Design and Obstacle-surmounting Analysis of a Novel 6× 6 Wheel-tracked Unmanned Ground Platform

Abstract

In view of the complex topographic structure in the off-road and the insufficiency in trafficability of traditional multi-wheeled vehicles and tracked vehicles, a novel 6×6 wheel-tracked unmanned ground platform (6×6 WTUG platform) was purposed and designed in this paper, its posture can be rotated and adjusted through six independently driven wheel-track mechanisms to adapt to the complex off-road environment. Obstacle-surmounting performance is the fundamental factor in evaluation of platform trafficability. In order to evaluate the obstacle-surmounting performance of 6×6 WTUG platform in typical vertical obstacles, a posture planning model and a kinematic model of the obstacle-surmounting process were established. In order to verify the theoretical analysis, simulation of obstacle-surmounting was carried out in RecurDyn. Studies have shown that 6×6 WTUG platform can overcome obstacles higher than its own height, and the stability and feasibility of 6×6 WTUG platform posture planning were verified by analyzing the change in pitch angle during the obstacle-surmounting process. The studies on 6×6 WTUG platform has potential applications for off-road transportation, disaster relief and the military.