Ciocarlie Matei author Columbia University. Computer Science Miller Andrew T. author Columbia University. Computer Science Allen Peter K. author Columbia University. Computer Science Columbia University. Computer Science originator text Articles 2005 English The human hand is unrivaled in its ability to grasp and manipulate objects, but we still do not understand all of its complexities. One benefit it has over traditional robot hands is the fact that our fingers conform to a grasped object's shape, giving rise to larger contact areas and the ability to apply larger frictional forces. In this paper, we demonstrate how we have extended our simulation and analysis system with finite element modeling to allow us to evaluate these complex contact types. We also propose a new contact model that better accounts for the deformations and show how grasp quality is affected. This work is part of a larger project to understand the benefits the human hand has in grasping. Robotics Piscataway, N.J. IEEE 2005 4122 4128 http://dx.doi.org/10.1109/IROS.2005.1545525