KR20070109592A - Localization system and the method of the mobile robot using the charging station - Google Patents

Abstract

A localization system and method of a mobile robot using a charging station are provided to senses position of the mobile robot in a room automatically without manual installation of recognition marks by scanning marks for recognizing the front of the robot and the ceiling from the charging station. In a localization system of a mobile robot(1) using a charging station(2), the mobile robot comprises a drive unit(11), a charging unit(12), a communication unit(13), a sensor unit(14), a camera unit(15), a power unit(16), and a control unit. The drive unit drives the mobile robot. The charging unit charges a battery by contacting with charging terminals(27) of the charging station. The communication unit communicates with a remote controller and the charging station mutually. The sensor unit senses obstacles and prevents the robot from falling. The camera unit has a first camera(151) having a fish-eye lens recognizing marks in the front of the robot, a second camera(152) recognizing marks on the ceiling, and a vision board(153) regulating the first and second cameras. The power unit feeds power to each unit. The control unit controls functions of the mobile robot with a control program. The mobile robot calculates the position thereof by filming marks in the front and on the ceiling. The charging station includes a charging unit(21), a front mark scanning unit(22), a ceiling mark scanning unit(23), a communication unit(24), a power unit(25), and a charging station control unit(26). The charging unit has the charging terminals to feed power to the battery of the mobile robot. The front mark scanning unit scans infrared rays to the front with a plurality of LEDs so that the robot recognizes the charging station. The ceiling mark scanning unit scans laser beams to the ceiling with a plurality of laser diodes so that the robot recognizes position thereof in a room. The communication unit receives commands from the mobile robot. The power unit supplies power to each unit. The charging station control unit controls functions of the charging station with a control program. The charging station charges the battery and scans marks to the front and the ceiling.

Description

Localization system and method of the mobile robot using the charging station

1 is a block diagram of a system of the present invention;

Figure 2 is a side view of the mobile robot of the present invention system.

3A and 3B are front and side views of a charging station of the present invention system.

Figure 4 is a perspective view of the installation state of the infrared light emitting element and the light emitting window used as the front recognition mark irradiation unit installed in the charging station of the present invention system.

5 is a diagram illustrating arrangement of light emitting devices.

Fig. 6 is an illustration of shapes of light formed on the ceiling by light irradiated by the ceiling recognition mark irradiator.

7 is a view showing the position of the charging station position recognition area by the front recognition mark and the position recognition area of the mobile robot through the ceiling recognition mark.

8 is a main flowchart for explaining the method of the present invention.

9 is a detailed flowchart of the step of measuring the position of the recognition mark in the method of the present invention.

10 is a detailed flowchart of the mobile robot position recognition step of the present invention.

11 is a detailed flowchart of the battery automatic charging step.

12A and 12B are state diagrams in which the position measurement and automatic charging algorithm of the charging station is performed.

Explanation of symbols on the main parts of the drawings

1: Mobile Robot 2: Charging Station

11: mobile robot drive unit 12: charging unit

13, 24: communication unit 14: sensor unit

15: camera portion 16, 25: power supply portion

17: mobile robot control unit 18: battery

19, 27: charging terminal 21: charging unit

22: forward recognition mark irradiation unit 23: ceiling recognition mark irradiation unit

26: charging station control unit 121: light emitting device

122: transparent window 151: front camera

152: upward camera 153: vision board

The present invention relates to a method and a system for recognizing a position of a mobile robot using a charging station, and more particularly, to capture an infrared recognition mark formed at a specific position with the upper and front cameras mounted on the mobile robot, so that the mobile robot is at the current magnetic position. It can be detected in real time to recognize the position of the mobile robot without the need to install the recognition mark for position recognition in the indoor space, and to measure the parameters such as the installation position of the recognition mark for position recognition in the indoor space. And input work is done automatically, and it is less influenced by general lighting change or indoor environment change in the indoor space and can recognize the position of mobile robot quickly and accurately, and it is possible to change the general lighting change or indoor environment change without additional installation equipment. Fast and accurate automatic charging with low impact and wide range It will be invented so.

In general, in order for the mobile robot to autonomously drive and automatically recharge the indoor space, a process of recognizing the current position of the mobile robot in itself is essential.

There are various approaches to this location recognition method, and there is a method of location recognition by installing the recognition mark at a specific location in the indoor space.

Such a method of attaching a recognition mark involves installing a recognition mark on a specific position such as a floor, a wall, or a bottom surface, and after the installation process, it is necessary to accurately input the position of the recognition mark on the actual space. It involves an input step.

In addition, in the case of changing the position of the recognition mark, installation and movement work is complicated because the operation of re-installing the recognition mark and re-entering the position of the recognition mark is necessary again.

Therefore, the necessity of the invention for the position recognition method that is easy to install and change the position of the recognition mark has been raised.

As the autonomous mobile robots move freely, the power supply unit is built in a rechargeable battery to execute the function, and the automatic charging method for the conventional mobile robot in which the power supply unit is built in a rechargeable battery is followed by a wall. The method of finding a charging station by means of searching or finding the charging station with respect to a fixed position has been used.

However, the automatic charging method of the mobile robot using the conventional driving direction monitoring camera as described above is possible to automatically charge by finding and docking the charging station under the limited environmental conditions. When the surrounding environmental factors change, such as when the lights are turned off or the lights are turned off, the mobile robot cannot find the charging station.

Accordingly, the present applicant has developed a method for automatically charging a mobile robot using a driving direction monitoring camera to solve the above problems and has proposed as a Korean patent application No. 10-2004-3492.

However, the automatic charging method of the mobile robot using the driving direction monitoring camera is an automatic charging method of the autonomous mobile robot using the driving direction monitoring camera. When the voltage of the mobile robot falls below a set voltage, the mobile robot is built in the mobile robot. Transmitting, by the mobile robot controller, a light emitting indicator light blinking signal of the charging station, and a charging station controller built in the charging station by the light emitting signal blinking signal received by the receiving unit of the charging station; Simultaneously flashing a plurality of light emitting indicators installed at predetermined intervals, acquiring an image when the light emitting indicators are turned on and off by the image sensing device installed in the mobile robot, and embedded in the mobile robot; Of the light emission indicator by the mobile robot controller Obtaining a difference image between the image when the image is turned off and the image when the image is turned off, removing the noise through a video processing process by the mobile robot controller embedded in the mobile robot, and removing the noise by the mobile robot controller. Calculating the position of the light emitting indicator by comparing the position of each light emitting indicator on the removed image with the position of the pre-inputted actual light emitting indicator and calculating an angle between the position of the light emitting indicator on the image and the position of the actual light emitting indicator; The mobile robot drive unit installed in the mobile robot is operated by the mobile robot control unit according to the position of the light emitting indicator calculated in the above, and the mobile robot moves to the proximal position of the charging station so that the mobile robot charging unit installed in the mobile robot is installed in the charging station. It is composed of a step of being charged to the charging unit.

Therefore, by calculating the exact position information of the charging station using the difference image of each image in the lighted state and the lighted off state of the light emitting indicator, the mobile robot can be automatically charged by moving to the charging station. The two light emitting indicators are installed, and only one camera is installed in the front part of the mobile robot to detect its position, so that the recognition mark itself consists of two recognition marks (that is, two light emitting indicators). Since the form of heat has a problem of having to re-enter the height according to the height change rate of the camera, there is a problem such as affecting the lighting change or the indoor environment change.

The present invention has been made to solve such a conventional problem, firstly can recognize the position of the mobile robot without the installation work of the recognition mark for the position recognition in the indoor space, and second, the position recognition in the indoor space The parameter surveying and input work such as the installation position of the recognition mark is performed automatically. Third, the position of the mobile robot can be recognized quickly and accurately with little influence on general lighting change or indoor environment change in the indoor space. The purpose of the present invention is to provide a mobile robot location recognition system and method using a charging station that can be automatically and quickly charged in a wide range without affecting general lighting changes or indoor environment changes without the need for equipment.

The present invention for achieving the above object, the mobile robot drive unit for driving the mobile robot under the control of the mobile robot control unit, and connected to the charging terminal of the charging station to supply power to the mobile robot at the same time to charge the battery The main unit is equipped with a charging unit, a communication unit performing bidirectional communication with a remote controller and a charging station, a sensor unit for preventing obstacle detection and falling, a front camera equipped with a fisheye lens that recognizes a front recognition mark of the charging station, and a ceiling recognition mark. Camera unit consisting of an upper camera to recognize the camera and a vision board for controlling the driving of the front and upper cameras, a power supply unit for supplying power to each unit in the mobile robot, and overall control function of the mobile robot through the execution of a predetermined control program The front recognition mark having a configuration consisting of a mobile robot control unit for performing the A mobile robot for photographing through the jeonginsik mark calculating the self-location and;

The charging unit is connected to a battery installed in the mobile robot, and the charging unit supplies power to the battery of the mobile robot and irradiates infrared light to the front through a plurality of light emitting devices so that the mobile robot can recognize the charging station. Front recognition mark irradiator to enable, the laser recognition through a plurality of laser diodes ceiling ceiling mark irradiator for the mobile robot to recognize the location of the interior space, a communication unit for receiving commands from the mobile robot, charging station The charging unit has a configuration consisting of a power supply unit for supplying power to each part of the charging station, and the charging station control unit that performs the overall control function of the charging station through a predetermined control program, and forms a light emitting recognition mark on the front and ceiling of the battery. It is characterized by consisting of stations.

At this time, the vision board of the camera unit may find the position of the charging station and the position of the ceiling recognition mark by determining the position of the recognition mark on the image input from the front and upper cameras, and the camera to be used is a lens of a conventional general camera. An infrared band pass filter is used between the and CCDs, and the camera is equipped with a fisheye lens to measure the position of the mobile robot by performing a single recognition algorithm over a wide range.

According to the present invention for achieving the above object, the mobile robot running by itself using the recognition mark irradiation device installed in the charging station that does not require the installation process can automatically identify the position of the recognition mark, automatically drive it, and automatically charge it. A position recognition method, comprising: installing a charging station equipped with front and ceiling recognition mark irradiation units; Measuring the position of the recognition mark; Recognizing a position of the mobile robot through a recognition mark; Recognizing the position of the mobile robot and automatically driving; And automatically charging when the battery level is below a threshold.

At this time, the step of installing the charging station equipped with the front and ceiling recognition mark irradiation unit, the step of attaching the charging station to the floor of the traveling space; And inserting a power plug of a charging station into a power outlet on a traveling space.

The measuring of the position of the recognition mark may include: recognizing a ceiling recognition mark when a recognition mark position measuring command is received; Storing a recognition mark position point on the recognized image; Linearly traveling by a predetermined distance; Recognizing the ceiling recognition mark; Storing the recognition mark position point on the recognized image; Calculating a ratio between the distance difference between the recognition mark position points before and after the movement and the driving distance; Calculating and storing the ceiling height based on the ratio between the distance difference and the driving distance calculated above; Measuring the position of the charging station; And storing the position of the ceiling recognition mark on the basis of the charging station.

The mobile robot position recognition step may include: determining whether a ceiling recognition mark position recognition area is received when a mobile robot position measurement command is received; Transmitting a ceiling recognition mark blinking signal when the determination result is the ceiling recognition mark position recognition area; Receiving a blinking image through an upper camera of the mobile robot; Determining whether there is a position recognition mark on the ceiling image; Extracting a position of a recognition mark on the image when the position recognition mark is present on the ceiling image as a result of the determination; Calculating a current position of the mobile robot based on the recognition mark position extraction value; Moving the robot by following the wall surface if the position recognition mark is not the position recognition area or the position recognition mark does not exist on the ceiling image.

The automatic charging of the battery may include determining whether a location of a charging station is recognized when an automatic charging command is received; Transmitting a blinking signal for the forward recognition mark in the position recognition region of the charging station as a result of the determination; Receiving a blinking image through a front camera of the mobile robot; Determining whether a recognition mark exists in front; Calculating a current position of the mobile robot when a recognition mark exists in front of the result determined by the above; Calculating a moving motion for the charging station and the docking based on the calculated current position of the mobile robot; Moving the mobile robot for docking with the charging station based on the calculated value for the mobile motion; Determining whether the docking station is docked with the charging station, and charging the battery of the mobile robot when docked, and returning to calculating the current position of the mobile robot when docked; As a result of the determination, if it is not the location recognition area of the charging station or if there is no recognition mark in the front, the mobile robot moves to the charging station location recognition area and returns to the initial stage.

Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Figure 1 shows a block diagram of the system of the present invention, Figure 2 shows a side view of the mobile robot of the present invention, Figures 3a and 3b is a front view and a side view of the charging station of the present invention system, Figure 4 shows a perspective view of the installation state of the infrared light emitting element and the light emitting window used as the front recognition mark irradiation unit installed in the charging station of the present invention system.

5 shows an exemplary view of arrangement of light emitting devices, FIG. 6 shows an exemplary view of shapes of light formed on the ceiling by light irradiated by the ceiling recognition mark irradiator, and FIG. 7 shows a front recognition mark. Figure 2 shows the position of the charging station position recognition area and the position recognition possible area of the mobile robot through the ceiling recognition mark.

8 shows a main flowchart for explaining the method of the present invention, FIG. 9 shows a detailed flowchart of the step of measuring the position of the recognition mark in the method of the present invention, and FIG. 10 shows the movement of the present invention. A detailed flowchart of the robot position recognition step is shown, and FIG. 11 is a detailed flowchart of the battery automatic charging step. will be.

Accordingly, the system of the present invention is connected to the mobile robot driver 11 for driving the mobile robot 1 under the control of the mobile robot controller 17, and the charging terminal 19 of the charging station 2 to move the mobile robot ( 1) a charging unit 12 which supplies power to the battery and simultaneously charges the battery 18, a communication unit 13 which performs bidirectional communication with the remote controller and the charging station 2, and prevents obstacle detection and fall. A front camera 151 equipped with a sensor unit 14, a front camera 151 equipped with a fisheye lens for recognizing a front recognition mark of the charging station 2, an upper camera 152 for recognizing a ceiling recognition mark, and the front and upper camera 151 Camera unit 15 consisting of a vision board 153 for controlling the driving of the 152, a power supply unit 16 for supplying power to each part of the mobile robot 1, and a mobile robot through the execution of various control programs As the mobile robot control unit 17 performing the overall control function of (1) It has a luer configuration binary mobile robot (1) for calculating a self-location via the recording of the front recognition mark and the mark recognition and the ceiling;

A charging unit 21 having a charging terminal 27 connected to the battery 18 installed in the mobile robot 1 and supplying and charging power to the battery 18 of the mobile robot 1, and a plurality of light emission units The front recognition mark irradiator 22 for irradiating infrared light to the front through the element 221 to allow the mobile robot 1 to recognize the charging station 2 and the laser light through the plurality of laser diodes 231. Of the ceiling recognition mark irradiation unit 23 for irradiating the ceiling to the ceiling unit so that the mobile robot 1 recognizes the position of the indoor space, the communication unit 24 for receiving a command from the mobile robot 1, and the charging station 2. The power supply unit 25 supplies power to each unit, and the charging station control unit 26 that performs the overall control function of the charging station 2 through various control programs, and the charging function and the front of the battery 18 And the light emitting recognition mark on the ceiling Characterized by consisting of a filling station (2).

At this time, the vision board 153 of the camera unit 15 determines the positions of the front and ceiling recognition marks on the images input from the front and upper cameras 151 and 152 to recognize the position and ceiling recognition of the charging station 2. The position of the mark is used, and the camera used is an infrared band pass filter between the lens and the CCD in a conventional general camera, and the front camera 151 is equipped with a fisheye lens for a wide range of only one time. Characterized in that it is possible to measure the position of the mobile robot 1 by performing the recognition algorithm.

On the other hand, the method of the present invention using the position recognition mark irradiation device mounted on the charging station (2) that does not require the installation process is a position where the mobile robot running by itself can identify the position of the recognition mark, automatically drive and automatically charge In the recognition method,

Installing a charging station 2 equipped with front and ceiling recognition mark irradiators 22 and 23 (S1);

Measuring the position of the recognition mark (S2);

Recognizing the position of the mobile robot through the recognition mark (S3);

Recognizing the position of the mobile robot 1 and automatically driving (S4);

It is characterized in that it comprises a; step (S5) to automatically charge if the remaining battery 18 is less than the threshold.

At this time, the step (S1) of installing the charging station (2) equipped with the front and ceiling recognition mark irradiator (22) 23, the step of attaching the charging station (2) to the floor of the traveling space (S11); And inserting the power plug of the charging station 2 into a power outlet on the traveling space (S12).

In addition, the step (S2) of measuring the position of the recognition mark may include: recognizing a ceiling recognition mark when a recognition mark position measurement command is received (S21); Storing the recognition mark position point on the recognized image (S22); Linear driving by a predetermined distance (S23); Recognizing the ceiling recognition mark (S24); Storing the recognition mark position point on the re-recognized image (S25); Calculating a ratio between the distance difference between the recognition mark position points before and after the movement and the driving distance (S26); Calculating and storing the ceiling height based on the ratio between the distance difference and the driving distance calculated above (S27); Measuring the position of the charging station 2 (S28); And storing the position of the ceiling recognition mark on the basis of the charging station 2 (S29).

In addition, the mobile robot position recognition step (S3), if the mobile robot (1) position measurement command is received to determine whether the ceiling recognition mark position recognition area (S31); Transmitting the ceiling recognition mark blinking signal if the ceiling recognition mark position recognition region (Yes in S31) is determined as the determination result; Receiving a blinking image through the upper camera 152 of the mobile robot 1 (S33); Determining whether a position recognition mark is present on the ceiling image (S34); Extracting the position of the recognition mark on the image when the position recognition mark is present on the ceiling image (Yes in S34); Calculating a current position of the mobile robot based on the recognition mark position extraction value (S36); Moving the mobile robot 1 through the wall following step if the position recognition mark is not the position of the ceiling recognition mark (No in S31) or the position recognition mark does not exist on the ceiling image (No in S34); Characterized in that consisting of.

In addition, the automatic battery charging step (S5), the step of determining whether the location recognition area of the charging station (2) when the automatic charging command is received (S51); Transmitting the blinking signal for the forward recognition mark (Yes in S51) if the position recognition area of the charging station 2 is determined as above (S52); Receiving a blinking image through the front camera 151 of the mobile robot 1 (S53); Determining whether there is a recognition mark in front (S54); Calculating a current position of the mobile robot 1 when there is a recognition mark in front of the determination result (Yes in S54) (S55); Calculating a moving motion for docking with the charging station (2) based on the current position of the mobile robot (1) calculated above (S56); Moving the mobile robot (1) for docking with the charging station (2) based on the calculated value for the mobile motion (S57); Determining whether the docking station 2 is docked with the charging station 2 (Yes) charging the battery 18 of the mobile robot 1 and calculating the current position of the mobile robot 1 if not docked (No) Returning to step S55 (S58); If the determination result is not the position recognition area of the charging station (No in S51) or if there is no recognition mark in front (No in S54), the mobile robot 1 is moved to the charging station 2 position recognition area and the initial step is performed. And returning to step S51 (S59).

Referring to the operation and effect of the present invention made of such a configuration and steps as follows.

First, the system of the present invention includes a mobile robot 1 which calculates its own position through the photographing of the front recognition mark and the ceiling recognition mark, and the charging function and the front of the battery 18 mounted on the mobile robot 1. The main technical configuration consists of a charging station 2 that forms a light emission recognition mark on the ceiling.

In this case, the mobile robot 1 includes a mobile robot driver 11, a charging unit 12, a communication unit 13, a sensor unit 14, a camera unit 15, a power supply unit 16, and a mobile robot control unit 17. The mobile robot driver 11 is driven by the mobile robot controller 17 to directly drive the mobile robot 1, and the charging unit 12 is charged by the mobile robot controller 17. It is connected to the charging terminal 121 of the station 2 to supply power to the mobile robot 1 and at the same time to charge the battery 18, the communication unit 13 is a remote control (not shown) and the charging station ( 2) the two-way communication with the sensor, the sensor unit 14 detects the state of the various obstacles and the bottom surface to prevent the mobile robot 1 to fall to a low place, including the detection of the obstacle, the mobile robot Transfer to the control unit 17.

In addition, the camera unit 15 includes a front camera 151 equipped with a fisheye lens for recognizing a front recognition mark of the charging station 2, an upper camera 152 for recognizing a ceiling recognition mark, and the front and upper cameras. The vision board 153 controls the driving of the cameras 151 and 152. In this case, the vision board 153 of the camera unit 15 is forward on the images input from the front and upper cameras 151 and 152. And the position of the ceiling recognition mark to find the position of the charging station 2 and the position of the ceiling recognition mark, and the camera used is equipped with an infrared band pass filter between the lens and the CCD in a typical general camera. In addition, the front camera 151 may be equipped with a fisheye lens to measure the position of the mobile robot 1 by performing a single recognition algorithm over a wide range.

In addition, the power supply unit 16 supplies power to each part of the mobile robot 1, the mobile robot control unit 17 performs the overall control function of the mobile robot 1 through the execution of various control programs to be described later Done.

On the other hand, the charging station 2 is composed of a charging unit 21, the front recognition mark irradiator 22, the ceiling recognition mark irradiator 23, the communication unit 24, the power supply unit 25 and the charging station controller 26 At this time, the charging unit 21 serves to charge and supply power to the battery 18 of the mobile robot 1 under the control of the charging station control unit 26, the front recognition mark irradiation unit 22 is a plurality of The infrared light is irradiated to the front part through the light emitting device 221 so that the mobile robot 1 can recognize the charging station 2, and the ceiling recognition mark irradiator 23 lasers the plurality of laser diodes 231. The light is irradiated to the ceiling to allow the mobile robot 1 to recognize the location of the indoor space.

In addition, the communication unit 24 receives a command from the mobile robot 1 and transmits it to the charging station control unit 26, the power supply unit 25 supplies power to each part of the charging station 2, the charging station control unit Reference numeral 26 performs an overall control function of the charging station 2 through various control programs.

On the other hand, the charging station (2) is basically a device for the purpose of automatic charging of the mobile robot (1) is placed on the floor surface in the indoor space, and also the charging station (2) in front and ceiling as described above Since the recognition mark irradiator (22) and (23) are mounted, the position recognition of the mobile robot (1) is possible. Therefore, the position recognition mark does not need to be installed separately. do.

In addition, the front recognition mark irradiation unit 22 installed in the charging station 2 is located in the front of the charging station 2, such a front recognition mark irradiation unit 22 as shown in Figure 4 It consists of a light emitting element 221 and a transparent window 222 for protecting it.

At this time, the light emitting device 221 is flashing is operated in accordance with the control signal of the mobile robot 1, the mobile robot 1 through the front camera 151 to display a flashing image of the front recognition mark on the charging station (2) Obtained to measure the position of the mobile robot 1 through the recognition mark recognition algorithm.

The light emitting element 221 applied to the front recognition mark irradiator 22 is composed of an infrared light emitting diode having a wavelength of 75 nm or more, and an infrared light emitting diode of the near infrared band. A transparent window 222 is attached for protection.

In this case, the transparent window 222 may use a transparent matte lavaton soft fill paint in a transparent acrylic material to maximize light transmittance of the light emitting device 221 and minimize reflectance by an external light source.

In addition, the arrangement of the front recognition mark formed by the front recognition mark irradiator 22 installed in the charging station 2 is because the bottom of the traveling space of the mobile robot 1 is uneven, the front and upper camera 151 ( In order to cope with the height change of 152, the position of the charging station 2 can be measured by mounting the emission recognition marks through two or more linear arrays.

FIG. 5 shows various embodiments of the front recognition mark formed by the front recognition mark irradiator 22. Three or four infrared light emitting devices may be arranged in an inverted triangle or a triangle, and four may be quadrangles. Of course, it can be arranged in the form of, of course, two or three of the five can be arranged at regular intervals up and down, respectively, six can be arranged up and down, such arrangement is simply It is only an example and is not limited to this.

In the above, the ceiling recognition mark irradiating part 23 for forming a ceiling recognition mark for position recognition when the mobile robot 1 travels in an indoor space is mounted on the upper surface of the charging station 2 at an angle toward the ceiling. In this case, the light source used is a near-infrared laser diode having a wavelength of 750 nm or more, and the light emitted to the ceiling has an amount of light that can be observed by the camera 152 above the mobile robot 1.

In the present invention, the output light of the near-infrared laser diode is 0.8 mW, but is not limited thereto.

In addition, the formation of the light irradiated by the ceiling recognition mark irradiator 23 may have various forms, as shown in FIG. 6, but this is not limited thereto and may also provide other various forms.

And, Figure 7 is possible to recognize the position of the mobile robot 1 through the position recognition area of the charging station (2) by the front recognition mark and the ceiling recognition mark made by light on the ceiling by the ceiling recognition mark irradiator (23). As shown in the drawing, in the present invention, the position recognition region of the charging station 2 is set as a fan-shaped region having a radius of 2 m and an angle of 90 degrees with respect to the charging station 2, and the position recognition region of the mobile robot 1 Although it is set to a circular area of 6m in diameter based on the ceiling recognition mark, this is also not limited thereto.

On the other hand, the method of the present invention in the known position recognition method as shown in Figure 8, the charging station 2 is attached to the floor of the traveling space (S11), the power plug of the charging station 2 to the power source in the traveling space Installing the charging station 2 equipped with the front and ceiling recognition mark irradiating portions 22 and 23, which are inserted into the outlet (S12) (S1), and then measure the position of the recognition mark (S2), and Recognizing the position of the mobile robot through the recognition mark (S3) and then recognizes the position of the mobile robot 1 and automatically runs (S4), if the remaining battery 18 is below the threshold step of the automatic charging (S5).

At this time, the step of measuring the position of the recognition mark (S2), as shown in Figure 9, when the recognition mark position measurement command is received and recognize the ceiling recognition mark (S21), the position of the recognition mark on the recognized image After storing the point (S22), and then linearly traveling by a predetermined distance (for example, 1M) (S23), after recognizing the ceiling recognition mark formed by the ceiling recognition mark irradiator 23 (S24) and recognizing the recognized image After storing the mark position point (S25), calculating the ratio between the distance difference between the recognition mark position point before and after the movement and the driving distance (S26) and calculating the ceiling height based on the ratio between the distance difference and the driving distance calculated above. After storing (S27) to measure the position of the charging station (2) (S28), based on the charging station (2) to store the position of the ceiling recognition mark (S29).

That is, in the step (S2) of measuring the position of the recognition mark, the height of the ceiling and the position of the recognition mark on the ceiling are measured. In this case, the light irradiated from the ceiling recognition mark irradiator 23 forms an image on the ceiling but Since the position is changed according to the height of the installation space, the mobile robot 1 measures the position of the ceiling recognition mark through the ceiling recognition mark position measurement step.

In other words, the mobile robot 1 recognizes the recognition mark under the ceiling recognition mark position recognition area, moves a predetermined distance, and then recognizes the recognition mark, thereby moving the position and image on the image of the recognition mark measured at the start point of movement. After the height of the ceiling is measured by the ratio between the position of the recognition mark on the image and the distance actually moved, the mobile robot 1 recognizes the front recognition mark and recognizes the position of the ceiling recognition mark.

In addition, the mobile robot position recognition step (S3), as shown in FIG. 10, determines that the ceiling recognition mark position recognition area is received when the mobile robot 1 position measurement command is received (S31), and as a result, the ceiling recognition mark. If the position recognition area (Yes in S31), the ceiling recognition mark blinking signal is transmitted (S32) to receive a blinking image through the upper camera 152 of the mobile robot 1 (S33), and then the position recognition mark on the ceiling image. (S34), and as a result, if there is a position recognition mark on the ceiling image (Yes in S34), the position of the recognition mark on the image is extracted (S35) and the current position of the mobile robot is calculated based on this (S36). However, if it is not the ceiling recognition mark position recognition area in the above (No in S31) or if the position recognition mark does not exist on the ceiling image (No in S34), the mobile robot 1 is moved through the wall following (S37). do.

That is, in the position recognition step (S3) of the mobile robot 1, the ceiling recognition mark is recognized through the camera unit 15 of the mobile robot 1 to measure the position in the indoor space of the mobile robot 1. When the mobile robot 1 receives the position recognition command, the mobile robot controller 17 checks whether the current position is inside the ceiling recognition mark position recognition area, and if the ceiling recognition mark position recognition area, the charging station mark blinking signal is charged. (2) after receiving the blinking signal through the upper camera 152 of the mobile robot 1 to extract the position of the recognition mark on the image to measure the current position of the mobile robot 1, but receives the blinking signal If not, the mobile robot 1 autonomously moves to the ceiling recognition mark recognition area, retakes it, and measures the position of the mobile robot 1, thereby accurately recognizing the location of the mobile robot 1. .

On the other hand, the automatic battery charging step (S5), as shown in Figure 11, when the automatic charging command is received, it is determined whether the location of the charging station (2) (S51), and as a result of the charging station (2) If the position recognition area (Yes in S51) transmits a blinking signal for the front recognition mark (S52), and receives a blinking image through the front camera 151 of the mobile robot (S53) and then the recognition mark in front If there is a recognition mark in front of the result (S54), the current position of the mobile robot 1 is calculated (S55), and then the calculated position of the mobile robot 1 is calculated. Based on the current position, the mobile station 1 and the mobile motion for docking is calculated (S56), and the mobile station 1 and the mobile robot 1 for docking are based on the calculated value for the mobile motion (S57). After docking with the charging station (2) If the battery 18 of the mobile robot 1 is charged and is not docked (No), the process returns to the step S55 of calculating the current position of the mobile robot 1 (S58). If the determination result is not the position recognition area of the charging station (No in S51) or if there is no recognition mark in front (No in S54), the mobile robot 1 is moved to the charging station 2 position recognition area and the initial step (S51). Is returned to (S59).

That is, in the automatic charging step S5, the mobile robot 1 is moved to the charging station 2 to dock the charging terminal 19 of the mobile robot 1 at the charging terminal 27 of the charging station 2. : Bonding).

At this time, the mobile robot 1 performs a function such as automatic cleaning and continuously checks the remaining capacity of the battery 18 in the power supply unit 16 and the remaining amount of the battery 18 is below the threshold or by a remote control not shown When the automatic charging command is received or when the function being performed is completed, the mobile robot controller 17 operates the automatic charging mode.

When the automatic charging mode is activated as described above, the mobile robot control unit 17 transmits the autonomous driving and the stop command of the function execution to the mobile robot drive unit 11, and then moves the mobile robot 1 through the ceiling recognition mark as shown in FIG. 11A. The mobile robot 1 is moved to the expected position of the charging station 2 by measuring the position of the mobile station. In this case, the mobile robot controller 17 forward-recognizes the mark signal blinking on the communication unit 24 of the charging station 2. Transmits and requests the camera unit 15 to acquire the image data.

In addition, on the communication unit 24 of the charging station 2 that has transmitted the recognition mark blinking signal, the recognition mark blinks at a predetermined time interval through the charging station controller 26, and the camera unit 15 of the mobile robot 1 A flashing image of the recognition mark is generated and sent to the vision board 153. The vision board 153 moves the robot 1 based on the charging station 2 through a mark recognition algorithm process from the input recognition mark blinking image. The current position and angle information of) is output to the mobile robot controller 17.

Subsequently, the mobile robot controller 17 uses the current position and angle information of the inputted mobile robot 1 to calibrate the mobile robot 1 to the charging docking position as shown in FIG. 12B to charge the mobile robot 1. The terminal 19 is docked with the charging terminal 27 of the charging station 2.

At this time, while the mobile robot 1 is being moved, the camera unit 15 acquires an image of a recognition mark at a predetermined time interval and transmits it to the vision board 153, and the vision board 153 receives the input. The current position of (1) is periodically transmitted to the mobile robot controller 17.

Also, the charging unit 12 of the mobile robot 1 continuously checks whether the charging terminal 19 is docked and transmits a charging docking success signal to the mobile robot control unit 17 when the docking succeeds. The controller 17 stops the functions of the mobile robot driver 11 and the sensor unit 14 until charging is completed or a driving command is received, and charges the battery 18 of the mobile robot 1.

Although the above-described embodiments have been described with respect to the most preferred embodiments of the present invention, it is not limited to the above embodiments, and it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications can be made without departing from the technical spirit of the present invention.

As described above, according to the present invention, first, in the case of the conventional position recognition device, there is a complexity of the process of installing a charging station for charging and additionally installing the position recognition mark equipment. Since the irradiation unit is installed in the charging station, no additional equipment for position recognition is required.

Second, in the case of the conventional position recognition device, a complicated installation process of fixing the position recognition mark on the ceiling or the wall or the floor on the correct position and inputting the position of the position recognition mark to the mobile robot requires a charging station in the present invention. Is placed on the floor and power is supplied, so the installation process is simple.

Third, in the case of the conventional position recognition device, after fixing the position recognition mark on the ceiling, the wall or the floor, in order to grasp the position on the space of the position recognition mark, the robot must be manually inputted to the height of the ceiling or the position on the wall. While the inconvenience of recognizing the present invention, the mobile robot does not need manual adjustment through the recognition mark position measuring step of setting the position on the driving space of the position recognition mark itself.

Fourth, even when the installation position of the position recognition mark is changed, only the installation position of the charging station is changed, thereby changing the recognition mark position change operation, and even when the height of the ceiling is changed, no manual manual operation is required, and the recognition mark offset is offset. Through the measuring method, the mobile robot recognizes the height change by itself.

Fifth, the conventional location recognition device has the inconvenience of manually inputting the location of the charging station when generating the driving space map, but in the present invention, since the location recognition mark is attached to the charging station, the additional input operation of the charging station location is It is unnecessary.

Sixth, in the case of the conventional position recognition device, only the x, y coordinate values of the position points are output in the case of the relative position coordinates away from the recognition mark to the mobile robot, that is, the rectangular coordinate system based on the position recognition device. The output data of the position measuring step outputs not only the coordinate point (x, y) where the mobile robot is located on the rectangular coordinate system with the charging station as origin, but also the inclination angle information between the mobile robot and the charging station. Outputs vector information including the center position of the robot and the current direction of the mobile robot.

Seventh, the use of an infrared laser light source does not give a disgusting appearance because it is invisible to the human eye.

Fourth, it is possible to recognize the position of the charging station regardless of the change in ambient illumination (i.e. night or day or even when the indoor lighting is turned off).

Ninth, by using a front camera equipped with a fisheye lens, it is possible to recognize a wide range at once, thereby reducing the recognition time and significantly expanding the recognition range.

Tenth, since only the high luminance reflected light formed on the ceiling is recognized, it has the same recognition rate as the method of attaching the position recognition mark on the ceiling, and thus the false recognition rate due to the reflected light is reduced compared to the method of irradiating the ceiling with the infrared light emitting diode. I can eliminate it.

Eleventh, it is a very useful invention such that the location recognition range of the mobile robot can be greatly expanded by installing a plurality of position recognition mark parts in addition to the charging station position recognition mark irradiator.

Claims (6)

A mobile robot driving unit for driving the mobile robot, a charging unit connected to the charging terminal of the charging station to charge the battery, a communication unit for performing bidirectional communication with the remote control and the charging station, and a sensor unit for preventing obstacle detection and fall And a camera unit comprising a front camera equipped with a fisheye lens for recognizing a front recognition mark of a charging station, an upper camera for recognizing a ceiling recognition mark, and a vision board for controlling driving of the front and upper cameras. A mobile robot configured to supply a power supply unit and a mobile robot control unit to perform an overall control function of the mobile robot through a control program and calculate a magnetic position by photographing the front recognition mark and the ceiling recognition mark; A charging unit having a charging terminal and supplying power to the battery of the mobile robot, a front recognition mark irradiation unit for irradiating infrared light to the front through a plurality of light emitting elements so that the mobile robot can recognize the charging station; A ceiling recognition mark irradiation unit for irradiating a laser light to the ceiling through two laser diodes so that the mobile robot recognizes the location of the indoor space, a communication unit for receiving a command from the mobile robot, a power unit for supplying power to each unit, and control Positioning system of a mobile robot using a charging station comprising a charging station control unit which performs a general control function of a charging station through a program, and a charging station configured to form a light recognition mark on the front and ceiling of the battery. . In the position recognition method that the mobile robot which runs by itself using the recognition mark research device installed in the charging station that does not need the installation process can identify the position of the recognition mark, automatically drive and automatically charge it, Installing a charging station equipped with front and ceiling recognition mark irradiation units; Measuring the position of the recognition mark; Recognizing a position of the mobile robot through a recognition mark; Recognizing the position of the mobile robot and automatically driving; Automatic charging when the remaining battery is below the threshold; Position recognition method of a mobile robot using a charging station comprising a. The method according to claim 2, Installing the charging station, Attaching a charging station to the floor of the traveling space; Inserting the power plug of the charging station into the power outlet on the driving space; Position recognition method of a mobile robot using a charging station, characterized in that consisting of. The method according to claim 2, Measuring the position of the recognition mark, Recognizing a ceiling recognition mark when a recognition mark position measuring command is received; Storing a recognition mark position point on the recognized image; Linearly traveling by a predetermined distance; Recognizing the ceiling recognition mark; Storing the recognition mark position point on the recognized image; Calculating a ratio between the distance difference between the recognition mark position points before and after the movement and the driving distance; Calculating and storing the ceiling height based on the ratio between the distance difference and the driving distance calculated above; Measuring the position of the charging station; Storing the position of the ceiling recognition mark on the basis of the charging station; Position recognition method of a mobile robot using a charging station, characterized in that consisting of. The method according to claim 2, The mobile robot position recognition step, Determining whether it is a ceiling recognition mark position recognition area when a mobile robot position measurement command is received; Transmitting a ceiling recognition mark blinking signal in the ceiling recognition mark position recognition area; Receiving a blinking image through an upper camera of the mobile robot; Determining whether there is a position recognition mark on the ceiling image; Extracting a recognition mark position on the image when the position recognition mark is present on the ceiling image; Calculating a current position of the mobile robot based on the recognition mark position extraction value; Moving the robot by following the wall if the location of the ceiling recognition mark is not the location recognition area or the location recognition mark on the ceiling image; and a method of recognizing the location of the mobile robot using a charging station. The method according to claim 2, The automatic battery charging step, Determining whether a location recognition area of a charging station is received when an automatic charging command is received; Transmitting a blinking signal for the forward recognition mark in the position recognition region of the charging station; Receiving a blinking image through a front camera of the mobile robot; Determining whether a recognition mark exists in front; Calculating a current position of the mobile robot when a recognition mark exists in front; Calculating a moving motion for the charging station and the docking based on the calculated current position of the mobile robot; Moving the mobile robot for docking with the charging station based on the calculated value for the mobile motion; Determining whether the docking station is docked with the charging station, and charging the battery of the mobile robot when docked, and calculating a current position of the mobile robot when docked; If the result of the determination is not the location recognition area of the charging station or if there is no recognition mark in front of the mobile station to move to the charging station location recognition area and returning to the initial stage; the movement using the charging station, characterized in that consisting of How to recognize the position of the robot.

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