Washington, July 28: European researchers have created a robotic hand that mimics the flexibility and sensitivity of a human hand, and is controlled by a neural-network-based program modelled on the cerebelloum.
The hand developed as part of the research project Sensopac — being run by 12 groups — can grasp an egg, snap its fingers, and carry coffee.
Experts at the German Aerospace Centre (DLR) have revealed that they made a robotic "skin" out of a thin, flexible carbon that changes its resistance depending on pressure.
According to them, this enabled the robot hand to tell the shapes of an object, the amount of force placed upon it, and the direction of that force.
The researcher say that there are 38 opposing motors that control the hand's joints, giving it a touch that ranges from light to forceful.
To model the robot hand, the researchers utilised hundreds of MRI images of human hands.
Bureau Report
First Published: Monday, July 28, 2008, 00:00