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JRM Vol.26 No.4 pp. 460-468
doi: 10.20965/jrm.2014.p0460
(2014)

Paper:

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New Body Design for Flexible Mono-Tread Mobile Track: Layered Structure and Passive Retro-Flexion

Takafumi Haji*1, Tetsuya Kinugasa*2, Shinichi Araki*1,
Daiki Hanada*1, Koji Yoshida*2,Hisanori Amano*3,
Ryota Hayashi*4, Kenichi Tokuda*5, and Masatsugu Iribe*6

*1National Institute of Technology, Matsue College, 14-4 Nishiikuma-cho, Matsue, Shimane 690-0865, Japan

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

*3National Research Institute of Fire and Disaster, 4-35-3 Jindaiji-Higashi-machi, Chofu, Tokyo 182-8508, Japan

*4Kagoshima University, 1-21-24 Korimoto, Kagoshima 890-8580, Japan

*5Wakayama University, 930 Sakaedani, Wakayama-city 640-8510, Japan

*6Osaka Electro-Communication University, 18-8 Hatsucho, Neyagawa-shi, Osaka 572-8530, Japan

Received:
February 19, 2014
Accepted:
July 15, 2014
Published:
August 20, 2014
Creative Commons License
Keywords:
flexible mono-tread mobile track, tracked vehicle, flexible layered structure
Abstract
Flexible mono-tread mobile track RT06


Robot technology is expected to be applicable to missions on rough terrain, such as rescue activities, environmental investigation, and planetary exploration. Tracked vehicles are effective in such environments because the contact pressure of the vehicle can be distributed more widely. To improve mobility, new mechanisms such as serpentine tracked vehicles have been proposed. We previously proposed the flexible mono-tread mobile track (FMT). The first prototype, WORMY, had a mechanical problem when it moves flexing, i.e., track belt interference and derailing. This paper proposes and confirms a new FMT design strategy using a layered structure to reduce space between vertebrae, solving derailing. A new prototype using the layered structure confirmed its mobility. We also used the prototype to evaluate the effectiveness of passive retro-flexion against obstacles.
Cite this article as:
T. Haji, T. Kinugasa, S. Araki, D. Hanada, K. Yoshida, H. Amano, R. Hayashi, K. Tokuda, and M. Iribe, “New Body Design for Flexible Mono-Tread Mobile Track: Layered Structure and Passive Retro-Flexion,” J. Robot. Mechatron., Vol.26 No.4, pp. 460-468, 2014.
Data files:
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