JPH1158282A - Operation device for wall surface walking robot - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an operation device of a wall surface walking robot free to act in a wider range by radio without a limit to an action range with less consumption of an electric source. SOLUTION: This device is furnished with a PHS 30 mounted on a walking robot 11 on the controlled side and a PHS 30 set on the control side, antennas 36 for the PHSs are respectively set in transmit-receive ranges of the PHSs 30 of the controlled side and the control side, the antennas 36 for these PHSs are connected to each other by a telephone line 37, and operation of the walking robot 11 is controlled by transmitting and receiving a communication data between these PHSs 30. In such constitution, the walking robot 11 is controlled while confirming operation of the walking robot 11 by transmitting a signal to the walking robot 11 and receiving a signal from the walking robot 11 by an operating personal computer 38. It is not limited to the PHS 30 but can be applied to a portable telephone.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a wall-walking robot operating device for wirelessly controlling the operation of a walking robot.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art The present applicant has already proposed a walking robot 11 as shown in FIGS. The walking robot 11 moves up and down while self-propelling on walls such as buildings and rocks such as tunnels, high-rise buildings, bridges, etc., and is used for investigation, measurement, photography, and other work of dangerous walls inaccessible to humans. Things.

More specifically, the scanning suction unit 1
3 is attached to the wall 10 by a vacuum pump 14 for generating a negative pressure through a rubber tube 25.
5 is sucked. In the manifold 15, a cam 19 is rotated by a rotary shaft 20. When the cam 19 pushes and opens one valve 21 against a spring, air in the small suction cup 16 attached to the disk 22 is removed from the manifold 22. It is aspirated at 15. The rubber cylindrical member 2 of the small suction cup 16 is
3 is in contact, so even if there is a slight gap in the wall surface 10, it is surely adsorbed. When the cam 19 moves and the valve 21 closes, the small suction cup 16 is closed and the suction state is maintained.
Similarly, all the small suction cups 16 adhere to the wall surface 10.

[0006] As shown by a solid line in FIG. 6, a description will be given of a case where the walking robot 11 walks from a state where both the first leg 17 and the second leg 18 are attracted to the wall surface 10. 1. Only one first leg 17 is separated from one negative pressure generating vacuum pump 14. 2. The scanning suction unit 13 of the separated first leg 17 is lifted up by a driving device (not shown). 3. Starting from the second leg 18 fixed by suction, the gear 26
Turns the robot body 12. When moving linearly, it makes a 180 degree turn. When turning at a predetermined angle, the vehicle turns at an angle corresponding to the turning angle. 4. The first leg 17 is lifted down. 5. Connect the first leg 17 turned 180 degrees to the vacuum pump 14 for generating negative pressure. 6. It is confirmed that the scanning suction unit 13 of the first leg 17 has been suctioned to the wall surface 10. 7. This time, the first leg 17 is used as a starting point and the second leg 18
Is lifted up by the driving device, and the robot main body 12 turns and walks.

[0005] Conventionally, the walking robot 11 as described above has
The power of the vacuum pump 14 for generating negative pressure and the motor inside the robot body 12 is supplied from the outside by a power cable 27, and the transmission and reception of walking, measurement, photographing, and other control signals are performed through a signal cable 28. The so-called wired system has been adopted.

[0006]

The control data communication system includes a wired system and a wireless system. As described above, the method of controlling the walking robot 11 by wire is advantageous in that the electrical noise of the surroundings is reduced. And is less susceptible to the effects of radio waves compared to wireless systems. However, as a disadvantage, walking robot 1
1) the range of action is limited to the length of the communication line,
If the communication line is lengthened, the walking robot 11 needs the power to drag it around, and it becomes large, and the communication line is obstructed by intrusion into holes and gaps and other complicated actions. And the like.

The radio system includes the most general radio control system. However, this radio control system only sends a control signal from the control device to the robot unilaterally, does not retry connection re-establishment even if a communication error occurs, and has no feedback function. Or a mechanical trouble cannot be known during driving, and furthermore, because of the analog system, it is susceptible to radio interference, and in particular, the reliability of moving the walking robot 11 on the wall surface 10 in a city is lacking. And the like.

[0008] In the wireless system, since there is no communication line, the range of action is not limited, and control data can be transmitted and received within a range where radio waves can reach. Therefore, it is conceivable to adopt a specific low-power radio system (wireless modem) for the purpose of expanding the operation range of the walking robot 11 and becoming independent. However, controlling the walking robot 11 by the specific low-power radio system (wireless modem) also has the following problems.

(1) The output of radio waves that do not require a license or qualification
It is specified to be 10 mW or less, and such a small output radio wave is easily affected by surrounding electric noise, and there is a possibility that control data communication may be disturbed. (2) The specific low-power radio wave of the walking robot 11 is an analog low-power radio wave that does not require a license. However, the surrounding business radio and amateur radio are also analog waves, and their transmission output is at least 2 W. Therefore, the specific low-power radio wave of the walking robot 11 may be affected by such interference.

(3) Because of the low power radio wave, the range of the radio wave is narrow. Theoretically, it is 300m, but the influence of noise,
Actually, it becomes narrower due to the influence of surrounding shields. (4) Radio waves that do not require a license or qualification are determined by law to be no longer than 3 minutes in a row.
Once off and on again, communication of control data while off is disabled. (5) The power supply of the wireless modem is supplied from a battery built in the walking robot 11 as a driving motor of the walking robot 11 and a power supply of the vacuum pump 14 for generating a negative pressure.
The operating time is shortened. And the like.

According to the present invention, the power consumption is small, and
It is an object of the present invention to provide an operation device of a wall-walking robot that can perform a wider range of action by wireless so that the action range is not restricted.

[0012]

The present invention comprises a PHS 30 mounted on the controlled walking robot 11 and a PHS 30 installed on the control side, and the transmission and reception range of the PHS 30 on the controlled side and the control side. The PHS antennas 36 are installed inside the PHS antennas, and the PHS antennas 36 are connected to each other by a telephone line 37 to transmit and receive communication data between the PHSs 30 to control the operation of the walking robot 11. An operation device for a wall-walking robot characterized by the following.

In such a configuration, the operation personal computer 3
When the movement, turning, photographing, measurement, and other control signals of the walking robot 11 are output from 8, radio waves are emitted from the PHS 30. The radio wave of the PHS 30 on the control side is
It is received by the HS antenna 36 and is emitted from the PHS antenna 36 near the walking robot 11 via the telephone line 37. Then, it is received by the PHS 30 in the walking robot 11 and sent to the CPU 33. The CPU 33 reads the received signal, and generates a negative pressure generating vacuum pump 14 and a driving device 34.
Control the movement, inversion, shooting,
Perform measurement and other operations.

The result of the control is returned from the controlled side to the control side, and the operation personal computer 38 displays and stores the returned communication data. In this way, the operation personal computer 3
8, a signal is transmitted to the walking robot 11 and a signal is received from the walking robot 11.
Control while checking the operation of.

[0015]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS In the present invention, a radio telephone is used as a method for making a walking robot 11 self-supporting and for surely performing control data communication. The radio telephone is a digital wave and is not affected by business radio and amateur radio, which are analog waves. The wireless telephone is a simple mobile phone (so-called PHS-Personal Handyphone).
System) and a mobile phone. These features are as follows.

(1) PHS (Simplified Mobile Phone) The PHS 30 shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 3 is a kind of parent-child telephone, and can also perform data communication by connecting to a personal computer 38.
From there, data enters the telephone line 37 via the nearby PHS antenna 36. Digital waves are transmitted between the PHS 30 and the PHS antenna 36, and the others are wired (telephone line 37), so that they are hardly affected by surrounding radio waves and noise. PHS30 and PHS antenna 3
The distance between 6 is generally 100 m, although it depends on surrounding conditions such as a shield.

It can be used without the PHS antenna 36 nearby. The PHS master unit 39 is installed and connected to the telephone line 37. Then, the PHS 30 is registered in the PHS master device 39 and used as a parent-child telephone. The transmission / reception distance from the PHS master device 39 to the PHS 30 is about 100 m. If the PHS 30 is used only as a parent-child telephone, a contract with a telephone company is unnecessary. That is, there is no need to obtain a telephone number. Even in this case, data communication is possible by connecting to the personal computer 38.

(2) Cellular Phone Data is transmitted and received from the cellular phone 41 via the cellular phone base station 42. It is also possible to perform data communication by connecting to the personal computer 38. In recent years, digital wave models have become widespread and are less susceptible to surrounding radio waves and noise. Although it depends on the surroundings, radio waves may not reach from a location distant from the mobile phone base station 42, which may hinder data communication.

The following is a comparison of the PHS 30 and the portable telephone 41 with the specified low-power radio system (wireless modem). Wireless modem PHS Mobile phone Type of radio wave Analog wave Digital wave Digital wave Off every 3 minutes according to the Radio Law None None Restriction Communication is possible No restriction PHS antenna In the set area Region or PHS base phone is installed Phone model Communication speed varies depending on the location where it is located Up to 4,800 bps Up to 32,000 bps Up to 9,600 bps

An embodiment of the operating device for a wall-walking robot according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows a first embodiment of the present invention, in which a PHS 30 and a PHS antenna 36 are used. This PHS30 and PHS
The transmittable / receiveable distance between the antennas 36 is about 100 m. As described above, the walking robot 11 of the controlled device is provided with the scanning suction unit 13, the vacuum pump 14 for generating negative pressure, and the like on the robot body 12, but the present invention further includes a PHS 30, a modem 32, and a CPU 33. , Drive device 3
4. Built-in NiCd power supply battery 35. The PHS
Since the battery 30 and the modem 32 have their own batteries, the NiCd power supply battery 35 only supplies power to the vacuum pump 14 for generating negative pressure, the driving device 34, and the CPU 33.

On the control side, an operation personal computer 38 for inputting, outputting, storing, displaying, and other control of control data.
Is provided. The operation personal computer 38 is connected to the PHS 30 via the modem 32. PH of this PHS30
Within the range where radio waves from the S built-in antenna 31 can reach, PH
The S antenna 36 is installed, and the PHS antenna 3
6 to a PHS antenna 36 on the controlled side via a telephone line 37.

In such a configuration, the operation personal computer 3
When the movement, turning, photographing, measurement, and other control signals of the walking robot 11 are output from 8, the signals are converted by the modem 32,
Radio waves are emitted from the PHS built-in antenna 31 of the PHS 30. The PHS built-in antenna 3 of the PHS 30 on the control side
1 is received by the nearby PHS antenna 36,
It is emitted from the PHS antenna 36 near the walking robot 11 via the telephone line 37. Then, walking robot 1
1 is received by the PHS built-in antenna 31 of the PHS 30,
It is sent to the CPU 33 via the modem 32. This CPU
33 reads the received signal, and generates a vacuum pump 14 for generating a negative pressure;
Controlling the driving device 34 to move the walking robot 11;
Invert, shoot, measure, and perform other operations.

Vacuum pump 14 for generating negative pressure, drive unit 34
Is returned to the CPU 33 and the modem 3
2. A radio wave is emitted from the PHS built-in antenna 31 through the PHS 30, received by the PHS antenna 36, emitted by the PHS antenna 36 on the control side via the telephone line 37, received by the PHS 30 and passed through the modem 32 Input to the operation personal computer 38. The operation personal computer 38 displays and stores the returned communication data. In this way, the operation personal computer 38 transmits a signal to the walking robot 11 and receives a signal from the walking robot 11, and performs control while confirming the operation of the walking robot 11.

FIG. 2 shows a second embodiment of the present invention which is possible even in a place where the PHS antenna 36 is not provided. The difference from the embodiment of FIG. And the telephone 40 are installed,
In this way, the PHS 30 can be used as a slave unit, so that the same transmission and reception as in FIG. 1 can be performed by connecting the PHS master unit 39 to the telephone line 37.

The effect of the PHS 30 on data communication in FIGS. 1 and 2 is the distance between the PHS 30 and the PHS antenna 36 or the PHS master 39.
The HS master unit 39 can be installed anywhere as long as it can be connected to the telephone line 37 of the dial call, so that a place having a good communication state can be selected, and the reliability of data communication is improved.

The PHS 30 is smaller and lighter than a wireless modem, and can be easily incorporated into the existing walking robot 11. By the way, the outer diameter of the PHS 30 is about 40 × 25 × 105 mm in width × depth × height, and weighs 92 g.
(Including a battery), so that it can be incorporated in the walking robot 11 with a margin.

The PHS 30 has a NiCd power source battery 3
By providing the robot 5 independent of the robot 5, the operating time of the walking robot 11 is prolonged accordingly. PHS3
The data communication speed of 0 is 32,000, and about eight image data can be transmitted in one second. Therefore, the moving state of the walking robot 11 is transmitted to the operation personal computer 38 as a moving image via the telephone line 37. be able to. PHS3
0 indicates that the call fee is low.

FIG. 3 shows a third embodiment of the present invention, in which data is transmitted and received from a portable telephone 41 via a portable telephone base station 42. In this example, the communication data from the operation personal computer 38 which is the operation device on the control side is transmitted to the modem 32.
Is converted by the mobile phone 41 to the mobile phone base station 42.
To the base station antenna 43, and further received from the base station antenna 43 by the mobile phone 41 built in the walking robot 11 on the controlled side.
It is received by the mobile phone 41 on the control side from the mobile phone 41 of the walking robot 11 via the mobile phone base station 42, displayed on the operation personal computer 38 via the modem 32, and stored. The data communication by the mobile phone 41 is performed by the mobile phone 41.
Is affected by the distance between the
Between the HS 30 and the PHS antenna 36 or between the PHS 30 and the PHS
Transmission / reception is possible even at a sufficiently long distance as compared with the transmission / reception possible distance with the HS master unit 39.

[0029]

The present invention is configured as described above.
It has the following effects. (1) Since transmission / reception of control data is possible, when a communication error occurs, retry and feedback of connection re-establishment can be performed, and it is immediately determined whether the error is a communication error or a mechanical trouble. (2) Since the digital system is used, it is hardly affected by radio interference and the reliability of operating the walking robot 11 on the wall 10 in the city is high.

(3) PHS 30 or mobile phone 41
Since there is no communication line, the action range is not limited, and control data can be transmitted and received in a range where radio waves can reach, so that the operation range of the walking robot 11 can be expanded and become independent. (4) Since the PHS 30 transmits and receives via the telephone line 37, there is no limit to the distance that radio waves can reach. Further, the mobile phone 41 has a sufficient distance for radio waves to reach without the PHS antenna 36 and the telephone line 37.

(5) Since the power is not turned off after a predetermined time unlike a wireless modem, communication of control data does not become impossible. (6) Since the power supplies of the PHS 30 and the modem 32 are independent of the NiCd power supply battery 35 mounted on the walking robot 11, the operation time of the vacuum pump 14 and the driving device 34 for generating the negative pressure of the walking robot 11 may be shortened. There is no. Therefore, the range of action of the walking robot 11 can be expanded. (7) Since the PHS 30 is extremely small, the vacuum pump 14 for generating negative pressure and the driving device 34 can also be miniaturized, so that the entire device can be miniaturized and the moving speed can be increased.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 shows a PHS 30 and a PHS antenna 3 according to the present invention.
6 is an explanatory view showing a first embodiment of the operation device for a wall-walking robot according to No. 6; FIG.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory view showing a first embodiment of the operation device of the wall-walking robot by the PHS 30 and the PHS master unit 39 according to the present invention.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory view showing a first embodiment of a device for operating a wall-walking robot by a mobile phone 41 and a mobile phone base station 42 according to the present invention. It is.

FIG. 4 is a partially cutaway front view of the walking robot 11;

5 is a horizontal sectional view of the scanning suction unit 13 in FIG.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram of a walking state of the walking robot 11;

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Wall surface, 11 ... Walking robot, 12 ... Robot main body, 13 ... Scanning suction part, 14 ... Vacuum pump for negative pressure generation,
15: manifold, 16: small suction cup, 17: first leg, 1
8 second leg, 19 cam, 20 rotary shaft, 21 valve, 2
2 ... Disc, 23 ... Rubber cylindrical member, 24 ... Com tube,
25: rubber tube, 26: gear, 27: power cable, 28: signal cable, 30: PHS, 31: PHS
Built-in antenna, 32 ... Modem, 33 ... CPU, 34 ... Driver, 35 ... NiCd power battery, 36 ... PHS antenna, 37 ... Phone line, 38 ... Operation personal computer, 39 ... P
HS master unit, 40 phone, 41 mobile phone, 42 mobile phone base station, 43 base station antenna.

────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continued on the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁶ Identification code FI G05D 1/02 G05D 1/02 P H04M 11/00 302 H04M 11/00 302 (72) Inventor Shinji Numao Kisazakicho, Inashiki-gun, Ibaraki Prefecture 2304 Takasaki Nippon Koei Central Research Laboratory (72) Inventor Yukio Kitamura 2304 Takasaki Kusazaki-cho, Inashiki-gun, Ibaraki Prefecture Nippon Koei Central Research Laboratory

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. A PHS 30 mounted on a controlled walking robot 11 and a PHS 30 installed on a control side, wherein communication data is transmitted and received between the PHS 30 to control the operation of the walking robot 11. An operation device for a wall-walking robot, comprising: 2. A PHS antenna 36 is installed in the transmission / reception range of the PHS 30 on the controlled side and the control side, and these PHS antennas 36 are connected by a telephone line 37. The operation device for a wall-walking robot according to claim 1. 3. A PHS master unit 39 is provided within the transmission / reception range of the PHS 30 on the controlled side and the control side, and these PHS master units 39 are connected by a telephone line 37. The operation device for a wall-walking robot according to claim 1. 4. The control side includes an operation personal computer 38, a modem 3
4. The operation of the wall-walking robot according to claim 1, wherein the controlled walking robot 11 includes a PHS 30, a modem 32, a CPU 33, and a nickel caddy battery 35. 5. apparatus. 5. A mobile phone 41 mounted on the controlled walking robot 11 and a mobile phone 41 installed on the control side.
And a mobile phone base station 42 interposed between the mobile phones 41 to control the operation of the walking robot 11 by transmitting and receiving communication data between the mobile phones 41. Characteristic operation device for wall-walking robot. 6. The control side includes an operation personal computer 38, a modem 3
2 and a mobile phone 41, and the controlled walking robot 11 includes a mobile phone 41, a modem 32, a CPU 3
3. The operation device for a wall-walking robot according to claim 5, further comprising a power supply battery.