JP2021048665A - Working robot system - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a working robot system capable of efficiently charging working robots when simultaneously operating a plurality of working robots to work.SOLUTION: A working robot system comprises a plurality of working robots and a charging robot. Positional information of the charging robot and the working robots is acquired, and remaining battery power, operable times and remaining work times of the working robots are acquired. On the basis of the operable times and the remaining work times, it is determined whether or not it is necessary to charge the working robots and on the basis of a result of the determination, a target working robot which is subjected to present charging is determined, and a charging command is generated for charging the target working robot by moving to a position of the target working robot. The charging robot charges the target working robot on the basis of the charging command.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

The present invention relates to a work robot system including a plurality of work robots and a charging robot.

Conventionally, a work robot including a charging robot is known. (See Patent Document 1).

According to the work robot of Patent Document 1, the work robot can be continuously used by charging the work robot using the charging robot.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 06-133411

It is expected that the work robot of Patent Document 1 will be applied to a work robot system including a self-propelled work robot that performs lawn mowing, cleaning, patrol, and other work while moving over a wide range.

By the way, when the work target covers a wide range, it is efficient to operate a plurality of work robots at the same time to perform the work. Then, when a plurality of work robots are operated at the same time to perform work, it is appropriately determined at what timing to charge which of the plurality of work robots operating at the same time. Charging is required.

However, in the work robot of Patent Document 1, one charging robot charges one working robot. Therefore, one charging robot is required for one working robot, which is not economical.

Further, in the work robot of Patent Document 1, since it is not assumed that one charging robot charges a plurality of work robots, any work of the plurality of work robots operating at the same time is performed. It is not possible to properly determine when to charge the robot. Therefore, there is a possibility that the working robot may not be charged in time and the working robot may stop in the middle of the work.

An object of the present invention is to provide a work robot system capable of efficiently charging a work robot when a plurality of work robots are operated at the same time to perform work in view of the problems of the prior art. is there.

The work robot system of the present invention
A work robot system including a plurality of work robots equipped with rechargeable batteries and a charging robot for charging the plurality of work robots.
A position information acquisition unit that acquires position information of each of the charging robot and the plurality of working robots, and
A battery level acquisition unit that acquires the battery level of each of the plurality of work robots,
Based on the battery remaining amount of each of the plurality of working robots acquired by the battery remaining amount acquisition unit, the movable time acquisition which acquires the movable time which is the time during which each of the plurality of working robots can continue the work without charging. Department and
The remaining work time acquisition unit that acquires the remaining work time, which is the time required for each of the plurality of work robots to complete the remaining work,
When the remaining battery level of each of the plurality of working robots is equal to or less than a predetermined amount and the remaining working time is longer than the movable time, it is determined that the working robot needs to be charged, and the charging of this time is performed. The target work robot determination unit that determines the target work robot, and the target work robot determination unit
It is provided with a charging command unit that generates a charging command, which is information for instructing the target work robot to move to the position of the target work robot determined by the target work robot determination unit at a predetermined time and charge the target work robot.
The charging robot is configured to acquire the charging command, move to the position of the target working robot at the predetermined time based on the charging command, and charge the target working robot. It is a feature.

The work robot system of the present invention includes a plurality of work robots provided with rechargeable batteries, and a charging robot that charges the plurality of work robots.

Therefore, since one charging robot can charge a plurality of working robots, it is not necessary to prepare one charging robot for one working robot, which is economical.

In addition, the target work robot determination unit determines that the remaining work time of each of the plurality of work robots is less than or equal to a predetermined amount and the remaining work time of each of the plurality of work robots is the time required to complete the remaining work. When it is determined that the work robot needs to be charged when it is longer than the movable time, which is the time during which the work can be continued without charging, the target work robot to be charged this time is determined and charged. The command unit generates a charging command, which is information for instructing the target work robot to move to the position of the target work robot determined by the target work robot determination unit at a predetermined time and charge the target work robot.

Then, the target work robot is charged by the charging robot that has moved to the position of the target work robot at a predetermined time based on the charging command.

Therefore, the work robot system can charge the work robot by appropriately determining when to charge the work robot among the plurality of work robots operating at the same time. It does not cause inconvenience such as the work robot stopping in the middle of work because the charging to the robot is not in time.

Further, since the charging robot moves to the working robot and charges the robot, the working robot does not have to return to the charging robot every time the charging amount becomes low, which is efficient.

As described above, according to the work robot system of the present invention, it is possible to provide a work robot system capable of efficiently charging the work robot when a plurality of work robots are operated at the same time to perform work. it can.

In the work robot system of the present invention
Based on the position information of the charging robot and the plurality of working robots acquired by the position information acquisition unit, the movement required for the charging robot to move to the position of each of the plurality of working robots. Equipped with a travel time calculation unit that calculates the time
The target work robot determination unit determines each of the work robots based on the battery remaining amount of each of the plurality of work robots acquired by the battery remaining amount acquisition unit and the movement required time calculated by the movement required time calculation unit. The charging score, which is information indicating the high necessity of charging the robot, is calculated, and when the calculated charging score is equal to or higher than a predetermined threshold value, it is determined that the working robot needs to be charged. It is preferably configured.

According to the work robot system of the present invention, the charging robot is the plurality of working robots based on the position information of the charging robot and the plurality of working robots acquired by the position information acquisition unit by the moving time calculation unit. The time required to move, which is the time required to move to the position of, is calculated.

Then, the target work robot determination unit needs to charge each work robot based on the battery remaining amount of each of the plurality of work robots acquired by the battery remaining amount acquisition unit and the movement required time calculated by the movement required time calculation unit. A charging score, which is information indicating the high degree of sex, is calculated, and when the calculated charging score is equal to or higher than a predetermined threshold value, it is determined that the working robot needs to be charged.

As a result, the remaining battery level of each work robot and the time required for the charging robot to move to each position of the plurality of work robots are taken into consideration, and the charging indicating the high necessity of charging each work robot is shown. Since the necessity of charging the work robot is determined based on the score and the target work robot is determined, the work robot may not be charged in time and the work robot may stop in the middle of the work. The fear is effectively reduced.

As described above, according to the work robot system of the present invention, it is possible to provide a work robot system capable of more efficiently charging the work robot when a plurality of work robots are operated at the same time to perform work. Can be done.

In the work robot system of the present invention
It is preferable that the target work robot determination unit is configured to calculate the charge score using the equation (1).

Sij = w1 / Rwj + w2 / tij ... (1)
here,
Sij is the charge score,
w1 is a weighted value of the remaining battery level, and is
Rwj is the remaining battery level of each of the plurality of working robots.
w2 is a weighted value of the travel time required, and is
The tij is the time required for the charging robot to move to the position of each of the plurality of working robots.

For example, the importance of the remaining battery level and the time required for movement may differ with respect to the high need for charging the work robot, depending on the width of the work range and the charging capacity of the work robot. Therefore, if the high need for charging the work robot is determined in consideration of the importance of the remaining battery level and the time required for movement with respect to the high need for charging the work robot, the work robot will be charged. Charging can be done efficiently while responding to the situation.

According to the work robot system of the present invention, the charging score is calculated using a mathematical formula that considers the importance of the remaining battery level and the time required for movement with respect to the high necessity of charging the work robot. Can be charged efficiently while responding to the situation.

As described above, according to the work robot system of the present invention, when a plurality of work robots are operated at the same time to perform work, the work robot can be efficiently charged while responding to the situation. Can be provided.

In the work robot system of the present invention
The plurality of working robots are configured to stop work when the remaining battery level becomes less than a predetermined amount less than the predetermined amount and while receiving power from the charging robot.
A storage unit for storing a work plan, which is information indicating a work process including at least a movement route of each of the plurality of work robots, is provided.
When each of the plurality of work robots performs work based on the work plan based on the work plan, the remaining battery level of each of the plurality of work robots is less than a predetermined amount less than the predetermined amount. The work stop time, which is the time during which the work is stopped while receiving power from the charging robot, is the weighted value of the remaining battery level and the movement based on the work plan and the formula (1). A weighting value of the remaining battery amount, which is calculated by using a plurality of combinations of a weighting value of the required time and a plurality of combinations of the charging scores having different thresholds, and the total sum of the calculated work stop times is the shortest, and the movement required time. A simulation unit for selecting a combination of the weighting value of the above and the threshold value of the charging score is provided.
The target work robot determination unit calculates the charge score using a combination of the weighted value of the remaining battery level, the weighted value of the movement required time, and the threshold value of the charge score selected by the simulation unit, and the said. It is preferable that it is configured to determine the target work robot.

According to the work robot system of the present invention, the remaining battery level of the plurality of work robots is a predetermined amount smaller than a predetermined amount (first predetermined amount) for the target work robot determination unit to determine that charging is required. It is configured to stop the work when the amount becomes less than (second predetermined amount) or while receiving power from the charging robot.

As a result, the working robot stops the work from the time when the remaining battery level becomes the second predetermined amount or less until the charging robot finishes charging, so that the remaining battery level is exhausted during the work and communication cannot be performed. In addition, the risk of being unable to charge is reduced.

Then, the storage unit stores a work plan which is information indicating a work process including at least a movement route of each of the plurality of work robots.

Further, the simulation unit determines the work stop time when each of the plurality of work robots performs the work based on the work plan based on the work plan, and the weighted value of the remaining battery level based on the work plan and the formula (1). , A weighted value of the remaining battery level, a weighted value of the required travel time, and a weighted value of the remaining battery time, which is calculated by using a plurality of combinations having different weights of the required travel time and different thresholds of the charging score, and which minimizes the total sum of the calculated work stop times. A combination of charge score thresholds is selected.

Then, the target work robot determination unit calculates the charge score using the combination of the weighted value of the remaining battery level, the weighted value of the movement required time, and the threshold value of the charge score selected by the simulation unit, and determines the target work robot. To.

As a result, a combination of the weighting value of the remaining battery level, the weighting value of the movement required time, and the threshold value of the charging score is predetermined so as to minimize the work stop time of the work robot, and the weighting of the remaining battery level is determined. Since the target working robot is determined using the combination of the value, the weighting value of the movement required time, and the threshold value of the charging score, the total working time by the working robot is shortened as a result.

As described above, according to the work robot system of the present invention, when a plurality of work robots are operated at the same time to perform work, the work robot is efficiently charged and the total work time by the work robot is minimized. It is possible to provide a working robot system that can be used.

In the work robot system of the present invention
The charging command unit is a planned charging point at which the charging robot charges the target work robot based on the position information of the charging robot and the plurality of work robots acquired by the position information acquisition unit. And the charging start time, which is the time for the charging robot to charge the target work robot, and the information instructing the charging robot to move to the scheduled charging point and receive power supply from the charging robot at the charging start time. It is configured to generate a power supply command and generate a charging command containing information instructing the robot to be charged by moving to the scheduled charging point at the charging start time.
The working robot is configured to acquire the power supply command, move to the charging scheduled point at the charging start time, and receive power supply from the charging robot based on the power supply command.
The charging robot acquires the charging command and moves to the charging scheduled point at the charging start time based on the charging command to move to the position of the target work robot and charge the target work robot. It is preferably configured to do so.

According to the working robot system of the present invention, a charging scheduled point and the charging robot, which are positions where the charging robot charges the target working robot based on the position information of the charging robot and the plurality of working robots by the charging command unit. Is determined as the charging start time, which is the time for charging the target work robot.

In addition, the charging command unit generates a power supply command, which is information that commands the charging robot to move to the scheduled charging point and receive power from the charging robot at the charging start time, and moves to the scheduled charging point at the charging start time based on the power supply command. Power is received from the charging robot by the working robot.

Furthermore, the charging command unit generates a charging command containing information that commands the robot to be charged by moving to the scheduled charging point at the charging start time, and moves to the scheduled charging point at the charging start time based on the charging command. By doing so, the charging robot that has moved to the position of the target working robot charges the target working robot.

As a result, the time and place where the target work robot is charged is clarified, and the target work robot and the charging robot share the information about the time and place where the charge is performed, so that the target work robot can be surely reached. Can be charged.

As described above, according to the work robot system of the present invention, there is provided a work robot system capable of reliably and efficiently charging the work robot when a plurality of work robots are operated at the same time to perform work. be able to.

The block diagram explaining an example of the whole structure of this invention. The block diagram explaining an example of the structure of the work robot of this invention. The schematic diagram explaining an example of the structure of the work robot of this invention. The block diagram explaining an example of the structure of the charging robot of this invention. The block diagram explaining an example of the structure of the charging robot of this invention. The schematic diagram explaining an example of the structure of the charging robot of this invention. The block diagram explaining an example of the structure of the external processing apparatus of this invention. The flowchart explaining an example of the processing content of this invention. The flowchart explaining an example of the processing content of this invention. The image diagram explaining an example of the processing content of this invention. The image diagram explaining an example of the processing content of this invention.

<Configuration of work robot system>
First, the configuration of the work robot system of the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 4. As shown in FIG. 1, the work robot system of the present embodiment includes a plurality of work robots 10, a charging robot 20 for charging the work robot, and an external processing device 30.

In FIG. 1, a group of work robots 10 arranged in a region Ar to be worked by the work robot 10 shows a case where work is performed in the region Ar.

When there are a plurality of regions (for example, Ar1 and Ar2) to be worked by the work robot 10, a group of work robots 10 arranged in one region Ar1 performs the work in one region Ar1. The charging robot 20 arranged in one area Ar1 charges a group of working robots 10 arranged in one area Ar1.

Further, the group of working robots 10 arranged in the other area Ar2 works in the other area Ar2, and the charging robot 20 arranged in the other area Ar2 is a group of working robots arranged in the other area Ar2. The working robot 10 is charged.

The target area for work by the work robot 10 may be a plurality or one. Further, FIG. 1 describes a configuration in which one charging robot 20 charges a group of working robots 10, but the present invention is not limited to this. A plurality of charging robots 20 may jointly charge a group of working robots 10 as long as the economic efficiency of the working robot system is not impaired.

As shown in FIG. 2A, the work robot 10 includes a power receiving unit 110, a work robot battery pack 115, a work robot communication unit 120, a work robot control unit 130, a work robot storage unit 140, a work robot positioning unit 150, and a work unit motor control circuit 161. The work unit motor 163, the work robot left wheel motor control circuit 170, the work robot left wheel motor 175, the work robot right wheel motor control circuit 180, and the work robot right wheel motor 185 are included, for example, shown in FIG. 2B. It is a self-propelled car-shaped robot like this.

The work robot 10 has a predetermined amount smaller than a predetermined amount (first predetermined amount) for determining that the remaining battery level of the work robot 10 needs to be charged by, for example, the target work robot determination unit 235 described later. It is configured to stop the work when the amount becomes less than (second predetermined amount) or while receiving power from the charging robot 20.

The power receiving unit 110 is composed of, for example, a power receiving pad 111 that receives power supplied from the charging robot 20 and a working robot charging circuit 113 that controls charging of the working robot battery pack 115 via the power receiving pad 111.

The working robot battery pack 115 stores the power supplied from the charging robot 20 and supplies power to the working robot 10.

The work robot communication unit 120 is a communication device for communicably connecting the work robot 10 and the external processing device 30, receives work plan data or the like from the external processing device 30, and is acquired by the work robot positioning unit 150. The generated information is transmitted to the external processing device 30.

The work robot control unit 130 is, for example, a microcomputer, and is composed of an arithmetic processing unit such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a memory, and an I / O (Input / Output) device.

For example, the work robot control unit 130 acquires voltage and battery level information from the work robot battery pack 115 at a predetermined cycle, and acquires information detected by the sensor from the sensors constituting the work robot positioning unit 150. , The acquired information is transmitted as operation information to the external processing device 30 via the work robot communication unit 120. Further, the work robot control unit 130 transmits a control command for controlling the operation of each motor corresponding to the work unit 160, the work robot left wheel motor control circuit 170, and the work robot right wheel motor control circuit 180.

The work robot storage unit 140 is composed of storage devices such as a ROM (Read Only Memory), a RAM (Random Access Memory), and an HDD (Hard Disk Drive).

The work robot storage unit 140 stores the work plan data, which is information indicating the movement route of the work robot 10 and the contents of the work to be executed on the route, in the work plan database (DB) 141, and is necessary. The processing result of the work robot control unit 130 is stored accordingly.

The working robot positioning unit 150 includes, for example, an RGB-D sensor 153, a 2D-LiDAR 155, and an IMU (Inertial Measurement Unit) 157, in addition to the GPS antenna 151 for acquiring the position information of the working robot.

The work unit 160 is a mechanism for executing the work given to the work robot 10. The mechanism for executing the work given to the work robot 10 is a lawn mowing cutter if the work given to the work robot 10 is, for example, mowing, and a cleaning brush if, for example, cleaning the floor surface. If it is a specific work using the arm, it is the arm or the like.

The work unit motor control circuit 161 controls the operation of the work unit motor 163 in response to a control command from the work robot control unit 130. The work unit motor 163 operates the work unit 160 so as to perform the work given to the work robot 10.

The work robot left wheel motor control circuit 170 controls the operation of the work robot left wheel motor 175 in response to a control command from the work robot control unit 130, and the work robot right wheel motor control circuit 180 from the work robot control unit 130. By controlling the operation of the work robot right wheel motor 185 in response to the control command and moving each wheel Wh, the work robot 10 is moved in the area to be worked.

As shown in FIG. 3A, the charging robot 20 includes a charging unit 210, a charging robot battery pack 215, a charging robot communication unit 220, a charging robot control unit 230, a charging robot storage unit 240, a charging robot positioning unit 250, a power supply circuit 260, and a power supply pad. 265, the charging robot left wheel motor control circuit 270, the charging robot left wheel motor 275, the charging robot right wheel motor control circuit 280, and the charging robot right wheel motor 285 are included. The charging robot 20 is a self-propelled vehicle-type robot as shown in FIG. 3C, for example, which charges the target work robot based on the charging command generated by the charging command unit 236.

The charging unit 210 is composed of, for example, a power receiving terminal 211 that receives power supplied from an external power source, and a charging robot charging circuit 213 that controls charging of the charging robot battery pack 215 via the power receiving terminal 211.

The charging robot battery pack 215 stores the power supplied from the external power source and supplies power to the charging robot 20.

The charging robot communication unit 220 is a communication device for communicably connecting the charging robot 20 and the external processing device 30, and communicates with the working robot 10 and the external processing device 30 via the charging robot communication antenna 221. To communicate.

The charging robot control unit 230 is, for example, a microcomputer, and is composed of an arithmetic processing unit such as a CPU, a memory, an I / O device, and the like.

The charging robot control unit 230 reads and executes a predetermined program to read and execute the position information acquisition unit 231 and the battery remaining amount acquisition unit 232, the movable time acquisition unit 233, the remaining work time acquisition unit 234, and the target work robot determination unit 235. , It functions as a charging command unit 236, or further functions as a movement required time calculation unit 237 and a simulation unit 238.

The position information acquisition unit 231 acquires the position information of each of the charging robot 20 and the plurality of working robots 10.

The battery remaining amount acquisition unit 232 acquires the battery remaining amount of each of the plurality of work robots 10. Alternatively, the battery remaining amount acquisition unit 232 acquires the battery remaining amount of the charging robot 20 as needed. The battery remaining amount acquisition unit 232 acquires, for example, the voltage value of the working robot battery pack 115 from the working robot 10, and estimates and acquires the battery remaining amount of the working robot 10 based on the acquired voltage value.

The movable time acquisition unit 233 is a time during which each of the plurality of work robots 10 can continue the work without charging based on the battery remaining amount of each of the plurality of work robots 10 acquired by the battery remaining amount acquisition unit 232. Get the movable time. The movable time acquisition unit 233 acquires the movable time of each of the plurality of work robots 10 based on, for example, the work plan of each of the plurality of work robots 10 stored in the charging robot storage unit 240 and the current position information.

The remaining work time acquisition unit 234 acquires the remaining work time, which is the time required for each of the plurality of work robots 10 to complete the remaining work.

The target work robot determination unit 235 determines that the work robot 10 needs to be charged when the remaining battery level of each of the plurality of work robots 10 is less than or equal to a predetermined amount and the remaining work time is longer than the movable time. Then, the target work robot to be charged this time is determined.

The target work robot determination unit 235 is, for example, the work robot 10 based on the battery remaining amount of each of the plurality of work robots 10 acquired by the battery remaining amount acquisition unit 232 and the movement required time calculated by the movement required time calculation unit 237. A charging score, which is information indicating the high necessity of each charging, was calculated, and when the calculated charging score was equal to or higher than a predetermined threshold, it was determined that the working robot 10 needs to be charged. Then determine the target work robot.

The charging command unit 236 generates a charging command which is information for instructing the charging robot 20 to move to the position of the target work robot determined by the target work robot determination unit 235 at a predetermined time and charge the target work robot. To do.

The charging command unit 236 is scheduled to be charged at a position where the charging robot 20 charges the target work robot based on the position information of the charging robot 20 and the plurality of work robots 10, for example, acquired by the position information acquisition unit 231. A point and a charging start time, which is a time for the charging robot 20 to charge the target work robot, are determined, and at the charging start time, a command is given to move to the charging scheduled point and receive power supply from the charging robot 20. It is configured to generate a power supply command which is information to be performed, and to generate a charging command including information for instructing the robot to be charged by moving to the scheduled charging point at the charging start time.

The movement time required calculation unit 237 moves the charging robot 20 to each position of the plurality of work robots 10 based on the position information of the charging robot 20 and the plurality of work robots 10 acquired by the position information acquisition unit 231. Calculate the travel time, which is the time required to complete the operation.

Based on the work plan, the simulation unit 238 determines the work stop time required when each of the plurality of work robots 10 performs the work based on the work plan, based on the work plan and the equation (1) described later. A plurality of combinations of the weighted value of the remaining battery level, the weighted value of the required travel time, and the threshold value of the charging score are calculated, and the total of the calculated work stop times is the shortest. A combination of the weighted value, the weighted value of the travel time, and the threshold value of the charge score is selected.

The work stop time is a predetermined amount (second predetermined amount) smaller than a predetermined amount (first predetermined amount) for each of the plurality of work robots 10 to be determined by the target work robot determination unit 235 to be charged. It is the time when the work is stopped when it becomes less than the predetermined amount) or while receiving power from the charging robot.

The charging robot storage unit 240 is composed of storage devices such as a ROM, RAM, and HDD. The charging robot storage unit 240 operates the work plan of each work robot 10 in the work plan DB 241 and the charging command for each work robot 10 and the charging robot 20 in the charging plan DB 243 with the operation information of each work robot 10 and the charging robot 20. Each is stored in the information DB 235, and the processing result of the charging robot control unit 230 is stored as needed.

The charging robot positioning unit 250 includes, for example, an RGB-D sensor 253, a 2D-LiDAR 255, and an IMU 257, in addition to the GPS antenna 251 for acquiring the position information of the charging robot.

The power supply circuit 260 controls power supply to the work robot 10 via the power supply pad 265 in response to a control command from the charging robot control unit 230.

The charging robot left wheel motor control circuit 270 controls the operation of the charging robot left wheel motor 275 in response to a control command from the charging robot control unit 230, and the charging robot right wheel motor control circuit 280 is from the charging robot control unit 230. By controlling the operation of the charging robot right wheel motor 285 in response to the control command and moving each wheel Wh, the charging robot 20 is moved in the target area for work.

The external processing device 30 is, for example, a personal computer, and is composed of an external processing device main body 31 and a communication device 32 as shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 4, the external processing device main body 31 includes an external processing device control unit 310, an external processing device storage unit 340, an external processing device input unit 350, and an external processing device output unit 360.

The external processing device control unit 310 is composed of an arithmetic processing device such as a CPU, a memory, an I / O device, and the like.

The external processing device storage unit 340 is composed of storage devices such as ROM, RAM, and HDD. The external processing device storage unit 340 stores, for example, the information received by the operator of the work robot system and the processing result of the external processing device control unit 310 as needed.

The external processing device input unit 350 is an input device that receives information input by an operator of the work robot system, and includes, for example, a keyboard, a mouse, a touch pad, a touch panel, or other pointing device.

The external processing device output unit 360 is a display that displays information for the operator of the work robot system.

The communication device 32 is a device for communicably connecting the external processing device main body 31 to the work robot 10 and the charging robot 20, and is, for example, a wireless router.

<Processing content of work robot system>
Next, an outline of the entire processing of the work robot system will be described with reference to FIG. 5A. Prior to the execution of the work by the working robot 10 and the charging robot 20, the external processing device 30 first receives input of information for designating the work area Ar of the working robot 10 and the charging robot 20.

For example, the external processing device 30 displays a map on a display which is an external processing device output unit 360, and clicks a range to be worked on in the map through a mouse which is an external processing device input unit 350. Accepts the input by the operator of the work robot system of the information designating the work area Ar of the work robot 10 and the charging robot 20 and transmits the input information to the charging robot 20 (FIG. 5A / S10). ..

After that, the plurality of working robots 10 and the charging robot 20 are respectively arranged at initial positions by the operator of the working robot system (FIG. 5A / S20).

After that, the charging robot 20 is based on, for example, the information that specifies the working area Ar of the working robot 10 and the charging robot 20 to be worked, and the current position information of the charging robot 20 and the plurality of working robots 10 received from the external processing device 30. The work plan is automatically created and stored in the charging robot storage unit 240, and the created work plan is transmitted to each work robot 10 (FIG. 5A / S30).

For example, the charging robot 20 derives the movement route of each of the plurality of efficient work robots 10 by calculation by a predetermined algorithm, and works of each of the plurality of work robots 10 including information indicating the movement route. A plan is created and transmitted to each of the plurality of working robots 10.

Then, each of the work robots 10 stores the work plan received from the charging robot 20 in each work robot storage unit 140, and executes the work individually based on the work plan (FIG. 5A / S40).

Subsequently, the simulation unit 238 selects a combination of the weighted value of the remaining battery level, the weighted value of the movement required time, and the threshold value of the charging score (FIG. 5A / S50). The selection of the combination by the simulation unit 238 may be performed every time, or after being selected once, it may be executed when a predetermined condition is satisfied or at a predetermined timing as necessary. Good.

After that, the charging robot 20 executes a series of processes related to the creation of the charging plan, creates the charging plan, and commands the charging robot 20 and the target work robot to charge based on the created charging plan (FIG. 5A / S60).

The charging robot 20 and the target working robot that have received the charging command execute charging (FIG. 5A / S70).

Then, for example, the charging robot 20 determines whether or not the work by all the work robots 10 is completed (FIG. 5A / S80), and repeats the processes S20 to S70 until the work by all the work robots 10 is completed.

The plurality of working robots 10 and the charging robot 20 end a series of these processes when the work by all the working robots 10 is completed.

<Creating a charging plan>
Subsequently, the contents of a series of processes related to the creation of the charging plan will be described with reference to FIG. 5B. The charging robot 20 repeatedly executes a series of processes as shown in FIG. 5B, for example, at a predetermined frequency. Further, in the following, a case where a plurality of charging robots 20 exist and one of them executes the following series of processes will be described.

When the process is started, the position information acquisition unit 231 of the charging robot 20 includes the position information Pwj of the working robot 10 (j is 1 to n and n is the number of working robots) and the charging robot 20 including the charging robot. The position information Pbi (i is 1 to m and m is the number of charging robots) is acquired (FIG. 5B / S501), and the battery remaining amount acquisition unit 232 is the battery remaining amount Rwj of each of the working robots 10. (Fig. 5B / S503).

For example, the position information acquisition unit 231 requests the working robot 10 and the other charging robot 20 to transmit the position information (Pwj, Pbi) while acquiring its own position information via the GPS antenna 251. Is transmitted, and the battery remaining amount acquisition unit 232 transmits information requesting that the battery remaining amount (Rwj, Pbi) be transmitted, and the position information and the battery are transmitted from the working robot 10 and the charging robot 20 that have received the information. Receive each remaining amount.

Next, the movable time acquisition unit 233 acquires the movable time Twj of each of the working robots 10 (FIG. 5B / S505). The movable time acquisition unit 233 calculates and acquires the movable time Twj of each work robot 10 by, for example, dividing the remaining battery level Rwj of each work robot 10 by the average power consumption per hour for each work robot 10.

Subsequently, the remaining work time acquisition unit 234 acquires the remaining work time Lwj of each of the work robots 10 (FIG. 5B / S507). The remaining work time acquisition unit 234 determines the remaining work time Lwj of each work robot 10 by, for example, dividing the remaining work amount for each work robot 10 based on the work plan by the average work amount per hour for each work robot 10. Calculate and obtain.

After that, the movement required time calculation unit 237 calculates the time tij required for the charging robot 20 and the working robot 10 to join each other (FIG. 5B / S509). The tij is required for the i-th working robot 10 and the j-th charging robot 20 to merge when the j-th charging robot 20 moves to charge the i-th working robot 10. It is an estimate of time.

For example, the moving required time calculation unit 237 determines the current distance between the i-th working robot 10 and the j-th charging robot 20 from the average moving speed of the j-th charging robot 20 to the average moving speed of the i-th working robot 10. By dividing by the value obtained by subtracting, the moving required time tij is calculated and acquired. The average moving speed of the charging robot 20 is adjusted to be faster than the average moving speed of the working robot 10.

Then, the target work robot determination unit 235 acquires the charge state Cbi of the charging robot 20 and the charge state Cwj of the work robot 10 (FIG. 5B / S511). For example, if the i-th working robot 10 is charging, Cbi is "1", and if it is not charging, Cbi is "0".

Subsequently, the charging robot 20 determines whether or not charging is necessary, and performs a series of processes for instructing the working robot 10 determined to be charged to be charged (FIGS. 5B / S521 to S535). The charging robot 20 repeatedly executes these series of processes for each work robot 10 (FIG. 5B / L1), and repeatedly executes each of the work robots 10 (FIG. 5B / L2).

The target work robot determination unit 235 first determines whether or not the remaining battery level Rwj of the work robot 10 to be processed is equal to or less than a predetermined threshold value (FIG. 5B / S521). When the determination is affirmative (FIG. 5B / S521: Yes), the target work robot determination unit 235 subsequently determines the remaining work time Lwj of the work robot 10 to be processed and the movable time Twj of the work robot 10. It is determined whether or not it is larger than (FIG. 5B / S523).

When the determination is affirmative (FIG. 5B / S523: Yes), the remaining work time Lwj is larger than the movable time Twj. Therefore, if the work is continued as it is, the work of the work robot 10 to be processed is completed. The battery will run out before.

Therefore, when the determination is affirmative (FIG. 5B / S523: Yes), the target work robot determination unit 235 then determines whether the charging robot 20 or the working robot 10 to be processed is being charged (FIG. 5B / S525). ). If the charging robot 20 to be processed is being charged, the other working robot 10 cannot be charged during that time, and if the working robot 10 to be processed is being charged, it is not necessary to further charge it. This is because it is considered that it should be excluded from the target for issuing a charging command.

When the determination is affirmative (FIG. 5B / S525: Yes), neither the work robot 10 to be processed nor the charging robot 20 is charging, so the charging necessity determination unit 315 is the work robot 10 to be processed. And the charging score Sij in the combination of the charging robot 20 and the charging robot 20 are calculated (FIG. 5B / S527). Sij is a charging score in the combination of the i-th working robot 10 and the j-th charging robot 20.

The target work robot determination unit 235 calculates the charge score Sij in the combination of the work robot 10 to be processed and the charging robot 20 by, for example, the following mathematical formula (1).

Sij = w1 / Rwj + w2 / tij ... (1)
here,
Sij is the charge score,
w1 is a weighted value of the remaining battery level,
Rwj is the remaining battery level of each of the plurality of work robots 10.
w2 is a weighted value of the travel time required,
The tij is the movement time required for the charging robot 20 to move to each position of the plurality of working robots 10.

When any of the above determinations is negative (FIG. 5B / S521: No, S523: No or S525: No), the target work robot determination unit 235 determines the work robot 10 to be processed and the charging robot 20. The charge score Sij in the combination of is calculated to be "0" (FIG. 5B / S529).

After that, the target work robot determination unit 235 determines whether or not the charge score Sij in the combination of the work robot 10 to be processed and the charging robot 20 is equal to or higher than the threshold value (FIG. 5B / S531).

When the determination is affirmative (FIG. 5B / S531: Yes), the target work robot determination unit 235 determines the work robot 10 to be processed as the target work robot to be charged this time, and charges the processing target. The robot 20 is determined as the target charging robot that charges the target work robot.

Then, as shown in FIG. 6A, the charging command unit 236 charges the target working robot based on the position information of the charging robot 20 and the plurality of working robots 10 acquired by the position information acquiring unit 231. The planned charging point CP, which is the position where the charging is performed, and the charging start time, which is the time when the charging robot 20 charges the target work robot, are determined, and the charging robot moves to the scheduled charging point at the charging start time. A power supply command, which is information for instructing to accept power supply from 20, is generated, and a charging command including information for instructing the robot to be charged by moving to the scheduled charging point at the charging start time is generated. Then, a power supply command and a charging command for the target working robot 10 are transmitted to the target charging robot 20 (FIG. 5B / S533), and the charging state Cbi of the charging robot 20 to be processed and the charging state of the work robot 10 to be processed are charged. Cwj and Cwj are changed to "1", that is, during charging (FIG. 5B / S535).

When the determination is negative (FIG. 5B / S531: No), the charging command unit 236 does not transmit the charging command and the power supply command, nor does it change the charging state.

Then, when these processes (FIGS. 5B / S521 to S270) for all the charging robots 20 and the working robot 10 are completed, the charging robot 20 exits the loops L1 and L2 and ends the current processing.

Then, as shown in FIG. 6B, the charging robot 20 moves to the position of the target work robot by acquiring the charging command and moving to the scheduled charging point CP at the charging start time based on the charging command, and the target work. The robot is charged, and the working robot 10 acquires a power supply command, moves to the scheduled charging point CP at the charging start time based on the power supply command, and receives power supply from the charging robot 20 (FIG. 5A / S50). ..

Even after receiving the charging command, the work robot 10 continues the work as it is until its own battery remaining amount Rwj becomes a predetermined amount or less, and when the battery remaining amount Rwj becomes a predetermined amount or less, for example. Stop work and movement on the spot.

After that, when the charging is completed, the work robot 10 resumes the work based on the work plan (FIG. 5A / S30). Prior to this, the charging robot 20 automatically re-creates a work plan based on the current position information of the charging robot 20 and the plurality of working robots 10, stores the work plan in the charging robot storage unit 240, and re-creates the work plan. The created work plan is transmitted to each work robot 10 (FIG. 5A / S20).

This is because the other work robots 10 continue to work while the work robot 10 is stopped for charging, rather than continuing the work by each work robot 10 in the initial work plan. This is because there is a possibility that the work can be completed more efficiently if the plan is reviewed.

As described above, according to the work robot system of the present invention, there is provided a work robot system capable of efficiently charging the work robot when a plurality of work robots are operated at the same time to perform work. be able to.

Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited thereto. Various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

For example, in the above, the configuration in which the charging robot 20 performs the above series of processes has been described, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the external processing device 30 may perform all or part of the above series of processing.

In this case, for example, when the external processing device control unit 310 of the external processing device 30 reads and executes a predetermined program, the position information acquisition unit 231 and the battery remaining amount acquisition unit 232, the movable time acquisition unit 233, and the remaining work time It functions as an acquisition unit 234, a target work robot determination unit 235, a charge command unit 236, a movement required time calculation unit 237, and a simulation unit 238. Alternatively, some of these functions may be executed by the work robot control unit 130 of the work robot 10 as needed.

Alternatively, for example, in the above description, the configuration including the external processing device 30 has been described, but the external processing device 30 may be omitted.

Alternatively, for example, the charging robot 20 may be provided with a generator in place of or in addition to the charging robot battery pack 215, and may be configured to supply power from the generator to the working robot 10 and the charging robot 20.

Alternatively, for example, the remaining work time acquisition unit 234 may acquire the time required for each work of the preset work robot 10 minus the elapsed time since the start of the work as the remaining work time of the work robot 10. Further, the remaining work of the work robot 10 is based on a value obtained by dividing the distance obtained by subtracting the distance already moved from the planned total movement distance of each of the preset work robots 10 by the average movement distance per hour of the work robot 10. It may be acquired as time.

Alternatively, for example, the target work robot determination unit 235 determines the charging timing of each of the work robots 10 in advance, and the work robot 10 needs to be charged depending on whether or not the charging timing of each of the predetermined work robots 10 has arrived. It may be determined that there is.

Alternatively, for example, the simulation unit 238 may be omitted by setting the threshold value of the charge score, the weighted value of the remaining battery level, and the weighted value of the movement required time according to the equation (1) as fixed values.

10 ... work robot, 20 ... charging robot, 140 ... work robot storage unit, 231 ... position information acquisition unit, 232 ... battery remaining amount acquisition unit, 233 ... movable time acquisition unit, 234 ... remaining work time acquisition unit, 235 ... target Working robot determination unit, 236 ... Charging command unit, 237 ... Movement time calculation unit, 238 ... Simulation unit.

The work robot system of the present invention is a work robot system including a plurality of work robots provided with rechargeable batteries and a charging robot for charging the plurality of work robots.
A position information acquisition unit that acquires position information of each of the charging robot and the plurality of working robots, and
A battery level acquisition unit that acquires the battery level of each of the plurality of work robots,
Based on the battery remaining amount of each of the plurality of working robots acquired by the battery remaining amount acquisition unit, the movable time acquisition which acquires the movable time which is the time during which each of the plurality of working robots can continue the work without charging. Department and
The remaining work time acquisition unit that acquires the remaining work time, which is the time required for each of the plurality of work robots to complete the remaining work,
Based on the position information of the charging robot and the plurality of working robots acquired by the position information acquisition unit, the movement required for the charging robot to move to the position of each of the plurality of working robots. The travel time calculation unit that calculates the time and the travel time calculation unit
When the remaining battery level of each of the plurality of working robots is equal to or less than a predetermined amount and the remaining working time is longer than the movable time, it is determined that the working robot needs to be charged, and the charging of this time is performed. The target work robot determination unit that determines the target work robot, and the target work robot determination unit
It is provided with a charging command unit that generates a charging command, which is information for instructing the target work robot to move to the position of the target work robot determined by the target work robot determination unit at a predetermined time and charge the target work robot.
The target work robot determination unit determines each of the work robots based on the battery remaining amount of each of the plurality of work robots acquired by the battery remaining amount acquisition unit and the movement required time calculated by the movement required time calculation unit. The charging score, which is information indicating the high necessity of charging the robot, is calculated, and when the calculated charging score is equal to or higher than a predetermined threshold value, it is determined that the working robot needs to be charged. It is composed and
The charging robot is configured to acquire the charging command, move to the position of the target working robot at the predetermined time based on the charging command, and charge the target working robot. It is a feature.

In the work robot system of the present invention
The charging command unit is a planned charging point at which the charging robot charges the target work robot based on the position information of the charging robot and the plurality of work robots acquired by the position information acquisition unit. And the charging start time, which is the time for the charging robot to charge the target work robot, and the information instructing the charging robot to move to the scheduled charging point and receive power supply from the charging robot at the charging start time. It is configured to generate a power supply command and generate a charging command containing information instructing the target work robot to move to the scheduled charging point and charge the target work robot at the charging start time.
The working robot is configured to acquire the power supply command, move to the charging scheduled point at the charging start time, and receive power supply from the charging robot based on the power supply command.
The charging robot acquires the charging command and moves to the charging scheduled point at the charging start time based on the charging command to move to the position of the target work robot and charge the target work robot. It is preferably configured to do so.

Furthermore, the charging command unit generates a charging command containing information that commands the target work robot to move to the scheduled charging point at the charging start time and move to the scheduled charging point at the charging start time based on the charging command. By doing so, the charging robot that has moved to the position of the target working robot charges the target working robot.

Claims (5)

A work robot system including a plurality of work robots equipped with rechargeable batteries and a charging robot for charging the plurality of work robots.
A position information acquisition unit that acquires position information of each of the charging robot and the plurality of working robots, and
A battery level acquisition unit that acquires the battery level of each of the plurality of work robots,
Based on the battery remaining amount of each of the plurality of working robots acquired by the battery remaining amount acquisition unit, the movable time acquisition which acquires the movable time which is the time during which each of the plurality of working robots can continue the work without charging. Department and
The remaining work time acquisition unit that acquires the remaining work time, which is the time required for each of the plurality of work robots to complete the remaining work,
When the remaining battery level of each of the plurality of working robots is equal to or less than a predetermined amount and the remaining working time is longer than the movable time, it is determined that the working robot needs to be charged, and the charging of this time is performed. The target work robot determination unit that determines the target work robot, and the target work robot determination unit
It is provided with a charging command unit that generates a charging command, which is information for instructing the target work robot to move to the position of the target work robot determined by the target work robot determination unit at a predetermined time and charge the target work robot.
The charging robot is configured to acquire the charging command, move to the position of the target working robot at the predetermined time based on the charging command, and charge the target working robot. A featured work robot system. In the work robot system according to claim 1,
Based on the position information of the charging robot and the plurality of working robots acquired by the position information acquisition unit, the movement required for the charging robot to move to the position of each of the plurality of working robots. Equipped with a travel time calculation unit that calculates the time
The target work robot determination unit is a work robot based on the battery remaining amount of each of the plurality of work robots acquired by the battery remaining amount acquisition unit and the movement required time calculated by the movement required time calculation unit. The charging score, which is information indicating the high necessity of charging the robot, is calculated, and when the calculated charging score is equal to or higher than a predetermined threshold, it is determined that the working robot needs to be charged. A work robot system characterized by being configured. In the work robot system according to claim 2.
The target work robot determination unit is a work robot system configured to calculate the charge score using the equation (1).
Sij = w1 / Rwj + w2 / tij ... (1)
here,
Sij is the charge score,
w1 is a weighted value of the remaining battery level, and is
Rwj is the remaining battery level of each of the plurality of working robots.
w2 is a weighted value of the travel time required, and is
The tij is the time required for the charging robot to move to the position of each of the plurality of working robots. In the work robot system according to claim 3.
The plurality of working robots are configured to stop work when the remaining battery level becomes less than a predetermined amount less than the predetermined amount and while receiving power from the charging robot.
A storage unit for storing a work plan, which is information indicating a work process including at least a movement route of each of the plurality of work robots, is provided.
When each of the plurality of work robots performs work based on the work plan based on the work plan, the remaining battery level of each of the plurality of work robots is less than a predetermined amount less than the predetermined amount. The work stop time, which is the time during which the work is stopped while receiving power from the charging robot, is the weighted value of the remaining battery level and the movement based on the work plan and the formula (1). A weighting value of the remaining battery amount, which is calculated by using a plurality of combinations of a weighting value of the required time and a plurality of combinations of the charging scores having different thresholds, and the total sum of the calculated work stop times is the shortest, and the movement required time. A simulation unit for selecting a combination of the weighting value of the above and the threshold value of the charging score is provided.
The target work robot determination unit calculates the charge score using a combination of the weighted value of the remaining battery level, the weighted value of the movement required time, and the threshold value of the charge score selected by the simulation unit, and the said. A work robot system characterized in that it is configured to determine a target work robot. In the work robot system according to any one of claims 1 to 4.
The charging command unit is a planned charging point at which the charging robot charges the target work robot based on the position information of the charging robot and the plurality of work robots acquired by the position information acquisition unit. And the charging start time, which is the time for the charging robot to charge the target work robot, and the information instructing the charging robot to move to the scheduled charging point and receive power supply from the charging robot at the charging start time. It is configured to generate a power supply command and generate a charging command containing information instructing the robot to be charged by moving to the scheduled charging point at the charging start time.
The working robot is configured to acquire the power supply command, move to the charging scheduled point at the charging start time, and receive power supply from the charging robot based on the power supply command.
The charging robot acquires the charging command and moves to the charging scheduled point at the charging start time based on the charging command to move to the position of the target work robot and charge the target work robot. A work robot system characterized by being configured to do.

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