Preliminary Study and Analysis of MUAT: Modularized Ultralight Arm Tracker for Humanoid Teleoperation

This research addresses the need for advanced teleoperation in challenging environments where human access is limited, introducing MUAT (Modularized Ultralight Arm Tracker). Leveraging advancements in humanoid robotics and motion retargeting, MUAT creatively overcomes the limitations of previous teleoperation methods, including IMU-based and optical sensor-based systems. These methods often struggled with issues related to measurement accuracy, space requirements, and operational constraints. MUAT employs a position sensor-based exoskeleton approach, offering a novel solution. The design of MUAT is characterized by its lightweight and modular construction, allowing it to be easily attached to an operator's forearm. This design minimizes interference with movement and grants unrestricted use of the hands. To assess the feasibility and effectiveness of MUAT, a preliminary study version, referred to as p-MUAT (preliminary MUAT), was developed in this study. Through rigorous testing with p-MUAT, we successfully validated the device's precision in tracking the operator's wrist position, utilizing a motion capture system for validation. Additionally, this study demonstrated the device's capability to effectively teleoperate a humanoid robot.