JP6848532B2 - Control method of autonomous mobile robot - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a control method for an autonomous mobile robot.

There is known a technique of requesting the outside of an obstacle to be removed from the path when an obstacle exists on the path (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

International Publication No. 2009/090807

In the above technology, it is necessary to request an outsider when there is an obstacle on the route. During this request, the work of the robot may be interrupted and the work efficiency of the robot may decrease.

The present invention has been made to solve such a problem, and a main object of the present invention is to provide a control method for an autonomous mobile robot capable of suppressing a decrease in work efficiency of the robot.

One aspect of the present invention for achieving the above object is
A storage means for storing an object and a map data in which a cleanup location associated with the object is set, a route planning means for planning a movement route on the map data of the storage means, and the object are detected. A control method for an autonomous mobile robot comprising a detection means, moving according to a movement route planned by the route planning means, and moving an object detected by the detection means to a place where the map data is cleared.
A step of determining whether or not there is a second object that hinders the movement on a movement path for moving the first object to the corresponding first cleaning place.
When it is determined that the second object exists on the route, the step of planning the movement route to move from the position of the second object to the second cleaning place corresponding to the second object. ,
A step of planning a movement route from at least one predetermined position set on the map data to the cleanup place, and a step of planning each.
On the map data, provisionally, the location excluding the travel route to the planned second cleanup location and the route that passes a predetermined number of times or more when the travel route from the predetermined position to the cleanup location is planned. Steps to set the storage location and
A step of temporarily placing the first object in the set temporary storage location and cleaning up the second object in the corresponding second cleanup location.
A step of cleaning up the second object to the second cleaning place and then cleaning up the temporarily placed first object to the corresponding first cleaning place.
It is a control method of an autonomous mobile robot including.

According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a control method for an autonomous mobile robot that can suppress a decrease in the work efficiency of the robot.

It is an external view which shows the structure of the autonomous mobile robot which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows the schematic system configuration of the autonomous mobile robot which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows the schematic system configuration of the control device which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a figure which shows the state which the autonomous mobile robot patrolls in a room, and searches for the 1st to 3rd objects. It is a figure which shows the state which the environmental sensor first detected the first object. It is a figure which shows the state which the 2nd object which becomes an obstacle of movement exists on the movement path. (A) It is a figure which shows the movement path from a present position to a shelf B. (B) It is a figure which shows the grid corresponding to the movement path from the present position to the shelf B. (A) It is a figure which shows the movement path from each predetermined position to each shelf A to C. (B) It is a figure which shows the grid corresponding to the movement path from each predetermined position to each shelf A to C. It is a figure which shows the grid of the temporary storage place candidate area. It is a figure which shows the nearest temporary storage place of a shelf A in the temporary storage place candidate area. It is a figure which shows the state which arranged the 1st object in the temporary storage place. It is a figure which shows the state which arranged the 2nd object on the shelf B. It is a figure which shows the state which arranged the 3rd object on the shelf C. It is a flowchart which shows an example of the flow of the control method of an autonomous mobile robot.

A robot configuration, which is an example of an autonomous mobile robot according to an embodiment of the present invention, will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 1 is an external view showing a configuration of an autonomous mobile robot according to a first embodiment of the present invention. The autonomous mobile robot according to the first embodiment autonomously moves, for example, an object to be cleaned up (hereinafter referred to as an object) to a preset cleaning place, and autonomously cleans up the object at the cleaning place.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a schematic system configuration of the autonomous mobile robot according to the first embodiment of the present invention. The autonomous mobile robot 1 according to the present embodiment controls a robot main body 2, a moving device 3 for moving the robot main body 2, a gripping operation device 4 for gripping and moving an object, a moving device 3 and a gripping operation device 4. It includes a control device 5 and an environment sensor 6.

The moving device 3 rotates a plurality of wheels by driving, for example, a motor or the like in response to a control signal from the control device 5, and moves the robot body 2 to a desired position.

The gripping operation device 4 drives, for example, a grip portion 41 that grips an object, a plurality of links 43 that are connected via joint portions 42 such as wrist joints, elbow joints, and shoulder joints, and each joint portion 42. It is configured as an articulated arm consisting of a plurality of actuators such as a motor.

The control device 5 causes the autonomous mobile robot 1 to execute the work by controlling the moving device 3 and the gripping operation device 4 based on the operation signal input via the operation terminal 7, for example. The operation terminal 7 is, for example, a mobile terminal 7 such as a tablet terminal, a PC (Personal Computer), or a smartphone. The operation terminal 7 and the control device 5 are wirelessly or wiredly connected to each other to transmit and receive data.

The control device 5 includes, for example, a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 5a that performs control processing, arithmetic processing, and the like, a ROM (Read Only Memory) and a RAM (Random Access Memory) that store a control program, an arithmetic program, and the like executed by the CPU 5a. ), And an interface unit (I / F) 5c that inputs and outputs signals to and from the outside, and so on. The CPU 5a, the memory 5b, and the interface unit 5c are connected to each other via a data bus or the like.

The environment sensor 6 is a specific example of the detection means. The environment sensor 6 detects environmental information (distance information, image information, etc.) such as an object around the robot 1. The environment sensor 6 is mounted on, for example, the head of the robot 1, but is not limited to this. The environment sensor 6 may be installed in the operating environment in which the robot 1 operates. Further, a plurality of environment sensors 6 may be provided in the robot 1 and the operating environment. The environment sensor 6 is, for example, a distance sensor such as a camera (RGB-D camera, stereo camera), a laser range finder, or an ultrasonic sensor.

The environment sensor 6 detects an obstacle such as an object on the movement path when the autonomous mobile robot 1 moves on the movement path. The environmental sensor 6 outputs environmental information such as detected obstacles to the control device 5.

The control device 5 plans a movement path for the autonomous mobile robot 1 to move, and controls the mobile device 3 so that the autonomous mobile robot 1 moves along the movement path. Of course, the autonomous mobile robot 1 is not limited to the wheel type mobile robot, but may be a walking type or other mobile robot. For example, the control device 5 estimates the self-position of the autonomous mobile robot 1 based on the environmental information detected by the environmental sensor 6, and moves the autonomous mobile robot 1 according to the planned movement route.

By the way, in the conventional autonomous mobile robot, when an object is moved to a set tidying place and tidyed up at the tidying place, another object may become an obstacle. In that case, the object may not be put away at the place to be put away, the work of the autonomous mobile robot may be interrupted, and the work efficiency may be lowered.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 3, the control device 5 according to the first embodiment has a storage unit 51 that stores an object and map data in which a cleanup location associated with the object is set, and a first unit. The path is determined by the obstacle determination unit 52 that determines whether or not there is a second object that interferes with the movement on the movement route that moves the object to the corresponding first cleanup location, and the obstacle determination unit 52. When it is determined that the second object exists on the path, the second object corresponding to the second object from the position of the second object (the position where the autonomous mobile robot 1 grips the second object). The route planning unit 53 and the storage unit 51, which plan the movement route of the autonomous mobile robot 1 to move to the cleanup place and plan the movement route from at least one predetermined position set on the map data to the cleanup place, respectively. Except for the planned movement route to the second cleanup location and the route that will pass more than the predetermined number of times when the travel route from the predetermined position to the cleanup location is planned on the map data. Temporary storage location setting unit 54 that sets the temporary storage location, and the first object is temporarily placed in the set temporary storage location, and the second object is tidied up to the corresponding second cleanup location. A control unit 55 that controls the autonomous mobile robot 1 so as to clean up the temporarily placed first object in the corresponding first cleanup place after cleaning up the second object in the second cleanup place is provided. ing.

As a result, even if a second object exists on the route and becomes an obstacle, a temporary storage location is set, the first object is temporarily placed in the set temporary storage location, and the second object is placed first. The object is tidied up to the corresponding second tidying place, the second object is tidied up to the second tidying up place, and then the temporarily placed first object is tidied up to the corresponding first tidying up place. Therefore, since the first object is not tidied up in the first tidying up place and the work of the autonomous mobile robot 1 is not interrupted, the decrease in work efficiency can be suppressed.

The storage unit 51 is a specific example of the storage means. The storage unit 51 is composed of, for example, the ROM or RAM. The map data is composed of, for example, a plurality of grid-like grids, and each cleanup location associated with each object is set.

For example, in the map data, the first object a is associated with the shelf A, which is the first tidying place, and the second object b is associated with the shelf B, which is the second tidying place. The third object c is associated with the shelf C, which is the third place to clean up.

The route planning unit 53 is a specific example of the route planning means. The route planning unit 53 plans the movement route of the autonomous mobile robot 1 on the map data of the storage unit 51. Based on the map data of the storage unit 51, the route planning unit 53 plans the movement route of the autonomous mobile robot 1 which is the shortest distance avoiding obstacles and the like by using, for example, a well-known route search algorithm.

The control unit 55 controls the movement device 3 so that the autonomous mobile robot 1 moves according to the movement route planned by the route planning unit 53, so that the object is moved to the shelves A to C, which are the places where the map data is cleared. Move.

For example, as shown in FIG. 4, when the autonomous mobile robot 1 starts the work of cleaning up the object, the control unit 55 patrols the room or the like based on the information such as obstacles detected by the environment sensor 6. The moving device 3 of the autonomous mobile robot 1 is controlled so as to search for the first to third objects a to c.

As shown in FIG. 5, when the environmental sensor 6 first detects the first object a, the control unit 55 grips the gripping operation device 4 so as to grip the first object a detected by the environmental sensor 6. Control. The route planning unit 53 is associated with the first object a from the current position based on the information of the first object a detected by the environment sensor 6 and the map data of the storage unit 51. Plan a travel route to the first cleanup location. The control unit 55 controls the movement device 3 so that the autonomous mobile robot 1 moves according to the movement route planned by the route planning unit 53.

In this movement process, the obstacle determination unit 52 moves the first object a to the corresponding shelf (first cleanup place) A based on the information of the object detected by the environment sensor 6, for example. It is determined whether or not there is a second object b (or a third object c) that obstructs the movement on the route. As shown in FIG. 6, since the second object b exists in front of the shelf A, the fault determination unit 52 determines the first object a based on the information of the object b detected by the environmental sensor 6. It is determined that there is a second object b that obstructs the movement on the movement path for moving the movement to the shelf A.

When the failure determination unit 52 determines that the second object b exists on the route route to the shelf A, the route planning unit 53 has the autonomous mobile robot 1 second as shown in FIG. 7A. A movement route for moving the object b from the current position where the object b is gripped to the shelf (second cleanup place) B corresponding to the second object b is planned.

Further, when the failure determination unit 52 determines that the second object b exists on the route route to the shelf A, the route planning unit 53 is set on the map data as shown in FIG. 8A. Plan the movement routes from the plurality of predetermined positions P1 to P6 to the shelves (cleanup locations) A to C, respectively. In FIG. 8A, the set predetermined positions are 6 points, but the predetermined positions are not limited to this, and for example, several tens to several hundreds of predetermined positions may be set. As the number of predetermined positions to be set increases, it is possible to accurately set a temporary storage location that does not easily get in the way when the object is tidied up to the corresponding tidying up location, but the amount of calculation at the time of route planning increases. Therefore, the number of predetermined positions that can achieve both accuracy and calculation amount is experimentally obtained and set.

The route planning unit 53 plans the movement routes from the predetermined positions P1 to P6 set on the map data to the arbitrarily selected shelves A to C, respectively.

On the map data of the storage unit 51, the temporary storage location setting unit 54 includes a movement route from the current position planned by the route planning unit 53 to the shelf B, and from each predetermined position P1 to P6 to each shelf A to C. Set a temporary storage location at a location other than the route that passes a predetermined number of times or more when the movement route of is planned.

For example, in the initial state, 0 (white part) is set for each grid on which the autonomous mobile robot 1 of the map data can move, and 1 is set for each grid on which the autonomous mobile robot 1 cannot move due to obstacles or the like. (Slanted part) is set. As shown in FIG. 7B, the temporary storage location setting unit 54 has 1 on the grid corresponding to the movement route from the current position planned by the route planning unit 53 to the shelf B on the map data of the storage unit 51. Set (shaded area). Similarly, as shown in FIG. 8B, the temporary storage location setting unit 54 corresponds to a route that passes a predetermined number of times or more when a movement route from each predetermined position P1 to P6 to each shelf A to C is planned. Set 1 (shaded area) on the grid. As for the predetermined number of times, for example, the number of passages that are considered to be a route of the autonomous mobile robot 1 is experimentally obtained in advance and stored in a storage unit 51 or the like in advance.

As shown in FIG. 9, the temporary storage location setting unit 54 sets each grid in which 0 is set in the map data as a temporary storage location candidate area (hatched portion) that can be a temporary storage location.

The temporary storage location setting unit 54 sets the position closest to the current position of the first object a from the set temporary storage location candidate area, for example, as shown in FIG. 10, and temporarily stores the first object a. Set to the storage location (shaded area). The temporary storage location setting unit 54 sets the position closest to the current position of the arm that grips the first object a as the temporary storage location of the first object a from the set temporary storage location candidate area. You may. As a result, the first object a can be quickly placed in the temporary storage place.

The temporary storage location setting unit 54 sets the position closest to the shelf (first cleanup location) A corresponding to the first object a from the set temporary storage location candidate area, and sets the position closest to the first object a. It may be set as a temporary storage place for. As a result, the first object a can be put away from the temporary storage place on the shelf A at the shortest distance.

As shown in FIG. 11, the control unit 55 arranges the first object a at the temporary storage location set in the temporary storage location setting unit 54 based on the information of the obstacle detected by the environmental sensor 6. As described above, the autonomous mobile robot 1 is controlled.

The control unit 55 controls the gripping operation device 4 so as to grip the second object b detected by the environment sensor 6. The route planning unit 53 is the second from the current position where the second object b is gripped, based on the information of the second object b detected by the environment sensor 6 and the map data of the storage unit 51. Plan a movement route to the shelf B associated with the object b of. The control unit 55 controls the movement device 3 so that the autonomous mobile robot 1 moves according to the movement route planned by the route planning unit 53.

In this movement process, the obstacle determination unit 52, for example, based on the information of the object detected by the environment sensor 6, the obstacle of the movement on the movement path for moving the second object b to the corresponding shelf B. It is determined whether or not the third object c to be present exists. As shown in FIG. 12, since the third object c does not exist in front of the shelf B, the fault determination unit 52 moves the second object b to the shelf B based on the information detected by the environmental sensor 6. It is determined that there is no third object c that interferes with the movement on the movement path to be moved. Therefore, the control unit 55 controls the gripping operation device 4 so as to arrange the second object b on the shelf B based on the information of the obstacle detected by the environment sensor 6.

The control unit 55 controls the gripping operation device 4 so as to grip the third object c detected by the environment sensor 6. The route planning unit 53 plans a movement route from the current position to the shelf C associated with the third object c based on the map data of the storage unit 51. The control unit 55 controls the movement device 3 so that the autonomous mobile robot 1 moves according to the movement route planned by the route planning unit 53.

In this movement process, the obstacle determination unit 52, for example, based on the information of the object detected by the environment sensor 6, the obstacle of the movement on the movement path for moving the third object c to the corresponding shelf C. It is determined whether or not the target object exists.

Here, since the second object b is arranged on the corresponding shelf B, it does not become an obstacle object. On the other hand, the first object a is arranged in the temporary storage place, and the temporary storage place is the movement path from the current position to the shelf C and each shelf A to the plurality of predetermined positions as described above. When the movement route to C is planned, it is set in the place excluding the route with high frequency of passage. Therefore, since it is very unlikely that a temporary storage location will be set on the movement path to the shelf C, it is very unlikely that the first object a will be an obstacle.

As shown in FIG. 13, since the object does not exist in front of the shelf C, the failure determination unit 52 moves the third object c to the shelf C based on the information detected by the environment sensor 6. It is determined that there is no object on the top that obstructs the movement. Therefore, the control unit 55 controls the moving device 3 and the gripping operation device 4 so as to arrange the third object c on the shelf C based on the information of the obstacle detected by the environment sensor 6.

FIG. 14 is a flowchart showing an example of the flow of the control method of the autonomous mobile robot described above.
When the autonomous mobile robot 1 starts the cleanup work (step S101), it searches the entire area in the mobile environment and determines whether or not all the objects detected by the environment sensor 6 have been cleaned up at the corresponding cleanup location. (Step S102).

When the autonomous mobile robot 1 searches the entire area in the mobile environment and determines that all the objects detected by the environment sensor 6 have been cleaned up at the corresponding cleanup location (YES in step S102), this control process is performed. finish. On the other hand, when the autonomous mobile robot 1 searches the entire area in the mobile environment and determines that all the objects detected by the environment sensor 6 have not been cleaned up at the corresponding cleanup location (NO in step S102). It is determined whether or not the environmental sensor 6 has detected the object (step S103).

When the environment sensor 6 detects the first object (YES in step S103), the fault determination unit 52 moves the first object on the movement path for moving the first object to the corresponding first cleaning place. It is determined whether or not there is a second object that becomes an obstacle (step S104). If the environment sensor 6 does not detect the first object (NO in step S103), the process returns to the above (step S102).

When the failure determination unit 52 determines that a second object that interferes with the movement exists on the movement path (YES in step S104), the temporary storage location setting unit 54 sets the temporary storage location setting unit 54 on the map data of the storage unit 51. , A route that passes a predetermined number of times or more when a movement route from the current position planned by the route planning unit 53 to the second cleanup location and a movement route from each preset predetermined position to each cleanup location are planned. A temporary storage location is set at a location excluding the above (step S105).

The control unit 55 arranges the first object at the temporary storage location set in the temporary storage location setting unit 54 based on the information of the obstacle detected by the environment sensor 6, so that the autonomous mobile robot 1 Is controlled (step S106), and the process returns to the above (step S102).

When the obstacle determination unit 52 determines that there is no second object that obstructs the movement on the movement path (NO in step S104), the obstacle determination unit 52 cleans up the first object at the corresponding first cleanup location. , Return to the above (step S102).

As described above, in the control method of the autonomous mobile robot 1 according to the present embodiment, there is a second object that hinders the movement on the movement path for moving the first object to the corresponding first cleanup place. When it is determined whether or not the second object exists on the route, the second object corresponding to the second object from the current position where the autonomous mobile robot 1 grips the second object. Plan the movement route to move to the tidying place, plan the movement route from at least one predetermined position set on the map data to the tidying place, and move to the planned second tidying place on the map data. Temporary storage locations are set at locations excluding routes and routes that pass more than a predetermined number of times when a movement route from a predetermined position to a cleanup location is planned, and the first object is placed at the set temporary storage location. Temporarily place, clean up the second object to the corresponding second cleanup location, clean up the second object to the second cleanup location, and then place the temporarily placed first object to the corresponding first cleanup location. Clean up in a tidying place.

As a result, even if a second object exists on the route and becomes an obstacle, a temporary storage location is set, the first object is temporarily placed in the set temporary storage location, and the second object is placed first. The object is tidied up to the corresponding second tidying place, the second object is tidied up to the second tidying up place, and then the temporarily placed first object is tidied up to the corresponding first tidying up place. Therefore, since the first object is not tidied up in the first tidying up place and the work of the autonomous mobile robot 1 is not interrupted, the decrease in work efficiency can be suppressed.

The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and can be appropriately modified without departing from the spirit.

In the above embodiment, the temporary storage location setting unit 54 is based on the posture of the gripping operation device 4 that is gripping the first object a from the set temporary storage location candidate area. The position where the first object a is most easily arranged may be set as the temporary storage place of the first object a. As a result, the first object a can be efficiently placed in the temporary storage place.

In the map data of the storage unit 51, a temporary storage location for the object may be set in advance. The temporary storage location setting unit 54 may set the temporary storage location of the object based on the information of the temporary storage location of the map data set in the storage unit 51. As a result, the temporary storage location intended by the user can be set.

When the temporary storage location setting unit 54 sets the temporary storage location in the set temporary storage location candidate area, the temporary storage location is weighted to the predetermined position so as to preferentially set the temporary storage location at the preset predetermined position. Etc. may be set. When the temporary storage location setting unit 54 sets the temporary storage location of the object in the set temporary storage location candidate area and another object is arranged in the set temporary storage location, the storage unit 51 or the like is used in advance. The set position may be set as a temporary storage place for the object. As a result, the temporary storage location can be set more reliably.

In the above embodiment, the control unit 55 arranges the first object at the temporary storage place, then arranges the second object at the corresponding second tidying place, and sets the nearest third object. The autonomous mobile robot 1 is controlled so as to be arranged at the corresponding third tidying place and finally, the first object a is placed at the first tidying place, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the control unit 55 arranges the first object a in the temporary storage place, then arranges the second object in the corresponding second cleanup place, and places the first object a in the first cleanup place. The autonomous mobile robot 1 may be controlled so as to be arranged at a place and finally, a third object is placed at a corresponding third tidying place. The control unit 55 may determine which of the first and third objects should be placed first in the corresponding tidying up location so that the sum of the movement paths of the autonomous mobile robot 1 is minimized. .. As a result, the autonomous mobile robot 1 can clean up the object with the shortest movement, and can further improve the work efficiency.

The autonomous mobile robot 1 moves in the environment in advance, searches for each object, detects the position of each object, and then determines the order of cleaning up each object based on the detected position of each object. You may.

The present invention can also be realized, for example, by causing the CPU to execute a computer program for the process shown in FIG.

Programs can be stored and supplied to a computer using various types of non-transitory computer readable media. Non-transitory computer-readable media include various types of tangible storage media. Examples of non-temporary computer-readable media include magnetic recording media (eg, flexible disks, magnetic tapes, hard disk drives), magneto-optical recording media (eg, magneto-optical disks), CD-ROMs (Read Only Memory), CD-Rs. It includes a CD-R / W and a semiconductor memory (for example, a mask ROM, a PROM (Programmable ROM), an EPROM (Erasable PROM), a flash ROM, and a RAM (random access memory)).

The program may be supplied to the computer by various types of transient computer readable media. Examples of temporary computer-readable media include electrical, optical, and electromagnetic waves. The temporary computer-readable medium can supply the program to the computer via a wired communication path such as an electric wire and an optical fiber, or a wireless communication path.

1 Autonomous mobile robot, 2 Robot body, 3 Mobile device, 4 Grip operation device, 5 Control device, 7 Operation terminal, 41 Grip part, 42 Joint part, 43 Link, 51 Storage part, 52 Failure judgment part, 53 Route planning part , 54 Temporary storage location setting unit, 55 Control unit

Claims (1)

A storage means for storing an object and a map data in which a cleanup location associated with the object is set, a route planning means for planning a movement route on the map data of the storage means, and the object are detected. A control method for an autonomous mobile robot comprising a detection means, moving according to a movement route planned by the route planning means, and moving an object detected by the detection means to a place where the map data is cleared.
A step of determining whether or not there is a second object that hinders the movement on a movement path for moving the first object to the corresponding first cleaning place.
If it is determined that the second object is present in said movement path, comprising the steps of planning a travel route for moving from the position of the second object to a second put away location corresponding to the object of the second,
A step of planning a movement route from at least one predetermined position set on the map data to the cleanup place, and a step of planning each.
On the map data, provisionally, the location excluding the travel route to the planned second cleanup location and the route that passes a predetermined number of times or more when the travel route from the predetermined position to the cleanup location is planned. Steps to set the storage location and
A step of temporarily placing the first object in the set temporary storage location and cleaning up the second object in the corresponding second cleanup location.
A step of cleaning up the second object to the second cleaning place and then cleaning up the temporarily placed first object to the corresponding first cleaning place.
Control methods for autonomous mobile robots, including.

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