Purpose – The capability to perform dexterous operations in an autonomous manner would greatly enhance the productivity of robotic operations. In this paper, we present a new methodology for vision‐based grasping of objects or parts using a three‐finger hand as a gripper of a robotic...

Purpose – Semiconductor manufacturing industry requires highly accurate robot operation with short install/setup downtime. Design/methodology/approach – We develop a fast, low cost and easy‐to‐operate calibration system for wafer‐handling robots. The system is defined by a fixture and...

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to inform the readers of the design process and practical implications of a new gripping device created by the authors. Design/methodology/approach – We have developed a novel gripping device based on the biomechanics of the feeding apparatus of the...

Purpose – Robotic hands are still a long way from matching the grasping and manipulation capability of their human counterparts, but computer simulation may help us understand this disparity. We present our publicly available simulator, and describe our research projects involving the system...

Purpose – When designing hardware and algorithms for robotic manipulation and grasping, sensory information is typically needed to control the grasping process. This paper presents an overview of the major grasping and manipulation approaches and the more common hardware used to obtain the...

Purpose – This paper presents the design and prototyping of the Inherently cOmpliant light Weight Active (IOWA) hand, an active hand prosthetic device. Design/methodology/approach – This hand prosthetic device has five actuated fingers, each with three joints. Each joint is designed using a...

Purpose – Aims to measure the development and performance of a sensor‐augmented industrial robotic system for handling steel bearing races in an unstructured environment. Design/methodology/approach – Performs exhaustive experimentation during installation of the robotic system to assess...

Purpose – Aims to review the CLAWAR 2004 conference on climbing and walking robots. Design/methodology/approach – Selects key papers from the conference and presents a brief outline of the research undertaken and the conclusions reached. Findings – The CLAWAR conference covered every...

Purpose – Highlights new robots introduced in the fall 2004 offer various benefits such as lower prices, internal cable management for arc welding, reduced floor space requirements, environmental protection and features for quicker application design and commissioning....

Purpose – The paper describes a pipe repair conducted in August 2004 using two types of snake‐arm robot. The pipe was located 5 m below the reactor core of Ringhals 1 nuclear reactor. Design/methodology/approach – The two types of robot worked co‐operatively to replace a section of...