Linear-motion telescopic mechanism and robot arm having linear-motion telescopic mechanism

A linear-motion telescopic mechanism comprising:

• a block-member group including a plurality of block members;
• moving means which moves the plurality of block members and which has a function of fixing a given block member to another block member in the block-member group and of unfixing fixed block members one by one,
• the moving means causing a part of or all of the plurality of block members in the block-member group to align in a linear and rigid manner to form a rigid alignment, and unfixing a part of or all of the rigid alignment to disengage the block members one by one, so that the rigid alignment serves as a linear rigid arm section that is freely variable in length,
• each of the plurality of block members has a corrugated structure on its surface as means for fixing said each of the plurality of block members to its adjacent block member so as to form the rigid arm section,
• the linear-motion telescopic mechanism further comprising:
• a flexible belt-like structural member (i) which extends along block members aligning to form the rigid arm section and (ii) which has a corrugated surface;
• and
• a mechanism for engaging the corrugated structures of the plurality of block members with the corrugated surface of the flexible belt-like structural member,
• wherein the block members have side-undulating structures configured to mesh with corresponding side-undulating structures in adjacent block members when the block members are disengaged from the belt-like structural member.