INNOVATION Sept-Oct 2019

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then you can throw them out, without worrying about environmental contamination,” he says. That will no doubt be vital for the full realization of the Internet of Things, where virtually any physical object—a car, refrigerator, lamp post, building, soft robot, heart monitor—can be connected to the internet and/or with any other device to gather, send and receive data. As for Manpreet Kaur, now a lecturer in SFU’s Sustainable Energy Engineering program, she is looking forward to seeing where her touch-sensing gripper may lead. “The usual rigid manufacturing robots make our world more efficient and faster, but to be really useful we need robots that can work well in human environments, and for the benefit of humans,” she says. “I would love to see a person who is wearing a 3-D-printed prosthetic hand have the same dexterity and compliance as they would with their own body part, or a senior interacting with a caregiving robot. I think as we move into the next phase of development, we will be able to create useful robots that people actually like

to touch and can form an emotional attachment to.” Sort of like C-3PO and R2-D2, but with a softer grip. Manpreet Kaur said that 3-D printing is a simple and affordable way to fabricate robot digits, because they “ allow . . . us to adjust the rigidity of the polymers in targeted spots to create fingers that bend in some places and are stiffer in others. ” P hoto : k ent k Allberg

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Columbia Valley Engineering Inc. Element Consulting Engineers Ltd. JD Structural Consulting Ltd. Kalwij Water Dynamics Inc. Octo Engineering Inc. Pacific Powertech Inc. Petro Sadr Corporation R. Mark Lasby, P.Eng. Consulting Structural Engineer Ryzuk Geotechnical SLR Consulting Ltd. Solidus Geological Services The following organizations have recently received OQM certification. To find out more, visit egbc.ca/oqm .

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