Improving robots’ grasp requires a new way to measure it in humans

HUMAN BEINGS can pick up and manipulate objects and tools with hardly a thought. This seemingly simple task, however, requires the precise, co-ordinated movement of individual fingers and thumbs, each applying the correct amount of pressure, at exactly the right places, to the object handled.That people can do this successfully is thanks to special nerve endings, called mechanoreceptors, found in their skin. These provide instant tactile feedback to the brain of the shape, feel and weight of whatever is being grasped. With time and experience, people learn to vary their grip instinctively when lifting a golf ball, for example, as opposed to an egg.