HBA is developing a robot called ‘HSR Inspection” that automates inspections of facilities and equipment such as plants. It is an inspection robot that automatically travels to a target location, extends its arm to an object, and collects data with sensors. Meanwhile, as a further development, we are currently focusing on the outdoor work support robot solution ‘HSR Outdoor Field”.
Takanori Yamano, managing director of HBA, explains the background as follows.
“HSR Inspection has been installed at Hokkaido Electric Power (Hokuden) plants and is used for equipment inspections. During our interactions with Hokuden Electric Power, we were asked whether we could create an automated solution that could be used in outdoor or other informal environments. Efforts have started.”
And the HSR Outdoor Field was born.
As a robot support solution for outdoor work, the company is considering applications in the agricultural field for inspections of solar panels, power plants, plants, tunnels, etc., and since Hokkaido has a thriving primary industry.
The current focus is automation of mowing.
‘For example, Hokuden Electric Power owns a lot of power equipment such as transmission towers and substations, so they have to mow the grass several times a year depending on the surrounding environment.Also, when talking with farmers, Currently, there is a shortage of manpower and it is becoming difficult to recruit staff to cut grass.There is also the risk of encountering snakes or wasps while cutting grass.There is a need for automation with robots, and the benefits are considerable.” (Mr.Yamano) .
　　
When selecting outdoor robots, we focused on robots that can run on gravel, grass, steps, and slopes. It also needs a certain amount of load capacity, as it may spray pesticides on the farmland and load the harvested crops. and be able to drive automatically. Outdoor robots that cover these three points are currently difficult to obtain in the market. For this reason, the company developed its own outdoor robot by installing an automatic driving unit in the remote-controlled AMR.
There are two types of automatic driving systems: one type that uses the slam method (implements LiDAR) to create a map and drives automatically, and the other type that uses a satellite positioning system (satellite signals such as GPS + RTK positioning) to determine location information while looking at Google Maps. Prepare. It incorporates two systems and takes the form of choosing one depending on the situation.

‘The key point is that you can change the purpose by replacing the unit.The idea is that if you attach the mowing unit, you can cut grass, and if you attach the inspection unit, you can inspect solar panels,” says Managing Director Yamano.
HBA is cooperating with HEPCO Research Institute to develop a trial of HSR Outdoor Field. They are verifying automation of mowing by robots.
The satellite system runs automatically on sites with no obstacles, and on sites with obstacles such as trees, it runs using the slam method. In the future, HBA will consider using AI and other technologies to analyze images to see if there is grass in front of the robot, and if it is, it will mow it, and if it is not, it will avoid it.