Variable geometry and steady volume inflatable tube, robotic arm and robot
원문보기
IPC분류정보
국가/구분
United States(US) Patent
등록
국제특허분류(IPC7판)
B25J-018/06
B25J-009/14
B25J-009/10
출원번호
16191798
(2018-11-15)
등록번호
10589434
(2020-03-17)
우선권정보
FR-17 71220 (2017-11-16)
발명자
/ 주소
Voisembert, Sébastien
출원인 / 주소
WAREIN
대리인 / 주소
Young & Thompson
인용정보
피인용 횟수 :
0인용 특허 :
0
초록▼
Disclosed is a variable geometry and constant-volume inflatable tube, including an inflatable envelope having a central axis. A stress-bearing unit is provided, including a pair of first and second inextensible link belonging to a same longitudinal half-plane of the envelope, the first unit being or
Disclosed is a variable geometry and constant-volume inflatable tube, including an inflatable envelope having a central axis. A stress-bearing unit is provided, including a pair of first and second inextensible link belonging to a same longitudinal half-plane of the envelope, the first unit being oriented along a first longitudinal direction inclined with respect to the central axis and the second unit being oriented along a second longitudinal direction which is also inclined with respect to the central axis but which crosses the first direction on the central axis. The inflatable tube can be bent around a first or second pivot axis, the longitudinal tensile stresses applied to the envelope then being concentrated on the central axis.
대표청구항▼
1. A variable geometry and constant-volume inflatable tube, comprising an inflatable envelope made of impermeable flexible material and having a central axis, the inflatable tube further comprising means for bearing longitudinal tensile stress applied to the envelope by the internal pressure within
1. A variable geometry and constant-volume inflatable tube, comprising an inflatable envelope made of impermeable flexible material and having a central axis, the inflatable tube further comprising means for bearing longitudinal tensile stress applied to the envelope by the internal pressure within the latter, wherein the stress-bearing means comprise pairs of a first and a second inextensible linking means extending inside the envelope, said pairs being distributed in N longitudinal half-planes of the envelope, each extending between the central axis of the envelope and a respective generatrix of the surface of the envelope, N being an integer divisor of 360 and greater than or equal to 2, and in that, in each longitudinal half-plane, the at least one first inextensible linking means of said longitudinal half-plane is oriented along a first longitudinal direction which is inclined with respect to the central axis of the envelope and the at least one second inextensible linking means is oriented along a second longitudinal direction which is also inclined with respect to the central axis of the envelope, at a same angle of inclination as the first longitudinal direction, and the at least one first and the at least one second inextensible linking means are attached, at a first end, to said respective generatrix of the surface of the envelope and have a point of intersection with the central axis of the envelope, whereby the inflatable tube is bendable around N first pivot axes, each first pivot axis both being located in a respective longitudinal half-plane and being perpendicular to the central axis of the envelope, and around N second pivot axes, each second pivot axis being both perpendicular to the central axis and perpendicular to a respective one of the N first pivot axes, the longitudinal tensile stresses applied to the envelope by the internal pressure within the latter being concentrated on the central axis by the at least one first and the at least one second inextensible linking means, whether or not the inflatable tube is bent. 2. The inflatable tube according to claim 1, wherein the at least one first inextensible linking means and the at least one second inextensible linking means are respectively formed by a first and a second inextensible link. 3. The inflatable tube according to claim 2, wherein the stress-bearing means comprise, for each longitudinal half-plane, a series of first inextensible links and a series of second inextensible links, said inextensible links being arranged behind one another along the central axis of the envelope so as to form a series of pairs of first and second inextensible links. 4. The inflatable tube according to claim 2, wherein the number N of longitudinal half-planes in which the pairs of first and second inextensible linking means are distributed is even, whereby said pairs of first and second inextensible linking means are distributed in a number N/2 of couples of longitudinal half-planes defined such that any longitudinal half-plane is parallel to the other longitudinal half-plane with which it forms a couple, the first inextensible linking means of two longitudinal half-planes belonging to a same couple being formed by a first inextensible link and the second inextensible linking means of said two longitudinal half-planes being formed by a second inextensible link, the first inextensible link crossing the second inextensible link on the central axis of the envelope, first ends of the first and second inextensible links being attached to a first region of the envelope while second ends of the first and second inextensible links are attached to a second region of the envelope, said first and second regions of the envelope being located on either side, in the direction of the central axis of the envelope, of the crossing of said first and second longitudinal directions, the first and second inextensible links bringing said first and second regions of the envelope closer such that, when over-pressurized, the latter does not have any longitudinal tension. 5. The inflatable tube according to claim 3, wherein the number N of longitudinal half-planes in which the pairs of first and second inextensible linking means are distributed is even, whereby said pairs of first and second inextensible linking means are distributed in a number N/2 of couples of longitudinal half-planes defined such that any longitudinal half-plane is parallel to the other longitudinal half-plane with which it forms a couple, the first inextensible linking means of two longitudinal half-planes belonging to a same couple being formed by a series of first inextensible links and the second inextensible linking means of said two longitudinal half-planes being formed by a series of second inextensible links, the first inextensible links crossing the second inextensible links on the central axis of the envelope, first ends of the first and second inextensible links being attached to a first region of the envelope while second ends of the first and second inextensible links are attached to a second region of the envelope, said first and second regions of the envelope being located on either side, in the direction of the central axis of the envelope, of the crossing of said first and second longitudinal directions, the first and second inextensible links bringing said first and second regions of the envelope closer such that, when over-pressurized, the latter does not have any longitudinal tension. 6. The inflatable tube according to claim 5, wherein the first and second inextensible links forming the first and second inextensible linking means of any couple of longitudinal half-planes are placed sufficiently close to one another such that each of the first inextensible links crosses second inextensible links, and vice versa, the first and second inextensible links all being attached to a single third inextensible link which extends along the central axis of the envelope. 7. The inflatable tube according to claim 5, wherein the number N of longitudinal half-planes in which the pairs of first and second inextensible linking means are distributed is equal to 4, and both couples of longitudinal half-planes are perpendicular to each other. 8. The inflatable tube according to claim 1, wherein the first and second inextensible linking means belonging to a same longitudinal half-plane comprise a strip made of fibrous inextensible material, first fibers of which are oriented along said first longitudinal direction and second fibers of which are oriented along said second longitudinal direction, each strip being attached, at a so-called external longitudinal edge, to the envelope, and being connected, at a so-called internal longitudinal edge, to an inextensible link. 9. The inflatable tube according to claim 8, wherein the number N of longitudinal half-planes in which the pairs of first and second inextensible linking means are distributed is equal to 4 and in that the longitudinal half-planes are at equal angular distances from one another, the inflatable tube comprising a first strip assembly formed by first and second ones of said strips extending in a first longitudinal mid-plane of the envelope, and a second strip assembly formed by third and fourth ones of said strips, said third and fourth strips extending in a second longitudinal mid-plane of the envelope which is perpendicular to said first longitudinal mid-plane, each of the first to fourth strips of material being connected, at a so-called internal longitudinal edge, to an inextensible link which extends along the central axis of the envelope, and being attached, at a so-called external longitudinal edge, to the envelope. 10. The inflatable tube according to claim 1, wherein the envelope has, along its external surface, means for directing at least one control cable that is for bending the inflatable tube. 11. The inflatable tube according to claim 3, wherein the stress-bearing means define, inside the envelope, a number N of compartments separated from one another by the inextensible linking means, wherein the envelope has N inflatable chambers, each formed in a respective compartment, each inflatable chamber comprising a fluid inlet and a fluid outlet so as to allow the inflation and the deflation of said inflatable chamber. 12. The inflatable tube according to claim 8, wherein the stress-bearing means define, inside the envelope, a number N of compartments separated from one another by the inextensible linking means, wherein the envelope has N inflatable chambers, each formed in a respective compartment, each inflatable chamber comprising a fluid inlet and a fluid outlet so as to allow the inflation and the deflation of said inflatable chamber. 13. The inflatable tube according to claim 1, wherein the envelope is formed by a fabric the fibers of which are arranged aslant with respect to the central axis of the envelope, at an angle of 45°. 14. The inflatable tube according to claim 1, wherein the N longitudinal half-planes are at equal angular distances from one another. 15. A robotic arm, wherein it comprises: at least one inflatable tube according to claim 1,a tool carried at a distal end of the arm, which distal end is formed by the end of an inflatable tube that is closed,means for actuating the tool,means for sealingly linking to fluid injection means for injecting a fluid into the arm, andmeans for controlling the motion of the at least one inflatable tube around the first N and second N pivot axes. 16. The robotic arm according to claim 15, wherein it comprises several inflatable tubes. 17. A robot, wherein it comprises at least one robotic arm according to claim 15, fluid injection means sealingly linked to the at least one robotic arm so as to inject a fluid into the at least one robotic arm for its inflation, and control means controlling the means for controlling the motion of the at least one inflatable tube and the means for actuating the tool. 18. A robotic arm, wherein it comprises: at least one inflatable tube according to claim 1,a tool carried at a distal end of the arm, said distal end being formed by the end of an inflatable tube that is closed,means for actuating the tool,fluid injection means for injecting a fluid into the arm, andmeans for controlling the motion of the at least one inflatable tube around the first N and second N pivot axes. 19. The robotic arm according to claim 18, wherein it comprises several inflatable tubes. 20. A robot, wherein it comprises at least one robotic arm according to claim 18, means for controlling the fluid injection means and control means controlling the means for controlling the motion of the at least one inflatable tube and the means for actuating the tool.
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