Sensor-embedded robotic hands ‘offer extra dexterity’

Future generations of robotic arms could offer greater dexterity through the implementation of embedded sensor technology.

Carnegie Mellon University researchers have developed a three-fingered soft robotic hand with multiple fibre optic sensors embedded into the fingers, as well as a new type of stretchable optical sensor to be used in future iterations.

Thanks to the fibre optics technology, the hand has the ability to determine where its fingertips are in contact and detect forces of less than a tenth of a newton.

When the stretchable optical sensing material is incorporated, it could be used to create a robotic skin that provides even more feedback.

Such an innovation could be vital in future efforts to create soft robots that can interact routinely and safely with humans, allowing them to be used in healthcare applications, rather than being restricted to industrial applications.

Yong-Lae Park, assistant professor of robotics at Carnegie Mellon University, said: "If you want robots to work autonomously and to react safely to unexpected forces in everyday environments, you need robotic hands that have more sensors than is typical today."