Atsushi Kakogawa
Papers
41
Total Citations
749
H-Index
17
About
Atsushi Kakogawa is a robotics researcher whose work centers on pipeline inspection robots, in-pipe locomotion mechanisms, and underactuated robotic systems. His most significant contributions lie in the design and analysis of robots capable of navigating complex pipe networks, including curved sections, vertical runs, and branching junctions. His seminal work on screw drive in-pipe robots — spanning spring stiffness design, arm length optimization, and T-branch pathway selection — has established foundational principles for compact, mechanically efficient inspection platforms, collectively accumulating over 175 citations. Kakogawa further advanced the field with his multilink-articulated wheeled robots (AIRo-II and AIRo-2.1), which employ passive elastic joints and holonomic movement strategies to navigate winding pipelines without complex actuation switching. His work on underactuated parallelogram crawler modules and a modular robotic finger demonstrates a broader interest in elegant mechanical design that achieves adaptive behavior through passive compliance rather than added actuators. A notable contribution is his anisotropic shadow-based visual assistance method, bridging mechanical design with practical operator guidance in real inspection scenarios. More recently, his resonance-based snake robot with parallel elastic actuators highlights his expanding focus on energy-efficient locomotion, making his research portfolio both theoretically rigorous and practically impactful.
Research Focus
Key Achievements
Top Papers
- 1
- 2Mobility of an in-pipe robot with screw drive mechanism inside curved pipes54 citations · 2010
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- 4
- 5An in-pipe robot with underactuated parallelogram crawler modules42 citations · 2014
- 6Pathway selection mechanism of a screw drive in-pipe robot in T-branches37 citations · 2012
- 7
- 8Underactuated modular finger with pull-in mechanism for a robotic gripper36 citations · 2016
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- 10