Quasi-static object scanning using technical vibrissae

Biological observations have shown that rodents use their vibrissae to estimate obstacle contact within a few contacts of the tactile hair. Based on this observation, a mechanical model of an animal vibrissa is developed, resulting in a long slim beam with a clamp as support at one end. A sweep of the beam along a profile, with its boundary describable by a strictly convex function, exhibits two phases. A phase in which the beam contacts the profile at its tip and a phase in which the beam contacts the profile tangentially (between the tip and the base). An analysis of the problem results in a decision criterion for the reconstruction and in a formula for the contact point of the beam with the profile. This is new in literature. Based only on forces and moments at the support it is possible to reconstruct the profile.