Assessment Using Numerical Analysis of the Behaviour of a Two Fingers Gripping Mechanism

Abstract

An important issue in robotics is evaluating the force necessary to firmly grip objects. This can be done experimentally, or, as a more cost-effective approach, through numerical analysis. The results obtained through this method, although less precise, can offer a good assessment of the way a gripping mechanism behaves. The authors propose a comparative numerical analysis of a two-finger gripper, using a motion analysis performed in Siemens NX and a transient structural  analysis conducted in Ansys. Both methods aim to capture the moment when the grasped object starts to slip. This moment marks the point at which the gripping is no longer reliable and provides insights into the reliability of the gripping  mechanism. To assess the influence of the geometry of the gripping area, as well as the impact of the shape of the grasped object or the pair of materials (object and gripper), several analyses were performed in both Siemens NX and Ansys  Workbench.