World's Strongest Robotic Hand Can Gracefully Play the Piano with Its Human-like Fingers

With enough strength to handle objects three times its own weight, the robotic hand below is touted as the “world’s strongest” by its makers. However, it’s not all about strength, as this robotic hand is gentle and dexterous enough to gracefully play a piano, serve a glass of water and even hold eggs.

Image credit: Korea Institute of Machinery and Materials (KIMM)

Developed by scientists at the Korea Institute of Machinery and Materials (KIMM), the robotic hand is designed to mimic both the dimensions and functions of a human hand, although it does have one less finger. But what the robotic hand lacks in digits, it more than makes up for it in motors. That’s because the hand is powered by no less than 12 motors, which allow all its fingers and joints to move independently of one another.

The hand itself can be easily mounted on a variety of robotic arms, enabling its skills to be utilised in a number of scenarios, particularly ones that involve grasping heavy(ish) objects up to 3 kg (6.6 lb) in weight. But it’s not all about heavy lifting, with the robotic hand equally comfortable performing more delicate feats like cutting paper with scissors, picking up an egg and pouring a glass of water.

Force and tactile sensors located in the fingertips, fingers and palm enable the robotic hand to measure and adjust the direction and magnitude of force when it comes into contact with different objects. This, coupled with its extraordinary grasping force, mean it marks a huge step forward for robotic technology.

Image credit: Korea Institute of Machinery and Materials (KIMM)

Here’s a video of the robotic hand in action playing the piano:



What do you think? Could we see orchestras comprising robotic arms and hands playing live concertos, or are they going to be limited to helping out with everyday tasks? Tweet us @PolytecNews