JP2017130098A - Autonomous travelling device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To surely detect obstacles obstructing travelling of an autonomous travelling device, and allow quick and safety travelling to be continued without performing unnecessary deceleration or stoppage.SOLUTION: An autonomous travelling device comprises: a vehicle body; a travelling control unit; a distance detection unit that emits an obstacle determination area including a forward space in an advancing direction with light to receive reflection light reflected by an object existing in the obstacle determination area, and detects a distance to the object; an inertia measurement unit that measures displacement caused by travelling of the vehicle body to detect a current advancing direction; a storage unit that stores route information having a travelling route pre-set, determination area information in which a location and size of each sub-divided area having the obstacle determination divided are set, and an area weighted value indicative of a degree of importance for detecting the obstacle of each sub-divided area; and a control unit. The control unit is configured to set the area weighted value having a subsequent advancing direction considered to each sub-divided area on the basis of a current advancing direction detected by the inertia measurement unit, or an advancing direction where the vehicle body is going to travel in the travelling route.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 9

Description

  The present invention relates to an autonomous traveling device, and more particularly, to an autonomous traveling device having a function of measuring a distance to an obstacle and a function of avoiding a collision with the obstacle.

2. Description of the Related Art Today, autonomous traveling devices that move autonomously are used, such as a transport robot that transports luggage, and a monitoring robot that monitors the situation in and around buildings and in predetermined sites.
Such a conventional autonomous traveling device stores in advance map information and travel route information of an area to be traveled, and uses information acquired from a camera, a distance image sensor, and a GPS (Global Positioning System) to obstruct an obstacle. Traveling on a predetermined route while avoiding

In addition, in a conventional autonomous traveling device (hereinafter, also simply referred to as a vehicle), when an obstacle is found on the autonomous traveling route, the vehicle travels while decelerating, before changing the route, or before colliding with the obstacle. The process to stop is performed.
In order to detect an obstacle, for example, a camera or a distance sensor that detects reflected light from an object by emitting a laser is used.
In the distance sensor, the distance to the object is detected by measuring the time until the reflected light returns, and the position where the object exists is detected by changing the laser emission direction.
For example, the position and distance of an obstacle present in a fan-shaped area opened at an angle of about 180 degrees by scanning the distance sensor at an angle of 90 degrees to the left and right in the horizontal direction with the front in the traveling direction of the vehicle as the center. Is detected.

In order to travel safely, speed control is performed in accordance with the measured distance from the distance sensor to the obstacle.
For example, if the distance to the measurement point at which the reflected light is detected is relatively long, such as 10 m or more, the vehicle will travel at a high normal speed, and if the distance to the measurement point is within 3 m, deceleration will start. Furthermore, speed control is performed such that the vehicle stops when the distance to the measuring point is within 1 m.

That is, weighting for speed control is set in correspondence with the distance from the distance sensor to the measuring point in the area where the obstacle is detected. For example, the highest weighting value is set in an area where the distance to the station where the stop process should be performed is relatively short, and the distance to the station where the deceleration process should be performed is within the area of the predetermined distance range. Speed control based on the measured distance to an obstacle has been performed by setting the weighting value to the next highest value and setting the weighting value to the lowest in a relatively far region where deceleration is not performed.
Also, for other vehicles recognized as obstacles (obstacle candidate objects), the direction and position of the relative speed vector with respect to the own vehicle are obtained, and the weight function calculated from the relative speed vector and position is used. There has also been proposed a recognition device that performs high-speed and accurate recognition of an object that becomes an obstacle to a vehicle (see Patent Document 1).

JP 2002-225656 A

However, in the speed control in the conventional autonomous traveling device, the deceleration and stop processing based on the traveling direction of the vehicle is performed only by performing the deceleration and stop processing based on the distance from the vehicle to the obstacle. There wasn't.
For example, when a fan-shaped area having the position of the distance sensor as the center position of the fan is used as the obstacle detection area, if the vehicle enters the fan-shaped area having a relatively short distance L1 from the center position, the vehicle is Processing to stop is performed.
When this sector-shaped region is a sector shape opened at 180 degrees, for example, the vehicle is stopped when an obstacle is detected within a distance L1 ahead of the traveling direction of the vehicle. Alternatively, the vehicle is also stopped when an obstacle is detected within the distance L1 of the fan-shaped end portion in the right direction with respect to the traveling direction, instead of in front of the traveling direction of the vehicle.
That is, when there is an obstacle in a region within the distance L1 in the sector shape region in the right direction and the sector shape region in the left direction with respect to the traveling direction, a process of stopping the vehicle has been performed.

If an obstacle is detected in the immediate vicinity of the traveling direction, it is meaningful to stop for safe driving. However, when it is detected that there is an obstacle at a position that is on the right side of the traveling direction and within a relatively short distance L1, but does not interfere with traveling forward in the traveling direction, the problem on safe traveling is However, stopping the vehicle in spite of the lack of speed is not an appropriate speed control from the viewpoint of rapid autonomous driving.
Further, when a fan-shaped area having a distance L2 longer than the distance L1 from the center position where the distance sensor is located is set as an area for performing deceleration processing of the vehicle, the distance L2 is the right end of the fan-shaped area. If an obstacle is detected in the area within the range, even if the position of the obstacle is a position that does not interfere with traveling in the traveling direction of the vehicle, vehicle deceleration processing is performed. Is not an appropriate speed control. That is, although the vehicle can continue traveling without decelerating, the vehicle is decelerated, so it can be determined that this corresponds to an erroneous detection of an obstacle.

In addition, for example, when changing the course slightly to the right direction with respect to the current traveling direction, or when making a right turn, the portion of the sector area in the right direction with respect to the traveling direction in the sector shape area for detecting obstacles In addition, since the vehicle will travel from now on, whether or not there is an obstacle in the right-hand sector area is important information for safe traveling.
However, when the vehicle bends in the right direction, the portion of the fan-shaped area on the left side of the traveling direction moves away from the vehicle. It is considered that this information is not important, and if an obstacle is detected in the sector in the left direction, there may be no problem in safe driving even if the presence of the obstacle is almost ignored.
That is, when speed control is performed by detecting an obstacle existing within a certain distance based on the information of the measured distance from the distance sensor without considering the future course that the vehicle is going to travel, Although it is possible to continue traveling without decelerating for safe traveling, unnecessary deceleration processing or stopping may occur.

  Therefore, the present invention has been made in consideration of the above circumstances, and in order to ensure the safety of autonomous traveling, obstacle detection processing is performed in consideration of the traveling direction of the autonomous traveling device, and It is an object of the present invention to provide an autonomous traveling device that can effectively detect obstacles that are likely to become an obstacle and continue traveling quickly and safely without decelerating or stopping as much as possible.

  The present invention emits predetermined light to a predetermined obstacle determination area including a vehicle body, a travel control unit that controls a driving member that drives the vehicle body, and a forward space in the traveling direction, and enters the obstacle determination area. A distance detection unit that receives reflected light reflected by an existing object and detects a distance to the object, and an inertial measurement that detects a current traveling direction of the vehicle body by measuring a displacement caused by travel of the vehicle body Set based on route information in which the travel route of the vehicle body is determined in advance, determination area information in which the position and size of each divided area obtained by dividing the obstacle determination area into a plurality of parts, and the progress state of the vehicle body A storage unit storing an area weight value indicating the degree of importance for detecting an obstacle in each divided area, and a control unit, wherein the control unit is a current traveling direction detected by the inertia measurement unit, Or Autonomous traveling characterized in that, based on the traveling direction to be traveled in the traveling route determined in the route information, region weight values are set for each divided region in consideration of the subsequent traveling direction of the vehicle body. A device is provided.

Further, a comparatively large area weight value is set in the divided area A including the traveling direction of the vehicle body and in some divided areas in the vicinity of the divided area A.
In addition, when it is determined that there is an object whose distance is detected in the divided area where the relatively large area weight value is set, a vehicle body deceleration process or a stop process is performed in accordance with the area weight value. It is characterized by that.
According to this, since a relatively large area weight value is set in the divided area including the traveling direction of the vehicle body, the vehicle body can be surely decelerated or stopped when an object exists in the traveling direction of the vehicle body. Can do.

Further, when it is determined that no object is present in the divided area where the relatively large area weight value is set, the vehicle body deceleration process and the stop process are not performed.
Further, when it is determined that there is an object whose distance is detected in a divided region other than the divided region where the relatively large region weight value is set, the vehicle body deceleration process and the stop process are not performed. To do.
According to this, when it is determined that an object is present in a divided area other than the divided area for which a relatively large area weight value is set, the vehicle body deceleration process or stop process is not performed. In contrast, when an object is present at a position where the possibility of collision with the vehicle body is low, unnecessary deceleration or stopping is not performed, and traveling can be continued quickly and safely.

In addition, the divided areas in which the relatively large area weight value is set include a divided area A including the traveling direction of the vehicle body and both divided areas of the divided area A. .
Further, the largest region weight value is set in the divided region including the traveling direction of the vehicle body, and the smaller region weight value is set for the other divided regions as the distance from the traveling direction increases.

Further, when the vehicle body is going to turn leftward or rightward in a stationary state, among the obstacle determination regions, a plurality of divided regions existing in a direction in which the vehicle body advances by the turn are relatively large. A region weight value is set, and a comparatively small region weight value is set in another divided region existing in a direction opposite to the direction in which the vehicle body advances by turning.
According to this, when the vehicle body is going to turn, a relatively large area weight value is set to a plurality of divided areas existing in the direction in which the vehicle body advances by turning, so that an object existing in the traveling direction during turning is surely detected. And appropriate processing such as deceleration can be performed.
In addition, a relatively small area weight value is set for other divided areas that exist in the direction opposite to the direction in which the vehicle body travels by turning, so even if an object exists in the direction opposite to the traveling direction, it is unnecessary Traveling can be continued without decelerating or stopping.

Further, when the inertia measuring unit detects that the vehicle body has slipped in a specific direction, the obstacle determination region is compared with a plurality of divided regions existing in a direction in which the vehicle body travels due to the skid. A relatively large area weight value is set, and a relatively small area weight value is set for a plurality of divided areas existing in a direction opposite to the direction in which the vehicle body advances due to the side slip.
According to this, when the vehicle body slips, relatively large region weight values are set in a plurality of divided regions existing in the direction in which the vehicle body advances due to the side slip. It is possible to detect and perform appropriate processing such as deceleration.
In addition, since a relatively small area weight value is set for a plurality of divided areas that exist in the direction opposite to the direction of advancement due to skid, unnecessary deceleration even if an object exists in the direction opposite to the direction of advancement of skid. And never stop.

  Further, when the light is scanned in the horizontal direction around the light emission position as a center, and the horizontal fan-shaped region that can be reached by the light is used as the obstacle determination region, each of the divided regions is The obstacle determination area is an area obtained by dividing the obstacle determination area into a plurality of fan shapes having a predetermined central angle.

Further, when the light is scanned in a direction perpendicular to the ground with the light emission position as the center, and the vertical fan-shaped area that the light can reach is an obstacle determination area, each of the divided areas is The obstacle determination area is a rectangular area that is divided into a plurality of areas in the vertical direction, and the area weight value is changed in accordance with the height of each divided area from the ground. An area weight value smaller than the area is set.
According to this, since the area weight value smaller than the other divided areas is set in the divided area closest to the ground, for example, when the rear wheel of the vehicle rides on a step and the front of the vehicle leans downward, Can be reduced as an obstacle.

Further, the distance detection unit includes a light emitting unit that emits light to the obstacle determination region in the traveling direction, a light receiving unit that receives light, and the light toward a plurality of predetermined measurement points in the obstacle determination region. A scanning control unit that scans the light emission direction so that the light is emitted from the light emitting unit, and the light reflected by the object is the light receiving unit. Calculating a distance between the light emitting unit and the plurality of measurement points using a time difference from the time when the light is confirmed to be received, and detecting the distance to the object from the calculated distance It is characterized by.
Further, the distance detection unit uses a LIDAR that emits a laser to a two-dimensional space or a three-dimensional space in a predetermined obstacle determination area and measures distances at a plurality of measurement points in the obstacle determination area. Features.

  According to the present invention, the obstacle weight determination area is divided into a plurality of divided areas, and the area weight value considering the subsequent traveling direction of the vehicle body is set for each divided area. By performing obstacle detection using the vehicle, it is possible to continue traveling quickly and safely without unnecessary deceleration or stopping.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS It is an external view of one Example of the autonomous traveling apparatus of this invention. It is explanatory drawing of the structure relevant to driving | running | working of the autonomous running apparatus of this invention. It is a block diagram of a configuration of an embodiment of the autonomous mobile device of the present invention. It is a schematic explanatory drawing of one Example of the distance detection part of this invention. It is a schematic explanatory drawing of the scanning direction of the laser radiate | emitted from the distance detection part of this invention. It is the schematic explanatory drawing which looked at the irradiation area of the laser of this invention from the upper direction and back. It is explanatory drawing of one Example of the information memorize | stored in the memory | storage part of this invention. It is explanatory drawing of one Example of the information memorize | stored in the memory | storage part of this invention. It is explanatory drawing of one Example of the determination area | region of an obstacle of this invention, and a division area. It is explanatory drawing of one Example of the division area of this invention. It is explanatory drawing of the example of a setting of the area | region weight value at the time of straight ahead, and one Example of an obstacle detection. It is explanatory drawing of the example of a setting of the area | region weight value at the time of a right turn start, and one Example of an obstacle detection. It is explanatory drawing of the example of a setting of the area | region weight value at the time of a right direction progress start, and one Example of an obstacle detection. It is explanatory drawing of the example of a setting of the area | region weight value at the time of right skid detection, and one Example of an obstacle detection. It is explanatory drawing of one Example of an obstruction detection when the detection position of a measurement point differs at the time of a right turn start. It is explanatory drawing of the example of a setting of the area | region weight value of a perpendicular direction.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In addition, this invention is not limited by description of the following examples.
<Configuration of autonomous traveling device>
In FIG. 1, the external view of one Example of the autonomous running apparatus of this invention is shown.
In FIG. 1, an autonomous traveling device 1 of the present invention is a vehicle having a function of autonomously moving while avoiding an obstacle based on predetermined route information.
In addition to the moving function, the autonomous mobile device 1 may include various functions such as a transport function, a monitoring function, a cleaning function, a guidance function, and a notification function.
In the following embodiments, an autonomous traveling apparatus capable of autonomously traveling in a predetermined outdoor monitoring area or passage and monitoring or transporting the monitoring area will be mainly described.

In the external view of FIG. 1, the autonomous traveling device 1 (hereinafter also referred to as a vehicle) mainly includes a vehicle body 10, four wheels (21, 22), a monitoring unit 2, and a control unit 3.
The monitoring unit 2 is a part having a function of confirming a moving region and a road surface state and a function of monitoring a monitoring target. 55, a position information acquisition unit 58 for acquiring information on the current position of traveling.
The control unit 3 is a part that executes a traveling function and a monitoring function of the autonomous traveling device of the present invention. For example, a control unit 50, an image recognition unit 56, an obstacle detection unit 57, a communication unit 54, which will be described later, The storage unit 70 and the like are included.

The autonomous traveling device 1 of the present invention uses the camera 55, the distance detection unit 51, the obstacle detection unit 57, and the like to travel on its own while confirming the state in front of the traveling direction of the vehicle body 10. For example, when it is detected that there are obstacles, steps, etc. ahead, the course is changed by performing operations such as rest, rotation, backward movement, and forward movement in order to prevent collision with the obstacles. When an obstacle is recognized by image recognition or when contact is detected, a predetermined function such as a stop operation of the vehicle body is executed.
However, if an obstacle is detected within the specified obstacle detection area, but it is possible to run without colliding with that obstacle, or if the obstacle does not interfere with running, autonomous driving will continue without deceleration. Let

FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram of a configuration related to traveling of the autonomous traveling device of the present invention.
FIG. 2A is a right side view of the vehicle 1, and the right front wheel 21 and the rear wheel 22 are indicated by phantom lines. FIG. 2B shows a cross-sectional view taken along line BB in FIG. 2A, and sprockets 21b, 22b, 31b, and 32b described later are indicated by phantom lines. Front wheels (21, 31) are arranged on the front surface 13 of the vehicle body 10, and rear wheels (22, 32) are arranged on the rear surface 14.
A belt-like cover 18 is installed on each side surface 12R, 12L of the vehicle body 10 and extends along the front-rear direction of the vehicle body 10. Below the cover 18 are provided axles 21a, 31a and axles 22a, 32a that rotatably support the front wheels 21, 31 and the rear wheels 22, 32, respectively. Each axle 21a, 31a, 22a, 32a is independently rotatable when not coupled by a power transmission member.

  A pair of front wheels (21, 31) and rear wheels (22, 32) on the left and right sides are provided with belts 23, 33 as power transmission members. Specifically, a sprocket 21 b is provided on the axle 21 a of the right front wheel 21, and a sprocket 22 b is provided on the axle 22 a of the rear wheel 22. Between the front wheel sprocket 21b and the rear wheel sprocket 22b, for example, a belt 23 provided with a protrusion that meshes with the sprocket is provided on the inner surface side. Similarly, a sprocket 31b is provided on the axle 31a of the left front wheel 31, and a sprocket 32b is provided on the axle 32a of the rear wheel 32. Between the sprocket 31b of the front wheel and the sprocket 32b of the rear wheel, A belt 33 having the same structure as the belt 23 is wound around.

Accordingly, the pair of front wheels and rear wheels (21 and 22, 31 and 32) on the left and right sides are connected and driven by the belts (23 and 33), so that one of the wheels may be driven. For example, the front wheels (21, 31) may be driven. When one wheel is a driving wheel, the other wheel functions as a driven wheel that is driven without slipping by a belt that is a power transmission member.
As a power transmission member for connecting and driving a pair of left and right front wheels and rear wheels, in addition to using a sprocket and a belt provided with a projection that meshes with the sprocket, for example, using a sprocket and a chain that meshes with the sprocket. Also good. Furthermore, if slip is acceptable, a pulley and a belt having a large friction may be used as the power transmission member. However, the power transmission member is configured so that the rotational speeds of the driving wheel and the driven wheel are the same.
In FIG. 2, the front wheels (21, 31) correspond to drive wheels, and the rear wheels (22, 32) correspond to driven wheels.

  Two motors, an electric motor 41R for driving the right front and rear wheels 21 and 22 and an electric motor 41L for driving the left front and rear wheels 31 and 32, are provided on the front wheel side of the bottom surface 15 of the vehicle body 10. ing. A gear box 43R is provided as a power transmission mechanism between the motor shaft 42R of the right electric motor 41R and the axle 21a of the right front wheel 21. Similarly, a gear box 43L is provided as a power transmission mechanism between the motor shaft 42L of the left electric motor 41L and the axle 31a of the left front wheel 31. Here, the two electric motors 41R and 41L are arranged in parallel so as to be symmetrical with respect to the center line in the traveling direction of the vehicle body, and the gear boxes 43R and 43L are also arranged on the left and right outer sides of the electric motors 41R and 41L, respectively. It is installed.

  The gear boxes 43R and 43L are composed of a plurality of gears, shafts, and the like, and are assembly parts that transmit the power from the electric motor to the axle that is the output shaft by changing the torque, the rotation speed, and the rotation direction. A clutch for switching the shutoff may be included. The left and right rear wheels 22 and 32 are respectively supported by bearings 44R and 44L, and the bearings 44R and 44L are disposed close to the right side surface 12R and the left side surface 12L of the bottom surface 15 of the vehicle body 10, respectively. .

  With the above configuration, the pair of front and rear wheels 21 and 22 on the right in the traveling direction and the pair of left and right front and rear wheels 31 and 32 can be driven independently. That is, the power of the right electric motor 41R is transmitted to the gear box 43R via the motor shaft 42R, and the rotational speed, torque, or rotational direction is changed by the gear box 43R and transmitted to the axle 21a. The wheel 21 is rotated by the rotation of the axle 21a, and the rotation of the axle 21a is transmitted to the rear shaft 22b via the sprocket 21b, the belt 23, and the sprocket 22b, and the rear wheel 22 is rotated. Transmission of power from the left electric motor 41L to the front wheels 31 and the rear wheels 32 is the same as the operation on the right side described above.

When the rotation speeds of the two electric motors 41R and 41L are the same, the autonomous traveling device 1 moves forward or backward if the gear ratios (reduction ratios) of the gear boxes 43R and 43L are the same. When changing the speed of the autonomous mobile device 1, the gear ratios of the gear boxes 43R and 43L may be changed while maintaining the same value.
When changing the traveling direction, the gear ratios of the gear boxes 43R and 43L are changed so that the rotation speeds of the right front wheel 21 and the rear wheel 22 and the left front wheel 31 and the rear wheel 32 are rotated. It only has to make a difference. Furthermore, by changing the rotation direction of the output from each gear box 43R, 43L, the turning direction of the left and right wheels can be reversed to enable stationary turning around the vehicle body center.

  When the autonomous traveling device 1 is turned stationary, the steering mechanism for changing the angle of the front and rear wheels is not provided. Therefore, the larger the distance between the front and rear wheels (wheel base), the greater the resistance applied to the wheels. A large driving torque is required for turning. However, since the gear ratios in the gear boxes 43R and 43L are variable, a large torque can be applied to the wheels only by reducing the rotation speed of the wheels during turning.

  For example, when the gear ratio in the gear box 43R is 10 for the number of gear teeth on the motor shaft 42R, 20 for the number of teeth on the intermediate gear, and 40 for the gear on the side of the axle 21b, the rotational speed of the axle 21b Is ¼ of the rotational speed of the motor shaft 42R, but four times the torque is obtained. And, by selecting a gear ratio that further reduces the rotation speed, a larger torque can be obtained, so that it is possible to turn even on road surfaces with large resistance related to wheels such as rough terrain and sand. .

  Further, since the gear boxes 43R and 43L are provided between the motor shafts 42R and 42L and the axles 21a and 31a, vibrations from the wheels 21 and 31 are not directly transmitted to the motor shaft. Further, clutches for transmitting and disconnecting power (disconnection) are provided in the gear boxes 43R and 43L, and when the electric motors 41R and 41L are not energized, the electric motors 41R and 41L side and the axles 21a and 31a serving as drive shafts are provided. It is desirable to block power transmission between the two. As a result, even if a force is applied to the vehicle body 10 when the vehicle stops and the wheels rotate, the rotation is not transmitted to the electric motors 41R and 41L. Therefore, no back electromotive force is generated in the electric motors 41R and 41L. There is no possibility of damaging the circuits of 41R and 41L.

In this way, the left and right pair of front and rear front wheels and rear wheels are connected by a power transmission member, and the four wheels are driven so as to be driven by two electric motors arranged on the front wheel side. In addition, it is not necessary to provide a dedicated rear wheel gear box between the electric motor and the rear wheel, and the installation space for the rear wheel dedicated electric motor and gear box can be reduced. .
As described above, the two electric motors 41R and 41L are arranged on the front wheels 21 and 31 side of the bottom surface 15 of the vehicle body 10 on the left and right in the traveling direction, and further the gear box 43R on the left and right sides of the electric motors 41R and 41L. 43L, but only the bearings 44R and 44L are arranged on the rear wheels 22 and 32 side of the bottom surface 15. Therefore, the bottom surface 15 of the vehicle body 10 is placed on the bottom surface 15 of the vehicle body, for example, from the center position. A wide accommodation space 16 can be secured up to the end.

  Each electric motor 41R, 41L uses a battery (rechargeable battery) 40 such as a lithium ion battery as a power source, and installs the battery 40 in the accommodation space 16. Specifically, the battery 40 has a rectangular parallelepiped shape, for example, and can be placed at a substantially central position of the bottom surface 15 as shown in FIG. In addition, the rear surface 14 of the vehicle body 10 is preferably configured to be openable and closable with respect to the upper surface or the bottom surface 15, for example, so that the battery 40 can be easily inserted into and removed from the accommodation space 16. As a result, a large-capacity battery 40 for realizing long-time running can be mounted in the housing space 16 of the vehicle body 10, and work such as replacement, charging, and inspection of the battery 40 can be easily performed from the rear surface 14. It becomes possible. Furthermore, since the battery 40 can be disposed on the bottom surface 15, an electric vehicle capable of running stably with a low center of gravity of the vehicle body 10 can be obtained.

FIG. 3 shows a block diagram of a configuration of an embodiment of the autonomous traveling device of the present invention.
3, the autonomous traveling device 1 of the present invention mainly includes a control unit 50, a distance detection unit 51, a travel control unit 52, a wheel 53, a communication unit 54, a camera 55, an image recognition unit 56, an obstacle detection unit 57, A position information acquisition unit 58, a rechargeable battery 59, a speed detection unit 60, a monitoring information acquisition unit 61, an inertia measurement unit 62, a region weight calculation unit 63, and a storage unit 70 are provided.
The autonomous mobile device 1 is connected to the management server 5 via the network 6, autonomously travels based on instruction information and the like sent from the management server 5, and transmits the acquired monitoring information and the like to the management server 5.
As the network 6, any currently used network can be used. However, since the autonomous mobile device 1 is a moving device, it is possible to use a network capable of wireless communication (for example, a wireless LAN). preferable.

  As a wireless communication network, the Internet open to the public or the like may be used, or a dedicated line wireless network in which devices that can be connected are limited may be used. In addition, as a wireless transmission method in a wireless communication path, various wireless LANs (Local Area Network) (with or without WiFi (registered trademark) authentication), ZigBee (registered trademark), Bluetooth (registered trademark) LE (Low Energy) ) And the like, and may be used in consideration of a wireless reachable distance, a transmission band, or the like. For example, a mobile phone network may be used.

The management server 5 mainly includes a communication unit 91, a monitoring control unit 92, and a storage unit 93.
The communication unit 91 is a part that communicates with the autonomous mobile device 1 via the network 6 and preferably has a wireless communication function.
The monitoring control unit 92 is a part that executes movement control for the autonomous traveling device 1, information collection function and monitoring function of the autonomous traveling device 1, and the like.
The storage unit 93 stores information for instructing movement to the autonomous mobile device 1, monitoring information (reception monitoring information 93a) sent from the autonomous mobile device 1, a program for monitoring control, and the like. It is.

The control unit 50 of the autonomous traveling device 1 is a part that controls the operation of each component such as the traveling control unit 52, and is mainly realized by a microcomputer including a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, an I / O controller, a timer, and the like. The
The CPU organically operates various hardware based on a control program stored in advance in a ROM or the like, and executes the running function, the image recognition function, the obstacle detection function, and the like of the present invention.

The distance detection unit 51 is a part that detects the distance from the current position of the vehicle to an object and a road surface that exist in a predetermined space (for example, an obstacle determination region) including a forward space in the traveling direction. The distance detection unit 51 is disposed near the center of the front surface of the vehicle body. Here, when the vehicle travels outdoors, the object means, for example, a building, a pillar, a wall, a protrusion, or the like.
The distance detection unit 51 emits predetermined light to the obstacle determination area in the forward space in the traveling direction, and then receives the reflected light reflected by the object and the road surface existing in the front space, and the distance to the object and the road surface Is detected. Specifically, the distance detection unit 51 mainly includes a light emitting unit 51a that emits light to an obstacle determination region in a predetermined forward space in the traveling direction, a light receiving unit 51b that receives light reflected by an object, The scanning control unit 51c changes the emission direction of the two-dimensionally or two-dimensionally.

FIG. 4 shows an explanatory diagram of an embodiment of the distance detector 51 of the present invention.
Here, the laser 51d emitted from the light emitting unit 51a is reflected by the object 100, and a part of the laser that has returned back and forth by the light receiving distance L0 is received by the light receiving unit 51b.

As the emitted light, laser, infrared light, visible light, ultrasonic wave, electromagnetic wave, or the like can be used. However, it is preferable to use a laser because distance measurement must be possible even at night.
Also, today, LIDAR (Light Detection and Ranging or Laser Imaging Detection and Ranging: rider) is used as a distance detection sensor, but this may be used as the distance detection unit 51.
The LIDAR is a device that emits a laser to a two-dimensional space or a three-dimensional space in a predetermined obstacle determination area and measures distances at a plurality of measurement points in the obstacle determination area.
The LIDAR detects the reflected light reflected by the object after the laser is emitted from the light emitting unit 51a, and calculates the light receiving distance L0 from the time difference between the emission time and the light receiving time, for example. This light receiving distance L0 corresponds to measurement distance information 72 described later.

If the laser emitted from the light emitting unit 51a hits a non-moving object separated by a distance L0, the laser beam travels by a distance (2L0) corresponding to twice the distance L0 from the tip of the light emitting unit 51a to the object surface. Light is received by the light receiving portion 51b.
The time when the laser is emitted and the time when the laser is received are shifted by a time T0 required for the laser to travel the distance (2L0). That is, there is a time difference. By using the time difference T0 and the speed of light, the light receiving distance L0 can be calculated.
Further, the distance to the object (obstacle) is detected from the calculated light receiving distance L0.

FIG. 4 shows a case where the distance detecting unit 51 is not moved, and shows a case where the laser emitted from the light emitting unit 51a travels on the same optical path.
Therefore, when the reflected light reflected by one point of the object 100 is received, only the distance between the tip of the light emitting unit 51a and one point of the object is calculated.

The scanning control unit 51c is a part that scans the light emission direction so that the light is emitted toward a plurality of predetermined measurement points in the obstacle determination region in the forward space in the traveling direction. The distance detection unit 51 Is changed little by little at regular intervals, and the optical path traveled by the emitted laser is moved little by little.
The LIDAR 51 calculates the distance to the object by changing the laser emission direction by a predetermined scanning pitch within a predetermined two-dimensional space in the horizontal direction (horizontal two-dimensional scanning). When calculating the distance three-dimensionally, the laser emission direction is changed by a predetermined scanning pitch in the vertical direction, and the above two-dimensional scanning in the horizontal direction is further performed to calculate the distance.

FIG. 5 is a schematic explanatory diagram of the scanning direction of the laser emitted from the distance detection unit (LIDAR) 51.
FIG. 6 shows a view of the irradiation region of the laser emitted from the distance detection unit (LIDAR) 51 as viewed from above (FIG. 6A) and a view as viewed from the rear (FIG. 6B). Show.
In FIG. 5, one point indicates a position (hereinafter referred to as a measurement point) where the laser hits on a two-dimensional plane (vertical plane) in a vertical direction at a position separated by a predetermined distance.

For example, when the direction of the distance detection unit 51 is changed so that the emission direction of the laser emitted from the light emitting unit 51a of the distance detection unit 51 is moved to the right by a predetermined scanning pitch in the horizontal direction, the laser is moved in the horizontal direction. It hits the vertical plane of the next position (measurement point) shifted to the right by the scanning pitch.
If an object exists at the position of the vertical plane, a part of the reflected light of the laser reflected at each measurement point is received by the light receiving unit 51b.
In this manner, when the laser irradiation direction is shifted sequentially by a predetermined scanning pitch in the horizontal direction, the laser is irradiated to a predetermined number of measurement points. The distance is calculated by confirming whether or not the reflected light is received at each of the plurality of measurement points irradiated with the laser.

FIG. 6A shows an explanatory diagram of an example in which the laser irradiation direction is shifted in the horizontal direction by the scanning pitch and the laser is scanned in the left-right direction (that is, the horizontal direction) in the figure.
For example, as shown in FIG. 6A, when the laser is irradiated in the rightmost direction, if there is an object in that direction, the light receiving distance L0 is calculated by receiving the reflected light from the object. The

Further, as shown in FIG. 5, when the laser scanning direction is the vertical direction, for example, when the laser emission direction is shifted upward by a predetermined scanning pitch in the vertical direction, the laser is vertical. It hits the vertical plane of the next position (measurement point) shifted in the upward direction by the scanning pitch.
After shifting the laser emission direction by one scanning pitch in the vertical upward direction, as shown in FIG. 6A, if the laser irradiation direction is shifted in the horizontal direction, the laser beam is shifted upward by 1 from the previous measurement point. A laser beam is irradiated to a measurement point at a position shifted by the scanning pitch.
In this way, by sequentially performing a horizontal laser scan and a vertical laser scan, the laser is irradiated to a predetermined three-dimensional space, and if an object exists in the three-dimensional measurement space, The distance to the object is calculated.

In addition, when light (laser) emitted toward a plurality of measurement points is reflected by an object, if it is confirmed that the reflected light reflected by the object is received by the light receiving unit, the distance is calculated. It is determined that a part of the object exists at the position of the measured point.
Furthermore, the object exists in an area including a plurality of measurement points where it is determined that a part of the object exists, and the shape of the object or the posture of the human body is characterized from information on the area including the plurality of measurement points. Get detection information.
The detection information is information that characterizes some object, but may be acquired by the distance detection unit 51 or may be acquired from image data of an object photographed by the camera 55.

In the two-dimensional scanning, the laser scanning direction is described as the horizontal direction, but the present invention is not limited to this, and the laser emitting direction may be changed in the vertical direction.
When irradiating a laser to a three-dimensional measurement space, after performing two-dimensional scanning in the vertical direction, the same two-dimensional scanning in the same vertical direction may be sequentially performed by shifting the scanning direction by a predetermined scanning pitch in the horizontal direction.

FIG. 6B is a schematic explanatory diagram of laser measurement points irradiated on the three-dimensional space when the laser is scanned in the horizontal direction and the vertical direction.
If there is no object in the direction of one measuring point where the laser is emitted, the laser travels on the optical path as it is, the reflected light is not received, and the distance cannot be measured.
Conversely, when reflected light is received with respect to a laser emitted to a certain measurement point, a distance is calculated, and it is recognized that an object exists at a position separated by the calculated distance.
FIG. 6B shows that reflected light is detected at the six measurement points in the lower right part, and some object (for example, a human body, an obstacle, etc.) is present in the region including these six measurement points. Is recognized.

In addition, when a predetermined number or more (for example, 10 points or more) of points whose distances are measured are detected with respect to the detection region of an object including a plurality of points, within the region where those points are located It is determined that there is an object.
However, if the number of measuring points whose distance is measured is less than the predetermined number, or if the measuring point around one measuring point where the distance is measured cannot measure the distance, it will be near the measuring point. Is highly likely not to exist, and the distance measurement at the measuring point is determined to be a false detection.

In addition, when counting the number of measuring points at which distances are measured, in principle, one measuring point is counted as one. For example, the distance is detected at ten measuring points in a predetermined detection area. If so, the number of stations in that area is counted as 10.
However, as will be described later, when distances are detected at N measuring points in the weighted region among the determination regions for detecting an object, the number of measuring points is not counted as N. Count as a number that takes into account weighting.
For example, if the weighting is set to twice the actual number of station counts, and the number of stations whose distance is detected in the weighted area is 10, the number of stations in the area is Count as 10 × 2 = 20.

  In particular, in the present invention, the weight of a part of the object detection region to which the traveling direction of the vehicle belongs (divided region to be described later) is set to be greater than that of other regions, which may greatly affect the traveling of the vehicle. If the object is present in a low-weighted area that is considered to have little effect on the vehicle's driving, it will be detected normally. To continue.

When the laser 51d is incident on the light receiving unit 51b of the distance detecting unit 51, an electrical signal corresponding to the received light intensity of the laser is output.
The control unit 50 confirms the electrical signal output from the light receiving unit 51b, and determines that the laser is received, for example, when an electrical signal having an intensity equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold is detected.
Conventionally used laser light emitting elements are used for the light emitting part 51a, and laser light receiving elements for detecting a laser are used for the light receiving part 51b.

In addition, the control unit 50 uses the time difference T0 between the emission time of the laser emitted from the light emitting unit 51a and the light reception time when it is confirmed that the reflected light is received by the light receiving unit 51b. A light receiving distance L0, which is a distance between a plurality of measurement points, is calculated.
The control unit 50 obtains the current time using, for example, a timer, calculates a time difference T0 between the laser emission time and the light reception time when laser reception is confirmed, and the time difference T0 between these two times and the laser The light receiving distance L0 is calculated by using the speed of.

The travel control unit 52 is a part that controls a drive member that travels the vehicle body, and mainly controls the rotation of the wheels 53 corresponding to the drive member to perform linear travel, rotational operation, and the like, so that the vehicle automatically To run. The driving member includes a wheel, a caterpillar (registered trademark), and the like.
The wheel 53 corresponds to four wheels (21, 22, 31, 32) as shown in FIGS.
Further, as described above, of the wheels, the left and right front wheels (21, 31) may be drive wheels, and the left and right rear wheels (22, 32) may be driven wheels that are not rotationally controlled.
In addition, encoders (not shown) are provided on the left and right wheels of the drive wheels (21, 31), respectively, and the travel distance of the vehicle is measured by the rotation speed, rotation direction, rotation position, and rotation speed of the wheels to control traveling. May be. The encoder corresponds to a speed detection unit 60 described later.

The communication unit 54 is a part that transmits / receives data to / from the management server 5 via the network 6. As described above, it is preferable to have a function of connecting to the network 6 by wireless communication and communicating with the management server 5.
For example, when an abnormal state occurs and the notification process is executed, the communication unit 54 arranges the notification information including the occurrence of the abnormal state, the occurrence date and time of the abnormal state, and the occurrence position at a position different from the autonomous traveling device. To the management server 5.
The notification information may be transmitted to a terminal owned by a person in charge at a position different from that of the autonomous mobile device, and may be transmitted to at least one or both of the management server and the terminal.
In addition, although it is necessary to set in advance where the transmission destination is, it may be possible to change or add the transmission destination based on the contents of the abnormal state in accordance with the operation mode of the vehicle. .

The camera 55 is a part that mainly captures an image of a predetermined space including a front space in the traveling direction of the vehicle, and the image to be captured may be a still image or a moving image. The captured image is stored in the storage unit 70 as input image data 71 and transferred to the management server 5 in response to a request from the management server 5.
Moreover, you may provide not only one camera 55 but multiple units | sets. For example, four cameras may be fixedly installed to shoot the front, left, right, and rear of the vehicle body, and the shooting direction of each camera may be changed. You may prepare.
When the vehicle travels outdoors and the weather is good and the shooting area is sufficiently bright, the human body, obstacles, road conditions, etc. are detected by analyzing the images taken by the camera.

The image recognition unit 56 is a part that recognizes an object included in the image data (input image data 71) captured by the camera 55. For example, an object included in image data is extracted, and when the extracted object is an object having a predetermined characteristic of the human body, the object is recognized as a human body. Further, the recognized human body image data (human body image) is compared with the person registration information stored in advance in the storage unit 70 to determine whether or not the human body image can match the person registered in advance. . The image recognition process may use existing image recognition technology.
An object to be recognized is not limited to a human body, and an obstacle such as a wall, a pillar, a step, an animal, or a narrow passage may be recognized.

The obstacle detection unit 57 is a part that detects an object (obstacle) mainly using information acquired from the distance detection unit 51. In particular, the position of the object whose distance is detected by the distance detection unit 51 in the obstacle determination area and the direction of the position where the object exists with respect to the traveling direction are detected.
For example, the distance detector 51 detects the presence of an obstacle at the position of the measuring point where the reflected light is received and the distance is calculated.
In addition, as described above, since the distances to a plurality of measurement points are calculated, the size, position, shape, and distance to the obstacles of the obstacles are acquired from the position information of the measurement points for which the distances have been calculated. The

Furthermore, if the scanning direction of the laser at the center in the scanning direction of the laser shown in FIG. 6A is the traveling direction of the vehicle, the position of the station where the obstacle is detected and the scanning direction of the laser From the relationship, it can be determined whether the detected obstacle is in the right direction, the left direction, or just in the traveling direction with respect to the traveling direction.
In addition, as a reference for determining the direction in which the obstacle exists, the traveling direction of the vehicle can be set to zero degrees, and the angle of the position where the obstacle exists can be calculated. That is, it is possible to detect a direction in which an obstacle exists in the traveling direction.

In addition to the position, distance, and direction with respect to the traveling direction, the interval between the plurality of measurement points (inter-measurement distance Ws) is calculated for each measurement point at a different position in the laser scanning region.
Information about these detected stations (for example, station number, distance to station, position, direction, distance between stations) is stored in the storage unit 70 as obstacle information 77 as will be described later. Is done.
However, since the obstacle information 77 is always acquired even while the vehicle is traveling, it is updated every predetermined time. Further, information (size, shape, position, distance, direction, etc.) of obstacles existing at the positions of the measurement points is generated from the information of the plurality of measurement points.

  By using the distance to each station detected as described above, the station or obstacle direction with respect to the traveling direction, the number of stations in a predetermined area, etc., the change of the traveling direction of the vehicle and speed control If it is determined that it is not necessary to decelerate even if an obstacle is found in the traveling direction, the vehicle continues traveling without decelerating.

The position information acquisition unit 58 is a part that acquires information (latitude, longitude, etc.) indicating the current position of the vehicle. For example, the current position information 73 may be acquired using GPS (Global Position System). .
While comparing the acquired current position information 73 and route information 74 stored in advance in the storage unit 70, the direction in which the vehicle should travel is determined, and the vehicle is allowed to travel autonomously.
In order to make the vehicle autonomously travel, it is preferable to use information obtained from all of the distance detection unit 51, the camera 55, the obstacle detection unit 57, and the position information acquisition unit 58, or from at least one of them. You may make it run autonomously using the obtained information.

  Further, as the position information acquisition unit 58, other currently used satellite positioning systems may be used as in the case of GPS. For example, using Japan's Quasi-Zenith Satellite System (QZSS), Russian GLONASS (Global Navigation Satellite System), EU Galileo, China Hokuto, India IRNSS (Indian Regional Navigational Satellite System) Also good.

The rechargeable battery 59 is a part that supplies power to each functional element of the vehicle 1, and is a part that mainly supplies power for performing a travel function, a distance detection function, an image recognition function, a collision detection function, and a communication function. It is.
For example, rechargeable batteries such as lithium ion batteries, nickel metal hydride batteries, Ni-Cd batteries, lead batteries, and various fuel cells are used.
In addition, a battery remaining amount detection unit (not shown) is provided to detect the remaining capacity (battery remaining amount) of the rechargeable battery, and whether or not to return to a predetermined charging facility based on the detected battery remaining amount. When the remaining battery level is less than the predetermined remaining level, the battery may be automatically returned to the charging facility.

  The speed detection unit 60 is a part that detects the speed during travel of the vehicle 1 and mainly corresponds to an encoder attached to the wheel 53. The CPU acquires speed information from the speed detection unit 60 in real time, and controls the traveling control unit 52 according to the situation to accelerate or decelerate.

  The monitoring information acquisition unit 61 is a part that acquires information on a predetermined monitoring target. For example, the monitoring information acquisition unit 61 acquires information collected by the vehicle autonomously traveling in a predetermined region or information on the traveling state of the vehicle. And stored as transmission monitoring information 75. What is necessary is just to provide a thermometer, a hygrometer, a microphone, a gas detection apparatus etc. as a device corresponded to the monitoring information acquisition part 61, for example.

The inertial measurement unit 62 is a part that measures acceleration and angular velocity with respect to the three-dimensional space when the vehicle is traveling, and mainly measures the displacement caused by the traveling of the vehicle body to obtain information on the vehicle from information such as the measured acceleration. This is a part that detects the position, tilt, vibration, and the current traveling direction of the vehicle body.
The inertia measurement unit 62 mainly measures acceleration and angular velocity with respect to three axes of the vehicle in the vertical direction, the horizontal direction, and the front-rear direction. For example, an acceleration sensor that measures acceleration and a gyro sensor that measures angular velocity. And an inertial measurement unit (IMU: Inertia Measurement Unit) including at least one of a magnetic sensor for measuring the magnitude and direction of geomagnetism.
By using the measured acceleration and the magnitude and direction of the angular velocity, the traveling direction of the vehicle can be detected, and if the vehicle slips in a direction different from the traveling direction when the vehicle travels, the vehicle slips. The direction can be detected.

The area weight calculation unit 63 sets weights (also referred to as area weight values or weight values) of determination areas for detecting obstacles based on the traveling state of the vehicle 1 and information on the traveling direction to be traveled. It is a part to do.
For example, among all the determination areas for detecting obstacles, the determination criteria for detecting obstacles for a part of the areas having a predetermined width in the traveling direction in which the vehicle is going to travel is set to be more than the other areas. A high weight (for example, double weighting) is given.
As will be described later, the set weight is given to each divided area obtained by dividing the obstacle determination area into several areas.
In addition, the area weight value given to each divided area is given a different value depending on the running state of the vehicle, for example, when going straight, turning, detecting side slip, changing the course to the left or right direction, etc. Different values are assigned in advance to the respective divided regions.

What kind of area weight value is assigned to each divided area corresponding to the running state of the vehicle may be stored in the storage unit 70 in advance. An example of the region weight value 79 is shown in FIGS.
For example, when the vehicle is going straight ahead, the area weight value 79 set in advance as the weight for straight ahead may be read from the storage unit 70 and set as the current weight of each divided area.
When the inertia measuring unit 62 detects that the vehicle has skid to the right, the right skid weight value 79 stored in advance in the storage unit 70 is read and the current weighting of each divided region is read. Can be set as
In the present invention, the level of weighting is not set based on the distance from the front surface of the vehicle, but is set based on the traveling direction of the vehicle.
The area weight value 79 of each divided area may be fixedly stored in advance, but an appropriate weight using a predetermined calculation formula based on the actual traveling speed, acceleration, angular speed, etc. of the vehicle. A value may be set each time.

In addition to the above-described components, a collision detection unit that detects that the vehicle 1 has collided with, touched, or approached an obstacle while traveling may be provided. For example, a contact sensor or a non-contact sensor including a pressure sensitive switch, a micro switch, an ultrasonic sensor, an infrared distance measuring sensor, or the like is used.
One collision detection unit may be provided, but a plurality of collision detection units are preferably provided at predetermined positions on the front, side, and rear of the vehicle body in order to detect collisions from the front, side, and rear of the vehicle body.
For example, it is preferable that a plurality of collision detection units are attached at a predetermined distance from each other between the elastic member constituting the bumper and the vehicle body.
When the collision detection unit detects a collision with an obstacle after the traveling control unit 52 executes the vehicle deceleration process, the traveling control unit 52 stops the vehicle body so that the vehicle body is not damaged. Execute the process. Further, the CPU may recognize the position where the obstacle exists based on the signal output from the collision detection unit. Further, based on the recognized position information of the obstacle, the CPU stops the vehicle body or determines a direction to travel next while avoiding the obstacle.

  The storage unit 70 is a part that stores information and programs necessary for executing each function of the autonomous mobile device 1, and is a semiconductor storage element such as ROM, RAM, flash memory, a storage device such as HDD, SSD, and the like. These storage media are used. The storage unit 70 includes, for example, input image data 71, measurement distance information 72, current position information 73, route information 74, transmission monitoring information 75, set speed information 76, obstacle information 77, determination area information 78, area weight values. 79 and the like are stored.

  The input image data 71 is image data taken by the camera 55. When there are a plurality of cameras, it is stored for each camera. The image data may be either a still image or a moving image. The image data is used for detecting a suspicious person, detecting an abnormal state, determining a course of the vehicle, and the like, and is transmitted to the management server 5 as one of the transmission monitoring information 75.

The measurement distance information 72 is the light reception distance L0 calculated by the information acquired from the distance detection unit 51 as described above. One light receiving distance L0 means a distance measured at one measuring point in a predetermined distance measuring region.
Further, this information 72 is stored for each measuring point belonging to the predetermined distance measuring area, and is stored in association with the position information of each measuring point. For example, when there are m measuring points in the horizontal direction and n measuring points in the vertical direction, the light receiving distances L0 corresponding to the total of m × n measuring points are stored.

  In addition, if there is an object (obstacle, road surface, pillar, etc.) that reflects the laser in the direction of each measurement point and the reflected light from the object can be received, the light receiving distance L0 to that object is stored. The However, since no reflected light is received when there is no object in the direction of the measurement point, information indicating that measurement could not be performed may be stored as the measurement point distance information 72, for example, instead of the light reception distance L0. .

  The current position information 73 is information indicating the current position of the vehicle acquired by the position information acquisition unit 58. For example, it is information consisting of latitude and longitude acquired using GPS. This information is used, for example, to determine the course of the vehicle.

  The route information 74 is information that predetermines the travel route of the vehicle body, and stores a map of the route to travel in advance. For example, when a moving route or area is fixedly determined in advance, it is stored as fixed information from the beginning. However, when it is necessary to change the route, information transmitted from the management server 5 via the network 6 may be stored as new route information 74.

  The transmission monitoring information 75 is information of various monitoring targets acquired by the monitoring information acquisition unit 61 during travel and stop, and is information transmitted to the management server 5 via the network 6. This information includes, for example, input image data 71 photographed by the camera 55, travel distance, travel route, environment data (temperature, humidity, radiation, gas, rainfall, voice, ultraviolet light, etc.), terrain data, obstacle data, Includes road surface information and warning information.

The set speed information 76 corresponds to the travel speed of the vehicle, and the current travel speed is set based on this information.
For example, when traveling on a route without an obstacle, a relatively high speed is set in the set speed information 76, and the travel control unit 52 moves the wheels so as to travel at the speed set in the set speed information 76. 53 is controlled.
When it is determined that it is necessary to decelerate by detecting an obstacle or a step, a relatively slow speed is set in the set speed information 76.

  The obstacle information 77 is information on each measuring point and the detected obstacle, and is based on the distance from the current position to the obstacle, the shape, position, direction, size, color, height difference, inclination angle, etc. of the obstacle. Information. For example, the distance detection unit 51 acquires the shape and size of the obstacle, and the distance to the obstacle, and stores them as a part of the obstacle information 77. The camera 55, the image recognition unit 56, and the obstacle detection unit 57 also acquire information that identifies the obstacle.

FIG. 7A shows an example of information regarding each measuring point in the obstacle information 77.
Here, a station number, a distance to a station, a position, a direction, a distance Ws between stations, and the like are stored for each station. Since these pieces of information are acquired while traveling autonomously, they change every moment.
The position of the station is stored as, for example, two-dimensional or three-dimensional spatial coordinates, and the direction may be stored as an angle with respect to the traveling direction, or stored as information such as left or right with respect to the traveling direction. Also good.
The inter-station distance Ws means the distance between the stations where the distance is measured, and the coordinates of each station are known in advance, and can be obtained by a predetermined distance calculation. The distance between adjacent stations is constant and relatively short.
For a plurality of measuring points whose distances are measured, only relatively short distances between the measuring points Ws are calculated, and when the plurality of measuring points are concentrated in an area having a predetermined spread, It is determined that an object exists in the area.

However, for a plurality of measuring points whose distances are measured, there are many relatively long distances between the measuring points Ws, and the plurality of measuring points do not exist densely in one area, that is, a plurality of measuring points. If the stations are scattered at a predetermined distance or more, there is little possibility that an object exists at each station, and there is a possibility of false detection, or grass In addition, it is considered that there is an object that can be run on the vehicle without any problem.
Therefore, as will be described later, when there are a plurality of measurement points concentrated in a predetermined range, there is a high possibility that an object exists in the range. Set high.
On the contrary, when a plurality of measurement points are dispersed at a predetermined distance or more, it is considered that there is a high possibility of erroneous detection, and the weight of the divided area including those measurement points is set low. .
By setting such weighting, the accuracy of object detection can be improved and unnecessary deceleration processing can be reduced.

The determination area information 78 means information on an area for detecting an object such as an obstacle (hereinafter referred to as an obstacle determination area or a determination area), and the position of each divided area obtained by dividing the obstacle determination area into a plurality of areas. It is information that sets the size. This is mainly information relating to an area where an object can be detected by LIDAR corresponding to the distance detection unit 51.
For example, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the laser is scanned two-dimensionally or three-dimensionally, and the three-dimensional space ahead of the traveling direction becomes a determination region for detecting an obstacle.

However, since there is a limit to the distance at which the reflected light can be detected depending on the performance of the emitted laser, a fan-shaped area within the range of the predetermined detection distance L becomes the determination area.
In addition, when light is scanned in the horizontal direction on the ground with the light emission position, that is, the position of the light emitting unit 51a as the center, and a horizontal fan-shaped area where the light can reach is defined as an obstacle determination area, The divided area is an area obtained by dividing the obstacle determination area into a plurality of fan shapes having a predetermined central angle.
In addition, as the determination area, a fan-shaped area with a traveling direction in the center and within 180 degrees ahead of the traveling direction may be set in advance, but in consideration of stationary turning, direction change, etc. An area exceeding 180 degrees including the area may be used as the determination area.

FIG. 9 shows an example of the determination area.
FIG. 9A shows a determination area 78a which is a sector shape centered on the position of the LIDAR arranged on the front surface of the vehicle 1 and opened at an angle of 270 degrees.
This determination area 78a has a fan-shaped shape that is opened by an angle of 135 degrees to the left and right with respect to the traveling direction of the vehicle 1, and an area that is opened 45 degrees behind the vehicle 1 is also set as the determination area. .
In FIG. 9A, the determination area 78a is divided into nine areas (A1 to A9).
Each divided region is a sector-shaped region having a central angle (also referred to as a detection angle) of 30 degrees, and a length corresponding to the radius of each sector corresponds to the detection distance L.
When an object exists in any of the nine divided regions, the distance to the object and the position are detected.

Also, as a general rule, the vehicle is stopped if the distance to the detected object is shorter than the predetermined stop determination distance, and the vehicle speed is reduced if the distance to the detected object is shorter than the predetermined deceleration determination distance. .
However, in the present invention, weights (importance) are given to each divided region of the determination region based on the vehicle's future traveling direction, the current traveling state, or the position of the detected object, and the object is detected. The weight of the divided area to which the measurement point belongs is added to the number of measurement points, the importance of the detected object is determined, and the vehicle speed control is performed.
For example, even if an object is detected in the determination area, if the divided area where it is determined that the object exists is an area that does not interfere with the progress of the vehicle and has a low weight, even if the object is Even if it is within the deceleration judgment distance, the running is continued without performing the deceleration process.

  For example, in FIG. 9A, when the direction of the divided area A5 of the determination area is the vehicle traveling direction, if an object is detected in the divided area A2, the vehicle temporarily stops and turns rightward. Is set such that the weights of the divided areas A1, A2, and A3 in the right direction of the vehicle are larger than those of the other divided areas, and the distance to the object existing in the divided area A2 is the divided area A2. Even if it is longer than the deceleration determination distance, deceleration processing is performed.

FIG. 7B shows an example of the determination area information 78.
Here, information of nine divided areas (A1 to A9) shown in FIG. 9 is shown.
For each divided area, information such as a position and coordinates for specifying the area is stored in advance.
For example, with respect to the divided area having the area number A1, a fan-shaped outline having a determination width W1, a detection angle α1, and a position of the light emitting unit 51a of the distance measuring unit 51 for specifying the sector shape as an origin is shown. XY coordinate values and the like are stored in advance.
As shown in FIG. 10C, which will be described later, the determination width W1 corresponds to the width of the fan-shaped lateral direction, and a numerical value obtained by adding a predetermined margin width ma to the vehicle width W0 is set in advance. .
Similarly, information for identifying the other divided areas (A2 to A9) is set in advance.

Each divided area included in the determination area 78a may be fixedly set in advance to the same size and shape, but is not limited thereto.
The size of each divided area may be changed in real time in consideration of the traveling speed of the vehicle, the traveling direction, the stoppable distance, and the like.
Further, the number of divided areas is not limited to nine, and the angle of the determination area 78a is not limited to 270 degrees.
However, in the following embodiments, in order to facilitate explanation, the size and shape of each divided region are the same, and the number of divided regions is nine.

The area weight value 79 means the weight value of each divided area included in the determination area for detecting the presence / absence of an obstacle, and indicates the importance of detecting the obstacle in each divided area set based on the traveling state of the vehicle body. Show. The area weight value of each divided area is set according to the traveling state of the vehicle.
Based on the current traveling direction detected by the inertia measuring unit 62 or the traveling direction to be traveled in the traveling route determined in the route information 74, the control unit 50 performs the vehicle body movement for each divided region. A region weight value is set in consideration of the subsequent traveling direction.
For example, as shown in FIG. 11 described later, relatively large area weight values are set in the divided area A5 including the traveling direction of the vehicle body and in some divided areas in the vicinity of the divided area A5.

In the present invention, the presence of an object is determined based on the size of the area weight value set for each divided area, and the subsequent deceleration process or stop process of the vehicle body is performed.
Mainly, when it is determined that there is an object whose distance is detected in a divided area where a relatively large area weight value is set, the vehicle body deceleration process or stop process is performed in accordance with the set area weight value. .
On the other hand, when it is determined that there is no object in the divided area where the relatively large area weight value is set, the vehicle body deceleration process and the stop process are not performed.
Further, even when it is determined that there is an object whose distance is detected in a divided region other than the divided region in which a relatively large region weight value is set, the vehicle body deceleration process and the stop process are not performed.
Thus, for example, even if an object exists near the vehicle body, if the object exists in a divided area where a relatively large area weight value is not set, the vehicle continues to travel without performing deceleration processing of the vehicle body. be able to.

The above-described divided areas in which relatively large area weight values are set include a divided area A that includes the traveling direction of the vehicle body and a divided area that includes both of the divided areas A, particularly when going straight ahead. Is preferred.
Alternatively, the largest region weight value may be set for the divided region including the traveling direction of the vehicle body, and the smaller region weight value may be set for the other divided regions as the distance from the traveling direction increases.
As a result, when there is an object in the direction of travel, it is possible to reliably perform deceleration processing, etc., and when there is an object in a divided area that does not interfere with the progress of the vehicle body, unnecessary deceleration or stop It is possible to continue traveling quickly without doing so.

FIG. 7C and FIG. 8A show an example of setting values of region weight values.
Here, as shown in FIG. 9A, it is assumed that the determination region 78a is divided into nine, and the weight value Mn is one of three levels (M1, M2, M3) for each divided region An. Is set.
Of the three weight values Mn, M1 has the highest weight and M3 has the lowest weight, and M1>M2> M3.
As a specific example of the weight value Mn, a multiplication factor for multiplying the number of measurement points whose distances are detected in the divided area may be employed. For example, M1 means 3 times and M2 means 2 times. 2, 0.5 which means 0.5 times may be set in advance as M3.

For example, when the weight value of a certain divided area A3 is M1 and there are 10 points where the distance is detected among the points in this divided area A3, the weight after weighting is performed in the divided area A3. The number of measurement points is 10 × 3 = 30.
In addition, when the weight value of the divided area A6 is M3 and there are eight measuring points whose distances are detected in the divided area A6, the number of measuring points after weighting in the divided area A6 is 8 ×. 0.5 = 4.
It is determined that the greater the number of station points after weighting, the higher the possibility of the existence of the object, and the smaller the number of station points after weighting, the lower the possibility of the existence of the object.
However, the determination of the existence of an object is actually made comprehensively using not only the number of measurement points but also the distance from the vehicle, the direction with respect to the traveling direction, the position of the measurement point, a camera image, an ultrasonic sensor, etc. Is done.

FIG. 7 (c) shows an example of the straight weight value Mn when the vehicle is going straight ahead and the turn weight value Mn when turning right and left. Yes.
Further, FIG. 8A shows that the vehicle is about to slide to the right by the inertial measuring unit 62 when it is about to travel in the right licking direction than the straight traveling direction, and when it is about to travel in the left licking direction. One example of the weight value Mn when the vehicle is detected and when the vehicle has slipped to the left is shown.

FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram of an embodiment of one divided area of the determination area shown in FIG.
FIG. 10A shows a divided area A5 in the traveling direction when the vehicle 1 is traveling straight.
Here, the divided area A5 is a fan-shaped area in which the obstacle detection distance is L and the detection angle is α.
Further, the detection angle α of the divided area A5 is an angle opened by α / 2 in the left-right direction with the traveling direction as the center.
The detection distance L is a distance at which the reflected light can be detected, and is determined by the intensity of the laser light emitted from the light emitting unit 51a, and has a length of about 25 m, for example.
Further, if the determination area 78a including nine divided areas (A1 to A9) has an angle of 270 degrees, the detection angle α of one divided area is 30 degrees.

FIG. 10B shows an example in which one divided area A5 is classified into three according to the distance from the vehicle. The range within the shortest distance L1 from the front of the vehicle is defined as the stop region a1, the range outside the stop region a1 and within the next shortest distance L2 (> L1) is defined as the deceleration region a2, and is outside the deceleration region a2. A range within the detection distance L (> L2) is referred to as a normal region a3.
These distances L1 and L2 are preferably set to predetermined values in advance, but may be changed each time in relation to the traveling speed of the vehicle. For example, when traveling at a relatively low speed, the distances L1 and L2 may be set relatively short.

The stop area a1 is an area where the vehicle is stopped when an obstacle is detected in this area, and for example, L1 = 1 m.
The deceleration area a2 is an area where the traveling speed of the vehicle is decelerated when an obstacle is detected in this area. For example, L2 = about 5 m.
In addition, how much deceleration is performed is determined by calculating the maximum braking distance of the vehicle body on the frozen road surface, for example, stopping distance when driving at 5 km / h Since it is about 3m, it will decelerate from a distance of 5m before it to about 2.5km / h. When decelerating to 2.5km / h, the stopping distance is about 1m. The normal area a3 is an area in which normal travel is continued even when an obstacle is detected in this area, and in principle, travels at the same speed as the travel speed immediately before the obstacle is detected.

Also, the three areas (a1, a2, a3) shown in FIG. 10B show fixed areas when weighting is not performed, but when weighting is applied to divided areas, the weight value Mn Correspondingly, the size of each region may be changed.
For example, when the largest weight value M1 is set for the divided region, the distance L1 that defines the stop region a1 and the distance L2 that defines the deceleration region a2 are changed to longer values, and the size of the stop region a1 and the deceleration region a2 is increased. The size of the normal area a3 may be reduced by increasing the size.
Thereby, when an obstacle is detected in the divided area where the large weight value M1 is set, the vehicle can be decelerated and stopped more safely and reliably.

Conversely, when the smallest weight value M3 is set in the divided area, the distances L1 and L2 are changed to shorter values, the sizes of the stop area a1 and the deceleration area a2 are reduced, and the size of the normal area a3. May be increased.
As a result, even when an obstacle is detected in the divided area, it is possible to increase the possibility that the vehicle can travel at a normal speed by increasing the range of the normal area a3. Except when an object is detected, unnecessary deceleration processing and stop processing can be prevented.

FIG. 10C shows another embodiment of the divided area.
In FIG. 9 and FIG. 10A, the determination area 78a is equally divided into a plurality of divided areas. Here, the size of one divided area is determined in consideration of the width of the vehicle. An example is shown.
In FIG. 10C, the width of the vehicle is W0, the detection distance is L, and both are constant values determined in advance.
Further, a predetermined margin width ma is set in the left-right direction of the vehicle 1, and the width W1 of the divided region in the direction perpendicular to the traveling direction of the vehicle is determined.
Here, W1 = W0 + 2ma.
When the width W1 of the divided area is determined, the detection angle α is also determined by a predetermined calculation formula.

The margin width ma is the length of the vehicle body width W0, the size of the predicted swing width when the vehicle may swing left and right when traveling straight in the traveling direction, and the road surface to be traveled. The predicted slip width when there is a possibility that the wheel slides in the left / right direction depending on the state, and the predicted left / right movement when the vehicle may move in the left / right direction when suddenly stopped The distance is set in advance in consideration of the size of the distance, the traveling speed of the vehicle, or the way of turning. Alternatively, the margin width ma may be changed each time based on the actual driving situation, road surface condition, weather, road surface inclination, and the like.
For example, when the vehicle width W0 is set to 0.8 m, the margin width ma may be set to about 0.3 m, and the width W1 of the divided region A5 in the direction in which the vehicle body goes straight may be set to about 1.4 m.

Hereinafter, setting examples of area weight values set in accordance with the running state and some examples of obstacle detection will be described.
Example 1
Here, an example of the area weight value set in the divided area when going straight and the obstacle detection is shown.
FIG. 11 illustrates the weight value Mn during straight travel shown in FIG. 7C for nine divided regions (A1 to A9).
Assuming that the traveling direction of the vehicle 1 when traveling straight is the direction of the divided region A5, it is most necessary to avoid a collision when an obstacle is found in the region A5 when traveling straight, so the weight value of the region A5 Is the highest M1.

Further, during straight traveling, the weight value of the two divided areas (A4, A6) adjacent to the divided area A5 is set to M2, which is a lower value than the area A5.
This is because when a moving object is detected in the divided areas A4 and A6 during straight traveling, there is a high possibility of collision with the vehicle.
Further, when traveling straight in the direction of the area A5, it is considered that the possibility of collision is low even if there are obstacles in other divided areas (A1, A2, A3, A7, A8, A9). . Therefore, the weight value of these divided areas (A1, A2, A3, A7, A8, A9) is set to the lowest value M3.
By setting such a weight value, when there are obstacles in the divided area with a high weight value, the number of stations where the distance is detected is multiplied by a high magnification. Existence will be detected more reliably.

For example, as shown in FIG. 9B, when the vehicle is traveling straight in the direction of the area A5, if the distance is detected for a part of the points in the areas A5 and A6, the points in the areas A5 and A6 are detected. Is multiplied by the weight values (M1, M2) to calculate the number of measurement points.
Since the weight value M1 of the area A5 is the highest and the weight value M2 of the area A6 is the next highest, the number of measurement points larger than the actual number of measurement points is calculated. More than the predetermined determined number of measurement points, it is more reliably determined that the obstacle OB1 exists in the vicinity of the boundary between the areas A5 and A6.
Further, since the distance L0 to the obstacle OB1 is also calculated by the distance detection unit 51, when the distance L0 is shorter than a predetermined deceleration determination distance, a predetermined deceleration process is performed.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 11B, it is assumed that the obstacle OB1 is detected in the divided area A8 in which the area weight value is set to M3 when the vehicle goes straight in the area A5 direction. In this case, in the area A8, a fixed number of points where the distance is detected is detected. If the weight value M3 is 0.5, the number of points taking the weight value into consideration is the actual number of points. Calculated as half.
Therefore, when the number of measured points calculated in the region A8 is smaller than the determined number of measured points where an obstacle is present, even if the actual number of measured points in the region A8 is larger than the determined number of measured points. In A8, it is determined that the obstacle OB1 does not exist.
That is, in the case of FIG. 11B, the obstacle OB1 exists on the left side with respect to the traveling direction of the vehicle, but the obstacle OB1 exists at a position that does not interfere with the traveling of the vehicle. By determining that the obstacle OB1 does not exist, normal traveling can be continued without decelerating or stopping.

(Example 2)
Here, an example of the area weight value when turning right and an example of obstacle detection will be shown.
When the vehicle is going to turn left or right while standing still, there is a high possibility that it will collide with an object that exists in the turning direction, and may collide with an object that exists in the direction opposite to the turning direction. Is considered low.
Therefore, when turning left or right, a relatively large area weight value is set in a plurality of divided areas existing in the direction in which the vehicle body travels by turning in the obstacle determination area. A relatively small area weight value is set for other divided areas in the direction opposite to the direction in which the vehicle body travels.

In the area weight value 79 of FIG. 7C, the weight value Mn when turning right and turning left is shown. When turning right, the weight values of the three divided areas (A1, A2, A3) are shown. Is the highest M1, the weight value of the two divided regions (A4, A5) is the next highest M2, and the weight value of the other divided regions (A6, A7, A8, A9) is the lowest M3.
FIG. 12A illustrates a setting example of the area weight value shown in FIG. 7C that is set when the vehicle starts a right turn.
When the vehicle turns to the right at the stationary current position, there is a possibility of traveling toward the right divided area with respect to the current position. Therefore, the three divided areas (A1, A2, A3) in the right direction Set the highest weight value.
Thereby, after starting a right turn, it is possible to more reliably detect obstacles existing in the three divided areas (A1, A2, A3) which are positions that are likely to interfere with the progress of the vehicle. Become.

FIGS. 12B and 12C show an embodiment when an obstacle is detected after starting a right turn.
FIG. 12B shows a case where the obstacle OB1 is detected in the divided area A7 in which the lowest weight value M3 is set.
Here, when the weight value M3 is set to 0.5, by weighting, the number of points after weighting is calculated as a numerical value smaller than the actual number of points of the point where the distance is detected. When the calculated number of measurement points becomes smaller than the predetermined determination number of measurement points, it is determined that the obstacle OB1 does not exist.
That is, even if the obstacle OB1 exists in the divided area A7 after starting the right turn, it is determined that there is no obstacle OB1 because the obstacle OB1 does not give a great obstacle to the running of the vehicle. By doing so, it is possible to continue the right turn and the subsequent travel without unnecessary deceleration or stopping.

On the other hand, FIG. 12C shows a case where an obstacle OB2 is detected in the divided area A2 in which the highest weight value M1 is set.
In this case, it is considered that the obstacle OB2 is likely to interfere with the right turn and the subsequent driving of the vehicle.
Here, the number of measurement points where the distance is detected in the region A2 is calculated as a numerical value larger than the actual number of measurement points by weighting.
When the calculated number of measurement points becomes larger than the predetermined determination number of measurement points, it is more reliably determined that the obstacle OB2 exists in the area A2.
Therefore, by considering the distance L0 to the obstacle OB2, the process of decelerating or stopping the subsequent vehicle progress is performed.

(Example 3)
Here, an example of the area weight value when starting to proceed in the right lick direction and obstacle detection will be shown.
FIG. 13 illustrates the weight value Mn when starting to advance in the right lick direction shown in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 13A, it is assumed that the vehicle 1 tries to start traveling in the direction of the divided area A4 in the right licking direction among the nine divided areas.
In this case, the weight value of the divided area A4 in the traveling direction is set to the highest M1, and the weight values of the divided areas (A3, A5) adjacent to the area A4 are set to the next highest M2.
This is because when there is an obstacle in the division area A4 that is the traveling direction, the obstacle is reliably detected and the deceleration process and the stop process are performed, and the obstacle extends over both the division areas A4 and A3. This is because an obstacle that extends over both of the divided areas A4 and A5 can be reliably detected.
The other regions (A1, A2, A6 to A9) are assigned the lowest weight value M3 because there is a high possibility that the vehicle will not interfere with the vehicle even if there are obstacles.

FIGS. 13B and 13C show an embodiment in the case where an obstacle is detected after starting to proceed in the right licking direction.
FIG. 13B shows a case where an obstacle OB1 is detected in the divided area A7 in which the lowest weight value M3 is set.
In the divided area A7, the number of stations from which distances are detected is calculated as a numerical value smaller than the actual number of stations by weighting the weight value M3.
When the calculated number of measurement points is smaller than the predetermined determination number of measurement points, it is determined that the obstacle OB1 does not exist.
That is, even if the obstacle OB1 exists in the area A7 that is the left direction of the vehicle after starting to proceed in the right licking direction, the obstacle OB1 will hinder the vehicle in the right licking direction. Since it is considered that there is no obstacle, it is possible to prevent unnecessary deceleration and stop by determining that there is no obstacle OB1, and to continue traveling in the right lick direction.

On the other hand, FIG. 13C shows a case where an obstacle OB2 is detected in a portion that extends over both the divided areas A3 and A4 for which a high weight value is set.
Since the divided area A4 is the traveling direction, the obstacle OB2 is considered to have a high possibility of hindering the subsequent traveling of the vehicle.
Here, in the areas A3 and A4, the number of measurement points where the distance is detected is calculated as a numerical value larger than the actual number of measurement points by weighting the weight values M1 and M2, respectively.
When the calculated number of measurement points is larger than the predetermined determination number of measurement points, it is determined that the obstacle OB2 exists in both the areas A3 and A4.
Therefore, the deceleration process or stop process of the vehicle is performed by considering the distance L0 to the obstacle OB2.
In FIG. 13, the case of proceeding in the right lick direction has been described. However, in the case of proceeding in the left lick direction, the direction only changes from right to left, and similarly, weighting is performed when traveling in the left lick direction. Thus, obstacle detection and speed control are performed.

Example 4
Here, an example of the area weight value when a right side slip is detected and an example of obstacle detection are shown.
When the road surface is wet or frozen, it may slide in a direction different from the traveling direction in which the vehicle is actually going to travel.
In other words, if an object slides in an unintended direction, it is necessary to decelerate and stop if there is an object in the slipped direction, but it is necessary to perform deceleration etc. even if an object exists in the opposite direction to the slipped direction. It is not considered.
Therefore, when the inertia measuring unit 62 detects that the vehicle body has slipped in a specific direction, a relatively large region weight is added to the plurality of divided regions existing in the direction in which the vehicle body advances due to the skid in the obstacle determination region. A value is set, and a relatively small area weight value is set for a plurality of divided areas existing in a direction opposite to the direction in which the vehicle body advances due to skidding.

FIG. 14 illustrates the weight value Mn when the right side slip shown in FIG. 8A is performed.
As shown in FIG. 14A, it is assumed that the vehicle 1 skids to the right while facing the direction of the divided area A5 that is the forward direction of the vehicle.
At this time, since the traveling direction of the vehicle is rightward, the weight value of the three divided areas (A1, A2, A3) in the right direction of the vehicle is set to M1, and the weight of the area A4 adjacent to the divided area A3 is set. The value is set to the next highest weight value M2, and the weight values of the other regions (A5 to A9) are set to the lowest weight value M3.
By weighting in this way, it is possible to reliably detect an obstacle present in the direction of the right side slip, and an obstacle present in the left direction opposite to the direction of the right side slip is detected by the right side slip even if it exists. It is considered that there will be few collisions, so avoid detection.

FIGS. 14B and 14C show an embodiment when an obstacle is detected when it is detected that the vehicle has slipped to the right.
FIG. 14B shows a case where an obstacle OB1 is detected in the divided area A7 in which the lowest weight value M3 is set.
In the divided area A7, the number of stations whose distances are detected is calculated as a numerical value smaller than the actual number of stations by weighting the weight value M3, and the calculated number of stations is smaller than the predetermined number of determined stations. If it is, it is determined that the obstacle OB1 does not exist.
Since the direction of the divided area A7 where the obstacle OB1 exists is significantly different from the direction in which the vehicle skids to the right, it is considered that the obstacle OB1 does not collide with the obstacle OB1.
Therefore, even if it is determined that the obstacle OB1 does not exist, the vehicle 1 is not hindered, and it is not necessary to perform a deceleration process or a process of stopping a skid.

On the other hand, FIG. 14C shows a case where an obstacle OB2 is detected in the divided area A2 in which the highest weight value M1 is set.
In the divided area A2, the number of stations where the distance is detected is calculated as a larger numerical value than the actual number of stations by weighting the weight value M1.
When the calculated number of measurement points is larger than the predetermined determination number of measurement points, it is determined that the obstacle OB2 exists in the area A2.
Therefore, it is considered that the obstacle OB2 is highly likely to collide with a side slip of the vehicle. Therefore, a process for preventing the side slip of the vehicle is performed in consideration of the distance to the obstacle OB2. To prevent skidding, for example, the vehicle travels in the direction opposite to the obstacle or travels away from the obstacle.
In FIG. 14, the case where the skidding is performed in the right direction has been described. However, if the skidding is performed in the left direction, only the direction of the skidding changes from right to left, and weighting is performed when the skidding is performed in the left direction. Thus, obstacle detection and speed control are performed.

(Example 5)
Here, an embodiment is shown in which the area weight value is changed depending on the positions of a plurality of measurement points from which distances have been detected.
FIG. 15 shows another setting example of the area weight value at the start of the right turn.
Before attempting to start a right turn, perform obstacle detection processing for the entire judgment area and reset the area weight value in consideration of the arrangement and density of multiple detected obstacles. explain.
FIG. 15A shows the same setting example as the area weight value at the start of the right turn shown in FIGS. 7C and 12A.

When the vehicle tries to make a right turn, it stops once, and before actually making a right turn, the laser is determined two-dimensionally and three-dimensionally for all the determination regions 78a (divided regions A1 to A9). Obstacle detection processing is performed by scanning light.
At this time, the position of the station where the distance is detected is stored.

FIGS. 15B and 15C show an example of obstacle detection when starting a right turn.
FIG. 15B shows that in the divided areas A2 and A3, the distance between the stations where the distances are detected is considerably short, and the stations where the distances are detected are within a predetermined range. It shows the case where it exists densely.
In FIG. 15B, only four measurement points are shown for ease of explanation. However, if distances are detected at all the measurement points existing in the area AS surrounding these four points, these four measurement points are shown. It is considered that there is a high possibility that the obstacle OB1 exists in the area AS surrounding the point.

Therefore, the distance between the stations is calculated for each of the plurality of stations whose distances are detected, and the variance of the calculated distance between the stations is not large, and the plurality of stations is about 10 cm, for example. If it is included in the range of the constant value, it is determined that there is a high possibility that the obstacle OB1 exists in the area AS, and the weight value M1 of the divided areas A2 and A3 including the area AS is determined. The setting is changed to a higher value M11 (M11> M1).
As a result, the weight values of the divided areas A2 and A3 are set to be higher, so that obstacles existing in these areas (A2, A3) can be detected more reliably.

On the other hand, FIG. 15 (c) shows a case where there are a plurality of measurement points whose distances are detected in the divided areas A2 and A3, but the measurement points are located far apart.
In FIG. 15 (c), four stations are shown as the stations from which the distance is detected. However, the distance between these four stations is considerably large, and the four stations are shown in FIG. Suppose that it could not be included in the predetermined area AS as shown in b).
For example, if the distance between each station is 20 cm or more and there is no other station where the distance is detected between the stations, each station is a dispersed isolated point. Therefore, it cannot be determined that one obstacle exists in the region including the four measurement points, and there may be different obstacles at the positions of the four measurement points.
Or if there are no other stations whose distances are detected around the four stations, an object that cannot be an obstacle, such as grass, may be detected, or there may be a false detection. obtain.
Therefore, as shown in FIG. 15C, when a plurality of stations whose distances are detected are detected in the divided area, the plurality of stations are detected in a dispersed state separated by a predetermined distance or more. If so, the weight value is not changed.

(Example 6)
FIG. 16 is an explanatory diagram of an embodiment in the case where weighting is performed on the determination region in the height direction.
When scanning the LIDAR in the vertical direction, it is preferable to divide the obstacle determination area into a plurality of areas in the height direction (vertical direction) in order to prevent erroneous detection of the ground as an obstacle.
Therefore, when the light is scanned in the direction perpendicular to the ground centering on the light emission position, and the vertical fan-shaped area where the light can reach is defined as the obstacle determination area, each divided area is determined as an obstacle determination. The area is a rectangular area divided into a plurality of areas in the vertical direction, and the area weight values are made different according to the height of each divided area from the ground.
For example, a smaller area weight value than the other divided areas is set in the divided area closest to the ground.

When the obstacle is detected by operating the LIDER of the distance detecting unit 51 three-dimensionally, the laser beam emitted from the light emitting unit 51a is scanned in the vertical direction in addition to the horizontal direction.
When the laser beam is scanned downward, the presence of the ground at a position several meters away from the vehicle is detected by reflecting the laser beam to the ground.
If the road on which the vehicle travels is always flat with no irregularities, the ground is always detected from a position several meters away when scanned downward. The distance information acquired from the measured station may be recognized as the ground and determined not to be an obstacle.

However, the road surface that actually travels outdoors has few flat roads, has irregularities and steps, and has upward and downward slopes.
Therefore, for example, when only the front wheel of the vehicle rides on a road surface with a protrusion, the laser emission direction is directed upward as compared to a flat road, and the road surface may not be detected.
In addition, when only the rear wheel of the vehicle rides on a road surface with a protrusion, the laser emission direction will be downward compared to a flat road, and the laser beam hitting the ground will increase, and more distances will be measured at more measuring points. Will be detected.
In other words, even if the distance is not detected when traveling on a flat road, the distance will be detected if the outgoing direction is downward, and the ground will be recognized when traveling on a flat road. For a station that does not exist, it may be determined that an obstacle exists at the position of the station even though the ground is detected.

In this case, there is a case where unnecessary deceleration processing is performed by recognizing the ground as an obstacle even though the rear wheel has only temporarily climbed on the road surface having the protrusion.
Therefore, in this embodiment, the determination area in the vertical direction is also weighted, the setting of the weight is changed according to the inclination of the vehicle in the vertical direction, and the detected ground is erroneously determined as an obstacle. The purpose is to reduce the amount of unnecessary deceleration processing.

FIG. 16A shows an example of weighting the determination area in the vertical direction when traveling on flat ground.
A LIDAR, which is a distance detection unit 51, is attached to the front upper portion of the vehicle 1, and laser light is emitted from the light emitting unit 51a to the front in the traveling direction, as shown in FIG. It is assumed that the laser beam is scanned three-dimensionally.
FIG. 16A is a cross-sectional view of the vehicle 1 as viewed from the lateral direction. When the laser beam is scanned in the vertical direction, for example, when the vertical scanning angle θ is 50 degrees, the laser beam is emitted downward. When the laser beam hits the ground and is emitted upward, the laser beam is irradiated toward the three-dimensional space above the vehicle.
Since the ground is not an obstacle, even if the distance is detected by receiving reflected light from the measurement points corresponding to the position of the ground when traveling on a flat ground, Exclude from obstacle detection.

Therefore, in FIG. 16A, in order not to detect the ground as an obstacle, the presence or absence of an obstacle is detected in a rectangular three-dimensional space parallel to the ground within the vertical laser irradiation range. The determination area.
The determination area shown in FIG. 16A is composed of three divided areas (A11, A12, A13) divided in the height direction, and the weight values of the divided areas are (W11, W12, W13). To do.
The magnitude relationship of the weight values is W11>W12> W13, and the weight value of the highest divided region is the largest value.
The divided area A11 at the highest position is a rectangular three-dimensional space parallel to the ground and having a height of H1, and when a distance is detected at a measurement point in the area A11, the weight value W11 is the largest numerical value. Therefore, the weighted number of measurement points is calculated as a numerical value larger than the number of measurement points where the distance is actually detected.

The divided area A12 at the second highest position is a three-dimensional space parallel to the ground and having a height of H2. Within this area A12, the number of measuring points whose distances are detected is weighted by a weight value W12 smaller than W11.
The divided region A13 at the lowest position is a three-dimensional space slightly above the ground, parallel to the ground, and having a height of H3.
Since the weight value W13 of this area A13 is the smallest, the number of stations where the distance is detected in this area is weighted with a lower weight value W13 and is calculated as a numerical value smaller than the actual number of stations, for example.
The reason why the smallest weight value W13 is set in the lowest divided area A13 is that, for example, there is a high possibility that the ground is erroneously detected as an obstacle or an object that cannot be an obstacle such as grass is detected. Yes, by reducing the weight value, the possibility of erroneous detection and the like is reduced.

When the vertical scanning angle θ is 50 degrees, the height of each divided region is, for example, about H1 = 20 cm, H2 = 30 cm, and H3 = 50 cm.
However, the height of each segmented area is not fixed to this value. It may be changed corresponding to.
Further, the length of each divided region in the traveling direction (the length in the left-right direction of the paper surface) may be set based on, for example, the maximum amount of vehicle body inclination that can be assumed.

As shown in FIG. 16 (a), when traveling on a flat ground, if there is a station whose distance is detected only in the lowest divided area A13, the number of stations in that area Therefore, it is difficult to determine that an obstacle exists.
Accordingly, it is possible to reduce the determination of the ground as an obstacle, or to make it difficult to determine a small object such as grass as an obstacle, and to reduce unnecessary deceleration processing and stoppage.
On the other hand, if distances are detected at many stations from a low area to a relatively high area, the number of stations at a high position is counted as a large number of stations by a large weight value, which is more reliable. In addition, it is determined that an obstacle exists in the determination area.
In this way, in the vertical direction, the obstacle determination area is divided into a plurality of divided areas, a small weight is given to the low position area, and a large weight is given to the high position area, so that unnecessary deceleration processing or It is possible to reduce stopping and to more reliably detect an obstacle.

FIGS. 16B, 16C, and 16D are explanatory diagrams of an example of weighting in the vertical direction when the vehicle body is tilted downward.
FIGS. 16B, 16C and 16D show a state in which the rear wheel of the vehicle body 1 rides on the convex surface G of the ground. At this time, if the vertical range of the laser light emitted from the LIDAR 51 is within the range of the scanning angle θ as in FIG. The determination area also tilts downward.
The fact that the front surface of the vehicle body 1 is tilted downward can be detected by an acceleration sensor, a gyro sensor, or the like of the inertial measurement unit 62, and the angle of the vehicle body tilted downward can also be calculated.
When the determination area becomes a three-dimensional space inclined downward, the ground is detected at a part of the measurement points located below in the determination area.
If the ground is detected, the detected ground part may be judged as an obstacle and unnecessary deceleration processing may be performed, so measurement of the part of the judgment area where the ground may be detected by the inclination of the vehicle body is possible. It is preferable to invalidate the distance measurement at the point or to reduce the weighting of the part of the determination region.

FIG. 16B shows an embodiment in which the division method of the divided areas belonging to the tilted determination area is changed. Here, the determination area is divided into three divided areas (A21, A22, A23), and the boundary of each divided area is set to be parallel to the ground.
For example, the height of the left end of three divided areas (A21, A22, A23) is set to the height (H1, H2, H3) of the three divided areas (A11, A12, A13) in FIG. The height of the right end of each divided area is the same as the height of the left end from the ground regardless of the inclination of the divided area.
In this case, since the height of the right end of the highest divided area A21 is shortened, the space of the divided area A21 is reduced.
On the other hand, since the height of the right end of the lowest divided area A23 becomes longer, the space of the divided area A23 becomes wider than the divided area A13 in FIG. 16A, but this area also includes the ground. .
Therefore, in order to reduce erroneous detection of the ground as an obstacle, the weight value W23 of the divided area A23 is set to a value smaller than the weight value W13 of the divided area A13 in FIG. 16A (W23 < W13).

Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 16 (b), it is considered that the rear wheel climbs on the convex surface G and tilts temporarily, and it is considered that the vehicle often returns to a flat road immediately. The value may be zero, the distance measurement at the measurement points included in the divided area A23 may be invalidated, and the obstacle detection in the divided area A23 may not be performed.
For the upper two divided areas (A21, A22), for example, the same weight values (W11, W12) as the divided areas (A11, A12) in FIG. What is necessary is just to detect an object.
As described above, when the front surface of the vehicle body is tilted downward, the weight value of the lowest divided area A23 in the determination area is set to be small, or the obstacle detection of the divided area A23 is temporarily performed. By avoiding this, unnecessary deceleration processing and stopping can be prevented.

FIG. 16C shows an embodiment in which the size and shape of the three divided areas (A11, A12, A13) of the tilted determination area are the same as those in FIG. Here, since the three divided areas (A11, A12, A13) are also inclined as in the case of the inclination of the vehicle body, the ground is detected in the lowest divided area A13.
As described above, when the inclination angle of the vehicle body is calculated by the inertia measuring unit 62, the inclination angle of the divided area is also known, so that it is recognized that the ground may be detected in the divided area A13.
Therefore, in order to reduce false detection of an obstacle due to the ground, the weight value W23 of the divided region A13 at the lowest position is set to a value lower than the weight value W13 in FIG. 16A (W23 <W13). ).
Alternatively, as described with reference to FIG. 16B, the weight value of the divided area A13 may be set to zero, and the obstacle detection of the divided area A13 may be temporarily disabled.

FIG. 16D shows another embodiment in which the division method of the divided area belonging to the tilted determination area is changed.
In FIG. 16B, the divided areas are set so that the boundaries of the three divided areas (A21, A22, A23) are parallel to the ground, but in FIG. 16D, the three divided areas belonging to the determination area are set. The boundary of (A31, A32, A33) is set to have an inclination corresponding to the inclination of the determination area.
Further, when the determination area is tilted, a point P where the right end of the determination area intersects the ground is generated. With this point P as a base point, a boundary between the lowest divided area A33 and the upper divided area A32 is set. .

The boundary between the divided areas A32 and A33 and the boundary between the divided areas A31 and A32 are set to be parallel as shown in FIG. As a result, the lowest region of the divided region A33 includes a region for detecting the ground at a portion below the point P.
When the inertial measurement unit 62 determines the inclination of the vehicle body, the position where the determination area intersects the ground is calculated based on the inclination below the scanning angle θ and the inclination of the lowermost side and the right side of the determination area. The position of P is determined.

When the point P is obtained, the divided area A33 is set as shown in FIG.
In addition, the boundary between the divided areas A31 and A32 positioned above may be set so that the heights of both divided areas are the same, or based on the inclination angle of the determination area, for example. You may decide.
For the weight values of the two divided areas (A31, A32), for example, the same weight values (W11, W12) as the divided areas (A11, A12) of FIG.
On the other hand, the divided region A33 at the lowest position includes a portion where the ground is detected in the region below the point P. Therefore, as the weight value W33 of the region A33, the above-described weight value W13, It is preferable to set a numerical value lower than W23 (W11>W12> W33, W13>W23> W33).

In the divided area A33, the ground is detected in the area below the point P. Therefore, the weight value of the divided area A33 is set to zero, and the obstacle detection of the divided area A33 is not performed. Also good. That is, obstacle detection may be performed only in the upper two divided areas A31 and A32.
Thereby, since the obstacle detection in the divided area A33 where the ground is detected is not performed, it can be prevented that the ground is erroneously detected as an obstacle, and unnecessary deceleration processing and stop can be reduced.

  16B, 16C, and 16D, after the vehicle further travels in the traveling direction and the rear wheels descend from the convex surface G, the vehicle travels on a substantially flat road surface. In such a case, since the inclination in the vertical direction is not detected by the inertia measuring unit 62, the area for detecting the obstacle is divided into three rectangular divided areas (parallel to the ground as shown in FIG. It is possible to return to the determination area composed of A11, A12, A13) and return the area weight value to the weight value shown in FIG.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Autonomous traveling apparatus, 2 Monitoring unit, 3 Control unit, 5 Management server, 6 Network, 10 Car body, 12R Right side, 12L Left side, 13 Front, 14 Rear, 15 Bottom, 16 Storage space, 18 Cover, 21 Front wheel, 21a Axle, 21b Sprocket, 22 Rear wheel, 22a Axle, 22b Sprocket, 23 Belt, 31 Front wheel, 31a Axle, 31b Sprocket, 32 Rear wheel, 32a Axle, 32b Sprocket, 33 Belt, 40 Battery, 41R Electric motor, 41L Electric motor Motor, 42R motor shaft, 42L motor shaft, 43R gear box, 43L gear box, 44R bearing, 44L bearing, 50 control unit, 51 distance detection unit (LIDAR), 51a Optical part, 51b Light receiving part, 51c Scan control part, 51d Laser, 52 Travel control part, 53 Wheel, 54 Communication part, 55 Camera, 56 Image recognition part, 57 Obstacle detection part, 58 Position information acquisition part, 59 Rechargeable battery , 60 speed detection unit, 61 monitoring information acquisition unit, 62 inertia measurement unit, 63 area weight calculation unit, 70 storage unit, 71 input image data, 72 measurement distance information, 73 current position information, 74 route information, 75 transmission monitoring information , 76 set speed information, 77 obstacle information, 78 determination area information, 79 area weight value, 91 communication section, 92 monitoring control section, 93 storage section, 93a reception monitoring information, 100 object

Claims (13)

The car body,
A travel control unit that controls a drive member that travels the vehicle body;
A predetermined light is emitted to a predetermined obstacle determination area including a front space in the traveling direction, and a reflected light reflected by an object existing in the obstacle determination area is received to detect a distance to the object. A distance detector to perform,
An inertial measurement unit for detecting a current traveling direction of the vehicle body by measuring a displacement caused by the traveling of the vehicle body;
Route information that predetermines the travel route of the vehicle body, determination region information that sets the position and size of each divided region obtained by dividing the obstacle determination region into a plurality of pieces, and each set based on the traveling state of the vehicle body A storage unit storing an area weight value indicating the importance of detecting an obstacle in the divided area, and a control unit,
The control unit, for each divided region, on the basis of the current traveling direction detected by the inertia measuring unit or the traveling direction to be traveled in the traveling route determined in the route information. An autonomous traveling device that sets an area weight value in consideration of a subsequent traveling direction.   2. The autonomous traveling device according to claim 1, wherein a relatively large area weight value is set in a divided area A including the traveling direction of the vehicle body and several divided areas in the vicinity of the divided area A. 3. .   When it is determined that there is an object whose distance is detected in the divided area where the relatively large area weight value is set, the vehicle body deceleration process or the stop process is performed in accordance with the area weight value. The autonomous traveling device according to claim 2, wherein   3. The autonomous traveling apparatus according to claim 2, wherein when it is determined that no object exists in the divided region in which the relatively large region weight value is set, the vehicle body deceleration process and the stop process are not performed. . In the divided areas other than the divided areas in which the relatively large area weight value is set,
5. The autonomous traveling device according to claim 2, wherein when it is determined that an object whose distance is detected is present, deceleration processing and stopping processing of the vehicle body are not performed. In the divided area where the relatively large area weight value is set,
The autonomous traveling device according to any one of claims 2 to 5, further comprising: a divided area A including a traveling direction of the vehicle body; and a divided area including both of the divided areas A.   2. The largest area weight value is set for a divided area including the traveling direction of the vehicle body, and a smaller area weight value is set for the other divided areas as the distance from the traveling direction increases. To 5. The autonomous traveling device according to any one of 5 to 5. When the vehicle body is going to turn leftward or rightward in a stationary state,
Among the obstacle determination areas, a relatively large area weight value is set for a plurality of divided areas existing in the direction in which the vehicle body advances by turning, and the obstacle exists in a direction opposite to the direction in which the vehicle body advances by turning. The autonomous traveling device according to claim 1, wherein a relatively small area weight value is set in each of the divided areas. When the inertial measurement unit detects that the vehicle body skids in a specific direction,
A relatively large area weight value is set in a plurality of divided areas existing in the direction in which the vehicle body travels due to the side slip in the obstacle determination area,
The autonomous traveling device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein a relatively small area weight value is set in a plurality of divided areas existing in a direction opposite to a direction in which the vehicle body travels due to the side slip. . With the light emission position as the center, the light is scanned in a direction horizontal to the ground,
When the horizontal sector-shaped area that the light can reach is the obstacle determination area,
10. The autonomous traveling device according to claim 1, wherein each of the divided areas is an area obtained by dividing the obstacle determination area into a plurality of fan shapes having a predetermined central angle. Centering on the light emission position, the light is scanned in a direction perpendicular to the ground,
When the vertical sector-shaped area where the light can reach is an obstacle determination area,
Each of the divided areas is a rectangular area obtained by dividing the obstacle determination area into a plurality of pieces in the vertical direction, and the area weight value is changed in accordance with the height from the ground of each divided area, so that the division closest to the ground is performed. 10. The autonomous traveling device according to claim 1, wherein a region weight value smaller than that of other divided regions is set in the region. The distance detector includes a light emitting unit that emits light to the obstacle determination region in the traveling direction, a light receiving unit that receives light, and the light radiated toward a plurality of predetermined measurement points in the obstacle determination region. And a scanning control unit that scans the light emission direction,
The distance detection unit utilizes the time difference between the time when the light is emitted from the light emitting unit and the time when the light reflected by the object is received by the light receiving unit, and the light emitting unit The autonomous traveling device according to claim 1, wherein distances between the plurality of measurement points are calculated, and a distance to the object is detected from the calculated distances.   The distance detection unit uses a LIDAR that emits a laser to a two-dimensional space or a three-dimensional space in a predetermined obstacle determination area and measures distances at a plurality of measurement points in the obstacle determination area. The autonomous traveling device according to any one of claims 1 to 12.

Images