Host: The Japan Society of Mechanical Engineers
Name : [in Japanese]
Date : September 08, 2024 - September 11, 2024
A robot unit packaged with a flexible plastic film was developed. By packaging the robot with a thin plastic film, waterproofing was achieved at a low cost and using a simple method. This robot can operate underwater and in living areas by being waterproof. This study developed a robot based on the “robot packaging method.” This method is a technology of vacuum packaging a robot and insulating fluid in a film. Since this robot has three links, it can be expected to work as a stand-alone robot. The effects of the film’s length and the amount of liquid on the range of motion of the robot unit in the robot packing method were confirmed through experiments. The experimental results confirmed that in this robot unit, the amount of liquid affects the range of motion. Furthermore, it was shown that the optimal length of the plastic film may change depending on the robot’s shape and the amount of liquid. In this study, the proposed robot is intended to be used for various tasks, and examples of its use as a locomotive robot, a robot hand, and a fish-like robot are shown. In an underwater experiment using a fish-like robot, we confirmed that the robot packing method was waterproof, operated underwater, and achieved movement as a single robot unit, similar to a mobile robot. As for the robot hand, we confirmed changes in the gripping force of the object by changing the hand position.
