Development of peristaltic crawling robot using magnetic fluid on the basis of locomotion mechanism of earthworm

摘要

The field of bio-engineering with the aim of developing new machines, which utilizes the motion and control of organisms as a model, is attracting attention. This technology is pursued by paying attention to various shapes and movements of organisms and autonomous system of organisms in acting in response to environment surrounding them, and by mechanically elucidating the locomotion mechanism, propulsive mechanism, nerve system and sensation system of these organisms. On the other hand, in the field of hydrodynamics, magnetic fluid that changes its apparent viscosity depending on magnetic field has been developed, and its utilization is under trial in various fields. We paid attention to the peristaltic crawling of earthworm as transport function in place of wheels or ambulation, and have developed a micro robot running inside a tube using magnetic fluid. In this micro robot, a cell corresponding to earthworm's segment is composed of a natural rubber tube sealed with water-based magnetic fluid, and the cells are connected with elastic rods made of natural rubber. The feature of this micro robot is that its structure is simply composed of, and it can be controlled with external wireless force, by providing it with moving magnetism from the outside. This paper presents the analytical result of the peristaltic crawling of an actual earthworm and the evaluation result of transport mechanism of a prototype micro robot moved by external magnetic field.