Handling of hemmed fabrics by a single-armed robot

We describe here a mechanical system that can grasp, unfold, and position fabrics in a series of motions. Fabric setting process by a human consists of wiping, pinching, unfolding, and placing motions. This setting process can be performed using a single-armed robot with a gripper hand having four degrees of freedom. For grasping the fabric, the robotic gripper wrinkles part of it, causing residual deformation. During the unfolding motion, the robot can perform a pinching slip motion, in which fingertips slip on the fabric surface while grasping, similar to a human unfolding motion.