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A Universal Soft Gripper with the Optimized Fin Ray Finger

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Abstract

This paper presents a soft gripper that improves on the Fin Ray finger for enhanced gripping capability; it can be used to transfer workpieces in manufacturing processes. A system that can switch between parallel and centric grips was designed and fabricated to extend the working geometry. The structure of the finger was investigated through simulation, and friction pads were designed to improve the gripping force. In the simulation, the effect of each individual structural parameter was analyzed, to optimize the geometry to provide the largest gripping force without losing the advantage of flexible deformation. To verify the enhanced gripping capabilities of three gripping methods, the maximum mass of workpieces that could be gripped was measured. The geometry of the objects that could be gripped was also investigated. The modified gripper significantly improved the gripping weight by a factor of approximately 4–5 compared to the original finger structure, and was able to grip various workpieces, including one with an aspect ratio exceeding 10. The advantages and disadvantages of the friction pad for the different gripping methods were discussed for further improvements.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) grant funded by the Korean government (Ministry of Science and ICT) (No. NRF-2018R1C1B5085752), 2020 Korea Aerospace University Faculty Research grant, and the Brain Korea 21 FOUR program (No. 5199990714521) at Korea Aerospace University.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering, Korea Aerospace University, 76 Hanggongdaehak-ro, Deogyang-gu, Goyang-si, 10540, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea

    Ji Hyeon Shin, Jong Geon Park, Dong Il Kim & Hae Sung Yoon

  2. Department of Smart Drone Convergence, Korea Aerospace University, 76 Hanggongdaehak-ro, Deogyang-gu, Goyang-si, 10540, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea

    Hae Sung Yoon

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  1. Ji Hyeon Shin
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  2. Jong Geon Park
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Correspondence to Hae Sung Yoon.

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Shin, J.H., Park, J.G., Kim, D.I. et al. A Universal Soft Gripper with the Optimized Fin Ray Finger. Int. J. of Precis. Eng. and Manuf.-Green Tech. 8, 889–899 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40684-021-00348-1

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