It may sound like a moniker best suited for a pack of villains seeking to do battle with the Justice League or the Avengers, but the Shadow Hand — created by the UK-based Shadow Robot Company (SRC) — is quite an impressive robotic creation.

According to the SRC website, the Shadow Hand has:

“…integrated sensing and position control, allowing precise control from off-board computers, or integration into your existing robot platform.

The Shadow Hand contains an integrated bank of 36 air muscles which make it move. The muscles are compliant, which allows the hand to be used around soft or fragile objects.

The Shadow Hand Can be fitted with touch sensing on the fingertips, offering sensitivity sufficient to detect a single small coin.”

SRC’s client list includes NASA, Carengie-Mellon University, LEGO, Matsushita, ABB and Bielefeld University. The company is hard at work on other robotic products as well, including synthetic muscles.

Check out video clips and additional info on the hand at this SRC media page.  (Source: Shadow Robot Company) - [Jeff James]
^{photo: © The Shadow Robot Company}