Abstract: An alternating-current/direct-current converter includes a rectifier, a reactor, a capacitor, and a switching rectifier. The rectifier is configured to rectify alternating-current voltage output from an alternating-current power source, thereby converting the alternating-current voltage into direct-current voltage, and to output the direct-current voltage. The capacitor includes terminals. The switching rectifier is coupled to the AC power source and switchable to output the direct-current voltage to the capacitor.

Abstract: An optical entire-circumference encoder includes a substrate. A light source is disposed on a rotation axis and a first surface of the substrate. A disc, rotatable about the rotation axis, is disposed on a second surface of the substrate. The disc includes first and second rotation tracks each including rotating slits. A light guiding unit radially guides light from the light source toward an entire outer circumference of the disc to the first and second rotation tracks. The light guiding unit includes a first light guiding section and second light guiding sections. The first light guiding section includes a ring-shaped surface directly or indirectly opposed to a rotation track. The first light guiding section radially guides the light out from the ring-shaped surface toward the first rotation track. The second light guiding sections guide part of the radially guided light to the second rotation track.

Abstract: A robot apparatus includes a robot arm and a held-state detector. The robot arm includes a first holder configured to hold a to-be-held object. The held-state detector is coupled to the robot arm and is configured to detect a held state of the to-be-held object held by the first holder while the robot arm is transferring the to-be-held object.

Abstract: A robot system includes a container, a disposed-state detector, and a robot arm. The container is configured to accommodate a plurality of to-be-held objects and includes a reticulated portion. The disposed-state detector is configured to detect disposed states of the plurality of respective to-be-held objects disposed in the container. The robot arm includes a holder configured to hold a to-be-held object among the plurality of to-be-held objects based on the disposed states of the plurality of respective to-be-held objects detected by the disposed-state detector.

Abstract: The encoder includes a disk in a disk shape that is arranged rotatably about a rotation axis and that includes one track in a ring shape on which a rotating grating is formed and one or more origin detection areas serving as partial areas on which a rotating grating is formed, and a mask that is fixed and arranged in a manner facing the disk and on which one or more fixed gratings are formed so as to constitute a diffraction interference optical system together with the rotating gratings. A plurality of slits and included in at least one rotating grating are formed along a curved line obtained by curving a plurality of radial lines about the rotation axis in the circumferential direction at predetermined curvature such that pitches and of the slits and can be set to a predetermined value.

Abstract: A robot apparatus includes a turning base, a lower arm, an upper arm, a wrist unit, a hand, and a controller. The hand is provided on the wrist unit to hold or release a longitudinally intermediate portion of a noodle lump. The controller controls operations of the turning base, the lower arm, the upper arm, the wrist unit, and the hand. The controller controls the turning base, the lower arm, the upper arm, and the wrist unit so that the hand moves the noodle lump obliquely upward at least in a part of a path from a holding position at which the noodle lump is held and a releasing position at which the noodle lump is released.

Abstract: This disclosure discloses a robot hand of underactuated mechanism. The robot hand includes a plurality of actuators, a plurality of joints where the number of the joints is more than the number of the actuators, a palm portion, three finger portions each including a plurality of links having bases coupled to the palm portion and coupled being capable of flexion, and a shape-fitting mechanism which is provided in at the finger portion, and which enables to grasp an object to be grasped in an enclosing manner with the finger portions by performing providing torsional displacement to the links.

Abstract: A rotor includes a rotor core; and first and second permanent magnets arranged in the core such that each of the first magnets corresponds to one of the second magnets and, on a cross-sectional plane of the rotor core perpendicular to a rotation axis thereof, a first line passing through the first magnet and a second line passing through the second magnet meet at a point pointing toward the rotation axis. The first and second magnets are arranged such that a straight line interconnecting the rotation axis and the point is interposed therebetween, an angle of the first magnet relative to the straight line being smaller than that of the second magnet relative to the straight line, and a width of the first magnet in the direction parallel to the first line being smaller than that of the second magnet in the direction parallel to the second line.

Abstract: In this ?Z drive apparatus, at least three coil portions are arranged to be capable of driving a stage in a direction Z, a direction ?x which is a rotation direction employing a direction X in a horizontal plane as a center line of rotation, and a direction ?y which is a rotation direction employing a direction Y in the horizontal plane orthogonal to the direction X as a center line of rotation.

Abstract: A signal processor includes an AD converter that converts a periodic analog signal output from a detector in accordance with a position Q of a motor to a digital signal at a predetermined conversion period, a tracking circuit that calculates a position P of the motor at an arithmetic period on the basis of the digital signal that is converted and output at the conversion period by the AD converter, an operation state identifier that identifies an operation state of the motor on the basis of the position P of the motor calculated by the tracking circuit, and an arithmetic period determiner that changes the arithmetic period of the tracking circuit in accordance with the operation state of the motor identified by the operation state identifier such that the position P of the motor calculated by the tracking circuit follows the actual position Q of the motor.

Abstract: An encoder includes a position data obtainer that obtains superordinate data representing a position of a moving body in a superordinate section and subordinate data representing a position in a subordinate section repeated in a superordinate section with higher resolution than that of the superordinate data, a storage in which a correction value that can correct a deviation amount occurring in the superordinate data against the subordinate data is recorded to be associated with an absolute position with resolution nearly equal to that of the superordinate data, a corrector that obtains the correction value from the storage and corrects the superordinate data, and a section identifier that identifies, based on the superordinate data corrected by the corrector and the subordinate data when the superordinate data is obtained, the subordinate section in which the subordinate data is obtained against the superordinate section.