Steerable Drive Unit Layout for Precise Floor-Bound Vehicle Positioning
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Floor-bound vehicles with Mecanum wheels face challenges in achieving precise positioning and traction on uneven ground, particularly when individual wheels lose ground contact, requiring complex control mechanisms.
Innovation Solution
The vehicle incorporates at least two drive units with separate steering and driving functions, allowing adjustable wheel carriers and pivot axes to maintain ground contact and improve positioning accuracy, even on uneven terrain, through a combination of steering drives, gear mechanisms, and pivot devices.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If Mecanum wheels are used for omnidirectional movement, then the vehicle can be steered in any direction, but positioning accuracy deteriorates on uneven ground due to loss of ground contact
Solution Approach 1:
The wheel assembly is segmented into independent components: the drive wheel, the wheel carrier, and the pivot mechanism. This segmentation allows each component to perform its specific function - the drive wheel provides propulsion, the wheel carrier enables steering, and the pivot mechanism maintains ground contact - thereby resolving the contradiction between omnidirectional capability and positioning accuracy on uneven terrain
Solution Approach 2:
The wheel carrier is designed to be dynamically adjustable relative to the drive wheel through the pivot mechanism. This dynamic adjustment allows the wheel carrier to pivot and maintain ground contact even when the drive wheel loses contact on uneven terrain, preserving both omnidirectional steering capability and positioning accuracy
2Adaptability or versatility
If Mecanum wheels are used with multiple wheels, then omnidirectional movement is enabled, but control complexity increases due to continuous partial ground contact loss
Solution Approach 1:
The control system is segmented by assigning independent control to each wheel carrier-pivot assembly. Each assembly can be controlled independently to maintain ground contact, simplifying the overall control architecture compared to a fully coupled system and reducing control complexity while preserving omnidirectional movement capability
Solution Approach 2:
The pivot mechanism provides self-service by automatically adjusting the wheel carrier angle to maintain ground contact. This self-adjusting capability reduces the control burden on the central control system, thereby reducing control complexity while maintaining omnidirectional movement capability
3Ease of operation
If the travel drive is coupled to the steering mechanism, then integrated control is achieved, but suspension flexibility is reduced and ground contact is compromised on uneven ground
Solution Approach 1:
The drive and steering functions are segmented into separate controllable units. The travel drive rotates the drive wheel, while the steering mechanism independently pivots the wheel carrier. This functional separation allows each system to operate optimally without compromising the other, maintaining both ease of operation and ground contact reliability
Solution Approach 2:
The system employs dynamic decoupling where the travel drive and steering mechanism can operate independently or in coordination as needed. The pivot mechanism dynamically adjusts the wheel carrier position to maintain ground contact while the travel drive provides propulsion, ensuring reliable ground contact without sacrificing integrated control capability
4Device complexity
If simple wheel suspension is used, then structural simplicity is maintained, but positioning accuracy deteriorates due to inability to compensate for ground unevenness
Solution Approach 1:
The wheel carrier is designed with dynamic pivoting capability through the pivot mechanism. This allows the wheel carrier to automatically adjust its angle to maintain ground contact on uneven terrain, improving positioning accuracy without requiring complex suspension systems with multiple components
Solution Approach 2:
The pivot mechanism provides self-service by automatically compensating for ground unevenness through angle adjustment. This self-adjusting capability improves positioning accuracy on uneven terrain while maintaining structural simplicity, as the mechanism uses the existing wheel carrier geometry rather than requiring additional complex suspension components
Data Source
AI summary
A floor-bound vehicle, in particular for a movable production plant with a processing unit for processing a workpiece, with at least two drive units, wherein the drive units each comprise at least one drive wheel, a travel drive for driving the at least one drive wheel, a wheel carrier on which the at least one drive wheel is arranged, and a steering drive for adjusting the wheel carrier with the drive wheel about a geometric steering axis and thus steering the drive wheel, wherein for steering, the respective wheel carrier can be adjusted relative to the respective travel drive by means of the respective steering drive is provided.