JP3293952B2 - Legged walking robot with shock absorbing means - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a legged walking robot provided with a shock absorbing means, and more specifically, absorbs a shock generated when the robot interferes (contacts) with a pipe or the like in a working environment, and makes a connection with the robot itself. It relates to one that protects the other party that interfered.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As legged walking robots, in particular, bipedal walking robots, those described in JP-A-62-97005 and JP-A-63-150176 are known. In addition, general robots including bipedal legged walking robots are described in detail in "Robot Engineering Handbook" (edited by The Robotics Society of Japan, October 20, 1990).

[0003]

By the way, legged walking robots, especially legged walking robots of bipedal walking, are expected to have a work ability that can be replaced by humans, and the work environment includes many structures such as pipes. It is expected that the work environment exists and the work environment is relatively narrow in terms of space. In such an environment, if the robot loses its posture and interferes with structures such as pipes or workers, it may not only damage them, but also damage the robot itself and hinder work. There is.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned inconvenience, and even if a legged walking robot interferes with a construction such as a pipe or a worker in a working environment, it may cause damage to itself and others. It is an object of the present invention to provide a legged walking robot having shock absorbing means for preventing as much as possible.

[0005]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention is constituted , for example, as set forth in claim 1.
Was. Explaining with reference numerals described below , at least the base
24 and the base through joints 10, 12, 14R (L).
Rutotomoni comprises a leg link 2 which is connected to the leg portion
Walking while maintaining the stability of the base against the gravity by link
In the legged walking robot 1 to the means for absorbing impact by an external force other than the floor reaction force received from the floor when walking (impact absorption
Collecting means 70, 80, 90, 200) to substantially all of the base.
Together comprise a circumferential, said shock absorbing means, a portion displaced from the initial position (the balloon 72, the damper unit
86, the elastic member 92, and the bag 202) to absorb the impact.

[0006]

A means for absorbing an impact due to an external force other than the floor reaction force received from the floor during walking is provided over substantially the entire circumference of the base, so that a structure such as a pipe or a worker can be used in a working environment. Even if they interfere with each other, the degree of damage received thereby can be reduced, and at the same time, the degree of damage to the other party can be reduced, and both can be protected. Sa
In addition, they are relatively protruding and easy to interfere, and precision electronic parts
Etc. in all directions of the base and the interference partner
Can be protected.

[0007]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will be described below, taking a bipedal legged mobile robot as an example of a legged walking robot. FIG. 1 is a joint skeleton diagram showing the robot 1 as a whole. The left and right leg links 2 have six joints (for convenience of understanding, each joint is shown by an electric motor that drives it). . The six joints are, in order from the top, joints 10R and 10L for rotation of the waist legs (around the z-axis) (R on the right and L on the left; the same applies hereinafter), and the roll direction of the waist (around the y- axis). joints 12R, 12L, joints 14R, 14L, the pitch direction <br/> direction joints 16R of knee, 16L, in the pitch direction of ankle joint 1 of the same pitch direction (about the x-axis)
8R, 18L, and joints 20R, 20L in the same roll direction. Foot 22R, 22L is attached to the lower part, and a base 24 is provided at the top, and the inside will be described later. It stores precision electronic components such as a control unit 26 composed of a microcomputer and a battery.

In the above, the hip joint is joint 10R (L),
12R (L) and 14R (L), and the ankle joint is composed of joints 18R (L) and 20R (L).
In addition, the thigh links 32R, 32 between the waist joint and the knee joint.
L, the lower leg links 34R, 34 between the knee joint and the ankle joint.
L connected. Here, the leg link 2 is given six degrees of freedom for each of the left and right feet, and by driving these 6 × 2 = 12 joints (axes) to appropriate angles during walking, the entire foot To a desired motion, and can be arbitrarily walked in a three-dimensional space. As described above, the above-mentioned joint is formed of an electric motor, and further includes a speed reducer for boosting the output thereof. Details of the joint are described in the application proposed by the present applicant (Japanese Patent Application No.
No. 324218, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 3-184787), and the like, which is not the subject of the present invention, and therefore, further description is omitted.

In the robot 1 shown in FIG. 1, a known six-axis force sensor 36 is provided at the ankle, and force components Fx, F in the x, y, and z directions transmitted to the robot through the foot.
y, Fz and moment components Mx, M around the direction
y and Mz are measured. At the four corners of the foot 22R (L), capacitance type ground switches 38 (not shown in FIG. 1) are provided to detect whether the foot is grounded. Further, an inclination sensor 40 is provided on the base 24 to detect an inclination angle and an inclination angular velocity of the base 24 with respect to the direction of gravity. The electric motor of each joint is provided with a rotary encoder for detecting the amount of rotation. 1, an origin switch 42 for correcting the output of the tilt sensor 40 and a limit switch 44 for fail countermeasures are provided at appropriate positions of the robot 1. These outputs are sent to the control unit 26 in the base 24 described above.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the details of the control unit 26, which comprises a microcomputer. The output of the tilt sensor 40 and the like is converted into a digital value by the A / D converter 50, and the output is
Via the RAM 54. The output of an encoder disposed adjacent to each electric motor is input to the RAM 54 via a counter 56, and the ground switch 3
Outputs of the RAM 8 and the like are similarly sent to the RAM 5
4 is stored. In the control unit, first and second arithmetic units 60 and 62 each including a CPU are provided. The first arithmetic unit 60 reads gaits (hip trajectory, foot trajectory) stored in the ROM 64. Then, the target joint angle is calculated and transmitted to the RAM 54. Further, the second arithmetic unit 62 reads out the target value and the detected actual value from the RAM 54, calculates a control value required for driving each joint, and outputs the control value to each joint via a D / A converter 66 and a servo amplifier. To the electric motor that drives the motor.

FIG. 3 is a front view showing the structure of the robot 1 shown in FIG. 1 more specifically, and FIG. 4 is a side view. A shock absorbing means 7 as shown in FIG.
0 is provided. FIG. 5 is a sectional view of the main part.
Referring to FIG. 3 to FIG.
Numeral 0 denotes a donut-shaped balloon 72 whose central opening penetrates the base 24 to cover the circumference of the base 24. As shown in FIG. 5, the balloon 72 is made of a contractible elastic material such as rubber. The balloon 72 is provided with an appropriate number of valves 76. Here, as shown in FIG. 5, the valve 76 is a valve body 76a air-tightly bonded to an edge of an opening formed in the balloon 72 via an elastic piece 77.
And a plate 7 housed therein in an airtight and slidable manner.
6b and a spring 76c for urging the plate 76b to the illustrated position. Although not evident from the drawings, the valve body 76a and the plate 76b are formed in a plane circular shape. Further, windows 7 are provided at a plurality of locations on the side surface of the valve
6d is drilled. In addition, a shoulder portion 76e is protruded below the valve body 76a to receive the plate 76b.
The upper surface 76f is fixed to the illustrated position by an internal circlip 76g.

In the above-described configuration, when a foreign object 100 such as a work environment building or a worker comes into contact with the object as shown in FIG. 5, the balloon 72 is deformed as shown by an imaginary line in FIG.
The compressed air filled in 2 drives the plate 76b upward in the drawing against the spring force of the spring 76c, and flows out of the window 76d to the outside. At this time, the valve 7
By setting the installation number of 6 and the spring force of the spring 76c to appropriate values, it is possible to absorb an impact generated by interference with the foreign matter 100. Accordingly, the impact received by the robot 1 can be reduced, and the impact received by the foreign object 100 can be reduced. The released air is refilled later to prepare for the next use.

Here, the example in which the shock absorbing means 70 (balloon 72) is arranged on the entire circumference of the base body 24 has been described, but it may be partially arranged at a corner or the like. It may be arranged. Further, air is used as the medium, but the medium is not limited to this, and a fluid such as oil may be used.
Furthermore, although the balloon 72 consisting of a single airtight chamber was used,
The present invention is not limited to this, and may be provided with a plurality of airtight chambers, a honeycomb structure, or a foam material.

Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described.
Another example of the shock absorbing means (hereinafter, the second shock absorbing means 80)
To explain). In this example, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the thigh link 32R (L) and the crus link 34R
(L). FIG. 6 is a sectional view taken along line VI-VI showing the details. Note that the description of the mechanism provided on the thigh link side described below also applies to the mechanism provided on the lower leg link 34R (L).

Referring to FIG. 6, the second shock absorbing means 80 includes a thigh (lower leg) link 32 having an H-shaped cross section.
(34) It is incorporated in R (L). That is, in the link, two damper units 86 are arranged in parallel on one side.
In each damper unit 86, a piston head 86a is slidably inserted into a cylinder 86d, and the piston head 86a is connected to a piston rod 86 by a lock nut 86c.
It is integral with b. The first chamber 86h defined by the piston head 86a communicates with the second chamber 86j formed by the piston head 86a and the cap 86f through a passage 86i provided in the piston head 86a. Further, a spring 86e is provided in the first chamber 86h, and urges the piston head 86a to a position shown in the drawing in contact with the cap 86f. Hydraulic oil is supplied to the first chamber 86h.
The free end of the piston rod 86b is enlarged in diameter, and the buffer cover 88 is attached thereto. 86 g is an oil seal.

In the above configuration, when the leg interferes with the foreign matter 100, the cover 88 retreats as shown by the imaginary line in FIG. 6 to move the piston rod 86b into the cylinder 86d against the spring force. As a result, the hydraulic oil in the first chamber 86h flows into the second chamber 86j through the passage 86i. Accordingly, by appropriately setting the diameter of the passage 86i with respect to the volume of the first chamber and appropriately setting the force of the spring 86e, the external force generated by the interference with the foreign matter 100 is reduced, and the impact due to the external force is reduced. Can be relaxed,
As in the first embodiment, it is possible to absorb and reduce the impact received by the other party that interferes with the robot 1. Although oil is used as the working fluid, air or the like may be used. Furthermore, although it is arranged on both the thigh link and the lower leg link, one of them may be arranged, and the other may be arranged on the base 24 or the like.

FIG. 7 is a partial sectional front view of the robot 1 showing another example (third shock absorbing means 90) of the shock absorbing means according to the third embodiment of the present invention. In the third embodiment, as shown in the drawing, the entire robot 1 is covered with an elastic material 92 made of rigid urethane foam. Further, as shown in FIG. 8 (a sectional view taken along the line VIII-VIII in FIG. 7), the elastic member 92 is coated so as to house the wiring 94 inside the thigh link 32R (L). This is the lower leg link 34R
The same applies to (L). Note that the wiring 94 is formed on the base 2.
4 from the control unit 26 or the battery stored in
This is for sending a control signal and a drive current to a group of motors mounted on the knee joint 16R (L) and the foot joints 18, 20R (L). Reference numeral 96 indicates a transmission belt. Note that the base 24 is provided with a window 98 for heat radiation of the electronic device housed in an appropriate position.

With the above-described structure, also in the third embodiment, when the base 24 or the leg link 2 interferes with a foreign matter, the shock generated between the robot 1 and the foreign matter can be absorbed and reduced. In addition, since the wiring 94 and the like are housed inside, there is no damage due to interference.
Although the example in which the entire robot 1 is covered is shown, the base 2
4 and the like.

FIG. 9 shows still another example of the shock absorbing means (fourth shock absorbing means 200) according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 4 is a partial front sectional view of the robot 1 similar to FIG. In the fourth embodiment, the base 2
Four airbag systems were arranged around the front, back, forth, right and left. The airbag system is a bag 202
And an inflator 204, and the structure itself is basically the same as that known in a vehicle. The control circuit is shown at the end of the block diagram of FIG. In the control unit 26, a second arithmetic unit 62 controls its operation. The bag 202 is stored in the inflator 204 when not operated.

Referring to the flow chart of FIG. 10, this will be described. First, in step S10, the output of the inclination sensor 40 is read, and the process proceeds to step S12, where the output is compared with a predetermined value. As described above, the output of the tilt sensor 40 is output from the base 2 of the robot 1.
4 shows the inclination angle and the inclination angular velocity with respect to the gravity direction of FIG. As the predetermined value, a value is set such that the robot 1 is expected to fall. If it is determined in S12 that the sensor output value exceeds the predetermined value, the robot 1 is predicted to fall over, so the process proceeds to S14 and the ignition device (not shown in FIG. 9) housed in the inflator 204 via the output circuit 206. ) To ignite and burn the propellant of potassium potassium nitrate charged on both sides of the airbag 202 to deploy the airbag 202 to a state shown by imaginary lines in FIG. 9 (FIG. 9 shows the left and right bags deployed). ). If the result in S12 is NO, the program ends.

Although the structure of the airbag system shown in the drawing is not fundamentally different from that of a known vehicle as described above, the posture of the robot 1 is more stable than that of a vehicle. The bag 202 is set so that the bag 202 contracts more slowly and the robot 1 makes a soft landing on the floor when compared with a collision with a vehicle, since the collision with the floor or the like when the vehicle 1 falls due to its own weight is lost. I do.

Since the fourth embodiment is constructed as described above, the impact received from the floor can be reduced even when the robot 1 loses its posture and falls down, so that both the robot 1 and the floor can be used. Can be protected. Further, as long as the inflator 204 is not ignited, the bag 202 is housed therein and does not protrude from the base 24,
It is easy to walk in a narrow work space. In the embodiment, an example is shown in which four airbag systems are provided on the base, but the present invention is not limited to this, and one airbag system or five or more airbag systems may be used. In addition, the placement destination is not limited to the base, but may be a leg.

In the first to fourth embodiments, four types of shock absorbing means are shown, but these may be used alone or in combination.

Further, in the above description, a bipedal legged walking robot has been described as an example. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and is applicable to a legged walking robot having three or more legs. In addition, a legged walking robot is taken as an example, but the present invention is also applicable to a wheel type or crawler type robot.

[0025]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, a legged walking robot provided with a leg link , more specifically, at least
A body and leg links connected to the base via joints, and the leg links oppose gravity to the base.
In the legged walking robot to walk while maintaining the stability of the body, the means for absorbing impact by an external force other than the floor reaction force received from the floor when walking, with provided over substantially the entire periphery of the substrate, the shock absorbing means, With a part that is displaced from the initial position, it is configured to absorb shock, so even if the robot interferes with installed objects such as piping in the work environment, it also absorbs the shock received by the other party that interfered with the robot itself Can relax and protect both sides. Furthermore, it is relatively protruding and easy to interfere,
All directions of the base, which often contains
You can protect your negotiation partner.

[0026] In the legged walking robot according to the second aspect, the shock absorbing means includes means for displacing the portion that absorbs the shock by displacing from the initial position and thereafter returning to the initial position. Even if there is continuous interference, the shock can always be absorbed and reduced.

[0027] In the legged walking robot according to claim 3 wherein said shock absorbing means, it is arranged that is intended to cover the convex portion of the robot, with easy site relatively interference of the robot The robot can be protected from interference by avoiding damage due to interference.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the legged walking robot, the shock absorbing means is configured to substantially cover a transmission path of a control system or a drive system such as wiring of the robot. Therefore, it is possible to effectively absorb and mitigate the shock at the time of interference, and to prevent disconnection of the transmission path.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the legged walking robot, the shock absorbing means further comprises a leg portion of the robot.
Since it is configured as Ru provided link, pressurized to the effects mentioned above
Even when the leg link interferes with foreign matter,
It is possible to protect both by absorbing and mitigating the impact received by the interfering partner .

[0030] In the legged walking robot according to claim 6, at least the base is connected to the base via a joint.
Leg link, and the leg link
Walking while keeping the stability of the base against
For robots, other than the floor reaction force received from the floor during walking
Means for absorbing an impact due to an external force, wherein the impact absorbing means comprises a base and a leg link of the robot .
At least one airbag disposed over at least one of substantially the entire circumference , detection means for detecting the degree of posture instability of the robot, and activating the airbag when the degree of posture instability is detected The control means for controlling the airbag can reduce the impact caused by the contact with the floor surface even if the robot falls down, and the airbag does not protrude when the robot is not operated. It does not hinder walking in the work space.

[0031] In the legged walking robot according to claim 7, the detecting means detects the degree of instability of the posture from a tilt angle and / or a tilt angular velocity of the robot with respect to the direction of gravity, and the control means includes: Since the airbag is configured to operate when the detected value exceeds a predetermined value,
The instability of the posture of the robot can be detected with high accuracy, and the impact due to contact with the floor surface due to falling can be reliably reduced.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a joint skeleton diagram showing an entire legged walking robot according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory block diagram of a control unit shown in FIG.

FIG. 3 is a front view specifically showing the structure of the robot shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a side view specifically showing the structure of the robot shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a sectional view of a main part showing the shock absorbing means shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 in more detail;

FIG. 6 is a sectional view taken along line VI - VI of FIG. 3, showing another example of the shock absorbing means in the second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a front partial sectional view of a robot similar to FIG. 3, showing still another example of the shock absorbing means in the third embodiment of the present invention.

8 is a sectional view taken along line VIII-VIII in FIG.

FIG. 9 is a front partial sectional view of a robot similar to FIG. 3, showing still another example of the shock absorbing means in the fourth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating the operation of a shock absorbing unit according to a fourth embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

Reference Signs List 1 legged walking robot (bipedal walking robot) 2 leg link 10R, 10L joint for leg rotation 12R, 12L joint in waist pitch direction 14R, 14L joint in waist roll direction 16R, 16L knee roll direction Joints 18R, 18L Joints in the roll direction of the ankle 20R, 20L Joints in the pitch direction of the ankle 22R, 22L Foot 24 Base 26 Control unit 70, 80, 90, 200 Shock absorbing means 72 Balloon 86 Damper unit 88 Buffer Cover 92 elastic material 100 foreign matter 202 (air) bag 204 inflator

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor ▲ Taka ▼ Hashiaki 1-4-1 Chuo, Wako-shi, Saitama Prefecture Inside Honda R & D Co., Ltd. (72) Takashi Matsumoto 1-4-4 Chuo, Wako-shi, Saitama No. 1 Inside Honda R & D Co., Ltd. (56) References JP-A Sho 63-30252 (JP, U) JP-A Sho 58-186701 (JP, U) JP-A Sho 58-150492 (JP, U) (58) Survey Field (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) B25J 5/00 B25J 19/00

Claims (7)

(57) [Claims] At least a base and an articulation are provided on the base.
Rutotomoni comprises a leg link that is connected with, the legs Li
Walking while maintaining the stability of the base against gravity
That in the legged walking robot, the means for absorbing impact by an external force other than the floor reaction force received from the floor while walking, said substrate
Substantially together comprise the entire circumference, said shock absorbing means legged walking robot, characterized in that to absorb the impact by providing a portion which is displaced from the initial position. 2. The legged walking robot according to claim 1, wherein said shock absorbing means includes means for returning a portion which is displaced from said initial position and absorbs a shock to an initial position thereafter. 3. The legged walking robot according to claim 1, wherein the shock absorbing means covers a convex portion of the robot. Wherein said shock absorbing means, to one of 3 claims 1 to wherein, characterized in that the transmission path of the control system or the drive system, such as the robot wiring is to substantially cover The legged walking robot as described. 5. The robot according to claim 1 , further comprising:
2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the link is provided on a leg link of the vehicle .
Legged walking robot according to any one of al Section 4. 6. At least a base, and a joint interposed between said base and said base.
Leg link, and the leg link
Walking while maintaining the stability of the base against gravity
Floor walking robot
When equipped with a means to absorb the impact of external forces other than the reaction force,
To the shock absorbing means, a. At least one of the base body and the leg link of the robot
One of the at least one air bag is arranged me cotton substantially the entire circumference, b. Detecting means for detecting the degree of instability of the posture of the robot; and c. When the degree of instability of the posture is detected, the control means for operating the air bag until the impact is capable of absorbing state, legged walking robot according to claim Tona Rukoto. 7. The detecting means detects the degree of instability of the posture from a tilt angle and / or a tilt angular velocity of a predetermined part of the robot with respect to a gravity direction, and the control means determines that the detected value exceeds a predetermined value. 7. The legged walking robot according to claim 6, wherein the airbag is operated at the time.