Haptic virtual fixtures for robot-assisted manipulation

Haptic virtual fixtures are software-generated force and position signals applied to human operators in order to improve the safety, accuracy, and speed of robot-assisted manipulation tasks. Virtual fixtures are effective and intuitive because they capitalize on both the accuracy of robotic systems and the intelligence of human operators. In this paper, we discuss the design, analysis, and implementation of two categories of virtual fixtures: guidance virtual fixtures, which assist the user in moving the manipulator along desired paths or surfaces in the workspace, and forbidden-region virtual fixtures, which prevent the manipulator from entering into forbidden regions of the workspace. Virtual fixtures are analyzed in the context of both cooperative manipulation and telemanipulation systems, considering issues related to stability, passivity, human modeling, and applications.