Modular mobile robot

Abstract

The present invention provides a modular mobile robot comprising: a first body part having at least one pair of first driving wheels rotatably disposed on the left and right sides thereof, and having a first driving motor for rotating the first driving wheels; a second body part having at least one pair of second driving wheels rotatably disposed on the left and right sides thereof, and having a second driving motor for rotating the second driving wheels; and a rotatable connection part for rotatably connecting the first body part and the second body part to each other.

Description

modular mobile robot

[0001] The present invention relates to a modular mobile robot that enables four wheels arranged front, rear, left, and right to move in a stable grounding state on the floor.

[0002] With the development of industry, the transportation of processed and finished products within factories, between factories, and courier / food delivery has increased, and various unmanned robots and unmanned delivery vehicles are being developed to perform these tasks in place of humans.

[0003] Among these, unmanned robots and unmanned delivery vehicles that can carry various items and deliver them to the desired destination are being actively developed.

[0004] In the case of these unmanned robots or unmanned transport vehicles, the wheels are fixed to the body, so the wheels that come into contact with the ground are limited depending on the shape of the ground, resulting in vibration, shaking, or slipping.

[0005] To solve this problem, the suspension system of a conventional automobile is being applied to unmanned mobile robots or unmanned transport vehicles.

[0006] However, when applying suspension systems to unmanned mobile robots or unmanned transport vehicles, difficulties in maintenance arise due to spatial constraints and structural complexity.

[0007] The background technology of the present invention for a means of transportation having such a suspension device is disclosed in Korean Patent Publication No. 10-2005-0026289 (March 15, 2005).

[0008] The purpose of the present invention is to provide a modular mobile robot having a simple structure and four wheels arranged front, back, left, and right, which can move in a stable grounding state on the floor.

[0009] The present invention provides a modular mobile robot including a first body part having at least one pair of first drive wheels rotatably arranged on the left and right and a first drive motor for rotating the first drive wheels, a second body part having at least one pair of second drive wheels rotatably arranged on the left and right and a second drive motor for rotating the second drive wheels, and a rotational connecting part for rotatably connecting the first body part and the second body part to each other.

[0010] Additionally, the first drive motors may be configured as at least one pair to independently drive each of the first drive wheels.

[0011] Additionally, the second drive motors may be configured as at least one pair to independently drive each of the second drive wheels.

[0012] In addition, the rotational connecting portion has an axial shape arranged in parallel with the driving direction of the first body portion and the second body portion, one longitudinal side of the rotational connecting portion is rotatably connected to the first body portion, and the other longitudinal side of the rotational connecting portion can be fixed to the second body portion.

[0013] In addition, the rotational connecting part may further include a bearing means that is arranged on the first body part and rotatably connects the rotational connecting part, and a fixing means that is arranged on the second body part and fixes the rotational connecting part.

[0014] In addition, a support for supporting the transport object is further provided, the front side of the support is fixed to the first body part, and the rear side of the support can be rotatably connected to the second body part.

[0015] In addition, the second body part is further provided with a rear connection part, and the rear side of the support can be rotatably connected to the rear connection part.

[0016] In addition, the rear connecting portion has an axial shape, and the rear connecting portion can be arranged on the same axis as the rotary connecting portion.

[0017] A modular mobile robot according to the present invention comprises a first body part having at least one pair of first drive wheels rotatably arranged on the left and right, and a second body part having at least one pair of second drive wheels rotatably arranged on the left and right, which are rotatably connected to each other by a rotational connection part, so that the first body part and the second body part can move independently, and the first drive wheels and the second drive wheels are maintained in contact with the floor of a moving location, thereby enabling stable movement.

[0018] FIG. 1 is a side view of a modular mobile robot according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0019] FIG. 2 is a plan view of a modular mobile robot according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0020] Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the attached drawings. Prior to this, it should be noted that the terms and words used in this specification and claims should not be construed as limited to their conventional or dictionary meanings. Based on the principle that the inventor can appropriately define the concepts of terms to best explain his or her invention, they should be interpreted in a way that conforms to the technical spirit of the present invention.

[0021] Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, a modular mobile robot according to one embodiment of the present invention may include a first body part (100), a second body part (200), and a rotation connection part (300).

[0022] The above first body part (100) can be rotatably connected to at least one pair of first drive wheels (110) on the left and right so that it can move while being settled on the floor of the moving location.

[0023] The above first body part (100) is illustrated as a hexahedron connected by a plurality of horizontal unit members and vertical unit members, but it is not limited thereto and can be formed in various shapes.

[0024] In addition, the first body part (100) may be provided with a first drive motor (120) that generates a rotational force to rotate the first drive wheel (110). At least one first drive motor (120) may be provided, and more preferably, at least one pair may be provided to independently rotate each of the first drive wheels (110).

[0025] The above second body part (200) can be rotatably connected to at least one pair of second drive wheels (210) on the left and right so that it can move while being settled on the floor of the moving location.

[0026] The above second body part (200) is illustrated as a hexahedron connected by a plurality of horizontal unit members and vertical unit members, but it is not limited thereto and can be formed in various shapes.

[0027] In addition, the second body part (200) may be provided with a second drive motor (220) that generates a rotational force to rotate the second drive wheel (210). At least one second drive motor (220) may be provided, and more preferably, at least one pair may be provided to independently rotate each of the second drive wheels (210).

[0028] Additionally, the second body part (200) may be provided with a rear connection part (230) that rotatably connects the rear side of the support (400) to be described later.

[0029] The rear connection part (230) has an axial shape and can be connected to the second body part (200) so as to be arranged on the same axis as the rotation connection part (300). Here, the rear connection part (230) can be rotatably connected to the second body part (200) or fixedly connected.

[0030] Here, the first body part (100) and the second body part (200) are sequentially arranged in the front-back direction based on the driving direction, and the first body part (100) and the second body part (200) are connected to each other through the rotational connecting part (300) to be described later.

[0031] The above-mentioned rotational connecting part (300) rotatably connects the first body part (100) and the second body part (200) to each other.

[0032] The above-described rotational connecting part (300) may be formed in the form of an axis arranged parallel to the driving direction of the first body part (100) and the second body part (200).

[0033] Here, the rotational connecting part (300) can be rotatably connected to at least one of the first body part (100) and the second body part (200).

[0034] In one embodiment, one longitudinal side of the rotational connection part (300) may be rotatably connected to the first body part (100), and the other longitudinal side of the rotational connection part (300) may be fixed to the second body part (200). To this end, the rotational connection part (300) may include a bearing means (310) that rotates on the first body part (100) and a fixing means (320) that is arranged on the second body part (200).

[0035] The bearing means (310) is positioned on the first body part (100) and supports one longitudinal side of the rotational connection part (300) in a rotatable state, and the fixing means (320) is positioned on the second body part (200) and supports the other longitudinal side of the rotational connection part (300) in a fixed state. In one embodiment, the fixing means (320) can be applied as a bracket.

[0036] In this way, the rotational connecting part (300) is rotatably connected to at least one of the first body part (100) and the second body part (200) while being arranged in parallel with the driving direction of the first body part (100) and the second body part (200), so that the first body part (100) and the second body part (200) can move independently, and the first driving wheel (110) and the second driving wheel (210) can be maintained in a stable contact state with the floor of the moving location.

[0037] Additionally, a modular mobile robot according to one embodiment may be equipped with a stand (400) that supports a transport object (not shown) in a stationary state.

[0038] The above-described stand (400) is placed on the upper portion of the first body part (100) and the second body part (200), and the stand (400) can be connected to the first body part (100) and the second body part (200). The stand (400) can be provided with first and second connecting frames (400a, 400b) that are connected to the first body part (100) and the second body part (200).

[0039] The above-described support (400) can be rotatably connected to at least one of the first body part (100) and the second body part (200). In one embodiment, the front side of the support (400) is fixedly connected to the first body part (100) through the first connecting frame (400a), and the rear side of the support (400) can be rotatably connected to the second body part (200) through the second connecting frame (400b).

[0040] At the rear side of the above-mentioned stand (400), one side of the second connecting frame (400b) is connected to be fixed to the stand (400), and the other side of the second connecting frame (400b) can be connected to the rear connection part (230) provided in the second body part (200).

[0041] As an example, the second connecting frame (400b) may be provided with a structure in which a lower portion is bent for connection with the rear connecting portion (230), and the bent area may be formed as a connecting structure that can rotate while inserted into the rear connecting portion (230).

[0042] In another embodiment, the second connecting frame (400b) disposed on the rear side of the support (400) may be provided with a rotating joint (410) so as to be rotatably connected when connected to the rear connecting portion (230). The rotating joint (410) may be applied as a variety of joint members that allow for rotatably connecting in addition to a bearing member or a universal joint.

[0043] When the rear side of the above-mentioned support (400) is rotatably connected to the second body part (200), the forward movement of the support (400) according to the floor shape of the moving location where the first body part (100) is placed and the rearward movement of the support (400) according to the floor shape of the moving location where the second body part (200) is placed are separated, thereby preventing the movement of the support (400) from being affected by the movement of the second body part (200), thereby stably maintaining the movement of the transport object placed on the support (400).

[0044] In addition, when the rear side of the above-mentioned stand (400) is connected to the second body part (200) in a rotatably manner, the first body part (100) allows the stand (400) to move according to the shape of the floor of the moving location, thereby preventing deformation or damage due to twisting of the stand (400).

[0045] According to one embodiment of the present invention, a modular mobile robot comprises a first body part (100) having at least one pair of first drive wheels rotatably arranged on the left and right, and a second body part (200) having at least one pair of second drive wheels rotatably arranged on the left and right, which are rotatably connected to each other by the rotational connection part (300), so that the first body part (100) and the second body part (200) can move independently, and the first drive wheel (110) and the second drive wheel (210) are maintained in contact with the floor of the moving location, thereby enabling stable driving.

[0046] While the present invention has been described with reference to the embodiments illustrated in the drawings, these are merely exemplary, and those skilled in the art will appreciate that various modifications and equivalent alternative embodiments are possible. Therefore, the true scope of technical protection of the present invention should be determined by the technical spirit of the appended claims.

Claims

1. A first body part having at least one pair of first drive wheels rotatably arranged on the left and right sides and a first drive motor for rotating the first drive wheels; A second body part having at least one pair of second drive wheels rotatably arranged on the left and right sides and a second drive motor for rotating the second drive wheels; and A modular mobile robot comprising a rotational connecting portion that rotatably connects the first body portion and the second body portion to each other.

2. In claim 1, A modular mobile robot in which the first drive motor is configured in at least one pair to independently drive each of the first drive wheels.

3. In claim 1, A modular mobile robot in which the second drive motor is configured in at least one pair to independently drive each of the second drive wheels.

4. In claim 1, The above-mentioned rotary connecting part has an axis shape arranged parallel to the driving direction of the first body part and the second body part, A modular mobile robot in which one longitudinal side of the above-mentioned rotary connecting part is rotatably connected to the first body part, and the other longitudinal side of the above-mentioned rotary connecting part is fixed to the second body part.

5. In claim 4, The above rotating connection part A bearing means arranged in the first body part and rotatably connecting the rotary connecting part; A modular mobile robot further comprising a fixing means for fixing the rotational connecting part, the fixing means being arranged on the second body part.

6. In claim 1, A stand to support the transport object is additionally provided, A modular mobile robot in which the front side of the above-mentioned pedestal is fixed to the first body part and the rear side of the above-mentioned pedestal is rotatably connected to the second body part.

7. In claim 6, The above second body part is further provided with a rear connection part, A modular mobile robot in which the rear side of the above-mentioned pedestal is rotatably connected to the rear connection part.

8. In claim 7, The above rear connection part has an axial shape, A modular mobile robot in which the rear connection part is arranged on the same axis as the rotation connection part.

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