JPH07184415A - Autonomously traveling working vehicle - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To enable sure autonomous traveling of a working vehicle along the boundary between a non-reaped field and a reaped field. CONSTITUTION:Plural swinging members are swingably arranged under a chassis in the lateral direction of the chassis. The swinging state of the swinging member is detected by microswitches (swinging state detection sensors) 24 of reaping boundary detection apparatuses 20a,20b. The signal transmitted from each microswitch 24 of the reaping boundary detection apparatus 20a (20b) is processed in a boundary recognizing unit 51 of a controlling apparatus 50 to detect the reaping boundary between the non-reaped field and the reaped field and the end point of the working lane. A command for controlling the following travel based on the boundary position data transmitted from the boundary recognizing unit 51 is transmitted from a travel controlling part 56 to a vehicle controlling part 58. Hydraulic control valves 28a, 28b for the steering of the front and rear wheels are operated by the vehicle controlling part 58 via a steering controlling part 60 to control the steering mechanisms for the front and rear wheels and realize the following travel along the reap track boundary.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention detects the boundary between the uncut land and the already-cut land in the grass / lawn mowing work area, and autonomously runs along the boundary to perform grass / lawn mowing work. Regarding work vehicles.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, for an autonomous vehicle that is autonomously autonomously traveling, there is a technique in which an electric wire is buried underground and a magnetic sensor detects a magnetic field generated by the electric wire as self-position detection for autonomous traveling. Although proposed (for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 1-
No. 312610), a golf course, a river embankment, a field such as a park, etc., where an autonomous traveling area is large, such as an autonomous traveling vehicle that performs unmanned work such as mowing and lawn mowing.
It is difficult to embed the electric wire in the whole area, and the installation cost becomes large.

In order to cope with this, a boundary between an uncut land as an unprocessed work site and an already cut land as a processed work site, that is, a cut boundary, is detected in the grass / lawn mowing work area, and this cut boundary is detected. An autonomous mobile work vehicle has been developed that autonomously travels along the road to perform grass and lawn mowing work.

Regarding the detection of the boundary of the cut mark, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. Sho 61-61
No. 139304, a monitor camera captures an image of a boundary portion, and the captured image is binarized by an average brightness difference.
At the time of value conversion, the positive and negative signs of the differential value are detected and compared with the traveling direction of the vehicle to identify whether it is worked / unworked / boundary or unworked / worked / boundary,
A technique is disclosed in which only the necessary boundary is found in the current work process and the vehicle autonomously travels along this boundary.

Further, Japanese Patent Publication No. 4-39286 discloses that
A scanning sensor composed of two photointerrupter type optical sensors in which a pair of a light emitting element and a light receiving element are arranged at positions facing each other through a slit is suspended on the vehicle body so as to be aligned in the left-right direction with respect to the vehicle body. Each of the optical sensors is attached to the front end of each frame before and after being fixed to the lawnmower and detects the presence of lawn passing between the light emitting element and the light receiving element. , Which is above, and the combination of the detection results, that is,
The state where the optical sensor on the boundary side and outside the vehicle body detects the already cut land and the optical sensor inside the vehicle body detects the uncut area is defined as the state along the cut line boundary. A technique is disclosed in which a positional relationship with a vehicle body is discriminated and the vehicle autonomously travels along a cut mark boundary.

[0006]

However, the copying traveling by image processing as in the first prior art requires a video camera and an image processing device, which leads to an increase in cost, and the image pickup surface of a camera lens or the like. If dust, mud, etc. adheres,
A clear image cannot be obtained, it becomes difficult to detect the boundary, it becomes impossible to follow along the boundary, and maintenance work such as cleaning of the imaging surface of the camera lens etc. needs to be done frequently. However, there is an inconvenience that it is necessary to take waterproof measures for the video camera.

Further, as shown in the second prior art example, a scanning sensor comprising two photo interrupter type optical sensors in which a light emitting element and a light receiving element are arranged in a pair so as to face each other through a slit is used. In this case, if dust, mud, or the like adheres to the light-emitting surface of the light-emitting element and the light-receiving surface of the light-receiving element, the light from the light-emitting element is always blocked, and even if it is already cut, it is erroneously detected as uncut. There is a disadvantage that autonomous traveling along the cut boundary becomes impossible.Furthermore, the copying sensor has a structure in which a slit in which a light emitting element and a light receiving element are arranged to face each other is rigidly fixed to the frame of the lawnmower, so In order to prevent damage to the scanning sensor due to collision with the ground, it is necessary to secure a certain space (ground clearance) between the scanning sensor and the ground. The grass length is low If the difference ShibaTake with non cutting locations and Sundekari land is small, there is a disadvantage that can not be detected Kariato boundaries.

In view of the above circumstances, the present invention does not depend on the use environment, has a low grass / turf length in uncut land, and has a small difference in grass / turf length between uncut and cut land. Even in such a case, it is possible to reliably detect the cut boundary and reliably perform autonomous traveling along the cut boundary, and further detect the end point of the work lane to move the vehicle to the next work lane. It is an object of the present invention to provide an autonomous traveling work vehicle that can be automatically shifted to.

[0009]

In order to achieve the above object, an autonomous traveling work vehicle according to the present invention has a lower end at the lower part of the body of the autonomous traveling work vehicle, which is substantially equal to the minimum ground clearance of the cutting blade in the cutting blade mechanism, or A plurality of rocking members set at positions slightly higher than that are arranged side by side in the left-right direction of the vehicle so as to be rockable, and a cut boundary detection is provided with a rocking state detection sensor for detecting the rocking state of the rocking members. Means and a signal from the rocking state detection sensor, and based on the rocking state of the rocking member, the boundary between the cut land and the uncut land in the grass / lawn mowing work area is detected, and this cutting is performed. A copying traveling control means for controlling the steering mechanism based on the position data of the trace boundary to perform the copying traveling along the cut boundary, and the work level based on the output value of the rocking state detection sensor during the copying traveling. -When it is judged that the end point of the Because have been set de - the vehicle by controlling the motor following tasks Les - - steering mechanism and the travel control actuator on the basis of data, characterized in that it comprises a shift processing means for shifting the emission.

[0010]

In the above-mentioned autonomous work vehicle, a plurality of rocking members positioned in parallel in the left-right direction of the vehicle body rock according to the grass and turf height as the vehicle advances, and the rocking state is rocked. Based on the rocking state of the rocking member detected by the detection sensor and the rocking state detection sensor, the boundary between the cut and uncut land in the grass / lawn mowing work area is detected. The steering mechanism is controlled on the basis of the position data of the above to perform the profile travel along the cut boundary, and during the profile travel, at the end point of the work lane based on the output value of the rocking state detection sensor. When it is judged that the vehicle has reached the limit, the steering mechanism and the traveling control actuator are controlled based on the preset data, and the vehicle is shifted to the next work lane.

[0011]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. The drawing shows an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 1 shows a D-GP.
FIG. 3 is an explanatory view showing a lawnmower equipped with a mobile station for S and a fixed station for D-GPS, FIG. 2 is a plan view showing a mounting position relationship between a cutting blade mechanism and a cut boundary detection device in the lawn mowing vehicle, and FIG. 4 is an explanatory view showing the configuration of the cut boundary detection device, FIGS. 4 and 5 are explanatory diagrams showing the operation of the cut boundary detection device, FIG. 6 is a block diagram of the control device, and FIG. 7 is a configuration of the steering control system. Illustration,
8 is an explanatory view showing a traveling route and a work area, FIGS. 9 to 12 are main control routine flowcharts, and FIGS. 13 and 14 are autonomous traveling control routine flowcharts. Figure 15
Is a flow chart of the D-GPS wireless communication routine, FIG.
6 is an explanatory view showing the state of the first outer peripheral cutting in the work area, and FIG. 17 is a time chart showing the relationship between the deviation of the cut boundary from the target boundary position as the vehicle travels and the azimuth deviation angle.
18 and 19 are explanatory views showing a vehicle shift state at the end of one stroke by grass / lawn mowing work, and FIG. 20 is an explanatory diagram of a grass / lawn mowing operation state by copying traveling.

In FIG. 1 (a), reference numeral 1 indicates an autonomous traveling work vehicle which is self-propelled and is unmanned. In this embodiment, it is a lawn mowing work vehicle for performing grass / lawn mowing work on a golf course or the like. This lawnmower vehicle 1 is driven by an engine, and the steering angles of the front and rear wheels can be independently controlled.
Satellite radio receiver for receiving radio waves from satellites and measuring own position, dead reckoning sensor for measuring current position based on traveling history, sensor for detecting obstacles, grass and lawn mowing A sensor or the like for detecting a cut boundary for performing a contour running along the cut boundary in the work area is mounted, and highly accurate autonomous running can be performed.

In this embodiment, the satellite radio receiver is a GPS receiver for receiving radio waves from GPS satellites to measure its own position, and position observation is performed by a fixed station located at a known point. So as to feed back the correction information (differential information) to the mobile station, so-called differential GPS (hereinafter abbreviated as D-GPS).
Is a mobile station GPS receiver for.

As is well known, the causes of positioning errors by GPS are errors of clocks of satellites and receivers, errors of orbits of satellites, delay of radio waves by the ionosphere, delay of radio waves by the atmosphere, multipath, etc. In addition, the largest error factor is selectable availability (S / A)
There is a deliberate deterioration in accuracy called by the operator. Of the errors due to these factors, the in-phase error can be removed by using the correction information corresponding to each satellite captured by the fixed station at a known point, and the positioning accuracy at the mobile station is about several meters. Can be dramatically improved.

For this reason, the lawnmower vehicle 1 has an antenna 2 for a mobile station GPS receiver and an antenna 3 for a wireless communication device for receiving differential information from a fixed station.
Are installed upright, and at a known location outside the vehicle,
As shown in, the antenna 41 of the fixed station GPS receiver,
Fixed station 4 with an antenna 42 of a wireless communication device for transmitting differential information to a mobile station GPS receiver
0 is placed.

As the dead reckoning sensor, a geomagnetic sensor 4 and a wheel encoder as an example of a vehicle speed sensor.
And a contactless sensor 6a, 6b such as an ultrasonic sensor or an optical sensor as the obstacle detection sensor is attached to the front and rear parts of the lawn mowing work vehicle 1. Contact type sensors 7a and 7b using micro switches or the like are attached to the front and rear ends of the lawnmower working vehicle 1.

The lower part of the lawn mowing vehicle 1 is
As shown in FIG. 2, a cutting blade mechanism 15 having a plurality of cutting blades 15a such as mowers for performing grass / lawn mowing work, and a cut mark between the already cut land C and the uncut land B in the grass / lawn mowing work area Cut boundary detecting device 2 as a cut boundary detecting means for detecting the boundary L
0a and 20b are provided.

Casters 17 are attached to the four corners of the deck 16 of the cutting blade mechanism 15 to keep the distance between the working ground and the cutting blade 15a substantially constant (several centimeters), the displacement of the cutting blade mechanism 15 and the body 1a. The cutting blade mechanism 15 for damping the displacement of
It is attached to the lower part of the vehicle body 1 a via the link mechanism 18.
Further, the PTO of the transmission 9 in the power transmission mechanism that transmits power from the vehicle-mounted engine 8 to the front and rear wheels 11a and 11b.
Power is transmitted to the cutting blade mechanism 15 via a shaft, a hydraulic clutch mechanism (not shown), and the universal joint 10, and each cutting blade 15a is rotated via a transmission mechanism (not shown) to perform grass / lawn mowing. .

The cut boundary detecting devices 20a and 20b are
As the lower part of the vehicle body 1a, the deck 16 in the cutting blade mechanism 15
A plurality of mechanisms that are attached to the left and right sides of the vehicle and that detect the difference in grass / turf length between the already-cut land C and the uncut land B are arranged in parallel in the lateral direction of the vehicle body.

As shown in FIG. 3, each of the above-mentioned mechanisms is fixed to a frame 16a extending from the deck 16 and is provided with a predetermined pitch (for example, 30
mm), a plurality of vertically slender swing members 22 are swingably mounted via bearings 23, respectively. The lower part of each of the swing members 22 is formed as a sensing part 22a for detecting a cut boundary, and the upper part is formed as a sensor operating part 22b. The center of gravity is on the sensing part 22a side with the swing center as a boundary. , And the sensing unit 22a side is set so as to be always located below. Further, the lower end of the sensing portion 22a of each rocking member 22 is set to a position substantially equal to or slightly higher than the lowest ground clearance position of the cutting blade 15a in the cutting blade mechanism 15. Furthermore, each rocking member 22 is set to be light enough not to crush grass / turf.

Further, when the swing member 22 is in a vertical state, a micro switch 24 is provided as an example of a swing state detecting sensor with respect to the sensor operating portion 22b with a certain interval in the vehicle traveling direction.

That is, as shown in FIG. 4 (a), when the swinging member 22 is located on the cut land C in the grass / lawn mowing work area, the lower end of the sensing portion 22a is the lowest of the cutting blade 15a as described above. Since it is set at a position substantially equal to the height above ground, the sensing part 22a is not in contact with the grass / turf and the swinging member 22 maintains the vertical state, or the swinging angle does not change even when it is in contact with the grass / turf. Since it is minute, the sensor operating unit 22
b does not contact the microswitch 24 and the microswitch 2
4 turns off. On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 4B, when the rocking member 22 is located in the uncut area B, the grass / turf height is high, and therefore the sensing portion 22a comes into contact with the grass / turf as the vehicle advances. The rocking member 22 rocks, the sensor operating portion 22b of the rocking member 22 contacts the micro switch 24, and the micro switch 24 is turned on. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 5, a plurality of swinging members 22 are provided in a direction perpendicular to the vehicle traveling direction, that is, in the vehicle body left-right direction, and the swinging state of the swinging member 22 as the vehicle travels is detected. Each rocking member 22 located in the cut land C rocks to turn on the micro switch 24 opposite to the rocking member 22, and each rocking member 22 located in the cut land C has a vertical state or a small rocking angle. , The microswitch 24 opposite to this is turned off, and the boundary position between ON and OFF of these microswitches 24 is detected to detect the cut boundary L between the cut land C and the uncut land B with respect to the vehicle body position. You can do it.

In this embodiment, the micro switch 24 is used as an example of the rocking state detecting sensor in order to detect the rocking state of the rocking member 22, but a contact type sensor that operates in the same manner as the micro switch, Alternatively, a contactless sensor such as a proximity switch that is turned on when an object approaches may be used.

Further, in the present embodiment, in the grass / lawn mowing work by the lawn mowing work vehicle 1 following the cut mark boundary, the already-cut land C is always located on the left outer side of the vehicle body 1a and the leftover cutting is prevented. In order to realize a predetermined lawn mowing overlap amount O, the respective cut mark boundary detection devices 20a and 20b are arranged so that the left cutting blade 15a of the cutting blade mechanism 15 in the front-back direction of the vehicle body 1a as shown in FIG. Positioned to straddle a tangent.
As a result, when the target position of the lawnmower working vehicle 1 in copying travel is set to a position where a predetermined lawn mowing overlap amount O is obtained, the cut land boundary detection devices 20a and 20b separate the cut land C and the uncut land B from each other. Cut boundary L is detected, and already cut land C and uncut land B
During the grass / lawn mowing work performed by the lawnmower 1 following the cut mark boundary L, the cut mark boundary L can be positioned inside the cutting blade 15a, which prevents the grass / lawn from being left behind. It

Further, as shown in FIG. 6, the lawnmower working vehicle 1 is equipped with a control device 50 composed of a microcomputer and the like.
The actuators are connected to the control device 50, and the control device 50 inputs signals from the microswitches 24 of the cut boundary detection devices 20a and 20b. Based on the swing state of the swing member 22, grass and lawn mowing work is performed. The cut boundary L between the already cut and uncut land in the area is detected, and the steering mechanisms 30a and 30b, which will be described later, are controlled based on the position data of the cut boundary to follow the cut boundary L. And the function as a copying travel control means for performing the following, and when it is determined that the end point of the work lane is reached based on the output value of each microswitch 24 during the copying travel, a preset data is set. Based on the steering mechanism 30a, 30b and the traveling control actuator 1
The function as shift processing means for controlling the vehicle 2 to shift the vehicle to the next work lane is realized. Further, the control device 50 has a wireless communication device 26 for receiving the differential information from the mobile station GPS receiver 25 and the fixed station 30.
Are also connected, and a self-positioning function by D-GPS, a self-positioning function by dead-reckoning, and an autonomous traveling control function for controlling autonomous traveling are realized.

Specifically, the cut boundary detecting device 20a,
Boundary recognition section 51 to which each microswitch 24 of 20b is connected, running distance detecting section 52 to which the wheel encoder 5 is connected, geomagnetic sensor 4 and running distance data by the running distance detecting section 52. Dead reckoning position detection unit 53, D-GPS position detection unit 54 to which the mobile station GPS receiver 25 and wireless communication device 26 are connected, the non-contact type sensors 6a and 6b, and the contact type sensors 7a and 7b are connected. An obstacle detection section 55, a recognition control section 51, a travel control section 56 to which the detection sections 52 to 55 are connected, and a work data map in which a work data map referred to by the travel control section 56 is stored. -Data storage unit 57, the traveling control unit 5
The control device 50 is provided with a vehicle control unit 58 for controlling the vehicle according to an instruction from the control unit 6. Further, drive control is performed to drive each mechanism unit of the lawnmower working vehicle 1 based on the output from the vehicle control unit 58. A section 59, a steering control section 60, and a cutting blade control section 61 are provided.

The boundary recognition section 51 selects one of the cut boundary detection devices 20a and 20b based on the vehicle traveling direction data, and processes the signal from each microswitch 24 of the selected cut boundary detection device. Then, the boundaries of the cut marks of grass and lawn height and the end points of the work lane are detected, and these data are output to the traveling control unit 56.

The traveling distance detecting section 52 is a wheel encoder.
The vehicle speed detected by the vehicle 5 is integrated to obtain the travel distance, which is given to the dead reckoning position detection unit 53 and the travel control unit 56.

The dead reckoning position detecting section 53 accumulates the traveling distance in correspondence with the change in the traveling direction detected by the geomagnetic sensor 4 to calculate the traveling history from the reference point and determine the present position of the vehicle. It measures and outputs the positioning data to the traveling control unit 56. The sensor connected to the dead reckoning position detection unit 53 is not limited to the geomagnetic sensor 4, and a gyro or the like may be used.

The D-GPS position detector 54 includes a group of GPS satellites captured through the mobile station GPS receiver 25 (at least four in the case of three-dimensional positioning and at least three in the case of two-dimensional positioning). ) Navigation message from 70,
That is, satellite clock correction coefficient, orbit information, satellite calendar,
The position of the vehicle is measured with high accuracy based on positioning information such as satellite placement and the differential information received from the fixed station 40 via the wireless communication device 26, and the positioning data is sent to the travel control unit 56. Output.

The fixed station 40 for the D-GPS position detector 54 is a D-to which a fixed station GPS receiver 43 is connected.
GPS fixed local unit 44, D-GPS for transmitting differential information from this D-GPS fixed local unit 44
The information transmitter 45 includes a wireless communication device 46 connected to the D-GPS information transmitter 45.

The D-GPS fixed station section 44 processes the positioning information from the satellite group 70 received via the fixed station GPS receiver 43 to create differential correction data. The differential correction data is converted into wireless communication packet data in the D-GPS information transmitting unit 45 and transmitted via the wireless communication device 46.

In this embodiment, the D-GPS fixed station 40 is installed as a specific device for the mobile station of the lawnmower vehicle 1, but it is a wireless device for transmitting differential information. Existing D-GP with stations
It is also possible to use an S fixed station or an existing D-GPS fixed station that transmits differential information via a communication satellite.

The obstacle detecting section 55 detects an unpredictable obstacle by the non-contact type sensors 6a, 6b and the contact type sensors 7a, 7b, and outputs a detection signal to the traveling control section 56.

In the traveling control unit 56, the boundary recognition unit 5
1, mileage detector 52, dead reckoning position detector 53, D
-Selecting each positioning data from the GPS position detector 54 as appropriate, referring to the work data in the work data storage 57 to calculate the amount of error between the current position of the vehicle and the target position. , Determine the route and vehicle control instructions.

In this case, when moving to the work area,
When the positioning accuracy in the D-GPS position detecting unit 54 is compared with a set level and the set level is satisfied, the positioning data from the D-GPS position detecting unit 54 is used, and when the set level is not satisfied, The autonomous traveling control is performed by using the positioning data from the dead reckoning position detecting section 53. In the grass / lawn mowing work in the work area, the copying traveling is controlled by using the boundary position data from the boundary recognizing unit 51, the traveling distance data from the traveling distance detecting unit 52, the vehicle speed data and the like. To do. When the boundary recognizing section 51 detects the end point of the work lane, shift processing is performed to shift the vehicle to the next work lane. When an obstacle is detected by the obstacle detection unit 55, an instruction to avoid the obstacle or stop the vehicle is issued.

The work data storage unit 57 comprises a ROM area in which fixed data is stored and a RAM area in which work data under control is stored.
Topographic data of the work area for grass and lawn mowing work in the M area
Data and terrain data of the entire area including a plurality of work areas are stored in advance. In the RAM area, as described later, in order to correct positioning data by dead reckoning, D- GPS positioning data and the like are stored.

The vehicle control unit 58 converts the instruction from the traveling control unit 56 into a specific control instruction amount and outputs it to the drive control unit 59, the steering control unit 60, and the cutting blade control unit 61. As a result, the drive control unit 59 controls the traveling control actuator 12 such as the shift actuator, the forward / reverse switching actuator, the throttle actuator, the brake actuator, etc. to control the traveling of the vehicle. The hydraulic pump 27 is controlled to generate hydraulic pressure for driving each functional unit, and the steering control unit 60 controls the front wheel steering angle sensor 31.
a, steering control (steering amount feedback control) is performed via the front wheel steering hydraulic control valve 28a and the rear wheel steering hydraulic control valve 28b based on the input from the rear wheel steering angle sensor 31b.
The cutting blade control unit 61 controls the cutting blade mechanism 15 by operating the hydraulic clutch mechanism via the cutting blade control hydraulic control valve 33.

As shown in FIG. 7, the steering system of the lawnmower working vehicle 1 includes a hydraulic pump 27 driven by an engine 8.
Is connected to a front wheel steering hydraulic control valve 28a and a rear wheel steering hydraulic control valve 28b controlled by the steering control unit 60, and the front wheel hydraulic cylinder 29a and the rear wheel are connected to the respective hydraulic control valves 28a and 28b. Hydraulic cylinders 29b are connected to the respective hydraulic cylinders 29a, 29a.
b, the front wheel steering mechanism 30a and the rear wheel steering mechanism 30b are driven independently.

When the steering angles of the front and rear wheels detected by the steering angle sensors 31a and 31b attached to the steering mechanisms 30a and 30b are input to the steering control section 60,
The steering control unit 60 controls the steering mechanisms 30a and 30b via the hydraulic control valves 28a and 28b so as to eliminate the deviation between the detected steering angle and the target steering angle.

The case where unmanned grass / lawn mowing work is performed on a plurality of divided work areas as shown in FIG. 8 will be described below. In this case, assuming that the lawn mowing vehicle 1 is waiting at an arbitrary preparation position 80 before starting work, it moves to the first work area 82, the grass / lawn mowing work in this work area 82, and the next from the work area 82. The movement to the work area 86, the grass / lawn mowing work in the work area 86, and the movement to the return position 88 are autonomously performed according to the programs shown in FIGS. 9 to 15.

First, in the main control routine shown in FIGS. 9 to 12, in step S101, the G-DPS is used to measure the preparation position 80, which is the current self-position. This position measurement is
Converting D-GPS positioning data such as latitude and longitude (altitude data is also added as necessary) into geodetic system data stored in the work data storage unit 57. Done by. In addition, data conversion to this geodetic system is performed by D-GPS.
It may be performed by the position detection unit 54 or the travel control unit 56.

Next, in step S102, the work data
The terrain data of the first work area 82 is referred to with reference to the data storage unit 57.
Is read out, a route 81 from the measured preparation position 80 to the work start point is generated, and the process proceeds to step S103. Step
In S103, the autonomous traveling control routine of FIGS. 13 and 14 to be described later is executed to move the vehicle to the work start position, and in step S104, the cutting blade control hydraulic control valve 33 is opened to perform the hydraulic clutch mechanism. Hydraulic pressure is supplied to the blades and the cutting blade 15a is operated to start the grass / lawn mowing work. First, the work area data stored in advance in the work data storage unit 57 is referred to by D-GPS / dead reckoning navigation. Then, the outer circumference of the route 83 is cut along the work area by D-GPS / dead reckoning (see FIG. 16).

That is, in step S105, the self-position is detected by D-GPS or dead reckoning during autonomous traveling as in step S103, and then in step S106, the work data in the work data storage unit 57 is detected. Work area 82
The amount of error from the current position with respect to the path 83 along the boundary of is calculated.

Then, the process proceeds to step S107, and the step
The steering amount for each target steering angle of the front and rear wheels is determined according to the error amount obtained in S106, and in step S108, the front wheel steering mechanism 30a is operated via the front wheel steering hydraulic control valve 28a and the rear wheel steering hydraulic control valve 28b. The rear wheel steering mechanism 30b is driven, and the front wheel steering angle sensor 31a and the rear wheel steering angle sensor 31b detect the respective steering angles of the front and rear wheels 11a and 11b to perform control so as to obtain the target steering angle.

After that, the process proceeds to step S109, and it is checked whether or not the end position P0 of the outer circumference cutting in the work area has been reached from the current position of the vehicle based on the positioning data.
If it has not reached 0, the process returns to step S105 to continue the outer circumference cutting work, and when it reaches the end position P0 of the outer circumference cutting, the process proceeds from step S109 to step S110 to shift the vehicle and operate the steering mechanism. Control the previous grass
A constant speed (for example, 3 to 6) is used to follow the traveling of the work path 84 along the cut line boundary L between the already-cut land C and the uncut land B by the lawn mowing work.
Km / h) Carry out by running.

It should be noted that in this embodiment, the grass
Since the lawn mowing work is performed in a straight line, the first predetermined range a in the outer peripheral mowing is performed in a straight line to straighten the grass and lawn.

Next, the process proceeds to step S111, and the cut mark boundary detecting devices 20a, 20 are selected according to the forward / backward movement state of the lawnmower work vehicle 1.
Select one of b. That is, when it is determined that the vehicle is moving forward F based on the vehicle forward-reverse control data in the controller 50, the cut mark boundary detecting device 20a on the front side of the cutting blade mechanism 15 is selected, and when it is determined that the vehicle is moving backward R. The rear cut boundary detection device 20b is selected. Then, the process proceeds to step S112, in which the signals from the respective micro switches 24 of the selected cut boundary detecting device and the signal from the wheel encoder 5 are input and processed, and in step S113, the already-cut land C corresponding to the vehicle position is obtained. While calculating the position of the cut boundary L with the uncut land B,
The vehicle speed is calculated, and the process proceeds to step S114.

Now, when the vehicle travels along the cut boundary L while the vehicle is moving forward, the cut boundary detecting device 20a as shown in FIG. The microswitches 24 are turned off, and the microswitches 24 located in the unmarked area B are turned on. Therefore, the position of the cut boundary L with respect to the vehicle body position is obtained by detecting the ON / OFF boundary of each microswitch 24 in the cut boundary detection device 20a. It should be noted that when the vehicle is moving backward, by selecting the rear side cut mark boundary detecting device 20b, the cut mark boundary L with respect to the vehicle body position is similarly selected.
The position of can be calculated.

Further, as described above, the cut boundary detecting device 2
Since the swing members 22 of 0a and 20b are swingably mounted on the shaft 21, the sensing portion 22 of the swing member 22
Since the lower end of a can be lowered, the sensing unit 22a
The lower end of the cutting blade 15a can be set at a position approximately equal to or slightly higher than the minimum ground clearance of the cutting blade 15a,
Even if the grass / turf height in the grass / lawn mowing work area is low and the difference in grass / turf length between the already-cut area C and the uncut area B is small, it is possible to reliably detect the cut mark boundary.

Then, in order to prevent the grass and grass from being left uncut by copying, a predetermined lawn mowing overlap amount O is obtained as shown in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 7, the position between the specific rocking members 22 arranged in parallel in the cut boundary detection device 20a (20b), that is, the position between the specific microswitches 24 is set to the target boundary position L.
The deviation of the vehicle with respect to the cut boundary L is obtained by presetting as B and calculating the number of microswitches 24 between which the cut boundary L exists from the target boundary position LB. For example, the mounting pitch of each swing member 22 is 3
At 0 mm, 0 is provided between the + 10th micro switch 24 and the + 11th microswitch 24 from the target boundary position LB (here, the symbols indicate + ... vehicle forward direction left side, −... vehicle forward direction right side).
When there is a boundary of N and OFF and a cut boundary L exists, the cut boundary L is 30 mm × 10 on the left side from the target boundary position LB.
It is calculated to be at a position of 300 mm. Note that the error at this time is within the mounting pitch of the swing member.

Then, by the subsequent processing, the control valves 28a, 2a are adjusted so that the position of the cut boundary L coincides with the target boundary position LB.
The steering mechanisms 30a and 30b are controlled via 8b to correct the steering angles of the front and rear wheels 11a and 11b to correct the traveling direction of the vehicle body 1a.

In step S114, the position data of the cut boundary L is
Then, in step S115, it is determined whether or not the averaging time as a unit time for giving the averaging process has ended, and steps S112 to S115 are repeated until the averaging time ends.
When the process proceeds to step S116 after the end of the averaging process, it is determined whether or not all the micro switches 24 of the selected cut boundary detecting device 20a (20b) are OFF, and 1
It is determined whether or not the end point of the work lane of the stroke (one column) has been reached.

That is, as shown in FIG. 16, the periphery of the uncut land B is surrounded by the already cut land C1 obtained by cutting the outer circumference of the work area, and the copying operation by the cut mark boundary L causes 1 to the uncut land B. When the grass and lawn mowing work on the row is performed, the lawn mowing vehicle 1 eventually reaches the already cut land C1 by the outer circumference cutting, and all the micro switches 24 of the cut mark boundary detection device 20a (20b) are turned off. Therefore, it is determined whether or not all the micro switches 24 of the cut boundary detecting device 20a (20b) are off, thereby deciding whether or not the end point of the work lane of one stroke (one row) by the copying traveling is reached. Is possible.

Then, all the micro switches 24 are turned off.
When it is determined that the end of the work lane is reached and the work of one stroke is completed, the process branches to step S136 and it is determined that the end of the work lane is not reached and the work of one stroke is not completed. If so, the process proceeds to step S117. Step S117
Then, the average value of the position data of the cut boundary L is stored in the work data storage unit 57 as the cut boundary position L0, and the preset control interval (several seconds) is set in step S118.
Process is suspended until the control interval elapses by determining whether or not has elapsed, and when the control interval elapses, the process proceeds to step S119, and in steps S119 to S122, similar to steps S112 to S115. The average value of the position data of the cut boundary L is calculated. Then, the process proceeds to step S123, and similarly to step S116, it is determined whether or not the end point of the work lane is reached and one stroke of the contour traveling is completed. When one stroke is completed, the process branches to step S136, and if not completed, Step
The process proceeds to S124, the average value of the position data of the cut boundary L calculated this time is stored as the cut boundary position L1 in the work data storage unit 57, and the process proceeds to step S125.

At step S125, the cut boundary position L0.
, L1 and the distance S between the two cut mark boundary positions L0, L1
Based on the above, the azimuth deviation angle θ in the vehicle traveling direction is calculated, and the deviation Z between the target vehicle body position and the current vehicle body position is obtained. As shown in FIG. 17, a difference X (= L0-L1) between the cut boundary position L0 at the time t0 and the cut boundary position L1 at the time t1 after the control interval has elapsed is calculated,
The traveling distance S from the time t0 to t1 is calculated by the vehicle speed, and the azimuth deviation angle θ in the vehicle traveling direction with respect to the cut boundary L is calculated based on the difference X and the traveling distance S. Also, time t0
The cut-line boundary position L0 at is the deviation Z between the target vehicle body position and the current vehicle body position.

The azimuth deviation angle θ and the deviation Z are used to recognize in which direction and how much the vehicle body 1a is deviated. Based on this recognition result, the target steering angles of the front and rear wheels 11a and 11b are set so as to correct the displacement of the vehicle body 1a based on the recognition result. The target rudder angle is set, for example, by referring to a table stored in advance in the work data storage unit 57 using the azimuth deviation angle θ and the deviation Z as parameters.

After that, in step S127, the signals from the front and rear wheel steering angle sensors 31a and 31b are input to calculate the steering angles of the front and rear wheels 11a and 11b, respectively.
The process proceeds to S128, in which the front wheel steering angle and the front wheel target steering angle are first compared. When it is determined that the front wheel steering angle is equal to or larger than the front wheel target steering angle, the process proceeds to step S129, the front wheel steering hydraulic control valve 28a is turned off, and the front wheel steering mechanism 30a is operated via the front wheel hydraulic cylinder 29a. Is operated to decrease the steering angle of the front wheels 11a, and when the front wheels steering angle is smaller than the front wheels target steering angle, the process proceeds to step S130 to turn on the front wheel steering hydraulic control valve 28a to increase the steering angles of the front wheels 11a. Control.

Next, the process proceeds to step S131, the rear wheel steering angle is compared with the rear wheel target steering angle, and if the rear wheel steering angle is equal to or larger than the rear wheel target steering angle, step S132
Then, the rear wheel steering hydraulic control valve 28b is turned off and the rear wheel steering mechanism 30b is operated via the rear wheel hydraulic cylinder 29b to reduce the steering angle of the rear wheel 11b so that the rear wheel steering angle is the target rear wheel. When the steering angle is smaller than the steering angle, the process proceeds to step S133, and on the contrary, the rear wheel steering hydraulic control valve 28b is turned on to control the steering angle of the rear wheel 11b to be increased. Then, in step S134, it is determined whether the preset control interval has elapsed,
Until the control interval elapses, step S127-
By repeating S134, the rudder angle feedback control is continued so that the rudder angles of the front and rear wheels 11a and 11b match the target rudder angle, and when the control interval elapses, the process proceeds to step S135 and the previous cut mark boundary position L0. Is rewritten with the value of the current cut mark boundary position L1 and the process returns to step S119.

As a result, the recognition of the displacement of the vehicle body 1a with respect to the boundary of the cut mark and the steering angle control based on this displacement recognition are repeated at regular intervals determined by the control interval, and the cut land C
The lawn mowing work vehicle 1 follows the cutting boundary B between the uncut area B and the uncut area B to perform grass / lawn mowing.

When the end point of one stroke (one row) due to the copying run is reached, the cut boundary detecting device 20 as described above.
All the microswitches 24 of a (20b) are turned off, this is detected in the step S116 or step S123, and the process branches to step S136 to detect the self-position based on the data by D-GPS / dead reckoning, In S137,
It is determined whether or not all work for one section (work area 82) has been completed. When the work for one section has not been completed yet, the process returns to step S110, the vehicle shift process is performed, and the front / rear wheel steering mechanism is performed via the traveling control actuator 12 and the front / rear wheel steering hydraulic control valves 28a, 28b. Thirty
By controlling a and 30b, the vehicle is shifted to the next work lane, and grass and lawn mowing work is performed by copying traveling in the next stroke (next row).

Here, as shown in FIG. 18, by the forward movement F of the lawnmower work vehicle 1, the end point of the work lane, that is, the grass.
When reaching the end point P1 of one stroke of lawn mowing, to prevent uncut grass and lawn at the end point position based on the terrain data by the work data accumulation unit 57 and the preset control data. Then, the hydraulic control valves 28a, 28b are moved forward to the point P2, then moved backward R from the point P2 to the point P3, moved forward from the point P3 to the front right, and at the position P4 for obtaining a predetermined lawn mowing overlap amount O. Via the steering mechanisms 30a, 30b
Control to bring the vehicle body 1a into a parallel state with the previous work,
That is, after the lawn mowing work vehicle 1 is laterally shifted by the amount obtained by subtracting the lawn mowing overlap amount O from the width W of each cutting blade 15a, the vehicle is set to the reverse R state, and the step S111 is performed.
Through S135, the cut boundary detection device 20b on the rear side of the cutting blade mechanism 15 senses the cut boundary L, and the grass / lawn mowing work is performed by following along the cut boundary L. Further, as shown in FIG. 19, when the one-stroke end point P5 of grass / lawn mowing is reached by the reverse movement R of the lawn mowing work vehicle 1, the end point is similarly determined based on the data of the work data accumulation unit 57. In order to prevent leftover cutting of grass / turf at the position, it retreats as it is to point P6, then moves forward to point P7 and moves backward from point P7 to the left rear to obtain a predetermined lawn mowing overlap amount O.
Then, the steering mechanisms 30a and 30b are controlled so that the vehicle body 1a is in a parallel state with the previous work, the vehicle is in the forward state, and the cut boundary L is detected by the cut boundary detection device 20a on the front side of the cutting blade mechanism 15. By sensing and following along the cut line boundary L, the grass and lawn mowing work in the next step is performed. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 20, the lawnmower work vehicle 1 travels along a line while alternately repeating forward movement and backward movement to perform grass / lawn mowing work in the work area 82.

Then, steps S110 to S137 are repeated until the work in one section (work area 82) is completed, and the grass and lawn mowing work in one section is continued by the follow-up traveling by forward and backward movement,
When the work for one section is completed, the cutting blade control hydraulic control valve 3
3 is closed to stop the operation of the cutting blade mechanism 15, and the step
The process proceeds from step S137 to step S138, and it is determined whether or not the work for all the sections has been completed. Here, the next work area 8
Since the work in 6 has not been completed, the above-described step S102
Returning to the above, when the route 85 from the work area 82 to the work area 86 is generated in the same procedure, the path 85 is moved to the next work area 86 in accordance with the autonomous traveling control routine of FIGS.
Perform lawn mowing work.

Eventually, when the work of all the sections is completed, the process proceeds from step S138 to step S139, and the work data storage unit 5
7, when the route 87 to the return position 88 is generated,
In step S140, the autonomous traveling control routine of FIGS.
Follow the chin to the return position 88, finish the routine and stop the vehicle.

Next, the autonomous traveling on the routes 81, 83, 85, 87 by the autonomous traveling control routine shown in FIGS. 13 and 14 will be described. In the main control routine described above, the routes 81, 83, 85 and 87 are generated from the positioning data of the self position and the work data of the work data storage unit 57. , Routes 81, 83, 85, 8
7 itself may be stored in the work data storage unit 57 in advance.

In the self-position measurement by D-GPS, much better accuracy can be obtained as compared with the case of a single GPS, but it is necessary for autonomous traveling control depending on the satellite capturing state and the radio wave receiving state. The accuracy required for timing may not be obtained. Therefore, when the current D-GPS accuracy information is obtained in step S201, in step S202
This accuracy information is compared with a prescribed position accuracy evaluation set value stored in advance in the work data storage unit 57, and step S2
At 03, it is determined whether or not the positioning accuracy of D-GPS satisfies the set level.

When the positioning accuracy of D-GPS satisfies the set level, the process proceeds to step S204, and the moving speed of the lawnmower work vehicle 1 is set to the normal speed stored in the work data storage unit 57. (For example, 5 km / h), and in step S205, when the error amount of the vehicle position is obtained from the position information of the G-DPS and the route information, step S206
Then, the steering amounts of the front and rear wheels are determined according to the error amount.

Next, in step S207, the front wheel steering mechanism 30a and the rear wheel steering mechanism 30b are respectively driven via the front wheel steering hydraulic control valve 28a and the rear wheel steering hydraulic control valve 28b to obtain the target steering angle. Control, step S208
Then, the current position measured by D-GPS is compared with the target position, and it is determined in step S209 whether or not the target position has been reached. As a result, when the target position is not reached,
Returning to step S204, the vehicle continues traveling while positioning the current position by the D-GPS, and when the target position is reached, the vehicle is stopped and the routine is exited in step S225.

On the other hand, if the positioning accuracy of the D-GPS does not satisfy the set level in step S203, the process branches from step S203 to step S210, and the dead reckoning autonomous driving is performed. That is, in step S210, by setting the moving speed of the vehicle to a low speed (for example, 3 km / h) stored in the work data storage unit 57, the cumulative error of dead reckoning caused by the slip of the vehicle is reduced. Then, in step S211, the error amount of the vehicle position is obtained from the position information and the route information based on dead reckoning.

Next, in step S212, the steering amounts of the front and rear wheels are determined according to the error amount. In step S213, the front wheel steering mechanism 30a is operated via the front wheel steering hydraulic control valve 28a and the rear wheel steering hydraulic control valve 28b. The rear wheel steering mechanism 30b is driven to control the target steering angle. Then, in step S214, the current position by dead-reckoning and the target position are compared, and in step S215, it is determined whether or not the target position has been reached.

When the target position has not been reached, the process returns from step S215 to step S210 to continue autonomous traveling while positioning the current position by dead reckoning. When the target position is reached, the process proceeds from step S215 to step S216. When is stopped, the current position is measured by the D-GPS and the positioning data is stored in the RAM area of the work data storage unit 57 in step S217.

Then, the process proceeds to step S218, the preset data accumulation set time is compared with the data accumulation time set in step S217, and it is checked in step S219 whether the set time has elapsed. . Then, when the set time has not elapsed, the process returns to step S217 to continue accumulating the positioning data by the D-GPS, and when the set time elapses, the accumulation of the positioning data by the D-GPS ends. Proceed to step S220.

In step S220, the accumulated positioning data by D-GPS is averaged, and the current position is obtained from this average value. Then, the process proceeds to step S221, the current position is compared with the target position, and in step S222. , Determine whether the true target position has been reached. As a result, when it is determined that the true target position is reached, when it is determined that the vehicle is stopped and the routine is exited in step S225 described above and the true target position is not reached, When the dead reckoning positioning data is corrected by the average value of the positioning data by D-GPS in step S223, the process proceeds to step S224, a route to the true target position is generated, and the process returns to step S210. The traveling is restarted, and the above processing is repeated until the true target position is reached.

That is, even when the positioning accuracy of the D-GPS is deteriorated, the positioning accuracy can be improved by staying at a certain point and continuing the measurement for a predetermined time, which is required by the D-GPS during autonomous traveling. If the position accuracy is not obtained, the dead-reckoning navigation is performed to the target position and then stopped, and in the stopped state, the D-GPS positioning data is accumulated for a set time and the average value is taken to obtain the accurate current position. You can know. If the dead-reckoning position is displaced, the dead-reckoning positioning data is corrected by the average value of the set times of the D-GPS positioning data.
It is possible to always perform accurate autonomous driving.

Data communication between the fixed station 40 and the mobile station in D-GPS is performed by packet data by the D-GPS wireless communication routine shown in FIG. In this data communication, the mobile station GPS receiver 25 is initialized in step S301, and the fixed station GPS receiver 43 is initialized by data transmission via the wireless communication devices 26 and 46 in step S302. , Proceeds to step S303 to obtain the differential information from the fixed station 40 by wireless data communication.

Then, in step S304, the D-GP
In the S position detection unit 54, the differential information from the fixed station 40 is applied to the positioning data obtained from the mobile station GPS receiver 25, and differential calculation is performed to measure the own vehicle position. Then, the positioning information is transmitted to the travel control unit 5
When sent to step 6, the process returns to step S303 to repeat the next data processing. In this case, the differential calculation with the fixed station 40 may be performed by a function unique to the mobile station receiver 25.

In this embodiment, the cut boundary detecting device 2
0a (20b) each swing member 22 to one shaft 21
However, it is sufficient that each swing member 22 is swingably supported, and each swing member 22 is appropriately supported.
It is also possible to adopt a means for individually supporting the.

In the grass / lawn mowing work, the uncut land B is always on the right side in the forward direction of the lawn mowing vehicle 1 (left side in the backward direction) with respect to the already-cut land C, and the cut boundary detecting device 20 is used.
Although a and 20b are respectively installed at the front and rear positions of the cutting blade mechanism 15 at the lower part of the vehicle body on the left side in the forward direction, the uncut land B becomes the left side in the forward direction (right side in the reverse direction) with respect to the already-cut land C. However, in this case, the cut boundary detecting device is installed in front of and behind the cutting blade mechanism 15 on the right side in the forward direction. Further, in order to deal with both the left-right relationship between the already-cut land C and the uncut land B, the cut mark boundary detection devices may be installed respectively before and after the cutting blade mechanism 15 on the right side and the left side in the forward direction. .

Further, in the present embodiment, movement from the preparation position 80 to the work area 82, movement between the work areas 82 and 86, work traveling of the first outer peripheral cutting in each work area 82 and 86,
And the movement from the work area 86 to the return position 88, DG
Although the vehicle is autonomously driven by PS or dead reckoning, it may be manned.

Further, as shown in FIG. 21, when the end point of one stroke in copying travel is reached and the vehicle is shifted to the next stroke, the turn of the lawnmower work vehicle 1 is devised so that the lawn mowing vehicle 1 always follows in the forward direction. You may make it run, and in this case, the cut boundary detection devices 20a and 20c are arrange | positioned at the front left and right of the cutting blade mechanism 15, respectively, and it cuts by step S111 in the above-mentioned main control routine suitably. Trace boundary detection device 20a,
Select one of 20c.

Further, as shown in FIG. 22, the micro switch 24 in the cut boundary detecting device is set to the swing member 22.
The sensor operating unit 22b may be attached on the opposite side of the vehicle traveling direction, and may be set to be turned off when it is in the uncut land B and turned on when it is in the already cut land C.

[0082]

As described above, according to the autonomous traveling work vehicle of the present invention, a plurality of rocking members positioned in parallel in the lateral direction of the vehicle body rock in accordance with the traveling of the vehicle in accordance with the grass / turf height. The rocking state detection sensor detects the rocking state, and based on the rocking state of the rocking member detected by the rocking state detection sensor, the grass and lawn mowing work area is cut and cut and the uncut area is cut. The trace boundary is detected, and the steering mechanism is controlled based on the position data of the cut boundary, and the contour travel along the cut boundary is performed. Therefore, the cut boundary is detected by the optical system as in the prior example. Unlike the above, it is possible to reliably run autonomously along the cut line boundary between the already-cut land and the uncut land without being influenced by the environment in which dust, mud, etc. are used, and the accuracy of copy-running is improved. Workability such as grass and lawn mowing can be improved. Also,
Since the swing member for detecting the cut boundary is set at its lower end at a position approximately equal to or slightly higher than the minimum ground clearance of the cutting blade in the cutting blade mechanism, the grass / turf at the work site is Even if the height is low and the difference in grass / turf length between the already-cut land and the uncut land is small, the cut boundary between the already-cut land and the uncut land can be reliably detected.

When it is determined that the end point of the work lane has been reached based on the output value of the rocking state detection sensor during the profile travel, the steering mechanism and the travel based on the preset data. Since the control actuator is controlled to shift the vehicle to the next work lane, the end point of the work lane can be detected and the vehicle can be automatically shifted to the next work lane. Therefore, highly autonomous driving in the work area becomes possible.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a lawnmower equipped with a D-GPS mobile station and D-
Explanatory drawing showing fixed station for GPS

FIG. 2 is a plan view showing a mounting position relationship between a cutting blade mechanism and a cut boundary detecting device in a lawn mowing vehicle.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram showing a configuration of a cut boundary detecting device.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing the operation of the cut boundary detecting device.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram showing the operation of the cut boundary detecting device.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram of a control device.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram showing a configuration of a steering control system.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram showing a travel route and a work area.

FIG. 9: Flow chart of main control routine

FIG. 10: Flow chart of main control routine (continued)

FIG. 11 Flow chart of main control routine (continued)

FIG. 12 Flow chart of main control routine (continued)

FIG. 13: Flow chart of autonomous traveling control routine

[Fig. 14] Flow chart of autonomous traveling control routine (continued)

FIG. 15 is a flowchart of a D-GPS wireless communication routine.
To

FIG. 16 is an explanatory view showing the state of the first outer peripheral cutting in the work area.

FIG. 17 is a time chart showing the relationship between the deviation of the cut boundary from the target boundary position and the azimuth deviation angle as the vehicle travels.

FIG. 18 is an explanatory view showing a vehicle shift state at the end of one stroke by grass / lawn mowing work.

FIG. 19 is an explanatory view showing a vehicle shift state at the end of one stroke by grass / lawn mowing work.

FIG. 20 is an explanatory diagram of a grass / lawn mowing work state by copying traveling.

FIG. 21 is an explanatory view showing another example of a vehicle shift state at the end of one stroke by grass / lawn mowing work.

FIG. 22 is an explanatory diagram showing another embodiment of the cut boundary detecting device.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Lawn mowing work vehicle (autonomous traveling work vehicle) 1a Body 12 Travel control actuator 15 Cutting blade mechanism 15a Cutting blades 20a, 20b Cutting mark boundary detecting device (cutting boundary detecting means) 22 Swing member 24 Micro switch (swing) State detection sensor) 30a, 30b Steering mechanism 50 Control device

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A plurality of oscillating members each having a lower end set at a position substantially equal to or slightly higher than a minimum ground clearance of a cutting blade in a cutting blade mechanism are freely swingable at a lower portion of a body of an autonomous traveling work vehicle. On the left and right sides of the vehicle body, the cut boundary detecting means having a rocking state detecting sensor for detecting the rocking state of the rocking member, and a signal from the rocking state detecting sensor to input the rocking boundary detecting means. Based on the rocking state of the members, the boundary between the cut and uncut areas in the grass / lawn cutting work area is detected, and the steering mechanism is controlled based on the position data of the cut boundary to control the cut boundary. Copying traveling control means for performing the following traveling along, and when it is determined during the copying traveling that the end point of the work lane is reached based on the output value of the swing state detection sensor,
An autonomous traveling work vehicle comprising: shift processing control means for controlling the steering mechanism and the traveling control actuator based on preset data to shift the vehicle to the next work lane. ..