Robot Operating System (ROS) Controlled Anthropomorphic Robot Hand

Abstract

This paper presents a new design of a dexterous robot hand by incorporating human hand factors. The robotic hand is a Robot Operating System (ROS) controlled standalone unit that can perform key tasks and work independently. Hardware such as actuators, electronics, sensors, pulleys etc. are embedded within or on the hand itself. Raspberry Pi, a single board computer which runs ROS and is used to control the hand movements as well as process the sensor signals is placed outside of the hand. It supports peripheral devices such as screen display, keyboard and mouse. The hand prototype is designed in Solid Works and 3D printed/built using aluminum sheet. The prototype is similar to the human hand in terms of shape and possesses key functionalities and abilities of the human hand, especially to imitate key movements of the human hand and be as dexterous as possible whilst keeping a low cost. Other important factors considered while prototyping the model were that the hand should be reliable, have a durable const­­ruction, and should be built using widely available off-the-shelf components and an open-source software. Though the prototype hand only has 6 degrees-of-freedom (DOF) compared to the 22 DOF of the human hand, it is able to perform most grasps effectively. The proposed model will allow other researchers to build similar robotic hands and perform specialized research.