In this paper, we propose a pipe inspection robot to move automatically along the outside of piping. In recent years, such pipe inspection robots and climbing robots have been the subject of important research activity worldwide [1]-[3]. Inspection of industrial pipe is a well-known and highly practical application of robotic technology. Robots especially designed to inspect the surface of pipe have recently been realized by some companies, and are in practical use as mechanical pipe inspection devices in various plants. Some of the robots have the capability of self-propelled inspection. These robots are equipped with ultrasonic diagnostic equipment that can measure the thickness of the pipe along its surface [4]. However, they are able to move by manual operation only. Such robots cannot be applied to pipes with flanges and valves, etc. We have designed a mechanism that enables robots to traverse flanges, rise along vertical flanges, and move along the underside of the piping [5]-[8]. The proposed robot is composed of three connected units.

In an industrial plant, straight piping, vertical piping, curved piping, valves, and flanges are arranged in complex patterns. Problems regarding automated pipe inspection originate in the fact that sensors cannot scan complex piping schemes involving flanges, valves, curved piping, and vertical piping. Various types of pipes are used in industrial applications, taking into consideration the temperature and the corrosive properties of the fluid. Oil plants, for example, use mainly carbon steel, stainless steel, and chloridized vinyl pipes. In light of this, we have focused on developing a robot that can inspect carbon steel pipes, having the ability to move automatically along the outside of a length of piping. This paper describes the structure of magnetic wheels used in a pipe inspection robot. We propose a robot that has a mechanism consisting of wheel-type magnets. Using the power generated by the magnets, the robot maintains its attachment to the pipe. The mechanism of the robot is composed of three units, and is able to automatically inspect a pipe's surface, traverse flanges, and rise along vertical piping. To achieve the robot's optimum performance, the design of the magnetic wheels is important. The authors have previously designed a similar robot composed of three connected units, though the adherence power of this robot was weak and could not achieve a high level of stability while advancing along a straight length of pipe.

In this paper, we propose a robot which detects dangerous articles made of plastic. To detect plastic articles, a corona charger is installed on a robot. The corona charger consists of corona wire through which high voltage is charged. The dangerous articles are identified by the detection of different surface potential by the difference of the electrification series when the corona is applied to the object. A vehicle was developed as a prototype machine. This vehicle has two driving systems; one is the mechanism with two motors and four castors, another one is a motor which moves the sensor up and down.

We consider the design of a modular hybrid functional electrical stimulation (FES) system for an injured person. We propose a system using an assistant robot to follow the FES performance, as FES control has many uncertainties in characteristics. The assistant robot used is a 3-link serial type, and attached to the injured person to actively assist the FES performance. The assistant robot must be very simple, light, and can be easily attached to the injured person. We constitute various types of human models which can be used to show the exact actions and muscle function characteristics. Furthermore, we propose a control system for the model of an injured person fitted with the assistant robot. Finally, we show that a robust performance of the injured person has been achieved in the standing motion using the modular hybrid FES system.

In this paper, we deal with the handling of a flexible object by rigid arm robots. We consider three main tasks: 1) to propose a mathematical model for a variety of flexible objects of our daily life; 2) to design a controller to achieve cooperative handling of the flexible object by the robots; and 3) to analyze the stability and robustness of the control system. In particular, demands for manipulating a large-scale structure by a space robot will be increasing. Therefore, it is important to constitute the cooperative control problem of several robots handling a flexible object, and to analyze the proposed control system.

Deals with the handling of a constrained flexible object by a robot. The authors regard the robot as a rigid manipulator and the object as having one side free and the other side fixed to the wall. The authors' purpose is for the robot, to follow up the open end of the flexible object and to suppress its vibration. As a technique to achieve their purpose, the authors propose a new numerical modeling method to handle the object by the robot. This model reveals the force relationship at the handling point. Next, the authors constitute the control system to make it possible to achieve two performances, following up the object and vibration suppression.

In this paper, we deal with the handling of a vibrating flexible object by a rigid dual-arm robot. Each arm consists of two links and an end-effector. The aim of this work is to realize the position control of the flexible object while suppressing its vibration. In particular, the problem considered is about the control system designed to realize the active handling of the flexible object. For this purpose, we propose a model for both the robot and the object in a connected position so as to guarantee the whole handling system's stability. We also express a new mathematical model of the flexible object using the model reduction theory in the same connected position. The model of the robot and the object while they are in contact is derived by the positional requirements at the handling point. We also consider the design of the controller to satisfy the constraint condition at the static equilibrium point. The design of the combined system consisting of the robot and the object is useful for the analysis of whole handling system's stability.