Soft Robotic Grippers With User-Assisted Control for Adaptive Picking
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional robotic grippers are expensive, inflexible, and incapable of handling objects of varying weights, sizes, and shapes, making them unsuitable for environments with uncertainty and diversity in object characteristics.
Innovation Solution
The development of soft robotic actuators made from elastomeric materials, such as rubber or thin plastic, which are inflatable with fluids to change shape and conform to objects, allowing for adaptive grasping and motion capabilities, along with a user-assisted control system that includes modular grippers and advanced user interfaces for efficient robotic control.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If conventional robotic grippers are used, then structural strength and precision are improved, but adaptability and cost are worsened
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs soft robotic actuators constructed from flexible elastomeric materials that can deform and conform to objects of varying shapes, sizes, and weights. These flexible shells replace rigid gripper structures, enabling adaptive grasping while maintaining sufficient structural integrity through material selection and actuator design.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent utilizes pneumatic or hydraulic actuation to dynamically change the physical parameters of the soft actuators, including volume, pressure, and shape. By controlling fluid injection and extraction, the system can adapt the gripper's configuration in real-time to match different object characteristics, resolving the contradiction between structural rigidity and adaptability.
2Adaptability or versatility
If soft robotic actuators are used, then adaptability and cost are improved, but manufacturing precision is worsened
Solution Approach 1:
The patent incorporates sensors and control systems that provide real-time feedback on actuator deformation and object contact forces. This feedback loop enables closed-loop control, compensating for the inherent flexibility of soft materials and achieving precise shape control and positioning despite the soft actuators' compliance.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces traditional rigid mechanical linkages and joints with pneumatic or hydraulic fluid systems to control actuator deformation. This substitution allows for smoother, more continuous shape control and reduces the need for precise mechanical tolerances, as fluid pressure can be controlled with high resolution.
3Extent of automation
If conventional robotic systems are used, then automation level is improved, but ease of operation is worsened
Solution Approach 1:
The patent pre-configures the soft robotic actuators with embedded sensors, fluid channels, and control electronics during manufacturing. This preliminary integration of components simplifies system assembly and operation, as the actuators arrive as ready-to-deploy modules requiring minimal configuration or calibration.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent designs universal soft actuator modules that can perform multiple functions through software control and configuration. A single actuator type can be programmed to execute different grasping patterns, force profiles, and motion sequences, reducing the need for specialized hardware for each task and simplifying system operation.
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
Soft robotic actuators provide a cost-effective, adaptable, and safe solution for handling diverse objects without damage, while the user-assisted control system enhances the efficiency and flexibility of robotic operations in various applications, including warehouse management and recycling.
Implementation Method 1
soft robotic actuators made from elastomeric materials, such as rubber or thin plastic, which are inflatable with fluids to change shape and conform to objects
Data Source
AI summary
Exemplary embodiments relate to user-assisted robotic control systems, user interfaces for remote control of robotic systems, vision systems in robotic control systems, and modular grippers for use by robotic systems. Systems, methods, apparatuses and computer-readable media instructions are disclosed for interactions with and control of robotic systems, in particular, pick and place systems using soft robotic actuators to grasp, move and release target objects.