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From: jrv@demon.siemens.com (James R Vallino)
Newsgroups: comp.robotics
Subject: Re: Memory Metals
Message-ID: <44431@siemens.siemens.com>
Date: 9 Nov 90 23:39:07 GMT
References: <0093F732.C4DCDA20@EA.USL.EDU>
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Organization: Siemens Corporate Research, Inc.
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In article <0093F732.C4DCDA20@EA.USL.EDU> leecemb@EA.USL.EDU writes:
>They also had a demonstration on how two wire could be used to act as a finger
>Heating one would cause it to flex one way and heating the other would cause it
>to flex the other and heating both would make it bend backwards.
>
>Does anyone have more information about this?

I recently saw a video tape of a finger design developed in one of the
Japanese industrial labs.  Each finger was composed of several hollow
channels.  By adjusting the air pressure in each of the channels and the
relative pressure between the channels you could get the finger to move
around in lots of different ways.  The video showed several fingers working
together handling relatively lightweight objects.  When I saw the video and
was told how it worked it seemed like a real simple and elegant technique.


--
Jim Vallino	Siemens Corporate Research, Inc., Princeton, NJ
jrv@demon.siemens.com
princeton!siemens!demon!jrv
(609) 734-3331