Chinese robot masters massage techniques, pinches, vibrates with human-like hands - Yahoo! Voices

[Christopher McFadden]

Researchers from Shanghai Jiao Tong University and the University of Shanghai for Science have successfully developed a new robot that uses traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) techniques to give massages. This new robot could eventually find a place in healthcare, wellness, and rehabilitation facilities as an additional patient therapeutic tool.

"We adopt an adaptive admittance control algorithm to optimize force and position control, ensuring safety and comfort," wrote Yuan Xu, Kui Huang, Weichao Guo, and Leyi Du in their paper published in the journal arXiv.

"The paper analyzes key TCM techniques from kinematic and dynamic perspectives and designs robotic systems to reproduce these massage techniques," they added.


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The as-yet-unnamed robot uses jaka zhu7 robotic arms, each with a multi-functional massage hand installed at their ends. These "hands" have been meticulously designed to mimic the approximate size and shape of a human hand.

Chinese TCM-trained robot masseuse​

According to the team, the robot's hands have four operation modes, each emulating different TCM massage techniques, such as the concept of zang-fu organs and meridians. To this end, the hands can perform palm punch, vibration, kneading, and finger technique function modules.

Each function requires different hardware tools to perform tasks like turning the hand into a fist or providing directed vibration to an area. Others, like the kneading function, employ a specially designed "kneading motor" that allows the robot to "pinch" the user's back.

"We adopted a compliance control algorithm based on adaptive admittance control, aiming to optimize force and position control to address challenges such as patient posture changes and muscle stiffness differences, ensuring the safety and comfort of the massage process," wrote Xu, Huang, and their colleagues.


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"Furthermore, combining massage techniques, this paper conducts an in-depth analysis of several typical massage methods from the kinematic and dynamic perspectives, designs corresponding mechanical massage hands, and uses robotic technology to replicate and automate these traditional techniques."

To develop their new masseuse robot, the team first had to observe and collect data from expert TCM massage therapists. This was done using a combination of motion capture and pressure sensors.

This data was then used to train a machine-learning algorithm that would ultimately form the basis of the "brain" of the new robot.

Yet to be tested on people​

"Through the introduction of these technologies, this paper provides theoretical support and practical guidance for the robotic implementation of massage techniques, promoting the integration of traditional Chinese massage with modern robotics and opening up new application prospects for assistive therapeutic methods," explained Xu, Huang, and their colleagues.


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The team also tested their robot design in the real world to assess its ability to replicate different TCM massage techniques accurately. The results confirmed that the robot effectively performed its four primary massage techniques.

The team hopes to test the robot on human users to assess its ability further and gauge how humans respond to it. They hope that this study will encourage further research into automated massage systems, potentially encompassing other massage styles as well.

The complete study can be found in the journal arXiv.