Robotic Circulatory Network: Germination of basic technology and science for extensional morphological modification of the self-body

2023 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 22K18776
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Challenging Research (Exploratory)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Review Section: Medium-sized Section 20:Mechanical dynamics, robotics, and related fields
• Research Institution: Tohoku University
• Principal Investigator: Tadakuma Kenjiro 東北大学, タフ・サイバーフィジカルAI研究センター, 准教授 (30508833)
• Project Period (FY): 2022-06-30 – 2024-03-31
• Keywords: ロボット機構 / メカニズム設計 / 循環メカニズム / 化学反応 / 柔剛切替え

Outline of Final Research Achievements

We have promoted the “mechano- chemical complex reaction mechanism,” which is a combination of chemical reaction and force field change from the viewpoint of mechanism. This mechanism enables the flexible performance of a variety of tasks by extensively modifying the morphology through the application of mechanical action during the reaction, a function that was previously limited to restoration only. We have further advanced this dramatically variable function of shape, and have organized a methodology to make the previously fixed counterpart variable as well. Specifically, we discovered the phenomenon of circumferential power transmission in the same plane in a paraffin wax-hardened, alienated rotating magnet with a rotor, and as a result, we were able to organize and develop the design theory of robot mechanisms from the viewpoint of reflective drive and variable pairing.

Free Research Field

ロボット機構学

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

この回転入力のON・OFFや回転数の調整を行うことで，多様に自己改変させるロボット機構の構成において，アクチュエータ数を少なくしながらも複数の状態と取り得るという，複態・多態化の機構設計論に結び付けることが可能となる．このような入出力因果現象を確認することができた．
さらに展開された学術知識として，反射型駆動の側面において，自己形状変化させる際のトリガを，メタ入力として考え図３に示すように，物理量としての入力（物理量変化）・出力（力・変位・動作・物理量変化・形状変化・特性変化）として，内外を含めて，入出力因果メカニズムという概念に展開している．