Patent ID: 7527117

Claim:
A vehicle capable of traveling over uneven terrain with a load, said vehicle comprising: a frame having a front end, a rear end, and a fore-aft axis extending therebetween; a body mounted to said frame; an adjustable axle assembly mounted to said frame such that said adjustable axle assembly is aligned substantially orthogonal to said fore-aft axis; a pair of wheels rotatably mounted on the ends of said adjustable axle assembly such that said wheels are aligned substantially in parallel and are thereby capable of facilitating moving interaction with the ground; at least one supplemental ground-interacting apparatus mounted to said frame such that each said supplemental ground-interacting apparatus cooperates with said pair of wheels to thereby maintain clearance between both said frame and said body and said ground; an actuation system capable of mechanically adjusting said adjustable axle assembly to thereby adjust the fore-aft position of said pair of wheels relative to both said frame and said body; and an electronic controller mounted to said body and electrically connected to said actuation system; wherein said electronic controller is capable of communicating electrical control signals to said actuation system to thereby adjust said fore-aft position of said pair of wheels as necessary to actively maintain the fore-aft stability of said vehicle; wherein said adjustable axle assembly includes (i) a cross arm assembly and (ii) a pair of swing arms having pivotal ends pivotally mounted to said frame and distal ends interconnected with said cross arm assembly; and wherein said wheels are rotatably suspended from said swing arms proximate said distal ends.