JPH0871977A - Robot device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To provide a small-sized lightweight robot device which can take motion resembling a human motion. CONSTITUTION: Four stators 5 which drives in a principle similar to that used as a ultrasonic motor, are located on end the same circumference so that their center axes pass through the center of a substantially spherical rotor, and accordingly, the rotor 4 are held at opposite sides between the stators 5 in two pairs, that is, the rotor 4 is supported only by the four stators 5, so that a spherical actuator 3 is formed. The rotor 4 incorporates a first arm part l corresponding to a hand, and a second arm part 2 corresponding to a front arm, and a cover part 6 made of soft materials, with which the spherical actuator 3 is covered, is provided so as to obtain an upper extremity prosthesis A. Accordingly, the rotor 4 can be smoothly rotated, and accordingly, the first arm can be smoothly actuated as if it is a human joint.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a robot device.
Specifically, the present invention relates to a robot apparatus that mimics the movement of each part of a human.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, attempts have been made to assist a physically handicapped person with a robot device for the purpose of supporting independence of persons with disabilities or reducing the burden on caregivers. By Noodles ”, The Japan Society of Mechanical Engineers Robotics and Mechatronics Lecture, Proceedings p.11
13-1114). 2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in a robot device such as an assisting robot or a prosthetic hand, which is an alternative to human limbs, a rotary electromagnetic motor is used in a joint portion. For example, like a robot device F shown in FIG. Two electromagnetic motors 52 and 53 having different rotation axis directions are attached to the tips. In this robot apparatus F, the movement of the wrist is represented by using the two electromagnetic motors 52 and 53, and the two electromagnetic motors 52 and 53 are driven,
A spoon or fork 54 attached to the drive shaft of the electromagnetic motor 52 can be used to care for meals.

If an object such as an industrial robot is an object for assembling a machine or transporting an object, it is not necessary to consider the appearance of a human such as its movement and speed, but a human such as an artificial hand or an assisting robot is required. For the target robot device,
Due to its functions, it is necessary to perform actions that correspond to human-like soft movements and emotions.

[0004]

However, in a robot apparatus using a rotary type electromagnetic motor, only a rotation about one axis and a linear movement can be realized, and the operation feels awkward and extremely cold. Also, if we try to realize human movement only by a rotary electromagnetic motor,
Since a complicated transmission conversion mechanism has to be used, there is a problem that the device becomes large and heavy.

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned drawbacks of the prior art, and an object of the present invention is to provide a robot apparatus which is small in size and light in weight, and which can move smoothly and softly like a human. It is in.

[0006]

In a first robot apparatus according to the present invention, a plurality of stators are brought into pressure contact with the surface of a substantially spherical rotor, and minute vibrations generated in the stator are transmitted to the rotor. It is characterized in that a spherical actuator that drives the rotor to rotate is used in the joint portion.

Further, the plurality of stators are provided along a predetermined same circumference of the rotor, the first arm is provided on one side of the rotor with the circumference as a boundary, and the first arm is provided on the other side. Two arms may be provided.

At this time, it is preferable that the spherical actuator is covered with a soft member, and the spherical actuator can be used as a joint portion of a prosthetic hand or artificial leg.

According to the second robot apparatus of the present invention,
A spherical actuator in which a plurality of stators are brought into pressure contact with the surface of a substantially spherical rotor and minute vibrations generated in the stator are transmitted to the rotor to drive the rotor to rotate is used for the eyeball portion. There is.

At this time, the rotor is preferably used as an eyeball, and the eyeball can be used as an artificial eye.

In each of the above-mentioned robot devices, a minute vibration is generated in each of the plurality of stators along a substantially circular shape with an axis passing through the center of the rotor as an axis, and each of the stators receives the vibration. The spherical actuator may be driven by applying a rotational kinetic force around each axis to the rotor, and the rotor is rotationally driven in an arbitrary direction by combining the rotational drive forces generated by the respective stators. Good.

[0012]

In the spherical actuator used in the robot apparatus according to the present invention, the rotor can be smoothly rotated by the stator pressed against the surface. Therefore, by using the spherical actuator for the joint portion as in the first robot apparatus of the present invention, the first arm or the second arm attached to the rotor can be smoothly driven, and it is as if a human being. It can operate like a joint.
Further, since this spherical actuator is small and lightweight, the robot apparatus can be made compact and lightweight. Therefore, the robot device can be used as a prosthetic hand or a prosthetic leg, and can be a robot device that behaves like a human. Particularly, by covering the spherical actuator with a soft member, the joint portion can be hidden, which is preferable in terms of appearance.

Further, as in the second robot apparatus of the present invention, by using the spherical actuator for the eyeball portion, the eyeball model attached to the rotor can be smoothly driven. For this reason, it can be used as a prosthesis that moves close to the human eyeball, and the human eye can feel it gently. In particular, the rotor itself can be used as an eyeball, and the robot device can be made smaller and lighter.

[0014]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS FIG. 1 shows a prosthetic hand A as a robot apparatus according to the present invention. The prosthetic hand A includes a first arm portion 1 corresponding to a hand, a second arm portion 2 corresponding to a forearm, and a spherical actuator 3 that functions as a wrist joint. Between the first arm portion 1 and the second arm portion 2, a cover portion 6 made of a soft material such as rubber or soft plastic is provided so as to cover the spherical actuator 3, and at first glance. It is designed so that you do not know that it is a prosthetic hand.

The spherical actuator 3 is constructed such that a stator 5 using a piezoelectric material is fixed to the inner surface of a cover portion 6, and a spherical rotor 4 is rotatably supported by a plurality of stators 5. That is, the rotor 4 cannot rotate due to friction with the stator 4 when the stator 5 is not driven, but drives the stator 5 to generate so-called ultrasonic vibration (flexure traveling wave on the piezoelectric surface) on the surface of the stator 5. The rotor 4 rotates accordingly. Also,
When the stator 5 to be driven is switched or the vibration mode of the stator 5 is changed, the rotor 4 rotates in different directions.

As the spherical actuator 3, it is possible to use, for example, one that has been applied for a patent as Japanese Patent Application No. 5-252273. This spherical actuator 3
As shown in FIG. 2A, the four stators 5 are arranged at an angle of 90 degrees along the maximum circle (equator) of the spherical rotor 4 and the rotors 4 are arranged by the four stators 5. I supported it. Each stator 5 is composed of a rotary type surface acoustic wave oscillator as shown in FIGS. That is, the elastic body 10 formed of an elastic material such as metal has a substantially dish shape, and the contact pieces 11 are projected and arranged in a ring shape on the outer peripheral surface at a constant pitch. Corresponding to 11, a piezoelectric element 12 such as PZT is attached to the back surface of the outer peripheral portion of the elastic body 10. The stator 5 has a contact piece 11
The rotor 4 is supported in such a manner that it contacts the rotor 4. Therefore, the upper surface of the contact piece 11 is provided with a concave rounded surface 11a having the same curvature as that of the surface of the rotor 4. .

However, the stator 5 drives the rotor 4 according to the principle of an ultrasonic motor, and vibrates the piezoelectric element 12 to contact the contact piece 11 of the elastic body 10.
It generates surface wave vibration such as flexural vibration and stretching vibration on the surface of the. When the piezoelectric element 12 is driven in a predetermined driving mode, the traveling particles traveling on the surface of the elastic body 10 in the circumferential direction (flexing traveling wave) cause the particles on the surface of the contact piece 11 to move in an elliptical orbit. , The surface of the rotor 4 moves along the circumferential direction of the stator 5. As a result, the rotor 4 rotates around the axis of the driven stator 5.

As shown in FIG. 1, for example, the first arm portion 1 is provided on either side of the equatorial plane of the rotor 4 on which the four stators 5 are arranged, and the first equatorial plane is the symmetry plane. Two arm portions 2 are provided. A control signal (not shown) installed outside each of the four stators 5 transmits a control signal. By driving the paired stators 5 facing each other, the shafts of the stators 5 being driven are driven. The rotor 4 is rotated around the center. Further, by driving the four stators 5, the rotational forces around the axes of the paired stators 5 are combined, and the rotor 4 is rotated in the direction of the combined force. Therefore, by driving the four stators 5, the first arm portion 1 provided on the rotor 4 can be freely rotated in the arrow direction as shown in FIG. of course,
It is also possible to switch the stator 5 to be driven or change the vibration mode of the stator 5 to rotate the first arm unit 1.

In the artificial hand A, the rotor 4 of the spherical actuator 3 functioning as a wrist joint is smoothly rotated so that the first arm portion 1 corresponding to the hand operates smoothly and softly as if a human being. , The first arm unit 1
Can be oriented in any direction. The spherical actuator 3 can freely rotate the rotor 4,
The single spherical actuator 3 can move in two degrees of freedom, and can reduce the size and weight of the joint portion. In particular, since the spherical actuator 3 is operated according to the same principle as that of the ultrasonic motor, even if the spherical actuator 3 should fail, the position and orientation at that time can be maintained as they are. There is.

Further, by analyzing the myoelectric signal of the user and controlling the spherical actuator 3 based on the analyzed myoelectric signal, it is possible to operate the first arm portion 1 according to the intention of the user. is there. Furthermore, the first arm portion 1 may be provided with a finger movement function, and it is conceivable that the first arm portion 1 is a prosthetic hand that is closer to the human hand.

FIG. 3 shows a artificial eye B as a robot apparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention. The rotor 4 of the spherical actuator 3 functions as an eyeball,
The iris 7 and the pupil 8 are drawn on the surface of the rotor 4, and the spherical actuator 3 is housed in the human head 9 (in the eye socket). Reference numeral 13 denotes a casing that houses the rotor 4 and the stator 5, and the rotor 4 is supported only by the four stators 5 without contacting the inner wall surface of the casing 13.

By driving the stator 5, the rotor 4 is smoothly rotated around the axis of the pair of stators 5. Therefore, the rotor 4 smoothly moves up and down, and left and right, and it can be made as if the human eyeball is moving up and down and left and right. Moreover, the spherical actuator 3 is extremely small and lightweight, and it is an effective method to use it particularly in a small area such as an eyeball.

As shown in FIG. 4, an eyeball portion 14 on which the iris 7 and the pupil 8 are drawn is rotatably housed in the eye socket, and is pressed against the surface of the rotor 4 on the back side of the eyeball portion 14. Thus, by driving the stator 5, the eyeball portion 14 can be smoothly rotated.

FIG. 5 is a schematic view of a feeding / care robot apparatus D which is a robot apparatus according to another embodiment. In the feeding and nursing robot apparatus D, a spherical actuator 3 that functions as a wrist joint is attached to the tip of an arm portion 21 that functions as an arm, and a spoon or fork 2 is attached to a drive shaft (not shown) of the spherical actuator 3.
2 is attached. A uniaxially-rotated electromagnetic motor 23 is provided in the middle of the arm portion 21. By driving the electromagnetic motor 23, the forearm portion 21a rotates about the axis of the electromagnetic motor 23, and the arm portion 21 can bend and stretch. It has become. The mounting portion of the arm portion 21 to the apparatus body 25 is also provided with an electromagnetic motor 24 around one axis, and the rear arm portion 21 is driven by driving the electromagnetic motor 24.
b is rotatable about the axis of the electromagnetic motor 24. Then, a control signal is transmitted from the device body 25 or a remote control device (not shown) to drive the electromagnetic motors 23 and 24 to bend and stretch the arm portion 21, and the spoon or fork 22 is served with rice or noodles. Bring it close to the bowl or plate and scoop up the rice. Next, the spherical actuator 3 is turned up and down, left and right to shake off the excess amount, and then the two electromagnetic motors 23 and 24 are driven while the rice is still placed on the spoon or the fork 22 to bring it closer to the mouth. Rotate the spherical actuator 3 to turn the spoon or fork 22 upside down,
You can put the rice scooped into your mouth.

As described above, in the feeding / care robot apparatus D of the present invention, the spoon or fork 22 attached to the drive shaft of the spherical actuator 3 is smoothly rotated vertically and horizontally so that it is as if it were a wrist joint. The spoon or fork 22 can be moved smoothly, and the amount can be easily adjusted to an appropriate amount for easy eating. Moreover, since the joint portion corresponding to the wrist can be made small, the robot device D can be made compact.

FIG. 6 shows a master-slave robot E as a robot apparatus according to still another embodiment of the present invention. The master-slave robot E is used, for example, in an undersea explorer, and the undersea explorer 31 is used.
A pair of left and right working units 32 are provided so as to protrude from the inside toward the sea. The working unit 32 includes a first arm unit 3 corresponding to a hand so that the working unit 32 can perform the same movement as a human arm or hand.
3, a second arm portion 34 corresponding to the lower arm portion and a third arm portion 35 corresponding to the upper arm portion, and the first arm portion 33 is constituted by the spherical actuator 35 and the second arm portion 36. The second arm portion 34 is rotatably supported by the third arm portion 35 by an electromagnetic motor (not shown) around one axis. A pair of left and right arms (not shown) for operating the working unit 32 is provided inside the seabed probe 31. The arm includes, for example, a hand portion for operating the first arm portion, a lower arm portion for operating the second arm portion, and an upper arm portion for operating the third arm portion. Then, the upper arm of the arm is attached to the upper arm of the operator, the lower arm is attached to the lower arm of the operator, and the operator holds the hand. The operator can grasp and open the first arm portion 33 of the working portion 32 by grasping and opening the hand portion of the arm, and
By twisting the wrist vertically and horizontally, the spherical actuator 36 can be driven and the first arm portion 33 of the working unit 32 can be twisted vertically and horizontally. Further, the working unit 32 can be extended or contracted by extending or contracting the arm while holding the arm. Therefore, as if the operator himself / herself is working, the working unit 32 can collect rocks on the seabed and operate a machine placed in the sea. Of course, the master-slave robot E can also be operated by transmitting a control signal from the sea by a cable or the like. In such a master-slave robot E, the first arm portion 33 can perform a smooth motion as if it were a human hand, and the operability can be improved. Further, the master-slave robot E can be used not only for a seabed probe, but also for applications such as handling radioactive materials from the outside of a barrier, and virtual reality.

The present invention is not limited to the above embodiments, but can be applied to other joints such as ankles, knees, knees and necks. Further, it goes without saying that it can be used not only for feeding but also for various robot devices that imitate human motions, such as other assisting robot devices and rescue robot devices. The spherical actuator referred to in the present invention is not limited to the structure described here, and it is needless to say that it may be any one capable of rotating a substantially spherical rotor.

[0028]

In the robot apparatus according to the present invention, since the spherical actuator is used in the joint portion and the eyeball portion, it is possible to express the movements of the joint and the eyeball which are close to those of a human. Further, since the spherical actuator is small and lightweight, the robot apparatus can be made compact and lightweight.
Therefore, it can be used as an artificial hand, an artificial leg, an artificial eye, and the like, and can be used as various robot devices that require human motion.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a partially cutaway perspective view showing a prosthetic hand as an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2A is a partially sectional schematic structural view showing the spherical actuator of the above, and FIGS. 2B and 2C are a front view and a sectional view showing the stator of the same.

FIG. 3 is a front view showing a artificial eye which is another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a side view showing a artificial eye which is still another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a configuration diagram showing a robot apparatus according to still another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a schematic configuration diagram showing a robot apparatus according to still another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a configuration diagram showing a robot device as a conventional example.

[Explanation of symbols]

 A artificial hand B, C artificial eye 3 spherical actuator 4 rotor 5 stator 14 eyeball part

Claims (9)

[Claims] 1. A spherical actuator in which a plurality of stators are brought into pressure contact with the surface of a substantially spherical rotor and micro-vibration generated in the stator is transmitted to the rotor to drive the rotor to rotate, is used in a joint portion. A robot device characterized by the above. 2. The plurality of stators are provided along a predetermined same circumference of the rotor, a first arm is provided on one side of the rotor with the circumference as a boundary, and the other side is provided. The robot apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a second arm. 3. The robot apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the spherical actuator is covered with a soft member. 4. The spherical actuator is used as a joint portion of a prosthetic hand or a prosthetic foot.
The robot apparatus according to 2 or 3. 5. A spherical actuator, in which a plurality of stators are brought into pressure contact with the surface of a substantially spherical rotor and micro-vibration generated in the stator is transmitted to the rotor to drive the rotor to rotate, is applied to an eyeball portion. A robot device characterized by being used. 6. The robot apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the rotor is used as an eyeball. 7. The robot apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the eyeball is an artificial eye. 8. The plurality of stators each generate a minute vibration along a substantially circular shape with an axis passing through a center of the rotor as an axis, and each of the stators has a rotational movement about the axis. The robot device according to claim 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 or 7, wherein force is applied to the rotor. 9. The robot apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the rotor is rotationally driven in an arbitrary direction by combining rotational drive forces generated by the respective stators.