JPH02302617A - System for measuring position and advancing bearing of moving body - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To simplify the constitution of a system by providing first - third light emitting means which emit light beams at first - third angles on one side of a road, and calculating the present position and advancing direction of a moving body from the outputs of first - third photodetectors. CONSTITUTION:Corner cubes 0 which are light reflecting means are provided at an arbitrary interval on one side of a road 2 that is a running course for a moving body 1. The corner cube 0 has three light reflecting surfaces which are intersected at right angles to each other. The corner cube 0 has the optical property so that the reflected light is outputted at the same emitting angle as the incident angle regardless of the incident angle of the incident light. In the moving body 1, a beam emitter 3 which emits three fan-shaped beams to the corner cube 0 is provided. The light which is emitted from the emitter 3 and reflected from the corner cube 0 is detected by each photodetector. The position and advancing direction of the moving body 1 are calculated in an operating means from the output of each photodetector. When the system is constituted in this way, the constitution can be simplified.

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] C. Industrial Application Field] The present invention relates to a system for measuring the position and traveling direction of a moving object, and more specifically, the present invention relates to a system for measuring the position and traveling direction of a moving object, and more specifically, a system for measuring the position and traveling direction of a moving object by using reflection of light. Concerning the system to be measured.

[Prior art] Conventionally, ultrasonic waves are emitted from a moving object (automobile, automatic guided vehicle, etc.), reflected waves from guardrails, walls, etc. are detected, and the distance between the moving object and the guardrail is detected based on the time difference between the emission time and the delivery time. A system has been proposed that automatically guides a moving object by measuring the distance between the object and a wall.

However, in the automatic guidance system using ultrasonic waves as described above, it is difficult for the moving object to accurately receive reflected waves when the moving object is traveling at high speed.

This is because, as the traveling speed of the moving object increases, the wave receiving position moves away from the emitting position, and eventually deviates from the moving object and becomes undetectable.

Therefore, in order to eliminate the above-mentioned drawbacks, the applicant of the present application has disclosed
EEE PLAN, 1988 Proc, P47~
53 “A VEHICLE POSITION
AND HEADING MEACUREMEN
T SYSTEM USING CORNER CUB
E AND LASERBEAM''by T,T
In SUMURA etal, we proposed a system for measuring the position of moving objects using light beams. In such a system, a plurality of light reflecting means are provided at appropriate intervals along both sides of the travel course of the moving object. This light reflecting means is, for example, a corner cube, and has an optical property such that the incident angle and the output angle of the reflected light are equal regardless of the incident angle of the incident light.

In other words, it reflects the incident light in the direction from which it came.

On the other hand, the moving body is provided with a beam emitter that emits two light beams in the left and right directions at predetermined angles. When this light beam hits the light reflecting means, the reflected light returns to the beam emitter and is detected. In the moving object, the current position of the moving object is calculated based on the light reception time difference and angle information of each beam emitter. Since the moving body position measuring system proposed by the present applicant uses a light beam, the light receiving position does not shift depending on the traveling speed of the moving body. Therefore, the reflected waves are easily received, and the position can be reliably measured. Furthermore, if a light beam with sharp directivity is used, high precision can be expected.

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] However, in the position 1111 fixing system proposed by the applicant as described above, light reflecting means must be provided on both sides of the travel course of the moving body, and the number of light reflecting means to be installed increases. . Therefore, there were problems in that the system was expensive and the installation work was time-consuming.

Furthermore, at least four light beams must be used, which increases the size and cost of the beam emitter.

Furthermore, when a plurality of moving bodies run in parallel in the same direction, the light beam is blocked by other vehicles running in parallel, making it impossible to measure the position. Therefore, there was a problem in that only one lane was allowed in the same direction.

This invention was made in order to solve the above-mentioned conventional problems, and it is possible to measure the position and heading of a moving object by simply installing a light reflecting means on one side of the moving course of the moving object. The purpose of this invention is to provide a system for measuring the position and heading of a moving body.

[Means for Solving the Problems] In the system for measuring the position and traveling direction of a moving object according to claim 1 of the present invention, an appropriate interval is provided on either the right side or the left side of the path along which the moving object should travel. A plurality of light reflecting means are arranged, and the light reflecting means has an optical property of reflecting the incident light at the same output angle as the incident angle regardless of the incident angle. The movable body includes a first light emitting means for emitting a light beam toward the one side at a predetermined first angle, and a first light emitting means for emitting a light beam toward the one side at a predetermined second angle. a second pre-emission means for
a third light emitting means for emitting a light beam toward the one side at a predetermined third angle; and a third light emitting means provided in association with the first light emitting means and emitting light from the first light emitting means. a first photodetector for detecting the light reflected by the reflecting means;
a second photodetector provided in association with the second light emitting means for detecting light emitted from the second light emitting means and reflected by the light reflecting means; and a third light emitting means. and an output of the first photodetector.

Calculating means for calculating the current position and heading of the moving object based on the output of the second photodetector and the output of the third photodetector is mounted.

In the moving body position and traveling direction measuring system according to claim 2 of the present invention, the traveling distance Δ− for measuring the traveling distance of the moving body is provided in place of the third light output means and the third photodetector. 1 constant means is provided, and the calculation means is the first
The current position and traveling direction of the moving body are calculated based on the output of the second photodetector, the output of the second photodetector, and the output of the travel distance measuring means.

[Function] In the present invention, each photodetector detects the light emitted from each first output means and reflected by the light reflection means, and the calculation means detects the output of each photodetector (and the measurement of the traveling distance measuring means). (result), the position and heading of the moving body are calculated from the geometric conditions.

[Example] Before describing specific examples of the present invention, the measurement principle of the present invention will be explained with reference to FIGS. 7 to 12. In the system for measuring the position and traveling direction of a moving object according to the present invention, for example, as shown in FIG. 1, light reflecting means O are arranged at arbitrary intervals along one side of the traveling course 2 of the moving object 1. .

Each light reflecting means 0 reflects the emitted light at the same emitted angle as the incident angle regardless of the incident angle of the incident light. Also,
Three or two light beams are emitted from the moving body 1 in order to detect the light reflecting means O.

(1) Target of Measurement in the Present Invention Referring to FIG. 7, a straight line G indicates the traveling locus of the center of gravity g of the moving body. Also, o' and o indicate the positions of the light reflecting means that were detected successively, respectively. Now, if the straight line passing through the light reflecting means 0 and 0' is the Y axis, and the straight line intersecting the light reflecting means O at right angles to this Y axis is the X axis, then in this invention, the XY The position of the center of gravity g of the moving object in the coordinate system (Xg, Yg) and the angle θ between the traveling straight line G and the Y axis, that is, the traveling azimuth angle θ of the moving object are determined.

(2) How to determine the traveling azimuth angle θ of a moving object Referring to FIG. 8, let the position of the foot of the perpendicular line drawn from the light reflecting means 0 to the traveling straight line G be a point P1, and its length be Lx, and similarly, Let the position of the foot of the perpendicular line drawn from the light reflecting means O' to the traveling straight line G be a point P/, and its length be Lx'. Further, the interval between points P and P' is assumed to be Ly. These distance information Lx,
From Lx' and Ly, the traveling azimuth θ of the moving object is expressed by the following equation (1).

Therefore, by measuring the distance information Lx, Lx', and Ly, the traveling azimuth angle θ can be determined.

(3) How to find the position of the center of gravity g of a moving object Referring to Figure 9, the coordinate position (Xg,
The method for determining Yg) will be explained.

From FIG. 9, the equation of the traveling straight line G with the light reflecting means O as the origin is as shown in the following equation (2).

Ysinθ−Xcosθ+Lx−0・=(2) As shown in FIG. 9, consider a straight line connecting the light reflecting means O to a point q on the traveling straight line G that is a distance a away from the center of gravity g, and this straight line Oq and Run straight! Once the angle α formed by IG is determined, the coordinates of the center of gravity g in the XY coordinate system with 0 as the origin can be determined as follows.

First, if the coordinates of point q are (Xq, Yq), then from equation (2), Yq*sinθ−Xq*cosθ+Lx−0...(3
) Also, using the angle α, Yq−−Xq −cot (a−θ) −(4
) Using the above (3) and (4) as simultaneous equations, Xq.

If we calculate yq, we get: Xq-Lx...(5) cosθ+cot(a-θ) slnθyqw −
Lx eoL(a-e> , . . . (6) eO
8θ+cot(a-θ) s1nθ Therefore, assuming that the coordinate position of the center of gravity g (X g, Y g) is offset by the distance a from the coordinate position of point q (Xq, Yq), Xq = ”x -aSinθ-(7)CO
Sθ+CO1(α−θ) yq−−Lxocot(a−θ2−−acosθ−(8
)cosθ+cot (α−θ) (4) How to determine the distance Lx■ If the travel distance of the moving object can be measured, refer to Fig. 10, and use two different light beams from the moving object to Point detection qO.

By doing this with ql, the distance @Lx can be found.

From FIG. 10, the distance Lx is expressed by the following equation (9).

Lx-ΔIt-(ao-al),,,(9)co
tαQ-cotal However, the distance information Δ1 between the two points gO and g1 is measured by a distance measuring means such as an odometer.

(2) When measuring the detection time difference from the moving body to the light reflecting means without measuring the traveling distance In this case, it is assumed that the moving body travels at a constant speed V.

As shown in FIG. 11, the distance LX is determined by detecting the light reflecting means O at points qO, ql, and q2 using three different light beams from the moving body. That is,
From FIG. 11, −VΔto−al−ao+Lx (co
tal -cot aO)...(10) -VΔtl=a2-al+Lx (cota2-cot
(gl)...(11) However, Δ10 is the time it takes for the center of gravity of the moving body to shift from go to gl, and Δt1 is the time it takes for the center of gravity of the moving body to shift from gl to gl.
This is the time until the transition to 2.

Using equations (10) and (11) above as simultaneous equations, L
When we find x and v, we get .

(5) How to find the distance Ly ■ When the travel distance of the moving object can be measured As shown in Fig. 12, the distance Ly can be determined by detecting the light reflecting means O' and 0 from the moving object using qj and qk, respectively. It is determined by That is, when Lg-gj, gk, the distance Ly is expressed by the following formula (14)%. Note that the distance Lg is measured by a distance measuring means such as an odometer.

(2) When measuring the detection time difference from the moving body to the light reflecting means without measuring the traveling distance In this case, the distance Lg is determined by the following equation (15).

Lgmv·Δt (15) Note that Δt is the time until the center of gravity of the moving body moves from gj to gk. By substituting this equation (15) into the above-mentioned equation (14), the distance Ly can be obtained. That is, Ly-veΔt-(a j+Lx ecota j)
+ (ak ten Lx' 11 cotak) - (16)
becomes.

Hereinafter, specific embodiments of the present invention using the above principle will be described.

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the overall configuration of an embodiment of a system for determining the position and traveling direction a of a moving object according to the present invention.

In the figure, corner cubes 0, which are an example of light reflecting means, are arranged at arbitrary intervals on one side (the left side in FIG. 1) of a road 2, which is the travel course of a moving body 1. As is well known, the corner cube O is equipped with three light reflecting surfaces that are perpendicular to each other, and has an optical property of emitting reflected light at the same output angle as the incident angle, regardless of the incident angle of the incident light. are doing. That is, the reflected light follows the path of the incident light in the opposite direction and returns to the direction from which it came. On the other hand, mobile object 1 has
A beam emitter 3 that emits three fan-shaped beams (hereinafter referred to as fan beams) toward the light reflecting means 0 is provided.

The beam emitter 3 includes three sets of light emitting and receiving units having the same configuration. As shown in FIG. 2, each light emitting/receiving unit includes a laser diode 31, which is an example of a light source, a cylindrical lens 32, and a photodiode 33, which is an example of a light receiving element, inside an L-shaped housing 30. They are arranged in a positional relationship like this. In addition, as a light source,
Any device that emits a light beam with sharp directivity may be used, and instead of the laser diode 31, for example, a light emitting diode or a solid laser light source may be used. laser diode 3
The linear light emitted from the fan beam B is expanded in two dimensions by the cylindrical lens 32, and is emitted to the outside as a fan beam B having a predetermined divergence angle.

When this fan beam B hits any of the corner cubes 0, it returns to the relevant light emitting/receiving unit as reflected light indicated by a dotted line. The photodiode 33 detects this reflected light. Note that since the reflected light beam returns as a fan beam, the diode 33 can detect the reflected light beam even if it is disposed slightly offset from the optical axis of the laser diode 31.

Next, with reference to FIG. 3, the geometric relationships on a two-dimensional plane in the above embodiment will be explained.

Now, assuming that two corner cubes continuously detected from the moving body 1 are 0' and 0, a straight line passing through these two corner cubes 0' and 0 is taken as the Y axis. Also, a straight line that is perpendicular to this Y-axis and passes through the corner cube O is taken as the X-axis. Assuming that the current traveling straight line of the moving body 1 is G, one purpose of this embodiment is to determine the traveling azimuth angle θ between the Y axis and the traveling straight line G. Another purpose is to find the position of the center of gravity g of the moving body 1 on the XY coordinate system with the corner cube 0 as the origin. Three fan beams BO2B1 and B2 are used as geometric measurement means for determining the traveling azimuth θ and the position of the center of gravity g. As mentioned above, these fan beam BO,
Bl and B2 are emitted from a beam emitter 3 mounted on the moving body 1. As shown in Figure 3, fan beam BO.

B1 and B2 are α0 with respect to the traveling straight line G, respectively.
．． It has angles α1 and α2. These angles α0
．． α1 and α2 are the angles α0. Corresponds to α1 and α2. Also, the angle α0. Either one of α1 and α2 corresponds to the angle α in FIG. 9, and any two correspond to the angle αj in FIG.
and αk. Each fan beam BO, BL
Let the intersections of the extension line of B2 and the traveling straight line G be points qo, ql, and q2, respectively. These points qO1q1 and q2 correspond to points qo, ql and q2 shown in FIGS. 10 and 11, respectively. Also, point qo,
One of ql and q2 corresponds to point q in FIG. 9, and two of them correspond to points qj and qk in FIG. 12.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the electric circuit portion of the above embodiment. Note that these configurations are mounted on the mobile body 1. In the figure, the beam emitter 3 includes three laser diodes 31 corresponding to three sets of light emitting/receiving units.
0 to 312 and three photodiodes 330 to 332
including. The measuring device 4 controls the light emission of the beam emitter 3 and performs calculations to measure the position and traveling direction of the moving body 1.

The configuration of this measuring device 4 will be explained below. The power supply 41 is
Three laser diodes 31 included in the beam emitter 3
It emits light from 0 to 312.

Amplifiers 420, 421 and 422 amplify the outputs of photodiodes 330; 331 and 332, respectively. The waveform shaping circuits 430, 431 and 432 are
The outputs of amplifiers 420, 421, and 422 are level-discriminated using predetermined threshold values, and pulses with shaped waveforms are output. The output SO of the waveform shaping circuit 430 is applied to the counter 440 as a start signal, and also to the flip-flop 45. Waveform shaping circuit 431
The output S1 is given to the counter 440 as a stop signal, and is also given to the counter 441 as a start signal.
given to. The output S2 of the waveform shaping circuit 432 is given to the counter 441 as a stop signal. The output of flip-flop 45 is provided to counter 442.

Each counter 440-442 is provided with a clock pulse from an oscillator 46. The outputs CO, CI and C2 of counters 440, 441 and 442 are connected to CPU 4 via interfaces 470, 471 and 472, respectively.
given to 8. Further, the CPU 48 gives addresses to the interfaces 470, 471, and 472, and controls the timing of taking in data from these interfaces 470-472.

The calculation result of the CPU 48 is given to the utilization device 5. Various devices may be used as the utilization device 5, and examples thereof include a display, an automatic steering device, and the like.

Next, the operation of the above embodiment will be explained with reference to the tying yard shown in FIG. each laser diode 310,
311 and 312 are angles α0, . . . as shown in FIG. Fan beams BO, Bl and B2 are emitted by C1 and C2.

Here, when the fan beam BO hits the corner cube O', the reflected light bO from the corner cube O' enters the photodiode 330.
A light reception pulse is output from 30. This received light pulse is
After being amplified by the amplifier 420, the waveform is shaped by the waveform shaping circuit 430.

The counter 440 is controlled by the output SO of the waveform shaping circuit 430.
begins counting clock pulses from oscillator 46.

Furthermore, the flip-flop 45 is set by the output SO of the waveform shaping circuit 430, and the counter 442 is set by the oscillator 4.
Start counting clock pulses from 6.

Next, when the fan beam B1 hits the corner cube O', a received light pulse is output from the photodiode 331, amplified by the amplifier 421, and then sent to the waveform shaping circuit 4.
31, the waveform is shaped. The counting operation of the counter 440 is stopped by the output S1 of the waveform shaping circuit 431.

Additionally, the counter 441 starts counting clock pulses from the oscillator 46. At this time, the CPU 48 takes in the count MCO of the counter 440 via the interface 470, and also clears the counter 440. Then, the CPO 48 calculates the following equation (17).

ΔtO snow CO·ΔT (17) However, ΔT is one cycle time of the clock pulse output from the oscillator 46.

Next, when the fan beam B2 hits the corner cube O', a light reception pulse is output from the photodiode 332, and in response, an output pulse S2 is obtained from the waveform shaping circuit 432. The output S of this waveform shaping circuit 432
2, counter 441 stops its counting operation. At this time, the CPU 48 takes in the count value C1 of the counter 441 via the interface 471, and also clears the counter 441. Then, the CPU 48 calculates the following equation (18).

Δtl−CI・ΔT (18) Here, CPO48 is Δ10. calculated using the above equations (17) and (18). Δt1 as described above (12).

By substituting into equation (13), the distance Lx' (see FIG. 8) with respect to the corner cube 0' and the speed v1 of the moving body 1 are calculated. Note that the distances aO1a1 and a2 in FIG. 3 are known and set in the CPU 48 in advance.

Therefore, in calculating equations (12) and (13), the CPU 48 uses these set distance information aQ, al.
and a2.

Next, when the moving object 1 advances and the fan beam BO hits the corner cube 0, the counter 440 starts counting clock pulses in response to the output SO of the waveform shaping circuit 430, as in the case of the corner cube 0'. Start.

Furthermore, the flip-flop 45 is reset and the counter 442 stops counting. At this time, the CPU 48 takes in the count value C2 of the counter 442 and clears the counter 442. Then, the CPU 48 calculates the following equation (19).

Δt-C3・ΔT (19) Next, when the fan beam B1 hits the corner cube 0, the counter 440 starts counting in response to the output S1 of the waveform shaping circuit 431, as in the case of the corner cube 0'. At the same time as the operation is stopped, the counter 441 starts counting operation. At this time, the CPO 48 takes in the count value CO of the counter 440 and also clears the counter 440. Then, the CPU 48 calculates the following equation (20).

ΔtO・ΔT (20) Next, when the fan beam B2 hits the corner cube O, the counter 441 starts counting in response to the output S2 of the waveform shaping circuit 432, as in the case of the corner cube O'. Stop operation. At this time, the CPU 48
A count value C1 of 1 is taken in and the counter 441 is cleared. Then, the CPO 48 calculates the following equation (21).

Δtl−C1−ΔT (21) Here, the CPU 48 converts ΔtO1Δt1 obtained by the above equations (20) and (21) into the above (12).

Substituting into equation (13), the distance Lx to the corner cube O (see FIG. 8 or FIG. 11) and the speed v2 of the moving body
Calculate. Then, the average value (vl+v2) of the velocity v1 obtained for the corner cube O′ and the above velocity v2
/2 is calculated and set as the current speed information V.

Next, the CPU 48 calculates the speed information V, Δt obtained by equation (19), distance information Lx' obtained with respect to the corner cube O', and distance information Lx obtained with respect to the corner cube O. By substituting into the above equation (16), the distance Ly(
(see Figure 12). Note that the distances aj, ak and the angles αj, α may be used for arbitrary beams.

Next, the CPU 48 calculates the distance information Lx, Lx',
Based on Ly, the traveling azimuth θ of the mobile object 1 is calculated from the above-mentioned equation (1). Furthermore, based on the calculated angle θ and the distance information Lx, the coordinate position (X g

Yg) is calculated. Note that the coordinate origin is the position of corner cube 0.

The traveling azimuth angle θ and the coordinate position (Xg, Yg) calculated as described above are given to the utilization device 5 and used in various ways. For example, it may be displayed on a road map, or may be used as information for automatic steering so that the moving body 1 follows a predetermined course.

Next, other embodiments of the invention will be described.

In another embodiment, a beam emitter mounted on the moving body 1 emits two fan beams BO and Bl. Therefore, the beam emitter includes two sets of light emitting and receiving units.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the electric circuit portion in the other embodiment. In the figure, the beam emitter 3' includes two laser diodes 310, 311 and 2
photodiodes 330° and 331. The measuring device 4' includes a power source 41 for causing the laser diodes 310 and 311 to emit light, and a photodiode 330 and 331.
Amplifiers 420 and 421 for amplifying the outputs of
, waveform shaping circuits 430 and 431 for shaping the outputs of the amplifiers 420 and 421, respectively, a CPU 48 for calculating the position and heading angle of the moving body 1, and a CPU 48 for measuring the traveling distance of the moving body 1. and an odometer 49. The calculation result of the CPU 48 is given to the utilization device 5.

Next, the operation of the above-mentioned embodiment will be explained.

In this embodiment, the distance information Lx, Lx' is determined by the above-mentioned equation (9). Moreover, the distance information Ly is obtained by the above-mentioned equation (14).

Here, the distance information 6 in equation (9) is calculated from the rise of the output SO of the waveform shaping circuit 430 to the waveform shaping circuit 431.
This corresponds to the traveling distance measured by the odometer 49 until the output S1 rises. Therefore, the CPU
48 takes in the measurement results of the odometer 49 at the rise of the output SO of the waveform shaping circuit 430 and the rise of the output S1 of the waveform shaping circuit 431, and calculates the difference between the two to obtain distance information Δ. On the other hand, (1
The distance information Lg in equation 4) is determined by the output SO of the waveform shaping circuit 430 (or the output Sl of the waveform shaping circuit 431) after the output SO of the waveform shaping circuit 430 (or the output Sl of the waveform shaping circuit 431) rises. This corresponds to the distance traveled by the odometer 49 until the time when the odometer 49 starts up. Therefore, the CPU 48 takes in the measurement results of the odometer at the rise of the output SO (or Sl) and at the rise of the next output So (or Sl), and calculates the difference between the two to obtain the distance information Lg.

Next, the CPU 48 substitutes the distance information Δ obtained as described above into equation (9) to obtain the distance information Lx.

Calculate Lx'. Further, the CPU 48 outputs distance information Lg
, Lx, and Lx' into equation (14) to calculate distance information Ly. Next, the CPO 48 calculates the distance information Lx
, Lx', and Ly into the above equation (1) to calculate the moving object 1.
The traveling azimuth θ is calculated and substituted into equations (7) and (8) to calculate the coordinate position (Xg, yg).

[Effects of the Invention] As explained above, according to the present invention, since it is only necessary to provide the light reflecting means on one side of the running course of the moving body, the number of installed light reflecting means can be reduced, and even if Even if there is a vehicle running parallel to the moving body, the position and traveling direction of the moving body can be measured without blocking the light beam. Furthermore, since it is sufficient to emit two or three light beams from the moving body, the configuration of the beam emitter is simplified and cheaper than the conventional one that uses four light beams.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the overall configuration of an embodiment of a moving object position and traveling direction measuring system according to the present invention. 2 is a diagram showing the configuration of a light emitting and receiving unit provided in the beam emitter 3 shown in FIG. 1. FIG. 3 is a diagram for explaining the geometrical relationship on a two-dimensional plane of the embodiment shown in FIG. FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing the configuration of an electric circuit portion of an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 5 is a timing chart for explaining the operation of one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing the configuration of an electric circuit portion of another embodiment of the present invention. 7 to 12 are geometrical schematic diagrams for explaining the measurement principle of the present invention. In the figure, 0 and O' are corner cubes, 1 is a moving body, 3 and 3' are beam emitters, 310 to 312 are laser diodes, 330 to 332 are photodiodes,
4 and 4' are measuring devices, 420 to 422 are amplifiers, 4
30 to 432 are waveform shaping circuits, 440 to 442 are counters, 45 is a flip-flop, 46 is an oscillator, and 48 is a C
P.U. 49 indicates an odometer.

Claims (2)

[Claims] (1) A system that measures the current position and traveling direction of a moving object using reflection of light, which has an appropriate interval on either the right or left side of the path that the moving object should travel. A plurality of light reflecting means are arranged, and the light reflecting means has an optical property of reflecting the incident light at the same output angle as the incident angle regardless of the incident angle, and the light reflecting means has an optical property to reflect the incident light at the same output angle as the incident angle, and a first light emitting means for emitting a light beam at a predetermined first angle toward the one side; a second light emitting means for emitting a light beam at a predetermined second angle toward the one side; means, a third light emitting means for emitting a light beam toward the one side at a predetermined third angle; provided in relation to the first light emitting means, the light beam is emitted from the first light emitting means; a first photodetector for detecting the light reflected by the light reflecting means; a first photodetector provided in association with the second light emitting means to detect the light emitted from the second light emitting means a second photodetector for detecting the light reflected by the reflecting means; provided in association with the third light emitting means, the second photodetector detects the light emitted from the third light emitting means and reflected by the light reflecting means; a third photodetector for detecting the light detected, and based on the output of the first photodetector, the output of the second photodetector, and the output of the third photodetector. A system for measuring the position and heading of a moving body, comprising calculation means for calculating the current position and heading of the moving body. (2) A system that measures the current position and traveling direction of a moving object using reflection of light, and has an appropriate interval on either the right or left side of the path that the moving object should travel. A plurality of light reflecting means are arranged, and the light reflecting means has an optical property of reflecting the incident light at the same output angle as the incident angle regardless of the incident angle, and the light reflecting means has an optical property to reflect the incident light at the same output angle as the incident angle, and a first light emitting means for emitting a light beam at a predetermined first angle toward the one side; a second light emitting means for emitting a light beam at a predetermined second angle toward the one side; means, a first photodetector provided in relation to the first light emitting means and for detecting light emitted from the first light emitting means and reflected by the light reflecting means; a second photodetector provided in association with the second light emitting means and for detecting light emitted from the second light emitting means and reflected by the light reflecting means; and a distance measuring means for measuring the current distance of the moving body based on the output of the first photodetector, the output of the second photodetector, and the output of the distance measuring means. A system for measuring the position and heading of a moving object, which is equipped with calculation means for calculating the position and heading.