JPH0460815A - Guide device for unattended vehicle - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To give a command to an unattended vehicle without providing a marker only for command neither a command marker detecting sensor by detecting a marker part for command, which is provided on the way of a guide marker and has a width different from the prescribed width of this marker, based on the output of a marker detecting sensor. CONSTITUTION:A marker detecting sensor 11 arranged in the front of an un attended vehicle has an array of plural magnetic sensing elements 11a and is is arranged in the breadthwise direction of the vehicle. The width of a pre scribed width part 20a of a marker 20 is made shorter than the length of the marker detecting sensor 11, and a deflection extent detecting part 31 of a con trol part 30 detects the extent of deflection in the transverse direction of the unattended vehicle form the marker 20 based on the output signal of each magnetic sensing element 11a of the marker detecting sensor 11 and outputs a steering control signal corresponding to this extent of deflection to a motor driving circuit 32. Consequently, the vehicle 10 runs while following up the marker 20. Thus, private command marker and command marker detecting sensor are not provided to reduce the equipment cost.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Field of Industrial Application] The present invention relates to a device for guiding an unmanned vehicle.

[Conventional technology]

Sign detection consisting of a belt-shaped guidance sign laid on the road surface along a predetermined iJ1 line course and elements sensitive to this sign arranged along the width direction of the vehicle with an arrangement length greater than the width of the sign. An unmanned vehicle guidance device comprising a sensor and a control means for controlling the steering means of the vehicle so that the sign is positioned at the center of the sensor based on the output signal of the sign detection sensor. It has been in practical use for a long time.

By the way, unmanned vehicles require external commands such as a speed command and a stop command. For this reason, conventionally, in addition to the "-" markings that define the course to be run, a "-" marking dedicated to commands is placed on the driving road surface, and this marking is detected by a sensor different from the "-"-marking sensor.

Note that the "2" command sign is placed to the side of the sign that defines the iJ, - line course.

[Invention or problem to be solved]

As described above, in the past, a command mark and a sensor for detecting the command mark were each provided exclusively for use, which resulted in the inconvenience of increased equipment costs.

In view of this situation, an object of the present invention is to provide a guidance system for an unmanned vehicle that can send commands to the vehicle without increasing equipment costs. It's about doing.

[Means to solve the problem]

In the present invention, a belt-shaped guidance sign laid on the road surface along a predetermined driving course and elements sensitive to the sign are arranged along the width direction of the vehicle with an array length larger than the width of the sign. A guidance device for an unmanned vehicle, comprising: a sign detection sensor; and a control means for controlling a steering means of the vehicle so that the sign is positioned at the center of the sensor based on the output of the sign detection sensor. , a command sign section provided in the middle of the guide sign and having a width different from a prescribed width of the sign; and means for detecting the command sign section based on the output of the sensor. There is.

[Effect]

When the sign detection sensor passes through the specified width part of the sign and when the sensor passes through the instruction sign section,
Since the format of the output signal of this sensor is different, the command mark section is detected based on this.

〔Example〕

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 shows a band-shaped sign 20 laid out on a road surface along a predetermined travel course as a guide sign for an unmanned vehicle 10. As shown in FIG.

In the sign 20 of this embodiment, a cut portion 20a of a predetermined length (for example, several tens of mm) is formed before a corner portion of the driving course, and a wide portion 20a is formed beyond the corner portion.
b is formed.

The specified width portion 20c of the sign 20 is made of magnetic tape. The wide portion 20 is formed by intersecting the tape described above on the specified width portion 2Oc.

Note that the specified width portion 20c and the wide width portion 20b are adhered to the road surface using adhesive or the like.

As shown in FIG. 2, the unmanned vehicle 10 includes a sign detection sensor 1 placed at the front, driving wheels 1.2L, 2R, and 1.2L, 2R placed on the left and right sides of the center. 2L
, 1.2R, respectively.
R and 1. Installed in front left and right positions and rear left and right positions;
It is equipped with 4 casters.

As shown in FIG. 3, the label detection sensor] is a magnetic sensing element 11. It has a structure in which a large number of A are arranged, and are arranged along the vehicle width direction as shown in FIG.

The width of the specified width portion 20c of the sign 20 is set smaller than the length of the sign detection sensor 1,
For example, as shown in FIG. 3, the length is set to about the length when four magnetic sensing elements 1.12 of the sensor 1 are arranged.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 5, the length Dl of the cut portion 20a in the sign 20 is set larger than the short side force direction length D2 of the sign detection sensor, and as shown in FIG. , the width D3 of the wide portion 20b of the sign 20
is set larger than the longitudinal force direction length D4 of the sign detection sensor 11.

FIG. 4 shows the control unit 30 mounted on the unmanned vehicle 10.

The deviation detection unit 31 of the control unit 30 detects the amount of lateral deviation of the unmanned vehicle 10 with respect to the sign 20 based on the output signal of each magnetic sensing element 11H of the sign detection sensor 1, and detects the amount of deviation. A steering control signal corresponding to this is output to the motor drive circuit 32.

That is, for example, as shown in FIG.
0 is deviated leftward by Δd from the center of the specified width portion 20c of the sign 20, the magnetic sensing element 11. a senses the magnetism of the specified width portion 20c,
As a result, the logical level ″′1
'° signal is also transmitted to the other element 11. A signal of logic level "O" is output from each terminal a.

Therefore, based on the output signal of each magnetic sensing element 1]a, the deflection amount detection section 3] detects the polarity and the deflection amount Δd according to the deflection direction.
A steering control signal having a magnitude corresponding to that is output to the motor drive circuit 32.

The motor drive circuit 32 controls the steering control (during the time when the magnitude is within the set dead band width, the motors 13L and 13R are driven at a constant speed, or the steering control signal is output). When the size exceeds the dead zone width, a speed difference based on the size is generated in the motors 13L and 13R.

That is, in the example of FIG. let

As a result, the vehicle is steered to the left, and the deflection of the vehicle is compensated by 1F.

Since the control unit 30 operates as described above, the vehicle O does not follow the sign 20 but moves in jjk directions.

At the same time, the mark detection sensor 11 detects the cut 11 shown in FIG.
The case where it is located on the portion 2Oa will be explained.

In this case, as shown in FIG. 5, since the specified width portion 20c of the sign 20 does not exist below the sensor 1, the magnetic sensitivity r], ], a of the sensor 1 is the signal゛0
Outputs “.

Therefore, the AND circuit 33 of the control unit 30 outputs a signal ゛1'', which is applied to the motor drive circuit 32 as a deceleration command signal.

Based on the second deceleration command signal, the motor drive circuit 32
The rotational speed of the motors 1.3L and 1.3R is lowered to a predetermined speed, thereby causing the vehicle 10 to move into the cut 1 shown in FIG.
The speed is reduced starting from the first portion 20a.

Incidentally, a state in which all the magnetic sensitivity r11a of the sensor 11 outputs the signal "0" also occurs when the vehicle 10 goes off course.

Therefore, in this embodiment, in order to detect the course out, a timer 35 which is triggered by the output signal "1" of the AND circuit 33, a NOR circuit 36 connected to the sensor,
Ant circuit 37 that takes the AND of the time-up signal of the timer 35 and the output signal of the OR circuit 36.
It is set up in

The set time of the timer 35 is adjusted to be shorter than the longest time required for the sensor 1 to pass through the cutout 171 portion 20a.

When the sensor 11 passes through the cut portion 20a, the logical level of the output of the NOR circuit 36 becomes ``0'' when the passage is completed, so that the time-up signal of the timer 35 is not output from the AND circuit 37.

On the other hand, if the vehicle 10 has a course error, the NOR circuit 36 at the time of time up of the timer 35
The logic level of the output of is 1”, so timer 3
5 is output from the AND circuit 37.

Ant circuit 37 output signal ``1'' or motor drive circuit ``3''
2, the circuit 32 causes the motor,
3 L and 13R are stopped. In other words, vehicle]0 is brought to an emergency stop.

When the vehicle] 0 passes the corner portion at low speed and the sign detection sensor 11 is positioned on the wide portion 20b as shown in FIG. 1.1. A signal "1" is output.

Along with this, a signal "1" is output from the ant circuit 1-34 of the control section 30, and this signal is applied to the motor drive circuit 32 as a speed increase command signal.

Therefore, the motor drive circuit 32 increases the rotational speed of the motors 13L and 13R to a predetermined speed based on the speed increase command signal.
For the second time, this speeds up the vehicle 10 to the speed before deceleration.

In the above embodiment, the 1.7J 1-1 section 20a and the wide section 20b are used as speed command signs, but these can also be used as stop, branch, etc. command signs.
is also possible.

Also, as shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, portions 2(]d and 20e are formed narrower than the specified width portion 20c.
It is also possible to use the specified width part 20c as a command sign.
It is also possible to use the portion 2Of formed narrower than the longitudinal length of 1 as a command indicator.
-iJ Noh.

When such a command indicator is used, the content of the command is determined from the number of magnetic sensing elements 11 that are turned on.

Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 10, the 9' shown in FIG.
By forming the wide portion 20b and the cut portion 20a adjacent to the narrow portion 20a and the wide portion 20b, the same command as shown in FIG. 1 can be given regardless of the traveling direction of the vehicle.

Although magnetic tape is used as the sign 20 in the above embodiment, the present invention can also be implemented using a white reflective tape as the sign 20. Of course, in this case,
A label detection sensor is used that has an array of elements that detect light reflected from the reflective tape.

〔Effect of the invention〕

According to the present invention, command-only signs and commands 1] Give commands to unmanned vehicles using existing equipment without installing a sensor for detecting signs! Since the equipment cost can be reduced significantly, equipment costs can be reduced significantly.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

Figure 1 is a conceptual diagram illustrating the configuration and installation mode of a guidance sign applied to the present invention, Figure 2 is a conceptual diagram illustrating the configuration of an unmanned vehicle, and Figure 3 is a conceptual diagram illustrating the configuration of a sign detection sensor. Figure 4 is a block diagram illustrating the configuration of a control unit that performs steering control, etc. Figures 5 to 9 are conceptual diagrams illustrating the configuration of command signs, respectively, and Figure 10 is a block diagram illustrating the configuration of a control unit that performs steering control etc. FIG. 2 is a conceptual diagram showing the configuration. 10... Unmanned vehicle, 11... Sign detection sensor, 20...
... Guidance sign, 20a... Cut portion, 20b... Wide width portion, 20c... Specified width portion, 30... Control unit, 32
...Motor drive port-path, 33, 34.37...AND circuit, 35...timer, 36...OR circuit.

Claims (1)

[Claims] A belt-shaped guidance sign laid on the road surface along a predetermined driving course, and a plurality of elements sensitive to this sign arranged in an arrangement length larger than the width of the sign in the width direction of the vehicle. and a control means for controlling the steering means of the vehicle so that the sign is positioned at the center of the sensor based on the output signal of the sign detection sensor. In a guidance device for an unmanned vehicle, a command sign section is provided in the middle of the guide sign and has a width different from a prescribed width of the sign, and the command sign section is detected based on the output of the sensor. A guidance device for an unmanned vehicle, characterized in that it is provided with means.