Looks like this product is called AmazingHand (and there are billions of "hand"s in the world), so the title might have some room for improvement as far as searchability goes.
This looks like a nice, approachable robotic model of a human hand that can be printed and experimented with.
But... is a human hand the best design for a robot to grip things with? Or could we surmise that the human hand evolved as a pretty good hand given the materials and senses that were available to evolve humans from, while in theory a totally different design might be optimal for gripping when constructed from metal, plastic, motors, etc.?
The bigger or biggest question is - how much weight it can lift? If we assume it can lift half a pound, then what changes it’d require to make it lift 10/20/30 pounds and so on?
Here is what I’m more keen on, rather than the human-like robots that we are all expecting. For instance, I would like a wall-mounted or floor-standing multi-arm robot that serves as a kitchen assistant. One can add or reduce arms as needed/desired. It is custom-equipped with a fire extinguisher, thermometer, and the usual must-haves for a kitchen. It will hold the cutlery, plates, and other items as needed. It will also advise on the likes of, “No, salts usually go in a pinch, would you like me to add in just about 5 grams?”
Thus, similarly for the garage, the DIY table, etc. Just Arms would be good.
This is great, but to make a comparable hand, we also need very sensitive sensors, at minimum pressure and temperature, across the entire surface area.
Does anyone know what design considerations, if any, might've gone into deciding to have 4 fingers instead of 5? And what tradeoffs that entails?
I actually saw this posted a few days back on Twitter and had been wondering if there was any deeper consideration for the number of fingers. It seems like you save around $10 in parts by getting rid of a finger, based on the information in the BOM.
This is what open source hardware should look like: fully accessible, modifiable, and fit for iterative improvement. It’s no longer about closed “prod tech” it’s about community driven evolution.
Cool project. I've heard that robotic hands should have finger lengths that are not equal for more dexterity. The variation in finger length of a human hand is a feature not a bug.
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[ 2.9 ms ] story [ 42.8 ms ] threadBut... is a human hand the best design for a robot to grip things with? Or could we surmise that the human hand evolved as a pretty good hand given the materials and senses that were available to evolve humans from, while in theory a totally different design might be optimal for gripping when constructed from metal, plastic, motors, etc.?
Thus, similarly for the garage, the DIY table, etc. Just Arms would be good.
What a time to be alive!
I actually saw this posted a few days back on Twitter and had been wondering if there was any deeper consideration for the number of fingers. It seems like you save around $10 in parts by getting rid of a finger, based on the information in the BOM.
feels like a cool project/toy