Spherical wheel/tire assembly
First Claim
1. A support assembly for a vehicle travelling along a road surface and rotating relative to the road surface and the vehicle comprising:
- a spherical tread layer for contacting the road surface;
a foam layer adjacent the spherical tread layer, the foam layer including adjustable elements for altering an outer physical contour of the spherical tread layer, the outer physical contour contacting the road surface;
a spherical wheel/tire for supporting the spherical tread layer and the vehicle; and
a drive system magnetically driving rotation of the spherical wheel/tire relative to the vehicle such that no portion of the spherical tread layer physically contacts the vehicle, the drive system including a radially extending fiber optic element for external communication, a radially extending electronic communication/power bus, and an energy harvester disposed in the foam layer.
1 Assignment
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A support assembly for a vehicle travels along a road surface and rotates relative to the road surface and the vehicle. The first support assembly includes a spherical tread layer for contacting the road surface, a foam layer adjacent the spherical tread layer, the foam layer including adjustable elements for altering an outer physical contour of the spherical tread layer, the outer physical contour contacting the road surface, a spherical wheel/tire for supporting the spherical tread layer and the vehicle, and a drive system magnetically driving rotation of the spherical wheel/tire relative to the vehicle such that no portion of the spherical tread layer physically contacts the vehicle.
32 Citations
16 Claims
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1. A support assembly for a vehicle travelling along a road surface and rotating relative to the road surface and the vehicle comprising:
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a spherical tread layer for contacting the road surface; a foam layer adjacent the spherical tread layer, the foam layer including adjustable elements for altering an outer physical contour of the spherical tread layer, the outer physical contour contacting the road surface; a spherical wheel/tire for supporting the spherical tread layer and the vehicle; and a drive system magnetically driving rotation of the spherical wheel/tire relative to the vehicle such that no portion of the spherical tread layer physically contacts the vehicle, the drive system including a radially extending fiber optic element for external communication, a radially extending electronic communication/power bus, and an energy harvester disposed in the foam layer. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9)
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10. A support assembly for a vehicle travelling along a road surface and rotating relative to the road surface and the vehicle comprising:
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a spherical tread layer for contacting the road surface; a foam layer disposed radially inward of the spherical tread layer; a magnetic layer disposed radially inward of the foam layer, the magnetic layer including diamagnetic elements for penetrating a magnetic field with an opposed polarity to a permanent magnet of the vehicle; and a drive system magnetically driving rotation of the magnetic layer relative to the vehicle such that no portion of the spherical tread layer physically contacts the vehicle. - View Dependent Claims (11, 12, 13)
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14. A method for supporting a vehicle, the method comprising the steps of:
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travelling along a road surface by the vehicle; rotating a spherical tread layer relative to the road surface and the vehicle with the spherical tread layer rolling along the road surface; magnetically driving rotation of a magnetic layer relative to the vehicle such that no portion of the spherical tread layer physically contacts the vehicle; adjusting an outer contour of the spherical tread layer for improving the contact between the outer contour and the road surface; altering a physical shape of an adjustable element radially beneath the spherical tread layer; and powering alteration of the adjustable element by an energy harvester. - View Dependent Claims (15, 16)
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Specification