Researchers Develop Detachable Crawling Robotic Hand

Source: Slashdot

Overview

Long‑time Slashdot reader fahrbot‑bot reports that researchers have developed a robotic hand capable of skittering on its fingertips, bending its fingers backward, connecting and disconnecting from a robotic arm (Nature article), and picking up and carrying one or more objects simultaneously.

The hand’s agility is demonstrated in a Science News article, which includes footage of the robotic arm re‑attaching to the skittering hand. The hand can hold objects against both sides of its palm at once and “can even unscrew the cap off a mustard bottle while holding the bottle in place.”

Capabilities

• Multi‑object handling – When attached to the mechanical arm, the hand can grasp objects much like a human hand: pinching a ball between two fingers, wrapping four fingers around a metal rod, and holding a flat disc between fingers and palm.
• Independent locomotion – Detached from the arm, the hand stabilises on four or five fingers, using one or two fingers for grabbing and carrying. In trials, the hand detached, used its fingers as legs to skitter to a wooden block, picked up the block with a single finger, and carried it back to the arm.
• Bidirectional finger movement – The fingers can bend backward, giving the hand unconventional postures not limited by human anatomy.

Potential Applications

• Industrial inspection – The crawling hand could navigate and inspect pipes and equipment too confined for a human or larger robot.
• Warehouse logistics – It may retrieve objects in tight storage areas.
• Disaster response – Its ability to move through confined spaces could aid in search‑and‑rescue operations.

Xiao Gao, a roboticist now at Wuhan University in China, suggests that the hand’s unique combination of locomotion and manipulation could make it valuable for these scenarios.