Patent ID: 7087092

Claim:
An artificial hand for grasping an object comprising: a base, a first finger group movably joined to said base and having volar and dorsal surfaces and a distal end, a second finger group joined to said base and having volar and dorsal surfaces and a distal end, wherein said finger groups are resiliently biased toward each other and said finger groups define a capture zone between said volar surfaces thereof and are movable relative to each other between open and closed positions, and in said closed position define a plane of object entry between said distal ends of said finger groups, and said plane of object entry extends through said capture zone and intersects said base, wherein when said object is pushed along said plane of object entry against said dorsal surfaces of said distal ends of said finger groups, said distal ends of said first and second finger groups then spread away from each other, thereby accepting said object and allowing said object to pass between said volar surfaces of said first and second finger groups and enter said capture zone, whereupon said first and second finger groups resiliently close around said object to retain it within said capture zone.