Takahiko Nakamura

Locomotion method of a rescue robot with multi-legs and Omni-directional wheels

A rescue robot in a disaster area should have a mechanism to move on irregular surfaces. Actual disaster spot consists of an irregular surface such as inside of a collapsed house. However, it is mostly surrounded by many flat surfaces such as roads to that spot or undamaged area inside that spot. A robot that works under rescue operation should not only have special purpose locomotion mechanism but also have rapid movement methods to run under level surfaces. We proposed new rescue robot that has two mechanisms: one is Omni-directional wheels for leveling surfaces, the other is a set of multiple legs for irregular surfaces. To realize smooth rotation seamlessly between wheel movement and legged locomotion, we investigated a new gait that realizes arbitrary rotation around any position of a center of rotation. The proposed gait is especially useful for sensing devices such as cameras mounted on top of the robot.

Development of a dense-phase conveying system of lapillus

Ordinary Lapillus has been thought as an aggregate though, it in this study, it is considered of particulate and being developed based on powder particle technology. The purpose of this study is guaranteeing safety of workers, improving working efficiency and minimization damage to farmlands. We are developing lapillus conveying system. This paper describes the detailed design of the Conveying System, the safety control system required for preventing from bursting the pipe, and the experiment condition we establish.