Page 36 - Mechatronics for Safety, Security and Dependability in a New Era

Ch05-I044963.fm Page 20 Tuesday, August 1, 2006 5:42 PM
Ch05-I044963.fm
20 20 Page 20 Tuesday, August 1, 2006 5:42 PM

Robot hand CCD camera
Technology and cost
100% - . 100% Light
X Environment

and
Obiect
Best allotment omputer
Contrivance of this research
Mobile
Special end-effecter Barcode mark on tableware platform
for rice scooping Landmark on ceiling
500
Figure 1: RECS concept
Star-shaped wheel
Figure 2: Welfare and home robot
with four star-shaped wheels, which assists this robot to step over a slight bump or level differences in
1
the environment '. A CCD camera with a light is attached to the tip of the robot arm. All driving
mechanisms of the platform and the arm are controlled by a computer on the robot. Localization of the
robot in the indoor environment ' 2 and recognition of the tableware by image processing^ are also
carried out by this computer.

PREPARING MEAL BY ROBOT

In order to realize the task of filling rice into a bowl, a special rice scoop for a robot is developed as
shown in Fig. 3. Full length of this tool is about 310 mm and width of it is about 100 mm. The head of
it can be linearly expanded and contracted within the range of about 50 mm by utilizing a spring inside
it. A robot can scoop up cooked rice in easy operation owing to this flexible mechanism, namely the
robot needs only to put this special scoop into the rice and move it horizontally. Irrespective of residual
amount of the rice in the rice cooker, the robot is allowed to take down this scoop to the same height
always as shown in Fig. 4. Furthermore, the rice can be carried without falling, since it is contained in
a bag shaped cloth. After the scoop is positioned over a bowl, the robot only needs to turn the scoop
upside down for filling the rice into the bowl. The robot can realize the fine round shape of the rice
only by pushing a cup shown in Fig. 5 into the rice.

Robol hand , Robot hand
Same height
Lxpanded'Contracted
within range of 50 mm Cooked rice
/A
Spring is inside
Cooked rice
A head becomes
Cloth Rice cooker
short with a spring Figure 5: Shaping cup
Figure 3: Rice scoop for robot Figure 4: How to use a rice scoop for robot

SETTING TABLEWARE BY ROBOT
Based on RECS concept, four barcode marks are given to the edge of the tableware as shown in Fig. 6.
Since this mark is made of retro-reflective material, it is conspicuous only when illuminated by a light.