A message from Edmonton Global:
From a prototype to a globally exported robotics platform, Sarcomere Dynamics co-founders Harpal Mandaher, Avtar Mandaher, and Nancy Mandaher are bringing lifelike dexterity to industries around the world, and they are doing this from their headquarters in St. Albert.
Sarcomere builds robotic hands that can be used in a number of applications. Their flagship product, ARTUS Lite, can grasp, pinch, and manipulate objects with a level of control rarely seen outside the human body. Designed to integrate seamlessly with existing robotic arms, these hands are helping solve challenges across sectors like food packing, electronics, hazardous materials handling, and remote operations.
Avtar developed his first prototype of a prosthetic hand, using actuator technology he also developed while he was finishing his engineering degree at the University of British Columbia.
"We were aiming to be a prosthetics company," Avtar recalled. "But we found it wasn't feasible for the amputees to control higher dexterity hands we built."
"We started getting this weird pull from industry," he added. "We realized that wherever there's a human hand that is required to do dexterous work, there was a potential to use the robotic hand we'd made."
Faced with a strong pull from the industry, the company pivoted — and began exploring robotics, thus leading to the launch of the ARTUS Lite, a robotic hand that is now being shipped globally.
With roughly the same range of motion as a human hand, a strong grip, and real-time pressure sensing, Sarcomere's robotic hand is ideal for delicate or complex tasks; it attaches easily to most robotic arms with no major changes, offering near-human dexterity "at a fraction of the cost of competing technologies."
Learn more about how trade missions have opened global markets for Sarcomere and how Edmonton's deep bench of AI talent is helping the company grow.
The Trade Heroes series from Edmonton Global highlights companies in the Edmonton region that have "exportitude" — the mindset and commitment to think globally when it comes to their business.