JP2021171904A - Mobile robot, method for controlling mobile robot and control program - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a mobile robot that includes an omnidirectional movement carrier and does not make people around the robot cautious, instead, builds a feeling of safety.SOLUTION: A mobile robot that moves with an omnidirectional movement carrier part includes: a head part installed to a robot body part and including a face part at the front surface; drive means for driving the head part; and a head part control unit for controlling the drive means. The head part control unit controls the drive means to orient the face part in a movement direction when the robot starts moving or a prescribed time before moving.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

The present invention relates to, for example, mobile robots and the like.

In recent years, robots have been applied not only to factories and warehouses, but also to various places such as commercial buildings, airports, and nursing care facilities. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a human-cooperative mobile robot that autonomously travels in a work area shared with humans in a factory.

Japanese Patent No. 6412179

By the way, in order to support movement in a narrow passage or passing by a person, a human-cooperative mobile robot may adopt an omnidirectional mobile trolley that enables movement in all directions as a movement mechanism. many. However, since it is difficult to predict the moving direction of the omnidirectional moving trolley, it may warn people nearby about the movement of the robot.

The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned technical problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a feeling of security in a mobile robot equipped with an omnidirectional mobile trolley without alerting nearby people. Is to give.

The above-mentioned technical problem can be solved by a mobile robot or the like having the following configuration.

That is, the mobile robot according to the present invention is a mobile robot that moves by an omnidirectional mobile carriage unit, and controls a head having a front surface as a face, a driving means for driving the head, and the driving means. The head control unit includes a head control unit, and the head control unit controls the driving means to direct the face portion in the movement direction when the mobile robot starts moving or a predetermined time before the movement starts. , Has the function.

According to such a configuration, the mobile robot may move to a nearby person and notify the moving direction by turning the face in the moving direction at the time of starting the movement or a predetermined time before the start of the movement. Therefore, it is possible to avoid a collision with a person due to the movement without notice, and to give a sense of security to the person without being alert to the movement without notice.

The head control unit may be one that directs the face portion to the changed moving direction when changing the moving direction or before a predetermined time for changing the moving direction while the mobile robot is moving.

According to such a configuration, when the mobile robot changes the moving direction (changes the course) or turns the face in the changed moving direction before a predetermined time for changing the course, it may occur due to the change of the course without notice. It is possible to avoid collisions with people and give people a sense of security without being wary of changing course without notice.

The predetermined time may be changed according to the moving speed of the mobile robot.

According to such a configuration, a predetermined time that can be changed can be provided between the timing of driving the head and the start timing of movement or course change from the time of stop, so that, for example, it is natural according to the movement speed. The movement of the head can be adjusted, and the movement of the head can be realized without any discomfort.

The driving means may include a rotating shaft in the vertical direction for rotationally driving the head in the left-right direction.

According to such a configuration, by controlling the rotation of the rotation axis in the vertical direction, it is possible to realize the rotational drive of the head in the left-right direction.

A movement route setting unit that sets a movement route, a detection unit that detects the position of a person's head, and a case where the mobile robot moves the movement route in the movement direction from the current location within a predetermined distance from the mobile robot. A collision determination unit for determining whether or not to collide with the person is further provided, and when the collision determination unit determines that the collision with the person, the head control unit puts the face portion on the person's head. It may be something to point at.

According to such a configuration, the face can be directed to the head of a person who is predicted to collide when the mobile robot moves, so that the person is not only notified of the moving direction but also to avoid the collision. Evacuation behavior can be encouraged.

The driving means may further include a horizontal rotation axis that drives the head in the vertical direction.

According to such a configuration, by controlling the rotation of the rotation axis in the horizontal direction, it is possible to realize the movement of the head as if looking up and down, so that the position is higher or lower than the head of the mobile robot. You can turn your face to the head of the person in position.

An image sensor may be further provided, and the detection unit may detect the position of the person's head based on the image data detected by the image sensor.

According to such a configuration, the position of the human head can be easily detected by using various algorithms (software) for analyzing the image data.

When the collision determination unit further includes a person identification unit that identifies the person who is predicted to collide first when it is determined that the collision determination unit collides with the plurality of persons, and the collision determination unit determines that the collision determination unit collides with the plurality of persons. The head control unit may direct the face portion to the head of the person specified by the person identification unit.

According to such a configuration, even if there are a plurality of people who are predicted to collide when the mobile robot moves, the people identified in the same order as the human behavior principle are sequentially evacuated without discomfort. Can be encouraged.

A movement control unit that controls the movement of the mobile robot is further provided, and when an obstacle including the person is detected on the movement path during the movement of the robot, the movement control unit decelerates or decelerates the mobile robot. It may be something to stop.

According to such a configuration, even when a moving mobile robot encounters a person, it is possible to safely urge evacuation with a margin.

A speaker and a notification control unit that outputs a predetermined sound using the speaker are further provided, and the notification control unit is provided for a certain period of time after the head control unit directs the face portion toward the person's head. If it is determined that the collision determination unit collides with the person even after the lapse of time, a predetermined sound may be output.

According to such a configuration, since it is possible to appeal to the human hearing by using the speaker, it is possible to promote the evacuation more strongly and more clearly.

It may further include one or more arms having a manipulator mechanism.

According to such a configuration, it is possible to realize a movement manipulator having a function of notifying the movement or a function of urging the evacuation in addition to the function of notifying the movement.

The present invention can also be thought of as a method. That is, the method for controlling a mobile robot according to the present invention is a method for controlling a mobile robot that includes a head having a front face as a face and a driving means for driving the head, and is moved by an omnidirectional mobile trolley. The head control step includes a head control step for controlling the drive means, and the head control step controls the drive means when the mobile robot starts moving or before a predetermined time before the movement starts. The face is turned in the direction of movement.

The present invention can also be thought of as a computer program. That is, the control program for a mobile robot according to the present invention is a control program for a mobile robot that includes a head having a front face as a face and a driving means for driving the head, and is moved by an omnidirectional mobile trolley. The head control step includes a head control step for controlling the drive means, and the head control step controls the drive means when the mobile robot starts moving or before a predetermined time before the movement starts. The face is turned in the direction of movement.

According to the present invention, in a mobile robot provided with an omnidirectional mobile trolley, it is possible to give a sense of security to a nearby person without causing caution.

FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a mobile robot according to the first embodiment. FIG. 2 shows the appearance of the mobile robot of the first embodiment, but is a schematic configuration diagram. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a head of a mobile robot. FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating the head drive control of the first embodiment. FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an operation related to the head drive process. FIG. 6 is a schematic configuration diagram of the mobile robot of the second embodiment. FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating the head drive control of the second embodiment. FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating a method of collision determination processing. FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating an operation related to a human-compatible head drive process. FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating a situation in which a human-compatible head drive process is executed. FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating a situation in which the human-compatible head drive process is not executed. FIG. 12 is a flowchart illustrating the details of the movement process of the second embodiment. FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating a collision determination process executed during movement. FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating a specific process performed by the person identification unit.

<First Embodiment>
1 to 3 are views for explaining a configuration example of the mobile robot 100 according to the first embodiment of the present invention. The mobile robot 100 of the present embodiment is a robot that is supposed to move in a work area shared with a person, and is, for example, a mobile manipulator having a function of picking parts and transporting them to a predetermined place in a factory or the like. Or, it may be applied to a service robot or the like that guides a customer such as a traveler at a facility such as an airport. In the present embodiment, an example in which the mobile robot 100 is applied to a roughly humanoid mobile manipulator including a head 30 and an arm portion 40 having a manipulator mechanism as shown in FIG. 2 will be described.

As shown in FIG. 1, the mobile robot 100 of the present embodiment includes a controller 1 that functions as a control device for controlling the operation of the mobile robot 100, a moving mechanism driving means 2, and a head driving means 3. NS.

The controller 1 of the present embodiment has functional units such as a movement route setting unit 11, a movement control unit 12, and a head direction control unit 13. In the controller 1, for example, a central processing unit (CPU) as a processor, a read-only memory (ROM) and a random access memory (RAM) as a storage medium, an input / output interface (I / O interface), and the like are connected via a bus. It is an information processing unit configured by the interface. Further, the ROM included in the controller 1 stores a program (control program) for executing each function of each of the above-mentioned functional units. That is, the controller 1 realizes the functions of each functional unit such as the movement route setting unit 11, the movement control unit 12, and the head direction control unit 13 by executing various programs stored in the storage medium. It is composed. The above-mentioned configurations as the processor and the storage medium constituting the controller 1 are examples, and in addition to or in place of these, a GPU, a flash memory, a hard disk, a storage, and the like may be included. Further, the functions of the above-mentioned functional units do not necessarily have to be realized only by the controller 1, and are configured to be realized by a plurality of controllers appropriately selected for each functional unit or by coordinating with each other. May be good. The functions of each functional unit of the controller 1 will be described below.

The movement route setting unit 11 sets a route (movement route) on which the mobile robot 100 intends to move. Specifically, the movement route setting unit 11 plans the route from a predetermined position to the destination based on the map information (map data) of the work area. The movement route of the mobile robot 100 is a route generated by so-called path planning. Set as. The predetermined position here may be a predetermined predetermined position or may be the current position of the mobile robot 100. The specific method for the mobile robot 100 to generate a movement path from a predetermined position to the destination is not particularly limited, and a known method used for a mobile robot such as an existing mobile manipulator may be appropriately adopted. However, the set movement route does not necessarily have to be generated by the controller 1. The movement route setting unit 11 may set the route to the destination acquired via wireless communication or the like as the movement route of the mobile robot 100.

The movement control unit 12 controls the movement mechanism driving means 2 in order to move the mobile robot 100 along the movement path set by the movement route setting unit 11. The moving mechanism driving means 2 will be described later with reference to FIG.

The head direction control unit 13 controls the head driving means 3 in order to drive the head 30 (see FIG. 2) provided in the mobile robot 100. Specifically, the head direction control unit 13 controls the front facing direction of the head 30 via the head driving means 3. The details of the head driving means 3 will be described later with reference to FIG.

FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining the configuration of the mobile robot 100, and mainly shows an example of the appearance of the mobile robot 100.

As shown in the figure, the mobile robot 100 of the present embodiment has a substantially humanoid shape, and is located on the robot main body 10, the mobile trolley 20 that supports the robot main body 10, and the upper end of the robot main body 10. It is composed of a head portion 30 provided and an arm portion 40 extending from the front surface of the robot main body portion 10.

The mobile trolley 20 that supports the robot main body 10 is an omnidirectional mobile trolley having a function of moving on a surface (floor surface) on which the mobile robot 100 is placed. The omnidirectional moving trolley is a trolley provided with, for example, a plurality of omni wheels as driving wheels and configured to be able to move in all directions. The omnidirectional moving trolley may be referred to as an omnidirectional trolley, an omnidirectional moving trolley, or an omnidirectional trolley. In addition, the omnidirectional moving trolley has the feature that it can move 360 degrees in all directions and can move freely even in a narrow passage, etc., while the moving direction is changed from the direction in which the drive wheels face like a general trolley. Since it is difficult to judge, it is difficult to predict the direction of movement. As shown in the figure, the moving carriage 20 of the present embodiment has three driving wheels 22 and a moving mechanism driving means 2 for driving the driving wheels 22 via a belt or the like inside the skirt 21 represented in the appearance. It may be composed of and. The moving mechanism driving means 2 of the present embodiment is composed of one or a plurality of motors, and hereinafter, the moving mechanism driving means 2 is also referred to as a motor 2.

The head 30 may be provided at the upper end of the robot main body 10 as a configuration corresponding to a human head (a portion above the neck) in the substantially humanoid mobile robot 100. It is desirable that the head 30 is configured so that the front surface of the head 30 can be recognized as a face when viewed by a person. The head 30 is configured to be able to control the direction in which the front faces. Specifically, the mobile robot 100 of the present embodiment includes one or a plurality of head driving means 3 (actuators 3), and controls the direction of the front surface thereof by moving the head via the head driving means 3. It is configured so that it can be done. In the following, the front surface of the head 30 will be referred to as a face portion 31.

The mobile robot 100 of the present embodiment has a vertical rotation axis that rotates the head 30 in the horizontal direction (horizontal direction) with respect to the floor surface, and enables the head 30 to be rotationally driven in the left-right direction. It has a unit driving means 3 (servo motor 3a). As a result, the mobile robot 100 can rotate and drive only the head 30 to the left and right with respect to the vertical direction. However, the arrangement of the servomotor 3a is not limited to the arrangement shown in the drawing, and may be appropriately changed as long as the direction of the face portion 31 can be moved in the left-right direction. For example, the servomotor 3a may be provided so as to rotationally drive the robot main body 10 to the left and right with respect to the moving carriage 20. In this case, the servomotor 3a can change the direction of the face portion 31 by rotationally driving the head portion 30 together with the robot main body portion 10 to the left and right with respect to the vertical direction.

Further, the mobile robot 100 has a head driving means 3 (servo motor) which has a horizontal rotation axis for driving the head 30 in the vertical direction with respect to the floor surface and enables an operation of looking up and down of the head 30. 3b) may be provided. As a result, the mobile robot 100 can also move the direction of the face portion 31 in the vertical direction.

FIG. 3 is a diagram for more specifically explaining a configuration example of the head 30 of the present embodiment. The shape of the head 30 is not particularly limited as long as the front surface can be recognized as the face portion 31. For example, it is desirable that the face portion 31 has a structural feature that can be visually recognized only on the front portion of the head portion 30 so that the front surface can be easily recognized as the face portion 31. For example, as shown in FIG. 3A, by providing a configuration corresponding to two eyes imitating a human face only on the front surface of the head 30, the front surface can be easily recognized as the face portion 31. .. Further, as shown in FIG. 3B, for example, a characteristic portion (a portion indicated by a thick arrow) configured by using a transparent member or the like is provided on the front surface of the head 30, so that the front surface is used as the face portion 31. It can be easily recognized. Further, although not shown, for example, in the head 30 having a substantially long spherical shape, only the front surface may be made flat.

Further, as shown in the figure, the head 30 may be provided on the robot main body 10 via a configuration (neck) corresponding to a human neck, or may be provided directly on the upper end of the robot main body 10. good. That is, the servomotors 3a and 3b may be provided on the neck or the head 30. A sensor for recognizing the surrounding environment of the mobile robot 100 on the front portion of the head 30, for example, the portion corresponding to the eyes shown in FIG. 3 (a) and the portion made of the transparent member shown in FIG. 3 (b). Alternatively, an external environment recognition means (detection means) such as a camera may be provided. The external environment recognition means may be configured as a configuration for the mobile robot 100 to autonomously travel, or as a detection means 4 described later in the second embodiment.

As shown in FIG. 2, the mobile robot 100 includes an arm portion 40 on the front surface of the robot main body portion 10. The arm portion 40 is provided with a manipulator mechanism, and a gripping mechanism 41 for gripping an article or the like to be transported is provided at a tip corresponding to a free end. However, the shape, number, and arrangement of the arm portions 40 are not limited to the illustrated modes and may be appropriately changed according to the purpose. For example, the mobile robot 100 may be configured as a dual-arm robot having arm portions 40 on both side surfaces of the robot main body portion 10.

The above is a configuration example of the mobile robot 100 of the present embodiment. Although the mobile robot 100 is omitted in FIG. 2, the mobile robot 100 has other configurations required for controlling the operation of the mobile robot 100, for example, other actuators for driving the arm 40 and the like, and a power source. A battery or the like may be provided.

Next, the operation of the mobile robot 100 will be described with reference to FIGS. 4 and 5.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating the head drive control performed by the mobile robot 100 of the present embodiment. The storage medium included in the controller 1 stores a control program that executes the processes described below with reference to the illustrated flowchart.

In step S11, the controller 1 executes the task acquisition process. The task acquisition process is a process for the mobile robot 100 to acquire information necessary for generating a movement route set by the movement route setting process (S12) described later. In the task acquisition process, the controller 1 acquires, for example, identification information (part ID) of the part to be picked, position information of the destination (for example, position coordinates), and the like. The acquisition method is not limited, and the acquisition may be performed using a known wireless communication technique, or may be configured to be acquired via an information input means (for example, a touch panel or the like) (not shown).

In step S12, the controller 1 (movement route setting unit 11) sets the route generated according to the information acquired by the task acquisition process as the movement route of the mobile robot 100. For example, when the component ID is acquired by the task acquisition process, the movement route setting unit 11 moves from the current location generated with the location where the component specified by the component ID is placed to the destination. Set the route as a movement route. When the movement route to the destination is set, the head drive process is subsequently executed (S13).

In step S13, the controller 1 (head direction control unit 13) executes a head drive process that controls the direction in which the face unit 31 faces. The head drive process in this step is executed at the same time as the mobile robot 100 starts moving or before a predetermined time from starting the movement. The predetermined time here may be set as appropriate, for example, immediately before the start of movement (for example, within 1 second), or a relatively long time (for example, 3 seconds or more) may be set.

In the head drive process (S13), the head direction control unit 13 controls the servomotor 3a so that the face portion 31 faces the moving direction. Then, the movement process (S14) is executed at the same time when the face portion 31 starts the operation of facing the moving direction, or when the above-mentioned predetermined time has elapsed from the start of the operation.

Here, the operation of the mobile robot 100 when executing the head drive process will be described with reference to FIG.

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating the operation of the mobile robot 100 when executing the head drive process. In this figure, the operation of the mobile robot 100, which functions as a mobile manipulator, after picking a part and immediately before starting the movement is shown. FIG. 5A shows a mobile robot 100 that performs a work of picking parts and a person (worker) who is working next to the mobile robot 100. FIG. 5B shows a state in which the mobile robot 100 has finished picking parts and has stopped. At this time, the mobile robot 100 may execute the movement route setting process (S12) to set the movement route. The illustrated arrow is a part of the set movement path and indicates the latest movement direction (movement direction from the current location) of the mobile robot 100.

Here, if the mobile robot 100 starts moving without performing the head drive process, the worker in the moving direction may inevitably collide with the mobile robot 100 that suddenly starts moving toward himself / herself. In addition, even if a collision can be avoided, in a situation where a mobile robot 100 that may suddenly start moving toward itself is nearby, the next movement of the mobile robot 100 is warned, and the work efficiency is increased due to the psychological burden. May decrease. The mobile robot 100 of the present embodiment is configured to eliminate such a fear by executing a head drive process for notifying a nearby person of the next operation.

FIG. 5C shows a state in which the mobile robot 100 executes the head drive process and directs the face portion 31 in the moving direction. By executing the head drive process, the mobile robot 100 can indicate the direction of movement to a nearby person and foretell the subsequent movement operation. As a result, the mobile robot 100 can urge a person to evacuate from the movement path, so that a collision with the person can be avoided. In addition, since it is known to workers and the like that the mobile robot 100 turns the face 31 in the moving direction at the start of the movement or before the movement starts, the caution against sudden movement in the direction in which the mobile robot 100 is located is warned. You can give a sense of security to people in a shared work area without having to worry about it.

If the direction of the face portion 31 and the movement direction in the stopped state before the start of movement match, the mobile robot 100 may start the movement without executing the head drive process. The direction of the face portion 31 may be moved once in any of the up, down, left, and right directions, and then turned in the moving direction. By doing so, the mobile robot 100 notifies a nearby person that the movement of the head 30 will move from now on even if the direction of the face portion 31 in the stopped state and the movement direction match. can do. The above is the details of the operation related to the head drive process (S13). Returning to the flowchart of FIG. 4, the following description will be continued.

In step S14, the controller 1 (movement control unit 12) executes a movement process for moving the mobile robot 100 to the destination. In the movement process, the movement control unit 12 controls the motor 2 to move the automatic robot 100 to the destination along the set movement path. The specific method for moving the mobile robot 100 to the destination is not particularly limited, and various known methods may be appropriately adopted. For example, the mobile robot 100 controls the motor 2 while performing known self-position estimation such as odometry and scan matching based on the route planned by path planning and the map data stored in advance, and the destination. It may be configured to realize autonomous movement (autonomous driving) up to.

The mobile robot 100 may be configured to execute the head drive process even during the movement (during the movement process). That is, the controller 1 (head direction control unit 13) directs the face portion 31 to the changed moving direction when changing the moving direction or before a predetermined time for changing the moving direction while the mobile robot 100 is moving. The head drive process may be executed. The predetermined time may be set as appropriate, and may be changed according to, for example, the current moving speed of the mobile robot 100. For example, the faster the moving speed, the shorter the predetermined time may be set. In this case, the movement speed is zero, that is, the head drive process is executed during the movement and then the course is changed rather than the predetermined time required from the execution of the head drive process to the start of the movement when the vehicle is stopped. The predetermined time required to start is set shorter. By making it possible to change the predetermined time according to the moving speed of the mobile robot 100 in this way, the movement of the head 30 according to the moving speed of the mobile robot 100 can be adjusted, so that people around the user can rest assured. It is possible to realize the natural movement of the head 30 without any discomfort while giving a feeling.

In this way, the mobile robot 100 changes the moving direction and changes the moving direction after the change, not only at the start of the movement from the stopped state but also during the movement, depending on the direction in which the face portion 31 faces. You can give notice to people. When the mobile robot 100 reaches the destination, the movement process ends.

The above is the details of the head drive control performed by the mobile robot 100 of the first embodiment. It should be noted that the flowchart shown in FIG. 4 is an example for explaining the head drive control of the present embodiment, and does not limit the execution as shown in the drawing. For example, the task acquisition process and the movement route setting process do not have to be executed before the head drive process.

The above is the details of the mobile robot 100 of the first embodiment. As described above, since the mobile robot 100 directs the face portion 31 in the moving direction, it is possible to give a notice of the moving direction to a nearby person. As a result, the mobile robot 100 can give a sense of security to people who share the same space without being alert to the movement of the mobile robot 100.

<Second Embodiment>
Hereinafter, the mobile robot 200 of the second embodiment will be described. The mobile robot 200 is mainly different from the first embodiment in that the position of a person existing in the vicinity, particularly the position of the head of the person, can be detected. Hereinafter, the differences from the mobile robot 100 will be mainly described with reference to FIGS. 6 to 14. The description of the same configuration as that of the mobile robot 100 will be omitted.

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating the configuration of the mobile robot 200. As shown in the figure, in addition to the mobile robot 100 of the first embodiment, the mobile robot 200 of the present embodiment includes a detection means 4, a human detection unit 21 and a collision prediction unit 22 as functional units of the controller 1. Further prepare.

The detecting means 4 detects an obstacle existing in the surrounding environment of the mobile robot 200. The obstacles here are mainly people. The detection means 4 includes, for example, at least one of a sensor (image sensor, lidar, laser scanner, etc.), a stereo camera, and the like. The detection means 4 of the present embodiment is composed of an image sensor, and the detection means 4 is also referred to as a sensor 4 below. The image sensor is a sensor having an image sensor that converts light detected through an optical system into an electric signal, and the type thereof is not particularly limited. The sensor 4 is configured to be able to detect an obstacle existing in the surrounding environment including at least the front, and is provided, for example, in a portion corresponding to the human eye, which is configured in the face portion 31 shown in FIG. 3A. good. Further, a sensor 4 capable of detecting all directions, which is a so-called 360-degree camera, may be provided on the crown of the head 30, for example. The sensor 4 of the present embodiment detects image data capable of recognizing the position and posture of a person existing in the vicinity including at least the front of the mobile robot 100, and transmits the detected data (image data) to the controller 1.

The person detection unit 21 detects the position and posture of a person based on the image data acquired by the sensor 4. The posture to be detected here is not necessarily the posture of the whole body, but at least the position of the human head may be discriminated. Various known methods can be adopted as a method for detecting the position and posture of a person based on the image data, but in the present embodiment, the human skeleton (bone) is detected from the image data to determine the position of the person. A method of detecting the posture is adopted. This method is also referred to as a bone model, bone detection, or the like. By adopting such a method, the human detection unit 21 can easily detect the position of the head of a person in the vicinity of the mobile robot 200.

The collision prediction unit 22 predicts whether or not the mobile robot 200 and a person collide with each other when the mobile robot 200 moves along a set movement path. As a method for predicting a collision between the mobile robot 200 and a person, various known methods may be appropriately adopted. A specific example of the collision prediction adopted in this embodiment will be described later with reference to FIG.

The above is the main configuration of the mobile robot 200. Hereinafter, the operation of the mobile robot 200 will be described with reference to FIGS. 7 to 14.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating the head drive control performed by the mobile robot 200 of the second embodiment. The storage medium included in the controller 1 stores a control program that executes the processes described below with reference to the illustrated flowchart.

Steps S21 to S23 are executed when the mobile robot 200 starts moving along the set movement path, or when the mobile robot 200 is in a stopped state before starting the movement.

In step S21, the controller 1 (collision prediction unit 22) executes a collision determination process for predicting whether or not the mobile robot 200 collides with a person. The details of the collision determination process will be described with reference to FIG.

FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating a collision determination process performed by the collision prediction unit 22 of the present embodiment. In FIG. 8, the mobile robot 200 and the person 300 detected by the person detection unit 21 are shown. The dotted arrow extending from the mobile robot 200 indicates a set movement path. Further, the solid line arrow extending from the mobile robot 200 indicates the latest moving direction of the mobile robot 200. The latest movement direction indicates the movement direction from the current location on the set movement route, and is indicated by a straight line starting from the current location in principle. In other words, the most recent movement direction is the direction from the current location to the first turning point (first waypoint) on the movement route.

The collision determination process of the present embodiment is performed by regarding the mobile robot 200 and the person 300 as simple two-dimensional figures projected from above onto the floor surface, and determining whether or not the two-dimensional figures interfere with each other. .. As illustrated in FIG. 8, the mobile robot 200 is represented by, for example, a series of circles projected corresponding to each link of the mobile carriage 20 and the arm 40. Further, the person 300 is represented by a circle considering a region that expands in the horizontal direction when the arm is extended in the horizontal direction. The outer edge of the projected two-dimensional figure, that is, the diameter of the circle, is the maximum value of the horizontal width of the mobile robot 200 seen from above, and the maximum horizontal width when the person 300 spreads both arms in the horizontal direction. The values do not necessarily have to match. The projected two-dimensional figure may be appropriately adjusted by making it slightly wider to allow a margin or narrowing it in consideration of a realistic movable range.

Further, the circle corresponding to the mobile robot 200 is generated along the movement path while the mobile robot 200 moves for a predetermined distance or a predetermined time. In FIG. 8, circles corresponding to the mobile robot 200 that moves the movement path within the predetermined distance indicated by the dotted line circle in the latest movement direction are shown in chronological order. As shown in the figure, the predetermined distance of the present embodiment may be set to a distance equal to or less than the moving distance in the latest moving direction (distance from the current location to the first waypoint). In this figure, the current circle corresponding to the mobile robot 200 is shown as (t), and the circles generated in time series along the moving path are shown as (t + 1) and (t + 2). Then, the collision prediction unit 22 calculates whether or not the circle corresponding to the mobile robot 200 and the circle corresponding to the person 300 come into contact (interference) within a predetermined distance from the mobile robot 200. Whether or not they touch each other can be easily calculated based on, for example, the distance between the centers of the circles and the radius of each circle. As a result, the collision prediction unit 22 can predict that the mobile robot 200 can collide with the person 300 at (t + 2), for example, as shown in the figure.

The predetermined distance indicated by the dotted line circle in the figure, that is, the distance range of the collision prediction based on the current location may be appropriately adjusted according to the moving speed of the mobile robot 200 and the like. Further, the generation interval of the two-dimensional figures shown by (t + 1) and (t + 2) in the figure is the moving speed of at least one of the mobile robot 200 and the person 300, the sampling frequency when the detection unit 21 detects the person 300, and the like. May be adjusted as appropriate in consideration of. The collision determination method for generating the above-mentioned two-dimensional figure as the collision verification figure is an example, and is not limited to this. The collision prediction unit 22 may adopt another known collision determination method that generates a three-dimensional figure as a collision verification figure. In this case, each link of the mobile robot 200 and the person 300 may be represented by a three-dimensional sphere or polygon mesh as a collision verification figure.

The above is the details of the collision determination process (S21) performed by the collision prediction unit 22. Hereinafter, the description will be continued by returning to the flowchart of FIG.

When it is determined by the collision determination process that the vehicle does not collide with a person (S21, NO determination), the process of step S22 for performing the head drive process is executed. The head drive process according to this step is the same as the head drive process described above in the first embodiment (see S13, FIG. 5 (c)). When the head drive process is executed, the process proceeds to the subsequent move process (S24) in order to move along the set movement path. On the other hand, if it is determined that the vehicle collides with a person (YES determination), the human-compatible head drive process in step S23 is executed.

In step S23, the controller 1 (head direction control unit 13) executes the human-compatible head drive process. The human-compatible head drive process is a process executed for a person who is determined to collide when the mobile robot 200 moves in the movement direction (most recent movement direction) from the current location within a predetermined distance from the current location of the mobile robot 200. Is.

FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating a human-compatible head drive process (S23) executed when the movement is started from the stopped state. As shown in FIG. 9, in the human-compatible head drive process (S23), the head direction control unit 13 controls the head drive means 3 and directs the face 31 to the head of a person determined to collide. .. In order to turn the face portion 31 upward as shown in the figure, the head direction control unit 13 may control the drive of the servomotor 3b.

Here, when the mobile robot 200 in the stopped state starts moving, each situation when the face portion 31 is directed toward the human head and when the face portion 31 is not directed is arranged with reference to FIGS. 10 and 11. In FIGS. 10 and 11, the mobile robot 200, the movement path indicated by the dotted arrow extending from the mobile robot 200, the latest movement direction indicated by the solid arrow extending from the mobile robot 200, and the predetermined movement from the mobile robot 200 indicated by the dotted circle. The distance and the person are shown.

FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating a situation when the face portion 31 is directed toward a person's head. As shown in FIG. 10A, when a person is within a predetermined distance and is in the latest movement direction on the movement path, it is naturally predicted that the person will collide with the face 31. To the person's head. Further, as shown in FIG. 10B, even when the person is at a position deviated from the latest movement direction on the movement path, the mobile robot 200 moves in the latest movement direction within a predetermined distance. When the robot 200 is in a position where it is predicted that the robot will collide with the robot 200, the mobile robot 200 turns the face 31 toward the human head. As a result, the mobile robot 200 can announce the movement operation to the person who is predicted to collide, and can urge the person to evacuate from the movement path.

On the other hand, FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating a situation in which the face portion 31 is not directed toward the human head. In FIGS. 11 (a) and 11 (b), since the person is not within the predetermined range and is not predicted to collide with the mobile robot 200, the mobile robot 200 has a face 31 regardless of whether or not it is in the latest moving direction. Do not point at the person's head. Further, in FIGS. 11 (c) and 11 (d), although the person is within the predetermined range, it is unlikely that the mobile robot 200 will approach the person even if the mobile robot 200 moves in the latest moving direction. Since it is predicted that the robot will not collide, the mobile robot 200 does not turn the face 31 toward the human head.

When the human-compatible head drive process (S23) is executed, until there are no people predicted to collide, that is, the person determined to collide by the collision determination process (S21) performed in the previous stage is from the movement path. The processes of steps S21 to S23 are repeatedly executed until eviction or the like. During this time, the mobile robot 200 can continue to urge evacuation from the latest moving direction by maintaining the state in which the face portion 31 is directed toward the human head and continuing to apply silent pressure.

However, while the processes of steps S21 to S23 are repeated, it is not always necessary to keep the face 31 facing the human head. For example, when a person who is predicted to collide does not evict for a certain period of time, a conspicuous action such as shaking the head 30 to the left or right is performed so that the person who is predicted to collide notices earlier by the advance notice action of the mobile robot 200. You may. Further, the mobile robot 200 may be provided with a notification means (not shown), and may be configured to more directly appeal to a person who is predicted to collide with evacuation from the movement path by using the notification means.

For example, the mobile robot 200 may further include a speaker as a notification means and a functional unit (notification means control unit) of the controller 1 that controls the notification means. Then, if the mobile robot 200 continues to be determined to collide with the person even after a certain period of time has passed after the face 31 is directed toward the person's head by the human-compatible head drive process (S23), the speaker It may be configured to output a predetermined sound from. The predetermined sound here may be, for example, a warning sound consisting of a buzzer sound, or a voice such as "I'm sorry, I'm moving" or "passing". As a result, the mobile robot 200 can give a clearer and stronger notice of movement to a person who is predicted to collide.

When there are no more people predicted to collide (S21, NO determination), the face 31 is directed in the moving direction (S22), and a moving process for moving along the moving path is executed (S24).

The human-friendly head drive control of the second embodiment has been described above. Subsequently, the details of the movement process in step S24 shown in FIG. 7 will be described with reference to FIG.

FIG. 12 is a flowchart illustrating a movement process performed by the mobile robot 200 of the second embodiment. The movement process described in this flowchart is always executed while the mobile robot 200 is moving to the destination along the set movement route. The storage medium included in the controller 1 stores a control program that executes the processes described below with reference to the illustrated flowchart.

In step S221, the controller 1 (collision prediction unit 22) executes the collision determination process. The collision determination process may be the same as the method described above in the first embodiment (see FIG. 8). However, the collision determination process executed in this step may be executed as follows in consideration of being performed while the mobile robot 200 is moving.

FIG. 13 is a diagram for explaining a collision determination process executed while the mobile robot 200 is moving. In FIG. 13, the mobile robot 200, the movement path indicated by the dotted arrow extending from the mobile robot 200, the latest movement direction indicated by the solid arrow extending from the mobile robot 200, and the predetermined distance from the mobile robot 200 indicated by the dotted circle. The deceleration start area indicated by the alternate long and short dash line circle and the person are shown.

The movement control unit 12 at the time of movement may execute a process (deceleration process) of decelerating or stopping the movement of the mobile robot 200 when the person detection unit 21 detects a person on the movement path. The alternate long and short dash line circle shown in FIG. 13A is a circle exemplifying a deceleration start area (deceleration start distance) set to execute deceleration processing when a person is detected.

Then, after the deceleration process is performed, when a person is detected on the movement path within a predetermined range and in the latest movement direction (see FIG. 13 (b)), the head direction control unit 13 sets the head direction control unit 13. The human-compatible head drive process (S23) is executed. As a result, even if a person is encountered while moving, it is possible to safely urge evacuation from the moving path before the collision. The size of the deceleration start area and the degree of deceleration including the stop may be appropriately adjusted in consideration of the moving speed of the mobile robot 200 and the person. Further, the deceleration process may be executed not only when a person is detected in the deceleration area but also when some obstacle that may hinder the movement of the mobile robot 200 is detected.

The explanation will be continued by returning to step S221 of FIG. If it is determined in step S221 that the vehicle does not collide with a person (NO determination), the processes of steps S221 to S222 are repeatedly executed until the destination is reached. If it is determined that the vehicle collides with a person (YES determination), the process of step S223 is executed.

In step S223, the controller 1 determines whether or not there are a plurality of people who are determined to collide by the collision determination process. If there is only one person instead of a plurality (NO determination), the human-compatible head drive process (S225) is executed in order to direct the face 31 to the head of the person who is predicted to collide. On the other hand, if there are a plurality of persons (YES determination), the person identification process (S224) is executed in order to identify the person to whom the face portion 31 is directed.

FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating a person identification process. In FIG. 14, the mobile robot 200, the movement path indicated by the dotted arrow extending from the mobile robot 200, the latest movement direction indicated by the solid arrow extending from the mobile robot 200, the predetermined distance from the mobile robot 200 indicated by the dotted circle, and the predetermined distance from the mobile robot 200. A plurality of people, including person A and person B, are shown.

Person A and person B shown in FIG. 14 are both persons who are expected to collide. In this way, when there are a plurality of people who are predicted to collide when the mobile robot 200 moves in the latest moving direction, the head 30 puts the face 31 on the head of the person who is predicted to collide first. Controlled to point. That is, in the person identification process, the controller 1 identifies the person who is predicted to collide first when the mobile robot 200 moves. Specifically, the person (person A) closest to the mobile robot 200 is identified as the person who is predicted to collide first. However, when identifying a person who is expected to collide for the first time, the moving speed and moving direction of the person may be taken into consideration. In this case, for example, when the person A slowly moves away from the mobile robot 200 while the person B quickly approaches the mobile robot 200, the person B is identified as the first person to be predicted to collide. There may be. When the person who turns the face 31 is identified by the person identification process, the process of step S225 is executed.

In step S225, the controller 1 (head direction control unit 13) executes a human-compatible head drive process in order to direct the face 31 to the human head. The human-friendly head drive process here is the same as the process described in step S23 of FIG. 7 (see FIG. 9 and the like). Then, when no one is predicted to collide (S221, NO determination), the processes of steps S221 to S222 are repeatedly executed until the destination is reached.

Then, when the mobile robot 200 arrives at the destination, the controller 1 (movement control unit 12) stops the movement of the mobile robot 200, and the movement process ends. As a result, when the mobile robot 200 is predicted to collide with a person when moving in the latest moving direction, the mobile robot 200 can directly move by pointing the face 31 toward the person's head. Since it is possible to appeal to the person concerned, it is possible to more strongly urge the person to evacuate from the movement route.

The above is the details of the head drive control and the movement process performed by the mobile robot 200 of the second embodiment. It should be noted that the flowcharts shown in FIGS. 7 and 12 are examples for explaining the head drive control and the movement process of the present embodiment, and do not necessarily limit the execution as shown in the drawings. In the head drive control of the present embodiment, as described above, it is determined at least whether or not the vehicle collides with a person while stopped or moving, and when it is determined that the vehicle collides with a person, a human-compatible head drive process is performed. It may be changed as appropriate.

For example, the head drive process (S22) shown in FIG. 7 may be executed before the collision determination process (S21). In particular, for example, when the sensor 4 is provided on the face 31 and is configured to detect only a person in front of the head 30, the moving direction is before the collision determination process (S21) is executed. It is desirable that the head drive process (S24) for directing the face portion 31 to the face is executed. Further, for example, the series of flow of the person identification process (S223, S224) shown in FIG. 12 may be executed after the YES determination in step S21 of FIG.

The above is the details of the mobile robot 200 of the second embodiment. As described above, since the mobile robot 200 directs the face 31 to the head of a person who is predicted to collide when moving, the mobile robot 200 not only informs a nearby person of the moving direction but also retreats to avoid the collision. Can be encouraged. As a result, the mobile robot 200 can give a sense of security by eliminating the alertness that a person sharing the same space may have with respect to the movement of the mobile robot 200.

Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the above embodiments are only a part of the application examples of the present invention, and the technical scope of the present invention is limited to the specific configurations of the above embodiments. No. In addition, the above embodiments can be appropriately combined as long as there is no contradiction.

For example, the configurations of the mobile robots 100 and 200 shown in FIG. 2 may be appropriately changed as long as they include at least the head 30 and are configured to be movable by the omnidirectional mobile trolley unit (moving trolley 20). For example, the mobile robots 100 and 200 do not have to include the robot main body 10. In this case, the head 30 may be configured to be provided directly on the moving carriage 20.

The present invention can be used at least in an industry that manufactures mobile robots and the like.

1 Controller 2 Movement mechanism driving means 3 Head driving means 4 Detection means 10 Robot main body 11 Movement route setting unit 12 Movement control unit 13 Head direction control unit (head control unit)
20 Mobile trolley (omnidirectional mobile trolley)
21 person detection unit (detection unit)
22 Collision prediction unit 30 Head 40 Arms 100 Mobile robot (first embodiment)
200 mobile robot (second embodiment)
300 people

Claims (13)

It is a mobile robot that moves by the omnidirectional mobile trolley.
The head with the front as the face and
The driving means for driving the head and
A head control unit that controls the driving means is provided.
The head control unit is a mobile robot that controls the driving means to turn the face portion in the moving direction when the mobile robot starts moving or before a predetermined time when the moving robot starts moving. The movement according to claim 1, wherein the head control unit directs the face portion to the changed movement direction when changing the movement direction or before a predetermined time for changing the movement direction while the mobile robot is moving. robot. The mobile robot according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the predetermined time is changed according to the moving speed of the mobile robot. The mobile robot according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the driving means includes a rotation axis in a vertical direction for rotationally driving the head in the left-right direction. The movement route setting unit that sets the movement route and
A detector that detects the position of a person's head,
A collision determination unit for determining whether or not the mobile robot collides with the person when the mobile robot moves in the movement direction from the current location within a predetermined distance from the mobile robot is further provided.
The mobile robot according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein when the collision determination unit determines that the robot collides with the person, the head control unit directs the face to the person's head. The mobile robot according to claim 5, wherein the driving means further includes a horizontal rotation axis that drives the head in the vertical direction. Equipped with an image sensor
The mobile robot according to claim 5 or 6, wherein the detection unit detects the position of the person's head based on the image data detected by the image sensor. Further provided with a specific unit for identifying the person who is predicted to collide first when the collision determination unit determines that the person collides with the plurality of persons.
Any one of claims 5 to 7, wherein when the collision determination unit determines that the collision determination unit collides with a plurality of the person, the head control unit directs the face portion to the head of the person specified by the specific unit. The mobile robot described in. A movement control unit that controls the movement of the mobile robot is further provided.
The method according to any one of claims 5 to 8, wherein when an obstacle including the person is detected on the movement path during the movement of the robot, the movement control unit decelerates or stops the mobile robot. Mobile robot. With speakers
A notification control unit that outputs a predetermined sound using the speaker, and further provided.
When the head control unit determines that the collision determination unit collides with the person even after a certain period of time has passed after the face portion is directed toward the person's head, the notification control unit makes a predetermined sound. The mobile robot according to any one of claims 5 to 9, which outputs. The mobile robot according to any one of claims 1 to 10, further comprising one or more arms having a manipulator mechanism. The head with the front as the face and
It is a control method of a mobile robot provided with a driving means for driving the head and moved by an omnidirectional moving carriage unit.
Including a head control step, which controls the driving means.
In the head control step, a method for controlling a mobile robot, in which the driving means is controlled to turn the face portion in a moving direction when the mobile robot starts moving or before a predetermined time when the moving robot starts moving. The head with the front as the face and
A control program for a mobile robot that includes a driving means for driving the head and is moved by an omnidirectional moving carriage.
Including a head control step, which controls the driving means.
In the head control step, a control program for a mobile robot that controls the driving means to turn the face portion in a moving direction when the mobile robot starts moving or a predetermined time before the moving starts.

Images