KR100645813B1 - Detecting method for movement path of moving robot and moving robot using the method - Google Patents

Abstract

A method for detecting a movement path of a mobile robot and the mobile robot thereby are provided to detect the actual moving direction of the mobile robot by periodically inputting image from a camera, and to monitor the moving state and the abnormal state of the mobile robot by comparing the actual moving direction according to image from the camera with moving direction calculated from pulse in proportion to rpm of left and right wheel motors. A mobile robot includes a camera unit(160) taking a picture of image from a lens and outputting image, a driving unit(130) having left and right wheel motors(131,132) traveling the mobile robot according to control signals, and a rotation detection unit outputting pulse information by detecting rotary speed of the left or right wheel motor, a memory(170) storing operation program for driving the mobile robot and image from the camera, and a microprocessor(150) storing image from the camera and calculating and outputting the processing direction of the mobile robot by comparing image with the stored image. The microprocessor comprises a travel control unit(151) controlling the driving unit, a proceeding direction calculation unit(152) calculating and outputting the proceeding direction of the mobile robot by comparing image from the camera with image from the memory in moving the mobile robot, and a state detection unit calculating the proceeding direction and speed according to pulse from a rotation detection unit and outputting the control signal by detecting the abnormal state of the mobile robot according to the moving direction. The mobile robot is formed of a cleaning robot.

Description

Detecting method for movement path of moving robot and moving robot using the method

1 is a block diagram schematically illustrating a cleaning robot which is an example of a mobile robot according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

Figure 2 is a schematic block diagram of a cleaning robot as an example of a mobile robot according to another embodiment of the present invention.

3 is a flowchart schematically illustrating a process of detecting a moving path of a cleaning robot, which is an example of a mobile robot according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

The present invention relates to a mobile robot, and more particularly, to a technology for calculating a moving direction of a mobile robot by using image information input from a camera and controlling a moving state of the mobile robot.

Robots have been developed for industrial use and as part of factory automation, or have been used to collect or collect information on behalf of humans in extreme environments that humans cannot tolerate. This field of robotics has been developed in recent years as it is used in the cutting-edge space development industry, and until recently, human-friendly home robots have been developed. A representative example of such a human-friendly home robot is a cleaning robot.

A cleaning robot, a mobile robot, is a device that inhales dust or foreign substances while driving itself in a certain cleaning area such as a house or an office. In addition to the construction of a general vacuum cleaner that sucks in dust or foreign substances, such a cleaning robot includes a driving device including a left and right wheel motors that drive the cleaning robot, and a plurality of detections for driving without colliding with various obstacles in the cleaning area. It consists of a sensor and a microprocessor which controls the whole apparatus.

As described above, since a mobile robot traveling through a traveling device including a left wheel and a right wheel motor travels a certain area by itself, it is essential to detect and control whether the moving path and the traveling device move normally. Therefore, in the related art, a gyro or an acceleration sensor is installed in the left and right wheel motors of the traveling device, and the moving path and the normal movement of the mobile robot are detected using the rotation state of the corresponding motor.

However, such a method simply detects only the driving state of the moving means, and thus there is a problem in that the moving path sensed according to the moving path and the driving state of the moving robot is different.

For example, when an obstacle such as slippage of a wheel connected to a right-wheel motor occurs while driving, the gyro or acceleration sensor is detected at a normal rotational speed, and the mobile robot is normally detected as moving. However, since the sliding occurs on the right wheel, the mobile robot moves to the right side instead of the normal movement.

Therefore, the conventional method has a problem that can not detect the actual traveling route when the driving device abnormality occurs, it can not be corrected.

The present invention was devised to solve such a problem, and its purpose is to detect a moving path of a mobile robot that can detect a direction in which the mobile robot actually moves by using image information input to a camera, and a mobile robot using the same. To provide.

Furthermore, the present invention provides a method of detecting a moving path of a mobile robot and a mobile robot using the same, which can detect and notify when an abnormal driving of the mobile robot occurs by using image information and rotation information of a motor used for driving means.

The mobile robot according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention calculates the moving direction of the corresponding mobile robot by using the degree of change of images input in real time at predetermined intervals from the camera provided in the mobile robot. To this end, the mobile robot according to the present invention includes a driving unit including a left wheel and a right wheel motor for driving the mobile robot according to an applied control signal, a camera unit for capturing and outputting an image input from a lens, and operating for driving the mobile robot. The program is stored, the memory to store the image output from the camera unit, the mobile robot device to control the overall movement, the driving control unit for controlling the operation of the drive unit, the image and memory stored in real time input from the camera at a predetermined period when moving the mobile robot The microprocessor includes a microprocessor including a moving direction calculator configured to calculate a moving direction of the mobile robot based on the degree of change of the previous image, and output the calculated moving direction.

Therefore, it is possible to sense the direction in which the actual mobile robot moves by using the degree of change between images input from the camera at a predetermined time period.

According to another aspect of the present invention, the mobile robot according to the present invention detects the rotational speed of the left wheel and the right wheel motor for driving the mobile robot, and uses the moving direction of the mobile robot calculated through the image input from the camera. It can detect the normal movement state of. To this end, the mobile robot according to another aspect of the present invention further includes a rotation detection unit for detecting and outputting rotation speeds of the left and right wheel motors, and the microprocessor includes speed information measured by the rotation detection unit and a travel direction calculation unit. The mobile terminal may further include a progress state sensing unit configured to calculate and output a movement state of the mobile robot through the output direction.

Therefore, the moving direction and abnormality of the actual mobile robot are simultaneously monitored by comparing the actual moving direction calculated from the image information input from the camera with the driving direction calculated through the pulse proportional to the rotational speed of the left and right wheel motors of the driving unit. It has the advantage to do it.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings so that those skilled in the art can easily understand and reproduce the present invention. In addition, it will be described in detail assuming that the mobile robot of the present invention as a representative example of the cleaning robot.

1 is a block diagram schematically illustrating a cleaning robot which is an example of a mobile robot according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. As shown, the cleaning robot according to the present invention includes a driving unit 130 including a left and right wheel motors 131 and 132 for driving the cleaning robot according to a control signal applied in addition to the basic configuration of the cleaning robot, and an image input from the lens. A camera unit 160 for capturing and outputting the image, an operating program for driving the cleaning robot, a memory 170 storing the image output from the camera unit 160, and a microcontroller for controlling the overall cleaning robot apparatus. It is configured to include a processor 150.

Looking at the basic configuration of the cleaning robot includes a dust sensor for detecting dust or foreign matter in the cleaning area, by the suction means 110 and the suction means 110 to suck the dust or foreign matter detected by the dust sensor Dust storage means 120 for storing the dust and foreign matter collected, the driving unit 130 for driving the cleaning robot, the battery 140 for supplying the driving power of the suction device and the traveling device, and the overall device of the cleaning robot It is configured to include a microprocessor 150 for controlling. The basic configuration of such a cleaning robot may be a well-known configuration, and a detailed description thereof will be omitted.

The camera unit 160 includes a lens system 161, an image capturing unit 162 for converting an optical signal from the lens system 161 into an analog electric signal, and a signal output from the image capturing unit 162 for digital conversion. And a conversion unit 163 for converting a format suitable for the input of the microprocessor 150 and a camera control unit 164 for controlling the operation of the entire module.

The lens system 161 is composed of one or more small lenses, and collects and supplies light to the imaging unit 162. The imaging unit 162 is usually a CMOS imaging device or CCD imaging device, and is a known device that converts light into an electrical signal for each pixel and sequentially outputs it in synchronization with a clock. The converter 163 converts the current or voltage proportional to the brightness of the image output from the imaging unit 162 into digital data through a slight process and outputs the digital data. In another embodiment, the conversion unit 163 may further include a codec for compressing the captured image in the JPEG format or the MPEG format, as in the known camera module.

The memory 170 includes, for example, a nonvolatile memory device such as an EEPROM or a flash memory, and stores an operating program for driving the cleaning robot. According to a characteristic aspect of the present invention, the memory 170 according to the present invention sequentially stores an input image photographed and output from the camera unit 160 at predetermined intervals. The images stored in the memory 170 are accessed and controlled by the microprocessor 150.

The driving unit 130 drives the cleaning robot by driving the left and right wheel motors 131 and 132 according to a control signal output from the microprocessor 150. The left and right wheel motors 131 and 132 of the driving unit 130 are connected to the left / right wheels for driving the cleaning robot. Therefore, according to the rotation speed and the direction of the left and right wheel motors 131 and 132, the cleaning robot travels forward, backward, left and right.

The microprocessor 150 of the cleaning robot through the driving control unit 151 for controlling the operation of the driving unit 130 and the degree of change of the previous image stored in the memory 170 and the image input in real time from the camera at a predetermined period when the cleaning robot is moved. And a traveling direction calculating unit 152 for calculating the traveling direction and outputting the calculated traveling direction.

The driving control unit 151 controls the driving unit 130 for driving the cleaning robot according to a control command output from the operation program of the cleaning robot.

The moving direction calculating unit 152 sequentially stores the image input from the camera unit 160 at predetermined intervals in the memory 170, and the real-time image is input at predetermined intervals as the cleaning robot is driven by the driving unit 130. And the image stored in the memory 170 to calculate the output direction of the cleaning robot through the degree of change between the two images.

The moving direction calculator 152 sequentially stores the images input from the camera unit 160 at the memory 170 at intervals of 10 frames in the case of a camera capable of capturing 60 frames per second. When the robot is not driven, that is, in a stationary state, the image input in real time from the camera has no change with the previous image stored in the memory 170. Therefore, the direction calculation unit 152 detects that the cleaning robot is currently stopped.

When the driving command of the cleaning robot is input from the user, the driving control unit 151 of the microprocessor 150 transmits a control signal to the driving unit 130, and the driving unit 130 receives the left and right wheel motors 131 and 132. Drive the robot to run. The camera unit 160 outputs an image input from the lens at a predetermined cycle to the heading calculation unit 152. The heading calculator 152 calculates a degree of change by comparing the real-time image input from the camera unit 160 with the previous image stored in the memory 170.

For example, the moving direction calculating unit 152 calculates the left and right moving direction and the moving speed of the cleaning robot by comparing the image input position in real time with the image speed position of the same object in the previous image stored in the memory 170.

In this case, the degree of change between the two images is calculated through the position information of the same object moved on the screen from the previous image stored in the memory 170 and the image input in real time. For example, assuming that an outlet installed on a wall is located at the center of an image stored in the memory 170 at the time of stopping, and the outlet is biased to the right in the image input in real time, the heading calculation unit 152 ) Detects that the outlet, which is a reference object located in the center, and the outlet found in the real-time input image are moved to the right from the stored previous image, and thus determine that the corresponding cleaner is in progress to the left. The image input in real time is stored in the memory 170 again and then becomes a reference image comparing with an image input from the camera unit 160.

In addition, the moving direction calculating unit 152 calculates the moving direction before and after the cleaning robot by comparing the size of the same object, for example, the number of pixels, in the image input in real time and the previous image stored in the memory 170. For example, when the size occupied by the outlet in the image input in real time, that is, the pixel information is 50 × 50, and the pixel information of the outlet in the previous image stored in the memory 170 is 40 × 40, it is a reference object for the direction calculation. You can see that the outlet occupies a smaller size in the image. This makes it possible to determine that the cleaning robot is moving backwards. Therefore, the moving direction calculating unit 152 may detect the forward and backward moving directions based on the amount of change according to the size of the reference object in the image stored in the memory 170 and the image input in real time.

In addition, the moving direction calculating unit 152 calculates the corresponding moving speed by using the change in the moving distance and the size of the reference object. The moving distance of the reference object can be calculated from the image input by the camera unit 160 at a predetermined time period and the previous image stored in the memory 170, or the speed of the cleaning robot can be detected through the change in the size of the reference object. have.

Therefore, the mobile robot according to the present invention calculates the moving direction and the moving speed of the mobile robot through the degree of change between the image input in real time from the camera unit 160 and the previous image stored in the memory 170, the actual mobile robot It has the advantage of accurately calculating the moving direction.

2 is a block diagram schematically showing a cleaning robot as an example of a mobile robot according to another embodiment of the present invention. The cleaning robot according to another aspect of the present invention is a movement state of the cleaning robot through the rotational speed of the left and right wheel motors (131, 132) of the drive unit 130 and the moving direction of the cleaning robot calculated by the traveling direction calculation unit. I can detect it.

The driving unit 130 of the cleaning robot according to another embodiment of the present invention further includes a rotation detecting unit 133 that detects and outputs rotational speeds of the left and right wheel motors 131 and 132, and the microprocessor 150 includes: The apparatus further includes a progress state sensing unit 153 that calculates and outputs a moving state of the cleaning robot through the speed information measured by the rotation detecting unit 133 and the heading direction output from the progressing direction calculating unit 152.

The rotation detector 133 detects and outputs rotation speeds of the left and right wheel motors 131 and 132 of the driving unit 130 for driving the cleaning robot. The rotation detector 133 generates a pulse signal proportional to the rotational speed of the left wheel motor 131, that is, the rotation of the left wheel motor 131, and measures the driving distance and the speed at which the cleaning robot moves to the right. 1) and the right wheel detection unit 133-2 for generating a pulse signal proportional to the number of revolutions of the right wheel motor 132, that is, the rotation of the right wheel motor 132 and measuring the driving distance and speed at which the cleaning robot moves to the left. It consists of.

When the driving control unit 151 of the microprocessor 150 outputs a control signal to the driving unit 130, the driving unit 130 drives the left or right wheel motors 131 and 132 to drive the cleaning robot according to the control signal. In this case, the left wheel detector 133-1 and the right wheel detector 133-2 of the rotation detector 133 generate a pulse proportional to the number of revolutions of each motor and output the pulse to the traveling state detector 153.

The progress state detecting unit 153 outputs the heading direction information of the cleaning robot output from the heading calculating unit 152 and the pulses output from the left and right wheel detecting units 133-1 and 133-2 of the rotation detecting unit 133. It detects the driving state including the direction and speed of the cleaning robot.

Assuming that the control signal output from the travel control unit 151 to the drive unit 130 proceeds to the right side of the cleaning robot, the drive unit 130 may rotate the left wheel motor 131 according to the control signal of the travel control unit 151. At the same time increasing the number of revolutions of the right wheel motor 132 is maintained as it is. Accordingly, the left and right wheel detection units 133-1 and 133-2 provided in the left and right wheel motors 131 and 132 generate pulses proportional to the rotational speeds of the respective motors and output the pulses to the traveling state detector 153.

Meanwhile, the moving direction calculating unit 152 calculates the moving direction and the moving speed of the cleaning robot by using the degree of change of the image input in real time and the previous image stored in the memory 170 as described with reference to FIG. 1. Output to state detector 153.

The progress state detecting unit 153 is a traveling direction and a traveling speed of the cleaning robot calculated from pulse information output from the left and right wheel detection units 133-1 and 133-2 of the rotation detector 133, and a traveling direction calculation unit. Comparing the traveling direction and the speed calculated by the step 152 to check whether the two information is the same, and according to the result detected the running state of the cleaning robot.

For example, while the rotation direction of the rotation detection unit 133 is calculated through the image input from the camera unit 160 of the cleaning robot in progress according to a control command of the operation program of the cleaning robot. If the traveling direction calculated through the pulses output by the left and right wheel detection units 133-1 and 133-2 is straight, it may be determined that an abnormality such as, for example, a slipping phenomenon or a wheel is generated on the left wheel.

Therefore, the mobile robot according to the present invention has an advantage of simultaneously monitoring the moving state of the actual mobile robot as well as detecting the actual moving direction through the camera.

3 is a flowchart schematically illustrating a process of detecting a moving path of a cleaning robot, which is an example of a mobile robot according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. As shown, the moving path detection method of the cleaning robot according to the present invention, when the user inputs the operation command of the cleaning robot (S101), the operating program to take an image input every predetermined period according to the user's operation command The driving command is output to the camera unit 160 to be output to the moving direction calculating unit 152 of the microprocessor (S102), and the camera unit 160 is driven according to the driving command. 152, and the advancing direction calculating unit 152 stores the corresponding image in the memory 170 (S104). In addition, the operation program outputs a driving command to the driving control unit 151 according to the user's operation command (S105). The driving control unit 151 outputs a control signal to the driving unit 130 for driving the cleaning robot, and the driving unit 130 drives the left and right wheel motors 131 and 132 to drive the cleaning robot (S106).

On the other hand, the camera unit 160 outputs the image input from the lens at a predetermined period to the heading direction calculating unit 152 (S107), the heading direction calculating unit 152 and the real-time image input from the camera unit 160 and Comparing the previous image stored in the memory 170 to calculate the moving direction and speed according to the degree of change (S108), (S109). For example, the heading calculation unit 152 detects the heading state by calculating the left and right heading directions and heading speeds of the cleaning robot by comparing the position of the same object in the image input in real time and the previous image stored in the memory 170. Output to the unit 153.

In addition, the moving direction calculating unit 152 calculates the corresponding moving speed by using the change in the moving distance and the size of the reference object. The moving distance of the reference object is calculated from the image input by the camera unit 160 at a predetermined time period and the previous image stored in the memory 170, or the speed of the cleaning robot is detected by the change in the size of the reference object. Output to state detector 153.

On the other hand, the left and right wheel motors 131 and 132 of the driving unit 130 generate a pulse proportional to the number of revolutions of the motor and output them to the traveling state detecting unit S110. And a rotation detector 133 including 2).

The progress state detecting unit 153 calculates the heading direction information through pulse information input through the left and right wheel detection units 133-1 and 133-2 of the rotational speed detecting unit (S111). The progress state detecting unit 153 compares the progress direction information calculated through the pulse information with the progress direction information calculated through the image input through the progress direction calculating unit 152 (S112), and when the two information coincide. Check that the robot is operating normally and keep the robot running.

However, if the two information does not match, it is confirmed that the abnormality has occurred in the drive unit 130 and stops the driving or notifies the user through, for example, a warning sound (S113).

As described above, the movement path detection method of the mobile robot and the mobile robot using the same according to the present invention can detect the direction in which the actual mobile robot moves by using the degree of change between images input from the camera at a predetermined time period. Has

In addition, by comparing the actual moving direction calculated from the image information input from the camera and the driving direction calculated by the pulse proportional to the rotational speed of the left and right wheel motor of the drive unit, the movement status and abnormality of the actual mobile robot are simultaneously monitored. It has the advantage to do it.

The present invention has been described above with reference to preferred embodiments, but is not limited thereto, and is interpreted by the appended claims, which are intended to cover many modifications that will be apparent to those skilled in the art without departing from the scope of the present invention. Should be done.

Claims (7)

In mobile robot, A camera unit for photographing and outputting an image input from a lens; A driving unit including a left wheel and a right wheel motor for driving the mobile robot according to an applied control signal, and a rotation detector for detecting a rotation speed of the left wheel and the right wheel motor and outputting pulse information corresponding thereto; A memory configured to store an operation program for driving the mobile robot and to store an image output from the camera unit; And a microprocessor that stores an image input from the camera and compares the image input at a predetermined period with the stored image to calculate and output a moving direction of the mobile robot. The microprocessor is: A driving control unit controlling an operation of the driving unit; A moving direction calculating unit configured to calculate and output a moving direction of the mobile robot based on a degree of change of an image input in real time from the camera at a predetermined period when the mobile robot moves and a previous image stored in the memory; Calculating a moving direction and a speed from the pulse information measured by the rotation detecting unit, and detecting an abnormal state of the mobile robot through the calculated moving direction information and the moving direction output from the moving direction calculating unit to output a control signal Mobile robot, characterized in that having a progress detection unit. delete delete The method of claim 1, A mobile robot, wherein the mobile robot is a cleaning robot In the movement path detection method of a mobile robot, a) processing an image input from a camera and sequentially storing the image in a memory; b) calculating and outputting a moving path of the mobile robot by calculating a degree of change of a real time image input from the camera and an image stored in the memory when the mobile robot is driven according to an input driving command; c) measuring the rotational speeds of the left and right wheel motors for driving the mobile robot and calculating and outputting a traveling direction and speed of the mobile robot; d) outputting a control signal by calculating a moving state of the mobile robot through the speed information measured in step c) and the moving path calculated in step b); Movement path detection method of the mobile robot, characterized in that it comprises a. delete The method of claim 5, A moving path detecting method of a mobile robot, characterized in that the mobile robot is a cleaning robot.

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