The robotic revolution

Antonio Bicchi, Professor of Robotics at the University of Pisa and Senior Researcher at the Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia in Genoa, Italy, has designed a revolutionary bionic hand – the SoftHand – that can replicate many functions of its human equivalent very naturally. Here, he tells Mega about this remarkable feat and, after more than 30 years in the field, reflects on what the future holds for robotics.

Complexity has been the enemy of robotics. The more mechanical and electronics parts in a robot, the more difficult it is to programme and the greater the risk of breakdown. Today, we have a much better understanding of how the human body performs complex tasks, and this is revolutionising robotics. The latest neuroscience research shows that these physical behaviours are not controlled by the brain directly but are instead responses to the feedback provided by our own bodies and the environment. This is an evolving field of research called embodied intelligence, or the notion that intelligence requires both body and brain. This philosophy is coming into play in robotics, as we try to build devices that are simpler by embodying part of the intelligence in the physics of their construction.

Revolutionising artificial limbs has become my life’s work. The SoftHand project at the University of Pisa builds on the idea that the body can be very soft but also very strong, because it uses embodied intelligence. The hand is made from strong plastic material, with tendons in high-strength fiber and elastic ligaments. The controller and motor are located in the hand; a sensor-embedded glove fits over it. Initially, our intention was to develop a robotics hand for research. Now we are working with partners to develop a prosthetic hand that can be easily and affordably used by amputees.

If you look at existing prosthetic hands, there are of two kinds: very simple hooks, used (in some form) since the middle ages and still incredibly practical; or socalled bionic hands, which until now have been very complex to control. The fact is that even those amputees that can afford bionic hands soon abandon them because they get tired very quickly. We wanted to make a hand that would be simple to control for the amputee, but still very dextrous and very effective.

What used to take months can now be done in a week. Rapid prototyping allows us to proceed at a much faster pace in research, thanks to processes such as 3D printing. There have also been a whole range of developments in IT. Powerful open source software enables us to quickly develop programmes that are accessible by anyone. And middleware systems allow us to glue together pieces of code that come from different sources. Taken together, these great strides in science and technology are making it possible to move forward at a much faster pace than in the past.

robotic body

Robots used to be separated from humans due to safety concerns. But now we are building a new generation of lightweight, soft robots that can safely coexist with humans. With these new co-bots, we are subverting the robotics paradigm. Robots are no longer necessarily heavy, very rigid constructions – they now tend to be safe and lightweight machines. So we no longer need to control robots to make them safe; we need to control them to make them effective.

artificial hand

The fusion between man and machine is already occurring on some level. Connected computer networks are effectively working as an extension of human memory. On another level, human interaction with intelligent machines has begun with the use of prostheses such as audio or retinal implants, artificial hands and legs, and orthoses for rehabilitation. And, of course, with self-driving cars. We will see even more of this in the near future, including machines to increase the autonomy of the elderly and to assist workers who use heavy equipment.