Modularized omni-directional moving wheel set

Abstract

The invention discloses a modularized omni-directional moving wheel set. The wheel set is composed of a steering moving part, a driving moving part and an independent suspension system. The steering motion part comprises a steering servo motor, a planetary reducer and a main body supporting component; the driving motion part comprises a driving wheel bracket and a hub motor; the independent suspension system comprises a rack connecting plate, a damping spring, a connecting rod and a sliding block rod set. The wheel set has the driving function and the steering function at the same time, the whole wheel set can be freely combined with a mobile robot body to achieve omni-directional movement of the robot, meanwhile, a constant-wheel-track double-sliding-block structure independent suspension system is creatively added on the basis of modular design, and therefore movement of wheel set components has flexibility and stability.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The invention belongs to the field of wheeled mobile robots, and in particular relates to a modular omnidirectional mobile wheel set with independent suspension. Background Art

[0002] The widespread application of mobile robots in various fields has become a significant trend in the development of science and technology today. From industrial automation to service robots, from healthcare to warehousing and logistics, the application scenarios of mobile robots are becoming more and more diverse. In these applications, the omnidirectional mobility and modular design of the mobile robot's wheel set are particularly important. The omnidirectional mobility enables mobile robots to move freely in complex and changing environments. Whether it is a narrow corridor, a crowded warehouse, or a factory workshop full of obstacles, the omnidirectional mobile wheel set allows the robot to easily move forward, backward, left and right, and even rotate and move diagonally. This flexibility not only improves the robot's maneuverability, but also enhances its ability to adapt to various work scenarios. The modular design facilitates the customization and maintenance of mobile robots. Different application scenarios have different requirements for robots. Some require greater carrying capacity, while others focus more on speed and accuracy. Through modular design, different types of wheel set modules can be selected according to specific needs, or even mixed and matched, so as to achieve customized adjustment of robot performance. At the same time, in terms of maintenance, the modular design makes the inspection and replacement of the wheel set simple and quick, greatly improving the maintainability and reliability of the robot.

[0003] Patent CN101638052B discloses an integrated wheel assembly design with independent drive, steering, suspension and braking. The steering motor is connected to the universal joint, and the steering action is completed by driving the universal joint. The design structure is complex, the overall volume of the wheel is large, and the difficulty of both early manufacturing and later maintenance is large. In addition, the mechanical efficiency of the method of driving the steering by the universal joint is not high, which not only leads to poor control accuracy, but also a short life of the wheel structure. Patent CN101716954A discloses a design scheme of a four-wheel steering four-wheel drive wire control platform. The steering motor is directly fixed on the chassis bracket and connected to the wheel. The steering actuator adopts an open-loop controlled steering gear, but due to insufficient steering torque and low execution accuracy, this design is difficult to ensure the maneuverability and stability of the platform. Patent CN102431586A discloses an integrated steering and suspension system. The steering motor transmits torque through the kingpin shaft and sleeve, shortens the transmission chain, and improves the transmission efficiency. However, its main shaft pin and sleeve are both splined, resulting in high manufacturing costs, fragile structure, and difficult later maintenance. Patent CN107856760A discloses a four-wheel steering universal chassis with adjustable parameters. The chassis size can be adjusted by push-pull rods to adjust the wheel spacing, but the platform is not equipped with a suspension system. At the same time, it relies on hydraulic motors to complete steering execution, and the control accuracy is low. Patent CN106938677B discloses a wheeled agricultural four-wheel drive transport vehicle with four-wheel steering. The design does not consider the suspension system, and the steering motor is directly connected to the drive part, and is only driven by gear meshing. The structure is simple, the transmission accuracy is low, and the control accuracy is difficult to guarantee. Patent 113276939A discloses a modular wheeled motion unit system that integrates steering, shock absorption, and driving functions. The overall structure of the design is simple and compact, which is convenient for rapid layout and maintenance, but the suspension system of the structure is in a semi-open "mouth" shape. When encountering obstacles, the driving wheel jumps in a non-vertical direction, which easily affects the precise control of the mobile robot. Summary of the invention

[0004] The purpose of the present invention is to address the deficiencies in the prior art and to propose an independent suspension system with a simple and compact structure, strong versatility, flexible disassembly, a high degree of modularity, and a constant wheelbase, and a modular omnidirectional mobile wheel set that can achieve precise omnidirectional control, thereby providing a solution for robots that require precise control to achieve flexible movement.

[0005] The object of the present invention is achieved through the following technical solution: a modular omnidirectional mobile wheel set, comprising:

[0006] The independent suspension system includes a frame connecting plate and an upper main body bracket, the upper main body bracket is provided with a linear optical axis with a nested damping spring, the frame connecting plate is connected to the linear optical axis in a floating manner through a linear bearing; the whole constitutes a slider, and is connected to another vertically arranged slider through a connecting rod;

[0007] The steering motion component comprises a steering servo motor and an end face planetary reducer connected to the output end thereof, wherein the output end face of the end face planetary reducer serves as a connecting face of a moving wheel.

[0008] Furthermore, the modular omnidirectional mobile wheel set also includes:

[0009] The driving moving part includes a modular end surface connection bracket used for connecting with the output end surface of the end surface planetary reducer and a driving wheel bracket installed with a hub motor; the modular end surface connection bracket and the driving wheel bracket are fixedly connected.

[0010] Furthermore, the double slider structure of the suspension system is symmetrically arranged on both sides of the wheel set, and the movement paths are perpendicular to each other. The movement direction of the vertically arranged slider is always parallel to the wheel jumping direction. Through the conduction of the connecting rod between the two sliders, the horizontally arranged slider absorbs part of the external excitation force, thereby reducing the vertical vibration of the wheel set and keeping the wheelbase constant.

[0011] Furthermore, the frame connecting plate is used as a mobile platform and has a plurality of holes reserved therein for fastening and connecting with different types of robot bodies.

[0012] Furthermore, the driving motion component serves as a replaceable lower wheel module of the modular omnidirectional mobile wheel set. The connection ports of different lower wheel modules can be quickly replaced according to different motion functions on the premise that they are consistent with the output end face size and installation hole position of the end face planetary reducer.

[0013] The advantages of the present invention are as follows: it integrates steering, driving and suspension systems with high integration, strong modularization and simple and compact structure; the wheel set as a whole is modularized, and the various holes reserved in the frame connecting plate are convenient for connecting the entire wheel set with various wheeled mobile robot bodies, and combining wheeled mobile platforms with different functions; the wheel set body is also modularized, and is divided into an upper wheel set module and a lower wheel set module according to the steering function and the driving function. The wheel set can freely replace modules according to the needs of the application scenario to achieve function conversion and convenient maintenance; the independent suspension system provides a vibration reduction solution with a constant wheelbase for the wheel set through a double slider mechanism while ensuring a compact structure. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0014] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of the three-dimensional structure of the modular omnidirectional mobile wheel set of the present invention;

[0015] Figure 2 Axonometric view of the upper wheel module of the modular omnidirectional mobile wheel module of the present invention;

[0016] Figure 3 A front view of the upper wheel module of the modular omnidirectional mobile wheel assembly of the present invention;

[0017] Figure 4 A side view of the upper wheel module of the modular omnidirectional mobile wheel module of the present invention;

[0018] Figure 5 Axonometric view of the lower wheel module of the modular omnidirectional mobile wheel module of the present invention;

[0019] Figure 6 A front view of the lower wheel module of the modular omnidirectional mobile wheel assembly of the present invention;

[0020] Figure 7 A side view of the lower wheel module of the modular omnidirectional mobile wheel module of the present invention;

[0021] Figure 8 A schematic diagram of the modular omnidirectional mobile wheel assembly of the present invention;

[0022] Fig. 9 Schematic diagram of the replacement of modular omnidirectional mobile wheel module of the present invention.

[0023] Description of labels:

[0024] 1—Frame connecting plate; 2—Servo motor driver; 3—Upper main body bracket; 4—Steering servo motor; 5—End face planetary reducer; 6—Linear optical axis; 7—Linear bearing; 8—Main damping spring; 9—Connecting rod; 10—Auxiliary damping spring; 11—Modular end face connecting bracket; 12—Drive wheel bracket; 13—Hub motor; 14—Auxiliary linear optical axis. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0025] The present solution is further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0026] The modular design adopted in the present invention facilitates the customization and maintenance of the mobile robot. Different application scenarios have different requirements for robots. Some require a larger carrying capacity, while others focus more on speed and accuracy. Through modular design, different types of wheel modules can be selected according to specific needs, and even a mixed combination can be made to achieve customized adjustment of the robot's performance. At the same time, in terms of maintenance, the modular design makes the inspection and replacement of the wheel set simple and quick, greatly improving the maintainability and reliability of the robot.

[0027] The overall structure of the modular mobile omnidirectional wheel set of the present invention is as follows: Figure 1 As shown, it consists of three parts: an independent suspension system with a constant wheelbase, a steering moving part and a driving moving part. The wheel set has high integration, strong modularity and a simple and compact structure.

[0028] Figure 2 , Figure 3 and Figure 4, which is the upper wheel module of the modular omnidirectional mobile wheel set proposed by the present invention, and is composed of an independent suspension system and a steering motion component. It includes a frame connecting plate 1, a servo motor driver 2, an upper main body bracket 3, a steering servo motor 4, an end planetary reducer 5, a linear optical axis 6, a linear bearing 7, a main damping spring 8, a connecting rod 9, a secondary damping spring 10, a secondary linear optical axis 14, fasteners and corresponding connecting lines, etc.

[0029] The independent suspension system is used to be connected to the mobile robot body through one side of the frame connecting plate 1 and a variety of holes are reserved to quickly fasten it to different types of robot bodies to form mobile platforms with different needs. The other side of the frame connecting plate 1 is fixedly connected to a linear bearing 7, which is floatingly connected to a linear optical axis 6 fixed to the upper main body bracket 3 through the linear bearing 7. A main damping spring 8 is nested on the linear optical axis 6 and is located between the linear bearing 7 and the upper main body bracket 3. The whole structure can be regarded as a slider A as a whole. A secondary linear optical axis 14 is also fixed on the upper main body bracket 3 and is arranged in a vertical relationship with the linear optical axis 6. A slider B is floatingly connected to the secondary linear optical axis 14. The slider B is composed of an aluminum alloy machined part and a graphite copper sleeve, and is connected to the slider A through a connecting rod 9, forming a constant wheelbase independent suspension system of a double slider mechanism. A secondary damping spring 10 is installed on the secondary linear optical axis 14. The main damping spring 8 and the secondary damping spring 10 jointly provide vibration reduction for the independent suspension system. The suspension system is based on a double slider mechanism and is symmetrically arranged on both sides of the wheel set. The movement paths of sliders A and B indicated by the thick solid line are perpendicular to each other. When a certain load is applied to the wheel set or the ground is undulating, the vibration damping spring embedded in the linear optical axis can reduce the vibration caused by external force, while ensuring that the movement direction of slider A is always parallel to the wheel jumping direction (vertical direction). For the mobile robot as a whole, during the vibration reduction process, the robot wheelbase is always constant, effectively avoiding the occurrence of wheel roll and the phenomenon of reduced control accuracy caused by the constant change of wheelbase; at the same time, through the conduction of the double slider mechanism connecting rod, the slider B installed at the other end of the wheel set can absorb part of the external excitation force well and decompose these external forces in the horizontal direction, effectively reducing the vibration of the wheel set in the vertical direction. In addition, since the two sets of double slider mechanism independent suspension are symmetrically arranged to include the entire wheel set structure, the torque applied to the linear optical axis 6 is also reduced.

[0030] The servo motor in the steering motion component as the core motion component of the wheel set steering has high-precision position control capability and can realize precise steering control; the rotating shaft of the steering servo motor 4 is tightly connected to the input end of the end planetary reducer 5, and the end planetary reducer 5 is connected to the upper main body bracket 3 by screws. When the wheel set is turned, the end planetary reducer 5 can further amplify the motor torque through the reduction ratio with its compact structure and high transmission efficiency to realize more precise steering control. The servo motor driver is installed in the space reserved for it by the upper main body bracket, which is used to convert the control signal into a control power signal, supply power to the steering servo motor 4 and realize closed-loop control; the upper main body bracket 3 mainly provides a frame support for the steering motion component body, and through reasonable space design, compactly turns to integrate the servo motor 4, the servo motor driver, the end planetary reducer 5 and the independent suspension system. At the same time, the output end face of the end planetary reducer 5 is used as the connection surface of the lower wheel set module to realize the modular replacement of the wheel set drive motion component.

[0031] Figure 5 , Figure 6 and Figure 7 , which is the lower wheel module (i.e., driving motion component) of the modular omnidirectional mobile wheel set proposed by the present invention, including a modular end surface connection bracket 11, a driving wheel bracket 12, a hub motor 13, fasteners, and corresponding connection lines.

[0032] The wheel hub motor 13 in the driving motion component is connected to the driving wheel bracket 12 by screws to provide running power for the wheel set, while the driving wheel bracket 12 provides stable connection and support for the wheel hub motor and the entire driving motion component. The end surface connection bracket 11 is an important connection bracket for the combination of the upper wheel set module and the lower wheel set module. One end of the end surface connection bracket 11 matches the output end surface size and installation hole position of the end surface planetary reducer 5, and the other end is firmly connected to the driving wheel bracket 12 by screws. The wheel hub motor 13, as the driving wheel of the wheel set, further improves the integration of the wheel set while reducing transmission loss and improving control accuracy, making the entire wheel set system more concise and compact; the driving wheel bracket 12 is mainly used for connecting the driving motion component with the steering motion component, and also plays the role of supporting the wheel hub motor 13.

[0033] In general, the modular omnidirectional mobile wheel set provided by the present invention is divided into three parts: an independent suspension system, a steering motion component and a driving motion component, and has a modular structure: the steering motion component and the independent suspension system together constitute the upper wheel set module, and the driving motion component constitutes the lower wheel set module. Each module can achieve functional conversion and convenient maintenance of the wheel set through replacement of a universal interface.

[0034] The modular replacement diagram of the modular omnidirectional mobile wheel set of the present invention is as follows: Figure 8 and Fig. 9As shown, the upper wheel module remains unchanged, and the lower wheel module can be quickly replaced according to the different production tasks of the mobile robot, provided that the connection port has the same output end face size and installation hole position as the end face planetary reducer 5, such as a herringbone wheel, chain wheel or track wheel suitable for special scenarios, so as to better adapt to different production environments.

[0035] The above embodiments are used to illustrate the present invention rather than to limit the present invention. Any modification and change made to the present invention within the spirit of the present invention and the protection scope of the claims shall fall within the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A modular omnidirectional mobile wheel set, It is characterized in that include: The independent suspension system comprises a frame connecting plate (1) and an upper main frame (3), wherein the upper main frame (3) is provided with a linear optical axis (6) and a secondary linear optical axis 14 with nested damping springs, the frame connecting plate (1) is connected to the linear optical axis (6) in a floating manner via a linear bearing (7), and the whole constitutes a slider A, and a slider B is connected to the secondary linear optical axis (14) in a floating manner, and is arranged in a vertical relationship with the slider A and connected to the slider A via a connecting rod (9); The steering motion component comprises a steering servo motor (4) and an end face planetary reducer (5) connected to the output end of the steering servo motor (4), wherein the output end face of the end face planetary reducer (5) serves as a connection face of a moving wheel.

2. A modular omnidirectional mobile wheel set according to claim 1, It is characterized in that The modular omnidirectional wheel set also includes: The driving motion component comprises a modular end surface connection bracket (11) for connecting to the output end surface of the end surface planetary reducer (5) and a driving wheel bracket (12) on which a hub motor (13) is installed; the modular end surface connection bracket (11) and the driving wheel bracket (12) are fixedly connected.

3. A modular omnidirectional mobile wheel set according to claim 1, It is characterized in that The double slider structure composed of slider A and slider B of the suspension system is symmetrically arranged on both sides of the wheel set, and the movement paths are perpendicular to each other. The movement direction of the vertically arranged slider A is always parallel to the wheel jumping direction. Through the conduction of the connecting rod (9) between the two sliders, the horizontally arranged slider B absorbs part of the external excitation force, reduces the vibration of the wheel set in the vertical direction and keeps the wheelbase constant.

4. The modular omnidirectional mobile wheel set according to claim 1, It is characterized in that The frame connection plate (1) is used as a mobile platform and has a plurality of holes reserved therefor for fastening and connecting with robot bodies of different types.

5. The modular omnidirectional mobile wheel set according to claim 2, It is characterized in that The driving motion component is a replaceable lower wheel module of the modular omnidirectional mobile wheel set. The connection ports of different lower wheel modules are matched with the output end face size and installation hole position of the end face planetary reducer (5), so that the lower wheel modules can be quickly replaced according to different motion functions.

Images