Engineers Garage

  • Electronic Projects & Tutorials
    • Electronic Projects
      • Arduino Projects
      • AVR
      • Raspberry pi
      • ESP8266
      • BeagleBone
      • 8051 Microcontroller
      • ARM
      • PIC Microcontroller
      • STM32
    • Tutorials
      • Audio Electronics
      • Battery Management
      • Brainwave
      • Electric Vehicles
      • EMI/EMC/RFI
      • Hardware Filters
      • IoT tutorials
      • Power Tutorials
      • Python
      • Sensors
      • USB
      • VHDL
    • Circuit Design
    • Project Videos
    • Components
  • Articles
    • Tech Articles
    • Insight
    • Invention Stories
    • How to
    • What Is
  • News
    • Electronic Product News
    • Business News
    • Company/Start-up News
    • DIY Reviews
    • Guest Post
  • Forums
    • EDABoard.com
    • Electro-Tech-Online
    • EG Forum Archive
  • DigiKey Store
    • Cables, Wires
    • Connectors, Interconnect
    • Discrete
    • Electromechanical
    • Embedded Computers
    • Enclosures, Hardware, Office
    • Integrated Circuits (ICs)
    • Isolators
    • LED/Optoelectronics
    • Passive
    • Power, Circuit Protection
    • Programmers
    • RF, Wireless
    • Semiconductors
    • Sensors, Transducers
    • Test Products
    • Tools
  • Learn
    • eBooks/Tech Tips
    • Design Guides
    • Learning Center
    • Tech Toolboxes
    • Webinars & Digital Events
  • Resources
    • Digital Issues
    • EE Training Days
    • LEAP Awards
    • Podcasts
    • Webinars / Digital Events
    • White Papers
    • Engineering Diversity & Inclusion
    • DesignFast
  • Guest Post Guidelines
  • Advertise
  • Subscribe

Robot Getting Trained to Feel and React to Pain

By Parul Gupta May 26, 2016

One great fact about robots is that they do not feel pain and for this reason they are most preferred to put on to dangerous work or perform tasks that can be fatal to humans. But as per a team of German researchers, feeling pain can be a good skill for robots to possess.
 
The researchers from the Leibniz University of Hannover are experimenting to develop an ‘artificial nervous system for robot’ to teach them the sensation of pain and deliver a quick reaction against it. Such a development aims to protect them experiencing potential damage to their gears, electronics, and motors. The declaration about the project was made at the International Conference on Robotics and Automation (ICRA) that was held in Stockholm, Sweden.
 
Feeling pain is a good idea for robots. Johannes Kuehn states the reason for same as, “Pain is an element that protects us as when we evade from the pain source then it helps us to avoid getting hurt. Humans do not have the capability to get injured and feel pain more often because their bodies instantly react against things that hurt them.”
 
 
 
Kuehn worked on this project with Professor Sami Haddadin, a famous expert in physical human-robot interaction and safety. Both of them agrees with the ideology that if robots will be able to sense pain and will try to protect themselves, then they will also understand the painful conditions of humans and will also try to protect them. Their reasoning is based on the biological mechanism of humans to sense and react to pain.
 
This idea of inculcating a nervous system inside the robots is based on the reflex controller, which was previously used by a team of Stanford and University of Rome to assist a robot arm in avoiding colliding with people. Kuehn and Haddadin mentioned in the ICRA paper that a robot must be able to identify and differentiate unforeseen physical disturbances and states, rate the possible damage they may encounter with and instinctively take countermeasures, known as reflexes. To tackle the demanding requisite, this human antitype will serve as an inspiration implying that human pain-reflex actions are utilized for designing according to robot pain reaction and controls.
 
The robot nervous tissue model is inspired by the skin structure of human to evaluate the level of pain that they must feel for a specific amount of force. This model transfers the pain information in repetitive spikes to the body, just like the way it is transferred in the human neurons. If the force exceeds a specific level, then the pain controller will transmit a signal classifying the level of pain into moderate, light or severe.
 
Conclusion – regarding control and bio-inspiration, the paper by Kuehn and Haddadin is just the first step towards a reflex controller against the pain for robots. While it is expected that it would bring great utility to the robots, it is also an undeniable fact that the robots must be trained to not only safeguard humans but also to save themselves from getting hurt.

Filed Under: News

 

Next Article

← Previous Article
Next Article →

Questions related to this article?
👉Ask and discuss on EDAboard.com and Electro-Tech-Online.com forums.



Tell Us What You Think!! Cancel reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

EE TECH TOOLBOX

“ee
Tech Toolbox: 5G Technology
This Tech Toolbox covers the basics of 5G technology plus a story about how engineers designed and built a prototype DSL router mostly from old cellphone parts. Download this first 5G/wired/wireless communications Tech Toolbox to learn more!

EE Learning Center

EE Learning Center
“engineers
EXPAND YOUR KNOWLEDGE AND STAY CONNECTED
Get the latest info on technologies, tools and strategies for EE professionals.

HAVE A QUESTION?

Have a technical question about an article or other engineering questions? Check out our engineering forums EDABoard.com and Electro-Tech-Online.com where you can get those questions asked and answered by your peers!


RSS EDABOARD.com Discussions

  • Testing 5kW Grid Tied inverter over 200-253VAC
  • Single ended measuring ports and balanced antenna
  • Thermal modelling of repetitive power pulse
  • Resistor Selection for Amplifier Layout
  • Cadence LVS bug I do not understand on 12T XOR gate

RSS Electro-Tech-Online.com Discussions

  • Is AI making embedded software developers more productive?
  • Can I make two inputs from one??
  • Behlke swich
  • Beats Solo 4
  • Simple LED Analog Clock Idea

Featured – LoRa/LoRaWan Series

  • What is the LoRaWAN network and how does it work?
  • Understanding LoRa architecture: nodes, gateways, and servers
  • Revolutionizing RF: LoRa applications and advantages
  • How to build a LoRa gateway using Raspberry Pi
  • How LoRa enables long-range communication
  • How communication works between two LoRa end-node devices

Recent Articles

  • RPi Python Programming 21: The SIM900A AT commands
  • RPi Python Programming 22: Calls & SMS using a SIM900A GSM-GPRS modem
  • RPi Python Programming 23: Interfacing a NEO-6MV2 GPS module with Raspberry Pi
  • RPi Python Programming 24: I2C explained
  • RPi Python Programming 25 – Synchronous serial communication in Raspberry Pi using I2C protocol

EE ENGINEERING TRAINING DAYS

engineering

Submit a Guest Post

submit a guest post
Engineers Garage
  • Analog IC TIps
  • Connector Tips
  • Battery Power Tips
  • DesignFast
  • EDABoard Forums
  • EE World Online
  • Electro-Tech-Online Forums
  • EV Engineering
  • Microcontroller Tips
  • Power Electronic Tips
  • Sensor Tips
  • Test and Measurement Tips
  • 5G Technology World
  • Subscribe to our newsletter
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Advertise

Copyright © 2025 WTWH Media LLC. All Rights Reserved. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of WTWH Media
Privacy Policy

Search Engineers Garage

  • Electronic Projects & Tutorials
    • Electronic Projects
      • Arduino Projects
      • AVR
      • Raspberry pi
      • ESP8266
      • BeagleBone
      • 8051 Microcontroller
      • ARM
      • PIC Microcontroller
      • STM32
    • Tutorials
      • Audio Electronics
      • Battery Management
      • Brainwave
      • Electric Vehicles
      • EMI/EMC/RFI
      • Hardware Filters
      • IoT tutorials
      • Power Tutorials
      • Python
      • Sensors
      • USB
      • VHDL
    • Circuit Design
    • Project Videos
    • Components
  • Articles
    • Tech Articles
    • Insight
    • Invention Stories
    • How to
    • What Is
  • News
    • Electronic Product News
    • Business News
    • Company/Start-up News
    • DIY Reviews
    • Guest Post
  • Forums
    • EDABoard.com
    • Electro-Tech-Online
    • EG Forum Archive
  • DigiKey Store
    • Cables, Wires
    • Connectors, Interconnect
    • Discrete
    • Electromechanical
    • Embedded Computers
    • Enclosures, Hardware, Office
    • Integrated Circuits (ICs)
    • Isolators
    • LED/Optoelectronics
    • Passive
    • Power, Circuit Protection
    • Programmers
    • RF, Wireless
    • Semiconductors
    • Sensors, Transducers
    • Test Products
    • Tools
  • Learn
    • eBooks/Tech Tips
    • Design Guides
    • Learning Center
    • Tech Toolboxes
    • Webinars & Digital Events
  • Resources
    • Digital Issues
    • EE Training Days
    • LEAP Awards
    • Podcasts
    • Webinars / Digital Events
    • White Papers
    • Engineering Diversity & Inclusion
    • DesignFast
  • Guest Post Guidelines
  • Advertise
  • Subscribe