KR101333208B1 - Meal assistance robot for noodles - Google Patents

Abstract

A noodle meal assisting robot is disclosed. A first robot arm to which the handle of the spoon is coupled at one end; A second robot arm to which the handle of the fork is coupled at one end; And controlling the second robotic arm, inserting the fork into a surface of a tableware, and then rotating in a first direction having an extension direction of the fork to wind the surface of the surface of the fork and lifting the fork. After positioning on the food receiving portion of the spoon coupled to the robot arm and rotated in a second direction opposite to the first direction with the axis of extension of the fork, the surface of the spoon wound the food of the spoon The noodle meal assistance robot including a cancer control unit put on the receiving part can help the intake of noodles to the elderly, patients, persons with disabilities, etc. who need meal assistance, and automatically recognizes various types of meal tools and performs the action accordingly. In addition, it is effective to drink liquids such as water and soup easily according to the selection.

Description

Meal assistance robot for noodles}

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a robot, and more particularly to a noodle meal assisting robot.

As the electronics industry develops, robots are used to replace humans in various fields. For example, various robots have been developed and used in modern society, such as industrial robots for producing products, medical robots for operating the human body, and service robots for performing simple services. In addition, various mechanisms for assisting meals of the elderly, the patient, the disabled and the like are implemented and used by the robot.

Meal assistant robot is a robot that helps the user to eat easily by scooping food and delivering it to the user's mouth. The related art, as disclosed in US Patent Publication No. US2009 / 0104004, consists of a support, a food container, a cutlery capable of raising food, and a mechanism part capable of moving food near the mouth.

However, according to the prior art, there is a problem in that it is not presented to help the meal, and there is a problem in that it is inconvenient to actually use, such as no function to distinguish different eating tools such as spoon and fork.

The above-described background technology is technical information that the inventor holds for the derivation of the present invention or acquired in the process of deriving the present invention, and can not necessarily be a known technology disclosed to the general public prior to the filing of the present invention.

The present invention provides a meal aid robot that can help the intake of noodles to the elderly, patients, disabled people, such as those who need meal assistance.

In addition, the present invention provides a noodle meal assistance robot that automatically recognizes a variety of meal tools and performs the operation accordingly.

In addition, the present invention provides a noodle meal assistance robot that can easily drink a liquid such as water and soup according to the selection.

The technical problems other than the present invention can be easily understood from the following description.

According to one aspect of the invention, the first robot arm is coupled to the handle of the spoon at one end; A second robot arm to which the handle of the fork is coupled at one end; By controlling the second robot arm, the fork is inserted into the surface of the tableware, and then rotated in a first direction having an axis of extension of the fork to wind the surface of the surface of the fork. After positioning on the food receiving portion of the spoon coupled to the arm is rotated in the second direction opposite to the first direction with the axis of extension of the fork to accommodate the food of the spoon wound the noodles There is provided a noodle meal assisting robot comprising an arm control unit mounted on a portion.

The present embodiment may further include a bar support arm coupled to the first robot arm and the second robot arm to be movable in an extended direction.

In addition, the arm controller may control the first robot arm to move the food container of the spoon on which the noodles are raised to prestored position information corresponding to the mouth position of a food intake user.

In addition, the cancer control unit may move the food container of the spoon corresponding to the position information and then tilt the food container to 5 to 10 degrees toward the mouth of the food intake.

In addition, the first robot arm includes a first button pressed by a first protrusion formed on the handle of the spoon and a second button pressed by a second protrusion formed on the handle of the fork, wherein the second robot arm includes: And a third button pressed by the first protrusion formed on the handle of the spoon and a fourth button pressed by the second protrusion formed on the handle of the fork, wherein the arm controller is configured to press the first robot arm when the first button is pressed. Recognize the coupling state of the spoon, and when the fourth button is pressed can recognize the coupling state of the fork to the second robot arm.

In addition, the present embodiment is a bottle support; A water bottle coupled to one side of the bottle support, into which a straw is inserted and containing water; Coupled to the other side of the bottle support, the straw is inserted and the soup bottle containing soup; The bottle support may further include a driving unit for rotating one end of the straw inserted into the water bottle or the bottle so as to rotate the bottle support in the extension direction of the bottle support in accordance with the pre-stored position information to the mouth position of the food intake.

In addition, the food receiving portion of the spoon, the upper supporter including a side surface and a lower surface to form a predetermined angle and rotatably coupled to accommodate the noodles; Elastic means for applying a rotational force to the side surface in a direction in which the acute angle formed by the side surface and the bottom surface increases; A lower supporter supporting a side surface of the upper supporter; And height adjusting means interposed between the upper supporter and the lower supporter to adjust a separation distance between the upper supporter and the lower supporter.

In addition, the present embodiment further comprises a third robot arm to which a gripper is coupled to one end, the arm control unit controls the third robot arm, the gripper to pick up food containing the noodles Can be placed in the food container of a spoon.

Here, the gripper, the body; A pair of teeth coupled to the body to be rotatable; A pair of first bars that one end is rotatable and the other end is rotatably coupled to one end of the forceps; A pair of second bars having one end coupled to the body and the other end rotatably coupled to one side of the forceps; And a pair of tongs that rotates about the other end of the second bar in response to the movement of the first bar according to the rotation of the toothed part, and the other end of the tongs to pick up the food.

Here, the outer groove is formed along the outside at one end of the gripper coupled to the third robot arm, and the inner groove along the inner side of the insertion hole into which the gripper is inserted at one end of the third robot arm coupled to the gripper. Is formed, the open ring is coupled to the inner groove of the third robot arm, when the gripper is inserted into the insertion hole of the third robot arm, the inner surface of the open ring is coupled to the outer groove of the gripper Can support the gripper.

In addition, the present embodiment includes a first magnet coupling portion coupled to one end of the third robot arm coupled to the gripper; And a second magnet coupling part coupled to one end of the gripper coupled to the third robot arm and coupled to the first magnet coupling part by magnetic force.

In addition, the fork, a plurality of windows inserted in the food containing the noodles to lift the food; And a push bar that moves in an extension direction of the fork to push away food from the plurality of windows by sliding away from the plurality of windows, wherein the second robot arm reciprocates the push bar in an extension direction of the fork. It may further include.

Other aspects, features, and advantages will become apparent from the following drawings, claims, and detailed description of the invention.

Noodle meal aid robot according to the present invention can help the intake of noodles to the elderly, patients, people with a disability, such as the disabled, and automatically recognizes various types of meal tools to perform the operation accordingly, water and soup and It is effective to drink the same liquid easily according to the selection.

1 is a block diagram of a noodle meal aid robot according to an embodiment of the present invention.
2 to 7 is a photograph of the operation of the noodle meal assistance robot according to a first embodiment of the present invention.
8 and 9 are photographs of the operation of the noodle meal assistance robot according to a second embodiment of the present invention.
10 is a view showing a fork of the noodle meal assisting robot according to a third embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 11 is a view showing a meal device receiving device of the noodle meal assisting robot according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention; FIG.
12 and 13 are views showing a meal tool coupling structure of the noodle meal aid robot according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention.
14 is a view showing a meal tool coupling structure of the noodle meal aid robot according to a sixth embodiment of the present invention.

While the invention is susceptible to various modifications and alternative forms, specific embodiments thereof are shown by way of example in the drawings and will herein be described in detail. It is to be understood, however, that the invention is not to be limited to the specific embodiments, but includes all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the invention.

Terms including ordinals, such as first, second, etc., may be used to describe various elements, but the elements are not limited to these terms. The terms are used only for the purpose of distinguishing one component from another.

When a component is referred to as being "connected" or "connected" to another component, it may be directly connected to or connected to that other component, but it may be understood that other components may be present in between. Should be.

The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the invention. Singular expressions include plural expressions unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. In this specification, the terms "comprises" or "having" and the like refer to the presence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, or combinations thereof, But do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, or combinations thereof.

The term " part, "" module," " means, "or the like, which is described in the specification, refers to a unit for processing at least one function or operation and may be implemented by hardware or software or a combination of hardware and software .

In the following description of the present invention with reference to the accompanying drawings, the same components are denoted by the same reference numerals regardless of the reference numerals, and redundant explanations thereof will be omitted. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the following description, well-known functions or constructions are not described in detail since they would obscure the invention in unnecessary detail.

1 is a block diagram of a noodle meal assistance robot according to an embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG. 1, a robot 100, a first robot arm 110, a second robot arm 120, an arm support 130, an information storage unit 140, and an arm controller 150 are illustrated.

This embodiment is characterized by helping elderly people, patients, disabled people, such as those who need meal assistance self intake noodles. That is, the present embodiment is characterized by taking the noodles near the mouth for easy eating by those who need meal assistance after picking up the noodles using a fork.

The robot 100 may include a robot arm and a joint operated by an electrical signal, and the joint may be operated by a motor. A spoon may be coupled to the first robot arm 110, and a fork may be coupled to the second robot arm 120.

Specifically, the handle of the spoon is coupled to one end of the first robot arm 110, and the handle of the fork is coupled to one end of the second robot arm 120. A spoon is a spoon generally used for a meal and has a food receiving portion at one end and a handle held by the user at the other end. In addition, the fork is also commonly used for meals, a plurality of windows are formed at one end, the handle is held by the user at the other end is formed.

In addition, the first robot arm 110 includes a first button pressed by the first protrusion formed on the handle of the spoon and a second button pressed by the second protrusion formed on the handle of the fork, and the second robot arm 120 The silver button may include a third button pressed by the first protrusion formed on the handle of the spoon and a fourth button pressed by the second protrusion formed on the handle of the fork. Each protrusion is a portion protruding at different positions of the handle, and each button may be a button pressed by each protrusion when the handle is engaged.

In this case, the arm controller 150 recognizes that the spoon is coupled to the first robot arm 110 when the first button is pressed, and recognizes the coupling state of the fork to the second robot arm 120 when the fourth button is pressed. Can be. In addition, when the second button is pressed, the fork is coupled to the first robot arm 110, and when the third button is pressed, the spoon may be recognized as being coupled to the second robot arm 120.

Although referred to herein as a button, the present invention is not limited thereto. For example, an electrical sensor for sensing the engagement of the handle through electricity may be used when the protrusion is coupled by the protrusion of the handle formed of the electrical conductor.

The arm support 130 may be a bar-shaped support in which the first robot arm 110 and the second robot arm 120 are coupled to be movable in an extended direction. For example, the first robot arm 110 and the second robot arm 120 may be coupled to the arm support 130 by a ball spline.

The arm control unit 150 controls the second robot arm 120, inserts the fork into the surface of the tableware, rotates it in a first direction with an extension direction of the fork, winds the surface of the surface, and lifts the fork. 1 Place the spoon on the food container of the spoon coupled to the robot arm 110 and rotate the spinner in a second direction opposite to the first direction with the fork extending direction as an axis, and the food container of the spoon You can raise it. The arm controller 150 may perform the above-described processes by controlling the rotation time and the rotation speed of the motor of each joint included in the first robot arm 110 and the second robot arm 120.

As described above, the arm controller 150 controls the second robot arm 120 to perform the above-described processes, but the present invention is not limited thereto, and the arm controller 150 may include the first robot arm 110. And / or control the second robot arm 120 to perform the above-described processes. For example, the arm controller 150 may control the first robot arm 110 to place a food container of a spoon coupled to the first robot arm 110 under a fork wound with noodles.

In addition, the arm controller 150 may control the first robot arm 110 to move the food container of the spoon on which the noodles are raised to the prestored position information corresponding to the mouth position of the food intake user. In this case, the arm controller 150 may control the first robot arm 110 so that the food container of the spoon on which the noodles are raised is located parallel to the ground.

Here, the method for calculating the location information corresponding to the mouth position of the food intake may be variously implemented. For example, the mouth position of the food intake may be predetermined to be located at a specific coordinate of the three-dimensional coordinates using a specific position of the arm support 130 as an origin. In this case, the person receiving the food intake may always position the mouth in the same position. For this purpose, the present embodiment may further include a jaw supporting the jaw to fix the position of the mouth.

According to another embodiment, the camera unit and the image processing unit for specifying the mouth position may be further provided. The camera unit prepares a face image by capturing a face of a food intake user in real time, and the image processor generates a face boundary image by extracting a boundary region of the face image generated by the camera unit, and generates position information corresponding to the mouth position. can do. The image processor may recognize the boundary area positioned at the lower end of the face line as the mouth, and in this case, the arm controller 150 controls the first robot arm 110 so that the food receiving portion of the spoon on which the noodles are raised is located at the corresponding position information. Can be moved to The robot arm of the present embodiment can move not only a spoon but also various eating tools such as a fork and a cup corresponding to the mouth position of the food intake.

The image processor may extract a boundary area of the face image by using a difference between at least one of brightness, saturation, and color among pixel values of the face image. The difference may be determined using a predetermined threshold. In other words, the boundary area of the face image may have different properties of the pixel value than the non-boundary area. Therefore, if the pixel values of consecutive pixels differ by more than a threshold value by using this property, the corresponding pixel is divided into pixels of the boundary area. Can be determined by

The arm control unit 150 moves the food container of the spoon corresponding to the positional information, and then tilts the food container toward the mouth of the food intake user by a predetermined angle, for example, 5 degrees to 10 degrees, so that the noodles are assisted with the meal. The first robot arm 110 may be controlled to fall into the mouth of the recipient.

The information storage unit 140 may store the position information of each robot arm by the motor rotation of each joint, the above-described face image information, face image boundary region information, position information corresponding to the mouth position, and the like.

2 to 6 is a photograph of the operation of the noodle meal assistance robot according to a first embodiment of the present invention. The above-described embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings. Each step may be performed by the above-described arm control unit 150 to control each robot arm.

Referring to FIG. 2, the fork 121 is positioned perpendicular to the ground in an initial state in which the noodles are not normally eaten. Referring to FIG. 3, the fork 121 is disposed at a specific position of the dishware 210 when the noodles are to be eaten. One end of the can then be placed in the food. Here, the tableware 210 is a bowl containing food in sections and may be referred to as a plate. The location information of the tableware 210 and the location information of each section are stored in the above-described information storage unit 140, and the noodles may be lifted by the fork 121 in the corresponding section after being contained in a specific section.

Referring to Fig. 4, in (a) to (c), the surface is wound around the fork by rotating in a first direction with the fork extending direction. Various motors may be applied to the present embodiment. For example, the operation of FIG. 3 may be performed by a servo motor, and the operation of FIG. 4 may be performed by a DC geared motor.

Referring to FIG. 5, the fork is positioned parallel to the ground after lifting the fork wound with noodles. Referring to FIG. 6A, the noodle wound around the spoon is placed on the food receiving portion of the spoon and then rotated on the spoon in a second direction opposite to the first direction, with the axis extending in the direction of the fork. Can be placed in the food container of the spoon.

Referring to FIG. 6B, there is shown a food container cross section of a scoop-shaped spoon in which the food container size is adjusted. Spoon in the form of adjustable scoop may include a food container 310, the upper supporter 320, the elastic means 330, the lower supporter 340, the height adjustment means 350. The upper supporter 320 is a structure that can be adjusted in size, the lower supporter 340 is a fixed structure.

The upper supporter 320 includes a side surface and a lower surface that form a predetermined angle so that the surface flow is accommodated and are rotatably coupled. The elastic means 330 applies a rotational force to the side surface in a direction in which the acute angle formed by the side surface and the lower surface is increased.

The lower supporter 340 supports the side surface of the upper supporter 320, and the height adjusting means 350 is interposed between the upper supporter 320 and the lower supporter 340 to support the upper supporter 320 and the lower supporter 340. Adjust the separation distance of).

Referring to (a) of FIG. 6B, when the height adjusting means 350 pushes the upper supporter 320 to increase the distance from the lower supporter 340 when the spoon receives the surface current, the upper supporter is supported by the elastic means 330. The acute angle formed by the side surface and the lower surface of the 320 is increased, the width of the food container 310 is increased. In this case, since the side surface of the upper supporter 320 is supported by the side surface of the lower supporter 340, when the height adjusting means 350 raises the upper supporter 320, the side surface of the upper supporter 320 is further inclined. It is supported by the side surface of the lower supporter 340.

Here, the elastic means 330 may be provided in a portion where the side surface and the bottom surface are coupled to increase the size of the acute angle formed by the side surface and the bottom surface. Elastic means 330 may have a variety of shapes, functions, types, for example, may be a leaf spring.

In addition, the height adjustment means 350 may be operated by a motor. For example, the height adjustment means 350 may be a means for increasing the height when the motor is rotated, such a structure is a structure that can be obvious to those skilled in the art of robots, detailed description thereof will be omitted.

Referring to FIG. 6B (b), when the spoon moves to the food intake after receiving the noodles, the height adjusting means 350 pulls the upper supporter 320 to reduce the distance from the lower supporter 340. Acute angles formed by the side surface and the lower surface of the supporter 320 are reduced in size, thereby reducing the width of the food container 310. In this case, the side surface of the upper supporter 320 is closer to the vertical state than the state (a) can prevent the fall of food. Therefore, according to this structure, there is an advantage that can move without dropping during the transportation of noodles.

Referring to FIG. 7, various eating tools may be coupled to the first robot arm 110. For example, a spoon 111 may be coupled to one side about an extended axis of the first robot arm 110. On the other side of the spoon-shaped spoon 112 may be combined. Their operation selection can be determined by an electronic circuit. For example, the first robot arm 110 may include three bars having one end of the same joint A. The other end of the first bar 113 is coupled with a spoon 111 having a general shape. The other end of the two bars 114 is coupled to the spoon 112 in the form of a scoop, and the other end of the third bar 115 is coupled to the lower support of the first robot arm 110.

In this case, only one of the spoons or the spoons of the ladle may be lifted to the A joint portion using a pin of a predetermined shape, for example, a square pillar, controlled and pushed by an electronic signal. That is, when the pin is pushed toward the first bar 113 side, one end of the first bar 113 and one end of the third bar 115 are coupled at the joint A part, and when the pin is pushed toward the second bar 114 side, the joint A part. At one end of the second bar 114 and one end of the third bar 115 are combined. Therefore, when the A joint part is lifted up or the joint is rotated in the coupled state, the combined bar is operated to raise the spoon 111 or the spoon shape 112 of the general shape coupled to the other end of the bar.

8 and 9 are photographs of the operation of the noodle meal assistance robot according to a second embodiment of the present invention. 8 and 9, a bottle support 231, a driver 232, a water bottle 241, and a bottle 242 are shown.

This embodiment is characterized by presenting a plurality of bottles rotatable about a support to selectively provide water and a station to a user.

The bottle support 231 is a support to which the water bottle 241 and the bottle 242 are coupled to different sides, and may be, for example, a bar support.

The water bottle 241 is coupled to one side of the bottle support, the straw is inserted into the bottle containing water. The bottle 242 is coupled to the other side of the bottle support, the straw is inserted and the bottle containing the soup. The straw may be bent toward the user's mouth to facilitate the user's mouth.

The straw can be formed of various materials, for example, plastic, metal, etc. In the latter case, when the user's teeth are touched by putting a rubber cover on one end of the user's mouth, the teeth are not damaged and the feeling of the machine is felt. Can not be strong.

The driving unit 232 rotates the bottle support 231 in the extension direction of the bottle support 231 axially to store one end of the straw inserted in the water bottle 241 or the bottle 242 in advance corresponding to the mouth position of the food intake user. Move to location information. As described above, the position information corresponding to the mouth position may be a preset position or a position calculated in real time. Here, the driving unit may operate under the control of the arm controller 150 described above.

In addition, the present embodiment may further include an interface for the user to directly drive the driver 232, for example, a water bottle 241 button, a bottle 242 button, a joystick for manipulating to move to each bottle.

In addition, according to another embodiment, in addition to the spoon and fork described above, various grippers may be used to pick up not only noodles but also other foods such as tofu, dried side dishes, rice, and the like. That is, the gripper according to the present embodiment may have a tong shape, not a spoon or a spatula, and may have a structure in which a pair of tooth-shaped tongs catch food. If one of the tongs is bent and the noodle is caught, the noodle can be cut and held inside the nipper.

The gripper according to the present embodiment may be implemented in various forms, and the shape of the tongs described below should be understood as one embodiment of various structures applied to the present invention.

Although not shown, the present embodiment may include a body, a toothed part, a first bar, a tong part, and a second bar. The body may be coupled to one end of a third robot arm (not shown) as the body of the gripper. The third robot arm may be coupled to the arm support 130 described above and move in an extended direction thereof.

The pair of teeth is rotatably coupled to the body, and when one tooth rotates by being engaged with each other, the other tooth may rotate. The pair of teeth can be rotated by the rotating means of the third robot arm. For example, the third robot arm may include a motor, and the teeth may be connected to the motor to rotate in a predetermined direction according to the rotation of the motor. Information related to the rotation, such as the rotational speed, the rotation direction, the rotation time, the rotation period of the tooth portion can be controlled by the above-described arm control unit.

Here, the pair of teeth may be referred to as a first tooth and a second tooth, respectively, and a pair of components described below may also be referred to as first and second names.

A pair of first bars are respectively coupled to the toothed portion so that one end is rotatable, and the other end is rotatably coupled to each end of the tongs portion.

One pair of second bars is coupled to the body, and the other end is rotatably coupled to each side of the forceps. Each position where the second bar is coupled to the tongs may be a central region of the tongs.

The tongs may rotate about the other end of the second bar in response to the movement of the first bar according to the rotation of the toothed part, so that the other end may operate the tongs to pick up food.

10 is a view showing a fork of the noodle meal assistance robot according to a third embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG. 10, a plurality of windows 410 and push bars 420 are shown.

This embodiment has a feature of suggesting a structure for easily separating food from the fork to the fork.

The plurality of windows 410 are one end of a general fork that is attached to food containing noodles and lifts food. The push bar 420 moves in the extending direction of the fork and functions to push away foods stuck in the plurality of windows 410 from the plurality of windows 410.

Here, the second robot arm 120 may further include a bar controller (not shown) for reciprocating the push bar 420 along the extending direction of the fork. The bar control unit may include a motor, and the push bar 420 may be coupled to the rotational axis of the motor to push the food coupled to the plurality of windows 410 by reciprocating along the extension direction of the fork according to the rotation of the motor. .

FIG. 11 is a view illustrating a meal tool storage device of the noodle meal assisting robot according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention. FIG.

This embodiment may include a meal utensil storage device 510 for storing the various types of tongs described above. The above-described first to third robot arms may be selectively combined with various types of forceps located in the eating utensil storage device 510. As shown, the eating utensil storage device 510 is provided with various eating utensils, for example, a spoon 521, a fork 522, and a gripper 523, and only one eating utensil is shown. A plurality of kinds of eating utensils may be provided.

Each robot arm may be provided with means for holding the handle or the body of each eating utensil. In addition, each robot arm may have a configuration for manipulating it after combining with a specific gripper used according to the type of food.

According to this feature, since the type of gripper can be easily changed and the food supply operation can be changed according to the operation of each gripper, there are features that help to facilitate various types of meals.

12 to 13, a coupling structure of the robot arm and the eating utensil is shown. FIG. 12A shows the open ring 310, FIG. 12B shows the robot arm coupling part 620, which is one end of the robot arm to which the meal tool is coupled in the direction of the arrow, and FIG. ) Is a side view of the robot arm coupling unit 620 and the meal tool coupling unit 630 before coupling, and FIG. 13B is a side view of the robot arm coupling unit 620 and the eating tool coupling unit 630 after coupling. .

The coupling structure of the robot arm and the eating utensil may be supported by the opening ring 310. The robot arm coupled to the meal tool described below may be any one or more of the above-described first to third robot arms, the meal tool may be a variety of tools such as spoons, forks, grippers.

One end of the meal tool coupled to the robot arm, that is, the meal tool coupler 630 has an outer groove 631 along the outside. One end of the robot arm coupling with the meal tool coupling part 630, that is, the robot arm coupling part 620, has an inner groove 621 along the inner side of the insertion hole into which the meal tool coupling part 630 is inserted. An opening ring 610 is inserted into and coupled to the inner groove 621 of the robot arm coupling part 620. The open ring 610 may be a circular ring with some areas cut off. When the opening ring 610 is inserted into the inner groove 621, the inner surface of the opening ring 610 may protrude to the inner side of the insertion hole.

According to this structure, when the meal tool coupler 630 is inserted into the insertion hole of the robot arm coupler 620, the meal tool coupler 630 moves while opening the opening ring 610, the outer groove 631 When the inner groove 621 is in the position of the inner ring 610 is the original size by the elastic can be combined with the outer groove 631 of the meal tool coupling portion 630 to support the meal tool. .

In addition, according to another embodiment of the present invention, the robot arm may be coupled to the eating utensil and the magnet. For example, the meal assistance robot according to the present embodiment includes one end of the robot arm coupled to the meal tool, that is, a first magnet coupling portion 721 coupled to the robot arm coupling portion 720, and a meal coupling to the robot arm. One end of the tool, ie, the meal tool coupler 730, may include a second magnet coupler 731 magnetically coupled to the first magnet coupler 721. In this case, the first magnet coupling part 721 and / or the second magnet coupling part 731 may be a permanent magnet or an electromagnet. According to this embodiment, the robotic arm can be combined with other types of eating utensils using magnetic force.

In addition, in this case, a method of removing the eating utensils from the robot arm may be implemented in various ways. For example, using the separate removing robot arm, the eating utensil coupler 730 may be downward or laterally in the drawing. Remove the eating tool from the robot arm by pulling, inserting the eating utensil into the eating utensil storage 510 and then moving the robot arm laterally, or removing the magnetic force by not applying power if the magnet is an electromagnet. can do.

In addition, according to another embodiment, in order to ensure various functions and added scalability in the future, the above-described communication protocols for each board of the robot may be commonly used. That is, the packet according to the present embodiment starts with two bytes of 0xff and 0xff, and may be composed of a transmission / reception ID address, an instruction, data, and a checksum for detecting a transmission error thereof.

For example, Table 1 is a packet received at the input device, and Table 2 is a packet to which the input device responds. Here, the input device may be an input device for controlling the above-described robot.

Packets received at input device 0 One 2 3 4 5 6 7 Header0 Header1 id Length command address Received bytes check sum 0xFF 0xFF 10 3 2 0 2 ed

As shown in Table 1, the packet received by the input device may be configured as follows.

checksum = buf [2] + buf [3] + buf [4] + buf [5] + buf [6];

checksum = (INT8U) (~ checksum &0x00ff);

Packets sent from the input device 0 One 2 3 4 5 6 7 stx stx id len error switch sel value check sum 0xFF 0xFF 10 4 0 x x x

As shown in Table 2, a packet transmitted from an input device may be configured as follows.

checksum = buf [2] + buf [3] + buf [4] + buf [5] + buf [6];

checksum = (INT8U) (~ checksum &0x00ff);

In this case, only when the main board requests the corresponding input device, the current value of the input device (button, joystick, sensor, etc.) may be output as a packet.

In addition, the specific operation method for the noodle meal assistance robot according to the embodiment of the present invention, common platform technology such as embedded system, O / S, communication standardization, interface standardization technology such as I / O interface, actuator, battery, camera, sensor Detailed description of the parts standardization technology, etc. will be omitted since it is obvious to those skilled in the art.

The method of operating the noodle meal assisting robot according to the present invention may be implemented in the form of program instructions that can be executed by various computer means and recorded in a computer readable medium. That is, the recording medium may be a computer-readable recording medium having recorded thereon a program for causing a computer to execute the steps described above.

The computer readable medium may include a program command, a data file, a data structure, etc. alone or in combination. The program instructions recorded on the medium may be those specially designed and constructed for the present invention or may be available to those skilled in the art of computer software. Examples of the computer-readable recording medium include magnetic media such as a hard disk, a floppy disk and a magnetic tape, optical recording media such as CD-ROM and DVD, magnetic recording media such as a floppy disk Optical media, and hardware devices specifically configured to store and execute program instructions such as ROM, RAM, flash memory, and the like.

The medium may be a transmission medium such as an optical or metal line, a wave guide, or the like, including a carrier wave for transmitting a signal designating a program command, a data structure, or the like. Examples of program instructions include machine language code such as those produced by a compiler, as well as high-level language code that can be executed by a computer using an interpreter or the like. The hardware devices described above may be configured to operate as one or more software modules to perform the operations of the present invention.

In addition, each of the above-described components may be embodied as one physically adjacent component or may be implemented as a different component. In the latter case, each component can be controlled to be located adjacent to or in a different zone. In this case, the present invention can include a separate control means or control room for controlling each component to control each component in a wired or wireless manner You may.

In the above description, the respective components and / or functions described in the embodiments may be combined and combined, and those skilled in the art will understand that the present invention It will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes in form and details may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

100: robot 110: first robot arm
111: spoon 120: second robot arm
121: fork 130: arm support
140: information storage unit 150: cancer control unit
210: tableware 231: bottle support
232: drive unit 241: water bottle
242: Armed Forces 410: Revenge Spear
420: Push Bar 510: Meal Tool Storage
610: open ring 620, 720: robot arm coupling portion
621: internal groove 630, 730: meal tool coupling
631: outer groove 721: first magnet coupling portion
731: the second magnetic coupling portion

Claims (11)

A first robot arm to which the handle of the spoon is coupled at one end;
A second robot arm to which the handle of the fork is coupled at one end; And
By controlling the second robot arm, the fork is inserted into the surface of the tableware, and then rotated in a first direction having an axis of extension of the fork to wind the surface of the surface of the fork. After positioning on the food receiving portion of the spoon coupled to the arm is rotated in the second direction opposite to the first direction with the axis of extension of the fork to accommodate the food of the spoon wound the noodles Noodles meal aid robot including the arm control unit to raise the wealth.
The method according to claim 1,
And a bar support arm supporting the first robot arm and the second robot arm to move in an extended direction.
The method according to claim 1,
And the arm control unit controls the first robot arm to move the food receiving portion of the spoon on which the noodles are raised to prestored position information corresponding to the mouth position of a food intake user.
The method according to claim 1,
The first robot arm includes a first button pressed by a first protrusion formed on the handle of the spoon and a second button pressed by a second protrusion formed on the handle of the fork,
The second robot arm includes a third button pressed by the first protrusion formed on the handle of the spoon and a fourth button pressed by the second protrusion formed on the handle of the fork,
The arm controller recognizes the coupling state of the spoon to the first robot arm when the first button is pressed, and recognizes the coupling state of the fork to the second robot arm when the fourth button is pressed. Noodle Meal Assistant Robot.
The method according to claim 1,
Bottle support;
A water bottle coupled to one side of the bottle support, into which a straw is inserted and containing water;
Coupled to the other side of the bottle support, the straw is inserted and the soup bottle containing soup; And
Rotating meal support robot further comprises a drive unit for rotating the bottle support axis in the extending direction of the bottle support to move one end of the straw inserted in the water bottle or bottle to the mouth position of the food intake in accordance with the pre-stored position information .
The method according to claim 1,
The food container of the spoon,
An upper supporter including a side surface and a bottom surface to form a predetermined angle to be rotatable and to be rotatable;
Elastic means for applying a rotational force to the side surface in a direction in which the acute angle formed by the side surface and the bottom surface increases;
A lower supporter supporting a side surface of the upper supporter; And
And a height adjusting means interposed between the upper supporter and the lower supporter to adjust a separation distance between the upper supporter and the lower supporter.
The method according to claim 1,
Further includes a third robot arm to which the gripper is coupled to one end,
And the arm controller controls the third robot arm, and the gripper picks up food containing the noodles and places the food on the food container of the spoon.
The method of claim 7,
The gripper
Body;
A pair of teeth coupled to the body to be rotatable;
A pair of first bars that one end is rotatable and the other end is rotatably coupled to one end of the forceps;
A pair of second bars having one end coupled to the body and the other end rotatably coupled to one side of the forceps; And
A noodle meal assisting robot comprising a pair of tongs that rotates around the other end of the second bar in response to the movement of the first bar according to the rotation of the toothed part, and the other end of the tongs to pick up the food. .
The method of claim 7,
An outer groove is formed along the outside at one end of the gripper coupled to the third robot arm, and an inner groove is formed along the inner side of the insertion hole into which the gripper is inserted at one end of the third robot arm coupled to the gripper. Opening ring is coupled to the inner groove of the third robot arm,
When the gripper is inserted into the insertion hole of the third robot arm, the inner surface of the opening ring is coupled to the outer groove of the gripper, side surface meal aid robot, characterized in that for supporting the gripper.
The method of claim 7,
A first magnet coupling part coupled to one end of the third robot arm coupled to the gripper; And
And a second magnet coupling portion coupled to one end of the gripper coupled to the third robot arm and magnetically coupled to the first magnet coupling portion.
The method according to claim 1,
The fork is,
A plurality of windows inserted in the food including the noodles to lift the food; And
It includes a push bar to move in the extension direction of the fork to slide the food stuck in the plurality of windows from the plurality of windows,
The second robot arm further comprises a bar controller for reciprocating the push bar in the extending direction of the fork.

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