Robotic Hands Move from Lab to Factory
The problem: Many industrial and complex tasks—from delicate medical procedures to precise manufacturing assembly—require the dexterity and nuance of a human hand. Current robots often lack the fine motor skills and precision needed for these jobs, creating a critical gap in automation for essential industrial tasks.
The solution: A new National Science Foundation grant worth up to $5 million will support a collaborative team of researchers from Carnegie Mellon University, the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and the University of Houston working to close this gap.
- Their Altus Dexterity team designs and refines robotic hands based on years of study into how people use their hands. This work, accelerated by the NSF Convergence Accelerator program, is now moving beyond prototypes.
The impact: The CMU team has launched a startup, FuturHand Robotics Inc, to deploy and test these highly capable robotic hands in real-world environments. The NSF Convergence Accelerator program provided the research team with intensive curriculum and training in sales, product development, and business management.
- The robotic hands will be piloted in Bosch factories for complex tasks like cable plug insertion and handling.
- Future applications include agriculture and delicate medical fields where human-like precision is essential. Continued development in manufacturing remains a priority as these tools provide opportunities to onshore American manufacturing, foster job creation and expand production capabilities.
Go deeper: Dexterous Robots Move From Labs to Industry With NSF Support