Investigation of tip-over condition for tracked vehicles climbing over an obstacle on a slope

Abstract

Unmanned investigation of disaster sites using robots has become indispensable in avoiding the risk of secondary disasters or those associated with restricted areas. In fact, in cases of extended periods of investigation or detailed exploration of critical sites, tracked vehicles have proved to be quite useful. However, as a tracked vehicle traverses the terrain, it may be necessary for it to climb and negotiate unfixed obstacles such as loose rocks and rubble. Such cases could result in serious problems. The vehicle could tip-over or slide down as it rolls along with loose obstacles. The primary purpose of this research is to understand how these problems develop. In this paper, the geometric tip-over conditions relative to a basic obstacle were derived, and whether those conditions apply to fixed obstacles and unfixed obstacles was investigated through an experiment.