1A2-P20 Development of a Coupled Tendon-Driven Multi-joint Manipulator for Decommissioning Nuclear Power Plant : Introduction of mini CT-Arm model with 3D joint mechanism(Mechanism and Control for Wire Actuation System)

Abstract

For the decommissioning of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, we need robot arms which have long and slender shape, wide motion range, and radiation-tolerant system. However, existing robot arms are not capable of satisfying those requirements. In particular, the extremely large torque generated by the arm weight is the most difficult problem in the development of such long and slender arms. Therefore, in order to satisfy those requirements, we propose a new robot arm named "3D CT-Arm". The 3D CT-Arm uses a "coupled tendon drive", in which the all joints are driven by motors located on the base through wires and pulleys, and the all motors support the torque on the base joint. Thus, the 3D CT-Arm can maintain its posture even when it extends the arm horizontally. In this paper, we introduce the concept of 3D CT-Arm and show the design and test of a prototype.