Design of a Tendon-Driven Robotic Hand for High-Force Grasping and Dexterous Manipulation

Tele-operated systems are expected to play a vital role in environments that pose hazards to human workers and in scenarios where fully autonomous robots face significant challenges. The robotic hands incorporated into such systems must possess capabilities comparable to those of human oper- ators to accomplish a wide range of tasks. In this study, we present the design and development of a tendon-driven robotic hand intended for integration into tele-operated systems. The target tasks encompass both dex- terous manipulations and force-intensive operations typically performed by humans. To achieve these capabilities, we first defined the performance requirements necessary for task exe- cution and analytically derived the link ratios that maximize gripping efficiency. From these, we further identified the link ratio that yields the largest operational workspace, thereby narrowing the range of suitable design parameters. Based on the analytical findings, we devised an optimized link structure and tendon routing configuration tailored for tendon-driven actuation. A corresponding control system was implemented to operate the robotic hand and realize precise tendon-driven motion. Finally, we evaluated the system’s abil- ity to perform the designated tasks, demonstrating that the proposed robotic hand can effectively serve as a substitute for human operators in tele-operated applications.