JP2019115473A - Movable carriage, and control program for movable carriage - Google Patents

Abstract

To solve the problem that in a conventional movable carriage for supporting a user's walking, it is difficult to make it start moving according to a user's "desire to walk."SOLUTION: A movable carriage for assisting a user's walking includes: a grip part that receives a load from the user; a grip detection part for detecting a grip action in which the user grips the grip part; an action detection part for detecting a walking action of the user; and a movement control part for causing the movable carriage to start moving when the grip detection part detects the grip action and the action detection part detects the start of the walking action.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to a movable carriage and a control program for the movable carriage.

  There is known a movable carriage for supporting walking of patients who have temporarily become difficult to walk due to injury or the like, or elderly people who have chronically become difficult due to a decrease in physical ability (for example, a patent) Reference 1).

JP 2007-202924 A

If the mobile carriage starts to move only when the user approaches the mobile carriage or the user grips the grip of the mobile carriage, the user who is not ready for walking may hesitate. That is, it was difficult to start moving the moving carriage in accordance with the user's intention to "walk".
The present invention has been made to solve such a problem, and provides a moving carriage that starts moving in accordance with the user's intention.

  The movable carriage according to the first aspect of the present invention is a movable carriage that assists the user's walking, and includes a holding unit that receives a load from the user and a holding operation that detects a holding operation that the user holds the holding unit. Movement that causes the moving carriage to start moving when the detection unit, the operation detection unit that detects the walking motion of the user, and the grip detection unit detect the gripping operation and the operation detection unit detects the start of the walking motion And a control unit.

  If it is a mobile trolley configured in this way, movement is not started unless the user starts walking even if the holding unit is held. Similarly, even if the user shows the same swing as the start of walking, the movement is not started unless the grip portion is gripped. That is, the moving carriage reflects the user's intention and starts moving.

  The moving carriage described above may have a target speed after the start of movement as a constant speed. When the mobile carriage is used for rehabilitation training, for example, after confirming the start of movement of the user, the user who leads at a constant speed set as training leads the user to correct walking. It is preferable from the viewpoint.

  On the other hand, the moving carriage described above may change the target velocity after the start of movement based on the walking motion detected by the motion detection unit. For example, when the movable carriage is used for walking support for elderly people, it may be used for long distance movement, and the walking speed of the user may change according to fatigue or the environment. In such a case, the target speed may be changed according to the walking motion of the user detected by the motion detection unit.

  The movable carriage described above is configured to detect the load including the component in the direction of gravity received from the user by the grip detection unit, and the movement control unit detects the grip when the load exceeds a predetermined reference load. It may be determined that the unit has detected a gripping operation. The user tends to hold the grip portion with a larger force at the start of walking, and if it is a mobile carriage configured in this way, the grip detection unit can accurately grasp the user's start of walking. In particular, when used for rehabilitation training, the user holds the grip with the hand on the healthy leg side not suffering from paralysis, and starts walking from the affected leg side suffering from paralysis. A large force in the direction is applied. If the mobile carriage detects this force, it can grasp the user's walking start more accurately.

  In the movable carriage described above, the movement control unit detects that the gripping detection unit has released the gripping operation, or the motion detection unit detects a predetermined delay in the walking motion with respect to the movement of the movable carriage. The movement of the movable carriage can be stopped. When stopping the movement of the movable carriage, unlike when starting the movement, the intention of the user to "stop" is to stop the movable carriage when at least one of the holding condition and the walking operation condition is satisfied. Along. Moreover, it is preferable also in avoiding a fall of a pedestrian. In this case, the motion detection unit may configure the first detection unit that detects the start of the walking motion and the second detection unit that detects the delay of the walking motion as separate sensors. If it comprises as another sensor, each operation | movement can be detected by a more simple sensor.

  The movable carriage described above is used to move on one side of the user, and the adjustment unit adjusts the detection range of the motion detection unit according to which side the user is positioned with respect to the movable carriage. You may have. If such an adjustment unit is provided, the detection range can be limited, so that the walking motion of the user can be detected with higher accuracy.

  Alternatively, the movable carriage described above has a grip for the right hand that receives a load from the user on the right side of the user, and a grip for the left hand that receives the load from the user on the left of the user. The motion detection unit may be configured to be installed either on the right side of the user or on the left side of the user. With such a configuration, both the user who wants to grip the grip with the right hand and the user who wants to grip the grip with the left hand have the same standing position with respect to the movable carriage, so the motion detection part is on one side It can be installed together.

  The control program of the movable carriage in the second aspect of the present invention is a control program of the movable carriage for assisting the user's walking, and detects the grasping operation in which the user grasps the grasping portion receiving the load from the user When the grasping motion is detected in the grasping detection step to perform, the motion detecting step detecting the start of the walking motion by the user, and the gripping detecting step, and the start of the walking motion is detected in the motion detecting step And causing the computer to execute a movement control step of starting.

  In the case of a mobile carriage controlled in this way, movement is not started unless the user starts walking even if the holding unit is held. Similarly, even if the user shows the same swing as the start of walking, the movement is not started unless the grip portion is gripped. That is, the moving carriage reflects the user's intention and starts moving.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a moving carriage that starts moving according to the user's intention.

It is a side outline figure of a mobile truck concerning a 1st example. FIG. 2 is a top view of the mobile carriage of FIG. 1; It is a control block diagram of the mobile trolley which concerns on a 1st Example. It is a figure explaining the movement start conditions of the mobile trolley which concerns on a 1st Example. It is a figure explaining the 1st movement stop condition of the mobile trolley which concerns on a 1st Example. It is a figure explaining the 2nd movement stop condition of the mobile trolley which concerns on a 1st Example. It is a movement control flowchart of the mobile trolley which concerns on a 1st Example. It is a side outline figure of a mobile truck concerning a 2nd example. It is a figure explaining the movement start conditions of the mobile trolley which concerns on a 2nd Example. It is a top schematic view of the mobile trolley which concerns on a 3rd Example. It is a figure explaining the movement start conditions of the mobile trolley which concerns on a 3rd Example. It is a figure explaining the 2nd movement stop condition of the mobile trolley which concerns on a 3rd Example. It is a side outline figure of a mobile truck concerning a 4th example. It is a figure explaining setting of the target speed of the mobile trolley concerning a 4th example.

  Hereinafter, the present invention will be described through the embodiments of the invention, but the invention according to the claims is not limited to the following embodiments. Moreover, not all the configurations described in the embodiments are necessarily essential as means for solving the problems.

  The movable carriage according to the present embodiment is a device for assisting the walking of the user, and runs parallel to the walking of the user while supporting the load from the user. The moving carriage is used for rehabilitation training for patients who have temporarily become difficult to walk due to injury or the like, or used to support the walking of elderly people who have difficulty walking chronically due to a decrease in physical ability. Be Although some examples according to the present embodiment will be described below, common elements are represented by the same reference numerals, and redundant descriptions will be omitted unless otherwise stated.

  The first embodiment will be described. FIG. 1 is a side view of the movable carriage 100 according to the first embodiment, and FIG. 2 is a top view of the movable carriage 100 in the state of FIG. 1 as viewed from above. The movable carriage 100 is mainly used for rehabilitation training.

  The movable carriage 100 includes two front wheels 111 and one rear wheel 113 along the moving direction. The front wheel 111 is disposed on the carriage base 110 and is driven by a motor (not shown) and a reduction mechanism accommodated in the carriage base 110 to function as a driving wheel. The rear wheel 113 is disposed near the rear end of the carriage frame 112 extending rearward from the carriage base 110 and functions as a driven wheel that follows the movement direction of the movable carriage 100. The movable carriage 100 is a static stable vehicle which is grounded at three points by three wheels and is self-supporting even when the user 900 is not in use.

  The support column 114 is a support member which is erected with respect to the carriage base 110 and transmits a load from the user 900 to the carriage base 110. The support post 114 supports a horizontally projecting handle 115 near the other end side opposite to the one end side supported by the carriage base 110. At the tip of the handle 115, for example, a grip 116 of urethane is provided so that the user 900 can easily grip it. The grip 116 is a grip portion gripped by the user 900, and receives a load from the user 900 and transmits the load to the handle 115 and further to the support column 114.

  The arm 117 is supported by the support column 114 at one end, and supports the display 122 at the other end. The arm 117 has a plurality of links, and can maintain the posture adjusted by the user 900 or the like. Thus, the display 122 may be placed in front of the face of the user 900, for example as shown. The display 122 is, for example, a liquid crystal panel, and displays various information regarding the surrounding environment and rehabilitation training.

  The control unit 120 includes a movement control unit described later, a memory, and the like. The control unit 120 is electrically connected to various elements to be controlled, in addition to the display 122 and the motor for driving the front wheel 111. These elements include various sensors for observing the state of the movable carriage 100, the state of the surrounding environment, and the operation of the user 900.

  Various sensors in the present embodiment include a distance measurement sensor 130, a front camera 131, a foot camera 132, and a grip switch 133. Distance measuring sensor 130 is fixed to support column 114 and measures the distance to the leg of user 900. More specifically, the distance measuring sensor 130 is, for example, a laser range finder, and scans a range R in a horizontal plane surrounded by a broken line shown in FIG. 2 to continuously acquire detection distances in respective directions. , Detects the walking motion of the user 900. In FIGS. 1 and 2, the movable carriage 100 is used to move on the right side of the user 900, but can also be used to move on the left side of the user. Therefore, in the range R, a range symmetrical to the moving direction is set so that the user's walking motion can be detected regardless of which side of the movable carriage 100 the user uses.

  The front camera 131 is fixed to the support 114 in the forward direction, which is the moving direction of the movable carriage 100. The front camera 131 includes, for example, an imaging element, which is a CMOS image sensor, and an image data generation unit, and outputs image data generated by imaging a space in the moving direction. The image captured by the front camera 131 has an angle of view similar to the field of view of the user 900, and is displayed on the display 122 as necessary.

  The foot camera 132 is fixed to the support 114 so that the entire foot of the user 900 can be observed. The foot camera 132 includes, for example, an imaging device, which is a CMOS image sensor, and an image data generation unit, and outputs image data generated by imaging the foot of the user 900. The image captured by the foot camera 132 has an angle of view such that the foot can be observed when the user stands on either the right side or the left side of the movable carriage 100, and is displayed on the display 122 as necessary. Ru.

  The grip switch 133 is an on / off switch disposed inside the grip 116, and outputs an on signal while the user 900 grips the grip 116. The grip switch 133 may be an element which is physically in contact or non-contact with an electrical contact, or may be an element of a kind that detects pressure.

  FIG. 3 is a control block diagram of the movable carriage 100. As shown in FIG. The movement control unit 200 is, for example, a CPU, and is accommodated in the control unit 120. The movement control unit 200 generally controls the entire movable carriage 100.

  The display 122 receives the image signal adjusted for the display 122 by the movement control unit 200 and displays the image signal in a viewable manner. The drive wheel unit 210 includes a drive circuit and a motor for driving the front wheel 111, which is a drive wheel, and is accommodated in the carriage base 110. The movement control unit 200 executes rotation control of the front wheel 111 by sending a drive signal to the drive wheel unit 210. The vehicle speed sensor 220 monitors the amount of rotation of the front wheel 111 to detect the speed of the movable carriage 100. The vehicle speed sensor 220 transmits the detection result as a speed signal to the movement control unit 200 in response to a request from the movement control unit 200.

  The memory 230 is a non-volatile storage medium, and for example, a solid state drive is used. The memory 230 stores, in addition to a control program for controlling the movable carriage 100, various parameter values used for control, functions, a lookup table, and the like.

  The ranging sensor 130 detects the distance to the leg of the user 900 as described above. The distance measurement sensor 130 transmits the detection result as a distance measurement signal to the movement control unit 200 in response to a request from the movement control unit 200. As described above, the front camera 131 captures the front space of the movable carriage 100 and outputs image data. The front camera 131 performs imaging in response to a request from the movement control unit 200, and transmits generated image data to the movement control unit 200. As described above, the foot camera 132 captures an image of the foot of the user 900 and outputs image data. The foot camera 132 performs imaging in response to a request from the movement control unit 200, and transmits the generated image data to the movement control unit 200. The grip switch 133 transmits an on signal to the movement control unit 200 when the user 116 grips the grip 116. While the user 900 grips the grip 116, the grip switch 133 continuously transmits an ON signal to the movement control unit 200.

  Next, conditions under which the movable carriage 100 starts moving will be described. FIG. 4 is a view for explaining the movement start condition of the movable carriage 100. As shown in FIG. The upper graph represents the on / off state (vertical axis) of the grip switch 133 with respect to the elapsed time (horizontal axis). The middle graph shows the leg speed v (vertical axis) of the user 900 with respect to the elapsed time (horizontal axis). The lower graph represents the target velocity V (vertical axis) of the movable carriage 100 with respect to the elapsed time (horizontal axis). The horizontal axes of the respective graphs are shown in synchronization with each other.

The movable carriage 100 stands by itself in the standby state as described above. In the standby state, since the user 900 does not grip the grip 116, the output of the grip switch 133 is off. When the user 900 holds the grip 116 from the point of time _{t 1, the} grip switch 133 outputs an ON signal continues from time _{t 1.} The movement control unit 200 detects a gripping operation in which the user 900 grips the grip 116 by receiving an on signal from the gripping switch 133. That is, the gripping switch 133 and the movement control unit 200 function as a gripping detection unit that cooperates to detect a gripping operation.

Movement control unit 200 receives the ON signal from the grip switch 133 at time t _1, the overall system shifts to the active state releasing the suppression of suppressing sleep power consumption. Also, the range sensor 130 is made to start sensing.

  The movement control unit 200 receives a distance measurement signal from the distance measurement sensor 130, and calculates the leg speed of the leg to be observed. That is, the distance measurement sensor 130 and the movement control unit 200 function as a motion detection unit that detects the walking motion of the user 900 in cooperation. Specifically, the movement control unit 200 continuously acquires, from the distance measurement sensor 130, a set of a scan angle and a detection distance at the time of sensing as a distance measurement signal. The scan angle represents the azimuth in the range R starting from the distance measurement sensor 130. The detection distance represents the distance from the distance measurement sensor 130 to the detection point of the leg. The distance measuring sensor 130 does not output the detection distance if there is no leg in the range R. The movement control unit 200 can grasp the positions of both legs present in the range R by acquiring a distance measurement signal for one cycle.

  The movement control unit 200 sets, as an observation target, a leg on the side far from the movable carriage 100 among the grasped legs. For example, as shown in FIG. 2, when the user 900 is positioned on the left side of the movable carriage 100 (when the user 900 grips the grip 116 with the right hand), the movement control unit 200 observes the left leg set to target. The movement control unit 200 defines, for example, the farthest point among the legs to be observed (hereinafter, referred to as observation legs) as observation points, and observes the change over time. The movement control unit 200 calculates a derivative value of the acquired detected distance as the leg speed of the observation leg with respect to the movable carriage 100. The movement control unit 200 uses this leg speed v as a material for determining the start of movement.

Movement control unit 200, after the time t _1, the Ashisoku v of the user 900, to detect when exceeding the reference Ashisoku v ₀ which can be recognized as started walking. In the figure, since Ashisoku v exceeds the reference Ashisoku v ₀ at time t _2, the movement control unit 200 detects that the user 900 has started walking at time t _2.

Movement control unit 200, since the start of the grasping operation and the walking movement was detected both from the time t ₂ that has detected the start of a walking motion, and transmits a driving signal for driving the front wheels 111 to the drive wheels unit 210. Then, it monitors the speed signal from the vehicle speed sensor 220, after reaching the target speed V _T moves the movable carrier 100 at a constant speed V _T. As described above, if the movement of the movable carriage 100 is started when the movement of the movable carriage 100 is also detected without starting the movement of the movable carriage 100 only by the detection of the gripping operation, the intention of the pedestrian "wants to walk" Can be reflected. In particular, it is possible to prevent the mobile carriage from starting to move before the posture for starting to move is established although gripping is performed.

  In addition, since it is assumed that the movable carriage 100 in the present embodiment is mainly used for rehabilitation training, it is preferable to set the target speed to a constant speed after the start of movement. That is, since a training effect is obtained by giving a slight force in rehabilitation training, it is preferable from the viewpoint of leading the user's walking by setting the target speed to a constant speed.

  Next, conditions under which the movable carriage 100 stops moving will be described. There are two conditions for stopping, and the mobile carriage 100 stops when any of the conditions is satisfied. FIG. 5 is a view for explaining the first movement stop condition of the movable carriage 100. As shown in FIG. The upper graph represents the on / off state (vertical axis) of the grip switch 133 with respect to the elapsed time (horizontal axis). The lower graph represents the target velocity V (vertical axis) of the movable carriage 100 with respect to the elapsed time (horizontal axis). The horizontal axes of the respective graphs are shown in synchronization with each other.

Movement control unit 200, when the user 900 by that no longer receives an ON signal of the grip switch 133 at time t ₃ detects that releases the grip 116, is gradually decreased speed from this point, stopping the movable carriage 100 Let That is, the movement of the user 900 releasing the grip 116 is regarded as representing the intention of "stop walking", and the moving carriage 100 is stopped. In addition, since the movable carriage 100 is self-supporting, there is no risk of the user 900 falling down even if the grip 116 is released.

  FIG. 6 is a view for explaining the second movement stop condition of the movable carriage 100. As shown in FIG. The upper graph represents the leg distance D (vertical axis) relative to the elapsed time (horizontal axis). The horizontal axes of the respective graphs are shown in synchronization with each other.

  As described above, the movement control unit 200 continuously observes the leg distance D from the distance measurement sensor 130 to the observation leg in the process of tracking the leg speed. The movement control unit 200 uses the leg distance D as a material for determining the movement stop.

Movement control unit 200, when detecting that the leg distance D is greater than the reference distance D ₀ at time t _4, the speed is gradually decreased from this point to stop the movable carriage 100. That is, the movement of the user 900 having a large delay relative to the movable carriage 100 is regarded as representing the intention of “stopping walking”, and the movable carriage 100 is stopped. For example, even in a situation where the road surface is bumped or bumped, the movable carriage 100 appropriately stops.

  Next, a processing procedure related to movement control of the movable carriage 100 will be described. FIG. 7 is a flow chart of movement control of the movable carriage 100. As shown in FIG. The flow starts from the above-mentioned waiting state.

In step S101, the movement control unit 200 confirms whether an on signal has been sent from the grip switch 133. If it has been sent, the process proceeds to step S102, and if it has not been sent, the standby state is continued. Movement control unit 200, at step S102, it is determined whether Ashisoku v exceeds the reference Ashisoku _{v 0.} If it is determined that it has exceeded, the process proceeds to step S103, and if it is determined that it has not exceeded, the process returns to step S101.

In step S103, the movement control unit 200, such that the moving speed V reaches the target speed V _0, and transmits a driving signal to the driving wheel unit 210 while monitoring the speed signal from the vehicle speed sensor 220. Subsequently, in step S104, the movement control unit 200 confirms whether an ON signal of the grip switch 133 is received. If the on signal is received, the process proceeds to step S105. If the on signal is not received, the process proceeds to step S106. In step S105, it checks whether the leg distance D is greater than the reference distance D _0. If it has not been detected, the process returns to step S103 to continue the movement. If it is detected that the number has been exceeded, the process proceeds to step S106. In step S106, the movement control unit 200 gradually reduces the moving speed, stops the moving carriage 100, and ends the series of processes.

  Next, a second embodiment will be described. FIG. 8 is a side view of the movable carriage 101 according to the second embodiment. The movable carriage 101 is mainly used for rehabilitation training. While the movable carriage 100 according to the first embodiment is provided with the gripping switch 133, the movable carriage 101 is provided with a load sensor 134 instead of the gripping switch 133.

  In the present embodiment, a strain sensor is used as the load sensor 134. The handle 115 has a narrow portion 115a whose cross-sectional diameter is narrowed between the end supported by the support column 114 and the position where the grip 116 is disposed, and the load sensor 134 is provided in the narrow portion 115a. It is stuck. Therefore, when the user 900 grips the grip 116, the narrow portion 115a is distorted according to the load in the direction of gravity or the direction of movement from the user 900 received by the grip 116, and the load sensor 134 responds to the load signal according to the amount of distortion. Output The movement control unit 200 detects the load that the user 900 applies to the grip 116 by acquiring the load signal. The load sensor 134 and the movement control unit 200 function as a gripping detection unit that cooperates to detect a gripping operation including a load.

  FIG. 9 is a view for explaining the movement start condition of the movable carriage 101. As shown in FIG. The upper graph shows the load b (vertical axis) in the direction of gravity with respect to the elapsed time (horizontal axis). The middle graph shows the leg speed v (vertical axis) of the user 900 with respect to the elapsed time (horizontal axis). The lower graph shows the target velocity V (vertical axis) of the movable carriage 101 with respect to the elapsed time (horizontal axis). The horizontal axes of the respective graphs are shown in synchronization with each other.

The user 900 when gripping the grip 116 at time _{t 0,} the load sensor 134 detects a slight load in accordance with the operation. However, at this point of time, there is a high possibility of preparing for the walking motion, so in this embodiment, the movement control unit 200 is not yet recognized as the gripping motion.

  Normally, if the user has the left leg as the affected leg, the user stands on the left side of the movable carriage 101 and holds the grip 116 with the right hand, and if the user whose right leg is the affected leg, on the right side of the movable carriage 101 Stand and grip the grip 116 with the left hand. As shown in FIG. 8, if the user grips the grip 116 with the right hand, normally the right leg is a healthy leg, and the walking motion is started from the swinging out of the left leg. That is, the first step of the walking motion is often the outer leg with respect to the movable carriage 101. At this time, it is difficult for the user's outer leg to move forward due to paralysis or the like, and tends to lean on the grip 116 in an attempt to stabilize the posture with the grip 116 and the healthy leg as a support point. Therefore, the load sensor 134 outputs a large value at the start of the first movement.

In the present embodiment, the movement control unit 200 detects a time point at which it can be recognized as being reliably held using this phenomenon. That is, the movement control unit 200 detects a time when the user 900 is reliably holds the grip 116 when the load b the load sensor 134 outputs exceeds a reference load b ₀ determined in advance. In the figure, the time when the load b exceeds the reference load b ₀ is time t ₁ . When the walking ability of the user 900 recovers, the component pushing the grip 116 in the advancing direction increases. Therefore, from a certain training stage, a reference load is set for the load component in the advancing direction. A point in time when it can be recognized as being held securely may be detected. In this case, the reference load may be set in two directions, the gravity direction and the traveling direction, and it may be recognized that the grip 116 is reliably gripped when any reference load is exceeded.

Movement control unit 200, upon detecting grasping in time t _1, the overall system shifts to the active state releasing the suppression of suppressing sleep power consumption. Also, the range sensor 130 is made to start sensing. In the present embodiment, the distance measuring sensor 130, since the observed inside the leg to the mobile cart 101, movement control unit 200, after the time t _1, the Ashisoku v of the user 900, walking Detects a point in time that exceeds the reference leg speed v ₀ that can be recognized as having started.

Movement control unit 200, since the start of the grasping operation and the walking movement was detected both transmits from time t ₂ the drive signal for driving the front wheels 111 to the drive wheels unit 210. Then, it monitors the speed signal from the vehicle speed sensor 220, after reaching the target speed V _T moves the movable carrier 101 at a constant speed V _T. In this way, if it is detected that the load applied to the grip 116 exceeds a certain value and treated as one trigger, it is possible to more faithfully reflect the pedestrian's intention to “walk”.

  Next, the third embodiment will be described. FIG. 10 is a top view of the movable carriage 102 according to the third embodiment. The movable carriage 102 is mainly used for rehabilitation training. If the mobile truck 100 according to the first embodiment is a user whose left leg is an affected leg, the mobile truck 100 can stand on the left side of the mobile cart 100 and grip the grip 116 with the right hand and be a user whose right leg is an affected leg. For example, it was supposed to stand on the right side of the movable carriage 100 and grip the grip 116 with the left hand. However, the movable carriage 102 has a structure in which approximately two movable carriages 100 are arranged side by side with respect to the movement direction, and these are connected by the connection bar 118. The control unit 120, the display 122, the front camera 131, the foot camera 132, etc., which do not need to be provided independently on the left and right sides, are disposed on either side or on the connection bar 118.

  With such a structure, even if the user 900 suffers from the right leg or the patient suffering from the left leg, he can stand at the center of the movable carriage 102. The user 900 may hold the right hand grip 116R or may hold the left hand grip 116L depending on the state of the user. In addition, you may change hands while walking. A right hand grip switch 133R is disposed in the right hand grip 116R, and a left hand grip switch 133L is disposed in the left hand grip 116L. When the movement control unit 200 receives an ON signal from at least one of the right hand holding switch 133R and the left hand holding switch 133L, the movement control unit 200 processes the ON signal from the holding switch.

  Further, in the movable carriage 102, a squeeze sensor 135 and a delay detection sensor 136 are provided instead of the distance measurement sensor 130. The swing out sensor 135 is provided in front of the bogie frame 112 on the right side of the user 900 (near the connection with the bogie base 110), and the delay detection sensor 136 is provided on the rear of the bogie frame 112 on the right side of the user 900. It is done.

  The swing-out sensor 135 is, for example, a reflection type photo sensor, and is disposed inward of the user 900 so as to output an ON signal when either of the left and right legs reaches the swing-out position. The delay detection sensor 136 is, for example, a reflection type photo sensor similar to the swing out sensor 135, and outputs an ON signal when it reaches a position where it is determined that either the left or the right leg is delayed with respect to the movable carriage 102. As a result, the user 900 is arranged to be directed inside. That is, the image output sensor 135, the delay detection sensor 136, and the movement control unit 200 cooperate with each other to function as a motion detection unit that detects the walking motion of the user 900. Note that the feed out sensor 135 and the delay detection sensor 136 may be provided on the bogie frame 112 on the left side of the user 900.

  FIG. 11 is a diagram for explaining the movement start condition of the movable carriage 102. As shown in FIG. The upper graph represents the on / off state (vertical axis) of the grip switch 133 with respect to the elapsed time (horizontal axis). The middle graph shows the on / off state (vertical axis) of the swing out sensor 135 with respect to the elapsed time (horizontal axis). The lower graph represents the target velocity V (vertical axis) of the movable carriage 102 with respect to the elapsed time (horizontal axis). The horizontal axes of the respective graphs are shown in synchronization with each other.

When the user 900 grips the right grip 116R or the left hand grip 116L at time t _1, the movement control unit 200 receives an ON signal from the corresponding gripping switch detects that the user 900 has performed a gripping action.

Subsequently, when the user 900 reaches the detection position of the sensor 135 shaken either leg at time t ₂ and starts walking, movement control unit 200 receives an ON signal from the shaken sensor 135, the user 900 It detects that the walking motion has been started.

Movement control unit 200, since the start of the grasping operation and the walking movement was detected both from the time t ₂ that has detected the start of a walking motion, and transmits a driving signal for driving the front wheels 111 to the drive wheels unit 210. Then, it monitors the speed signal from the vehicle speed sensor 220, after reaching the target speed V _T moves the movable carrier 102 at a constant speed V _T.

  FIG. 12 is a diagram for explaining the second movement stop condition of the movable carriage 102, which corresponds to the second movement stop condition of the movable carriage 100 described with reference to FIG. The first movement stop condition described with reference to FIG. 5 is also applied to this embodiment.

  The upper graph represents the on / off state (vertical axis) of the delay detection sensor 136 with respect to the elapsed time (horizontal axis). The lower graph represents the target velocity V (vertical axis) of the movable carriage 102 with respect to the elapsed time (horizontal axis). The horizontal axes of the respective graphs are shown in synchronization with each other.

When the user 900 reaches the detection position of one of the legs lag detection sensor 136 at time t ₄ during walking, movement control unit 200 receives an ON signal from the delay detection sensor 136, the user 900 is moving carriage It detects that a large delay with respect to 100 is taken. The movement control unit 200 gradually reduces the speed from this point on and stops the moving carriage 102. That is, the movement of the user 900 having a large delay relative to the movable carriage 102 is regarded as representing the intention of “stopping walking”, and the movable carriage 102 is stopped.

  Even with such a simple sensor, the movement of the movable carriage 102 can be started according to the pedestrian's intention to "walk", and the movable trolley 102 according to the intention "to stop walking". The movement of 102 can be stopped. It should be noted that instead of the reflection type photo sensor, a pair of photo sensors may be used in which a light emitting unit is provided on one of the carriage frames 112 and a light receiving unit is provided on the opposing carriage frame 112. Further, even in the case of adopting the structure of the movable carriage 102 in which the movable carriages are arranged on the left and right, the distance measuring sensor 130 may be adopted as in the case of the movable carriage 100. May be adopted. The movement start condition and the movement stop condition in that case can apply the example demonstrated in each Example.

  Next, a fourth embodiment will be described. FIG. 13 is a side view of the movable carriage 103 according to the fourth embodiment. The movable carriage 103 is mainly used to support the walking of the elderly people who have chronically become difficult to walk due to the decrease in their physical abilities. The mobile carriage 103 is a mobile carriage 100 according to the first embodiment from which apparatuses used mainly for rehabilitation training, such as a front camera 131, a foot camera 132, an arm 117, and a display 122, are omitted. If the main application is pedestrian support, the entire device can be simplified, which makes handling easier.

  The movable carriage 103 is the same as the movable carriage 100 with respect to the movement start condition and the movement stop condition, but the setting of the target speed is different. FIG. 14 is a diagram for explaining the setting of the target velocity in the movable carriage 103. As shown in FIG. The upper graph represents the on / off state (vertical axis) of the grip switch 133 with respect to the elapsed time (horizontal axis). The middle graph shows the leg speed v (vertical axis) of the user 900 with respect to the elapsed time (horizontal axis). The lower graph represents the target velocity V (vertical axis) of the movable carriage 100 with respect to the elapsed time (horizontal axis). The horizontal axes of the respective graphs are shown in synchronization with each other.

The movable carriage 103 starts moving under the same conditions as the movement start conditions described with reference to FIG. When you start to move at time t _2, the movement control unit 200 monitors the leg velocity v continuously increases or decreases in conjunction with the target speed V in Ashisoku v. That is, the movement control unit 200 raises the target speed when the user 900 is walking fast, and reduces the target speed when walking slowly. The target velocity is preset according to, for example, the amplitude of the leg velocity v, the integral value per unit time, and the cycle. As described above, if the target speed is changed according to the leg speed, it is possible to cause the moving carriage to appropriately follow the use environment such as a slope or the degree of fatigue of the user.

Although the present embodiment has been described above through the respective examples, the configurations of the movable carriages described in the respective embodiments may mutually replace or add elements. The movement start condition and the movement stop condition may be appropriately corrected according to the adopted configuration. For example, in the case where the configuration of the movable carriage 100 and the configuration of the movable carriage 101 are combined and both the grasping switch 133 and the load sensor 134 are adopted, the grasping switch 133 detects grasping and the load sensor 134 determines the reference load b ₀ When the above is detected, it may be determined that the user 900 has completed the gripping operation.

Also, although D ₀ , V _T , v ₀ , and b ₀ as reference constants in the respective embodiments have been described as being determined in advance, specifically, they are determined according to an assumed user, environment, etc. The user or the assistant may be able to make adjustments before using the movable carriage. In addition, as the use is accumulated, the movement control unit 200 may learn the use situation and adjust it appropriately.

  Moreover, although the various sensors used for control were demonstrated with the representative example, if it is a sensor which exhibits the same function, it will not be restricted to the example described. For example, the distance measuring sensor may not be a laser range finder but may be a stereo camera.

  In each of the above embodiments using the laser range finder, the outer leg is used as the observation leg with respect to the movable carriage, but the inner leg may be used as the observation leg according to the performance of the distance measuring sensor to be applied. . As mentioned above, the inner leg is often a healthy leg, and usually the outer leg is the first leg. Therefore, when the outer leg is used as the observation leg, the user's walking start timing can be accurately detected. When the inner leg is used as the observation leg, although the walking operation start timing is delayed by one half step, an inexpensive distance measuring sensor with a narrow measurement range can be adopted. It may be possible to adjust which leg is used as the observation leg, or in accordance with the purpose of use of the movable carriage 100 or the like.

  In each of the above embodiments using the laser range finder, the range R is the observation target, but the movement control unit 200 detects which side of the movable carriage the user stands on, and only on that side. The observation range may be limited to In addition, it has an adjustment mechanism that adjusts the direction so that the observation range of the distance measurement sensor is about half the range R and the user can direct the observation range of the distance measurement sensor before use. It is good.

100, 101, 102, 103 mobile carriage, 110 carriage base, 111 front wheel, 112 carriage frame, 113 rear wheel, 114 post, 115 handle, 115a narrow portion, 116 grip, 116R right hand grip, 116L left hand grip, 117 arm, 118 connecting bar, 120 control unit, 122 display, 130 distance measuring sensor, 131 forward camera, 132 foot camera, 133 gripping switch, 133R right hand gripping switch, 133L left hand gripping switch, 134 load sensor, 135 swing sensor, 136 delay detection sensor , 200 movement control unit, 210 driving wheel unit, 220 vehicle speed sensor, 230 memory, 900 user

Claims (10)

A moving carriage that assists the user's walking,
A grip for receiving a load from the user;
A gripping detection unit that detects a gripping operation in which the user grips the gripping unit;
A motion detection unit that detects the walking motion of the user;
And a movement control unit configured to start movement of the movement carriage when the grip detection unit detects the holding motion and the motion detection unit detects the start of the walking motion.   The movable carriage according to claim 1, wherein the movement control unit causes the movement of the movable carriage to start when the movement detection unit detects the start of the walking movement after the holding unit detects the holding movement. .   The movable carriage according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the movement control unit sets a target velocity after the start of movement as a constant velocity.   The mobile carriage according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the movement control unit changes the target velocity after the start of movement based on the walking motion detected by the motion detection unit. The grip detection unit detects a load including a component in a gravity direction or a traveling direction received from the user,
The mobile carriage according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the movement control unit determines that the holding detection unit detects the holding operation when the load exceeds a predetermined reference load.   The movement control unit is configured such that, when the grip detection unit detects the release of the holding operation, or when the movement detection unit detects a predetermined delay of the walking operation with respect to the movement of the movable carriage, The moving truck according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein movement of the moving truck is stopped.   The mobile truck according to claim 6, wherein the motion detection unit is configured such that the first detection unit that detects the start of the walking motion and the second detection unit that detects the delay of the walking motion are separate sensors. The mobile carriage is used to move on one side of the user,
The mobile truck according to any one of claims 1 to 7, further comprising: an adjustment unit configured to adjust a detection range of the operation detection unit according to which side the user is positioned with respect to the mobile carriage. The grip portion includes a right-hand grip portion that receives a load from the user in the right side of the user, and a left-hand grip portion that receives a load from the user in the left side of the user.
The mobile truck according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the motion detection unit is installed on either the right side of the user or the left side of the user. A control program for a movable carriage that assists the user in walking,
A gripping detection step of detecting a gripping operation in which the user grips a gripping unit that receives a load from the user;
A motion detection step of detecting the start of the walking motion by the user;
Control of the movable carriage causing the computer to execute a movement control step of starting movement of the movable carriage when the grasping operation is detected in the grasping detection step and the start of the walking operation is detected in the operation detection step program.

Images