JPH0884696A - Cleaning robot control method and device therefor - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To prevent a robort from touching with and colliding against a wall, by performing a switching control so as to make the robot run by holding a certain distance up to the wall when the robot is running along the wall, and to make the robot run straight based on the direction when a reccessed part is present on the wall. CONSTITUTION: Distance sensors 14a and 14b by which a running distance of a cleaning robot 41 is measured and distance data are outputted are provided on rotationary axes of driving motors 11a and 11b. A forward obstacle sensor 17b for detecting forward obstacles and right/left sides obstacle sensors 17b and 17c for detecting obstacles of the respective direction, and furthermore, a direction sensor 18 for detecting directions and outputting the direction data are provided on the forward side of the cleaning robot 41. Also, a right wall detecting sensor 21a and a left wall detecting sensor 21b are provided in front of the cleaning robot and these sensors detect distances to right/left walls and output distance data. Signals outputted respectively from these sensors are given to a control part 16.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for controlling a cleaning robot having an automatic cleaning function and an autonomous traveling function.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, cleaning robots having an automatic cleaning function and an autonomous traveling function have been developed. Such cleaning robots use a motor that uses a storage battery as a power source to enable autonomous traveling, drive wheels that are driven by the motor, a sensor that detects an obstacle or a direction, and a motor that uses the output of the sensor. The vehicle is equipped with a microcomputer that controls the operation of the. Further, a suction nozzle for sucking dust and a cleaning brush are provided so that automatic cleaning can be performed. As such a cleaning robot, for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 5-158
There are those disclosed in Japanese Patent No. 536 and Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 161577/1993.

[0003]

However, according to the conventional control of the cleaning robot, when cleaning a long corridor, the following problems occur.

First, as shown in FIG. 11, when the cleaning robot 51 travels along the wall 32 for a long distance, the cleaning robot 51 may come into contact with the wall and cannot perform the cleaning operation. This is because it is practically impossible to set the cleaning robot 51 completely parallel to the wall 32 when the cleaning robot 51 starts traveling. For example, walls 32 to 20
When the cleaning robot 51 starts traveling from a position 0 mm away from the wall 32 in a direction shifted by 0.5 degrees, 22917
The cleaning robot 51 comes into contact with the wall 32 and stops when traveling (= 200 / tan 0.5 degrees) mm.

Further, when the cleaning robot 51 travels so as to keep the distance to the wall 32 constant, as shown in FIG. 12, if a recess 32a exists in the middle of the wall 32 such as an entrance / exit, The cleaning robot 51 sometimes enters the recess 32a and collides with it in order to keep the distance to the inner wall of the recess 32a constant.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a cleaning robot control method and apparatus for cleaning a long corridor.

[0007]

According to the control method of the cleaning robot of the present invention, the vertical dimension of the corridor to be cleaned is input to the operation unit, and the obstacle, direction and traveling distance are detected by the sensor and input. A method for controlling a vehicle drive mechanism by a control unit based on the vertical dimension and detected obstacles, azimuth, and traveling distance to allow a vehicle to travel autonomously, in which an operator controls a cleaning robot in a corridor before starting traveling. From the cleaning robot to the first wall, using the step of installing in parallel to the first wall and inputting the vertical dimension of the corridor into the operation unit, and the wall detection sensor detecting the first or second wall. The step of measuring the distance and inputting it to the control unit as the reference distance, the cleaning robot is turned 90 degrees, and the corridor is moved laterally, and the distance traveled until the second wall is detected and stopped is detected. Input to controller as distance And a step of rotating the cleaning robot 90 degrees and traveling along the second wall so that the distance to the second wall maintains the reference distance, and a vertical dimension along the second wall. When the total value of the distance traveled in the lateral direction reaches the corridor lateral width distance in the process of moving the cleaning robot 90 degrees after turning the cleaning robot and moving the cleaning robot 90 degrees laterally in the corridor.
Turn to make the corridor run along the first wall for the lengthwise dimension to finish, and if the total value of the distance traveled in the horizontal direction does not reach the width of the corridor, stop after running a predetermined distance. When the vehicle stops after traveling for a predetermined distance, the cleaning robot turns 90 degrees, and the vehicle travels straight based on the direction detected by the sensor and then stops. When the total value of the distance traveled in the lateral direction reaches the corridor width in the process of traveling a predetermined distance in the direction, turn 90 degrees and run the corridor along the first wall by the vertical dimension to finish. If the total value of the distance traveled in the lateral direction does not reach the corridor lateral width distance, the vehicle travels a predetermined distance and then stops.

Here, in the step of traveling along the first or second wall, the first detected by the wall detection sensor.
Alternatively, when the distance to the second wall is longer than the reference distance by a certain distance or more, the control may be switched so that the vehicle travels straight based on the azimuth detected by the azimuth sensor.

The control device for the cleaning robot according to the present invention comprises an operation unit for inputting the vertical dimension of the corridor to be cleaned, a wall detection sensor for measuring the distance from the cleaning robot to the first or second wall, A direction sensor for detecting the direction, a running distance detection unit for detecting the distance traveled, a lateral distance of the corridor is stored as a corridor lateral width distance, and the first or second wall wrinkle is longitudinally traveled. Is the direction sensor when traveling such that the distance to the first or second wall detected by the wall detection sensor maintains the reference distance, and when traveling in the vertical direction other than the first or second wall ridge. When traveling in a straight line based on the azimuth detected by, and traveling horizontally in the corridor, if the total value of the distance traveled in the process of traveling a predetermined distance in the horizontal direction reaches the corridor lateral width distance, Then the first or second wall Is run vertically to maintain the reference distance, and if the total value of the distances run horizontally does not reach the corridor width, the vehicle is run a predetermined distance in the horizontal direction and is detected by the azimuth sensor. And a control unit that controls the vehicle drive mechanism so as to move straight in the vertical direction based on the azimuth.

The control unit maintains the first distance while the distance to the first or second wall detected by the wall detection sensor maintains the reference distance.
Alternatively, when the detected distance to the first or second wall is longer than the reference distance by a certain distance or more while controlling the vehicle drive mechanism so as to travel along the second wall, The control of the vehicle drive mechanism may be switched so that the vehicle travels straight based on the azimuth detected by the sensor.

[0011]

When the vehicle travels along the first or second wall, the distance to the wall is detected and the vehicle travels so that this distance maintains the reference distance. It is possible to prevent contact with the first or second wall and stop.

Further, when the detected distance to the wall is longer than the reference distance by a certain distance or more while traveling along the first or second wall, there is a recess in the wall. By making a determination and switching the control so that the vehicle travels straight based on the detected azimuth, the situation of entering into the inside of the recess and colliding is avoided.

[0013]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A cleaning robot control method and apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

First, FIG. 1 shows a schematic configuration of a traveling mechanism and a cleaning mechanism of a cleaning robot 41 to be controlled in this embodiment.

A pair of drive wheels 12a and 1 on either side of the vehicle.
2b are provided for each drive wheel 12a and 12b
The drive motors 11a and 11b are provided corresponding to. Further, motor drivers 15a and 15b are provided corresponding to the drive motors 11a and 11b, respectively. The motor drivers 15a and 15b control the operation of the drive motors 11a and 11b, respectively, based on the command signal given from the control unit 16. Further, three rotatable cleaning brushes 13a to 13c and a squeegee 23 for sucking dirty water after cleaning are arranged at the rear portion of the vehicle.

Distance sensors 14a and 14b for measuring the traveling distance of the cleaning robot 41 and outputting distance data are provided on the rotary shafts of the drive motors 11a and 11b. The front side of the cleaning robot 41 is provided with a front obstacle sensor 17b for detecting a front obstacle, and the left and right sides of the cleaning robot 41 are provided with front obstacle sensors 17a and 17c for detecting an azimuth obstacle, respectively. Further, an azimuth sensor 18 for detecting the azimuth and outputting the azimuth data is provided.
Here, three front obstacle sensors 17a to 17c are provided, but this is for more reliably detecting the front obstacle, and may be one or two.
Further, in front of the cleaning robot 41, the right wall detection sensor 21
a and a left wall detection sensor 21b are provided, which detect the distance to the left and right walls and output distance data.

The signals output from the distance sensors 14a and 14b, the front obstacle sensors 17a to 17c, the azimuth sensor 18, and the left and right wall detection sensors 21 and 21b are given to the control unit 16.

Further, on the upper part of the cleaning robot 41, there is provided an operation panel (not shown) on which a switch for setting the length of the cleaning area in the vertical and horizontal directions, a switch for starting or stopping the traveling, and the like are arranged. This operation panel is connected to the control unit 16.

A more detailed circuit configuration in the control unit 16 is as shown in FIG. The control unit 16 includes interfaces 19a to 19c, a main controller 20, a counter 24, and an AD converter 19d.

The interface 19a performs processing such as amplification and level shift on the detection signals output from the front obstacle sensors 17a to 17c, and outputs the detection signals to the main controller 20. The interface 19b is given the azimuth data output from the azimuth sensor 18, performs processing such as amplification, and outputs the data to the main controller 20. The distance data indicating the distance to the wall output from the left and right wall detection sensors 21a and 21b is converted from an analog signal to a digital signal by the AD converter 19d and input to the main controller 20.

Right drive motor 11a and left drive motor 11
distance sensors 14a and 14 attached to the rotating shaft of FIG.
In b, the number of rotations per unit time is detected and the detection result is given to the counter 24 in the control unit 16. Counter 2
4 counts the number of rotations to calculate the traveling distance, and gives the result to the main controller 20.

The operation panel 22 described above is provided with a switch for setting the length of the cleaning area in the vertical and horizontal directions, a switch for starting or stopping the traveling, and the like. 16 main controllers 20
It is connected to the.

The main controller 20 is the operation panel 2
The information about the size of the cleaning area and the start of running, which are input in 2, are given. Furthermore, the main controller 20
The presence or absence of a front obstacle detected by the front obstacle sensors 17a to 17c, the azimuth detected by the azimuth sensor 18, the traveling distance calculated by the counter 24, and the left or right wall detected by the left and right wall detection sensors 21a and 21b. A command signal for controlling the driving of the right drive motor 11a and the left drive motor 11b is output to the interface 19c based on the distance to. The interface 19c performs processing such as amplification on this command signal and outputs it to the drivers 15a and 15b. The drivers 15a and 15b control the right drive motor 11a and the left drive motor 11b, respectively, based on the command signal.

Next, the procedure for cleaning a long corridor using the cleaning robot 41 according to this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.
This will be described with reference to the flowcharts of FIGS. 4 and 5. Further, FIG. 6 shows a path along which the cleaning robot 41 travels in a long cleaning area existing between the walls 31 and 32 in FIG.

First, the operator installs the cleaning robot 41 on the wall 31.
Close to and parallel to the wall 31. As step 101, the power is turned on on the operation panel 22 and the vertical distance of the area to be cleaned in the corridor is input.

At step 102, the output of the azimuth sensor 18 is reset. Specifically, assuming that the cleaning robot 41 and the wall 31 are parallel to each other at the start of cleaning, the azimuth data output from the azimuth sensor 18 is set to 0.00 degrees.

As step 103, the cleaning robot 41
The distance l1 between the wall 31 located on the right side of and the center line of the cleaning robot 41 is detected by the right wall detection sensor 21a, and this distance data is fetched into the main controller 20. The cleaning robot 41 moves the distance 31 to the wall 31 or 32.
The distance data is stored as the target distance so that the vehicle travels while maintaining. However, when the distance l1 to the wall 31 or 32 is 100 mm or less, the target is to keep the distance of 100 mm.

As step 104, the spin-turn is performed 90 degrees to the left as indicated by arrow A1. The cleaning robot 41 is run so as to cross the corridor at a right angle toward the wall 32. Specifically, in step 105, the counter 24 that counts the traveling distance is cleared. Step 1
At 06, proceed straight toward the wall 32 as indicated by arrow A2. As the step 107, the left wall detection sensor 21
It goes straight until b detects the wall 32, and when it detects it, it stops at step 108. Further, as step 109,
The traveling distance l2 measured by the counter 24 when traveling toward the wall 32 is used as the corridor width data.

As a step 110, it is rotated 90 degrees to the right as shown by the arrow A3.

As in step 111, the vehicle runs along the wall 32 in the direction of arrow A4. Specifically, the distance to the wall 32 detected by the left wall detection sensor 21b is the above-mentioned distance l.
The vehicle moves forward while controlling the rotational speeds of the right drive motor 11a and the left drive motor 11b so as to maintain 1. As a result, as shown in FIG. 7, the wall 32 is approached until the distance becomes l1, and the vehicle runs straight so as to maintain this distance l1. In addition, the distance when traveling along the wall 32 is
The length of the cleaning area is the vertical length set at the start of travel.
Further, the detection of the front obstacle sensor 17c provided on the left side of the cleaning robot 41 needs to be set to be invalid. This is the wall 32 by the front obstacle sensor 17c.
This is to prevent the cleaning robot 41 from being stopped by being detected as an obstacle. Further, switching to the trimming traveling when the wall 32 is provided with an entrance / exit and the wall 32 is interrupted and a concave portion is present will be described later.

At step 112, a 90 degree spin turn is made to the right as indicated by arrow A5.

As step 113, the counter 24 is reset. Forward obstacle sensor 1 as step 114
Start the uptake of 7a-17c. At this time, the detection of the front obstacle sensor 17c located on the left side of the cleaning robot 41 is switched to be effective. As step 115, the loading of the travel distance data output from the counter 24 is started.

In step 116, it is judged whether or not the distance traveled in the direction of arrow A6 has reached 500 mm, and the process proceeds to step 117 and thereafter until the distance is reached.

In step 117, it is judged whether or not the front obstacle sensors 17a to 17c have detected an obstacle ahead during the shift running. While no obstacle is detected,
Shifting is continued as step 118, and step 1
Return to 14. When the obstacle is detected, step 11
As a result, the cleaning robot 41 stops running.

Next, at step 120, the total shift traveling distance data L is updated. In step 121, the total shift travel distance data L and the above-mentioned corridor width data 12 are compared. While the total shift mileage data L is smaller than the corridor lateral distance data l2, that is, while the right end of the corridor is not reached, the detected obstacle is regarded as a passerby, and the passerby returns and the obstacle is detected. The cleaning robot 41 is stopped until it disappears, and the process returns to step 114. When the total shift mileage data L reaches the corridor lateral width data l2, it is determined that the right end of the corridor has been reached, and in step 123, the corridor arrival determination flag ROKTF is set to 1
Set to.

When the shift travel distance reaches 500 mm in step 116 described above, the process proceeds to step 124. In step 124, it is determined that one shift has been completed, and the corridor arrival determination flag ROKTF
Is cleared and set to 0. And the total shift distance data L
Is updated and the process proceeds to step 126.

In step 126, it is determined whether the corridor arrival determination flag ROKTF is 1, and when it is 0, it is determined that the right end of the corridor has not been reached. Step 129
As a result, a 90 degree spin turn is performed to the right as indicated by arrow A7. In step 130, the direction of arrow A8, that is, 1
Go straight in the direction of 80 degrees. When the cleaning robot 41 is located away from the walls 31 and 32, traveling control is performed based on the orientation data detected by the orientation sensor 18.
The travel distance at this time is the vertical dimension set at the start of travel.

At step 131, a left 90 degree spin turn is performed to determine whether or not the right end of the corridor has been reached.
As a step 133, corridor arrival judgment flag ROKTF
If it is not 1, it is spin-turned 90 degrees to the left as step 136. Step 137
As a result, the vehicle runs straight in the direction of 0 degree. The process proceeds to step 112 and the above control is performed again.

In steps 126 and 133, it is determined whether or not the corridor arrival determination flag ROKTF is 1, and when it is determined to be 1 in step 126, the process proceeds to step 127, and it is determined to be 1 in step 133. If so, the process proceeds to step 134. In either case, when the corridor arrival determination flag ROKTF is 1, it is judged that the end of the corridor has been reached and the final traveling is performed along the wall, but the timing when the flag ROKTF becomes 1 is different. As a result, in step 128, the cleaning robot 41 is moved to the wall 3 as shown in FIG.
While looking at 1 on the left side, drive in FIG.
As shown in (b), the vehicle runs while looking at the wall 31 to the right.

Next, as shown in FIG. 9, when the recess 32a exists in the middle of the wall 32, the trimming traveling is performed in the following procedure. As shown in step 201,
The counter 24 is cleared, and in step 202, it is determined whether the distance traveled in the vertical direction has reached the vertical set distance. When the travel distance reaches the vertical set distance, the process stops at step 203.

When the traveling distance does not reach the set distance in the vertical direction, it is determined in step 204 whether the vehicle is traveling along the right wall. If the vehicle is traveling along the right wall, the distance data detected by the right wall detection sensor 21a is compared with a constant value l3 in step 205. This value l3 may be set as l3 = 2 · l1-50 using the above-mentioned distance l1. The detected distance data is a constant value l
While it is smaller than 3, it is determined that there is no recess in the middle of the wall, the traveling along the right wall is continued as step 209, the traveling distance data is fetched as step 214, and the process returns to step 202.

In step 207, if the distance data detected by the right wall detecting sensor 21a is not less than the constant value l3, the process proceeds to step 210 and thereafter. In step 210, it is determined whether or not the vehicle is proceeding in the 0 degree direction. If the vehicle is traveling in the 0 degree direction, trimming traveling in the 0 degree direction is performed, and the process proceeds to step 214 and thereafter. 0 in step 210
Step 21
Trimming is performed in the 180 degree direction as in 2.

When it is determined in step 204 that the vehicle is traveling along the left wall, a constant value l3 (= 2.l1-50) is determined in step 206. In step 208, it is determined whether or not the distance data detected by the left wall detection sensor 21b is 13 or more. Distance data is l3
In the above case, there is a recess in the wall, and step 210
Move to. In step 210, it is determined whether or not the vehicle is proceeding in the 0 degree direction as described above. If the vehicle is traveling in the 0 degree direction, trimming traveling in the 0 degree direction is performed as shown in FIG. Transition to 214. When it is determined that the process is not proceeding in the 0 degree direction, trimming in the 180 degree direction is performed as in step 212. If the distance data has not reached the constant value l3, the vehicle continues traveling along the left wall as in step 213, and the process proceeds to step 214.

According to this embodiment, when traveling along a wall, the distance to the wall is measured and the traveling is performed so that this distance maintains a constant value, so that the deviation in the direction increases and the contact with the wall occurs. Can be prevented from stopping. Also, if a recess is present in the middle of the wall and it is detected that the distance to the wall is longer than a certain distance, attempting to keep the distance to the wall constant will cause a collision by entering into the recess, In this case, the vehicle is switched to travel straight based on the azimuth detected by the azimuth sensor. With such traveling control, it becomes possible to automatically clean a long corridor with a cleaning robot simply by inputting the longitudinal distance of the cleaning area on the operation panel.

The above-described embodiments are merely examples and do not limit the present invention. For example, when there is a recess in the wall and the criteria for switching from running along the wall to running around the trimming are:
In the embodiment, the value is set to be larger than the value 2l1-50 when the distance from the center line of the cleaning robot to the wall when traveling along the wall is l1. However, the value is not limited to this value. However, a distance that is greater than the distance to the wall when traveling along the wall and that may cause a collision as shown in FIG. Considering the above, it is desirable to set the value that will be the criterion.

[0046]

As described above, according to the cleaning robot control method and apparatus of the present invention, when traveling along a wall, the displacement of the direction increases by keeping the distance to the wall constant. To prevent contact with the wall, and if there is a recess in the wall, switch to traveling straight based on the azimuth to prevent entering and colliding with the inside of the recess. A long corridor can be automatically cleaned by simply inputting the distance on the operation panel.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a control device for a cleaning robot according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a more detailed configuration of the control device.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing a procedure of controlling the traveling of the cleaning robot by the method of controlling the cleaning robot according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing a procedure for controlling the traveling of the cleaning robot by the control method.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing a procedure for controlling the traveling of the cleaning robot by the control method.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory view showing a travel route when the travel of the cleaning robot is controlled by the control method.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory view showing a route at the start of traveling when the traveling of the cleaning robot is controlled by the control method.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory view showing a route when the right end of the corridor is reached when the traveling of the cleaning robot is controlled by the control method.

FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram showing a route during trimming traveling when the traveling of the cleaning robot is controlled by the control method.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing a control procedure when the cleaning robot is trimmed by the control method.

FIG. 11 is an explanatory diagram showing how a cleaning robot is brought into contact with a wall of a corridor when the cleaning robot is run by a conventional control method.

FIG. 12 is an explanatory view showing a state in which the cleaning robot collides with a recess in a corridor when the cleaning robot is run by a conventional control method.

[Explanation of symbols]

 11a, 11b Drive motor 12a, 12b Drive wheel 13a-13b Cleaning brush 14a, 14b Distance sensor 15a, 15b Motor driver 16 Control part 17a-17c Front obstacle sensor 18 Direction sensor 19a-19c Interface 19d AD converter 20 Main controller 21a Right wall detection sensor 21b Left wall detection sensor 22 Operation panel 23 Squeegee 24 Counter 41 Cleaning robot

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A vertical dimension of a corridor to be cleaned is input to an operation unit, an obstacle, an azimuth and a traveling distance are detected by a sensor, and the input vertical dimension and the detected obstacle, azimuth and traveling are detected. In a control method for a cleaning robot that controls a vehicle drive mechanism based on a distance by a control unit to autonomously move a vehicle, an operator controls the cleaning robot to move the cleaning robot to a first position in a corridor before starting traveling.
Installed parallel to the walls of the cleaning robot and inputting the vertical dimension of the corridor into the operation unit, and using the wall detection sensor for detecting the first or second wall, Measuring the distance to and inputting it to the control unit as a reference distance; traveling the cleaning robot 90 degrees, traveling horizontally in the corridor, detecting the second wall and stopping. Inputting the determined distance to the control unit as a corridor width distance, the cleaning robot is turned 90 degrees, and the distance to the second wall is maintained along the second wall so as to maintain the reference distance. A step of traveling, a step of traveling along the second wall for the lengthwise dimension and a stop, and a step of rotating the cleaning robot 90 degrees and traveling the corridor laterally by the predetermined distance. so 90 When the sum of the distance traveled in the direction has reached the corridor width distance
Turns once and runs the corridor along the first wall by the lengthwise dimension to finish, and when the total value of the distance traveled in the horizontal direction does not reach the width of the corridor, stop after traveling the predetermined distance A step of causing the cleaning robot to turn 90 degrees when the vehicle has stopped after traveling the predetermined distance, and a straight traveling based on the direction detected by the sensor, and then stopping the cleaning robot. 90 degrees when the total value of the distance traveled in the lateral direction reaches the corridor lateral width distance in the process of turning the corridor and traveling the corridor in the lateral direction by the predetermined distance.
Turns once and runs the corridor along the first wall by the lengthwise dimension to finish, and when the total value of the distance traveled in the horizontal direction does not reach the width of the corridor, stop after traveling the predetermined distance A method of controlling a cleaning robot, comprising: 2. In the step of traveling along the first or second wall, the distance to the first or second wall detected by the wall detection sensor is a certain distance or more than the reference distance. The control method for the cleaning robot according to claim 1, wherein when the length is long, the control is switched so that the vehicle travels straight based on the azimuth detected by the azimuth sensor. 3. A controller for a cleaning robot that autonomously runs a cleaning robot having a vehicle drive mechanism, wherein an operating section for inputting a vertical dimension of a corridor to be cleaned is provided, and the cleaning robot has a first or second wall. The wall detection sensor that measures the distance to, the azimuth sensor that detects the azimuth, the mileage detection unit that detects the distance traveled, and the lateral distance of the corridor are stored as the corridor width distance.
Alternatively, when traveling in the vertical direction on the second wall, the vehicle is caused to travel such that the distance to the first or second wall detected by the wall detection sensor maintains a reference distance, and the first or second wall is moved. When traveling in the vertical direction other than the wall between the two walls, the vehicle is made to travel straight based on the orientation detected by the orientation sensor, and when traveling in the corridor in the lateral direction, it travels for a predetermined distance in the lateral direction. When the total value of the distance traveled in the process reaches the corridor widthwise distance, then the vehicle is caused to travel vertically so that the distance to the first or second wall maintains the reference distance, and traveled laterally. When the total value of the distances does not reach the corridor width distance, the vehicle drive mechanism is controlled so that the vehicle drive mechanism is moved straight in the vertical direction based on the direction detected by the direction sensor after traveling a predetermined distance in the horizontal direction. Department and A cleaning robot control device characterized by the above. 4. The control unit causes the distance to the first or second wall detected by the wall detection sensor to maintain the reference distance and to travel along the first or second wall. When the detected distance to the first or second wall is longer than the reference distance by a certain distance or more while controlling the vehicle drive mechanism, the azimuth detected by the azimuth sensor The control device for the cleaning robot according to claim 3, wherein the control of the vehicle drive mechanism is switched so as to travel straight based on the above.