Wet adhesion wearable grabbing device, preparation method and application

Abstract

The invention discloses a wet adhesion wearable grabbing device, a preparation method and application, in the wearable grabbing device, a hard film hydrogel layer is laminated on a substrate hydrogel layer and has interface acting force for avoiding interface separation to form a laminated structure; the hard film hydrogel layer comprises a contact surface which has a wet adhesion function and is used for grabbing, irregular, soft or wet surfaces can be effectively grabbed, high adaptability and comfort are achieved, and damage to the surfaces is avoided. By providing the accurate grabbing capacity, the flexible grabbing device can be widely applied to various occasions needing flexible grabbing, especially the field of medical operations making contact with biological tissue.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of wearable devices with enhanced grasping ability, and in particular to a wet-adhesion wearable grasping device, a preparation method and use thereof. Background Art

[0002] Wearable gripping devices are increasingly used in the fields of medicine, rehabilitation, robotics, etc. Existing wearable gripping devices are prone to cause damage or discomfort to the organism when grasping biological tissues such as skin, muscles, organs, etc. or other soft objects. Especially when grasping biological tissues, it is difficult for existing wearable gripping devices to provide lasting adhesion without damaging the surface of the object.

[0003] The information disclosed in this Background section is only for enhancement of understanding of the background of the invention and therefore it may contain information that does not form the prior art that is already known to a person of ordinary skill in the art. Summary of the invention

[0004] In view of the shortcomings or defects of the prior art, the present invention provides a wet adhesion wearable grasping device, comprising: a base hydrogel layer; A hard film hydrogel layer is stacked on the base hydrogel layer and has an interfacial force to avoid interfacial separation to form the stacked structure, wherein: The hard film hydrogel layer includes a contact surface with wet adhesion function for gripping. The stacked structure has an elastic modulus gradient, The wearable grasping device uses the stacked structure to curl on the surface of the target object to grasp the target object.

[0005] In the wearable grasping device, methacrylated gelatin having a wet adhesion function is added to the contact surface.

[0006] In the wearable grasping device, the side of the hard film hydrogel layer away from the base hydrogel layer has a wavy surface.

[0007] In the wearable gripping device, the base hydrogel layer and the hard film hydrogel layer have the same hydrogel composition.

[0008] In the wearable gripping device, the hard film hydrogel layer can absorb water to enhance adhesion to the target surface.

[0009] In the wearable grasping device, the wearable grasping device realizes spontaneous morphological changes such as curling and spiral deformation through the stacked structure during deformation (such as stretching and release) to automatically wrap around and grasp the target object.

[0010] In the wearable grasping device, after the wearable grasping device is deformed (for example, stretched and released), surface wrinkles are generated on the surface of the hard film hydrogel layer to increase friction when grasping an object.

[0011] In the wearable grasping device, the wearable grasping device is a non-closed annular body.

[0012] The present invention also discloses a method for preparing a wet adhesion wearable gripping device, comprising the following steps: Using two hydrogel layers in different curing processes to form a base hydrogel layer and a hard film hydrogel layer with different structures; Functional components with wet adhesion function are added to the hard film hydrogel layer and form a contact surface for gripping.

[0013] The wearable grasping device is used for grasping or supporting human tissue, or for robotic grasping.

[0014] The present invention also discloses the use of a wet adhesion wearable grasping device for grasping biological tissues or for a robot to grasp various dry and wet substances.

[0015] Compared with the prior art, the present invention has the following beneficial effects: The wearable gripping device disclosed in the present invention can adapt to the surfaces of objects of different shapes, provide better adaptability and comfort, and avoid damage caused by excessively rigid structures; the wearable gripping device disclosed in the present invention enhances the device's gripping ability for easily damaged and irregular materials due to its wet adhesion characteristics, especially when gripping wet or soft surfaces, and has more advantages than the solutions of the prior art.

[0016] The above description is only an overview of the technical solution of the present invention. In order to make the technical means of the present invention clearer and to achieve the extent that those skilled in the art can implement it according to the contents of the specification, and in order to make the above and other purposes, features and advantages of the present invention more obvious and easy to understand, the specific implementation methods of the present invention are exemplified below. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0017] By reading the detailed description of the preferred specific embodiments below, various other advantages and benefits of the present invention will become clear to those of ordinary skill in the art. The drawings in the specification are only for the purpose of illustrating the preferred embodiments and are not considered to be limitations of the present invention. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of the present invention. For those of ordinary skill in the art, other drawings can also be obtained based on these drawings without creative work. Moreover, the same reference numerals are used to represent the same components throughout the drawings.

[0018] In the attached picture: Figure 1 It is a structural schematic diagram of the present invention; Figure 2 It is a schematic diagram of the wearing effect of the present invention.

[0019] The present invention is further explained below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and embodiments. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0020] The following will refer to the attached Figure 1 to Figure 2 Specific embodiments of the present invention are described in more detail. Although specific embodiments of the present invention are shown in the accompanying drawings, it should be understood that the present invention can be implemented in various forms and should not be limited by the embodiments described herein. On the contrary, these embodiments are provided to enable a more thorough understanding of the present invention and to fully convey the scope of the present invention to those skilled in the art.

[0021] It should be noted that certain words are used in the specification and claims to refer to specific components. Those skilled in the art should understand that technicians may use different nouns to refer to the same component. This specification and claims do not use the difference in nouns as a way to distinguish components, but use the difference in the functions of the components as the criterion for distinction. As mentioned throughout the specification and claims, "including" or "comprising" is an open term, so it should be interpreted as "including but not limited to". The subsequent description of the specification is a preferred embodiment of the present invention, but the description is based on the general principles of the specification and is not intended to limit the scope of the present invention. The scope of protection of the present invention shall be determined by the attached claims.

[0022] To facilitate understanding of the embodiments of the present invention, several specific embodiments will be further explained below with reference to the accompanying drawings, and each of the accompanying drawings does not constitute a limitation on the embodiments of the present invention.

[0023] In one embodiment, the present invention discloses a wet-adhesive wearable gripping device, comprising: a base hydrogel layer; A hard film hydrogel layer is stacked on the base hydrogel layer and has an interfacial force to avoid interfacial separation to form the stacked structure, wherein: The hard film hydrogel layer includes a contact surface with wet adhesion function for gripping. The stacked structure has an elastic modulus gradient, The wearable grasping device uses the stacked structure to curl on the surface of the target object to grasp the target object.

[0024] It should be noted that the key is that the stacked structure as a whole needs to have an elastic modulus gradient, rather than strictly requiring that the base hydrogel layer and the hard film hydrogel layer must use materials with different elastic moduli. This will be described in detail later.

[0025] For the above-mentioned embodiment, since the stacked structure is based on a hydrogel layer and has an elastic modulus gradient, this makes the wearable grasping device soft and adaptable, as well as having curling characteristics, which further enables the device to adapt to the surfaces of objects of different shapes, providing better adaptability and comfort, and avoiding damage caused by excessively hard structures; and because of the wet adhesion characteristics, the device's ability to grasp materials with fragile surfaces and irregular shapes is enhanced, especially when grasping target objects with wet or soft surfaces, which is more advantageous than the solutions of the prior art. In addition, the stacked structure composed of hydrogel also has the following effects: when the hydrogel contacts biological tissue, skin or other wet surfaces, its surface will absorb surrounding moisture, enhance adhesion, and thus provide a stable grasping effect. In summary, the stacked structure of the present invention can provide a softer grasping effect on the contact surface, avoiding damage to the surface of the target object.

[0026] It can be understood that the wearable grasping device is used to grasp biological tissue (such as biological tissue of human body or animal) or other substances. In addition, the wearable grasping device can also be used for robot grasping various dry and wet substances.

[0027] In another embodiment, the elastic modulus gradient needs to meet the following constraint: during the operation of the wearable gripping device, the wearable gripping device is wrapped around the surface of the target object through the morphological change of the stacked structure (such as curling or spiral deformation). This is because the above constraint of the elastic modulus gradient makes the contact area between the wearable gripping device and the target object more effectively increased, thereby improving the gripping force.

[0028] In another embodiment, the base hydrogel layer and the hard film hydrogel layer have a thickness ratio, and preferably, the base hydrogel layer is thicker than the hard film hydrogel layer.

[0029] In another embodiment, the wearable gripping device is composed of a layer of the base hydrogel layer and a layer of the hard film hydrogel layer, wherein the base hydrogel layer and the hard film hydrogel layer have the same hydrogel composition but form structural differences during the curing process.

[0030] The thickness ratio and the structural difference are based on satisfying the following constraints: the base hydrogel layer and the hard film hydrogel layer have sufficient interface action, and the base hydrogel layer and the hard film hydrogel layer do not undergo interface separation during operation of the wearable grasping device.

[0031] In another embodiment, the base hydrogel layer and the hard film hydrogel layer are a double-layered and integrated structure.

[0032] In another embodiment, the stacked structure is implemented as a self-curling stacked structure. In this way, the wearable grasping device utilizes the self-curling and wet adhesion characteristics, and can be wrapped around the finger or the mechanical gripper execution end after deformation (such as stretching and releasing), making it safer and more efficient to grasp biological tissues, soft materials or surface wet materials, thereby achieving a more efficient and stable grasping effect in the fields of medical surgery, robot grasping, etc.

[0033] In another embodiment, the laminated structure of the wearable grasping device generates surface wrinkles on the surface of the hard film hydrogel layer during deformation (eg, stretching and releasing) to increase friction when grasping an object.

[0034] It should be noted that the hardness in the present invention does not mean absolute hardness; the hard film hydrogel layer has a moderate elastic modulus, which can ensure sufficient rigidity to maintain the shape and be soft enough to adapt to the surface characteristics of the target object. In the present invention, although the structural support provided by the hard film hydrogel layer itself and the wet adhesion function of the contact surface can further ensure the effect of grasping the human body or other biological tissues or soft substances, however, it is more preferable in another embodiment. The elastic modulus of the hard film hydrogel layer itself needs to meet the following constraints: so that the contact surface can fit tightly to irregular or sensitive surfaces.

[0035] In this way, the present invention can further ensure that it can provide durable adhesion without damaging the surface of the object.

[0036] In another embodiment, for the stacked structure with an elastic modulus gradient, the base hydrogel layer is relatively soft, and the hard film hydrogel layer closer to the target object is relatively hard.

[0037] In this way, the relatively soft base hydrogel layer can be more easily manipulated to deform, while the relatively hard film hydrogel layer contacts the target object through the structural support provided by itself and through its contact surface with wet adhesion properties to facilitate grasping of the target object by the wearable grasping device.

[0038] In another embodiment, if it is preferred to protect the grasped target object from external impact or pressure, a relatively hard base hydrogel layer can be used to provide support, while a relatively soft hard film hydrogel layer is used to ensure gentle contact with the target object. It can be understood that in the present invention, the hard film hydrogel layer is not required to be harder than the base hydrogel layer.

[0039] In another embodiment, the base hydrogel layer and the hard film hydrogel layer have the same hydrogel composition.

[0040] For this embodiment, it means that the same hydrogel component can be selected as the only source of material to form the stacked structure. For example, under the premise of using the same hydrogel component, the required modulus gradient is created by adjusting the cross-linking density, adding fillers, changing the microstructure inside the material (such as porosity, fiber arrangement direction, etc.) or changing the curing conditions (such as temperature, time, light intensity, etc.), and further adjusted through experimental results until the stacked structure is formed using the same hydrogel component. Selecting the same hydrogel component has other advantages for the present invention: it is easy to ensure good interface compatibility and bonding strength between the two layers, and it is easier to avoid delamination or peeling; at the same time, the use of similar base materials can simplify the manufacturing process, reduce production costs, and ensure that the wearable gripping device has consistent biocompatibility.

[0041] In another embodiment, the base hydrogel layer and the hard film hydrogel layer have different hydrogel compositions. It can be understood that the desired modulus gradient can be created by adding different fillers to the respective hydrogel compositions, adjusting the length of the polymer chains, or changing the curing conditions, and further adjusted according to experimental results until the same hydrogel composition is used to form the stacked structure.

[0042] In another embodiment, the stacked structure has an elastic modulus that gradually changes from the base to the top layer. This helps the top layer to better fit the surface of the target object while maintaining sufficient rigidity to achieve effective grasping. By extension, the hydrogel composition, elastic modulus and morphology of each layer in the stacked structure can be flexibly adjusted according to different grasping application scenarios and characteristics of the target object.

[0043] In another embodiment, The choice of hydrogel components includes: polyacrylic acid (PAA), polyvinyl alcohol (PVA), polyethylene glycol diacrylate (PEGDA), etc.

[0044] In another embodiment, the contact surface is added with methacrylated gelatin having a wet adhesion function.

[0045] It should be noted that the present invention may also consider adding other functional components with wet adhesion function. For example, alginate or polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) may be added to increase adhesion under wet conditions; or nanoparticles such as silica or silver ions may be added to not only appropriately improve mechanical strength but also impart antibacterial properties. It can be understood that all functional components with wet adhesion function that can be used in the hard film hydrogel layer of the wearable gripping device are acceptable.

[0046] In another embodiment, the side of the hard film hydrogel layer away from the base hydrogel layer has a wavy surface.

[0047] For this embodiment, the wavy surface can provide a larger actual contact area under the same projected area compared to the flat surface, which helps to enhance the adhesion and friction between the target object (such as biological tissue), thereby improving the grasping efficiency and stability. The wavy surface can help to distribute the applied pressure more evenly over the entire contact surface, avoiding damage caused by local stress concentration, especially for fragile biological tissues.

[0048] Preferably, the microstructure of the wavy surface can be further designed to be embedded into the tiny bumps on the surface of the target object by physical anchoring during the grasping process, forming a mechanical interlock, further improving the firmness of the grasping.

[0049] In another embodiment, the hard film hydrogel layer is capable of absorbing water to enhance adhesion to the target surface.

[0050] In another embodiment, the layered structure of the wearable grasping device achieves curling or spiral deformation, winding and grasping of the target object during deformation (such as stretching and releasing).

[0051] See also Figure 1 and Figure 2 In another embodiment, the wearable grasping device is a non-closed ring-shaped body.

[0052] This embodiment makes it easier for the wearable device to fit on the operator's finger and can flexibly adapt to fingers of different sizes while maintaining a certain degree of elasticity to better fit various finger sizes. In addition, the non-closed ring body can be easily and quickly put on and taken off without affecting the function.

[0053] In another embodiment, the present invention discloses a method for preparing a wet-adhesive wearable gripping device, comprising the following steps: Using two hydrogel layers in different curing processes to form a base hydrogel layer and a hard film hydrogel layer with different structures; Functional components with wet adhesion function are added to the hard film hydrogel layer and form a contact surface for gripping.

[0054] For this embodiment, by adding a functional component to the contact surface, the gripping device can have a wet adhesion function. As mentioned above, the functional component is, for example, methacrylated gelatin.

[0055] In another embodiment, During the curing process, applying directional stretching can cause one layer to cure earlier than another, thereby fixing a specific shape; and / or, adjusting the curing conditions to influence mechanical properties, such as hardness and elasticity, to meet expectations and verification.

[0056] In another embodiment, after deformation (e.g., stretching and releasing), surface wrinkles can be generated on the surface of the hard film hydrogel layer, thereby increasing friction when grasping an object. It can be understood that the wearable grasping device disclosed in the present invention can not only act on biological tissues with wet surfaces, but also can act on grasped objects with dry surfaces in dry environments, especially irregular grasped objects.

[0057] The wet adhesion wearable gripping device of the present invention is suitable for the following scenarios: Medical field: Used to grasp or support human tissue (such as skin, muscle, etc.), such as assisting in surgery, or as a rehabilitation device to enhance the grasping ability of the patient's limbs. For example, during an operation, the doctor wears this wet-adhesive wearable grasping device for fine manipulation and grasping of soft tissues such as muscle, skin, etc. The device can be put into use quickly during surgery, enhance grasping stability and do not damage the tissue surface.

[0058] Robotic grasping: In soft object grasping tasks, it can be combined with the gripper actuator to effectively grasp irregular and fragile objects, such as fruits, biological tissues, etc. In robotic grasping tasks, the wearable grasping device is used in the robot gripper to grasp soft objects. The wet adhesion ability of the device allows the robot to effectively grasp these soft objects with wet surfaces without the need for complex mechanical grippers. Especially in medical surgical robot applications, the wearable grasping device can greatly improve the grasping and fine manipulation capabilities of traditional hard medical mechanical grippers on biological tissues.

[0059] The basic principle of the present invention is described above in conjunction with specific embodiments. However, it should be pointed out that the advantages, strengths, effects, etc. mentioned in the present invention are only examples and not limitations, and it cannot be considered that these advantages, strengths, effects, etc. must be possessed by each embodiment of the present invention. In addition, the specific details disclosed above are only for the purpose of illustration and facilitation of understanding, rather than limitation, and the above details do not limit the present invention to being implemented by adopting the above specific details.

[0060] The above description has been given for the purpose of illustration and description. In addition, this description is not intended to limit the embodiments of the present invention to the forms disclosed herein. Although a number of example aspects and embodiments have been discussed above, those skilled in the art will recognize certain variations, modifications, changes, additions and sub-combinations thereof.

Claims

1. A wet-adhesive wearable gripping device, characterized in that: These include, a base hydrogel layer; A hard film hydrogel layer is stacked on the base hydrogel layer and has an interfacial force to avoid interfacial separation to form the stacked structure, wherein: The hard film hydrogel layer includes a contact surface with wet adhesion function for gripping. The stacked structure has an elastic modulus gradient, The wearable grasping device uses the stacked structure to curl on the surface of the target object to grasp the target object.

2. The wearable grasping device according to claim 1, characterized in that: Methacrylated gelatin having a wet adhesion function is added to the contact surface.

3. The wearable grasping device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The side of the hard film hydrogel layer away from the base hydrogel layer is a wavy surface.

4. The wearable grasping device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The base hydrogel layer and the hard film hydrogel layer have the same hydrogel composition.

5. The wearable grasping device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The hard film hydrogel layer is able to absorb water to enhance adhesion to the target surface.

6. The wearable grasping device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The wearable grasping device is a non-closed annular body.

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