SYNFORMAX
From flexible actuators to full‑stack control —
systems that move the way the world actually is,
not the way rigid machines wish it were.
Every technology category below exists to answer
the same question: what happens when a machine
can actually feel what it's doing?
Not sensing through a camera from a distance.
Not force-limited after the fact.
Understanding through contact.
That is the design problem we are solving.
Soft Grippers
Adaptive elastomer fingers with integrated tactile sensing. Tool-free module swaps and quick-change couplers mean zero retooling when the SKU changes. The fingers read what they hold and adjust grip force in real time.
Pneumatic · Cable-Driven · Tactile FeedbackArtificial Muscles
HASEL and DEA actuation for lifelike motion profiles. Lightweight, scalable, and compliant by default — no gears, no bearings, no rigid linkages. The mechanism is the material.
HASEL · DEA · Electroactive PolymerEmbodied AI
Perception-in-the-loop control on ROS 2. Learn motion primitives by demonstration; deploy as safe, repeatable skills. The system improves with every cycle it runs.
ROS 2 · Motion Learning · Sensor FusionStandards & Safety
Designed with ANSI/RIA and ISO collaborative robot standards from day one. Instrumented testing and risk assessment built into the development cycle — not retrofitted at the end.
ANSI/RIA · ISO 10218 · TS 15066Integration
Drop-in end-effectors for popular collaborative robots. Python and C++ APIs. Web dashboard for pilot operations. Designed to fit into existing infrastructure, not replace it.
Python · C++ · REST API · Web DashboardGrant-Ready R&D
Research architecture aligned with NSF, DARPA, and DOE funding tracks. Modular platforms designed for academic and national lab collaboration from the first prototype.
NSF · DARPA · DOE · Open Architecture
Traditional rigid grippers succeed at one task: gripping objects that are already the right shape. Our elastomer finger modules use pneumatic and cable-driven actuation to conform to whatever they encounter. Integrated tactile sensors at each fingertip close the loop — the system knows not just that it's holding something, but how hard, where, and whether the grip is stable.
Quick-change couplers allow finger modules to be swapped in under 60 seconds without tools. Different finger geometries ship for different task profiles — pinch, wrap, lateral — each hot-swappable on the same base.
HASEL (Hydraulically Amplified Self-healing Electrostatic) actuators use a liquid dielectric encased in a flexible pouch. Apply voltage — the pouch deforms, producing contraction or extension. No motors. No gearboxes. No rigid linkages.
DEA (Dielectric Elastomer Actuator) modules offer a complementary profile: higher strain, lower force, ideal for large-displacement applications like artificial limbs or soft locomotion. Both actuator families are self-damping — they absorb impact energy rather than transmitting it.
The control stack runs on ROS 2 with real-time perception pipelines that feed learned motion policies. Rather than hand-coding trajectories, operators demonstrate a task and the system extracts a generalizable motion primitive — a skill that transfers across variations in object position, size, and orientation.
Deployed skills run as safe, interruptible behaviors. The system monitors force, velocity, and contact state continuously. If any threshold is exceeded, the behavior pauses gracefully rather than faulting hard. Skills improve with every successful execution logged.
End-effector modules ship with standardized mounting flanges for UR, Fanuc, KUKA, and ABB collaborative robots. The Python SDK exposes full actuator and sensor state with a clean async API. A web dashboard provides real-time monitoring, skill library management, and pilot logging without requiring a local install.
For custom deployments, the C++ library provides deterministic real-time control at 1kHz update rates. All interfaces are documented and versioned — no black boxes, no proprietary lock-in.
We run pilots with logistics operators, research institutions, and healthcare partners. If you have a handling problem that rigid grippers keep failing at — let's talk.
No lock-in. No proprietary hardware dependency. Just results.