Search Results - daniel+rucker

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New Bending Actuators for Soft Robots
The Problem: Soft and continuum robots show great promise for a variety of applications. However, current actuation strategies present challenges in robotic control and performance. Tendon actuation is hampered by friction and fluidic actuation requires bulky actuation systems that are imprecise and difficult to control. In addition, these strategies...
Published: 9/9/2022   |   Inventor(s): Daniel Rucker, Jake Childs
Keywords(s):  
Category(s): Engineering
Flexible Instrument with Pre-curved Elements for Surgical Tools
SummaryVanderbilt researchers have developed a novel system for allowing surgical instruments to navigate around tighter corners and access difficult-to-reach areas in the body. This system uses pre-curved elastic elements added on to the existing instrument. Current surgical instruments are manufactured in a straight-line configuration, which means...
Published: 7/9/2024   |   Inventor(s): Andria Remirez, Daniel Rucker, Robert Webster
Keywords(s): Gastrointestinal
Category(s): Medical Devices, General Engineering, Robotics
Tentacle-Like Robots to Access Tight Spaces in Manufacturing and Medical Applications
SummaryVanderbilt researchers have developed a novel method for enabling tentacle-like robots to reach into tight spaces in manufacturing or medical applications. This is useful for industrial inspection tasks, assembly of products like airplane wings with complex geometry, or making medical endoscopes reach places in the body they cannot reach today....
Published: 7/9/2024   |   Inventor(s): Daniel Rucker, Robert Webster
Keywords(s):  
Category(s): Medical Devices