This paper addresses the online grasp synthesis problem, in which statically stable grasp configurations are to be generated given instantaneous contact information. We use the preimage of a given grasp controller to address object resolution, friction compensation, and resource allocation in a online fashion. The approach can be applied to piecewise smooth object geometries, and it can be extended to accommodate any number of contacts and 3D objects.

This paper discusses how grasp synthesis can be cast as a control composition problem. Two elemental grasp controllers are presented and composed into a general purpose grasp controller through the use of standard optimal control techniques. The resulting grasp synthesis procedure is scalable on the number of contacts, is not tied to any specific object representation scheme, and can incorporate kinematic constraints into its resolution.>

This paper discusses the issues involved in developing a grasp controller, within the framework of control composition, and introduces control pre-imaging. Pre-imaging is a design technique for augmenting the performance of a baseline controller through the opportune activation of metalevel control actions. Such metalevel control actions are activated whenever the current system state is associated to past unsuccessful patterns of interaction between the existing predictable, stable controller and the environment. The technique is illustrated by the implementation of a grasp controller capable of generating grasp configurations through successive, local refinements, given the position and normal of each contact.>