JP4007204B2 - Robot system - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a robot system in which a mobile robot having an article handling manipulator handles articles, and more particularly to a robot system for handling general-purpose articles whose shapes and postures are not uniformly limited.
[0002]
[Prior art]
Conventionally, as a robot system in which a mobile robot handles a general-purpose article that is not limited in shape, posture, or the like used in daily life, it is disclosed in Non-Patent Document 1, Non-Patent Document 2, and the like. There is an example. An example of an automatic storage device is disclosed in Patent Document 1 and the like.
[0003]
Non-Patent Document 1 and Non-Patent Document 2 disclose systems in which, for example, a mobile robot opens a door of a refrigerator and takes out an arbitrarily designated article from the refrigerator in the home. In this system, a detection device for a laser distance sensor, a hand camera, a main camera, and a force sensor is mounted on the mobile robot, and the detection devices detect the position of the refrigerator and the refrigerator door, taking into account the physical constraints of the robot. Open the refrigerator door based on the automatically generated operation plan, identify the items in the refrigerator with the camera, and also specify the arbitrarily specified items based on the automatically generated operation plan It is a system of taking out.
[0004]
Further, as disclosed in Patent Document 1, for example, in a commercial kitchen, the transfer machine carries in / out a container case storing tableware from an automatic warehouse based on an instruction of a kitchen room, etc., and transfers it to a conveyor. By doing so, a system for automatically loading and unloading specified tableware from a plurality of types of tableware has also been proposed.
[0005]
[Non-Patent Document 1]
Yano, Miura, Shirai, Shimada "Intuitive work teaching method for mobile manipulators" Proceedings of the 20th Annual Conference of the Robotics Society of Japan [Non-Patent Document 2]
Sakakibara, Takizawa, Shirai, Miura, Shimada “Object Recognition for Service Robots Using Dialogue with Users” Proceedings of the 20th Annual Conference of the Robotics Society of Japan [Patent Document 1]
JP-A-1-321202 [0006]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, the conventional robot system for handling articles has the following problems.
[0007]
That is, in the systems shown in Non-Patent Document 1 and Non-Patent Document 2, the robot can handle the target device or article for general use without any restrictions or modifications to the device or target article in daily life. Although it is aimed at, it has not reached the level that can be used in the real environment. For example, to generate an operation plan for a mobile robot including a manipulator, the exact position of the mobile robot and the object, the position and shape of the obstacle near the mobile robot, the mechanical constraints of the mobile robot and the object, etc. Although data is required, it is very difficult to detect these data, and even if it can be detected, a considerable amount of time is required for the detection. Even in the detection of the instructed article, it is difficult to cope with conditions that are normally considered in the real environment, such as changes in illumination conditions and overlapping of articles. As for the gripping of articles, what can be gripped at present is of limited shape, material, and posture, and those that overlap several times in front and back, soft ones, irregularly shaped ones, etc. It is very difficult to grasp and take out.
[0008]
Further, in the system disclosed in Patent Document 1, although automatic delivery of articles is achieved, it is difficult to develop for general versatility, and it is particularly small and versatile in the home. It is very difficult to apply to highly demanded systems. There are examples in which goods are delivered and transported by a combination of an automatic warehouse and a robot for industrial use, but in any case, it is very difficult to develop a system that is as small and highly versatile as the above.
[0009]
It is an object of the present invention to provide a robot system that enables a mobile robot to reliably deliver an article in an environment that requires a small scale and extremely high versatility such as article handling in a home. .
[0010]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In the robot system of the present invention, the dedicated container for storing the target article is detachably held inside the article storage apparatus for storing the article to be handled, and can be moved in the horizontal direction of the article storage apparatus, and the dedicated container is in a moving state. A storage shelf is provided in a drawer shape so that the holding position of the storage device is outside the article storage device, and the container has a dedicated container delivery unit that can move in the left and right and up and down directions relative to the storage shelf on the moving direction side of the storage shelf outside the article storage device. The device is fixedly installed with the article storage device, and the transfer device moves the dedicated container between the storage shelf and the mobile robot delivery position, and the mobile robot is dedicated at the mobile robot delivery position. An article is delivered through a container. According to the present invention, it is possible for a mobile robot to reliably deliver an article in an environment that requires a small scale and extremely high versatility, such as article handling in a home.
[0011]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
According to the first aspect of the present invention, the dedicated container for storing the target article is detachably held in the article storage apparatus for storing the article to be handled, and is movable in the horizontal direction of the article storage apparatus. In this state, a storage shelf is provided in a drawer shape so that the holding position of the dedicated container goes out of the article storage device, and the dedicated container can be moved to the side of the storage shelf outside the article storage device in the horizontal and vertical directions. A transport device having a section is fixedly installed with the article storage device, and the transport device moves the dedicated container between the storage shelf and the mobile robot delivery position, and moves the dedicated container between the storage shelf and the mobile robot delivery position. A mobile robot is designed to deliver articles through a special container, and it is related to the variety of shapes, postures, and materials of the target article through the special container. It is possible to handle general-purpose items, and a drawer-shaped storage shelf inside the item storage device and a transport device having a dedicated delivery section outside the item storage device are fixedly installed with the item storage device. By adopting a configuration in which the dedicated container is delivered by the operation in the pull-out direction and the movement in the two directions of the transport device, an extra space for delivering the dedicated container is not required between the drawers, and the article storage device can be made compact. And it has the effect | action that a mobile robot can deliver and convey a target article reliably.
[0012]
According to the second aspect of the present invention, communication means for transmitting information related to delivery of an article is installed in the article storage device, and movement of a storage shelf and movement of a dedicated container delivery section provided in the transport device are performed based on information from the communication means. This communication means enables automatic delivery of articles between a mobile robot and an article storage device or between a person and an article storage device, and manages the information management of the stored items. It has the effect that equipment can be used.
[0013]
The invention according to claim 3 is configured such that the storage shelf is manually moved from the outside of the article storage device, and when the storage shelf is manually moved and the articles in and out of the storage shelf are taken in and out, It is possible to change the storage information of stored items, and this also allows humans to manually put in and out items of the item storage device. In this case, the management information of the item storage device and the correspondence between the actual item storage state and Since it can be removed, the mobile robot can reliably deliver the designated article even after the article is manually put in and out.
[0014]
In the invention according to claim 4, the dedicated container can pass through the bottom of the storage shelf at at least one position A of the dedicated container, and the dedicated container is at at least one position B of the dedicated container different from the one position. A through-hole is formed in the bottom of the storage shelf so that it cannot pass through the bottom of the storage shelf, and the dedicated container delivery unit of the transport device detaches the dedicated container from the storage shelf at the bottom of the hole in the storage shelf. The storage container is moved horizontally in this way, and the storage container is held at a position where the storage position of the target storage container goes out of the article storage device. It has the effect that the mechanism for detaching can be made simple.
[0015]
The invention according to claim 5 is configured such that a through-hole is provided in the bottom of the storage shelf and at least one of the shape of the hole or the shape of the dedicated container can be changed, and the storage shelf holds the dedicated container in a horizontal state. When the container is held at the bottom of the storage shelf, the dedicated container must be shaped so that the dedicated container cannot pass through the hole at the bottom of the storage shelf. The shape of the hole at the bottom of the storage shelf or the shape of the dedicated container is changed so that the dedicated container can pass through the hole shape at the bottom of the storage shelf in a horizontal posture Thus, the operation of moving the position of the dedicated container for the purpose of attaching / detaching the dedicated container required in the example described in claim 4 can be eliminated.
[0016]
The invention according to claim 6 is such that the arrangement of the dedicated container on the storage shelf is a two-dimensional arrangement in the vertical direction, and the dedicated container delivery part of the transport device detaches the dedicated container from the side surface of the storage shelf. As a result, the storage container can be detached from the horizontal direction of the dedicated container, and it is easy to confirm the stored article with a camera or the like from the horizontal direction.
[0017]
1 to 5 show an embodiment of the present invention.
[0018]
(Embodiment 1)
FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the entire configuration of a robot system according to the present invention.
[0019]
In FIG. 1, 1 is an article storage device for storing the target article 102, 2 is a delivery of the target article 102 to and from the article storage device 1, and the indicated position of the article storage device 1 It is a mobile robot that transports between. In the article storage device 1, a drawer-shaped storage shelf 120 is vertically arranged so as to be movable in the horizontal direction, and a dedicated container 110 is detachably held at the bottom of the storage shelf 120. In addition, the article storage device 1 is fixedly provided with a transport device 140 having a dedicated container delivery portion 141 that can move in the left and right and up and down directions with respect to the storage shelf 120 outside the storage shelf 120 in the moving direction.
[0020]
Further, the article storage device 1 is provided with a communication unit 101 that manages the delivery of stored articles, the storage status of stored articles, and the like, and transmits instructions regarding operations such as movement of the storage shelf 120 to the article storage device 1. The mobile robot 2 has a moving mechanism using known wheels (not shown) and a steering mechanism that steers in the traveling direction, and is capable of moving on a plane. It comprises a known vertical articulated manipulator 202 that can grip and move nearby items.
[0021]
In addition, the mobile robot 2 is equipped with a control device (not shown) that controls the operation of the mobile carriage 201 and the manipulator 202 according to instructions from the outside, and autonomous movement by the mobile carriage 201 and autonomous handling of articles by the manipulator 202 are performed. Is possible. When the mobile robot 2 takes out the target article 102 from the article storage device 1 with this overall configuration, the information to be taken out is sent directly from the mobile robot or from a central control device (server) (not shown) via the communication means 101. 1, the storage shelf 120 moves horizontally until the dedicated container 110 in which the target article 102 is stored exits the article storage device 1 in accordance with the information, and the dedicated container delivery unit 141 of the transport device 140 is moved. Moves to the position of the dedicated container 110 to be taken out, takes out the dedicated container 110 from below, moves the dedicated container 110 to the delivery position P with the mobile robot 2, and at this position the manipulator 202 of the mobile robot 2 moves the target article. A dedicated container 110 containing 102 can be gripped and transported to a designated position. When the mobile robot 2 stores the target article 102 in the article storage device 1, an operation reverse to that in the case of taking out is performed.
[0022]
That is, the operator (human) performs until the target article 102 is stored in the dedicated container 110 and the dedicated container 110 is installed at a position where the mobile robot 2 can hold the dedicated container 110. In this state, the operator is instructed to store the article 102 directly or indirectly via the central controller or the like from the operator, and in response to this instruction, the mobile robot 2 moves to a position where the dedicated container 110 can be gripped. Then, after the dedicated container 110 is gripped by the manipulator 202, it is moved to a predetermined delivery position in the vicinity of the article storage device 1.
[0023]
Here, the storage information is transmitted to the article storage device 1 directly from the mobile robot or from a central control device (server) (not shown) via the communication means 101, and the dedicated container delivery unit 141 of the transport device 140 corresponds to the information. Moves to the delivery position P. The mobile robot 2 installs the dedicated container 110 in which the article 102 is stored in the dedicated container transfer unit 141 after confirming that the dedicated container transfer unit 141 is at the transfer position P using a camera or a position detector (not shown). The article storage device 1 confirms that the dedicated container 110 is installed in the dedicated container delivery section 141 by a detector (not shown), then moves the storage shelf 120 in which the target article 102 should be stored in the horizontal direction, and stores the target article 102. The holding position of the dedicated container 110 to be moved is moved to the outside of the article storage device 1, and the dedicated container 110 storing the target article 102 is moved to the holding position by the transfer device 140 near the holding position. Installed. Although the manipulator 202 has been described as a vertical articulated type, it can be similarly applied to a horizontal articulated type, a cylindrical coordinate system type, a polar coordinate system type, and other types of manipulators, and the mobile robot 2 needs to be fully autonomous. The remote control type can be similarly implemented.
[0024]
(Embodiment 2)
FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the storage shelf 120 and the storage shelf drive mechanism 130 inside the article storage device 1 taken out.
[0025]
In FIG. 2, reference numeral 131 denotes an actuator such as an electromagnetic motor, which can automatically move the storage shelf 120 in the horizontal direction via a transmission mechanism 132 including a belt 133, a pulley 134, and the like. The storage shelf 1 is held so as to be movable only in the horizontal front-rear direction by a linear rail or the like (not shown), and is automatically driven only in one horizontal direction by a storage shelf drive mechanism 130 composed of the actuator 131 and the transmission mechanism 132. . In addition, a concave or protruding handle 123 is provided on the front surface of the storage shelf 120 in a movable direction, and the operator can manually move the storage shelf 120 using the handle 123.
[0026]
In this case, an element such as a brake is not operated or installed in the actuator 131 and the transmission mechanism 132 so as not to prevent manual operation. In addition, when an article is manually put in and out, it is necessary that an operator can change information related to article storage using a keyboard, a touch panel, etc. (not shown).
[0027]
In addition, the information regarding the article storage is changed by attaching information such as a barcode and an ID tag to the target article 102 and installing the target article 102 in front of the information reader (not shown) provided in the article storage device 1. The present invention can be similarly implemented even if the reader automatically reads the information of the target article 102 and can change the information regarding the article storage of the article storage device 1.
[0028]
(Embodiment 3)
FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a part of the bottom 121 of the dedicated container 110 and the storage shelf 120. The dedicated container 110 has a square tray shape, and protrusions 111 a and 111 b are provided integrally with the dedicated container 110 on both sides. A plurality of through holes 122 are provided in the bottom 121 of the storage shelf 120 in a grid-like arrangement. The shape of the through hole 122 is such that when the dedicated container 110 is in the position A indicated by the solid line, the protrusion 111 is located at the position of the extraction hole 124 provided on both sides of the through hole 122 and the dedicated container 110 can pass through in a horizontal posture. The protrusion 111 is located at the position of the holding part 123 at the position B indicated by the broken line where the dedicated container 110 has moved by the distance C in the D direction, and the protrusion 111 cannot pass through when the dedicated container 110 is in the horizontal state. It has a shape like this. The upper surface of the dedicated container 110 has a planar shape, and can store articles of any shape that fits within the area. A concave shape slightly larger than the convex shape provided on the upper portion of the dedicated container delivery portion 141 of the transport device 140 is formed below the bottom portion of the dedicated container 110, and the dedicated container 110 is positioned on the upper portion of the dedicated container delivery portion 141 so as to be horizontal. The shape can be held in a state.
[0029]
When the target article 102 is stored inside the article storage device 1 with the above configuration, the dedicated container 110 penetrates the bottom 121 of the storage shelf 120 in a state where the target article 102 is stored in the upper part of the dedicated container 110. This is a state where the protrusions 111a and 111b on both sides of the dedicated container are held by the holding parts 123a and 123b on both sides of the through-hole at the position B indicated by the broken line with respect to the hole 122. When there is a request for taking out the target article 102 from the article storage device 1, first, the storage shelf in which the target article 102 is stored is moved in the horizontal direction by the storage shelf driving mechanism 130 and the dedicated article in which the target article 102 is stored. The container 110 is pulled out until the holding position of the container 110 comes out of the article storage device 1.
[0030]
Next, the dedicated container delivery section 141 of the transport mechanism 140 is driven laterally by a drive mechanism (not shown) and moves directly below the holding position of the dedicated container 110. Similarly, the dedicated container delivery section 141 is moved upward by the drive mechanism (not shown). To the concave shape provided on the bottom of the dedicated container 110 and the convex shape of the upper portion of the dedicated container delivery portion 141 is fitted, and the projection 111 of the dedicated container 110 is separated from the holding portion 123 of the storage shelf bottom 121 until the dedicated container is used. 110 is lifted. In this state, the dedicated container delivery part 141 moves by a distance C on the opposite side to the D direction. When the dedicated container delivery unit 141 moves downward in this state, the dedicated container 110 can also pass through the through hole 122, and the target article 102 stored in the dedicated container can be taken out of the storage shelf 120.
[0031]
In the present description, the dedicated container 110 and the through hole 122 have been described as being substantially square, but other shapes such as a circle can be similarly implemented, and the arrangement of the through holes 122 is not necessarily a grid. There is no need. Moreover, although the exclusive container 110 was demonstrated with the shape of tray shape, what has an opening-and-closing type door can be implemented similarly.
[0032]
(Embodiment 4)
FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing an embodiment of the dedicated container 110 and the through hole 122 different from the third embodiment.
[0033]
In FIG. 4, a roller 114 is provided at the bottom of the bottom of the special container 110 and is pressed against a plate cam 115 rotatably held at the bottom center of the special container 110 by an elastic body 113 such as a tension spring. In this state, the projection 112 is held on both sides so as to be movable. The plate cam 115 is rotationally driven so as to be detachable by a rotational driving unit (not shown) provided at the tip of the dedicated container delivery unit 141. In the state of the position A rotated 90 degrees from the position shown in FIG. 4 of the plate cam 115, the protruding portion 112 is in a position retracted from the outer shape of the dedicated container 110, and in the state of the plate cam 115 in the position B shown in FIG. The position 112 protrudes from the outer shape of the dedicated container 110, and the shape of the dedicated container 110 can be changed from the outside. The shape of the through-hole 122 provided in a grid pattern in the bottom 121 of the storage shelf 120 is such that the dedicated container 110 can pass through when the protruding portion 112 of the dedicated container 110 is retracted, and the dedicated container when the protruding portion 112 protrudes. The shape is such that 110 cannot pass through.
[0034]
With the configuration as described above, when the dedicated container 110 is stored in the storage shelf 120, the plate cam 115 is at the position B and the protrusion 112 protrudes from the dedicated container 110, and the through hole 122 of the bottom 121 of the storage shelf 120 is formed. The protrusion 112 can be held by the holding portions 123 provided on both sides. When the dedicated container 110 is taken out from the storage shelf 120, the dedicated container 110 can pass through the through hole 122 by rotating the plate cam 115 to the position A by the dedicated container delivery unit 141 and retracting the protrusion 112 from the dedicated container 110. Thus, the dedicated container can be taken out from the storage shelf 120 by the same operation as in the third embodiment.
[0035]
(Embodiment 5)
FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing an embodiment of the article storage device 1 in which the arrangement of the dedicated containers 110 in the storage shelf 120 is a two-dimensional arrangement in the vertical direction and a plurality of storage shelves 120 are arranged in the vertical direction.
[0036]
In the case of this embodiment, the storage container 120 is fixedly installed in the article storage device 1 with respect to the dedicated container 110 stored in the holding unit 125 of the dedicated container 110 arranged in a vertical grid pattern. The dedicated container delivery unit 141 of the transport device 140 moves from the lateral direction to the lower side of the bottom of the dedicated container 110, moves upward, and returns to the lateral direction, whereby the dedicated container 110 can be taken out from the storage shelf 120.
[0037]
In this embodiment, for example, by providing the camera 103 or the like that moves integrally with the dedicated container delivery unit 141 in the vicinity of the dedicated container delivery unit 141 of the transport device 140, the presence or absence of the target article and the target before delivery of the target article 102 are provided. It can be confirmed whether the article is different from the one indicated.
[0038]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the present invention, in the robot system in which the mobile robot having the handling manipulator delivers the article to and from the article storage device, the dedicated container for storing the article is used and the dedicated container is stored in the article storage device. By providing an automatic article delivery unit consisting of a drawer-type storage shelf that can move in one direction and a transfer device that can move in two directions, the delivery of articles between the mobile robot and the article storage device can be ensured in a compact size. The advantageous effect that it can be implemented is obtained.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the entire configuration of a robot system showing Embodiment 1 of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a storage shelf and a storage shelf drive mechanism showing Embodiment 2 of the invention. FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a part of a dedicated container and a storage shelf bottom according to a third embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a storage container and a through hole according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention. The perspective view of the article storage equipment which arranged the storage shelf which shows Embodiment 5 in the lengthwise direction [Explanation of numerals]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Article storage apparatus 2 Mobile robot 101 Communication means 102 Target article 110 Dedicated container 111 Protrusion part 120 Storage shelf 121 Storage shelf bottom part 122 Through hole 123 Holding part 124 Taking out hole 130 Storage shelf drive mechanism 131 Actuator 132 Transmission mechanism 133 Belt 134 Pulley 140 Transport device 141 Dedicated container delivery unit 201 Moving carriage 202 Manipulator

Claims (2)

In robotic system mobile robot having an article handling manipulator handles the article, the interior article storage device for storing an article handling object, horizontal detachably holding vital said article storage device dedicated container for storing the target object in moving state movable in the direction provided in the form pull the storage shelf in which the holding position of the special container exits to the outside of the article storage device, the moving direction of the storage rack of the article storage device external to said storage rack the conveying device having a special container delivery section which is movable in the left-right-up-down direction fixedly installed to the article storage device, the mobile robot transfer position and desorption and the storage rack of the special container the transport device relative to the storage rack the mobile robot in the dedicated container moves, the mobile robot transfer position between the There to pass receive articles via the dedicated container,
At least one position A of the dedicated container, the dedicated container can pass through the bottom of the storage shelf, and at at least one position B of the dedicated container different from the one position, the dedicated container is in the storage shelf. A through-hole is formed in the bottom of the storage shelf so that it cannot pass through the bottom, and the dedicated container delivery unit of the transport device is attached to and detached from the storage shelf from below the hole in the storage shelf. robot system and performs. A through hole is provided in the bottom of the storage shelf, and the shape of the hole or the shape of the dedicated container can be changed. The storage shelf holds the dedicated container in a horizontal state. When the position B, the dedicated container has a hole shape and a dedicated container shape so that the dedicated container cannot pass through the hole at the bottom of the storage shelf, and the dedicated container delivery portion of the transfer device is located below the hole at the bottom of the storage shelf. When attaching / detaching the dedicated container to / from the storage shelf, the hole shape of the storage shelf bottom or the dedicated container of the storage container bottom so that the dedicated container can pass through the hole shape of the storage shelf bottom part in the horizontal state in A. The robot system according to claim 1, wherein at least one of the shapes is changed.

Images