JPS624275B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Industrial Application Field] The present invention relates to an uneven terrain moving device for a mobile vehicle that travels on uneven terrain such as stairs, steps, and other irregularities.

[Prior Art] In small self-propelled vehicles that replace guide dogs, or other vehicles for arbitrary purposes, it is often desired to allow the dogs to ascend and descend stairs, steps, and the like.

However, an effective and suitable mobile vehicle has not yet been proposed that is suitable for climbing and descending stairs and traveling on uneven terrain while running smoothly on level ground like a normal vehicle.

For example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 49-19583 discloses an amphibious tractor in which a spiral screw is attached to the outside of floats provided on both the left and right sides in addition to the running wheels, and the floats are driven to rotate around the front and rear axes. It is shown. Although this type of mechanism is suitable for driving in wetlands, it is difficult to apply it to climbing stairs or steps. The main reason for this is that the thread of the spiral screw is inclined by the lead angle of the screw with respect to the direction perpendicular to the direction of travel, so it cannot be reliably engaged with the corners of stairs, etc. .

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] An object of the present invention is to provide a pair of threaded rods on the lower surface of the body of a moving vehicle driven by front and rear wheels to travel on rough terrain. In a mobile vehicle that is rotatably driven by a drive device, the screw thread on the ground side of the screw rod is oriented in a direction substantially perpendicular to the direction of travel of the vehicle, thereby ensuring reliable climbing and descending of stairs and steps on uneven terrain. The objective is to obtain a mobile device for use.

[Means for Solving the Problems] In order to achieve the above object, the rough terrain moving device of the present invention has front and rear wheels, and in a moving vehicle that is driven by these wheels and travels on level ground, the vehicle body A pair of screw rods is rotatably supported by a drive device on the lower surface, a right-hand thread and a left-hand thread are carved into the pair of screw rods, and the screw rods are connected to a horizontal surface by an angle corresponding to the lead angle of the screw. The inside of the screw rod is inclined in the opposite direction to the direction of travel of the vehicle, and the threads on the ground contact side of the screw rod are oriented in a direction substantially perpendicular to the direction of travel of the vehicle.

[Operation] When traveling on level ground, it is sufficient to drive the front and rear wheels in the same way as a normal moving vehicle.

When driving on rough terrain, a pair of screw rods is rotated by a drive device, but these screw rods are rotated in the opposite direction to the direction of travel of the vehicle in a horizontal plane by an angle corresponding to the lead angle of the screws. Because it is tilted, the screw thread on the ground side of the screw rod is oriented almost perpendicular to the direction of travel of the vehicle and is driven as if it were moving in the axial direction of the screw rod. The mountain reliably engages with the corners of stairs and steps, allowing the mobile vehicle to ascend and descend in a stable manner.

[Effects of the Invention] As is clear from the detailed description above, according to the present invention, the vehicle can run smoothly on leveled terrain like a normal vehicle, while also traveling on uneven terrain with stairs, steps, and other unevenness. Even when the belly of the moving vehicle rides on a convex part and the front or rear wheels are no longer in contact with the ground, it is possible to easily get over the convex part, and when driving a pair of screw rods, the screw rods With the screw threads on the ground contact side facing in a direction almost perpendicular to the direction of travel of the vehicle, the screw threads are driven as if they were moving in the axial direction of the screw rod, so that the screw threads are moved in the direction of the stairway. It reliably engages with the corners of stairs and steps, allowing the mobile vehicle to move up and down in a stable manner.

[Examples] Examples of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings.

1 and 2 show the configuration of the main parts of a mobile vehicle equipped with the rough terrain traveling device of the present invention,
A vehicle body 1 of the moving vehicle is equipped with front and rear wheels 2, 3 and a moving device 4 for rough terrain. In the illustrated moving vehicle, only the front wheels 2 are used as driving wheels, and the rear wheels 3 are used as driven wheels, but the rear wheels 3 can also be provided with a driving means. Furthermore, in FIG. 2, the rear wheels 3 are two left and right wheels in order to stabilize the vehicle body, but one or both of the front and rear wheels may be two left and right wheels.

As shown in detail in FIGS. 3 and 4, the front wheels 2 have a wheel frame 5 rotatably attached to the vehicle body 1 by a steering shaft 6, and the steering shaft 6 is controlled by a steering device on the vehicle body 1. A motor 7 as a power source is fixed to the wheel frame 5, and a main wheel 8 for leveling the ground driven by the motor 7 and a climbing wheel 9 for climbing up and down stairs, steps, etc. The shafts 10 and 11 are supported. This climbing wheel 9 has a large number of protrusions 12 on its circumferential surface that engage with steps 13 such as stairs, and has a radius larger than the maximum height of the step to be climbed, which is clear from FIG. As shown in the figure, its ground contact surface is slightly above the ground contact surface of the main wheels 8, so it does not touch the ground during leveling, and its circumferential surface protrudes slightly forward of the main wheels 8, making it difficult for the vehicle to climb stairs, etc. The climbing wheels 9 are supported so that they function when climbing. Then,
While fixing the gear 14 to the side surface of the main wheel 8,
A gear 15 is also attached to the side of the climbing wheel 9, and both gears 1
The intermediate gear 16 that meshes with gears 4 and 15 is operated by the operating lever 1.
The intermediate gear 16 is rotatably supported on the shaft portion of
5, and thereby constitutes a clutch mechanism between the main wheel 8 and the climbing wheel 9.

Further, as can be seen from FIGS. 1 and 2, the rough terrain moving device 4 has a pair of threaded rods 18, 18 on the lower surface of the vehicle body 1, and bearings 19, 18, respectively.
9 rotatably supported by the threaded rod 18,
18 can be rotationally driven by a drive device such as motors 20, 20. When the abdomen of the vehicle body 1 rides on a convex part of uneven ground and the drive wheels are no longer in contact with the ground, the motors 20, 20 As a result, the screw rods 18, 18 are rotated so that their threads apparently move from the front to the rear, allowing them to ride over the protrusions and the like. In particular, Figure 2 shows an example of a configuration suitable for climbing stairs, which is an example of uneven terrain.
A pair of screw rods 18, 18 in the direction of travel of the vehicle
The axes of the screw rods are inclined in opposite directions, and the screw rods on the right side with respect to the direction of travel of the vehicle are carved with right-hand threads, and the screw rods on the left side with left-hand threads.
8 is inclined so that the two are separated from each other at the front of the vehicle body 1 and closer to each other at the rear. The inclination of the threaded rods 18, 18 with respect to the direction of travel of the vehicle approximately corresponds to the lead angle of the screw, and therefore, as can be seen from FIG. The screw threads are oriented in a direction substantially perpendicular to the direction of travel, making it easier for the threads to engage with corners of stairs, etc., thereby stably driving the vehicle body.

When the moving vehicle having the above configuration runs on level ground, it runs in exactly the same way as a normal vehicle using the main wheels 8 and the rear wheels 3, 3.
Or when climbing onto a bump on uneven ground,
By moving the lever 17 downward, the intermediate gear 16 is engaged with both the gears 14 and 15 on the side surfaces of the main wheel 8 and the climbing wheel 9, whereby the motor 7 of the main wheel 8 drives the climbing wheel 9, and its circumferential surface The protrusion 12 of the step part 13 of a staircase etc.
to climb the stairs, etc. When the abdomen of the vehicle body 1 rides on a protrusion on uneven ground and the drive wheels are no longer in contact with the ground, the screw rods 18, 18 are driven by the motors 20, 20, thereby making it possible to ride over the protrusion. can.

FIG. 5 shows another example of the configuration of the front wheels, in which a wheel frame 25 is tiltably attached to the vehicle body, a motor 27 is fixed to the wheel frame 25, and the motor 27 is
The shaft 30 of the main wheel 28 for leveling the ground and the climbing wheel 29 for climbing stairs, floors, etc., which are driven by the main wheel 28, are supported. This ascending/descending wheel 29 has a large number of bevel gear-shaped protrusions 42 on its circumferential surface, and is formed to have a slightly smaller diameter than the main wheel 28. When the main wheel 28 is running on level ground, as shown by the solid line in FIG. Ground and ascend/descend wheel 2
9 is not in contact with the ground, and when the wheel frame 25 is tilted as shown by the chain line in the same figure, when the wheel frame 25 is tilted and the wheel is running on rough terrain, the circumferential surface of the climbing wheel 29 provided with the protrusion 42 contacts the ground, and the main wheel 28 The state is such that the wheel frame 25 is not in contact with the ground, and the main wheel 28 and the ascending/descending wheel 2 are tilted.
9 can be switched and used.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

1 and 2 are a side view and a bottom view showing the configuration of the main parts of a stair climbing vehicle using the drive wheel of the present invention, and FIGS. 3 and 4 are a side sectional view and a front sectional view of the drive wheel. , FIG. 5 is a sectional view showing another example of the structure of the drive wheel. 1...Vehicle body, 2...Front wheel, 3...Rear wheel, 8,2
8...Main wheel, 9,29...Climbing wheel, 12,42...
...projection, 18...screw rod.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. In a mobile vehicle that has front and rear wheels and is driven by these wheels to travel on level ground, a pair of threaded rods are rotatably supported on the underside of the vehicle body by a drive device, and the pair of threaded rods are equipped with a right-hand thread and a right-hand thread. Left-hand threads are carved, and the threaded rods are inclined in the opposite direction to the vehicle's traveling direction in a horizontal plane by an angle corresponding to the lead angle of the screws, so that the threads on the ground contact side of the screw rods are aligned with the vehicle. A device for moving a mobile vehicle on rough terrain, characterized in that the device is oriented in a direction substantially perpendicular to the traveling direction of the vehicle.