Research and application of a coupled wheel-track off-road robot based on separate track structure

A novel coupled wheel/track mechanism is proposed to overcome the complexity and limited applicability of conventional coupled wheel/track robots. The mechanism is based on the design of a tracked off-road robot, where the track is separated from the driving wheel and the load-bearing wheel by a fork fixed on the frame. The tension-wheel compensates for the shortening of the track winding length by moving along the frame. The chain transmission between the first pair of load-bearing wheels and the driving wheel enables the wheeled operation. The coupling mechanism is characterized by only one set of walking mechanism, and the coupling is realized by separating part of the walking mechanism, avoiding the use of the clutch. The advantages of this mechanism are its simple and reliable structure, low cost, and easy installation of the suspension system. A simulation experiment is conducted to verify the performance of the mechanism, and a prototype is designed and manufactured for testing. The structure was used to design simulation experiments, and a test model of the vehicle was designed and fabricated. The design specifications were achieved by the results.