Under this project, the members will develop hydraulic actuators and hydraulic fluids capable of operating in ultra-high-vacuum environments to serve as elemental technologies essential for future lunar construction machinery, with the goal of demonstrating their performance in a hydraulic arm.
With a view toward future application in lunar construction equipment, the project team will accumulate technical knowledge by evaluating output characteristics under ultra-high-vacuum conditions and conducting space environment tests. Led by Sanyo Chemical Industries, Ltd., technology development will be carried out under an industry–academia partnership framework involving Ritsumeikan University and the University of Tokyo. By exploring the applicability of technologies originally developed for non-space sectors, the project team aims to establish one of the elemental technologies required for future lunar civil engineering operations.

Lead institution: Sanyo Chemical Industries, Ltd.
Cooperating institutions: The Ritsumeikan Trust, the University of Tokyo

Representing Ritsumeikan University, Associate Professor Atsushi Kakogawa from the Department of Robotics in the College of Science and Engineering, who is also a member of the Earth & Space Exploration Center (ESEC), will play a central role in the project.
Associate Professor Kakogawa, who specializes in robotic mechanics and mechanical dynamics and control, has conducted research on robot motion, mechanism design, and control technologies for operation in extreme environments. In this project, he will contribute to the development of technologies for realizing a stable, high-output hydraulic arm capable of operating in the ultra-high-vacuum environment of the lunar surface. His work will include the mechanical design of the robotic arm as well as the evaluation of its motion and control characteristics.
Leveraging its expertise in robotics and space exploration research, Ritsumeikan University will work closely with the lead institution and other cooperating organizations to advance the project.

I am very pleased that Ritsumeikan University has the opportunity to participate as a cooperating institution in this technology development project aimed at future lunar civil engineering operations. The lunar surface presents an environment fundamentally different from that on Earth, characterized by ultra-high vacuum and low gravity. Establishing mechanisms and control technologies capable of generating significant force under such conditions is, in my view, one of the key challenges for future space development.
Through this project, I hope to leverage the expertise in robotic mechanism design and motion control that I have cultivated through my research on robots for extreme environments. In particular, I intend to focus on evaluating the performance of the hydraulic arm and identifying the technical challenges that must be addressed. By engaging in research and development as part of this industry–academia partnership, I will strive to contribute to the establishment of the core technologies needed to support future human activities on the Moon.