Research and design of a multi-fingered hand made of hyperelastic material

Purpose The purpose of this study is to provide a novel multi-fingered hand made of hyperelastic material. This kind of hand has the advantage of less mechanical parts, simpler control system. It can greatly cut down the complexity and cost of the hands under conditions of ensuring enough flexibility of grasping. Design/methodology/approach Based on the principle of virtual work, the equations of pulling force and grasping force are derived. To get the max grasping force, the optimal structural dimensions of the hand are obtained by finite element simulations. Hand’s grasping experiment is conducted. Findings The factors influencing grasping force and grasping stability are identified, and they are the length between short poles around the knuckles and the height of short poles. Experimental results show that the max strain of knuckles is less than the elastic limit of hyperelastic material, and the presented hand is practicable. The adaptive ability and grasping stability of the presented hand are demonstrated. Originality/value A novel multi-fingered hand made of hyperelastic material is presented in this paper. By designing the thickness of every section of a hyperelastic plate, the knuckle sections will bend and other sections of the plate will remain straight, and thus, the multi-fingered hand will grasp.