Software pick-and-place structure, software robot and software gripper preparation method

Abstract

The application provides a soft body taking and placing structure, a soft body robot and a soft body gripper preparation method. The soft body taking and placing structure comprises a base and a soft body gripper. The base is provided with a permanent magnet capable of providing a magnetic field. The soft body gripper is provided with a plurality of soft body grippers, each of which is annularly and spacedly arranged on the base and corresponds to the permanent magnet. Each soft body gripper has two parallelly arranged spiral channels inside, and the two spiral channels are respectively filled with liquid metal and low-melting-point alloy. Each spiral channel corresponds to an electrical connection part at both ends. The soft body taking and placing structure provided by the application can ensure that the soft body gripper can be bent and deformed only by the action of the magnetic field, without the need for additional guide structures outside the base for assistance, thereby improving the adaptability and ensuring the adaptation to diversified task scenarios. Meanwhile, the melting time and cooling time of the low-melting-point alloy can be shortened to a certain extent, thereby improving the work efficiency.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The application belongs to the technical field of soft robots, and particularly relates to a soft body taking and placing structure, a soft robot and a soft gripper preparation method. BACKGROUND

[0002] The emergence of soft robot technology breaks through the research boundaries of traditional rigid robots. The soft robot technology adopts flexible materials, can have high compliance and controllable deformation capacity, and exhibits unique advantages in driving performance, environmental adaptability and the like, and makes up for the problems of the traditional rigid robots, such as insufficient compliance, single output mode, inability to meet the deformation and movement requirements of the soft robot, and insufficient adaptability and safety.

[0003] In the prior art, different researches are made on the variable stiffness soft gripper. The soft gripper generally adopts low-temperature alloy or low-melting-point alloy. The low-temperature alloy or low-melting-point alloy is heated and melted, and then is assisted by external force. Commonly, the deformation of the soft gripper is realized by attracting the external magnet and the magnet on the soft gripper, that is, an additional guiding structure needs to be externally provided. However, the structure cannot adapt to diversified task scenarios. In addition, after the liquid metal is deformed (after the object is clamped and gripped), if it is desired to maintain stable load capacity, a certain time interval is needed to ensure the solidification of the liquid metal, which undoubtedly reduces the work efficiency in the actual application process. Therefore, the core challenge for realizing the wide application of the soft robot is how to dynamically control the stiffness to adapt to diversified task scenarios, that is, to improve the excellent environmental adaptability and deformation capacity of the soft robot, and to improve the load capacity and work efficiency. SUMMARY

[0004] The embodiment of the application provides a soft body taking and placing structure, a soft robot and a soft gripper preparation method, and aims to solve the problem of poor practicability of the existing soft body taking and placing structure due to the inability to adapt to diversified task scenarios and low work efficiency.

[0005] To achieve the above object, the technical scheme adopted by the application is as follows: a soft body taking and placing structure, a soft robot and a soft gripper preparation method are provided, and the method comprises the following steps.

[0006] A base is provided with a permanent magnet for providing a magnetic field;

[0007] A plurality of soft grippers are provided, each of the soft grippers is annularly and spacedly arranged on the base and corresponds to the permanent magnet; each of the soft grippers internally has two parallelly arranged spiral channels, and the two spiral channels are respectively filled with liquid metal and low-melting-point alloy; and each of the spiral channels has an electric connection part at two ends thereof;

[0008] The low-melting alloy is melted into liquid state by Joule heat effect after current is passed through; each soft gripper is relatively bent to clamp an object or is bent in opposite direction to release an object by the Lorentz force formed in the liquid metal and the low-melting alloy; the shape of the soft gripper is maintained by the Lorentz force formed in the liquid metal during solidification of the low-melting alloy.

[0009] In a possible implementation, the liquid metal is a gallium-indium-tin alloy in liquid state at room temperature.

[0010] In a possible implementation, the low-melting alloy is a bismuth-lead-indium-tin-cadmium alloy in solid state at room temperature.

[0011] In a possible implementation, each spiral channel is in rectangular spiral structure.

[0012] In a possible implementation, an intermediate thermal insulation layer is arranged between two spiral channels.

[0013] In a possible implementation, a grasping space is formed between each soft gripper; the spiral channel in which the low-melting alloy is located in each soft gripper is arranged close to the grasping space.

[0014] In a possible implementation, a plurality of connecting structures are fixed on the base, each connecting structure corresponds to one soft gripper; each connecting structure has a clamping position for one end of the corresponding soft gripper to extend into.

[0015] The application further provides a soft robot comprising the soft pick-and-place structure.

[0016] The application further provides a preparation method of a soft gripper for manufacturing the soft gripper; the soft pick-and-place structure; wherein the manufacturing steps of the soft gripper in the soft pick-and-place structure comprise:

[0017] The soft gripper is designed as a split structure of a first carrier layer with a first spiral flow channel, an intermediate thermal insulation layer, a second carrier layer with a second spiral flow channel, and an extraction electrode as an electrical connection part;

[0018] The first carrier layer, the intermediate thermal insulation layer, the second carrier layer, and the extraction electrode are respectively formed by 3D printing.

[0019] The Ecoflex0030 silicone A and B are mixed at a ratio of 1:1 and stirred for 3 minutes, and then poured into the forming mold of the first carrier layer, the second carrier layer and the lead electrode after being degassed by a vacuum pump for 5 minutes; after curing at room temperature for 4 hours, demolding is performed to prepare the first carrier layer, the second carrier layer and the lead electrode; the hollow glass beads are dried in an oven at 120°C for 4 hours to remove the surface moisture; meanwhile, Ecoflex0030 silicone A and B are mixed at a mass ratio of 1:1.2, stirred uniformly, mixed with the treated hollow glass beads at a mass ratio of 5:1, stirred at low speed for 30 minutes, degassed by a vacuum pump for 5 minutes, and then poured into the forming mold of the intermediate thermal insulation layer; after curing at room temperature for 4 hours, demolding is performed to prepare the intermediate thermal insulation layer;

[0020] The first carrier layer and the front surface of the intermediate thermal insulation layer are bonded and packaged using a silicone adhesive to form a spiral channel on the front surface of the intermediate thermal insulation layer; the second carrier layer and the back surface of the intermediate thermal insulation layer are bonded and packaged to form another spiral channel on the back surface of the intermediate thermal insulation layer; after the silicone adhesive is cured, the two lead electrodes are bonded and packaged with the first carrier layer and the second carrier layer, respectively, and the two electrical connection ports of each lead electrode are adapted to the two ends of the corresponding spiral channel;

[0021] Liquid metal and low-melting-point alloy are injected into the two spiral channels, respectively, and conductors are inserted into the electrical connection ports of the lead electrodes.

[0022] The soft body gripping structure provided by the present implementation is filled with liquid metal and low-melting-point alloy in two spiral channels in each soft body gripper, and the fillings in each spiral channel are electrically connected to the corresponding external electrical connection part. After the low-melting-point alloy and the liquid metal are powered, the low-melting-point alloy will melt into a liquid state due to the Joule heating effect of the current, and then the low-melting-point alloy and the liquid metal will move in the magnetic field provided by the permanent magnet and generate Lorentz force, thereby driving the soft body gripper to bend and deform, and the bending direction can be changed by changing the direction of the current. This method can ensure that the soft body gripper can bend and deform only by the action of the magnetic field, without the need for additional guide structures outside the base to assist, improving adaptability and ensuring adaptation to a variety of task scenarios. Moreover, after the soft body gripper clamps the object, the shape of the soft body gripper can be maintained by the Lorentz force generated by the powered liquid metal, further improving adaptability. In addition, the coordination of the liquid metal and the low-melting-point alloy can correspondingly reduce the cross-sectional area of the low-melting-point alloy, thereby reducing the volume of the low-melting-point alloy, which can shorten the melting time and cooling time of the low-melting-point alloy to some extent, thereby improving work efficiency. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0023] Figure 1 Structure diagram of soft body taking and placing structure provided by the embodiment of the present application Figure 1 (initial state);

[0024] Figure 2 Structure diagram of soft body taking and placing structure provided by the embodiment of the present application Figure 2 (clamping state);

[0025] Figure 3 Structure diagram of soft body taking and placing structure provided by the embodiment of the present application Figure 3 (releasing state);

[0026] Figure 4 Structure diagram of soft body taking and placing structure provided by the embodiment of the present application;

[0027] Figure 5 Structure diagram of soft body taking and placing structure provided by the embodiment of the present application

[0028] Figure 6 Structure diagram of soft body taking and placing structure provided by the embodiment of the present application

[0029] Explanation of reference numerals:

[0030] 10, base; 20, permanent magnet; 30, soft body gripper; 31, first carrier layer; 32, second carrier layer; 33, lead electrode; 34, conductor; 35, spiral channel; 36, liquid metal; 37, low-melting alloy; 38, intermediate thermal insulation layer; 40, connecting structure; 41, fixing lug; 42, clamping plate; 43, fastener. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0031] In order to make the technical problems to be solved by the present application, technical solutions and beneficial effects more clearly understood, the present application will be further described in detail below in combination with the drawings and embodiments. It should be understood that the specific embodiments described herein are only used to explain the present application and do not limit the present application.

[0032] Please refer to Figures 1 to 5 , now the soft body taking and placing structure provided by the present application will be described. The soft body taking and placing structure comprises a base 10 and a soft body gripper 30. The base 10 is provided with a permanent magnet 20 capable of providing a magnetic field. The soft body gripper 30 is provided in plurality, and each soft body gripper 30 is annularly and spacedly arranged on the base 10 and corresponds to the permanent magnet 20. Each soft body gripper 30 has two parallelly arranged spiral channels 35 inside, and the two spiral channels 35 are respectively filled with liquid metal 36 and low-melting alloy 37. Each spiral channel 35 has a corresponding electrical connection part at both ends.

[0033] The working principle of the soft body pick-and-place structure is that the low-melting alloy 37 melts into a liquid state through Joule heating effect after passing through an electric current. The vector direction of the electric charge movement in the liquid metal 36 and the low-melting alloy 37 in the part of the spiral channel 35 is perpendicular to the magnetic field direction formed by the permanent magnet 20, so that the electric charges in the liquid metal 36 and the low-melting alloy 37 generate Lorentz force after moving in the magnetic field formed by the permanent magnet 20. Each soft body gripper 30 is relatively bent inward to clamp an object or bent outward to release an object through the Lorentz force generated in the liquid metal 36 and the low-melting alloy 37. After the soft body gripper 30 is bent, the electric current of the low-melting alloy 37 is turned off, and the low-melting alloy 37 solidifies. During this process, the shape of the soft body gripper 30 is maintained through the Lorentz force generated in the liquid metal 36.

[0034] In order to further understand the working principle, the following steps can be referred to:

[0035] A01: The low-melting alloy 37 is heated to the phase change point through Joule heating effect after passing through an electric current, and a phase change occurs (from solid to liquid, i.e., melting). At the same time, due to the existence of a fixed magnetic field, the low-melting alloy 37 generates Lorentz force as long as it is electrified.

[0036] A02: After the low-melting alloy 37 melts into a liquid state, the liquid metal 36 is electrified, and the liquid metal 36 generates Lorentz force, which is effectively superimposed with the Lorentz force of the low-melting alloy 37. Under the positive current, the soft body gripper 30 is opened at this time; at the same time, the current is reversed, the soft body gripper 30 is closed to softly grasp the object, and has softness.

[0037] A03: The low-melting alloy 37 is de-energized and cooled to solidify (since cooling requires time, the liquid metal 36 needs to be electrified at all times during this time to continuously provide the clamping force required for closing clamping).

[0038] A04: After the low-melting alloy 37 solidifies (from liquid to solid), the soft body gripper 30 is in a rigid state, the rigidity of the soft body gripper 30 increases greatly, and the shape is fixed; at this time, the liquid metal 36 is de-energized, and since the shape of the low-melting alloy 37 is maintained, the soft body gripper 30 can always maintain the grasping state, realizing passive (without power supply) grasping.

[0039] It needs to be explained that the pick-and-place process of the soft body pick-and-place structure provided in this embodiment can realize adaptive adjustment of variable rigidity, i.e., flexible grasping and rigid grasping.

[0040] The flexible grabbing is mainly aimed at the flexible and light load, and the liquid metal 36 is in a liquid state, so that the flexible grabbing of the object can be realized by only the low-melting-point alloy 37, that is, only the low-melting-point alloy 37 is continuously powered, and the low-melting-point alloy 37 is continuously kept in a liquid state.

[0041] The rigid grabbing is mainly aimed at the rigid object with a large load. For example, the rigid load with a certain weight can be powered after the low-melting-point alloy 37 is melted, and the liquid metal 36 is powered off after the low-melting-point alloy 37 is solidified, so that the low-melting-point alloy 37 forms a shape locking of the grabbed object, and passive grabbing is realized. For the load with a large weight, the current in the liquid metal 36 is continuously ensured before and after the low-melting-point alloy 37 is solidified, and the liquid metal 36 further provides clamping force through the Lorentz force generated by itself.

[0042] Compared with the prior art, the soft body taking and placing structure provided in the embodiment is characterized in that two spiral channels 35 are arranged in each soft body gripper 30 and filled with the liquid metal 36 and the low-melting-point alloy 37 respectively, and the fillings in each spiral channel 35 are electrically connected with the corresponding external electrical connection parts. After the low-melting-point alloy 37 and the liquid metal 36 are powered, the low-melting-point alloy 37 is melted into a liquid state due to the Joule heat effect of the current, and then the low-melting-point alloy 37 and the liquid metal 36 involve the movement of electric charges in the magnetic field provided by the permanent magnet 20 and generate the Lorentz force, so as to drive the soft body gripper 30 to bend and deform, and the bending direction is changed by changing the direction of the current. This kind of mode can ensure that the bending and deformation of the soft body gripper 30 can be realized only by the action of the magnetic field, without the need of an additional guide structure arranged outside the base 10 for assistance, so as to improve the adaptability and further ensure the adaptation to diversified task scenarios. Moreover, after the objects are clamped by the soft body grippers 30, the shape of the soft body gripper 30 can be maintained by the Lorentz force generated by the powered liquid metal 36 after the low-melting-point alloy 37 is powered off and solidified, so as to further improve the adaptability.

[0043] In addition, the coordination work of the liquid metal 36 and the low-melting-point alloy 37 can correspondingly reduce the cross-sectional area of the low-melting-point alloy 37. For example, in the prior art, the low-melting-point alloy 37 is used alone, and the cross section needs to be made into 3mm*3mm in order to ensure the rigid load. However, when the structure of the combination of the liquid metal 36 and the low-melting-point alloy 37 in the present solution is used, the liquid metal 36 can also provide clamping force at all times, so that the cross section of the low-melting-point alloy 37 can be made into 1.5mm*1.5mm. This kind of structure can reduce the volume of the low-melting-point alloy 37, and to a certain extent, shorten the melting time and cooling time of the low-melting-point alloy 37, so as to improve the work efficiency.

[0044] In the present example, the base 10 can be connected with the arm end of the soft robot.

[0045] With regard to a preferred arrangement of the permanent magnets 20, the base 10 can be provided with an end face for connection of the soft grippers 30. Corresponding permanent magnets 20 can be located inside the base 10, with their N-poles arranged towards the end face.

[0046] In some embodiments, the liquid metal 36 is a gallium-indium-tin alloy that is liquid at room temperature, with a composition of 68.5% gallium, 21.5% indium, and 10% tin. This composition ensures that the melting point of the alloy is 6-10°C, i.e. it is liquid at room temperature, so as to ensure the shape of the auxiliary soft gripper 30 during the solidification stage of the low-melting alloy 37, and also to enable superposition of the electromagnetic force of the liquid metal 36 and the low-melting alloy 37, so as to assist the low-melting alloy 37 in grasping the object and improve the load capacity.

[0047] In some embodiments, the low-melting alloy 37 is a bismuth-lead-indium-tin-cadmium alloy that is solid at room temperature, with a composition of 45% bismuth, 23% lead, 19% indium, 8% tin, and 5% cadmium. This composition ensures that the melting point of the alloy is 47°C, i.e. it is solid at room temperature, so as to ensure complete melting of the alloy within a short time of energization, and also to ensure rapid solidification and improve work efficiency.

[0048] In some embodiments, the spiral channels 35 can have the structure shown in Figure 5 . Referring to Figure 5 , each spiral channel 35 is of a rectangular spiral structure.

[0049] The spiral channel 35 of the rectangular spiral structure can ensure that, at the end of the soft gripper 30 that is far from the base 10, multiple straight segments are formed that are parallel and perpendicular to the direction of the magnetic field, so as to ensure that the direction of movement of the electric charge after energization is perpendicular to the direction of the magnetic field, to maximize the Lorentz force and enable greater magnetic torque, thereby ensuring the bending deformation of the soft gripper 30.

[0050] Further to the spiral channels 35, the soft gripper 30 as a whole can be of a rectangular sheet structure, and the spiral channels 35 can be distributed on both sides of the soft gripper 30 along the thickness direction of the soft gripper 30, with the spiral tracks being arranged in superposition.

[0051] Of course, when larger objects are involved, the soft gripper 30 can also be of an isosceles trapezoidal structure, and the corresponding spiral channels 35 can be of a rectangular spiral structure or an isosceles trapezoidal spiral structure that is adapted to the isosceles trapezoidal structure. This structure can increase the length of the straight segments that are perpendicular to the direction of the magnetic field, thereby increasing the Lorentz force and further improving the bending deformation efficiency.

[0052] In some embodiments, the soft gripper 30 can have the structure shown in Figure 5 . Referring to Figure 5 , an intermediate thermal insulation layer 38 is provided between the two spiral channels 35.

[0053] Since the liquid metal 36 generates Joule heat during power supply, the intermediate thermal insulation layer 38 separates the Joule heat of the liquid metal 36 as much as possible, reduces the heat transfer to the low-melting alloy 37 side, reduces the thermal influence on the cooling of the low-melting alloy, and further ensures that the low-melting alloy 37 can be cooled and solidified in time.

[0054] For further understanding, the soft gripper 30 mentioned in the embodiment can include a first carrier layer 31 with a first spiral flow channel, an intermediate thermal insulation layer 38, a second carrier layer 32 with a second spiral flow channel, and a lead electrode 33 as an electrical connection part. The first carrier layer 31 and the second carrier layer 32 can sandwich the intermediate thermal insulation layer 38 therebetween, and the three are integrally connected by an adhesive, and finally the first spiral flow channel and the second spiral flow channel form spiral channels 35 on both sides of the intermediate thermal insulation layer 38. At the same time, two lead electrodes 33 can be respectively arranged outside the first carrier layer 31 and the second carrier layer 32, and conductive bodies 34 inside the lead electrodes 33 are respectively connected with the fillers inside the two spiral channels 35 to form a conductive circuit.

[0055] The first carrier layer 31, the second carrier layer 32, and the lead electrode 33 can all be silica gel materials, and the intermediate thermal insulation layer 38 can be a mixture of silica gel and hollow glass microbeads.

[0056] In some embodiments, the soft gripper 30 described above can adopt a structure as shown in Figures 1 to 3 Referring to Figures 1 to 3 , a grabbing space is formed between each soft gripper 30. The spiral channel 35 in which the low-melting alloy 37 is located in each soft gripper 30 is arranged close to the grabbing space.

[0057] The spiral channel 35 in which the low-melting alloy 37 is located is close to the grabbing space, which can ensure that after the object is grabbed, it can be close to the object, absorb the cold on the object, and realize rapid heat exchange with the object, thereby accelerating solidification. At the same time, this structure can also ensure the stability of clamping the object.

[0058] In some embodiments, referring to Figure 4 , a plurality of connection structures 40 are fixedly arranged on the base 10, and each connection structure 40 corresponds to each soft gripper 30. Each connection structure 40 has a clamping position for one end of the corresponding soft gripper 30 to extend into.

[0059] The connection structure 40 mainly ensures the fixed clamping of the soft gripper 30, and fixes the soft gripper 30 on the base 10. Since the soft gripper 30 is a sheet-shaped structure, the soft gripper 30 can be effectively fixed and clamped through the clamping position.

[0060] It needs to be explained that when the soft gripper 30 extends to the clamping position, part of the spiral channel 35 needs to be ensured to enter the clamping position, so that the low-melting alloy 37 can form a rigid fixation after solidification.

[0061] As a specific embodiment of the connecting structure 40 in the embodiment, each connecting structure 40 can include a fixed lug 41, a clamping plate 42, and a fastener 43. The fixed lug 41 is provided with two, both of which are fixedly arranged on the base 10 and are spaced apart. The clamping plate 42 is provided with two, which are arranged in parallel and spaced apart, and the two clamping plates 42 clamp the two fixed lugs 41 therebetween, forming a clamping position between the two clamping plates 42. The fastener 43 is provided with two, corresponding to the two fixed lugs 41 one by one. Each fastener 43 integrally connects the corresponding fixed lug 41 and one end of the two clamping plates 42. The fastener 43 can be a locking bolt.

[0062] Based on the same inventive concept, the embodiment of the present application also provides a soft robot, which includes the soft pick-and-place structure described above.

[0063] Compared with the prior art, the soft robot provided by the embodiment can realize the bending deformation of the soft gripper 30 only by the action of the magnetic field, without the need for additional guide structures outside the base 10 for assistance, thereby improving the adaptability and ensuring the adaptation to various task scenarios. Moreover, after the soft gripper 30 clamps the object, the shape of the soft gripper 30 can be maintained by the thrust generated by the electrified liquid metal 36 as the low-melting alloy 37 is de-energized and solidified, thereby further improving the adaptability. In addition, the coordination of the liquid metal 36 and the low-melting alloy 37 can correspondingly reduce the cross-sectional area of the low-melting alloy 37, thereby reducing the volume of the low-melting alloy 37, which can to some extent shorten the melting time and cooling time of the low-melting alloy 37, thereby improving the work efficiency.

[0064] Based on the same inventive concept, the present application also provides a preparation method of a soft gripper, which can be seen from Figure 6 , which can manufacture the soft pick-and-place structure described above; wherein the soft gripper 30 in the soft pick-and-place structure comprises the following steps:

[0065] S100 design the split structure of the soft gripper 30: the soft gripper 30 is designed as a split structure with a first spiral flow channel of a first carrier layer 31, an intermediate thermal insulation layer 38, a second spiral flow channel of a second carrier layer 32, and an extraction electrode 33 as an electrical connection part.

[0066] S200 manufacture the forming mold: the forming mold of the first carrier layer 31, the intermediate thermal insulation layer 38, the second carrier layer 32, and the extraction electrode 33 is printed by 3D printing.

[0067] S300 respectively pouring the split structure of the soft gripper 30: mix Ecoflex0030 silicone A, B in a ratio of 1:1 and stir for 3 minutes, then vacuum pump to degas for 5 minutes, and then pour into the forming mold of the first carrier layer 31, the second carrier layer 32 and the lead electrode 33. Remove the excess silicone with a scraping template. After curing at room temperature for 4 hours, demold to prepare the first carrier layer 31, the second carrier layer 32 and the lead electrode 33. Dry the hollow glass beads in an oven at 120°C for 4 hours to remove surface moisture. At the same time, mix Ecoflex0030 silicone A and B in a mass ratio of 1:1.2, then mix with the treated hollow glass beads in a mass ratio of 5:1, stir at low speed for 30 minutes, then vacuum pump to degas for 5 minutes, pour into the middle thermal insulation layer 38 forming mold, remove the excess silicone with a scraping template, and demold after curing at room temperature for 4 hours to prepare the middle thermal insulation layer 38.

[0068] S400 bonding the split structure of the soft gripper 30: use silicone adhesive to bond and package the front surface of the first carrier layer 31 and the middle thermal insulation layer 38, forming a spiral channel 35 on the front surface of the middle thermal insulation layer 38. Bond and package the back surface of the second carrier layer 32 and the middle thermal insulation layer 38, forming another spiral channel 35 on the back surface of the middle thermal insulation layer 38. After the silicone adhesive is cured, bond and package the two lead electrodes 33 with the first carrier layer 31 and the second carrier layer 32 respectively, and at the same time, make the two electrical connection ports of each lead electrode 33 adapt to the two end portions of the corresponding spiral channel 35.

[0069] S500 injecting fillers and perfecting the lead electrode 33: inject liquid metal 36 and low-melting-point alloy 37 into the two spiral channels 35 respectively, and insert the conductor 34 into the electrical connection port of the lead electrode 33.

[0070] The preparation method of the soft gripper provided in the embodiment compared with the prior art, the soft gripper 30 is set as a split combined structure, and the first carrier layer 31, the middle thermal insulation layer 38 and the second carrier layer 32 are all based on silicone, which adopts economical and efficient injection molding and bonding method, which can facilitate production and effectively ensure the generation of reliable rectangular spiral flow channels and achieve higher driving current.

[0071] As a specific implementation of step S500:

[0072] Filling of liquid metal 36: The soft gripper 30 is adhesively packaged, and a syringe is used to extract an appropriate amount of liquid metal 36 through the start of the helical channel 35 corresponding to one of the lead electrodes 33. Another syringe is used to extract air at the end of the channel. The injection and extraction are performed simultaneously, and the syringe is removed after the liquid metal 36 fills the entire helical channel 35. Subsequently, the conductive body 34 is inserted into the two ends of the helical channel 35 through the lead electrodes 33, and is electrically connected to the liquid metal 36.

[0073] Filling of low-melting alloy 37: An appropriate amount of solid low-melting alloy 37 is placed in a container, and is heated to 60°C on a heating table to melt it into a liquid state. The soft gripper 30 is adhesively packaged, and a syringe is used to extract an appropriate amount of liquid low-melting alloy 37 through the start of the helical channel 35 corresponding to one of the lead electrodes 33. Another syringe is used to extract air at the end of the channel. The injection and extraction are performed simultaneously, and the syringe is removed after the liquid low-melting alloy 37 fills the entire channel. Subsequently, the conductive body 34 is inserted into the two ends of the helical channel 35 through the lead electrodes 33, and is electrically connected to the low-melting alloy 37.

[0074] It should be noted that the lead electrode 33 and the conductive body 34 inside it form an electrical connection part.

[0075] The above description is only the preferred embodiment of the present application, and is not intended to limit the present application. Any modification, equivalent replacement, and improvement within the spirit and principle of the present application should be included in the protection scope of the present application.

Claims

1. A soft-access structure, characterized in that, include: A base, on which a permanent magnet for providing a magnetic field is provided; A plurality of soft grippers are provided, each arranged in a ring at intervals on the base and corresponding to the permanent magnet; each soft gripper has two parallel spiral channels inside, the two spiral channels being filled respectively with liquid metal that is liquid at room temperature and low-melting-point alloy that is solid at room temperature; each spiral channel has an electrical connection at both ends; a heat insulation layer is provided between the two spiral channels; In this process, the low-melting-point alloy melts into a liquid state through the Joule heating effect after an electric current is passed through it; each of the soft grippers uses the Lorentz force formed in the liquid metal and the low-melting-point alloy to perform relative bending deformation to grip or release objects by bending deformation in opposite directions; during the solidification process of the low-melting-point alloy, the Lorentz force formed in the liquid metal maintains the shape of the soft gripper.

2. The software pick-and-place structure as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The liquid metal is a gallium-indium-tin alloy that is liquid at room temperature.

3. The soft loading and unloading structure as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The low-melting-point alloy is a bismuth-lead-indium-tin-cadmium alloy that is solid at room temperature.

4. The soft loading and unloading structure as described in any one of claims 1-3, characterized in that, Each of the spiral channels described is a rectangular spiral structure.

5. The soft loading and unloading structure as described in claim 1, characterized in that, A grasping space is formed between each of the soft grippers; the spiral channel containing the low-melting-point alloy in each soft gripper is positioned close to the grasping space.

6. The soft loading and unloading structure as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The base is fixed with a plurality of connecting structures, each of which corresponds one-to-one with each of the soft grippers; each of the connecting structures has a clamping position into which one end of the corresponding soft gripper extends.

7. A soft robot, characterized in that, Includes the software pick-and-place structure as described in any one of claims 1-6.

8. A method for preparing a soft gripper, characterized in that, For fabricating a soft pick-and-place structure as described in any one of claims 1-6; wherein, the soft gripper fabrication step in the soft pick-and-place structure includes: The soft gripper is designed as a split structure consisting of a first carrier layer with a first spiral flow channel, an intermediate heat insulation layer, a second carrier layer with a second spiral flow channel, and lead-out electrodes as electrical connection parts. The molding molds for the first carrier layer, the intermediate heat insulation layer, the second carrier layer, and the lead-out electrode are printed using 3D printing. Ecoflex 0030 silicone A and B were mixed in a 1:1 ratio and stirred for 3 minutes. After degassing by vacuum pumping for 5 minutes, the mixture was poured into the molding molds of the first carrier layer, the second carrier layer, and the lead-out electrode, respectively. After curing at room temperature for 4 hours, the mixture was demolded to prepare the first carrier layer, the second carrier layer, and the lead-out electrode. Hollow glass microspheres were dried in a 120°C oven for 4 hours to remove surface moisture. Meanwhile, Ecoflex 0030 silicone A and B were mixed in a 1:1.2 mass ratio and stirred rapidly. This mixture was then mixed with the treated hollow glass microspheres in a 5:1 mass ratio. After stirring at low speed for 30 minutes, the mixture was degassed by vacuum pumping for 5 minutes. The mixture was poured into the molding mold of the intermediate heat insulation layer and cured at room temperature for 4 hours before demolding to prepare the intermediate heat insulation layer. The first carrier layer is bonded and encapsulated to the front side of the intermediate heat insulation layer using silicone adhesive, forming a spiral channel on the front side of the intermediate heat insulation layer; then the second carrier layer is bonded and encapsulated to the back side of the intermediate heat insulation layer, forming another spiral channel on the back side of the intermediate heat insulation layer; after the silicone adhesive cures, the two lead-out electrodes are bonded and encapsulated to the first carrier layer and the second carrier layer respectively, while the two electrical connection ports of each lead-out electrode are respectively adapted to the two ends of the spiral channel. Liquid metal and low-melting-point alloy are injected into the two spiral channels respectively, and a conductor is inserted into the electrical connection port of the lead-out electrode.

Images