publications | Bruno Vilhena Adorno, PhD

Journal Articles

2023

Design Requirements of Robotic Systems for Assisting Percutaneous Tracheostomy: A Scoping Review and Development Framework

Yuan Tang, Lutong Li, Zhanghao Lu, Athia Haron, Bruno V. Adorno, Brendan McGrath, and Andrew Weightman

IEEE Transactions on Medical Robotics and Bionics, Nov 2023

Abs DOI Bib

Percutaneous dilatational tracheostomy (PDT) is a common procedure for patients managed in Intensive Care Units (ICUs). PDT has equivalent complication rates to surgical tracheostomy but can be performed at the ICU bedside, eliminating delays in the procedure. However, PDT complications associated with initial needle insertion into the trachea still exist and can cause severe consequences such as pneumothorax, major haemorrhage, and death. Robotic technology is a powerful adjunct to assist manual surgery, improving procedural safety and accuracy. Whilst robotic surgery of the airway has become established, there is limited research and guidance regarding robotics to assist tracheostomy insertions. This study aims to identify design requirements that map clinical needs to design details and motivate the development of a scientific design framework in robotic tracheostomy. A literature search in Google Scholar, PubMed, and Web of Science on topics relevant to robotic tracheostomy was conducted. Clinical requirements were evaluated by distributing an online questionnaire to professional clinicians. Thirteen eligible studies were presented, from which 36 design requirements in four categories were collected. We present a design framework to inform the development of robotic tracheostomy with key requirements validated for suitability by relevant healthcare professionals.
@article{tangDesignRequirementsRobotic2023, title = {Design {{Requirements}} of {{Robotic Systems}} for {{Assisting Percutaneous Tracheostomy}}: {{A Scoping Review}} and {{Development Framework}}}, shorttitle = {Design {{Requirements}} of {{Robotic Systems}} for {{Assisting Percutaneous Tracheostomy}}}, author = {Tang, Yuan and Li, Lutong and Lu, Zhanghao and Haron, Athia and Adorno, Bruno V. and McGrath, Brendan and Weightman, Andrew}, year = {2023}, month = nov, journal = {IEEE Transactions on Medical Robotics and Bionics}, volume = {5}, number = {4}, pages = {754--767}, issn = {2576-3202}, doi = {10.1109/TMRB.2023.3309946}, urldate = {2024-06-23}, copyright = {https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/Xplorehelp/downloads/license-information/IEEE.html}, langid = {english}, }

2022

Adaptive Constrained Kinematic Control Using Partial or Complete Task-Space Measurements

Murilo Marques Marinho and Bruno Vilhena Adorno

IEEE Transactions on Robotics, Dec 2022

DOI Bib

@article{Marinho2022,
  title = {Adaptive {{Constrained Kinematic Control Using Partial}} or {{Complete Task-Space Measurements}}},
  author = {Marinho, Murilo Marques and Adorno, Bruno Vilhena},
  year = {2022},
  month = dec,
  journal = {IEEE Transactions on Robotics},
  volume = {38},
  number = {6},
  pages = {3498--3513},
  issn = {1552-3098},
  doi = {10.1109/TRO.2022.3181047},
}

Manipulation Task Planning and Motion Control Using Task Relaxations

Marcos S. Pereira and Bruno Vilhena Adorno

Journal of Control, Automation and Electrical Systems, Aug 2022

Abs DOI

This paper proposes a robotic manipulation task relaxation method applied to a task and motion planning framework adapted from the literature. The task relaxation method consists of defining regions of interest instead of defining the end-effector pose, which can potentially increase the robot’s redundancy with respect to the manipulation task. Tasks are relaxed by controlling the end-effector distance to a target plane while respecting suitable constraints in the task-space. We formulate the problem as a constrained control problem that enforces both equality and inequality constraints while being reactive to changes in the workspace. We evaluate the adapted framework in a simulated pick-and-place task with similar complexity to the one evaluated in the original framework. The number of plan nodes that our framework generates is 54% smaller than the one in the original framework and our framework is faster both in planning and execution time. Also, the end-effector remains within the regions of interest and moves toward the target region while satisfying additional constraints.
Dynamics of Mobile Manipulators Using Dual Quaternion Algebra

Frederico Fernandes Afonso Silva, Juan José Quiroz-Omaña, and Bruno Vilhena Adorno

Journal of Mechanisms and Robotics, Dec 2022

Abs DOI

This article presents two approaches to obtain the dynamical equations of mobile manipulators using dual quaternion algebra. The first one is based on a general recursive Newton–Euler formulation and uses twists and wrenches, which are propagated through high-level algebraic operations and works for any type of joints and arbitrary parameterizations. The second approach is based on Gauss’s Principle of Least Constraint (GPLC) and includes arbitrary equality constraints. In addition to showing the connections of GPLC with Gibbs–Appell and Kane’s equations, we use it to model a nonholonomic mobile manipulator. Our current formulations are more general than their counterparts in the state of the art, although GPLC is more computationally expensive, and simulation results show that they are as accurate as the classic recursive Newton–Euler algorithm.

2021

DQ Robotics: A Library for Robot Modeling and Control

Bruno Vilhena Adorno and Murilo Marques Marinho

IEEE Robotics & Automation Magazine, Sep 2021

Abs DOI

Dual quaternion algebra and its application to robotics have gained considerable interest in the last two decades. Dual quaternions have great geometric appeal and easily capture physical phenomena inside an algebraic framework that is useful for both robot modeling and control. Mathematical objects, such as points, lines, planes, infinite cylinders, spheres, coordinate systems, twists, and wrenches are all well defined as dual quaternions. Therefore, simple operators are used to represent those objects in different frames and operations such as inner products and cross products are used to extract useful geometric relationships between them. Nonetheless, the dual quaternion algebra is not widespread as it could be, mostly because efficient and easy-to-use computational tools are not abundant and usually are restricted to the particular algebra of quaternions. To bridge this gap between theory and implementation, this paper introduces DQ Robotics, a library for robot modeling and control using dual quaternion algebra that is easy to use and intuitive enough to be used for self-study and education while being computationally efficient for deployment on real applications.
Robust H∞ Kinematic Control of Manipulator Robots Using Dual Quaternion Algebra

Luis Felipe da Cruz Figueredo, Bruno Vilhena Adorno, and João Yoshiyuki Ishihara

Automatica, Oct 2021

Abs DOI Bib

This paper proposes a robust dual-quaternion based H-infinity task-space kinematic controller for robot manipulators. To address the manipulator liability to modeling errors, uncertainties, exogenous disturbances, kinematic singularities, and their influence upon the kinematics of the end-effector pose, we adapt H-infinity techniques—suitable only for additive noises—to unit dual quaternions. The noise to error attenuation within the H-infinity framework has the additional advantage of casting aside requirements concerning noise distributions, which are significantly hard to characterize within the group of rigid-body transformations. Using dual quaternion algebra, we provide a connection between performance effects over the end-effector trajectory and different sources of uncertainties and disturbances while satisfying attenuation requirements with minimum instantaneous control effort. The result is an easy-to-implement closed-form H-infinity control design criterion. The effectiveness and performance overview of the proposed strategies are evaluated within different realistic simulated scenarios.
@article{Figueredo2018, title = {Robust {{H}}{$\infty$} Kinematic Control of Manipulator Robots Using Dual Quaternion Algebra}, author = {Figueredo, Luis Felipe da Cruz and Adorno, Bruno Vilhena and Ishihara, Jo{\~a}o Yoshiyuki}, year = {2021}, month = oct, journal = {Automatica}, volume = {132}, pages = {109817}, publisher = {Elsevier Ltd}, issn = {00051098}, doi = {10.1016/j.automatica.2021.109817}, archiveprefix = {arXiv}, }
Task-Space Admittance Controller with Adaptive Inertia Matrix Conditioning

Mariana de Paula Assis Fonseca, Bruno Vilhena Adorno, and Philippe Fraisse

Journal of Intelligent & Robotic Systems, Feb 2021

Abs DOI Bib

Whenrobots physically interact with the environment, compliant behaviors should be imposed to prevent damages to all entities involved in the interaction. Moreover, during physical interactions, appropriate pose controllers are usually based on the robot dynamics, in which the ill-conditioning of the joint-space inertia matrix may lead to poor performance or even instability. When the control is not precise, large interaction forces may appear due to disturbed end-effector poses, resulting in unsafe interactions. To overcome these problems, we propose a task-space admittance controller in which the inertia matrix conditioning is adapted online. To this end, the control architecture consists of an admittance controller in the outer loop, which changes the reference trajectory to the robot end-effector to achieve a desired compliant behavior; and an adaptive inertia matrix conditioning controller in the inner loop to track this trajectory and improve the closed-loop performance. We evaluated the proposed architecture on a KUKA LWR4+ robot and compared it, via rigorous statistical analyses, to an architecture in which the proposed inner motion controller was replaced by two widely used ones. The admittance controller with adaptive inertia conditioning presents better performance than with a controller based on the inverse dynamics with feedback linearization, and similar results when compared to the PID controller with gravity compensation in the inner loop.
@article{Fonseca2021b, title = {Task-{{Space Admittance Controller}} with {{Adaptive Inertia Matrix Conditioning}}}, author = {Fonseca, Mariana de Paula Assis and Adorno, Bruno Vilhena and Fraisse, Philippe}, year = {2021}, month = feb, journal = {Journal of Intelligent \& Robotic Systems}, volume = {101}, number = {2}, pages = {41}, publisher = {Journal of Intelligent \& Robotic Systems}, issn = {0921-0296}, doi = {10.1007/s10846-020-01275-0}, isbn = {1084602001275}, keywords = {adaptive control,Adaptive control,admittance control,Admittance control,Dual quaternion,dynamic control,Dynamic control,ill-conditioning,Ill-conditioning,robot manipulator,Robot manipulator} }

2020

Coupled Task-Space Admittance Controller Using Dual Quaternion Logarithmic Mapping

Mariana de Paula Assis Fonseca, Bruno Vilhena Adorno, and Philippe Fraisse

IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters, Oct 2020

DOI Bib

@article{Fonseca2020a,
  title = {Coupled {{Task-Space Admittance Controller Using Dual Quaternion Logarithmic Mapping}}},
  author = {Fonseca, Mariana de Paula Assis and Adorno, Bruno Vilhena and Fraisse, Philippe},
  year = {2020},
  month = oct,
  journal = {IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters},
  volume = {5},
  number = {4},
  pages = {6057--6064},
  issn = {2377-3766},
  doi = {10.1109/LRA.2020.3010458},
}

Stable-by-Design Kinematic Control Based on Optimization

Vinicius Mariano Goncalves, Bruno Vilhena Adorno, Andre Crosnier, and Philippe Fraisse

IEEE Transactions on Robotics, Jun 2020

DOI Bib

@article{Goncalves2020,
  title = {Stable-by-{{Design Kinematic Control Based}} on {{Optimization}}},
  author = {Goncalves, Vinicius Mariano and Adorno, Bruno Vilhena and Crosnier, Andre and Fraisse, Philippe},
  year = {2020},
  month = jun,
  journal = {IEEE Transactions on Robotics},
  volume = {36},
  number = {3},
  pages = {644--656},
  issn = {1552-3098},
  doi = {10.1109/TRO.2019.2963665},
}

Pose Consensus Based on Dual Quaternion Algebra with Application to Decentralized Formation Control of Mobile Manipulators

Heitor J. Savino, Luciano C.A. Pimenta, Julie A. Shah, and Bruno V. Adorno

Journal of the Franklin Institute, Jan 2020

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This paper presents a solution based on dual quaternion algebra to the general problem of pose (i.e., position and orientation) consensus for systems composed of multiple rigid-bodies. The dual quaternion algebra is used to model the agents’ poses and also in the distributed control laws, making the proposed technique easily applicable to time-varying formation control of general robotic systems. The proposed pose consensus protocol has guaranteed convergence when the interaction among the agents is represented by directed graphs with directed spanning trees, which is a more general result when compared to the literature on formation control. In order to illustrate the proposed pose consensus protocol and its extension to the problem of formation control, we present a numerical simulation with a large number of free-flying agents and also an application of cooperative manipulation by using real mobile manipulators.
@article{Savino2020, title = {Pose Consensus Based on Dual Quaternion Algebra with Application to Decentralized Formation Control of Mobile Manipulators}, author = {Savino, Heitor J. and Pimenta, Luciano C.A. and Shah, Julie A. and Adorno, Bruno V.}, year = {2020}, month = jan, journal = {Journal of the Franklin Institute}, volume = {357}, number = {1}, pages = {142--178}, publisher = {Elsevier Ltd}, issn = {00160032}, doi = {10.1016/j.jfranklin.2019.09.045}, archiveprefix = {arXiv}, }

2019

Dynamic Active Constraints for Surgical Robots Using Vector-Field Inequalities

Murilo Marques Marinho, Bruno Vilhena Adorno, Kanako Harada, and Mamoru Mitsuishi

IEEE Transactions on Robotics, Oct 2019

Abs DOI Bib

Robotic assistance allows surgeons to perform dexterous and tremor-free procedures, but robotic aid is still underrepresented in procedures with constrained workspaces, such as deep brain neurosurgery and endonasal surgery. In these procedures, surgeons have restricted vision to areas near the surgical tooltips, which increases the risk of unexpected collisions between the shafts of the instruments and their surroundings. In this work, our vector-field-inequalities method is extended to provide dynamic active-constraints to any number of robots and moving objects sharing the same workspace. The method is evaluated with experiments and simulations in which robot tools have to avoid collisions autonomously and in real-time, in a constrained endonasal surgical environment. Simulations show that with our method the combined trajectory error of two robotic systems is optimal. Experiments using a real robotic system show that the method can autonomously prevent collisions between the moving robots themselves and between the robots and the environment. Moreover, the framework is also successfully verified under teleoperation with tool-tissue interactions.
@article{Marinho2020, title = {Dynamic {{Active Constraints}} for {{Surgical Robots Using Vector-Field Inequalities}}}, author = {Marinho, Murilo Marques and Adorno, Bruno Vilhena and Harada, Kanako and Mitsuishi, Mamoru}, year = {2019}, month = oct, journal = {IEEE Transactions on Robotics}, volume = {35}, number = {5}, pages = {1166--1185}, publisher = {IEEE}, issn = {1552-3098}, doi = {10.1109/TRO.2019.2920078}, urldate = {2018-05-04}, archiveprefix = {arXiv}, }
Whole-Body Control With (Self) Collision Avoidance Using Vector Field Inequalities

Juan Jose Quiroz-Omana and Bruno Vilhena Adorno

IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters, Oct 2019

Abs DOI Bib

This work uses vector field inequalities (VFI) to prevent robot self-collisions and collisions with the workspace. Differently from previous approaches, the method is suitable for both velocity and torque-actuated robots. We propose a new distance function and its corresponding Jacobian in order to generate a VFI to limit the angle between two Pl\"ucker lines. This new VFI is used to prevent both undesired end-effector orientations and violation of joints limits. The proposed method is evaluated in a realistic simulation and on a real humanoid robot, showing that all constraints are respected while the robot performs a manipulation task.
@article{Quiroz-Omana2019, title = {Whole-{{Body Control With}} ({{Self}}) {{Collision Avoidance Using Vector Field Inequalities}}}, author = {{Quiroz-Omana}, Juan Jose and Adorno, Bruno Vilhena}, year = {2019}, month = oct, journal = {IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters}, volume = {4}, number = {4}, pages = {4048--4053}, issn = {2377-3766}, doi = {10.1109/LRA.2019.2928783}, archiveprefix = {arXiv}, }

2018

Set-Point Control of Robot End-Effector Pose Using Dual Quaternion Feedback

H.L. Pham, B.V. Adorno, Veronique Perdereau, and Philippe Fraisse

Robotics and Computer-Integrated Manufacturing, Aug 2018

DOI Bib

@article{Pham2017,
  title = {Set-Point Control of Robot End-Effector Pose Using Dual Quaternion Feedback},
  author = {Pham, H.L. and Adorno, B.V. and Perdereau, Veronique and Fraisse, Philippe},
  year = {2018},
  month = aug,
  journal = {Robotics and Computer-Integrated Manufacturing},
  volume = {52},
  pages = {100--110},
  issn = {07365845},
  doi = {10.1016/j.rcim.2017.11.003},
  keywords = {Dual quaternion,Pose control,Robot manipulator}
}

Whole-Body Kinematic Control of Nonholonomic Mobile Manipulators Using Linear Programming

Juan José Quiroz-Omaña and Bruno Vilhena Adorno

Journal of Intelligent & Robotic Systems, Aug 2018

DOI Bib

@article{Quiroz-Omana2017,
  title = {Whole-{{Body Kinematic Control}} of {{Nonholonomic Mobile Manipulators Using Linear Programming}}},
  author = {{Quiroz-Oma{\~n}a}, Juan Jos{\'e} and Adorno, Bruno Vilhena},
  year = {2018},
  month = aug,
  journal = {Journal of Intelligent \& Robotic Systems},
  volume = {91},
  number = {2},
  pages = {263--278},
  issn = {0921-0296},
  doi = {10.1007/s10846-017-0713-4},
}

Whole-Body Control of a Mobile Manipulator Using Feedback Linearization and Dual Quaternion Algebra

Frederico Fernandes Afonso Silva and Bruno Vilhena Adorno

Journal of Intelligent & Robotic Systems, Aug 2018

DOI Bib

@article{Silva2017,
  title = {Whole-Body {{Control}} of a {{Mobile Manipulator Using Feedback Linearization}} and {{Dual Quaternion Algebra}}},
  author = {Silva, Frederico Fernandes Afonso and Adorno, Bruno Vilhena},
  year = {2018},
  month = aug,
  journal = {Journal of Intelligent \& Robotic Systems},
  volume = {91},
  number = {2},
  pages = {249--262},
  issn = {0921-0296},
  doi = {10.1007/s10846-017-0686-3},
}

2017

The Cross-Motion Invariant Group and Its Application to Kinematics

Bruno Vilhena Adorno and Philippe Fraisse

IMA Journal of Mathematical Control and Information, Dec 2017

DOI

Hybrid Kinematic Control for Rigid Body Pose Stabilization Using Dual Quaternions

Hugo T.M. Kussaba, Luis F.C. Figueredo, João Y. Ishihara, and Bruno V. Adorno

Journal of the Franklin Institute, May 2017

DOI Bib

@article{Kussaba2017,
  title = {Hybrid Kinematic Control for Rigid Body Pose Stabilization Using Dual Quaternions},
  author = {Kussaba, Hugo T.M. and Figueredo, Luis F.C. and Ishihara, Jo{\~a}o Y. and Adorno, Bruno V.},
  year = {2017},
  month = may,
  journal = {Journal of the Franklin Institute},
  volume = {354},
  number = {7},
  pages = {2769--2787},
  issn = {00160032},
  doi = {10.1016/j.jfranklin.2017.01.028},
}

2016

Parsimonious Kinematic Control of Highly Redundant Robots

Vinicius Mariano Goncalves, Philippe Fraisse, Andre Crosnier, and Bruno Vilhena Adorno

IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters, Jan 2016

Abs DOI Bib

When a robot is highly redundant in comparison to the task to be executed, current control techniques are not " economic " in the sense that they demand, most of the time unnecessarily, all the joints to move. Such behavior can be undesirable for some applications. In this direction, this work proposes a new control paradigm based on linear programming that intrinsically provides a parsimonious control strategy, that is, one in which few joints move. In addition to a formal stability proof, the paper presents simulation and experimental results on the HOAP-3 humanoid robot. Finally, a comparison is made with a least-square method based on the pseudoinverse of the task Jacobian, showing that the proposed method indeed uses fewer joints than the classic one.
@article{Goncalves2016, title = {Parsimonious {{Kinematic Control}} of {{Highly Redundant Robots}}}, author = {Goncalves, Vinicius Mariano and Fraisse, Philippe and Crosnier, Andre and Adorno, Bruno Vilhena}, year = {2016}, month = jan, journal = {IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters}, volume = {1}, number = {1}, pages = {65--72}, issn = {2377-3766}, doi = {10.1109/LRA.2015.2506259}, }

2015

Kinematic Modeling and Control for Human-Robot Cooperation Considering Different Interaction Roles

Bruno Vilhena Adorno, a. P. L. Bó, and P. Fraisse

Robotica, Feb 2015

Abs DOI

This paper presents a novel approach for the description of physical human-robot interaction (pHRI) tasks that involve two-arm coordination, and where tasks are described by the relative pose between the human hand and the robot hand. We develop a unified kinematic model that takes into account the human-robot system from a holistic point of view, and we also propose a kinematic control strategy for pHRI that comprises different levels of shared autonomy. Since the kinematic model takes into account the complete human-robot interaction system and the kinematic control law is closed loop at the interaction level, the kinematic constraints of the task are enforced during its execution. Experiments are performed in order to validate the proposed approach, including a particular case where the robot controls the human arm by means of functional electrical stimulation (FES), which may potentially provide useful solutions for the interaction between assistant robots and impaired individuals (e.g., quadriplegics and hemiplegics).

Detection of Movement Intention Using EEG in a Human-Robot Interaction Environment

Ernesto Pablo Lana, Bruno Vilhena Adorno, and Carlos Julio Tierra-Criollo

Research on Biomedical Engineering, Dec 2015

DOI Bib

@article{Lana2015a,
  title = {Detection of Movement Intention Using {{EEG}} in a Human-Robot Interaction Environment},
  author = {Lana, Ernesto Pablo and Adorno, Bruno Vilhena and {Tierra-Criollo}, Carlos Julio},
  year = {2015},
  month = dec,
  journal = {Research on Biomedical Engineering},
  volume = {31},
  number = {4},
  pages = {285--294},
  issn = {2446-4740},
  doi = {10.1590/2446-4740.0777},
  keywords = {brain-machine interface,desynchronization,event-related,movement intention,objective response detection,statistical f test}
}

2014

3D Robust Online Motion Planning for Steerable Needles in Dynamic Workspaces Using Duty-Cycled Rotation

Mariana C. Bernardes, Bruno V. Adorno, Geovany A. Borges, and Philippe Poignet

Journal of Control, Automation and Electrical Systems, Apr 2014

DOI Bib

@article{Bernardes2014a,
  title = {{{3D Robust Online Motion Planning}} for {{Steerable Needles}} in {{Dynamic Workspaces Using Duty-Cycled Rotation}}},
  author = {Bernardes, Mariana C. and Adorno, Bruno V. and Borges, Geovany A. and Poignet, Philippe},
  year = {2014},
  month = apr,
  journal = {Journal of Control, Automation and Electrical Systems},
  volume = {25},
  number = {2},
  pages = {216--227},
  issn = {2195-3880},
  doi = {10.1007/s40313-013-0104-4},
  urldate = {2014-11-23},
}

2013

Robot-Assisted Automatic Insertion of Steerable Needles with Closed-Loop Imaging Feedback and Intraoperative Trajectory Replanning

M.C. Bernardes, B.V. Adorno, P. Poignet, and G.A. Borges

Mechatronics, Sep 2013

DOI Bib

@article{Bernardes2013,
  title = {Robot-Assisted Automatic Insertion of Steerable Needles with Closed-Loop Imaging Feedback and Intraoperative Trajectory Replanning},
  author = {Bernardes, M.C. and Adorno, B.V. and Poignet, P. and Borges, G.A.},
  year = {2013},
  month = sep,
  journal = {Mechatronics},
  volume = {23},
  number = {6},
  pages = {630--645},
  publisher = {Elsevier Ltd},
  issn = {09574158},
  doi = {10.1016/j.mechatronics.2013.06.004},
  urldate = {2014-10-21},
  keywords = {Needle,Robotics,Steering}
}

Conference Papers

2026

Planning and Control of Mobile Manipulators for Inspection of Clustered Environments

Joshua Bettles, Jiaxu Wu, Bruno V Adorno, Joaquin Carrasco, and Atsushi Yamashita

In 7th UK Robot Manipulation Workshop, 2026
Object-Reconstruction-Aware Whole-body Control of Mobile Manipulators

Fatih Dursun, Bruno Vilhena Adorno, Simon Watson, and Wei Pan

In 7th UK Robot Manipulation Workshop, 2026
Underwater Whole-body Control Using Constrained Feedback Linearisation

Seyonne Leslie-Dalley, Frederico F. A. Silva, and Bruno V. Adorno

In 7th UK Robot Manipulation Workshop, 2026

2025

A New Semi-Automatic Strategy for Teleoperating Mobile Manipulators Using a Haptic Device

Bandar Aldhafeeri, Joaquin Carrasco, and Bruno V. Adorno

In Towards Autonomous Robotic Systems, 2025

Abs DOI

When teleoperating wheeled mobile manipulator robots using haptic devices, users usually use rate control for navigation and position control for manipulation. Manually switching between those two modes (for example, via a push button) while relying on visual feedback is often challenging, as using a single camera significantly reduces depth perception, making contact-based tasks difficult due to reduced spatial awareness and depth cues. Adding proximity sensors or auditory cues for distance detection requires processing more data, raising both the cognitive load and associated costs. On the other hand, typical automatic hybrid switching schemes employ restoring forces in navigation mode to assist the human operator. However, performing contact-based tasks in navigation mode deteriorates transparency due to interference between environmental and restoring forces while impairing fine-manipulation capabilities. Therefore, to overcome these challenges, we propose a new hybrid scheme that detects interaction with the environment via a force sensor to facilitate the automatic transition from navigation to manipulation mode. We use constrained task-space controllers to address obstacle avoidance directly in the control law and enable safe interaction. We conducted an ethically approved study involving nine humans to assess the proposed scheme and used task completion time (TCT) and NASA Task Load Index (TLX) to assess human operator workload. Paired t-tests indicate a reduction of 23.3% (.p = 0.0058) in TCT and mental demand by.57.1% (.p = 0.0021), highlighting the advantages of the proposed semiautomatic switching scheme over the manual one.
Multi-Contact Posture Generation Using Vector Field Inequalities

Daniel S. J. Derwent, Simon Watson, and Bruno Vilhena Adorno

In Towards Autonomous Robotic Systems, 2025

Abs DOI

We present a novel method for solving posture generation problems in multi-contact motion planning for legged robots. Our approach builds on the state of the art by generating not only optimal contact placement locations but also simultaneously verifying the existence of a feasible trajectory allowing the robot to make those contacts. By optimising the robot’s velocity rather than its configuration, we are able to replace what would otherwise be a highly constrained non-linear optimisation problem with a series of linearly constrained quadratic programs, which are comparatively much faster to solve. We implement our posture generator as part of a receding horizon multi-contact planning algorithm to generate several motion plans in challenging environments, including chimney climbing and negotiating narrow passages by forming contacts on walls. Using Bayesian data analysis, we find that the mean execution time of our planner is faster than the state of the art in all scenarios tested (ranging from 10 s to 10 min faster), while in two of four scenarios it returns shorter paths (ranging from 23.4 stance changes longer to 53.9 stance changes shorter).

2024

A New Hybrid Teleoperation Control Scheme for Holonomic Mobile Manipulator Robots Using a Ground-based Haptic Device

Bandar Aldhafeeri, Joaquin Carrasco, Bruno V Adorno, and Erwin Jose Lopez

In 25th Annual Conference Towards Autonomous Robotic System, 2024

Abs

Teleoperating mobile manipulator (MM) robots using a single ground-based haptic (GBH) device is challenging due to differences in workspaces and mechanical structures. A hybrid control scheme combines navigation and manipulation modes to operate a robot using manual or automatic mode switching. Although an automatic scheme tends to reduce the user’s mental workload, in some cases, the bilateral teleoperation system loses transparency when interacting with the environment; in others, the interaction with the environment may happen in inappropriate operation mode without the user’s awareness. To overcome those challenges, this paper proposes a new hybrid control scheme for bilateral teleoperation of holonomic MM robots. In this scheme, while navigating, the user’s hand motion is restricted by an artificial force to prevent reaching the boundary of the GBH device’s workspace. When the end-effector touches the environment, a method not requiring any exteroceptive sensor automatically switches the operation mode to manipulation mode. After completing the remote task, the user must switch to navigation mode manually. The simulation results indicate that the baseline bubble technique, a widely used automatic scheme, creates over 50% of forces on the haptic interface unrelated to environmental interaction, resulting in transparency deterioration. On the other hand, with our proposed technique, the bilateral system becomes transparent in under 0.3 s.
Control Strategies for the Task Definition of Constrained Bimanual Manipulation

Seyonne Leslie-Dalley, Keir Groves, and Bruno Vilhena Adorno

In 5th UK Robot Manipulation Workshop, 2024

Abs

This work describes two use-cases to present strategies for the definition of constrained bimanual manipulation tasks. We use the cooperative dual task-space (CDTS) framework, vector field inequalities (VFIs) and geometric primitives such as Plücker lines and planes to implement collision avoidance with the environment and preserve the integrity of the task. Simulations of the use-cases were carried out and showed that all implemented constraints were upheld through the execution of the bimanual manipulation task.
Control Strategies Using the Extended Cooperative Dual Task-Space

Seyonne Leslie-Dalley, Bruno Vilhena Adorno, and Keir Groves

In 25th Annual Conference Towards Autonomous Robotic System, 2024

Abs DOI

An existing extension of the Cooperative Task Space is reformulated in the dual quaternion domain to form the Extended Cooperative Dual Task Space (ECDTS). This representation allows for the description of both uncoordinated and coordinated cooperative manipulation tasks into a unified formulation free of representational singularities. Additionally, a general framework is proposed to describe cooperative manipulation tasks considering the required manipulation mode in the ECDTS, the desired control objective, and additional task constraints. Vector Field Inequalities (VFIs) and geometric primitives such as Plu\textasciidieresis cker lines and planes are used to define such constraints. Simulations of a task from each manipulation mode are carried out and show the generality of the proposed framework and applicability of the ECDTS formulation.
A Nonlinear Estimator for Dead Reckoning of Aquatic Surface Vehicles Using an IMU and a Doppler Velocity Log

Jessica Paterson, Bruno V. Adorno, Barry Lennox, and Keir Groves

In 2024 IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation (ICRA), May 2024

Abs DOI

Aquatic robots require an accurate and reliable localization system to navigate autonomously and perform practical missions. Kalman filters (KFs) and their variants are typically used in aquatic robots to combine sensor data. The two critical drawbacks of KFs are the requirement for skilled tuning of several filter parameters and the fact that changes to how the Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) is oriented necessitate modifying the filter. To overcome those problems, this paper presents a novel method of fusing sensor data from a Doppler Velocity Log (DVL) and IMU using an adaptive nonlinear estimator to provide dead reckoning localization for a small autonomous surface vehicle. The proposed method has only one insensitive tuning parameter and is agnostic to the configuration of the IMU. The system was validated using a small ASV in a 2.4\texttimes 3.6\texttimes 2.4 m water tank, with a motion capture system as ground truth, and was evaluated against a state-of-the-art method based on KFs. Experiments showed that the average drift error of the nonlinear filter was 0.16 m (s.d. 0.06 m) compared to 0.15 m (s.d. 0.05 m) for the state of the art, meaning that the benefits in terms of tuning and flexible configuration do not come at the expense of performance.
Automated Robotic Needle Puncture for Percutaneous Dilatational Tracheostomy

Yuan Tang, Brendan McGrath, Andrew Weightman, and Bruno Vilhena Adorno

In 5th UK Robot Manipulation Workshop, 2024
Design of a Surgical Device for Performing Percutaneous Dilatational Tracheostomy

Yuan Tang, Glen Cooper, Bruno V. Adorno, Brendan McGrath, and Andrew Weightman

In 9th European Medical and Biological Engineering Conference, 2024

Abs DOI

Percutaneous Dilatational Tracheostomy (PDT) is a routine bedside procedure performed on patients managed in Intensive Care Units (ICUs). Severe perioperative complications exist, and some, such as major bleeding and tracheal wall perforation, may be caused by operator errors when using PDT instruments, especially inserting and removing the needle and dilators. We designed a new device called TrachyPen for performing PDT puncture and dilation to reduce the complications associated with current PDT instruments and improve the procedure. The design followed the requirements developed from a questionnaire to twenty-one healthcare professionals, which mapped the mechanical design to the clinical needs. Either used manually or powered by a motor, the TrachyPen is designed to combine the PDT puncture, guidewire insertion, and dilation into a single step, eliminating the use of multiple instruments. Five healthcare professionals evaluated the conceptual design through a demo video and an online questionnaire. A structural analysis of the key parts was completed to evaluate the strength of the design. The results reinforced the feasibility and usability of TrachyPen in terms of matching the design requirements and clinical perspectives.

2023

Maintaining Visibility of Dynamic Objects in Cluttered Environments Using Mobile Manipulators and Vector Field Inequalities

Fatih Dursun, Bruno Vilhena Adorno, Simon Watson, and Wei Pan

In 2023 IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems (IROS), Oct 2023

DOI
Receding Horizon Contact Planning for Agile Motions in Hexapod Robots

Daniel Johnson, Bruno Vilhena Adorno, and Simon Watson

In ICRA 2023 Workshop on Agile Movements: Animal Behavior, Biomechanics, and Robot Devices, 2023

Abs

This work proposes a planning approach for agile motions in hexapod robots. The algorithm explores contact sequences until a user-defined planning horizon is reached. The move leading to the best position on the horizon is executed, and exploration resumes. The planning comprising exploration plus optimal motion within the planning horizon continues until the desired stance is reached. In preliminary simulations, the algorithm returned a path requiring 33% fewer contact changes than the state of the art while generating 64% more nodes.
Receding Horizon Contact Planning for Advanced Motions in Hexapod Robots

Daniel Johnson, Bruno Vilhena Adorno, and Simon Watson

In Proceedings of the 24th Annual TAROS 2023 Conference - Extended Abstracts, 2023

Abs

This work proposes a planning approach for advanced motions in hexapod robots. Contact sequences are explored until a user-defined planning horizon is reached. The contact change leading to the best position on the horizon is executed, and exploration resumes. In preliminary simulations, the algorithm consistently returned paths requiring at least 20% fewer contact changes than the state-of-the-art. Our algorithm generated 48.0% fewer nodes than the state-of-the-art in one terrain and 0.5% more in another, leading future work to examine the effects of specific environmental features on the number of nodes generated.
Task Planning and Motion Control with Temporal Logic Specifications

Marcos S. Pereira, Luciano C. A. Pimenta, and Bruno V. Adorno

In 2023 IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems (IROS), Oct 2023

DOI
Clinical Perspective of Developing Robotic Systems for Assisting Percutaneous Tracheostomy

Yuan Tang, Lutong Li, Pu Yuan, Zhanghao Lu, Bruno V. Adorno, Brendan Mcgrath, and Andrew Weightman

In 28th Congress of the European Society of Biomechanics, July 9-12, 2023, Maastricht, the Netherlands, Apr 2023

2022

Set-Point Control for a Ground-based Reconfigurable Robot

Wei Cheah, Bruno Vilhena Adorno, Simon Watson, and Barry Lennox

In 2022 IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems (IROS), Oct 2022

There is a typo in the value of alpha. The correct is the one in the figure; that is, alpha is +1 when the CoM is above the horizontal axis and -1 otherwise. Remember to put an errata on my Webpage.

DOI

2020

Development of Human-Robot Communication Technologies for Future Interaction Experiments

Ana Christina Almada Campos and Bruno Vilhena Adorno

In 2020 Latin American Robotics Symposium (LARS), 2020 Brazilian Symposium on Robotics (SBR) and 2020 Workshop on Robotics in Education (WRE), Nov 2020

DOI
Biped Walking Control Based on Quadratic Programming and Differential Inequalities

Stella Diniz Urban and Bruno Vilhena Adorno

In Anais Do Congresso Brasileiro de Automática 2020, Dec 2020

DOI
Manipulation Task Planning with Constrained Kinematic Controller

Marcos S. Pereira and Bruno V. Adorno

In Anais Do Congresso Brasileiro de Automática 2020, Dec 2020

DOI

2019

Distributed Coverage of Boundaries for Multi-robot Systems Using Dual Quaternion Algebra

Rafael Palma Brito, Bruno Vilhena Adorno, and Luciano Cunha de Araújo Pimenta

In Workshop on Applications of Dual Quaternion Algebra to Robotics, 2019

DOI
Human Gesture Recognition Using Dual Quaternion Algebra

Almada Christina Almada Campos and Bruno Vilhena Adorno

In Workshop on Applications of Dual Quaternion Algebra to Robotics, 2019

DOI
An Adaptive Controller with Guarantee of Better Conditioning of the Robot Manipulator Joint-Space Inertia Matrix

Mariana de Paula Assis Fonseca, Bruno Vilhena Adorno, and Philippe Fraisse

In 2019 19th International Conference on Advanced Robotics (ICAR), Dec 2019

DOI
Task-Space Impedance Controller Using Dual Quaternion Logarithm

Mariana de Paula Assis Fonseca, Bruno Vilhena Adorno, and Philippe Fraisse

In Workshop on Applications of Dual Quaternion Algebra to Robotics, 2019

DOI
A Unified Framework for the Teleoperation of Surgical Robots in Constrained Workspaces

Murilo M. Marinho, Bruno V. Adorno, Kanako Harada, Kyoichi Deie, Anton Deguet, Peter Kazanzides, Russell H. Taylor, and Mamoru Mitsuishi

In 2019 International Conference on Robotics and Automation (ICRA), May 2019

Abs DOI

In adult laparoscopy, robot-aided surgery is a reality in thousands of operating rooms worldwide, owing to the increased dexterity provided by the robotic tools. Many robots and robot control techniques have been developed to aid in more challenging scenarios, such as pediatric surgery and microsurgery. However, the prevalence of case-specific solutions, particularly those focused on non-redundant robots, reduces the reproducibility of the initial results in more challenging scenarios. In this letter, we propose a general framework for the control of surgical robotics in constrained workspaces under teleoperation, regardless of the robot geometry. Our technique is divided into a slave-side constrained optimization algorithm, which provides virtual fixtures, and with Cartesian impedance on the master side to provide force feedback. Experiments with two robotic systems, one redundant and one non-redundant, show that smooth teleoperation can be achieved in adult laparoscopy and infant surgery.
Manipulation Task Planning and Motion Control Using Task Relaxations

Marcos da Silva Pereira and Bruno Vilhena Adorno

In Workshop on Applications of Dual Quaternion Algebra to Robotics, 2019

DOI
Bimanual Mobile Manipulation Using the Cooperative Dual Task-Space Framework and Vector Fields Inequalities

Juan José Quiroz-Omaña and Bruno Vilhena Adorno

In Workshop on Applications of Dual Quaternion Algebra to Robotics, 2019

DOI
Wrench Control Based on Dual Quaternion Algebra

Frederico Fernandes Afonso Silva and Bruno Vilhena Adorno

In Workshop on Applications of Dual Quaternion Algebra to Robotics, 2019

DOI
Constraint-Based Gait Control Using Differential Inequalities

Stella Diniz Urban and Bruno Vilhena Adorno

In Workshop on Applications of Dual Quaternion Algebra to Robotics, 2019

DOI

2018

CONVERGÊNCIA E COBERTURA DE CURVAS POR SISTEMAS MULTI-ROBÔS

Rafael Palma de Brito, Bruno Vilhena Adorno, and Luciano Cunha de Araújo Pimenta

In Anais Do XXII Congresso Brasileiro de Automática, 2018

DOI
Design of an Adaptive Controller to Improve the Condition Number of the Inertia Matrix of Serial Manipulators

Mariana de Paula Assis Fonseca, Bruno Vilhena Adorno, and Philippe Fraisse

In Anais Do XXII Congresso Brasileiro de Automática, 2018

DOI
Active Constraints Using Vector Field Inequalities for Surgical Robots

Murilo M. Marinho, Bruno V. Adorno, Kanako Harada, and Mamoru Mitsuishi

In 2018 IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation (ICRA), May 2018

DOI

2017

External Hybrid Force/Pose Controller for Manipulator Robots Using Dual Quaternion Algebra

Diana Sabina Alban and Bruno Vilhena Adorno

In 2017 Latin American Robotics Symposium (LARS) and 2017 Brazilian Symposium on Robotics (SBR), Nov 2017

DOI

2016

Whole-Body Modeling and Hierarchical Control of a Humanoid Robot Based on Dual Quaternion Algebra

Mariana De Paula Assis Fonseca and Bruno Vilhena Adorno

In 2016 XIII Latin American Robotics Symposium and IV Brazilian Robotics Symposium (LARS/SBR), Oct 2016

DOI
Robust Whole-Body Control of an Unmanned Aerial Manipulator

Laysa S Mello, Guilherme V Raffo, and Bruno V Adorno

In 2016 European Control Conference (ECC), Jun 2016

DOI
Parsimonious Kinematic Control of Nonholonomic Mobile Manipulators

Juan Jose Quiroz-Omana and Bruno Vilhena Adorno

In 2016 XIII Latin American Robotics Symposium and IV Brazilian Robotics Symposium (LARS/SBR), Oct 2016

Abs DOI

This paper presents the implementation and per- formance comparison of two whole-body kinematic control strategies for a robot composed of one manipulator with five degrees of freedom (DOF) serially coupled to a nonholonomic mobile base. The control strategy is based on a cascade scheme composed of an outer loop that takes into account all DOF and an inner loop that explicitly deals with the nonholonomic constraints of the mobile base. The comparison is performed between two techniques applied at the outer loop to deal with the whole-body motion, namely a traditional approach that uses the pseudoinverse of the robot Jacobian matrix and the parsimonious control recently introduced by Gonçalves et al. [1]. Experiments on a real robot show that the parsimonious approach uses fewer actuators than the traditional approach at the expense of more abrupt control signals.
Formation Backstepping Control Based on the Cooperative Dual Task-Space Framework: A Case Study on Unmanned Aerial Vehicles

Brenner S. Rego, Bruno V. Adorno, and Guilherme V. Raffo

In 2016 XIII Latin American Robotics Symposium and IV Brazilian Robotics Symposium (LARS/SBR), Oct 2016

DOI
Whole-Body Control of a Mobile Manipulator Using Feedback Linearization Based on Dual Quaternions

Frederico Fernandes Afonso Silva and Bruno Vilhena Adorno

In 2016 XIII Latin American Robotics Symposium and IV Brazilian Robotics Symposium (LARS/SBR), Oct 2016

DOI

2015

Consenso Utilizando a Álgebra de Quatérnios Duais Em Sistemas Compostos Por Manipuladores Móveis

Rafael P Brito, Heitor J Savino, Bruno V Adorno, and Luciano C A Pimenta

In XII Simpósio Brasileiro de Automação Inteligente (SBAI), 2015

Abs

Resumo— Este artigo trata do problema de consenso entre múltiplos manipuladores móveis. O sistema é modelado utilizando álgebra de quatérnios duais e dois casos são considerados: o problema de rendezvous e o de consenso na pose dos efetuadores dos manipuladores móveis utilizando-se referenciais locais. Para o controle local dos manipuladores móveis, utiliza-se uma abordagem de controle hierárquico com duas tarefas executadas em diferentes níveis de prioridade. A técnica proposta é avaliada em simulação, mostrando que o sistema fica estável quando o consenso é atingido. Palavras-chave— Quatérnios duais, consenso, rendezvous, manipulador móvel, controle de corpo completo. Abstract— This paper deals with the consensus problem of multiple mobile manipulators. The system is modeled by using dual quaternion algebra and two problems are considered: the rendezvous problem and the pose consensus of the end-effectors with local frames. In order to perform the local control of the mobile manipulators, a hierarchical approach is used such that two tasks are executed simultaneously with different priorities. The proposed technique is evaluated in simulation, which shows that the system stabilizes when the consensus is achieved.
A New Algebraic Approach for the Description of Robotic Manipulation Tasks

Ernesto Pablo Lana, Bruno Vilhena Adorno, and Carlos Andrey Maia

In 2015 IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation (ICRA), May 2015

DOI
A Dual Quaternion Linear-Quadratic Optimal Controller for Trajectory Tracking

M M Marinho, L F C Figueredo, and B V Adorno

In 2015 IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems (IROS), Sep 2015

Abs DOI

This work addresses the task-space design prob- lem of a linear-quadratic optimal tracking controller for robotic manipulators using the unit dual quaternion formalism. The efficiency, compactness, and lack of singularity of the representation render the unit dual quaternion a suitable framework for simultaneously describing the attitude and the position of the end-effector. Motivated by the advantages of this kinematic description, we propose a new task-space linear- quadratic optimal tracking controller in order to find an optimal trajectory for the end-effector, providing a tool to balance more conveniently the end-effector error and its task- space velocity. This is possible because the kinematic control problem using the dual quaternion transformation invariant error can be reduced to an affine time-varying system. The proposed optimal tracking controller allows the compensation of trajectory induced disturbances, as well as other modeled additive disturbances and known bias. Simulation results with different design parameters provide a performance overview, in comparison with standard kinematic controllers with and without a feed-forward term, for tracking a desired reference.
Whole-Body Modeling and Control of an Unmanned Aerial Manipulator

Laysa Santos Mello, Bruno Vilhena Adorno, and Guilherme Vianna Raffo

In XII Simpósio Brasileiro de Automação Inteligente (SBAI), 2015
Balance Control of a Humanoid Robot Based on the Cooperative Dual Task-Space Framework

Ana Christine Oliveira and Bruno Vilhena Adorno

In XII Simpósio Brasileiro de Automação Inteligente (SBAI), 2015

Abs

— This paper presents a technique for the modeling and balance control of humanoid robots based on dual quaternion algebra and the Cooperative Dual Task-Space Framework. A strategy for controlling the Center of Mass (CoM) position that takes into account the system’s stability constraints is presented and validated in a realistic simulation. The results show that the presented control strategy is able to track a desired 3D trajectory for the CoM while ensuring the robot’s balance, and may potentially be extended to perform bipedal locomotion. Keywords— Humanoid robots, Center of Mass (CoM), CoM control, Dual quaternion, Cooperative Dual Task-Space (CDTS). Resumo— Este artigo apresenta uma técnica de modelagem e controle de equilíbrio de robôs humanóides baseada na álgebra de quatérnios duais e no Espaço de Cooperação Dual. Uma estratégia para controlar a posição do Centro de Massa (CM), que leva em consideração as restrições de estabilidade do sistema, é apresentada e validada em um ambiente de simulação realístico. Os resultados obtidos mostram que esta estratégia de controle é capaz de realizar o rastreamento de uma trajetória 3D desejada para o CM, enquanto garante o equilíbrio do robô, e pode, potencialmente, ser estendida para a locomoção de robôs bípedes. Palavras-chave— Robôs humanóides, Centro de Massa, Controle do Centro de Massa, Quatérnios duais, Espaço de Cooperação Dual.

2014

Teoria de Controle Supervisório e Controle Dirigido Ótimo: Solução de Um Problema de Sequenciamento

Ramon G Durães, Gustavo L Vieira, Patrícia N Pena, and Bruno V Adorno

In Congresso Brasileiro de Automática, 2014
Switching Strategy for Flexible Task Execution Using the Cooperative Dual Task-Space Framework

L.F.C. Figueredo, B.V. Adorno, J.Y. Ishihara, and G.A. Borges

In 2014 IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems, Sep 2014

DOI
Descrição Geométrica, Cinemática e de Esforços Para Tarefas de Manipulação Usando Quatérnios Duais

Ernesto Pablo Lana, Bruno Vilhena Adorno, and Carlos Andrey Maia

In Congresso Brasileiro de Automática, 2014
Modelagem e Controle de Corpo Completo Usando Quatérnios Duais Para Um Manipulador Móvel

Fredy Rolando Salazar-Sangucho and Bruno Vilhena Adorno

In Anais Do XX Congresso Brasileiro de Automática, 2014

2013

Robust Kinematic Control of Manipulator Robots Using Dual Quaternion Representation

L.F.C. Figueredo, B.V. Adorno, J.Y. Ishihara, and G.a. Borges

In 2013 IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation, May 2013

Abs DOI

This paper addresses the H∞ robust control problem for robot manipulators using unit dual quaternion representation, which allows an utter description of the end-effector transformation without decoupling rotational and translational dynamics. We propose three different H∞ control criteria that ensure asymptotic convergence, whereas reducing the influence of disturbances upon the system stability. Also, with a new metric of dual quaternion error in SE(3) we prove independence from robot coordinate changes. Simulation results highlight the importance and effectiveness of the proposed approach in terms of performance, robustness, and energy efficiency.
An ERD/ERS Analysis of the Relation between Human Arm and Robot Manipulator Movements

Ernesto Pablo Lana, Bruno Vilhena Adorno, and Carlos Julio Tierra-Criollo

In ISSNIP Biosignals and Biorobotics Conference, BRC, Feb 2013

Abs DOI

This work aims to analyze the relation between the movement of an anthropomorphic robotic manipulator with the brain cortex response elicited in healthy subjects for three experimental conditions. The experiment was divided in three parts: in the first one, the subject only observes the movement of the robotic manipulator; in the second part, the subject follows the robot movement with his right arm; finally, in the third part, the subject imagines the execution of the corresponding movement synchronized with the robot movement. Event related (de)synchronization in each of the recorded electroencephalogram channels was analyzed. Event related desynchronization was present in alpha and beta bands in various areas of the cortex, including occipital, parietal, central and prefrontal areas. The results provided some physiological insights into human-robot interaction for future developments in brain-machine interfaces.
Assistance Task Using a Manipulator Robot and User Kinematics Feedback

Ernesto Pablo Lana, Bruno Vilhena Adorno, and Carlos Julio Tierra-Criollo

In Anais Do Simpósio Brasileiro de Automação Inteligente, 2013
Design Of Singularity-robust and Task-priority Kinematic Controllers in the Unit Dual Quaternion Space

Murilo Marques Marinho and Bruno Vilhena Adorno

In Anais Do Simpósio Brasileiro de Automação Inteligente, 2013

2012

Manipulação Cooperativa Descentralizada Usando o Espaço Dual de Cooperação

Bruno Vilhena Adorno

In XIX Congresso Brasileiro de Automática, 2012
Semi-Automatic Needle Steering System with Robotic Manipulator

Mariana Costa Bernardes, Bruno Vilhena Adorno, Philippe Poignet, and Geovany Araújo Borges

In Proceedings - IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation, 2012

Abs DOI

This paper presents a semi-automatic system for robot-assisted 2D needle steering that uses duty-cycling to perform insertions with arcs of adjustable curvature radius. It combines image feedback manually provided by an operator with an adaptive path planning strategy to compensate for system uncertainties and changes in the workspace during the procedure. Experimental results are presented to validate the proposed platform.

2011

Towards a Cooperative Framework for Interactive Manipulation Involving a Human and a Humanoid

Bruno Vilhena Adorno, Antônio Padilha Lanari Bó, Philippe Fraisse, and Philippe Poignet

In Proceedings - IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation, May 2011

Abs DOI

In this paper we propose a novel approach for interactive manipulation involving a human and a humanoid. The interaction is represented by means of the relative configuration between the human’s and the robot’s hands. Based on this principle and a set of mathematical tools also proposed in the paper, a large set of tasks can be represented intuitively. We also introduce the concept of simultaneous handling using mirrored movements, where the human controls the robot and simultaneously interacts with it by means of a common manipulated object. Illustrative experiments are performed to validate the proposed techniques.
Interactive Manipulation between a Human and a Humanoid: When Robots Control Human Arm Motion

Bruno Vilhena Adorno, Antonio Padilha Lanari Bo, and Philippe Fraisse

In 2011 IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems, 2011

DOI
Path Planning for Steerable Needles Using Duty-Cycling

Mariana Costa Bernardes, Bruno Vilhena Adorno, Nabil Zemiti, Philippe Poignet, and Geovany Araújo Borges

In CARS 2011 Computer Assisted Radiology and Surgery, 2011

DOI
Adaptive Path Planning for Steerable Needles Using Duty-Cycling

Mariana C Bernardes, Bruno V Adorno, Philippe Poignet, Nabil Zemiti, and Geovany A Borges

In 2011 IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems, 2011

DOI

2010

Dual Position Control Strategies Using the Cooperative Dual Task-Space Framework

Bruno Vilhena Adorno, Philippe Fraisse, and Sébastien Druon

In 2010 IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems, Oct 2010

DOI
Position and Orientation Control of Robot Manipulators Using Dual Quaternion Feedback

Hoang-Lan Pham, Veronique Perdereau, Bruno Vilhena Adorno, and Philippe Fraisse

In 2010 IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems, Oct 2010

DOI

2009

iARW: An Incremental Path Planner Algorithm Based on Adaptive Random Walks

Bruno Vilhena Adorno and Geovany Araújo Borges

In The 2009 IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems, Oct 2009

DOI

2007

Planejamento de Caminho Usando BI-ARW Melhorado e Mapa de Rotas

Bruno Vilhena Adorno and Geovany Araújo Borges

In Simpósio Brasileiro de Automação Inteligente, 2007

2006

Um Método de Planejamento de Trajetória Para Robôs Móveis Através de Passeios Aleatórios Adaptativos e Mapa de Rotas

Bruno Vilhena Adorno and Geovany Araújo Borges

In XVI Congresso Brasileiro de Automática, 2006

2005

Planejamento de Trajetória Para o Robô OMNI Utilizando o Algoritmo Mapa de Rotas Probabilístico

Bruno Vilhena Adorno, Carla Silva Rocha Aguiar, and Geovany Araújo Borges

In VII Simpósio Brasileiro de Automação Inteligente / II IEEE Latin-American Robotics Symposium, 2005

Book Preprints

2017

Robot Kinematic Modeling and Control Based on Dual Quaternion Algebra – Part I: Fundamentals

Bruno Vilhena Adorno

2017

Preprints

2026

Coverage First Next Best View for Inspection of Cluttered Pipe Networks Using Mobile Manipulators

Joshua Raymond Bettles, Jiaxu Wu, Bruno Vilhena Adorno, Joaquin Carrasco, and Atsushi Yamashita

Mar 2026

Comment: 8 pages, 9 figures, 1 table. Submitted to IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems 2026

Abs DOI

Robotic inspection of radioactive areas enables operators to be removed from hazardous environments; however, planning and operating in confined, cluttered environments remain challenging. These systems must autonomously reconstruct the unknown environment and cover its surfaces, whilst estimating and avoiding collisions with objects in the environment. In this paper, we propose a new planning approach based on next-best-view that enables simultaneous exploration and exploitation of the environment by reformulating the coverage path planning problem in terms of information gain. To handle obstacle avoidance under uncertainty, we extend the vectorfield-inequalities framework to explicitly account for stochastic measurements of geometric primitives in the environment via chance constraints in a constrained optimal control law. The stochastic constraints were evaluated experimentally alongside the planner on a mobile manipulator in a confined environment to inspect a pipe network. These experiments demonstrate that the system can autonomously plan and execute inspection and coverage paths to reconstruct and fully cover the simplified pipe network. Moreover, the system successfully estimated geometric primitives online and avoided collisions during motion between viewpoints.
Object-Reconstruction-Aware Whole-body Control of Mobile Manipulators

Fatih Dursun, Bruno Vilhena Adorno, Simon Watson, and Wei Pan

Mar 2026

19 pages, 17 figures, 5 tables. Under Review for the IEEE Transactions on Robotics (T-RO)

DOI

2025

A Study on the Effects of Mixed Explicit and Implicit Communications in Human-Virtual-Agent Interactions

Ana Christina Almada Campos and Bruno Vilhena Adorno

May 2025

Comment: Main paper with 23 pages, 12 figures, 4 tables. Supplementary material with 19 pages, 16 figures, 2 tables. Submitted to Intelligent Service Robotics

Abs DOI

Communication between humans and robots (or virtual agents) is essential for interaction and often inspired by human communication, which uses gestures, facial expressions, gaze direction, and other explicit and implicit means. This work presents an interaction experiment where humans and virtual agents interact through explicit (gestures, manual entries using mouse and keyboard, voice, sound, and information on screen) and implicit (gaze direction, location, facial expressions, and raise of eyebrows) communication to evaluate the effect of mixed explicit-implicit communication against purely explicit communication. Results obtained using Bayesian parameter estimation show that the number of errors and task execution time did not significantly change when mixed explicit and implicit communications were used, and neither the perceived efficiency of the interaction. In contrast, acceptance, sociability, and transparency of the virtual agent increased when using mixed communication modalities (88.3%, 92%, and 92.9% of the effect size posterior distribution of each variable, respectively, were above the upper limit of the region of practical equivalence). This suggests that task-related measures, such as time, number of errors, and perceived efficiency of the interaction, have not been influenced by the communication type in our particular experiment. However, the improvement of subjective measures related to the virtual agent, such as acceptance, sociability, and transparency, suggests that humans are more receptive to mixed explicit and implicit communications.

2023

Dynamic Modeling of Branched Robots Using Modular Composition

Frederico Fernandes Afonso Silva and Bruno Vilhena Adorno

Dec 2023

Abs

This paper proposes a systematic modular procedure for the dynamic modeling of branched robots comprising several subsystems, each of which being composed of multiple rigid bodies. Furthermore, the proposed strategy is applicable even if some subsystems are regarded as black boxes, requiring only the twists and wrenches at the connection points between different subsystems. To help in the model composition, we also propose a graph representation that encodes the propagation of twists and wrenches between the subsystems. Numerical results show that the proposed formalism is as accurate as a state-of-the-art library for robotic dynamic modeling.

2022

The IncompleteGuide to Academic Writing in Robotics Research

Bruno Vilhena Adorno and Murilo Marques Marinho

2022

Theses

2011

Two-Arm Manipulation: From Manipulators to Enhanced Human-Robot Collaboration [Contribution à La Manipulation à Deux Bras : Des Manipulateurs à La Collaboration Homme-Robot]

Bruno Vilhena Adorno

Université Montpellier 2, 2011

2008

Planejamento probabilístico de rotas no espaço de configuração e sua aplicação em robótica móvel

Bruno Vilhena Adorno

2008