東京大學最新科研

Recently Asahi News reported the following:

空中を飛ぶ米粒ほどの物体を、目にもとまらぬ速さでピンセットを動かして捕まえる高速ロボットシステムを、東京大の石川正俊教授らの研究チームが開発した。チームは「この技術を応用すれば、将来、飛び回るハエを捕まえるロボットをつくれるはず」という。 ピンセットは長さ２０センチのステンレス製。高速で開閉できる。実験では、直径６ミリのプラスチック球を秒速約１メートルではね上げた。千分の３秒ごとに位置情報をつかむ独自の高速画像処理技術を使い、空中を飛ぶプラスチック球を１５％の確率でつかめた。今後も改良を重ね、成功率のアップをめざす。 工場で部品の組み立てなどをする産業ロボットの性能向上をめざした研究の一環。球の存在を認識してからつかむまで、０．１秒しかかからない。石川教授は「目にもとまらぬスピードで次々と製品を生み出すロボットの開発につなげ、日本の産業の空洞化に歯止めをかけたい」と話している。

Professor Ishikawa's research team in Tokyo University had developed a high-speed robot system that could move tweezers to capture small flying objects like the rice grain flying in the air at the speed that even eyes could not see. The team said, "If this technology is applied, in future it is possible to make robot that could capture a fly that flies around". Tweezers were made of stainless steels of 20 centimeters in length. It is possible to open and shut at high speed. In the experiment, a plastic ball of 6 milli in diameter projected up at a speed of about one meter per second. Using the original high-speed image processing technology, information on the location of the ball was gripped in 3/1000 seconds, and the probability of catching this plastic ball that flew in the air was 15% . Improvement will be made repeatedly in the future, aiming at improving the success rate. Part of research was aimed at improving performance in industrial robot used to assemble parts at factories. It took only 0.1 seconds, from knowing to gripping the ball. Professor Ishikawa was saying that, "I want to tie the development to invention of robots that can do manufacturing at high speed one after another, thus preventing Japan's industry from being emptied of all its contents".

From the above, it is obvious that Japan is working hard in producing high-technological products in order to maintain its leading role in high-technology research and development.