JP6448437B2 - Omnidirectional wheel mechanism - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an omnidirectional moving wheel mechanism, and more particularly, to provide an omnidirectional moving wheel mechanism that can move in all directions even on rough terrain.

One conventional omnidirectional wheel mechanism is the Mecanum wheel.
The Mecanum wheel was invented by Bengt Erland Ilon (Patent Document 1), and its structure was covered with a barrel-shaped roller whose wheel surface (circumferentially) was inclined 45 ° with respect to the axle. It is what.

  This wheel is mounted so that each of the barrel-shaped rollers on the circumference can rotate freely in addition to moving back and forth like a conventional wheel by transmitting the driving force of the motor. It is possible to move in the direction of 45 ° with respect to the front-rear direction.

Therefore, a Mecanum wheel is installed as each wheel of a four-wheel drive vehicle, and the four wheels are individually driven by a motor, and the rotation direction and speed of each of the four motors are controlled. Therefore, it is possible to move in all directions such as front and rear, left and right, and diagonal directions.
The mecanum wheel has an advantage that the mechanism is simple and the control is easy as compared with other omnidirectional wheel mechanisms such as a spherical wheel.

  In the invention described in Non-Patent Document 1, a large number of small rollers are mounted on a curve forming a part of an ellipse, and the central axis (rotation axis) of the small roller forms a part of the ellipse. Each roller rotates in a direction perpendicular to the direction of the curve forming part of the ellipse.

  This wheel corresponds to the case where there are three barrel rollers of the Mecanum wheel, and it can be considered that a large number of small rollers are attached to each barrel roller instead of the barrel rollers.

  This wheel realizes a lightweight and cushioned Mecanum wheel compared to the Mecanum wheel with barrel-shaped rollers. However, as with Mecanum wheels with barrel-shaped rollers, it was difficult to get over the steps.

  As described above, the Mecanum wheel, which is a conventional omnidirectional moving wheel mechanism, is assumed to be operated on a flat ground, and has a problem that it is difficult to get over a step.

U.S. Pat. No. 3,876,255

Suzumori Koichi, Yamada Noriyuki, Wakimoto Shuichi, Senoo Norihisa, Ozaki Naoto, Yamamoto Akina, Okamoto Takemitsu, Nozawa Kazushi, RSJ2014AC3D2-05 "Prototype of New Mecanum Wheel with Spiral Wire Lot Structure" The 32nd Annual Meeting of the Robotics Society of Japan Lecture Proceedings, Japan, Robotics Society of Japan, September 2014

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide an omnidirectional moving wheel mechanism that can move in all directions such as front, back, left, and right, oblique directions without changing the direction of the vehicle body, can further overcome a step, and is suitable for traveling on rough terrain. That is.

  According to the first aspect of the present invention, two or more rollers are attached to the arcuate fitting along the arcuate curve of the arcuate fitting so that the rotation direction of the roller is the longitudinal direction of the arcuate fitting. An omnidirectional moving wheel mechanism comprising two arcuate units and a wheel base, wherein two or more arcuate units are attached to each other in the circumferential direction of the wheel base to constitute a wheel, Each of the arcuate units is provided with an omnidirectional moving wheel mechanism that is attached to the wheel base so that the longitudinal direction of the arcuate fitting is inclined with respect to the rotational direction of the wheel.

That is, in the invention of claim 1, two or more arcuate units each having a plurality of rollers are held while being shifted from each other in the circumferential direction of the wheel base portion, and each of the arcuate units is Since the longitudinal direction of the arcuate bracket is attached to the wheel base so as to be inclined with respect to the rotation direction of the wheel, the vehicle equipped with the omnidirectional moving wheel mechanism of the invention of claim 1 changes the direction of the vehicle body. It is possible to move in all directions such as front, back, left, and right diagonal directions.
In addition, each of the arcuate units is attached to the wheel base so that the longitudinal direction of the arcuate fitting is inclined with respect to the rotation direction of the wheel. One of the units gets caught on the step and can get over the step.

  According to the second aspect of the present invention, a unit holding shaft corresponding to each of the arcuate units is further provided, each of the unit holding shafts is attached to the wheel base, and each of the arcuate units is interposed via the unit holding shaft. Each of the arcuate units is attached to the unit holding shaft by the unit support component so that the longitudinal direction of the arcuate bracket is inclined with respect to the rotational direction of the wheel. The unit holding shaft is attached with springs between both ends of the unit holding shaft and the unit support parts. When the arcuate unit slides with respect to the unit holding shaft, An omnidirectional moving wheel mechanism according to claim 1, wherein a reaction force acts is provided.

  That is, in the invention of claim 2, each of the arcuate units is attached to the corresponding unit holding shaft attached to the wheel base so that the longitudinal direction of the arcuate bracket is inclined with respect to the rotation direction of the wheel. It is slidably attached to the holding shaft, and when each of the arcuate units slides on the unit holding shaft, a reaction force is exerted by the spring. Sometimes one of the arcuate units can catch the step reliably, get caught on the step and get over the step.

  According to invention of Claim 3, it is an omnidirectional mobile vehicle, Comprising: Each of the wheel which drives an omnidirectional mobile vehicle is the omnidirectional mobile wheel mechanism of Claim 1 or 2, and an omnidirectional mobile wheel. An omnidirectional vehicle is provided that includes a drive shaft attached to the center of rotation of the mechanism and a drive device that drives the drive shaft, and individually controls the rotational direction and rotational speed of each wheel.

  That is, the invention according to claim 3 is provided with the omnidirectional moving wheel mechanism according to claim 1 or 2, and can move in all directions such as front and rear, right and left, and oblique directions without changing the direction of the vehicle body, and can overcome a step. An omnidirectional vehicle is provided.

  According to the invention described in each claim, it is possible to move in all directions such as front, rear, left and right without changing the direction of the vehicle body, and moreover, can step over the steps, and is suitable for traveling on rough terrain. There is a common effect of providing a wheel mechanism.

It is a figure of the omnidirectional movement wheel mechanism in one embodiment of the present invention, (A) is a front view, (B) is a perspective view, (C) is a bottom view, (D) is a side view. It is a perspective view of the arcuate unit in one embodiment of the present invention. It is the figure which attached the omnidirectional movement wheel mechanism in one embodiment of the present invention to the four-wheel drive vehicle, (A) is a top view, (B) is a perspective view, (C) is a front view, (D) is It is a side view. It is a figure explaining the case where the omnidirectional movement wheel mechanism in one embodiment of the present invention gets over a level difference, (A) is a front view of a wheel when a bow unit of a wheel reaches a level difference, (B) Is a side view thereof, (C) is a front view of the wheel when the arcuate unit of the wheel is caught on the step from above, (D) is a side view thereof, and (E) is an end of the arcuate unit of the wheel. It is a front view of the state where the wheel has begun to lift when the wheel itself is lifted with the portion supported, (F) is a side view thereof, and (G) is a wheel supported by the end portion of the arcuate unit of the wheel. It is a front view of a state in which the wheel is lifted when it is lifted, (H) is a side view thereof, and (I) is when the wheel itself is lifted by supporting the end portion of the wheel arcuate unit. The lifting of the wheel Is a front view of a completion state, (J) is a side view thereof. It is a figure explaining the positional relationship with a level | step difference when the four-wheel drive vehicle which attached the omnidirectional movement wheel mechanism in one embodiment of this invention gets over a level | step difference, (A) is a level | step difference with a four-wheel drive vehicle. It is a top view in a parallel relationship, and (B) is a top view in which a step is in an oblique relationship with a four-wheel drive vehicle.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, the accompanying drawings are for explaining the present invention, and the present invention is not limited to the embodiments shown in the accompanying drawings. In the plurality of accompanying drawings, the same or corresponding members are denoted by the same reference numerals.

  (A)-(D) of FIG. 1 shows the omnidirectional moving wheel mechanism 10 in one embodiment of this invention from a respectively different direction, and one omnidirectional moving wheel mechanism 10 is circular shape. As long as two or more arcuate units 20 are provided to form a single wheel, and a circular wheel is formed without interfering with each other, it is possible to have multiple arcuate units 20.

  In the embodiment of FIG. 1, one omnidirectional wheel mechanism 10 corresponds to each arcuate unit, three arcuate units 20, a wheel base constituted by wheel support plates 11, 12 and a wheel reinforcement component 13. A unit holding shaft 14, and the unit holding shaft 14 is supported by wheel support plates 11 and 12 at both ends. In the embodiment of FIG. 1, each of the arcuate units has two unit holding shafts 14, and a total of six unit holding shafts 14, each of which has three arcuate units 20 in the circumferential direction of the wheel base 120. It is arranged so as to be held at a shifted angle, and constitutes one wheel (FIG. 1D).

  Each of the arcuate units 20 is slid on the unit holding shaft 14 so that the longitudinal direction of the arcuate bracket 25 is inclined with respect to the rotation direction of the wheel by the unit support parts (reference numerals 24 and 26 in FIG. 2). It is attached as possible.

  The attachment of each of the arcuate units 20 in which the longitudinal direction of the arcuate fitting is inclined with respect to the rotation direction of the wheel causes one of the arcuate units to be caught on the step from above when the wheel rotates, as will be described later. Is for. Therefore, as long as the arcuate units do not interfere with each other, they are attached to the unit holding shaft 14 at an arbitrary inclination angle in the range of more than 0 ° and less than 90 ° with respect to the rotation direction of the wheel, and the function of climbing to the step is exhibited. be able to.

  In the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, the inclination angle formed by the longitudinal direction of the arcuate fitting 25 with respect to the rotational direction of the wheel of each arcuate unit 20 is 45 °.

  The arcuate unit 20 is attached to the unit holding shaft 14 so as to be slidable in the axial direction via a unit linear sliding part 27 (see FIG. 2) attached to the unit support part 26.

  A spring 15 is attached to the unit holding shaft 14 between the wheel support plates 11 and 12 at both ends of the unit holding shaft 14 and the unit support component 26, and the arcuate unit 20 is attached to the unit holding shaft 14. When the sliding is performed, the reaction force by the spring 15 is applied regardless of which direction the wheel support plates 11 and 12 slide.

  FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an arcuate unit 20 according to an embodiment of the present invention, and the arcuate unit 20 includes an arcuate bracket 25, and a plurality of rollers 21 correspond to each roller in the arcuate bracket 25. The roller holding shaft 22 is attached along the arcuate curve of the arcuate fitting 25 so that the rotation direction of each roller 21 is the longitudinal direction of the arcuate fitting 25.

  The above-described attachment of each of the arcuate units 20 in which the longitudinal direction of the arcuate fitting is inclined with respect to the rotation direction of the wheel is performed by changing the mutual attachment angle of the unit support parts 24 and 26 to each of the arcuate units 20. As long as there is no interference, any inclination angle in the range of more than 0 ° and less than 90 ° with respect to the rotation direction of the wheel can be obtained.

  Furthermore, the mounting position of the unit linear sliding component 27 with respect to the arcuate bracket 25 is set to an arbitrary position within the range of the length of the arcuate bracket 25 by changing the mounting position of the unit support component 24 with respect to the arcuate bracket 25. be able to.

  In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the mounting position of the unit linear sliding component 27 is such that the outside and inside of the wheel in the top view perform the same function with respect to overcoming the step in the left and right movement of the vehicle. The arcuate fitting 25 is attached at a central position with respect to the length direction.

  As described above, in the present invention, each roller 21 of the arcuate unit 20 is held so as to rotate in the same direction as the longitudinal direction of the arcuate fitting 25, and is apparent from the embodiment shown in FIGS. As described above, the omnidirectional moving wheel mechanism to which the bow unit of the present invention is attached is different from the Mecanum wheel described in Patent Document 1 and the improved Mecanum wheel described in Non-Patent Document 1 in the rotation direction of the roller. However, the mechanism is different from the Mecanum wheel.

  When configuring an omnidirectional vehicle using the omnidirectional moving wheel mechanism of the present invention, each of the wheels that drive the vehicle is the omnidirectional moving wheel mechanism of the present invention, and the rotational direction of each drive wheel is By individually controlling the rotational speed, the purpose of omnidirectional movement can be achieved.

  FIG. 3 shows an embodiment in which four omnidirectionally moving wheel mechanisms (hereinafter also simply referred to as “wheels”) of the present invention are arranged as four-wheel drive vehicles. By independently controlling the rotation of the driving force transmission shaft 32, each wheel can be moved in all directions including front and rear, left and right, and diagonal directions without changing the direction of the vehicle body.

  That is, in the case of four-wheel drive, the omnidirectional moving wheel mechanism is symmetrically set with respect to the central axis extending in the front-rear direction of the vehicle 30 and symmetrical with respect to the central axis extending in the left-right direction of the vehicle 30. By attaching and controlling the rotation of each wheel independently, it is possible to move in all directions.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining the operation of overcoming the step at the stepped portion. The omnidirectional moving wheel mechanism of the present invention can get over the stepped portion by the end portion of the arcuate unit being caught by the step and the wheel itself being lifted. Can do.

  That is, when the wheel reaches the step, the arcuate unit that comes into contact with the step is lowered rearward along the unit holding shaft by the reaction force received from the step, as shown in FIGS.

  Next, as shown in FIGS. 4C and 4D, the wheel rotates on the spot, and one of the arcuate units is caught on the step from above.

  Further, as shown in FIGS. 4E and 4F, when the wheel rotates, the wheel itself is lifted by supporting the end portion of the arcuate unit.

  Further, as shown in FIGS. 4G and 4H, the arcuate unit that is in contact with the step returns to the central portion of the shaft by the force of the spring due to the absence of the reaction force.

  And finally, as shown to (I) (J) of FIG. 4, all the parts of a wheel reach | attain above a level | step difference.

  In the above operation, as shown in FIG. 5A, not only the direction of the vehicle body 31 enters parallel to the step, but also the direction of the vehicle body 31 changes to the step as shown in FIG. Even in the case of entering obliquely, the end portion of the arcuate unit can be caught by the step as described above, so that the step can be overcome.

  As shown in FIG. 4C, the maximum height over the step is determined depending on whether or not the end portion of the arcuate unit is caught. Therefore, a wheel with a large outer diameter can be selected for the purpose of overcoming a large level difference, and the size of the wheel may be determined according to the purpose.

  As one embodiment, for example, in the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, when the wheel diameter is 254 mm, a step having a height of about 200 mm can be overcome.

  In the above description of the embodiment, the embodiment of the omnidirectional vehicle equipped with four omnidirectional wheel mechanisms has been described. However, the omnidirectional wheel mechanism includes a number of omnidirectional wheel mechanisms other than four. Various omnidirectional vehicles can be configured by individually controlling the rotation direction and rotation speed of the vehicle.

  For example, when three omnidirectional wheel mechanisms are installed, the omnidirectional wheel mechanisms are arranged such that the rotation directions of the rollers of each wheel are not all parallel, and the rotation direction and rotation speed of each wheel are determined. By individually controlling, a vehicle that can move in all directions can be configured.

  Conventional omnidirectional vehicles are operated only on flat ground in forklifts and the like, but if the omnidirectional moving wheel mechanism of the present invention is adopted, steps can be overcome, so that obstacles such as rough terrain can be avoided. Even where it exists, it is possible to move over obstacles.

  Specifically, not only was it applied to conventional forklifts, but there were many rubble due to mobile vehicles in factories with uneven or stepped floors, narrow-width outdoor work vehicles, wheelchairs, disasters, etc. Applications can be expanded to various mobile vehicles such as mobile vehicles at the site, satellite and planetary surface probes.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Omni-directional moving wheel mechanism 11 Wheel support plate 12 Wheel support plate 13 Wheel reinforcement component 14 Unit holding shaft 15 Spring 20 Arc unit 21 Roller 22 Roller holding shaft 23 Unit support component 24 Unit support component 25 Bow-shaped metal fitting 26 Unit support component 27 Unit Linear sliding parts 30 Vehicle 31 Vehicle body 32 Driving force transmission shaft

Claims (2)

Two or more arcuate units in which a plurality of rollers are attached to the arcuate fitting along the arcuate curve of the arcuate fitting such that the rotational direction of the roller is the longitudinal direction of the arcuate fitting;
A wheel base,
With
The two or more arcuate units are omnidirectionally moving wheel mechanisms that are attached to each other in a circumferential direction of the wheel base to constitute a wheel,
Each of said arcuate units, the wheel base, the longitudinal direction of the arcuate bracket is attached so as to be inclined with respect to the rotational direction of the wheel,
Furthermore, a unit holding shaft corresponding to each of the bow units is provided,
Each of the unit holding shafts is attached to the wheel base,
Each of the arcuate units is attached to the wheel base via the unit holding shaft,
Each of the arcuate units is attached to the unit holding shaft by a unit support component so that the longitudinal direction of the arcuate bracket is inclined with respect to the rotation direction of the wheel, and slides with respect to the unit holding shaft. Can be attached,
A spring is attached to each of the unit holding shafts between both end portions of the unit holding shaft and the unit support component, and when the arcuate unit slides with respect to the unit holding shaft, a reaction force by the springs Act,
Omni-directional moving wheel mechanism. An omnidirectional vehicle,
Each of the wheels driving the omnidirectional vehicle is
An omnidirectional moving wheel mechanism according to claim 1 ;
A drive shaft attached to the center of rotation of the omnidirectional moving wheel mechanism;
A drive device for driving the drive shaft,
An omnidirectional vehicle that individually controls the rotational direction and rotational speed of each of the wheels.

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