JPH0981237A - Traveling object controller - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To attain safe traveling and inexpensive movement control for a traveling object such as an unmanned travelling vehicle. SOLUTION: A dynamic image processing part 3 extracts information such as the position, traveling direction and speed of a unmanned cleaning vehicle 8 from video images taken by a video camera 2a fixed so as to cover the whole moving range 1 where the vehicle 8 travels. In the processing part 3, a virtual guide tape for the traveling route of the vehicle 8 is preset in the screen of the moving range. The traveling direction, speed, etc., of the vehicle 8 are calculated from the information obtained from the video images and the information of the virtual guide tape and transmitted from a transmitting part 4 to the vehicle 8. On the side of the vehicle 8, a receiving part 6 receives the signal transmitted from the transmitting part 4 and a traveling control part 7 controls the direction to be moved, the speed, etc., based upon the received signal to travel the vehicle 8.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention mainly relates to a moving body control device for controlling a moving body such as an unmanned vehicle having a limited moving range.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in controlling a moving body such as an unmanned vehicle having a limited range of movement, a guide tape or the like is attached to the traveling route on the road on which the unmanned vehicle travels, and the unmanned vehicle mounts the guide tape. It is generally used to provide a control device that detects by some means (for example, optical means or the like) and runs along the guide tape.

However, it may not be possible to attach the guide tape or the like on the traveling road because it is aesthetically unclear or because the traveling road of the unmanned vehicle is not constant, or it may not be effective when the vehicle is not traveling uniformly. .

In such a case, various sensors are mounted on the unmanned traveling vehicle, and the position, direction, speed, etc. of the unmanned traveling vehicle are detected by the sensors, and the traveling pattern preset based on the information is detected. It is common to use a device that travels along the road while avoiding obstacles, that is, a self-supporting traveling device.

[0005]

However, in the above-described self-supporting traveling apparatus, the sensors normally used and the processing of the signals obtained from these sensors are complicated and expensive, and further, the sensors are not used. Since the accuracy and reliability of the obtained signal are generally insufficient, there is also a problem in the stability of the traveling control itself, which in turn causes a reduction in the range of use of unmanned vehicles. There is.

The present invention solves the above-mentioned problems of the prior art, and mainly for a mobile body such as an unmanned vehicle having a limited range of movement, which enables safe traveling and realizes inexpensive mobile body control. An object is to provide a body control device.

[0007]

In order to achieve this object, the present invention outputs a moving body whose movement is controlled in a specific moving range and control information of the moving body which is fixedly installed at a specific place outside the moving body. It is characterized in that the moving control of the moving body is performed using the control information obtained from the image of the moving range from the fixing device.

Further, in the above-mentioned fixing device, the moving image input section for photographing the moving body and the entire range to be moved by the moving image input section, and the position and movement of the moving body based on the output signal of the moving image input section. A moving image processing unit that extracts information such as the direction and speed of the moving body and calculates signals such as the moving direction and speed that suit the moving purpose of the moving body, and a transmitting unit that transmits the signal of the moving image processing unit. The mobile unit is characterized by comprising a receiving unit that receives a signal from the transmitting unit and a travel control unit that controls the movement of the mobile unit based on the signal received by the receiving unit.

Further, the moving body is characterized in that a marking for discriminating the position of the moving body, the direction of movement, etc. is provided on a specific portion of the moving body on the video screen input from the moving image input section. And

Further, the moving image processing section sets a virtual guide tape corresponding to a moving path of the moving body on a screen showing a moving range of the moving body obtained from the moving image input section. .

On the screen showing the moving range of the moving body by the moving image processing unit, the virtual guide tape set corresponding to the moving route is a specific portion for judging the position of the moving body, the moving direction, etc. It is characterized in that the marking provided on the screen is set at the same height as the running surface on the screen.

Further, the moving image processing unit is configured to calculate the position, the moving direction, the speed, etc. of the moving body based on the information of the virtual guide tape at the current position of the moving body.

[0013]

According to the above construction, the information such as the moving position, the moving direction, the moving speed, etc. necessary for the movement control of the moving body is not extracted by the sensors mounted on the moving body, but it is moved by the moving body. This is performed by information from a fixed device including a moving image input unit and a moving image processing unit fixedly installed at a specific position outside the body. That is, by the input from the moving image input unit of the fixing device provided at the mounting position where the entire moving range of the moving body and the position and direction of the moving body can be grasped with the required accuracy
The position and orientation of the moving object in the moving range in the moving image processing unit,
Information such as speed is extracted, and information such as the position, orientation, and speed of the moving body is calculated from the extracted information and the information of the set virtual guide tape, and the calculated information is transmitted to the moving body. A signal will be received and movement control of a mobile will be performed based on the information.

[0014]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram for explaining the configuration and operation of a moving body in one embodiment of the present invention. Hereinafter, a case where the moving body is an unmanned cleaning vehicle will be described as an example. In FIG. 1, 1 is the entire moving range to be cleaned by an unmanned cleaning vehicle (moving body) described later, 2 is a moving image input unit for inputting a video signal of an unmanned cleaning vehicle moving in the entire moving range 1, and 2a is A video camera 3 for inputting a moving image processes a video signal captured by the video camera 2, and a moving image processing unit that stores position information of the unmanned cleaning vehicle, which is a part of the processing result, and 4 a moving image processing. Among the output signals of the unit 3, a transmitting unit that transmits a signal necessary for controlling the unmanned cleaning vehicle, 4a is an antenna that transmits the signal of the transmitting unit, and 5 is a moving image input unit 2.
A fixed device including the moving image processing unit 3 and the transmitting unit 4, 6 is a receiving unit that receives a transmitting signal from the transmitting unit 4, 6a is an antenna that receives the transmitting signal, and 7 is an unmanned person described later by the output of the receiving unit 6. A traveling control unit 8 for controlling the traveling of the cleaning vehicle is an unmanned cleaning vehicle including a receiving unit 6 and a traveling control unit 7.

FIG. 2 shows a screen from the moving image input section.
It is a figure which shows the state which overlapped and displayed the virtual guide tape. In FIG. 2, 9 is set on the image taken by the video camera 2a (unmanned cleaning vehicle 8 and the entire moving range 1 of the unmanned cleaning vehicle 8 to be cleaned), and the traveling route and moving direction of the unmanned cleaning vehicle 8 are set. Virtual guide tapes 10 and 10 are markings for determining the position and direction of movement of the unmanned cleaning vehicle 8.

The moving body control device for the unmanned cleaning vehicle 8 constructed as described above will be described. In order to cover the entire moving range 1 of the unmanned cleaning vehicle 8 and to grasp the position and direction of movement of the unmanned cleaning vehicle 8 well, a moving image is taken from the image captured by the video camera 2a fixedly installed. The processing unit 3 extracts information on the position, traveling direction, speed, etc. of the unmanned cleaning vehicle 8. At the same time, the traveling direction, speed, etc. of the unmanned cleaning vehicle 8 to be traveled from this information and the information on the virtual guide tape 9 are calculated, and the calculated information is transmitted to the unmanned cleaning vehicle 8 by a radio signal to the unmanned cleaning vehicle 8. And so on.

On the other hand, on the side of the unmanned cleaning vehicle 8, the receiving unit 6 receives the transmission signal from the transmitting unit 4, and the traveling control unit 7 uses the received signal to determine the direction and speed at which the unmanned cleaning vehicle 8 should move. Etc. are controlled to run.

Here, in the moving image processing unit 3, a virtual guide tape 9 corresponding to the traveling path of the unmanned cleaning vehicle 8 is set in advance in the screen of the cleaning range of the unmanned cleaning vehicle 8. The virtual guide tape 9 sets a traveling path such that the unmanned cleaning vehicle 8 in the screen travels along the virtual guide tape 9 so that the entire cleaning range can be efficiently cleaned. By performing some kind of distinction such as color coding, it is possible to distinguish the area where cleaning is completed and the area where cleaning is not completed.

When setting the virtual guide tape 9 on the screen, the position (height) of the virtual guide tape 9 is most easily extracted as the movement locus of the unmanned cleaning vehicle 8 as the unmanned cleaning vehicle 8.
The virtual guide tape 9 can be traced by setting it on the surface so as to be at the same height as the above specific portion (for example, the marking 10 which is the specific mark provided on the central portion of the upper surface of the unmanned cleaning vehicle 8). Then, the marking 10 of the unmanned cleaning vehicle 8 moves, and the correspondence between the virtual guide tape 9 and the traveling trajectory of the unmanned cleaning vehicle 8 can be easily and accurately performed. As a result, the unmanned cleaning vehicle 8 can be associated with the traveling path to the current position, the traveling direction at the current position and the direction of the virtual guide tape 9 can be compared, or the current traveling position of the unmanned cleaning vehicle 8 and the virtual guide tape 9 can be compared. It is possible to accurately compare the travel routes shown.

In this embodiment, the moving image input section 2 has one video camera 2a, but it is fixedly installed when the unmanned cleaning vehicle 8 has a wide traveling range or when there is an obstacle. If there is a possibility that a blind spot may appear in the image of the unmanned cleaning vehicle 8 with the video camera 2a,
It is also possible to install a plurality of cameras so as to eliminate these problems (for example, a moving obstacle exists within the traveling range, and a certain video camera 2a provides a clear image of the unmanned cleaning vehicle 8). If you can't get it). Regarding this overlapping area, it is necessary to set the priority of the video camera 2a and the like for each area.

Further, in the description of the above-mentioned one embodiment, it is assumed that the speed information of the unmanned cleaning vehicle 8 is also transmitted from the fixing device 5 side to the unmanned cleaning vehicle 8 side. It is also possible to do in. Although an example using a wireless signal is given to exchange control information between the fixing device 5 and the unmanned cleaning vehicle 8, it goes without saying that another method capable of transmitting / receiving control information may be used.

[0022]

As described above, according to the moving body control device of the present invention, the moving image input section captures an image by utilizing the information from the fixed device installed at a specific place outside the moving body. The position of the moving body within the moving range from the image,
The movement control on the moving body side can be performed because all or part of the main information necessary for moving control of the moving body such as detection of obstacles on the traveling direction of the moving body, direction, speed, etc. can be obtained with the required accuracy. The configuration of the device to be performed can be extremely simplified, and stable movement control of the moving body can be realized at a relatively low cost.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a concept for explaining a configuration and an operation of a moving body in an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a state in which a virtual guide tape is superimposed and displayed on a screen from a moving image input unit in one embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 ... Whole moving range, 2 ... Moving image input unit, 2a ... Video camera, 3 ... Moving image processing unit, 4 ... Transmitting unit, 4
a, 6a ... antenna, 5 ... fixing device, 6 ... reception part,
7 ... Running control unit, 8 ... Unmanned cleaning vehicle (moving body), 9 ... Virtual guide tape, 10 ... Marking.

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. A moving body which is controlled to move within a specific moving range, and a fixing device which is fixedly installed at a specific place outside the moving body and outputs control information of the moving body. A moving body control device, wherein movement control of the moving body is performed using control information obtained from an image of the moving range. 2. The stationary device includes a moving image input unit that captures an image of the moving body and the entire range of movement of the moving body by the moving image input unit, and an output signal of the moving image input unit that determines the moving body from the moving body. A moving image processing unit that extracts information such as a position, a moving direction, and a speed, and calculates a signal such as a moving direction and a speed that suits the moving purpose of the moving body, and a signal of the moving image processing unit is transmitted. And a traveling unit that controls the movement of the moving body by using a signal received by the receiving unit, and a receiving unit that receives the signal from the transmitting unit. The moving body control device according to claim 1, which is characterized in that. 3. The moving body may be provided with a marking for discriminating a position, a moving direction, etc. of the moving body on a video screen input from a moving image input section, at a specific portion of the moving body. The mobile body control device according to claim 2, which is characterized in that. 4. The moving image processing unit sets a virtual guide tape corresponding to a moving route of the moving body on a screen indicating a moving range of the moving body obtained from the moving image input unit. Item 2. The moving body control device according to item 2. 5. The virtual guide tape set by the moving image processing unit on the screen showing the moving range of the moving body in correspondence with the moving route is used for determining the position, moving direction, etc. of the moving body. 3. The moving body control device according to claim 2, wherein the marking provided on the specific portion is set at the same height as the running surface on the screen. 6. The moving image processing unit, when calculating the position, moving direction, speed, etc. of the moving body, calculates based on information of the virtual guide tape at the current position of the moving body. The moving body control device according to item 5.