Briefs · Emerging Technologies
DLR and SCHUNK Give Humanoid Hands a Firmer Grip on Industry
A robot hand is easy to admire. It is hard to employ.
DLR and SCHUNK intend to close that gap. Their verdict is plain. Humanoid hands must leave the laboratory and learn the factory floor.
At the German Robotics Conference in Cologne, the DLR Institute of Robotics and Mechatronics and SCHUNK signed a declaration of intent to expand their work on humanoid robotic hands. The aim is faster technology transfer and finer motor skills for new automation tasks.
The partnership is not new. The two sides have worked together for around 20 years. What is new is the urgency.
DLR technology will go into SCHUNK’s new modular, anthropomorphic five-finger gripper hand. The hand is designed for human-like dexterity, above all for fine manipulation in demanding industrial work. SCHUNK will bundle its humanoid work in a newly founded tech spin-off.
Prof. Dr. Alin Albu-Schäffer, director of the DLR institute, signed alongside Timo Gessmann, SCHUNK’s chief technology officer. Gessmann put it plainly. Strong partnerships, speed, and focus bring robotics into application.
Germany talks often about research excellence. This is research with a deadline: dexterous, deliberate, and distinctly industrial.
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