Here is a rover that shows how I see an articulated joint being used. This rover has two independent sections with four wheels each. The sections are connected by a bus style articulated joint that allows easier handling of uneven terrain. This is the same type of articulation used in articulated transit buses. This rover would be much better equipped to handle climbing over obstacles, since the articulation allows a vertical pivot.
Quite an interesting design, with a lot of pros to it, however, cons to think about, the ammount of force to overcome to turn an articulated vehicle, stress on the servo? Or rather, ways of articulating the vehicle… Sure options are out there, but you have to figure how much the thing will weigh and if it gets into some sand it will be even moreso hard to turn. Atop that, is it just going to be a kind of hinge between the two for traveling over hills, or could you make one designated end (the aft perhaps) heavier than then front and power that joint to thus lift the front end onto a surface. Would be neat… Things to ponder anyway.
What servo would be stressed in turning? The articulation linkage doesn’t have any servos in it at all, which I think is one of the coolest things about it. It is all ball bearing hubs, ASB-06 brackets and an AHC-01 hub.
This would sure be a consideration in a design like this. In my design, each 4 wheel section is powered and driven separately, all controlled by a master central microcontroller.
This design would be capable of being a push me pull you type of thing. One 4 wheel section could be used to pul the other out of a jam. Developing software for this would be a fun experience!
I don’t know if I’ll ever actually build anything like this, but it sure is fun to dream and wonder if it could actually work in the real world. I can guarantee I will be building some rovers at some point.
