Patent ID: 8019473

Claim:
A manipulator comprising: a drive section which electrically drives a turnable joint; an instruction input section which executes instruction input for rotating the joint; a driving signal generation section which generates a driving signal for driving the drive section in response to the instruction input; a sensor which detects an operation status of the joint or the drive section in time series; a setting section which sets an allowable operation range within which the drive section is operable in a case when the drive section is driven with the driving signal; a determination section which determines whether an operation status signal corresponding to the operation status is within the allowable operation range, the operation status signal at least including a detection signal detected by the sensor; a control section which, in a case when the operation status signal is determined as being within the allowable operation range, generates a driving signal for a time after the determination using the detection signal; and a replacement section which, in a case when the operation status signal is determined as deviating from the allowable operation range, replaces the detection signal with a previous detection signal having been determined as being within the allowable operation range just before a time the operation status signal has been determined as deviating from the allowable operation range, and generates a driving signal for a time after the determination of deviance.