Because the crossed friction wheel drive technology has many characteristics， including the conversion of rotary and linear motion， arbitrary adjustment of linear motion displacement and remote reciprocating conveying， adaptive driving ability， overload self-protection， high drive efficiency， low wear， long life， low cost， simple structure and manufacturing process， it has been rapidly developed and applied more than 100 years， and widely used in the equipment of automation， intelligence， precision positioning and so on. However， the crossed friction wheel drive technology has not been clearly and systematically listed in the textbooks and manuals in mechanical engineering field， and only the parallel and intersecting friction wheel drive technologies have been classified in the classification system. Therefore， the principle and characteristics of crossed friction wheel drive technology are introduced， its basic principle， two basic motion forms and four basic structural forms are summarized， and a complete classification system of friction wheel drive is established. At the same time， the application and research progress of crossed friction wheel mechanism in different engineering fields are reviewed from the perspective of drive principle. Finally， the current difficulties and problems of the crossed friction wheel drive technology are analyzed， and its development trend is prospected.