Newsgroups: comp.robotics
Path: brunix!news.Brown.EDU!qt.cs.utexas.edu!cs.utexas.edu!sun-barr!decwrl!netcomsv!netcom.com!park
From: park@netcom.com (Bill Park)
Subject: Insect Robots and Origami
Message-ID: <1993Feb8.003446.12163@netcom.com>
Followup-To: comp.robotics
Summary: Micro robot locomotion based on insect exoskeleton concepts
Keywords: Robot, micro robot, microbot, insect, insectbot, origami, exoskeleton
Bcc: park killion@btr.com myers@atr-la.atr.co.jp@netcom.com
Organization: Netcom Online Communications Services (408-241-9760 login: guest)
Date: Mon, 8 Feb 1993 00:34:46 GMT
Lines: 41

IEEE Control Systems for February, 1993, pp. 37-41, has a very clever
article by some researchers in the MechanoInformatics Dept. of U.
Tokyo: "Insect-Like Microrobots with External Skeletons," by Isao
Shimoyama, Professor Hirofumi Miura, Kenji Suzuki, and Yuichi Ezura.

The article presents some innovative designs for light, strong,
compact, low-friction mechanisms that are well-suited for actuation of
legs, arms, and wings in micro robots.  The mechanisms are based on
several design principles observed in insects: exoskeletons composed
of rigid plates hinged along their edges, strictly contractile
actuators (muscles), simple control signal patterns for different
kinds of motions, and output motion frequencies higher than the
frequencies of the neurological control signals thanks to mechanical
resonance.  They cleverly used paper-folding to evaluate design
alternatives.  The figures show a desktop-scale artificial ant built
with these mechanisms, and some folded, polymer-hinged microstructures
that they have fabricated using integrated-circuit techniques.

Related references from this paper include ...

K. Suzuki, I. Shimoyama, H. Miura, and Y. Ezura, "Creation of an
insect-based microrobot with an external skeleton and elastic joints,"
in Proceedings of the the IEEE Workshop on Micro Electromechanical
Systems, 1992, pp.  190-195.

I. Shimoyama, H. Miura, K. Suzuki and T. Yasuda, "Artificial insects
(silicon microrobots)," in Proceedings of the 6th International
Conference on CAD/CAM, Robotics and Factories of the Future, 1991, pp.
836-841.

I. Shimoyama, H. Miura, C. Kimura and M. Kikuta, "Analysing the
dynamics of ants and application to microrobots," in Proceedings of
the ASME Symposium on Micromechanical Sensors, Actuators and Systemms,
1991, pp. 279-285.

Food for thought.  Don't overeat.

Bill Park
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-- 
Grandpaw Bill's High Technology Consulting & Live Bait, Inc.
