MOBILE VEHICLE

• US 20170094144A1
• Filed: 09/07/2016
• Published: 03/30/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 09/24/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha (Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha (Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd.)
• Inventors: TOMOMASA, Masatoshi, KUNIHIRO, Hisashi
• Granted Patent: US 10,491,823 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 15/20 for control of the vehicle or its driving motor to achieve a desired performance, e.g. speed, torque, programmed variation of speed
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 15/2036 Electric differentials, e.g. for supporting steering vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2200/40 Working vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2220/46 Wheel motors, i.e. motor connected to only one wheel
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 50/60 using power supplied by batteries in combination with fuel cells B60L50/75
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 50/66 Arrangements of batteries
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/685 performed by mechanical compensation
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/185 from a mobile camera, e.g. for remote control
• CPC Class Codes: Y02P 90/60 Electric or hybrid propulsion means for production processes
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/64 Electric machine technologies in electromobility
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/70 Energy storage systems for electromobility, e.g. batteries
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/72 Electric energy management in electromobility

Abstract

The present invention aims to provide a mobile vehicle that can effectively suppress an image blur with a simple configuration.

The present invention provides a mobile vehicle comprising: an electric undercarriage that can travel; and an imaging unit provided on the electric undercarriage, wherein the electric undercarriage includes an undercarriage body, multiple wheels which are provided as a pair of left and right wheels on a front part of the undercarriage body and as a pair of left and right wheels on a rear part thereof, two electric motors that independently and rotationally drive the pair of left and right wheels on at least one of the front part and the rear part out of the multiple wheels, and a battery that supplies electric power to the two electric motors, the pair of left and right wheels rotationally driven by the electric motors being disposed on the same axle line, and in a plan view, the imaging unit is disposed in a circular region that is centered at a middle point on the axle line between the pair of left and right wheels rotationally driven by the electric motors and has a predetermined radius shorter than a distance between axle lines of the left and right wheels on the front and rear parts.

Claims

1. A mobile vehicle comprising:

an electric undercarriage that can travel; and

an imaging unit provided on the electric undercarriage, wherein

the electric undercarriage includes an undercarriage body, multiple wheels which are provided as a pair of left and right wheels on a front part of the undercarriage body and as a pair of left and right wheels on a rear part thereof, two electric motors that independently and rotationally drive the pair of left and right wheels on at least one of the front part and the rear part out of the multiple wheels, and a battery that supplies electric power to the two electric motors,

the pair of left and right wheels rotationally driven by the electric motors being disposed on the same axle line, and

in a plan view, the imaging unit is disposed in a circular region that is centered at a middle point on the axle line between the pair of left and right wheels rotationally driven by the electric motors and has a predetermined radius shorter than a distance between axle lines of the left and right wheels on the front and rear parts.

2. The mobile vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined radius is set to be equal to or shorter than a distance from the middle point to an outer peripheral edge of the electric undercarriage in a plan view.

3. The mobile vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the imaging unit is disposed in a rectangular region which falls within the circular region and is formed such that corner portions are located on the axle line and on a longitudinal centerline that passes through the middle point and is orthogonal to the axle line.

4. The mobile vehicle according to claim 1, wherein

the imaging unit is disposed on a longitudinal centerline that passes through the middle point and is orthogonal to the axle line in a plan view.

5. The mobile vehicle according to claim 1, wherein

the left and right wheels rotationally driven by the electric motors are front wheels, and

the imaging unit is disposed anterior to the middle point on the axle line of the pair of left and right wheels on the front part.

6. The mobile vehicle according to claim 1, further comprising a lift mechanism unit that is provided on the electric undercarriage to lift and lower the imaging unit, wherein

a movement range of the imaging unit lifted and lowered by the lift mechanism unit in a plan view falls within the circular region.

7. The mobile vehicle according to claim 6, wherein the lift mechanism unit is configured to move the imaging unit in the vertical direction and in the front-back direction with respect to the electric undercarriage.

8. The mobile vehicle according to claim 6, wherein the lift mechanism unit is configured to be capable of moving the imaging unit across the axle line in a plan view.

9. The mobile vehicle according to claim 6, wherein

the lift mechanism unit is a link mechanism including an underframe fixed on the undercarriage body to extend in the front-back direction, and a boom provided at a rear end of the underframe so as to be swingable around a lateral axis,

the underframe has a support unit that is provided on a front end of the underframe to support the boom, and

the support unit is disposed on the axle line.

10. The mobile vehicle according to claim 6, wherein the lift mechanism unit is configured to move the imaging unit only in the vertical direction with respect to the electric undercarriage.

11. The mobile vehicle according to claim 1, wherein each of the pair of left and right wheels rotationally driven by the electric motors includes a wheel body mounted to the electric undercarriage through a drive shaft and a tire mounted on an outer periphery of the wheel body and filled with air.

12. The mobile vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the mobile vehicle is an autonomous mobile vehicle.