Soft Manipulators and Grippers: A Review

Abstract

Soft robotics is a growing area of research which utilizes the compliance and adaptability of soft structures to develop highly adaptive robotics for soft interactions. One area in which soft robotics has the ability to make significant impact is in the development of soft grippers and manipulators. With an increased requirement for automation, robotics systems are required to perform task in unstructured and not well defined environments; conditions which conventional rigid robotics are not best suited. This requires a paradigm shift in the methods and materials used to develop robots such that they can adapt to and work safely in human environments. One solution to this is soft robotics, which enables soft interactions with the surroundings while maintaining the ability to apply significant force. This review paper assesses the current materials and methods, actuation methods and sensors which are used in the development of soft manipulators. The achievements and shortcomings of recent technology in these key areas are evaluated, and this paper concludes with a discussion on the potential impacts of soft manipulators on industry and society.

Compliant electric actuators based on handed shearing auxetics

“…Fluid driven actuators, specifically pneumatic [4,5], vacuum [5,6] and hydraulic [5,7] actuators, are the most common approaches for creating compliant soft robots [1,8]. The pneunet actuators were among the first developed for soft robotics [1].…”

An anthropomorphic soft skeleton hand exploiting conditional models for piano playing

“…However, the inherent flexibility of soft materials can result in behaviors that are ill defined and highly variable. A key challenge, therefore, is controlling the mechanical compliance when using softer materials (36,37). This has been demonstrated with soft robots by using variable stiffness materials to achieve a range of movements and to modulate interactions with the environment (38)(39)(40).…”

Soft, Rotating Pneumatic Actuator

“…[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19] Hard actuators, for example, are superior when high force, accuracy of positioning, repeatability, and speed of actuation are required. Soft actuators are more directly compatible with tasks requiring delicacy, adaptability, collaborativity (meaning the ability to operate safely with humans), resistance to damage by impact, and light weight.…”