ROBOT OBJECT MANIPULATOR WITH CHANGEABLE FINGER TOOLS

摘要

An object manipulator includes a gripper (15) formed with at least two fingers (24, 25) which are mounted for relative movement so as to be able to grip an object to be manipulated. At least one tool (32) is mounted on a respective one of the fingers and is adapted to engage with the object. The manipulator also includes control means (16) for controlling the relative movement of the fingers.
The tool and its associated finger are formed with cooperating surfaces (36, 37) which allow the tool to be moved in two opposite directions on and off the finger but prevent relative movement between the tool and the finger in any other direction. The cooperating surfaces also cause a frictional force to be exerted on the tool when the finger is gripping an object and this force resists any relative movement between the tool and the finger in the two opposite directions.
The tool and its associated finger are also formed with yieldable means (43, 44, 45) for retaining the tool in position on the finger.