Rendering Thermal Sensation of Fingertip by Using Spatial Information of Heat Sources

To encourage interaction between a human and a robot, a technique of giving a thermal sensation is needed. In particular, the technique is important for the case of offering a sense of security such as nursing care robot and rehabilitation robot. Thermal sensation is perceived from the temporal and spatial information of heat sources. Therefore, the model included such information is needed to control multiple heat sources as a single system. In this paper, the fingerstall attached four heat sources was developed and its control method for rendering spatial thermal sensation is proposed. The four heat sources are attached to the copper plate, and the human finger is thermally stimulated by touching the plate. The temperature distribution on the copper plate is modeled based on a two- dimensional thermal diffusion equation, and spatial thermal sensation can be rendered using the proposed system. Some experiments were conducted to verify the proposed thermal system and its control system.