Development of a 15-Degree-of-Freedom Bionic Hand with Cable-Driven Transmission and Distributed Actuation

Abstract--In robotic hand research, minimizing the number of actuators while maintaining human-hand-consistent dimensions and degrees of freedom constitutes a fundamental challenge. Drawing bio-inspiration from human hand kinematic configurations and muscle distribution strategies, this work proposes a novel 15-DoF dexterous robotic hand, with detailed analysis of its mechanical architecture, electrical system, and control system. The bionic hand employs a new tendon-driven mechanism, significantly reducing the number of motors required by traditional tendon-driven systems while enhancing motion performance and simplifying the mechanical structure. This design integrates five motors in the forearm to provide strong gripping force, while ten small motors are installed in the palm to support fine manipulation tasks. Additionally, a corresponding joint sensing and motor driving electrical system was developed to ensure efficient control and feedback. The entire system weighs only 1.4kg, combining lightweight and high-performance features. Through experiments, the bionic hand exhibited exceptional dexterity and robust grasping capabilities, demonstrating significant potential for robotic manipulation tasks. HE development of actuator systems with human-level dexterity presents significant challenges [1], [2], stemming from the bio-integrated nature of the human hand: it is not an isolated entity but a highly coupled system intricately connected through skeletal-muscular-neural networks to the forearm, forming a synergistic functional unit.