Patent ID: 7806208

Claim:
A method for controlling movement of an intelligent wheel over a discontinuity in a travel surface, the method comprising: providing the wheel with a plurality of radially extensible spoke mechanisms fastened thereon, a plurality of sensors mounted on the wheel for sensing a travel surface, each sensor being associated with one of the plurality of spoke mechanisms, and a control system operable to receive signals from the sensors and transmit control signals to each of the sensor's associated spoke mechanism; sensing a position of the discontinuity with one or more of the sensors; calculating a virtual surface over the discontinuity; and extending a tip of one or more spokes of the spoke mechanisms beyond an outer circumference of the wheel to effectively increase a radius of the wheel so that, as one of the spoke mechanisms rotates to a bottom dead center (BDC) position of the wheel, the outer circumference of the wheel substantially follows the calculated virtual surface over the discontinuity.