Feb 4, 2016 | By Andre
When it comes to toys everyone in my neighbourhood had while growing up, the above hand powered robot claw makes the list without question. It was a toy that had me convinced I was some sort of cyborg capable of grasping at things well beyond my regular reach. Unfortunately, it wasn’t all too practical and I wound up dropping most items I picked up along the way.
Fast forward through to today and another low-cost gripper called the ORIGIGRIP has made its way to Indiegogo thanks in large part to 3D printing. Only this time, instead of being a clumsy extension to my own self, the claw is mechanically driven and can grasp onto just about any item 9” or smaller thanks to its cushioned 2” articulating fingers.
Designed from the ground up to be versatile, lightweight, strong and affordable, its hobby sourced servo motors are what breathes life into the 3D printed gripper. From the looks of it, there don't appear to be any optical sensors to detect an incoming object so instead you simple place the item you’re hoping to have the ORIGIGRIP hold, activate it somehow and it’ll close down quickly and fluidly until contact is made.
The closing mechanism design is that of an under-actuated gripper with the fingers driven by artificial 3D printed tendons. As displayed in the image below, the inner segments close first until contact with the item is made followed by the closing of the finger tips themselves.
Check out the above video for examples of what it is capable of grasping. It seems to handle all the tested items with ease although I’m a little bit curious if the egg was boiled or not in the end.
When it comes to rewards, they get straight to the point. You have the option to purchase only 3D printed parts and hardware ($59USD), the fully assembled OrigiGrip ($99USD) or an High-Torque servo addon ($24) that allows further wrist rotation. Also, as an additional perk for the campaign, there’s an early bird package for the assembled OrigiGrip going for $89USD. And hey, thanks to the open-nature of 3D printing, you can have your gripper arrive in blue, red, silver, black or green colours.
So while its true this 3D printed gripper isn’t going to revolutionize the world in any way, its low cost should appeal to the curious tinkerer out there. And if you’re worried about whether the team is capable of delivering, they’ve already completed another somewhat related campaign with the ORIGIBOT so it’s likely they’ll pull through with their delivery promise. As things stand the team is aiming to ship everything out by March - April of 2016 providing they reach their $15,000 campaign target.
Posted in 3D Printing Application
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