JP6784380B2 - Position measurement system - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a position measurement system, and more particularly to a position measurement system of a robot moving underwater.

As robots that work underwater (hereinafter referred to as underwater robots), robots that explore underwater and robots that excavate the bottom of the water to mine resources (for example, rare metal ore and methane hydrate) are known. Patent Document 1 discloses, as an example of such an underwater robot, a robot that excavates the seabed to mine methane hydrate.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2006-161531

It is necessary to grasp the position of the underwater robot for the work of the underwater robot or for confirming the work area. On the ground, the use of GPS is known as one tool for grasping position information. However, since the underwater robot is located below the surface of the water, it cannot receive GPS satellite radio waves. Further, when the underwater robot moves at a depth of 1000 m or more, for example, it is difficult to grasp the position of the robot by communicating with the mother ship or the like.

Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a position measurement system capable of more accurately calculating the position of a robot that can move in water.

The position measurement system according to one aspect of the present invention is located between a robot that can move in water and the water surface, and is a connection line that connects the position measurement device that measures the position of the robot and the robot and the position measurement device. And at least one marker moored in water, the position measuring device controls an information acquisition unit that acquires information on at least one indicator and an information acquisition unit to acquire information. It has a control unit that calculates the position of the robot by calculating the relative position between at least one marker and the position measuring device based on the above information acquired by the information acquisition unit.

In the above configuration, the information acquisition unit of the position measuring device acquires the information of at least one marker moored in water. Based on the information, the control unit identifies the position of the robot by calculating the relative position between at least one marker and the position measuring device. Since the position measuring device is connected to the robot via a connection line and is located between the robot and the water surface, it is possible to maintain a constant positional relationship with the robot under the water surface even if the robot moves underwater. In this case, since the position of the robot is measured by a position measuring device that is located in the water and can maintain the positional relationship with the robot, the position of the robot can be measured more accurately even in the water.

In one embodiment, the position measuring device has a tilt measuring unit that measures the tilt of the connection line with respect to the vertical direction, and the information processing unit may calculate the position of the robot from the relative position and the tilt.

Even if the position measuring device is not located directly above the robot, the position of the robot can be more reliably specified by the above configuration.

In one embodiment, the position measuring device includes a position adjusting unit for adjusting the position of the position measuring device in water and a tilt measuring unit for measuring the inclination of the connection line with respect to the vertical direction, and the control unit measures the inclination. The position adjusting unit may be controlled to move the position measuring device so that the inclination measured by the unit is within a predetermined range including 0.

In this case, since the position measuring device can be located substantially directly above the robot, it is easier to identify the position of the robot.

In one embodiment, the information acquisition unit has a photographing unit that photographs the outside of the position measuring device, and the control unit uses the image of the marker body in the image outside the information acquisition unit photographed by the photographing unit as information. The relative position may be calculated.

Since the position of the robot can be specified by photographing the marker body, the position of the robot can be easily specified.

In one embodiment, the information acquisition unit outputs light for measuring at least one indicator to the outside of the position measuring device, and receives light that detects the light reflected by at least one indicator. The control unit may calculate the relative position using the signal corresponding to the light detected by the light receiving unit as information.

In this case, the information of the marker body is acquired by transmitting the light and receiving the light reflected by the marker body. Therefore, the information of the marker body can be acquired more reliably even in a dark place such as underwater.

In one embodiment, there may be a plurality of labeled bodies, and the plurality of labeled bodies may have different identification information.

In this configuration, the position of the robot can be measured based on the relative relationship between the plurality of markers and the position measuring device, so that the position of the robot can be measured more accurately. At that time, since the plurality of labeled bodies have different identification information, the position measuring device can detect each labeled body.

According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a position measurement system capable of more accurately measuring the position of a robot that can move in water.

FIG. 1 is a schematic view of a position measurement system according to an embodiment. FIG. 2 is a schematic view showing an example of a robot work area viewed from above the sea surface (water surface). FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of the position measuring device. FIG. 4 is a drawing showing another embodiment of the position measuring device.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following description, the same reference numerals are used for the same elements, and duplicate description will be omitted.

FIG. 1 is a schematic view of a position measurement system according to an embodiment. The position measurement system 10 is a system for measuring the position of the robot 12 in the sea while moving in the sea. The meaning under the sea includes the seabed. The robot 12 is not particularly limited as long as it is a robot 12 having a function of performing a predetermined work in the sea. Examples of predetermined operations include undersea exploration, seafloor drilling and mining of resources (eg, methane hydrate and rare metal ores, etc.). Examples of robots 12 that perform these predetermined tasks include underwater exploration robots, seabed excavation robots, and resource mining robots. In FIG. 1, as an example, a robot 12 that works while moving on the seabed at a depth D of 1000 m or more is schematically shown. Such a robot 12 includes a moving device such as a caterpillar so that it can move on the seabed, a mechanism for performing a predetermined work, and a control device for controlling each element of the robot.

The position measuring system 10 includes a position measuring device 16 connected to the robot 12 by a cable (connection line) 14. The position measuring device 16 is arranged between the robot 12 and the sea surface by a floating ball 18 as a buoyancy generating unit. The floating ball 18 and the position measuring device 16 may be connected by, for example, a wire 20. The position measuring device 16 is separated from the seabed. An example of the distance d between the position measuring device 16 and the seabed is 50 m to 100 m. This can be achieved by adjusting the length of the cable 14. In one embodiment, the position measuring device 16 may be connected to the mother ship 22 on the sea surface by a cable 24. In one embodiment, the cables 14 and 24 may be one continuous cable. In the following description, a cable means, for example, a required number of at least one of a communication line and a power line, which are covered with a protective member, and a wire is a constant, such as an iron cable or a steel cable. It means a metal wire that secures strength.

Four markers 26 are arranged around the position measuring device 16. In FIG. 1, two marker bodies 26 are shown for convenience of illustration. The positions of the four markers 26 are not particularly limited as long as they are arranged at predetermined positions in the sea. In one embodiment, the four markers 26 are located on the periphery of the planned work area 28 of the robot 12. FIG. 2 is a schematic view showing an example of a robot work area. In FIG. 2, the area surrounded by the broken line is the work area of the robot 12. FIG. 2 schematically shows a work area 28 viewed from above the sea surface. In the example of FIG. 2, the work area 28 has a rectangular shape, and the four markers 26 are arranged at the four corners 28a, 28b, 28c, and 28d of the work area 28, respectively.

The marker 26 will be described again with reference to FIG. The marker body 26 is moored in the sea by being anchored to the seabed. Specifically, the marker body 26 is connected to the submerged anchor 30 by a wire 32 and is connected to the floating body ball 34 as a buoyancy generating unit by a wire 36. In one embodiment, the stiffness of the wires 32, 36 and the buoyancy of the floating ball 34 can be selected such that the marker 26 is maintained approximately directly above the anchor 30. In one embodiment, the distance of the marker 26 from the seabed can be approximately the same as the distance d of the position measuring device 16 from the seabed.

Examples of the label 26 include a reflector coated with a microbead paint utilizing the retroreflection principle, a corner cube reflector, or a code reflector using a corner cube prism.

The four markers 26 have different identification information so that they can be identified. Such identification information can be obtained by, for example, in a reflector coated with a microbead paint, by changing a pattern (for example, a predetermined number, an alphabet, a predetermined graphic symbol, etc.) obtained by applying the microbead paint for each marker body 26. It can be realized. In FIG. 1, as an example of the identification information, symbols such as □ and ◯ are attached to the marker body 26, and hatching is attached for convenience. Alternatively, the identification information can be realized in the code reflector by changing the coding method for each marker 26.

In one embodiment, the marker 26 may have a plurality of light emitting sources such as LEDs arranged so as to indicate predetermined identification information, and a power device such as a storage battery for supplying electric power to the light emitting sources. Also in this form, the four markers 26 have different identification information so that they can be identified, for example, by changing the arrangement of the light emitting source such as an LED.

The position measuring device 16 will be described in detail with reference to FIG. FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of the position measuring device. The position measuring device 16 has a position adjusting unit 38 that adjusts the position of the position measuring device 16 with respect to the robot 12, and a device main body 40 that is fixed to the position adjusting unit 38.

The position adjusting unit 38 is a propulsion device for moving the position measuring device 16. The position adjusting unit 38 has a propulsion mechanism unit 42 and a driving unit 44 for driving the propulsion mechanism unit 42. The propulsion mechanism unit 42 includes two or more screw devices. An example of the drive unit 44 is an electric motor that drives a rotary blade of a screw device.

The device main body 40 includes an information acquisition device (information acquisition unit) 46, a lighting device 48, a tilt measurement device (tilt measurement unit) 50, a control device (control unit) 52, a power device 54, and a communication device 56. And have.

The information acquisition device 46 is a device that acquires information on the marker body 26. The information acquisition device 46 has a photographing unit 58 that photographs the outside of the position measuring device 16.

In one embodiment, the photographing unit 58 may have a camera including an image sensor, a lens, and the like, and a reflecting unit that reflects 360 degrees around the position measuring device 16 on the camera. The reflecting unit may be one mirror (for example, a conical mirror) that reflects the periphery of the position measuring device 16 on the camera at a time, or a mirror that reflects light and a rotating mechanism that rotates the mirror. You may have. In one embodiment, the photographing unit 58 may have a plurality of cameras facing different directions so that the surroundings of the position measuring device 16 can be photographed.

The lighting device 48 is a device for illuminating the outside of the position measuring device 16 for shooting by the photographing unit 58. In one embodiment, the lighting device 48 may have a plurality of light sources (eg, LED lamps) arranged so as to illuminate the periphery of the position measuring device 16. In one embodiment, the illuminating device 48 may have one light source and a reflecting portion capable of radiating light from the light source around the position measuring device 16. The reflecting unit may be a mirror capable of radiating the light from the light source around the position measuring device 16 at once, as in the case of the information acquisition device 46, or a mirror reflecting the light from the light source and its mirror. It may have a rotation mechanism for rotating the light source.

The inclination measuring device 50 is a sensor that measures the inclination of the cable 14 from the vertical direction. The electric power device 54 appropriately supplies electric power to the components of the position measuring device 16, for example, the information acquisition device 46, the lighting device 48, the tilt measuring device 50, the control device 52, the communication device 56, the position adjusting unit 38, and the like. An example of the power device 54 is a storage battery.

The control device 52 controls the components of the position measuring device 16, such as the information acquisition device 46, the lighting device 48, the tilt measuring device 50, the power device 54, and the communication device 56. The control device 52 further calculates the position of the robot 12 from the image obtained by the information acquisition device 46 and the inclination angle of the cable 14 obtained by the inclination measuring device 50.

When calculating the position of the robot 12, the control device 52 processes the image information obtained from the information acquisition device 46, so that the control device 52 also functions as an image processing unit. Since the control device 52 processes the measurement result from the tilt measuring device 50 for the position measurement of the robot 12 together with the image processing, the control device 52 also functions as an information processing unit. In one embodiment, the control device 52 may control the position adjusting unit 38 so that the inclination angle of the cable 14 obtained by the inclination measuring device 50 is within a predetermined range including 0. The predetermined range of the inclination angle may be determined in advance corresponding to the allowable range of the inclination angle of the cable 14 in the sea. An example of a predetermined range is ± 20 degrees, preferably ± 10 degrees.

The communication device 56 sends the position of the robot 12 obtained by the position measuring device 16 to the mother ship 22. Communication between the mother ship 22 and the communication device 56 may be performed using the cable 24 or wireless communication.

In the position measurement system 10 having the above configuration, the imaging unit 58 of the information acquisition device 46 photographs 360 degrees around the position measurement device 16 under the control of the control device 52. The control device 52 causes the lighting device 48 to illuminate the shooting direction, and causes the tilt measuring device 50 to measure the tilt of the cable 14. The information acquisition device 46 inputs the captured image information to the control device 52. The inclination measuring device 50 inputs the inclination of the cable 14 to the control device 52. The control device 52 calculates the position of the robot 12 based on the input information.

An example of a method of calculating the position of the robot 12 by the control device 52 will be described. The control device 52 analyzes the input image (hereinafter, also referred to as an input image) to identify the four marker bodies 26 in the input image. A known image processing technique may be applied to identify (or extract) a specific image in the image. For the identification of the marker body 26, the identification information unique to each marker body 26 may be used. The control device 52 uses the images of the four labeled bodies 26 identified in the input image as the information of the labeled body 26 to calculate the relative positions of the position measuring device 16 and the four labeled bodies 26. The relative position can be calculated, for example, by obtaining the distance and the azimuth angle between the position measuring device 16 and each marker body 26 from the position and size of the image of each marker body 26 in the input image. The control device 52 calculates the position of the robot 12 from the relative position and the measurement result of the inclination measuring device 50. As a result, the position of the robot 12 in the sea is specified.

In one embodiment, when the position measuring device 16 is laterally displaced from directly above the robot 12 due to an ocean current or the like, that is, when the measuring device of the tilt measuring device 50 exceeds the permissible range, the control device 52 is a position adjusting unit. The position measuring device 16 may be maintained directly above the robot 12 by the 38.

Specifically, the control device 52 controls the drive unit 44 to drive at least one screw device included in the propulsion mechanism unit 42. By this drive, the propulsive force in the horizontal direction and the horizontal rotation is mainly generated in the position adjusting unit 38, and the position of the position measuring device 16 is maintained directly above the robot 12. When the position measuring device 16 is located directly above the robot 12 by the position adjusting unit 38, the measurement result of the tilt measuring device 50 is within a predetermined range (preferably) when the position of the robot 12 is measured by the control device 52. Since it is substantially 0), the control device 52 can calculate the position of the robot 12 based on the relative positions of the four markers 26 and the position measuring device 16.

According to the position measurement system 10, since the position measurement device 16 and the robot 12 are connected by a cable 14, the position measurement device 16 follows the robot 12 even if the robot 12 moves. Therefore, the position measuring device 16 can maintain the positional relationship with the robot 12. The position measuring device 16 measures the position of the robot 12 in water while following the robot 12 as described above. Therefore, according to the position measurement system 10, the position of the robot 12 can be measured more accurately even in water where GPS satellite radio waves cannot be received.

By sending the position of the robot 12 measured by the position measuring device 16 to the mother ship 22, the work area actually worked by the robot 12 can be grasped. Since the mother ship 22 can grasp the position of the robot 12, the position of the robot 12 can be corrected when the position of the robot 12 deviates from the work area 28. For example, the mother ship 22 may send an instruction signal for correcting the position of the robot 12 to the robot 12 via the cables 14 and 24, or the robot 12 itself may be moved into the predetermined work area 28 again. You may rearrange it in. As a result, the robot 12 can properly work on the work area 28.

When the robot 12 works on the seabed where the water depth D is 1000 m or more, for example, it is conceivable to connect the mother ship 22 and the robot 12 with a wire or a cable to grasp the position of the robot 12. However, in this case, since it is difficult to grasp the state of the wire or cable due to the ocean current or the like, it is difficult to measure the position of the robot 12, and the error becomes large.

On the other hand, in the position measurement system 10, since the position of the robot 12 is measured above a predetermined distance d (for example, 50 m to 100 m) from the robot 12, the position of the robot 12 can be measured more accurately.

When the robot 12 is a robot that excavates the seabed to mine resources such as methane hydrate and rare metal ore, the surroundings of the robot 12 are likely to be suspended by the hoisting of mud and sand on the seabed by the mining device included in the robot 12. Alternatively, when the robot 12 explores the vicinity of a submarine volcano, the periphery of the robot 12 tends to be suspended. Even in such a case, in the position measuring system 10, since the position measuring device 16 is arranged apart from the robot 12, the position of the robot 12 can be measured while avoiding the influence of the suspension state. As a result, the position of the robot 12 can be identified more accurately.

The information acquisition device 46 acquires the information of the marker body 26 by obtaining the image of the marker body 26 by the photographing unit 58. Therefore, the marker body 26 can be easily identified. Although the identification information of the marker body 26 has been illustrated, when the photographing unit 58 is used, for example, the outer shape of the marker body 26 may be changed for each marker body 26. In this case, the outer shape itself of each marker 26 can be the identification information.

(Second Embodiment)
FIG. 4 is a drawing showing another embodiment of the position measuring device. FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of the position measuring device according to the second embodiment, as in the case of FIG. The position measuring device 60 shown in FIG. 4 can be used in the position measuring system 10 instead of the position measuring device 16.

The position measuring device 60 has a position adjusting unit 38 and a device main body unit 62. The position adjusting unit 38 has a propulsion mechanism unit 42 and a driving unit 44, as in the case of the position measuring device 60.

The device main body unit 62 includes an information acquisition device (information acquisition unit) 64, a tilt measurement device (tilt measurement unit) 50, a control device (control unit) 66, a power device 54, and a communication device 56.

The information acquisition device 64 includes a light source unit 68 including a laser light source that outputs the laser light to the outside of the position measuring device 60, and a photodetector that detects the laser light output from the light source unit 68 and reflected by the marker body 26. It has a light receiving unit 70. The light receiving unit 70 inputs a signal corresponding to the detected light to the control device 66.

An example of the laser light source included in the light source unit 68 is a semiconductor laser. An example of a photodetector included in the light receiving unit 70 is a photodiode. However, for example, an image sensor such as a CCD image sensor may be used as a photodetector. The light receiving unit 70 may be configured to selectively have sensitivity to a predetermined wavelength of the laser light in order to detect the laser light.

In one embodiment, the light source unit 68 has a plurality of laser light sources so that the light receiving unit 70 can receive the reflected light output from the light source unit 68 and reflected by the four marker bodies 26, respectively. It may have a light detector corresponding to each laser light source. In such a form, the plurality of laser light sources may be arranged so that the laser light can be output in different directions in the horizontal plane.

In one embodiment, the information acquisition device 64 further includes a reflecting unit so that the laser light is transmitted to the outside of the position measuring device 60 and the light receiving unit 70 can receive the reflected light from the four marker bodies 26. You may. In such a form, the light source unit 68 may be a laser light source and the light receiving unit 70 may be a photodetector. In one embodiment, the reflective section may include a mirror and a rotating mechanism capable of rotating the mirror about a vertical direction. In this case, the laser light output from the light source unit 68 is reflected by the mirror of the reflecting unit, so that the laser light is output to the outside of the position measuring device 60. At that time, the mirror is rotated in the vertical direction by using the rotation mechanism, so that the laser beam is output 360 degrees around the position measuring device 60. The light receiving unit 70 is the light reflected by the marker body 26 and returned to the position measuring device 60, and detects the laser light reflected by the mirror and input to the light receiving unit 70.

The control device 66 analyzes the signal input from the light receiving unit 70 and obtains the signal from each indicator body 26. Since the laser light reflected by the marker body 26 includes the identification information of the marker body 26, the control device 66 compares the input signal with the identification information unique to each marker body 26 from each marker body 26. Get the signal of. The control device 66 calculates the position of the robot 12 by using the signal corresponding to the reflected laser light from each of the markers 26 thus obtained as the information indicating each of the markers 26.

In one embodiment, the control device 66 controls the propulsion device so that the tilt angle of the cable 24 obtained by the tilt measuring device 50 is within a predetermined range including 0, as in the case of the control device 52. May be good.

As described in the second embodiment, when the laser beam is used, the labeling body 26 is a reflector coated with the microbead paint using the feedback reflection principle described in the first embodiment. , A code reflector using a corner cube reflector or a corner cube prism can be preferably used.

Since the configurations of the propulsion mechanism unit 42, the drive unit 44, the power device 54, and the communication device 56 included in the position adjusting unit 38 are the same as in the case of the first embodiment, the description thereof will be omitted.

In the position measurement system 10 using the position measurement device 60 instead of the position measurement device 16, the light source unit 68 of the information acquisition device 64 emits laser light around the position measurement device 60 under the control of the control device 66. .. The control device 66 causes the inclination measuring device 50 to measure the inclination of the cable 14. The light receiving unit 70 of the information acquisition device 64 detects the reflected laser light from the marker body 26 and inputs a signal corresponding to the light to the control device 66. The inclination measuring device 50 inputs the inclination of the cable 14 to the control device 66. The control device 66 calculates the position of the robot 12 based on the input information.

An example of a method of measuring the position of the robot 12 by the control device 66 using the signal from the information acquisition device 64 will be described. As described above, the control device 66 analyzes the signal input from the information acquisition device 64 to obtain the signal of each indicator body 26. The control device 66 uses the signal corresponding to the reflected laser light from each of the measured markers 26 as information indicating each marker 26, and uses the relative positions of the position measuring device 60 and the four markers 26. Is calculated. For the relative position, for example, the distance between each marker 26 and the position measuring device 60 is calculated from the phase difference (in other words, time difference) between the laser light transmitted from the position measuring device 60 and the reflected laser light. , It can be calculated by measuring the orientation of each marker body 26 with respect to the position measuring device 60 according to the light receiving direction (or the output direction of the laser beam) of the reflected laser light from each marker body 26. The control device 66 calculates the position of the robot 12 based on the obtained relative position and the measurement result of the inclination measuring device 50. In this way, the position of the robot 12 is measured, and the position of the robot 12 in the sea is specified.

As described above, since the distance between each marker 26 and the position measuring device 60 can be calculated from the phase difference between the laser light transmitted from the position measuring device 60 and the reflected laser light, the light source unit 68 and the light receiving unit The information acquisition device 64 having the 70 is also functioning as a distance measuring sensor.

The configuration of the position measurement system 10 using the position measurement device 60 is the same as that of the position measurement system 10 using the position measurement device 16 except that the position measurement device 60 is used instead of the position measurement device 16. Have. Therefore, the position measurement system 10 using the position measurement device 60 has at least the same effect as the position measurement system 10 using the position measurement device 16. In addition, since the labeled body 26 is detected by transmitting the laser light from the position measuring device 60 and receiving the reflected laser light, the labeled body 26 can be suitably detected even in dark water.

Although various embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments, and various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

For example, the number of the labeling bodies 26 is not limited to four, and may be 1, 2, or 3, or 5 or more. The position of the marker body 26 is not limited to the peripheral edge of the work area if it is specified in advance. As illustrated by the marker body 26 itself, when the marker body 26 has a light emitting source such as an LED and light is output from the marker body 26, the position measuring device 16 in the first embodiment does not have a lighting device. You may. As described above, when the light is output from the marker body 26, the position measuring device 60 does not have to have the light source unit 68.

The position measuring devices 16 and 60 do not have to have the position adjusting unit 38. In this case, the control devices 52 and 66 may calculate the position of the robot 12 in consideration of the measurement result of the inclination measuring device 50. However, if the position measuring devices 16 and 60 are located in the immediate vicinity of the robot 12 by the position adjusting unit 38, the influence of the inclination can be reduced and the position of the robot 12 can be grasped more accurately. On the contrary, the position measuring devices 16 and 60 do not have to have the tilt measuring device 50. In this case, the position measuring devices 16 and 60 may be adjusted by the position adjusting unit 38 so that the position measuring devices 16 and 60 are always located directly above the robot 12. In the case of such a positional relationship between the robot 12 and the position measuring devices 16 and 60, the position of the robot 12 can be calculated by calculating the relative position between the position measuring devices 16 and 60 and the marker body 26. ..

Although the information acquisition device 46 having the photographing unit 58 and the information acquisition device 46 having the light source unit 68 and the light receiving unit 70 are illustrated, the information acquisition device is not limited to these forms. The information acquisition device may be any device that can acquire the information of the marker body 26 by optical measurement (including image acquisition).

In the form having a plurality of indicator bodies 26, in the position measuring devices 16 and 60, the control devices 52 and 66 control the position adjusting unit 38 and rotate the position measuring devices 16 and 60 around the vertical direction as an axis. , Information on each marker 26 may be acquired. In such a form, for example, the photographing unit 58 of the information acquisition device 46 may be a camera, and the light source unit 68 and the light receiving unit 70 of the information acquisition device 64 may be a laser light source and a photodetector, respectively.

In the explanation so far, the robot that works in the sea has been described, but the robot is not limited to the sea and may be a robot that works in the water. Therefore, for example, the position measurement system can be applied to a robot working in a lake or a river.

Instead of transmitting the position of the robot 12 measured by the position measuring devices 16 and 60 to the mother ship 22 or in addition to the transmission to the mother ship 22, the position may be transmitted to the robot 12 via the cable 14 or by wireless communication. In such a form, for example, if the control device (or control system) of the robot 12 is provided with a function of controlling the movement of the robot 12 according to the input position of the robot 12, the robot 12 can be further equipped. It is possible to work accurately within the predetermined work area 28.

An example is shown in which the position of the robot 12 measured by the position measuring devices 16 and 60 is transmitted to at least one of the mother ship 22 and the robot 12. For example, the position measuring devices 16 and 60 record the position of the robot 12 measured appropriately. You may have a storage device to do. In this case, after the work of the robot 12 is completed, the work area of the robot 12 can be grasped by referring to the data of the recording device.

An example is shown in which the robot 12 and the position measuring devices 16 and 60 are connected by a cable 14 including a communication lead wire, but the connection line connecting the robot 12 and the position measuring devices 16 and 60 is a wire. You may.

Although the light source unit 68 has been described as having a laser light source and outputting the laser light, it is sufficient that the light source 26 can be detected.

The inclination measuring device 50 may detect the fluctuation of the inclination of the cable 14 as the vibration of the cable 14, and input the detection result to the control device 52. In this case, the control device 52 may control the position adjusting unit 38 so that the vibration of the cable 14 is reduced. Alternatively, the position measuring devices 16 and 60 may separately have a vibration measuring device for measuring the vibration of the cable 14.

The position measuring device 16 includes a power device 54, but each of the position adjusting unit 38, the information acquisition device 46, the tilt measuring device 50, the control device 52, and the communication device 56 includes a power supply unit such as a battery. You may be. Alternatively, power may be supplied to the components of the position measuring device 16 from the robot 12 via a cable 14, for example.

Further, the position measuring devices 16 and 60 may further include an inertial sensor (for example, a gyroscope or an acceleration sensor) and a geomagnetic sensor. In this case, the control device 52 controls the position adjusting unit 38 based on the data from the inertial sensor and the geomagnetic sensor to control the attitudes of the position measuring devices 16 and 60 and to measure the position of the robot 12. Can be used for data interpolation. As a result, the position of the robot 12 can be measured more accurately.

The various embodiments illustrated can be appropriately combined without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

The present invention can be used to measure the position of a robot that works underwater (including the bottom of the water), for example, an underwater exploration robot, a bottom excavation robot, a resource exploration robot, or a resource excavation robot. In particular, it is effective for the robot to work at a water depth of 1000 m or more.

10 ... Position measurement system, 12 ... Robot, 14 ... Cable (connection line), 16 ... Position measurement device, 26 ... Marker, 28 ... Work area, 38 ... Position adjustment unit, 46 ... Information acquisition device (information acquisition unit) , 50 ... Tilt measuring device (tilt measuring unit), 52 ... Control device (control unit), 58 ... Imaging unit, 60 ... Position measuring device, 62 ... Device main unit, 64 ... Information acquisition device (information acquisition unit), 66 ... control device (control unit), 68 ... light source unit, 70 ... light receiving unit.

Claims (7)

A position measuring device that is located between a robot that can move in water and the water surface and measures the position of the robot,
A connection line connecting the robot and the position measuring device,
With the plurality of markers moored in the water,
With
The position measuring device is
An information acquisition unit that acquires information on a plurality of the markers,
The information acquisition unit is controlled to acquire the information, and the position measuring device obtained based on the information acquired by the information acquisition unit is based on the orientation and distance between each of the plurality of markers. by calculating the relative position of the position measuring equipment to a plurality of the labels, and a control unit for calculating the position of the robot,
Have,
The information acquisition unit has an imaging unit that photographs the outside of the position measuring device.
The control unit calculates the relative position using the image of the marker body in the image outside the position measuring device taken by the photographing unit as the information.
Position measurement system. A position measuring device that is located between a robot that can move in water and the water surface and measures the position of the robot,
A connection line connecting the robot and the position measuring device,
With the plurality of markers moored in the water,
With
The position measuring device is
An information acquisition unit that acquires information on a plurality of the markers,
The information acquisition unit is controlled to acquire the information, and the position measuring device obtained based on the information acquired by the information acquisition unit and the orientation and distance between each of the plurality of markers are used. by calculating the relative position of the position measuring equipment to a plurality of the labels, and a control unit for calculating the position of the robot,
Have,
The information acquisition unit
A light source unit that outputs light for measuring a plurality of the markers to the outside of the position measuring device, and
A light receiving unit that detects the light reflected by the plurality of markers, and
Have,
The control unit calculates the relative position using the signal corresponding to the light detected by the light receiving unit as the information.
Position measurement system. The position measuring device has a tilt measuring unit for measuring the tilt of the connecting line with respect to the vertical direction.
The information acquisition unit calculates the position of the robot from the relative position and the inclination.
The position measurement system according to claim 1 or 2. The position measuring device has a position adjusting unit for adjusting the position of the position measuring device in the water.
The control unit controls the position adjustment unit so that the inclination measured by the inclination measurement unit falls within a predetermined range including 0, and moves the position measurement device.
The position measurement system according to claim 3 . Each of the plurality of labeled bodies has different identification information.
The position measurement system according to any one of claims 1 to 4. The distance between the position measuring device and the bottom of the water is 50 m to 100 m.
The position measurement system according to any one of claims 1 to 5. The distance from the water bottom of the position measuring device and the distance from the water bottom of the plurality of markers are substantially the same.
The position measurement system according to any one of claims 1 to 6.

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