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  • Robotic hand uses the power of static electricity to pick up apples and iPads

    by 
    Mariella Moon
    Mariella Moon
    10.25.2014

    A cheap robotic hand developed by a company called Grabit offers something most of the other mechanical limbs we've seen before don't: the ability to pick up objects using electrostatic attraction. Even if you're not familiar with term, you've likely encountered the phenomenon at least once. Ever rubbed a balloon on your hair for fun, so you can stick it to the wall? How about getting plastic of bits of styrofoam stuck on your hand while handling a package? Yep, that's all thanks to attraction caused by static electricity. Grabit's mechanical hand takes it step further by using powered electrodes to sustain the phenomenon, as the charge naturally disappears over time. It also has the technology to prevent dust from clinging onto the fingers.