Development of Spherical Ultrasonic Motor as a Camera Actuator for Pipe Inspection Robot

摘要

In this paper we present a driving system and control method of newly developed spherical ultrasonic motor (SUSM) as a camera actuator for pipe inspection robot. The pipe inspection robot using SUSM that is very small actuator with three rotational degrees of freedom (DOF) can be inserted to the inside of pipe of 50 mm in diameter. The novel SUSM has improved the range of movement compared to previous SUSM. The robot can point a camera in any direction.