CN118545182A - A dual-mode wheel-foot mechanical leg and robot - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention discloses a dual-mode wheel-foot mechanical leg and robot, comprising: a thigh connection unit, wherein a side swing joint is provided at the end of the thigh connection unit; a calf connection unit, wherein a supporting wheel set is provided at the end of the calf connection unit; a wheel module, wherein the wheel module is provided at the end of the calf connection unit; a connecting rod mechanism is provided on the thigh connection unit, wherein the connecting rod mechanism maintains a transmission connection with the calf connection unit, and the calf connection unit is driven by the connecting rod mechanism to keep swinging so that the supporting wheel set abuts against the ground. The dual-mode wheel-foot mechanical leg and robot provided by the present invention can lower the center of gravity to move when the robot encounters an environment with height restrictions, and can enable the robot to stably pass through the environment with height restrictions, and can improve the robot's passability. At the same time, the mechanical leg provided by the present invention can adopt a four-wheel mode in the standby state, which can reduce the power consumption of the robot itself and extend the robot's endurance time.

Description

A dual-mode wheel-foot mechanical leg and robot

Technical Field

The present invention relates to the technical field of wheel-foot robots, and in particular to a dual-mode wheel-foot mechanical leg and a robot.

Background Art

With the continuous development of the robotics industry, various mobile robots are playing an increasingly important role in industrial production, human life and military operations. Wheeled robots are suitable for running on flat ground, but it is difficult to run stably on ground with complex terrain structure and full of obstacles, and the obstacle crossing ability is also limited by the radius of the wheel. Compared with wheeled mobile robots, leg-foot robots have strong adaptability to complex terrain and have a natural advantage in crossing obstacles, but their movement speed and energy utilization rate on flat ground are significantly lower than those of wheeled robots. In order to adapt to mixed road conditions, a wheel-foot robot that combines the high-speed mobility of wheeled robots and the adaptability of leg-foot robots to complex terrains has been proposed. It can switch freely in different terrains to achieve efficient all-terrain movement, with richer application scenarios and significantly improved operating efficiency.

According to the invention patent application with publication number: CN116750103A and publication date of 2023-09-15, a bipedal wheel-leg robot is disclosed, comprising a frame and a parallel leg mechanism symmetrically mounted on both sides of the frame; characterized in that the parallel leg mechanism comprises two first leg plates hinged on the frame, the other ends of the two first leg plates are deflected in opposite directions, and each is hinged with a second leg plate, the ends of the two second leg plates are hinged to each other, and a driving wheel assembly is coaxially mounted; the frame is also provided with a linear drive device corresponding to the first leg plate, the driving end of the linear drive device is movably connected to the first leg plate, and forms a triangular structure with the first leg plate and the frame, so that the first leg plate can rotate under the drive of the driving end of the linear drive device. Its main technical effect is: it has the advantages of being able to meet both the wheel leg swing rate and the wheel leg swing accuracy, which is conducive to reducing costs.

In the prior art, a two-wheeled robot needs to maintain its own balance in standby mode, which results in high energy consumption. When passing through a rough road, due to the design defects of the two-wheeled robot's joints, it is difficult to simulate gait walking on a rough road. Also, when crossing an environment with height restrictions, the center of gravity is too high to pass stably. Therefore, a dual-mode wheeled robot is proposed, which aims to solve the problems of high energy consumption caused by the need to maintain its own balance, difficulty in gait walking on a rough road, and inability to adjust the center of gravity height.

Summary of the invention

The purpose of the present invention is to provide a dual-mode wheeled-foot mechanical leg and robot, aiming to solve the problems of high energy consumption caused by the need to maintain self-balance, difficulty in walking on rough roads and inability to adjust the center of gravity height in the prior art wheeled-foot robots.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides the following technical solutions:

A dual-mode wheel-foot mechanical leg, comprising:

A thigh connection unit, wherein the end of the thigh connection unit is provided with a side swing joint;

A calf connection unit, the calf connection unit is rotatably connected to the thigh connection unit, and a supporting wheel set is provided at the end of the calf connection unit;

A wheel module, wherein the wheel module is arranged at an end of the calf connection unit;

The thigh connection unit is provided with a connecting rod mechanism, and the connecting rod mechanism is in transmission connection with the calf connection unit. The calf connection unit is driven to keep swinging by the connecting rod mechanism, so that the supporting wheel set contacts the ground.

Preferably, a connecting seat is provided at one end of the thigh connecting unit away from the side swing joint, the calf connecting unit is rotatably connected to the inside of the connecting seat, a connecting frame is provided at one end of the thigh connecting unit away from the connecting seat, a calf joint module is fixedly mounted on the connecting frame, and the connecting rod mechanism maintains a transmission connection with the calf joint module.

Preferably, the linkage mechanism includes a rocker and a connecting rod, the rocker is fixedly mounted on the output end of the calf joint module, a rotating seat is fixedly mounted on one end of the calf connection unit, one end of the connecting rod is rotatably connected to the rocker, and the other end of the connecting rod is rotatably connected to the rotating seat.

Preferably, the supporting wheel assembly comprises a universal wheel and a telescopic rod, the telescopic rod is fixedly mounted on an outer wall of one side of the calf connection unit, and the universal wheel is fixedly mounted on an output end of the telescopic rod.

Preferably, the side swing joint comprises a side swing module and a connecting piece, wherein the connecting piece is fixedly mounted on an output end of the side swing module, and the connecting piece is connected to a thigh connecting unit.

Preferably, a thigh joint module is fixedly mounted on the outer wall of one side of the connecting member, and the output end of the thigh joint module is fixedly connected to the thigh connection unit.

A robot applied to the above-mentioned dual-mode wheel-footed mechanical leg is characterized in that it includes a shell, a receiving groove is provided on the outer wall of one side of the shell, and mounting grooves are symmetrically provided on the inner wall of the receiving groove, the side swing joint is installed in the mounting groove, and the thigh joint module is located in the receiving groove. In the above-mentioned technical scheme, the present invention provides a dual-mode wheel-footed mechanical leg and robot, which has the following

Beneficial effects:

The invention drives the calf connection unit to keep swinging through the connecting rod mechanism arranged on the thigh connection unit, so that the calf connection unit can keep rotating, and then the supporting wheel group on the calf connection unit can be in contact with the ground, and can form a two-point support structure with the wheel module. By symmetrically arranging mechanical legs on the outer shell, the robot can lower its center of gravity to move when encountering an environment with height restrictions, and can stably pass through the environment with height restrictions, which can improve the robot's passability. At the same time, the mechanical legs provided by the present invention can adopt a four-wheel mode in standby state, which can reduce the robot's own power consumption and extend the robot's battery life.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In order to more clearly illustrate the embodiments of the present application or the technical solutions in the prior art, the drawings required for use in the embodiments will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments recorded in the present invention. For ordinary technicians in this field, other drawings can also be obtained based on these drawings.

FIG1 is a schematic diagram of the overall structure provided by an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG2 is a schematic diagram of a robot walking gait provided by an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG3 is a schematic diagram of a mechanical leg connection assembly according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG4 is a schematic diagram of the assembly structure of a mechanical leg provided by an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG5 is a schematic diagram of a four-wheel mobile mode provided by an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG6 is a schematic diagram of an overall assembly structure provided by an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram of the extension structure of the telescopic rod provided in an embodiment of the present invention.

Description of reference numerals:

1. Thigh connection unit; 11. Connection seat; 12. Connection frame; 13. Calf joint module; 14. Thigh joint module; 2. Side swing joint; 21. Side swing module; 22. Connector; 3. Calf connection unit; 31. Rotating seat; 4. Support wheel group; 41. Universal wheel; 42. Telescopic rod; 5. Wheel module; 6. Connecting rod mechanism; 61. Rocker; 62. Connecting rod; 7. Shell; 71. Receiving slot; 72. Installation slot.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In order to enable those skilled in the art to better understand the technical solution of the present invention, the present invention will be further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Please refer to Figures 1-7, a dual-mode wheel-foot mechanical leg includes:

A thigh connection unit 1, wherein the end of the thigh connection unit 1 is provided with a side swing joint 2;

A calf connection unit 3, wherein a support wheel set 4 is provided at the end of the calf connection unit 3;

A wheel module 5, wherein the wheel module 5 is arranged at the end of the calf connection unit 3;

The thigh connection unit 1 is provided with a connecting rod mechanism 6, and the connecting rod mechanism 6 is in transmission connection with the calf connection unit 3. The calf connection unit 3 is driven by the connecting rod mechanism 6 to keep swinging, so that the supporting wheel set 4 is in contact with the ground.

Specifically, the calf connection unit 3 is rotationally connected to the thigh connection unit 1 through a rotating shaft, and a side swing joint 2 is provided on one end of the thigh connection unit 1 away from the calf connection unit 3, and the side swing joint 2 can drive the thigh connection unit 1 to maintain lateral rotation, thereby driving the calf connection unit 3 to maintain lateral rotation synchronously;

A supporting wheel set 4 is provided at the end of the calf connection unit 3, and a wheel module 5 is provided at one end of the calf connection unit 3 away from the supporting wheel set 4. Specifically, the wheel module 5 is a robot wheel set with a driving function and automatic locking, which is a conventional technical means in the prior art, and its specific structure and principle are not described in detail here;

As shown in Figure 1, a connecting rod mechanism 6 is provided on the thigh connection unit 1, and the connecting rod mechanism 6 maintains a transmission connection with the calf connection unit 3. The calf connection unit 3 can be driven to swing around the connection point with the thigh connection unit 1 through the connecting rod mechanism 6. Since the calf connection unit 3 is provided with a supporting wheel group 4 and a wheel module 5, the calf connection unit 3 can be driven to rotate so that the supporting wheel group 4 is in contact with the ground. The overall center of gravity height and overall height are lowered by folding the thigh connection unit 1 and the calf connection unit 3, so that the passability is better and more stable when passing through some environments with height restrictions.

The invention drives the calf connection unit 3 to keep swinging by the connecting rod mechanism 6 arranged on the thigh connection unit 1, so that the calf connection unit 3 can keep rotating, and then the supporting wheel group 4 on the calf connection unit 3 can be in contact with the ground, and can form a two-point support structure with the wheel module 5. By symmetrically arranging mechanical legs on the outer shell 7, the robot can lower its center of gravity to move when encountering an environment with height restrictions, and can stably pass through the environment with height restrictions, thereby improving the robot's passability. At the same time, the mechanical legs provided by the present invention can adopt a four-wheel mode in standby mode, which can reduce the robot's own power consumption and extend the robot's battery life.

As an embodiment provided by the present invention, as shown in Figure 6, a connecting seat 11 is fixedly installed on the outer wall of the thigh connection unit 1 on one side away from the side swing joint 2, the calf connection unit 3 is rotatably connected to the inside of the connecting seat 11 through a rotating shaft, and a connecting frame 12 is fixedly installed on the outer wall on one side of the thigh connection unit 1. Preferably, the connecting frame 12 and the connecting seat 11 are located on the same side wall of the thigh connection unit 1, and a calf joint module 13 is fixedly installed on the connecting frame 12. The calf joint module 13 maintains a transmission connection with the connecting rod mechanism 6. By arranging the connecting frame 12 and the connecting seat 11 on the same side wall of the thigh connection unit 1, it is convenient for the connecting rod mechanism 6 to connect the calf connection unit 3 and the calf joint module 13, thereby reducing interference of the connecting rod mechanism 6 during movement.

As an embodiment provided by the present invention, as shown in Figure 3, the connecting rod mechanism 6 includes a rocker 61 and a connecting rod 62, the rocker 61 is fixedly installed at the output end of the calf joint module 13, and the rocker 61 can be driven to keep rotating through the calf joint module 13. As shown in Figure 6, a rotating seat 31 is fixedly installed on one end of the calf connection unit 3. Preferably, the rotating seat 31 is inclined, one end of the connecting rod 62 is rotationally connected to the rotating seat 31 through a rotating shaft, and the other end of the connecting rod 62 is rotationally connected to the rocker 61 through a rotating shaft. When the calf joint module 13 drives the rocker 61 to keep rotating, the rocker 61 can further drive the calf connection unit 3 to keep rotating through the connecting rod 62.

As an embodiment provided by the present invention, as shown in Figure 7, the supporting wheel group 4 includes a universal wheel 41 and a telescopic rod 42. The telescopic rod 42 is fixedly installed on the outer wall of one side of the calf connection unit 3, and the universal wheel 41 is fixedly installed on the output end of the telescopic rod 42. The telescopic rod 42 can be used to drive the universal wheel 41 to move closer to or away from the calf connection unit 3, so that the bottom of the universal wheel 41 can be adapted to the bottom of the wheel module 5 to ensure the balance of the robot posture.

As a further embodiment provided by the present invention, as shown in Figure 3, the side swing joint 2 includes a side swing module 21 and a connecting member 22, the connecting member 22 is fixedly installed at the output end of the side swing module 21, the connecting member 22 is connected to the thigh connection unit 1, the side swing module 21 can be installed according to the required installation position, and the side swing module 21 can be used to drive the connecting member 22 to keep rotating, thereby driving the thigh connection unit 1 to keep rotating laterally, and further, a thigh joint module 14 is fixedly installed on the outer wall on one side of the connecting member 22, and the output end of the thigh joint module 14 is fixedly connected to the thigh connection unit 1, and the thigh connection unit 1 can be driven to keep rotating through the thigh joint module 14, thereby completing the rotation action of the thigh connection unit 1.

A robot applied to the above-mentioned dual-modal wheel-foot mechanical leg includes a shell 7, a receiving groove 71 is opened on the outer wall of one side of the shell 7, and installation grooves 72 are symmetrically opened on the inner wall of the receiving groove 71. The side swing joint 2 is installed in the installation groove 72, and the thigh joint module 14 is located in the receiving groove 71.

As shown in Figure 4, a receiving groove 71 is opened on the outer wall on one side of the outer shell 7. Preferably, the receiving groove 71 is a "U"-shaped structure as a whole, which can accommodate the thigh drive module. An installation groove 72 is opened on the inner wall on one side of the receiving groove 71. The side swing module 21 is fixedly installed in the installation groove 72. There are two installation grooves 72, and the two installation grooves 72 are symmetrically arranged inside the receiving groove 71. As an embodiment provided by the present invention, there are two mechanical legs, which are respectively arranged on both sides of the outer shell 7, and the structures of the two mechanical legs are mirror-imaged.

Working principle:

When the robot is in the walking state, the wheel module 5 is in the locked state;

The thigh connection unit 1 is driven to keep rotating through the thigh joint module 14, and the rotation of the thigh connection unit 1 is realized. The rocker 61 is driven to keep rotating through the calf joint module 13, and then the connecting rod 62 is driven to rotate. Finally, the calf connection unit 3 is driven to keep rotating through the rotation of the connecting rod 62. The thigh connection unit 1 and the calf connection unit 3 are controlled by the control program to keep moving in sequence, so as to realize the walking action of the robot.

When the robot encounters an environment with height restrictions or needs to move quickly;

The calf joint module 13 is used to drive the calf connection unit 3 to swing back and rotate toward the thigh connection unit 1. At the same time, the thigh joint module 14 is used to adjust the posture of the shell 7. The telescopic rod 42 is extended through the control program to make the universal wheel 41 contact the ground, so that the universal wheels 41 and the wheel modules 5 on both sides form a four-legged mode with the ground, which can improve the stability of the robot during movement while lowering the overall center of gravity of the robot.

When the robot is in a wheeled mobile state, the thigh joint module 14 and the shank joint module 13 are coaxially designed, and the output end faces of each other are connected by the connecting frame 12. The thigh joint module 14 and the shank joint module 13 are used to adjust the thigh connection unit 1 and the shank connection unit 3 to a suitable joint angle. At the same time, the extension of the telescopic rod 42 can adjust the extension length of the universal wheel 41 and the wheel module 5 to maintain coordination to achieve the four-wheel stable mobile mode of the wheeled robot as a whole. By adjusting the height change of the robot's center of gravity, it can adapt to different terrain environments. In the standby or dormant state, the robot as a whole still maintains a four-wheel mobile state, and the universal wheel 41 touches the ground, but at this time the wheel module 5 brakes, and after the robot is adjusted to maintain a certain stable balance point, the side swing module 21, the thigh joint module 14, and the shank joint module 13 are also closed, thereby maintaining the overall balance of the fuselage and the energy consumption is also extremely low, which can greatly reduce the power consumption of the robot in the standby state and extend the robot's battery life.

In the foot-type mode, the telescopic rod 42 contracts to drive the universal wheel 41 off the ground, and the wheel module 5 is controlled by the upper computer to keep in the braking state, and the side swing joint 2 is used to maintain the balance of the robot when the leg is raised. The calf joint module 13 and the thigh joint module 14 are coaxially placed, and the thigh joint module 14 can adjust the rotation angle of the thigh. The calf connection unit 3 can be adjusted through the calf joint module 13 and the connecting rod mechanism 6, that is, the rotation of the calf joint module 13 can drive the calf connection unit 3 and the wheel module 5 installed at the bottom of the robot at the end of the calf connection unit 3 to swing accordingly, so that the thigh and calf parts of the wheel leg can be rotated to a certain angle as needed. At the same time, the gait mode can be realized by coordinating with the robot control system to adjust the center of gravity of the body.

The smooth switching between bipedal gait and four-wheel movement is realized. The telescopic rod 42 and the universal wheel 41 are connected and matched to realize the adjustable height of the robot's center of gravity in the wheeled movement state and the stable low-energy state of the four-wheel support in the standby mode. The upper computer control is used to realize the braking state of the wheel module 5, and at the same time, the cooperation with the side swing module 21, the thigh joint module 14, and the calf joint module 13 enters the gait mode.

Those skilled in the art will appreciate that other similar connection methods may also be used to implement the present invention, such as welding, bonding or screwing.

The above description is only by way of illustration of certain exemplary embodiments of the present invention. It is undoubted that, for those skilled in the art, the described embodiments can be modified in various ways without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. Therefore, the above drawings and descriptions are illustrative in nature and should not be construed as limiting the scope of protection of the claims of the present invention.

Claims (7)

1. A dual-mode wheel-foot mechanical leg, characterized by comprising: A thigh connection unit (1), wherein the end of the thigh connection unit (1) is provided with a side swing joint (2); A calf connection unit (3), wherein the calf connection unit (3) is rotatably connected to the thigh connection unit (1), and a supporting wheel set (4) is provided at the end of the calf connection unit (3); A wheel module (5), wherein the wheel module (5) is arranged at an end of the calf connection unit (3); The thigh connection unit (1) is provided with a connecting rod mechanism (6), and the connecting rod mechanism (6) is in transmission connection with the calf connection unit (3). The calf connection unit (3) is driven by the connecting rod mechanism (6) to keep swinging, so that the supporting wheel set (4) contacts the ground. 2. A dual-modal wheel-foot mechanical leg according to claim 1, characterized in that a connecting seat (11) is provided at one end of the thigh connection unit (1) away from the side swing joint (2), the calf connection unit (3) is rotatably connected to the inside of the connecting seat (11), a connecting frame (12) is provided at one end of the thigh connection unit (1) away from the connecting seat (11), a calf joint module (13) is fixedly installed on the connecting frame (12), and the connecting rod mechanism (6) maintains a transmission connection with the calf joint module (13). 3. A dual-modal wheeled-foot mechanical leg and robot according to claim 2, characterized in that the connecting rod mechanism (6) includes a rocker (61) and a connecting rod (62), the rocker (61) is fixedly installed at the output end of the calf joint module (13), one end of the calf connection unit (3) is fixedly installed with a rotating seat (31), one end of the connecting rod (62) is rotatably connected to the rocker (61), and the other end of the connecting rod (62) is rotatably connected to the rotating seat (31). 4. A dual-mode wheel-foot mechanical leg according to claim 1, characterized in that the supporting wheel group (4) includes a universal wheel (41) and a telescopic rod (42), the telescopic rod (42) is fixedly mounted on the outer wall of one side of the calf connection unit (3), and the universal wheel (41) is fixedly mounted on the output end of the telescopic rod (42). 5. A dual-mode wheel-foot mechanical leg according to claim 1, characterized in that the side swing joint (2) includes a side swing module (21) and a connecting member (22), the connecting member (22) is fixedly installed at the output end of the side swing module (21), and the connecting member (22) is connected to the thigh connection unit (1). 6. A dual-modal wheel-foot mechanical leg according to claim 5, characterized in that a thigh joint module (14) is fixedly installed on the outer wall of one side of the connecting member (22), and the output end of the thigh joint module (14) is fixedly connected to the thigh connection unit (1). 7. A robot applied to the dual-modal wheel-foot mechanical leg described in claims 1 to 6 above, characterized in that it comprises a shell (7), a receiving groove (71) is provided on the outer wall of one side of the shell (7), and installation grooves (72) are symmetrically provided on the inner wall of the receiving groove (71), the side swing joint (2) is installed in the installation groove (72), and the thigh joint module (14) is located in the receiving groove (71).