Design and Evaluation of a Rigid-Soft Coupling Anthropomorphic Hand System for Grasping Performance Enhancement

Humanoid robots with anthropomorphic hands can assist or replace humans in performing complex tasks in dynamic scenarios, such as industrial manufacturing. This article presents a rigid-soft coupling anthropomorphic hand system aimed at improving grasping performance by focusing on dexterity, adaptability, and system integration. The hand adopts a bionic design inspired by the human hand, featuring rigid-soft fingers fabricated using a multimaterial layered manufacturing approach and optimized thumb parameters to maximize the enveloping grasp range. A lightweight, embedded control system is implemented alongside a gesture-coordinated control method based on disturbance observer, further enhancing functionality. Weighing approximately 600 g and resembling adult hand dimensions, the hand demonstrates human-like dexterity. Its ability to leverage environmental constraints for grasping reduces dependence on perception and planning, enabling secure and efficient interactions. This study offers meaningful insights into deploying humanoid robots for intricate tasks in dynamic environments.