FR3141113A1 - Autonomous handling machine, installation equipped with such a machine and method of controlling such a machine - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention relates to an autonomous handling machine comprising an autonomous coupling module (52) which is configured to: - process a signal delivered by a spatial detection sensor (34, 57) and deliver positioning information of a l tool (4, 5, 6) representative of the position and orientation of the tool (4, 5, 6) relative to the machine (2); - control at least one steering member (45, 46) and a motor (44) according to the positioning information of the tool (4, 5, 6) so as to position the machine (2) relative to the door frame -tool (16) in a relative coupling position; and - control at least one lifting cylinder (24) and one dumping cylinder (25) when the machine (2) is in said relative coupling position in order to autonomously couple the tool (4, 5, 6 ) to the tool holder frame (16). The invention also relates to a handling installation comprising such a handling machine and a method for controlling such a handling machine. Figure to be published: 6

Description

Autonomous handling machine, installation equipped with such a machine and method of controlling such a machine

The invention relates to the field of handling installations, in particular intended to be installed in an agricultural operation, which are equipped with a handling machine comprising a pivotally mounted boom and a tool, such as a bucket, pivotally mounted at the end of the boom and allowing the handling of organic materials. The handling machine can in particular make it possible to distribute food to animals and/or supply an organic waste recovery facility.

The invention also relates to a handling machine of the aforementioned type which is autonomous, that is to say is capable of moving and carrying out handling operations in an automated manner, without the intervention of a driver.

Technology background

In agricultural operations, it is known to use handling machines equipped with lifting devices allowing different types of handling operations to be carried out on a recurring basis, such as for example transporting food from a food storage area. feeding to an animal housing area or even transporting organic matter to an organic waste processing facility, in particular a methanization or composting facility.

These handling machines are equipped with a boom pivotally mounted on the frame of the machine and a tool-carrying frame which is suitable and intended to receive tools of different types, which allows the machine to ensure a large variety of handling operations.

However, these handling machines require the presence of a driver. However, handling operations of the aforementioned type must be carried out on a recurring basis, generally daily, and present little added value. Such handling operations therefore harm driver productivity.

Autonomous handling machines are also known which are capable of moving and carrying out industrial or agricultural operations in an automated manner. However, such handling machines are specialized in the automation of a single operation and are therefore not fully satisfactory either.

Summary

An idea underlying the invention consists of proposing a handling machine which is, on the one hand, versatile, that is to say capable of carrying out a plurality of handling operations, and, on the other hand, part, autonomous.

According to a first aspect, the invention proposes an autonomous handling machine comprising:
- a chassis ;
- a front axle and a rear axle which are each mounted on the chassis along a transverse axis; at least one of said front and rear axles being steered and controlled by a steering body;
- a motor which is coupled to at least one of the front and rear axles by a transmission device;
- a boom which is mounted articulated on the chassis between an extreme lowered position and an extreme raised position;
- a lifting cylinder which is arranged to move the boom between the extreme lowered position and the extreme raised position;
- a tool-carrying frame which is pivotally mounted on the boom between an extreme digging position and an extreme dumping position and which is capable of being coupled to a tool;
- a dumping cylinder which is arranged to move the tool-carrying frame between the extreme digging position and the extreme dumping position;
- at least one spatial detection sensor capable of delivering a signal comprising information representative of the position of a tool;
- a control unit which includes an autonomous coupling module which is configured to:
- process the signal delivered by the at least one spatial detection sensor and deliver tool positioning information representative of the position and orientation of the tool relative to the machine;
- control at least the steering member and the motor as a function of the positioning information of the tool so as to position the machine relative to the tool-carrying frame in a relative coupling position; And
- control at least the lifting cylinder and the dumping cylinder when the machine is in said relative coupling position in order to autonomously couple the tool to the tool-carrying frame.

Thus, such a handling machine is particularly advantageous in that, on the one hand, it is autonomous and on the other hand, it is versatile and can thus carry out a wide variety of handling operations due to its capacity to 'couple autonomously to a plurality of different tools.

According to embodiments, such a handling machine may have one or more of the following characteristics.

According to one embodiment, the steering member and a steering cylinder.

According to one embodiment, the motor is an electric motor.

According to one embodiment, the lifting cylinder has a first end pivotally mounted on the boom and a second end pivotally mounted on the chassis.

According to one embodiment, the dumping cylinder is pivotally mounted, on the one hand, on the boom and, on the other hand, on a beam, a dumping rod being pivotally mounted on the beam and on the tool-carrying frame .

According to one embodiment, the tool-carrying frame comprises hooking means intended to cooperate with complementary means secured to the tool and a crosspiece intended to cooperate with at least one support stop of the tool, the module autonomous coupling being configured for: and
- control at least the lifting cylinder and the dumping cylinder, and optionally the motor and the steering member, so that the attachment means of the tool-carrying frame cooperate with the complementary means secured to the tool and that the crosspiece comes to rest against the tool’s support stop.

According to one embodiment, the tool holder frame comprises at least one locking rod movable between a locking position in which said locking rod is able to be inserted into a locking orifice of the tool and an unlocked position in which said locking rod is outside said locking orifice of the tool, the autonomous coupling module being configured to move the locking rod from the unlocked position to the locking position after the crosspiece is pressed against the tool’s support stop.

According to one embodiment, the tool holder frame comprises two locking rods which are each movable between a locking position in which said locking rod is able to be inserted into a locking orifice of the tool and an unlocked position in which said locking rod is outside said locking orifice of the tool, the autonomous coupling module being configured to move the locking rods from the unlocked position to the locking position after the crosspiece is supported against the tool’s support stop.

According to one embodiment, the tool holder frame comprises a locking cylinder arranged to move the locking rod between the locking position and the unlocked position, the autonomous coupling module being configured to control said locking cylinder.

According to one embodiment, the spatial detection sensor is chosen from cameras, for example stereoscopic cameras, time-of-flight cameras, LIDARS, radars and ultrasonic sensors.

According to one embodiment, the machine does not have a cabin intended to accommodate a driver, which makes the machine particularly compact.

According to one embodiment, the boom comprises two lifting arms extending on either side of a longitudinal axis of the machine.

According to one embodiment, the chassis comprises a projecting portion which projects upwards between the two lifting arms, said projecting portion projecting beyond the two lifting arms when the boom is in the extreme lowered position.

According to one embodiment, the spatial detection sensor is fixed to a vertex of the protruding portion. Thus, the positioning of the spatial position sensor on the aforementioned projecting portion makes it possible, on the one hand, to limit the exposure of said spatial detection sensor to dust resulting in particular from the material which is handled by the tool and, on the other hand on the other hand, to offer an excellent field of perception, particularly on the material to be loaded. In particular, the spatial detection sensor overcomes the chassis as well as the boom and its tool, particularly when the boom is in the extreme lowered position. In addition, taking into account the arrangement of the protruding portion between the lifting arms, the position of the spatial detection sensor is central.

According to one embodiment, each of said front and rear axles has two wheels, is steered and is controlled by a respective steering member; said front and rear axles being equipped with a steering system arranged to give a different inclination, relative to the longitudinal direction, to the two wheels of each of the front and rear axles so that the wheel located inside steers more than the one located outside. This improves the movement capabilities of the machine. Thus, the four steering wheels can, for example, be turned in the opposite direction on the same curve (radius of gyration of the machine is reduced) or in the same direction, we then speak of “crab” movement.

According to one embodiment, the control unit comprises a control module, the control module being configured to transmit, according to a defined route, a movement instruction comprising three variables V ₁ , V ₂ and V ₃ ; with :
- V ₁ : a setpoint representative of an angle variation of the trajectory of a characteristic point of the machine;
- V ₂ : a setpoint representative of a speed of movement of the characteristic point of the machine on the trajectory; And
- V ₃ : a setpoint representative of the variation in heading angle, that is to say the longitudinal direction, of the machine;
said control module being further configured to:
- determine a median angle of inclination of the two wheels of each of the front and rear axles according to the movement instruction;
- determine a set angle of inclination of at least one wheel of each of the front and rear axles as a function of the value of the median angle of inclination of the wheels of said front or rear axle calculated previously; And
- control the steering members of said front and rear axles according to the set angle of inclination of the wheel of each of the front and rear axles. This offers even more possibilities for moving the machine.

According to one embodiment, the wheel of each of the front and rear axles for which the inclination angle setpoint is determined is the wheel which is located inside the trajectory of the characteristic point of the machine.

The value of the angle of inclination of the wheels of each of the front and rear axles which is located outside the trajectory is thus obtained as a result of the arrangement of the steering system as described previously. According to one embodiment, the invention relates to a handling installation comprising at least one aforementioned handling machine and a plurality of tools capable of being coupled to the tool-carrying frame.

According to one embodiment, each of the tools is equipped with a radio tag, the machine being equipped with a reader capable of reading a unique identifier contained in the radio tags, the autonomous coupling module being capable of comparing said unique identifier with tool identification information included in instructions representative of a mission to be carried out received by the control unit.

According to an alternative or complementary embodiment, the autonomous coupling module includes, in memory, information representative of the geometry of each of the tools and is configured to:
- process the signal delivered by the spatial position sensor so as to obtain verification information representative of the geometry of the tool opposite which the machine is positioned; And
- check the concordance between the stored information representative of the geometry of the tool corresponding to the instructions representative of a mission to be carried out received by the control unit.

According to one embodiment, the handling installation further comprises supervision equipment comprising a man-machine interface allowing a user to define a mission comprising at least the following characteristics: a total mass of material to be transported, a storage area of the material in which the material must be loaded, a discharge zone of the material and a deadline for accomplishing the mission, said supervision equipment being configured to transmit to the control unit instructions representative of the mission to be carried out.

According to one embodiment, the supervision equipment is not on board the handling machine and is separate equipment from the control unit which is on board the handling machine.

According to one embodiment, the supervision equipment is configured to break down the mission defined by the user into a plurality of elementary actions and to transmit said elementary actions to the control unit. Thus, the handling machine receives from the start of the mission all the information necessary to carry out the mission. The machine can then carry out the mission without using supervision equipment, which is particularly advantageous when the machine is likely to operate in a white zone, that is to say in an area not covered by the network. information transmission used for communication between the machine control unit and the supervisory equipment.

According to one embodiment, the control unit comprises a route definition module which includes, in memory, a network of predefined paths and is equipped with a program using a Dijkstra type algorithm making it possible to determine the route to be follow by the machine, depending on the predefined path network, a position, and advantageously a heading, of the machine, determined by means of signals delivered by at least one set of sensors chosen from: a first set of sensors comprising two geolocation antennas; a second set of sensors comprising accelerometers and gyrometers; and a third set of sensors comprising odometers fitted to one or more of the wheels of the handling machine and instructions representative of the mission to be carried out received by the control unit.

According to one embodiment, the handling installation comprises a charging terminal, the machine comprising an electrical energy storage device, a sensor for evaluating the state of charge for evaluating the state of charge of said device storage of electrical energy, the control unit comprising an energy management module which is configured to:
- estimate the electrical energy E_{necc .}which is necessary to carry out the mission;
- estimate the energy E_availablewhich is available in the electrical energy storage device as a function of the state of charge of said electrical energy storage device; And
- generate an instruction to recharge the machine at the charging station when E_necc ≥ E_available - E_Threshold, with E_Threshold: an energy threshold value. This is particularly interesting for missions that cannot be interrupted.

According to one embodiment, E _Threshold is greater than the energy available in the electrical energy storage device when it has reached a deep discharge state.

According to one embodiment, the energy management module is configured to, in response to a generation of reloading instructions:
- estimate a duration of_tot-rechnecessary to fully recharge the electrical energy storage device;
- estimate a total duration of_{early -assignment}the mission to be carried out;
- calculate the sum S1 of d_{early -assignment}and D_tot-rech;
- compare the sum S1 to a time interval Δt available until a deadline for carrying out the mission; And
- generate an electrical energy storage device recharging level instruction as a function of E_necc when S1 is greater than Δt.

According to one embodiment, the energy management module generates a complete recharge instruction for the electrical energy storage device when S1 is less than or equal to Δt.

According to one embodiment, the energy management module is configured to:
- compare the state of charge of the electrical energy storage device to a threshold; And
- generate an instruction to recharge the machine at the charging station when the state of charge is lower than said threshold.

According to a second aspect, the invention proposes a method for controlling an autonomous handling machine comprising:
- a chassis ;
- a front axle and a rear axle which are each mounted on the chassis along a transverse axis; at least one of said front and rear axles being steered and controlled by a steering body;
- a motor which is coupled to at least one of the front and rear axles by a transmission device;
- a boom which is mounted articulated on the chassis between an extreme lowered position and an extreme raised position;
- a lifting cylinder which is arranged to move the boom between the extreme lowered position and the extreme raised position;
- a tool-carrying frame which is pivotally mounted on the boom between an extreme digging position and an extreme dumping position and which is capable of being coupled to a tool;
- a dumping cylinder which is arranged to move the tool-carrying frame between the extreme digging position and the extreme dumping position; And
- at least one spatial detection sensor capable of delivering a signal comprising information representative of the position of a tool;
the ordering process comprising the following steps:
- process the signal delivered by the at least one spatial detection sensor and deliver tool positioning information representative of the position and orientation of the tool relative to the machine; And
- control at least the steering member and the motor as a function of the positioning information of the tool so as to position the machine relative to the tool-carrying frame in a relative coupling position; And
- control at least the lifting cylinder and the dumping cylinder when the machine is in said relative coupling position in order to autonomously couple the tool to the tool-carrying frame.

According to one embodiment, the control method comprises the following step:
-
- control at least the lifting cylinder and the dumping cylinder, and optionally the motor and the steering member, so that the attachment means of the tool-carrying frame cooperate with complementary means of the tool and that a crosspiece of the tool holder frame comes to rest against a support stop of the tool.

According to one embodiment, the control method comprises, after pressing the crosspiece against the support stop of the tool, the following step:
- move a locking rod of the tool holder frame from an unlocked position in which said locking rod is out of a locking hole of the tool to a locking position in which said locking rod is inserted into the tool’s locking hole.

According to one embodiment, in the control method:
- we read a unique identifier contained in a radio tag fitted to the tool; And
- said unique identifier is compared with identification information of the tool included in instructions representative of a mission to be carried out.

According to one embodiment, the control method comprises the following steps:
- determine a route to follow by the machine using a Dijkstra type algorithm based on:
- a predefined path network,
- a position and a heading of the machine determined by means of signals delivered by at least one set of sensors chosen from:
- a first set of sensors comprising two geolocation antennas;
- a second set of sensors comprising accelerometers and gyrometers; And
- a third set of sensors comprising odometers equipping one or more and, preferably each, wheels of the handling machine;
- instructions representative of the mission to be carried out.

According to one embodiment, the position and heading of the machine are determined by data fusion processing processing the signals by means of at least two of the aforementioned sets of sensors, and preferably at least the first set of sensors and the second set of sensors.

According to one embodiment, the information obtained by the aforementioned data fusion processing is compared with information obtained by the at least one spatial detection sensor in order to check its consistency.

According to one embodiment, the control method comprises the following steps:
- estimate the electrical energy E_{necc .}which is necessary to carry out the mission;
- estimate the energy E_availablewhich is available in the electrical energy storage device as a function of the state of charge of said electrical energy storage device; And
- generate an instruction to recharge the machine at the charging station when E_necc ≥ E_available - E_Threshold, with E_Threshold: an energy threshold value.

According to one embodiment, the control method comprises, in response to a generation of reloading instructions:
- estimate a duration of_tot-rechnecessary to fully recharge the electrical energy storage device;
- estimate a total duration of_{early -assignment}the mission to be carried out;
- calculate the sum S1 of d_{early -assignment}and D_tot-rech;
- compare the sum S1 to a time interval Δt available until a deadline for completing the mission; And
- generate an electrical energy storage device recharging level instruction as a function of E_necc when S1 is greater than Δt.

Note that, according to other embodiments, the control module, the route definition module and the energy management module can each or in combination be implemented independently of the autonomous coupling module , that is to say in a machine without an independent coupling module.

Brief description of the figures

The invention will be better understood, and other aims, details, characteristics and advantages thereof will appear more clearly during the following description of several particular embodiments of the invention, given solely by way of illustration and not limitation. , with reference to the attached drawings.

There is a schematic view of a handling installation equipping a farm.

There is a right front perspective view of a handling machine capable of equipping the handling installation of the , the boom of the handling machine being shown with an arrow in the transport position and equipped with a tool.

There is a view similar to that of the in which the arrow is shown without tools.

There is a side view of the handling machine of Figures 1 and 2 in which the boom is shown in the extreme lowered position.

There is a side view of the handling machine in which the boom is shown in the extreme raised position.

There is a schematic representation of the control unit of the handling machine and the various sensors and equipment fitted to said handling machine.

In reference to the , we describe a handling installation 1 implemented in an agricultural operation. The handling installation 1 notably comprises at least one autonomous handling machine 2, supervision equipment 19 configured to communicate with the machine 2 and making it possible to supervise the missions of the machine 2, a charging terminal 3 making it possible to recharge a unit storage of the electrical energy of the machine 2 as well as a plurality of tools 4, 5, 6 which are here each positioned in a location of a storage zone 7 and which are each capable of equipping the machine 2 Note that, if in the embodiment shown the installation only includes one machine 2, it can also include several.

The agricultural operation comprises one or more material storage zones 8, 9, 10 as well as one or more material discharge zones 11, 12, 13 requiring to be supplied with material stored in the storage zones. storage 8, 9, 10. On the , the material storage areas are in the form of a silage silo 8, material in a heap 9 and material in a silo 10 while the material discharge areas include a methanization installation 11 equipped with a hopper 14 as well as an interior stable 12 and an exterior stable 13.

A machine 2 according to one embodiment is described below in relation to Figures 2 to 5. By convention, the “longitudinal” direction of the machine 2 corresponds to the front-rear orientation. Furthermore, the “transverse” direction is oriented perpendicular to the longitudinal direction. The terms “rear” and “front” correspond respectively to the abbreviations AR and AV indicated in the figures and are used to define the relative position of one element in relation to another in the longitudinal direction. The terms “front” and “rear” are adopted here in relation to the loading direction of the tool 4, that is to say that the tool 4 is positioned at the front of the machine 2. This definition does not prefigure the preferred direction of movement of the machine 2 which can therefore occur either forwards or backwards.

The machine 2 comprises a chassis, not visible, and a boom 15 which is mounted articulated on the chassis by an articulation device described subsequently, and at the end of which is mounted a tool holder frame 16, in particular visible on the , intended to receive a tool 4. By tool 4, we designate, for example, forks or a bucket, such as a simple bucket, a silage scooping bucket, a distributor bucket or others.

The chassis is mobile. To do this, in the embodiment shown, the machine 2 comprises two axles, a front axle 17 and a rear axle 18, which are each mounted on the chassis along a transverse axis and are each equipped with two wheels, one on the left and the other on the right. Advantageously, the two front axles 17 and rear 18 are steering axles, that is to say they are equipped with means allowing the orientation of the wheels to be varied relative to the longitudinal direction of the machine 2. For this To do this, each of the front 17 and rear 18 axles is equipped with a steering cylinder making it possible to modify the orientation of the wheels of said front 17 or rear 18 axle. In addition, in a manner known per se, each of the front 17 and rear 18 axles is equipped with a steering system, comprising for example a steering bar and steering links, arranged to give different inclinations, relative to the longitudinal direction, to the two wheels of each of the front 17 and rear 18 axles so as to that the wheel located on the inside turns more than the one located on the outside.

The machine 2 comprises at least one electric motor, not illustrated, which is fixed to the chassis and which is coupled to at least one of the front 17 or rear 18 axles, and preferably to both, via a device transmission, mechanical or hydraulic. The machine 2 also includes an electrical energy storage device, not visible, which includes one or more batteries and which is connected to the electric motor in order to supply it with electrical energy.

In the embodiment shown, the boom 15 comprises two lifting arms 20, 21 which extend longitudinally, parallel to each other and which are arranged on either side of the median longitudinal plane of the machine 2 The two lifting arms 20, 21 are connected to each other by means of crosspieces.

The boom 15 is mounted movable relative to the chassis between an extreme lowered position, shown on the , and an extreme raised position, shown on the . The arrow 15 is thus capable of taking a plurality of positions between the two aforementioned extreme positions and in particular a transport position, shown on the in which the tool-carrying frame 16 is positioned at a sufficient distance from the ground so as not to degrade the ground clearance of the machine 2.

The boom 15 is mounted articulated on the chassis by means of an articulation device comprising two connecting rods, namely a front connecting rod 22 and a rear connecting rod 23, in particular visible on the . The rear connecting rod 23 is pivotally mounted, on the one hand, on the chassis and, on the other hand, on the boom 15. The front connecting rod 22 is also pivotally mounted, on the one hand, on the chassis and on the boom 15 The four aforementioned geometric pivot axes are parallel to each other and oriented transversely.

The machine 2 includes a lifting cylinder 24, also shown on the , allowing the arrow 15 to move between the extreme lowered position and the extreme raised position. To do this, the lifting cylinder 24 has one end which is mounted hingedly on the chassis and another end which is mounted hingedly on the boom 15. Thus, when the lifting cylinder 24 deploys, it causes a movement of the boom 15 towards the extreme raised position. On the contrary, when it retracts, it causes a movement of the arrow 15 towards the extreme lowered position.

The tool-carrying frame 16 is intended to be secured to a tool 4 and is mounted articulated at the front end of the arrow 15 around an axis A. The tool-carrying frame 16 is thus able to take a plurality of positions between two extreme positions, namely an extreme digging position and an extreme dumping position. A tipping cylinder 25 acts on the tool-carrying frame 16 via a balance 26 so as to make it pivot around the axis A, relative to the arrow 15. The tipping cylinder 25 has a first end which is mounted articulated on the arrow 15 and a second end which is mounted articulated on the balance 26.

The two ends of the balance 26 are respectively mounted articulated on the boom 15 and on a tipping rod 27 which is, in addition, mounted articulated on the tool-carrying frame 16 so that the pivoting movement of the balance 26 causes the pivoting of the tool-carrying frame 16 around the axis A. In the configuration shown, when the dumping cylinder 25 deploys, it causes the tool-carrying frame 16 to pivot relative to the arrow 15, around the axis A, towards the extreme dumping position whereas, on the contrary, when the dumping cylinder 25 retracts, it causes a pivoting of the tool-carrying frame 16 relative to the arrow 15 towards the extreme digging position.

The tool holder frame 16 comprises, in the upper part, hooking means intended to cooperate with complementary means secured to the tool 4. In the embodiment shown, the hooking means comprise a pair of bars 28, visible in Figures 3, 4 and 5 extending transversely and coaxially to each other while the complementary means comprise two hooks 29, one of which is visible in Figures 4 and 5, which are integral with the tool 4 and are arranged to hook respectively on one and the other of the two bars 28. Note that according to another embodiment, the structure is inverted, that is to say that the frame carries -tool 16 is equipped with hooks intended to cooperate with a pair of bars carried by the tool 4.

Furthermore, the tool holder frame 16 comprises, in the lower part, a crosspiece 30, visible in Figures 3, 4 and 5 which is formed of a metal bar and is arranged to cooperate with a pair of support stops 31 formed, for example, on fittings welded to the back of tool 4, one of which is visible in Figures 4 and 5.

Furthermore, the tool holder frame 16 also includes locking rods 32, visible on the , which extend transversely and are suitable and intended to be inserted into locking orifices, not shown, of the tool 4. The locking orifices are, for example, provided in the fittings located on the back of the tool 4 The locking rods 32 are movable transversely between a locking position in which they are able to be positioned inside one of the locking holes and an unlocked position in which they are outside the locking holes. In the embodiment shown, the tool holder frame 16 comprises a locking cylinder 33 making it possible to move the locking rods 32 between the locked position and the unlocked position. The locking cylinder 33 is a double-acting cylinder extending transversely. The locking cylinder 33 is mounted "floating" on the tool holder frame 16, which means that neither its body nor its rod are immobilized in translation, the abutment of one against a fixed part during the the extension of said locking cylinder having the effect of distributing the thrust force so that the other in turn abuts against a fixed part. The locking rods 32 are mounted in sleeves, one of which is secured to the body of the locking cylinder 33 and the other of which is secured to the rod of the locking cylinder 33. For more information on the characteristics of a such tool holder frame 16, we can also refer to application FR2869054.

In order to couple a tool 4, 5, 6 to the tool holder frame 16, the hooks 29 are engaged around the bars 28 and the tipping cylinder 25 is actuated so as to pivot the tool holder frame 16 in the direction of the extreme digging position, which makes it possible to bring the crosspiece 30 into contact with the support stops 31 of the tool 4. The locking orifices are thus located opposite the locking rods 32 so that, when the cylinder of locking 33 extends, the locking rods 32 insert into the locking holes. Simply carry out the reverse operations to uncouple tool 4, 5, 6 from tool holder frame 16.

Furthermore, the machine 2 comprises at least one spatial detection sensor 34, that is to say a sensor generating signals which include information representative of the position of the objects located in the environment of the machine 2. In the embodiment shown, the spatial detection sensor 34 is fixed on a projecting portion 35 which projects, between the two lifting arms 20, 21, upwards, beyond said lifting arms 20, 21 when the arrow 15 is in the transport position or in the extreme lowered position. The spatial detection sensor 34 is chosen from cameras and in particular stereoscopic cameras, time-of-flight cameras, LIDARS, radars and ultrasonic sensors. In the embodiment shown, the spatial detection sensor 34 is a stereoscopic camera.

According to an advantageous embodiment, the machine 2 comprises at least one other spatial position sensor, which is advantageously of a different type from the spatial detection sensor 34 described above and making it possible to ensure redundancy of the information collected. The machine 2 may in particular include other spatial position sensors, such as LIDARS for example, at the front and rear of the machine 2, for example under its chassis. On the , we schematically observe the position of a spatial detection sensor 57, such as a LIDAR for example, placed at the front of the machine 2 under its chassis.

The spatial detection sensors 34, 57 are particularly capable of delivering signals comprising information representative of the position of a tool and the organic material to be loaded.

The machine 2 further comprises two geolocation antennas 36, 37, shown in particular on the , of the GNSS type for example, making it possible to deliver information representative of the position of the machine 2 in space. Advantageously, the machine 2 comprises at least two geolocation antennas 36, 37 which are positioned at two different locations, which makes it possible to deduce from the signals delivered by these two geolocation antennas 36, 37, information representative of the heading of the machine 2 in space. The two geolocation antennas 36, 37 are here spaced from one another in the longitudinal direction. One of the geolocation antennas 36, 37 is fixed on the spatial position sensor 34, at the top of the protruding portion 35, while the other geolocation antenna 37 is fixed at the top of the rear part of the body of the machine 2, behind the rear end of the boom 15. Such an arrangement is advantageous in that it allows the geolocation antennas to be placed at a significant distance from each other, in particular greater than if they were positioned in the same transverse plane, which makes it possible to obtain better sensitivity in determining the heading of the machine 2. In addition, this arrangement makes it possible to obtain information relating to the pitch of the machine 2, that is to say -say the angular displacement of the machine 2 around a transverse axis.

Returning to the , we describe below the different functionalities implemented by the handling installation 1 as well as the means allowing the implementation of these functionalities.

The supervision equipment 19 comprises a memory, a processor as well as telecommunications means allowing it in particular to communicate with a control unit embedded in the machine 2. For example, the telecommunications means can in particular use cellular networks or specific local networks (using for example WIFI, UWB or Bluetooth standards). The supervision equipment 19 also includes a man-machine interface.

The supervision equipment 19 is configured to allow an installer to configure the handling installation 1 via the man-machine interface. During this configuration step, the parameters of the handling installation 1 are recorded in the memory of said supervision equipment 19, and in particular:
- the position of the material storage zone(s) 8, 9, 10;
- the position of the material spill zone(s) 11, 12, 13;
- the position of charging station 3;
- a list of tools 4, 5, 6;
- for each of said tools 4, 5, 6, a plurality of characteristics, such as its capacity, its capacity to be used for loading into at least one material storage zone 8, 9, 10 and its capacity to be used for discharge in at least one discharge zone 11, 12, 13; And
- the position of the storage zone 7 of the tools 4, 5, 6 and the location of each of the tools 4, 5, 6 in said storage zone 11, 12, 13.

Furthermore, the man-machine interface of the supervision equipment 19 is also configured so that a user can define a list of missions and plan them.

According to one embodiment, each mission includes at least the following four setpoint characteristics: the total mass of material to be transported, the material storage zone 8, 9, 10 in which the material must be loaded, the dumping zone of material 11, 12, 13 as well as a deadline to accomplish the mission. According to one embodiment, the mission may also include other characteristics and in particular an indication as to its interruptible nature, which may in particular be the case when the mission aims to distribute food to animals.

The supervision equipment 19 is configured to break down the mission defined by the user into a plurality of tasks and to break down the plurality of tasks into a plurality of elementary actions. To do this, depending on the installation parameters defined during the configuration step and the mission setpoint characteristics, the supervision equipment 19 identifies in particular the appropriate tool 4, 5, 6, its location, the number of journeys necessary between the storage zone and the material discharge zone to transport the total mass as well as the mass of material to be transported for each of said journeys and deduces a list of elementary actions to be carried out. Each elementary action may in particular correspond to one of the following actions: movement between two points, coupling of a tool 4, 5, 6 identified to the tool-carrying frame 16, loading of an identified quantity of material into the tool 4 , 5, 6, spillage of an identified quantity of material, uncoupling of the tool 4, 5, 6 from the tool holder frame 4, 5, 6.

For example, assuming that the mission consists of transporting 1000 kg of material from a silage silo 8 and distributing them to the animals housed in the indoor stable 12 before a deadline, the supervision equipment 19 cuts this mission in four tasks, namely transporting 4 times 250 kg from the silage silo 8 to the interior barn 12 by means of an identified tool 4, 5, 6, for example of the silage bucket type. Each of these four tasks is further broken down by the supervision equipment 19 into a plurality of elementary actions. Thus, for the first task corresponding to the transport of 250 kg of material from the silage silo 8 to the interior barn 12 using the identified tool 4, 5, 6, the elementary actions are as follows:
- movement of the machine 2 to the location in the storage area 7 of the identified tool 4, 5, 6;
- coupling of said tool 4, 5, 6 to the tool-carrying frame 16 of machine 2;
- movement of machine 2 to silage silo 8;
- loading 250 kg of material into tool 4, 5, 6;
- movement of machine 2 to the interior barn 12;
- distribution of 250 kg of material to the animals in the indoor stable 12; And
- movement of machine 2 to silage silo 8.

In relation to the , we describe below the control unit 38 of the handling machine 2 as well as the equipment on which it acts.

The control unit 38 is equipped with telecommunications means allowing it to communicate with the supervision equipment 19. The control unit 38 is thus configured to receive instructions representative of the mission to be carried out and the corresponding elementary actions determined by the supervision equipment 19. The control unit 38 is also configured to transmit to the supervision equipment 19 an acknowledgment of receipt of the instructions as well as to transmit an end of action message indicating the completion of the elementary action in question . This allows the supervision equipment 19 and therefore the user to monitor the progress of the mission in real time.

As shown on the , the control unit 38 is in particular connected to the following sensors:
- spatial position sensors 34, 57, 61, such as the stereoscopic camera placed at the top of the protruding portion 35 and other spatial position sensors, such as LIDARS, arranged for example under the chassis of the machine 2;
- to the geolocation antennas 36, 37,
- to a sensor 39 to deliver a signal representative of the relative position of the arrow 15 relative to the chassis of the machine 2;
- to a sensor 40 to deliver a signal representative of the relative position of the tool holder frame 16 relative to the arrow 15;
- to sensors 41, 42 to deliver signals representative of the orientation of at least one of the wheels of the front axle 17 and one of the wheels of the rear axle 18;
- to a state of charge evaluation sensor 43 for evaluating the state of charge of the electrical energy storage device 55;
- accelerometers 58 making it possible to measure the acceleration of the machine in at least two intersecting directions and gyrometers 59 together forming an inertia unit; And
- optionally, odometers 60 equipping one or more of the wheels of the machine 2, and preferably each.

The control unit 38 is also equipped with processing means:
- to process the signals collected by the spatial position sensor(s) 34 and deliver information relating to the position of objects in the environment of the machine 2. The information notably comprises three-dimensional coordinates of a plurality of points on the surface of objects; And
- to process the signals delivered by the geolocation antennas 36, 37 and/or the signals delivered by the inertial unit, that is to say the accelerometers 58 and the gyrometers 59 and deliver information relating to the position, heading and pitch of machine 2; And
- optionally, to process the signals delivered by the odometers 60 and deliver information relating to the position, heading and pitch of the machine 2.

According to one embodiment, the processing means determine the position and heading of the machine 2 by data fusion processing which processes the signals delivered by the geolocation antennas 36, 37 and by the inertial unit. This data fusion processing makes it possible to correct errors in order to very precisely estimate the heading and position of the machine.

Furthermore, according to one embodiment, the information determined by the aforementioned data fusion processing is compared with the information obtained by one or more of the spatial detection sensors 34, 57, 61 in order to check its consistency. On the , a spatial position sensor 61 of the LIDAR type is shown. It is here positioned at the rear of the machine 2, preferably near the top of the rear part.

The control unit 38 is configured to generate instructions to the electric motor 44 which is coupled to at least one of the front 17 and rear 18 axles via a transmission device.

The control unit 38 is also configured to provide control of the hydraulic control circuit which controls the lifting cylinder 24, the dumping cylinder 25, the steering cylinders 45, 46 and the locking cylinder 33. The circuit hydraulic control system comprises in particular a reservoir 47, a pump 48 connected to the reservoir 47 as well as a flow sharing distributor 49. The pump 48 is also supplied with electrical energy by the electrical energy storage device 55 described above. The flow sharing distributor 49 is configured to put the hydraulic fluid coming from the pump 48 into communication with the lifting cylinder 24, the tipping cylinder 25, the steering cylinder 45 of the front axle 17, the steering cylinder 46 of the rear axle 18, the locking cylinder 33 or simultaneously with several of said cylinders.

The control unit 38 also includes control means which are configured to:
- control, autonomously, the movement of machine 2 in space; And
- control, autonomously, the pivoting of the arrow 15 relative to the chassis and of the tool-carrying frame 16 relative to the arrow 15;
depending on the elementary action to be performed, information relating to the position of objects in the environment of the machine 2 and information relating to the position, heading and pitch of the machine 2.

Furthermore, the control unit 38 includes a route definition module 50 which includes, in memory, a network of paths which has been previously defined by the installer when configuring the handling installation 1. The module route definition 50 is also equipped with a program using a Dijkstra type algorithm making it possible to determine the route to be followed by the machine 2, in particular as a function of the predefined path network, the position and the starting heading of the machine 2 of a position and the target heading of the machine 2 defined in the elementary action in question. The route definition module 50 is further configured to modify the route to follow, depending on the information relating to the position of the objects in the environment of the machine 2 delivered by means of the spatial position sensors 34, 57, particularly when an object constitutes an obstacle on the previously determined route.

Furthermore, the control unit 38 also includes a control module 51 to control, autonomously, the movement of the machine 2 in space so that it follows the route defined by the route definition module 50 depending in particular on information relating to the position of objects in the environment of the machine 2 and information relating to the position and heading of the machine 2.

In order to control the movement of the machine 2, the control module 51 is configured to generate, based on the route defined by the route definition module 50, a movement instruction making it possible to control:
- the electric motor 44 which is coupled to at least one of the front 17 and rear 18 axles; And
- the two steering cylinders 45, 46 which are respectively associated with one and the other of the front 17 and rear 18 axles.

To do this, the control module 51 is configured to emit, at each instant, depending on the route defined by the route definition module 50, a movement instruction comprising three variables V ₁ , V ₂ and V ₃ ; with :
- V ₁ : a setpoint representative of the variation in angle of the trajectory of a characteristic point of the machine 2, for example its center;
- V ₂ : a setpoint representative of the speed of movement of the characteristic point of machine 2 on its trajectory; And
- V ₃ : a setpoint representative of the variation in angle of the heading of the machine 2, that is to say its longitudinal direction.

In order to deduce the control instructions for the electric motor 44 and the steering cylinders 45, 46, the control module 51 determines the median angle of inclination of the two wheels of each of the front 17 and rear 18 axles corresponding to the setpoint. displacement and deduces an inclination angle instruction for the wheel of each of the front and rear axles which is located inside the trajectory of the center of the machine 2 so that this angle is consistent with the median angle previously determined inclination. The control unit 51 then controls each of the steering cylinders 45, 46 with a specific setpoint so that the wheel of each of the front and rear axles which is located inside the trajectory of the center of the machine 2 presents a inclination angle corresponding to the previously determined setpoint. The control unit 51 then controls the stroke of the steering cylinders 45, 46 as a function of said instructions and of the signals representative of the orientation of at least one of the wheels of the front axle 17 and one of the wheels of the rear axle 18 delivered by the sensors 41, 42. According to another embodiment, it is also possible to determine an angle of inclination of the wheels located outside the trajectory of the center of the machine 2 so that this angle is consistent with the median angle of inclination and to control the steering cylinders 45, 46 with this instruction.

Furthermore, the control unit 38 also includes an autonomous coupling module 52 which is implemented to carry out the elementary action of coupling the tool 4, 5, 6 to the tool holder frame 16, when the machine 2 has reached the location of the corresponding storage area 7.

According to one embodiment, the autonomous coupling module 52 includes, in memory, information representative of the geometry of each of the tools 4, 5, 6. The autonomous coupling module 52 is further configured to:
- process at least one of the signals delivered by the spatial position sensors 34 so as to obtain verification information representative of the geometry of the tool 4, 5, 6 facing which the machine 2 is positioned;
- check the concordance between the stored information representative of the geometry of the tool 4, 5, 6 referenced in the elementary action in question and the verification information; And
- confirm that the tool 4, 5, 6 opposite which the machine 2 is positioned corresponds to the tool 4, 5, 6 referenced in the elementary action in question when the concordance is verified. If the agreement is not verified, an anomaly message is transmitted to the supervision equipment 19.

Furthermore, the autonomous coupling module 52 is configured to move the machine 2 in order to position it relative to said tool 4, 5, 6 in a relative coupling position as a function of at least one of the signals delivered by spatial position sensors 34.

To do this, the autonomous coupling module 52 comprises processing means configured to process at least one of the signals collected by the spatial position sensor(s) 34 and deliver tool positioning information representative of the position and orientation of the tool relative to the machine 2. The information includes in particular three-dimensional coordinates of at least two characteristic points of the tool 4, 5, 6.

Thus, the autonomous coupling module 52 is configured to control, based on the positioning information of the tool, the movement of the machine 2 by controlling the electric motor 44 and the steering cylinders 45, 46 so that it- this is located in a relative coupling position in which the means for attaching the tool holder frame 16 (in the embodiment shown, the bars 28) are located vertically opposite the complementary means of the tool 4, 5 , 6 (in the embodiment shown the hooks 29).

When this relative coupling position is reached, the independent coupling module 52 controls the lifting cylinder 24 and the dumping cylinder 25 so as to engage the hooking means of the tool-carrying frame 16 in the complementary means of the tool 4, 5, 6. According to one embodiment, the autonomous coupling module 52 can also control the motor 44 and the direction cylinders 45, 46 in order to move the machine 2 simultaneously with the movement of the arrow 15 and the tool holder frame 16 to engage the attachment means of the tool holder frame 16 in the complementary means of the tool 4, 5, 6.

Simultaneously or in a second step, the autonomous coupling module 52 controls the dumping cylinder 25 in order to ensure the pivoting of the tool-carrying frame 16 towards the extreme digging position so that the crosspiece 30 comes to bear against the support stops 31 of the tool 4.

Subsequently, the independent coupling module 52 controls the locking cylinder 33 so as to move the locking rods 32 towards the locking position, inside the corresponding locking orifices of the tool 4, 5, 6 .

Furthermore, according to one embodiment, each of the tools 4, 5, 6 is equipped with a radio tag 53, of the type designated by the acronym RFID for “Radio Frequency Identification” in English, which includes a unique identifier while that the machine 2 is equipped with a reader 54 capable of reading the unique identifier contained in the radio tag 53. The autonomous coupling module 52 is thus capable of comparing the unique identifier of the radio tag 53 with the 'ID of the tool referenced in the elementary action. This makes it possible to verify that the tool 4, 5, 6 which was coupled to the tool holder frame 16 is the correct one. Such verification can be used as an alternative or complementary method to the method mentioned above in which the concordance between the stored information representative of the geometry of the tool 4, 5, 6 referenced in the elementary action in cause and verification information representative of the geometry of the tool 4, 5, 6, obtained from at least one of the signals delivered by the spatial position sensors 34.

Furthermore, the control unit 38 is also equipped with an energy management module 56. This energy management module 56 is in particular configured to implement, prior to the execution of the mission, a preliminary energy autonomy verification procedure. To do this, when the control unit 38 receives the instructions representative of the mission to be carried out and the corresponding elementary actions determined by the supervision equipment 19, the energy management module 56 estimates, on the one hand, electrical energy E_{necc .}which is necessary to carry out the mission and, on the other hand, the energy E_availablewhich is available in the electrical energy storage device 55, as a function of the capacity C of said electrical energy storage device 55 and its state of charge delivered by the sensor for evaluating the state of charge 43. The energy management module 56 then compares the necessary energy E_neccto the available energy E_{available .}Preferably, the energy management module 56 compares the necessary energy E_necc to subtraction E_available - E_Threshold with E_Threshold: an energy threshold value which is greater than the energy available in the electrical energy storage device 55 when it has reached a deep discharge state.

When E_necc < E_available - E_Threshold, the energy management module 56 confirms that the charge of the electrical energy storage device 55 is sufficient and the machine 2 begins execution of the mission.

In addition, during the execution of the mission, the energy management module 56 periodically compares the state of charge of the electrical energy storage device 55 with a threshold Threshold1. If the state of charge is lower than said Threshold 1 threshold, the energy management module 56 interrupts the mission in progress, generates an instruction to recharge the machine 2 at the charging station 3 and informs the equipment supervision 19. This prevents the electrical energy storage device 55 from finding itself in a discharged state in the event that the estimate of the necessary energy E _necc is incorrect.

When E_necc ≥ E_available - E_Threshold, several procedures are likely to be implemented.

According to one embodiment, when E_necc ≥ E_available - E_Threshold, the energy management module 56 generates an instruction for recharging machine 2 at charging station 3: machine 2 then moves to charging station 3 and connects to it autonomously.

According to one embodiment, when an instruction to reload the machine 2 is generated, the energy management module 56 estimates the duration d _tot-rech necessary to fully recharge the electrical energy storage device 55.

The energy management module 56 estimates the total duration d _{tot -mission} of the mission to be carried out and calculates the sum S1 of the total duration d _{tot -mission} of the mission to be carried out and the duration d _tot-rech necessary for fully recharge the electrical energy storage device 55 and compare it to the time interval Δt available until the deadline for completing the mission.

When the sum S1 is less than or equal to Δt, the energy management module 56 generates a complete recharge instruction for the electrical energy storage device 55.

On the contrary, when the sum S1 is greater than Δt, the energy management module 56 generates a minimum recharging instruction for the electrical energy storage device 55, that is to say that the storage device storage of electrical energy 55 is recharged until reaching a state of charge determined as a function of the electrical energy E _{necc .} which is necessary for the achievement of the mission and which is notably superior to this.

According to one embodiment, the energy management module 56 only implements the preliminary energy autonomy verification procedure when the mission does not have, among its characteristics, an interruptible nature. Therefore, when the mission is interruptible, the energy management module 56 simply checks periodically that the state of charge of the electrical energy storage device 55 is greater than the aforementioned Threshold1 threshold and interrupt the mission when the state of charge is lower than said threshold Threshold1.

Certain elements represented, in particular the supervision equipment 19 and the control unit 38, can be produced in different forms, in a unitary or distributed manner, by means of hardware and/or software components. Usable hardware components are specific ASIC integrated circuits, FPGA programmable logic networks or microprocessors. Software components can be written in different programming languages, for example C, C++, Java or VHDL. This list is not exhaustive.

Although the invention has been described in connection with several particular embodiments, it is quite obvious that it is in no way limited and that it includes all the technical equivalents of the means described as well as their combinations if these fall within the scope of the invention, as defined by the claims.

The use of the verb “include”, “understand” or “include” and its conjugated forms does not exclude the presence of other elements or other steps than those set out in a claim.

In the claims, any parenthetical reference sign shall not be construed as a limitation of the claim.

Claims (17)

Autonomous handling machine (2) comprising:
- a chassis ;
- a front axle (17) and a rear axle (18) which are each mounted on the chassis along a transverse axis; at least one of said front (17) and rear (18) axles being steered and controlled by a steering member (45, 46);
- a motor (44) which is coupled to at least one of the front (17) and rear (18) axles by a transmission device;
- a boom (15) which is mounted articulated on the chassis between an extreme lowered position and an extreme raised position;
- a lifting cylinder (24) which is arranged to move the boom (15) between the extreme lowered position and the extreme raised position;
- a tool-carrying frame (16) which is pivotally mounted on the boom (15) between an extreme digging position and an extreme dumping position and which is capable of being coupled to a tool (4, 5, 6);
- a dumping cylinder (25) which is arranged to move the tool-carrying frame (16) between the extreme digging position and the extreme dumping position;
- at least one spatial detection sensor (34, 57) capable of delivering a signal comprising information representative of the position of a tool (4, 5, 6);
- a control unit (38) which comprises an autonomous coupling module (52) which is configured to:
- process the signal delivered by the at least one spatial detection sensor (34, 57) and deliver tool positioning information (4, 5, 6) representative of the position and orientation of the tool (4, 5, 6) relative to the machine (2);
- control at least the steering member (45, 46) and the motor (44) according to the positioning information of the tool (4, 5, 6) so as to position the machine (2) relative to the frame tool holder (16) in a relative coupling position; And
- control at least the lifting cylinder (24) and the dumping cylinder (25) when the machine (2) is in said relative coupling position in order to autonomously couple the tool (4, 5, 6) to the tool holder frame (16). Autonomous handling machine (2) according to claim 1, in which the tool-carrying frame (16) comprises hooking means (28) intended to cooperate with complementary means (29) integral with the tool (4, 5 , 6), and a crosspiece (30) intended to cooperate with at least one support stop (31) of the tool (4, 5, 6), the autonomous coupling module (52) being configured to:

- control at least the lifting cylinder (24) and the dumping cylinder (25) and, optionally the motor (44) and the steering member (45, 46), so that the hooking means (28) of the tool holder frame (16) cooperate with the complementary means (29) secured to the tool and the crosspiece (30) comes to bear against the support stop (31) of the tool (4, 5, 6) . Autonomous handling machine (2) according to claim 2, in which the tool holder frame (16) comprises at least one locking rod (32) movable between a locking position in which said locking rod (32) is able to insert into a tool lock hole (4, 5, 6) and an unlocked position in which said lock rod (32) is outside said tool lock hole (4, 5, 6) and in which the autonomous coupling module (52) is configured to move the locking rod (32) from the unlocked position to the locking position after the crosspiece (30) is pressed against the support stop (31) of the tool (4, 5, 6). Autonomous handling machine (2) according to any one of claims 1 to 3, in which the spatial detection sensor (34, 57) is chosen from cameras, time-of-flight cameras, LIDARS, radars and sensors ultrasound. Autonomous handling machine (2) according to any one of claims 1 to 4, in which each of said front (17) and rear (18) axles has two wheels, is steered and is controlled by a steering member (45, 46 ) respective ; said front (17) and rear (18) axles being equipped with a steering system arranged to give a different inclination, relative to the longitudinal direction, to the two wheels of each of the front (17) and rear (18) axles of so that the wheel located on the inside turns more than the one located on the outside. Autonomous handling machine (2) according to claim 5, in which the control unit (38) comprises a control module (51), the control module (51) being configured to transmit according to a defined route, a movement instruction comprising three variables V ₁ , V ₂ and V ₃ ; with :
- V ₁ : a setpoint representative of an angle variation of the trajectory of a characteristic point of the machine (2);
- V ₂ : a setpoint representative of a speed of movement of the characteristic point of the machine (2) on the trajectory; And
- V ₃ : a setpoint representative of the variation in heading angle, that is to say the longitudinal direction, of the machine (2);
said control module (51) being further configured to:
- determine a median angle of inclination of the two wheels of each of the front (17) and rear (18) axles as a function of the movement instruction; - determine a set angle of inclination of at least one wheel of each of the front (17) and rear (18) axles as a function of the value of the median angle of inclination of the wheels of said front axle (17) or rear (18) calculated previously; And
- control the steering members (45, 46) of said front (17) and rear (18) axles as a function of the set angle of inclination of the wheel of each of the front (17) and rear (18) axles. Handling installation comprising at least one autonomous handling machine (2) according to any one of claims 1 to 6 and a plurality of tools (4, 5, 6) capable of being coupled to the tool-carrying frame (16). Handling installation according to claim 7, in which each of the tools (4, 5, 6) is equipped with a radio tag (53) and in which the machine (2) is equipped with a reader (54) capable of read a unique identifier contained in the radio tags (53), the autonomous coupling module (52) being able to compare said unique identifier with identification information of the tool (4, 5, 6) included in instructions representative of a mission to be carried out received by the control unit (38). Handling installation according to claim 7 or 8, further comprising supervision equipment (19) comprising a man-machine interface allowing a user to define a mission comprising at least the following characteristics: a total mass of material to be transported, an area storage of the material (8, 9, 10) in which the material must be loaded, a material discharge zone (11, 12, 13) and a deadline for accomplishing the mission, said supervision equipment (19) being configured to transmit to the control unit (38) instructions representative of the mission to be carried out. Handling installation according to claim 9, in which the supervision equipment (19) is configured to break down the mission defined by the user into a plurality of elementary actions and to transmit said elementary actions to the control unit (38). ). Handling installation according to claim 9 or 10, in which the control unit (38) comprises a route definition module (50) which has, in memory, a predefined path network and is equipped with a program using a Dijkstra type algorithm making it possible to determine the route to be followed by the machine (2), as a function of the predefined network of paths, of a position of the machine (2) determined by means of signals delivered by at least one set of sensors chosen from: a first set of sensors comprising two geolocation antennas (36, 37); a second set of sensors comprising accelerometers (58) and gyrometers (59) and a third set of sensors comprising odometers (60) equipping one or more of the wheels of the machine (2) and instructions representative of the mission to be carried out received by the control unit (38). Handling installation according to any one of claims 9 to 11, comprising a charging terminal (3) and in which the machine (2) comprises an electrical energy storage device (55), a sensor for evaluating the state of charge (43) for evaluating the state of charge of said electrical energy storage device (55), the control unit (38) comprising an energy management module (56) which is configured for:
- estimate the electrical energy E_{necc .}which is necessary to carry out the mission;
- estimate the energy E_availablewhich is available in the electrical energy storage device (55) depending on the state of charge of said electrical energy storage device (55); And
- generate an instruction to recharge the machine (2) at the charging terminal (3) when E_necc ≥ E_available - E_Threshold, with E_Threshold: an energy threshold value. Handling installation according to claim 12, in which the energy management module (56) is configured to, in response to a generation of reloading instructions:
- estimate a duration of_tot-rechnecessary to fully recharge the electrical energy storage device (55);
- estimate a total duration of_{early -assignment}the mission to be carried out;
- calculate the sum S1 of d_{early -assignment}and D_tot-rech;
- compare the sum S1 to a time interval Δt available until a deadline for carrying out the mission; And
- generate a recharging level instruction for an electrical energy storage device (55) as a function of E_necc when S1 is greater than Δt. Method for controlling an autonomous handling machine (2) comprising:
- a chassis ;
- a front axle (17) and a rear axle (18) which are each mounted on the chassis along a transverse axis; at least one of said front (17) and rear (18) axles being steered and controlled by a steering member (45, 46);
- a motor (44) which is coupled to at least one of the front (17) and rear (18) axles by a transmission device;
- a boom (15) which is mounted articulated on the chassis between an extreme lowered position and an extreme raised position;
- a lifting cylinder (24) which is arranged to move the boom (15) between the extreme lowered position and the extreme raised position;
- a tool-carrying frame (16) which is pivotally mounted on the boom (15) between an extreme digging position and an extreme dumping position and which is capable of being coupled to a tool (4, 5, 6);
- a dumping cylinder (25) which is arranged to move the tool-carrying frame (16) between the extreme digging position and the extreme dumping position; And
- at least one spatial detection sensor (34, 57) capable of delivering a signal comprising information representative of the position of a tool (4, 5, 6); said ordering method comprising the following steps:
- process the signal delivered by the at least one spatial detection sensor (34, 57) and deliver tool positioning information (4, 5, 6) representative of the position and orientation of the tool (4, 5, 6) relative to the machine (2); And
- control at least the steering member (45, 46) and the motor (44) according to the positioning information of the tool (4, 5, 6) so as to position the machine (2) relative to the frame tool holder (16) in a relative coupling position; And
- control at least the lifting cylinder (24) and the dumping cylinder (25) when the machine (2) is in said relative coupling position in order to autonomously couple the tool (4, 5, 6) to the tool holder frame (16). Method for controlling an autonomous handling machine (2) according to claim 14, comprising the following step:

- control at least the lifting cylinder (24) and the dumping cylinder (25) and, optionally the motor (44) and the steering member (45, 46), so that the hooking means (28) of the tool holder frame (16) cooperate with the complementary means (29) secured to the tool (4, 5, 6) and that a crosspiece (30) of the tool holder frame (16) comes to bear against the stop d support (31) of the tool (4, 5, 6). Method for controlling an autonomous handling machine (2) according to claim 15, comprising after pressing the crosspiece (30) against the support stop (31) of the tool (4, 5, 6) , the next step :
- move a locking rod (32) of the tool holder frame (16) from an unlocked position in which said locking rod (32) is out of a locking hole of the tool (4, 5, 6) to a locking position in which said locking rod (32) is inserted into the locking hole of the tool (4, 5, 6). Method for controlling an autonomous handling machine (2) according to any one of claims 14 to 16, in which:
- we read a unique identifier contained in a radio tag (53) fitted to the tool (4, 5, 6); And
- said unique identifier is compared with identification information of the tool (4, 5, 6) included in instructions representative of a mission to be carried out.