Akito Nomura

Two axes orthogonal drive transmission for omnidirectional crawler with surface contact

In this paper, we propose an omnidirectional mobile mechanism with surface contact. This mechanism is expected to perform on rough terrain and weak ground at disaster sites. In the discussion on the drive mechanism, we explain how a two axes orthogonal drive transmission system is important and we propose a principle drive mechanism for omnidirectional motion. In addition, we demonstrated that the proposed drive mechanism has potential for omnidirectional movement on rough ground by conducting experiments with prototypes.

Planar Omnidirectional Crawler Mobile Mechanism—Development of Actual Mechanical Prototype and Basic Experiments

This letter proposes a planar omnidirectional crawler mobile mechanism. This mechanism is the basis for the mobility of search and rescue robots. A planar omnidirectional crawler aims to facilitate penetration into a narrow path and soft or fragile ground. In this letter, the effectiveness of the proposed transmission mechanism is experimentally determined. In addition, a planar omnidirectional crawler equipped with a transmission mechanism was developed, and its characteristics were investigated through experiments for the pressure applied to the ground.

Jamming layered membrane gripper mechanism for grasping differently shaped-objects without excessive pushing force for search and rescue missions

ABSTRACT A gripper comprising a jamming membrane was developed with the capability of grasping collapsible, soft, and fragile objects without applying heavy pressure. In disaster sites, it is necessary for robots to grab various types of objects, such as fragile objects. Deformable grippers that contain bags filled with powder cannot handle collapsible or soft objects without excessive pressure. Changing powder density relatively by changing inner volume is one approach to overcome this problem. By expanding the concept and simplifying the variable inner volume of the gripping mechanism, we developed a jamming membrane comprising the following three layers: outer layer and inner layer made of rubber and a powder layer in between the outer and inner rubber layer. This jamming membrane allows collapsible, soft, or fragile objects to be held securely without applying too much pressure. We designed and developed a prototype of the jamming membrane gripper. Our experiments confirmed the validity of the proposed jamming membrane mechanism. GRAPHICAL ABSTRACT