Grasp-state plane analysis of two-phalanx underactuated fingers (Q2495867)

The analysis and control of under-actuated robotic hands (the number of actuators is smaller than the number of degrees of freedom), first developed by the first author in his PhD thesis (University Laval, Quebec, Canada, October 2004), are extended and earlier results are sharpened. It is shown that it is impossible for under-actuated fingers to always apply forces to an object seized with both phalanges. To assure a stable grasp, ejection must be prevented. The authors present a method to establish the equilibrium and trajectories for any under-actuated finger. The refined model of the grasp-state representation allows to predict the finger behaviour and to ensure the grasp stability, which has to be considered in designing under-actuated fingers. The detailed discussion of the grasp state for the two-phalanges case will be extended to the three-phalanges grasp space in a paper soon to be published in the J. of Mech. Design, 2006.