JP2004062577A - Carpet grain detecting device and mobile robot using the same - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To solve the problem that in a detecting lever type carpet grain detecting device, a contact pressure between a roller and the surface of a floor is required to be large to secure sensibility in detection and a roller mark remains, depending on the kinds of carpets after the roller runs, if the contact pressure is too large. <P>SOLUTION: In the carpet grain detecting device, the roller 6 contacting the surface of the floor is installed rotative to the detection lever 8, and a convex part 9 is provided on the outer circumference of the roller 6, where the roller contacts the surface of the floor. By this composition, the contact pressure required for a rug carpeted floor surface, on which the roller runs is secured by the convex part 9, and the roller marks hardly remain after the roller runs, since the whole width of the roller contacts the carpet to distribute the load, when a thick carpet on which the roller marks tend to remain. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO

Description

[0001]
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a carpet detection device that detects the direction and strength of carpets on a traveling floor mounted on a floor cleaning robot or the like, and a mobile robot that performs travel control using the same.
[0002]
[Prior art]
In a mobile robot that travels on a floor surface having travel driving means, sensors, travel control means, and the like in the main body, when traveling on the carpet floor, the fur of the carpet (hereinafter, referred to as carpet eyes) is It is known that the influence is exerted on the traveling direction, and contrivances for eliminating this influence have been made.
[0003]
For example, as disclosed in Japanese Patent No. 30032660, Japanese Patent No. 3079686, and Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 7-116087, a detection lever having a contact portion that comes into contact with a floor surface, and a detection lever rotatably supported in a horizontal direction. There has been developed an apparatus which comprises a rotating support portion and a detecting means for detecting a rotation angle of a detecting lever, and detects a carpet eye from an angle of the detecting lever with respect to a running main body.
[0004]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
The above detection lever type carpet eye detection device is an excellent method that has a simple configuration and can correct the traveling route without sensor information from the outside world, but the contact part of the detection lever directly contacts the floor surface. Therefore, there are the following disadvantages. In this method, sufficient detection sensitivity cannot be obtained unless the contact pressure between the contact portion of the detection lever and the floor surface is increased to a predetermined value or more.
[0005]
Normally, the rotatable roller attached to the contact part is brought into contact with the floor surface with a constant load, so the roller width is reduced to ensure sufficient detection sensitivity even on various types of carpet floor surfaces. However, if the contact pressure is increased, there is a problem that roller marks remain after running depending on the type of carpet. When the contact pressure of the roller is increased, there is a problem that the floor surface is easily damaged by the roller when traveling on a hard floor such as a wooden floor other than the carpet floor surface. Further, when the roller width is reduced, the strength is reduced, and conversely, there is a problem that the roller is easily damaged by an impact from the floor surface.
[0006]
An object of the present invention is to provide a carpet-eye detection device that can ensure the detection sensitivity of carpet eyes even in the case of a mobile robot that is assumed to travel on various floors, and in which roller marks are less likely to remain after traveling. .
[0007]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to solve the conventional problem, the carpet-eye detection device of the present invention includes a detection lever rotatably mounted with a roller that comes into contact with a floor surface, and a protrusion provided on a floor contact surface around the roller. A rotation support portion that rotatably supports the detection lever in a horizontal direction, and an angle detection unit that detects a rotation angle of the detection lever, and detects a carpet from an angle of the detection lever with respect to the main body during traveling. On a carpet with a long bristle feet, the required contact pressure can be secured on the floor of the carpet that travels by the convex portion on the outer periphery of the roller, and the roller mark can be easily left. Since the entire width abuts on the carpet and disperses the load, a carpet mesh detection device in which roller marks are less likely to remain after running can be realized.
[0008]
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
According to the first aspect of the present invention, a detection lever rotatably attached to a roller that comes into contact with a floor surface, a convex portion provided on a floor contact surface around the roller, and the detection lever freely rotatable in a horizontal direction. A rotation support portion for supporting the rotation of the detection lever, and an angle detection means for detecting the rotation angle of the detection lever, wherein the carpet mesh is detected from the angle of the detection lever with respect to the main body during traveling, the roller outer periphery The required contact pressure on the floor of the carpet that travels can be secured by the convex part of the carpet, and on carpets with long bristle feet where roller marks are likely to remain, not only the convex part on the outer periphery of the roller but also the entire roller width abuts the carpet. And disperse the load, so that roller marks are less likely to remain after running.
[0009]
The invention according to claim 2 is particularly configured such that the floor contact surface on the outer periphery of the roller according to claim 1 is formed of a soft body, and the floor surface is hardly damaged by the roller even when traveling on a hard floor such as a wooden floor. Become.
[0010]
According to a third aspect of the present invention, in particular, the convex portion provided on the floor contact surface on the outer periphery of the roller according to the first or second aspect is constituted by a member separate from the floor contact surface. Maintenance becomes easy.
[0011]
According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a carpet detection device according to any one of the first to third aspects, traveling control means for controlling traveling of the main body, and direction measuring means for measuring a direction of the main body. Wherein the travel control means causes the main body to travel straight in the target direction based on the output of the direction measurement means, and corrects the straight travel target direction based on the output of the angle detection means of the carpet-eye detection device. Thus, it is possible to automatically detect the angle deviation of the lateral displacement due to the carpet eyes.
[0012]
According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in addition to the fourth aspect of the present invention, an obstacle detecting means for detecting an obstacle outside the main body, and the traveling direction of the main body is turned by an output of the obstacle detecting means. Turning means for stopping the operation of the angle detection means of the carpet detection device during the operation of the turning means, so that the rotation of the wheel at the time of turning is not included in the detection of the carpet eyes, The accuracy of detection can be improved.
[0013]
According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in particular, the operation of the angle detecting means of the carpet mesh detecting apparatus is stopped until the turning means of the fifth aspect operates stably and straight ahead. After the rotation of the carpet is completely stopped, the detection of the carpet eyes can be restarted, and the detection accuracy of the carpet eyes can be improved.
[0014]
【Example】
Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.
[0015]
(Example 1)
FIG. 1 is a sectional view showing the overall configuration of a floor cleaning robot according to a first embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a sectional view showing the configuration of a driving and steering means of the floor cleaning robot, and FIG. 4 and 5 are explanatory views showing details of the carpet eye detection device of the floor surface cleaning robot, and FIGS. 4 and 5 are explanatory views showing details of the carpet eye detection device. FIG. It is an internal perspective view which shows arrangement | positioning.
[0016]
In the figure, reference numeral 1 denotes a main body of the floor cleaning robot, and 2L and 2R denote driving wheels provided on the left and right sides of the main body 1, respectively, which are independently driven by driving motors 3L and 3R. Reference numerals 4L and 4R denote rotation detectors including rotary encoders and tachogenerators connected to 3L and 3R, respectively, and detect the rotational speeds of the drive motors 3L and 3R. Reference numeral 5 denotes a carpet eye detecting device, which also serves as a follower wheel that supports the weight of the main body 1, so that the roller 6 is brought into contact with the floor surface with a constant load.
[0017]
The roller 6 of the carpet detection device 5 is rotatably attached to a detection lever 8 via a wheel shaft 7 and has a protrusion 9 on the outer periphery of the floor contact surface. Reference numeral 10 denotes a rotation support portion that supports the detection lever 8 so as to be rotatable in the horizontal direction. Reference numeral 11 denotes a rotation shaft fixed to the center of rotation of the detection lever 8, and is connected to an angle detection means 12 such as a rotary encoder or a potentiometer provided on the rotation support portion 10. By detecting the rotation of the rotation shaft 11, the rotation angle of the detection lever 8 is detected.
[0018]
FIG. 4 shows the details of the roller 6 part, and FIG. 4B is a cross-sectional view taken along the line ZZ of FIG. 4A. In the present embodiment, as shown in the figure, the outer peripheral convex portion 9 is configured by fitting a ring-shaped member made of a soft material such as an elastomer resin or rubber to the roller 6 having an outer peripheral groove.
[0019]
When the main body 1 travels on the carpet, the carpet-eye detection device 5 configured as described above is in a state as shown in FIG. FIG. 5A shows a state in which the vehicle travels on a carpet A with a long hair, and FIG. 5B shows a state in which the vehicle travels on a carpet B with a short hair.
[0020]
Normally, in the case of a carpet B having a short bristle, the bristle of the bristle is strong. For example, the conventional roller 6b having a large width as shown in FIG. Poor eye detection sensitivity. Therefore, for example, when the conventional roller 6a having a small width as shown in FIG. 5C is used, the contact pressure increases and the detection sensitivity can be secured even on the carpet B having a short hair.
[0021]
However, as shown in FIG. 5 (c), when the conventional roller 6a having a small width is run on the carpet A having a long bristle, the roller 6a sinks deeply into the bristle and runs on the carpet A. Traces are clearly left. Further, when the roller width is reduced as in the conventional roller 6a, there is a problem that a soft material is weak in strength and easily deformed or damaged, and conversely, if a metal material having a high strength is formed, the floor surface is easily damaged.
[0022]
In the carpet-eye detection device 5 of this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 5B, even on the carpet B having a short bristle foot, the contact pressure of the outer peripheral convex portion 9 of the roller 6 is large, so that the carpet B sinks into the bristle foot. Thus, the detection sensitivity can be secured. Then, as shown in FIG. 5 (a), when running on the carpet A having a long bristle feet, the outer peripheral convex portion 9 sinks into the bristle feet, but the roller 6 has a large width, so that the rollers 6 have a large width. Since it does not sink deeply into the water, no roller marks remain after traveling.
[0023]
Further, since only the outer peripheral protrusion 9 is made of a soft body, the roller 6 is not deformed or damaged, and the outer peripheral protrusion damages the floor surface even when traveling on a hard floor such as a wooden floor. Not even.
[0024]
Further, since the outer peripheral convex portion 9 is formed of a separate member from the roller 6, even when the outer peripheral convex portion 9 is worn by contact with the floor surface, only the outer peripheral convex portion 9 can be easily replaced.
[0025]
13 is an electric blower. Reference numeral 14 denotes a suction unit which is provided at the bottom of the main body 1 and performs a cleaning operation by sucking dust on the floor surface by the suction force of the electric blower 13. The suction unit 14 is connected to the dust collection chamber 15 via a connection pipe (not shown). Connected. Reference numeral 16 denotes a direction measuring means for measuring the direction of the main body 1, which comprises a gyro and an integrator for integrating the output. Reference numeral 17 denotes a distance measuring sensor including an ultrasonic sensor and the like provided around the main body 1, and an obstacle detecting means for detecting an obstacle by measuring a distance to an object located in front, right, left, right, and rear of the main body 1. Is composed. Reference numeral 18 denotes a travel control unit that controls the drive motors 3L and 3R based on data from the direction measurement unit 16 and the distance measurement sensor 17 to control the travel of the main body, and is accommodated in the circuit box 19. Reference numeral 20 denotes a power supply including a storage battery or the like that supplies power to the whole.
[0026]
FIG. 7 is a control block diagram of the present embodiment. The outputs of the direction measuring means 16, the distance measuring sensor 17, the rotation detectors 4L and 4R, and the angle detecting means 12 are input to the traveling control means 18. The traveling control means 18 determines these data and outputs a control signal to the drive motors 3L, 3R. In the present embodiment, by controlling the rotation speeds of the drive motors 3L and 3R, the rotation speeds of the left and right drive wheels 2L and 2R are independently controlled to drive and steer the main body 1.
[0027]
Here, the effect of carpet eyes when traveling straight on a carpet will be described with reference to FIG. In FIG. 8, (a) shows the movement trajectory of the main body 1 when the traveling floor is a hard floor. At this time, since there is no carpet on the floor, the carpet is naturally not affected by the carpet, and the main body 1 is controlled to go straight by the straight traveling means of the traveling control means 18, and its movement locus is a straight line that matches the direction of the main body 1 at the start of traveling. a.
[0028]
However, as shown in (b), for example, when the carpet is on the carpet floor surface in the left-to-right direction and the vehicle 1 travels straight under the same conditions, the main body 1 moves straight ahead in the straight traveling mode of the travel control unit 18. Is performed so as to ride on the target line L1, but the actual trajectory is inclined rightward by an angle θ from the direction of the target line L1 even though the main body 1 is always facing the direction at the start of traveling. It becomes a straight line b. That is, when the main body 1 travels straight on the carpet, the main body 1 slides in the direction of the carpet in proportion to the straight traveling distance of the main body 1. The angle deviation θ indicating the degree of the side slip is substantially unique to each carpet, and is about several degrees.
[0029]
Therefore, for example, as shown in FIG. 8C, the target line of the straight-ahead means on the carpet whose angle deviation θ was measured in advance during the first travel is defined as a straight line L2 inclined to the left by an angle θ from the direction at the start of travel (b). When the vehicle travels straight under the same conditions as above, the movement locus at that time becomes a straight line c that coincides with the direction of the main body 11 at the start of traveling. Similarly, as shown in (d), when the vehicle travels straight ahead in the direction opposite to (c), the target line of the straight traveling means is set to L3 inclined rightward from the direction at the start of travel by L3. Then, the movement locus becomes a straight line d that coincides with the direction of the main body 1 at the start of traveling. As described above, when traveling straight on a carpet, it is known that the movement locus of the main body 1 can be corrected by changing the direction of the target line of the straight traveling means in accordance with the direction of the carpet eyes and the strength of the eyes.
[0030]
Further, since the roller 6 of the carpet eye detecting device 5 is rotatably supported in the horizontal direction with respect to the main body 1 by the rotation support portion 10, it always faces the running direction when the main body 1 runs. That is, in the example of FIG. 8A, the roller 6 faces the direction of the straight line a, and in the example of FIG. 8B, the roller 6 faces the direction of the straight line b.
[0031]
FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing a control method in the traveling control means 18 of the present embodiment. Numeral 30 denotes a carpet deviation calculating means for calculating the average angle of the output of the angle detecting means 12. Numeral 31 is a travel correcting means for inputting the value of the carpet deviation calculating means 30 and setting a correction target line for straight-ahead control. Reference numeral 32 denotes the drive motors 3L and 3R based on the direction data of the main body 1 measured by the direction measuring means 16 and the outputs of the rotation detectors 4L and 4R so that the main body 1 rides on the correction target line set by the travel correcting means 31. This is a straight traveling means that controls the vehicle to travel straight. Further, an obstacle is detected in front of the main body 1 by the distance measuring sensor during straight traveling, and if the cleaning operation is not completed, the obstacle is reversed to a position displaced in the operation direction by a predetermined operation width.
[0032]
The movement locus of the floor cleaning robot will be described with reference to FIG. The floor to be cleaned by the main body 1 is assumed to have carpets in a left-to-right direction. When the main body 1 is started at the start point S, the straight running starts, and the main body 1 performs the straight running control in the direction at the start of the running as in the case shown in FIG. It is swept away to the right due to the eyes. As described above, the roller 6 of the carpet-eye detection device is rotatably supported in the horizontal direction with respect to the main body 1 by the rotation support portion 10, and thus always faces the running direction when the main body 1 runs. When the obstacle detection means 17 approaches the front wall W1 and detects this, it is checked whether there is an obstacle in the working direction R. In this case, since there is no obstacle, the direction is exactly inverted by 180 ° using the direction measuring means 16 at the point P1 at a position displaced by the predetermined working width in the working direction A, that is, rightward of the main body 1. At this time, the carpet deviation calculating means 30 calculates the average value θ1 of the output angles of the angle detecting means 12 until the inversion starts at the point P1. After the inversion at the point P1, the traveling correction means 31 sets a correction target line (a straight line inclined by an angle θ1 to the right of the main body 1) based on the calculation result, and the main body 1 is set to the target line by the straight traveling means 32. Perform straight-ahead control to get on. When the output of the direction measuring means is stabilized by starting the straight-ahead control, the carpet deviation calculating means 30 newly calculates the average value θ2 of the output angles of the angle detecting means until the output is inverted by 180 ° at the point P2 approaching the wall W2. After the reversal at the point P2, the traveling direction correcting means 31 sets a correction target line (a straight line inclined by an angle θ2 to the left of the main body 1) based on the calculation result, and the main body 1 is set to the target line by the straight traveling means 32. Perform straight-ahead control to get on.
[0033]
When the above operation is repeated and the wall W1 is detected in front of the main body 1 at the point F, since the work direction A, that is, the wall W3 is in the right direction of the main body 1, it is determined that cleaning is completed, and the work is completed. .
[0034]
The carpet deviation calculating means 30 ignores the output of the angle detecting means 12 when the main body 1 detects a wall (or an obstacle) and inverts by 180 °, and when the roller 6 after inversion does not face the traveling direction. Since the deviation due to the carpet is calculated only using the data during the straight traveling without using the data during this period, the influence due to the carpet can be accurately corrected.
[0035]
In this way, the direction of the roller 6 of the carpet-means detecting device 5 with respect to the main body 1 is detected by the angle detecting means 12, the carpet misalignment calculating means 30 calculates the misalignment angle of the carpet mesh, and travels based on the calculation result. Since the correction means 31 sets the target line for the straight-ahead control as the corrected target line and performs the straight-ahead control, the rectilinear trajectory of the reciprocation of the main body 1 becomes parallel, the working width does not change during running, and the remaining cleaning is left. The cleaning efficiency is not reduced.
[0036]
In the present embodiment, the outer peripheral convex portion 9 is formed of a separate member from the roller 6 so that replacement maintenance of the outer peripheral convex portion 9 can be easily performed. Needless to say, the same effect can be obtained in that the detection sensitivity is secured and the roller mark after running is hardly left.
[0037]
Further, even if the outer peripheral portion of the roller 6 or the entire roller 6 as well as the outer peripheral convex portion 9 is made of a soft material, the floor surface is hardly damaged even when traveling on a hard floor such as a wooden floor.
[0038]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to secure the necessary contact pressure on the carpet floor surface that travels by the convex portion on the outer periphery of the roller, and on the carpet with long bristle feet on which the roller marks easily remain, only the convex portion on the outer periphery of the roller. Instead, the entire roller width abuts the carpet and disperses the load, making it difficult for roller marks to remain after traveling.Therefore, even in the case of a mobile robot that is expected to travel on various floors, The detection sensitivity can be ensured, and a carpet detection device in which a roller mark hardly remains after traveling can be realized.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view showing the overall configuration of a floor cleaning robot according to a first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing the structure of a driving and steering means of the floor cleaning robot. FIG. 4A is a side cross-sectional view illustrating a configuration of a carpet eye detection device of the surface cleaning robot. FIG. 4A is a side view illustrating a configuration of a carpet eye detection device of the floor cleaning robot. FIG. FIG. 5 (a) is an explanatory diagram showing the operation of the carpet eye detecting device, FIG. 5 (b) is another explanatory diagram showing the operation of the carpet eye detecting device, and FIG. 5 (c) is a conventional carpet. Explanatory diagram showing the operation of the eye detecting device (d) Another explanatory diagram showing the operation of the conventional carpet eye detecting device FIG. 6: Distance measuring sensor and direction measurement of the floor cleaning robot in the first embodiment of the present invention FIG. 7 is an internal perspective view showing the arrangement of the means. FIG. 7 is a control block diagram of the floor cleaning robot. FIG. 4B illustrates a case where the floor cleaning robot travels straight on a hard floor, which is a hard floor. FIG. 6B illustrates a case where the floor cleaning robot travels straight on a carpet having carpets in a left-to-right direction. FIG. (C) illustrates the effect of the floor cleaning robot, and FIG. (D) illustrates a method of causing the carpet to travel straight on a carpet having left and right directions. FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating a method of controlling the floor cleaning robot according to another embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating a method for causing the vehicle to travel straight on a carpet in a left-to-right direction. Figure [Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Main body 5 Carpet eye detection apparatus 6 Roller 8 Detection lever 9 Convex part 10 Rotation support part 12 Angle detection means 16 Direction measurement means 17 Distance measurement sensor (obstacle detection means)
18 Travel control means

Claims (6)

A detection lever rotatably attached to a roller that comes into contact with the floor, a protrusion provided on the floor contact surface on the outer periphery of the roller, a rotation support portion that rotatably supports the detection lever in a horizontal direction, An angle detecting means for detecting a rotation angle of a detecting lever, and a carpet-like detecting apparatus for detecting a carpet-like from an angle of the detecting lever with respect to a running body. 2. The carpet detection device according to claim 1, wherein the floor contact surface around the roller is made of a soft material. The carpet detection device according to claim 1, wherein the protrusion provided on the floor contact surface on the outer periphery of the roller is formed of a member different from the floor contact surface. 4. The carpet-eye detecting device according to claim 1, a traveling control unit that controls traveling of the main body, and a direction measuring unit that measures a direction of the main body, wherein the traveling control unit measures the direction. 5. A mobile robot that moves the main body straight in a target direction based on the output of the means and corrects the straight ahead target direction based on the output of the angle detection means of the carpet detection device. An obstacle detecting means for detecting an obstacle outside the main body, and a turning means for turning the traveling direction of the main body according to an output of the obstacle detecting means, wherein an angle detection of the carpet detection device is performed during the operation of the turning means. The mobile robot according to claim 4, wherein the operation of the means is stopped. 6. The mobile robot according to claim 5, wherein the operation of the angle detecting means of the carpet detection device is stopped until the turning means moves in a straight line stably.

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