Classifications

• • G—PHYSICS
  • G05—CONTROLLING; REGULATING
  • G05D—SYSTEMS FOR CONTROLLING OR REGULATING NON-ELECTRIC VARIABLES
  • G05D1/00—Control of position, course, altitude or attitude of land, water, air or space vehicles, e.g. using automatic pilots
  • G05D1/02—Control of position or course in two dimensions
  • G05D1/021—Control of position or course in two dimensions specially adapted to land vehicles
  • G05D1/0276—Control of position or course in two dimensions specially adapted to land vehicles using signals provided by a source external to the vehicle
  • G05D1/0278—Control of position or course in two dimensions specially adapted to land vehicles using signals provided by a source external to the vehicle using satellite positioning signals, e.g. GPS
• • G—PHYSICS
  • G05—CONTROLLING; REGULATING
  • G05D—SYSTEMS FOR CONTROLLING OR REGULATING NON-ELECTRIC VARIABLES
  • G05D1/00—Control of position, course, altitude or attitude of land, water, air or space vehicles, e.g. using automatic pilots
  • G05D1/02—Control of position or course in two dimensions
  • G05D1/021—Control of position or course in two dimensions specially adapted to land vehicles
  • G05D1/0212—Control of position or course in two dimensions specially adapted to land vehicles with means for defining a desired trajectory
  • G05D1/0221—Control of position or course in two dimensions specially adapted to land vehicles with means for defining a desired trajectory involving a learning process

Definitions

• the present invention relates to a universal intelligent system whose objective is to make radio- controlled vehicles autonomously driven, whether they are driven by electric or endothermic motors, and which does not impact electrically on the safety circuits already existing on the machine.
• the invention proposes a system that, by interfacing with the radio-controlled vehicle to be controlled, allows the storage of routes and actions to be performed during the individual activities, closely reproducing them automatically, with the ability to react to stimuli coming from outside and that does not impact significantly on previous user experience.
• the human being is not always able to operate with bare hands but is assisted by equipment and machines that are able to support him during the daily operations to relieve fatigue, improve results and optimize production times.
• machines such as tractors, quads, tracked vehicles, wheeled vehicles are widely used, which with suitable implement connected to them, are able to perform specific functions.
• GNSS Global Navigation Satellite System
• ultrasonic and contact sensors it is also possible to react to external stimuli, such as avoiding obstacles along a path and / or stopping promptly.
• robots that work in the field in a completely autonomous way. They are customizable and configurable according to the various activities, and independent of the operator. These systems are also very expensive, but generally require above all a professional figure specialized in the use of specific software for their use.
• an autonomous robot managed by means of a universal intelligent system, would represent the most effective solution for various fields of use.
• humans are not so able to maintain concentration for a long time and in alienating conditions, therefore, in some cases, said autonomous robots, equipped with said universal intelligent system, offer a series of strategic advantages compared to humans between which theaciousness, the constant operation, the inability to experience emotions in situations of extreme danger, the attention to detail not decreasing over time, the ability to reach places of difficult accessibility for man, etc. They perform dangerous operations for humans such as moving excessive weights, maintaining extreme levels of concentration, working in hostile environments that could, due to their steep slope, cause the vehicles to overturn, working in environments contaminated by vapors, dust, noise.
• the impact on security has improved considerably, but also that on costs and earnings, in fact the intelligent robots allow access to information in real time such as to speed up decision-making times and therefore to be able to intervene immediately where there is need, even completely autonomously.
• the aim of the present invention is therefore to provide an intelligent system capable of overcoming the drawbacks of the prior art as highlighted above by developing new solutions .
• the aim of the invention is therefore to provide a universal intelligent system, mechanically non- invasive, which allows to make autonomous radio- controlled machines not equipped with steering, independent of vision systems for navigation, suitable for applications both in the open field and along the rows of plants, both for machines with electric and endothermic propulsion, which does not have excessive costs for end users and which does not have a significant impact on previous user experience.
• the present invention achieves the aim with an intelligent system for making an autonomous driving of a remote-controlled machine, in particular agricultural, wheeled motorized and non-tracked or tracked, suitable for carrying out work operations, which operating machine comprises a means of locomotion equipped with drives to perform these work operations and a control unit capable of receiving commands from a remote control and controlling the movement and drives of the machine.
• the system includes:
• b a central processing unit for navigation management and the execution of actions to be carried out
• the central processing unit includes one or more processors configured to send drive / guide commands to the control unit as an alternative or in addition to the commands given by the remote control .
• the proposed intelligent system makes an electric and / or hydraulic and / or endothermic propulsion vehicle controlled by one or more electronic control units autonomous.
• the machine can be equipped with one or more control units including but not limited to the management of the collection of the commands given by the radio control and / or of the motors of the machine and / or of the solenoid valves and / or actuators.
• This invention makes the radio controlled machine autonomous through the interaction of said intelligent system with each of the control units present, adapting to pre-existing commercial machines .
• the present invention comprises a central processing unit, one or more GNSS position sensors, an IN / OUT bus management system, status and / or position transducers and one or more sensors including but not limited to proximity and / or shock and / or contact sensors , such as ultrasonic bumpers, touch sensors and / or mechanical sensors. These sensors detect the presence of possible obstacles along a path and are in constant communication with a central processing unit.
• This processing unit analyzes the data coming from the sensors and transmits a command signal to the various actuators that control the agricultural machine.
• the central processing unit controls movement and actuation based on the vehicle's operating mode (REC MODE, AUTO MODE, MANUAL MODE) , outside stimuli and the route .
• Said path can, for example, be calculated by calculating the error of the current position of said means of locomotion in relation to the desired path of said means of locomotion while the current position of said means of locomotion can be established using the data from the position detection device (GNSS) .
• GNSS position detection device
• Movement control typically includes both speed control and steering control, the torsion applied to the vehicle baing a function of speed and steering, which in turn depends on the error on the position.
• the proposed intelligent system represents a universal system that does not impact electrically on the safety circuits already existing on the machine, on the contrary increases its safety.
• the intelligent system further increases the safety level of the machine through the management of the emergency stop event by remote control in dangerous situations.
• the central processing unit intercepts the signal relating to the pressing of the emergency stop button, generated by the control unit of the machine itself, putting the automatic guide on stand-by and calling the relevant emergency interruption .
• the intelligent system further increases the safety level of the machine through the management of the emergency stop event generated by the activation of one or more proximity and / or impact and / or contact sensors in situations of danger.
• the central processing unit intercepts the signal relating to the activation of one or more proximity and / or impact and / or contact sensors, putting automatic driving on stand-by and recalling the relative emergency interrupt procedure.
• the central processing unit is configured to start an interruption procedure which includes :
• the present invention also allows any supervisor of the machine to place himself at a safe distance from the same in order to avoid all the risks and dangers connected therein mentioned above.
• the proposed intelligent system is equipped with a GNSS positioning system, an extremely useful tool in agriculture, capable of determining the position of an agricultural vehicle, with an error in the order of one centimeter.
• Orchards , vineyards and plants arranged along the rows represent the ideal scenario within which to navigate automatically and perform repetitive work operations.
• Said intelligent system uses this positioning system to determine the position of the agricultural vehicle within the lane delimited by plants, allowing the navigation along a memorized path and the execution of repetitive actions.
• the present invention controls the position of the medium based on the simple implementation of a dynamic system with negative feedback.
• a desired position is inserted in this model representing the position that the autonomous machine must follow as a reference.
• the model calculates the difference between the actual and desired position and seeks to minimize the position error. This error affects the control of the speed and steering of the agricultural machine, in order to improve the position of the vehicle along the path to follow.
• the intelligent system provides for the management of actuators equipped with the relative position and / or status transducers. Therefore, both on linear and rotary actuators, the application, if not already incorporated within the actuators themselves, of additional position sensors is provided for this purpose.
• LIDAR and / or LADAR technologies are not strictly necessary for the operation of the present invention, as the use of the same would imply a considerable increase in the computational capacity of the processing system.
• the intelligent system provides software-side programming which makes use of a series of specific libraries and tools for the design of applications for robotics, released under an open source BSD license. This choice provides a level of "abstraction" of the hardware of the connected devices, greatly improving their adaptability even for complex robotic systems.
• the central processing unit software is installed on a GNU / Linux operating system released under the GNU GPL license.
• This operating system is in turn installed on a single board computer characterized by low power consumption and dimensions.
• the exchange of information between said single-board computer and the machine takes place via a communication channel widely used also for industrial applications of the embedded type, where a high level of immunity to electromagnetic disturbances is required. It includes but is not limited to CAN bus, MODBUS, PROFIBUS and PROFINET.
• the present invention simplifies, compared to the technologies present in the state of the art, human- machine interaction thanks to a user-friendly interface.
• said user-friendly interface contains but is not limited to a push button panel, status LED and display.
• the pushbutton panel enables the operator to select one of the operating modes provided by the intelligent system. By pressing the push-button panel it is possible to record a path and / or actions to be performed (REC MODE) , select a path and / or stored actions (AUTO MODE) , stop any operations started (MANUAL MODE) , confirm the selected options, turn off the intelligent system.
• the proposed executive example provides a push button comprising five buttons, four of which are directional buttons for selecting the various options available, and one for confirming the chosen option.
• This user-friendly interface uses LEDs to signal the status of the intelligent system.
• This user-friendly interface comprises a display through the options available to the user and the status of the intelligent system are visible.
• the use of the entire interface which is made up but not limited to a push button panel, status LED and display, allows the operator to have a simple and effective user experience of the intelligent system, thus solving the problems of managing complexity of the software related to today's machines.
• the proposed intelligent system represents a method by which it is possible to control a radio-controlled machine for agricultural applications.
• the operating methods of this method provide for three basic operating states:
• the REC MODE operating mode provides for the recording of a path and / or actions to be stored in the intelligent system, using sensors and actuators present, with which said intelligent system interfaces.
• the method in REC MODE instant by instant records the triad (Ai , xi , yi) in order to be able to replicate it in the autonomous driving mode, called AUTO MODE.
• the AUTO MODE operating mode provides, in fact, the automatic start of the machine along a path with actions to be performed, previously stored during the REC MODE described.
• the presence of external sensors also allows the intelligent system to be able to react to stimuli from the surrounding environment, temporarily and promptly stopping the operations in progress until the necessary conditions for resuming the execution of said operations occur.
• the method used by said intelligent system involves the three operating states. This method begins with waiting for the instruction command. As long as the operator does not receive this command, the intelligent system remains on hold, allowing the machine to operate in manual mode. Once the command is received, the system understands whether the chosen mode of use is REC MODE or AUTO MODE.
• the intelligent system saves both the data from the positioning system, and the status of the actuators equipped with sensors, and the activation or deactivation status of the actuators not equipped with sensors, and therefore verifies the reception of a signal of "stop recording" by the operator. Once the stop signal has been received, the system is ready to wait for a new command. Conversely, the intelligent system continues to record said data.
• the intelligent system In autonomous driving mode, the intelligent system reads the stored data of a chosen path, then the data relating to the positioning system, the status of the sensors to move the actuators and the activation or deactivation status of the actuators without sensors, to their drive. Based on these data, the system checks the machine by replicating the previously recorded data. The electric and / or hydraulic and / or endothermic propulsion system is then activated to move the vehicle along the geographical coordinates from the data relating to the positioning system and then the actuators are checked. The operator can at any time, via radio control and / or push-button panel, with the exception of pressing the emergency stop button, send a premature "AUTO STOP" stop signal to the intelligent system.
• the intelligent system deactivates all active actuators, stops the movement of the machine and is therefore ready to wait for a new command. Conversely, the intelligent system checks whether the position reached and / or the action performed is the last to be reached and / or performed. If not, the system goes back to reading the next position to reach and / or action to perform. Vice versa, if said position reached and / or action performed is the last to be reached and / or performed, the intelligent system stops autonomous driving, turns off all actuators activated and is now ready to wait for a new command.
• the central processing unit is typically configured to store one or more desired routes based on data from the position detection device and automatically guide the means of locomotion by replicating one of the stored routes.
• the central processing unit can also be configured to process routes through the acquisition of : a. obstacle data along a route; b. data concerning the position of the means of locomotion ; c. engine status data; d. data regarding the status of the sensors; e. data regarding the status of the actuators.
• the central processing unit can be configured for: a. avoiding obstacles along the memorized route; b. creating an alternative route to get around unexpected obstacles along the stored route.
• the central processing unit can be configured to perform: a. a step of manual control of the radio-controlled vehicle along a route based on inputs from the remote control ; b. a recording step, in which the route information is stored, including data relating to the position of said vehicle, the state of the engines, the state of the actuators and the state of the sensors; c. an automatic driving phase of said radio-controlled vehicle along a memorized route.
• the automatic driving step includes the control of the movement of the radio-controlled vehicle based on the analysis of the position of said vehicle with respect to a desired position, the position of the vehicle being provided by the position detection device (GNSS) .
• GNSS position detection device
• the autonomous driving step comprises controlling the actuators of said radio-controlled vehicle, the state of said actuators being provided through sensors interfaced to the central processing unit.
• the invention relates to an operating machine, in particular agricultural, comprising a means of locomotion equipped with drives to perform work operations and a control unit capable of receiving commands from a remote control and controlling the movement and drives of the machine.
• the machine is characterized by the fact that it includes an intelligent system according to the invention interfaced to said control unit to independently send machine movement / operation commands .
• the means of locomotion for example with an electric and / or hydraulic and / or endothermic propulsion system, can advantageously comprise tracked or wheeled vehicles capable of being driven even without information from sensors on the vehicle.
• AUTO MODE operating mode of operation of the intelligent system in which said intelligent system guides the machine along a path and / or performs actions automatically.
• Actions operations performed by the actuators.
• Bumper obstacle detection sensor positioned around the locomotion vehicle.
• Emergency circuit auxiliary electronic circuit that interfaces between the operator and the machine to ensure that the operator can stop the machine from operating in an emergency. This circuit does not turn off the proposed intelligent system.
• GNSS group of satellites that transmit signals to a receiver which uses the data received by the signal to determine its position, speed, direction and time.
• LADAR optical radar that uses a laser light beam in the visible, used, in proximity conditions.
• LIDAR sensor based on the remote sensing technique to determine the distance of an object or surface using a laser pulse.
• MANUAL MODE operating mode of operation of the intelligent system in which the machine can be controlled manually by remote control .
• Path set of geographical points that the intelligent system stores, if in REC MODE operating mode, or that runs the machine under the control of the intelligent system, if in AUTO MODE operating mode.
• REC MODE operating mode of operation of the intelligent system in which said intelligent system records a path and / or actions automatically.
• STAND-BY condition in which the intelligent system is not operational but is electrically powered and is ready for switching from temporary stop to operating mode .
• FIG. 1 shows a block diagram of the parts of the intelligent system.
• FIG. 2 shows a block diagram of the negative feedback control of the intelligent system.
• FIG. 3a shows a flow chart of the operation of the intelligent system.
• FIG. 3b shows a flow diagram of the emergency interruption procedure of the intelligent system.
• FIG. 4 shows an overview of the functioning of the intelligent system.
• FIG. 5 shows a status diagram of the three operating modes of the intelligent system.
• FIG. 6a shows an axonometric representation of a tracked machine automated by the intelligent system.
• FIG. 6b shows an axonometric representation with a rear view of a tracked machine automated by the intelligent system.
• FIG. 7 shows the image of a remote control for agricultural machines controlled by the intelligent system.
• FIG. 8 shows the image of a user-friendly interface of the intelligent system.
• FIG. 1 shows the present invention which comprises four macro blocks : a block relating to the central processing unit 103, a block relating to the position sensors GNSS 101, a block relating to the management of the IN / OUT bus 104, a block relating to status and / or position transducers 102.
• the sensors relating to the status of the actuators, included in block 102, can concern both simple position transducers such as encoders and / or linear transducers, and the activation / deactivation status of the same actuators.
• FIG. 1 shows the present invention which comprises four macro blocks : a block relating to the central processing unit 103, a block relating to the position sensors GNSS 101, a block relating to the management of the IN / OUT bus 104, a block relating to status and / or position transducers 102.
• the sensors relating to the status of the actuators, included in block 102 can concern both simple position transducers such as encoders and / or linear trans
• FIG. 2 shows the intelligent system which carries out a negative feedback control regarding the current position 202 with respect to the stored position 201 as a reference, so as to minimize the position error 203, obtained as the difference between the stored position 201 and the current position 202.
• Direction control 204 is performed by the central processing unit 103 which implements the method of FIG. 3a, while the reading of position 205 is performed by the central processing unit 103 by means of the GNSS 101 positioning sensor.
• FIG. 3a shows the flow chart which describes the functioning of the intelligent system. Said diagram begins with waiting for instruction command 301. As long as the operator does not receive said command, the intelligent system remains on standby 309a in manual machine operating mode. Once the command 309b has been received, the system understands whether the chosen mode of use is a recording of a path and / or actions to be stored 302a or an automatic start of the machine along a path and / or actions to be performed 302b previously stored.
• the intelligent system saves 303 both the data from the positioning system, and the status of the actuators equipped with transducers, and the activation or deactivation status of the actuators not equipped with sensors, and therefore checks the reception for 304 of a "stop recording" signal by the operator. Once the stop signal 304a has been received, the system is ready to wait for a new command 301. Vice versa 304b, said intelligent system continues to record said detected data .
• the intelligent system reads 305 the stored data of a chosen path, then the data relating to the positioning system, the status of the transducers to move the actuators and the activation or deactivation status of the actuators not equipped with transducers, for their actuation. On the basis of said data, the control of the machine 306 is then performed. The electric and / or hydraulic and / or endothermic propulsion system is therefore activated for the movement of the vehicle along the geographical coordinates coming from the data relating to the positioning system and therefore the actuators are checked.
• the operator can at any time, via radio control and / or push-button panel, with the exception of pressing the button relating to the emergency stop, send 308b to the intelligent system a premature stop signal of "STOP AUTO" 308.
• the intelligent system deactivates all active actuators, stops the movement of the machine and is therefore ready to wait for a new command.
• the intelligent system checks 307 if the position reached and / or the action performed is the last to be reached and / or performed. In the negative 307b, the system reads 305 the next position to be reached and / or action to be performed.
• the intelligent system stops autonomous driving, turns off all actuators activated and is now ready to wait for a new command 301.
• FIG. 3b shows a flowchart relating to the emergency interrupt procedure of the intelligent system. This procedure is initiated when an emergency stop condition occurs.
• the intelligent system performs the stop 310 of all the actuators and checks 311 if the emergency stop condition persists. If the emergency stop condition is no longer verified 311a, the interrupt procedure ends and the intelligent system resumes autonomous driving, restoring 312 only the actuators active before the emergency stop. Vice versa 311b, the system remains waiting for said emergency stop condition to end.
• FIG. 4 shows an overview of the interaction between the proposed intelligent system 401 and the machine 402 on which it is applied and which becomes autonomous both for navigating and executing its functions.
• the intelligent system provides its own software programming which provides the end user with a level of "abstraction" of the hardware of the connected devices, greatly improving the adaptability on multiple machines .
• FIG. 5 shows a diagram concerning the fundamental operating states of the proposed intelligent system:
• the first fundamental state of operation of this system is manual mode 501.
• the operator can operate the machine via the remote control.
• the intelligent system can pass to the states of recording mode 502 operating mode or autonomous navigation 503.
• the transition 503b towards the state relating to autonomous navigation mode 503 is possible if there is at least one path and / or actions already previously memorized.
• the intelligent system returns to manual mode 503a 501.
• the intelligent system changes 502a from manual mode 501 to recording mode 502.
• the intelligent system changes 502b from recording mode 502 to manual operating mode 501.
• FIG. 6a shows an axonometric representation of an executive example consisting of a crawler 602, driven by battery-powered electric motors 605, radio controlled remotely by means of a radio control FIG. 7, for agricultural applications, having a rear towing hook 603 for hooking and moving auxiliary equipment, being automated thanks to the intelligent system 601 of said invention, and equipped on board with mushroom shaped emergency button 604 for activating the relative emergency circuit.
• FIG. 6b shows an axonometric representation with a rear view of the executive example shown in FIG. 6a.
• the towing hitch 603 is visible located behind the executive example in question, for the attachment and handling of auxiliary equipment, automated thanks to the intelligent system of this invention, useful for the agricultural operator to carry out the activities connected to it.
• FIG. 7 shows the image of a radio control for machines controlled by the proposed intelligent system. From its embodiment it can be seen that said radio control is equipped with an emergency stop button 703, associated precisely with the emergency stop circuit.
• This radio control comprises but is not limited to buttons 704, joystick 702 and display 701 for controlling the agricultural vehicle.
• FIG. 8 shows the image of a user-friendly interface of the intelligent system.
• Said user-friendly interface contains but is not limited to 801 push-button panel, 802 status LED and 803 display.
• 801 push-button panel allows the operator to select one of the operating modes provided by the intelligent system. By pressing the push-button panel it is possible to record a path and / or actions to be performed (REC MODE, 502) , select a path and / or stored actions (AUTO MODE 503) , stop any operations started (MANUAL MODE 501) , confirm the selected options, turn off the smart system.
• the proposed executive example provides a push button consisting of five buttons, four of which are directional buttons for selecting the various options available, and one for confirming the option chosen.
• This user-friendly interface uses 802 LEDs to signal the status of the intelligent system.
• Said user-friendly interface comprises a display 803 through which it is possible to show both user available options and the intelligent system status.

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• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Radar, Positioning & Navigation (AREA)
• Remote Sensing (AREA)
• Aviation & Aerospace Engineering (AREA)
• Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
• General Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
• Automation & Control Theory (AREA)
• Control Of Position, Course, Altitude, Or Attitude Of Moving Bodies (AREA)
• Traffic Control Systems (AREA)

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Citations (13)

• 2019
  • 2019-07-02 IT IT102019000010629A patent/IT201900010629A1/it unknown
• 2020
  • 2020-07-01 WO PCT/IB2020/056214 patent/WO2021001762A1/en unknown
  • 2020-07-01 EP EP20747104.6A patent/EP3994538A1/en not_active Withdrawn

Patent Citations (13)

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