  In this paper, we present a novel kinematic model of the human phalanges
based on the elliptical motion of their joints. The presence of the soft
elastic tissues and the general anatomical structure of the hand joints highly
affect the relative movement of the bones. Commonly used assumption of circular
trajectories simplifies the designing process but leads to divergence with the
actual hand behavior. The advantages of the proposed model are demonstrated
through the comparison with the conventional revolute joint model. Conducted
simulations and experiments validate designed forward and inverse kinematic
algorithms. Obtained results show a high performance of the model in mimicking
the human fingertip motion trajectory.
