Episode 113: Soft robotic hands - Kaspar Althoefer

Robot Talk · 14 Mar 2025 · 32m · Episode 113

What this episode covers

Kaspar Althoefer, Director of the Centre for Advanced Robotics at Queen Mary University of London, discusses soft robotic manipulators designed for healthcare and manufacturing. He explains how pneumatic and fabric-based soft hands offer compliance and tactile perception, enabling safe human-robot collaboration and delicate object handling, as seen in collaborations with Okado. Althoefer details applications ranging from minimally invasive surgery projects like Stiff Flop and Endotheragnostics to collaborative manufacturing arms developed under the 4 by 3 project.

Mentioned

Companies
Queen Mary University of London, Okado, intuitive surgical, Metronic, CMR, Cambridge Medical Robotics
Products
Stiff Flop, da Vinci robot, Endotheragnostics, 4 by 3

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