Patent ID: 11945103
Assignee: BERKSHIRE GREY OPERATING COMPANY, INC.
Field: Handling (Mechanical engineering)
Classification: CPC B | IPC B

Claim 24:
25. A method of grasping an object with an end-effector that includes a body that provides an open interior that is coupled to a vacuum, said method comprising:
contacting a contact portion of the body with the object;
applying a vacuum through the contact portion to the object to primarily engage the object through tension force between the contact portion and the object; and
permitting any of the contact portion or a periphery thereof to become non-planar while grasping the object such that the object becomes primarily engaged with the object via a shear force that is greater than the tension force between the contact portion and the object,
wherein the body further includes a collapsible dome that is adapted to collapse into the open interior of the end-effector body and a stop member for limiting movement of the collapsible dome into the open interior of the body.