BarrettHand BH-280/282 Safety and Cautions

PLEASE READ THIS SECTION IN ITS ENTIRETY BEFORE USING YOUR BarrettHand™.

• Following these safety instructions will help prevent user injury and equipment damage.

• As with any piece of robotic equipment, it is ultimately up to you to be aware of your surroundings during robot operation. The workspace of the system comprising the BarrettHand™ and robot arm should be clearly marked to prevent persons or objects from inadvertently entering the equipment’s reach. Before attaching the BarrettHand™, test host robot trajectories to confirm that it will not inadvertently collide with other objects in the workspace.

• NEVER connect or disconnect any electrical cables while the Power Supply is turned on. Failure to follow this instruction could impart irreparable damage to the onboard electronics or put you at risk of electrical shock.

• Always plug the Power Supply into a properly grounded wall source. Failure to do so could damage the BarrettHand™ electronics and put you at risk of electrical shock.

• Do not place any part of your body or delicate objects within the grasp of the BarrettHand™ without first verifying control of the unit and confirming appropriate force levels.

• Do not allow the BarrettHand™ to be exposed to liquids that may cause electrical short-circuit and put you at the risk of electrical shock.

• Keep dirt away from the exposed gear and cable drives located at the joints.

• Do not exceed the load limit of the fingers, 2 kg per finger. Consider all loading situations including accelerated loads, cantilever loads from long objects, robot collisions, active loads, etc.

• Remove/replace the fingers only as instructed in the user manual and on this wiki.

• Monitor the operating temperature of the BarrettHand™ so that it does not exceed 65C. Under normal conditions, the Hand operates between 40 and 60C. The BarrettHand™ was designed with non-backdrivable finger joints to take advantage of the motors’ peak operating performance in short bursts. The spread, however, is backdrivable to aid in target-independent grasping and requires constant motor current to actively hold position. Idling the spread motor, when possible, will help keep the temperature lower.