Towards Very Low-Cost Iterative Prototyping for Fully Printable Dexterous Soft Robotic Hands

Abstract

The design and fabrication of soft robot hands is still a time-consuming and difficult process. Advances in rapid prototyping have significantly accelerated the fabrication process while introducing new complexities into the design process. In this work, we present an approach that utilizes novel low-cost fabrication techniques in conjunction with design tools to help soft hand designers systematically take advantage of multi-material 3D printing to create dexterous soft robotic hands. While very low-cost and lightweight, we show that generated designs are highly durable, surprisingly strong, and capable of dexterous grasping.