Study of Flexible Wheels for Lunar Exploration Rovers

Running Performance of Flexible Wheels with Various Amount of Deflection

Abstract

Lunar rovers are required to traverse rough terrains with craters and sheer cliffs-often seen in locations of scientific importance. Recently, wheeled rovers have been gaining popularity in conducting planetary exploration missions. However, wheeled rovers are likely to get stuck in the soil while traversing such terrains. One way to solve this problem is to use flexible wheels. In this study, experiments were carried out to simulate actual running conditions using flexible wheels. The results showed that flexible wheels had a high level of performance when traversing loose soil on a slope. The experiments were carried out using various flexible wheels that allowed different amounts of deflection. The flexible wheels were made from beryllium copper, magnesium, and stainless steel. In these experiments, we measured slip ratio and sinkage for each of these materials.