JP5461071B2 - Autonomous mobile body and mobile body system using it - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an autonomous mobile body such as an unmanned vehicle that moves autonomously and a mobile body system using the same.

Conventionally, as this type of autonomous mobile body, there is one described in Patent Document 1 under the name of a mobile robot.
The autonomous moving body described in Patent Document 1 uses a driving wheel driving means for driving a driving wheel and a light beam for a planned moving path in a mobile robot that can move on a traveling surface in an environment where people are present in the surroundings. A notice display means for drawing on the travel surface, drive wheel drive control means for controlling the drive wheel drive means based on travel command information for commanding a travel plan of the mobile robot over time, travel command information, And a notice display control means for controlling the notice display means on the basis of notice command information for instructing a method of notice display, and the drawing on the running surface is performed at predetermined time intervals. It has a built-in function to display a scheduled route notice.

JP 2007-310563 A

However, the autonomous mobile body described in Patent Document 1 draws a planned route on the traveling surface using light rays based on the travel command information and the advance command information for instructing how to display the advance notice. It is.
Therefore, in the vicinity of the autonomous mobile body, the drawn planned route can be visually recognized, but a person located far away cannot be visually recognized, and when moving at a high speed of about several tens of kilometers per hour It is extremely difficult to visually recognize even those who are located nearby.

  Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide an autonomous mobile body capable of reliably reporting its own behavior to the surroundings even when moving at a high speed, and a mobile body system using the same.

An autonomous mobile body according to the present invention for solving the above problems includes a distance measuring unit for acquiring distance measurement data in a moving area, a driving mechanism for moving in the moving area, and a visual or and a notification device for notifying around the required information through auditory or both thereof, it der those movable autonomously, based on the distance measurement data obtained by the distance measuring unit, a movable area Area extracting means for extracting, movement route planning means for planning a movement route for autonomous movement in a movable area, stop distance calculating means for calculating a stop distance at the current movement speed, and a stop distance at the current movement speed An informing means for informing the movement information of the self at a point far away by an informing device.

A mobile system using an autonomous mobile body according to the present invention for solving the above-described problem is autonomously provided with the above-described autonomous mobile body and an emergency stop signal for emergency stop of the movement of the autonomous mobile body. It includes an emergency stop radio that transmits to the movable body.
In the present invention, the autonomous mobile unit directly receives the emergency stop radio circuit for receiving the emergency stop signal transmitted from the emergency stop radio and the emergency stop signal received by the emergency stop radio circuit. And a drive circuit for driving the notification device, and the drive circuit has a function of stopping the drive mechanism by an emergency stop signal transmitted from the emergency stop radio circuit. .

ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the own movement information including the planned movement path | route and the movement speed according to the movement path | route can be alert | reported uniformly to the circumference | surroundings.
Further, since the above-described movement information of the self is notified as the light emission mode of the light source corresponding to the movement path and the light emission mode of the light source corresponding to the movement speed different from the light emission mode, the movement path and the movement speed are visually confirmed. To be recognized.

It is explanatory drawing which shows the whole structure of the mobile body system containing the autonomous mobile body which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. (A) is a side view schematically showing a configuration of an autonomous mobile body according to an embodiment of the present invention, and (B) is a front view thereof. It is a block diagram of the control circuit provided in the autonomous mobile body same as the above. (A) is a block diagram which shows the function which the computer for autonomous movement has, (B) is a block diagram which shows the function which the computer for vehicle control has. It is explanatory drawing which shows the relationship of a driving | running | working possible area, the planned moving path | route, and the maximum curvature. (A) is explanatory drawing when calculating the movement speed allowable with the maximum curvature of a movement path | route, (B) is explanatory drawing when calculating the stop distance in the present moving speed. (A) is explanatory drawing which shows an example of the alerting | reporting aspect of the alerting | reporting apparatus arrange | positioned at the autonomous mobile body which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention, (B) is explanatory drawing which shows the other example of the alerting | reporting aspect. . It is explanatory drawing which shows the change of the movement state of an unmanned vehicle, and the relationship of the action | operation / stop of a sound generator. It is a flowchart which shows the process which moves an unmanned vehicle in autonomous mode.

  EMBODIMENT OF THE INVENTION Below, the form for implementing this invention is demonstrated with reference to drawings. FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing an overall configuration of a mobile system including an autonomous mobile body according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2A is a configuration of an autonomous mobile body according to an embodiment of the present invention. The side view which shows roughly, (B) is the front view. 3 is a block diagram of a control circuit provided in the autonomous mobile body, FIG. 4A is a block diagram showing functions of the autonomous mobile computer, and FIG. 3B is a vehicle control computer. It is a block diagram which shows a function.

A mobile system A1 shown in FIG. 1 includes an unmanned vehicle B, an emergency stop radio C, and a remote control device D that are autonomous mobile bodies according to an embodiment of the present invention.
P1 is an emergency stop radio device C, and P2 is an emergency stop person and an operator for operating the remote control device D, respectively.

The emergency stop radio C transmits an emergency stop signal to the unmanned vehicle B whose details will be described later.
The remote control device 20 transmits and receives vehicle information of the unmanned vehicle B and control information of the unmanned vehicle B to and from the unmanned vehicle B. The remote control device 20 includes the communication circuit Da, the computer Db, the control device Dc, and the like. It is configured.

  The unmanned vehicle B has a function of autonomously moving while performing environment recognition, and also has a function of moving based on the operation information from the remote operation device D, and in this embodiment Is a configuration in which various actuators are added so that a steering wheel / accelerator / brake of a general passenger vehicle can be operated by the following moving body control and autonomous movement computers 10 and 30.

That is, the unmanned vehicle B is controlled by a mobile object control computer 10 including a CPU (Central Processing Unit), an interface circuit (none of which are shown), and the autonomous movement computer 30 (see FIG. 2 and 3).
In the following, the moving body control computer 10 is referred to as a vehicle control computer 10 according to the present embodiment.
The vehicle control computer 10 and the autonomous movement computer 30 are connected to each other via the Ethernet (registered trademark) 11.
The vehicle control computer 10 and the autonomous mobile computer 30 can be connected to each other using an in-vehicle network such as CAN (Controller Area Network) in addition to Ethernet (registered trademark).

The autonomous movement computer 30 is composed of a CPU (Central Processing Unit), an interface circuit (none of which are shown), and the like, and a distance measurement for obtaining distance measurement data in the movement area is provided at an input port thereof. The unit 33 is connected.
The distance measuring unit 33 includes autonomous movement cameras 14 and 31 and laser light sensors (hereinafter referred to as “LRF”) 32a and 32b (see FIGS. 2 and 3).

The LRFs 32a and 32b perform distance measurement by a time-of-flight method for measuring the time from projecting to receiving of laser light. In the present embodiment, one laser light source is used and the optical axis is optical. This is a scan type that acquires a three-dimensional shape of an object by sweeping mechanically or mechanically.
In the present embodiment, one LRF 32a is for a long distance and the other LRF 32b is for a short distance so that the moving region can be covered regardless of the distance.

  The autonomous movement cameras 14 and 31 are used to acquire image data necessary for autonomous movement, and are arranged in the left-right direction in the vehicle width direction.

The autonomous mobile computer 30 exhibits the functions shown in FIG. 4A by executing a required program.
A function for creating an environmental map based on distance measurement data acquired by the distance measurement unit 33. This function is referred to as “map creation means 30a”.
In the present embodiment, the environment map is created based on both the laser beam data acquired by the LRFs 32a and 32b and the image data acquired by the autonomous traveling cameras 14 and 31.

The environment map is sequentially stored in a memory (not shown) in the autonomous traveling computer 30.
The environment map may be created based only on the image data acquired by the autonomous traveling cameras 14 and 31 and only based on the laser light data acquired by the LRF 32.

A function for extracting a movable area based on distance measurement data acquired by the distance measurement unit 33. This function is referred to as “area extraction means 30b”.
Specifically, the movable area is extracted based on the created environment map.

A function for planning a movement route for autonomous movement in a movable area. This is referred to as “movement route planning means 30c”.
In other words, the “movement route” is a movement route of the unmanned vehicle B in the movable area, and is based on a so-called potential method or graph search method.

A function for planning the moving speed of the unmanned vehicle B according to the planned moving route. This function is referred to as “moving speed planning means 30d”.
“Movement speed of the unmanned vehicle B according to the travel route” means, for example, a speed at which the vehicle can travel safely according to the curvature of the curve of the travel route, and the travel speed of the small curve is lower than that of the large curve. I have to.

  FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram showing the relationship between the travelable area, the planned travel route, and the maximum curvature, and FIG. 6A is an explanatory diagram for calculating a travel speed allowable with the maximum curvature of the travel route. ) Is an explanatory diagram when calculating a stop distance at the current moving speed. The unmanned vehicle shown in FIG. 6 is simplified for the sake of explanation.

First, the relationship between the travelable area a, the planned moving route b, and the maximum curvature κmax is as shown in FIG.
The movement speed allowable with the maximum curvature is calculated as follows.
Side slip limit speed: From mV ^ 2κ = μmGz
Vslip = √ (μGz / κmax)
Rollover limit speed: From hMV ^ 2κ = dmGz
Vroll = √ (dGz / hκmax)
The smaller one of Vslip and Vroll is the maximum speed at which the user can travel without skidding and rolling over the planned travel route b.

-Function to calculate the stop distance at the current moving speed. This function is referred to as “stop distance calculation means 30e”.
Here, stop distance = idle running distance + braking distance = V · T1 + V ^ 2 / (2Gμ)
T1: Reaction time (control system delay)
G: 9.8 m / s ^ 2μ: friction coefficient of road surface V: speed

  In the present embodiment, since movement information is generated at a point separated by a stop distance at the current movement speed, a person located around the unmanned vehicle B performs a coping action corresponding to the behavior of the unmanned vehicle B. It can be done without difficulty.

The vehicle control computer 10 includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit), an interface circuit, a memory (all not shown), and the like.
An emergency stop radio circuit 13, a communication device 20, a remote operation camera 19, a GPS (Global Positioning System) 15, a vertical gyro are connected to an input port of the vehicle control computer 10 via an Ethernet (registered trademark) 12. 16, a vehicle speed pulse 17, an odometry 18, and a notification device 8 which will be described in detail later are connected via a serial line. Reference numerals 13a and 20a denote antennas.

Further, a steering actuator 22 and a brake / accelerator actuator 23 are connected to the output port via a motor driver 21, respectively.
1 and 2 are running wheels, and together with these running wheels 9, a motor driver 21, a steering actuator 22, and a brake / accelerator actuator 23 constitute a drive mechanism E.

  The emergency stop radio circuit 13 has a function of receiving an emergency stop signal transmitted from the emergency stop radio C, and is connected to the motor driver 21 without the vehicle control computer 10 interposed therebetween. Has been.

  The motor driver 21 has a function of stopping the driving of the steering actuator 22 and the brake / accelerator actuator 23 by an emergency stop signal sent from the emergency stop radio circuit 13.

That is, the movement by the drive mechanism E of the unmanned vehicle B is directly stopped by the emergency stop signal sent from the emergency stop radio device C.
The term “direct stop” in the present embodiment means that the vehicle control computer 10 is not interposed. Thus, even when the vehicle control computer 10 breaks down or runs out of control, the unmanned vehicle B is It can be stopped reliably.

  The driving of the steering actuator 22 and the brake / accelerator actuator 23 may be stopped via the vehicle control computer 10 and the motor driver 21.

  The communication device 20 communicates vehicle information and control information of the unmanned vehicle B with the remote control device D.

  The vertical gyroscope 16 obtains the inclination posture in the vertical plane of the unmanned vehicle B, and therefore the optical axis posture (orientation) information of the autonomous traveling cameras 14 and 31, the LRFs 32a and 32b and the remote operation camera 19, which will be described later. It is.

The odometry 18 is a sensor for acquiring own position information based on each rotation amount of the traveling wheels 9 of the unmanned vehicle B.
The GPS 15 is for acquiring position information of the unmanned vehicle B.
The vehicle speed pulse 17 is for measuring the moving speed of the unmanned vehicle B, and outputs the moving speed of the unmanned vehicle B as pulse information.

  The notification device 8 shown in the present embodiment is for reporting necessary information to the surroundings through visual or auditory sense or both, and the five rotating lights 7a to 7e are arranged at regular intervals in the vehicle width direction of the unmanned vehicle B. In this configuration, a traveling / speed indicator lamp 7 arranged in a row and a sound generator 6 called a sounder are provided.

  The vehicle control computer 10 has a function of transmitting various information acquired by the GPS 15 and the vertical gyro 16 to the remote control device D through the Ethernet (registered trademark) 11 and the communication device 20, as well as a steering actuator 22, The brake / accelerator actuator 23 has a function of controlling driving through the motor driver 21.

  The vehicle control computer 10 exhibits the following functions by executing required programs stored in a memory (not shown). FIG. 7A is an explanatory diagram illustrating a notification mode according to an example of a notification device disposed in an autonomous mobile body according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 7B is a notification according to another example of the notification device. It is explanatory drawing which shows an aspect.

A function of moving the unmanned moving body B through the drive mechanism E according to the planned moving path and moving speed. This function is called “autonomous movement means 10a”.
A function for notifying the own movement information including the planned movement route by the travel / speed indicator lamp 7. This function is referred to as “notification means 10b”.
In the present embodiment, the user's own movement information including the movement speed according to the planned movement route is notified.

That is, the notification is performed in the light emission mode of the light source corresponding to the planned moving path and moving speed. In the present embodiment, the following is performed.
Specifically, as shown in FIG. 7A, rotating lamps 7a to 7e, which are examples of light sources, are turned on in accordance with the curvature when turning.

When the unmanned vehicle B travels straight, only the revolving light 7c is turned on. When turning in the right direction α1, the revolving light 7e is turned on together with the revolving light 7d or the revolving light 7d corresponding to the turning curvature. It is like that.
The turning curvature for rotating and turning on the rotating lights 7d and 7e simultaneously is smaller than the turning curvature when turning only the rotating lamp 7d.

On the other hand, when turning in the illustrated left direction α2, the rotating lamp 7a is turned on together with the rotating lamp 7b or the rotating lamp 7b corresponding to the turning curvature.
Also in this case, the turning curvature at which the rotating lamps 7b and 7a are simultaneously turned on is smaller than the turning curvature when only the rotating lights 7b and 7d are turned on.
In summary, the rotating lamps arranged on the side of the turning direction and corresponding to the turning curvature are turned on.

  Further, the rotating lamps 7a to 7e shown in the present embodiment are made to correspond to the turning curvature by lighting the rotating lamp 7c in light blue, the rotating lamps 7b and 7d in green, and the rotating lamps 7a and 7e in red. The colors are different from each other so that the user can visually recognize whether the turn has a large curvature or a turn with a small curvature.

Furthermore, in the present embodiment, the rotating lamp that has been turned on is blinked at a time interval (flashing cycle) corresponding to the moving speed.
Specifically, as shown in FIG. 7B, every time the moving speed increases from 10 km / h from 0, the blinking cycle is shortened in an arithmetic sequence, and the light is continuously turned on when the predetermined moving speed is reached. I am letting. Thus, the moving speed can be visually recognized.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram showing the relationship between the change in the moving state of the unmanned vehicle B and the operation / stop of the sounding device 6.
The sounding device 6 can emit a loud sound called a sounder. In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 8, the sounder 6 is activated / stopped according to the following six movement mode changes. To do.

The movement mode includes a standby mode, a setting mode, an emergency stop mode, an autonomous mode, a semi-autonomous mode, and a remote control mode.
“Standby mode” is a state of waiting for the activation of all programs, and each program is in an initialized state after the activation.
In the “setting mode”, variables and the like are set, and the motor (actuator) is set to the Enable state to check the state. The shift is a parking position, which means a state where an unmanned vehicle cannot move as it is, that is, a state waiting for a Go command.

“Emergency stop mode” refers to a state where the motor (actuator) is in a vehicle stop state by overriding a command or the like from the vehicle control computer.
The “autonomous mode” refers to a state in which a shift can be put into the drive / back position after the Go command, the engine (not shown) is blown by the accelerator command, and the vehicle can move autonomously.

  “Semi-autonomous mode” refers to a state in which a shift can be put into the drive-back position after a Go command, an engine (not shown) is blown by an accelerator command, and a part can be moved by an operator operation. The Go command is a command issued from the operator P2.

The “remote control mode” refers to a state in which a shift is put into a drive back position after a Go command, an engine (not shown) is blown in response to an accelerator command, and all can be moved by remote operation by an operator.
The sounder 6 is actuated when shifting from the setting mode to the autonomous mode, the semi-autonomous mode, and the remote control mode.
Thereby, it is possible to alert that the unmanned vehicle B may move autonomously.

  The sounder 6 is stopped when the semi-autonomous mode, the remote control mode is switched to the standby mode, the autonomous mode is switched to the standby mode, and the emergency stop mode is switched to the standby mode.

  Next, notification of the movement information when the unmanned vehicle B moves in the autonomous mode described above will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing a process of moving the unmanned vehicle in the autonomous mode.

Step 1 (abbreviated as “S1” in the figure. The same applies hereinafter): Sensing is performed. That is, ranging data is acquired from the LRF 31.
Step 2: Environment recognition is performed based on the acquired distance measurement data, and the process proceeds to Step 3.
Step 3: Create an environmental map and extract movable areas.
Step 4: A destination point (azimuth) is set.
Step 5: Plan a local route (movement route) from the current estimated position to the destination point.
In FIG. 5, the vehicle position is the current estimated position.
Step 6: A route following target point is calculated.

Step 7: Calculate the handle angle (turning curvature) to reach the target point following the route.
Specifically, if the tire angle δ, the wheel base L, the center of gravity and the rear wheel distance Lr,
δ = arctan (L / √ ((1 / κ) ^ 2-Lr ^ 2)) (Formula 1)
The steering wheel angle is uniquely determined from the tire angle δ depending on the characteristics of the moving body.

Step 8: Turn on the revolving lights 7a to 7e in a required manner.
Specifically, a rotating lamp corresponding to the turning curvature is turned on.

Step 9: Control the steering wheel actuator.
Step 10: Calculate the maximum curvature κmax of the local route.

Step 11: As described above, the moving speed allowable with the maximum curvature is calculated.
Step 12: The blinking cycle of the rotating lamp is changed in accordance with the calculated moving speed.
Step 13: The accelerator / brake actuator is controlled so as to obtain an allowable moving speed with the maximum curvature.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and the following modifications can be made.
In the above-described embodiment, an example in which sound is generated by the sound generation device when shifting to a movement state that can move autonomously has been described. However, for example, sound corresponding to the moving speed is generated by the sound generation device. You may do it.
The “voice according to the moving speed” may be, for example, one with different frequencies.
Specifically, it is conceivable to divide the assumed moving speed at every constant speed interval, and to associate these sections with voices having different frequencies.

In the above-described embodiment, the rotating lamp, which is an example of the light source, has been described as an example. However, the rotating light source is not limited to the rotating lamp, and a non-rotating light source may be employed.

In the above-described embodiment, a four-wheel unmanned vehicle has been described as an example. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and can naturally be applied to a two-wheel or three-wheel vehicle.

6 Sound generator (sounder)
7 (7a-7e) Light source (running / speed indicator)
8 Notification Device 10b Notification Unit 13 Emergency Stop Radio Circuit 21 Drive Circuit 30b Area Extraction Unit 30c Travel Route Planning Unit 30d Travel Speed Planning Unit 30e Stop Distance Calculation Unit 33 Distance Measuring Unit A1 Autonomous Mobile Body (Unmanned Vehicle)
C Emergency stop radio E Drive mechanism

Claims (6)

A distance measuring unit for acquiring distance measurement data in the moving region, a driving mechanism for moving in the moving region, and a notification device for notifying the surroundings of necessary information through vision and / or hearing; It is an autonomous mobile body that can move autonomously,
An area extracting means for extracting a movable area based on distance measurement data acquired by the distance measurement unit;
A travel route planning means for planning a travel route for autonomous movement in a movable area;
Stop distance calculating means for calculating a stop distance at the current moving speed;
An autonomous mobile body characterized by comprising an informing means for informing, with an informing device, own movement information at a point separated by a stop distance at the current moving speed . A distance measuring unit for acquiring distance measurement data in the moving region, a driving mechanism for moving in the moving region, and a notification device for notifying the surroundings of necessary information through vision and / or hearing; It is an autonomous mobile body that can move autonomously,
The notification device has a plurality of light sources arranged in a direction intersecting the moving direction, and the plurality of light sources correspond to each predetermined turning curvature,
An area extracting means for extracting a movable area based on distance measurement data acquired by the distance measurement unit;
A travel route planning means for planning a travel route for autonomous movement in a movable area;
Informing means for informing the movement information of the self including the planned movement route by an informing device,
The notifying means causes the light source corresponding to the turning curvature to emit light and performs notification in the light emission mode of the light source corresponding to the movement path. The blinking cycle of the light source is set for each predetermined moving speed,
The autonomous moving body according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the notification means causes the light source to blink at a blinking period corresponding to the moving speed. The notification device is a sound generation device that generates a required sound,
The autonomous moving body according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the notification means generates a sound by the sound generation device when shifting to a movement state in which the notification means can move autonomously. The notification device is a sound generation device that generates a required sound,
The autonomous moving body according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the notifying means generates a sound corresponding to the moving speed by a sound generating device. The autonomous mobile body according to any one of claims 1 to 5, and an emergency stop radio device that transmits an emergency stop signal for emergency stop of the movement of the autonomous mobile body to the autonomous mobile body A mobile system comprising:
The autonomous mobile body directly receives the emergency stop radio circuit for receiving the emergency stop signal transmitted from the emergency stop radio, the emergency stop signal received by the emergency stop radio circuit, and And a drive circuit for driving the notification device,
A drive system, wherein the drive circuit has a function of stopping the drive mechanism by an emergency stop signal transmitted from the emergency stop radio circuit.

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