WO2015139618A1

WO2015139618A1 - Suction state determination and locomotion control method for suction robot

Info

Publication number: WO2015139618A1
Application number: PCT/CN2015/074409
Authority: WO
Inventors: 汤进举
Original assignee: 科沃斯机器人有限公司
Priority date: 2014-03-17
Filing date: 2015-03-17
Publication date: 2015-09-24
Also published as: CN104921672B; CN104921672A

Abstract

A suction state determination and locomotion control method for a suction robot (100, 200), comprising: step 1: the suction robot (100, 200) is in a first movement state; step 2: the degrees of vacuum of M suction plates arranged at the bottom of a body of the suction robot (100, 200) are detected, and if a detection result is that the number N of leaking suction plates is ≤1, the method returns to step 1, and if not, the method enters step 3; step 3: it is determined whether the N leaking suction plates at least include a first suction plate and a second suction plate, and that the position of the first suction plate is closer, with respect to the second suction plate, to the front of a movement direction of the first movement state of the suction robot (100, 200), and if so determined, the suction robot (100, 200) enters a second movement state, and if not so determined, the method returns to step 1. Operational reliability of the suction robot (100, 200) is thereby improved. Different factors affecting the degrees of vacuum of the suction plates are distinguished, and corresponding crossing or evading movements are executed, thereby improving obstacle-negotiation capability while ensuring suction plate operational reliability.

Description

Adsorption state judgment and walking control method of adsorption robot

Technical field

The invention relates to an adsorption state determination and a walking control method of an adsorption robot, and belongs to the technical field of small household appliance manufacturing.

Background technique

A wall-climbing robot is a special robot that can be attached to a vertical or inclined wall and can perform certain actions. The adsorption unit is a very important part of the wall-climbing robot, which provides the robot with an adsorption force that allows the robot to reliably adsorb on the wall. The adsorption capacity of the adsorption unit directly affects the working efficiency, performance and wall adaptability of the robot. Therefore, the design of a reasonable adsorption unit is a key technology for wall climbing robots.

The existing single suction cup negative pressure adsorption wall climbing robot has a simple structure and low cost, and can realize the rapid movement of the wall climbing robot, and the working efficiency is high, but the vacuum adsorption method requires strict sealing conditions on the adsorption unit cavity, if working If there are cracks or bumps on the wall, or if the robot walks to the frameless boundary and the detection unit judges the error, it will cause air leakage of the adsorption unit, and the vacuum of the adsorption unit will decrease, causing the robot to drop.

The document of the publication number CN 101822513A discloses a wall cleaning robot in which a plurality of suction cups are staggered at the bottom of the fuselage so that they have a certain ability to span the gap. However, the wall cleaning robot cannot recognize the large crack on the wall surface, and cannot recognize that the walking position of the robot is already at the edge position of the wall. When the robot encounters a large gap during walking or walks on the edge of the frameless glass or wall, due to air leakage at the larger crack, all the suction cups will fail, or the robot will walk to the edge of the wall. Dropped directly and damaged.

Summary of the invention

The technical problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide an adsorption state determination and a walking control method for the adsorption robot according to the deficiencies of the prior art, which can further verify the accuracy of the detection result of the detection unit and improve the reliability of the adsorption robot operation; Different factors affecting the vacuum degree of the suction cup are divided into obstacles and obstacles that can be crossed, and corresponding crossing or avoiding actions are performed, and the obstacle-blocking ability is improved under the premise of ensuring the reliability of the suction cup.

The technical problem to be solved by the present invention is achieved by the following technical solutions:

An adsorption state determination and a walking control method for an adsorption robot, the method comprising the following steps:

Step 1: The adsorption robot is in the first action state;

Step 2: Detect the vacuum degree of the M suction cups set at the bottom of the adsorption robot body, if the detection result For the number of leaking suction cups N ≤ 1, then return to step 1; otherwise, proceed to step 3;

Step 3: judging whether at least the first suction cup and the second suction cup are included in the N suction cups, and the setting position of the first suction cup is closer to the front of the movement direction of the first action state of the adsorption robot with respect to the second suction cup, if the judgment result is If yes, the adsorption robot enters the second operation state, and if the determination result is no, the process returns to step 1.

The N suction cups in the step 2 are suction cups disposed at any position of the M suction cups at the bottom of the body.

The method for determining whether the first suction cup and the second suction cup are included in the N suction cups in the step 3 is specifically: the number N of the leaking suction cups detected in real time and the number of the leaking suction cups stored in the previous moment. When N' is compared, if N>N', the N suction cups of the air leakage include the first suction cup and the second suction cup; otherwise, the N suction cups of the air leakage do not include the first suction cup and the second suction cup.

The M suction cups at the bottom of the body are set according to their positions in the first action direction of the adsorption robot, and the method for determining whether the N suction cups containing the first suction cup and the second suction cup are included in the step 3 Specifically, it is determined whether the position codes of the N suction cups that are leaking are completely the same, and if so, the N suction cups of the air leakage do not include the first suction cup and the second suction cup; otherwise, the N suction cups of the air leakage include the first suction cup And a second sucker.

In order to more effectively judge the adsorption state of the adsorption robot, the positions of the first suction cup and the second suction cup are preferably adjacent.

In a particular embodiment, M is 4 and N is 2. Preferably, the first action state is a forward state, the second action state is a steering state, and may also correspond to a stop state.

In order to prompt the user to pay attention, the step 3 further includes an alarm when the adsorption robot enters the second action state.

In order to achieve a better detection effect, the projections of any two of the M suction cups on the straight line of the traveling direction of the body are only partially overlapped or separated.

The beneficial effects of the invention are as follows: 1. The accuracy of the detection result of the detecting unit is further verified, and the reliability of the working of the robot is improved; 2. Different factors affecting the vacuum degree of the suction cup are divided into obstacles that can be crossed and obstacles that cannot be crossed, and executed. The corresponding crossing or evading action improves the obstacle-blocking ability under the premise of ensuring the reliability of the suction cup.

The technical solutions of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments.

DRAWINGS

1 is a schematic structural view of a bottom suction cup of an adsorption robot according to an embodiment of the present invention;

2 is a schematic view of a bottom suction cup of an adsorption robot according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention;

3 is a flow chart of the adsorption state determination and the walking control method of the adsorption robot of the present invention.

detailed description

Embodiment 1

As shown in FIG. 1 and in conjunction with FIG. 3, the adsorption state determination and the walking control method of the adsorption robot provided by the present invention specifically include the following steps:

Step 1: The adsorption robot 100 is in the first action state. The first action state in the step 1 refers to a forward state.

Step 2: Detecting the vacuum degree of the four suction cups disposed at the bottom of the body of the adsorption robot 100. If the detection result is that the number of air leakage suction cups is N ≤ 1, the process returns to step 1, and the adsorption robot continues to advance. The detection result is divided into two cases. One is that if N < 1, that is, no suction cup leaks, the adsorption robot is kept in the first action state - the forward state.

If N=1, that is, only one suction cup leaks, but there may be a misjudgment at this time, that is, there may be only a barrier that can lead to leakage of the adsorption robot such as protrusions, cracks, etc., rather than a large gap or Edge; or, the detecting unit itself judges an error or the like. In order to improve reliability, the adsorption robot must continue to the first action state - the forward state. It should be noted that in the case that only one suction cup leaks and causes the suction cup to leak due to obstacles that can be crossed, the robot will continue to advance according to the above regulations, and the corresponding obstacles are relatively moved backwards. When the suction cup P1 is moved to the next adjacent suction cup P2 to make P2 a leak suction cup, the suction cup P1 has returned to the vacuum suction state, so that the suction cup P1 and the suction cup P2 are not leaked at the same time. According to the above regulations, the adsorption robot will return to step 1 to continue the advancement, and the obstacle will continue to move backward relative to the adsorption robot, so that the leaking suction cup is transferred from P2 to P3 and then to P4, but only one suction cup leaks, and then according to the above It is stipulated that the robot will continue to advance in the first action state in the case of a suction cup leak. This ensures that the absorbing robot spans the barrier that can be traversed without falling from the larger gaps and edges.

It should also be noted that the adsorption robot is designed to allow the two suction cups to leak normally and not fall, which can be a critical value for ensuring the number of leaking suction cups that the adsorption robot does not fall safely.

If step 2 detects that there are more than one leaking chuck, that is, N>1, then proceed to step 3.

Step 3: Determine whether the leaking suction cup includes at least the first suction cup and the second suction cup, and the first suction cup is disposed closer to the front side of the first movement of the adsorption robot with respect to the second suction cup. If the suction cup P1 and the suction cup P2 leak air, the first suction cup and the second suction cup are the suction cup P1 and the suction cup P2, respectively, and it is obvious that the first suction cup is adjacent to the second suction cup.

If the judgment result is yes, the adsorption robot eliminates the misjudgment factor of the detection unit, indicating that there may be a large gap or edge in the front, and the adsorption robot continues to advance and there is a danger of falling. At this time, the adsorption robot should be controlled to enter the second action state, that is, the steering Or stop, where the turn includes left turn, right turn or back.

If the result of the determination in the step 3 is no, the robot is returned to the step 1, that is, the robot is advanced.

In order to effectively attract the user's attention, the step 3 further includes an alarm when the adsorption robot enters the second action state. That is to say, when the adsorption robot detects a movement disorder, it alarms from the forward state to the state of turning or stopping, and alerts the user to the attention.

Finally, it should be noted that the adsorption state determination and the walking control method of the adsorption robot provided by the present invention have certain restrictions on the installation position of the suction cup provided on the bottom of the body. The projections of the four suction cups of the first embodiment on the straight line of the traveling direction of the body are not overlapping, and the four suction cups of the second embodiment are partially overlapped, but cannot overlap completely anyway, that is, in the body. The suction cups on the bottom are set separately from each other, and there is no nesting relationship between any two suction cups. Of course, the projection of any two suction cups on a straight line in the direction of travel of the body may also be completely separated.

Embodiment 2

2 is a schematic view showing the position of the bottom suction cup of the adsorption robot of the second embodiment. As shown in FIG. 2, the difference between this embodiment and the first embodiment is that the suction cups at the bottom of the body are disposed at different positions. In the first embodiment, the line connecting the centers of the four suction cups provided at the bottom of the body and the advancing direction A of the adsorption robot 100 are parallel to each other. In the present embodiment, the connection lines of the four suction cups P5, P6, P7, and P8 provided at the bottom of the body of the mobile adsorption robot 200 are formed at an angle with the advancing direction A of the adsorption robot 200, and any of the four suction cups. The projections of the two suction cups on the straight line of the traveling direction of the body are only partially overlapped, and cannot be completely overlapped. As shown in Fig. 2, the projections of the suction cups P5 and P6 in the forward direction of the body are S1 and S2, respectively, and only a portion S3 overlaps between them. Of course, the projection of any two suction cups on a straight line in the direction of travel of the body may also be completely separated.

The above structure of the adsorption robot 200 causes it to differ slightly in the specific application of the adsorption robot 100. For example, when the entire adsorption robot 200 spans the obstacle that can be crossed, there may be a case where only one suction cup leaks at a certain point, and unlike the first embodiment, when the span can cross the obstacle, the front suction cup leaks. The state is transferred to the next sucker. However, in general, the steps described in the first embodiment are not deviated.

Other technical features in this embodiment are the same as those in the foregoing embodiment 1. For details, refer to the content of the first embodiment.

Further, in the above two embodiments, the total number of suction cups is four, and the critical value of the air leakage suction cup is two, but the present invention is not limited thereto. The total number of suction cups can be adjusted appropriately, but at least three, the critical value is set according to the specific situation, as long as the adsorption robot is safe in the case of the two suction cups leaking. The position of the air leakage suction cup for judging may also be appropriately adjusted. It may be two adjacent suction cups at the forefront described in the first embodiment, or may be adjacent suction cups or non-adjacent, not adjacent. Judging the suction cup is often used to ensure the adsorption robot There are enough suction cups on the wall with more obstacles to provide adsorption force. For example, P2 is in the normal adsorption state, and P1 in front and P3 in the back are in the obstacle position. If the front is a large gap or obstacle, then Going forward, there will be 3 suction cups in a leaking state, exceeding the safety threshold.

The method for determining whether the first suction cup and the second suction cup are included in the N suction cups in the step 3 described in the above two embodiments is specifically: the number N of the leaking suction cups detected in real time and the leaks stored in the previous time. Comparing the number N of the suction cups, if N>N', the N suction cups containing the air contain the first suction cup and the second suction cup; otherwise, the N suction cups that are leaking do not include the first suction cup and the second suction cup. Suction cup.

That is to say, if the number of leaking suction cups detected later is smaller than the number of leaking suction cups detected before, it means that the total number of leaking suction cups decreases with the movement of the adsorption robot, and the suction cup that has been leaked before. It is possible to avoid the adsorption surface defects that cause air leakage during walking. If the number of leaking suction cups detected later is greater than the number of leaking suction cups detected before, for example, the adsorption robot encounters the border of the border or the borderless working area, it is obvious that the adsorption robot continues to walk, and the number of leaking suction cups Gradually, the N suction cups containing the first suction cup and the second suction cup contain the first suction cup and the second suction cup, and the adsorption robot needs to enter the second action state to avoid the risk of falling.

In the step 3 of the above two embodiments, it is verified whether the first suction cup and the second suction cup contain the first suction cup and the second suction cup. In addition to the above determination method, the M suction cups at the bottom of the body may be according to the adsorption robot. A specific position code is set in a position in an action direction, and the method of determining whether the first suction cup and the second suction cup are included in the N suction cups in the step 3 is specifically: determining whether the position codes of the N suction cups leaking are The same is true. If so, the first suction cup and the second suction cup are not included in the N suction cups; otherwise, the N suction cups containing the first suction cup and the second suction cup are included.

That is to say, in the embodiment, the M suction cups disposed at the bottom of the body are specifically coded according to the set position thereof, and the determination of the code determines whether the N suction cups of the air leakage contain the first suction cup and the second suction cup. The judgment method is more intuitive and accurate.

In combination with the contents of the above two embodiments, the adsorption state determination and the walking control method of the adsorption robot provided by the present invention include the following steps:

Step 1: The adsorption robot is in the first action state;

Step 2: detecting the vacuum degree of the M suction cups disposed at the bottom of the adsorption robot body, if the detection result is the number of air leakage suction cups N ≤ 1, then return to step 1; otherwise, proceed to step 3;

The positions of the first suction cup and the second suction cup are adjacent.

The M is 4 and N is 2.

The first action state in the step 1 is a forward state.

The second action state in the step 3 corresponds to a steering state.

The second action state in the step 3 corresponds to a stop state.

The step 3 further includes an alarm when the adsorption robot enters the second action state.

The projection of any two of the M suction cups on the straight line of the traveling direction of the body is only partially overlapped or separated.

In summary, the advantages of the present invention are as follows: 1. The accuracy of the detection result of the detecting unit is further verified to improve the reliability of the working of the robot; 2. Different factors affecting the vacuum degree of the suction cup are divided into obstacles that can be crossed and obstacles that cannot be crossed. And perform corresponding crossing or evasive actions to improve the ability to overcome obstacles while ensuring the reliability of the suction cup.

Claims

An adsorption state determination and a walking control method for an adsorption robot, characterized in that the method comprises the following steps:

Step 1: The adsorption robot is in the first action state;

Step 2: detecting the vacuum degree of the M suction cups disposed at the bottom of the adsorption robot body, if the detection result is the number of air leakage suction cups N ≤ 1, then return to step 1; otherwise, proceed to step 3;

Step 3: judging whether at least the first suction cup and the second suction cup are included in the N suction cups, and the setting position of the first suction cup is closer to the front of the movement direction of the first action state of the adsorption robot with respect to the second suction cup, if the judgment result is If yes, the adsorption robot enters the second operation state, and if the determination result is no, the process returns to step 1.
The adsorption state determination and walking control method of the adsorption robot according to claim 1, wherein the N suction cups in the step 2 are suction cups disposed at any position of the M suction cups at the bottom of the body.
The adsorption state determination and the walking control method of the adsorption robot according to claim 1, wherein the method of determining whether the first suction cup and the second suction cup are included in the N suction cups in the step 3 is specifically: The number N of leaking suction cups detected in real time is compared with the number N' of previously stored leaking suction cups at the previous moment. If N>N', the N suction cups containing the first suction cup and the second suction cup are included; Otherwise, the first suction cup and the second suction cup are not included in the N suction cups that are leaking.
The adsorption state determination and the walking control method of the adsorption robot according to claim 1, wherein the M suction cups at the bottom of the body are set with a specific position code according to the position in the first movement direction of the adsorption robot, The method for determining whether the first suction cup and the second suction cup are included in the N suction cups in the step 3 is specifically: determining whether the position codes of the N suction cups that are leaking are completely the same, and if so, the N suction cups that are leaking are not The first suction cup and the second suction cup are included; otherwise, the N suction cups containing the first suction cup and the second suction cup are included.
The adsorption state determination and walking control method of the adsorption robot according to claim 1, wherein the first suction cup and the second suction cup are disposed adjacent to each other.
The adsorption state determination and walking control method of the adsorption robot according to claim 2, wherein the M is 4 and N is 2.
The adsorption state determination and travel control method of the adsorption robot according to claim 1, wherein the first operation state in the step 1 is a forward state.
The adsorption state determination and the walking control method of the adsorption robot according to claim 1, wherein the second operational state in the step 3 corresponds to a steering state.
The adsorption state determination and travel control method of the adsorption robot according to claim 1, wherein the second operation state in the step 3 corresponds to a stop state.
The adsorption state determination and the walking control method of the adsorption robot according to claim 9, wherein the step 3 further comprises an alarm when the adsorption robot enters the second operation state.
The adsorption state judging and walking control method of the adsorption robot according to claim 1, wherein the projection of any two of the M suction cups on the straight line of the traveling direction of the living body is only partially overlapped or separated. .