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JRM Vol.38 No.2 pp. 598-607
(2026)

Paper:

Mobile Robot Utilizing the Rotational Motion of its Arms —Effect of Applying an Oscillation Mechanism—

Ryota Hayashi*1, Ryo Oishi*2, Yasuyuki Setoyama*3, Koji Yoshida*1, and Tetsuya Kinugasa*4 ORCID Icon

*1Department of Mechanical Systems Engineering, Okayama University of Science
1-1 Ridai-cho, Kita-ku, Okayama, Okayama 700-0005, Japan

*2Graduate School of Science and Engineering, Okayama University of Science
1-1 Ridai-cho, Kita-ku, Okayama, Okayama 700-0005, Japan

*3Department of Electronic Control Engineering, National Institute of Technology, Kagoshima College
1460-1 Shinko, Hayato-cho, Kirishima, Kagoshima 899-5193, Japan

*4Department of Robotics, Kindai University
1 Takaya Umenobe, Higashi-Hiroshima, Hiroshima 739-2116, Japan

Received:
March 28, 2025
Accepted:
October 20, 2025
Published:
April 20, 2026
Keywords:
mobile robot, arm rotation, oscillation mechanism, kinetic momentum, center of mass
Abstract

In this study, we propose a mobile robot that can start moving by utilizing the rotational movements of its two arms. The robot has two rotating arms and a body. It is equipped with a device that can fix its body to a platform constructed on a wall or floor. When the body is fixed to the platform, the robot can store the kinetic momentum of its center of mass by rotating its arms. When the body is released from the platform, the robot begins to move along the kinetic momentum of its center of mass. In our previous study, we demonstrated the feasibility of a mobile robot that hopped up and down the steps under Earth’s gravity, and we assessed its performance of the robot by performing numerical simulations. In the present study, we evaluated the performance of the mobile robot as it moved on a flat, low-friction floor, and we assessed the implementability of a device capable of fixing the robot’s body to a platform, by conducting a round-trip movement experiment. Furthermore, we proposed a modified mobile robot equipped with an oscillation mechanism and verified the feasibility of the modified mobile robot through comparative experiments.

Oscillating arm-rotation mobile robot

Oscillating arm-rotation mobile robot

Cite this article as:
R. Hayashi, R. Oishi, Y. Setoyama, K. Yoshida, and T. Kinugasa, “Mobile Robot Utilizing the Rotational Motion of its Arms —Effect of Applying an Oscillation Mechanism—,” J. Robot. Mechatron., Vol.38 No.2, pp. 598-607, 2026.
Data files:
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Last updated on Apr. 19, 2026