This Robotic Gripper Wraps Around Objects Like An Elephant Trunk

Apart from strong, powerful robots that can handle heavy-duty tasks for humans, soft robots have been rising rapidly as they offer unmatched flexibility for delicate jobs. We have learned about soft robots that mimic the squid that can swim on their own. And now, engineering researchers have built a tongue-like robot that’s inspired by the elephant trunk with the ability to grab around objects like a snake.

Biomimicry is an engineering approach that takes inspiration from nature rather than the conventional approach. Nature has had millions of years to perfect designs through gradual adaptation as well as evolution, which led to animal and plant life that’s suited to the landscapes and terrain on Earth. It’s the reason why Boston Robotics developed Spot, a robot that looks and functions like a real dog, while Atlas designed robots that can parkour like humans.

This is also the case for researchers from the University of New South Wales, who were inspired by animals like elephants and snakes to develop a flexible robotic gripper that can wrap around objects and securely hold, lift them, but doesn’t cause any harm to the object. The elephant trunk can have up to 40,000 muscles that allow the elephant to control it with surprising dexterity along with millions of nerve endings so that it can feel what it’s wrapping to determine how much pressure needed.

The gripper doesn’t have muscles like the elephant trunk but it’s made of materials that can change structures between rigid and flexible corresponding to cooling and heating. The gripper features layering fabrics that have different properties sensitive to heat, helping it coil up.

In addition, there is a real-time sensor with a sensitivity 15 times greater than that of previous techs, from which the robot can figure out when it needs to apply a gentle grasp. This gripper is a good example of biomimicry, but it could also be an alternative to traditional grippers mimicking the human hand with multiple fingers bending with much less mobility.

This gripper can wrap an object completely with improved surface contact and holding force, making it harder to accidentally drop an object underweight. With this design, the gripper can also wrap objects from hard-to-reach positions. Even better, if researchers can miniaturize this tech, it may also be used in non-invasive medical procedures.

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