Soft manipulator setup on the ROV.

<p>A: The soft manipulators are installed on the retractable tray of the ROV. B: The manifold, pump, control bottle, and accumulator are installed on the port rear side. These were developed as part of a previous study [<a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0200386#pone.0200386.ref009" target="_blank">9</a>].</p

Modified three fingers soft manipulator.

<p>Modified three-finger soft manipulator converted to a two-finger version to allow pinch and power grasps.</p

Full schematic of the soft manipulator setup.

<p>Hydraulic (solid black line) and electrical connections (dashed red lines) are represented. This setup is similar to the one used in [<a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0200386#pone.0200386.ref009" target="_blank">9</a>].</p

Sampling with a 3D printed soft manipulator designed and constructed on-board the ship.

<p>A & B: a goniasterid (depth: 1162m). C & D: a holothurian (depth: 843m).</p

A challenging grasping situation.

<p>An aplacophoran mollusc at the base of a delicate coral was difficult to grasp without damaging the coral.</p

Difficulties in grasping.

<p>Example of orienting the manipulator horizontally or perpendicularly from a deep-sea mushroom coral (<i>Anthomastus</i> sp., depth: 1282m).</p

Research vessel and the remotely operated underwater vehicle.

<p>A: R/V <i>Falkor</i>. B: ROV <i>SuBastian</i>.</p

The multi-mode gripper could be used successfully for sampling several sea creatures.

<p>A & B: pinch grasp on a holothurian (depth: 843m). C & D: a power grasp on a hexactinellid sponge (depth: 1361m).</p

Various types of grasping and comparison with a human hand.

<p>A & C: A power grasp allows to pick up large objects. B & D: Pinch grasp allows more dexterity to pick up small objects.</p

Examples of grasping sea cucumber (Holothuria).

<p>A: On a sandy substrate (depth: 2224m). B: On a rocky substrate (depth: 1282m).</p