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A new, precise, scalable multi-purpose gripper system for academic research purposes is proposed. The multi-purpose gripper is intended to be easily adapted to different tasks and object sizes. The gripper system is driven by two separate motor-gear-lead spindle units, operated by a small CNC control. Software running on the CNC unit is completely open source. A novelty for a gripper in this constellation is an interlock-line that may for example be used for a safety door, allowing to stop movement of the gripper fingers and thus being capable to avoid the bruise of an operator’s finger or arm part. This paper describes the steps mechanical parts were designed and simulated to allow a lightweight concept leaving some payload even for relatively small industrial robots used in academic research. Stability of the gripper fingers was tested by pressing the gripper finger towards each other by hand while “blocking” the movement with a finger showing no visible bending effect of the gripper parts. To test the concept of the gripper system, a first prototype is under construction. Parts of the gripper system were simulated, 3D-printed with poly- lactic-acid (PLA) and mounted to a small laboratory robot. The CNC-gripping function will be furthermore optimized and tested at the prototype.
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