A robotic vehicle (100) for traversing surfaces (111) is provided. The vehicle (100) is comprised of a front chassis section (112) including a magnetic drive wheel (116) for driving and steering the vehicle (100) and a front support point (140)configured to contact the surface. The vehicle (100) also includes a rear chassis section (114) supporting a follower wheel (138). The front and rear chassis sections (112,114) are connected by joints including a hinge joint (120) and a four-bar linkage (122). The hinge (120) is configured to allow the trailing assembly to move side-to-side while the four-bar linkage allows the trailing rear chassis section (114) to move up and down relative to the front chassis (112). Collectively, the rear facing mechanism is configured to maintain the follower wheel (138) in contact with and normal to the surface (111) and also maintains the front support point (140) in contact with the surface (111) and provides stability and maneuverability to the vehicle (100) while traversing surfaces regardless of surface curvature and vehicle orientation.
MAGNETIC CRAWLER VEHICLE WITH PASSIVE REAR-FACING APPARATUS
MAGNETISCHES RAUPENFAHRZEUG MIT PASSIVER RÜCKSEITIGER VORRICHTUNG
VÉHICULE À CHENILLE MAGNÉTIQUE DOTÉ D'UN APPAREIL PASSIF TOURNÉ VERS L'ARRIÈRE
2021-09-22
Patent
Electronic Resource
English
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