I am currently enrolled on an engineering course and i need to create a project, i want to redesign and change the material of a robotic end effector, specifically a grabber end effector. so i was wondering about the current materials that are being used to create end effectors and whether anyone has another potential material that could be used that would either be more suited for the job or if there is a material that can be used that is cheaper to work with. I would also like to know if there are any ideas for designs to improve how it works. Thank you for any feedback it is all very much appreciated.
Soft Robotics seems to be in-vogue right now. Perhaps you could use latex rubber glove fingers, with one end fastened around an air tube, or perhaps two fingers of different sizes together so that you can use differential forces to fold and unfold the fingers? Don’t know what an air pump and solenoid controlled valves cost, but perhaps using a SG90 solenoid to move stick inside a tube that exposes progressively more holes for the air to flow would be inexpensive to implement.
Just remember, engineering courses are learning experiences - you don’t have to solve world peace, or even succeed at your chosen task if you can explain what went wrong, why it went wrong, how you might have foreseen the problem, how you might do things differently if you ever need to try it again.
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Thankyou for the reply, i will definitely take soft robotics into account, and thankyou for the advice around the project and i will keep all of that in mind when writing my report.
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