Flexible Hinge Component and Shock-Absorbing Robot Including the Same

Flexible Hinge Component

This technology features a spherical robot equipped with multiple flexible hinge components, each featuring an X-shaped cross-beam or spring structure on its exterior. These components absorb impact from all directions upon impact, while internal links and actuators allow the robot to switch between throwing mode (spherical) and movement mode (separated/rotating).

Conventional throwable robots are complex to manufacture, often combining multiple leaf springs and rubber supports. While they may absorb lateral impacts, they often fail to mitigate vertical shocks, leaving wheels and internal electronic components vulnerable to damage.

This technology utilizes flexible hinge components made of elastic X-shaped cross-beams or springs, arranged in a grid pattern on the spherical housing to ensure omnidirectional shock absorption. A control unit processes real-time speed and orientation data from sensors to adjust internal counterweights, ensuring the shock-absorbing sections are positioned to mitigate anticipated impact points. Applicable to industrial robots and automation systems, this design provides a throwable, small-scale spherical robot with enhanced shock absorption and a specialized housing for movement and rotation, improving upon the monitoring and cost-efficiency of existing robotic solutions.

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Key Features:

• A plate-shaped buffer surface that receives impact and a plate-shaped support surface spaced apart from it
• A hinge section connected to the buffer and support surfaces to dampen the force transmitted from the buffer surface
• The hinge section includes a spring with one end coupled to the buffer surface and the other to the support surface
• A structure where a shock-absorbing unit, formed by linearly coupled flexible hinge components, is attached to the exterior of the robot housing with a gap