JP2001329478A - Magic rope attached with sensor at its head part and capable of being moved freely - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an economical robot capable of freely approaching a place where a person hardly approaches or can not approach since the place is too narrow, high or dangerous such as in an inspection at a high place, investigation at a recessed part of a narrow pipe, investigation under rubble in a calamity, etc., and having a flexibility, an operating property and various functions such as using a camera, etc., to grasp situation. SOLUTION: The structure and controlling methods of magic rope attached with a sensor in accordance with its use and capable of freely being moved are provided as follows; a method for fixing the shape of the flexible rope is enabled by a tension of a steel wire passed through central holes of a series of disc like parts having cores at their central parts, a method for controlling its position is enabled by >=3 bolts projecting from the disc like parts having cores at their central parts, a resistance to a twist is provided by an outer shell of the rope, and a method for controlling and operating the whole of the rope is enabled by conveying a series of information for controlling a motor obtained by the front end part of the rope to a motor-controlling device following behind.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

[Technical field to which the present invention pertains] When a person is narrow, tall or dangerous and cannot go, such as inspection of high places, investigation of the inside of narrow pipes, investigation of places where people can not enter such as under rubble in disasters, etc. It is used as a rope that can freely control the movement so that it can easily approach and enter difficult places, check the situation with a camera, etc., and take necessary measures.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A gastroscope is known as a bar-shaped camera having a sensor, but it does not move freely, and its use is limited in terms of functions. There are inspection vehicles and ladders for high-altitude inspections, but they are not flexible, and there are various restrictions because people can get on them, so that efficient and functional inspection methods have not been achieved.
A tool to enter the narrow hole includes a water pipe robot, but the application is limited to a uniform shape like a water pipe, and there are many functional restrictions.

[0003]

No prior art has the flexibility, operability, and versatility to go anywhere. Conventionally, the inspection could not be performed, or the cost, the time, and the equipment were very difficult.

[0004]

[Means for Solving the Problems] Attach a sensor or tool according to the application at the tip, and have the flexibility to enter anywhere, operate freely, and have the required strength and strength, such as "magic rope" Clarification of the structure and control method.

[0005]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS (1) Structure of a freely movable rope

As shown in FIG. 1, there is a drum having a rope (main body) wound around a starting point and an extruding device. The drum and the extruder shall be connected to a motor so that the extrusion of the rope can be precisely controlled. The rope extending from the drum is sequentially extruded or unwound by a required length from the drum.

The rope is

FIG.

FIG. 3 shows a structure as shown in FIG. The frame is composed of a required number (for example, 500) of disk-shaped members. The center hole is tensed through a flexible core material (steel wire, etc.) that holds a disc-shaped object in a rosary. Here, the steel wire passing through the center (centroid) of the disk-shaped object is tensioned, and the mutual position and the rope shape of the disk-shaped object are fixed. Further, since this axial force is close to the center and the thickness of the sheath tube is thin, the pliability is maintained, and a large force is not required for controlling the bolt for bending the rope.

The disc-shaped one has two (or more) holes, each of which passes a bolt (motor core) extending from the disc below and a spiral. A washer attached to the disk meshes with this, and the mutual position is determined. The rotation of the motor (bolt) and the spiral changes the position of engagement with the washer, changing the distance between the upper and lower disks. In addition, the spiral coming out of the disk can be moved with respect to the rotation of the motor by cutting the screw finely, but it can be prevented from moving due to the frictional force by the external force applied to the rope.

[0008] With respect to the deformation of the main body (self-weight, external force), the core material, its sheath, and the shaft of the motor resist compression, tension, and bending. With respect to torsion, the outer shell structure allows the empty space of the sheath tube to be taken in the radial direction of the disk, so that it does not resist expansion and contraction of the disk interval (bending of the rope), but to rotation (torsion) of the disk. To be able to resist.

[0009]

As shown in FIG. 2, the number of rotations of the motor is controlled by a motor controller and a control panel. The motor controllers are individually recognized by all disks and disk-shaped positions. The number of rotations is sent from the operation panel to each motor controller and controlled.

(2) Control / Operating Method It is assumed that the rope has a certain shape. Extruded from the propulsion drum, the rope is at the height of the disk body (the height of the sheath tube)
When moving forward, the information of the motor controller of the disk is transferred to the motor controller of the disk shifted one by one (however,

In the example of FIG. 2, the expansion and contraction are reversed by the upper and lower disc-shaped motors). For the most advanced ones, they turn in the direction specified by the instruction from the operation panel.

[0011] By such control, in the forward movement, the trailing position follows the leading position as it is, and a stream line is drawn. be able to. When the vehicle retreats, the rope is returned to the drum by performing the reverse control. Buttons for forward, backward and power ON / OFF are provided on the operation panel.

[0012] The basis of the exercise is to store the trajectory at the head as information of the motor controller and to follow the trail, but it is necessary to change the angle on the way in a state depending on the situation at the site. May occur. For this time, an individual disk is designated for the operation panel so that it can be controlled.

The structure will have considerable rigidity for a given shape. In order to safely recover the rope body in the event of an external force that may lead to the destruction of the body, unexpected changes in the outside world, or abnormal internal control, a safety device is incorporated into the washer that meshes with the spiral.
A function to release the restriction (resistance) of the interval between the disks will be provided.

(3) For each application, a thickness, a length, a sensor to be attached, a tool, and the like are selected, and a structural specification of the rope is determined based on the thickness, length, and the like. Inspections of high places, investigation of the depths of narrow pipes, investigations under rubble in disasters, etc., determine the required rope length, allowable thickness, types of sensors and tools to be installed. On the other hand, depending on the element technology, the diameter may be from several mm to several m.
Up to the required length can be designed and manufactured.

[0015]

By using the present invention, inspections and investigations that could not be done before, which could not be done easily, can be easily performed, and various operations can be performed with parts of the head, and medical, industrial, disaster rescue, etc. Available in various fields. Personally, the world that had never been seen before expands, and the driving of the rope itself can be enjoyed.

[0016]

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an overall view of an apparatus. 1 Rope head (Determines the direction to go and equips a sensor) 2 Rope body (

FIG. 2

[It has the structure of Fig. 3] 3 Drum (Rope take-up part, accurately sending out rope) 4 Operation panel (including control device of motor controller) 5 Monitor (from sensor) You can see video 6 Rope Head direction operation lever 7 Rope forward / backward / ONN / OFF lever 8 Key for specifying an arbitrary position on the rope 9 Sensor, tool operation lever 10 Sensor, tool designation lever 11 Sensor, tool ONN / OFF lever

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the fuselage. FIG. 1 Core material (steel wire or other pliable and tensile-resistant material) 2 A pipe through which the core material passes is attached to the disk. 3 Control lines, power lines, sensor control lines, etc. 4 Pipes containing control lines, power lines, sensor control lines, etc. 5 Motor controller 6 Motor core. The place where the washer is bitten is spiral. 7 Motor main body 8 Core (a device that can expand and contract without generating stress on the skin of the rope main body) 9 Sheath (a device that can expand and contract without generating stress on the skin of the rope main body and can resist rotation of the disk) Reference Signs List 10 Disc body 11 Washer controller 12 Washer rotation axis 13 Washer (follows changes in disc spacing) 14 Motor core and spiral (where the lower one comes out) 15 Motor core and spiral tube

FIG. 3 is a longitudinal sectional view of a fuselage. FIG. 1 Core material (a flexible and tensile-resistant material such as steel wire) 2 It is attached to a disk with a tube through which the core material passes. 3 Control lines, power lines, control lines for sensors, etc. 4 Pipes containing control lines, power lines, control lines for sensors, etc. 5 Motor core. The bite of the washer is spiral. 6 Washer 7 Motor body 8 Core (a device that can expand and contract without generating stress on the skin of the rope body) 9 Sheath (a device that can expand and contract without generating stress on the skin of the rope body, resisting rotation of the disk Yes) 10 disk body

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A method for flexibly fixing the entire shape of a rope by tensioning a core material passed through a sheath tube at the center of a series of disc-shaped parts (hereinafter referred to as a rope). 2. A spiral attached to two (or more) bolts protruding from a disc-shaped component and a washer attached to an adjacent disc-shaped component, thereby controlling the position of the upper and lower discs, or How to release constraints as needed. 3. A disk-shaped expansion and contraction in the axial direction (rotation in a direction perpendicular to the disk) generates stress, resists mutual torsion of the disks,
A rope with a shell structure protruding from a disc-shaped part. 4. A method of pushing or pulling a core material or a sheath tube thereof from a drum at a starting point to advance or retract the entire rope. 5. A method of operating and controlling the entire rope by drawing a stream line by transmitting a series of motor controller information obtained at a rope head to a subsequent motor controller.