Exquisitely engineered "soft" robotic arm is powered by air

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Originally published at: https://boingboing.net/2019/03/11/exquisitely-engineered-soft.html

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This is incredible technology, but I have to admit, it’s unsettling on some deeply instinctual level. My fore brain is all “ah, a range of nature, safe motion for those who have lost a limb,” while my hind brain is all “tentacle of a predator. Run. Run!”

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I liked how the character design for the Into the Spider-Verse version of Doctor Octopus used some kind of inflatable soft robotics for the robot arms. A nice hint of realism compared to the telescoping metal pipes that Doc Ock usually has.

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I do note that the video opted for a soundtrack instead of the actual sounds of the robot. Pneumatics have a lot of nice features, but they tend to be loud, especially portable ones that can’t leave the air compressor in a different room or outside.

It may be softer to look at, but a terrible racket when running. Psssht! Wrrr. Clak Clak Pshhhht! Wrrr! And that’s over top of the background clatter of a portable air compressor.

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Smooooooooth!

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How long before this apparatus makes it into the porn industry?

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If I ever lose a limb, I want a prosthetic tentacle to replace it.

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You’ve got detention, for a week!

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https://media.giphy.com/media/ySeRvSe4c1mRq/giphy.gif(image larger than 4096KB)

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“Has anyone seen Flick?”

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Hello, Baymax.

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If were anyone else, I’d be “Cool, but so what?” Just another dead end demo. Since this is from Festo, I don’t even need to see it function to know it’s solidly engineered. Those guys are the real deal. Here are some other examples

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“Rolling Spider”? “Flying Fox”? Can we hope that “Gypsy Danger” isn’t far behind?

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Very elegant design. All these types of things make me realize how refined our parts/ limbs/ joints are.

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I, for one, welcome our gasbag overlords.

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Those fan-driven tubes are the nadir of advertising kitsch. I hope there is a separate level of hell for whoever first imagined them as a method of selling used cars.

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The sad result of a triple-dog-dare.

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I knew from the headline that it was Festo. Their bionic robot research never ceases to amaze.

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Hell’s most popular Day Spa has a service named after the inventors of Tube Man. The Minshall-Gazit Treatment begins with the endoscopic removal of the client’s skin from their body and the insertion of a 4" DIA plastic tube into a convenient orifice. The other end of the tube is attached to a high capacity blower (anything over 400 cfm will work, but 600 to 800 cfm guarantees high duct velocity and turbulent flow in an average-sized client). The client spends an eternal afternoon in a lawn chair beside hell’s busiest traffic circle, holding a sign that reads “Ask Me about my Tax Preparation Services” while their epithelium flaps and dances on the breeze above them.

It’s quite beautiful, really.

ETA: Tucker Carlson been working on getting a reservation for a few years now.

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