Summer Fellowship Programme 2014

(19-May to 11-July)

Under the Guidance

Of
Dr. Varadhan S.K.M

Neuromechanics Lab
Indian Institute of Technology Madras

By
Jal Panchal
B.Tech Mechatronics Engineering
Manipal Institute of Technology, Manipal

Contents
Acknowledgement...................................................................................................................................3
Overview .................................................................................................................................................4
Theory......................................................................................................................................................5
Friction: ...............................................................................................................................................5
Types Of Friction: ................................................................................................................................5
Laws of dry friction: .............................................................................................................................5
Calculation of Dry Friction: ..................................................................................................................6
Types of Dry Friction............................................................................................................................7
Tribometer: .........................................................................................................................................7
Tribometer Setup ....................................................................................................................................8
Objective: ............................................................................................................................................8
Setup Alpha .........................................................................................................................................8
General Outline: ..............................................................................................................................8
Important components of setup: ....................................................................................................8
Selection and Finalisation of Components ......................................................................................8
Setup Beta .........................................................................................................................................17
General Outline: ............................................................................................................................17
Important Components of the Setup: ...........................................................................................17
Selection and Finalisation of Components ....................................................................................17
References and Bibliography.............................................................................................................21
Literature Review: .........................................................................................................................21
Content Referance: .......................................................................................................................21

Acknowledgement
I would like to thank Indian Institute of Technology, Madras for giving me this opportunity to be a
summer fellow at the Neuromechanics Lab in the Applied Mechanics Department.
During my stay at IITM, I have acquired valuable academic and non-academic knowledge and skills,
for which I am grateful to Dr. Varadhan SKM, my project guide and mentor. His guidelines and
support, coupled with the brainstorming sessions and the freedom of expression made it the perfect
learning environment.
I also thank my lab mates Meeshwan Marathe, Nayan Bhatt, Rachaveti Dhanush, Saida Naik,
Sampada Gharpure for their invaluable support and help.

Overview
The goal of the project was to design and develop a setup to understand the variation of frictional
force between the digits of our hand and contact surface of various materials, and compare he result
obtained with Amontons laws of friction.
Work started by reading about friction, its types and properties, factors affecting friction and how to
calculate it. Once knowledge about friction was acquired next step was reading research papers by
Part et al(Mechanical properties of the human hand digits: Age-related differences) and Ambike et
al(Factors affecting grip force: anatomy, mechanics, and referent Configurations). These papers gave
an insight about age related factors affecting gripping force in our hands, mechanical enslaving and
other factors affecting grip force. With this knowledge, work on designing a setup to test the friction
coefficient, began. To calculate the coefficient we needed to know the vertical force and horizontal
force at the time of slip. To achieve this, a sensor to calculate force in the required directions and an
actuator to cause slip between the finger and the test material are required. ATI sensors already
available in the lab were selected for the force sensors. To induce slip, the motion mechanism of the
alpha setup was inspired from the linear mechanism of a printer cartridge. This setup was designed
and developed. To improve upon a few of the glitches faced in the Alpha, the Beta Setup using a
capstan-bowstring mechanism was developed. The control system used Arduino Uno and LabVIEW
integration. The final setup prepared Alpha and Beta versions are ready for readings.

Theory
Friction:
It is the force resisting the relative motion of solid surfaces, fluid layers, and material elements
sliding against each other.

Types Of Friction:

Dry friction resists relative lateral motion of two solid surfaces in contact. Dry friction is
subdivided into static friction ("stiction") between non-moving surfaces, and kinetic
friction between moving surfaces.

Fluid friction describes the friction between layers of a viscous fluid that are moving relative
to each other.[1][2]

Lubricated friction is a case of fluid friction where a fluid separates two solid surfaces.[3][4][5]

Skin friction is a component of drag, the force resisting the motion of a fluid across the
surface of a body.

Internal friction is the force resisting motion between the elements making up a solid
material while it undergoes deformation.

Laws of dry friction: The elementary property of sliding (kinetic) friction were discovered by
experiment in the 15th to 18th centuries and were expressed as three empirical laws:

Amontons' First Law: The force of friction is directly proportional to the applied load.
Amontons' Second Law: The force of friction is independent of the apparent area of
contact.
Coulomb's Law of Friction: Kinetic friction is independent of the sliding velocity.

Calculation of Dry Friction:

Coulomb friction, named after Charles-Augustin de Coulomb, is an approximate model used to
calculate the force of dry friction. It is governed by the model:

where

is the force of friction exerted by each surface on the other. It is parallel to the surface,
in a direction opposite to the net applied force.

is the coefficient of friction, which is an empirical property of the contacting materials,

is the normal force exerted by each surface on the other, directed perpendicular
(normal) to the surface.

Normal force
The normal force is defined as the net force compressing two parallel surfaces together; and its
direction is perpendicular to the surfaces. In the simple case of a mass resting on a horizontal
surface, the only component of the normal force is the force due to gravity, where
this case, the magnitude of the friction force is the product of the mass of the object, the
acceleration due to gravity, and the coefficient of friction

. In

If an object is on a level surface and the force tending to cause it to slide is horizontal, the
normal force
between the object and the surface is just its weight, which is equal to
its mass multiplied by the acceleration due to earth's gravity, g.

Coefficient of friction
The coefficient of friction (COF), often symbolized by the Greek letter , is
a dimensionless scalar value which describes the ratio of the force of friction between two bodies
and the force pressing them together. The coefficient of friction depends on the materials used.
For surfaces at rest relative to each other

, where

is the coefficient of static friction.

This is usually larger than its kinetic counterpart.

For surfaces in relative motion
Coulomb friction is equal to

, where

is the coefficient of kinetic friction. The

, and the frictional force on each surface is exerted in the direction

opposite to its motion relative to the other surface.

Types of Dry Friction:

Static friction
Static friction is friction between two or more solid objects that are not moving relative to each
other. For example, static friction can prevent an object from sliding down a sloped surface. The
coefficient of static friction, typically denoted as s, is usually higher than the coefficient of kinetic
friction.The static friction force must be overcome by an applied force before an object can move.
The maximum possible friction force between two surfaces before sliding begins is the product of
the coefficient of static friction and the normal force:

Kinetic friction
Kinetic (or dynamic) friction occurs when two objects are moving relative to each other and rub
together (like a sled on the ground). The coefficient of kinetic friction is typically denoted as k,
and is usually less than the coefficient of static friction for the same materials.

Tribometer:
A tribometer is an instrument that measures tribological quantities, such as coefficient of friction,
friction force, and wear volume, between two surfaces in contact.

Using an analog multidimensional force sensor mounted on a moving block, the coefficient of friction
between the finger surface and test surface can be measured. The sensor will continuously record
the vertical force(Fv) and the horizontal force along the direction of motion(Fh). As there are no other
horizontal forces acting at the sensor, we have Fh = Ff.

So, by measuring the Fv and Ff we can calculate the s and also study the variation of with varying
vertical force applied and material. A motor mechanism will induce the horizontal movement of the
block to cause slip between the finger and the test surface.
7

Tribometer Setup
Objective:
To design and develop an equipment to measure and study the coefficient of skin friction between
the finger and test surface. And to verify the result with Amontons laws.

Setup Alpha

General Outline:
The test surface is stuck on the sensor surface, which is mounted on a linear guide mechanism. A DC
motor controlled using an Arduino Duo and LabVIEW code, rotated the timing pulley fixed to its
shaft. The rotational motion of the timing pulley is converted to transitional motion using a meshing
timing belt. The translating timing belt is fixed to the slide giving the required horizontal slip force.
The setup was an inspiration from the linear mechanism in a printer, for the movement of the
printer cartridges.
Important components of setup:
Base
Motor and motor driver
Timing pulley and timing belt
Linear guide and slide block

Force sensor
Arduino Uno and LabVIEW
Power suppy

Selection and Finalisation of Components:

1. Base: Due to its durability and workability, 10mm wood sheets were used.
2. Motor: From initial calculations and crude setup design, the approx. torque required to
overcome a max Frictional force of 50N is 150N-cm, which translates to about (15kg-cm,
g=10m/s), with a factor of error of 2, the required torque for the motor was calculated to be
about 30kg-cm. A DC geared motor with low speed and close to 30 kg-cm torque was selected.
8

Motor1:

Speed: 10rpm.
Voltage :12V DC
Torque: 45 Kg-cm
Current drawn: Normal 0.2A, Peak 0.6A, Stall 2A(theoretical).
DC geared motor with side shaft.

This motor gave a linear speed of guide of about 2 cm/s. To obtain higher linear speed and lower
vibration a second motor was selected.
Motor2:
Speed: 60 rpm
Voltage:12V DC
Torque: 45 Kg-cm
Current Drawn: Normal 0.3A, Peak 0.8A, Stall 2A(theoretical)
DC geared side-shaft motor.
Linear speed of guide: 6 cm/s.
This second motor provided sufficient torque and linear speed of slide block, though it generated
nose.
Motor Drivers:
The first setup was controlled using a L293D dc motor controller. Later due to higher current rating
and reliability, L298 was used to control the dc motor.
3. Timing Pulley and Belt.
An Aluminium Timing Pulley of pitch 2mm and diameter 20mm(approx.) was selected to provide the
optimum force transfer from the motor shaft to the belt . A MXL timing belt with appropriate length
and 2mm pitch was selected to obtain 1:1 gear ratio. The pulleys were to be kept at a distance of
150mm apart to obtain a traverse length of the slide block of about 80-100 mm after assembly of
the setup.
Tension in the timing belt was maintained using a sliding mechanism. The dead end pulley was
mounted on the movable slide, after fixing the belt and other parts, this slide was moved and
screwed to maintain optimum tension in the belt.
4. Guideway and slide block:
A Standard linear slide and guide mechanism of length 150 mm manufactured by Precision Bearing
House was identified to provide the required base and linear movement for the sensor. The
mechanism consists of a slide block with double circulating ballscrew mechanism which rolls over a
meshing guide.

5. Force Sensors
ATI multidirectional force sensors are used, along with DAQ and LabVIEW to record the force in
vertical and horizontal direction. This plot of continuous force gives us the relation between Fv and
Ff, giving the coefficient of friction.
6. Arduino Uno and LabVIEW Code:
Arduino Uno with Arduino IDE was selected to control the motor. This selection was made due to its
simplicity in using, connecting, coding and also the availability of Arduino Toolkit in LabVIEW with
which it can be integrated and controlled using the graphical VI of LabVIEW.
Initial Versions of Code:

This code caused the motor to run in clock and anticlockwise direction with the press on a switch.

10

This code changed the motor speed and direction change with the press of a button:

11

This code controlled the motor speed and direction using a 10k Potentiometer and a switch.:

After these codes were tried and tested on the Arduino platform, LabVIEW interface with Arduino
was used control the motors using the graphical Vis of LabVIEW and Arduino Uno boards.

12

LabVIEW Vis:
This VI is to switch the motor on and off, using a switch:

This Vi Controls the forward and reverse motion of the motor using a toggle switch and button:

13

This VI Controls the direction and speed of the motor in both the directions:

7. Power Source
During the testing and prototyping phase of the setup, direct RPS supply was used.
The requirements of the power supply are:

Voltage: 12V
Current: 0-2Amps
Power: about 650Watts.

To improve upon this a few ideas have been put forward:

1. A 12V rechargeable Li-ion battery with charger
2. A laptop battery with Adaptor
3. SMPS supply for 12V, 650W.
Finalisation of the power supply is still pending.

14

The Complete Setup Alpha:

15

Component List for Friction Measurement Alpha Setup

Sr. No

Item

Description

Place of Use

Quantity

Source

Cost

1 Arduino Board
2 Battery Eliminator

Arduino Uno
upto 15v and 4Amp

Control System
power the motor

http://www.rhydolabz.com/index.ph
p?main_page=product_info&cPath=1
1 52_123&products_id=626
approx. 1700
1 lab

3 Belt

2544 MXL timing belt. 0.08"

pitch(2.03 cm), width 6 mm, c-c
145.3mm(details in bill)

drive mechanism

Best Belts and

1 Couplings:http://www.bestbelts.in/ 240+ 5%tax

to maintain tension at the dead

centre

2 Cycle repair Shop

for linear movement

1 http://www.pbh.in/ar_dim.html

4 Chain Tightening Screw

5 Guideway

details in prev bill

6 Motor

10 rpm, 45 kg-cm stall torque.

7 Motor Driver
8 Nails
9 Nails

TI L293D
30mm
15mm
20.19 dia, 32 teeth, double
colar(details in bill)

10 Pulleys
11 Screw
12 Screw

driving the pulley

motor driver to control current and

voltage
base to support
various wood pieces
drive mechanism

6x2=12

http://www.nexrobotics.com/index.php?page=shop.
product_details&flypage=flypage.tpl
&product_id=856&category_id=13&o
1 ption=com_virtuemart&Itemid=45
538
http://www.nexrobotics.com/index.php?page=shop.
product_details&flypage=flypage.tpl
&product_id=48&category_id=14&opt
1 ion=com_virtuemart&Itemid=45
59
10 Workshop
10 Worshop
Best Belts and
2 Couplings:http://www.bestbelts.in/ (760+ 14%tax)x2

13 Screw

allen screw size 2.5, length 10mm

philips 4mm bore, 10mm length
size 5 allen screw, approx. 36mm
length

14 Screw

philips 35 mmm bore, 25mm length fixing guide to base

3 Lab

15 Sensor+
16 Slide

Force Sensor and fixing allen screw to measure force

details from previous bill
for linear movement

17 Wires

Jumper Wires
Single strand connection Wires(<4
Amps) 1m length.
40x35x5
450x350x10
long(200mm)
short(100mm)

1 Available in lab
1 http://www.pbh.in/ar_dim.html
http://www.nexrobotics.com/index.php?option=com
_virtuemart&page=shop.product_det
ails&flypage=flypage.tpl&product_id
5 =447&Itemid=45
6x5=30

18 Wires
19 Wood Piece
20 Wood Plank
21 Zip tags
22 Zip tags

clamping pulley to motor

fixing platform to slide

1 Lab
2 Lab(Mechanix set)

fixing pulley at dead centre

1 Worshop

Arduino to motorDriver
motor to driver and power source
to driver
mounting of sensor
Base and Alignments
clamp belt to the slide
clamp belt to the slide

2 electrical shops
1 Workshop
1 Workshop
1 Hardware store
2 Hardware store

The Setup 1 had the following problems which were addressed in the second setup:

High friction between the rotating member and the liner motion member
Maintaining tension in the timing belt.

16

1.5
1

Setup Beta

General Outline:
Two critical problems faced in Setup Alpha were addressed, of high friction in the movement and
improved method for maintaining the tension of the tensile member.
In this setup, a capstan and bowstring mechanism is used to convert the rotational movement from
the motor shaft to the translational motion of the slide block. A capstan is fixed on the motor shaft,
to this a stainless steel rope is wound around and tied to two ends of a movable base, tension in the
rope is maintained using a suitable spring at one end. This movable base is keyed onto the slide
block. The Force sensor is fixed on the slide block similar to the Alpha setup, on the movable block
here. As the motor rotates, the capstan rotates and along with it the bowstring winds and unwinds
on it, this action causes the movable base to move linearly along with the slide block on the guide.
Depending the direction of the motor rotation, the slide block will move towards or away from the
subject.
Important Components of the Setup:
Base
Motor
Capstan, Bow string and Spring
Movable base

Slide block and Guide

Force Sensor
Arduino Uno and LabVIEW
Power Supply

Selection and Finalisation of Components:

1. Base: Due to its durability and workability, 15mm wood sheet was used.
2. Motor: Adapting from Alpha, Beta used the same motor.

17

Motor specifications:

Speed: 60 rpm
Voltage:12V DC
Torque: 45 Kg-cm
Current Drawn: Normal 0.3A, Peak 0.8A, Stall 2A(theoretical)
DC geared side-shaft motor.
Linear speed of guide: 6 cm/s.

The required motor torque in this setup is lower compared to Alpha. We required an approx. torque
of 20 Kg-cm with a factor of error of 2 for an applied Fv of 50N and considering s = 1.
To be able to control he movement of the motor, the motor can be improved upon by using a DC
motor with optical feedback mechanism. The data from the optical feedback can be used to control
the to and fro motion of the slide.
Motor Driver:
The same motor driver L298N and L293D are used for Beta, after being tested on Alpha.
3. Capstan, bowstring and spring:
Bowstring: To hold the estimated tension, and provide the required pull force, a stainless
steel rope of diameter 1.2 mm was selected. Testing can be done with ropes of diameter 0.8,
0.5 and 1mm for durability. The rope used experienced splitting of strands due to wear and
mishandling; this can be taken care by applying a Teflon coat in the rope.
Capstan: A capstan to compliment the bowstring and the motor shaft was designed. A
20mm diameter, V-thread of pitch 1.5mm and depth 1.5 mm with a central bore of 6 mm for
motor shaft, with another bore to key the capstan to the motor shaft was designed.
Spring: A spring at one end is used to maintain the tension in the bowstring to provide the
required motion. The required force on the bowstring is 50N = approx. 5kg, movement of
the slide block is about 3 cm, giving the required force constant = 1.7 = approx. 2 Kg/cm.

4. Movable Base:
The movable base is used to hold the bowstring and transfer the linear motion of the bowstring to
the slide block. Initially the base was designed to be made from Acrylic, but due to inability to bend
Acrylic into the required shape, subject to its brittle nature, a plastic material was used to make the
base.
The current job made causes hindrance to the fingers when placed on the sensor, minor
modifications and design change are required to perfect the design. Possible materials that could be
used:

Glass, by blowing t into shape

3D printed plastic
Wood pieces
Aluminium sheet.

18

These Components are similar to Alpha Setup, no changes have been made:
5. Slide block and guide
7. Arduino Uno and LabVIEW
6. Force sensor
8. Power supply.

Capstan 1

Movable Base 1

Motor 1

19

Areas of improvement in Beta:

Use of better motor with less noise and feedback mechanism
Use of a dedicated battery for power supply
Use of bowstring of lesser diameter
Improvement in manufacture of movable base.

Component List for Friction Measurement Alpha Setup

Sr. No

Item

1 Arduino Board
2 Allen Screw
3 Bowstring

4 Capstan
5 Grub Screw

6 Motor
7 Motor Clamps

Description

Arduino Uno + Connection Cable

phillips 4 mm dia, 15 mm length
1.2/1.0/0.8/0.5 mm dia, about 100
cm
20mm dia, 1.5 mm pitch, 1.5 mm
depth V-thread, with 3mm dia tap
for grub screw
length 5mm, dia 3mm

60 rpm, 45 kg-cm stall torque.

Suitable Motor clamps

Place of Use

Quantity

Control System
tie bowstring to movable base
to the tied around capstan and tied
to movable base
to convert rotational Motion of
motor to linear motion of
bowstring
clamping pulley to motor

driving the pulley

Clamp motor to base

As per Design

motor driver to control current and

voltage
to connect the capstan mechanism
to the slide block

10 Screw
11 Screw
12 Screw

philips 4mm bore, 1mm length

philips 3.5 mm dia, 25mm length
Phillips 4 mm dia, 15 mm length

fixing platform to slide

fixing guide to base
fixing motor clamp to base

13 Sensor+
14 Slide block and guide
15 SMPS Power supply
16 Spring

Force Sensor and fixing allen screw to measure force

details from previous bill
for linear movement
12V, 650W.
power the motor
to maintain tension in the
2-5 Kg/cm spring constant
bowstring

17 Wires
18 Wood Plank

Connection wires
30X30X15

8 Motor Driver

L298N

9 Movable base

Source

1 Ritchie Street

30-1000

1 Workshop
1 Workshop Tool Store
http://www.nexrobotics.com/index.php?page=shop.
product_details&flypage=flypage.tpl
&product_id=856&category_id=13&o
1 ption=com_virtuemart&Itemid=45
2 Workshop

538

http://www.nexrobotics.com/index.php?page=shop.
product_details&flypage=flypage.tpl
&product_id=343&category_id=14&o
1 ption=com_virtuemart&Itemid=45

298

1 Workshop
2 Lab(Mechanix set)
3 Workshop, Lab
6 Workshop

1 Available in lab
1 http://www.pbh.in/ar_dim.html
1 lab
Ritchie Street/ Classic Springs
1 Vellacherry
http://www.nexrobotics.com/index.php?option=com
_virtuemart&page=shop.product_det
ails&flypage=flypage.tpl&product_id
Arduino to motorDriver, Motor driver2 to
m(approx)
power, Motor to Driver
=447&Itemid=45
Base
1 Workshop

20

Cost

http://www.rhydolabz.com/index.ph
p?main_page=product_info&cPath=1
1 52_123&products_id=626
approx. 1700
2 Workshop tool store

approx 2300

20-50

50-100
-

References and Bibliography

Literature Review:

1. Mechanical properties of the human hand digits: Age-related differences

Park, J., Pain, N., Friedman, J., Zatsiorsky, V. M., & Latash, M. L. (2014). Mechanical properties of the
human hand digits: Age-related differences.Clinical Biomechanics, 29(2), 129-137.

2. Factors affecting grip force: anatomy, mechanics, and referent

configurations.
Satyajit Ambike, Florent Paclet , Vladimir M. Zatsiorsky, Mark L. Latash(2014)

3. A Friction Differential and Cable Transmission Design for a 3-DOF Haptic

Device with Spherical Kinematics.
Reuben Brewer, Adam Leeper, and J. Kenneth Salisbury(2011)

Content Referance:
1. www.Google.com
2. www.Wikipedia.com
3. CATIA forum, Dassault Systems
4. Arduino.cc. ,Arduino Forums
5. http://charm.stanford.edu/ME327/AvinashAndChris#toc9

21