A chassis for an amphibious vehicle with foldable wheels

Abstract

This application belongs to the field of amphibious vehicle technology and discloses a chassis for an amphibious vehicle with foldable wheels. It includes two longitudinal beams and several crossbeams. Several driven shafts are rotatably mounted on the longitudinal beams, and a drive mechanism that drives the driven shafts to rotate synchronously is mounted on the crossbeams. A foldable wheel assembly is mounted on the outer side of the longitudinal beams corresponding to the driven shafts. The foldable wheel assembly includes a fixed seat, axle, suspension fork, wheel hub, tire, pull block, upper suspension arm, lower suspension arm, and telescopic cylinder. One end of the upper suspension arm is hinged to the bottom outer side of the pull block, and the other end is hinged to the top of the suspension fork. One end of the lower suspension arm is hinged to the bottom of the fixed seat, and the other end is hinged to the middle of the suspension fork. The cylinder body of the telescopic cylinder is hinged to the top outer side of the pull block, and the piston rod end is hinged to the middle of the lower suspension arm. This application uses the telescopic cylinder to drive the upper and lower suspension arms to move in tandem, causing the suspension fork to rotate the wheel axle downwards, thus achieving rapid folding and unfolding of the wheels.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This utility model relates to the field of amphibious vehicle technology, and in particular to a chassis for an amphibious vehicle with foldable wheels. Background Technology

[0002] Amphibious vehicles, as special equipment capable of operating in both land and water environments, play an irreplaceable role in extreme geographical conditions (such as flood relief, wetland exploration, and material transportation in complex terrain). The chassis, as the core load-bearing component of an amphibious vehicle, directly determines the vehicle's land passability, water navigation performance, and overall reliability through its structural design, requiring it to simultaneously meet the dual demands of "stable support for land driving" and "low-drag and high-efficiency water navigation."

[0003] In existing technologies, the chassis design of amphibious vehicles often involves performance trade-offs. Most products employ fixed, non-adjustable wheel structures to ensure load-bearing capacity, handling, and smoothness on land, resulting in the exposed wheels becoming the primary source of resistance once the vehicle enters water. On one hand, the rigid wheel structure disrupts the streamlined design of the vehicle body, significantly increasing hydrodynamic resistance on water and reducing speed and energy efficiency. On the other hand, phytoplankton such as aquatic plants and branches, or other debris present in the aquatic environment, can easily become entangled in the wheel rims, tire treads, and wheel hub connections. This not only further increases drag but can also cause wheel jamming and power transmission obstruction, severely impacting the vehicle's safety and reliability on water, potentially delaying rescue efforts, especially in emergency scenarios such as flood relief. Utility Model Content

[0004] To address the aforementioned problems, this utility model provides a chassis for an amphibious vehicle with foldable wheels.

[0005] The above-mentioned technical objective of this utility model is achieved through the following technical solution: a chassis for an amphibious vehicle with foldable wheels, comprising two parallel longitudinal beams arranged at intervals, the two longitudinal beams being connected by several crossbeams, several driven shafts rotatably arranged at intervals along their length on the longitudinal beams, a drive mechanism for driving the several driven shafts to rotate synchronously on the crossbeams, and a foldable wheel assembly arranged on the outer side of the longitudinal beams corresponding to the driven shafts, the foldable wheel assembly including a fixed seat arranged on the longitudinal beams and a... The system includes an outer axle, a suspension fork vertically mounted on the axle, a wheel hub rotatably mounted on the outer side of the axle, a tire mounted on the wheel hub, a pull block rotatably mounted on the top of the fixed seat, an upper suspension arm, a lower suspension arm, and a telescopic cylinder. One end of the upper suspension arm is hinged to the bottom outer side of the pull block, and the other end is hinged to the top of the suspension fork. One end of the lower suspension arm is hinged to the bottom of the fixed seat, and the other end is hinged to the middle of the suspension fork. The cylinder body of the telescopic cylinder is hinged to the top outer side of the pull block, and the piston rod end is hinged to the middle of the lower suspension arm.

[0006] Furthermore, a telescopic rod is provided between the lower suspension arm and the suspension fork. One end of the telescopic rod is hinged to the side of the lower suspension arm, and the hinge point is located between the fixed seat and the telescopic cylinder. The other end of the telescopic rod is hinged to the side of the suspension fork, and the hinge point is located below the junction of the suspension fork and the lower suspension arm.

[0007] Furthermore, the drive mechanism includes a motor mounting bracket disposed on two of the crossbeams and a dual-output shaft drive motor disposed on the motor mounting bracket. The motor mounting bracket and the longitudinal beams on both sides are respectively provided with concentric drive shafts. The drive shafts are connected to the driven shafts on both sides by drive chains. The driven shafts away from the drive shafts are connected to the adjacent driven shafts by transmission chains. The two output shafts of the drive motor are respectively connected to the drive shafts on both sides.

[0008] Furthermore, hollow rectangular tubes are provided at the rear ends of the two longitudinal beams, and signal lights are provided at both ends of the rectangular tubes. Reinforcing rods are welded between the two ends of the rectangular tubes and the two longitudinal beams.

[0009] Furthermore, a transmission assembly for driving the hub to rotate is provided inside the axle, and a magnetic coupler is provided inside the axle. The copper rotor part of the magnetic coupler is connected to the driven shaft, and the permanent magnet rotor part is connected to the transmission assembly.

[0010] In summary, this utility model has the following beneficial effects:

[0011] 1. This application includes a fixed base, axle, suspension fork, pull block, upper suspension arm, lower suspension arm, and telescopic cylinder. The telescopic cylinder's extension and retraction drive the upper and lower suspension arms to move in tandem, causing the suspension fork to rotate the axle, wheel hub, and tire downwards, enabling rapid folding and unfolding of the wheel. When driving on land, the unfolded wheel, supported and cushioned by the suspension structure, ensures vehicle stability. When in water, the folded wheel effectively reduces drag on the chassis and prevents damage from debris, solving the "mutual exclusion of land and water performance" problem inherent in traditional amphibious vehicles with fixed wheels, and significantly improving the vehicle's adaptability to different environments.

[0012] 2. In this application, a layout of dual output shaft drive motors and dual drive shafts is adopted. The drive shaft power is transmitted to the driven shafts on both sides through the drive chain, and then the synchronous rotation of all driven shafts is achieved through the transmission chain. This ensures that each wheel can obtain balanced power, simplifies the power transmission path, and reduces the probability of mechanical failure. Attached Figure Description

[0013] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the overall structure of an embodiment of the present utility model;

[0014] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the bottom structure of an embodiment of the present invention;

[0015] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of an embodiment of the present invention to highlight the structural connection between the foldable wheel assembly and the driven shaft;

[0016] Figure 4 This is a structural schematic diagram of the foldable wheel assembly according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0017] In the diagram: 10. Longitudinal beam; 11. Driven shaft; 12. Rectangular tube; 13. Signal light; 14. Reinforcing rod; 20. Crossbeam; 30. Drive mechanism; 31. Motor mounting bracket; 32. Drive motor; 33. Drive shaft; 34. Drive chain; 35. Transmission chain; 40. Foldable wheel assembly; 41. Fixed seat; 42. Wheel axle; 43. Suspension fork; 44. Wheel hub; 45. Tire; 46. Pull block; 47. Upper suspension arm; 48. Lower suspension arm; 49. Telescopic cylinder; 50. Telescopic tie rod; 60. Magnetic coupler. Detailed Implementation

[0018] The technical solutions in the embodiments of this application will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of this application, and not all embodiments. All other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art based on the embodiments of this application without creative effort are within the scope of protection of this application.

[0019] like Figure 1-4 As shown in the figure, this application discloses a chassis for an amphibious vehicle with foldable wheels, including two parallel longitudinal beams 10 arranged at intervals, which are connected by several crossbeams 20 to form a basic frame structure. Both the longitudinal beams 10 and the crossbeams 20 are made of high-strength alloy steel, and channel steel of type Q345B can be selected.

[0020] A plurality of driven shafts 11 are rotatably mounted on the longitudinal beam 10, spaced apart along its length. A foldable wheel assembly 40 is mounted on the outer side of the longitudinal beam 10 corresponding to the driven shafts 11. The foldable wheel assembly 40 includes a fixed seat 41, an axle 42, a suspension fork 43, a wheel hub 44, a tire 45, a pull block 46, an upper suspension arm 47, a lower suspension arm 48, and a telescopic cylinder 49. The fixed seat 41 is mounted on the longitudinal beam 10 and is fastened to the longitudinal beam 10 by high-strength bolts. The pull block 46 is rotatably mounted on the top of the fixed seat 41. The axle 42 is located on the outer side of the longitudinal beam 10, and the wheel hub 44 is rotatably mounted on its outer side. The tire 45 is mounted on the wheel hub 44, so that the wheel hub 44 and the tire 45 rotate relative to the wheel axle 42. The suspension fork 43 is vertically mounted on the axle 42. One end of the upper suspension arm 47 is hinged to the bottom outer side of the pull block 46, and the other end is hinged to the top of the suspension fork 43. One end of the lower suspension arm 48 is hinged to the bottom of the fixed seat 41, and the other end is hinged to the middle of the suspension fork 43. The cylinder end of the telescopic cylinder 49 is hinged to the top outer side of the pull block 46, and the piston rod end is hinged to the middle of the lower suspension arm 48. The upper suspension arm 47, the lower suspension arm 48, and the suspension fork 43 form a linkage structure. The telescopic cylinder 49 pulls the lower suspension arm 48 upward around the fixed seat 41. With the support of the upper suspension arm 47, the lower end of the suspension fork 43 moves inward, thereby causing the axle 42, the wheel hub 44, and the tire 45 to fold inward.

[0021] A telescopic rod 50 is installed between the lower control arm 48 and the suspension fork 43. One end of the telescopic rod 50 is hinged to the side of the lower control arm 48, with the hinge point located between the fixed seat 41 and the telescopic cylinder 49. The other end of the telescopic rod 50 is hinged to the side of the suspension fork 43, with the hinge point located below the junction of the suspension fork 43 and the lower control arm 48. The telescopic rod 50 adopts an adjustable structure, allowing its length to be freely adjusted according to the entire movement process during folding, resulting in smoother folding. This design is simple and highly practical.

[0022] A drive mechanism 30 is provided on the crossbeam 20 to drive several driven shafts 11 to rotate synchronously. The drive mechanism 30 includes a motor mounting bracket 31 mounted on two of the crossbeams 20 and a dual-output shaft drive motor 32 mounted on the motor mounting bracket 31. Both ends of the dual-output shaft drive motor 32 are provided with output shafts, which are coaxially arranged and rotate synchronously. Drive shafts 33 are rotatably arranged between the motor mounting bracket 31 and the longitudinal beams 10 on both sides. The two output shafts of the drive motor 32 are respectively connected to the drive shafts 33 on both sides, thereby driving the drive shafts 33 on both sides to rotate synchronously. The drive shafts 33 are connected to the driven shafts 11 on both sides via drive chains 34. The driven shafts 11 away from the drive shafts 33 are connected to their adjacent driven shafts 11 via transmission chains 35, thus achieving synchronous rotation of all driven shafts 11. Both the drive chain 34 and the transmission chain 35 use two to three chains arranged in parallel. This ensures power transmission even when some chains become slightly loose, thus guaranteeing stable power output and improving the reliability of the vehicle's power when navigating complex road conditions (such as muddy or gravel roads).

[0023] A transmission assembly for driving the wheel hub 44 to rotate is installed inside the axle 42. The transmission assembly adopts a planetary gear reducer structure to achieve power reduction and torque increase. The output end of the reducer is connected to the wheel hub 44, driving the tire 45 to rotate. A magnetic coupler 60 is installed inside the axle 42. The copper rotor part of the magnetic coupler 60 is connected to the driven shaft 11, and the permanent magnet rotor part is connected to the input end of the reducer of the transmission assembly. Power is transmitted through the magnetic field force between the copper rotor and the permanent magnet rotor. This non-contact characteristic eliminates the need for a mechanical connection between the axle 42 and the driven shaft 11, thus facilitating the folding of the wheel hub 44 and the tire 45 driven by the axle 42.

[0024] A hollow rectangular tube 12 is installed at the rear end of the longitudinal beam 10. Signal lights 13 are installed at both ends of the rectangular tube 12. When driving on land or water, the light signals convey the driving intention to surrounding vehicles, pedestrians or vessels, avoiding collisions and ensuring driving safety. Reinforcing rods 14 are welded between both ends of the rectangular tube 12 and the two longitudinal beams 10. The reinforcing rods 14, the rectangular tube 12 and the longitudinal beams 10 form a triangular support structure, which enhances the connection rigidity between the rectangular tube 12 and the longitudinal beams 10 and improves the deformation resistance of the rear of the chassis.

[0025] The operating principle of the foldable wheel amphibious vehicle chassis described in this embodiment is as follows: When the vehicle is traveling on land, the drive motor 32 is driven to rotate via an electronic control program. This drives the drive chain 34 and transmission chain 35 via the drive shaft 33, causing all driven shafts 11 to rotate synchronously. This, in turn, drives the transmission assembly within the wheel axle 42 via the magnetic coupler 60, causing the wheel hub 44 to rotate and ultimately propelling the vehicle. When the vehicle is traveling on water, the telescopic cylinder 49 is retracted, pulling the lower suspension arm 48 upward around the fixed seat 41. Supported by the upper suspension arm 47, the lower end of the suspension fork 43 moves inward, thereby causing the wheel axle 42, wheel hub 44, and tire 45 to fold inward, reducing water resistance.

[0026] The above description is merely a preferred embodiment of this utility model. The protection scope of this utility model is not limited to the above embodiments. All technical solutions falling within the scope of this utility model's concept are protected. It should be noted that for those skilled in the art, any improvements and modifications made without departing from the principle of this utility model should also be considered within the protection scope of this utility model.

Claims

1. A chassis for an amphibious vehicle with foldable wheels, characterized in that: The system includes two parallel longitudinal beams (10) spaced apart, connected by several crossbeams (20). Several driven shafts (11) spaced apart along the length of each longitudinal beam (10) are rotatably mounted on the longitudinal beams (10). A drive mechanism (30) is mounted on each crossbeam (20) to drive the driven shafts (11) to rotate synchronously. A foldable wheel assembly (40) is mounted on the outer side of each longitudinal beam (10) corresponding to the driven shafts (11). The foldable wheel assembly (40) includes a fixed seat (41) mounted on the longitudinal beam (10), an axle (42) mounted on the outer side of the longitudinal beam (10), a suspension fork (43) vertically mounted on the axle (42), and a rotating... The components include a wheel hub (44) located on the outside of the axle (42), a tire (45) located on the wheel hub (44), a pull block (46) rotatably mounted on the top of the fixed seat (41), an upper suspension arm (47), a lower suspension arm (48), and a telescopic cylinder (49). One end of the upper suspension arm (47) is hinged to the bottom outside of the pull block (46), and the other end is hinged to the top of the suspension fork (43). One end of the lower suspension arm (48) is hinged to the bottom of the fixed seat (41), and the other end is hinged to the middle of the suspension fork (43). The cylinder end of the telescopic cylinder (49) is hinged to the top outside of the pull block (46), and the piston rod end is hinged to the middle of the lower suspension arm (48).

2. The foldable wheel amphibious vehicle chassis according to claim 1, characterized in that: A telescopic rod (50) is provided between the lower suspension arm (48) and the suspension fork (43). One end of the telescopic rod (50) is hinged to the side of the lower suspension arm (48) and the hinge point is located between the fixed seat (41) and the telescopic cylinder (49). The other end of the telescopic rod (50) is hinged to the side of the suspension fork (43) and the hinge point is located below the junction of the suspension fork (43) and the lower suspension arm (48).

3. The foldable wheel amphibious vehicle chassis according to claim 1, characterized in that: The drive mechanism (30) includes a motor mounting bracket (31) mounted on two of the crossbeams (20) and a dual-output shaft drive motor (32) mounted on the motor mounting bracket (31). The motor mounting bracket (31) is rotatably connected to the longitudinal beams (10) on both sides with concentric drive shafts (33). The drive shafts (33) are connected to the driven shafts (11) on both sides via drive chains (34). The driven shafts (11) away from the drive shafts (33) are connected to their adjacent driven shafts (11) via transmission chains (35). The two output shafts of the drive motor (32) are connected to the drive shafts (33) on both sides respectively.

4. The foldable wheel amphibious vehicle chassis according to claim 1, characterized in that: Hollow rectangular tubes (12) are provided at the rear ends of the two longitudinal beams (10). Signal lights (13) are provided at both ends of the rectangular tubes (12). Reinforcing rods (14) are welded between the two ends of the rectangular tubes (12) and the two longitudinal beams (10).

5. The foldable wheel amphibious vehicle chassis according to claim 1, characterized in that: The axle (42) is provided with a transmission assembly for driving the hub (44) to rotate. A magnetic coupler (60) is provided inside the axle (42). The copper rotor part of the magnetic coupler (60) is connected to the driven shaft (11), and the permanent magnet rotor part is connected to the transmission assembly.

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