TW202036317A - Method for robot to dock with charging station in which the robot moves toward a charging station by alternately entering an overlapping area and an un-overlapping area defined by transmission ranges of two transmission signals from the charging station - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a method for a robot to dock with a charging station and is applicable between a robot and a charging station. The charging station outputs two transmission signals. Transmission ranges of the two transmission signals form an overlapping area and an un-overlapping area at a predetermined distance in front of the charging station, and a dead zone of the two transmission signals is formed within a predetermined distance. When the robot needs to move to the charging station, the robot detects an entry into the overlapping area or the un-overlapping area and moves in the direction of the charging station by alternately entering and exiting the overlapping area and non-overlapping area until the robot moves into the dead area, that is, directly moves toward the charging station, otherwise, the robot moves to the dead zone and then turns back and moves toward the charging station so that the robot stops at the charging station.

Description

Method for docking robot and charging station

The present invention relates to a robot, especially when the robot needs to be charged, the robot moves to the charging station for charging by using the emission signal of the charging station as a guide.

In recent years, the rapid development of the robotics industry has made people’s daily lives more and more related to robot products. In particular, the sales volume of cleaning robots (automatic sweeping or mopping robots) has increased year by year, and the sales volume is still extremely large. There is room for growth, so many industry players have invested in this field and are constantly developing new technologies.

For example, most cleaning robots use rechargeable batteries to provide the required power. In order to allow the cleaning robots to automatically move to the charging station for charging with the remaining power when the rechargeable battery is low, so as to avoid the robot’s power consumption. Stopped anywhere at will, users have to find the robot by themselves, causing inconvenience in use. Therefore, many companies have proposed solutions to this problem, for example: US Patent No. US9749196 filed by the US iRobot Company , Please refer to its manual from line 31 of column 13 to line 31 of column 13 is that the base station is equipped with a right signal transmitter and a left signal transmitter. When the robot (robotic device) needs to be charged, enters Move within the signal range of the right signal or left signal emitted by the right signal transmitter or the left signal transmitter, and move in the direction of the overlap area of the right signal and the left signal. After that, the robot follows a path when it enters the overlap area (M _F ) is close to the charging station, and at least a part of this path is in the overlapping area.

The above-mentioned path of the robot moving to the charging station is limited to the overlapping area of the right signal and the left signal to follow the path, and the overlapping area of the right signal and the left signal needs to be quite close to the charging station so that the front and rear axis of the robot can be aligned with the charging station . In other words, the charging station needs to specify the use of a transmitter of a specific specification and install it in a fairly limited position, so that when the robot moves into the overlapping area, the front and rear axis of the robot is aligned with the charging station. This approach has limited the way the robot moves, so it is necessary to provide a different solution to prevent the charging station from moving to the overlapping area in order to accurately move to the charging station for charging.

In view of the problems of the prior art, the purpose of the present invention is to allow the robot to use multiple paths to move close to the charging station and perform charging.

According to the purpose of the present invention, the present invention provides a method for docking a robot with a charging station, which is applied between a robot and a charging station. The charging station outputs two transmission signals, and the transmission range of the two transmission signals is a predetermined distance in front of the charging station An overlapping area and a non-overlapping area are formed there, and the two blank areas for transmitting signals are formed within the predetermined distance. When the robot needs to move to the charging station, the robot detects that it has entered the overlapping area or the non-overlapping area, and the robot moves in the direction of the charging station by alternately entering and leaving the overlapping area and non-overlapping area until the robot moves to the blank area Inside, that is, move directly toward the charging station and let the robot stop at the charging station, or move the robot to a blank area and then turn back and move towards the charging station, so that the robot stops at the charging station.

Among them, the charging station has two signal transmitters, each of which outputs one of the transmitted signals. The signal transmitter is a signal transmitter such as a radio frequency signal, an infrared signal, or an ultrasonic signal.

Among them, each transmission signal has different identification characteristics, and the identification characteristics of the transmission signal are different codes, different frequencies or signal phases, so that the robot can distinguish each transmission signal.

Among them, the robot faces the direction of the charging station and alternately enters and exits the overlapping area or the non-overlapping area. The robot enters one of the non-overlapping areas. The robot knows the direction of the other non-overlapping area, and the robot faces the overlapping area and The direction of the charging station moves. Once the robot detects that it has entered the overlapping area, the robot moves toward the previous non-overlapping area and the direction of the charging station, and then alternately enters and exits the overlapping area or moves between the non-overlapping areas until the robot moves blank Area, that is, move directly toward the charging station and let the robot stop at the charging station, or move the robot to a blank area and then turn the direction and then move back toward the charging station, and let the robot stop at the charging station.

Among them, the robot faces the charging station and alternately enters and exits the overlapping area or the non-overlapping area. The robot enters one of the non-overlapping areas. The robot knows the direction of the other non-overlapping area, and the robot faces the other non-overlapping area and The direction of the charging station moves until the robot detects that it has entered another overlapping area. The robot moves in the direction of the overlapping area and the charging station. Then the robot detects that it has entered the overlapping area and then heads to the previous non-overlapping area and the charging station. Move in the direction of the charging station, and then alternately move in and out of the overlapping area or non-overlapping area until the robot moves to the blank area, that is, directly moves toward the charging station, and the robot stops at the charging station or the robot moves to the blank area and then turns to Retreat and move towards the charging station, allowing the robot to stop at the charging station.

Among them, the robot faces the direction of the charging station and alternately enters and exits the overlapping area or the non-overlapping area. The robot enters the overlapping area, and the robot continues to move to any non-overlapping area, that is, determine the current non-overlapping area and the overlapping area. In the middle direction, the robot moves between the overlap and the previously entered non-overlap area, and then alternately moves in and out of the overlap area or between the non-overlap area until the robot moves in the blank area, that is, directly moves toward the charging station and stops the robot in The charging station, or the robot moves to a blank area and then turns around, then retreats and moves towards the charging station, allowing the robot to park at the charging station.

In summary, the present invention has one or more of the following advantages:

1. The robot moves to the charging station in a different walking path.

2. The robot can move to the charging station with multiple paths.

3. The transmitter specifications of the charging station and the location of the transmitter are no longer limited to the technical features of the previous proposal, but there are other specifications and location options.

1‧‧‧Robot

10‧‧‧Signal Sensor

2‧‧‧Charging station

20‧‧‧Signal Transmitter

3‧‧‧Overlap area

4‧‧‧Non-overlapping area

5‧‧‧Empty area

Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of the robot and charging station of the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a schematic diagram of movement of the first embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 3 is a schematic diagram of movement of the second embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 4 is a schematic diagram of movement of the third embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 5 is a schematic diagram of movement of the fourth embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 6 is a schematic diagram of movement of the fifth embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 7 is a schematic diagram of movement of the sixth embodiment of the present invention.

In order to help your examiners understand the features, content and advantages of the present invention and the effects that can be achieved, the present invention is described in detail with the accompanying drawings and in the form of embodiment expressions as follows. The drawings used in the text are: The subject matter is only for illustration and supplementary description, so it should not limit the patent scope of the present invention in actual implementation.

Please refer to Figures 1 and 2. The present invention is a method for docking the robot 1 with the charging station 2, which is applied between the robot 1 and the charging station 2. The charging station 2 has two signal transmitters 20, which output one of them respectively. Transmit the signal. The signal transmitter 20 is a signal transmitter 20 such as a radio frequency signal, an infrared signal or an ultrasonic signal, but is not limited thereto. And each transmission signal has a different identification feature, and the identification feature of the transmission signal is a different code, a different frequency or a signal phase, so that the robot 1 can distinguish each transmission signal. Furthermore, the transmission range of the two transmitted signals forms an overlapping area 3 and a non-overlapping area 43 at a predetermined distance in front of the charging station 2, and a blank area 5 of the two transmitted signals is formed within the predetermined distance.

Furthermore, the robot 1 is provided with a signal sensor 10 for sensing each transmitted signal. The signal sensor 10 is usually designed at a position where the top surface of the robot 1 faces the forward direction of the robot 1. When the robot 1 needs to move to the charging station At 2 o'clock, the signal sensor 10 detects one of the transmitted signals while the robot 1 is moving, which means that the robot 1 has entered one of the non-overlapping areas 43. The robot 1 is moving and the signal sensor 10 simultaneously detects Two emission signals are detected, indicating that the robot 1 enters the overlapping area 3. Whether the robot 1 enters the overlapping area 3 or the non-overlapping area 43 first, it faces the charging station 2 and alternately enters and exits the overlapping area 3 or does not overlap. Move in the manner of area 43 until the robot 1 cannot detect any transmission signal, which means that the robot 1 moves to the blank area 5, and the robot 1 moves directly toward the charging station 2, and allows the robot 1 to park at the charging station 2, or the robot 1 Move to the blank area 5 and then turn the direction, then retreat and move towards the charging station 2 so that the robot 1 stops at the charging station 2. In other words, when the robot 1 needs to move to the charging station 2, no matter whether it first enters the overlapping area 3 or the non-overlapping area 43, the walking path of the robot 1 can be said to be along any side edge of the overlapping area 3, alternately in and out The overlapping area 3 and the non-overlapping area 43 are moved towards the charging station 2 until the robot 1 moves into the blank area 5, that is, it moves directly towards the charging station 2 and allows the robot 1 to stop at Charging station 2.

In order to give people a better understanding of the walking mode of the robot 1 in this case, the robot 1 may be on either side edge of the overlap area 3, and alternately enter and exit the overlap area 3 and the non-overlap area 43 toward the direction of the charging station 2 below. The moving method is explained: in the first and second embodiments of the present invention, please refer to Figures 2 and 3, the charging station 2 is provided with a right signal transmitter 20 and a left signal transmitter 20, and a right signal transmitter 20 emits a right transmission signal, and the left signal transmitter 20 emits a left transmission signal. The robot 1 faces the charging station 2 and alternately enters and exits the overlapping area 3 and the non-overlapping area 43. Once the robot 1 enters the non-overlapping area 43 where the signal is emitted from the left or the right, the robot 1 confirms the overlap area 3 and non-overlapping area 43 The direction of the overlapping area 43 allows the robot 1 to move toward the overlapping area 3 and the charging station 2, and then the robot 1 detects that it has entered the overlapping area 3 while moving, and the robot 1 then faces the previous non-overlapping area 43 and charging station Move in the direction of 2, and then alternately move in and out of the overlapping area 3 or non-overlapping area 43 until the robot 1 moves the blank area 5, that is, directly moves toward the charging station 2, and allows the robot 1 to park at the charging station 2, or the robot 1 Move to the blank area 5 and then turn the direction, then retreat and move towards the charging station 2 so that the robot 1 stops at the charging station 2.

In the third and fourth embodiments of the present invention, please refer to Figures 4 and 5. The difference between the third and fourth embodiments and the first and second embodiments is that the robot 1 first enters the overlapping area 3, namely Determine the direction between the current non-overlapping area 43 and the overlapping area 3, the robot 1 chooses to continue to one of the non-overlapping areas 43, then the robot 1 detects that it has entered the non-overlapping area 43, and then goes to the overlapping area 3 and the charging station Move in the direction of 2 until it enters the overlapping area 3, and then alternately move in and out of the overlapping area 3 or non-overlapping area 43 until the robot 1 moves the blank area 5, that is, directly moves toward the charging station 2 and makes the robot 1 stop At charging station 2, or robot 1 moves to blank area 5 and then turns, Move backward and move towards the charging station 2 so that the robot 1 stops at the charging station 2.

In the fifth and sixth embodiments of the present invention, please refer to Figures 6 and 7. The difference between the fifth and sixth embodiments and the first and second embodiments is that after the robot 1 enters one of the non-overlapping areas 43 , The robot 1 moves toward the direction of the other non-overlapping area 43 and the charging station 2 until the robot 1 detects that it passes the overlapping area 3 and enters the other overlapping area 3, and the robot 1 then moves in the direction of the overlapping area 3 and the charging station 2 Move, then the robot 1 detects that it has entered the overlapping area 3, and then moves in the direction of the previous non-overlapping area 43 and the charging station 2, and then alternately in and out of the overlapping area 3 or moving between the non-overlapping area 43 until Robot 1 moves blank area 5, that is, directly moves toward charging station 2, and allows robot 1 to park at charging station 2, or robot 1 moves into blank area 5 and then turns, and then retreats toward charging station 2 to move robot 1 Stop at charging station 2.

In the present invention, when the robot 1 enters any overlapping area 3 or non-overlapping area 43, it can know the direction of the overlapping area 3 or the non-overlapping area 43. The reason is that the left emission signal or the right emission signal has different identification characteristics. The identification characteristics of the left and right transmitted signals can be one of different codes, different frequencies or signal phases, so that the robot 1 can distinguish the transmitted signals according to the identification characteristics, so that the robot 1 can enter any overlapping area 3 or not. The overlapping area 43 can be moved to the overlapping area 3 or the non-overlapping area 43 correctly.

To sum up, when the robot 1 needs to move to the charging station 2, the robot 1 will have multiple paths to move to the charging station 2, instead of the previous patents mentioned in the previous technology, the robot 1 will only overlap the signal After zone 3 moves, it moves directly towards charging station 2.

The above are only preferred embodiments of the present invention, and are not used to limit the scope of implementation of the present invention; if the present invention is modified or equivalently replaced without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention, it shall be covered by the protection of the scope of the present invention. In the range.

1‧‧‧Robot

10‧‧‧Signal Sensor

2‧‧‧Charging station

20‧‧‧Signal Transmitter

3‧‧‧Overlap area

4‧‧‧Non-overlapping area

5‧‧‧Empty area

Claims (5)

A method for docking a robot with a charging station is applied between a robot and a power station. The charging station outputs two transmission signals. The transmission range of the two transmission signals forms an overlapping area and a non-overlapping area at a predetermined distance in front of the charging station. And form a blank area for the two signals to be emitted within the predetermined distance. When the robot needs to move to the charging station, the robot performs the following steps: the robot detects that it has entered the overlapping area or the non-overlapping area; the robot alternately enters and exits this area. The overlapping area and the non-overlapping area move towards the charging station; until the robot moves into the blank area, it moves directly towards the charging station and allows the robot to park at the charging station, or the robot moves to the blank area and then turns back towards charging The station moves, allowing the robot to stop at the charging station. The method for docking a robot with a charging station as described in claim 1, wherein each transmission signal has a different identification feature, and each identification feature of each transmission signal is a different code, a different frequency or a signal phase, and the robot distinguishes each The transmitted signal is determined to be in the overlapping area, the non-overlapping area or the blank area. The method for docking a robot with a charging station as described in claim 1, wherein the robot faces the charging station and alternately enters and exits the overlapping area or the non-overlapping area, including: the robot enters one of the non-overlapping areas Inside, the robot confirms the direction of the other non-overlapping area; the robot moves toward the overlapping area and the direction of the charging station; the robot detects that it has entered the overlapping area, and the robot then faces the previous non-overlapping area and Move in the direction of the charging station, and move in and out of overlapping areas or non-overlapping areas repeatedly move. The method for docking a robot with a charging station according to claim 1, wherein the robot faces the charging station and alternately enters and exits the overlapping area or the non-overlapping area in a moving manner that includes: the robot enters one of the non-overlapping areas In the area, the robot confirms the direction of the other non-overlapping area; the robot moves in the direction of the other non-overlapping area and the charging station; until the robot detects that it enters the other overlapping area, the robot moves toward the overlapping area Then the robot detects that it has entered the overlapping area, and then moves in the direction of the previous non-overlapping area and the charging station, and then alternately enters and exits the overlapping area or the non-overlapping area. Move between overlapping areas. The method for docking a robot with a charging station according to claim 1, wherein the robot faces the charging station and alternately enters and exits the overlapping area or the non-overlapping area in a moving manner that includes: the robot enters the overlapping area, The robot continues to advance to any of the non-overlapping areas, that is, determining the direction between the current non-overlapping area and the overlapping area; the robot moves in the overlapping area and the previously entered non-overlapping area, and then alternately entering and leaving the overlapping area accordingly Or move between non-overlapping areas.

Images