For our grabber mechanism, we are designing a claw-like design that uses both a rigid frame and flexible TheraBand to gently and accurately pick up objects of various sizes and weights.
The rigid frame is comprised of two flat, four sided, frames, tensioned together at the start and pulled apart with two servos when going to grab an object. When completely closed, the rigid frame supports the object from the bottom and ensures the object is secure.
The TheraBand, which surrounds the sides of the frame, creates a wall in front of the frame. When the frame closes on the object, the TheraBand bends around the object, creating a tight and secure grab on whatever object is being picked up.
We chose to go with this design because it is lightweight and allows flexibility in what can be picked up. Because we don’t know the specific dimensions and weight of the object we will be required to pick up at competition, this design allows for flexibility to gently and accurately grab any object less than 20cm^3 and 2 kg.