Honda Motor Co., Ltd.

Honda Giken Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha

Makoto Hirano

Toru Takenaka

Shinichiro Kobashi

Taiji Koyama

Hideharu Izumi

Kazuya Kuwabara

Hiroshi Gomi

Masao Sasaki

Masaaki Matsuura

Yasuo Ikenoya

Tomoo Shiozaki

Takao Tomita

Masao Handa

Kazushi Hamaya

Shoichi Honda

Takashi Kondo

Hiroyuki Makino

Junji Otani

Seishi Miura

Yoshikatsu Nakano

Masafumi Araki

Yoji Shimizu

In a wheel for use in an omni-directional vehicle, gravel and other foreign matters are prevented from being trapped between free rollers forming the wheel, and traveling vibrations and noises are minimized at the same time. The wheel includes an annular member and a plurality of free rollers each rotatably supported by the annular member around a corresponding tangential line of the annular member, and a gap member is placed between each adjacent pair of the free rollers to fill a gap defined between the free rollers.

Wheel, and friction drive device and omni-directional vehicle using the same

In a friction drive device comprising first free rollers and second free rollers contacting each other at the outer circumferential surfaces thereof to frictionally transmit power from the second free rollers to the first free rollers, in order to minimize the slippage between the first and second free rollers, minimize the power loss and cause the first free rollers to move as designed, an outer peripheral part of each first free roller defining an outer circumferential surface thereof has a different stiffness from that of an outer peripheral part of each second free roller defining an outer circumferential surface thereof.

Friction drive device and OMNI-directional vehicle using the same

Heat generated by a drive source of a friction drive device such as an electric motor is allowed to efficiently dissipate to the atmosphere, and the friction drive device and an omni-directional vehicle using the same is designed in a highly compact manner. Left and right electric drive devices are placed on a central axial line of left and right rotatable drive members, and external teeth members serving as output members of the electric drive devices are directly connected to the respective rotatable drive members in a torque transmitting and heat transmitting relationship.

Friction drive device and omni-directional vehicle using the same

[Task] To allow a wheel that provides a performance required for use in an omni-directional vehicle to be manufactured in an efficient manner. [Solution] An annular member () comprises a C-shaped main body () and a complementary member () defining an endless annular shape jointly with the main body (), a joint () between the main body () and complementary member () includes mating surfaces that are non-perpendicular to the cross sectional center line of the annular member, and the main body () and the complementary member () are fixedly joined to each other by using a threaded bolt () passed radially through the mating surfaces.

The omni-directional drive device comprises a main wheel () comprising an endless annular member rotatable around a center of cross section perpendicular to a corresponding tangential line, electric motors (R andL) for producing rotative forces around the rotation axis of the main wheel () and around the center of cross section perpendicular to a corresponding tangential line of the main wheel () and an arrangement (rotary members (R andL) fitted with free rollers (R andL)) for converting the rotational forces of the electric motors (R andL) to the rotational forces around the rotation center of the main wheel () and around the center (C) of cross section perpendicular to a corresponding tangential line of the main wheel ().

Omni-directional drive device and omni-directional vehicle using the same

Provided is a vehicle that can make tight turns without significantly changing an attitude of a rider, and is highly convenient in narrow places. A omni-directional one-wheeled vehicle comprises a vehicle body () and a secondary wheel () configured to contact a ground surface at a point displaced from a contact point of a driven road wheel ().

Omni-directional vehicle

Provided is an inverted pendulum mobile vehicle such as a single-passenger coaxial two-wheel vehicle which is capable of turning with a small turning radius without causing discomfort to a rider or a vehicle occupant or causing a cargo or the like on the vehicle from shifting or falling off from the vehicle. The vehicle comprises a wheel supporting frame (), a body frame () supported by the wheel supporting frame so as to be rotatable around a vertical axial line and carry a rider and or a cargo and a body coupler () that couples the body frame relative to the wheel supporting frame in a prescribed dynamic positional relationship. Thereby, even when the wheel supporting frame undergoes a rapid yaw movement either while traveling in a fore-and-aft direction or remaining stationary, the body frame that carries a vehicle occupant or a cargo is allowed to follow the yaw movement of the wheel supporting frame at a slower angular speed and/or acceleration/deceleration so that the vehicle occupant is prevented from experiencing discomfort and the cargo is prevented from shifting on the body frame or falling off from the vehicle.

Inverted pendulum mobile vehicle

In a frictional drive vehicle, a load acting on the vehicle such as the weight of a rider is converted into a force that urges two frictionally engaging parts (L,R,) toward each other. Thereby, the contact pressure between the two frictionally engaging parts is maintained at an optimum level under all conditions. A weight of a rider may be transmitted to a drive member that frictionally engages a main wheel via a four-link parallel link mechanism ().

Friction drive vehicle

Provided is an omni-directional drive device that does not complicate the arrangement for a power source for a drive source such as an electric motor, and achieves a high durability and an ease of maintenance. A drive force in a first direction is produced by a movement of a first moveable member () itself, and a drive force in a second direction is produced by the rotation of first free rollers () retained by the first moveable member, the rotation of the first free rollers () being caused by engagement with second free rollers () that are retained by a second moveable member () and rotative actuation of the second moveable member (). Electric motors serving as drive sources may be mounted on base members (and).

In a valve operating system for an internal combustion engine provided with valve operating characteristics changing member capable of changing operating characteristics of an engine valve, the valve operating characteristics changing member includes a connection operating member which is provided in common at a drive rocker arm and both free rocker arms to be capable of switching an alternative connecting state of the drive rocker arm to both the free rocker arms and a release state of connection of the drive rocker arms to both the free rocker arms. Thus, the operating characteristics of the engine valve can be reliably switched with favorable responsiveness.

Valve operating system for internal combustion engine

An internal combustion engine variable compression ratio system is provided that includes a piston inner (), a piston outer () that is fitted around the outer periphery of the piston inner () so that it can slide only in the axial direction and is capable of moving between a low compression ratio position (L) and a high compression ratio position (H), a raising member () that can pivot around axes of the piston inner and outer () between a non-raised position (A) and a raised position (B), and an actuator () connected to the member () and pivoting it to the non-raised position (A) or the raised position (B), in which piston outer high compression ratio position latching means () is disposed between the piston inner () and the piston outer () and operates, when the piston outer () has reached the high compression ratio position (H), so as to prevent relative axial movement of the piston inner () and the piston outer (). It is thereby possible to provide a variable compression ratio system that enables the piston outer to be moved to the low compression ratio position and the high compression ratio position simply and reliably without rotating the piston outer.

Compression ratio variable device of internal combustion engine

An internal combustion engine variable compression ratio system includes a piston inner, a piston outer that, while being fitted around the outer periphery of the piston inner, so it slides only in the axial direction, is capable of moving among low (L), high (H), and medium (M) compression ratio positions, and two sets of raising means disposed in line in the axial direction between the piston inner and outer. Each set of raising means includes a movable raising member, which can pivot individually between a non-raised position (A) and a raised position (B) around the axis of the piston inner and outer. It is thus possible to provide an internal combustion engine variable compression ratio system that enables the compression ratio to be appropriately switched between at least three stages, that is, between low, medium and high compression ratios, without rotating the piston outer.

A compression ratio changing device in an internal combustion engine includes a piston inner element, a piston outer element slidably fitted over an outer periphery of the piston inner element for sliding movement only in an axial direction and capable of being moved between a lower-compression ratio position (L) and a higher-compression ratio position (H), a bulking member capable of being turned about axes of the piston inner and outer elements between a non-bulking position (A) and a bulking position (B), and an actuator connected to the bulking member for turning the bulking member to the non-bulking position (A) and the bulking position (B). The bulking member permits movement of the piston outer element to the lower-compression ratio position (L) when it is in the non-bulking position (A), and retains the piston outer element in the higher-compression ratio position (H), when it is turned to the bulking position (B).

Compression ratio variable device in internal combustion engine

An internal combustion engine is provided in which an intake valve, which opens and closes an intake valve hole formed in a cylinder head facing a combustion chamber has a hollow structure. An exhaust valve hole formed in the intake valve is made to open and close by an exhaust valve coaxially housed within the intake valve. The intake valve hole communicates directly with an intake port, and the exhaust valve hole coniniunicates with an exhaust port via an exhaust passage formed within the hollow intake valve. This ensures that the intake valve has a large opening area, thus increasing the intake charging efficiency. Furthermore, since exhaust gas coming out of the combustion chamber does not make direct contact with the cylinder head, which has a large heat capacity, any decrease in temperature of the exhaust gas can be minimized, thereby utilizing waste heat effectively.

Internal combustion engine

An internal combustion engine variable compression ratio system. The system includes an inner piston connected to a connecting rod, an outer piston fitted around the outer periphery of the inner piston so that the outer piston can slide only in the axial direction, and a retaining ring fixedly provided on the outer piston so as to axially oppose a head portion with the inner piston interposed between the restricting means and the head portion. Also included are a first cam mechanism disposed between the inner piston and the head portion for controlling a first axial spacing therebetween, and a second cam mechanism disposed between the inner piston and the retaining ring for controlling a second axial spacing therebetween.

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Wako, Japan

Makoto Hirano