Transporter With Rotationally Restricted Elevators For Uneven Terrain
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Solution Overview
Problem
Transporters for large payloads across uneven terrain face challenges in maintaining stability due to off-center payloads and ground undulations, leading to torque issues and impractical slewing operations.
Innovation Solution
The use of elongate extendable elevators with rotationally restricted joints and load sensors allows for independent adjustment of the payload's attitude and center of gravity, enabling stable lifting and transport across uneven terrain while preventing rotation about the elevator's axis, thus accommodating uneven terrain and maintaining balance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If the payload is lifted clear of rough terrain to be transported, then the payload can be transported across uneven ground, but the resultant arrangement is potentially top-heavy and unstable
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs dynamically adjustable elongate extendable elevators that can independently change their length and orientation. These elevators are actuatable to extend and bear on the payload support module, enabling the system to adapt its configuration in real-time to maintain stability while transporting across uneven terrain. The dynamic adjustment allows the elevators to compensate for terrain variations and payload position changes.
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes physical parameters of the elevators (length, orientation, extension) to maintain stability. By actuatably extending and retracting the elevators, the system adjusts its geometric parameters to counteract the top-heavy effect when the payload is lifted, thereby maintaining stable transport configuration across varying terrain conditions.
2Adaptability or versatility
If the payload centre of gravity is off centre, then the payload can accommodate varying load distributions, but the effect of ground undulations and gradients can be exaggerated to impart significant torque on the elevators
Solution Approach 1:
The independently actuatable elevators can dynamically adjust their extension and orientation in response to detected torque loads. When the payload center of gravity is off-center, the elevators on the lower side can extend further or orient at different angles to counterbalance the torque, while elevators on the higher side adjust accordingly. This dynamic response prevents excessive torque from being imposed on any single elevator.
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the operational parameters of the elevators (extension length, orientation angle) to counteract torque effects from off-center payloads. By adjusting these parameters differentially across multiple elevators, the system balances the torque distribution and prevents any single elevator from bearing excessive load.
3Ease of operation
If traditional transporters are used with ball joints and horizontal hydraulic cylinders, then the payload can be raised and lowered, but slewing operation is typically impractical and static turns require dropping and reloading the payload
Solution Approach 1:
The elongate extendable elevators provide dynamic positioning capability that enables both vertical lifting and horizontal slewing operations. By independently controlling the extension and orientation of each elevator, the system can smoothly transition between lifting, tilting, and slewing the payload without requiring static turns or dropping operations. This dynamic control allows continuous adjustment of payload position and orientation.
Data Source
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AI summary
A transporter for the transport of a large payload across an uneven ground surface is described. The transporter has a body (4); ground contacting transport means below the body, provided with drive means (1,2) to move the body across a ground surface in use; a payload support module (5) to support a payload above the body in use; and a plurality of elongate extendable elevators (6) each having a first articulated joint (17) with the body at a first end and a second articulated joint (13) with the payload support module at a second end. It is characterised in that each of the plurality of elongate extendable elevators is independently operable so as to enable the elongate extendable elevators (6) together to vary both the height and the attitude of the payload relative to the body; and in that at least one of each of the first (17) or second (13) articulated joints comprises a rotationally restricted joint that allows the elongate extendable elevator (6) to pivot relative to an axis orthogonal to its elongate direction but acts to prevent its rotation about an axis parallel to its elongate direction. The elongate extendable elevators are the means both by which the payload is lifted and by which the attitude of the payload is adjusted to enable it to balance.