CLASH-A Compliant Sensorized Hand for Handling Delicate Objects.

Area of Science:

• Robotics
• Automation
• Mechatronics

Background:

• Automating logistic tasks like object picking and placing is crucial.
• Handling delicate items such as fruits and vegetables presents significant challenges in robotics.

Purpose of the Study:

• To present the CLASH (Compliant Low-Cost Antagonistic Servo Hand), a novel robotic hand designed for grocery handling.
• To highlight its variable stiffness, modular design, and self-checking features for improved robustness.

Main Methods:

• Designed a robotic hand with kinematics specifically for grocery handling.
• Implemented differentially coupled flexors for underactuated and variable stiffness actuation.
• Incorporated self-checking and logging processes for enhanced performance.
• Conducted impact tests and standardized fruit benchmarking tests to evaluate robustness and failure compensation.

Main Results:

• The CLASH hand demonstrates variable stiffness, enabling it to withstand collisions and adapt to object weight.
• The modular design utilizes low-cost, off-the-shelf components.
• The hand successfully compensated for simulated actuator and sensor failures during tests.
• Its design supports both model-based and model-free grasping strategies.

Conclusions:

• The CLASH hand offers a robust, adaptable, and cost-effective solution for robotic grocery handling.
• Its variable stiffness and autonomous failure compensation mechanisms are key innovations.
• The hand is suitable for diverse grasping tasks in logistics and warehousing.