Kinematic Analysis of a Novel Leg-Wheel Transformable Mechanism

This paper presents the design of a leg-wheel transformable mechanism. This is a 7-link mechanism and has 2 degrees of freedom, which are controlled by actuators mounted on the vehicle chassis. The purpose of this mechanism is to combine the efficiency of the wheels with the ability of the legs to move in complex environments. The solutions of the direct and a simplified case of the inverse kinematics of the mechanism are presented. Finally the results of a simulation the mechanism performing one gait cycle are shown.