A Novel Approach to Model the Kinematics of Human Fingers Based on an Elliptic Multi-Joint Configuration

TL;DR

This paper introduces a new elliptical joint kinematic model for human fingers that better captures natural movement compared to traditional circular models, validated through simulations and experiments.

Contribution

The paper proposes a novel elliptical multi-joint kinematic model for human fingers, improving accuracy over conventional circular models.

Findings

High fidelity in mimicking fingertip trajectories

Validated through simulations and experimental data

Outperforms traditional revolute joint models

Abstract

In this paper, we present a novel kinematic model of the human phalanges based on the elliptical motion of their joints. The presence of the soft elastic tissues and the general anatomical structure of the hand joints highly affect the relative movement of the bones. Commonly used assumption of circular trajectories simplifies the designing process but leads to divergence with the actual hand behavior. The advantages of the proposed model are demonstrated through the comparison with the conventional revolute joint model. Conducted simulations and experiments validate designed forward and inverse kinematic algorithms. Obtained results show a high performance of the model in mimicking the human fingertip motion trajectory.