Rethinking Dexterous Hands for Robotics | Letian Wang (RobotEra)

In this talk

1. 0:09

   From prototypes to deployment

   Wang describes RobotEra’s bipedal, upper-body, wheeled, and hand products, and its focus on research customers and industry applications. He says the company is developing logistics deployments, including hospital isolation workflows, and reports more than 200 robots deployed at China Post sites, with additional rollout planned.

2. 4:37

   Designing hands for reliable use

   Wang says a hand’s performance depends on the policy controlling it, while his presentation focuses on hardware, data, and operating environments. RobotEra uses low-backlash mechanics and dual encoders for precision, alongside PD control and possible backdrivability for compliance. He argues that deployment durability should be judged by mean time between failures under real working conditions, since frequent breakdowns can stop customers from using a robot.

3. 9:48

   Tactile feedback and force control

   Wang presents the Flexion Hand X1, with 12 active degrees of freedom, compliance, and tactile sensing that covers 270 degrees. He says tactile feedback supports force control based on motor current, which can help with tasks such as precise insertion and polishing. He also cites 40 drives, a 25-kilogram payload, and response speed of up to 10 clicks per second.

4. 11:30

   Research tools and manipulation demos

   RobotEra provides reference designs, models, and data collection opportunities, and Wang points to open research on video prediction, imitation learning, reinforcement-learning simulation, and world models. He also describes a 21-active-degree-of-freedom hand that began shipping in June, with tactile coverage across the hand. Demonstrations include grasping, removing paper from a plastic pocket, and using tactile sensing to locate a cube for teleoperation-assisted grasping.