Research on omni-directional power-assisted moving mechanism and control method of measuring equipment for outdoor inspection

Abstract

In recent years，accidents such as road subsidence have occurred due to the breakage of water pipes caused by aging. In order to prevent such accidents，ground-penetrating radar surveys are used to investigate water pipes. In order to reduce the burden of this survey，a cart equipped with an omni-directional moving mechanism is being considered. However，the omni-directional moving mechanism is vulnerable to bumps and slopes，which poses a problem when operated outdoors. Therefore，this study aims to reduce the burden on the operator by applying a power assist to the omni-directional moving mechanism. For this purpose，a cart equipped with an omni-directional moving mechanism w that can run outdoors was fabricated，equipment for power assist was selected，and a power assist control method was studied and implemented. We also conducted running experiments using the implemented power assist system and measured the data. As a result，it was found that power assist is possible for the omni-directional moving mechanism. One of the issues was the large difference from the target value of the assist due to insufficient motor torque．