Coaxial two-wheel vehicle

• US 7,717,200 B2
• Filed: 04/19/2007
• Issued: 05/18/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 04/14/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Inventors: Sawai, Kunihito, Kakinuma, Takekazu, Yamano, Ikuo
• Primary Examiner(s): Dayoan; Glenn
• Assistant Examiner(s): AVERY, BRIDGET D
• Application Number:
  US11/785,647
• Publication Number:
  US 20070251735A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,125 Days
• Field of Search: 180/65.1, 180/65.5, 180/180, 180/181, 180/218, 280/652, 280/87.041, 280/33.992
• US Class Current: 180/6.5
• CPC Class Codes: A63C 17/08 single-wheel type with single axis
• CPC Class Codes: A63C 17/12 with driving mechanisms
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2200/16 Single-axle vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2200/24 Personal mobility vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2220/46 Wheel motors, i.e. motor connected to only one wheel
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/18 lateral
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2240/20 angular
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2250/24 by lever actuation
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 2260/34 Stabilising upright position of vehicles, e.g. of single axle vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 51/02 the driver standing in the vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 61/00 Motor vehicles or trailers, characterised by the arrangement or number of wheels, not otherwise provided for, e.g. four wheels in diamond pattern
• CPC Class Codes: B62K 11/007 Automatic balancing machines with single main ground engaging wheel or coaxial wheels supporting a rider

Abstract

A coaxial two-wheel vehicle is provided. The coaxial two-wheel vehicle includes a step plate for a rider to ride on; a vehicle body supporting the step plate to be capable of changing a posture in a roll direction of rotating around a roll axis as the center when a traveling direction is set to the roll axis; and a pair of wheels disposed on the same axis at both sides of the vehicle body in a direction orthogonal to the traveling direction and rotatably supported by the vehicle body. Further, the coaxial two-wheel vehicle includes a pair of wheel drivers driving and rotating the pair of wheels independently and a control lever directly changing a posture of the step plate or indirectly changing the posture through the vehicle body.

Claims

1. A coaxial two-wheel vehicle comprising:

a step plate for a rider to ride on;

a vehicle body supporting said step plate to be capable of changing a posture of the step plate in a roll direction around a roll axis, and wherein a traveling direction has a component extending in a direction of the roll axis;

a pair of wheels disposed at both sides of said vehicle body, and wherein an axis extending through said pair of wheels is orthogonal to said roll axis, and wherein the pair of wheels are rotatably supported by the vehicle body;

a pair of wheel drivers driving and rotating said pair of wheels independently;

a control lever directly changing a posture of said step plate indirectly changing the posture of said step plate through said vehicle body; and

wherein said control lever is supported in a turnable manner by said vehicle body, and a return biasing mechanism is provided to bias and return said control lever toward an initial position after said control lever is operated.

4. A coaxial two-wheel vehicle according to claim 1,

wherein said control lever is fixed to said step plate and a posture of said step plate can be changed by an operation of said control lever.

7. A coaxial two-wheel vehicle according to claim 1 further comprising:

a posture detector detecting an angle between said step plate or control lever and a gravitational axis to output a detection signal,

wherein said pair of wheel drivers are driven and controlled based on the signal detected by said posture detector such that predetermined centrifugal force is given.

8. A coaxial two-wheel vehicle according to claim 1,

wherein a posture of said step plate is changed to accommodate a centrifugal force of said rider based on a control signal output to said pair of wheel drivers.

9. A coaxial two-wheel vehicle according to claim 1, wherein said vehicle body includes a saddle supporting at least part of the weight of said rider.

10. A coaxial two-wheel vehicle according to claim 1, wherein said vehicle body includes a plurality of control levers provided upright at a predetermined interval in a direction orthogonal to said traveling direction.

12. A coaxial two-wheel vehicle according to claim 1, wherein said control lever includes a foot control portion to change a posture of said step plate by a foot of said rider.

16. A coaxial two-wheel vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the pair of wheels includes a first wheel and a second wheel, and wherein the pair of wheel drivers includes a first wheel driver which imparts a driving force to the first wheel and a second wheel driver which imparts a driving force to the second wheel.

2. A coaxial two-wheel vehicle comprising:

a step plate for a rider to ride on;

a vehicle body supporting said step plate to be capable of changing a posture of the step plate in a roll direction around a roll axis, and wherein a traveling direction has a component extending in a direction of the roll axis;

a pair of wheels disposed at both sides of said vehicle body, and wherein an axis extending through said pair of wheels is orthogonal to said roll axis, and wherein the pair of wheels are rotatably supported by the vehicle body;

a pair of wheel drivers driving and rotating said pair of wheels independently;

a control lever directly changing a posture of said step plate or indirectly changing the posture of said step plate through said vehicle body;

wherein said vehicle body includes a parallel link mechanism having a vehicle body upper member and a vehicle body lower member that are disposed above and below in parallel with each other, and a pair of lateral members are disposed left and right in parallel with each other and are connected to said vehicle body upper member and vehicle body lower member in a turnable manner; and

said step plate is divided into two divided steps individually fixed to said pair of lateral members and said pair of wheels are supported by said pair of lateral members through said pair of wheel drivers.

5. A coaxial two-wheel vehicle according to claim 2,

wherein a first elastic member generating a spring force orthogonally maintaining respective angles formed by said vehicle body upper member and vehicle body lower member and said pair of lateral members is interposed between the vehicle body upper member and vehicle body lower member.

3. A coaxial two-wheel vehicle comprising:

a step plate for a rider to ride on;

a vehicle body supporting said step plate to be capable of changing a posture of the step plate in a roll direction around a roll axis, and wherein a traveling direction has a component extending in a direction of the roll axis;

a pair of wheels disposed at both sides of said vehicle body, and wherein an axis extending through said pair of wheels is orthogonal to said roll axis, and wherein the pair of wheels are rotatably supported by the vehicle body;

a pair of wheel drivers driving and rotating said pair of wheels independently;

a control lever directly changing a posture of said step plate or indirectly changing the posture of said step plate through said vehicle body; and

wherein said step plate is divided into two divided steps which are individually supported by said vehicle body in a manner capable of changing a posture and which are connected by a connecting link in a turnable manner, and said two divided steps are capable of changing a posture in synchronization with an operation of said control lever by connecting said control lever to a middle portion of said connecting link in a turnable manner.

6. A coaxial two-wheel vehicle comprising:

a step plate for a rider to ride on;

a vehicle body supporting said step plate to be capable of changing a posture of the step plate in a roll direction around a roll axis, and wherein a traveling direction has a component extending in a direction of the roll axis;

a pair of wheels disposed at both sides of said vehicle body, and wherein an axis extending through said pair of wheels is orthogonal to said roll axis, and wherein the pair of wheels are rotatably supported by the vehicle body;

a pair of wheel drivers driving and rotating said pair of wheels independently;

a control lever directly changing a posture of said step plate or indirectly changing the posture of said step plate through said vehicle body;

wherein said control lever is fixed to said step plate and a posture of said step plate can be changed by an operation of said control lever; and

wherein an elastic member generating a spring force maintaining said step plate parallel with said vehicle body is interposed between said step plate and the vehicle body.

11. A coaxial two-wheel vehicle comprising:

a step plate for a rider to ride on;

a vehicle body supporting said step plate to be capable of changing a posture of the step plate in a roll direction around a roll axis, and wherein a traveling direction has a component extending in a direction of the roll axis;

a pair of wheels disposed at both sides of said vehicle body, and wherein an axis extending through said pair of wheels is orthogonal to said roll axis, and wherein the pair of wheels are rotatably supported by the vehicle body;

a pair of wheel drivers driving and rotating said pair of wheels independently;

a control lever directly changing a posture of said step plate or indirectly changing the posture of said step plate through said vehicle body; and

wherein said control lever includes a turning control ring capable of adjusting drive velocity of said pair of wheel drivers.

13. A coaxial two-wheel vehicle comprising:

a step plate for a rider to ride on;

a vehicle body supporting said step plate to be capable of changing a posture of the step plate in a roll direction around a roll axis, and wherein a traveling direction has a component extending in a direction of the roll axis;

a pair of wheels disposed at both sides of said vehicle body, and wherein an axis extending through said pair of wheels is orthogonal to said roll axis, and wherein the pair of wheels are rotatably supported by the vehicle body;

a pair of wheel drivers driving and rotating said pair of wheels independently;

a control lever directly changing a posture of said step plate or indirectly changing the posture of said step plate through said vehicle body; and

wherein said step plate includes first and second steps, and wherein the first step is closer to a first wheel of said pair of wheels and the second step is closer to a second wheel of said pair of wheels.

14. A coaxial two-wheel vehicle according to claim 13, wherein said first and second steps are supported by said vehicle so as to be capable of changing a posture about said roll axis.

15. A coaxial two-wheel vehicle according to claim 13, wherein a controller controls the posture of the first and second steps such that relative to a horizontal plane:

(a) the first and second steps are inclined relative to the horizontal plane when the vehicle is making a turn on a flat horizontal surface, and (b) the first and second steps are substantially parallel to the horizontal plane when the vehicle is traveling in a straight path on an inclined surface such that one of said pair of wheels is higher than the other of said pair of wheels.

17. A coaxial two-wheel vehicle comprising:

a step plate for a rider to ride on;

a vehicle body supporting said step plate to be capable of changing a posture of the step plate in a roll direction around a roll axis, and wherein a traveling direction has a component extending in a direction of the roll axis;

a pair of wheels disposed at both sides of said vehicle body orthogonal to said roll axis, and wherein the pair of wheels are rotatably supported by the vehicle body;

at least one wheel driver providing a driving force for rotating at least one of said pair of wheels;

a control lever directly changing a posture of said step plate or indirectly changing the posture of said step plate through said vehicle body; and

wherein the step plate includes a first step and a second step, and wherein a controller controls the posture of the first and second steps such that relative to a horizontal plane;

(a) the first and second steps are inclined relative to the horizontal plane when the vehicle is making a turn on a flat horizontal surface, and (b) the first and second steps are substantially parallel to the horizontal plane when the vehicle is traveling in a straight path on an inclined surface such that one of said pair of wheels is higher than the other of said pair of wheels.

18. A coaxial two-wheel vehicle according to claim 17, wherein the pair of wheels includes a first wheel and a second wheel, and wherein the at least one wheel driver includes a first wheel driver providing a driving force driving the first wheel and a second wheel driver providing a driving force driving the second wheel, and wherein the first and second wheel drivers are controlled to rotate the first and second wheels at different speeds for turning of the vehicle.

19. A coaxial two-wheel vehicle according to claim 17, further including a posture sensor for sensing a posture of the step plate or the control lever.