Wheel Assembly, Methods, and Applications
AssigneeMaidbot, Inc.
InventorsSteve Supron, Steven Whitehead, David Moroniti, Micah Green
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A quick release mechanism for a wheel includes a hub and a clip, which interact with a wheel or roller that may or may not be part of the invention per se. The hub is disposable on a drive shaft such that it will rotate with the drive shaft. An optional hub cap is disposable on the wheel and has an opening that is complimentary to the geometry of the hub to allow engagement thereof such that the hub the hub cap rotate together. The clip is disposable on the hub in a closed or an open position so that the hub cap cannot or can be removed from the hub.
Claims20
A robot, comprising:
- a plurality of drive shafts;
- for each draft shaft:
- a hub interface comprising a central portion aligned with the drive shaft and two hub projections projecting outward and away from the central portion, each hub projection comprising an opening;
- a wheel comprising a reciprocal slot configured to removably couple to the hub interface such that hub interface protrudes through the reciprocal slot;
- and
- a clip component comprising clip protrusions configured to, when the clip component is coupled to the hub interface, be inserted into the openings of the hub projections, thereby coupling the wheel to the hub interface.
A robot, comprising:
- a set of wheels;
- for each wheel, a hub interface configured to removably couple to the wheel and comprising 1) a central portion aligned with a drive shaft coupled to the wheel and 2) two hub projections projecting outward and away from the central portion, each hub projection comprising an opening;
- and
- for each hub interface, a clip component comprising clip protrusions configured to, when the clip component is coupled to the hub interface, be inserted into the openings of the hub projections, thereby coupling the wheel to the hub interface.
A robot wheel for coupling to a drive shaft, comprising:
- a hub interface comprising a central portion aligned with the drive shaft and two hub projections projecting outward and away from the central portion, each hub projection comprising an opening, the hub interface configured to removably couple to the robot wheel;
- and
- a clip component comprising clip protrusions configured to, when the clip component is coupled to the hub interface, be inserted into the openings of the hub projections, thereby coupling the hub interface to the robot wheel.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.