Disclosed is an omnidirectional treadmill which has several connected belt units with supporting frames and endless belts which are moved revolving in the first spatial direction. In the second spatial direction, the endless belts of the belt units are moved. The endless belts are driven in the second spatial direction preferably by gear wheels mounted on rolls and by a toothed shaft. The movement of all endless belts is synchronized by coupling with special tooth form crown gears arranged between the belt units.

An omnidirectional treadmill includes a treadmill deck assembly having a deck, and first omniwheels coupled to a periphery of the deck, and a support assembly. The support assembly includes a base, second omniwheels coupled to a periphery of the base and to abut the first omniwheels, and motors coupled to the second omniwheels. The omnidirectional treadmill also includes a tread surrounding the treadmill deck assembly and being between the first omniwheels and the second omniwheels. The first omniwheels and the second omniwheels are configured to pinch the tread. The omnidirectional treadmill also includes a controller coupled to the motors and configured to control movement of the motors to drive the tread.

An apparatus, e.g. an omnidirectional treadmill, is configured to allow a user to move in an arbitrary direction. The apparatus comprises a platform (1) including a frame with a planar support surface for the user, and a continuous sheet (3) arranged to enclose the frame while extending along the planar support surface so as to define a moveable active surface (5). The apparatus further comprises a drive arrangement arranged in frictional contact with the sheet (3) to drive the sheet (3), and thus the active surface (5), in a given direction (D) in relation to the planar support surface. The drive arrangement comprises at least three drive units (20) distributed around the frame, each drive unit (20) comprising a drive roller (21) arranged to rotatingly engage the sheet (3) in abutment to a circumferential edge surface (6) of the frame so as to establish the frictional contact with the sheet (3).

A method of realizing an omnidirectional motion includes: detecting a pace of an object moving over an omnidirectional motion platform; decomposing the pace of the object into speeds along at least two directions; and driving at least two pluralities of movable members, based on the speeds along the at least two directions, to translocate the object along one of the at least two directions and in a direction opposite to a corresponding speed of the pace of the object such that the object remains at a substantially same place over the omnidirectional motion platform. An omnidirectional motion apparatus includes an omnidirectional motion platform, and a pace detector and a data processor.

A platform for providing omnidirectional movement includes a first moveable member, a second moveable member, and a drive system. The first moveable member has an exterior surface adapted to support an object and has a plurality of first grooves therein. The second moveable member has an exterior surface adapted to support the object and has a plurality of second grooves therein. The drive system is operably coupled to the first and second moveable members and is adapted to independently drive the first and second moveable members in a forward direction and a reverse direction. The pluralities of first and second grooves are adapted to interact with the object to move the object in any direction along the exterior surfaces of the first and second moveable members when the drive system is driving at least one of the first and second moveable members.

A walking system that includes a walking dish formed in any one of a circular shape, a semi-circular shape, and a polygonal shape; a rolling ball formed on an upper surface of a ball fixing device; multiple auxiliary balls having multiple rolling balls on the surface of the walking dish and formed below the rolling ball so that the rolling ball smoothly rotates in all directions in 360 degrees; the ball fixing device fixing the auxiliary ball and the rolling ball while allowing the auxiliary ball and the rolling ball to rotate in all directions in 360 degrees; and a ball fixing table formed with the ball fixing device for joining the multiple ball fixing devices on the inclined surface at a predetermined interval to allow a user to walk in all directions in 360 degrees according to a virtual reality or walking motion image.

Embodiments herein describe techniques for operating an omnidirectional treadmill, the techniques include receiving VR (virtual reality) topographical information comprising a VR environment, and displaying the VR environment to a user wearing a headset. VR topographical information includes information about VR elements in front of the user in the VR environment relative to a facing direction of the user in the VR environment. The method includes sending topographical signals to active elements in an omnidirectional treadmill based upon the VR topographical information where the omnidirectional treadmill permits the user to move along at least two perpendicular directions of motion on a surface of the omnidirectional treadmill. The techniques include activating the active elements, based upon the VR topographical signals, to physically simulate the VR elements in the VR topographical information on the surface by at least one of expanding or contracting the active elements.

A modular floor with active tiles that utilize numerous friction or contact disks each with a raised segment or portion on their edges that together provide a planar contact surface for the active tile. Each disk is oriented at a fixed tilt angle to define which part of the disk's outer surfaces act as the raised portion, and each disk is oriented to position where the raised surface is located so as to define the direction that a supported object is moved over the modular floor. The drive system typically includes, for each disk assembly, a disk orienting mechanism along with a disk rotation mechanism to rotate the disk at a rotation rate about its central axis. The controller of the motion system operates the disk orienting mechanism to orient the disk so that a particular location on the disk behaves as the raised portion where an object is contacted.

A modular omnidirectional motion platform includes left-rotating speed decomposition units and right-rotating speed decomposition units. Rotational speed of each left-rotating speed decomposition unit is the same. Rotational speed of each right-rotating speed decomposition unit is the same. The left-rotating and right-rotating speed decomposition units are alternately and parallelly arranged. The left-rotating speed decomposition units have different lengths. The right-rotating speed decomposition units have different lengths. Each speed decomposition unit comprises a load-bearing shaft and rotating shafts fixed around the load-bearing shaft. Parallel transmission assemblies are disposed on the load-bearing shafts. Two adjacent left-rotating speed decomposition units are connected by one parallel transmission assembly, and two adjacent right-rotating speed decomposition units are connected by one parallel transmission assembly. The left-rotating speed decomposition units rotate together at a same speed in a same direction. The right-rotating speed decomposition units rotate together at a same speed in a same direction.

A platform for providing omnidirectional movement includes a first moveable member, a second moveable member, and a drive system. The first moveable member has an exterior surface adapted to support an object and has a plurality of first grooves therein. The second moveable member has an exterior surface adapted to support the object and has a plurality of second grooves therein. The drive system is operably coupled to the first and second moveable members and is adapted to independently drive the first and second moveable members in a forward direction and a reverse direction. The pluralities of first and second grooves are adapted to interact with the object to move the object in any direction along the exterior surfaces of the first and second moveable members when the drive system is driving at least one of the first and second moveable members.