FORTE: Tactile Force and Slip Sensing on Compliant Fingers for Delicate Manipulation

TL;DR

FORTE introduces a low-latency tactile sensing system with 3D-printed fin-ray fingers that enables robots to delicately grasp fragile objects by accurately sensing force and slip events.

Contribution

This work presents a simple, easy-to-fabricate tactile sensing system that provides fast force and slip feedback for delicate robotic manipulation.

Findings

Achieves 92% success in grasping fragile objects

Detects slip events within 100 ms with 93% accuracy

Estimates grasping forces with 0.2 N average error

Abstract

Handling fragile objects remains a major challenge for robotic manipulation. Tactile sensing and soft robotics can improve delicate object handling, but typically involve high integration complexity or slow response times. We address these issues through FORTE, an easy-to-fabricate tactile sensing system. FORTE uses 3D-printed fin-ray grippers with internal air channels to provide low-latency force and slip feedback. This feedback allows us to apply just enough force to grasp objects without damaging them. We accurately estimate grasping forces from 0-8 N with an average error of 0.2 N, and detect slip events within 100 ms of occurring. FORTE can grasp a wide range of slippery, fragile, and deformable objects, including raspberries and potato chips with 92% success and achieves 93% accuracy in detecting slip events. These results highlight FORTE's potential as a robust solution for delicate robotic manipulation. Project page: https://merge-lab.github.io/FORTE/