Omnidirectional Mobile Robot and Vehicle, Uninterrupted Transmission System, Intuitive Operating Method, and Riding Robotics: Overview of Research Activities in Vibration Engineering Laboratory in Kyoto University

Abstract

Mobile robots, vehicles, and robot arms are now widely used in various fields, such as autonomous transportation in factories and warehouses. Further, mobile robots that carry people have also been attracting attention. This paper introduces the overview of the research activities mainly concerning the mobile robots that the authors have carried out in the previous reports. First, two kinds of omnidirectional mobile mechanisms are explained. The active omni wheel (AOW) is the wheel mechanism that can move in any direction by using a differential gear mechanism. The slidable-wheeled omnidirectional mobile robot (SWOM) is the omnidirectional mobile robot that is equipped with the wheels connected by the sliding joints. The next part illustrates an uninterrupted transmission system, which can change the velocity ratio while transmitting power and rotation by using a noncircular gear pair. And then, an operating method to operate a robot intuitively by using arm motion is shown. In the following part, we attempt to establish a new research field termed Riding Robotics along with related studies in the field.