Delivery Robot Door Mechanism for Space-Constrained Opening
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Solution Overview
Problem
Delivery robots face challenges in safely transporting items over uneven terrain and navigating obstacles while maintaining the security of stored goods, especially when the cost of manufacturing is high and the robots need to travel long distances without human supervision.
Innovation Solution
A delivery robot design featuring a door that can open and close to secure the storage compartment, utilizing a sliding mechanism with a motor-driven link system and sensors for safe operation, allowing the robot to adapt to limited spaces and prevent items from falling, while also enhancing aesthetic appearance and safety by minimizing external exposure.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a door is added to cover the body opening for safety, then item security is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The door is divided into a door panel and a door link mechanism. The door link is further segmented into multiple links connected by pivots, allowing the door to open and close through a coordinated movement of these segments rather than a single rigid structure.
Solution Approach 2:
The door mechanism uses pivots that allow rotational movement between links. The door panel moves from a closed position (covering the body opening) to an open position (allowing access), with the angle of the door panel changing dynamically during operation. This dynamic movement is controlled by the motor driving the door link.
2Ease of operation
If the door panel moves laterally to open, then ease of operation is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The door link acts as an intermediary mechanism between the motor and the door panel. The motor provides pivoting force to the door link, which in turn moves the door panel laterally. This intermediary mechanism translates the motor's rotational output into the desired lateral movement of the door panel.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of moving the door panel in a simple arc (hinged motion), the mechanism uses multiple links and pivots to achieve lateral movement in a different dimension. The door panel moves sideways relative to the body housing, creating a sliding effect that is more space-efficient and aesthetically pleasing.
3Adaptability or versatility
If the first spacing of the door link is greater than the second spacing, then adaptability to limited spaces is improved, but manufacturing precision requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The door link mechanism deliberately uses asymmetric spacing between its components. The first spacing (between the first end and second end of the first door link) is designed to be greater than the second spacing (between the first end and second end of the second door link). This asymmetric configuration allows the door to operate effectively in limited spaces while maintaining functional performance.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution ensures safe delivery of items by preventing the door from opening during movement, maintaining safety through locking mechanisms, and allowing for efficient use of internal space with partitioning, reducing the risk of injury and electronic component damage, and facilitating easy maintenance and item retrieval.
Implementation Method 1
a first door link having a first end pivotably coupled to the door panel and a second end pivotably coupled to the body housing
Implementation Method 2
the door panel... slides in a lateral direction of the body housing in the open state
Data Source
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AI summary
A delivery robot includes a body housing including a storage defined therein and a body opening defined in a front surface thereof, and a door that operates in a closed state to cover the body opening or an open state to open the body opening. The door includes a door panel that covers the body opening at the front surface of the body housing in the closed state and slides in a lateral direction of the body housing in the open state, a first door link having a first end pivotably coupled to the door panel and a second end pivotably coupled to the body housing, and a motor that provides a pivoting force to the first door link. The door panel has different angles in the open state and the closed state. The delivery robot safely opens and closes the door in a limited space by moving a pivoting range of the door along an outer surface of a body when the door is opened.