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In this study, we developed a 4-degrees of freedom (DOF) force feedback device independent of its operational component comprising pneumatic artificial muscles and magnetorheological clutches. Research and development of force feedback devices is becoming popular in fields such as entertainment, remote operation, and rehabilitation. These areas of research are related to virtual reality and augmented...
In recent years, ventilation equipment has been installed in various structures to draw in outdoor air and circulate indoor air. These ventilation installations have pipes (ducts) through which air flows. If dust accumulates in a duct, it will be carried indoors by the airflow. Dust adversely affects human health, and so these ducts must be cleaned regularly. However, the existing cleaning methods...
If pipes with narrow diameters are not well inspected, preventing accidents become difficult. Therefore, we developed a pneumatically powered earthworm-type robot for Half-inch pipes (each having an inner diameter of approximately 16 mm); these pipes are extremely difficult to inspect. When the robot travels for a long distance, its speed significantly decreases. When the movement distance of one...
We have developed an earthworm-type 25A pipe inspection robot using a pneumatic drive. However, the developed robot had a low locomotion speed. This was due to the fact that the contraction amount of the pneumatic artificial muscle used for driving the actuator of the robot was small. To resolve the problem and increase the amount of movement of the robot, an extension actuator to extend in the axial...
In recent years, powdered materials have been often used in various industries. Among the various uses of powders, we focused on the conveyance of the developer in the printers. Screw conveyors are commonly used in the printer for the conveyance of the developer. However, this presents the problems such as the condensation of the developer by the shearing force and the temperature rise. Thus, low...
Sewer pipes play an important role in a city's infrastructure. However, accidents have occurred in recent years due to increasingly old pipes. To prevent such accidents, there is a need to check the internal condition of pipes. Therefore, we focused on the locomotion of a robotic earthworm that is capable of running stably in a narrow space. We developed a peristalsis crawling robot with the goal...
In recent years, the demand for rocket launching has increased due to the development of space technology. However, using inexpensive rockets is not always possible. Although the cost of solid-propellant rockets is relatively reasonable, safely manufacturing a large amount of solid propellant is difficult, and the manufacturing process is disjointed. Therefore, safe and continues manufacturing of...
The global water shortage has recently been debated at the United Nations. The main cause of this shortage is the excessive use of water resources by humans. Therefore, a positive approach to saving water is needed. Much water is used to flush toilets in homes. Thus, it is necessary to develop a sewage disposal system that saves water. We focused on the bowel peristalsis as a model for a mechanism...
A master-slave system has been used to operate a robot. This system is necessary to communicate human intentions to the robot. In this context, we focus on Myo-Electric (ME) potential. In many previous studies, a motor is used as an actuator, and the torque and position are estimated from the ME potential. However joint stiffness, which humans can change, is not considered. It is possible to solve...
In recent years, robots have been used in medicine and everyday life. Therefore, it is desirable that these robots be flexible and lightweight. For this reason, we have studied and developed straight-fiber-type artificial muscles derived from McKibben-type muscles, which have excellent contraction rate and force characteristics. Last year, we developed a manipulator with six degrees of freedom using...
Robots have become an integral part of human life, and the relationship between humans and robots has grown closer. Thus, it is desired that robots have characteristics similar to humans. In this context, we paid attention to an artificial muscle actuator. We used straight-fiber-type artificial muscles, derived from the McKibben type, which have excellent characteristics with respect to the contraction...
Muscle fatigue is commonly associated with the musculoskeletal disorder problem. Previously, various techniques were proposed to index the muscle fatigue from electromyography signal. However, quantitative measurement is still difficult to achieve. This study aimed at proposing a method to estimate the degree of muscle fatigue quantitatively. A fatigue model was first constructed using handgrip dynamometer...
Long-time exposure to repetitive or monotonous work is associated with increased risk for musculoskeletal disorders that are due to muscle fatigue. Previously, researchers reported that muscle fatigue can be estimated using a low-frequency band of an SEMG signal. However, these studies were performed exclusively during static contraction tasks. The objective of the present study was to evaluate and...
Robots have entered human life, and closer relationships are being formed between humans and robots. It is desirable that these robots be flexible and lightweight. For this reason, we studied and developed an artificial muscle actuator using straight-fiber-type artificial muscles derived from the McKibben-type muscles, which have excellent contraction rate and force characteristics. However, these...
An earthworm moves by peristaltic crawling, which propagates extension and contraction waves along the anteroposterior direction from the anterior to posterior part, by varying the thickness and length of its segments. This locomotion mechanism is in contact with a large area on the ground when the robot moves. Furthermore, the amount of space required is less than that for other locomotion mechanisms...
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