Gruelling world book signing tours were leaving the celebrated author, Margaret Atwood exhausted and wondering if there was an alternative - something that would allow personal contact with her fans whilst, at the same time, not leave her feeling depleted. That was when inspiration struck. A way of remotely signing autographs using robotic technology but still having the interaction with fans.
Now, you may think that sounds a little far fetched but cue experienced product developer Matthew Gibson. With Margaret they formed a company called 'Unotchit' (a shorthand for "you no touch it") and work began to bring the idea to life.
But building a robot that could accomplish what appears to be a relatively simple task for the human hand was much harder than you would perhaps think. Would you expect to generate some six to nine Gs and oscillate at 30Hz when you sign something? Well, you do and that doesn't even begin to take into account the joint angle and fingertip pressures exerted.
After two years in development and the creation of proof of concept prototypes, Unotchit teamed with Quanser Consulting and within three days Quanser's mechatronic development team had built upon Unotchit's initial designs and the LongPen Freehand Script Reproduction Robot (FSRR) was born.
LongPen is essentially a robotic mechanism, which controls the position of the pen holder as it makes contact with the writing surface. The robot is controlled via a PCbased controller and Quanser data acquisition and control unit running Quanser's WinCon real-time control software; the code operates in real time and ensures smooth, accurate motion.
The FSRR is integrated into the LongPen kiosk which performs video-conferencing, audio streaming and Internet functions. The design allows a seamless interface with the LongPen system. At the other end of the Internet connection the author writes on a tablet computer which captures and transmits the handwriting to the LongPen kiosk. The Quanser control software effectively tracks the author's arm/hand movements to provide an original script of what he or she wrote on the tablet. The design challenges included controlling the accuracy and speed of the robot as well as ensuring real-time data treaming from the tablet.
"The human hand writes quickly with high and unpredictable acceleration and deceleration," explains Quanser chief technical officer, Dr Jacob Apkarian, who led the Quanser team on this project. "We had to ensure the data could be interpolated to provide the information to the robot in such a way that it did not exceed its performance specifications, while at the same time maintaining the integrity of the signature."
Quanser developed a custom interpolator to provide a smooth trajectory between given points. The company also used rapid prototyping techniques to create the mechanical parts - a process that effectively cut the LongPen FSRR prototype development cycle by at least six weeks, reduced development costs and allowed the engineering team to progress through design iterations very quickly. Quanser's WinCon real-time control software also helped speed the process by automatically generating the real-time code from a commercially available graphical design tool.
Quanser robotic technology developed for the LongPen could be extended to a variety of other applications, from manufacturing to remote surgery.
Carbon footprint reduction
Since LongPen was launched in September 2006 it has hosted over 100 author events, with over 80 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions saved during this time. Fans can even have digital clips of the signings for a small fee, which goes directly to one of Unotchit's charity partners. LongPen Desktop is available for corporate and government use and provides the same benefits to these organisations as to authors. The system also helps to reduce corporate carbon footprints as well as saving time and money.
Significantly, the remote signature is legally binding so you can sign important documents remotely without ever having to leave your desk!
The Quanser range is available in the UK and Ireland from Adept Scientific.