JP2022036688A - Mobile robot - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a mobile robot configured so that influence of inertia force generated by running can be suppressed and costs are reduced.SOLUTION: The mobile robot comprises: a gravity center calculating part 25 that calculates a gravity center of a robot main body; an inertia force calculating part 26 that calculates inertia force that is generated by acceleration/deceleration amounts in advance, when running using a running part 12; and a multi-joint arm control amount calculating part 27 that calculates a gravity center position at which a moment around the gravity center is offset by moving the gravity center, with respect to a moment around the gravity center which is calculated based on a position of the gravity center calculated by the gravity center calculating part 25 and the inertia force calculated by the inertia force calculating part 26, and calculates a control amount by which a multi-joint arm 13 is operated so that the gravity center of the robot main body matches the calculated gravity center position at which the moment around the gravity center is offset. During acceleration and deceleration by the running part, operation of the multi-joint arm 13 is controlled on the basis of the control amount calculated by the multi-joint arm control amount calculating part 27.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

The present invention relates to a mobile robot having an articulated arm.

In recent years, a mobile robot having an articulated arm portion while traveling by using a traveling portion such as a wheel has been used.

Conventionally, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2006-150567 is available as a technique in such a field. In the mobile robot described in this publication, a cushioning member is provided between the mechanism portion for moving and traveling and the housing portion, and the inertial force and the external force due to the movement control can be absorbed. As a result, even if the center of gravity of the robot is high, it is possible to prevent the robot from tipping over when it suddenly starts or stops.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2006-150567

However, the above-mentioned conventional robot has a problem that it leads to an increase in cost because it has a structure in which a mechanism for moving, a flat slide mechanism for boldly absorbing a force, and an actuator are built in between the housing. ..
The present invention provides a mobile robot that suppresses the influence of inertial force generated by traveling and reduces costs.

The mobile robot according to the present invention is a mobile robot having a robot main body including a housing portion, an articulated arm connected to the housing portion, and a traveling portion provided in the housing portion. Calculated by the center of gravity calculation unit that calculates the center of gravity of the robot body, the inertial force calculation unit that calculates in advance the inertial force generated by the acceleration / deceleration amount when traveling using the traveling unit, and the center of gravity calculation unit. With respect to the position of the center of gravity and the moment around the center of gravity calculated based on the inertial force calculated by the inertial force calculation unit, the position of the center of gravity that cancels the moment around the center of gravity by the movement of the center of gravity is calculated. It is provided with an articulated arm control amount calculation unit that calculates a control amount for operating the articulated arm so that the center of gravity of the robot body coincides with the calculated center of gravity position that cancels the moment around the center of gravity. During acceleration / deceleration by the traveling unit, the operation of the articulated arm is controlled based on the control amount calculated by the articulated arm control amount calculation unit.
As a result, the moment around the center of gravity due to the inertial force can be canceled by controlling the articulated arm.

As a result, it is possible to provide a mobile robot that suppresses the influence of the inertial force generated by traveling and reduces the cost.

It is a figure which shows the structure of the mobile robot. It is a figure which shows the detailed structure of a mobile robot. It is a flow of operation that cancels the moment generated in the mobile robot. It is a figure which showed the control direction of the articulated arm corresponding to the inertial force applied when a mobile robot suddenly accelerates. It is a figure which showed the control direction of the articulated arm corresponding to the inertial force applied when a mobile robot suddenly decelerates.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. As shown in FIG. 1, the mobile robot 1 includes a housing portion 11, a traveling portion 12 connected to the lower portion of the housing portion 11, and an articulated arm 13 connected to the upper portion of the housing portion 11. , Equipped with. In the following, it is assumed that the mobile robot 1 constitutes the robot main body including the housing portion 11, the traveling portion 12, and the articulated arm 13.

The housing portion 11 can store a plurality of constituent articles inside. As shown in FIG. 2, the housing portion 11 includes a traveling drive unit 21 that generates power for driving the traveling unit 12 that is a wheel, a traveling control unit 22 that controls the operation of the traveling drive unit 21, and a traveling control unit 22. The articulated arm drive unit 23 that generates power to drive the articulated arm 13, the articulated arm control unit 24 that controls the operation of the articulated arm drive unit 23, and the center of gravity calculation unit that calculates the center of gravity of the robot body. The articulated arm using the 25, the inertial force calculation unit 26 that calculates the inertial force when the robot body is driven by using the traveling unit 12, the calculation result of the center of gravity calculation unit 25, and the calculation result of the inertial force calculation unit 26. A multi-joint arm control amount calculation unit 27 for calculating the control amount of 13 is provided.

The traveling portion 12 has a plurality of wheels provided at the lower part of the housing portion 11. In the traveling unit 12, the wheels are rotationally driven by the driving force given by the traveling drive unit 21 provided in the housing unit 11. As a result, the mobile robot 1 can travel on the road surface.

The articulated arm 13 is an arm robot having one end provided in the housing portion 11. For example, one end of the articulated arm 13 is movably connected to the upper part of the housing 11.

For example, in the articulated arm 13, a first joint portion 13a that moves freely is provided in the vicinity of a portion connected to the housing portion 11. Further, in the articulated arm 13, a second joint portion 13b and a third joint portion 13c are provided on the tip side of the first joint portion 13a, and a hand capable of gripping an article is provided at the tip portion. Has been done.

In the articulated arm 13, the joints are operated in response to the control signals from the articulated arm control unit 24 in each of the joint portions of the first joint portion 13a, the second joint portion 13b, and the third joint portion 13c. be able to. For example, in the first joint portion 13a, an actuator provided as the articulated arm drive unit 23 operates in response to a control signal from the articulated arm control unit 24, and the driving force generated by this actuator is used. Perform joint movements. On the other hand, in the second joint portion 13b and the third joint portion 13c, drive actuators provided in the vicinity of the respective joints operate in response to the control signal given from the multi-joint arm control unit 24. The joint operation is performed using the driving force generated by this actuator.

In this way, the multi-joint arm 13 can operate on 6 axes by operating the first joint portion 13a, the second joint portion 13b, and the third joint portion 13c, but the present invention is not limited to this. It is also possible to change the number of joints and change the number of axes.

The traveling drive unit 21 generates power for rotationally driving the wheels used in the traveling unit 12. For example, a motor can be used for the traveling drive unit 21. The travel drive unit 21 operates in response to a control signal input from the travel control unit 22. A plurality of traveling drive units 21 may be provided corresponding to each of the wheels used in the traveling unit 12, and have a mechanism for distributing the driving force of the traveling drive unit 21 to each wheel. You may.

The travel control unit 22 can control the rotation speed of the wheels used in the travel unit 12 by outputting a control signal to the travel drive unit 21. Further, the traveling control unit 22 controls the traveling direction of the mobile robot 1 by controlling the direction of the wheels.

The traveling unit 12 and the traveling drive unit 21 may be provided with sensors for measuring the traveling state of the mobile robot 1.

The articulated arm driving unit 23 generates a driving force for driving the articulated arm 13. Here, the articulated arm driving unit 23 is an actuator that operates the first joint unit 13a of the articulated arm 13, and will be described as being provided in the housing unit 11, but the second joint unit 13b will be described. And the third joint portion 13c, it may be provided on the articulated arm 13.

The articulated arm control unit 24 controls the operation of the articulated arm driving unit 23 that operates the first joint unit 13a and the actuator that operates the second joint unit 13b and the third joint unit 13c. A signal is output for each. The articulated arm control unit 24 outputs a control signal so that the articulated arm 13 is in a predetermined state based on the value calculated by the articulated arm control amount calculation unit 27.

The center of gravity calculation unit 25 calculates the center of gravity of the robot body. For example, the housing portion 11 of the mobile robot 1 can be provided with a sensor for measuring the center of gravity of the robot body, and the center of gravity calculation unit 25 can calculate the position of the center of gravity of the mobile robot 1 from the measured values. can. For example, the center of gravity calculation unit 25 may be configured to separately calculate the center of gravity of the housing unit 11 and the traveling unit 12 and the center of gravity of the articulated arm 13, and the method of measuring the center of gravity of the mobile robot 1 is arbitrary. Can be changed to.

The center of gravity of the mobile robot 1 is calculated by the center of gravity calculation unit 25 before the start of running of the mobile robot 1.

The inertial force calculation unit 26 calculates the inertial force of the traveling mobile robot 1. In particular, the inertial force calculation unit 26 calculates the inertial force of the mobile robot 1 when the mobile robot 1 is in a traveling state with a predetermined acceleration / deceleration amount.

The inertial force calculation unit 26 calculates the inertial force when the mobile robot 1 is in a traveling state with a predetermined acceleration / deceleration amount before the mobile robot 1 starts traveling.

The articulated arm control amount calculation unit 27 is based on the position of the center of gravity of the robot body of the mobile robot 1 calculated by the center of gravity calculation unit 25 and the inertial force calculated by the inertial force calculation unit 26. Calculate the control amount of the operation to be made. Here, the motion to be performed by the articulated arm 13 is an motion of canceling the moment around the center of gravity generated by the inertial force in the mobile robot 1 when the mobile robot 1 makes a predetermined movement.

In other words, the articulated arm control amount calculation unit 27 determines the moment around the center of gravity calculated based on the position of the center of gravity calculated by the center of gravity calculation unit 25 and the inertial force calculated by the inertial force calculation unit 26. On the other hand, the position of the center of gravity that can cancel the moment around the center of gravity by moving the center of gravity is calculated. Further, the articulated arm control amount calculation unit 27 calculates the control amount for operating the articulated arm 13 so that the center of gravity of the robot body coincides with the position of the center of gravity that cancels the calculated moment around the center of gravity. ..

In the articulated arm control unit 24, when a predetermined inertial force is generated in the mobile robot 1, the articulated arm drive unit 23 outputs a control signal for operating with the control amount of the calculation result of the articulated arm control amount calculation unit 27. The articulated arm 13 is operated. As a result, in the mobile robot 1, the moment generated around the center of gravity when the articulated arm 13 is not operated can be canceled by operating the articulated arm 13 and adjusting the position of the center of gravity of the robot body.

In the above, the articulated arm control unit 24 calculates the position of the center of gravity that can cancel the moment around the center of gravity, but the present invention is not limited to this, and the position that can be reduced so that the moment around the center of gravity becomes smaller is calculated. May be.

Next, the operation flow of the mobile robot 1 will be described with reference to FIG.

First, the mobile robot 1 is in a state before traveling and is in a stopped state.

At this time, it is assumed that the articulated arm 13 is in a preset posture. The center of gravity calculation unit 25 calculates the center of gravity of the robot body of the mobile robot 1 in this state (S1).

Further, the inertial force calculation unit 26 calculates the inertial force when the mobile robot 1 operates with a predetermined acceleration / deceleration amount (S2). Here, the case of operating with a predetermined acceleration / deceleration amount is a case where the mobile robot 1 suddenly accelerates as shown in FIG. 4 or a case where the mobile robot 1 suddenly decelerates as shown in FIG.

The articulated arm control amount calculation unit 27 determines the control amount of the articulated arm 13 performed by the articulated arm control unit 24 from the center of gravity calculated by the center of gravity calculation unit 25 and the inertial force calculated by the inertial force calculation unit 26. Calculate (S3). Here, the control amount calculated by the articulated arm control amount calculation unit 27 is large so as to cancel the moment around the center of gravity generated by the inertial force when the mobile robot 1 operates with a predetermined acceleration / deceleration amount. It is a control amount for operating the joint arm 13.

After that, the mobile robot 1 starts traveling. That is, the mobile robot 1 travels by rotationally driving the traveling unit 12 by the driving force supplied from the traveling driving unit 21.

Here, when the mobile robot 1 operates with the predetermined acceleration / deceleration amount set in S2, the articulated arm control unit 24 uses the control amount calculated by the articulated arm control amount calculation unit 27. , The articulated arm 13 is operated (S4).

For example, the determination of whether or not the mobile robot 1 has been operated with the predetermined acceleration / deceleration amount set in S2 is determined by the value of rotation or the like acquired by the sensor provided in the traveling unit 12 or the traveling drive. It can be performed from the value such as the rotation speed of the motor acquired by the sensor provided in the unit 21 or the control signal output from the traveling control unit 22.

In this way, the moment around the center of gravity of the mobile robot 1 generated by the inertial force when a predetermined running state is reached can be offset by controlling the operation of the articulated arm 13.

Therefore, it is possible to prevent the mobile robot 1 from tipping over at low cost without providing the mobile robot 1 with a cushioning member.

Further, even when the gripping object is gripped by the hand of the articulated arm 13, the moment around the center of gravity of the mobile robot 1 is canceled out, so that the force applied to the hand is also reduced at the same time, and the gripping from the hand is performed. It is possible to reduce the occurrence of deviation of the object.

The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and can be appropriately modified without departing from the spirit. That is, the above description has been omitted or simplified as appropriate for the sake of clarification of the description, and those skilled in the art can easily change, add, or convert each element of the embodiment within the scope of the present invention. It is possible.

1 Mobile robot 11 Housing unit 12 Travel unit 13 Multi-joint arm 21 Travel drive unit 22 Travel control unit 23 Articulated arm drive unit 24 Articulated arm control unit 25 Center of gravity calculation unit 26 Inertia force calculation unit 27 Multi-joint arm control amount calculation Department

Claims (1)

A mobile robot having a robot body including a housing portion, an articulated arm connected to the housing portion, and a traveling portion provided in the housing portion.
The center of gravity calculation unit that calculates the center of gravity of the robot body,
An inertial force calculation unit that calculates in advance the inertial force generated by the acceleration / deceleration amount when traveling using the traveling unit.
The moment around the center of gravity is offset by the movement of the center of gravity with respect to the moment around the center of gravity calculated based on the position of the center of gravity calculated by the center of gravity calculation unit and the inertial force calculated by the inertial force calculation unit. Articulated arm control that calculates the control amount for operating the articulated arm so that the center of gravity of the robot body coincides with the calculated center of gravity position that cancels the moment around the center of gravity. Equipped with a quantity calculation unit,
At the time of acceleration / deceleration by the traveling unit, the operation of the articulated arm is controlled based on the control amount calculated by the articulated arm control amount calculation unit.
Mobile robot.

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