Need a hand? A functioning robotic arm will be one of several devices on display at an on-campus lab for two days next week.
The Staff Council of Cal State Long Beach will open up its Human Performance and Robotics lab to the public Monday, May 7 and Wednesday, May 9. Students can visit the lab from 12:10 to 12:50 p.m. in room 115 of the Engineering and Computer Science building.
According to the department’s website, the group’s projects range from musculoskeletal modeling to robotic control. Currently, there are approximately seven active projects available to view in the lab. However, according to mechanical engineering masters student Joaquin Martinez, the majority of these projects are not finished and only three of them are ready to be showcased.
The projects include a lower body exoskeleton simulation, which is controlled with a software called opensim, a virtual reality simulation and a haptic feedback program. The virtual reality project consists of a robotic arm that reflects the motions a user makes in the world modeled in Unity, a game engine. This project’s goal is to show the capabilities of VR technology. It was created by John Abella, a graduate student in mechanical engineering at the university.
The lower body exoskeleton simulation was made by Martinez, mechanical engineering graduate student; Ricky Whisman, mechanical engineering major; and Maya Martinez, biomedical engineering student. According to Martinez, this model will allow designers to analyze how the lower body exoskeleton affects a person who requires assistance to walk so they may “tailor the device capabilities to their target audience.”
The third project on display will be the haptics simulation, a sensor that applies force through touch communication, created by Elliot Recinos, a graduate student in mechanical engineering. This project creates a source of force-like vibrations.
“It allows a user to physically interact with a computer environment and physically feel the environment, dynamic and rigid,” Joaquin Martinez said. “You can touch a wall in a computer game and feel the wall in real life through a haptic device.”