The gripper is modelled on the complex kinematics of a bird’s beak. When applied to engineering, the bionic principle is called Watt’s linkage. This is implemented in the PowerGripper with the aid of two type DMSP-5 fluidic muscles.
The use of Watt’s linkage enables relatively large opening distances to be achieved in a very compact installation space. Due to the lightweight structure used, the very lightweight DMSP pneumatic muscles and a titanium alloy as material for the basic components, the gripper achieves a very good ratio between force and weight.
The lightweight structures on the inner and outer sides of the gripper are designed according to the direction of force flow on the component, and their shape can only be produced with selective laser melting. In this process, a laser beam melts the metal powder layer by layer. This results in unique design possibilities for form creation and individual 3D printing of complex products.
The PowerGripper is a university project within the Bionic Learning Network. Together with renowned educational institutions, institutes and development companies, we investigate the transfer of biological principles to technology in order to develop innovative solutions for industrial practice.
The PowerGripper concept was based on a lecture by Dr Martin Fischer, Professor of Special Zoology and Evolutionary Biology at Friedrich Schiller University Jena. In his lecture on the topic of gripping systems in biology, he dealt with the complex kinematics of a bird’s beak, which had previously been described by Dr Cornelius Schilling and Dr Klaus Zimmermann, both from the Technical University of Ilmenau, in 1994.