Leveling system

Abstract

To provide a horizontal travel maintenance system that avoids increased weight and size. [Solution] The axle-suspended wheel unit (e.g., wheel unit 100 in Figure 1) comprises a wheel (e.g., wheel 30 to 80 in Figure 6) having an axle (e.g., axle 17 in Figure 4(a)), a plurality of ground contact points (e.g., ground contact points 11 to 13 in Figure 4(a)) arranged circumferentially around the axle, and a plurality of telescopic parts (e.g., telescopic parts 14 to 16 in Figure 4(a)) connecting the axle and each of the ground contact points; a sensor (e.g., sensor 200 in Figure 1) that detects the inclination of each axle or its prediction; and a control unit (e.g., control unit 300 in Figure 1) that controls the length of each telescopic part (e.g., telescopic parts 14 to 16 and 24 to 26 in Figure 5) based on the sensing signal of the sensor, under the condition that the extension direction of each axle (e.g., axle 17, 27 in Figure 5) is in a horizontal direction perpendicular to the direction of gravity (see Figure 2).

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a horizontal running maintenance system, for example, a horizontal running maintenance system that maintains horizontal running even on an inclined surface, an uneven ground surface with irregularities, or a running surface with obstacles.

Background Art

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses a coaxial two-wheeled vehicle that can travel with the left and right split steps horizontal by a passenger keeping the steering wheel vertical even when one wheel of a vehicle traveling straight on a flat road surface rides up on a step. In this coaxial two-wheeled vehicle, even when one wheel rides up on a step, the passenger can move the center of gravity to the side of the lower wheel, so that the wheel on the riding-up side can ride up on the step with less driving force. Subsequently, by moving the center of gravity to the side of the wheel on the riding-up side and then riding up on the step of the lower wheel, it feels as if one is stepping up a step with one's feet, so that the step can be easily overcome with less driving force.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] However, if traveling in a standing posture like the coaxial two-wheeled vehicle described in Patent Document 1, it may be possible for the passenger to control horizontal running by moving the center of gravity. However, in the case of a vehicle traveling in a seated posture like a three-wheeled vehicle or a four-wheeled vehicle, such control is not easy.

[0005] Furthermore, if the vehicle that wants to achieve horizontal movement is a vehicle without a rider, such as a mobile robot, it may be possible to equip it with a center of gravity shifting mechanism, even if it is a two-wheeled vehicle. However, since this mechanism would require a weight to form the center of gravity and a sliding mechanism for it, if it is to be installed, space must be provided for it, which could lead to other problems such as the mobile robot becoming heavier and larger.

[0006] Therefore, the object of the present invention is to provide a horizontal locomotion maintenance system that avoids increased weight and size regardless of the number of wheels. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] For ease of understanding, the horizontal travel maintenance system of the present invention will be described exemplified as follows: A wheel unit (e.g., wheel unit 100 in Figure 1) is provided with an axle-mounted wheel (e.g., wheel 30-80 in Figure 6) having an axle (e.g., axle 17 in Figure 4(a)), a plurality of ground contact points (e.g., ground contact points 11-13 in Figure 4(a)) arranged circumferentially around the axle, and a plurality of telescopic parts (e.g., telescopic parts 14-16 in Figure 4(a)) connecting the axle and each of the ground contact points, A sensor (for example, sensor 200 in Figure 1) that detects the tilt of each axle or predicts the tilt thereof, A control unit (for example, control unit 300 in Figure 1) controls the length of each of the telescopic parts (for example, telescopic parts 14-16 and 24-26 in Figure 5) under the condition that the extension direction of each axle (for example, axles 17 and 27 in Figure 5) is a horizontal direction perpendicular to the direction of gravity (see Figure 2), based on the sensing signal of the aforementioned sensor, It is equipped with.

[0008] To give a specific example, the wheel unit can be a four-wheeled vehicle including a pair of left and right front wheels (for example, wheels 50-80 in Figure 6) and a pair of left and right rear wheels (for example, wheels 10-40 in Figure 2). However, the wheel unit can also be equipped with, for example, three sets of wheels, six sets of wheels, etc. (i.e., it can be a tricycle, a six-wheeled vehicle, etc.). When the running surface is sloped, as shown in Figure 2, the control unit 300 controls the horizontal driving maintenance system so that the extension portion of the wheels located on the upper side of the slope (for example, wheel 10 in Figure 2) is shorter, and the extension portion of the wheels located on the lower side of the slope (for example, wheel 30 in Figure 2) is longer.

[0009] Furthermore, regardless of whether the running surface is sloped or horizontal, the control unit controls the running surface to have uneven surfaces, such as lengthening the telescopic portion connected to the contact point in contact with the recessed area and shortening the telescopic portion connected to the contact point in contact with the convex area for each wheel (10-40). This control can be applied similarly even when there are obstacles on the running surface, as will be described later.

[0010] For example, focusing on a pair of wheels 10-20, as shown in Figure 4(c), it is preferable to ensure that the radial angles of the extendable parts 11-13 and 21-23 are equal to each other (60 degrees in the case of Figure 4(c)). In this way, as shown in Figure 5, even when the ground contact parts 11-12 are extended, the gap between the ground contact parts 11-12 can be filled by the ground contact part 22, which is also extended.

[0011] Therefore, the horizontal running maintenance system 1000, despite its simple structure, can maintain a horizontal position and run smoothly by controlling the length of each extendable section 14, etc., under the condition that the extending direction of each axle 17, etc., is horizontal. If smoother running is required, the number of contact points 11, etc., or the number of wheels 10, etc., can be increased.

[0012] Each of the aforementioned expandable / contractable parts can be implemented, for example, by dampers or actuators. The sensors can be, for example, tilt sensors, acceleration sensors, gyroscopes, and / or image sensors.

[0013] For example, if the right front wheel of the level driving maintenance system approaches an obstacle, causing the axle of the right front wheel to tilt, the sensor outputs a sensing signal based on the tilt angle. The control unit then outputs a control signal to extend the telescopic parts of the right rear wheel, left front wheel, and left rear wheel in order to increase the diameter of each axle, under the condition that the extension direction of each axle is horizontal and perpendicular to the direction of gravity, thereby maintaining the level driving maintenance system. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0014] [Figure 1] This is a block diagram illustrating the configuration of the horizontal travel maintenance system 1000 according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] Figure 1 is a conceptual diagram illustrating the control operation of the control unit 300 shown. [Figure 3] This is an explanatory diagram of a horizontal travel maintenance system 1000 equipped with lifting mechanisms 610 and 620. [Figure 4] This is a schematic diagram illustrating the relationship between the arrangement of wheel 10 and wheel 20 shown in Figure 2. [Figure 5] Figure 4(c) is an explanatory diagram of the operation of the wheels 10 and 20. [Figure 6] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the external appearance of a horizontally moving robot, which is a horizontally moving robot, and is a horizontally moving robot, a horizontally moving robot, as shown in Figure 1. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0015] 10,20,30,40 wheels 11~13,21~23 Grounding part 14~16,24~26 Telescopic part 17, 27, 37, 47 axles 100 Wheel Unit 200 sensors 300 control unit 400 drive unit 500 housing part 610, 620 lifting mechanism 1000 horizontal travel maintenance system

Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[0016] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In the present specification, the term "horizontal" is used to mean horizontal with respect to gravity, but is not limited to the case where it is completely orthogonal to gravity, and depending on the use of the horizontal travel maintenance system 1000, for example, it is extended up to about ±10 degrees.

[0017] FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an outline of the configuration of the horizontal travel maintenance system 1000 according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1, the horizontal travel maintenance system 1000 of the present embodiment includes a wheel unit 100, a sensor 200, a control unit 300, and a drive unit 400, which will be described below.

[0018] Since the horizontal travel maintenance system 1000 of the present embodiment has element technologies such as a wheel unit 100, a sensor 200, a control unit 300, and a drive unit 400, it is also a traveling robot.

[0019] The wheel unit 100 operates according to an output signal of the control unit 300 and / or the drive unit 400. Although the specific configuration and operation of the wheel unit 100 will be described later, in the present embodiment, it is composed of four wheels having, for example, four pairs of wheels.

[0020] Each of those wheels typically includes a tire that contacts the traveling surface and a rim that receives it, and also includes a plurality of spokes that connect them to the axle, which is the same as in comparison with general wheels. On the other hand, the two wheels differ in that the tire and the like are composed of a plurality of parts and the spokes are configured to be stretchable.

[0021] The sensor 200 detects the tilt of each axle of each of the wheels, or predicts the tilt. Specific examples of when an axle may tilt include when the running surface of the horizontal running maintenance system 1000 is inclined, when there are irregularities in the path of the running surface of the horizontal running maintenance system 1000, or when there is an obstacle in the path of the running surface of the horizontal running maintenance system 1000.

[0022] The sensor 200 can be of any type as long as it is capable of outputting a sensing signal based on the tilt of such axle or its prediction. For example, the sensor 200 can be a tilt sensor, an acceleration sensor, a gyroscope, or an image sensor, and some of these can be used in combination.

[0023] For example, if the application of the horizontal driving maintenance system 1000 does not require high-speed driving, the need to predict and take countermeasures for the future tilt of each axle in advance is relatively low. In that case, it is sufficient to respond according to the current tilt of each axle when an angle change occurs in each axle. Therefore, as for the sensor 200, it is preferable to use a tilt sensor, an acceleration sensor, and a gyroscope sensor, as in the example mentioned above.

[0024] On the other hand, if the application of the horizontal driving maintenance system 1000 requires high-speed driving, for example, there is a relatively high need to predict and take measures against the future tilt of each axle in advance. In such cases, it is preferable to respond according to the predicted future tilt of each axle before any angle change occurs in each axle. Therefore, as the sensor 200, it is preferable to use an image sensor, as in the example mentioned above.

[0025] The tilt sensor, acceleration sensor, and gyroscope sensor can be housed in the housing section 500 (Figure 2) of the horizontal driving maintenance system 1000. On the other hand, the image sensor can be mounted, for example, in front of the housing section 500, to capture images of the driving surface in the direction of travel, and a computer such as a microcontroller that performs image analysis using image processing techniques such as edge detection and gradient detection on the image can be housed in the housing section 500.

[0026] The control unit 300 receives sensing signals output from the sensor 200 and / or drive signals output from the drive unit 400, generates control signals for each wheel based on these sensing signals, and outputs them to the wheel unit 100. The control referred to here includes spoke extension / retraction control, steering control, and axle rotation control.

[0027] The specific operation of the control unit 300 will be described later, but by controlling the extension and retraction of the spokes of each wheel, the extension direction of the axle of each wheel can be set to the horizontal direction, thereby maintaining the horizontal state of the horizontal driving maintenance system 1000 during travel, or changing the direction of travel of the horizontal driving maintenance system 1000.

[0028] The drive unit 400 is equipped with an engine that is the power source for the horizontal driving maintenance system 1000, brakes that stop the rotation of the wheels 10 of the horizontal driving maintenance system 1000, a steering system that changes the direction of the horizontal driving maintenance system 1000, a control unit that is in charge of controlling these functions, and a communication device that communicates various data and information with the operator's terminal, for example.

[0029] The communication targets referred to here include, for example, instructions for the driving route transmitted from the operator's terminal in a remote location to the communication device, and location information of the horizontal driving maintenance system 1000 transmitted from the communication device to the terminal.

[0030] Figure 2 is a conceptual diagram illustrating the control operation of the control unit 300 shown in Figure 1. Figure 2 shows a schematic view from the rear of a horizontal driving maintenance system 1000, which has a pair of right rear wheels (wheels 10, 20) with axles 17, 27, a pair of left rear wheels (wheels 30, 40) with axles 37, 47, and a housing 500 that accommodates the aforementioned sensor 200, control unit 300, and drive unit 400.

[0031] Here, the axle 17, etc., is shown as a straight structure extending parallel to the bottom surface of the housing 500 and connecting to the wheel 10, etc., but it may also be an L-shaped structure with a portion hanging down from the bottom surface of the housing 500, and is not limited to the form shown in Figure 2.

[0032] In the example shown, all of the axles 17, etc., of the wheels 10, etc., extend horizontally, and the horizontal running maintenance system 1000 is kept in a horizontal state. The diameter of the upper part of the axles 17, etc., can be made to be the same size as, for example, the diameter of the lower part of the axles. If this is done, when predicting the future tilt of each axle in advance, if it can be determined that running on an upward-right incline, as shown in Figure 2, will continue for a while, it is possible to avoid unnecessarily causing the spokes to continuously extend and retract.

[0033] With this in mind, and to avoid redundant descriptions, the following explanations regarding the diameter of the wheels 10, etc., will not use expressions based on the axle. However, when a description such as "the diameter of the wheels 10, etc. is large" is used, it means that at least the lower diameter, based on the axle 17, etc., is large. Therefore, the upper diameter, based on the axle 17, etc., can be large or small.

[0034] As can be seen from Figure 2, when the axle 17 etc. is in a horizontal position, the relative diameters of the wheels 10 etc. should be such that the wheels located on the lower side of the incline are larger. Specifically, the diameter of wheel 20 should be larger than the diameter of wheel 10, the diameter of wheel 40 should be larger than the diameter of wheel 20, and the diameter of wheel 30 should be larger than the diameter of wheel 40.

[0035] The control unit 300 only needs to perform a simple calculation using the trigonometric theorem to generate the control signal. As those skilled in the art will easily understand, if we consider the pair of wheels 10, 20 and the pair of wheels 30, 40 as macroscopically single wheels, then if the distance between wheels 10, 20 and wheels 30, 40 is, for example, 1 m, and the inclination angle of the running surface is, for example, 30 degrees, then the spokes of wheels 30, 40 on the lower side of the slope should be 50 cm longer than the spokes of wheels 10, 20 on the upper side of the slope. Therefore, the control unit 300 only needs to generate a control signal that makes the spokes of wheels 30, 40 50 cm longer than the spokes of wheels 10, 20.

[0036] In other words, when the control unit 300 receives a sensing signal based on the inclination angle of the running surface output from the sensor 200, it should generate a control signal using a calculation formula based on trigonometric ratios, taking into account the distance between the right and left wheels of the wheel unit 100.

[0037] Alternatively, if precise horizontality is not required for the horizontal driving maintenance system 1000, a table memory may be prepared that stores, for example, the relationship between radial angles in increments of a few degrees and the corresponding spoke expansion and contraction amounts, and control signals may be generated by referring to the table memory instead of performing calculations each time.

[0038] Furthermore, when the horizontal driving maintenance system 1000 is driving straight in the direction of the back (or front) of the drawing, it is necessary to adjust the rotation speed of both wheels based on the diameters of the axles 37 and 47 of the left wheels (wheels 30 and 40) and the diameters of the axles 17 and 27 of the right wheels (wheels 10 and 20). For example, if the diameter ratio of wheel 10 and wheel 30 is 1:2, the rotation speed should be set to 2:1.

[0039] Furthermore, if the horizontal driving maintenance system 1000 is to drive horizontally in the direction to the right of the drawing, rather than in the direction towards the back of the drawing, the diameters of the axles 17, 27, 37, and 47 of the rear wheels (wheels 10-40) should be determined based on the distance between the front and rear wheels and the inclination angle of the driving surface.

[0040] However, in reality, the running surface is not always inclined only in a predetermined direction. Therefore, the control system is based on the distance between the left and right wheels, the distance between the front and rear wheels, and the inclination angle of the running surface, so that the diameter of the wheel on the lower side of the incline is larger.

[0041] Furthermore, regardless of whether the running surface of the horizontal driving maintenance system 1000 is inclined or not, there may be unevenness or obstacles in its path. Assuming that the horizontal driving maintenance system 1000 is traveling in the direction shown in Figure 2 ("towards the back of the drawing"), if, for example, there is an obstacle in the path of the right front wheel of the wheel unit 100, the right front wheel will run over the obstacle.

[0042] In this case, the level-keeping system 1000 only needs to increase the diameter of the remaining three sets of wheels according to the height of the obstacle. In other words, in this example, the diameters of the left front wheel, left rear wheel, and right rear wheel should be increased in accordance with the height of the obstacle.

[0043] However, if the obstacle becomes too high, it becomes physically difficult to maintain the horizontal state of the horizontal running maintenance system 1000 simply by changing the diameter of the wheels. To avoid this, as explained below, each axle 17, for example, can be provided with an independent lifting mechanism.

[0044] Figures 3(a) and 3(b) are explanatory diagrams of the horizontal travel maintenance system 1000 equipped with lifting mechanisms 610 and 620. Figure 3(a) shows an example of the horizontal travel maintenance system 1000 without the lifting mechanisms 610 and 620, while Figure 3(b) shows an example of the horizontal travel maintenance system 1000 equipped with the lifting mechanisms 610 and 620. For simplicity, only the right wheel (wheel 10) and the left wheel (wheel 30) are shown.

[0045] As shown in Figure 3(a), if the lifting mechanism 610, 620 is not provided and the wheel 30 is lifted by an obstacle 700, even if the telescopic part 14 for adjusting the spoke length of the wheel 10 is extended to increase the diameter of the wheel 10 and the telescopic part 34 is retracted to decrease the diameter of the wheel 30, if the "height of the obstacle 700" > "difference in extension / retraction of the telescopic parts 14, 34", the horizontal running maintenance system 1000 will not be able to maintain a horizontal state physically.

[0046] In contrast, as shown in Figure 3(b), if the lifting mechanism 610, 620 is provided, even if the wheels 30 are caught on an obstacle 700, the horizontal state of the horizontal running maintenance system 1000 can be maintained as long as the relationship "height of obstacle 700" ≤ "difference in extension / retraction of the telescopic parts 14, 34" + "difference in raising / lowering of the lifting mechanism 610, 620" holds true, provided that the lifting mechanism 610, 620 controls the extension / retraction of the telescopic parts 14, 34 and raises the position of the axle 37.

[0047] Incidentally, it is also possible to create a difference in diameter, for example, by having relatively small diameter front wheels (wheels 50-80 in Figure 6) and relatively large diameter rear wheels (wheels 10-40). In that case, in order for the horizontal running maintenance system 1000, which is facing inward (or forward) in the drawing / facing right (or left) in the drawing, to maintain a horizontal state, the size of the diameter of the target wheels should be determined by taking into account not only the distance between the two target wheels of the wheel unit 100 and the inclination angle of the running surface, but also the difference in diameter of the front and rear wheels in their compressed state.

[0048] Furthermore, if the direction of travel of the horizontal driving maintenance system 1000 needs to be changed, this would normally be done by steering control. However, the control unit 300 can also do this, or in conjunction with this, by changing the diameter of the target wheel.

[0049] For example, if you want to make the level-keeping system 1000 turn right, you can increase the diameter of, for example, the left front wheel (wheels 70 and 80 in Figure 6) of the wheel unit 100, and by using the lifting mechanisms 610 and 620 in conjunction, you can make the level-keeping system 1000 turn while maintaining its horizontal position.

[0050] Furthermore, if the wheel unit 100 according to this embodiment is configured to allow four-wheel steering, the diameter control of the wheel unit 100 can be adjusted by, for example, increasing the diameter of the left front wheel (wheels 70, 80 in Figure 6) and, in conjunction with it, also increasing the diameter of the left rear wheel (wheels 30, 40) to make a tight right turn, or by increasing the diameter of the right rear wheel (wheels 10, 20) to make an even tighter right turn.

[0051] Furthermore, the wheel unit 100 may employ axle rotation speed / direction control in addition to the above-mentioned diameter size control and / or lifting control.

[0052] Figure 4 is a schematic diagram illustrating the relationship between the arrangement of wheel 10 and wheel 20 shown in Figure 2. Figure 4(a) shows wheel 10 viewed from the axial direction of axle 17, Figure 4(b) shows wheel 20 viewed from the axial direction of axle 27, and Figure 4(c) shows wheel 10 from Figure 4(a) and wheel 20 from Figure 4(b) aligned (the symbols are omitted in Figure 4(c)).

[0053] Wheels 10 and 20, in addition to the axles 17 and 27 described above, are each equipped with, for example, three contact points 11-13 and 21-23, and for example, three telescopic parts 14-16 and 24-26. The configuration of wheels 30-80 is the same as that of wheels 10 and 20.

[0054] Each contact point 11-13 and 21-23 corresponds to the tire and rim. Each contact point 11-13 and 21-23 is circumferentially shaped around the axle 17 and 27. Each extendable part 14-16 and 24-26 adjusts the length of the spokes. Each extendable part 14-16 and 24-26 connects the axle 17 and 27 to each contact point 11-13 and 21-23.

[0055] The materials for the wheels 10, etc., should be determined according to the scale and application of the horizontal running maintenance system 1000. For example, for the contact area 11, etc., the tire-equivalent portion can be made of rubber, and the rim-equivalent portion can be made of aluminum. The telescopic portion 14, etc., can be made of aluminum. In addition, different materials may be used for the front wheels (wheels 50-80 in Figure 6) and the rear wheels (wheels 10-40).

[0056] Furthermore, the overall dimensions and number of parts of the wheels 10, etc., are not limited in a broad sense and can be appropriately selected according to the scale and application of the horizontal driving maintenance system 1000. For example, if the horizontal driving maintenance system 1000 only needs to avoid tipping over, the number of contact points can be two, or if more precise horizontal driving is required, it can be four or more. Also, if rigidity and strength need to be increased, two or more telescopic parts can be assigned to each contact point, and if weight reduction is required, it can be equipped with one pair of front wheels and two pairs of rear wheels (i.e., a tricycle). In addition, depending on the weight of the horizontal driving maintenance system 1000, as already briefly explained, if it is rear-wheel drive, the front wheels can be relatively small and single, and the rear wheels can be relatively large and double. Moreover, some of these examples can be combined as they are or modified.

[0057] The extendable section 14, etc., can employ, for example, dampers or actuators. The damper may be air-operated, gas-operated, or of another type. The actuator may also be air-operated, gas-operated, electric, magnetic, or of another type.

[0058] As shown in Figure 4(c), a distinctive feature of the pair of wheels 10 and 20 is that the telescopic parts 14 and 24, etc., are aligned with respect to the axles 17 and 27 in such a manner that they are at equal angles in the radial direction, that is, their radial angles are equal to each other.

[0059] Figure 5 is an explanatory diagram of the operation of wheels 10 and 20 shown in Figure 4(c). In this diagram, wheel 10 has its telescopic parts 14 and 15 extended while telescopic part 16 is retracted. Similarly, wheel 20 has its telescopic part 25 extended while telescopic parts 24 and 26 are retracted. Figure 5 shows the state in which contact point 11 of the contact points 11-13 and 21-23 is in contact with the running surface.

[0060] When the horizontal travel maintenance system 1000 travels on the travel surface in the leftward direction in the drawing, the contact points with the travel surface cyclically transition from contact point 22, contact point 12, ..., contact point 21, contact point 11. When the control unit 300 rotates the axles 17 and 27, it also appropriately controls the extension and retraction states of the telescopic parts 14-16 and 24-26 according to the sensing signals from the sensor 200.

[0061] The reason for aligning the pair of wheels 10 and 20 in the manner shown in Figure 4(c) is that by aligning the center of the contact surface 22 with the center of the contact surface 11 and 12, the gap between the contact surfaces 11 and 12, which becomes relatively wider when the telescopic parts 14 and 15 are extended, can be filled by the contact surface 22. Therefore, the horizontal running maintenance system 1000 can run smoothly as the contact surfaces of the pair of wheels 10 and 20 sequentially transition.

[0062] It should be noted that it is not necessary to use a pair of wheels to achieve this effect. For example, even with a single wheel, if the total number of contact points and extendable parts is six each of the same shape, as shown in Figure 4(c), the same effect as in the example shown in Figure 5 can be obtained.

[0063] However, having multiple wheels offers the advantage of better running stability compared to having just one. On the other hand, increasing the number of wheels inevitably leads to a slight increase in product cost and weight. Therefore, the number of wheels should be selected based on a balance between running stability and manufacturing cost, taking into account the intended use of the Level Running Maintenance System 1000 and the road surface conditions it will inevitably operate on.

[0064] Furthermore, if you want to improve the smoothness of the ride, you can increase the total number of contact points 11 on the wheels 10, for example, from 4 to 8 each. This will reduce the gap between adjacent contact points on any of the wheels 10.

[0065] Increasing the number of contact points 11, etc., requires precise control of the extension and retraction of the telescopic parts. Therefore, the total number of contact points 11, etc., should be selected based on a balance between smoothness during travel and the burden and cost of extension and retraction control, taking into account the application of the horizontal travel maintenance system 1000, the expected trajectory conditions, etc.

[0066] Figure 6 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the external appearance of the horizontal movement maintenance robot, which is the horizontal movement maintenance system 1000 shown in Figure 1. Figure 6 shows the horizontal movement maintenance system 1000 including the parts described above. The horizontal movement maintenance system 1000 shown in Figure 6 is a configuration that assumes relatively low-speed movement.

[0067] The horizontal running maintenance system 1000 shown in Figure 6 is suitable for running surfaces that are not paved, such as uneven terrain, and where the flatness of the running surface is relatively poor. Examples of such horizontal running maintenance systems include disaster recovery areas such as the lunar or Martian surfaces, and the position, size, and layout of the housing 500 and wheels 10 have been selected to prevent tipping over even on such running surfaces.

[0068] Furthermore, by attaching an imaging device (not shown) to the storage unit 500, it is possible to detect and understand the conditions near the travel site, and by providing a cargo bed to the storage unit 500, materials can be transported. Of course, its uses are not limited to these. In addition, it is preferable to use the imaging device in conjunction with the imaging unit of the image sensor, which is the sensor 200.

[0069] In this specification, the horizontal travel maintenance system 1000 illustrated in Figure 6 has been described with reference to several applications, but it should be noted that the horizontal travel maintenance system of the present invention is not limited to that described herein, and various modifications are included as long as they do not depart from the spirit of the invention.

[0070] For example, the level driving maintenance system 1000 may have an operator on board, in which case a driver's seat equipped with a steering wheel, accelerator, brakes, etc. In that case, for example, steering operations would be performed by the operator directly, rather than by the operator in a remote location communicating instructions to the drive unit 400.

Claims

1. A wheel unit comprising a wheel having an axle, a plurality of contact points arranged circumferentially around the axle, and a plurality of extendable parts connecting the axle and each of the contact points, A sensor for detecting the tilt of each axle or its prediction, A control unit that controls the length of each extension portion under the condition that the extension direction of each axle is a horizontal direction perpendicular to the direction of gravity, based on the sensing signal of the aforementioned sensor, A horizontal driving maintenance system equipped with this system.

2. The horizontal driving maintenance system according to claim 1, wherein the control unit controls the length of each extension portion based on the length of the line segment between the wheel located on the lower side of the inclination and the wheel located on the upper side of the inclination, and the angle between the horizontal direction and the line segment, when each axle is inclined with respect to the horizontal direction.

3. The horizontal travel maintenance system according to claim 1, wherein the control unit controls the length of each of the telescopic parts when the horizontal travel maintenance system body changes direction.

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