Amusement devices: toys – Rolling or tumbling – Including intrinsic motive power means for propulsion
Reexamination Certificate
2000-06-15
2001-05-08
Ackun, Jr., Jacob K. (Department: 3712)
Amusement devices: toys
Rolling or tumbling
Including intrinsic motive power means for propulsion
C446S458000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06227933
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an autonomous robot ball capable of displacing in various environments, including indoors as well as outdoors.
2. Brief Description of the Prior Art
Upon designing a robot, the main difficulty is to make it sufficiently robust to sustain all environmental and operating conditions: shocks, stairs, carpets, various obstacles, manipulations by the children in the case of a toy, etc.
Prior art wheeled robot can turn upside down and, then, be incapable of relieving this deadlock.
A prior art solution to this problem is to use wheels bigger than the body of the robot. However, this does not prevent the robot from blocking in elevated position onto an object.
Another solution to this problem is described in the following prior art patents:
U.S. 3,798,835 (McKeehan) Mar. 26, 1974
U.S. 5,533,920 (Arad et al.) Jul. 9, 1996
U.S. 5,947,793 (Yamakawa) Sep. 7, 1999
CA 2 091 218 (Christen) Jul. 5, 1994
This solution consists of building a robot around a spherical shell enclosing a drive system. This drive system comprises an electric drive motor for rotating the spherical shell about an axis of rotation and thereby propelling the robot. The counter-rotating force on the electric drive motor is produced by a counterweight spaced apart from the axis of rotation. A drawback of such prior art robot balls is that steering thereof is not provided for.
OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION
An object of the present invention is therefore to provide a robot ball having steering capabilities.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a robot ball comprising an inclinometer to control the speed of rotation of the electric drive motor in relation to the angular position of the counterweight about the axis of rotation.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
More specifically, in accordance with the present invention, there is provided a robot ball comprising an encapsulating shell, a drive system encapsulated in the shell and comprising a first motorized mechanism and a counterweight, and a steering system comprising a second motorized, counterweight displacing mechanism. The encapsulating shell has an axis of rotation and an outer annular tread surface centered on this axis of rotation. The first motorized mechanism has a stator portion and a rotor portion centered on the axis of rotation and connected to the shell. The counterweight is connected to the stator portion and spaced apart from the axis of rotation whereby, due to inertia of the counterweight, rotation of the rotor portion rotates the shell to roll the tread surface on the ground. The second motorized mechanism connects the counterweight to the stator portion, and defines a course of displacement of the counterweight which extends along the axis of rotation.
In operation, activation of the second motorized mechanism displaces the counterweight along the axis of rotation, tilts this axis of rotation, displaces the center of gravity of the robot ball, and thereby changes the trajectory of the robot ball. This provides for steering of the robot ball.
According to a preferred embodiment, the second motorized mechanism includes a pivot assembly having a pivot axis transversal to the axis of rotation whereby, in operation, activation of the second motorized mechanism rotates the counterweight about the pivot axis, tilts the axis of rotation, displaces the center of gravity of the robot ball, and thereby changes the trajectory of the robot ball.
In accordance with other preferred embodiments of the robot ball:
the encapsulating shell comprises a generally spherical outer face;
the annular tread surface is generally elliptical in a cross sectional plane in which the axis of rotation is lying;
the pivot axis is substantially perpendicular to the axis of rotation;
the stator portion comprises a platform;
the first motorized mechanism comprises at least one electric drive motor having a stator and a rotor, the stator of the electric motor is secured to the platform, the rotor of the electric motor is centered on the axis of rotation and is connected the shell;
the first motorized mechanism comprises first and second electric drive motors each having a stator and a rotor, the stator of the first electric drive motor is secured to the platform, the stator of the second electric drive motor is secured to the platform, the rotor of the first electric drive motor is centered on the axis of rotation and is connected a first point of the shell, and the rotor of the second electric drive motor is centered on the axis of rotation and is connected to a second point of the shell diametrically opposite to the first point of this shell;
the platform comprises an underside, the second motorized mechanism comprises an electric servomotor having a stator and a rotor, the stator of the electric servomotor is secured to the underside of the platform, and the rotor of the electric servomotor is centered on the pivot axis and is connected to the counterweight;
the counterweight comprises an electric battery;
the counterweight comprises an electric battery and a bracket to mechanically connect the battery to the rotor of the servomotor;
the robot ball further comprises an inclinometer so mounted on the platform as to measure an inclination of this platform about the pivot axis, and a controller of the electric servomotor in relation to the measured platform inclination about the pivot axis; and
the robot ball further comprises at least one external sensors and a robot ball controller responsive to these sensors, these external sensors comprise a robot ball spin sensor unit detecting spinning of the robot ball, a voice instructions recognising system, and/or a tactile system, and the robot ball further comprises a voice message generating system controlled by the robot ball controller;
the robot ball further comprises an obstacle detector and a controller of the second motorized mechanism in response to an obstacle detected by the obstacle detector.
Also in accordance with the present invention, there is provided a robot ball comprising an encapsulating shell, a drive system encapsulated in the shell and comprising a motorized mechanism and a counterweight, an inclinometer and a controller. The encapsulating shell has an axis of rotation and an outer annular tread surface centered on the axis of rotation. The motorized mechanism has a stator portion and a rotor portion centered on the axis of rotation and connected to the shell. The counterweight is connected to the stator portion and spaced apart from the axis of rotation whereby, due to inertia of the counterweight, rotation of the rotor portion rotates the shell to roll the tread surface on the ground. The inclinometer is so mounted on the stator portion as to measure an inclination of this stator portion about the axis of rotation, and the controller regulates the speed of rotation of the rotor portion in relation to the measured inclination.
In this manner, the inclinometer allows the robot ball to control the angular position of the motorized mechanism about the axis of rotation.
Preferably, the stator portion comprises a platform and the inclinometer is mounted on the platform.
According to a preferred embodiment, the motorized mechanism comprises at least one electric drive motor having a stator and a rotor, the stator of the electric drive motor is secured to the platform, the rotor of the electric drive motor is centered on the axis of rotation and is connected the shell, the inclinometer is mounted on the platform to measure an inclination of this platform about the axis of rotation, and the controller is a controller of the speed of rotation of the electric drive motor in relation to the measured platform inclination.
Other objects, advantages and features of the present invention will become more apparent upon reading of the following non-restrictive description of a preferred embodiment thereof, given by way of example only with reference to the accompanying drawings.
REFERENCES:
patent: 2939246 (1960-06-01), Glos
patent: 2949696 (1960-
Caron Serge
Michaud François
Ackun Jr. Jacob K.
Dubuc Goudreau Gage
Francis Faye
Universite de Sherbrooke
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