Robotic Arm Roller Gripper for Contamination-Resistant Sample Handling
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Solution Overview
Problem
Traditional diagnostic testing methods face challenges such as sample contamination, human error, and operational inefficiencies, leading to inaccurate results and increased healthcare costs, particularly due to manual handling of diagnostic samples.
Innovation Solution
A robotic arm with a gripping mechanism featuring adjustable gripping arms, rollers, compression springs, and an actuator for precise handling and transportation of diagnostic samples, minimizing contamination risks and enhancing operational efficiency.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If manual handling of diagnostic samples is used, then operational simplicity is maintained, but sample contamination and human error increase
Solution Approach 1:
The robotic arm system performs sample handling autonomously without requiring continuous human intervention. The gripper mechanism automatically grasps, transports, and releases samples based on programmed instructions, allowing the system to serve itself in completing diagnostic workflows while maintaining high reliability and reducing contamination risks.
Solution Approach 2:
Manual mechanical handling by human operators is replaced with an automated robotic mechanical system. The robotic arm with its controlled gripper mechanism substitutes human hands and manual procedures, eliminating human error and contamination while maintaining precise control over sample handling through automated mechanical operations.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If automated robotic handling is implemented, then contamination risk is reduced, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The robotic system is divided into distinct functional segments: the robotic arm for positioning, the gripper mechanism for grasping, and the roller components for sample support. This segmentation allows each component to be optimized for its specific function while working together as an integrated system, reducing overall complexity through modular design.
Solution Approach 2:
The gripper mechanism with adjustable rollers serves multiple functions: it can grasp samples of various sizes and shapes, provide support during transport, and release samples at destination. This multi-functionality reduces the need for multiple specialized components, thereby reducing device complexity while effectively preventing contamination through automated handling.
3Manufacturing precision
If adjustable gripping arms with multiple rollers are used, then sample handling precision is improved, but mechanism complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The gripping arms are designed to be adjustable rather than fixed, allowing dynamic adaptation to different sample sizes and shapes. The arms can be repositioned and the rollers adjusted to accommodate various diagnostic samples, providing precise positioning without requiring a completely different mechanism for each sample type, thus balancing precision with manageable complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The rollers serve as intermediary elements between the gripping arms and the samples. Instead of direct contact between the arms and samples, the rollers mediate the interaction, providing precise positioning and support while reducing the complexity of the direct gripping mechanism. This intermediary approach simplifies the overall design while maintaining high positioning precision.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The robotic arm ensures secure, precise handling of diagnostic samples, reducing contamination and human error, and optimizing sample processing time within automated diagnostic systems.
Implementation Method 1
a plurality of compression springs positioned between the first gripping arm and the second gripping arm
Implementation Method 2
The first gripping arm may have a first roller located at a first distal end of the gripping arm, and a second roller positioned at another location along the first gripping arm
Data Source
AI summary
A robotic assembly associated with gripping an object may determine, using an angle sensor, a relative position of a first gripping arm in relation to a second gripping arm of a robotic assembly. The robotic assembly may separate, using an actuator, the first gripping arm and the second gripping arm of the robotic assembly. The robotic assembly may position the gripping arms around an object, so the first gripping arm and second gripping arm accommodate the object. The robotic assembly may then join the first gripping arm and the second gripping arm until the first roller, second roller, and third roller are in contact with the object. The robotic assembly may apply pressure to the object using a plurality of compression springs between the first gripping arm and second gripping arm allowing the robotic assembly to grip the object.