Soft Omni-Functional Robotic Gripper with a Force-Enhanced Pleated Mechanism for High Force and Multi-DoF Manipulation
Sinyoung Lee, Genesung Kang, Hongmin Kim, Dongjun Shin
AI summary
Problem
Existing soft robotic hands struggle to simultaneously achieve high fingertip force, rapid actuation, and multi-degree-of-freedom dexterity without resorting to complex, costly, or force-limited designs.
Approach
The authors developed a soft pneumatic gripper featuring a Synergistic-Chamber Finger Module that coordinates three chambers for multi-DoF motion, uses multi-node tendon routing to prevent buckling and boost force transmission, and integrates a Force-Enhanced Pleated mechanism to maximize expansion force.
Key results
- 68.76 N fingertip force per finger with a 32.41% boost from the pleated chamber design
- Multi-DoF flexion and abduction/adduction motions achieved in ~0.15 seconds
- System-level lifting capacity of 400 N and ~4.20 Nm torque
- Successful execution of high-force, delicate, and high-speed manipulation tasks
Why it matters
Enables versatile, high-performance soft robotic manipulation for demanding industrial, assistive, and dynamic applications without sacrificing dexterity for force.
Abstract
Developing a robotic hand that integrates high fingertip force, rapid response, and multi-degree-of-freedom (DoF) motion, similar to the human hand, remains a challenge in the field of robotic hands. This study presents the Soft Omni- Functional Robotic Gripper (SOFRo Gripper), designed to achieve all aforementioned characteristics. The finger module of the SOFRo Gripper incorporates synergistically arranged chambers together with a multi-node tendon routing strategy that distributes actuation forces, enabling both flexion and ab/adduction motions while enhancing fingertip force. Furthermore, to maximize fingertip force, the Force-Enhanced Pleated (FEP) mechanism was applied to the chambers, increasing force by 32.41% compared to conventional chamber designs. The proposed SOFRo Gripper achieves a high fingertip force of 68.76 N and dexterous motion capabilities, enabling a maximum lifting force of 400.0 N and in-hand manipulation. To validate its versatility, extensive experiments were conducted, demonstrating the hand's capability to perform a wide range of tasks. As a result, the SOFRo Gripper successfully performed grasping tasks involving various objects, as well as high-force tasks (e.g., lifting heavy objects, closing a valve), delicate tasks (e.g., grasping tofu, inserting a light bulb), and high-speed tasks (e.g., spinning a top, catching a ball). The system demonstrates high force capability and performs a wide range of tasks.