Researchers at Northeastern University are working on hand dexterity for NASA's
Valkyrie humanoid robot.
Credit: NASA
This article was originally published at The Conversation. The publication contributed the article to Live Science's Expert Voices: Op-Ed & Insights.
It's quite common for humans – especially those who work in manufacturing – to tie a knot, strip the casing off a cable, insert a pin in a hole or use a hand tool such as a drill. They may seem like simple tasks, but are really very complex and involve extremely fine finger and hand motions.
Though robots are getting more and more involved in factory work and in a wide range of other types of jobs – including in the service industry and health care – their dexterity is not nearly as impressive. Since people first brought them to work in automotive factories more than 50 years ago, we have built robots that can weld, paint and assemble parts quite well. Today's best robotic hands can pick up familiar objects and move them to other places – such as taking products from warehouse bins and putting them in boxes. https://www.livescience.com/58820-humanoid-robots-with-hand-dexterity.html
