Composite Laminar Jamming: Toward Designing a Tunable Stiffness Hybrid Soft Robotic Actuator

Abstract

Tunable stiffness in soft robotic actuators is crucial for developing sensor augmented artificial hands capable of mimicking human gripping complexity at reduced costs. This work proposes a synergistic actuator integrated with a composite laminar jamming structure developed by bonding together layers of printer paper and abrasive paper of 400 grit size. The proposed structure demonstrates superior stiffness and a broader tunable stiffness range compared to traditional uniform paper jammers. The results of load sensing revealed that the composite jammer requires less precise vacuum control mechanisms. The experimental findings confirm the effective response of the composite laminar jamming technique in terms of stiffness creation, tunability, and vacuum control efficiency. The proposed design holds significant potential for integration into sensor augmented soft robotic systems, specifically in precision robotics and biomedical applications.