A gas-driven, rope-controlled, deployable soft gripper robot

Abstract

The application discloses a gas-driven rope-controlled deployable soft body gripping robot, which comprises a rigid base support, four soft body pneumatic finger units, a driving air bag unit, a driving rope and a visual camera. The soft body pneumatic finger units are fixed on a connecting frame through bolts, the connecting frame is fixed on the rigid base support through bolts, and the four soft body pneumatic finger units are uniformly distributed on the rigid base support. The driving air bag unit is divided into a finger internal air bag and an external sector air bag, the finger internal air bag is nested in the soft body finger to drive the finger to bend, and the external sector air bag is fixed in the middle of the connecting frame to drive the finger to open. Under the double actions of the gas-driven opening and the rope-driven closing, the soft body finger can be flexibly and efficiently deployed and closed to realize the gripping of objects. The application has the characteristics of large gripping range and strong bearing capacity, and since the application is made of soft material, the application has the protection effect on fragile objects, so that the diversified task requirements can be met.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present application relates to the field of soft body gripping robots, and particularly relates to a gas-driven rope-controlled deployable soft body gripping robot. BACKGROUND

[0002] In recent years, with the rapid development of automation and intelligent technology, robots have been widely applied in manufacturing, logistics, medical treatment and agriculture, etc. Especially in the scene requiring flexible, safe and light grasping, soft robots show superior performance that traditional rigid robots cannot achieve due to their flexible materials and special structures. Compared with the grasping device of rigid structure, the soft body gripping robot can adapt to various and irregular object shapes, reduce damage to the grasped object, and is suitable for the demand of fine operation, such as the handling of fragile objects and the operation of precision devices, etc.

[0003] The existing soft body gripping robot mainly adopts pneumatic, hydraulic or electric driving mode, among which the pneumatic driving gradually becomes a popular technology in the field of soft robots due to its simple operation, rapid response and accurate control. However, the existing pneumatic soft body gripping robot has some deficiencies, such as complex structure design, poor flexibility, insufficient grasping stability, and is difficult to meet the diversified operation demand. In addition, the existing gas-driven soft body gripping robot also has room for improvement in terms of energy consumption, manufacturing cost and convenience. Therefore, developing a gas-driven soft body gripping robot capable of efficient and stable grasping in a complex working environment has become a research hotspot in the current technical field. SUMMARY

[0004] In view of the defects in the prior art, the purpose of the present application is to provide a gas-driven rope-controlled deployable soft body gripping robot.

[0005] The technical scheme adopted by the present application is:

[0006] A gas-driven rope-controlled deployable soft body gripping robot, comprising a plurality of soft pneumatic finger units, a driving rope, a rigid base support and a driving air bag unit; the soft pneumatic finger unit comprises an elastic sleeve, a spring steel sheet, a finger guide rope tube and a finger internal air bag, the finger internal air bag is arranged based on the spring steel sheet, and the elastic sleeve is wrapped outside the spring steel sheet and the finger internal air bag; the driving rope is sequentially threaded through the corresponding finger guide rope tube according to a certain rope arrangement rule to connect the soft pneumatic finger units, and finally threaded out through a rope collecting hole and connected to the driving structure through a guide rope tube; the rigid base support is used for supporting the soft pneumatic finger units; the driving air bag unit comprises the finger internal air bag and an external fan-shaped air bag, the finger internal air bag and the external fan-shaped air bag are communicated, and the gas pressure is delivered through a gas guide tube; the external fan-shaped air bag is used for large-range control of the included angle between the soft pneumatic finger unit and the rigid base support; and the finger internal air bag is used for completing the radian control of the soft pneumatic finger unit.

[0007] Further, the elastic sleeve is poured by silica gel into a multi-section cavity structure, specifically, the main body shape of the elastic sleeve matches the spring steel sheet, a plurality of protrusions are uniformly and equidistantly arranged on the side close to the rigid base support, the protrusions are inflation cavities, an internal finger air bag is arranged in each inflation cavity, the spring steel sheet and the elastic sleeve are integrally formed when pouring, and the end is fixed on the finger connecting plate by a bolt to form the base body of the soft finger, the finger rope pipe is fixed on the lower side of the rope passing hole by a rope, and is integrally poured with the elastic sleeve when pouring, to drive the passing of the rope, the internal finger air bag is made of polyethylene film and is arranged in a multi-layer cavity structure nested in the multi-section cavity of the elastic sleeve, and the finger is bent by inputting positive pressure.

[0008] Further, when the gas-driven soft gripping robot is in an unfolded state, the soft pneumatic finger unit is in a circular arc outward turning state, and when closed, the soft pneumatic finger unit is in a natural straight state.

[0009] Further, the part connected by the rigid base support and the soft pneumatic finger unit is a cuboid structure, the number of the soft pneumatic finger units is four, and they are sequentially arranged on the four sides of the cuboid structure.

[0010] Further, the rigid base support includes a finger mounting seat and a bottom plate, the finger mounting seat is a cuboid structure, an installation hole is arranged at the top center of the finger mounting seat to install a visual camera, the finger mounting seat is arranged as a hollow structure to reduce weight and store camera wires, four bolt holes are arranged on the four sides of the finger mounting seat to install the base connecting plate of the connecting frame, two rope collecting holes are arranged on the opposite sides of the finger mounting seat to uniformly output the driving ropes to the driving system, and the bottom plate is a circular structure and is connected and fixed with the finger mounting seat by bolts.

[0011] Further, the internal finger air bag and the external sector air bag are supported by polyethylene film, the internal finger air bag is a multi-section cavity structure to be nested in each cavity of the elastic sleeve to drive the finger to bend, the external sector air bag is a sector structure, is installed between the base connecting plate and the finger connecting plate of the connecting frame, and is used to drive the finger to open and close, the end thereof is sealingly connected with the air guide pipe through the base connecting plate, so as to realize the connection of the driving air bag and the air source.

[0012] Further, the soft pneumatic finger unit fixes the spring steel sheet on the connecting frame by a bolt, the connecting frame includes a base connecting plate, a finger connecting plate and a rotating shaft, and the base connecting plate and the finger connecting plate are connected through the rotating shaft.

[0013] Furthermore, when the drive rope and the external fan-shaped airbag are in the relaxed state and the positive pressure state, respectively, the pneumatic soft gripping robot is in the deployed state; when the drive rope and the external fan-shaped airbag are in the tightened state and the negative pressure state, respectively, the pneumatic soft gripping robot is in the closed state.

[0014] Furthermore, the visual camera is mounted at the center of the top of the rigid support to acquire data for target recognition and visual navigation of the pneumatic soft gripper robot.

[0015] Compared with existing technologies, the advantages of this invention are as follows: Driven by both external fan-shaped airbags and internal finger airbags, a pair of fingers can achieve an opening and closing range of 0-180°, providing a wide-range grasping capability. Simultaneously, the rope-driven mechanism allows the fingers to bend inward for a fully enclosed grasp, enabling the robot to lift objects weighing over 70kg, demonstrating high-load grasping capabilities. Furthermore, the pneumatic rope control system provides the robot with rapid response and ultra-high stability, and the silicone-coated fingers protect the grasped object. In summary, this invention can grasp objects with large radii and, while ensuring the integrity of the grasped object, can also grasp objects with large masses, thus meeting diverse task requirements. Attached Figure Description

[0016] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of this application, the accompanying drawings used in the description of the embodiments will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the accompanying drawings described below are only some embodiments of this application. For those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative effort.

[0017] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of the robot's unfolded state structure;

[0018] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the robot's closed-state structure.

[0019] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the robot's rear structure;

[0020] Figure 4 This is a front view of the robot.

[0021] Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram of the rigid base support structure for the robot.

[0022] Figure 6 A schematic diagram of the structure of a single soft finger of a robot;

[0023] Figure 7 A cross-sectional view of a single soft finger of a robot;

[0024] Figure 8 Figure 4 is a local enlarged view of a single soft finger of the robot;

[0025] Figure 9 Figure 5 is a spring steel sheet view of a single soft finger of the robot;

[0026] Figure 10 Figure 6 is a schematic diagram of a single driving air bag structure of the robot;

[0027] Figure 11 Figure 7 is a schematic diagram of a connecting frame structure of the robot;

[0028] In the figure: 1, soft pneumatic finger unit; 11, elastic sleeve; 12, spring steel sheet; 121, rope passing hole; 13, hand guide rope hole; 2, driving rope; 3, rigid base support; 31, finger mounting seat; 32, bolt hole; 33, bottom plate; 34, rope collecting hole; 4, driving air bag unit; 41, internal air bag of finger; 42, external sector air bag; 5, connecting frame; 501, base connecting plate; 502, finger connecting plate; 503, rotating shaft; 6, rope guide pipe; 7, air guide pipe; 8, visual camera; 9, bolt. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0029] In order to make the purpose, technical scheme and advantages of the embodiments of the present application clearer, the technical scheme of the embodiments of the present application will be described clearly and completely below in combination with the drawings in the embodiments of the present application. Obviously, the described embodiments are part of the embodiments of the present application, rather than all the embodiments of the present application. Based on the embodiments in the present application, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative labor fall within the scope of protection of the present application.

[0030] The embodiments of the present application will be further described in detail below in combination with the drawings.

[0031] As Figure 1 , Figure 2 , Figure 3 and Figure 4The gas-driven rope-controlled deployable soft gripper robot shown includes a soft pneumatic finger unit 1, a driving rope 2, a rigid base support 3, a driving air bag unit 4 and a visual camera 8; the visual camera 8 is installed at the top center of the rigid support for obtaining data for target recognition and visual navigation of the soft gripper robot, the soft pneumatic finger units 1 are evenly distributed around the rigid base support 3 and are connected and fixed by the connecting frame 5, the driving rope 2 passes through the corresponding finger rope pipe 13 in a certain rope distribution rule to connect the four soft pneumatic finger units 1 to form a net-like structure, and finally passes out through the rope collecting hole 34 and is connected to the driving structure through the guide rope pipe 6, the driving air bag unit 4 is composed of an internal air bag 41 and an external fan-shaped air bag 42, the two parts of the air bag are interconnected, and air pressure is delivered through a gas guide pipe 7.

[0032] As shown in Figure 5 The rigid base support 3 includes a finger mounting seat 31 and a bottom plate 33, the finger mounting seat 31 is a rectangular structure, an installation hole is arranged at the top center thereof to install the visual camera 8, the finger mounting seat 31 is arranged as a hollow structure to reduce weight and store camera wires, four bolt holes 32 are arranged on the four sides of the finger mounting seat 31 to install the base connecting plate 501 of the connecting frame 5, two rope collecting holes 34 are arranged on the opposite sides of the finger mounting seat 31 to uniformly output the driving rope 2 to the driving system, the bottom plate 33 is a circular structure and is connected and fixed with the finger mounting seat 31 by bolts, and other mechanical arm structures can also be used for fixed connection to complete special gripping tasks.

[0033] As shown in Figure 6 , Figure 7 , Figure 8 and Figure 9The soft pneumatic finger unit 1 shown includes an elastic sleeve 11, a spring steel sheet 12, a finger guide rope tube 13 and a finger internal air bag 41. The elastic sleeve 11 is cast into a multi-cavity structure by silica gel, is covered on the surface of the finger, has a flexible feature, can greatly avoid damage of the finger to an object during a gripping action, and specifically, the main body shape of the elastic sleeve 11 matches the spring steel sheet 12, a plurality of protrusions are uniformly and equidistantly arranged on the side close to the rigid base support 3, the protrusions are inflation cavities, the finger internal air bag 41 is arranged in each inflation cavity, the spring steel sheet 12 and the elastic sleeve 11 are integrally formed during casting, and the end is fixed on the finger connecting plate 502 by a bolt 9 to form a base body of the soft finger. The finger guide rope tube 13 is fixed on the lower side of the rope passing hole 121 by a rope, specifically, the lower guide rope tube 13 is fixed on the steel plate by a rope, the number of the finger guide rope tubes 13 matches the number of the ropes to be used, a plurality of the finger guide rope tubes 13 are arranged at a preset interval along the transverse direction of the spring steel sheet 12, the rope passing hole 121 is arranged on the steel plate and is integrally cast with the elastic sleeve 11 during casting, and is used to drive the passing of the rope 2. The finger internal air bag 41 is made of polyethylene film and is arranged in a multi-cavity structure nested in the multi-cavity inside the elastic sleeve, and the finger is bent by inputting positive pressure.

[0034] As shown in Figure 10 The driving air bag unit 4 shown includes the finger internal air bag 41 and the external sector air bag 42. The finger internal air bag 41 and the external sector air bag 42 are integrally communicated and are connected by a gas guide pipe 7. The finger internal air bag 41 is a multi-cavity structure and is nested in each cavity of the elastic sleeve 11 to drive the finger to bend. The external sector air bag 42 is a sector structure and is installed between the base connecting plate 501 and the finger connecting plate 502 of the connecting frame 5 to drive the finger to open and close. The end of the external sector air bag 42 is sealingly connected with the gas guide pipe 7 through the base connecting plate 501, so that the driving air bag 4 is connected with the gas source. Specifically, the external sector air bag 42 includes a main body and a plurality of branch air bags connected above the main body. The lengths of the branch air bags are different. The top points of the branch air bags are connected to form an arc surface. After inflation, the whole forms a sector. In the case of no inflation, the external sector air bag is compressed and the branch air bags are tightly fitted, so that the pneumatic finger unit 1 can be close to the rigid base support 3.

[0035] As shown in Figure 11The connecting frame 5 shown includes a base connecting plate 501, a finger connecting plate 502, and a rotating shaft 503. The finger connecting plate 502 is fixed by bolts to the spring steel sheet 12, and is fixed by bolts to the finger mounting seat 31. The base connecting plate 501 and the finger connecting plate 502 are connected by the rotating shaft 503, thereby achieving fixed connection between the soft pneumatic finger unit 1 and the rigid base support 3.

[0036] In this embodiment, the rope cloth rules are as follows: there are at least one set of cross-arranged ropes between adjacent soft pneumatic finger units 1, wherein two sets of oppositely arranged adjacent soft pneumatic finger units 1 are provided with second cross-arranged ropes, and another two sets of oppositely arranged adjacent soft pneumatic finger units 1 are provided with directly connected ropes. Of course, the rope strategy can be adjusted according to the actual application scenario.

[0037] Working principle: In a non-working state, the pneumatic soft finger unit and the fan-shaped air bag of a gas-driven rope-controlled deployable soft gripping robot are in a closed state, and the driving rope is in a tightened state. When the gas-driven soft gripping robot needs to grip an object, the target object information and route information are first captured by a visual camera, and then the captured visual information is fed back to the visual control system. The visual control system is integrated as a whole into the driving end of the robot, and is connected with the rope driving system and the bottom moving trolley driving system to form an integral control system. After receiving the visual information, the control system analyzes the current state of the robot and issues action instructions to drive the robot to run to the vicinity of the captured object. When the robot reaches the vicinity of the captured object, the driving rope is loosened, and at the same time the driving air bag is charged with positive pressure. Under the action of the positive pressure, the external fan-shaped air bag starts to expand, thereby driving the soft fingers to expand, and further, the internal air bag of the fingers drives the fingers to further expand outward to expand the gripping space. Then the soft gripping robot moves to a position where it can cover the entire object, and the driving air bag is charged with negative pressure. Under the action of the negative pressure, the external fan-shaped air bag starts to contract, thereby driving the soft fingers to close. Further, the internal air bag of the fingers drives the fingers to start to restore the straight state under the action of the negative pressure, and at the same time the driving rope is tightened to drive the soft fingers to bend inward until the soft gripping robot covers or completely grips the entire object, and then the object is captured by the soft gripping robot, and the next task is performed. After the subsequent task is completed, the driving rope of the soft gripping robot is loosened, and the driving air bag is continuously charged with positive pressure to open the closed cavity formed by the soft fingers of the entire robot, thereby unloading the gripped object. The above steps are a working process of a gas-driven soft gripping robot.

[0038] It should be noted that, in the present application, the relational terms such as "first" and "second", and the like, are used solely to distinguish one entity or action from another, without necessarily requiring or implying any actual relationship or order between such entities or actions. Moreover, the terms "comprises", "comprising", or any other variations thereof, are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises a list of elements does not include only those elements but can also include other elements not expressly listed or inherent to such process, method, article, or apparatus. An element proceeded by "comprises... a" does not, without more constraints, exclude the existence of additional identical elements in the process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises the element.

[0039] The foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the application. Numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, and the generic principles defined herein can be applied to other embodiments without departing from the spirit or scope of the application. Therefore, the application is not intended to be limited to the embodiments shown herein but is to be accorded the widest scope consistent with the principles and novel features disclosed herein.

Claims

1. An air-deployed, line-controlled, soft-bodied, grasping robot, characterized by: The application relates to a soft pneumatic hand finger unit (1), a driving rope (2), a rigid base support (3) and a driving air bag unit (4); the soft pneumatic hand finger unit (1) comprises an elastic sleeve (11), a spring steel sheet (12), a hand guide rope pipe (13) and a finger internal air bag (41), the finger internal air bag (41) is arranged on the basis of the spring steel sheet (12), the elastic sleeve (11) is wrapped outside the spring steel sheet (12) and the finger internal air bag (41), the driving rope (2) is sequentially threaded through corresponding hand guide rope pipes (13) according to certain rope arrangement rules to connect the soft pneumatic hand finger units (1), and finally is threaded out through a rope collecting hole (34) and connected to a driving structure through a guide rope pipe (6); the rigid base support is used for supporting the soft pneumatic hand finger units (1); the driving air bag unit comprises the finger internal air bag (41) and an external sector air bag (42), the finger internal air bag (41) and the external sector air bag (42) are communicated, and air pressure is delivered through a guide air pipe (7); the external sector air bag (42) is used for controlling a large range of angles between the soft pneumatic hand finger unit (1) and the rigid base support (3); and the finger internal air bag (41) is used for controlling the curvature of the soft pneumatic hand finger unit (1). The finger internal air bag (41) and the external sector air bag (42) are both supported by polyethylene films, the finger internal air bag (41) is a multi-section cavity structure and is nested in each cavity of the elastic sleeve (11) to drive the finger to bend, the external sector air bag (42) is a sector structure and is installed between a base connecting plate (501) and a finger connecting plate (502) of a connecting frame (5) to drive the finger to open and close, the end of the external sector air bag (42) is sealingly connected with the guide air pipe (7) through the base connecting plate (501), so that the driving air bag unit (4) is connected with an air source. The external sector air bag (42) comprises a main body part and a plurality of branch air bags connected above the main body part, the lengths of the branch air bags are different, the top points of the branch air bags are connected to form an arc surface, after being inflated, the whole forms a sector surface, and in the case of not being inflated, the external sector air bag is compressed, and the branch air bags are closely attached, so that the soft pneumatic hand finger unit (1) can be close to the rigid base support (3).

2. The gas-deployed, line-controlled, expandable soft gripper robot of claim 1, wherein: The elastic sleeve (11) is poured by silica gel into a multi-section cavity structure, specifically, the main body shape of the elastic sleeve (11) matches the spring steel sheet (12), a plurality of protrusions are uniformly and equidistantly arranged on the side close to the rigid base support (3), the protrusions are inflatable cavities, a finger internal air bag (41) is arranged in each inflatable cavity, the spring steel sheet (12) and the elastic sleeve (11) are integrally formed when pouring, and the spring steel sheet (12) is fixed on the finger connecting plate (502) at the end through a bolt (9) to form the base body of the soft finger, the finger rope pipe (13) is fixed on the lower side of the rope passing hole (121) through a rope, and is integrally poured with the elastic sleeve (11) when pouring, so as to drive the passing of the rope (2), the finger internal air bag (41) is made of polyethylene film and is arranged in a multi-layer cavity structure and nested in the multi-section cavity of the elastic sleeve, and the finger is bent by inputting positive pressure.

3. The gas-deployed, line-controlled, expandable, soft gripper robot of claim 1, wherein: When the gas-driven rope-controlled deployable soft gripping robot is in the deployed state, the soft pneumatic finger unit (1) is in a circular arc outward turning state, and when the soft pneumatic finger unit (1) is closed, the soft pneumatic finger unit (1) is in a natural straight state.

4. The gas-deployed, line-controlled, expandable, soft gripper robot of claim 1, wherein: The part connected with the soft pneumatic finger unit (1) of the rigid base support (3) is a cuboid structure, and the number of the soft pneumatic finger unit (1) is four, which are sequentially arranged on the four sides of the cuboid structure.

5. The gas-deployed, line-controlled, expandable, soft gripper robot of claim 1, wherein: The rigid base support (3) comprises a finger mounting seat (31) and a bottom plate (33), the finger mounting seat (31) is a cuboid structure, a mounting hole is arranged at the top center of the finger mounting seat (31) to mount a visual camera (8), the finger mounting seat (31) is arranged in a hollow structure to reduce weight and store camera wires, four bolt holes are arranged on the four sides of the finger mounting seat (31) to mount the base connecting plate (501) of the connecting frame (5), two rope collecting holes (34) are arranged on the opposite sides of the finger mounting seat (31) to uniformly output the driving rope (2) to the driving system, and the bottom plate (33) is a circular structure and is connected and fixed with the finger mounting seat (31) through a bolt.

6. The gas-deployed, line-controlled, expandable, soft gripper robot of claim 1, wherein: The soft pneumatic finger unit (1) is fixed on the connecting frame (5) through a bolt (9), the connecting frame (5) comprises a base connecting plate (501), a finger connecting plate (502) and a rotating shaft (503), and the base connecting plate (501) and the finger connecting plate (502) are connected through the rotating shaft (503).

7. The gas-deployed, line-controlled, expandable, soft gripper robot of claim 1, wherein: When the driving rope (2) and the external fan-shaped air bag (42) are in the relaxed state and the input positive pressure state respectively, the gas-driven soft gripping robot is in the deployed state, and when the driving rope (2) and the external fan-shaped air bag (42) are in the tightened state and the input negative pressure state respectively, the gas-driven soft gripping robot is in the closed state.

8. The gas-deployed, line-controlled, expandable, soft gripper robot of claim 5, wherein: The visual camera (8) is mounted at the top center of the rigid support to obtain data for target recognition and visual navigation of the gas-driven soft gripping robot.

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