DETECTING APPARATUS FOR POSITION AND POSTURE

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To detect the position and the posture of a moving body having degrees of freedom 6 with good accuracy by using a mechanism which is as simple as possible by a method wherein the position and the posture of the moving body are detected by using five distance-measuring means. SOLUTION: A moving body 2 is installed so as to be fixed to a platform 11, and fine detecting points (a), (b), (c), (d), (e) are arranged. In addition, fiber reference points A, B, C, D, E are arranged on a base 12 which is fixed inside a space. Then, respective telescopic links L1 to L5 are shaft-supported in the respective corresponding detecting points (a) to (e) and in the respective corresponding reference points A to E so as to be freely rotatable to arbitrary directions. The respective telescopic links L1 to L5 are freely telescopic by using respective cylinder mechanisms 10, and linear potentiometers which measure their lengths are built in. Thereby, when the moving body 1 is moved by an external force, the respective telescopic links L1 to L5 are expanded, compressed and turned according to its position and its posture, their lengths REAL (aA) to REAL (aE) are transmitted to a microcomputer so as to be computed by software which is stored in advance, and the position and the posture of the moving body 1 are output.