All natural movements tell a story of adaptation and efficiency, whether these are the precise finger movements of a pianist, the skilful catching techniques of a chameleon or the powerful plucking ability of an elephant's trunk. Over the years, our bionics team has developed a large number of bionic grippers and pneumatic lightweight robot arms, all of which can effortlessly execute the flowing motion sequences of their natural counterparts. Click through our bionic concepts that provideinspiration for our core business of automation technology.
Gripping has always played an important role in the Bionic Learning Network. Nature is often a source of amazing ideas and new solutions for industrial applications. Numerous bionic gripping applications have already been developed as part of the network’s interdisciplinary research work, and this has led to two concepts being developed into series products.
Adaptive shape gripper DHEF: adaptable like a chameleon’s tongue
Adaptive shape gripper DHEF is a further development of the FlexShapeGripper. Its operating principle is based on the tongue of the chameleon. In order to catch prey, the animal lets its tongue shoot out like a rubber band. Just before the tip of its tongue reaches the insect, it retracts in the middle, while the edges continue to move forwards. This allows the tongue to adapt to the shape and size of the prey and firmly wrap itself around it.
The central element of the gripper is a silicone cap, which is modelled on the chameleon’s tongue, and is filled with slight excess pressure. It wraps itself tightly and flexibly around the item being gripped, and enables it to be enclosed and held. It can even pick up several items at once, such as screws from a bowl, with proportional valves providing the appropriate actuation.
Adaptive gripper finger DHAS: inspired by a fish's fin
Adaptive gripper finger DHAS is based on the amazing capabilities of a fish's tail fin. If you press sideways against the fin, it does not bend away, but curves around the pressure point. The developers have incorporated this so-called FinRay Effect® into their technical design by using two flexible polyurethane strips that are connected by ribs.
Whether arranged in parallel or centrally, the stable yet flexible gripper fingers easily adapt to the contour of a workpiece when gripping. This enables the sensitive objects with irregular surfaces to be gripped gently and reliably. The DHAS is already being used in the food industry, for example to sort fruit and vegetables.