Robotics Researchers from the University of Maryland have created a soft robot hand printed 3D. One of the biggest problems with robot hands so far is that they don’t have the dexterity needed to do some tasks. The researchers have made a soft robot hand that is quite agile to play the Nintendo Super Mario Bros. video game. and win.
Soft robotics are fields that create inflatable robots that are flexible and powered by water or air instead of electricity. The soft robot is a very significant field of study because they have the ability of safety and adapting abilities that are attached to making them very interesting for applications, including prosthetics and biomedical devices. One of the main challenges for researchers in the field has controlled the liquid needed for soft robots for their motion. However, the team has now made a breakthrough with the ability to print a soft 3D robot assembled with an integrated fluid circuit using one step.
Previously each soft robot finger needed to have its own control line, limiting portability and usability. Utilizing 3D printing allows researchers to make soft robot hands with integrated fluid transistors that can play Nintendo based on one pressure input. The team’s demonstration is an integrated fluid circuit that allows hands to operate in response to single control input strength.
Low pressure causes the finger to press the Nintendo controller to make Mario run, while higher pressure causes the character to jump. The program that independently switches between off, low, medium, and high pressure allows a hand robot to complete the first level of video games in less than 90 seconds.
To overcome the previous obstacles in utilizing the fluidic circuit, the team uses Polyjet 3D printing, equated using a color printer, but with many multi-material ink layers stacked on top of each other. Within a day, with minimal labor, researchers can go from pressing starting on a 3D printer to have a complete soft robot including all soft actuators, fluidic circuit elements, and body features.
