Compliant underactuated grasper

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-8991885-B2
Application number	US-201313833631-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Mar 15, 2013
Priority date	Nov 9, 2012
Publication date	Mar 31, 2015
Grant date	Mar 31, 2015

Abstract

A compliant underactuated grasper includes a base and a plurality of fingers. At least one of the plurality of fingers includes: a proximal phalanx; a proximal joint connecting the proximal phalanx to the base; a distal phalanx; a distal joint connecting the distal phalanx to the proximal phalanx; and a member for moving the phalanges. At least one of the proximal joint and the distal joint includes a flexure joint having a first compliance in a first direction and a second compliance in a second direction, the second compliance being stiffer than the first compliance. The distal phalanx includes: a rounded end face; and a lifting portion including a lifting edge adjacent the rounded end face. The member acts in parallel to the first direction. The grasper further includes at least one actuator associated with the member. The grasper has fewer actuators than degrees of freedom.

First claim

That which is claimed is:

1. A compliant underactuated grasper comprising:
a base;
a plurality of fingers, at least one of the plurality of fingers comprising:
a proximal phalanx;
a proximal joint connecting the proximal phalanx to the base;
a distal phalanx;
a distal joint connecting the distal phalanx to the proximal phalanx; and
a member for moving the phalanges;
wherein at least one of the proximal joint and the distal joint includes a flexure joint, the flexure j…

Assignees

• Irobot Corp

Inventors

• Claffee Mark
• Corson Nicholas Roy

Classifications

• Y10S901/39

  Cross-Sectional Technologies · mapped topic

• B25J9/0015

  Operations & Transport · mapped topic

• Y10S901/31

  Cross-Sectional Technologies · mapped topic

• B25J9/104

  Operations & Transport · mapped topic

• B25J15/0475

  Operations & Transport · mapped topic