JP2003323214A - Moving device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To solve the problem that in a moving device which prevents a fall by detecting a distance to a place in front in a noncontact manner, a distance sensor that is laid protruded from a body to increase an accuracy of detection of distance to the place is liable to damage by an outer force applied. <P>SOLUTION: The moving device comprises a driving motor (a running means) 3 to move the body 1, a floor face distance sensor 15 to detect a distance to a place in front to which the body 1 moves in a noncontact manner and a movement controlling means to control the running means 3 in accordance with an output of the distance sensor 15. The distance sensor 15 is fitted to a supporting member 19 which is protruded from the body and its upper part is covered with a covering body 23. This construction protects the distance sensor with the supporting member and the covering body, preventing an outer force from being applied to the distance sensor and offering a moving device with improved reliability and durability. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a moving device such as a mobile robot which moves inside a building to automatically perform cleaning, transportation, patrol security, and the like.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, various mobile robots have been developed which add a traveling function, sensors and control means to a work machine to automatically move a work area to perform work.
In particular, among such mobile devices, some mobile devices that autonomously move without defining a route in advance detect a step on the floor surface to prevent it from falling from stairs or the like and avoid it.
For example, in the moving device of Japanese Patent No. 2516914, a distance sensor using near-infrared light is obliquely attached to the upper front part of the main body to detect the distance to the front floor surface.

[0003]

In such a moving device which detects the distance to the front floor surface in a non-contact manner, the distance sensor and the floor surface are preferably arranged in order to improve the detection accuracy of the distance to the floor surface. It is necessary to face each other, and it is preferable that the distance sensor is provided so as to protrude from the main body in the moving direction of the main body. However, when the distance sensor is provided so as to protrude from the main body, there is a problem that an external force is applied to the distance sensor during use and the distance sensor is easily damaged.

The present invention is to solve the above-mentioned conventional problems. In a device in which a distance sensor is provided so as to protrude from the main body, the distance sensor is protected from external force so that reliability and durability are improved. An object is to provide an improved mobile device.

[0005]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention provides a traveling means for moving a main body, a floor distance sensor for detecting a distance to a front floor surface on which the main body moves without contact, and a floor. The floor distance sensor is attached to a supporting member provided so as to project from the main body, and the upper portion of the floor distance sensor is covered with a cover body, the movement controlling means controlling the traveling means according to the output of the surface distance sensor. And This allows
The floor distance sensor is protected by the support member and the cover body, and it is difficult for external force to be applied to the distance sensor, so that it is possible to provide a moving device with improved reliability and durability.

[0006]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The invention described in claim 1 is a traveling means for moving a main body, a floor distance sensor for detecting a distance to a front floor on which the main body moves without contact, and the floor distance. The floor distance sensor is attached to a supporting member provided so as to project from the main body, and the upper portion thereof is covered with a cover body, the movement controlling means controlling the traveling means according to the output of the sensor. Therefore, the floor distance sensor is protected by the support member and the cover body, and it becomes difficult for external force to be applied to the distance sensor, so that it is possible to provide a moving device with improved reliability and durability.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in particular, the floor distance sensor according to the first aspect is an optical distance sensor using light having a light receiver, and the support member is the floor distance sensor. The floor distance sensor has a mounting portion made of a material that transmits the light received by the light receiving body, and the floor distance sensor is mounted on the mounting portion of the support member, without affecting the operation of the floor distance sensor. The mounting portion can cover the light receiving surface of the floor distance sensor and protect it.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in particular, the floor distance sensor according to the first aspect is an optical distance sensor using light having a light receiving body, and the support member is the floor distance sensor. Since the light receiving body has a hole that allows the light received by the light receiving body to pass therethrough, the light receiving surface of the floor distance sensor can be covered by the indicating member without affecting the operation of the floor distance sensor, and this can be protected. .

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in particular, the cover body according to any one of the first to third aspects is fitted and attached to a support member, and a fastening component such as a screw is used. The cover can be attached and removed without using it.

According to a fifth aspect of the invention, in addition to the invention according to the fourth aspect, a protrusion for catching a finger is provided in the vicinity of the fitting portion of the lower surface of the supporting member with the cover body. When you try to lift the main unit with your hand, the fingers first hang on the protrusions, so you will have to lift the indicator member with the protrusions, you will not have to lift the cover body directly, and the cover will come off and fall off. Can be prevented.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in particular, the main body according to any one of the first to fifth aspects has a bumper protruding in the moving direction, and the bumper covers the floor distance sensor. Since it projects from the main body from the cover body, even when the moving body collides with an obstacle such as a wall, the cover body is unlikely to collide with the obstacle and can be protected.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in particular, the floor distance sensor according to any one of the first to sixth aspects is provided at the front, rear, left and right corners of the main body. Even when moving in the direction, the floor distance sensor can reliably detect a step difference such as a staircase, and can prevent the body from falling.

According to the invention described in claim 8, in particular, an indicator for emitting light is provided inside the cover body according to any one of claims 1 to 7, and the cover body emits light from the indicator. It is made of a transparent material, and the display is projected from the main body to improve the display effect, and the cover can protect the display.

According to a ninth aspect of the present invention, in particular, the display according to the eighth aspect lights up or blinks depending on the operating state of the main body, so that the user can be notified of the state of the main body.

According to a tenth aspect of the present invention, in particular, the display device according to the ninth aspect displays the detection state of the sensor provided in the main body, and the user is asked whether the sensor is operating normally. It can be easily confirmed.

In the invention described in claim 11, in particular, the display device according to claim 9 displays the traveling direction of the main body, and it is possible to easily determine in which direction the main body is traveling. .

[0017]

EXAMPLE 1 Example 1 of the present invention applied to a cleaning robot will be described below with reference to FIGS.

1 and 2 show the configuration of the cleaning robot of this embodiment. Reference numeral 1 is a main body for cleaning while moving, and moves on the floor surface in the direction of arrow 2. Reference numerals 3 and 4 are left and right drive motors, and the respective output shafts drive the left and right drive wheels 5 and 6 via a speed reducer. By independently controlling the rotation of the left drive motor 3 and the right drive motor 4, the main body 1 can be moved and the moving direction can be changed, and it serves as a traveling means and a steering means. Reference numeral 7 is a movement control means for controlling the left and right drive motors 3 and 4 in accordance with various inputs to control the traveling of the main body 1. The movement control means 7 includes a microcomputer and other control circuits. Reference numeral 8 denotes an operation panel provided on the rear upper surface of the main body 1, which is configured by arranging an operation means composed of a transparent touch switch on a display means composed of a display such as a liquid crystal. Reference numeral 9 is a power source including a battery and the like, and a power switch 10
And is connected to the electric circuit of the main body 1 to supply electric power.
Obstacle detection sensors 11, 12, 13, and 14 detect the distances to the obstacles in front of, on the left side, on the right side, and behind the main body 1 by light. 15, 1
Reference numerals 6, 17 and 18 denote floor distance sensors, which are support members 19, 20, 21 provided so as to project from the four corners of the main body 1, respectively.
It is attached to No. 22 and detects the distance to the floor surface on the left front, right front, left rear, and right rear by light.
Cover members 23, 24, 25, and 26 are attached to the support members 19, 20, 21, and 22 to which the floor distance sensors 15, 16, 17, and 18 are attached so as to cover the upper portions thereof, and these are protected. It is supposed to do. Further, the support members 19, 20, 21, 22 are provided with indicators 27, 28, 29, 30 each made of a light emitting element such as an LED.

The detailed structure of the four floor distance sensor units will be described with reference to FIGS. Floor distance sensor 15,
The mounting structures of 16, 17, and 18 are the same for all four, so only one location will be described as an example.

In FIG. 3, the floor distance sensor 15 has a light emitting portion that emits infrared spot light to the object and a light receiving portion that receives the reflected light. Infrared distance measuring sensor for measuring the distance to the
It is attached to the mounting part of. The support member 19 is made of a synthetic resin such as polycarbonate, acrylic, ABS or the like that transmits infrared light, and covers the entire surface of the light emitting portion and the light receiving portion to protect them and also functions as a filter. An indicator 27 mounted on a board 27 'is attached to the upper part of the floor distance sensor 15.

As shown in FIG. 2, the main body 1 is composed of a structural body 1b for mounting internal parts and an outer body 1a covering the entire body, and the support member of the floor distance sensor is formed from the opening of the outer body 1a. It is designed to be fixed to the structural body 1b. For example, the support member 20 to which the floor distance sensor 16 is attached is fixed to the fixing portion 31 of the structural body 1b, and the support member 22 to which the floor distance sensor 18 is attached.
Are fixed to the fixing portion 32 of the structural body 1b.

Then, as shown in FIG. 4, the cover body 24 is attached to the fixed support member 20. Cover body 2
4 is a groove 24 that fits with the tip plate 20a of the support member 20.
a and the claw portion 24 that fits into the opening of the outer body 1a
b, 24c and 24d are provided so that they can be attached and detached without using fastening parts such as screws.

The covers 23, 24, 25, 26 are made of transparent material such as polycarbonate, acrylic, synthetic resin such as ABS, and the internal indicators 27, 28, 2 are provided.
The light emission of 9 and 30 can be seen from the outside.

The attached state of this cover body is shown in FIG.
Since the floor distance sensor 16 is attached to the support member 20 fixed to the fixing portion 31 of the structural body 1b so as to project from the main body 1, the floor distance sensor 16 should face the floor surface at a shallow angle θ. It is possible to prevent erroneous detection due to the influence of the reflection state of the floor surface and improve the detection accuracy. Further, even if the floor distance sensor 16 is provided so as to project from the main body 1 as described above, since the supporting member 20 is fixed to the structural body 1b, sufficient strength can be ensured, and it is possible to prevent collision or vibration. No worries about misalignment. Moreover, since the upper portion is covered with the cover body 24, external force is not directly applied to the floor distance sensor 16 and it is possible to prevent water and dust from being applied.

A bumper 33 is provided around the lower portion of the main body 1 so as to protrude from the outer periphery of the main body. This buffers the shock when the main body 1 collides with an obstacle while traveling, and is made of a soft material such as rubber or synthetic resin. As shown in FIG. 5, the bumper 33 projects in the moving direction of the main body 1 rather than the cover body 24, so that even if the main body 1 collides with an obstacle such as a wall, the cover body 24 should directly hit the obstacle. Is less and protects this. At this time, the support member 20, that is, the floor distance sensor 16
Is attached at an angle θ so that the bumper 33 can directly face the front floor surface of the main body 1 even if the bumper 33 projects.

Further, as shown in FIG. 5, a protrusion 20b is provided on the lower surface of the tip plate 20a of the support member 20 in the vicinity of the fitting portion with the cover 24. This is because the support member 20 is the main body 1
Since it is more protruding, the cover body 24 can be lifted even when the lower surface of the main body 1 is lifted by a hand during transportation.
Does not fall off easily. That is, since the support member 20 is fixed to the structural body 1b as described above, it is not easily deformed or damaged even if an external force is applied, but when a large external force is directly applied to the cover body 24, the groove 24a or The claw portions 24b, 24c, 24d are disengaged from each other and fall off from the support member 20.

However, when a force is applied by applying a hand from the lower surface of the support member 20, there is a protrusion 20b in the vicinity of the fitting portion between the support member 20 and the cover body 24, so that the fingers of the hand will have this protrusion. It will be caught on the body 20b and the cover body 2
No big force will be applied to 4.

Returning to the description of FIGS. 1 and 2, reference numeral 34 denotes a subordinate wheel rotatably mounted on the bottom surface of the main body 1, and the main body 1 is supported by the subordinate wheel 34 and the three wheels of the driving wheels 5 and 6 for weight. There is. A suction nozzle 35 is provided with an agitator such as a rotating brush at the suction port, and dust sucked by the vacuum pressure generated by the fan motor 36 is sucked into the suction passage 37.
Is separated by the filter 38 placed in the dust box 3
Collected in 9.

The operation of the cleaning robot of this embodiment having the above structure will be described. Place the main body 1 on the floor in the cleaning area, turn on the power switch 10, and operate the operation panel 8
When the operation is started by operating the, the main body 1 detects obstacles around it by the obstacle detection sensors 11, 12, 13, and 14, and the movement control means 7 rotates the left and right drive motors 3, 4 to move. To start. At the same time, the agitator of the cleaning nozzle 35 and the fan motor 36 are activated, and the dust on the floor is picked up and sucked to automatically perform cleaning.

As described above, the floor distance sensors 15, 16, 17, 18 are provided at the four corners of the main body 1 so as to project from the main body 1. As shown in FIG. Reference numerals 15 and 16 detect the distance to the front floor surface where the main body 1 moves by light in a non-contact manner. When the main body 1 is moving forward, if there is a step 40 such as a staircase, the distance to the floor becomes large, so the movement control means 7 determines that the step is a step and stops and performs an avoiding operation such as a direction change. When the main body 1 retracts, the floor distance sensors 17 and 18 on the rear side of the main body similarly avoid steps.

Further, as shown in FIG. 7, the detection areas 15 of the floor surface distance sensors 15, 16, 17, 18 are respectively detected.
Since A, 16A, 17A, and 18A are set so as to be applied to at least the outside in front of the drive wheels 5 and 6, the main body 1
Even if there is a step on the side of, the drive wheels 5 and 6 will not fall off at this step.

During operation of the main body 1, the display 27,
28, 29 and 30 are lit or blinking to display the operating state of the main body 1. For example, when the floor distance sensors 15, 16 and 17 detect a step, by turning on the indicators 27, 28, 29 and 30 correspondingly, the detection states of the respective sensors can be confirmed. Is.

Further, an obstacle detection sensor 11 in front of the main body 1
When the obstacle is detected, the front indicators 27 and 28 are blinked, and when the left obstacle detection sensor 12 detects an obstacle, the left indicators 27 and 29 are blinked,
When the obstacle detection sensor 13 on the right side detects an obstacle, the indicators 28 and 30 on the right side blink, and when the obstacle detection sensor 14 on the rear side detects an obstacle, the indicator 29 on the rear side. By blinking and 30, the detection states of the obstacle detection sensors 11, 12, 13, 14 can be confirmed.

Further, when the main body 1 moves forward and turns to the left, the indicator 27 on the left front blinks, and similarly, when it turns to the right, the indicator 28 on the right front blinks to function as a direction indicator. It is also possible to provide a display, and by providing a display unit in a portion protruding from the main body 1, the visibility from the outside is excellent and the display effect is large.

In the above, the case where the traveling device of the present invention is applied to a cleaning robot has been described, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, luggage transportation in a factory,
It is also effective as a mobile device such as a mobile robot that automatically performs building security and guidance.

[0036]

As described above, according to the present invention, the floor distance sensor is protected by the support member and the cover body, and external force is not easily applied to the distance sensor during use, which is excellent in reliability and durability. Mobile device can be realized.

Further, the display device in the cover body makes it possible to realize a moving device having an excellent visibility and effective display.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the inside of a main body of a moving device according to a first embodiment of the present invention as seen through the inside thereof.

FIG. 2 is a side sectional view of the main body of the moving device.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory view showing a mounting configuration of a floor distance sensor of the moving device.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory view showing a mounting structure of a cover body of the moving device.

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view showing a mounting state of a floor distance sensor of the moving device.

FIG. 6 is a side view showing a position of a floor distance sensor of the main body of the moving device.

FIG. 7 is a top view showing the position of a floor distance sensor of the main body of the moving device.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 body 3, 4 Drive motor (travel means) 5, 6 drive wheels 7 Movement control means 15, 16, 17, 18 Floor distance sensor 19, 20, 21, 22 Support member 23, 24, 25, 26 cover body 27, 28, 29, 30 Indicator 33 bumper 34 Follower

   ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continued front page    (72) Inventor Hiroshi Mori             1006 Kadoma, Kadoma-shi, Osaka Matsushita Electric             Sangyo Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Naoyuki Ohara             1006 Kadoma, Kadoma-shi, Osaka Matsushita Electric             Sangyo Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Toru Kodate             1006 Kadoma, Kadoma-shi, Osaka Matsushita Electric             Sangyo Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Hiroyuki Kayama             1006 Kadoma, Kadoma-shi, Osaka Matsushita Electric             Sangyo Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Miki Hono             1006 Kadoma, Kadoma-shi, Osaka Matsushita Electric             Sangyo Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Haji Masayo             1006 Kadoma, Kadoma-shi, Osaka Matsushita Electric             Sangyo Co., Ltd. F term (reference) 5H301 AA02 AA10 BB11 GG08 LL01

Claims (11)

[Claims] 1. A traveling means for moving a main body, a floor surface distance sensor for non-contact detection of a distance to a front floor surface on which the main body moves, and the traveling means is controlled according to an output of the floor surface distance sensor. And a floor surface distance sensor, the floor distance sensor being attached to a support member provided so as to project from the main body, and the upper portion thereof being covered with a cover body. 2. The floor distance sensor is an optical distance sensor using light having a light receiving body, and the support member has an attachment portion made of a material that transmits the light received by the light receiving body of the floor distance sensor. The moving device according to claim 1, wherein the floor distance sensor is mounted on a mounting portion of the support member. 3. The floor distance sensor is an optical distance sensor using light having a light receiving body, and the supporting member has a hole portion for passing light received by the light receiving body of the floor distance sensor. 1. The moving device according to 1. 4. The moving device according to claim 1, wherein the cover body is fitted and attached to a support member. 5. The moving device according to claim 4, further comprising a protrusion on which a finger is placed, in the vicinity of a fitting portion of the lower surface of the support member with which the cover member is fitted. 6. The moving device according to claim 1, wherein the main body has a bumper protruding in the movement direction, and the bumper projects from the main body from a cover body that covers the floor distance sensor. . 7. The moving device according to claim 1, wherein the floor distance sensor is provided at front, rear, left and right corners of the main body. 8. The moving device according to claim 1, wherein a display device that emits light is provided inside the cover body, and the cover body is made of a material that transmits the light of the display device. 9. The mobile device according to claim 8, wherein the indicator lights up or blinks depending on an operating state of the main body. 10. The mobile device according to claim 9, wherein the display unit displays a detection state of a sensor provided in the main body. 11. The moving device according to claim 9, wherein the display device indicates a traveling direction of the main body.