Additive Manufacturing from EOS Aids in European Collaboration to Develop Humanoid Robot

Additive manufacturing technology developer Electro Optical Systems (EOS) GmbH has helped further the Roboy project, a European collaboration led by the Swiss Devanthro Society and the Technical University of Munich, to develop humanoid robots with a musculoskeletal system designed to mimic that of the human body.

The Roboy robot. Courtesy of EOS.

The Roboy robot was built with EOS’ 3D printing technology, and the project’s researchers are continuing to develop its muscles, joints and electronics in a bid to improve the models until their dexterity, robustness and flexibility are comparable to that of humans. The complete skeletal body structure of Roboy, which encases its bones and muscles, was built using EOS’ plastic additive manufacturing systems.

“Industrial 3D printing allows for the efficient, cost-effective production of highly complex, light and stable structures through an iterative process,” said Garth Stevenson, EOS’ area sales manager for the UK and Ireland. “It therefore provides a high degree of design flexibility, optimization and integration of functional features and enables the fast modularization of the robot’s construction.”

Roboy’s hands and forearms were built in one piece, for example, including several joints and individual finger bones. The technology also allows researchers to rapidly produce and test components within the complex environment of the robot itself. Building robots with a similar musculoskeletal system to humans should mean they fit more naturally into our environment, said Stevenson.

“With the increasing advances in artificial intelligence and robotics, robots will play a much more prominent role both in society and at work,” he said. “In this context, building robots with similar morphology to the human body yields critical advantages over legacy robotic approaches.”

EOS is a provider of high-end additive manufacturing solutions.