Power assist apparatus and control method for same
AssigneeAgency of Industrial Science & Technology, Ministry of International Trade & Industry
InventorsHyoung-Ki Lee, Hirohiko Arai, Kazuo Tanie
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Abstract
A power assist apparatus includes an autonomously mobile base on which a manipulator for holding a load is mounted. The movement of the mobile base is controlled such that when the manipulator tip is within a prescribed operating region relative to the mobile base, the mobile base is maintained stationary, but when the manipulator tip moves outside the operating region, the mobile base is moved to decrease the distance between the mobile base and the manipulator tip. The power assist apparatus assists with the carrying of loads by amplifying an operational force applied to the manipulator.
Claims10
A power assist apparatus comprising:
- a manipulator that holds a load at a tip thereof;
- an autonomously mobile base on which the manipulator is mounted;
- and control means that, when the manipulator tip is within a prescribed operating region relative to the mobile base, maintains the mobile base in a stationary state, and when the manipulator tip moves outside said operating region, moves the mobile base to decrease distance between the mobile base and the manipulator tip;
- said power assist apparatus assisting with carrying of loads by amplifying an operational force applied to the manipulator.
A control method for controlling a power assist apparatus chat comprises a manipulator that at a tip thereof holds loads to be moved and an autonomously mobile base on which the manipulator is mounted and assists with handling of loads by amplifying an operational force applied to the manipulator, said method comprising:
- maintaining the mobile base in a stationary state when the manipulator tip is within a prescribed operating region relative to the mobile base;
- moving the mobile base to decrease a distance between the mobile base and the manipulator tip when the manipulator tip moves outside said operating region.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.