Crawler walking device suitable for seabed thin and soft substrate

Abstract

The invention discloses a wide crawler walking device suitable for seabed thin and soft geology, which realizes stable walking of a deep-sea heavy-load mining operation platform on a thin and soft substrate through a high-tooth large-width composite material crawler walking mechanism, and provides a power driving guarantee for later operation of a heavy and heavy collection device. The crawler walking module is used for providing enough traction force for the mining vehicle, so that the mining vehicle can normally run on the complex bottom surface of the seabed. A crawler walking device is located in a chassis, the overall width of a vehicle body is reduced, a main beam of the chassis penetrates through trolley frames on the two sides, chassis secondary beams are welded to outer side panels of the trolley frames, the bearing capacity of the chassis is improved, the trolley frames are of a simple frame structure, and through holes and open grooves are machined in left and right outer side plates of the trolley frames and used for installing driving wheels, guide wheels and bearing wheels. Welding or bolt connection of other wheel train installation type structural parts is omitted, the lightweight design is met, and the structural strength is enhanced.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The invention relates to the technical field of deep-sea mining devices, and in particular to a crawler walking device suitable for soft and sparse seabed. Background Art

[0002] Due to global economic development and industrial transformation, the demand for metals such as nickel, cobalt, and manganese is growing. Metal applications include not only consumer goods, biomedical products, alloys, pigments and catalysts, as well as heavy machinery and power transmission, but are also closely related to new green energy industries, including solar and wind farms, electric vehicles, electric ships, and other power batteries and other high-capacity energy storage devices. Polymetallic nodules are natural manganese ores containing metal elements such as cobalt, nickel, and copper. They are formed by metal precipitation in seawater and sediment pore water over millions of years, and most of them are found on deep-sea plains at 4000-6000m. Tracked deep-sea mining vehicles are the mainstream deep-water equipment for developing these seabed mineral resources. Since the 1970s, countries have carried out dozens of mining vehicle prototype development and sea trials, and the initial commercialization of deep-sea mining is expected to be realized for the first time in the past two years. The crawler walking mechanism is one of the main functional systems of deep-sea mining vehicles, which determines the production capacity of the mining system and the efficiency of ore collection.

[0003] The soil of the deep seabed is thin and soft, mainly composed of siliceous clay. The depth of the deep-sea sediment layer in contact with the crawler track is approximately 0~50cm. Taking my country's Xitai mining area as an example, as the depth increases, it presents a flowing state-plastic state-plastic state. The surface 0-10cm is flowing, and 10cm~50cm is a relatively consolidated layer. The bearing capacity, shear resistance, and internal friction angle of this layer are very small. When the crawler track contacts the bottom, it will sink into the relatively consolidated layer. Due to the small internal friction angle, the friction resistance contributes very limitedly to the traction force of the crawler track. The mutual shearing effect between the high-tooth structure and the bottom is the main source of traction. However, the crawler track should consider the deep seabed presenting grooves, steep slopes, etc. when shearing the soil. During the walking operation, the submarine mining vehicle is affected by unfavorable factors such as complex terrain, subsidence, slipping, and instability. Once the walking mechanism cannot operate normally, the deep-sea mining system will face the risk of shutdown. In order to ensure the safe and efficient movement of mining vehicles, the ground area of ​​the mining vehicle tracks should be increased as much as possible. The thin and soft sediments can continuously provide sufficient traction for the high-tooth tracks. However, how to increase the ground area of ​​the mining vehicle tracks as much as possible while ensuring the safe and efficient movement of the mining vehicle has become a problem that needs to be solved at present. Summary of the invention

[0004] The present invention aims to overcome at least one defect of the above-mentioned prior art and provide a crawler walking device suitable for the soft bottom of the seabed to achieve the purpose of high structural strength and lightweight design.

[0005] Specifically, the present invention provides a crawler walking device suitable for the soft and sparse bottom of the seabed, which is fixed to the chassis of the seabed mining vehicle; it includes a trolley frame, a crawler, a driving wheel, a hydraulic travel motor, a guide wheel, a tensioning device, a load-bearing wheel, a sprocket wheel, an anti-slip chain group, and a speed encoder; the guide wheel is installed at the front end of the trolley frame, and the driving wheel is installed at the rear end, and a plurality of the load-bearing wheels are arranged in an equidistant array at the bottom of the trolley frame; the wheel body of the load-bearing wheel is placed inside the trolley frame; the driving wheel is concentrically assembled with the hydraulic travel motor; the driving wheel preferably adopts an integrated structure in terms of processing technology to increase reliability and facilitate processing and offshore maintenance and replacement. The speed feedback function of the driving wheel is realized by a speed encoder installed on the trolley frame. The hydraulic travel motor is installed at the rear end of the trolley frame by screws; the guide wheel is installed at the front end of the trolley frame, and the threaded wheel shaft of the guide wheel is fixed to the tensioning device by a nut. The bottom end of the tensioning device is installed on the internal support panel of the trolley frame. The tensioning device can control the tensioning state of the track by adjusting the position of the hydraulic rod, and at the same time provide a contraction space to avoid excessive tensioning force inside the track when encountering obstacles during walking operation; the anti-slip chain assembly is installed on the upper part of the trolley frame; it includes a first anti-slip component and a second anti-slip component, the first anti-slip component is fixed to the adjacent load-bearing wheel by a double nut, and the second anti-slip component is fixed together with the support chain wheel; one or more speed encoders, divided into It is arranged on the outer circle of the driving wheel and the supporting sprocket, and the rotation speed of the driving wheel or the supporting sprocket is obtained through the intermediate conversion gear; the track surrounds the outer edge of the driving wheel, the guide wheel and the load-bearing wheel; the track includes a long-tooth track shoe, a short-tooth track shoe, a left chain track segment, a right chain track segment, a chain track shaft, a chain track shaft sleeve, and a titanium alloy sandwich core; the chain track segments of the short-tooth track shoe and the long-tooth track shoe are mutually sleeved to form a chain ring, and the chain ring surrounds the outer edge of the load-bearing wheel, the driving wheel and the guide wheel; the chain track segment group is fixed on the top of the titanium alloy sandwich, and the titanium alloy sandwich is fixed to the long-tooth track shoe by bolts; the ratio of the length of the short-tooth track shoe and the long-tooth track shoe to the width of the trolley frame is not less than 3:1.

[0006] As the ore production capacity increases, the weight of deep-sea mining vehicles will become heavier. The soil in the mining area has the characteristics of low load-bearing and low shear strength. In order to reduce the depth of soil depression, the chassis of the mining vehicle must simultaneously ensure high structural strength and lightweight design requirements. The present invention is aimed at the deep-sea polymetallic nodule mining operation platform and proposes a wide and lightweight crawler walking device suitable for the soft geology of the seabed.

[0007] The present invention adopts two left and right crawler walking devices arranged under a chassis. The two ends of the chassis main beam are respectively welded to the notches above the two sides of the platform frame, and the chassis secondary beam is welded to the outer side plate of the platform frame. The upper part of the chassis can carry other parts of the deep-sea operating platform. Different from the existing patents, the crawler walking device is arranged inside the chassis, which can reduce the integrated width of the deep-sea operating platform, increase the travel flexibility, and increase the actual ore collection coverage.

[0008] The main function of the guide wheel is not only to transmit the tensioning force of the tensioning device to the crawler to realize the tensioning function, but also to guide the crawler to rotate correctly and prevent the crawler from derailing. Considering the low-speed application environment of the mining vehicle, the guide wheel adopts a wheel disc type, works through the cam wheel groove, and has a simple structure. The guide wheel and the tensioning device keep the crawler track at a certain tension, and alleviate the impact force transmitted from the road, reduce the vibration and jumping phenomenon of the crawler track during movement, avoid the impact load and additional power consumption caused by the vibration and jumping of the crawler track during movement, and reduce the wear between the crawler pin and the pin hole. In order to meet the walking function of the soft geology of the deep seabed, the track shoe adopts a wide plate and high tooth form. The increase in the lateral width of the track shoe ensures a lower grounding pressure. The increase in the height of the grouser can increase the penetration depth of the seabed geology and improve the shear traction. In order to prevent the excessive number of grousers from damaging the seabed geology, the crawler adopts a unique high and low tooth spacing distribution to prevent the excessive shearing of the bottom soil from weakening the traction. The present invention complies with the technological development trend of the international community for the development of deep-sea mineral resources, and lays an important foundation for the large-scale commercial development of deep-sea mineral resources in the future.

[0009] Furthermore, the trolley frame includes an outer plate, an inner plate, a top plate and a bottom plate; the bottom of the outer plate is provided with a row of holes for mounting load-bearing wheels, the front ends of the outer plate and the inner plate are tilted synchronously to form a first angle, the range of the first angle is: 5°~30°; the rear end of the inner plate is tilted to form a second angle, the range of the second angle is: 5°~30°. The first angle corresponds to the approach angle of the mining vehicle, and the second angle corresponds to the departure angle of the mining vehicle. The two angles control the obstacle clearance height of the walking device when moving forward or backward, and the angle range is set according to the general height of general obstacles on the seabed.

[0010] Preferably, the bottom of the outer plate has a wavy structure.

[0011] Except for the crawler tracks, all other components are installed on the trolley frame. Among them, several load-bearing wheels are installed at the bottom of the trolley frame, distributed in an equidistant array. The wheel body of the load-bearing wheel is placed inside the trolley frame, and the wheel axle of the load-bearing wheel passes through the outer plate and the inner plate of the trolley frame. There are threads at both ends of the axle, which are fixed by tightening double nuts at both ends of the axle. Plastic pads are installed between the inside of the two side plates and the wheel discs of the load-bearing wheels. Since dimensional errors are inevitable during welding of the trolley frame, resulting in inconsistent distances between the through holes of the two side plates, the dimensional redundancy of the through holes for mounting the load-bearing wheels and the outer plate can be corrected by adjusting the thickness of the pads. The driving wheel is concentrically assembled with the hydraulic travel motor, and rotates synchronously with the reducer module of the hydraulic travel motor during operation. The hydraulic travel motor is installed on the outer plate at the rear end of the trolley frame by screws, and its oil port part is located on the outside of the crawler travel device, which is convenient for connection with the hydraulic pipeline. The guide wheel is installed at the front end of the trolley frame. The guide wheel has a threaded wheel shaft and is fixed to the tensioning device through a nut. The tensioning device is limited by the reserved notches on the double-side outer plates. It can be extended or retracted by the hydraulic cylinder. The bottom end is installed on the support panel inside the trolley frame. The tensioning device can control the tension state of the track by adjusting the position of the hydraulic rod. At the same time, it provides a retraction space to avoid excessive tension inside the track when encountering obstacles during walking. The sprocket wheel is installed on the upper base of the trolley frame, and the installation method is the same as that of the load-bearing wheel. The track consists of a short-tooth track shoe and a long-tooth track shoe. The chain track sections of the short-tooth track shoe and the long-tooth track shoe are mutually connected to form a chain ring, which surrounds the outer edge of the load-bearing wheel, the driving wheel, the guide wheel and the sprocket wheel. The anti-slip chain group includes a first anti-slip member and a second anti-slip member. The first anti-slip member is fixed to the adjacent load-bearing wheel through a double nut, and the second anti-slip member is fixed to the sprocket wheel. Each crawler walking device has two or more speed encoders, which are arranged near the outer circle of the driving wheel and the supporting sprocket wheel, and the rotation speed of the driving wheel or the supporting sprocket wheel is obtained through the intermediate conversion gear.

[0012] Different from the previous practice of using external devices such as balance frames, the present invention combines a variety of wheel system installation structures with the design of the trolley frame external panel. The bottom of the left and right outer plates of the trolley frame are respectively provided with rows of holes for installing load-bearing wheels. The outer plate adopts a whole plate cutting process to reduce the amount of welding and the influence of thermal residual stress. The front end of the outer plate and the inner plate are tilted to form a first angle. The front notch is used to install the guide wheel and the tensioning device. The size of the angle can adjust the approach angle of the crawler walking device. Similarly, the rear end of the inner plate is tilted to form a second angle. The through hole is used to install the hydraulic walking motor and the drive wheel. The departure angle of the walking device can be changed by adjusting the size of the inclination angle. The approach angle and departure angle are set to match the terrain conditions of different deep-sea mining areas. For the purpose of weight reduction, the bottom of the outer plate is designed with a wavy structure.

[0013] Furthermore, the tensioning device includes a wheel fork, a tensioning wheel shaft, a threaded sleeve, a spring, a cylinder body, a hydraulic rod, a tensioning sleeve, and a plastic bushing; the central axis of the guide wheel passes through the wheel fork, and the two ends of the central axis of the guide wheel are locked by nuts, and the wheel fork is U-shaped; the tensioning wheel shaft passes through the bottom of the wheel fork and is connected to the threaded sleeve; the open end of the tensioning sleeve is connected to the head structure of the cylinder body to form a columnar structure, and the spring is wound around the columnar structure; the plastic bushing is nested in the tensioning sleeve, and the two are fixed by screws; the oil port end of the hydraulic rod is fixedly installed on the trolley frame, and the telescopic function is realized by injecting oil into the oil port of the hydraulic rod and the oil port of the cylinder body to adjust the track tension.

[0014] The guide wheel and hydraulic tensioning device of the present invention provide support for the crawler track and adjust the internal tensioning force of the crawler track. The central axis of the guide wheel passes through the wheel fork, and the two ends of the central axis are locked by nuts. The wheel fork is U-shaped, and the tensioning wheel shaft passes through the bottom of the wheel fork and is tightened with the screw sleeve. The position of the screw sleeve on the tensioning wheel shaft can be mechanically adjusted before installation according to the actual tensioning state of the crawler track. The plastic bushing is nested inside the tensioning sleeve, and the two are fixed by screws. The side opening avoids the closed cavity structure. The bottom of the tensioning screw has a screw head, and the tensioning sleeve is nested on the screw head. The plastic bushing isolates the metal screw head from the inner metal layer of the tensioning bushing to reduce friction and scratches. One end of the opening of the tensioning sleeve is connected to the head structure of the oil cylinder body to form a columnar structure, and the spring is wound around the columnar structure. The tensioning screw head can translate and slide in the internal space of the tensioning sleeve, which can drive the guide wheel to slide, and the tensioning force of squeezing the guide wheel body is transmitted to the spring, which plays a buffering role. The oil port end of the hydraulic rod is fixedly installed on the trolley frame. The cylinder extension and retraction function is realized by injecting oil into the hydraulic rod oil port and the cylinder body oil port to adjust the track tension.

[0015] Furthermore, the anti-chain debonding group also includes a load-bearing wheel anti-chain debonding part, a sprocket wheel anti-chain debonding plastic block, and a sprocket wheel anti-chain debonding plate; the load-bearing wheel anti-chain debonding part is installed coaxially with the axis of the adjacent load-bearing wheel and is symmetrically distributed on the left and right sides of the trolley frame; the sprocket wheel anti-chain debonding plastic block and the sprocket wheel anti-chain debonding plate are fixed with bolts.

[0016] Furthermore, the number of the load-bearing wheel anti-slip chain parts is greater than or equal to 4, which are disposed at the front and rear ends of the trolley frame; when the chassis is suspended, the height of the bar at the bottom of the load-bearing wheel anti-slip chain parts is not lower than the height of the chain track segment group.

[0017] Since the crawler walking device has a potential risk of chain off during the laying and operation process, the present invention provides an anti-chain off group to reduce the risk of chain off, which is specifically divided into a load-bearing wheel anti-chain off part, a sprocket wheel anti-chain off plastic block, and a sprocket wheel anti-stripping plate. The load-bearing wheel anti-chain off part is a simple bending structure, which is installed coaxially with the adjacent load-bearing wheel axle, symmetrically distributed on the left and right sides of the trolley frame, and the number of installations is four or more, which are placed at the front and rear ends of the trolley frame. When the heavy-loaded work platform is suspended, the height of the bottom bar of the load-bearing wheel anti-chain off part does not exceed the height of the chain track section, ensuring that the crawler walking device is protected from the chain track section inside the load-bearing wheel disc when it touches the bottom. The sprocket wheel anti-chain off plastic block and the sprocket wheel anti-stripping plate are combined with bolts to form a 7-shaped structure. During the walking process of the deep-sea heavy-load platform, the upper part of the crawler track will vibrate due to the rugged ground or obstacles. The 7-shaped structure anti-stripping part can clamp the chain track section, and will not slide out of the reasonable range when the chain track section vibrates and moves up and down, thereby causing the guide wheel or drive wheel to de-chain.

[0018] Furthermore, the long-tooth track shoes and the short-tooth track shoes are both bolted composite structure track shoes; the bolted composite structure track shoes are titanium alloy polymer one-piece molded track shoes or all-polymer track shoes or nylon 6 track shoes; the titanium alloy is Ti-6Al-4V titanium alloy; the polymer is at least one of polyurethane, polyamide or polypropylene.

[0019] The long-tooth track shoe and the short-tooth track shoe of the present invention are connected at intervals to form a whole track. The bearing capacity and shear strength of the deep-sea bottom are very small. If the depression depth is too large, the heavy-loaded platform will be trapped in the mud and unable to escape. In view of this, the deep-sea operation platform needs to greatly reduce its ground pressure ratio to maintain the depression depth within a safe range. Reducing the ground pressure ratio of deep-sea operations can be achieved from two directions: reducing the weight of the crawler walking chassis and increasing the bottom area of ​​the crawler. The present invention proposes a titanium alloy-polymer composite structure track shoe. First, the density of the polymer material is close to the density of seawater, and the weight is light in water. Secondly, the ratio of the track shoe length to the track segment spacing is large. In order to improve the strength and rigidity of the track shoe, the track segment and the bottom titanium alloy sandwich are in direct contact. The titanium alloy sandwich and the long-tooth track shoe are fixed by bolts. The gravity of the heavy-loaded operation platform is transmitted to the track segment, the titanium alloy sandwich and the long-tooth track shoe in turn. The titanium alloy sandwich and the long-tooth track shoe are in large-surface contact to effectively avoid stress concentration.

[0020] The long-tooth track shoe and the short-tooth track shoe of the present invention can be a bolted composite structure, and the internal titanium alloy sandwich and the external plastic material parts are connected by bolts. In addition, there are two alternative forms of track shoes, namely titanium alloy polymer integrated molded track shoes and full polymer track shoes.

[0021] Titanium alloy polymer one-piece molded track shoe: The titanium alloy sandwich is fixed in the middle of the casting mold, and the titanium alloy sandwich is integrally cast with the plastic raw material, and a notch is left in the middle area of ​​the track plate to contact and connect with the upper track link structure. The geometric shape of the titanium alloy sandwich can be a T-shaped structure.

[0022] Full polymer track plate: The full polymer track plate is cast from polymer raw materials to obtain a blank, and then machined into shape. In certain mining operating conditions, the full polymer track plate can meet the strength and stiffness requirements. In order to enhance the mechanical properties of the full polymer track plate, glass fiber or toughening agent can be added.

[0023] Furthermore, the bolted composite track plate includes a polymer lightweight track plate and a TC4 titanium alloy core plate, which are fastened together by bolts.

[0024] Furthermore, the grouser of the long-tooth track shoe is in a right-angled trapezoidal structure with a smooth bottom; the angle between the inclined surface of the grouser and the horizontal surface of the ground is approximately vertical.

[0025] Different from the triangular shape of the previous domestic patent, it uses a right-angle trapezoidal structure with a smooth bottom. This design can increase the ground contact area between the bottom of the tooth and the soil. For heavy-duty load-bearing platforms, the triangular design can better penetrate into the seabed, but it cannot be placed or walked on land. Usually, a support frame is required to lift the entire heavy mining platform off the ground. This design can ensure sufficient track-soil contact area, allowing the mining vehicle to stand or walk independently on land, and is suitable for multiple terrain environments such as land, deck, and soft bottom.

[0026] More preferably, the manufacturing method of the titanium alloy polymer one-piece molded track is: fixing the titanium alloy core in the middle of the casting mold, the titanium alloy core and the plastic raw material are cast and molded as a whole, and a groove is left in the middle area of ​​the track plate to contact and connect with the upper link structure; the manufacturing method of the all-polymer track plate is: casting the polymer raw material to obtain a blank, and then machining it into shape.

[0027] The track plate material and composite structure of the present invention are innovative, using a titanium alloy-polymer composite structure track plate, emphasizing the bolt connection between the track link and the titanium alloy sandwich of the track plate, while increasing the mechanical properties while lightweight design, and providing two alternative solutions. The composite structure track plate is designed to optimize the overall performance of the track plate by combining a high-strength titanium alloy sandwich with a polymer material. Titanium alloy provides structural strength and rigidity, while polymer materials provide elasticity and wear resistance, achieving a balance between lightweight and high performance, and is suitable for heavy deep-sea operating platforms under high load and complex terrain conditions.

[0028] The titanium alloy sandwich material type in the present invention is Ti-6Al-4V titanium alloy, which has excellent strength-to-weight ratio, corrosion resistance and high temperature resistance. The polymer material is selected from engineering plastics with high wear resistance, high elasticity and high fatigue resistance, such as polyurethane, polyamide or polypropylene.

[0029] The manufacturing process of the titanium alloy-polymer bolted composite track plate of the present invention is as follows: the polymer is melted and cast into a track outer plate blank, and then machined and formed, and the T-type titanium alloy core plate is formed by laser machining and welding. The titanium alloy sandwich and the middle area of ​​the track plate are both provided with through holes, which are connected by bolts.

[0030] In terms of the manufacturing process of the titanium alloy polymer one-piece track plate, a special casting mold is designed to ensure that the titanium alloy sandwich can be accurately fixed in the middle position. The T-shaped titanium alloy sandwich is accurately positioned and fixed in the middle of the mold to ensure stability during the subsequent casting process. The polymer raw materials are melted by one-piece casting, and then cast and molded with the titanium alloy sandwich to ensure the overall consistency and strength of the composite structure. The boiling oil heat treatment process is used to improve the fluidity of the polymer material and the bonding strength with the titanium alloy, while improving the internal structure of the material and improving durability. After the casting is completed, the necessary finishing, testing and surface treatment are carried out to ensure the dimensional accuracy and surface finish of the track plate. The sandwich and the polymer material are firmly combined through one-piece casting, avoiding the delamination problem common in traditional composite materials.

[0031] The T-shaped titanium alloy sandwich core of the present invention has structural advantages. The T-shaped design enhances the load-bearing capacity of the middle part, disperses stress concentration, and improves the stability and impact resistance of the overall structure. On the basis of the T-shaped sandwich core, the geometric shape can be further optimized, such as adding reinforcing ribs or adopting a mesh structure to improve the overall impact resistance and bending resistance. A notch is reserved in the middle area of ​​the polymer track outer plate. The shape of the notch is consistent with the shape of the upper track segment. The track segment is in direct contact with the titanium alloy sandwich core to avoid crushing due to the poor compressive resistance of the polymer. The track segment load is transmitted to the bottom of the track plate through the titanium alloy sandwich core, and the force is more uniform and the structure is stable.

[0032] Compared with the prior art, the present invention has the following beneficial effects: The invention discloses a wide crawler walking device suitable for soft and sparse seabed geology. Through a high-tooth and wide composite crawler walking mechanism, a deep-sea heavy-load mining operation platform can stably walk on soft and sparse seabed, providing power drive guarantee for the operation of heavy and large-scale collection devices in the later stage. The crawler walking module provides sufficient traction for the mining vehicle, so that the mining vehicle can travel normally on the complex crust surface of the seabed.

[0033] The crawler walking device of the present invention is located inside the chassis to reduce the overall width. The main beam of the chassis passes through the trolley frames on both sides. The secondary beam of the chassis is welded to the outer panel of the trolley frame to increase the load-bearing capacity of the chassis. The trolley frame is a simple frame structure. The left and right outer panels of the trolley frame are processed with through holes and slots for installing driving wheels, guide wheels, and load-bearing wheels, eliminating the need for welding or bolting of other wheel system installation structural parts, conforming to the lightweight design and enhancing the structural strength.

[0034] The track plate of the present invention is much longer than the existing deep-sea track plate, which greatly reduces the ground pressure and avoids the problem of excessive sinking of the mining vehicle. The ratio of the track plate length to the platform frame width is not less than 3:1. In order to ensure the structural strength of the ultra-long track plate, the present invention adopts a composite structure track plate, and the polymer lightweight track plate is fastened to the TC4 titanium alloy core plate by bolts.

[0035] The grouser of the long-tooth track shoe of the present invention is in a right-angle trapezoidal structure with a smooth bottom. The angle between the inclined surface of the grouser and the horizontal surface of the ground is approximately vertical, thereby improving the shearing efficiency of the soil on the grouser.

[0036] The main material of the crawler of the present invention is polymer, such as nylon 6. This material has a low viscosity with deep-sea sediments, and the track plate is cast as a whole to form a blank and then finely processed. There are two alternative forms of track plates, namely titanium alloy polymer one-piece molded track plates and full polymer track plates. The titanium alloy sandwich is fixed to the middle of the casting mold, and the titanium alloy sandwich is cast and formed with the plastic raw material. The full polymer track plate is cast by polymer raw materials to obtain a blank, and then machined into shape.

[0037] The crawler walking device of the present invention has an anti-chain-off function. Two or more first anti-off parts are fixed to the left and right outer plates of the trolley frame respectively, and at the same time, the second anti-off parts are fixed to the left and right sides of the sprocket wheel mounting bracket respectively. The first anti-off part is welded from steel plates, and the main panel is provided with two through holes. The center distance of the through holes is consistent with the center distance of the load-bearing wheels, and the fixing nuts of adjacent load-bearing wheels can be directly used to fix the first anti-off part; the second anti-off part is formed by connecting a bent steel plate with a non-metallic pad bolt, and the pad prevents the outer edge of the chain track section from contacting and scratching the bent steel plate during operation. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0038] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the crawler walking device installed in the present invention.

[0039] Figure 2 It is a structural schematic diagram of the chassis of the present invention.

[0040] Figure 3 It is a schematic diagram of the side structure of the crawler walking device of the present invention.

[0041] Figure 4 It is a partial enlarged structural schematic diagram of the crawler walking device of the present invention.

[0042] Figure 5 It is a schematic diagram of the installation structure of the guide wheel and the tensioning device of the crawler walking device of the present invention.

[0043] Figure 6 It is a cross-sectional schematic diagram of the guide wheel and tensioning device of the crawler walking device of the present invention.

[0044] Figure 7 It is a schematic diagram of the crawler walking device trolley frame of the present invention.

[0045] Figure 8 It is a schematic diagram of the crawler structure of the crawler walking device of the present invention.

[0046] Fig. 9 It is a schematic diagram of the structure of the crawler walking device bolted to the long-tooth track shoe of the present invention.

[0047] Fig.10 It is a schematic diagram of the structure of the crawler walking device bolted to the short-tooth track shoe of the present invention.

[0048] Fig.11 It is a schematic diagram of the anti-chain-off component structure of the load-bearing wheel of the crawler walking device of the present invention.

[0049] Fig.12 The present invention is a schematic diagram of the installation structure of the anti-chain-off plastic block and the anti-chain-off plate of the sprocket wheel of the crawler walking device.

[0050] Fig.13 It is a schematic diagram of the three-dimensional structure of the long-tooth track shoe in Example 2 of the crawler walking device of the present invention.

[0051] Fig.14 It is a schematic diagram of the three-dimensional structure of the short-tooth track shoe in Example 2 of the crawler walking device of the present invention.

[0052] Fig.15 This is a schematic diagram of the cross-sectional structure of the long-tooth track shoe in Example 2 of the crawler walking device of the present invention.

[0053] Fig.16 It is a schematic diagram of the cross-sectional structure of the short-tooth track shoe in Example 2 of the crawler walking device of the present invention.

[0054] Fig.17 It is a schematic diagram of the three-dimensional structure of the long-tooth track shoe in Example 3 of the crawler walking device of the present invention.

[0055] Fig.18 It is a schematic diagram of the three-dimensional structure of the short-tooth track shoe in Example 3 of the crawler walking device of the present invention.

[0056] Fig.19 This is a schematic diagram of the cross-sectional structure of the long-tooth track shoe in Example 3 of the crawler walking device of the present invention.

[0057] Fig. 20 It is a schematic diagram of the cross-sectional structure of the short-tooth track shoe in Example 3 of the crawler walking device of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0058] The drawings in the embodiments provide a more detailed description of the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention. In the drawings, the same or similar reference numerals throughout represent the same or similar elements or elements with the same or similar functions. The described embodiments are part of the embodiments of the present invention, not all of them. The embodiments described below with reference to the drawings are exemplary and are intended to be used to explain the present invention, and should not be construed as limitations on the present invention. Based on the embodiments in the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by ordinary technicians in this field without creative work are within the scope of protection of the present invention. The embodiments of the present invention are described in detail below in conjunction with the drawings.

[0059] It should be noted that if the embodiments of the present application involve directional indications (such as up, down, left, right, front, back...), the directional indications are only used to explain the relative position relationship, movement status, etc. between the components under a certain specific posture (as shown in the accompanying drawings). If the specific posture changes, the directional indication will also change accordingly.

[0060] In addition, if there are descriptions involving "first", "second", etc. in the embodiments of the present application, the descriptions of "first", "second", etc. are only used for descriptive purposes and cannot be understood as indicating or suggesting their relative importance or implicitly indicating the number of technical features indicated. Therefore, the features defined as "first" and "second" may explicitly or implicitly include at least one of the features. In addition, the technical solutions between the various embodiments can be combined with each other, but they must be based on the ability of ordinary technicians in the field to implement them. When the combination of technical solutions is contradictory or cannot be implemented, it should be deemed that such combination of technical solutions does not exist and is not within the scope of protection required by this application.

[0061] Example 1

[0062] like Figure 1~2 As shown, the crawler walking device 1 of the present invention is fixed to the chassis 2 and combined with Figures 3-5As shown, it includes a trolley frame 3, crawler tracks 4, driving wheels 5, hydraulic travel motors 6, guide wheels 7, tensioning devices 8, load-bearing wheels 9, sprocket wheels 10, anti-slip chain assembly 11, and speed encoder 12. Except for the crawler tracks 4, all other components are installed on the trolley frame 3. Among them, a number of load-bearing wheels 9 are installed at the bottom of the trolley frame 3, and are distributed in an equidistant array. The wheel bodies of the load-bearing wheels 9 are placed inside the trolley frame 3. The wheel axles of the load-bearing wheels 9 pass through both sides of the trolley frame 3. The two ends of the wheel axles are threaded and fixed by tightening double nuts at both ends of the wheel axles. Plastic pads are installed between the inner part of the outer side and the wheel disc of the load-bearing wheels 9, and the processing error is corrected by adjusting the thickness of the pads. The driving wheel 5 is concentrically assembled with the hydraulic travel motor 6, and rotates synchronously with the reducer module of the hydraulic travel motor 6 during operation. The hydraulic travel motor 6 is installed on the outer plate 301 at the rear end of the trolley frame 3 by screws, and its oil port part is located on the outer side of the crawler travel device 1, which is convenient for connection with the hydraulic pipeline. The guide wheel 7 is installed at the front end of the trolley frame 3. The guide wheel 7 has a threaded axle and is fixed to the tensioning device 8 by a nut. As shown in Figures 6 and 7, the tensioning device 8 is limited by the reserved slots on the double-sided outer plates 301 and can be extended or retracted by a hydraulic cylinder. The bottom end is installed on the internal support panel of the trolley frame 3. The tensioning device 8 can control the tensioning state of the track 4 by adjusting the position of the hydraulic rod 806. At the same time, it provides a retraction space to avoid excessive tension inside the track 4 when encountering obstacles during walking. The support sprocket wheel 10 is installed on the upper base of the trolley frame 3 in the same installation method as the load-bearing wheel 9. Figure 8 As shown, the crawler track 4 includes a long-toothed track shoe 401 and a short-toothed track shoe 402. The track segments of the short-toothed track shoe 402 and the long-toothed track shoe 401 are mutually interlocked to form a chain ring, which surrounds the outer edges of the load-bearing wheel 9, the driving wheel 5, the guide wheel 7 and the sprocket wheel 10. The anti-slip chain assembly 11 includes a first anti-slip member 1104 and a second anti-slip member 1105. The first anti-slip member 1104 is fixed to the adjacent load-bearing wheel 9 through a double nut, and the second anti-slip member 1105 is fixed to the sprocket wheel 10. Each crawler walking device 1 has two or more speed encoders 12, which are separately placed near the outer edges of the driving wheel 5 and the sprocket wheel 10. The rotation speed of the driving wheel 5 or the sprocket wheel 10 is obtained through the intermediate conversion gear, so as to further calculate and measure the actual speed of the crawler walking devices 1 on both sides.

[0063] like Figure 7As shown, the trolley frame 3 serves as a supporting structural frame for all wheel train components, and mainly includes an outer plate 301, an inner plate 302, a top plate 303, a bottom plate 304, etc. The present invention combines a variety of wheel train installation structures with the frame-type external panel design of the trolley frame 3. The bottom of the left and right outer plates 301 of the trolley frame 3 are respectively provided with rows of holes for installing the load-bearing wheels 9. The outer plate 301 adopts a whole plate cutting process to reduce the welding amount and the influence of thermal residual stress. The outer plate 301 and the front end of the inner plate are tilted to form a first angle α. The front notch is used to install the guide wheel 7 and the tensioning device 8. The size of the angle can adjust the approach angle of the crawler walking device 1. Similarly, the rear end of the inner plate is tilted to form a second angle β. The through hole is used to install the hydraulic walking motor 6 and the driving wheel 5. The departure angle of the walking device can be changed by adjusting the size of the inclination angle. The approach angle and the departure angle are set to match the terrain conditions of different deep-sea mining areas. For the purpose of weight reduction, the bottom of the outer plate 301 is designed with a wavy structure.

[0064] like Figures 5 and 6 As shown, the tensioning device 8 includes a wheel fork 801, a tensioning wheel shaft 802, a screw sleeve 803, a spring 804, a cylinder body 805, a hydraulic rod 806, a tensioning shaft sleeve 807, and a plastic bushing 808; the guide wheel 7 and the tensioning device 8 of the present invention provide support for the track 4 and adjust the internal tension of the track 4. The guide wheel 7 and the hydraulic tensioning device 8 of the present invention provide support for the track 4 and adjust the internal tension of the track 4. The central axis of the guide wheel 7 passes through the wheel fork 801, and the two ends of the central axis are locked by nuts. The wheel fork 801 is U-shaped, and the tensioning wheel shaft 802 passes through the bottom of the wheel fork 801 and is tightened with the screw sleeve 803. The position of the screw sleeve 803 on the tensioning wheel shaft 802 can be mechanically adjusted before installation according to the actual tension state of the track 4. The plastic bushing 808 is nested inside the tensioning sleeve 807, and the two are fixed by screws. The side opening avoids the closed cavity structure. The bottom of the tensioning screw has a screw head, and the tensioning sleeve 807 is nested on the screw head. The plastic bushing 808 isolates the metal screw head from the inner metal layer of the tensioning bushing to reduce friction and scratches. The open end of the tensioning sleeve 807 is connected to the head structure of the cylinder body 805 to form a columnar structure, and the spring 804 is wound around the columnar structure. Among them, the tensioning screw head can translate and slide in the internal space of the tensioning sleeve 807, which can drive the guide wheel 7 to slide, and the tensioning force of the wheel body of the guide wheel 7 is transmitted to the spring 804 to play a buffering role. The oil port end of the hydraulic rod 806 is fixedly installed on the trolley frame 3. The extension and retraction function of the cylinder is realized by injecting oil into the oil port of the hydraulic rod 806 and the oil port of the cylinder body 805, and the tension of the track 4 is adjusted.

[0065] like Figures 8-10As shown, the crawler track 4 includes a long-tooth track shoe 401, a short-tooth track shoe 402, a left track segment 403, a right track segment 404, a track shaft 405, a track sleeve 406, and a titanium alloy sandwich 407. The long-tooth track shoe 401 and the short-tooth track shoe 402 are linked at intervals to form the entire crawler track 4. The long-tooth track shoe 401 of the present invention has a right-angle trapezoidal structure with a smooth bottom. The angle between the inclined surface of the grouser and the horizontal surface of the ground is approximately vertical, which improves the shearing efficiency of the soil on the grouser. The bearing capacity and shear strength of the deep-sea bottom sediment are very small. Excessive depression depth will cause the heavy-loaded platform to sink into the mud and be unable to escape. In view of this, the deep-sea operation platform needs to greatly reduce its grounding pressure ratio and maintain the depression depth within a safe range. Reducing the grounding pressure ratio of deep-sea operations can be achieved from two directions: reducing the weight of the crawler walking chassis 2 and increasing the contact area at the bottom of the crawler 4.

[0066] The present invention proposes a titanium alloy-polymer composite structure track plate, that is, a polymer lightweight track plate and a TC4 titanium alloy core plate are connected by bolts. First, the density of the polymer material is close to the density of seawater, and the weight is light in water. Secondly, the ratio of the track plate length to the track segment spacing is large. In order to improve the strength and rigidity of the track plate, the track segment and the bottom titanium alloy sandwich 407 are in direct contact, and the titanium alloy sandwich 407 and the long-tooth track plate 401 are fixed by bolts. The gravity of the heavy-loaded working platform is transmitted to the track segment, the titanium alloy sandwich 407 and the long-tooth track plate 401 in turn. The large-surface contact of the titanium alloy sandwich 407 and the long-tooth track plate 401 effectively avoids stress concentration. The titanium alloy sandwich 407 and the long-tooth track plate 401 are fixed by bolts; the length of the short-tooth track plate 402 and the long-tooth track plate 401 is not less than 3:1.

[0067] Since the crawler walking device 1 has a potential risk of chain derailment during the laying and operation process, the present invention provides an anti-chain derailment group 11 to reduce the risk of chain derailment, such as Figures 11-12 As shown, it is specifically divided into a load-bearing wheel anti-drop chain member 1101, a sprocket wheel anti-drop chain plastic block 1102, and a sprocket wheel anti-drop plate 1103. The load-bearing wheel anti-drop chain member 1101 is a simple bending structure, which is installed coaxially with the adjacent load-bearing wheel 9 axis, symmetrically distributed on the left and right sides of the trolley frame 3, and the number of installations is four or more, which are placed at the front and rear ends of the trolley frame 3. When the heavy-loaded work platform is suspended, the height of the bottom bar of the load-bearing wheel anti-drop chain member 1101 is not lower than the height of the chain track section, ensuring that the crawler walking device 1 is protected from the chain track section inside the wheel disc of the load-bearing wheel 9 at the moment of bottoming out. The sprocket anti-chain-off plastic block 1102 and the sprocket anti-chain-off plate 1103 are bolted together to form a 7-shaped structure. During the movement of the deep-sea heavy-load platform, the upper part of the track 4 may vibrate due to the rugged ground or obstacles. The 7-shaped structure anti-off parts can clamp the chain track segment, and will not slide out of the reasonable range when the chain track segment vibrates and moves up and down, thereby causing the guide wheel 7 or the drive wheel 5 to derail.

[0068] Example 2

[0069] This embodiment provides a titanium alloy-polymer composite track plate, such as Figures 13-16 As shown, and its preparation method: the titanium alloy sandwich 407 is fixed in the middle of the casting mold, the titanium alloy sandwich 407 and the plastic raw material are integrally cast, and a notch is left in the middle area of ​​the track plate to contact and connect with the upper track link structure. The geometric shape of the titanium alloy sandwich 407 can be a T-shaped structure.

[0070] Example 3

[0071] The difference between this embodiment and embodiment 1 is that Figures 17 to 20 As shown, in this embodiment, the titanium alloy-polymer composite structure track plate is replaced with a full polymer track plate, which is cast from polymer raw materials to obtain a blank, and then machined into shape. In certain mining operating conditions, the full polymer track plate can meet the strength and stiffness requirements. In order to enhance the mechanical properties of the full polymer track plate, glass avant or toughening agent is added to the blank.

[0072] The above embodiments are only used to illustrate the technical solution of the present invention and are not intended to limit it. Although the present invention is described in detail with reference to the above preferred embodiments, it should be understood by those skilled in the art that the technical solution of the present invention can be modified or replaced by equivalents without departing from the spirit and scope of the technical solution of the present invention. Those skilled in the art may also make other changes within the spirit of the present invention and apply them to the design of the present invention, as long as they do not deviate from the technical effects of the present invention. These changes made according to the spirit of the present invention should be included in the scope of protection claimed by the present invention.

Claims

1. A crawler walking device suitable for soft seabed, fixed to the chassis (2) of a seabed mining vehicle; characterized in that: It includes a trolley frame (3), crawler tracks (4), driving wheels (5), a hydraulic travel motor (6), a guide wheel (7), a tensioning device (8), a load-bearing wheel (9), a sprocket wheel (10), an anti-slip chain assembly (11), and a speed encoder (12); The guide wheel (7) is installed at the front end of the trolley frame (3), and the driving wheel (5) is installed at the rear end; a plurality of load-bearing wheels (9) are arranged in an equidistant array at the bottom of the trolley frame (3); the wheel body of the load-bearing wheel (9) is placed inside the trolley frame (3); The driving wheel (5) is concentrically mounted with the hydraulic travel motor (6); the hydraulic travel motor (6) is mounted on the rear end of the trolley frame (3) by means of screws; The guide wheel (7) is mounted on the front end of the trolley frame (3); the threaded wheel shaft of the guide wheel (7) is fixed to the tensioning device (8) via a nut; the bottom end of the tensioning device (8) is mounted on the internal support panel of the trolley frame (3); the tensioning device (8) can control the tensioning state of the crawler track (4) by adjusting the position of the hydraulic rod (806); and at the same time, a contraction space is provided to avoid excessive tensioning force inside the crawler track (4) when an obstacle is encountered during walking operation; The anti-slip chain assembly (11) is mounted on the upper part of the trolley frame (3); it comprises a first anti-slip component (1104) and a second anti-slip component (1105); the first anti-slip component (1104) is fixed to the adjacent load-bearing wheel (9) via a double nut, and the second anti-slip component (1105) is fixed to the supporting chain wheel (10); One or more speed encoders (12) are disposed on the outer edges of the driving wheel (5) and the supporting sprocket wheel (10), and the rotation speed of the driving wheel (5) or the supporting sprocket wheel (10) is obtained through an intermediate conversion gear; The crawler track (4) surrounds the outer edges of the driving wheel (5), the guide wheel (7), and the load-bearing wheel (9); the crawler track (4) comprises a long-tooth crawler shoe (401), a short-tooth crawler shoe (402), a chain track segment group, and a titanium alloy sandwich (407); the chain track segments of the short-tooth crawler shoe (402) and the long-tooth crawler shoe (401) are mutually interlocked to form a chain ring, and the chain ring surrounds the outer edges of the load-bearing wheel (9), the driving wheel (5), and the guide wheel (7); the chain track segment group is fixed above the titanium alloy sandwich (407), and the titanium alloy sandwich (407) and the long-tooth crawler shoe (401) are fixed by bolt connection; the ratio of the length of the short-tooth crawler shoe (402) and the long-tooth crawler shoe (401) to the width of the trolley frame (3) is not less than 3:

1.

2. The crawler walking device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The trolley frame (3) comprises an outer plate (301), an inner plate (302), a top plate (303) and a bottom plate (304); a row of holes for mounting load-bearing wheels (9) is provided at the bottom of the outer plate (301); front ends of the outer plate (301) and the inner plate are synchronously tilted to form a first angle, and the range of the first angle is: 5°~30°; The rear end of the inner plate (302) is tilted to form a second angle, and the range of the second angle is 5° to 30°.

3. The crawler walking device according to claim 2, characterized in that: The bottom of the outer plate (301) has a wave-like structure.

4. The crawler walking device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The tensioning device (8) comprises a wheel fork (801), a tensioning wheel shaft (802), a threaded sleeve (803), a spring (804), a cylinder body (805), a hydraulic rod (806), a tensioning shaft sleeve (807), and a plastic bushing (808); The central axis of the guide wheel (7) passes through the wheel fork (801), and both ends of the central axis of the guide wheel (7) are locked by nuts, and the wheel fork (801) is U-shaped; The tensioning wheel shaft (802) passes through the bottom of the wheel fork (801) and is connected to the threaded sleeve (803); an open end of the tensioning shaft sleeve (807) is connected to the head structure of the oil cylinder body (805) to form a columnar structure, and the spring (804) is wound around the columnar structure; The plastic bushing (808) is nested inside the tensioning sleeve (807), and the two are fixed by screws; The oil port end of the hydraulic rod (806) is fixedly mounted on the trolley frame (3), and the telescopic function is achieved by injecting oil into the oil port of the hydraulic rod (806) and the oil port of the cylinder body (805), so as to adjust the tension of the crawler track (4).

5. The crawler walking device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The anti-chain dropout assembly (11) further comprises a load-bearing wheel anti-chain dropout member (1101), a sprocket wheel anti-chain dropout plastic block (1102), and a sprocket wheel anti-chain dropout plate (1103); The load-bearing wheel anti-chain member (1101) is installed coaxially with the axis of the adjacent load-bearing wheel (9) and is symmetrically distributed on the left and right sides of the trolley frame (3); The sprocket wheel chain-off prevention plastic block (1102) and the sprocket wheel chain-off prevention plate (1103) are fixed by bolts, installed coaxially with the axis of the sprocket wheel (10), and symmetrically distributed on the left and right sides of the trolley frame (3).

6. The crawler walking device according to claim 5, characterized in that: The number of the load-bearing wheel anti-slip chain members (1101) is greater than or equal to 4, and they are disposed at the front and rear ends of the trolley frame (3); when the chassis (2) is suspended in the air, the height of the bar at the bottom of the load-bearing wheel anti-slip chain members (1101) does not exceed the height of the upper edge of the chain track segment assembly.

7. The crawler walking device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The long-tooth track shoe (401) and the short-tooth track shoe (402) are bolted composite structure track shoes or titanium alloy polymer integrated molded track shoes or all-polymer track shoes or nylon 6 track shoes; the titanium alloy is Ti-6Al-4V titanium alloy; the polymer is one of polyurethane, polyamide or polypropylene.

8. The crawler walking device according to claim 7, characterized in that: The bolted composite track shoe comprises a polymer lightweight track shoe and a TC4 titanium alloy core plate, which are fastened and connected by bolts.

9. The crawler walking device according to claim 7, characterized in that: The grouser of the long-tooth track shoe (401) is in a right-angled trapezoidal structure with a smooth bottom; the angle between the inclined surface of the grouser and the horizontal surface of the ground is approximately vertical.

10. The crawler walking device according to claim 7, characterized in that: The long-tooth track shoe (401) and the short-tooth track shoe (402) are titanium alloy polymer integrated track shoes or all-polymer track shoes, and the manufacturing method thereof is: fixing the titanium alloy sandwich (407) in the middle of the casting mold, the titanium alloy sandwich (407) and the plastic raw material are integrally cast and molded, and a groove is left in the middle area of ​​the track shoe to contact and connect with the upper link structure; the manufacturing method of the all-polymer track shoe is: casting the polymer raw material to obtain a blank, and then machining it into shape.

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