Robots are slowly being integrated into our daily lives. Some of them have become healthcare workers, warehouse staff, and even restaurant chefs. As the field advances further, researchers are now keen on making future robots more humane by understanding the feeling of touch.
A group of experts hopes to usher in a new era of robotics featuring fabricated muscles, sensory skins, and artificial neurons manufactured on flexible materials to equip robots with the sense of touch, according to a press release on Friday, Jan. 27.
PowerOn
The outcomes of interdisciplinary research undertaken by the Dresden University of Technology (TU Dresden) in Germany and the University of Auckland in New Zealand are utilized by the new startup PowerOn.
As part of a Marie Curie Fellowship granted by the European Commission, the team investigated the theoretical underpinnings of multifunctional dielectric elastomers used in soft robotics.
The PowerON team hopes to significantly increase the fields of application for industrial robots with its first product, which is a sensory fingertip. The robot grippers are designed to complete delicate tasks in several fields.
The grippers may be helpful for handling delicate items such as eggs or test tubes, removing rubber goods from injection molds, and gathering produce. They may even be employed at home and in the healthcare sector.
It may also bridge the gaps of labor shortage by using robotic grippers to complete repetitive tasks.
Although no specific date was given, the initial practical tests of the product will commence in the upcoming weeks, as per the startup's press release.
Robotic Gripper
The startup claims that they were already able to demonstrate the interplay of manufactured muscles, artificial neurons, and touch-sensitive skin. The robotic gripper is solely propelled by artificial muscles that are also managed by artificial neurons.
The gripper is a 3D-printed item made of flexible materials; it lacks conventional joints and has a haptic skin that detects how and where an object is grasped.
PowerON and TU Dresden collaborate closely on the robotic gripper. They are also a partner on the extensive research project "6G-life."
"This partnership is a testament to the cooperation potential between science and industry and how such collaborative projects can contribute to quickly transferring scientific findings into commercial products," Andreas Richter, Chair of Microsystems and Director of the Institute of Semiconductors and Microsystems in Tu Dresden, said in a statement.
Dr. Markus Henke, CEO of PowerON, said that there is a significant upward trend in automation in virtually all sectors of the industry and they hope to further this trend with the introduction of robots equipped with the sense of touch.
The demonstration of the robots was first shown at SAXONY! TechTalks on Dec. 6, 2022. You can watch the robot in motion through the YouTube video below.
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