JP4904600B2 - Wheel with rotating body and omnidirectional vehicle equipped with the same - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a wheel having a plurality of rotating bodies along the outer periphery of the wheel, and more particularly to a wheel having a plurality of auxiliary wheels so that obstacles such as steps on the running surface can be easily overcome. The present invention relates to an omnidirectional vehicle equipped.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, various traveling devices having wheels as means for moving a person are known. In this type of traveling device, at least three or four wheels are disposed at a corner portion of the body or a portion close thereto.

  As this type of vehicle, a vehicle having a pair of front wheels and a rear wheel as a pair of drive wheels, the axles of each wheel being arranged in the vehicle width direction, that is, a vehicle in which each wheel is attached to the body in a non-turning manner It has been known. In such a vehicle, since the wheels themselves do not change the direction, the traveling direction is changed by giving a difference in rotational speed between the left and right drive wheels.

  An omnidirectional wheel 200 shown in FIG. 8A has been developed in order to enhance the traveling function of a vehicle in which the wheel does not change direction. The omnidirectional wheel 200 includes a plurality of rotating bodies 210 along the outer peripheral edge of the wheel. Each rotating body 210 is formed in a cup shape so as to gradually expand from the disc-shaped bottom portion 211 toward the opening portion 212 as shown in FIG. 8B, for example. Each rotator 210 is arranged such that its tapered bottom region partially enters the inside from the opening 212 of the other rotator 210, and each rotator 210 is connected to form a circular shape by each rotator 210. The outline is defined. Patent Documents 1 to 5 disclose this type of omnidirectional wheel (hereinafter sometimes referred to as a wheel with a rotating body) 200.

Furthermore, in recent years, an omnidirectional vehicle that can move in all directions more smoothly has been developed as a vehicle including the omnidirectional wheel 200 described above. For example, an omnidirectional vehicle 300 shown in FIG. 9 includes an omnidirectional wheel 200 disposed at each of the four corners of the body, and a motor provided on each omnidirectional wheel 200 so as to drive each omnidirectional wheel 200 separately. 250, and an axle 220 (see FIG. 8A) of each omnidirectional wheel 200 is disposed so as to be inclined from the vehicle width direction so as to face the center Z side of the body 260.
As illustrated in FIG. 9, the omnidirectional vehicle 300 includes a motor driver 310, a control computer 320 that controls the motor driver 310, and a joystick or robot controller 330 that transmits an instruction signal to the control computer 320. ing. The joystick 330 is provided with levers and knobs. When the operator turns the levers and knobs, the indicated value is read by the control computer 320, and the control computer 320 calculates the rotation speed of each motor 250 by matrix calculation. In calculation, speed information is sent from the control computer 320 to the motor driver 310. Then, the motor driver 310 drives each motor 250 based on the speed information. As a result, the omnidirectional vehicle 300 travels as follows.

As shown in FIG. 10A, when the control computer 320 and each motor driver 310 control each motor 250 to cause each wheel 200 to rotate normally, the omnidirectional mobile vehicle 300 moves forward.
As shown in FIG. 10B, when the right front wheel 200 and the left rear wheel 200 are rotated forward and the other wheels 200, that is, the left front wheel and the right rear wheel are not rotated, the omnidirectional mobile vehicle 300 goes to the left front. When the right front wheel 200 and the left rear wheel 200 are reversed, the omnidirectional vehicle 300 moves diagonally to the right rear. In this case, the wheel itself does not rotate between the left front wheel 200 and the right rear wheel 200, but the rotating body 210 that is in contact with the traveling surface is around the rotation axis orthogonal to the axle, and in the illustrated example, the right front wheel 200 and The left rear wheel 200 rotates in the same direction as the wheel rotation direction. In this way, in the omnidirectional vehicle 300, the rotating body 210 of the left front wheel 200 and the right rear wheel 200 rotates so as not to hinder travel due to the rotation of the right front wheel 200 and the left rear wheel 200.
Contrary to FIG. 10B, when the rotation of the right front wheel 200 and the left rear wheel 200 is stopped and the other wheels 200, that is, the left front wheel 200 and the right rear wheel 200 are rotated forward or reverse, The omnidirectional vehicle 300 moves obliquely toward the right front or left rear.

  As shown in FIG. 10 (C), the control computer 320 and each motor driver 310 rotate the left wheel 200 forward and reverse the right wheel 200. At this time, the rotation speed of each wheel 200 is the same. If there is, the omnidirectional vehicle 300 rotates on the spot. When the rotation direction of each wheel 200 is reversed from that in FIG. 10C, the omnidirectional vehicle 300 rotates counterclockwise on the spot.

Thus, according to the omnidirectional vehicle 300, omnidirectional movement including rotation is possible. When the omnidirectional vehicle 300 is configured as an electric wheelchair, the electric wheelchair can move in a lateral direction without a turning operation even in a narrow place, and the convenience is greatly improved. In addition, when the omnidirectional mobile vehicle 300 is applied to heavy vehicles such as forklifts and automated guided vehicles (AGV) and robots, not only electric wheelchairs, but can move in all directions, Subtle alignment can be performed quickly.
This type of omnidirectional vehicle is disclosed in Patent Document 6.

JP 2002-58707 A JP 2002-137602 A JP 2003-154802 A JP 2003-154803 A JP 2005-343277 A JP-A-2005-47312

  However, the omnidirectional vehicle 300 provided with a wheel with a rotating body as shown in FIG. 8 has a weak force to overcome the step when traveling in the traveling direction, and is not suitable for traveling outdoors where there are many obstacles such as a step. It is unsuitable. That is, the omnidirectional vehicle 300 is configured such that when the wheel itself moves in the axle direction, the rotating body 210 that is in contact with the traveling surface rotates, and the wheel itself moves in the lateral direction (hereinafter referred to as lateral movement). If the wheel itself does not rotate and moves laterally when there is a step 400 as shown in FIG. 11A on the running surface of the wheel axle, the step 400 Is low, the rotating body 210 can ride on the step 400. However, as shown in FIG. 11B, the height H of the step 400A is higher than one third of the diameter D of the rotating body 210. (H> D / 3), it is impossible to ride on the step 400A.

  The present invention was created in view of the above points, and provides a wheel with a rotating body and an omnidirectional vehicle equipped with the wheel that exhibits strong running performance in a place having an outdoor step or the like. It is aimed.

In order to achieve the above object, a first configuration of the present invention includes a wheel having an outer shape of a first circle in a virtual first vertical plane, and a plurality of rotating bodies along the first circle. The rotating body is provided on the outer peripheral edge of the wheel so that the rotating body is provided outside the first circle so as to be able to move in the extension direction of the axle so as to be rotatable around the first rotating axis perpendicular to the axle. A second wheel having a radius smaller than that of the first circle in a virtual second vertical plane facing the first vertical plane at a distance from the first vertical plane in the extension direction of the axle. along with a plurality of steps for the auxiliary wheel which is arranged on wheels, the center of the second circle, have been set on the virtual horizontal line where the center of the first circle coincide with the passing Ri axle, auxiliary step wheel is arranged around the second rotational axis is provided outside the second circle, the second axis of rotation parallel to the tangential direction of the second circle It is perpendicular to the axle with there.

The second configuration of the present invention includes a wheel having an outer shape of a first circle in a virtual first vertical plane, and a plurality of rotating bodies provided along the first circle, and the wheel is an axle. A wheel with a rotating body, wherein the rotating body is provided outside the first circle so as to be movable in the extending direction, and is disposed on the outer peripheral edge of the wheel so as to be rotatable around a first rotating shaft orthogonal to the axle. A wheel along a virtual second circle having a radius smaller than that of the first circle in a virtual second vertical plane facing the first vertical plane at a distance from the first vertical plane in the extension direction of the axle. A plurality of first step assist wheels disposed on the first vertical surface and a virtual third facing the first vertical surface at a position spaced from the first vertical surface through the second vertical surface in the extension direction of the axle. A plurality of second level difference auxiliary wheels disposed along a virtual third circle having a radius smaller than the second circle in the vertical plane; Provided, the center and the center of the third circle of the second circle, is set on a virtual horizontal line where the center of the first circle coincide with the passing Ri axle, first step for training wheels of the second The second rotating shaft is arranged around the second rotating shaft provided outside the circle , the second rotating shaft is parallel to the tangential direction of the second circle and orthogonal to the axle, and the second step assist wheel is a third circle. Is arranged around a third rotation axis provided outside the first rotation axis, the third rotation axis being parallel to the tangential direction of the third circle and orthogonal to the axle.

  Still another configuration of the present invention includes a body, a pair of front wheels supported by the body, a pair of rear wheels supported by the body, driving means provided for each wheel, and control for controlling each driving means. And an omnidirectional vehicle equipped with the means, wherein the wheel is constituted by the wheel with the rotating body described above.

  According to the present invention, when a part of the four wheels is moved in the lateral direction, even if there is a step on the traveling surface where the rotating body cannot directly climb, the step assist wheel for climbing the step is provided. Therefore, the vehicle can easily travel over the steps. Therefore, the vehicle provided with the wheel with a rotating body of the present invention can exhibit high running performance even on an unstable running surface having a step.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the figure, Fr indicates the front of the omnidirectional vehicle, and LH indicates the left direction in the width direction of the omnidirectional vehicle.
FIG. 1 is a schematic plan view of an omnidirectional vehicle 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention.
The omnidirectional vehicle 10 includes a pair of left and right front wheels (hereinafter simply referred to as wheels) 20L and 20R, a pair of left and right rear wheels (hereinafter also simply referred to as wheels) 30L and 30R, And a body 40 that supports the rear wheels 30L and 30R.
The pair of front wheels 20L and 20R are arranged in a square shape in plan view so that the distance between the front wheels 20L and 20R becomes narrower toward the front of the vehicle. That is, the axles 21 and 21 of the front wheels 20L and 20R are disposed to be inclined rearward from the virtual first horizontal line L1 in the vehicle width direction so as to face the body center Z side.
The pair of rear wheels 30L and 30R are arranged in a reverse C shape in plan view so that the distance between the rear wheels 30L and 30R increases as the vehicle moves forward. That is, the axles 31, 31 of the rear wheels 30L, 30R are disposed to be inclined forward from the virtual second horizontal line L2 in the vehicle width direction so as to face the body center Z side.
In particular, in the present embodiment, these wheels 20L, 20R, 30L, and 30R are non-turning with respect to the body 40, that is, the axles 21 and 31 are arranged so as not to change the direction of the axis. .

  A motor 50 is connected to the axles 21 and 31 of each wheel, and these motors 50 are controlled by a motor driver 51 mounted on the body 40. The vehicle 10 is equipped with a controller 52, and a signal from the controller 52 is converted into a control signal by the control computer 53 and sent to the motor driver 51.

Furthermore, each wheel 20L, 20R, 30L, 30R according to the present embodiment is configured by a wheel 60 with a rotating body. Here, FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the wheel 60 with a rotator according to the present embodiment, FIG. 3 is a front view of the wheel 60 with a rotator, and FIG. 4 is a plan view of the wheel 60 with a rotator. FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the wheel 60 with a rotating body along the line AA in FIG.
Each of the pair of front wheels 20L, 20R and the pair of rear wheels 30L, 30R has a wheel 61 having the same outer shape as the virtual first circle C1 (see FIG. 3) in the virtual first vertical plane S1 (FIG. 4). A plurality of rotating bodies 62 are disposed on the outer peripheral edge of the wheel 61 so as to be rotatable around a first rotating shaft 63 (see FIG. 3) orthogonal to the axles 21 and 31 along the first circle C1. Yes. FIG. 3 shows a part of the first rotation shaft 63. The rotating body 62 attached to the outer periphery of the wheel 61 is formed in a cup shape so as to gradually expand from the disc-shaped bottom portion 211 toward the opening portion 212 as shown in FIG. 8B, for example.

Here, as shown in FIG. 5, the wheel 61 includes a circular vertical wall 61 </ b> A, and an outer peripheral edge 61 </ b> B that extends from the outer peripheral edge of the vertical wall 61 </ b> A in parallel to the axles 21, 31 toward the wheel rear side. The plurality of rotating bodies 62 described above are attached to the outer peripheral edge 61 </ b> B via the first bracket 64. Specifically, the first rotating shaft 63 is rotatably supported at the tip of the first bracket 64, and the rotating body 62 is attached to the first rotating shaft 63. Each rotating body 62 is arranged such that its tapered bottom region partially enters the inside of the opening of the other rotating body 62, and the rotating bodies 62 are connected to each other so that each rotating body 62 has a circular shape. A contour is defined. By providing the plurality of rotating bodies 62 on the entire outer periphery of the wheel 61 in this way, when the wheels themselves try to move to the axle direction side, that is, the arrow X side in FIG. (Rotating body indicated by arrow α in FIG. 5) 62 rotates around the first rotation shaft 63 to roll on the ground or the like, and the wheel moves in the lateral direction without changing the direction of the wheel itself. Can be done smoothly.

Furthermore, in this embodiment, each wheel is provided with a plurality of auxiliary wheels for steps.
That is, each wheel has a smaller radius than the virtual first circle C1 in the virtual second vertical surface S2 facing the first vertical surface S1 at a distance from the first vertical surface S1, as shown in FIG. A plurality of step assist wheels 65 are provided along a virtual second circle C2 (see FIG. 3). The center of the second circle C2 is set on a virtual horizontal line L3 (see FIG. 4: virtual third horizontal line) passing through the center of the first circle C1. Further, the step assist wheel 65 is set to be equal to or smaller than the size of the rotating body 62 attached to the outer peripheral edge portion 61B of the wheel 61, for example, and attached to the vertical wall portion 61A of the wheel 61 via the second bracket 66. Thus, when the wheels are standing on a flat running surface, the step assist wheel 65 is held by the wheel 61 at a position lifted from the running surface. As shown in FIG. 5, with the wheels standing on the flat traveling surface F, the step assist wheel 65 is preferably lifted from the traveling surface F by a distance of one third of the diameter D of the rotating body 62. Held in position.
The plurality of step assist wheels 65 are arranged around a second rotation shaft 67 orthogonal to the wheel axles 21 and 31. Specifically, a second rotating shaft 67 is rotatably supported at the tip of the second bracket 66, and a step assist wheel 65 is attached to the second rotating shaft 67. As shown in FIG. 3, the second rotating shaft 67 is arranged so as to be parallel to or in contact with the tangential direction of the virtual second circle C2. FIG. 3 shows a part of the second rotation shaft 67.

  The omnidirectional vehicle 10 configured as described above can travel in the same manner as the omnidirectional vehicle 300 shown in FIG. Specifically, the omnidirectional vehicle of the present embodiment can go straight as shown in FIG. 10 (A), move diagonally as shown in FIG. 10 (B), and rotate as shown in FIG. 10 (C). .

  Furthermore, in this embodiment, when the omnidirectional vehicle 10 moves in the lateral direction, that is, when it moves in the extending direction of the axle 21 (31) of the wheel without rotating some of the wheels, as shown in FIG. Even if the height 70 of the step 70 is higher than one third of the diameter D of the rotating body 62 (that is, H> D / 3), the rotating surface 62 rotates more than the rotating body 62. Since the step auxiliary wheel 65 is provided on the outer side in the axial extension direction, the step auxiliary wheel 65 reaches the step 70 earlier than the rotating body 62. Since it is lifted by being held at a position spaced apart from F, it is possible to ride on the step 70. In this way, when the step assist wheel 65 rides on the step 70 first, although not shown, the wheel itself is lifted from the traveling surface F, and further moved in the lateral direction, the step as shown by the one-dot chain line in the figure. The rotating body 62 can also ride on 70.

As described above, according to the omnidirectional vehicle 10 according to the present embodiment, when a part of the four wheels is moved in the lateral direction, the step 70 (FIG. 6) that the rotating body 62 cannot directly ride on the traveling surface. ), The step assist wheel 65 for climbing the step 70 is provided, so that it is possible to easily get over the step 70 and travel.
Therefore, the omnidirectional vehicle 10 according to the present embodiment can exhibit high running performance even on an unstable running surface F having a step 70.

[Second Embodiment]
FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing wheels 60A of the omnidirectional vehicle according to the second embodiment. The omnidirectional vehicle according to this embodiment is characterized in that a wheel 60A is provided instead of the wheel 60 of the first embodiment. The wheel 60A further extends from the step assist wheel 65 in the direction of extension of the axle so that the step cannot be climbed by the step assist wheel (first step assist wheel) 65 of the first embodiment. A plurality of other step assist wheels (second step assist wheels) 65A are provided on the outside. That is, in addition to the configuration of the wheel 60 of the first embodiment described above, a virtual third vertical surface facing the first vertical surface at a position further spaced from the first vertical surface S1 through the second vertical surface S2. A plurality of other step assist wheels (second step assist wheels) disposed along a virtual third circle (not shown) having a radius smaller than that of the virtual second circle C2 in the plane (not shown). ) 65A.
In this case, the center of the third circle is also set on a virtual horizontal line L3 passing through the center of the first circle C1, similarly to the center of the second circle C2. Similarly to the first step assist wheel 65, the second step assist wheel 65A is also disposed around a third rotation shaft (not shown) orthogonal to the axle. Although not shown, the third rotation shaft is disposed so as to be in contact with the virtual third circle or in parallel with the tangential direction.

  According to the omnidirectional vehicle equipped with such a wheel 60A with a rotating body, it is possible to ride on a step that cannot be ridden by the first step assist wheel 65 of the omnidirectional vehicle 10 of the first embodiment described above. it can.

Although detailed above, the present invention can be implemented in various forms without departing from the spirit of the present invention.
In the above description, the case where the pair of left and right front wheels are arranged in a C shape in a plan view and the pair of left and right rear wheels are arranged in a reverse C shape in a plan view is illustrated. The present invention can be applied to an omnidirectional vehicle in which the axle direction is set at a position parallel to the vehicle width direction. Of course, each wheel is not limited to a non-turning type, and may be arranged on the body in a turning type.
In the wheel of the first embodiment, the step assist wheel is provided with one step, and the wheel according to the second embodiment is provided with two step assist wheels. However, the number of step assist wheels provided on one wheel is illustrated. Is not limited to the number of stages described above, and may be a plurality of stages of 3 or more.

1 is a plan view of an omnidirectional vehicle according to a first embodiment of the present invention. It is a perspective view of the wheel with a rotating body concerning a 1st embodiment of the present invention. 2 is a front view of the wheel with a rotating body. 2 is a plan view of a wheel with a rotating body. It is sectional drawing of the wheel with a rotary body along the AA line of FIG. It is a figure for demonstrating the effect | action of the wheel with a rotary body which concerns on 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is a perspective view which shows the wheel with a rotary body which concerns on 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is a perspective view which shows the wheel with the conventional rotary body. It is a schematic block diagram which shows the structure of the omnidirectional vehicle provided with the wheel with the conventional rotation. (A)-(C) is a figure for demonstrating the travel mode of the omnidirectional mobile vehicle of FIG. (A) And (B) is a figure for demonstrating operation | movement of the wheel with the conventional rotary body.

Explanation of symbols

10 Omni-directional moving vehicle 20L, 20R Front wheel 21 Axle
30 L, 30R Rear wheel 40 Body 50 Motor 51 Motor driver 52 Controller 53 Control computer 60, 60A Wheel 61 with rotating body Wheel 61A Vertical wall portion 61B Outer peripheral edge portion 62 Rotating body 63 First rotating shaft 64 First bracket 65 First Step assist wheel 65 Step assist wheel 65A Second step assist wheel 65A Step assist wheel 66 Second bracket 67 Second rotating shaft 70 Rotating means C1 First circle C2 Second circle D Diameter F Running surface L1 Virtual First horizontal line L2 Virtual second horizontal line L3 Virtual third horizontal line S1 First vertical plane S2 Second vertical plane X Arrow Z center (body center)

Claims (4)

A wheel having an outer shape of a first circle in a virtual first vertical plane, and a plurality of rotating bodies provided along the first circle,
The rotating body is provided on the outer peripheral edge of the wheel so as to be able to rotate around a first rotation axis that is provided outside the first circle and is orthogonal to the axle so that the wheel can move in the extension direction of the axle. A wheel with a rotating body,
A virtual second circle having a radius smaller than that of the first circle in a virtual second vertical plane facing the first vertical plane at a distance from the first vertical plane in the extension direction of the axle. A plurality of step assist wheels arranged on the wheel along the
The center of the second circle is set on the virtual horizontal line consistent with passing Ri the axle center of the first circle,
The step assist wheel is provided on the outer side of the second circle and disposed around the second rotation axis.
The wheel with a rotating body, wherein the second rotating shaft is parallel to a tangential direction of the second circle and is orthogonal to the axle. The wheel includes a circular vertical wall portion, and the outer peripheral edge portion extending from the outer peripheral edge of the vertical wall portion in the direction of the wheel rear side in parallel with the axle.
The plurality of rotating bodies are attached to the outer peripheral edge portion via a first bracket,
The wheel with a rotating body according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of step assist wheels are attached to the vertical wall portion via a second bracket. A wheel having an outer shape of a first circle in a virtual first vertical plane, and a plurality of rotating bodies provided along the first circle,
The rotating body is provided on the outer peripheral edge of the wheel so as to be able to rotate around a first rotation axis that is provided outside the first circle and is orthogonal to the axle so that the wheel can move in the extension direction of the axle. A wheel with a rotating body,
A virtual second circle having a radius smaller than that of the first circle in a virtual second vertical plane facing the first vertical plane at a distance from the first vertical plane in the extension direction of the axle. A plurality of first step assist wheels disposed along the wheel,
In a virtual third vertical plane facing the first vertical plane at a position further away from the first vertical plane through the second vertical plane in the extension direction of the axle, than the second circle. A plurality of second step assist wheels arranged along a virtual third circle with a small radius,
The center and the center of the third circle of the second circle, have been set on the virtual horizontal line consistent with passing Ri the axle center of the first circle,
The first step assist wheel is disposed around a second rotation shaft provided outside the second circle ,
The second rotation axis is parallel to the tangential direction of the second circle and perpendicular to the axle;
The second step assist wheel is disposed around a third rotation shaft provided outside the third circle ,
The wheel with a rotating body, wherein the third rotating shaft is parallel to a tangential direction of the third circle and is orthogonal to the axle. A body, a pair of front wheels supported by the body, a pair of rear wheels supported by the body, drive means provided for each wheel, and control means for controlling each drive means. A directional vehicle,
An omnidirectional vehicle, wherein the wheel is constituted by a wheel with a rotating body according to any one of claims 1 to 3 .