Adjustable Wheel Lobes for Terrain Adaptation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional wheels are inefficient for traversing varying terrain types and bodies of water due to their design, which leads to increased energy expenditure and potential immobilization, especially when encountering rough, soft, or irregular surfaces.
Innovation Solution
A wheel assembly with rotatably adjustable wheel lobes and stem members that can be configured for optimal terrain negotiation, featuring convex curved surfaces and a revolute mechanism for shock absorption, allowing the platform to adapt to different terrains and environments, including water, by changing the footprint and motion dynamics.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Use of energy by moving object
If conventional wheels with uninterrupted cylindrical contact surface are used, then energy efficiency is optimal on smooth terrain, but the wheels become badly adapted to traversing irregular or absorbent terrain types
Solution Approach 1:
The wheel assembly employs dynamically adjustable wheel lobes that can change their configuration based on terrain conditions. The lobes are capable of extending and retracting, allowing the wheel to adapt its contact surface area and shape in real-time, thus maintaining energy efficiency across varying terrain types from smooth to irregular surfaces
Solution Approach 2:
The wheel is segmented into multiple adjustable lobes rather than a continuous cylindrical surface. This segmentation allows independent adjustment of each lobe's position and orientation, enabling the wheel to optimize its interaction with different terrain features while maintaining overall rotational function
2Adaptability or versatility
If wheels are changed in advance to suit different terrain types, then terrain adaptability is improved, but it becomes inconvenient or impossible to do so in the field and without specialist machinery
Solution Approach 1:
The wheel assembly incorporates self-adjusting mechanisms that automatically detect terrain conditions and modify the lobe configuration accordingly. This eliminates the need for manual intervention or specialist machinery to change wheels, as the system performs the adaptation autonomously in real-time
Solution Approach 2:
The wheel features dynamically controllable lobes that can be adjusted during operation through a control system. This dynamic capability allows the wheel to transition between different configuration states without requiring physical wheel changes or specialized equipment
3Adaptability or versatility
If thin arcuate spines are deployed on wheels, then capability to clamber over varied terrain types is improved, but the spines become snagged on debris or irregularities decreasing efficiency
Solution Approach 1:
The wheel lobes feature locally optimized surfaces with varying curvature and texture. The outer surfaces are designed with smooth convex curved regions that resist snagging on debris, while maintaining sufficient friction for terrain grip. This local quality differentiation allows effective terrain negotiation without the energy loss associated with spine snagging
4Productivity
If non-circular wheel shapes are used to move load in straight line, then movement efficiency on stairs is improved, but cycloidal motion increases energy expenditure on smooth ground
Solution Approach 1:
The wheel assembly uses dynamically adjustable lobes that can modify their effective radius and position during rotation. This dynamic adjustment allows the wheel to optimize its motion characteristics for different terrain types, reducing cycloidal motion on smooth ground while maintaining loading efficiency on varied terrain
Data Source
AI summary
A wheel assembly and a wheel are suitable for use with a mobile platform. The wheel assembly comprising a first wheel and a second wheel, each wheel comprising a hub having a central axis of rotation, and at least two wheel lobes coupled to the hub, the wheel lobes extending radially from the hub and spaced around the central axis of the hub, where the first wheel is rotatably mounted to the second wheel on a common axis, and a control mechanism rotates the first wheel with respect to the second wheel.