The New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO) and Yokohama National University have dramatically improved power transmission efficiency by optimizing the components of the reduction gear, resulting in a high reduction speed exceeding 100: 1, which was not possible in the past. We have developed the world's first gear that enables reverse drive even with a ratio reducer.
In recent years, a society in which humans and robots coexist is expected, but there is a risk of danger due to unintended contact between the two.That is, the reducer used for the joints of the robot does not have the reverse drive that moves flexibly with respect to external force, and it cannot absorb the impact of contact, so it is not possible to ensure sufficient human safety.Moreover, there was a lot of research on reduction gears, which are the core components of robots, and it was thought that there was no room for major improvement.
This time, Yokohama National University has dramatically improved the power transmission efficiency by optimizing the components such as the number of gear teeth and the transfer coefficient in order to maximize the power transmission efficiency of the "composite planetary gear mechanism" which is one of the reduction gears. Succeeded in raising to.We have developed a gear (bilateral drive gear) that can flexibly reverse drive even with a reducer with a reduction ratio exceeding 100: 1, which was impossible in the past.The prototype gear has improved reverse drive power transmission efficiency by about 30% compared to the conventional reducer, and the acceleration start torque (reverse drive torque) has been reduced to about 1/300.
This mechanism is characterized by reverse drive, and the joints of the robot can move flexibly with respect to external force.In addition, the efficiency of recovering heat during braking due to reverse drive as electrical energy (energy regeneration) has been made efficient, and load torque can be estimated based on motor information.Since it is possible to reduce the size, weight, cost, and energy at the same time, it is expected to be applied to joint members such as collaborative robots, assist robots, and mobile robots, as well as transmissions for electric vehicles (EVs) and electric bicycles. It is said that it can be done.
