Towards behavior design of a 3D-printed soft robotic hand

Abstract

This work presents an approach to integrate actuators, sensors, and structural components into a single product that is 3D printed using Selective Laser Sintering. The behavior of actuators, sensors, and structural components is customized to desired functions within the product. Our approach is demonstrated by the realization of human-like behavior in a 3D-printed soft robotic hand. This work describes the first steps towards creating the desired behavior by means of modeling specific volumes within the product using Additive Manufacturing. Our work shows that it is not necessary to limit the design of a soft robotic product to only integrating off-the-shelf components but instead we deeply embedded the design of the required behavior in the process of designing the actuators, sensors, and structural components.