Have you seen the humanoid robots from Boston Dynamics? These robots can run, jump, and complete various complex tasks with such fluid movements that they resemble humans. Every time I watch these robots perform, I can't help but exclaim: This is amazing! How are they so flexible and agile? The hero behind this is actually the reducer. The reducer is like the "joint" of the robots, which allows their movements to be smoother and more precise. It's key to enabling robots to perform various complex actions.
The Harmonic Reducers are a new transmission structure that uses flexible gears to generate controllable elastic deformation waves, causing relative tooth engagement and disengagement between the rigid wheel and the flexible wheel to transmit power and motion. It's like an agile "sprite"—compact and lightweight yet possessing incredible transmission capability.
The Harmonic Reducers mainly comprise three basic components: the wave generator, the flexible wheel, and the rigid wheel. Its working principle is unique and ingenious. When the wave generator rotates, it causes the flexible wheel to elastically deform, enabling engagement and disengagement with the rigid wheel, thus achieving speed reduction transmission.
This transmission method gives the Harmonic Reducers feature like a large transmission ratio, high precision, and smooth motion, much like a skilled dancer with fluid and precise movements. The Harmonic Reducers find wide applications in scenarios with stringent space and weight requirements, such as the arms and wrists of humanoid robots, enabling more flexible and refined actions.
The working principle of the Harmonic Reducer is filled with the beauty of flexibility and agility. It primarily comprises the wave generator, the flexible wheel, and the rigid wheel, which collaborate to deliver a precise transmission performance. The wave generator is one of the core components of the Harmonic Reducers and usually has an elliptical or polygonal shape.
When the wave generator is inserted into the inner circle of the flexible wheel, it acts like a magical magician, forcing the flexible wheel to elastically deform from a circle to an elliptical shape. During this process, the teeth at the long axis ends of the flexible wheel fully engage with the rigid wheel's teeth, while the teeth at the short axis ends completely disengage. The rest of the teeth are in transitional states of engagement and disengagement.
As the wave generator continuously rotates, the flexible wheel keeps deforming, causing continuous relative tooth engagement and disengagement between the flexible wheel and the rigid wheel, thus achieving speed reduction transmission. This method, relying on elastic deformation for transmission, gives the Harmonic Reducers highly precise transmission capabilities, meeting the demands of high-precision applications. For example, in the joints of humanoid robot hands, it enables robots to perform fine actions like threading a needle.
The Harmonic Reducers are an effective assistant for achieving light loads and precise operations in robots, playing a crucial role in the lightweight sections like the forearms and wrists of robots. These areas require high flexibility and precision so the robot can perform various delicate actions, such as grabbing objects or assembling tiny components. The Harmonic Reducers' compact size, lightweight, and high transmission precision make it perfectly suited for these needs.
In some service robots, the Harmonic Reducers are widely used in the arm and wrist joints, allowing robots to easily pick up cups, serve meals, and perform actions smoothly and intricately. They work as flexibly as human finger joints, enabling robots to complete various high-difficulty, precision tasks under light loads, expanding the potential application scenarios for robots.
As a core component in the field of robotics, the Harmonic Reducers play a crucial role in lightweight and precise operational sections with its high precision, small size, and lightweight characteristics. The development of reducers will directly impact the performance and application prospects of humanoid robots. Let's look forward to continuous innovation and breakthroughs in reducer technology, bringing more possibilities for the development of humanoid robots and more convenience and surprises to our lives!
