Design and Performance of a Wheel-legged Mobility System of Mars Rover

doi:10.3901/JME.2019.01.001

Abstract

Abstract: In order to overcome the problem that the traction of wheeled rover on loose terrain is limited by the wheel-soil mechanism. A four wheeled Mars rover with wheel-legged mobility is proposed. The adhesion of the brake wheel and the traction of the driving wheel is compared based on terramechanics, the sole mechanism of wheel-legged is clarified. A double pendulum walking mechanism is presented. Two rotate joints of double pendulum walking mechanism are associated with a belt drive. The driving motor takes less load and costs less energy than that the joints are drove independently. One planetary gear train and two brakes are utilized to control the four operating states of mobile system:wheel, step, wheel-legged and brake. The calculation methods of transmission ratio of wheel motion and step motion are given according to the load analysis of slope wheeled climbing and slope wheel-legged walking. The design and manufactured of the prototype is completed after the set of reducers is clarified. The typical gaits are proposed and the variation on joint load with each gait is analyzed built on simulation. This research aims to expand structures and research methods of Chinese rover, and to provide recommendations for future Mars exploration.

Key words: good performance suspension, Mars rover mobility system, principle and method of mechanical design, wheel-legged mobility system

CLC Number:

TP242

GAO Haibo, ZHENG Junqiang, LIU Zhen, WANG Yabin, YU Haitao, DENG Zongquan. Design and Performance of a Wheel-legged Mobility System of Mars Rover[J]. Journal of Mechanical Engineering, 2019, 55(1): 1-16.

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