Omnidirectional impeller propelling system of amphibious robot

Abstract

The invention discloses an omni-directional impeller propelling system of an amphibious robot, and belongs to the technical field of amphibious robots, the omni-directional impeller propelling system comprises two groups of impeller mechanisms with opposite rotation directions and two groups of motors; each impeller mechanism comprises a rotor, a plurality of paddle structures are arranged on the circumferential outer wall of the rotor, and each paddle structure comprises a driving paddle and a driven wheel; the outer edge of each driven wheel exceeds the outer edge of each driving paddle; the two motors drive the rotor in each impeller mechanism to rotate; the omni-directional impeller propelling system adopts a set of propelling system for single driving underwater and on land, belongs to an omni-directional, lightweight, rapid and reliable land and water propelling system, and can meet the environmental detection requirements in the ocean and offshore fields; the omni-directional impeller propelling system can be matched with current common propelling systems of square-shaped, fish-shaped, spherical and snake-shaped robots and the like.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention belongs to the technical field of amphibious robots, and in particular relates to an omnidirectional impeller propulsion system of an amphibious robot. Background Art

[0002] Designing and manufacturing amphibious robots that can adapt to the changing terrain of land and near-shore mudflats, as well as the complex operating environment and mission requirements of complex underwater environments, to perform ocean exploration tasks that humans cannot complete has important practical value and practical significance.

[0003] For amphibious robots, the most important component is the propulsion system. An ideal propulsion system for amphibious robots should meet the following characteristics: 1. The propulsion system should be able to adapt to both underwater and land operating environments; 2. The propulsion system should have omnidirectional driving capabilities to enable the robot to adapt to complex offshore terrain; 3. The propulsion system should be as small as possible to meet different application environments such as hull inspection and pipeline leak detection; 4. The propulsion system should have good durability to overcome the high workload and harsh environment of offshore field operations.

[0004] Currently, amphibious robot propulsion systems often struggle to simultaneously meet all four of these requirements. They either have relatively good performance in only one medium, either land or underwater, while traveling at a slower speed and experiencing lower efficiency in the other medium. Alternatively, they utilize two independent propulsion systems, resulting in a bulky overall design. For example, patent application number 201520008014.8, titled "Spiral-Propelled Snake-Like Robot," utilizes a spiral shell composed of four groups of helical teeth on the shell that rotate in opposite directions. The spiral propulsion mechanism in the snake-like robot is in direct contact with the ground, and friction with the contact surface during rotation can cause significant wear on the threaded structure, significantly reducing its service life. Furthermore, this type of spiral-propelled robot is only suitable for operations on land or on the seabed and is not suitable for movement in water.

[0005] For example, the invention patent application number 202310240037.0, titled "An Amphibious Robot," employs two drive modes: a bionic undulating fin in water and a tracked drive on land. The robot has two completely independent subsystems, one for water and one for land, which undoubtedly increases the size of the entire drive system. Furthermore, the omnidirectional performance of the bionic undulating fin in water is problematic, especially for forward and backward movement and rotation in place.

[0006] Therefore, there is an urgent need for an amphibious robot propulsion system that can adapt to both amphibious and terrestrial environments, has good terrain adaptability, simple structure, smaller size and higher reliability. Summary of the Invention

[0007] Based on the problems existing in the above-mentioned background technology, the present invention proposes an omnidirectional impeller propulsion system for an amphibious robot, which solves the problem that the existing amphibious robot propulsion system often finds it difficult to simultaneously meet the four characteristics of the background technology.

[0008] The embodiment of the present invention is implemented as follows: The present invention provides an omnidirectional impeller propulsion system for an amphibious robot, which includes two sets of impeller mechanisms with opposite rotation directions and two sets of motors; Each impeller mechanism includes a cylindrical rotor, with a plurality of blade structures arranged on the outer circumferential wall of the rotor at regular intervals and in an inclined manner, each blade structure including a driving blade and a driven wheel; the outer edge of each driven wheel exceeds the outer edge of each driving blade; The output shafts of the two groups of motors are both provided with a driving mechanism for driving the rotors in each group of impeller mechanisms to rotate.

[0009] Furthermore, each of the blade structures also includes a mounting frame with a blade-shaped structure having a curved bottom, and the bottom of each mounting frame is obliquely arranged on the circumferential outer wall of the rotor; at least one driven wheel is arranged in each mounting frame; the curvature of the bottom of the mounting frame is the same as the curvature of the circumferential outer wall of the rotor.

[0010] Furthermore, a driving blade is provided on both sides of each mounting frame, the bottom of the driving blade is curved and obliquely arranged on the circumferential outer wall of the rotor, the curvature of the bottom of the driving blade is the same as the curvature of the circumferential outer wall of the rotor, the bottom of the driving blade and the bottom of the mounting frame are smoothly transitioned, and the outer end of each driving blade is flush with the end face of the rotor.

[0011] Furthermore, the driving blade, driven wheel and mounting frame in each blade structure are all tilted and the angle between them and the rotor end face is 30°.

[0012] Furthermore, three driven wheels are provided in each of the mounting frames; each driven wheel includes a pin shaft fixedly connected to the mounting frame, a hub is rotatably connected to the pin shaft through a bearing, and an O-type rubber ring is sleeved on the middle position of the circumferential outer wall of the hub.

[0013] Furthermore, the width of the wheel hub is 2.5 mm and the diameter is 9 mm; the length of the pin shaft is 9 mm; the width of the O-ring is 2 mm and the diameter is 10 mm.

[0014] Furthermore, the inner diameter of the rotor is 52 mm and the outer diameter is 58 mm; the chord length of each blade structure is 50 mm; the width of the driving blade and the mounting frame is 5 mm, the height of the driving blade is 19.01 mm, and the outer side of the driving blade is a wedge-shaped structure with the tip facing outward; the installation positions of multiple pin shafts are located on a circle with a diameter of 84 mm; the outer edges of multiple driven wheels are located on a circle with a diameter of 93.69 mm.

[0015] Furthermore, a plurality of driven gears are evenly arranged at annular intervals on the circumferential inner wall of the rotor; the driving mechanism includes a gear plate connected to the output shaft of the motor, and the gear plate is provided with a plurality of driving gears meshing with the driven gears.

[0016] Compared with the existing amphibious robot propulsion system, the beneficial effects of the present invention are: 1. The present invention provides an omnidirectional impeller propulsion system for an amphibious robot, which uses a single propulsion system for single drive both underwater and on land, achieving a miniaturized design and meeting the requirements that the propulsion system volume should be as small as possible to be suitable for different application environments such as hull inspection and pipeline leak detection.

[0017] 2. The present invention provides an omnidirectional impeller propulsion system for an amphibious robot. When underwater, the motor drives the blade structure to rotate, generating thrust, so that the amphibious robot can move in the water; when on land, the motor drives the blade structure to rotate, and the driven wheel in the blade structure contacts the land, so that the amphibious robot can move on land; at the same time, by adjusting the speed and rotation direction of the two sets of motors, the amphibious robot can ultimately achieve free omnidirectional movement in water and on land, meeting the requirements that the propulsion system should be able to adapt to both underwater and land operating environments at the same time and that the propulsion system should have omnidirectional driving capabilities to meet the requirements that the robot can adapt to complex offshore terrain.

[0018] 3. The present invention provides an omnidirectional impeller propulsion system for an amphibious robot, which rotates a driven wheel on a mounting frame through a pin shaft and a bearing. When the driven wheel contacts the ground, rolling friction replaces sliding friction, solving the problem of wear and tear on the mechanical structure during movement and meeting the requirement that the propulsion system should have good durability to overcome the high workload and harsh environment of offshore field operations. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0019] In order to more clearly illustrate the embodiments of the present invention or the technical solutions in the prior art, the following is a brief introduction to the drawings required for use in the embodiments. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of the present invention. For those of ordinary skill in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without inventive work. The above and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent through the accompanying drawings. The same reference numerals indicate the same parts throughout the drawings. The drawings are not intentionally scaled to their actual sizes, and the focus is on illustrating the main purpose of the present invention.

[0020] Figure 1 Schematic diagram of the three-dimensional structure of a single impeller mechanism.

[0021] Figure 2 It is a schematic diagram of the front view structure of a single impeller mechanism.

[0022] Figure 3 Schematic diagram of the three-dimensional structure of a single blade structure.

[0023] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the front view of a single blade structure.

[0024] Figure 5 This is a side view schematic diagram of a single blade structure.

[0025] Figure 6 Schematic diagram of the three-dimensional structure of a single driven wheel.

[0026] Figure 7 Dimensional diagram for a single driven pulley.

[0027] Figure 8 This is a schematic diagram of the principle of the amphibious robot's omnidirectional impeller propulsion system to achieve deep longitudinal movement in water.

[0028] Among them, 1. rotor; 2. blade structure; 21. driving blade; 22. driven wheel; 221. pin shaft; 222. bearing; 223. hub; 224. O-ring; 23. mounting frame; 3. impeller unit. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0029] To make the objectives, technical solutions, and advantages of the embodiments of the present invention more clear, the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings of the embodiments of the present invention. Obviously, the described embodiments are only part of the embodiments of the present invention, not all of the embodiments. Generally, the components of the embodiments of the present invention described and shown in the drawings herein can be arranged and designed in various different configurations.

[0030] Therefore, the following detailed description of the embodiments of the present invention provided in the accompanying drawings is not intended to limit the scope of the invention as claimed, but rather merely represents selected embodiments of the present invention. All other embodiments derived by persons of ordinary skill in the art based on the embodiments of the present invention without creative effort shall fall within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0031] It should be noted that similar reference numerals and letters denote similar items in the following drawings, and therefore, once an item is defined in one drawing, it does not need to be further defined or explained in subsequent drawings.

[0032] Furthermore, the terms “first”, “second”, etc. are merely used for distinguishing descriptions and should not be understood as indicating or implying relative importance.

[0033] Please refer to Figure 1 As shown, the present invention provides an omnidirectional impeller propulsion system for an amphibious robot, which includes two sets of impeller mechanisms with opposite rotation directions and two sets of motors.

[0034] Each impeller mechanism includes a rotor 1 with a cylindrical structure, and a plurality of blade structures 2 are evenly and obliquely arranged on the circumferential outer wall of the rotor 1. Each of the blade structures 2 includes a driving blade 21 and a driven wheel 22; the outer edge of each driven wheel 22 exceeds the outer edge of each driving blade 21.

[0035] The output shafts of both motors are equipped with a drive mechanism for rotating the rotors 1 in each impeller mechanism. Specifically, the inner circumferential wall of the rotor 1 is uniformly spaced with multiple driven gears. The drive mechanism includes a gear plate connected to the motor output shafts, which is equipped with multiple driving gears that mesh with the driven gears. The motor's drive mechanism for rotating the rotors 1 is conventional technology, so its principles and structure will not be elaborated on here.

[0036] In practical use, the amphibious robot's omnidirectional impeller propulsion system can be installed on a single rotating shaft. Two sets of motors are used to control the rotation direction and speed of the two sets of impellers, enabling underwater, land, and amphibious movement. When underwater, the motor drives the blade structure 2 to rotate, generating thrust, allowing the amphibious robot to move in the water. When on land, the motor drives the blade structure 2 to rotate, causing the driven wheel 22 in the blade structure 2 to contact the land, allowing the amphibious robot to move on land.

[0037] In particular, if Figure 8As shown, if it is necessary to achieve movement in the longitudinal direction of the water depth, it can be achieved by adding impeller units 3 and joint mechanisms in the direction of the rotation axis. A set of impeller units 3 includes two sets of impeller mechanisms. The two sets of impeller units 3 are connected by joints. Figure 8 In the figure, the joint angle is φ. When the joint angle is zero, forward and backward movement in the direction of the rotation axis can be achieved. When the joint angle is not zero, if the propulsion directions of the two sets of impeller units 3 are in the same direction, circular path movement can be achieved; if the propulsion directions of the two sets of impeller mechanisms are in opposite directions, lateral movement can be achieved. When the above movement modes are used in combination, in-situ turning + lateral and longitudinal movement can be achieved, thereby achieving omnidirectional movement. The propulsion system should be able to adapt to both underwater and land operating environments and should have omnidirectional driving capabilities to meet the requirements of the robot to adapt to complex offshore terrain.

[0038] The present invention provides an omnidirectional impeller propulsion system for an amphibious robot, which uses a single propulsion system for single drive both underwater and on land, realizing a miniaturized design and meeting the requirements that the propulsion system volume should be as small as possible to be suitable for different application environments such as hull inspection and pipeline leak detection.

[0039] As a specific arrangement of the blade structure 2, Figure 3 As shown, each of the blade structures 2 further includes a mounting frame 23 having a blade-shaped structure with a curved bottom. The mounting frame 23 is made of an aluminum alloy frame, and the bottom of each mounting frame 23 is obliquely arranged on the circumferential outer wall of the rotor 1; at least one driven wheel 22 is arranged in each mounting frame 23; the curvature of the bottom of the mounting frame 23 is the same as the curvature of the circumferential outer wall of the rotor 1.

[0040] A driving blade 21 is provided on both sides of each mounting frame 23. The driving blade 21 is made of resin. The bottom of the driving blade 21 is curved and obliquely arranged on the circumferential outer wall of the rotor 1. The curvature of the bottom of the driving blade 21 is the same as the curvature of the circumferential outer wall of the rotor 1. The bottom of the driving blade 21 transitions smoothly with the bottom of the mounting frame 23. The outer end of each driving blade 21 is flush with the end face of the rotor 1.

[0041] The number of blade structures 2 is 6, and the driving blade 21, driven wheel 22 and mounting frame 23 in each blade structure 2 are all tilted and the angle between them and the end face of the rotor 1 is 30°; the above arrangement enables the omnidirectional impeller propulsion system of the amphibious robot to have maximum thrust efficiency.

[0042] The driven wheel 22 is rotatably mounted on the mounting frame 23 via a pin 221 and a bearing 222. When the driven wheel 22 contacts the ground, rolling friction replaces sliding friction, thereby solving the problem of wear and tear on the mechanical structure during movement and satisfying the requirement that the propulsion system should have good durability to overcome the high workload and harsh environment of offshore field operations.

[0043] Each of the mounting frames 23 is provided with three driven wheels 22; Figure 6 and Figure 7 As shown, each driven wheel 22 includes a pin 221 fixedly connected to a mounting frame 23. A hub 223 is rotatably connected to the pin 221 via a bearing 222. An O-ring 224 is positioned midway along the outer circumference of the hub 223. The hub 223 has a width of 2.5 mm and a diameter of 9 mm; the pin 221 is 9 mm long; and the O-ring is 2 mm wide and 10 mm in diameter. The pin 221 and bearing 222 rotatably secure the driven wheel 22 to the mounting frame 23. When the driven wheel 22 contacts the ground, rolling friction replaces sliding friction, eliminating wear and tear on the mechanical structure during movement. This ensures the propulsion system's durability is essential for navigating the demanding and challenging environments of offshore field operations.

[0044] like Figure 2 As shown, the inner diameter of the rotor 1 is 52 mm and the outer diameter is 58 mm; Figure 4 and Figure 5 As shown, the chord length of each blade structure 2 is 50 mm; the width of the driving blade 21 and the mounting frame 23 is 5 mm, the height of the driving blade 21 is 19.01 mm, and the outer side of the driving blade 21 is a wedge-shaped structure with the tip facing outward; the installation positions of the multiple pins 221 are located on a circle with a diameter of 84 mm; the outer edges of the multiple driven wheels 22 are located on a circle with a diameter of 93.69 mm.

[0045] To sum up, the omnidirectional impeller propulsion system of the amphibious robot of the present invention is an omnidirectional, lightweight, fast and reliable amphibious propulsion system, which can meet the environmental detection requirements of the ocean and its offshore areas. The omnidirectional impeller propulsion system can be adapted to the propulsion systems of currently common square-shaped, fish-shaped, spherical-shaped and snake-shaped robots.

[0046] The foregoing description is merely a preferred embodiment of the present invention and is not intended to limit the present invention. Those skilled in the art will readily appreciate that various modifications and variations of the present invention are possible. Any modifications, equivalent substitutions, or improvements made within the spirit and principles of the present invention are intended to be within the scope of protection of the present invention.

Claims

1. An omnidirectional impeller propulsion system for an amphibious robot, characterized in that: It includes two sets of impeller mechanisms with opposite rotation directions and two sets of motors; Each impeller mechanism includes a cylindrical rotor, with a plurality of blade structures arranged on the outer circumferential wall of the rotor at regular intervals and in an inclined manner, each blade structure including a driving blade and a driven wheel; the outer edge of each driven wheel exceeds the outer edge of each driving blade; The output shafts of the two groups of motors are both provided with a driving mechanism for driving the rotors in each group of impeller mechanisms to rotate.

2. The omnidirectional impeller propulsion system for an amphibious robot according to claim 1, characterized in that: Each of the blade structures also includes a mounting frame with a blade-shaped structure having a curved bottom, and the bottom of each mounting frame is obliquely arranged on the circumferential outer wall of the rotor; at least one driven wheel is arranged in each mounting frame; the curvature of the bottom of the mounting frame is the same as the curvature of the circumferential outer wall of the rotor.

3. The omnidirectional impeller propulsion system for an amphibious robot according to claim 2, characterized in that: A driving blade is provided on both sides of each mounting frame. The bottom of the driving blade is curved and inclined on the circumferential outer wall of the rotor. The curvature of the bottom of the driving blade is the same as the curvature of the circumferential outer wall of the rotor. The bottom of the driving blade transitions smoothly to the bottom of the mounting frame, and the outer end of each driving blade is flush with the end face of the rotor.

4. The omnidirectional impeller propulsion system for an amphibious robot according to claim 3, characterized in that: The driving blade, driven wheel and mounting frame in each blade structure are all tilted and the angle between them and the rotor end face is 30°.

5. The omnidirectional impeller propulsion system for an amphibious robot according to claim 2, characterized in that: Three driven wheels are arranged in each mounting frame; each driven wheel includes a pin shaft fixedly connected to the mounting frame, a wheel hub is rotatably connected to the pin shaft through a bearing, and an O-type rubber ring is sleeved on the middle position of the outer wall of the wheel hub.

6. The omnidirectional impeller propulsion system for an amphibious robot according to claim 5, characterized in that: The width of the wheel hub is 2.5 mm and the diameter is 9 mm; the length of the pin shaft is 9 mm; the width of the O-ring is 2 mm and the diameter is 10 mm.

7. The omnidirectional impeller propulsion system for an amphibious robot according to claim 6, characterized in that: The inner diameter of the rotor is 52mm and the outer diameter is 58mm; the chord length of each blade structure is 50mm; the width of the driving blade and the mounting frame is 5mm, the height of the driving blade is 19.01mm, and the outer side of the driving blade is a wedge-shaped structure with the tip facing outward; the installation positions of multiple pin shafts are located on a circle with a diameter of 84mm; the outer edges of multiple driven wheels are located on a circle with a diameter of 93.69mm.

8. The omnidirectional impeller propulsion system for an amphibious robot according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that: A plurality of driven gears are evenly arranged at annular intervals on the circumferential inner wall of the rotor; the driving mechanism includes a gear plate connected to the output shaft of the motor, and the gear plate is provided with a plurality of driving gears meshing with the driven gears.

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