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A finger-inspired pneumatic network actuator based on rigid-flexible coupling structure for soft robotic grippers

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Abstract

Inspired by the morphology of human finger, this study proposed a pneumatic network actuator for soft robotics gripper with rigid-flexible coupling and stepped chamber structure to improve the grasp stability and strength under low air pressure. The actuator adopts a segmented structure and has two independent chambers that can be driven, respectively. The distal segment of the soft actuator adopted a stepped chamber structure with a varying height which mimicked the shape of a human fingertip like a cone to increase the contact area between the object and the soft actuator. The proximal segment of the soft actuator utilizes the rigid-flexible coupling structure which draws inspiration from the interlacing of the ligaments and bones of human finger to enhance the output force of existing pneumatic network actuators. First of all, the structure of the pneumatic network actuator, the distal segment, the proximal segment, and the restriction layer structure were designed through theoretical derivations and finite element simulations. The response surface methodology was then utilized to optimize the dimensional aspects of the soft actuator's structure to further improve the performance of the actuator. Then, a prototype was fabricated based on the optimization results, and experiments were performed to assess the bending angles and output forces, which can reach 244.26°and 3.25 N, respectively. Finally, utilizing the soft actuator, two-finger and three-finger grippers were assembled, which are able to effectively grasp various objects in different grasping modes. These grippers exhibit advantages such as a sufficiently large contact area, high output force, reliable grasping, strong adaptability, and a wide range of grasping capabilities.

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Acknowledgements

This research was supported by the Ministry of Education Joint Fund (8091B032250) the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (B230202011 and B230205024), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (51975184). The authors gratefully acknowledge the supports.

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Author notes

  1. Xiaofeng Yu and Dong Mei have contributed equally to this work.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Jiangsu Provincial Key Laboratory of Special Robot Technology, Hohai University, Changzhou Campus, Changzhou, 213022, China

    Xiaofeng Yu, Dong Mei, Jianfeng Wang, Gangqiang Tang, Lei He & Yanjie Wang

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  1. Xiaofeng Yu
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Correspondence to Yanjie Wang.

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Yu, X., Mei, D., Wang, J. et al. A finger-inspired pneumatic network actuator based on rigid-flexible coupling structure for soft robotic grippers. Intel Serv Robotics 17, 833–846 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11370-024-00543-4

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