THE SMART ROVER

Technical Project Report

Submitted in partial fulfillment of the

requirement for the B.Tech in
Mechanical Engineering (8th Semester)
under Biju Patnaik University of
Technology, Rourkela

Submitted By:
ARUNANSHU NANDA REGD.NO - 1601106533
PRATYUSH PATTNAIK REGD.NO -1601106572
SWATI BEHERA REGD.NO - 1601106613
SUBHA RANJAN PANIGRAHI REGD.NO -1721106146

Under the guidance of:

Mr. SANTOSH MAHARANA

Dept. of Mechanical Engineering

APRIL - 2020

COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING & TECHNOLOGY

Ghatikia, Bhubaneswar, Odisha – 751003, India

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 COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING & TECHNOLOGY
Ghatikia, Bhubaneswar, Odisha – 751003, India

CERTIFICATE
This is to certify that the project work entitled ‘THE SMART ROVER’ is a bonafide work
being done by ARUNANSHU NANDA (1601106533), PRATYUSH PATTNAIK
(1601106572), SWATI BEHERA (1601106613), SUBHA RANJAN PANIGRAHI
(1721106146) of MECHANICAL ENGINEERING branch.

This seminar report is submitted in partial fulfillment for the requirement

of the B. Tech degree under Biju Patnaik University of Technology, Rourkela
Odisha.

MR.SANTOSH MAHARANA
PROFESSOR (PROJECT GUIDE)

PROFESSOR (DR.) RAMESH KUMAR MALLIK PROFESSOR (DR.) ASHOKMOHANTY

(B.TECH PROJECT COORDINATOR) (HEAD OF DEPARTMENT)

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 ABSTRACT

Rocker Bogie is a suspension system used in mars rovers like Pathfinder,

Curiosity etc. The specialty of this suspension system is that it does not have
any springs.
A four wheeled rover capable of traversing rough terrain using an efficient
high degree of mobility suspension system. The primary mechanical feature
of the rocker bogie design is its drive train simplicity, which is accomplished
by using motors for mobility.
Four wheels are used because there are few obstacles on natural terrain that
require both front wheels of the rover to climb simultaneously. A series of
mobility experiments in the agriculture land, rough roads, inclined, stairs and
obstacles surface concluded that rocker bogie can achieve some distance
traverses on field.
The term “rocker” comes from the design of the differential which keeps the
rover body balanced, enabling it to “rock” up and down depending on the
various positions of the multiple wheels. Bogie means links that has driven
wheels at each end.
The mechanism used for climbing obstacles like rocks which are more than
twice or three times the diameter of the wheels while the all six wheels are
touching the ground, whereas the other suspension tilt stability is limited to
Centre of gravity.

Keywords:
Rocker bogie, Wheel type mobile robot
Stair climbing, Mobile suspension system, Rover.

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 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

We would like to express our immense sense of gratitude to our guide Mr.
Santosh Maharana, for his valuable instructions, guidance and support
throughout our project.

We owe our special thanks to Prof. (Dr.) Ramesh Kumar Mallik, Technical
Project Coordinator for giving us an opportunity to do this report.

And finally, we extend our gratitude to Prof. (Dr.) Ashok Mohanty, HOD, and
Mechanical for his continuous drive for better quality in everything that
happens at CET. This report is a dedicated contribution towards that greater
goal.

1. Pratyush Pattnaik (1601106572)

2. Swati Behera (160110613)
3. Subha Ranjan Panigrahi (1721106146)
4. Arunanshu Nanda (1601106533)

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 INDEX

A. SECTION 1: INTRODUCTION

1.1 PROJECT TITLE ……………2

1.2 AIM OF PROJECT ...............…2
1.3 INTRODUCTION TO ROCKER BOGGIE ……3
1.4 WHAT IS ROCKER BOGGIE? ………………..3

B. SECTION 2: PROJECT DESCRIPTION

2.1 WORKING PRINCIPLE ………………………..4

2.2 HOW THE MACHINE WORKS? ……………...5
2.3 LIST OF COMPONENTS ………………………6
2.4 PARTS USED …………………………………..7

C. SECTION 3: ASSEMBELY DRAWING ……….11

D. SECTION 4: LIST OF MACHINES ….................12

E. SECTION 5: LIST OF EQUIPMENTS ………….13

F. SECTION 6: INNOVATIONS PROPOSED ……14

G. SECTION 7: FUTURE SCOPE ………………….15

H. SECTION 8: ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES …….15

I. SECTION 9: CONCLUSION.…………..15

J. SECTION 10: REFERENCES …………..16

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 LIST OF FIGURES

FIG. NO. FIG. NAME PAGE NO.

1 Encounter area of rocker bogie 9

suspension system
Line diagram of rocker bogie
2 suspension system and its motile joints 10
3 Isometric view of the river 13
4 Fragmented view of the rover 14
5 Calculative design sketch of the rover 14
6 Design of the wheel 15
7 General DC motor 15
8 Nuts and bolts 19
Vertical cross-section of a nut and bolt
9 arrangement 20
10 Alloy wheel 21
11 Principle of DC motor 23
12 Parts of DC motor 23
13 Principle of operation of DC motor 24
14 2- pole design 26
15 3- pole design 26
16 Series wiring of the coil windings 27
17 Different parts of DC motor 28
18 Battery 29
19 Schematic diagram of lead acid battery 31
20 Chemical reactions in battery 33

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1.INTRODUCTION:

The “Smart Rover” works on the principle of ROCKER-BOGIE MECHANISM. The

Rocker-Bogie Mobility system was designed to be used at slow speeds. It is capable of

overcoming obstacles that are on the order of the size of a wheel. However, when

surmounting a sizable obstacle, the vehicles motion effectively stops while the front wheel

climbs the obstacle. When operating at low speed (greater than 10cm/second), dynamic

shocks are minimized when this happens. For many future planetary missions, rovers will

have to operate at human level speeds (~1m/second). Shocks resulting from the impact of the

front wheel against an obstacle could damage the payload or the vehicle. This paper describes

a method of driving a rocker-bogie vehicle so that it can effectively step over most obstacles

rather than impacting and climbing over them. Most of the benefits of this method can be

achieved without any mechanical modification to existing designs – only a change in control

strategy. Some mechanical changes are suggested to gather the maximum benefit and to

greatly increase the effective operational speed of future rovers.

THE ROCKER-BOGIE MECHANISM IDEA AND APPLICATION

One of the major shortcomings of current planetary rovers is that they are slow. In order to be

able to overcome significantly rough terrain (i.e., obstacles more than a few percent of wheel

radius) without significant risk of flipping the vehicle or damaging the suspension, these

robots move slowly and climb over the obstacles by having wheels lift each piece of the
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suspension over the obstacle one portion at a time. NASA’s currently favored design, the

rocker-bogie, uses a two wheeled rocker arm on a passive pivot Design a robotic vehicle

capable of performing tasks for a sample return mission within the parameters and

requirements of the University Rover Challenge attached to a main bogie that is connected

differentially to the main bogie on the other side. The rocker-bogie suspension mechanism

which is currently NASA’s approved design for wheeled mobile robots, mainly because it has

sturdy or resilient capabilities to deal with obstacles and because it uniformly distributes the

payload over its 6 wheels at all times. It also can be used for other purposes to operate in

rough roads and to climb the steps. It is having lots of advantages but one of the major

disadvantages is the rotation of the mechanism when and where is required. The rotation can

be possible by providing individual motors to individual wheels which causes arise in cost

and complicacy in design. Here an attempt is made to modify the existing design by

incorporating a gear type steering mechanism which will be operated by a single motor which

simplifies the design as well as the total cost and operating cost of the mechanism

The rocker bogie mechanism is one of the most popular linkage mechanisms, which was

initially designed for space travel vehicles having its own deep history embedded in its

development. By construction it is a wheel robot which comprises of 6 actuated wheels. The

term “rocker” describes the rocking aspect of the larger links present each side of the

suspension system and these rockers are connected to each other and the vehicle chassis

through a selectively modified differential in order to balance the bogie.

By construction it has main frame containing two linkages on each side that are called the

“rocker” (Fig 1). One end of the rocker is connected to the rear wheel, and the other end is

connected to a small pivot point to maintain centre of gravity of entire vehicle as accordance

with the motion, when one rocker moves down-word, the other goes upward (Fig 1). The

chassis plays vital role to maintain the average pitch angle of both rockers by allowing both

rockers to move as per the situation. As per the acute design, one end of a rocker is fitted with
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a drive wheel and the other end is pivoted to a bogie which provides required motion and

degree of freedom.

Fig1.Encounter area of rocker bogie suspension system

In the system, “bogie” refers to the conjoining links that have a drive wheel attached at each

end.

Each of the front wheels is connected to the gears at their horizontal shaft. The body contains

one motor at the lower side. The motor shaft is connected to the master gear. The gears are

connected to the wheel gears with the help of idler. The motor can be controlled by the help

of micro controller or directly. Here it is connected to a cable and the cable is connected to a

control panel. Whenever it is required to have the turn of the mechanism then the controller

in the control panel will be operated which in turn will rotate the motor. The master gear

connected to the motor will also rotate with the motor. As the idlers are connected to the

motor they will rotate in the opposite direction to the rotation of motor. The wheel gears

connected the idler will also rotate along with this which will enable to rotate the wheels in

the required direction. Here the idlers are incorporated to avoid the confusion of operation.

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This enables the operator to get sure that if the controller is rotated clock wise the mechanism

will also rotate clock wise and vice

Fig 2. Line diagram of Rocker-bogie suspension system and its motile joints)

Bogies were commonly used to bare loading as tracks of army tanks as idlers distributing the

load over the terrain. Bogies were also quite commonly used on the trailers of semi-trailer

trucks as that very time the trucks will have to carry much heavier load.

LITERATURE REVIEW

The initiation of rocker bogie suspension system can be traced to the development of

planetary rover which are mobile robots, especially designed to move on a planet surface.

Early rovers were tele-operated like the Lunokhod I while recent ones are fully autonomous,

such as FIDO, Discovery and recently developed Curiosity mars exploration rover. The

rovers needed to be very robust and reliable, as it has to withstand dust, strong winds,

corrosion and large temperature changes under mysterious conditions. Maximum rovers

remain powered by batteries which are recharged by solar panels during the day installed

over there surface. The locomotion system of rovers remains crucial to enable it to reach

objective sites, conduct research, and collect data and to position itself according to the
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demand. There are three main types of rover locomotion developed so far i.e. wheeled,

legged and caterpillar locomotion. The main difference between the miscellaneous designs of

planetary robots lies in the type of locomotion system. Even after developing many legged

and hybrid robots, most researchers still focus on wheeled locomotion for rovers because of

its locomotive ease and advantages and among wheeled locomotion design, the rocker bogie

suspension system based design remain most favored. The ancient FIDO rover and the

Sojourner contain 6 independently steered and driven wheels suspended from a rocker-bogie

mechanism for maximum suspension and ground clearance. Rocky Seven Rover has a similar

suspension system just differ in front wheels. The Nano rover & Nomad Rovers have four

steered wheels suspended from two bogies & CRAB Rover utilizes two parallel bogie

mechanisms on each side to overcome obstacles and large holes. As far as the initial research

is concerned, the software optimization seeks for an optimum in the constrained solution

space given an initial solution and Dr. Li et al. derive a mathematical model to generalize

rover suspension parameters which define the geometry of the rocker-bogie system. The

objective behind evolution of rocker bogie suspension system is to develop a system which

minimizes the energy consumption, the vertical displacement of the rover’s centre of mass

and its pitch angle. In this research, our endeavor is to transfer these major advantages

embedded with the rocker bogie system into conventional vehicles in order to remove

discomfort and complexities present in conventional suspension system in general and

suspension system of heavy vehicles in particular.

PRINCIPLE

The rocker-bogie design consisting of no springs and stub axles in each wheel which allows

the chassis to climb over any obstacles, such as rocks, ditches, sand, etc. that are up to double

the wheel's diameter in size while keeping all wheels on the ground maximum time. As

compared to any suspension system, the tilt stability is limited by the height of the centre of

gravity and the proposed system has the same Systems employing springs tend to tip more
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easily as the loaded side yields during obstacle course. Dependent upon the centre of overall

weight, any vehicle developed on the basis of Rocker bogie suspension can withstand a tilt of

at least 50 degrees in any direction without overturning which is the biggest advantage for

any heavy loading vehicle. The system is designed to be implemented in low speed working

vehicles such as heavy trucks, Bulldozers which works at slow speed of around 10

centimeters per second (3.9 in/s) so as to minimize dynamic shocks and consequential

damage to the vehicle when surmounting sizable obstacles.

METHODOLOGY

As per the research it is find that the rocker bogie system reduces the motion by half

compared to other suspension systems because each of the bogie's six wheels has an

independent mechanism for motion and in which the two front and two rear wheels have

individual steering systems which allow the vehicle to turn in place as 0 degree turning ratio.

Every wheel also has thick cleats which provides grip for climbing in soft sand and

scrambling over rocks with ease. In order to overcome vertical obstacle faces, the front

wheels are forced against the obstacle by the centre and rear wheels which generate

maximum required torque. The rotation of the front wheel then lifts the front of the vehicle

up and over the obstacle and obstacle overtaken. Those wheels which remain in the middle, is

then pressed against the obstacle by the rear wheels and pulled against the obstacle by the

front till the time it is lifted up and over. At last, the rear wheel is pulled over the obstacle by

the front two wheels due to applying pull force. During each wheel's traversal of the obstacle,

forward progress of the vehicle is slowed or completely halted which finally maintain

vehicles centre of gravity. The above said methodology is being practically proved by

implementing it on eight wheel drive ATV system in order to gain maximum advantage by

rocker bogie system.

OBSERVATION

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A The main problem associated with current suspension systems installed in heavy loading

vehicles rovers (including those with active and semi active suspension systems) is their slow

speed of motion which derail the rythem to absorb the shocks generated by wheels which

remain the result of two factors. First, in order to pass over obstacles the vehicle must be

geared down significantly to allow for enough torque to raise the mass of the vehicle.

Consequently, this reduces overall speed which cannot be tolerated in the case of heavy

loading vehicles. Second, if the vehicle is travelling at a high speed and encounters an

obstacle (height greater than 10 percent of wheel radius), there will be a large shock

transmitted through the chassis which could damage the suspension or topple down the entire

vehicle. That is why current heavy loading vehicles travel at a velocity of 10cm/s through

uneven terrain. The software based testing of rocker bogie suspension system describes the

momentum and efficiency related utilities in cumulative manner

DESIGN

Fig 3.Isometric view of the rover

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 Fig 4.Fragmented view of the rover

Fig 5.Calculative Design Sketch of the rover

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 Fig 6. Design of the Wheel

COMPONENTS OF ROCKER-BOGIE MECHANISM

 Gear DC motor

Fig 7. A general DC Motor

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How a Gear Motor Works

A gear motor is a specific type of electrical motor that is designed to produce high torque

while maintaining a low horsepower, or low speed, motor output. Gear motors can be found

in many different applications, and are probably used in many devices in your home.

Gear motors are commonly used in devices such as can openers, garage door openers,

washing machine time control knobs and even electric alarm clocks. Common commercial

applications of a gear motor include hospital beds, commercial jacks, cranes and many other

applications that are too many to list.

Basic Principles of Operation

A gear motor can be either an AC (alternating current) or a DC (direct current) electric motor.

Most gear motors have an output of between about 1,200 to 3,600 revolutions per minute

(RPMs). These types of motors also have two different speed specifications: normal speed

and the stall-speed torque specifications.

Gear motors are primarily used to reduce speed in a series of gears, which in turn creates

more torque. This is accomplished by an integrated series of gears or a gear box being

attached to the main motor rotor and shaft via a second reduction shaft. The second shaft is

then connected to the series of gears or gearbox to create what is known as a series of

reduction gears. Generally speaking, the longer the train of reduction gears, the lower the

output of the end, or final, gear will be.

An excellent example of this principle would be an electric time clock (the type that uses

hour, minute and second hands). The synchronous AC motor that is used to power the time

clock will usually spin the rotor at around 1500 revolutions per minute. However, a series of

reduction gears is used to slow the movement of the hands on the clock.

For example, while the rotor spins at about 1500 revolutions per minute, the reduction gears

allow the final secondhand gear to spin at only one revolution per minute. This is what allows

the secondhand to make one complete revolution per minute on the face of the clock.
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Gear Motors and Increased Force

Gear motors are commonly used in commercial applications where a piece of equipment

needs to be able to exert a high amount of force in order to move a very heavy object.

Examples of these types of equipment would include a crane or lift Jack.

If you've ever seen a crane in action, you've seen a great example of how a gear motor works.

As you have probably noticed, a crane can be used to lift and move very heavy objects. The

electric motor used in most cranes is a type of gear motor that uses the basic principles of

speed reduction to increase torque or force.

Gear motors used in cranes are usually specialty types that use a very low rotational output

speed to create incredible amounts of torque. However, the principles of the gear motor used

in a crane are exactly the same as those used in the example electric time clock. The output

speed of the rotor is reduced through a series of large gears until the rotating, RPM speed, of

the final gear is very low. The low RPM speed helps to create a high amount of force which

can be used to lift and move the heavy objects.

ROCKER-FRAME

The rocker-bogie design has no springs or stub axles for each wheel, allowing the rover to

climb over obstacles, such as rocks, that are up to twice the wheel's diameter in size while

keeping all six wheels on the ground. As with any suspension system, the tilt stability is

limited by the height of the center of gravity. Systems using springs tend to tip more easily as

the loaded side yields. Based on the center of mass, the Curiosity rover of the Mars Science

Laboratory mission can withstand a tilt of at least 45 degrees in any direction without

overturning, but automatic sensors limit the rover from exceeding 30-degree tilts.[5] The

system is designed to be used at slow speed of around 10 centimeters per second (3.9 in/s) so

as to minimize dynamic shocks and consequential damage to the vehicle when surmounting

sizable obstacles.

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JPL states that this rocker bogie system reduces the motion of the main MER vehicle body by

half compared to other suspension systems. Each of the rover's six wheels has an independent

motor. The two front and two rear wheels have individual steering motors which allow the

vehicle to turn in place. Each wheel also has cleats, providing grip for climbing in soft sand

and scrambling over rocks. The maximum speed of the robots operated in this way is limited

to eliminate as many dynamic effects as possible so that the motors can be geared down, thus

enabling each wheel to individually lift a large portion of the entire vehicle's mass.

In order to go over a vertical obstacle face, the front wheels are forced against the obstacle by

the center and rear wheels. The rotation of the front wheel then lifts the front of the vehicle

up and over the obstacle. The middle wheel is then pressed against the obstacle by the rear

wheels and pulled against the obstacle by the front until it is lifted up and over. Finally, the

rear wheel is pulled over the obstacle by the front two wheels. During each wheel's traversal

of the obstacle, forward progress of the vehicle is slowed or completely halted. This is not an

issue for the operational speeds at which these vehicles have been operated to date.

One of the future applications of rovers will be to assist astronauts during surface operations.

To be a useful assistant, the rover will need to be able to move much faster than human

walking speed or at least equivalent. Other missions which have been proposed, such as t,

require even greater speeds (4–10 km/h).

BOGIE-FRAME

The term “bogie” refers to the links that have a drive wheel at each end. Bogies were

commonly used as load wheels in the tracks of army tanks as idlers distributing the load over

the terrain. Bogies were also quite commonly used on the trailers of semi trailer trucks. Both

applications now prefer trailing arm suspensions.

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The rocker-bogie system is the suspension arrangement used in the Mars rovers (mechanical

robot) introduced for the Mars Pathfinder and also used on the Mars Exploration Rover

(MER) and Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) missions. It is currently NASA's favored design.

The term “rocker” comes from the rocking aspect of the larger links [clarification needed] on

each side of the suspension system. These rockers are connected to each other and the vehicle

chassis through a differential. Relative to the chassis, when one rocker goes up, the other goes

down. The chassis maintains the average pitch angle of both rockers. One end of a rocker is

fitted with a drive wheel and the other end is pivoted to a bogie.

NUT, BOLT AND ROD

Fig 8. Nuts and Bolts

A nut is a type of fastener with a threaded hole. Nuts are almost always used in conjunction

with a mating bolt to fasten two or more parts together. The two partners are kept together by

a combination of their threads' friction, a slight stretching of the bolt, and compression of the

parts to be held together.

The distinction between a bolt and a screw is commonly misunderstood. There are several

practical differences, but most have some degree of overlap between bolts and screws.

The defining distinction, per Machinery's Handbook, is in their intended purpose: Bolts are

for the assembly of two unthreaded components, with the aid of a nut. Screws in contrast are

used in components which contain their own thread, and the screw may even cut its own

internal thread into them. Many threaded fasteners can be described as either screws or bolts,

depending on how they are used.

19
Bolts are often used to make a bolted joint. This is a combination of the nut applying an axial

clamping force and also the shank of the bolt acting as a dowel, pinning the joint against

sideways shear forces. For this reason, many bolts have a plain unthreaded shank (called

the grip length) as this makes for a better, stronger dowel. The presence of the unthreaded

shank has often been given as characteristic of bolts vs. screws,[3] but this is incidental to its

use, rather than defining.

The unthreaded grip length should be chosen carefully, to be around the same length as the

thickness of the material and washers through which the bolt passes. An overly long

unthreaded length prevents the nut from being tightened down correctly. An insufficient

unthreaded length results in the threads extending into the hole, and places the dowel shear

load onto the threads, which may cause fretting wear on the hole. No more than two turns of

the thread should be within the hole.

Where a fastener forms its own thread in the component being fastened, it is called a screw.
[2]
 This is most obviously so when the thread is tapered (i.e. traditional wood screws),

precluding the use of a nut, or when a sheet metal screw or other thread-forming screw is

used.A screw must always be turned to assemble the joint. Many bolts are held fixed in place

during assembly, either by a tool or by a design of non-rotating bolt, such as a carriage bolt,

and only the corresponding nut is turned.

Fig 9.Vertical Cross-section of a Nut and Bolt Arrangement

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CONSTRUCTION AND WORKING PRINCIPLE :

The rocker bogie suspension system, which was specifically designed for space exploration

vehicles have deep history embedded in its development. The term “rocker” describes the

rocking aspect of the larger links present each side of the suspension system and balance the

bogie as these rockers are connected to each other and the vehicle chassis through a

selectively modified differential encounter area of rocker bogie suspension system.

In accordance with the motion to maintain centre of gravity of entire vehicle, when one

rocker moves up-word, the other goes down. The chassis plays vital role to maintain the

average pitch angle of both rockers by allowing both rockers to move as per the situation. As

per the acute design, one end of a rocker is fitted with a drive wheel and the other end is

pivoted to a bogie which provides required motion and degree of freedom.

WHEEL

fig 10.Alloy Wheel

In its primitive form, a wheel is a circular block of a hard and durable material at whose

center has been bored a circular hole through which is placed an axle bearing about which the

wheel rotates when a moment is applied by gravity or torque to the wheel about its axis,

thereby making together one of the six simple machines. When placed vertically under a

load-bearing platform or case, the wheel turning on the horizontal axle makes it possible

to transport heavy loads; when placed horizontally, the wheel turning on its vertical axle

makes it possible to control the spinning motion used to shape materials (e.g. a potter's

21
wheel); when mounted on a column connected to a rudder or a chassis mounted on other

wheels, one can control the direction of a vessel or vehicle (e.g. a ship's wheel or steering

wheel); when connected to a crank or engine, a wheel can store, release, or transmit energy

(e.g. the flywheel).

DC GEAR MOTOR

A machine that converts direct current power into mechanical power is known as D.C Motor.

Its generation is based on the principle that when a current carrying conductor is placed in a

magnetic field, the conductor experiences a mechanical force. The direction iof this force is

given by Fleming’s left hand rule.

WORKING OF A DC MOTOR:

Consider a part of a multipolar dc motor as shown in fig. when the terminals of the motor are

connected to an external source of dc supply;

The field magnets are excited developing alternate N and S poles.

The armature conductors carry currents. All conductors under N-pole carry currents in one

direction while all the conductors under S-pole carry currents in the opposite direction.

Suppose the conductors under N-pole carry currents into the plane of paper and those under

S-pole carry current out of the plane of paper as shown in fig. Since each armature conductor

is carrying current and is placed in the magnetic field, mechanical force acts on it. Applying

Fleming’s left hand rule, it is clear that force on each conductor is tending to rotate the

armature in anticlockwise direction. All these forces add together to produce a driving torque

which sets the armature rotating. When the conductor moves from one side of the brush to the

22
other, current in the conductor is received and at the same time it comes under the influence

of next pole which is of opposite polarity. Consequently the direction of force on the

conductor remains same.

Fig 11.Principle of a DC Motor

Fig 12. Parts of a DC Motor

23
PRINCIPLES OF OPERATION:

In any electric motor, operation is based on simple electromagnetism. A current-carrying

conductor generates a magnetic field; when this is then placed in an external magnetic

field, it will experience a force proportional to the current in the conductor, and to the

strength of the external magnetic field. As you are well aware of from playing with

magnets as a kid, opposite (North and South) polarities attract, while like polarities

(North and North, South and South) repel. The internal configuration of a DC motor is

designed to harness the magnetic interaction between a current-carrying conductor and an

external magnetic field to generate rotational motion.

Let's start by looking at a simple 2-pole DC electric motor (here red represents a magnet

or winding with a "North" polarization, while green represents a magnet or winding with

a "South" polarization).

Fig 13.Principle of Operation of a Dc Motor

Every DC motor has six basic parts -- axle, rotor (armature), stator, commutator, field

magnet(s), and brushes. In most common DC motors, the external magnetic field is

produced by high-strength permanent magnets. The stator is the stationary part of the

24
motor -- this includes the motor casing, as well as two or more permanent magnet pole

pieces. The rotor (together with the axle and attached commutator) rotates with respect to

the stator. The rotor consists of windings (generally on a core), the windings being

electrically connected to the commutator. The above diagram shows a common motor

layout -- with the rotor inside the stator (field) magnets.

The geometry of the brushes, commutator contacts, and rotor windings are such that when

power is applied, the polarities of the energized winding and the stator magnet(s) are

misaligned, and the rotor will rotate until it is almost aligned with the stator's field

magnets. As the rotor reaches alignment, the brushes move to the next commutator

contacts, and energize the next winding. Given our example two-pole motor, the rotation

reverses the direction of current through the rotor winding, leading to a "flip" of the

rotor's magnetic field, driving it to continue rotating.

In real life, though, DC motors will always have more than two poles (three is a very

common number). In particular, this avoids "dead spots" in the commutator. You can

imagine how with our example two-pole motor, if the rotor is exactly at the middle of its

rotation (perfectly aligned with the field magnets), it will get "stuck" there. Meanwhile,

with a two-pole motor, there is a moment where the commutator shorts out the power

supply. This would be bad for the power supply, waste energy, and damage motor

components as well. Yet another disadvantage of such a simple motor is that it would

exhibit a high amount of torque "ripple" (the amount of torque it could produce is cyclic

with the position of the rotor)

25
 fig 14. 2-Pole Design fig 15. 3-Pole Design

A few things from this -- namely, one pole is fully energized at a time (but two others are

"partially" energized). As each brush transitions from one commutator contact to the next,

one coil's field will rapidly collapse, as the next coil's field will rapidly charge up (this occurs

within a few microsecond). We'll see more about the effects of this later, but in the meantime

you can see that this is a direct result of the coil windings' series wiring:

26
 Fig 16. Series Wiring of the coil windings

There's probably no better way to see how an average DC motor is put together, than by

just opening one up. Unfortunately this is tedious work, as well as requiring the

destruction of a perfectly good motor.

The guts of a disassembled Mabuchi FF-030-PN motor (the same model that Solarbotics

sells) are available for (on 10 lines / cm graph paper). This is a basic 3-pole DC motor,

with 2 brushes and three commutator contacts.

The use of an iron core armature (as in the Mabuchi, above) is quite common, and has a

number of advantages. First off, the iron core provides a strong, rigid support for the

windings -- a particularly important consideration for high-torque motors. The core also

conducts heat away from the rotor windings, allowing the motor to be driven harder than

27
might otherwise be the case. Iron core construction is also relatively inexpensive

compared with other construction types.

But iron core construction also has several disadvantages. The iron armature has a

relatively high inertia which limits motor acceleration. This construction also results in

high winding inductances which limit brush and commutator life.

In small motors, an alternative design is often used which features a 'coreless' armature

winding. This design depends upon the coil wire itself for structural integrity. As a result,

the armature is hollow, and the permanent magnet can be mounted inside the rotor coil.

Coreless DC motors have much lower armature inductance than iron-core motors of

comparable size, extending brush and commutator life.

Fig 17. Different Parts of a DC Motor

The coreless design also allows manufacturers to build smaller motors; meanwhile, due to

the lack of iron in their rotors, coreless motors are somewhat prone to overheating. As a

result, this design is generally used just in small, low-power motors. Beamers will most

often see coreless DC motors in the form of pager motors.

28
 Again, disassembling a coreless motor can be instructive -- in this case, my hapless victim

was a cheap pager vibrator motor. The guts of this disassembled motor are available (on

10 lines / cm graph paper). This is (or more accurately, was) a 3-pole coreless DC motor.

LIMITAION OF THE DC MOTOR:

We never aim at achieving maximum power due to the following reasons:

The armature current under this condition is very large – much excess of rated current of

the machine.

Half of the input power is wasted in the armature circuit. in fact ,if we take into account

other losses (iron and mechanical),the efficiency will be well below 50%

BATTERY

Fig 18. Battery

In isolated systems away from the grid, batteries are used for storage of excess solar

energy converted into electrical energy. The only exceptions are isolated sunshine load such

as irrigation pumps or drinking water supplies for storage. In fact for small units with output

less than one kilowatt. Batteries seem to be the only technically and economically available

storage means. Since both the photo-voltaic system and batteries are high in capital costs. It

is necessary that the overall system be optimized with respect to available energy and local

29
demand pattern. To be economically attractive the storage of solar electricity requires a

battery with a particular combination of properties:

(1) Low cost and longer Life

(2) High reliability

(3) High overall efficiency

(4) Low discharge

(5) Minimum maintenance

(A) Ampere hour efficiency

(B) Watt hour efficiency

LEAD-ACID WET CELL:

Where high values of load current are necessary, the lead-acid cell is the type most

commonly used. The electrolyte is a dilute solution of sulfuric acid (H₂SO4). In the

application of battery power to start the engine in an auto mobile, for example, the load

current to the starter motor is typically 200 to 400A. One cell has a nominal output of 2.1V,

but lead-acid cells are often used in a series combination of three for a 6-V battery and six for

a 12-V battery.

The lead acid cell type is a secondary cell or storage cell, which can be recharged. The

charge and discharge cycle can be repeated many times to restore the output voltage, as long

as the cell is in good physical condition. However, heat with excessive charge and discharge

currents shortens the useful life to about 3 to 5 years for an automobile battery. Of the

different types of secondary cells, the lead-acid type has the highest output voltage, which

allows fewer cells for a specified battery voltage.

30
CONSTRUCTION:

Inside a lead-acid battery, the positive and negative electrodes consist of a group of plates

welded to a connecting strap. The plates are immersed in the electrolyte, consisting of 8 parts

of water to 3 parts of concentrated sulfuric acid. Each plate is a grid or framework, made of a

lead-antimony alloy. This construction enables the active material, which is lead oxide, to be

pasted into the grid. In manufacture of the cell, a forming charge produces the positive and

negative electrodes. In the forming process, the active material in the positive plate is

changed to lead peroxide (Pbo₂). The negative electrode is spongy lead (Pb).

Fig 19.Schematic Diagram of a Lead Acid Battery

31
Automobile batteries are usually shipped dry from the manufacturer. The electrolyte is put in at

the time of installation, and then the battery is charged to from the plates. With maintenance-free

batteries, little or no water need be added in normal service. Some types are sealed, except for a

pressure vent, without provision for adding water.

CHEMICAL REACTION:

Sulfuric acid is a combination of hydrogen and sulfate ions. When the cell discharges,

lead peroxide from the positive electrode combines with hydrogen ions to form water and with

sulfate ions to form lead sulfate. Combining lead on the negative plate with sulfate ions also

produces he sulfate. Therefore, the net result of discharge is to produce more water, which

dilutes the electrolyte, and to form lead sulfate on the plates.

As the discharge continues, the sulfate fills the pores of the grids, retarding circulation of

acid in the active material. Lead sulfate is the powder often seen on the outside terminals of old

batteries. When the combination of weak electrolyte and sulfating on the plate lowers the output

of the battery, charging is necessary.

On charge, the external D.C. source reverses the current in the battery. The reversed

direction of ions flows in the electrolyte result in a reversal of the chemical reactions. Now the

lead sulfates on the positive plate reactive with the water and sulfate ions to produce lead

peroxide and sulfuric acid. This action re-forms the positive plates and makes the electrolyte

stronger by adding sulfuric acid.

At the same time, charging enables the lead sulfate on the negative plate to react with

hydrogen ions; this also forms sulfuric acid while reforming lead on the negative plate to react

with hydrogen ions; this also forms currents can restore the cell to full output, with lead peroxide

32
on the positive plates, spongy lead on the negative plate, and the required concentration of

sulfuric acid in the electrolyte.

Fig 20.Chemical Reactions in batteries

The chemical equation for the lead-acid cell is:

Charge

Pb + PbO₂ + 2H₂SO₄ 2PbSO₄ + 2H₂O

Discharge

On discharge, the Pb and Pbo₂ combine with the SO₄ ions at the left side of the equation

to form lead sulfate (PbSO₄) and water (H₂O) at the right side of the equation. One battery

consists of 6 cells, each have an output voltage of 2.1V, which are connected in series to get an

33
voltage of 12V and the same 12V battery is connected in series, to get an 24 V battery. They are

placed in the water proof iron casing box.

CARING FOR LEAD-ACID BATTERIES:

Always use extreme caution when handling batteries and electrolyte. Wear gloves, goggles and

old clothes. “Battery acid” will burn skin and eyes and destroy cotton and wool clothing.

The quickest way of ruin lead-acid batteries is to discharge them deeply and leave them

stand “dead” for an extended period of time. When they discharge, there is a chemical change in

the positive plates of the battery.

They change from lead oxide when charge out lead sulfate when discharged. If they

remain in the lead Sulfate State for a few days, some part of the plate dose not returns to lead

oxide when the battery is recharged. If the battery remains discharge longer, a greater amount of

the positive plate will remain lead sulfate. The parts of the plates that become “sulfate” no

longer store energy. Batteries that are deeply discharged, and then charged partially on a regular

basis can fail in less than one year.

Check your batteries on a regular basis to be sure they are getting charged. Use a

hydrometer to check the specific gravity of your lead acid batteries. If batteries are cycled very

deeply and then recharged quickly, the specific gravity reading will be lower than it should

because the electrolyte at the top of the battery may not have mixed with the “charged”

electrolyte. Check the electrolyte level in the wet-cell batteries at the least four times a year and

top each cell of with distilled water. Do not add water to discharged batteries. Electrolyte is

absorbed when batteries are very discharged. If you add water at this time, and then recharge the

battery, electrolyte will overflow and make a mess.

34
 Keep the top of your batteries clean and check that cables are tight. Do not tighten or

remove cables while charging or discharging. Any spark around batteries can cause a hydrogen

explosion inside, and ruin one of the cells,

On charge, with reverse current through the electrolyte, the chemical action is reversed.

Then the pb ions from the lead sulfate on the right side of the equation re-form the lead and lead

peroxide electrodes. Also the SO₄ ions combine with H₂ ions from the water to produce more

sulfuric acid at the left side of the equation.

CURRENT RATINGS:

Lead-acid batteries are generally rated in terms of how much discharge currents they can

supply for a specified period of time; the output voltage must be maintained above a minimum

level, which is 1.5 to 1.8V per cell. A common rating is ampere-hours (A.h.) based on a specific

discharge time, which is often 8h. Typical values for automobile batteries are 100 to 300 A.h.

As an example, a 200 A.h battery can supply a load current of 200/8 or 25A, used on 8h

discharge. The battery can supply less current for a longer time or more current for a shorter

time. Automobile batteries may be rated for “cold cranking power”, which is related to the job

of starting the engine. A typical rating is 450A for 30s at a temperature of 0 degree F. Note that

the ampere-hour unit specifies coulombs of charge. For instance, 200 A.h. corresponds to

200A*3600s (1h=3600s) equals 720,000 A.S, or coulombs. One ampere-second is equal to one

coulomb.

Then the charge equals 720,000 or 7.2*10^5ºC. To put this much charge back into the

battery would require 20 hours with a charging current of 10A.The ratings for lead-acid batteries

35
are given for a temperature range of 77 to 80ºF. Higher temperature increase the chemical

reaction, but operation above 110ºF shortens the battery life.

Low temperatures reduce the current capacity and voltage output. The ampere-hour

capacity is reduced approximately 0.75% for each decreases of 1º F below normal temperature

rating. At 0ºF the available output is only 60 % of the ampere-hour battery rating. In cold

weather, therefore, it is very important to have an automobile battery unto full charge. In

addition, the electrolyte freezes more easily when diluted by water in the discharged condition.

SPECIFIC GRAVITY:

Measuring the specific gravity of the electrolyte generally checks the state of discharge

for a lead-acid cell. Specific gravity is a ratio comparing the weight of a substance with the

weight of a substance with the weight of water. For instance, concentrated sulfuric acid is 1.835

times as heavy as water for the same volume. Therefore, its specific gravity equals 1.835. The

specific gravity of water is 1, since it is the reference.

In a fully charged automotive cell, mixture of sulfuric acid and water results in a specific

gravity of 1.280 at room temperatures of 70 to 80ºF. as the cell discharges, more water is

formed, lowering the specific gravity. When it is down to about 1.150, the cell is completely

discharged.

Specific-gravity readings are taken with a battery hydrometer, Note that the calibrated

float with the specific gravity marks will rest higher in an electrolyte of higher specific gravity.

The decimal point is often omitted for convenience. For example, the value of 1.220 is simply

read “twelve twenty”. A hydrometer reading of 1260 to 1280 indicates full charge,

approximately 12.50 are half charge, and 1150 to 1200 indicates complete discharge.

36
 The importance of the specific gravity can be seen from the fact that the open-circuit

voltage of the lead-acid cell is approximately equal to

V = Specific gravity + 0.84

For the specific gravity of 1.280, the voltage is 1.280 = 0.84 = 2.12V, as an example,

these values are for a fully charged battery.

CHARGING THE LEAD-ACID BATERY:

The requirements are illustrated in figure. An external D.C. voltage source is necessary

to produce current in one direction. Also, the charging voltage must be more than the battery

e.m.f. Approximately 2.5 per cell are enough to over the cell e.m.f. so that the charging voltage

can produce current opposite to the direction of discharge current. Note that the reversal of

current is obtained just by connecting the battery VB and charging source VG with + to + and –

to-, as shown in figure. The charging current is reversed because the battery effectively becomes

a load resistance for VG when it higher than VB. In this example, the net voltage available to

produce charging currents is 15-12=3V.

A commercial charger for automobile batteries is essentially a D.C. power supply,

rectifying input from the AC power line to provide D.C. output for charging batteries. Float

charging refers to a method in which the charger and the battery are always connected to each

other for supplying current to the load. In figure the charger provides current for the load and the

current necessary to keep the battery fully charged. The battery here is an auxiliary source for

D.C. power.

37
 It may be of interest to note that an automobile battery is in a floating-charge circuit. The

battery charger is an AC generator or alternator with rectifier diodes, driver by a belt from the

engine. When you start the car, the battery supplies the cranking power. Once the engine is

running, the alternator charges the battery. It is not necessary for the car to be moving. A

voltage regulator is used in this system to maintain the output at approximately 13 to 15 V.

The constant voltage of 24V comes from the solar panel controlled by the charge

controller so for storing this energy we need a 24V battery so two 12V battery are connected in

series.

It is a good idea to do an equalizing charge when some cells show a variation of 0.05

specific gravity from each other. This is a long steady overcharge, bringing the battery to a

gassing or bubbling state. Do not equalize sealed or gel type batteries.

With proper care, lead-acid batteries will have a long service life and work very well in

almost any power system. Unfortunately, with poor treatment lead-acid battery life will be very

short.

38
CONCLUSION

The proposed paper produces a novel design in pursue of increasing the rocker-bogie mobility

system in conventional heavy loading vehicle behavior when high-speed traversal is required.

Presented situation was faced presenting two modes of operation within same working principle

which is a rocker-bogie system with a robust obstacles traverse features and another is an

expanded support hexagon achieved by rotating the bogies of each side of the vehicle.

39
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