Humanoid robot
US8511964B2 · GM Global Technology Operations LLC, National Aeronautics and Space Administration NASA
- Patent number
- US8511964B2
- Applicant
- GM Global Technology Operations LLC, National Aeronautics and Space Administration NASA
- Filing date
- 2009-09-22
- CPC class
- B25J18/00
- Pillar
- Muscle
A humanoid robot includes a torso, a pair of arms, two hands, a neck, and a head. The torso extends along a primary axis and presents a pair of shoulders. The pair of arms movably extend from a respective one of the pair of shoulders. Each of the arms has a plurality of arm joints. The neck movably
Claims
The robot features canted shoulders defining a shrug angle for an enhanced workspace between the shoulders; arms with multiple joints (at least seven per arm in one aspect); hands with at least five fingers and twelve degrees of freedom each; neck and head joints providing pitch, roll, pitch movement; overall design for human-scale dexterity in assembly, construction, and maintenance tasks.
Technical analysis
The patent describes a dexterous humanoid robot with multiple degrees of freedom (DOF) in joints for precise manipulation of tools and objects. Key innovations include the shrug angle between shoulders to optimize workspace near the torso, extended neck/head mobility for machine vision coverage without interference, and high-DOF hands/arms mimicking human capabilities. Actuators drive the joints for torque, force, and motion control across object, end-effector, and joint levels.
Commercial impact
Developed under NASA-GM collaboration (Space Act Agreement), this patent supports advanced humanoid robots for space exploration, automotive manufacturing, and hazardous environments. It enables robots to share human workspaces and perform complex tasks, potentially impacting industries like aerospace, automotive assembly, and service robotics by improving dexterity and safety.
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