![[article image]](https://cacm.acm.org/system/assets/0004/0570/072321_University_of_Maryland_hand.large.jpg?1627060515&1627060515 "The 3D-printed robot hand.")
University of Maryland (UMD) researchers used three-dimensional (3D) printing to produce a water-controlled robotic hand capable of completing the first level of the computer game Super Mario Bros in less than 90 seconds.
The hand is composed of hard plastic, a rubbery polymer, and a water-soluble "sacrificial" material that can support complex shapes during printing before being rinsed away. These constituents form a rigid skeleton, as well as fluidic circuits that translate streams of water from a hose into finger movements.
By carefully controlling the pressure of water pulses routed through the hose, the UMD team moved each of the hand's three fingers to operate a controller with sufficient precision to play the game.
From New Scientist
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Abstracts Copyright © 2021 SmithBucklin, Washington, DC, USA
