JPH0733329A - Cable state control device for remote controlled vehicle - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To control the sag quantity of a cable to a proper sag quantity and allow a guide arm to accurately follow in the deflection direction of the cable. CONSTITUTION:This remote control vehicle is provided with a cable drum 6 winding/delivering a cable, a drum drive motor 7, a guide arm 50, an arm drive motor 60, guide pulleys 39, 40 holding the cable guided by the guide arm 50, a pulley drive motor 43, a laser projector 47 radiating a slit laser beam to the suspended portion of the cable suspended from the rear end section of the guide arm 50 to the ground surface, a two-dimensional PSD camera 45 measuring a luminescent spot on the cable where the slit laser beam is radiated, and a controller controlling the action of the pulley drive motor 43 based on the sag quantity of the cable and controlling the action of the arm drive motor 60 based on the deflection direction of the cable.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a cable condition control device for a remotely controlled vehicle, and more particularly to a remote control suitable for a remotely controlled vehicle which is remotely controlled via a cable by a controller installed at a control base. The present invention relates to a vehicle cable condition control device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as shown in FIG. 12, a remote-controlled vehicle has a cable drum 101 for winding / unwinding a cable mounted on a vehicle body 100, and a control device (not shown) installed at a predetermined control base. Are connected to each other via a cable C having therein an optical fiber for communication for transmitting a remote control signal transmitted from the control device. The cable C fed from the cable drum 101 is guided by the pair of pulleys 104 and 105 in the guide arm 103 supported at the rear end of the vehicle body via the traverser 102,
A portion that hangs from the rear end of the vehicle body to the ground G is pressed against the ground G by a rotatable pressure roller 106. When the remote-controlled vehicle travels forward / backward, the cable drum 101 is rotationally driven by the drum drive motor 107 via the belt 108.
By appropriately unwinding / winding the cable C against
It is designed to run. Reference numerals 109 and 110 in the figure denote wheels.

By the way, the cable hung from the rear end of the vehicle body of the remote-controlled vehicle to the ground is in the neutral state indicated by the reference symbol P1 when the tension is appropriate, but the tension indicated by the reference symbol P2 when the tension is too high. When the tension is too low, the relaxation state shown by the reference symbol P3 is obtained. In addition, the cable swings in the width direction of the vehicle body depending on the traveling state (curved traveling) of the remotely controlled vehicle. As a method of detecting the state of the cable hanging from the rear end of the vehicle body to the ground (whether it is neutral / tension / relaxation or in which direction it is swaying), for example, a CCD at a predetermined position in the cable case 103 is used. The camera is fixed, and the control unit of the remote-controlled vehicle drives the pulleys 104 and 105 so that the cable maintains the neutral state (the state where the tension is appropriate) indicated by the symbol P1 based on the image of the cable by the CCD camera. A method of driving and controlling a motor (not shown) or a drum driving motor, or driving and controlling an arm driving motor (not shown) so that the guide arm follows the direction of deflection of the cable is considered.

[0004]

However, in the above-mentioned prior art, the CCD constituting the CCD camera is used.
Since the element has a low resolution due to its characteristics, there is a problem that the degree of slack of the cable and the direction of deflection cannot be detected with high accuracy. Further, since various information is superimposed on the output signal of the CCD camera, a processing device for extracting a signal necessary for image processing from the output signal of the CCD camera is required. There is a problem in that the image processing mechanism becomes large and hinders the downsizing of the remote-controlled vehicle itself. Further, since image processing based on the output signal of the CCD camera takes time for the above-mentioned signal extraction, a delay occurs in the control of the pulley drive motor and the arm drive motor, and as a result, the tension of the cable is properly adjusted. There is a problem in that it is not possible to control in real time the state in which the guide arm is kept moving or the guide arm is made to follow the deflection direction of the cable.

[0005]

It is an object of the present invention to improve the inconveniences of the above-mentioned conventional examples, and in particular, by detecting with high accuracy the slack state and the direction of deflection of a cable hung from the rear end of a remote-controlled vehicle to the ground. An object of the present invention is to provide a cable condition control device for a remote-controlled vehicle that is capable of adjusting the amount of slack of a cable to an appropriate amount of slack and allowing the guide arm to accurately follow the direction of deflection of the cable.

[0006]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention is mounted on the remote-controlled vehicle while protruding in the backward direction of the remote-controlled vehicle and pivotally supported at the rear end of the vehicle so as to be swingable in the vehicle width direction. The guide arm includes a guide arm that guides the cable, an arm drive motor that drives the guide arm, a guide pulley that is attached to the guide arm and holds the cable, and a pulley drive motor that rotationally drives the guide pulley. Light irradiating means for irradiating the hanging portion of the cable hanging from the rear end onto the ground, photographing means for photographing the cable irradiated with light by the light irradiating means, and operation of each motor and each means And a control means for controlling the cable, and the control means controls the degree of slack in the hanging portion of the cable based on the image captured by the image capturing means and the vehicle of the cable. A cable condition determining function for determining the degree of deflection in the width direction, and a cable for controlling the operation of the pulley drive motor according to the degree of slack in the hanging portion of the cable to adjust the degree of slack in the hanging portion of the cable. The tension adjustment function and the guide arm control function for controlling the operation of the arm drive motor to control the drive direction of the guide arm in accordance with the degree of deflection of the cable in the vehicle width direction are provided. This is intended to achieve the above-mentioned object.

[0007]

According to the present invention, when the remote control vehicle is traveling, when the light irradiating means irradiates the hanging portion of the cable hanging from the rear end portion of the guide arm onto the ground, the photographing means emits the light. Take the pictured cable. Thus, the control means determines the degree of slack in the hanging portion of the cable and the degree of deflection of the cable in the vehicle body width direction based on the captured image of the cable irradiated with light. Furthermore,
The control means controls the operation of the pulley drive motor based on the degree of slack in the hanging portion of the cable, and adjusts the degree of slack in the hanging portion of the cable. Further, the control means, based on the degree of deflection of the cable in the vehicle body width direction,
It controls the operation of the arm drive motor and controls the drive direction of the guide arm. As a result, the slack amount of the cable can be adjusted to an appropriate slack amount in real time, and the guide arm can be made to follow the deflection direction of the cable. Therefore, when the remote-controlled vehicle travels forward, it becomes possible to travel forward while feeding the cable onto the ground along the approximate centerline of the vehicle travel route. When the remote-controlled vehicle travels backward, it travels along the approximate centerline of the vehicle travel route. It is possible to drive backward while winding the cable placed on the ground. As a result, it becomes possible to improve the controllability of the remotely controlled vehicle.

[0008]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A first embodiment and a second embodiment to which the present invention is applied will be described below with reference to the drawings.

(1) First embodiment. The configuration of the remote-controlled vehicle in the first embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2. The remote-controlled vehicle 1 has a front wheel 2 and a front wheel 2 which are remote-controlled by a control device installed at a predetermined control base. It is designed to travel outdoors via the rear wheels 3, and the vehicle body 4 receives a steering mechanism for steering the front wheels 2, a rear wheel drive motor for rotating the rear wheels 3, a remote control signal from the control device, and the like. Winding / winding of an optical fiber cable C (hereinafter abbreviated as cable) accommodating an optical fiber to be transmitted
It is equipped with a cable drum 6 for feeding out, a drum drive motor 7 for rotationally driving the cable drum 6, a control box 8 for accommodating a later-described control unit 52 for controlling each part of the vehicle, and the like.

The configuration of the remotely controlled vehicle 1 will be described in detail. On the upper surface of the vehicle body 4, a pair of support plates 9 and 10 are integrally provided vertically, and between the support plates 9 and 10. The mounting shaft 11 is arranged horizontally, and the cable drum 6 is supported on the mounting shaft 11. Further, guide shafts 12 and 13 are horizontally arranged between the support plates 9 and 10, and a traverser 14 is supported on the guide shaft 12 so as to be movable in the guide shaft direction. The traverser 14 moves in the axial direction of the guide shaft 12 and appropriately shakes the cable C in the guide shaft direction so that the cable C is wound around the cable drum 6 in a uniform state.

A cable contact pulley 15 is disposed near the traverser 14 via a mounting shaft (not shown), and the unidirectional rotation resistance pulley 1 is mounted via a mounting shaft (not shown).
6 and a rotary damper with a one-way clutch (not shown). The cable contact pulley 15 cooperates with the one-way rotation resistance pulley 16 to sandwich the cable C and constantly bias the cable C toward the one-way rotation resistance pulley 16. The unidirectional rotation resistance pulley 16 has a function of smoothly feeding the cable C from the cable drum 6 without applying a frictional force to the cable C at the time of feeding the cable, and provides an appropriate frictional force to the cable C by the action of the rotary damper at the time of winding the cable. It has a function to apply and tightly wind around the cable drum 6.

A cable drum and a drum drive motor 7 for driving a traverser are arranged near the cable drum on the upper surface of the vehicle body 4, and a pulley 18 mounted on a drive shaft 17 of the drum drive motor 7 and the cable drum. The endless belt 20 is wound around the pulley 19 mounted on the mounting shaft 11 of No. 6 and between the pulley 21 mounted on the mounting shaft 11 and the pulley 22 mounted on the guide shaft 12. The endless belt 23 is wound around. When the drum drive motor 7 is driven, the cable drum 6 is rotated by the mechanism described above and the traverser 14 is moved in the guide axis direction.

A rotary joint (not shown) is attached to the axial end of the mounting shaft 11 of the cable drum 6 opposite to the side where the pulleys 19 and 21 are mounted, and is pulled out from the inside of the cable drum 6. The cable C is connected via the rotary joint to a communication system arranged at a proper position of the vehicle body 4.

A first arm 25 is disposed in the center of the rear end of the vehicle body 4 in the width direction via a support mechanism 24 so as to be rotatable in the direction of the arrow by an arm drive motor 60, which will be described later. The first arm 25 is set so as to coincide with the center line of the vehicle body connecting the front wheel 2 and the support mechanism 24 when the arm drive motor 60 described later is not driven. A swing angle detecting potentiometer 26 is disposed below the support mechanism 24, and detects the swing angle of the first arm 25 during rotation.

Further, an arm drive motor 60 is provided on one end side of the rear end of the vehicle body 4 in the width direction, and a rotating member 6 is provided on a drive shaft 61 of the arm drive motor 60.
One end of 2 is fixed. Further, one end of a rod 64 is rotatably attached to the other end of the rotating member 62 via a mounting shaft 63, and the other end of the rod 64 is It is rotatably mounted on a mounting shaft 65 arranged on the side of the first arm 25 in a state perpendicular to the plate surface of the first arm 25.

When the remotely operated vehicle 1 is turned, when the arm drive motor 60 is driven by the control of the control unit 51, which will be described later, the rotating member 62 rotates in the direction of the arrow, so that the first arm 25 moves the rod 64. It is adapted to rotate in the direction of the arrow together with the rotating member 62 through. In this case, a spring (not shown) for returning to the original position is provided on the side of the first arm 25 opposite to the side where the rod 64 is attached, and the arm drive motor 60
When the vehicle is not driven, the first arm 25 is returned to a position that coincides with the vehicle body center line described above.

A pair of guide pulleys 27, 28 for guiding the cable C are arranged on the upper surface of the first arm 25 on the base end side thereof via mounting shafts 27a, 28a.
A dance roller 30 is disposed on the upper surface of the arm 25 on the center side through a mounting shaft 29a, a mounting member 29b, and a mounting shaft 29c. The mounting shaft 29a of the first arm 25 has a rotary damper 3 for preventing hunting of the dance roller 30.
1, a tension detecting potentiometer 32 is provided below the mounting shaft 29a, and the tension of the cable C is detected. in this case,
The dance roller 30, the attachment member 29b, the tension detecting potentiometer 32, and the like constitute a cable tension detecting portion 54.

A pair of guide pulleys 33 for guiding the cable C are provided on the upper surface of the first arm 25 on the distal end side.
34 is disposed via mounting shafts 33a and 34a.
Further, a spring 35 is stretched between the tip end side of the first arm 25 and the mounting member 29b. The tension detecting potentiometer 32 detects the tension of the cable C based on the swing angle of the mounting member 29b.

At the tip of the first arm 25, the mounting shaft 3 is attached.
The second arm 37 is rotatably arranged in the vertical direction via the cable 6, and the first arm 25 and the second arm 37 have a function as a guide arm 50 for guiding the cable C. The base end side of the second arm 37 and the first arm 2
A vibration absorbing suspension 38 is mounted between the tip end portion 5 and the tip end portion 5. A pair of guide pulleys 39, 40 for guiding the cable C are arranged on the side surface portion of the second arm 37 on the base end side via mounting shafts 39a, 40a.

A spring 42 for urging the guide pulley 39 toward the guide pulley 40 side is stretched between a mounting shaft 39a of the guide pulley 39 and a support member 41 fixed to the second arm 37. A pulley drive motor 43 is attached to the attachment shaft 40a. The pulley drive motor 43 is configured to be driven to rotate in the clockwise direction in the drawing or to be driven in the counterclockwise direction in the drawing to rotate in the reverse direction. The cable C is wound around the cable drum 6 during the normal rotation, and the cable C is rotated during the reverse rotation. The cable drum 6 is fed out.

The cable C fed from the cable drum 6 is guided by a guide arm 50 composed of a first arm 25 and a second arm 37, and hangs down on the ground by its own weight. The cable C that hangs on the ground is connected to the control device at the control base. That is, the remote-controlled vehicle 1 travels in a state in which the cable C hanging from the rear end of the vehicle body 2 to the ground drags the ground.

A mounting member 44 is attached to the second arm 37.
A two-dimensional camera 45 with a built-in PSD (position detection element) is arranged with the lens surface facing downward, and a laser projector 47 mounts the laser projection surface on the second arm via a mounting member 46. The mirror 49 is disposed on the second arm 37 with the reflecting surface thereof facing the laser projecting surface side of the laser projector 47 via the mounting member 48. It is set up. In this case, the laser projector 47 and the mirror 49 are arranged so that the slit laser light can be emitted from the pulleys 39 and 40 to the cable C that is suspended above the ground.

Further, a first stay 56 is rotatably mounted on the tip of the second arm 37 via a mounting shaft 55 in a plane parallel to the plate surface of the second arm 37 (see the arrow in FIG. 2). At the same time, a second stay 58 is attached to the lower end of the first stay 56 via a mounting shaft 57 so as to be rotatable in the direction perpendicular to the plate surface of the second arm 37 (see the arrow in FIG. 2). Further, a support ring 59 through which the cable C can be inserted is integrally provided at the lower end of the second stay 58. The cable C fed from the cable drum 6 via the guide pulleys 39, 40 and the like is supported by the support ring 59 and hangs down on the ground.

PS built into a two-dimensional PSD camera
D has a three-layer structure of a P layer formed on the front surface of silicon, an N layer formed on the back surface, and an I layer formed between the P layer and the N layer, and is incident on the PSD. It is a position detection element that photoelectrically converts light and outputs a photocurrent from an electrode attached to the P layer, and has a feature of high resolution and quick response.

The laser projector 47 emits slit laser light, and the emitted slit laser light is reflected by the reflecting surface of the mirror 49 and is directed to the cable C located between the guide pulleys 39, 40 and the support ring 59. It is supposed to be emitted. In the two-dimensional PSD camera 45, the slit laser light emitted from the laser projector 47 to the cable C via the mirror 49 is reflected on the surface 1 of the cable C.
The bright spot generated when the light is reflected at a point is measured, and the measured bright spot (light) is converted into an electric current and output. In this case, the angle of view θ of the two-dimensional PSD camera 45 (see FIG. 3)
Is set to an angle at which a bright spot generated on the surface of the cable C due to slack or deflection of the cable C can be measured.

Here, the principle of the case where the slackened state and the deflection direction of the cable C are measured by the two-dimensional PSD camera 45 will be described with reference to FIGS. 3 to 6. First, cable C
When measuring the slackened state, the slit laser light emitted from the laser projector 47 is reflected by the mirror 4 as shown in FIG.
It is reflected by 9 and radiated to the hanging portion of the cable C, but when the cable C is in the neutral state P1 where the tension is appropriate, a bright spot K1 is generated on the surface of the cable C, and the cable C is in a tension state where the tension is high. When the cable C is in P2, a bright point K2 is generated on the surface of the cable C, and when the cable C is in a relaxed state P3 where the tension is low, the bright point K3 is generated on the surface of the cable C.

That is, as the tension of the cable C changes depending on the traveling road surface condition of the remote-controlled vehicle 1 and so on, the bright spot reflected on the surface of the cable C also moves, so that the two-dimensional PSD is obtained.
Bright spots K1, K2, K3 in the neutral state P1, the tension state P2, and the relaxation state P3 of the cable C by the camera 45.
Is measured with respect to the angle of view of the two-dimensional PSD camera as shown in FIG.

On the other hand, when measuring the deflection direction of the cable, the slit laser light emitted from the laser projector 47 is reflected by the mirror 49 and radiated to the hanging portion of the cable C. As shown in FIG. C is a remote-controlled vehicle 1
When in a state P1 ′ parallel to the axial center line of the vehicle body, a bright spot K1 ′ is generated on the surface of the cable C, and when the cable C is in a state P2 ′ swung to the right in the vehicle forward direction. Is a state P3 ′ in which a bright spot K2 ′ is generated on the surface of the cable C and the cable C is swung to the left with respect to the vehicle forward direction.
When it is, the bright point K3 'is generated on the surface of the cable C.

That is, as the cable C swings in the width direction of the vehicle body depending on the traveling condition of the remotely controlled vehicle 1 (straight traveling / curving traveling), the bright spots reflected on the surface of the cable C also move, so that the two-dimensional PSD is obtained. The bright spots K1 ′, K2 ′, and K3 ′ in the state P1 ′ of the cable C, the state P2 ′ swung to the right, and the state P3 ′ swung to the left by the camera 45 are shown in FIG. 6 with respect to the angle of view of the two-dimensional PSD camera. It is designed to be measured as shown in.

Next, the configuration of the control system of the main part of the remote-controlled vehicle 1 in the first embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. 3. In the control box 8 mounted on the vehicle body 4, the control unit 5 is provided.
1 and a storage unit 52 are provided, the control unit 51 outputs a laser emission command signal to the laser projector 47 to control the emission of slit laser light by the laser projector 47,
The slack state and the deflection direction of the cable C are calculated based on the bright spot measurement signal output from the two-dimensional PSD camera 45 on the surface of the cable C. Also, the control unit 5
1 controls the operation of the pulley drive motor 43 via the motor driver, controls the operation of the arm drive motor 53 via the actuator driver, and controls the operation of the drum drive motor 7 via the motor driver. ing.

More specifically, the control unit 51 controls the rotation speed and rotation of the drum drive motor 7 and the pulley drive motor 43 based on the slack and deflection direction of the cable C calculated based on the measurement result of the two-dimensional PSD camera 45. The cable C is appropriately wound / unrolled so that the slack of the cable C between the guide pulleys 39, 40 and the support ring 59 is controlled appropriately by controlling the direction, and the arm drive motor 53 is controlled to control the guide arm. The guide arm 50 is swung so that 50 follows the swing direction of the cable C. Further, the controller 51 controls the pulley drive motor 4 when the cable C is pulled in and when it is fed out.
3. The rotation speed of the drum drive motor 7 is corrected so that the slack of the cable C during pulling in and feeding out is controlled appropriately.

In the storage unit 52, the measurement data based on the measurement signal output from the two-dimensional PSD camera 45 to the control unit 51, the guide pulleys 39 and 40, and the support ring 59.
Data on the proper amount of slack in the cable C between
Data concerning the winding speed / unwinding speed of the drum driving motor 7 in the control of FIG. 9 described later, the pulley driving motor 43 and the drum driving motor when the cable C is pulled in or fed out based on the degree of slack of the hanging portion of the cable C. Data related to the rotation correction control amount 7 are stored.

Therefore, in the first embodiment, the cable tension between the cable drum 6 and the guide pulleys 39 and 40 is properly maintained and the guide pulleys 39 and 40 are properly maintained when the cable is wound around the cable drum 6 and fed out. 39,4
The tension of the cable between 0 and the support ring 59 is maintained at an appropriate tension (tension in a neutral state between the tension state and the relaxation state). As a result, when the remote-controlled vehicle 1 travels forward, it travels forward while feeding the cable onto the ground along the substantially center line of the travel route of the remote-controlled vehicle 1. In addition, the remotely controlled vehicle 1
When the vehicle is traveling backward, the vehicle is traveling backward while winding the cable placed on the ground along the substantially center line of the traveling route of the remote-controlled vehicle 1.

Next, the operation of the first embodiment constructed as above will be described with reference to FIGS. 8 and 9.

"Overall Control Operation" (FIG. 8) When the control unit 51 of the remote-controlled vehicle 1 outputs a laser emission command signal to the laser projector 47, the laser projector 47
Slit laser light is emitted toward the reflecting surface of the mirror 49 (step SA1). The slit laser light emitted from the laser projector 47 is reflected by the reflecting surface of the mirror 49 and then radiated to the cable C located between the guide pulleys 39 and 40 and the support ring 59 (step SA).
2).

As a result, the cable C is in a neutral state P1 with proper tension, a tension state P2 with high tension, a relaxation state P2 with low tension, and a parallel state P1 'with respect to the axial center line of the vehicle body of the remotely controlled vehicle 1. , The two-dimensional PSD camera 4 depending on which of the state P2 ′ swung to the right with respect to the front of the vehicle and the state P3 ′ swung to the left with respect to the front of the vehicle.
One point on the surface of the cable C is reflected within the angle of view of 5 (step SA3). In this case, when an LED is used instead of the laser projector 47, light is reflected in a predetermined range on the surface of the cable C.

By reflecting one point on the surface of the cable C within the angle of view of the two-dimensional PSD camera 45, the reflected light from the cable C is projected on the PSD of the two-dimensional PSD camera 45 (step SA4). .

As a result, when the cable C is in the neutral state P1 where the tension is appropriate, the bright spot K1 generated on the surface of the cable C, or when the cable C is in the tension state P2 where the tension is high, When the bright point K2 generated on the surface or the cable C is in the relaxed state P3 with low tension, the measurement signal corresponding to the bright point K3 generated on the surface of the cable C is transmitted from the two-dimensional PSD camera 45 to the control unit 51. Is output.

When the cable C is in the parallel state P1 'with respect to the axial center line of the vehicle body of the remotely controlled vehicle 1, the bright point K1' generated on the surface of the cable C or the cable C is in the vehicle forward direction. On the other hand, when it is in the state P2 'which is swung to the right, the bright spot K2' generated on the surface of the cable C, or when the cable C is in the state P3 'which is swung to the left in the vehicle forward direction Bright spot K generated on the surface of C
A measurement signal corresponding to 3'is output from the two-dimensional PSD camera 45 to the control unit 51 (step SA5). In this case, when an LED is used instead of the laser projector 47, a signal corresponding to the position of the center of gravity of the reflected light on the surface of the cable C is output.

When the two-dimensional PSD camera 45 measures the slack and the deflection direction of the cable C and outputs a measurement signal to the control unit 51, the control unit 51 determines the slack and the deflection direction of the cable C based on the slack and the deflection direction of the cable C. Pulley drive motor 4
3, the cable C is appropriately wound / unwound so that the slack of the cable C is in an appropriate state by controlling the rotation speed and the rotation direction of the cable C, and the arm drive motor 53 is controlled to cause the guide arm 50 to move the cable C. The guide arm 50 is swung so as to follow the shake direction (step SA6).
This will be described in detail with reference to FIG.

The control of the drum drive motor 7, the pulley drive motor 43, and the arm drive motor 53 by the control unit 51 causes the cable C between the guide pulleys 39, 40 and the support ring 59 to have a high tension or a low tension. From the state, the tension is controlled to an appropriate neutral state, and the cable C from the rear end of the vehicle to the rear is guided along the swinging direction of the guide arm 50 (step S).
A7).

[Control Operation Related to Motor Control] (FIG. 9) The control unit 51, based on the output of the two-dimensional PSD camera 45, has a bright point (center of gravity) within the angle of view of the two-dimensional PSD camera 45.
Is above (step SB1). If the bright point (center of gravity) is above, it is determined that the slack amount of the cable C is larger than the appropriate slack amount, and the pulley drive motor 4
3 is controlled so that the cable C is wound around the cable drum, and the cable C has an appropriate amount of slack (step SB).
2).

Next, the control unit 51 determines whether the cable C is being fed out or wound up from the cable drum 6 (step SB3), and when it is being wound up, controls the drum drive motor 7. While the winding speed of the cable C with respect to the cable drum 6 by the drum driving motor 7 is increased (step SB4), the drum driving motor 7 is controlled to feed the cable drum 6 by the drum driving motor 7 during the feeding operation. The feeding speed of the cable C with respect to is reduced (step SB5).

Next, the control unit 51 determines whether the bright point (center of gravity) is on the right side or the left side within the angle of view of the two-dimensional PSD camera 45 based on the output of the two-dimensional PSD camera 45 (step SB6), when the bright point (center of gravity) is on the left side, it is determined that the cable C is swaying to the left with respect to the front of the vehicle body, and the arm drive motor 53 is controlled to move the guide arm 50 toward the front of the vehicle. When the bright point (center of gravity) is on the right side while being swung to the left side (step SB7), it is determined that the cable C is swung to the right side with respect to the front of the vehicle body, and the arm drive motor 53 is controlled to guide the guide arm. 50 is swung to the right with respect to the front of the vehicle (step SB8).

On the other hand, the control section 51 controls the above step SB1.
If the bright point (center of gravity point) is not above the angle of view of the two-dimensional PSD camera 45 in the determination, it is determined that the slack amount of the cable C is less than the appropriate slack amount, and the pulley drive motor 43 is controlled to control the cable. C is fed from the cable drum 6,
The cable C has an appropriate amount of slack (step SB
9).

Next, the control section 51 determines whether the cable C is being fed out or wound up from the cable drum 6 (step SB10), and when it is being fed out, the drum drive motor 7 is controlled. While the feeding speed of the cable C with respect to the cable drum 6 by the drum drive motor 7 is increased (step SB11), during the winding operation, the drum drive motor 7 is controlled to the cable drum 6 by the drum drive motor 7. The winding speed of the cable C is reduced (step SB12). After this, step SB
The processing after 6 is executed.

As described above, according to the first embodiment,
The slit laser light is emitted from the laser projector 47 to the cable located between the guide pulleys 39, 40 and the support ring 59 of the remote-controlled vehicle 1, and the bright spots generated on the cable surface are measured by the two-dimensional PSD camera 45. Based on the measurement result, the winding / unwinding of the cable is appropriately controlled, and the guide arm 50 is swung in the swing direction of the cable. Therefore, the slack of the cable can be adjusted to an appropriate amount of slack in real time, and at the same time, the slack of the cable can be adjusted. It is possible to make the guide arm follow the swing direction.

Therefore, when the remote-controlled vehicle 1 travels forward, it is possible to drive the remote-controlled vehicle 1 forward while extending the cable on the ground along the substantially center line of the vehicle travel route. When the remote-controlled vehicle 1 travels backward, the vehicle travels. Since it is possible to travel backward while winding the cable placed on the ground along the substantially center line of the route, it is possible to improve the maneuverability of the remote-controlled vehicle 1.

Since the luminescent spot of the light-irradiated portion of the cable is measured by using the two-dimensional PSD camera 45, the two-dimensional PSD is compared with the conventional case where the CCD camera is used.
Due to the high resolution and quick response of the camera 45, it is possible to detect the slack state of the cable and the direction of shake with high accuracy.

(2) Second embodiment. FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a configuration of a control system of a main part of a remote-controlled vehicle in the second embodiment, wherein, for example, an LED (light emitting diode) 70 is used as a light source for irradiating a cable with light, instead of a laser projector. This is an example of the case. The configuration other than the LED 70 used as the light source is the same as that of the first embodiment, and the description thereof will be omitted. In this case, the light source is not limited to the LED as long as it is a light source that radially diffuses light from the rear end of the vehicle body to the cable that is suspended above the ground.

FIG. 11 shows an example in which light is emitted from the LED 70 to the cable located between the guide pulley and the guide roller (not shown). Since the light emitted from the LED 70 is diffused radially, the surface of the cable C is shown. 2D PSD camera 45 will appear as a bright line (hatched portion in the figure) instead of a bright spot as when using a laser projector.
A bright line is measured within the angle of view of.

Therefore, when the cable C is in the parallel state P1 'with respect to the axial center line of the vehicle body of the remote-controlled vehicle, the center of gravity G1' of the light on the cable C or the cable C with respect to the front of the vehicle. The center of gravity 2 ′ of the light on the cable C when the cable C is swung to the right, or the center of gravity of the cable C when the cable C is swung to the left with respect to the front of the vehicle. G3 ′ is output from the two-dimensional PSD camera 45 to the control unit 51. The same applies to the case where the cable C is in the neutral state where the tension is proper, the tension state where the tension is high, and the relaxation state where the tension is low.

Also in the second embodiment, the slack state and the deflection direction of the cable can be detected with high accuracy by the same processing as the processing of FIGS. 8 and 9 in the first embodiment. Similarly to the embodiment, when the remote-controlled vehicle travels forward, it becomes possible to travel forward while feeding the cable on the ground along the substantially center line of the vehicle travel path. It is possible to travel backward while winding the cable placed on the ground along the approximate center line of the. As a result,
The maneuverability of the remotely controlled vehicle 1 can be improved.

Further, according to the second embodiment, since the light source (for example, LED) which diffuses light radially is used,
There is no need to create collimated light or slit light, the use of collimated light or slit light is unnecessary, and the size and weight of the optical system can be reduced. There are advantages that the power can be small, the driver for driving the light source can be downsized because the power of the light source is small, and the power consumption can be reduced by downsizing the driver for driving the light source. .

[0055]

As described above, according to the cable condition control device for a remote-controlled vehicle of the present invention, the operation of the pulley drive motor is controlled according to the degree of slack in the hanging portion of the cable to control the hanging portion of the cable. By adjusting the degree of slack and controlling the operation direction of the guide arm by controlling the operation of the arm drive motor according to the degree of deflection of the cable in the width direction of the vehicle body, the amount of slack in the hanging portion of the cable can be adjusted to an appropriate amount. It is possible to adjust the guide arm in the direction of the deflection of the cable, and therefore, when the remote-controlled vehicle travels forward, the cable is placed on the ground along the approximate center line of the vehicle travel route. It is possible to drive the vehicle forward while traveling, and when the vehicle is traveling backwards, the vehicle placed on the ground along the approximate center line of the vehicle travel route. It becomes possible to reverse running while taking up the table, this result, it is possible to improve the maneuverability of the remote control vehicle, the effect can be achieved that.

Further, in the present invention, when the operations of the pulley drive motor and the drum drive motor are controlled according to the degree of slack in the hanging portion of the cable, the slack in the hanging portion of the cable and the cable drum and the guide pulley are controlled. It is possible to precisely adjust the slack of the cable between the vehicle and the vehicle.Therefore, in the same way as described above, when the remote-controlled vehicle travels forward, it travels forward while feeding out the cable on the ground along the approximate center line of the vehicle travel route. It is possible to make it possible to carry out the reverse running while winding the cable placed on the ground along the substantially center line of the vehicle travel route during the reverse running of the remotely controlled vehicle,
There is an effect that the controllability of the remotely controlled vehicle can be improved.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view showing an overall configuration of a remote-controlled vehicle in a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a laser projector, a mirror and a laser projector 2 according to the first embodiment
It is explanatory drawing which shows the arrangement structure of a three-dimensional PSD camera.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram showing a slackened state and bright spots of the cable in the first embodiment.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing bright spots on an angle of view of the two-dimensional PSD camera in the first embodiment.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram showing a deflection direction and a bright spot of the cable in the first embodiment.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing bright spots on the angle of view of the two-dimensional PSD camera in the first embodiment.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a control system in the first embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing the overall operation in the first embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing a motor control operation in the first embodiment.

FIG. 10 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a control system in the second embodiment.

FIG. 11 is an explanatory diagram showing a deflection direction and a center of gravity of the cable in the second embodiment.

FIG. 12 is a schematic perspective view showing a configuration of a remote-controlled vehicle in a conventional example.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Remotely Controlled Vehicle 4 Car Body 6 Cable Drum 7 Drum Drive Motor 39, 40 Guide Pulley 43 Pulley Drive Motor 45 Two-Dimensional PSD Camera 47 as Imaging Means 47 Laser Projector as Light Irradiation Means 51 Control Unit as Control Means 50 Guide Arm 60 Arm drive motor 70 LED as light irradiation means

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A guide arm projecting in the reverse direction of a remote-controlled vehicle, pivotally supported at the rear end of the vehicle so as to be swingable in the vehicle width direction, and for guiding a cable mounted on the remote-controlled vehicle. An arm drive motor for driving the guide arm, a guide pulley attached to the guide arm for holding a cable, and a pulley drive motor for rotatably driving the guide pulley are provided. Light irradiating means for irradiating the hanging portion of the cable with light, and photographing means for photographing the cable irradiated with light by the light irradiating means,
A control means for controlling the operation of each of the motors and the means, wherein the control means controls the degree of slack in the hanging portion of the cable based on the image captured by the image capturing means and the widthwise direction of the cable. A cable state determination function that determines the degree of runout, and a cable tension adjustment function that controls the operation of the pulley drive motor according to the degree of slack in the hanging portion of the cable to adjust the degree of slack in the hanging portion of the cable. And a guide arm control function for controlling the operation of the arm drive motor to control the drive direction of the guide arm according to the degree of deflection of the cable in the width direction of the vehicle body. Cable condition controller. 2. The cable tension adjusting function of the control means is executed by changing a rotation correction control amount of the pulley drive motor during a cable pulling rotation operation or a cable feeding rotation operation by the pulley drive motor. The cable condition control device for a remotely controlled vehicle according to claim 1, wherein: 3. A cable drum mounted on a remote-controlled vehicle for winding / unwinding a cable connected to a predetermined remote-controlled device, a drum drive motor for rotationally driving the cable drum, and a reverse drive of the remote-controlled vehicle. Direction, is pivotally supported at the rear end of the vehicle body so as to be swingable in the vehicle width direction, and guides the cable, an arm drive motor for driving the guide arm, and a cable attached to the guide arm. A light irradiating means for irradiating light to a hanging portion of a cable hanging from the rear end portion of the guide arm to the ground, and a light irradiating means for irradiating the light, Photographing means for photographing the cable illuminated by the means,
A control means for controlling the operation of each of the motors and the means, wherein the control means controls the degree of slack in the hanging portion of the cable based on the image captured by the image capturing means and the widthwise direction of the cable. A cable state determination function for determining the degree of runout, and the operation of the pulley drive motor and the drum drive motor is controlled according to the degree of slack in the hanging portion of the cable to adjust the degree of slack in the hanging portion of the cable. A cable tension adjusting function and a guide arm control function for controlling the operation of the arm driving motor to control the driving direction of the guide arm according to the degree of deflection of the cable in the vehicle body width direction are provided. Cable condition control device for remotely controlled vehicles. 4. A cable tension adjusting function of the control means changes a rotation correction control amount of the pulley drive motor and the drum drive motor at the time of pulling in or rotating the cable by the pulley drive motor. The cable condition control device for a remote-controlled vehicle according to claim 3, wherein the cable condition control device is executed by the following.