JP2015066623A - Robot control system and robot - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide guide information to a user appropriately by outputting utterance contents in accordance with the history of the user's viewing behaviors at the time of his/her last visit.SOLUTION: A robot control system detects a position and a direction of a user by using a plurality of distance image sensors 12a and 12b disposed in an exhibition hall. A central control device records a user's viewing behaviors from when he/she arrives at the exhibition hall to when he/she leaves the hall and creates a viewing behavior table. When the user re-visits the hall, the central control device reads a history of the viewing behaviors from the viewing behavior table. Then, utterance contents containing phrases referring to a viewing behavior during a previous visit included in the history are selected and determined from an utterance content table, and output from a robot 10 to the user.

Description

  The present invention relates to a robot control system and a robot, and more particularly, to a robot control system and a robot that provide, for example, guidance information such as explanations of exhibits to a visitor as uttered content.

  In Non-Patent Document 1, which is an example of background technology, a robot that guides a scientific hall explains to a user about exhibits that have not been viewed yet, based on the tour history.

Masahiro Shiomi, Takayuki Kanda, Hiroshi Ishiguro and Norihiro Hagita, Interactive Humanoid Robots for a Science Museum, IEEE Intelligent Systems, vol. 22, no. 2, pp. 25-32, Mar / Apr. 2007.

  Non-Patent Document 1 is effective as a guidance robot that allows the user to view as many exhibits as possible, but is limited to guidance on the spot, and therefore cannot always provide an appropriate explanation to the user.

  Therefore, the main object of the present invention is to provide a novel robot control system and robot.

  Another object of the present invention is to provide a robot control system and a robot that can provide appropriate guidance information.

  The present invention employs the following configuration in order to solve the above problems. The reference numerals in parentheses, supplementary explanations, and the like indicate the corresponding relationship with the embodiments described in order to help understanding of the present invention, and do not limit the present invention.

  A first invention is a robot control system including a robot that outputs utterance content to a user in an exhibition hall where an exhibit is placed, and recording means for recording browsing behavior when the user visits as a history, And a robot control system comprising output means for outputting the utterance content determined based on the history from the robot when the user comes again.

  In the first invention, the robot (10) of the robot control system (100: reference numerals exemplifying corresponding parts in the embodiment; the same applies hereinafter) is located in the exhibition hall where the exhibit (E) is placed. Can move autonomously. The recording means (16, S9, 336) records, for example, how long each user has viewed each exhibit (viewing time) as a browsing action history. The output means (16, S27, S29) reads the browsing behavior history when the user revisits, determines speech content based on the history, and causes the robot to speak. For example, if there is a record that the user has browsed a specific exhibit for a relatively long time, an utterance content such as “I watched *** well” is output. For example, if there is a history of browsing behavior that the user has passed through the exhibition hall without almost viewing the exhibits, utterance content such as “Please watch slowly” is output.

  According to the first aspect, since the utterance content is output according to the user's browsing behavior history, appropriate guidance information can be provided to the user.

  A second invention is a robot control system according to the first invention, wherein the output means outputs an utterance content determined based on a browsing behavior history when the user visited the previous time.

  In the second invention, for example, if there is a record that the user browsed a specific exhibit for a relatively long time, “I watched *** last time. Utterance content such as "Please" is output. For example, if there is a history of browsing behavior that the user has only passed through the exhibition hall without looking at the exhibition, “Look at the last time, but look at this time slowly.” Utterance content is output.

  According to the second invention, since the utterance content determined based on the browsing behavior history at the previous visit is output, it is possible not only to provide appropriate guidance information to the user but also for the robot to observe the user well It is possible to give an impression that the user is present, and it can be expected to increase the familiarity of the user with the robot.

  A third invention is a robot control system according to the second invention, wherein the utterance content includes a phrase that refers to a browsing action when the user visited the previous time.

  The third invention includes phrases that directly refer to the previous browsing behavior, such as “Looked at *** well in the last time” or “Looked like you did n’t see it too much last time”. , Utterance content is output.

  According to the third aspect of the invention, since the utterance content including the phrase that refers to the browsing behavior at the previous visit of the user is output, it is possible to give a strong impression that the robot is observing the user well. It can be expected to increase the sense of familiarity with.

  A fourth invention is dependent on any one of the first to third inventions, a calculating means for calculating a total viewing time when the user visited the previous time, and a judging means for judging whether or not the total browsing time is shorter than a predetermined time. The output means determines the utterance content according to the determination result of the determination means.

  In the fourth invention, the calculation means (16, S23) calculates the total viewing time when the user visited the previous time, that is, the total time when the user browsed each exhibit exhibited in the exhibition hall. . Then, the judging means (16, S25) judges whether the total browsing time is less than a predetermined time (for example, 60 seconds). The output means determines and outputs the utterance content according to the determination result of the determination means, that is, according to whether the previous browsing total time is shorter than the predetermined time.

  According to the fourth aspect of the invention, it is possible to provide appropriate guidance information based on the previous total browsing time of the user, that is, the global action history of the previous user.

  A fifth invention is a robot control program executed by a computer of a robot control system, including a robot that outputs utterance content to a user in an exhibition hall where an exhibit is placed, wherein the user visits the computer It is a robot control program for functioning as a recording means for recording the browsing behavior as a history and an output means for outputting the utterance content determined based on the history from the robot when the user comes back.

  A sixth invention is a robot control method executed by a computer of a robot control system, including a robot that outputs utterance content to a user in an exhibition hall where an exhibit is placed, and browsing when the user visits A robot control method includes a recording step of recording an action as a history, and an output step of outputting utterance content determined based on the history from the robot when the user comes back.

  According to the fifth or sixth invention, the same effect as that of the first invention can be expected.

  A seventh invention is a robot that outputs utterance content to a user in an exhibition hall where an exhibit is placed, recording means for recording browsing behavior as a history when the user visited, and the user revisited In some cases, the robot includes output means for outputting utterance content determined based on the history.

  According to the seventh aspect, a robot that provides appropriate guidance information to the user can be obtained.

  According to this invention, it is possible to provide appropriate guidance information to the user.

  The above object, other objects, features, and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description of embodiments with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is an illustrative view showing one example of an exhibition hall to which a robot control system of one embodiment of the present invention is applied. FIG. 2 is an illustrative view showing one example of a plan view (map) of the exhibition hall shown in FIG. FIG. 3 is an illustrative view showing an outline of a robot control system according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing an example of an electrical configuration of the central controller shown in FIG. FIG. 5 is an illustrative view showing an external appearance of an example of the robot used in the embodiment shown in FIG. FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing an example of the electrical configuration of the robot shown in FIG. FIG. 7 is an illustrative view showing one example of a memory map of a memory of the central control unit shown in FIG. FIG. 8 is an illustrative view showing one example of a user management table shown in FIG. FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing an example of the browsing behavior table shown in FIG. FIG. 10 is an illustrative view showing one example of an utterance content table shown in FIG. FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing an example of the recording processing operation of the processor of the central controller shown in FIG. FIG. 12 is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of the robot behavior determination process of the processor of the central controller shown in FIG.

  With reference to FIG. 1, the robot control system 100 of this embodiment is used in a space (environment) such as an exhibition hall where an exhibit E is placed. In the exhibition hall, the user (visitor) and the robot 10 can arbitrarily move, and the ceiling has a plurality of positions for detecting the positions of all users in the exhibition hall and the direction of the body. A distance image sensor 12 (12a, 12b,...) Is provided.

  The robot 10 is also an interaction-oriented robot (communication robot), and has a function of performing body movements such as gestures and voice communication behavior with a communication target such as a user. Further, as part of the communication, the robot 10 provides a service for outputting an explanation (uttered content) about the exhibit E to the user and guiding the exhibition hall. The robot 10 autonomously moves within the exhibition hall or operates based on action commands given by the central control device 14 as necessary for providing services.

  The space of the embodiment is an exhibition hall where the exhibition E is placed, but the robot control system 100 can be used not only in this but also in a shopping mall, a company floor, a museum, an attraction hall, or the like.

  For simplicity, only one user is shown in FIG. 1, but there may be more users in the exhibition hall. Similarly, although only one robot 10 is shown, the robot control system 100 can control more than two robots 10 simultaneously.

  FIG. 2 is a map showing the planar position of such an exhibition hall (space). Referring to FIG. 2, a plurality (three in this embodiment) of exhibits E (E1, E2, E3) are displayed at the exhibition hall. An entrance / exit is formed in the exhibition hall, and a tag reader 13 (FIGS. 3 and 4) for reading RFID tag data is installed at the entrance / exit. For example, the user enters the exhibition hall after having the tag reader read the RFID tag held by the user. The RFID tag stores a user ID, and the tag reader reads the user ID from the RFID tag and transmits it to the central controller 14 (FIGS. 3 and 4).

  An arbitrary RFID tag can be used. However, this embodiment is intended to present appropriate guidance information (for example, output utterance content) by referring to the history of the previous browsing behavior when the same visitor comes after the second time. Therefore, in this embodiment, it is necessary to individually specify visitors (users). For this reason, the RFID tag used in the embodiments may be unique to each individual, for example, a member card, a mobile phone (including a smartphone), a car key, or the like.

  However, a user may be specified by providing a camera at the entrance / exit of the exhibition hall and performing image processing on the user's face image captured by the camera. Then, the trouble of presenting the RFID tag to the user can be avoided.

  Explainable ranges A1, A2, and A3 are set for the exhibits E1, E2, and E3 in the exhibition hall, respectively. The explainable range A is such a range in which the robot 10 provides the user with an explanation (guidance information) for the exhibit if the user is within this range. The coordinate data such as the position, shape and size of these explainable ranges A1, A2 and A3 are together with the coordinate data such as the position, shape and size of the centroids C1, C2 and C3 of the corresponding exhibits E1, E2 and E3. These are stored in advance as map data 332 (FIG. 7) described later.

  In this embodiment, when the user exists in the explainable range Ai of each exhibit Ei, the user is considered to have viewed the exhibit Ei.

  Referring to FIG. 3, the central control device 14 of the robot control system 100 detects the position of a user that is arbitrarily moved by the distance image sensors 12a, 12b,. Detect user orientation. The central control device 14 performs wireless communication with the robot 10 via the network 1000, and controls the behavior of the robot 10 if necessary.

  FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing an electrical configuration of the central controller 14. Referring to FIG. 3, central controller 14 includes distance image sensors 12a and 12b, a processor 16, and the like. The processor 16 is sometimes called a computer or a CPU. In addition to the distance image sensor 12a and the distance image sensor 12b described above, another distance image sensor 12 is connected to the processor 16. When there is no need to distinguish between the distance image sensors 12a and 12b, the distance image sensors 12a and 12b are simply referred to as “distance image sensor 12”.

  A memory 18 and a communication LAN board 20 are connected to the processor 16.

  The distance image sensor 12 irradiates light such as infrared light or laser, and captures light reflected from the object (reflected light) by an optical sensor such as a CCD sensor. The distance image sensor 12 measures the actual distance to the object by measuring the time until the light returns for each pixel. The distance image sensor 12 of the embodiment employs a product called Xtion (registered trademark) manufactured by ASUS (registered trademark). In another embodiment, the distance image sensor 12 uses a Kinect (registered trademark) sensor manufactured by Microsoft (registered trademark), a three-dimensional distance image sensor D-IMager (registered trademark) manufactured by Panasonic (registered trademark), or the like. It is also possible to do. This type of sensor is sometimes called a three-dimensional distance measuring sensor, a 3D scanner, or the like.

  The processor 16 acquires the three-dimensional information of the target (user) through such a distance image sensor 12. The three-dimensional information from the distance image sensor 12 includes the shape of the target and the distance to the target. For example, when the user is sensed by the distance image sensor 12 provided on the ceiling, the shape of the head and both shoulders as viewed from above and the distance to the head and both shoulders are obtained as three-dimensional information. It is done.

  For example, 35 distance image sensors 12 are installed at predetermined positions (known) in the exhibition hall, and the processor 16 acquires three-dimensional information from each to obtain a position in a three-dimensional space (world coordinate system). (For example, the position coordinates (x, y, z) of a feature point such as the center of gravity) and the user's direction (for example, the direction of a feature part such as the head and both shoulders) can be calculated.

  In another embodiment, the position and orientation of the user may be detected using a two-dimensional or three-dimensional LRF instead of the distance image sensor 12.

  The memory 18 includes a ROM, an HDD, and a RAM. In the ROM and the HDD, a control program for controlling the operation of the central controller 14 is stored in advance. The RAM is used as a work memory or a buffer memory for the processor 16.

  The communication LAN board 20 is configured by a DSP, for example, and provides transmission data given from the processor 16 to the wireless communication device 22, and the wireless communication device 22 transmits the transmission data to the robot 10 via the network 1000. For example, the transmission data includes data necessary for autonomous movement of the robot 10, data necessary for performing a service, and a signal (command) of an action command instructing the robot 10. Further, the communication LAN board 20 receives data via the wireless communication device 22 and gives the received data to the processor 16.

  In another embodiment, the central controller 14 may include an output device such as a display and input devices such as a mouse and a keyboard.

  FIG. 5 is a front view showing the appearance of the robot 10 of this embodiment. Referring to FIG. 5, the robot 10 includes a carriage 40, and two wheels 42 and one slave wheel 44 that autonomously move the robot 10 are provided on the lower surface of the carriage 40. The two wheels 42 are independently driven by a wheel motor 46 (see FIG. 6), and the carriage 40, that is, the robot 10 can be moved in any direction, front, back, left, and right. The slave wheel 44 is an auxiliary wheel that assists the wheel 42. Therefore, the robot 10 can move in the arranged space by autonomous control.

  A cylindrical sensor mounting panel 48 is provided on the carriage 40, and a large number of infrared distance sensors 50 are mounted on the sensor mounting panel 48. These infrared distance sensors 50 measure the distance to the sensor mounting panel 48, that is, the object (user, obstacle, etc.) around the robot 10.

  In this embodiment, an infrared distance sensor is used as the distance sensor. However, an LRF, an ultrasonic distance sensor, a millimeter wave radar, or the like can be used instead of the infrared distance sensor.

  On the sensor mounting panel 48, the body 52 is provided so as to stand upright. Further, the above-described infrared distance sensor 50 is further provided at the front upper center of the body 52 (a position corresponding to the user's chest), and measures the distance mainly to the user in front of the robot 10. Further, the body 52 is provided with a support column 54 extending from substantially the center of the upper end of the side surface, and an omnidirectional camera 56 is provided on the support column 54. The omnidirectional camera 56 photographs the surroundings of the robot 10 and is distinguished from an eye camera 80 described later. As the omnidirectional camera 56, for example, a camera using a solid-state imaging device such as a CCD or a CMOS can be employed. In addition, the installation positions of the infrared distance sensor 50 and the omnidirectional camera 56 are not limited to the portions, and can be changed as appropriate.

  An upper arm 60 </ b> R and an upper arm 60 </ b> L are provided at upper ends on both sides of the body 52 (positions corresponding to the user's shoulders) by a shoulder joint 58 </ b> R and a shoulder joint 58 </ b> L, respectively. Although illustration is omitted, each of the shoulder joint 58R and the shoulder joint 58L has three orthogonal degrees of freedom. That is, the shoulder joint 58R can control the angle of the upper arm 60R around each of three orthogonal axes. A certain axis (yaw axis) of the shoulder joint 58R is an axis parallel to the longitudinal direction (or axis) of the upper arm 60R, and the other two axes (pitch axis and roll axis) are orthogonal to the axes from different directions. It is an axis to do. Similarly, the shoulder joint 58L can control the angle of the upper arm 60L around each of the three orthogonal axes. A certain axis (yaw axis) of the shoulder joint 58L is an axis parallel to the longitudinal direction (or axis) of the upper arm 60L, and the other two axes (pitch axis and roll axis) are orthogonal to the axes from different directions. It is an axis to do.

  Further, an elbow joint 62R and an elbow joint 62L are provided at the tips of the upper arm 60R and the upper arm 60L, respectively. Although illustration is omitted, each of the elbow joint 62R and the elbow joint 62L has one degree of freedom, and the angles of the forearm 64R and the forearm 64L can be controlled around the axis (pitch axis).

  A hand 66R and a hand 66L are provided at the tips of the forearm 64R and the forearm 64L, respectively. Each hand 66 is provided with a thumb, a user's index finger, a middle finger, a ring finger, and a little finger in the same manner as the user. Finger joints (not shown) are provided at the base of the thumb of the hand 66 and the user's index finger, and each can be moved independently. In addition, the middle finger, the ring finger, and the little finger are integrally molded, and a finger joint is provided at the base, like the thumb and the user's index finger. The middle finger, ring finger, and little finger can be moved together.

  In addition, wrists are provided at the bases of the hands 66R and 66L. Although illustration is omitted, the left and right wrists each have one degree of freedom, and the angles of the hands 66R and 66L can be controlled around the axis (yaw axis). Although not shown, the thumbs of the hand 66R and the hand 66L, the user's index finger, and the finger joints of the remaining three fingers (middle finger, ring finger, and little finger) each have one degree of freedom. The angle of the finger can be controlled.

  Accordingly, the robot 10 can point an arbitrary object with the hand 66 in the state of pointing with the thumb, middle finger, ring finger, and little finger folded, or can use the entire upper arm 60, forearm 64 and hand 66 with the hand open. It is possible to point any target. Therefore, the upper arm 60, the forearm 64, and the hand 66 are sometimes referred to as pointing means.

  In another embodiment, as in the case of the user, a hand 66 may be employed in which each finger is independent and has the same number of finger joints as the user's finger. In this case, the robot 10 can perform not only pointing but also grasping an object with a finger or communicating by sign language.

  Although not shown, the front surface of the carriage 40, the portion corresponding to the shoulder including the shoulder joint 58R and the shoulder joint 58L, the upper arm 60R, the upper arm 60L, the forearm 64R, the forearm 64L, the hand 66R, and the hand 66L, , A contact sensor 68 (shown generically in FIG. 5) is provided. The contact sensor 68 on the front surface of the carriage 40 detects contact of the user or other obstacles to the carriage 40. Therefore, the robot 10 can detect the contact with the obstacle during its movement and immediately stop the driving of the wheel 42 to stop the movement of the robot 10 suddenly. In addition, the other contact sensors 68 detect whether or not the respective parts are touched. In addition, the installation position of the contact sensor 68 is not limited to the said site | part, You may provide in an appropriate position (a position corresponding to a user's chest, abdomen, side, back, and waist).

  A neck joint 70 is provided at the upper center of the body 52 (a position corresponding to the user's neck), and a head 72 is further provided thereon. Although illustration is omitted, the neck joint 70 has a degree of freedom of three axes, and the angle can be controlled around each of the three axes. A certain axis (yaw axis) is an axis directed directly above (vertically upward) of the robot 10, and the other two axes (pitch axis and roll axis) are axes orthogonal to each other in different directions.

  The head 72 is provided with a speaker 74 at a position corresponding to the user's mouth. The speaker 74 is used for the robot 10 to communicate with the surrounding users by voice or sound, or to output utterance content to be described later to the user. A microphone 76R and a microphone 76L are provided at a position corresponding to the user's ear. Hereinafter, the right microphone 76R and the left microphone 76L may be collectively referred to as a microphone 76. The microphone 76 captures ambient sounds, particularly the voice of the user who is the subject of communication. Furthermore, an eyeball part 78R and an eyeball part 78L are provided at positions corresponding to the eyes of the user. The eyeball part 78R and the eyeball part 78L include an eye camera 80R and an eye camera 80L, respectively. Hereinafter, the right eyeball part 78R and the left eyeball part 78L may be collectively referred to as the eyeball part 78. Further, the right eye camera 80R and the left eye camera 80L may be collectively referred to as an eye camera 80.

  The eye camera 80 takes a picture of a user's face and other parts or objects approaching the robot 10 and captures a corresponding video signal. The eye camera 80 can be the same camera as the omnidirectional camera 56 described above. For example, the eye camera 80 is fixed in the eyeball part 78, and the eyeball part 78 is attached to a predetermined position in the head 72 via an eyeball support part (not shown). Although illustration is omitted, the eyeball support portion has two degrees of freedom, and the angle can be controlled around each of these axes. For example, one of the two axes is an axis (yaw axis) in a direction toward the top of the head 72, and the other is orthogonal to the one axis and goes straight in a direction in which the front side (face) of the head 72 faces. It is an axis (pitch axis) in the direction to be performed. By rotating the eyeball support portion around each of these two axes, the tip (front) side of the eyeball portion 78 or the eye camera 80 is displaced, and the camera axis, that is, the line-of-sight direction is moved. In addition, the installation positions of the above-described speaker 74, microphone 76, and eye camera 80 are not limited to the portions, and may be provided at appropriate positions.

  As described above, the robot 10 of this embodiment includes independent two-axis driving of the wheels 42, three degrees of freedom of the shoulder joint 58 (6 degrees of freedom on the left and right), one degree of freedom of the elbow joint 62 (2 degrees of freedom on the left and right), 1 degree of freedom for wrist (2 degrees of freedom for left and right), 1 degree of freedom for finger joints (6 degrees of freedom for left and right fingers), 3 degrees of freedom for neck joint 70 and 2 degrees of freedom for eyeball support (4 degrees of freedom for left and right) A total of 25 degrees of freedom).

  FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing an electrical configuration of the robot 10. With reference to FIG. 6, the robot 10 includes a processor 90. The processor 90 is also called a microcomputer or a processor, and is connected to the memory 94, the motor control board 96, the sensor input / output board 98, the audio input / output board 110, and the communication LAN board 130 via the bus 92.

  The memory 94 includes ROM and RAM. In the ROM, a control program for controlling the operation of the robot 10 is stored in advance. For example, a detection program for detecting the output (sensor information) of each sensor, a communication program for transmitting / receiving necessary data and commands to / from an external computer (central control device 14), and the like are stored. The RAM is used as a work memory or a buffer memory of the processor 90.

  The motor control board 96 is composed of, for example, a DSP, and controls the driving of motors for axes such as arms, neck joints, and eyeballs. That is, the motor control board 96 receives the control data from the processor 90, and controls two angles of the two axes of the right eyeball part 78R (in FIG. 6, collectively shown as “right eyeball motor 112”). Control the rotation angle. Similarly, the motor control board 96 receives the control data from the processor 90, and shows two motors for controlling the respective angles of the two axes of the left eyeball portion 78L (in FIG. 6, collectively referred to as “left eyeball motor 114”). ) To control the rotation angle.

  The motor control board 96 receives control data from the processor 90, and includes a total of three motors for controlling the angles of the three orthogonal axes of the shoulder joint 58R and one motor for controlling the angle of the elbow joint 62R. The rotational angles of four motors (collectively indicated as “right arm motor 116” in FIG. 6) are controlled. Similarly, the motor control board 96 receives control data from the processor 90, and includes three motors for controlling the angles of the three orthogonal axes of the shoulder joint 58L and one motor for controlling the angle of the elbow joint 62L. The rotation angles of a total of four motors (collectively indicated as “left arm motor 118” in FIG. 6) are controlled.

  The motor control board 96 receives control data from the processor 90, and controls one motor for controlling the angle of one axis of the right wrist and three motors for controlling the angles of the three finger joints of the right hand 66R. The rotation angles of the four motors (collectively indicated as “right-handed motor 120” in FIG. 6) are controlled. Similarly, the motor control board 96 receives control data from the processor 90 and controls one motor for controlling the angle of one axis of the wrist of the left hand and three motors for controlling the angles of the three finger joints of the left hand 66L. The rotation angles of the four motors (collectively indicated as “left-handed motor 122” in FIG. 6) are controlled.

  Here, the angle of the finger joint does not reflect the rotation of the motor as it is, but is controlled by a fluid pressure cylinder that operates by the rotation of the motor. Specifically, a piston for moving the working fluid is movably accommodated in the fluid pressure cylinder, and the position of the piston changes as the motor rotates. Then, the angle of the finger joint changes according to the movement of the fluid pressure cylinder. The hand of the robot using the fluid pressure cylinder is described in detail in, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2013-96514, and detailed description thereof will be omitted here by referring to the publication.

  Further, the motor control board 96 receives the control data from the processor 90 and controls three motors for controlling the angles of the three orthogonal axes of the neck joint 70 (in FIG. 6, collectively indicated as “head motor 124”). ) To control the rotation angle.

  The motor control board 96 receives control data from the processor 90 and controls the rotation angles of two motors (collectively referred to as “wheel motors 46” in FIG. 6) that drive the wheels 42. In this embodiment, a motor other than the wheel motor 46 uses a stepping motor (that is, a pulse motor) in order to simplify the control. However, a DC motor may be used similarly to the wheel motor 46. The actuator that drives the body part of the robot 10 is not limited to a motor that uses a current as a power source, and may be changed as appropriate. For example, in another embodiment, an air actuator or the like may be applied.

  Similar to the motor control board 96, the sensor input / output board 98 is configured by a DSP and takes in signals from each sensor and supplies them to the processor 90. That is, data relating to the reflection time from each of the infrared distance sensors 50 is input to the processor 90 through the sensor input / output board 98. Further, the video signal from the omnidirectional camera 56 is input to the processor 90 after being subjected to predetermined processing by the sensor input / output board 98 as necessary. Similarly, the video signal from the eye camera 80 is also input to the processor 90. Further, signals from the plurality of contact sensors 68 described above (collectively indicated as “contact sensors 68” in FIG. 6) are provided to the processor 90 via the sensor input / output board 98.

  Similarly, the voice input / output board 110 is also configured by a DSP, and voice or voice in accordance with voice synthesis data provided from the processor 90 is output from the speaker 74. In addition, audio input from the microphone 76 is given to the processor 90 via the audio input / output board 110.

  The communication LAN board 130 is configured by a DSP, for example, and provides transmission data given from the processor 90 to the wireless communication device 132. The wireless communication device 132 sends the transmission data to the external computer (central control device 14) via the network 1000. Send to. In addition, the communication LAN board 130 receives data via the wireless communication device 132 and gives the received data to the processor 90. For example, the transmission data includes surrounding video data captured by the omnidirectional camera 56 and the eye camera 80.

  FIG. 7 is an illustrative view showing one example of a memory map of the memory 18 in the central controller 14 shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 7, the memory 18 includes a program storage area 302 and a data storage area 304. In the program storage area 302, as a program for operating the central control device 14, in addition to an operating system (OS), a recording program 310 for recording a history of browsing behavior of each user who has visited the exhibition hall, operation of each robot An operation determination program 312 and the like are stored. Although not shown, the program storage area 302 includes a program for detecting the position and orientation of the user from the output of the distance image sensor 12 described above.

  The data storage area 304 is provided with a user information buffer 330 and map data 332 is stored. For example, the user information buffer 330 temporarily stores the user position and the user orientation calculated based on the three-dimensional information as user information.

  The map data 332 includes map data representing a plan view as shown in FIG. The map data includes the various coordinate data described above, such as the exhibit E and information (coordinates) of a predetermined range corresponding to the exhibit E.

  Although not shown, the data storage area 304 is also provided with a buffer for temporarily storing the results of various calculations, and other counters and flags necessary for the operation of the central controller 14.

  The user management table 334 is, for example, as shown in FIG. 8, and records the number of visits and a visiting flag indicating whether or not the user is present at each user, and enters from the entrance as described above. Sometimes, reading the RFID can detect that the user has come to the venue, and reading the RFID when exiting from the entrance can detect that the user has exited. When the user arrives, the number of visits is incremented, and a visiting flag is set. The visiting flag is reset when the user leaves.

  The browsing action table 336 is shown in FIG. 9, for example, and records the browsing time of the user for each exhibit E1, E2, E3,. FIG. 9 shows a browsing behavior table for the user AAA, for example, but the same is provided for other users. Similarly to the previous user management table 334, this browsing behavior table 336 is also formed in the memory 18 when the corresponding user first visits, and the number of visits is incremented (updated) for each subsequent visit. Then, for each visit, it is recorded which exhibition the user has viewed for which time. At the same time, a movement trajectory indicating how the user has moved in the exhibition hall is recorded in the browsing action table 336. The movement trajectory can be recorded, for example, by acquiring the position of the user every Δt seconds. However, in FIG. 9, since this movement locus is bothersome, the description is omitted.

  In the utterance content table 338, for example, as shown in FIG. 10, utterance content data is recorded for each content number. Since the utterance content is unique to the exhibition hall or the exhibition, the utterance content table 338 is set (prepared) in advance whenever the exhibition hall or the exhibition is changed. In this embodiment, as an example, the content number 1 is an utterance content “Looks like you didn't look at the last time, but please take a look at this time.” This is the utterance content that says “Please look at the exhibition Ej this time.” Content number 3 is “Look at the last time, but please look carefully this time.” The content number 4 is an utterance content “There is a new exhibition Enew, so please see it”.

  As described above, the content number 1-3 refers to the browsing behavior when the user visited the previous time, and guides the current browsing. However, the utterance content does not refer to the browsing behavior at the previous visit in this way, and is not directly related to the history of the previous browsing behavior, such as content number 4, for example. It may be utterance content related to the history.

  In the robot control system 100 of this embodiment, the utterance content is selected from the utterance content table 338 based on the user's browsing behavior history and provided to the user as guidance information.

  In such a robot control system 100, when the tag reader 13 provided at the entrance / exit of the exhibition hall (FIG. 2) reads the RFID tag of the visitor, the central controller 14 executes the recording process of FIG.

  When the read ID data is input from the tag reader 13 to the central controller 14, the central controller 14 determines whether or not the visitor at that time is the first visit in the first step S1, for example, the user management table of FIG. Judgment is made by referring to 334. For example, if there is no record in the user management table 334, it can be determined that the current visit is the first visit for the user. If “YES” in the step S 1, the central controller 14 registers the user Ui in the user management table 334 and the browsing behavior table 336 in the next step S 3, and about the user in the user management table 334. Set the visiting flag.

  When “NO” is determined in step S1, that is, when it is determined that the user Ui is visiting for the second time or later, in the next step S3, the central controller 14 determines the user management table 334 and the browsing behavior table 336. Update. More specifically, in this step S3, the number of visits in the user management table 334 is updated and a visiting flag is set. Further, in this step S3, a storage area for recording data for the current visit is secured in the browsing behavior table 336. For example, if the user AAA visits for the second time, the storage area “Number of visits = 2” in FIG. 9 is secured.

  After step S3 or S5, the central controller 14 acquires the position Pi (= x, y, θ) of the user Ui in step S7. More specifically, the central control device 14 can receive distance information from each distance image sensor 12 and calculate the position of the user based on the distance information and information on a known installation position of each distance image sensor. . However, the angle θ is an angle indicating the orientation of the user, and is represented by an angle with respect to the horizontal in the plan view of FIG. 2 as an example. In step S7, a difference Δt (seconds) between the current time and the previous acquisition time is further calculated. The movement trajectory of the browsing action table 336 is recorded. That is, the position of the user that changes over time is recorded as a movement locus.

  Thereafter, in step S <b> 9, the central controller 14 measures the time (browsing time) that the user exists in the explainable range Ai of each exhibit Ei and records it in the browsing time column of the browsing action table 336.

  Steps S7 and S9 are repeatedly executed for the user until it is detected in step S11 that the user has left. That is, the user is traced (tracked) by the distance image sensor 12 from entering the exhibition hall to leaving, and the browsing behavior indicating which article has been browsed for how long, and the movement trajectory are the browsing behavior table 334. To be recorded.

  However, the tracking method of each user for recording such a browsing action table is not limited to this embodiment, and may be performed by any other method.

  In step S11, when the user exit is detected based on the information from the tag reader 13 described above, for example, in step S13, the corresponding user visit flag in the user management table 334 is reset, and this recording process is performed. Exit.

  In the above-described embodiment, the browsing behavior from when the user enters to the exit is recorded in the browsing behavior table 336 in real time, but it is not always necessary to record in real time while tracking the user. The data indicating the browsing behavior of the user as described above may be accumulated in the buffer, and for example, when the user leaves, the browsing behavior table 336 may be recorded by badge processing.

  The robot behavior determination process shown in FIG. 12 is started when there is a new visitor in the exhibition hall, as in the previous recording process. And unless it complete | finishes by step S21, it progresses to step S23 and calculates the browsing total time of the user Ui. In the browsing behavior table of the user AAA in FIG. 9, since the user AAA is the second visit this time, the history of browsing behavior at the previous visit (first time) is read, and the browsing time included in it is totaled. To calculate the total browsing time.

  In step S25, the central controller 14 determines whether the calculated total browsing time is less than a predetermined time, for example, 60 seconds. Since the total viewing time of the user AAA for the first time is 400 seconds (= 300 + 60 + 40), “YES” is determined in the step S25.

  Therefore, in the next step S27, the central controller 14 controls the movement of the robot 10 so as to approach the user Ui, and for example, for the exhibit Ei (exhibit E1 in the embodiment) having the longest last browsing time. The utterance content with content number 2 is output. For example, the utterance content “Look at the exhibition Ei last time, but please also look at the exhibition Ej this time” from the speaker 74 via the voice input / output board 110 of the robot 10. Output.

  On the other hand, when the previous browsing total time is less than the predetermined time (60 seconds in the embodiment), “NO” is determined in step S25. In that case, the central control device 14 controls the movement of the robot 10 so as to approach the user Ui in the next step S29, and outputs the utterance content of the content number 1, for example. For example, the utterance content “Look not to watch much last time but please watch slowly this time” is output from the speaker 74 of the robot 10.

  As in this embodiment, if the robot outputs the utterance content suitable for the visit this time, including phrases that refer to the history of the browsing behavior of the user at the previous visit, the user can be provided with more appropriate guidance information. In addition to being able to do it, it gives the user a strong impression that the robot is observing the user well, so it can be expected that the user's familiarity with the robot will increase as if it is in contact with a familiar face-to-face instructor or shop assistant .

  However, the utterance content output to the user in step S27 and / or S29 may not necessarily refer to the browsing behavior history at the previous visit. For example, when a new exhibit is displayed, the utterance content such as the content number 4 in the utterance content table 338 of FIG. 10 may be output regardless of the browsing behavior history at the previous visit.

  Thereafter, in step S31, the central control device 14 gives an instruction to the robot 10 to perform appropriate guidance behavior for the same user or another user. However, the guidance action itself of the robot 10 is not important, and thus the description thereof is omitted here.

  In the above-described embodiment, the utterance content to be output in step S27 or S29 is selected and determined by determining whether or not the total viewing time at the previous visit is a predetermined time or more in step S25. The factor that is selectively determined is not limited to the total viewing time at the previous visit of this embodiment.

  For example, the utterance content may be selected or determined based on the movement trajectory of the user recorded in the browsing behavior table 336 in step S9 of FIG. For example, an embodiment may be considered in which the movement trajectory is classified by pattern, and the utterance content is selected and output according to the classification.

  In still another embodiment, when the robot 10 has a display, guidance information may be provided to the user using video content in addition to speech content.

  In the above-described embodiment, the recording process in FIG. 11 and the action determination process in FIG. 12 are both executed by the central control device 14. However, these processes may all be executed by the robot 10. In that case, the processor 90 (FIG. 6) of the robot 10 may receive the output data from the distance image sensor 12 shown in FIG. 3 and the output data from the tag reader 13 directly. However, as in the embodiment, the output data from the distance image sensor 12 and the output data from the tag reader 13 are input to the central processing unit 14, and after the necessary processing is performed by the central processing unit 14, only the resulting data is transferred to the robot. 10 may be provided. This may be desirable because the processing load on the processor 90 of the robot 10 is reduced.

  In the embodiment described above, the robot 10 that provides guidance information as utterance content to the user is a wheel movement type robot. However, other types of robots may be used, for example, a biped walking robot may be used.

  Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, in order to determine whether or not the total viewing time at the previous visit is shorter than the predetermined time, it is determined whether or not “the total browsing time is less than 60 seconds” in step S25 of FIG. . However, it is not necessarily “less than”, and “whether the total browsing time is 60 seconds or less” may be determined.

  In addition, the plurality of programs described in the present embodiment may be stored in the HDD of a data distribution server and distributed to a system having the same configuration as that of the present embodiment via a network. In addition, storage programs such as CDs, DVDs, and BDs (Blu-ray (registered trademark) Disc) are sold or distributed with these programs stored in storage media such as optical disks, USB memory, and memory cards. May be. When the plurality of programs downloaded through the server and storage medium described above are applied to a system having the same configuration as that of this embodiment, the same effect as that of this embodiment can be obtained.

  The specific numerical values and specific utterance contents mentioned in this specification are merely examples, and can be changed as appropriate according to the type of exhibition hall and other specifications.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Robot 12a, 12b ... Distance image sensor 13 ... Tag reader 14 ... Central controller 16 ... Processor 18 ... Memory 100 ... Robot control system 334 ... User management table 336 ... Browse action table 338 ... Utterance content table

Claims (7)

A robot control system including a robot that outputs utterance content to a user in an exhibition hall where an exhibit is placed,
A robot control system comprising: recording means for recording browsing behavior when a user comes as a history; and output means for outputting speech content determined based on the history from the robot when the user comes again.   The robot control system according to claim 1, wherein the output unit outputs utterance content determined based on a browsing behavior history when the user visited the previous time.   The robot control system according to claim 2, wherein the utterance content includes a phrase that refers to browsing behavior when the user visited the previous time. A calculation means for calculating the total browsing time at the previous visit of the user, and a determination means for determining whether the total browsing time is shorter than a predetermined time;
The robot control system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the output unit determines an utterance content according to a determination result of the determination unit. A robot control program executed by a computer of a robot control system, including a robot that outputs utterance content to a user in an exhibition hall where an exhibit is placed, the browsing behavior when the user visits the computer And a robot control program for functioning as output means for outputting the utterance content determined based on the history from the robot when the user comes back. A robot control method executed by a computer of a robot control system, including a robot that outputs utterance content to a user in an exhibition hall where an exhibit is placed,
A robot control method, comprising: a recording step of recording browsing behavior when a user visits as a history; and an output step of outputting utterance content determined based on the history from the robot when the user comes again. A robot that outputs utterance content to the user in the exhibition hall where the exhibit is placed,
A robot comprising recording means for recording browsing behavior when a user comes as a history, and output means for outputting utterance content determined based on the history when the user comes again.

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