Master-Slave Control of the Robotic Hand Driven by Tendon-Sheath Transmission

Abstract

A robotic hand with 19 joints is designed to make the mechanical hand lighter and more anthropomorphic. Inspired by the human flexor tendon and sheath, tendon-sheath transmission is applied to drive the finger joint, which decouples the motion of the joints and achieves the postposition of the drive motor. The configuration of the robotic hand is determined by referring to the joints of a human hand; furthermore, a joint mechanism and a drive structure are designed. The flex sensor and the changeable proportion mapping algorithm are applied, and the tracking control of grasping is achieved. Finally, a mechanical hand prototype is built to conduct gesture experiments and grasping control experiments. According to the experimental results, the designed hand has high motion flexibility, and the cooperation of the fingers achieves the effective grasping of various objects. The application of tendon-sheath transmission to the mechanical hand is feasible, and the research context has certain theoretical value and practical significance for the technical development and social application of anthropomorphic multijoint robotic hands.