| Popis: |
Underground exploration of the moon has recently attracted attention from the global community. However, sufficient exploration has not been carried out yet. To achieve such an exploration, we developed a lunar earthworm-type excavation robot, called LEAVO, and confirmed its usefulness in a vertical excavation. Therefore, we now work to make LEAVO be able to excavate curving borehole for gathering regolith samples at a particular layer. For the excavation unit to achieve a curving excavation, it is necessary to 1) develop a flexible excavation instrument and 2) excavate a target diameter hole (allowing LEAVO to continually propel into a curving hole). Requirement 1) has already been achieved. Therefore, in this paper, to achieve requirement 2), we propose a both-ends supported flexible auger and its dust-proofing system. We then describe an excavation test conducted using the proposed excavation unit and confirm its excavation capability. |
