Wheeled Self-Balancing Robot Base for Stable Omnidirectional Mobility
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current robots, particularly humanoid and non-humanoid robots, face challenges with stability, slow movement, limited battery capacity, complexity in components, and high cost, making them unsuitable for navigating non-smooth surfaces and performing tasks efficiently.
Innovation Solution
A robot design featuring a wheeled self-balancing base with an omni-directional mobile platform, articulated lower joint, and a length-adjustable pedestal, combined with swappable end effectors, enables dynamic self-balancing and stability while performing various tasks such as lifting, carrying, and navigating uneven terrain.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Speed
If current walking robots use traditional leg-based locomotion mechanisms, then they can maintain structural stability, but they move slowly and have poor adaptability to non-smooth surfaces
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces traditional leg-based mechanical locomotion with a wheeled base system. The robot uses a mobile base with wheels instead of complex leg mechanisms, significantly simplifying the mechanical structure while enabling faster movement and better adaptability to non-smooth surfaces. This substitution of mechanical systems directly addresses the contradiction between movement speed and device complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The robot is divided into distinct functional modules: a mobile base unit with wheels, a pedestal unit with adjustable height, and an upper body unit. This segmentation allows each module to be optimized independently, reducing overall mechanical complexity while maintaining stability and improving navigation capabilities.
2Adaptability or versatility
If humanoid robots are designed with complex electronic and mechanical components to achieve human-like capabilities, then they can perform various tasks, but they become expensive and require maintenance
Solution Approach 1:
The robot design incorporates a universal mobile base that can support various upper body configurations and task-specific end effectors. The pedestal with adjustable height and the swappable end effectors enable the same base platform to perform multiple tasks, reducing the need for separate specialized robots and lowering overall system complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The robot employs dynamic self-balancing capabilities through an articulated lower joint that allows the pedestal to tilt in pitch and roll. This dynamic adjustment mechanism enables the robot to adapt to different terrains and task requirements without requiring complex static structural components, reducing mechanical complexity while maintaining versatility.
3Adaptability or versatility
If robots use fixed pedestal height mechanisms, then they have simpler structure, but they cannot adapt to different task heights or terrains
Solution Approach 1:
The pedestal incorporates a telescoping mechanism that allows dynamic height adjustment. This enables the robot to adapt to different task heights and terrain conditions by extending or retracting the pedestal, providing versatility without requiring multiple fixed-height mechanisms.
Solution Approach 2:
The height adjustment function is merged with the self-balancing articulation mechanism of the pedestal. Both the pitch/roll tilting and the telescoping height adjustment are integrated into a single articulated unit, reducing overall system complexity while maintaining adaptability.
4Productivity
If robots are designed with omnidirectional mobile bases for efficient navigation, then they can move faster and navigate better, but they require more energy
Solution Approach 1:
The mobile base uses omnidirectional wheels with adjustable parameters (wheel diameter, tread width, steering angle) to optimize navigation efficiency. By changing these parameters, the robot achieves faster movement and better terrain adaptability while managing energy consumption through efficient motion planning and control.
Data Source
AI summary
A mobile robot includes human-like physical proportions and a wheeled self-balancing base. The base may include an omni-directional mobile platform and an articulated (e.g., two-axis) lower joint to provide dynamic self-balancing capability while also maintaining a high level of stability during failures and when unpowered. The robot may furthermore include a length-adjustable pedestal that couples between the mobile base and an upper body. The upper body may include a pair of robot arms with swappable end effectors. The mobile robot may be employed for a wide variety of robot tasks such as lifting objects, carrying objects, pushing objects, pulling objects, or manipulating objects in settings such as warehouses or factories.