Inverted pendulum mobile vehicle

• US 20090288900A1
• Filed: 05/18/2009
• Published: 11/26/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 05/23/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Honda Motor Co., Ltd. (Honda Motor Company)
• Original Assignee: Honda Motor Co., Ltd. (Honda Motor Company)
• Inventors: Koyama, Taiji, Kobashi, Shinichiro, Takenaka, Toru, Hirano, Makoto, Izumi, Hideharu, Kuwabara, Kazuya
• Granted Patent: US 8,225,891 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 180/218
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2200/16 Single-axle vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/22 Yaw angle
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2260/34 Stabilising upright position of vehicles, e.g. of single axle vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B62K 11/007 Automatic balancing machines with single main ground engaging wheel or coaxial wheels supporting a rider
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0891 specially adapted for land vehicles

Abstract

Provided is an inverted pendulum mobile vehicle such as a single-passenger coaxial two-wheel vehicle which is capable of turning with a small turning radius without causing discomfort to a rider or a vehicle occupant or causing a cargo or the like on the vehicle from shifting or falling off from the vehicle. The vehicle comprises a wheel supporting frame (12), a body frame (12) supported by the wheel supporting frame so as to be rotatable around a vertical axial line and carry a rider and or a cargo and a body coupler (52, 78, 70) that couples the body frame relative to the wheel supporting frame in a prescribed dynamic positional relationship. Thereby, even when the wheel supporting frame undergoes a rapid yaw movement either while traveling in a fore-and-aft direction or remaining stationary, the body frame that carries a vehicle occupant or a cargo is allowed to follow the yaw movement of the wheel supporting frame at a slower angular speed and/or acceleration/deceleration so that the vehicle occupant is prevented from experiencing discomfort and the cargo is prevented from shifting on the body frame or falling off from the vehicle.

Claims

1. A mobile vehicle including at least one drive wheel and configured to be able to travel according to a principle of an inverted pendulum, comprising:

a wheel supporting frame rotatably supporting the drive wheel;

a drive actuator for actuating the drive wheel so as to cause the vehicle to travel in a fore-and-aft direction and to turn vehicle around a vertical axial line;

a body frame supported by the wheel supporting frame so as to be rotatable around a vertical axial line and carry a rider and or a cargo; and

a body coupler that couples the body frame relative to the wheel supporting frame in a prescribed dynamic positional relationship.

2. The mobile vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the body coupler comprises a yaw actuator that rotatively actuates the body frame relative to the wheel supporting frame, at least one sensor for detecting a dynamic state of the vehicle and a control device that provides a command signal for the yaw actuator according an output of the at least one sensor.

3. The mobile vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the sensor comprises a sensor for detecting a state of the actuator for actuating the drive wheel, and the control device provides a command signal for the yaw actuator so as to cause the body frame to follow a yaw movement of the wheel supporting member in a controlled manner.

4. The mobile vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the body coupler comprises a torsionally resilient member interposed between the body frame and wheel supporting frame.

5. The mobile vehicle according to claim 4, wherein the body coupler further comprises a torsionally damper interposed between the body frame and wheel supporting frame.

6. The mobile vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the vehicle comprises a pair of drive wheels which are coaxially disposed relative to each other so as to be rotated in an independent manner, and a pair of drive actuators that are configured to actuate the corresponding drive wheels individually.

7. The mobile vehicle according to claim 6, wherein the body frame comprises a pair of steps disposed on either side thereof to support corresponding feet of a rider and a pair of load sensors for detecting loads exerted on the steps by the corresponding feet of the rider, and the vehicle further comprises a control device that causes the drive actuators to actuate the drive wheels in such a way that the vehicle makes a turn to a side of one of the steps on which a greater load is applied than the other.

8. The mobile vehicle according to claim 6, further comprising a roll angle sensor mounted on the body frame and a control device that causes the drive actuators to actuate the drive wheels in such a way that the vehicle makes turn to a side toward which a roll angle of the body frame is detected by the roll angle sensor.