Patents by Inventor Matei Ciocarlie

Matei Ciocarlie has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 11911899
    Abstract: A tendon-driven robotic gripper is disclosed for performing fingertip and enveloping grasps. One embodiment comprises two fingers, each with two links, and is actuated using a single active tendon. During unobstructed closing, the distal links remain parallel, creating exact fingertip grasps. Conversely, if the proximal links are stopped by contact with an object, the distal links start flexing, creating a stable enveloping grasp. The route of the active tendon and the parameters of the springs providing passive extension forces are optimized in order to achieve this behavior. An additional passive tendon is disclosed that may be used as a constraint preventing the gripper from entering undesirable parts of the joint workspace. A method for optimizing the dimensions of the links in order to achieve enveloping grasps of a large range of objects is disclosed and applied to a set of common household objects.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 13, 2023
    Date of Patent: February 27, 2024
    Assignee: Willow Garage, LLC
    Inventors: Matei Ciocarlie, Scott Stanford
  • Publication number: 20230244229
    Abstract: Mechanism for selecting an action to be taken by a reinforcement learning agent in an environment, including: determining a first variance for a first state of the environment, wherein the first variance is based on reinforcement learning using a hardware processor; determining that the first variance meets a threshold; in response to determining that the first variance meets the threshold: requesting an identification of a first action to be taken by the agent from a human; and receiving the identification of the first action; and causing the first action to be taken by the agent.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 30, 2023
    Publication date: August 3, 2023
    Inventors: Matei Ciocarlie, Shuran Song
  • Publication number: 20230191594
    Abstract: A tendon-driven robotic gripper is disclosed for performing fingertip and enveloping grasps. One embodiment comprises two fingers, each with two links, and is actuated using a single active tendon. During unobstructed closing, the distal links remain parallel, creating exact fingertip grasps. Conversely, if the proximal links are stopped by contact with an object, the distal links start flexing, creating a stable enveloping grasp. The route of the active tendon and the parameters of the springs providing passive extension forces are optimized in order to achieve this behavior. An additional passive tendon is disclosed that may be used as a constraint preventing the gripper from entering undesirable parts of the joint workspace. A method for optimizing the dimensions of the links in order to achieve enveloping grasps of a large range of objects is disclosed and applied to a set of common household objects.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 13, 2023
    Publication date: June 22, 2023
    Applicant: Willow Garage, LLC
    Inventors: Matei Ciocarlie, Scott Stanford
  • Patent number: 11613005
    Abstract: A tendon-driven robotic gripper is disclosed for performing fingertip and enveloping grasps. One embodiment comprises two fingers, each with two links, and is actuated using a single active tendon. During unobstructed closing, the distal links remain parallel, creating exact fingertip grasps. Conversely, if the proximal links are stopped by contact with an object, the distal links start flexing, creating a stable enveloping grasp. The route of the active tendon and the parameters of the springs providing passive extension forces are optimized in order to achieve this behavior. An additional passive tendon is disclosed that may be used as a constraint preventing the gripper from entering undesirable parts of the joint workspace. A method for optimizing the dimensions of the links in order to achieve enveloping grasps of a large range of objects is disclosed and applied to a set of common household objects.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 16, 2021
    Date of Patent: March 28, 2023
    Assignee: Willow Garage, LLC
    Inventors: Matei Ciocarlie, Scott Stanford
  • Publication number: 20210291360
    Abstract: A tendon-driven robotic gripper is disclosed for performing fingertip and enveloping grasps. One embodiment comprises two fingers, each with two links, and is actuated using a single active tendon. During unobstructed closing, the distal links remain parallel, creating exact fingertip grasps. Conversely, if the proximal links are stopped by contact with an object, the distal links start flexing, creating a stable enveloping grasp. The route of the active tendon and the parameters of the springs providing passive extension forces are optimized in order to achieve this behavior. An additional passive tendon is disclosed that may be used as a constraint preventing the gripper from entering undesirable parts of the joint workspace. A method for optimizing the dimensions of the links in order to achieve enveloping grasps of a large range of objects is disclosed and applied to a set of common household objects.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 16, 2021
    Publication date: September 23, 2021
    Applicant: Willow Garage, LLC
    Inventors: Matei Ciocarlie, Scott Stanford
  • Patent number: 10987801
    Abstract: A tendon-driven robotic gripper is disclosed for performing fingertip and enveloping grasps. One embodiment comprises two fingers, each with two links, and is actuated using a single active tendon. During unobstructed closing, the distal links remain parallel, creating exact fingertip grasps. Conversely, if the proximal links are stopped by contact with an object, the distal links start flexing, creating a stable enveloping grasp. The route of the active tendon and the parameters of the springs providing passive extension forces are optimized in order to achieve this behavior. An additional passive tendon is disclosed that may be used as a constraint preventing the gripper from entering undesirable parts of the joint workspace. A method for optimizing the dimensions of the links in order to achieve enveloping grasps of a large range of objects is disclosed and applied to a set of common household objects.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 25, 2020
    Date of Patent: April 27, 2021
    Assignee: Willow Garage, LLC
    Inventors: Matei Ciocarlie, Scott Stanford
  • Publication number: 20200189096
    Abstract: A tendon-driven robotic gripper is disclosed for performing fingertip and enveloping grasps. One embodiment comprises two fingers, each with two links, and is actuated using a single active tendon. During unobstructed closing, the distal links remain parallel, creating exact fingertip grasps. Conversely, if the proximal links are stopped by contact with an object, the distal links start flexing, creating a stable enveloping grasp. The route of the active tendon and the parameters of the springs providing passive extension forces are optimized in order to achieve this behavior. An additional passive tendon is disclosed that may be used as a constraint preventing the gripper from entering undesirable parts of the joint workspace. A method for optimizing the dimensions of the links in order to achieve enveloping grasps of a large range of objects is disclosed and applied to a set of common household objects.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 25, 2020
    Publication date: June 18, 2020
    Applicant: Willow Garage, LLC
    Inventors: Matei Ciocarlie, Scott Stanford
  • Patent number: 10663361
    Abstract: Achieving high spatial resolution in contact sensing for robotic manipulation often comes at the price of increased complexity in fabrication and integration. One traditional approach is to fabricate a large number of taxels, each delivering an individual, isolated response to a stimulus. The proposed sensors include a continuous volume of soft material, e.g., a transparent polymer, and light emitting diodes configured to emit light into the transparent volume that can be received by photodetectors. The location and depth of indentations can be measured between all pairs of light emitting diodes and photodetectors in the set, and this rich signal set can contain the information needed to pinpoint contact location with high accuracy using regression algorithms.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 12, 2017
    Date of Patent: May 26, 2020
    Assignee: THE TRUSTEES OF COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY IN THE CITY OF NEW YORK
    Inventors: Matei Ciocarlie, Pedro Piacenza, Ioannis Kymissis
  • Publication number: 20190291269
    Abstract: A tendon-driven robotic gripper is disclosed for performing fingertip and enveloping grasps. One embodiment comprises two fingers, each with two links, and is actuated using a single active tendon. During unobstructed closing, the distal links remain parallel, creating exact fingertip grasps. Conversely, if the proximal links are stopped by contact with an object, the distal links start flexing, creating a stable enveloping grasp. The route of the active tendon and the parameters of the springs providing passive extension forces are optimized in order to achieve this behavior. An additional passive tendon is disclosed that may be used as a constraint preventing the gripper from entering undesirable parts of the joint workspace. A method for optimizing the dimensions of the links in order to achieve enveloping grasps of a large range of objects is disclosed and applied to a set of common household objects.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 16, 2019
    Publication date: September 26, 2019
    Applicant: Willow Garage, Inc.
    Inventors: Matei Ciocarlie, Scott Stanford
  • Publication number: 20180361572
    Abstract: A tendon-driven robotic gripper is disclosed for performing fingertip and enveloping grasps. One embodiment comprises two fingers, each with two links, and is actuated using a single active tendon. During unobstructed closing, the distal links remain parallel, creating exact fingertip grasps. Conversely, if the proximal links are stopped by contact with an object, the distal links start flexing, creating a stable enveloping grasp. The route of the active tendon and the parameters of the springs providing passive extension forces are optimized in order to achieve this behavior. An additional passive tendon is disclosed that may be used as a constraint preventing the gripper from entering undesirable parts of the joint workspace. A method for optimizing the dimensions of the links in order to achieve enveloping grasps of a large range of objects is disclosed and applied to a set of common household objects.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 9, 2018
    Publication date: December 20, 2018
    Applicant: Willow Garage, Inc.
    Inventors: Matei Ciocarlie, Scott Stanford
  • Patent number: 10107612
    Abstract: Achieving high spatial resolution in contact sensing for robotic manipulation often comes at the price of increased complexity in fabrication and integration. One traditional approach is to fabricate a large number of taxels, each delivering an individual, isolated response to a stimulus. In contrast, proposed sensor includes a continuous volume of soft material, e.g., a piezoresistive elastomer with a number of terminals embedded inside. Piezoresistive effects can be measured between all pairs of terminals in the set, and this rich signal set can contain the information needed to pinpoint contact location with high accuracy using regression algorithms. Submillimeter median accuracy can be demonstrated in locating contact on a 10 mm by 16 mm sensor using only four terminals (creating six unique pairs).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 30, 2017
    Date of Patent: October 23, 2018
    Assignee: The Trustees of Columbia University in the City of New York
    Inventors: Matei Ciocarlie, Ioannis Kymissis, Pedro Piacenza, Steve Jeung Hoon Park
  • Publication number: 20180106692
    Abstract: Achieving high spatial resolution in contact sensing for robotic manipulation often comes at the price of increased complexity in fabrication and integration. One traditional approach is to fabricate a large number of taxels, each delivering an individual, isolated response to a stimulus. The proposed sensors include a continuous volume of soft material, e.g., a transparent polymer, and light emitting diodes configured to emit light into the transparent volume that can be received by photodetectors. The location and depth of indentations can be measured between all pairs of light emitting diodes and photodetectors in the set, and this rich signal set can contain the information needed to pinpoint contact location with high accuracy using regression algorithms.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 12, 2017
    Publication date: April 19, 2018
    Inventors: Matei CIOCARLIE, Pedro PIACENZA, Ioannis KYMISSIS
  • Publication number: 20180079075
    Abstract: A tendon-driven robotic gripper is disclosed for performing fingertip and enveloping grasps. One embodiment comprises two fingers, each with two links, and is actuated using a single active tendon. During unobstructed closing, the distal links remain parallel, creating exact fingertip grasps. Conversely, if the proximal links are stopped by contact with an object, the distal links start flexing, creating a stable enveloping grasp. The route of the active tendon and the parameters of the springs providing passive extension forces are optimized in order to achieve this behavior. An additional passive tendon is disclosed that may be used as a constraint preventing the gripper from entering undesirable parts of the joint workspace. A method for optimizing the dimensions of the links in order to achieve enveloping grasps of a large range of objects is disclosed and applied to a set of common household objects.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 30, 2017
    Publication date: March 22, 2018
    Applicant: Willow Garage, Inc.
    Inventors: Matei Ciocarlie, Scott Stanford
  • Publication number: 20170284787
    Abstract: Achieving high spatial resolution in contact sensing for robotic manipulation often comes at the price of increased complexity in fabrication and integration. One traditional approach is to fabricate a large number of taxels, each delivering an individual, isolated response to a stimulus. In contrast, proposed sensor includes a continuous volume of soft material, e.g., a piezoresistive elastomer with a number of terminals embedded inside. Piezoresistive effects can be measured between all pairs of terminals in the set, and this rich signal set can contain the information needed to pinpoint contact location with high accuracy using regression algorithms. Submillimeter median accuracy can be demonstrated in locating contact on a 10 mm by 16 mm sensor using only four terminals (creating six unique pairs).
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 30, 2017
    Publication date: October 5, 2017
    Inventors: Matei CIOCARLIE, Ioannis KYMISSIS, Pedro PIACENZA, Steve Jeung HOON PARK
  • Publication number: 20170225328
    Abstract: A tendon-driven robotic gripper is disclosed for performing fingertip and enveloping grasps. One embodiment comprises two fingers, each with two links, and is actuated using a single active tendon. During unobstructed closing, the distal links remain parallel, creating exact fingertip grasps. Conversely, if the proximal links are stopped by contact with an object, the distal links start flexing, creating a stable enveloping grasp. The route of the active tendon and the parameters of the springs providing passive extension forces are optimized in order to achieve this behavior. An additional passive tendon is disclosed that may be used as a constraint preventing the gripper from entering undesirable parts of the joint workspace. A method for optimizing the dimensions of the links in order to achieve enveloping grasps of a large range of objects is disclosed and applied to a set of common household objects.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 26, 2017
    Publication date: August 10, 2017
    Applicant: Willow Garage, Inc.
    Inventors: Matei Ciocarlie, Scott Stanford
  • Publication number: 20160193734
    Abstract: A tendon-driven robotic gripper is disclosed for performing fingertip and enveloping grasps. One embodiment comprises two fingers, each with two links, and is actuated using a single active tendon. During unobstructed closing, the distal links remain parallel, creating exact fingertip grasps. Conversely, if the proximal links are stopped by contact with an object, the distal links start flexing, creating a stable enveloping grasp. The route of the active tendon and the parameters of the springs providing passive extension forces are optimized in order to achieve this behavior. An additional passive tendon is disclosed that may be used as a constraint preventing the gripper from entering undesirable parts of the joint workspace. A method for optimizing the dimensions of the links in order to achieve enveloping grasps of a large range of objects is disclosed and applied to a set of common household objects.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 14, 2016
    Publication date: July 7, 2016
    Applicant: Willow Garage, Inc.
    Inventors: Matei Ciocarlie, Scott Stanford
  • Patent number: 9314932
    Abstract: A tendon-driven robotic gripper is disclosed for performing fingertip and enveloping grasps. One embodiment comprises two fingers, each with two links, and is actuated using a single active tendon. During unobstructed closing, the distal links remain parallel, creating exact fingertip grasps. Conversely, if the proximal links are stopped by contact with an object, the distal links start flexing, creating a stable enveloping grasp. The route of the active tendon and the parameters of the springs providing passive extension forces are optimized in order to achieve this behavior. An additional passive tendon is disclosed that may be used as a constraint preventing the gripper from entering undesirable parts of the joint workspace. A method for optimizing the dimensions of the links in order to achieve enveloping grasps of a large range of objects is disclosed and applied to a set of common household objects.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 10, 2015
    Date of Patent: April 19, 2016
    Assignee: Willow Garage, Inc.
    Inventors: Matei Ciocarlie, Scott Stanford
  • Publication number: 20150151437
    Abstract: A tendon-driven robotic gripper is disclosed for performing fingertip and enveloping grasps. One embodiment comprises two fingers, each with two links, and is actuated using a single active tendon. During unobstructed closing, the distal links remain parallel, creating exact fingertip grasps. Conversely, if the proximal links are stopped by contact with an object, the distal links start flexing, creating a stable enveloping grasp. The route of the active tendon and the parameters of the springs providing passive extension forces are optimized in order to achieve this behavior. An additional passive tendon is disclosed that may be used as a constraint preventing the gripper from entering undesirable parts of the joint workspace. A method for optimizing the dimensions of the links in order to achieve enveloping grasps of a large range of objects is disclosed and applied to a set of common household objects.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 10, 2015
    Publication date: June 4, 2015
    Inventors: Matei Ciocarlie, Scott Stanford
  • Patent number: 8979152
    Abstract: A tendon-driven robotic gripper is disclosed for performing fingertip and enveloping grasps. One embodiment comprises two fingers, each with two links, and is actuated using a single active tendon. During unobstructed closing, the distal links remain parallel, creating exact fingertip grasps. Conversely, if the proximal links are stopped by contact with an object, the distal links start flexing, creating a stable enveloping grasp. The route of the active tendon and the parameters of the springs providing passive extension forces are optimized in order to achieve this behavior. An additional passive tendon is disclosed that may be used as a constraint preventing the gripper from entering undesirable parts of the joint workspace. A method for optimizing the dimensions of the links in order to achieve enveloping grasps of a large range of objects is disclosed and applied to a set of common household objects.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 11, 2014
    Date of Patent: March 17, 2015
    Assignee: Willow Garage, Inc.
    Inventors: Matei Ciocarlie, Scott Stanford
  • Publication number: 20140346796
    Abstract: A tendon-driven robotic gripper is disclosed for performing fingertip and enveloping grasps. One embodiment comprises two fingers, each with two links, and is actuated using a single active tendon. During unobstructed closing, the distal links remain parallel, creating exact fingertip grasps. Conversely, if the proximal links are stopped by contact with an object, the distal links start flexing, creating a stable enveloping grasp. The route of the active tendon and the parameters of the springs providing passive extension forces are optimized in order to achieve this behavior. An additional passive tendon is disclosed that may be used as a constraint preventing the gripper from entering undesirable parts of the joint workspace. A method for optimizing the dimensions of the links in order to achieve enveloping grasps of a large range of objects is disclosed and applied to a set of common household objects.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 11, 2014
    Publication date: November 27, 2014
    Inventors: Matei Ciocarlie, Scott Stanford