Tri Gripper

The next version of the soft robot actuators can grab things, and the tri gripper is even powerful enough to crawl! While the dual gripper is printed the same way as the waving hand, with a sliding rack and pinion, the tri gripper works a bit different. The cables are directly attached to the servo rolls the wires up. This rotating movement causes a lot of stress for the wires. Some adjustments to the roll-up attachment helped to reduce the stress, but the lifespan is still quite low.

Tri gripper close up: cables are already damaged

Dual Gripper

The dual gripper works like a charm and is quite powerful. Thanks to the linear actuator, it´s a lot more durable than the tri gripper. But there could some enhancements made regarding the release angle and grip profile, especially regarding small round parts.

What's next?

Next challenge will be something that walks/crawls, I want to use as few motors as possible to achieve that, but im unsure how will work in the ende, so any inspiration or tip is very welcome! But for the next two weeks priority will be on the printer again, there are some great updates which i can´t wait to share!