JP2009157735A - Mobile object and vehicle alarm device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a mobile object capable of appropriately avoiding a collision with an obstacle while paying attention to the own movement so as not to give confusions to those around. <P>SOLUTION: The mobile object (1) includes detection means (10, 31 and 32) for detecting a position and a direction of a mobile obstacle present in the circumference; and an inapproachable area setting means (36) which sets an inapproachable area so that a part corresponding to the direction of the mobile obstacle is extended when viewed from the position of the mobile obstacle detected by the detection means. The mobile object 1 moves so as to avoid the approach to the inapproachable area set by the inapproachable area setting means. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention avoids collisions with pedestrians and other moving obstacles that can move automatically so as to automatically avoid collisions with pedestrians and other moving obstacles that exist in the vicinity. The present invention relates to a warning device for a vehicle that issues a warning for the purpose.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, research has been conducted on a movable body that is capable of detecting pedestrians and other obstacles in the vicinity with a camera and automatically avoiding these obstacles. As a specific aspect of such a moving body, an autonomous mobile robot that automatically moves around and executes tasks (for example, guidance in facilities, crime prevention monitoring, indoor cleaning, etc.) and a route to a destination to be reached A fully-automatic vehicle that automatically generates and travels, and in principle, semi-automatically travels to avoid obstacles by performing interventional control when an obstacle is detected when it is driven by the driver's driving operation For example, a traveling vehicle is used.

An invention relating to the above autonomous mobile robot is disclosed (for example, see Patent Document 1). This mobile robot measures the distance and azimuth of an obstacle with a camera or an ultrasonic sensor, obtains each trajectory when the robot travels by changing the rudder angle, and determines whether the trajectory and the obstacle interfere with each other. And the traveling direction is controlled. In addition, the patent document suggests that the movement trajectory of an obstacle is predicted from changes in measurement results of a camera or an ultrasonic sensor, and the traveling direction is controlled by taking this into consideration (paragraph “0046”).
JP 2007-213111 A

  However, the above-mentioned Patent Document 1 does not describe any specific method for predicting the movement trajectory of the obstacle, and it is unclear by which method the direction in which the obstacle moves will be detected. From the expression that the movement trajectory of the obstacle is predicted from the change in the measurement result of the camera or the ultrasonic sensor, it is assumed that the future movement direction is predicted from the past movement trajectory of the obstacle. It is not possible to deal with a situation where a person who is a thing has changed direction on the spot. In addition, the confusion that the person feels when the moving body passes around the person is not considered.

  The present invention is for solving such problems, and provides a moving body that appropriately avoids a collision with an obstacle and that does not make the surroundings feel confused by its own movement. Main purpose.

In order to achieve the above object, the first aspect of the present invention provides:
Detection means for detecting the position and orientation of a moving obstacle present in the vicinity;
An inaccessible area setting means for setting an inaccessible area so that a portion corresponding to the direction of the moving obstacle is wide as viewed from the position of the moving obstacle detected by the detection means,
It moves so as to avoid entry into the inaccessible area set by the inaccessible area setting means,
It is a moving body.

  According to the first aspect of the present invention, the vehicle is allowed to pass as far as possible in front of a moving obstacle such as a pedestrian and to pass a relatively close position behind it. It is possible to avoid collisions with obstacles appropriately, and to prevent the surroundings from feeling confused by their movement.

In the first aspect of the present invention,
A movement path generating means for generating a movement path for achieving a predetermined target;
The movement route generation means is a means for generating the movement route so as to avoid the inaccessible area set by the inaccessible area setting means,
It is good also as what moves along the movement path | route produced | generated by this movement path | route production | generation means.

In the first aspect of the present invention,
The detection means is means for detecting the position and orientation of a pedestrian existing in the vicinity as the position and orientation of the moving obstacle, and means for detecting the reaction of the pedestrian due to the approach of the moving body. ,
The inaccessible area setting means may be means for enlarging or reducing the inaccessible area in accordance with a pedestrian reaction detected by the detecting means.

In the first aspect of the present invention,
When the direction of the pedestrian detected by the detection unit does not change for a predetermined time or more, a portion corresponding to the direction of the pedestrian viewed from the position of the pedestrian detected by the detection unit is in the inaccessible area. An entry suppression area setting means for setting the entry suppression area to be wider than
It is good also as what is moved so that the approach to the approach suppression area | region set by this approach suppression area | region setting means may be suppressed.

in this case,
Provided with a predetermined object detection means for detecting a predetermined object that easily attracts human attention,
The entry suppression area setting unit corresponds to the direction of the pedestrian as viewed from the position of the pedestrian detected by the detection unit when the direction of the pedestrian detected by the detection unit does not change for a predetermined time or more. When the predetermined object detected by the predetermined object detection means exists at a position, the entry suppression area may be enlarged.

The second aspect of the present invention is:
Detection means for detecting the position and orientation of a moving obstacle present in the vicinity;
An inaccessible area setting means for setting an inaccessible area so that a portion corresponding to the direction of the moving obstacle is wide as viewed from the position of the moving obstacle detected by the detection means,
A warning is given to the occupant about the approach to the inaccessible area,
This is a vehicle warning device.

  According to the second aspect of the present invention, the occupant is warned to allow as much distance as possible in front of a moving obstacle such as a pedestrian and to allow a relatively close position behind the obstacle. Therefore, it is possible to appropriately avoid a collision with a moving obstacle and prevent the surroundings from feeling confused by the movement of the self.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, while avoiding a collision appropriately, the mobile body considered so that it may not feel a confusing surrounding by self movement can be provided.

  Hereinafter, the best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

<First embodiment>
Hereinafter, the moving body 1 according to the first embodiment of the present invention will be described. The mobile body 1 according to the present embodiment is an autonomous mobile robot that generates a travel route for achieving a predetermined target and travels along the travel route.

  FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of the overall configuration of a moving body 1 according to a first embodiment of the present invention. The moving body 1 includes a travel drive device 10, a pedestrian detection sensor 20, and a control device 30 as main components. As an external configuration, the moving body 1 is a humanoid robot including a body portion 5 connected to the travel drive device 10 and a head portion 7 that can rotate so as to look over the horizontal direction at the top of the body. Good (see FIG. 2). In this case, it is preferable that the pedestrian detection sensor 20 and the notification means (speaker, display device, etc.) to the surroundings are arranged in the head unit 7.

  The traveling drive device 10 has, for example, a three-wheel structure including left and right drive wheels 11 and 12 and caster wheels 13 serving as auxiliary wheels, and in-wheel motors 11A and 12A that rotationally drive the drive wheels 11 and 12. And a drive circuit 14 that drives and controls each in-wheel motor according to an instruction from the control device 30, and a battery 15 that supplies electric power as drive energy. FIG. 3 is a perspective block diagram of the traveling drive device 10 as viewed from the bottom.

  The traveling drive device 10 drives the drive wheels 12 and 14 in the same direction to move the moving body 1 forward or backward. Further, by changing the rotational speeds of the drive wheels 12 and 14 or rotating them in the reverse direction, the traveling direction of the moving body 1 is changed or rotated on the spot.

  The travel drive device 10 is not limited to such a structure, and may have any structure. For example, an aspect (four-wheel drive, four-wheel steering, two-drive wheel + two-steering wheel, etc.) including four wheels like an automobile may be used, or a caterpillar or a hovercraft mechanism may be provided instead of the wheels.

  The pedestrian detection sensor 20 is, for example, a camera device (preferably equipped with a range finder for specifying a distance) such as a CCD (Charge-Coupled Device) camera or a CMOS (Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor) camera, a millimeter wave. , Various radar devices using lasers, ultrasonic waves, etc., a communication device for detecting the presence of a moving obstacle to be avoided if it has an IC tag, or a combination thereof. The pedestrian detection sensor 20 can perform wired or wireless communication with the control device 30, and the captured image, the radar detection result, the received content by communication, and the like are output to the control device 30. In the present invention, the “pedestrian” may include a person on a wheelchair.

  The control device 30 is, for example, a computer unit in which a ROM, a RAM, and the like are connected to each other via a bus with a CPU at the center. In addition, an HDD (Hard Disc Drive), a DVD (Digital Versatile Disk), a flash memory, etc. A storage medium, an I / O port, a timer, a counter, a GPS (Global Positioning System) receiver for detecting its own position, a gyro sensor, and the like are provided. The ROM stores programs and data executed by the CPU. In addition, the control device 30 includes a pedestrian position detection unit 31, a pedestrian orientation detection unit 32, and an inaccessible area setting unit 36 as main functional blocks that function when the CPU executes a program stored in the ROM. And a movement path generation unit 38.

  The pedestrian position detection unit 31 detects the position of the pedestrian (for example, a relative position with respect to the moving body) based on the output of the pedestrian detection sensor 20. Various methods have already been known for detecting pedestrians based on captured images and radar detection results, and any method may be used for the application of the present invention, and detailed description thereof will be omitted. For example, a template representing the general appearance of a person is held and matching processing is performed. It is preferable that the captured image of the camera device is analyzed to detect the person and the approximate position, and the distance and direction are detected with high accuracy by the radar device.

  The pedestrian direction detection unit 32 detects the direction of the pedestrian based on the output of the pedestrian detection sensor 20 (mainly the captured image analysis of the camera device). In the present invention, the “pedestrian direction” can be defined as, for example, a face direction or a body direction.

  When detecting the face orientation, for example, the pedestrian's face width and face center line are detected in the captured image to calculate the left-right spacing ratio of the face on the image, and the face orientation angle is calculated from this left-right spacing ratio. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the determination may be made taking into account both the face direction and the body direction, or may be determined taking into account the direction of the line of sight.

  When detecting the orientation of the body, for example, the joint position, three-dimensional shape, etc. of the human body are held in advance as a model in a ROM, etc., and the skin color area, joint position, area width, etc. in the image are used to determine the posture and Estimate the direction. For joint positions that cannot be detected in the captured image, pay attention to the structural features of human beings, such as the fact that both hands and feet and the head are connected to the torso, and that the left and right limbs are in a symmetrical position with respect to the torso. It can be estimated by giving it as a constraint ("Posture estimation method from a single image based on the structure of the human body" / "Image recognition and understanding symposium (MIRU2007)" (July 2007); (See http://cg.ces.kyutech.ac.jp/paper/miru07.pdf).

  The inaccessible area setting unit 36 is a portion corresponding to the direction of the pedestrian as viewed from the position of the pedestrian based on the position and orientation of the pedestrian detected by the pedestrian position detection unit 31 and the pedestrian direction detection unit 32. The inaccessible area is set so that is wide. FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating the inaccessible area set by the inaccessible area setting unit 36 according to the first embodiment. In addition, there is no special restriction | limiting about the extent to which the part corresponded to a pedestrian's direction seeing from a pedestrian's position, There may be no limit especially.

  The position of the pedestrian and the inaccessible area based on this are set as, for example, coordinates or areas on the virtual two-dimensional plane set as a predetermined area on the RAM.

  The movement path generation unit 38 generates a movement path for achieving a predetermined target, and periodically outputs an instruction signal to the drive circuit 14 so that the moving body 1 can move along the movement path. Here, the predetermined target may be arbitrarily determined according to the application of the moving body 1. For example, in-facility guidance, crime prevention monitoring, indoor cleaning, etc. can be considered.

  In addition, the movement route generation unit 38 generates a movement route so as to avoid entry into the no entry area set by the no entry area setting unit 36. Thereby, the mobile body 1 moves so as not to pass immediately before the pedestrian, and on the other hand, it is allowed to pass a relatively close position behind the pedestrian.

  FIG. 5 shows a case where control is simply performed so as not to pass an area within a certain distance from a pedestrian (FIG. 5A), and a case where control is performed by setting an inaccessible area as in this embodiment (FIG. 5B). )). As shown in the figure, in the case shown in FIG. 5A, there is a case where the distance behind the pedestrian cannot be passed and an efficient route cannot be traveled. In addition, it is allowed to pass a relatively close position in front of the pedestrian as compared to the case of the present embodiment, and the pedestrian passes a relatively close position in front of the pedestrian that seems to proceed from now on. In some cases, there is a high possibility of a collision with a pedestrian, and the pedestrian may feel embarrassed by passing in front of him. On the other hand, since the mobile body 1 of the present embodiment passes as far as possible in front of the pedestrian and allows it to pass a relatively close position behind the pedestrian, While avoiding a collision appropriately, it is possible to prevent a pedestrian from feeling confused by his / her movement. It is also possible to move along an efficient route.

  According to the moving body 1 of the present embodiment, it is possible to appropriately avoid a collision with a pedestrian and prevent the pedestrian from feeling confused by his / her movement.

<Second embodiment>
Hereinafter, the mobile body 2 according to the second embodiment of the present invention will be described. The mobile body 2 according to the present embodiment is an autonomous mobile robot that generates a travel route for achieving a predetermined target and travels along the travel route, like the mobile body 1 of the first embodiment.

  FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of the overall configuration of the moving body 2 according to the second embodiment of the present invention. Since the mobile body 2 further includes a pedestrian reaction detection unit 33 as a functional block realized by the control device 30 and has the same hardware configuration as that of the mobile body 1 of the first embodiment, the common components are the same. The description is abbreviate | omitted and attached | subjected.

  The pedestrian reaction detection unit 33 detects a pedestrian reaction due to the approach of the moving body 2. Specifically, for example, the pedestrian position detection unit 31 monitors the behavior of the pedestrian from the time when the pedestrian approaches within a predetermined distance, and preliminarily digitizes such as stopping or moving the upper body sharply. It is determined whether or not a predetermined reaction has been made.

  The inaccessible area setting unit 36 expands the inaccessible area when the pedestrian reaction detection unit 33 detects a predetermined reaction of the pedestrian, and the pedestrian reaction detection unit 33 expands the predetermined reaction of the pedestrian. If no is detected, the inaccessible area is reduced.

  Thereby, according to the property of a pedestrian, it can consider so that a pedestrian may not feel puzzled further. If a pedestrian is accustomed to the existence of an autonomous mobile robot such as the moving body 1, even if the moving body 1 passes near him, he will not feel any particular confusion. This is because it is assumed that if there is a mobile object 1 that passes near the user, the user may feel confused such as a collision. FIG. 7 is an image diagram conceptually showing a state where the inaccessible area setting unit 36 of the second embodiment enlarges or reduces the inaccessible area.

  According to the moving body 2 of the present embodiment, it is possible to appropriately avoid a collision with a pedestrian and to prevent the pedestrian from feeling confused by his / her movement.

<Third embodiment>
The moving body 3 according to the third embodiment of the present invention will be described below. The mobile body 3 according to the present embodiment is an autonomous mobile robot that generates a travel route for achieving a predetermined target and travels along the travel route, like the mobile body 1 of the first embodiment.

  FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating an example of the overall configuration of the moving body 3 according to the third embodiment of the present invention. Since the mobile unit 3 further includes an entry suppression area setting unit 37 as a functional block realized by the control device 30 and has the same hardware configuration as that of the mobile unit 1 of the first embodiment, common components are the same. The description is abbreviate | omitted and attached | subjected. Further, in this embodiment, a pedestrian reaction detection unit 33 may be provided, and the same processing as in the second embodiment may be performed.

  The entry suppression area setting unit 37 detects the pedestrian detected by the pedestrian position detection unit 31 and the pedestrian direction detection unit 32 when the pedestrian direction detected by the pedestrian direction detection unit 32 does not change for a predetermined time or more. Based on the position and orientation, the entry suppression region is set so that the portion corresponding to the orientation of the pedestrian is widened when viewed from the location of the pedestrian. The entry suppression area is set so that a portion corresponding to the direction of the pedestrian is further widened compared to the entry impossible area set by the entry impossible area setting unit 36. FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating an entry suppression area set by the entry suppression area setting unit 37 of the third embodiment.

  The movement route generation unit 38 according to the present embodiment generates a movement route so that the entry-impossible region never passes but the entry suppression region does not pass as much as possible. More specifically, an algorithm such as comparing the route when avoiding the entry suppression region and the route passing through the entry suppression region, and passing the entry suppression region as an exception when the route is longer than a predetermined distance, etc. To generate a movement route.

  Thereby, for example, when the pedestrian is facing the same direction and is gazing at the exhibits, the moving body 3 moves so as not to pass as much as possible in front of the pedestrian. On the other hand, when the detour due to such avoidance is large, it is possible to move through an efficient route through the entry suppression area.

  According to the moving body 3 of the present embodiment, the collision with the pedestrian can be appropriately avoided, and the pedestrian can move in a certain direction in addition to being able to prevent the pedestrian from feeling embarrassed by his / her movement. When facing, it can be considered not to pass as much as possible.

<Fourth embodiment>
The moving body 4 according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention will be described below. The moving body 4 according to the present embodiment is an extension of the function of the moving body 3 of the third embodiment.

  FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of the overall configuration of the moving body 4 according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention. The moving body 4 further includes a predetermined object detection unit 34 as a functional block realized by the control device 30 in addition to the moving body 3 of the third embodiment.

  The predetermined object detection unit 34 detects a predetermined object that easily attracts the attention of a pedestrian, such as an exhibit of goods or art objects existing around the moving body 4. As a detection method, a sightseeing map stored in a storage medium in advance may be referred to based on its own position detected using a GPS receiver, or may be detected by analyzing a captured image of a camera device. Good.

  The entry suppression area setting unit 37 of the present embodiment corresponds to the direction of the pedestrian as viewed from the position of the pedestrian when the direction of the pedestrian detected by the pedestrian direction detection unit 32 does not change for a predetermined time or more. When the predetermined object detected by the predetermined object detection unit 34 is present at the position, the entry suppression area is expanded as compared with the case where the predetermined object does not exist. FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating an entry suppression area set by the entry suppression area setting unit 37 of the fourth embodiment. Thereby, when the pedestrian is looking at a predetermined object and is facing a certain direction, further consideration can be given so as not to pass as much as possible in front of the surface.

  According to the moving body 4 of the present embodiment, the collision with the pedestrian can be appropriately avoided and the pedestrian can be prevented from feeling confused by the movement of the self. When facing, it can be considered not to pass as much as possible.

  The best mode for carrying out the present invention has been described above with reference to the embodiments. However, the present invention is not limited to these embodiments, and various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the present invention. And substitutions can be added.

  For example, the application of the present invention is not limited to an autonomous mobile robot, but may be applied to a fully automatic traveling vehicle on which a person is boarded. The present invention may be applied to a semi-automatic traveling vehicle. In the latter case, for example, the movement route generation unit 38 may generate a temporary movement route so as to avoid a pedestrian while reflecting the movement locus of the vehicle immediately before the avoidance travel.

  In addition, when applied to the semi-automated vehicle described above, an inaccessible area is set for a moving obstacle, and a speaker, a buzzer, or a flash is activated when the host vehicle enters and / or is about to enter. The driver or other occupants may be warned by, for example. In this case, the avoidance action may be combined, or the avoidance action may not be particularly performed. “When trying to enter” is determined based on the speed of the host vehicle or the distance from the outer edge of the area where entry is not possible. For example, using a two-dimensional map with the speed and distance as axes, a predetermined area in the map It can be determined that the vehicle is about to enter. In addition, when it is within a predetermined distance to the outer edge of the inaccessible area and the speed is equal to or higher than the predetermined speed, it may be determined that the user is about to enter when the vehicle is in the predetermined area in the map.

  Moreover, when applied to a vehicle, the same process may be performed by replacing a pedestrian, which is a moving obstacle, with the vehicle.

  The present invention can be used in the automobile manufacturing industry, the automobile parts manufacturing industry, and the like.

It is a figure which shows an example of the whole structure of the mobile body 1 which concerns on 1st Example of this invention. 2 is an external configuration example of a moving body 1. It is the see-through block diagram which looked at the traveling drive device 10 from the bottom. It is a figure which shows the entry impossible area set by the entry impossible area setting part 36 of 1st Example. It is a comparison figure with the case where it controls so that it may not pass through the area | region within a fixed distance only from a pedestrian, and the case where it controls by setting an inaccessible area like a present Example. It is a figure which shows an example of the whole structure of the mobile body 2 which concerns on 2nd Example of this invention. It is an image figure which shows notionally the mode that the inaccessible area setting part 36 of 2nd Example expands or reduces an inaccessible area. It is a figure which shows an example of the whole structure of the mobile body 3 which concerns on 3rd Example of this invention. It is a figure which shows the approach suppression area | region set by the approach suppression area | region setting part 37 of 3rd Example. It is a figure which shows an example of the whole structure of the mobile body 4 which concerns on 4th Example of this invention. It is a figure which shows the approach suppression area | region set by the approach suppression area | region setting part 37 of 4th Example.

Explanation of symbols

1, 2, 3, 4 Mobile
5 Body part
7 Head
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Travel drive device 11, 12 Drive wheel 11A, 12A In-wheel motor
13 caster wheels
14 Drive circuit
15 battery
20 Pedestrian detection sensor
30 Control device
31 Pedestrian position detector
32 Pedestrian detection unit
33 Pedestrian reaction detector
34 Predetermined object detection unit
36 No entry area setting section
37 Approach control area setting part
38 Travel path generator

Claims (6)

Detection means for detecting the position and orientation of a moving obstacle present in the vicinity;
An inaccessible area setting means for setting an inaccessible area so that a portion corresponding to the direction of the moving obstacle is wide as viewed from the position of the moving obstacle detected by the detection means,
It moves so as to avoid entry into the inaccessible area set by the inaccessible area setting means,
Moving body. A movement path generating means for generating a movement path for achieving a predetermined target;
The movement route generation means is a means for generating the movement route so as to avoid the inaccessible area set by the inaccessible area setting means,
Moving along the movement path generated by the movement path generation means,
The moving body according to claim 1. The detection means is means for detecting the position and orientation of a pedestrian existing in the vicinity as the position and orientation of the moving obstacle, and means for detecting the reaction of the pedestrian due to the approach of the moving body. ,
The inaccessible area setting means is means for enlarging or reducing the inaccessible area in accordance with a pedestrian reaction detected by the detecting means.
The moving body according to claim 1 or 2. When the direction of the pedestrian detected by the detection unit does not change for a predetermined time or more, a portion corresponding to the direction of the pedestrian viewed from the position of the pedestrian detected by the detection unit is in the inaccessible area. An entry suppression area setting means for setting the entry suppression area to be wider than
It moves so as to suppress entry into the entry suppression area set by the entry suppression area setting means,
The moving body according to any one of claims 1 to 3. Provided with a predetermined object detection means for detecting a predetermined object that easily attracts human attention,
The entry suppression area setting unit corresponds to the direction of the pedestrian as viewed from the position of the pedestrian detected by the detection unit when the direction of the pedestrian detected by the detection unit does not change for a predetermined time or more. When the predetermined object detected by the predetermined object detection means exists at a position, the entry suppression area is enlarged,
The moving body according to claim 4. Detection means for detecting the position and orientation of a moving obstacle present in the vicinity;
An inaccessible area setting means for setting an inaccessible area so that a portion corresponding to the direction of the moving obstacle is wide as viewed from the position of the moving obstacle detected by the detection means,
A warning is given to the occupant about the approach to the inaccessible area,
Warning device for vehicles.

Images