Students of the Wrocław University of Technology have completed work on an innovative gripper. They want to check its qualities in the microgravity and vacuum conditions. In March, the device will be launched at a height of 80 km.

Students’ project: Testing Robotic Application For Cathing in Zero-G is to check whether it is possible to use a jamming gripper in microgravity and vacuum. Such devices consist of a diaphragm filled with a granulate operating on the principle of pressure difference manipulation. The inflatable gripper adapts its shape to the object to be lifted, and after the air is sucked out, the granulate hardens, the membrane tightens on the object, and can be moved.

The experiment is carried out within the framework of the Swedish-German Rexus / Bexus program under a bilateral agreement between Germany (DLR – Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt) and the Swedish space agency (SNSB – Swedish National Space Board).
More: https://pwr.edu.pl/uczelnia/aktualnosci/kosmiczny-chwytak-studentow-pwr-gotowy-do-lotu-w-kosmos-11097.html