Beijing, Nov. 19 (Xinhua) -- Swiss and U.S. researchers have successfully printed a robot hand with bones, ligaments and tendons for the first time using a new technology that combines 3D printing with laser scanning and feedback mechanisms, according to a study published in the British journal Nature. The technique opens up entirely new possibilities for the production of flexible robotic structures.

3D printing technology enables a rapid transition from design to production by transforming digital models directly into physical objects. Unlike plastic materials that cure quickly, which are commonly used in 3D printing, in the new study, researchers at ETH Zurich in Switzerland and a start-up in the United States used slow-curing polymer materials with good flexibility.

Generally, 3D printers print layer by layer and scrape away the surface irregularities after each curing step, but this type of printing does not work with slow-curing polymer materials. In the new study, the researchers developed a new technique that combines 3D printing with laser scanning and feedback mechanisms to quickly examine surface irregularities in each printed layer and precisely adjust the amount of material to print the next layer in real time. Using this technique, the researchers successfully printed a robotic hand with bones, ligaments and tendons made from polymers of varying elasticity in one go.

The researchers said that the new technology can be relatively easy to combine soft, elastic and rigid materials. Next, they will use the technology to explore more possibilities.

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