WO2000063721A1 - Robot apparatus for detecting direction of sound source to move to sound source and method for operating the same - Google Patents
Robot apparatus for detecting direction of sound source to move to sound source and method for operating the same Download PDFInfo
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- WO2000063721A1 WO2000063721A1 PCT/KR2000/000372 KR0000372W WO0063721A1 WO 2000063721 A1 WO2000063721 A1 WO 2000063721A1 KR 0000372 W KR0000372 W KR 0000372W WO 0063721 A1 WO0063721 A1 WO 0063721A1
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Classifications
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- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B25—HAND TOOLS; PORTABLE POWER-DRIVEN TOOLS; MANIPULATORS
- B25J—MANIPULATORS; CHAMBERS PROVIDED WITH MANIPULATION DEVICES
- B25J9/00—Programme-controlled manipulators
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- G—PHYSICS
- G01—MEASURING; TESTING
- G01S—RADIO DIRECTION-FINDING; RADIO NAVIGATION; DETERMINING DISTANCE OR VELOCITY BY USE OF RADIO WAVES; LOCATING OR PRESENCE-DETECTING BY USE OF THE REFLECTION OR RERADIATION OF RADIO WAVES; ANALOGOUS ARRANGEMENTS USING OTHER WAVES
- G01S5/00—Position-fixing by co-ordinating two or more direction or position line determinations; Position-fixing by co-ordinating two or more distance determinations
- G01S5/18—Position-fixing by co-ordinating two or more direction or position line determinations; Position-fixing by co-ordinating two or more distance determinations using ultrasonic, sonic, or infrasonic waves
- G01S5/22—Position of source determined by co-ordinating a plurality of position lines defined by path-difference measurements
Definitions
- the present invention relates to a robot apparatus for detecting a direction of sound source to move thereto; and, more particularly, to a robot apparatus for receiving a sound signal having a specific pattern, outputted from a sound source, and detecting a current direction of the robot apparatus and a correct direction of the sound .source by using a phase difference between the sound signals, to thereby move thereto, and a method for operating the same.
- a movable robot is widely used in various fields such as industrial robot and a toy.
- Such a movable robot has several detectors and a moving means, wherein the detectors include a distance measurement instrument, a sensor for sensing a human body, and the like.
- the robot detects a target spot or a current position and then moves to the target spot by using detected target spot or detected current place .
- an apparatus for detecting a direction of sound source is disclosed in Korea Patent No. 91-2926. Instead of detecting a correct place of the sound source, however, the apparatus detects a direction of the sound source in a six direction by using a sequence of sound signals received through receivers that are mounted to the robot.
- the detection of the sound source may be incorrect and an error may also occur due to surrounding sounds, so that the conventional robot is applicable only to a toy.
- a robot apparatus for detecting a sound signal outputted from a sound signal generating means to move to a position of the sound signal generating mean, wherein the sound signal has, a specific pattern
- the robot apparatus comprising: at least three sound receiving means for receiving the sound signal outputted from the soun ⁇ signal generating means; a phase difference detection means for detecting a phase difference between each sound signals from the sound receiving means; a processing means for determining a position of the sound generating means using the phase difference, to generate a moving control signal; and a moving means, in response to the moving control signal, for moving the robot apparatus to the position of the sound generating means .
- a method for operating a robot apparatus for detecting a sound signal outputted from a sound signal generating means to move to a position of the sound signal generating mean, wherein the sound signal has a specific pattern comprising the steps of: a) determining whether an operation mode is set up; b) if the operation mode is not set up, setting up a standby mode to sense and tracing a human body existing within a predetermined distance; c) if the operation mode is set up, determining a kind of operation mode; and d) according to the operation mode, clearing a predetermined area by using an information of a plane structure obtained by searching and analyzing the plane structure, docking to a battery by searching the battery generating a sound signal when the battery is discharged, searching a sound source for generating a sound signal and performing a guard operation.
- Fig. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a robot apparatus for detecting a direction of sound source and moving to a place of the sound source in accordance with the present inventio ⁇
- Fig. 2 is a diagram illustrating a receiving unit having three receivers in Fig. 1;
- Fig. 3 is a diagram illustrating a receiving unit having six receivers in Fig. 1;
- Fig. 4 is a timing chart illustrating pattern of sound signal received through a receiving unit
- Fig.5 is a block diagram illustrating a phase-difference detection unit shown in Fig. 1;
- Fig. 6 is a circuit diagram illustrating a phase-difference detection unit shown in Fig. 5;
- Fig .7 shows a timing chart of signals in a phase-difference detection unit shown in Fig. 5;
- Fig. 8 is a block diagram illustrating a sound pattern detector shown in Fig. 5;
- Fig. 9 is a circuit diagram illustrating a sound pattern detector shown in Fig. 8
- Fig. 10 is a timing chart illustrating a sound pattern detector shown in Fig. 9;
- Fig. 11 is a diagram illustrating an electronic compass having hole sensors and ferrites, shown in Fig. 1;
- Fig. 12 is a circuit diagram illustrating an electronic compass shown in Fig. 11;
- Fig. 13 is a diagram illustrating an angle of direction detected from an electronic compass;
- Fig. 14 is a flow chart illustrating an operation of a robot in accordance with the present invention.
- Fig. 15 is a flow chart illustrating sequential steps of searching and analyzing a plane structure
- Fig. 16 is a flow chart illustrating sequential steps of an initial operation
- Fig. 17 is a flow chart illustrating sequential steps of determining a status of a robot
- Fig. 18 is a flow chart illustrating sequential steps of changing movement direction
- Fig. 19 is a flow chart illustrating sequential steps of a setup operation in Fig.15 in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention
- Fig. 20 is a flow chart illustrating sequential steps of a setup operation in Fig. 15 in accordance with another embodiment of the present invention
- Fig. 21 is a flow chart illustrating sequential steps of a setup operation in Fig. 15 in accordance with further another embodiment of the present invention.
- Fig. 22 is a flow chart illustrating sequential steps of analyzing a plane structure in Fig. 15;
- Fig. 23 is a diagram explaining an analysis of a plane structure in Fig. 22;
- Fig. 24 is a flow chart illustrating sequential steps of searching a sound source;
- Fig. 25 is a flow chart illustrating sequential steps of setting an operation of a search for a sound source
- Fig. 26 is a flow chart illustrating sequential steps of moving to a direction of sound source in Fig. 24;
- Fig. 27 is a flow chart illustrating sequential steps of setting a detour operation mode in Fig. 24;
- Fig. 28 is a diagram explaining a detour operation mode ;
- Fig. 29 is a flow chart illustrating sequential steps of tracing a human body under a standby mode in Fig. 14;
- Fig. 30 is a flow chart illustrating sequential steps of performing a guard operation.
- Fig. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a robot for detecting a direction of sound source and moving to a place of the sound source in accordance with the present invention.
- the present invention includes a sound-signal generating unit 111 for generating sound signals having a specific pattern for a predetermined time, and a robot 112 for receiving the sound signals outputted from the sound-signal generating unit 111 and detecting a direction of the sound source by using a phase difference between received sound signals, to move to a place of the sound source.
- the robot 112 also includes a sound-direction detection unit 113, a movement-direction detection unit 119 having an electronic compass 120 and an analog-to-digital converter, a data processing unit 125 for processing detected data, and a movement control unit 130 for controlling a movement of the robot.
- the data processing unit 125 includes an interface unit 126 for transferring the detected data, a micro -processor 127 for managing a process of the detected data, and a ROM 128 and a RAM 129 for storing processed data.
- the movement control unit 130 includes a control unit 131 for generating a movement control signal for controlling a movement of the robot under a control of the microprocessor 127, and a movement unit 132 for moving the robot to a specific place by using motors which are responsive to the movement control signal .
- the robot 112 further includes a distance measurement unit 122 having an ultrasonic telemeter, mounted on a front, a left, and a right sides thereof, for measuring distances between the robot and walls, a human body detection unit 123 having a sensor for detecting a human body, a remote control unit 124 having a remote controller for remote controlling themovement of the robot .
- the ultrasonic telemeter, the sensor, and the remote controller can be implemented with commercial products.
- the sound-direction detection unit 113 includes a sound signal receiving unit 114 having a plurality of receivers for receiving sound signal outputted from the sound signal generating unit 111, and a phase difference detection unit 118 for detecting a phase difference between signals outputted from the sound signal receiving unit 114.
- a sound signal receiving unit 114 having a plurality of receivers for receiving sound signal outputted from the sound signal generating unit 111
- a phase difference detection unit 118 for detecting a phase difference between signals outputted from the sound signal receiving unit 114.
- more than three receivers can be used, ana Fig. 2 shows a sound signal receiving unit using three receivers 115, 116 and 117, and Fig. 3 shows a sound signal receiving unit using six receivers.
- Fig. 2 there is shown distances and angles between the receivers and the sound source, wherein the receivers are mounted on the upper or bottom surface of the robot in
- a reference symbol S(X s ⁇ , Y s i) represents a position of the sound source, M a central point of the equilateral triangle, and ⁇ an angle between the central point M and the place of the sound source S(X s ⁇ , Y s ⁇ ) , respectively .
- a reference symbol L a ⁇ , L b ⁇ , and L c ⁇ represent distances between the place S(X s ⁇ , Y s ⁇ ) of the sound source and the receiver A, the receiver B, and the receiver C, respectively.
- distance differences between the sound source and respective receivers corresponds to phase differences between sound signals received by respective receivers, and it will be described in detail with reference to Fig. 4.
- the receivers A, B , C and D when using four receivers, the receivers A, B , C and D are used, and when using five receivers, the receivers A, B, C, D and E are used, and when using six receivers, the receivers A, B, C, D, E and F are used. That is, based on an equilateral triangle, as receivers are increased one by one, the receivers are arranged in an equilateral triangle form.
- Fig. 4 is a timing chart illustrating patterns of the sound signals received through the receivers A, B, and C in case where the sound signals are received in a sequence of the receiver A, the receiver B, and the receiver C in this order.
- a reference symbol T represents a period of signals outputted from the receivers, dl a difference between a distance from the sound source to the receiver A and a distance from the sound source to the receiver B, wherein the dl corresponds to a phase dif erence between a signal A outputted from the receiver A and a signal B outputted fro"!
- d2 a difference between a distance from the sound source to the receiver A and a distance between the sound source to the receiver C, wherein the d2 corresponds to a phase difference between the signal A to a signal C outputted from the receiver C
- d3 a difference between a distance from the sound source to the receiver B and a distance from the sound source to the receiver C, wherein the d3 corresponds to a phase difference between the signal C and the signal B outputted from the receiver B, respectively.
- the sound signal outputted from the sound signal generating unit 111 can be used with a signal having an audio frequency of 2.76 kHz.
- respective receivers are arranged to make maximum phase difference of sound signals received through the receivers to be within a half the frequency of the sound signal outputted from the sound signal generating unit 111. Additionally, based on a rising edge of the signal A, the signal A is received earlier than the signal B by the dl, the signal C is received earlier than the signal B by the d3, and the signal A is received earlier than the signal C by d2. On the contrary, based on a rising edge of the signal B, it is determined that the signal B is received later than the signal A by (T-d4) because a phase difference between the rising edge of the signal A and the rising edge of the signal B is greater than T/2.
- the receivers are arranged to have a maximum phase difference between each two signals in a range of 0.3T to 0.4T.
- the maximum phase difference is set to 0..375T and the phase difference is divided into 32 sections. Furthermore, angles corresponding to phase differences of respective signals are previously calculated and stored in the ROM 128 in a table form. Accordingly, the sound direction is detected within 32 sections by using approximate values of the angles corresponding to the phase differences. At this time, the angles of the sound direction corresponding to the phase differences between respective signals are calculated by using the distances between the sound source and the respective • receivers, the distance differences between the sound source and the respective receivers and the angles between the sound source and the central point of the equilateral triangle.
- the above-mentioned calculation method is the same as the method for finding a seismic center in three seismological observatories. For the sake of the convenience in explanation, detailed equations for calculation will be omitted. That is also applicable in case of four receivers.
- Fig.5 is a block diagram illustrating a phase-difference detection unit 118 contained in the sound-direction detection unit 113 shown in Fig. 1 in case where three receivers 115, 116 and 117 receive the sound signal having the audio frequency.
- the phase-difference detection unit 118 includes a first, a second, and a third amplifier/filters 511, 512 and 513, a sound-pattern detector 514 and a phase difference detector 515.
- the first, the second, and the third amplifier/filters 511, 512 and 513 amplify the signal A, the signal B, and the signal C, which are respectively outputted from three receivers 115, 116, and 117, and then perform a band pass filtering to output noiseless rectangular wave signals.
- the sound-pattern detector 514 receives the rectangular wave signals from the first amplifier/filter 511 and an external clock CK1 and determines whether or not a period of the rectangular wave corresponds to a predetermined period.
- the scund-pattern detector 514 If it is determined that sound signal having a predetermined sound pattern is continuously received as many as a predetermined number, the scund-pattern detector 514 generates a detection signal S s . Also, the phase difference detector 515 receives output signals from the first, the second, the third amplifier/filters 511, 512 and 513 and detects phase differences between respective signals to output phase differences PDA, PDB and PDC in response to the detection signal S s . Additionally, the phase difference detector 515 generates interrupt signals INTl, INT2, and INT3 as a control signal in response to the detection signal S s .
- Fig.6 is a circuit diagram illustrating a phase difference detector 515 as an embodiment of the present invention.
- a first detector 611 detects a phase difference between the signal A and the signal B to output a first phase difference data PDA and also receives the detection signal S s to output a first interrupt signal INTl.
- a second detector 622 detects a phase difference between the signal B and the signal C to output a second phase difference data PDB and also receives the detection signal S s to output a second interrupt signal INT2.
- a third detector 623 detects a phase difference between the signal C and the signal A to output a third phase difference data PDC and also receives the detection signal S s to output a third interrupt signal INT3.
- the second and the third detectors 622 and 623 have the same circuit structure as the first detector 611.
- a clock counting unit 612 ' receives the signal A and the. signal B and counts the number of clocks CK2 from a rising edge of the signal A to a rising edge of the signal B, to output a first phase difference data PDA.
- a clear signal generating unit 616 receives the signal A to generate a clear signal for clearing the clock counting unit 612.
- An interrupt signal generating unit 620 generates a first interrupt signal INTl for indicating a read timing of the first phase difference data PDA in response to the detection signal S s .
- the clock counting unit 612 includes a first D flip flop 613 having an input terminal D, a clock terminal CLK and a clear terminal CLR receiving a power supply voltage level, the signal A and the signal B, respectively, a first AND gate having a first input terminal receiving the clock CK2 and a second input terminal coupled to an output terminal Ql of the first D flip flop, and a first counter 615 having a clock terminal CLK coupled to an output terminal of the first AND gate 614 and a clear terminal CLR coupled to an output terminal of the clear signal generating unit 616, wherein the first counter outputs the first phase difference data PDA.
- the clear signal generating unit 616 includes a second D flip flop having a clock terminal CLK receiving the signal A, an output terminal Q2 coupled to a third input terminal of the first AND gate 614, and an input terminal D coupled to an inverting output terminal Q2 , an inverter 618 for inverting the signal A, and a second AND gate 619 for ANDing an output signal of the inverter 618 and an output signal outputted from the inverting output terminal Q2 of the second D flip flop 617, wherein an output terminal of the second AND gate 619 is coupled to the clear terminal CLR of the first counter 615.
- the interrupt signal generating unit 620 includes a third AND gate 612 having a first input terminal coupled to the inverting output terminal Q2 of the second D flip flop 617, a second input terminal receiving the signal A and a third input terminal receiving the detection signal S s .
- the third AND gate 612 performs an AND logic operation to output the first interrupt signal INTl.
- the second and the third detectors 622 and 623 operate in the same manner as the first detector 611.
- the second detector 622 outputs the second phase difference data PDB between the signal B and the signal C and the second interrupt signal INT2.
- the third detector 623 outputs the third phase difference data PDC between the signal C and the signal A and the third interrupt signal INT3.
- Fig .7 shows a timing chart of the phase difference detector 611.
- a signal Q2 outputted from the output terminal Q2 of the second D flip flop has twice the frequency of the signal A, and a phase difference between the signal A and the signal B is detected during a high level of the signal Q2.
- the first interrupt signal INTl which allows the microprocessor 127 to detect the count value corresponding to the phase difference, is generated during a low level of the signal Q2. That is, when the interrupt signal INTl outputted from the third AND gate 621 contained in the interrupt signal generating unit 620 is maintained at the high level, the microprocessor 127 detects the count value outputted from the first counter 615 contained in the clock counting unit 612.
- the first counter 615 is cleared at the rising edge of the clear signal outputted from the second AND gate 619, and then a next phase difference is detected and a count operation is performed at a rising edge of a next signal Q2.
- an output signal of the first AND gate 614 becomes a low level in case where the signal Q2 is a low level, a count operation of the first counter 615 is not performed.
- the signal Ql outputted from the output terminal Ql of the first D flip flop 613 becomes a high level from the rising edge of the signal A to the rising edge of the signal B, and during that period, the first counter 615 counts the number of the clocks CK2, and then outputs the first phase difference data.
- the count value from the first counter 615 is transferred to the microprocessor 127 at the rising edge of the interrupt signal INTl. That is, until the clear signal becomes a high level to clear the first counter 615, the microprocessor 127 reads the first phase difference data outputted from the first counter 615. In the same manner, the phase difference between the signal B and the signal C and the phase difference between the signal C and the signal A can be detected. Meanwhile, in case where the maximum phase difference is 2.76 kHz, the clock CK2 can divide a period corresponding to 0.375T of the sound source into 32 sections. Therefore, as an embodiment of the present invention, a rectangular wave having a frequency of 235.52 kHz is used.
- Fig. 8 is a block diagram illustrating a sound-pattern detector shown in Fig. 5.
- the sound-pattern detector 514 includes an edge detector 811 for detecting rising and falling edges to generate pulses, a pulse interval counter 812 for counting the number of clocks CK1 between pulse intervals outputted from the edge detector 811 to output a count value, a setup period determinator 813, in response to the pulse outputted from the edge detector 811, for receiving the count value from the pulse interval detector 812 and detecting whether or not the signal A has a predetermined period, a detection signal generator 814 for checking whether the signal A having the predetermined period is continuously inputted and for generating the detection signal S s , and a clear signal generator 815, in response to the clock CK1, for receiving the pulses outputted from the edge detector 811 and checking whether the signal A is inputted at a setup period for a predetermined time, to generate a clear signal for clearing the detection signal S s outputted from the detection signal generator 814.
- Fig. 9 is a circuit diagram illustrating a sound-pattern detector.
- the edge detector 811 includes an inverter 911 for inverting an input signal to output a signal PI, a D flip flop 912 for receiving the signal PI through a clock terminal and converting a period of the signal PI to output a signal P2, a plurality of inverters 913 and 914, serially connected to each other, for delaying the signal P2 for a predetermined time, an exclusive OR (XOR) gate for XORing the signal P2 and an output signal of the inverter 914.
- XOR exclusive OR
- the pulse interval counter 812 includes a plurality of inverters 921 and 922, serially connected to each other, for delaying an output signal of the XOR gate 915 contained in the edge detector 811 for a predetermined time, a counter 923, whose clear terminal CLR is coupled to an output terminal of the inverter 922, for counting a signal inputted through a clock terminal and outputting a count value through a first output terminal Q2 and a second output terminal Q4, wherein the first output terminal Q2 outputs a high level when four clocks are inputted, and the second output terminal Q4 outputs a high level when eight clocks are inputted, an AND gate 924 for ANDing an output signal of the first output terminal Q2 and the second output terminal Q4, an inverter 925 for inverting an output signal of the AND gate 924, an AND gate 926 for ANDing the clock CK1 and an output signal of the inverter 925 to an ANDed signal to the clock terminal of the counter 923, and an AND gate 927 for ANDing
- the setup period determinator 813 includes a D flip flop 931 having a clock terminal coupled to the output terminal of the XOR gate 915 contained in the edge detector 811, an input terminal D coupled to the output terminal of the AND gate 927 contained in the pulse interval counter 812, a clear terminal CLR coupled to the output terminal of the clear signal generator 815, and output terminals Q and Q coupled to the detection signal generator 814.
- the detection signal generator 814 includes a counter 941, whose clear terminal CLR is coupled to the output terminal
- the output signal of the AND gate 942 corresponds to the detection signal S s .
- the clear signal generator 815 includes a counter 951 for counting the clock CK1 inputted through a clock terminal to output a count value to a first output terminal Q3 and a second output terminal Q4, an AND gate 952 for ANDing signals outputted from the first and the second output terminals Q3 and Q4 to output an ANDed signal to the clear terminal CLR of the D flip flop 831 contained in the setup period determinator 813, and an AND gate 953 for ANDing an output signal of the AND gate 952 and an output signal of the XOR gate 951 contained in the edge detector 811 to output an ANDed signal to the clear terminal CLR of the counter 951.
- Fig. 10 illustrates a timing chart of the sound-pattern detector shown in Fig. 9.
- a reference symbol PI is an output signal of the inverter 911, P2 an output signal of the D flip flop 912, P3 an output signal of the XOR gate 915, and P4 an output signal of the AND gate 927, respectively.
- the signal PI when a rectangular signal, i.e., the signal PI, outputted from the edge detector 811 is inputted to the clock terminal, the signal PI is converted into a rectangular signal having a half the frequency of the signal PI.
- the clock CK1 is a rectangular clock having a frequency 8.5 to 9 times as many as the sound signal.
- the counter 923 outputs a high level signal through the second output terminal Q4 when the number of the clocks CK1 is more than eight, and the counter 923 outputs a high level signal through the first and the second output terminals Q2 and Q4 when the number of the clocks CKl is more than ten.
- the output signal of the inverter 925 becomes a low level, and thus, the output signal of the AND gate 926 also becomes a low level. If the output signal of the AND gate 926 becomes the low level, the counter does not perform the count operation any longer, and the signal P4 outputted from the AND gate 927 becomes a low level.
- the output terminal Q of the D flip flop 931 is set to a high level. That is, in case where the number of the clocks CKl within the period of the input signal is eight or nine, the output terminal Q of the D flip flop 931 is maintained at a high level. If the number of the. clocks CKl is less than eight or more than ten, the output terminal Q become a low level, and if the input signal having the setup period is continuously inputted, the output terminal Q is maintained at a high level . Additionally, the output terminal of the D flip flop 931 is a high level, the detection signal S s is maintained at a high level.
- the counter 951 clears the D flip flop 931. That is, the output waveform of the D flip flop 931 is prevented from being set to continuously have a same value.
- phase difference detection unit instead of using the phase difference detection unit for detecting the phase difference between signals, it is preferable to use a timer embedded in the microprocessor 127. That is, by generating a first control signal and a second control signal at the rising edge of the signal A and the rising edge of the signal B, respectively, a time difference between the first control signal and the second control signal is calculated. Then, a direction of the sound source can be detected by reading out a direction corresponding to the phase difference from the ROM 128 which stores directions corresponding to respective phase differences.
- the present invention describes the sound signal generating unit using the sound signal having the audio frequency, it is also applicable to the sound signal generating unit using an ultrasonic sound signal.
- the movement direction detection unit 119 includes an electronic compass 120 for detecting an earth' s magnetic field and an analog-to-digital converter 121 for converting detected analog values from the electronic compass 120 into digital values.
- Fig. 11 is a schematic view illustrating an arrangement of hole sensors and ferrites contained in an electronic compass .
- a first magnetic-field detection unit 1101 detects a direction of X axis with respect to the earth's magnetic field and a second magnetic-field detection unit 1102 detects a direction of Y axis with respect to the earth' s magnetic field.
- the first and the secondmagnetic-field detection units 1101 and 1102 are arranged in parallel to each other.
- the first magnetic-field detection unit 1101 includes two hole sensors 1103 and 1104 coupled with the ferrite 1105, and the second magnetic-field detection unit 1102 has the same structure as the first magnetic-field detection unit 1101.
- Fig. 12 is a circuit diagram illustrating an electronic compass as an embodiment of the present invention.
- an output terminal of the hole sensor 1103 is coupled to a non-inverting terminal of an amplifier 1201
- an output terminal of the second hole sensor 1104 is coupled to a inverting terminal of the amplifier 1201 through a resistor Rl .
- a resistor R3 and a capacitor C are coupled in parallel between the inverting terminal and an output terminal of the amplifier 1201
- a resistor R2 and a variable resistor VR are coupled between the inverting terminal of the amplifier 1201 and a ground terminal.
- the second magnetic-field detection unit 1102 has the same structure as the first magnetic-field detection unit 1101.
- Fig. 13 is a diagram illustrating an angle of direction according to output signals X and Y of the first and the second magnetic-field detection units 1101 and 1102.
- the output signals X and Y of the first and the second magnetic-field detection units 1101 and 1102 are 0' and l ' , respectively, it means a due north. If the output signals X and Y of the first and the second magnetic-field detection units 1101 and 1102 are ⁇ l' and '0' , respectively, it means a due east.
- the angles of direction are stored in the ROM 128 in a table form, and if the microprocessor 127 requires the angle of the direction, specific angle corresponding to the output signals X and Y is read out from the ROM 128, to detect the current movement direction.
- Fig. 14 is a flow chart illustrating sequential steps of operating the robot according to the present invention.
- step 1401 whether an operation mode is set or not is determined.
- step 1402 if it is determined that the operation mode is not set, the robot maintains a standby mode and detects a human body. At this time, if the robot is in a shape of dog, a dog-shape robot is made to follow a human body by waving his tail.
- the operation mode is implemented by mounting a switch to the robot, or by using a remote controller, or by program which automatically selects the operation mode.
- step 1403 as a result of determination at the step 1401, if it is determined that the operation mode is set, kinds of the operation mode are checked, and then following operations are performed.
- the plane structure is searched and analyzed by calculating a left, a right, and a front distances.
- step 1405 if it is determined that the operation mode is a sound source search mode, a place of the sound source is searched and then the robot moves to the place of the sound source. At this time, if a sound signal generator is mounted to a charger, the robot searches and docks to the charger, to thereby charge automatically a battery mounted to the robot.
- the robot performs a guard operation after passing a predetermined time when commands are transferred thereto.
- the robot searches and analyzes the plane structure having a predetermined space, and then clears up the predetermined space.
- a clearing things is mounted to the robot, and according to the movement of the robot, a possible space for clearing is in advance set up.
- the robot moves in a zigzag form and maintains a predetermined distance between the robot's body and the wall by rotating the motors little by little.
- Fig. 15 is a flow chart illustrating sequential steps of a plane structure search and analysis.
- the distance measurement unit 122 measures a distance between the robot and a left-side, a right-side, and a front-side walls, respectively, and an initial operation for moving to the nearest wall is performed.
- step 1502 after performing the initial operation, distances between the robot and the walls disposed at the right, the left and the front directions are calculated by the distance measurement unit 122 and a movement direction of the robot is detected by the movement-direction detection unit 119. Then, a status of the robot is determined by using information on the detected distance and the movement direction.
- the microprocessor 127 determines an operation to be performed by using a previous status of the robot stored in the RAM 129 and a current status of the robot.
- a setup operation is performed. At this time, if the robot does not move to a desired direction, the movement direction is automatically corrected.
- step 1505 whether a structure to be searched is a closed-loop is analyzed by using the current coverage distance and a coverage direction. If the structure is the closed-loop, the plane structure analysis is finished. At this time, the analyzed information is used to perform a clearing or move to a specific place.
- Fig. 16 is a flow chart illustrating sequential steps of the initial operation in Fig. 15.
- a distance between a current position of the robot and a front object, a front distance Fdist, a left-side distance Ldist between the current position of the robot and an object disposed at a left-side, and a right-side distance Rdist between the current position of the robot and an object disposed at a right-side are measured.
- whether the front distance Fdist is equal to a reference near distance Near is determined.
- the reference near distance Near represents a value for determine near distance. Additionally, the reference near distance is used to determine that the robot may collide with an object around the robot.
- the robot is turned left and then determines whether a current mode is the right-side priority mode in order that the right-side distance Rdist is the reference near distance Near.
- step 1611 in case of the right-side priority mode is, the robot is turned left a much as 90°, to there make the right-side distance Rdist equal to the reference near distance Near, and then the step 1611 is repeated.
- step 1615 if it is determined that the right-side priority mode is not, the robot is turned right as much as 90°, to there make the right-side distance Ldist equal to the reference near distance Near, and then the step 1611 of the distance measurement is repeated.
- step 1616 if it is determined at the step 1612 that the front distance Fdist is not equal to the reference near distance Near, whether the right-side distance Ldist is equal o the reference near distance Near is determined. At step 1617, if not equal, a step of determining whether the right-side priority mode is or not is performed.
- step 1618 if it is determined that the right-side priority mode is, the robot is turned right as much as 180°, to thereby make the right-side distance Rdist equal to the reference near distance Near. Then, the step 1611 is repeated.
- step 1502 for determining the status of the robot is repeated in. a state that the right-side distance Rdist is equal to the reference near distance Near.
- step 1619 if it is determined at the step 1516 the right-side distance Ldist is not equal to the reference near distance Near, whether the right-side distance Rdist is equal to the reference near distance Near is determined. At step 1620, whether the right-side priority mode is or not is determined.
- the step 1520 for determining the status of the robot is repeated in a state that the right-side distance Rdist is equal to the reference near distance Near.
- step 1621 if it is determined at the step 1620 that it is not the right-side priority mode, the robot is turned left as much as 180°, to thereby make the right-side distance Rdist equal to the reference near distance Near. Then, the step 1611 of the distance measurement is performed.
- step 1622 if it is determined that the right-side distance Rdist is not equal to the reference near distance Near, whether the front distance Fdist is smaller than the left-side distance Ldist is determined.
- step 1623 if the right-side distance Rdist is smaller than the reference near distance Near, whether the front distance Fdist is smaller than the right-side distance Rdist is determined.
- step 1624 it is determined that the front distance Fdist is smaller than the right-side distance, the robot moves forward, and then the step 1611 of the distance measurement is performed.
- step 1625 if it is determined at the step 1623 that the front distance Fdist is greater than the right-side distance Rdist, the robot is turned right as much as 180° and moves forward, and then the step 1611 is performed.
- step 1626 if it is determined at the step 1622 that the front distance Fdist is greater than the left-side distance, whether the right-side distance Rdist is greater than the left-side distance Ldist is determined.
- step 1627 if the right-side distance Rdist is greater than the left-side distance Ldist, the robot is turned left as much as 90° and moves forward. Then, the step 1611 of the distance measurement is performed.
- step 1628 if it is determined at the step 1626 that the right-side distance Rdist is smaller than the left-side distance, the robot is turned right as much as 90° and moves forward. Then, the step 1611 is performed.
- Fig. 17 is a flow chart illustrating sequential steps of determining the status of the robot in Fig. 15.
- a front distance between the robot and a wall disposed at a current moving direction of the robot is detected.
- the left-side distance between a left-side wall and the robot is detected.
- the right-side distance between a right-side wall and the robot is detected.
- a current moving direction of the robot is detected in order to obtain information for conversion of a moving status of the robot.
- respective status with respect to a detected front distance, a detected left-side distance and a detected right-side distance are determined.
- Fig. 18 is a flow chart illustrating sequential steps of changing a movement direction of the robot. Referring to Fig. 18, at step 1841, whether respective detected distance d is equal to or smaller than a predetermined reference distance di is determined. At step 1842, if the detected distance d is equal to or smaller than the reference distance d x , the distance status is determined as NI.
- NI represents a distance nearer than an appropriate distance.
- step 1843 it is determined as the step 1841 that the detected distance d is greater than the reference distance di, whether the detected distance d is equal to or greater than a reference distance d 2 is determined.
- step 1844 if it is determined that the detected distance d s equal to or greater than the reference distance di, and smaller than the reference distance d 2 , the distance status is determined as N2.
- the N2 represents the appropriate distance .
- step 1845 if it is determined at the step 1843 that the detected distance d is not equal to or greater than the reference distance di and not smaller than the reference distance d 2 , whether the detected distance d is equal to or greater than the reference d 2 , and smaller than a predetermined reference distance d 3 is determined.
- step 1846 if the detected distance is equal to or greater than the reference distance d 2 , and smaller than the reference distance d 3 , the distance status is determined as N3.
- the N3 represents a distance which is a little farther than the appropriate distance.
- the distance status is determined as F.
- the F represents a distance much farther than the appropriate distance.
- the robot maintains a distance between the wall and the robot's body to the appropriate distance N2 when moving along the wall.
- the movement direction is adjusted little by little to make the distance status to be the NI.
- the movement direction is adjusted little by little to a direction of the N2, to make the distance status to be the N2.
- Tables 1 and 2 shows an operation of the robot, which is set in Fig. 15.
- the table 1 shows an operation according to the status of the robot in the right-side priority mode
- the table 2 shows an operation according to the status of the robot in the left-side priority mode.
- FG represents an operation command formoving forward
- RG an operation command formoving backward
- TL an operation command for turning left as much as 90°
- TR an operation command for turning right as much as 90°
- TLx an operation command for turning left as much as x°
- TRx an operation command for turning right as much as x°.
- a default represents an operation command for continuously performing an operation of a current status.
- (dl+d2) /2 is a central of the N2 and is a reference value used for determining whether a space for turning of the robot is enough.
- dl and d2 are reference distance values for determining the distance status of NI, N2 and N3.
- Operation commands are set up according to the current operation status and the previous operation status, as shown in the tables 1 and 2.
- a first term presents a status of the front distance
- a second term presents a status of the left-side distance
- a third term represents a status of the right-side distance
- operation commands such as TLx and TRx are used to make the distance status to be N2.
- TLx represents a turning left as much as x°
- TRx represents a turning right as much as x°
- x corresponds to an angle of tan "1 (RMS).
- RMS is a value obtained by diving a subtracted value of a current right distance and a previous right distance by a current movement distance.
- the robot according to the present invention has a function of error correction with respect to a processed result, correction of a performance of the operation and error operation is achieved only by operation commands.
- the operation commands include FG for moving forward and RG for moving reverse (backward), and TL( ⁇ ) for turning left as much as a predetermined angle and TR( ⁇ ) for turning right as much as a predetermined angle.
- ⁇ is a angle for rotation, and if there is no angle, it means 90°.
- the robot Since the distance status NI is near to the wall, the robot cannot rotate, and the distance status N2 is a proper distance to rotate.
- the distance status N3 is out of the proper distance and the distance status F means a distance much farther than the distance status N3.
- the robot moves by a predetermined distance.
- the front distance status is N
- the left-side distance status is N
- the right-side distance status is N
- a sum of the right-side distance and the right-side distance is greater than the dr
- an operation of turning left as much as 90° is set.
- the symbol dr is a minimum space required for the robot to rotate.
- the robot is turned right as much as 90° and an operation of the forward movement is then set.
- the robot is turned left as much as 90° and an operation of the forward movement is then set.
- the robot is turned left as much as 90° and an operation of the forward movement is set.
- the robot is turned left as much as 90° and an operation of the forward movement is set. Furthermore, if, at the previous status, the front distance status is F, the left-side distance status is F, the right-side distance status is F, and if the previous operation is a turning right as much as 90° and then is not an operation of the forward movement, the robot is turned right as much as 90° and an operation of the, forward movement is then set.
- the front distance status is F
- the left-side distance status is N and the right-side distance status is N
- the previous operation is an operation of the backward movement or a turning left as much as 90° and a sum of the left-side distance and the right-side distance is greater than the dr
- an operation of a turning left as much as 90° is set.
- the dr represents a minimum space required for the robot to rotate.
- the robot is turned left as much as
- the robot is turned right as much as 90° and an operation of the forward movement is s*et.
- a current right-side distance status is NI
- a previous front distance status is F
- a previous left-side distance status is F
- a previous right-side distance status is N
- x represents a predetermined minimum unit angle or an inverse tangent (tan -1 ) of an angle obtained by diving a difference between the current right-side distance and the previous right-side distance by a current coverage distance.
- x represents a predetermined minimum unit angle or an inverse tangent (tan -1 ) of an angle obtained by diving a difference between the current right-side distance and the previous right-side distance by a current coverage distance.
- the front distance status is F
- the left-side distance status is F
- the right-side distance status is F
- an operation of the forward movement is set.
- the previous operation is not the forward movement but the backward movement or a turning left as much as 90°
- an operation of turning left as much as 90° is set.
- the robot is turned left as much as 90° and then an operation of the forward movement is set.
- the above-described eight setups of operations are steps for setting up the operation commands according to the robot' s status.
- Operation commands are set up according to the current operation status and the previous operation status, as shown in the tables 1 and 2.
- a first term presents a status of the front distance
- a second term presents a status of the left-side distance
- a third term represents a status of the right-side distance
- operation commands such as TLx and TRx are used to make the distance status to be N2.
- TLx represents a turning left as much as x°
- TRx represents a turning right as much as x°
- x corresponds to an angle of tan "1 (RMS).
- RMS is a value obtained by diving a subtracted value of a current right distance and a previous right distance by a current movement distance.
- the operation commands include FG for moving forward and RG for moving reverse (backward), and TL( ⁇ ) for turning left as much as a predetermined angle and TR( ⁇ ) for turning right as much as a predetermined angle.
- ⁇ is a angle for rotation, and if there is no angle, it means 90°.
- the distance status N can be divided into NI, N2, and N3. Since the distance status NI is near to the wall, the robot cannot rotate, and the distance status N2 is a proper distance to rotate. The distance status N3 is out of the proper distance .
- the distance status F means a distance much farther than the distance status N3.
- the robot moves by a predetermined distance.
- the front distance status is N
- the left-side distance status is N
- the right-side distance status is N
- a sum of the right-side distance and the right-side distance is greater than the dr
- an operation of turning right as much as 90° is set.
- the symbol dr is a minimum space required for the robot to rotate.
- the robot is turned right as much as 90° and an operation of the forward movement is then set.
- the robot is turned left as much as 90° and an operation of the forward movement is then set.
- the robot is turned right as much as 90° and an operation of the forward movement is set.
- the robot is turned right as much as 90° and an operation of the forward movement is set.
- the robot is turned left as much as 90° and an operation of the forward movement is then set.
- the front distance status is F
- the left-side distance status is N and the right-side distance status is N
- the previous operation is an operation of the backward movement or a turning right as much as 90° and a sum of the left-side distance and the right-side distance is greater than the dr
- an operation of a turning right as much as 90° is set.
- the dr represents a minimum space required for the robot to rotate.
- the previous operation is an operation of the backward movement
- an operation of the backward movement is set. If the previous operation is not the operation of the backward movement, an operation of the forward movement is set.
- the robot is turned right as much as 90° is set.
- x represents a predetermined minimum unit angle or an inverse tangent (tan "1 ) of an angle obtained by diving a difference between the current right-side distance and the previous right-side distance by a current coverage distance.
- x represents a predetermined minimum unit angle or an inverse tangent (tan "1 ) of an angle obtained by diving a difference between the current right-side distance and the previous right-side distance by a current coverage distance.
- the robot is turned left as much as 90° and an operation of the forward movement is set.
- the front distance status is F
- the left-side distance status is F
- the right-side distance status is F
- an operation of the forward movement is set.
- the previous operation is the forward movement or an operation of the forward movement
- an operation of the forward movement is set.
- the robot is turned left as much s 90° and then an operation of the forward movement is set.
- the above-described eight setups of operations are steps for setting up the operation commands according to the robot' s status
- Fig. 19 is a flow chart illustrating sequential steps of the setup operation in Fig. 15 when the robot moves forward.
- the movement unit 132 includes a left and a right motors .
- the robot moves forward by rotating the left and the right motors in a forward direction by a predetermined number.
- a robot's movement direction is detected through the electronic compass, in order to correct a deviated direction due to a collision with the ground or obstacles.
- step 1953 whether an error value el corresponding to a difference between a detected forward direction ⁇ l and an original forward direction ⁇ 2 is smaller than a predetermined minimum direction error value ⁇ e is determined. If the error value el is smaller than the minimum direction error value ⁇ e , an operation for correction the robot' s body in the forward movement is finished.
- step 1954 if it is determined at the step 1953 that the error value el is not smaller than the minimum direction error value ⁇ e , the robot's body is rotated to thereby be in the original forward direction ⁇ i.
- Fig. 20 is a flow chart illustrating sequential steps of the setup operation in Fig.15 when the robot moves backward.
- the robot moves backward by rotating the left and the right motors in a backward direction by a predetermined number.
- a robot's movement direction is detected through the electronic compass, in order to correct a deviated direction due to a collision with the ground or obstacles .
- whether an error value e2 corresponding to a difference between a detected backward direction ⁇ 2 and an original backward direction ⁇ 2 is smaller than a predetermined minimum direction error value ⁇ e is determined. If the error value e2 is smaller than the minimum direction error value ⁇ e , an operation for correction the robot's body in the backward movement is finished.
- step 2064 if it is determined at the step 2063 that the error value e2 is not smaller than the minimum direction error value ⁇ e , the robot's body is rotated to thereby be in the original backward direction ⁇ 2 .
- Fig. 21 is a flow chart illustrating sequential steps of the setup operations in Fig. 15 in a rotation of the robot's body according to another embodiment of the present invention.
- the operation of the rotation of the robot's body represents a direction change from a current movement direction ⁇ 3 to a target direction ⁇ 3 .
- the robot can change the direction by moving forward/backward little by little.
- an initial value of a forward/backward direction value FlagR is set to ⁇ 0', and the number of a correction operation is set to ⁇ 0' .
- a detected current direction of the robot is stored and an angle difference ⁇ of the robot's body direction is subtracted from the target direction.
- whether the angle difference ⁇ is smaller than ⁇ 0' is determined.
- the angle difference ⁇ is a negative (-) value, i.e., smaller than '0', a sign of the angle difference ⁇ is converted into a positive sign(+) .
- the left and the right motors are rotated in a forward and a backward direction by the angle difference ⁇ , respectively, to thereby turn right the robot's body.
- (+ ) value i.e., greater than ⁇ 0'
- the left and the right motors are rotated in a backward and a forward direction by the angle difference ⁇ , respectively, to thereby turn left the robot's body.
- a current direction ⁇ of the robot is detected through the electronic compass 120.
- a difference e3 between a detected direction ⁇ and the target direction ⁇ 3 is smaller than a predetermined minimum direction error value ⁇ e ⁇ is determined. If the difference e3 is smaller than the minimum direction error value ⁇ e ⁇ , an operation for rotating the robot's body is finished.
- step 2179 if it is determined at the step 2178 that the difference e3 is not smaller than the minimum direction error value ⁇ e ⁇ , whether a difference e4 between a previous direction ⁇ 3 of the robot and the detected current direction ⁇ is greater than a predetermined minimum direction error value ⁇ e2 is determined.
- step 2180 if the difference e4 is not greater than the predetermined minimum direction error value ⁇ e2 , and if the forward/backward direction value FlagR is ⁇ l' , the forward/backward direction value FlagR is changed into ⁇ 0' . Also, if the forward/backward direction value FlagR is '0' , the forward/backward direction value FlagR is changed into ⁇ l' . As a result, the forward and the backward direction are changed.
- step 2181 whether the number Nc of the correction operation is greater than a predetermined reference number Ncth of the correction operation is determined.
- step 2182 if the number Nc of the correction operation is greater than a predetermined reference number Ncth of the correction operation, an alarm is given and an operation is finished. In that case, the robot periodically gives a x beep' sound in order to informa user that there is no change of the direction.
- step 2183 if it is determined at the step 2179 that is the difference e4 is greater than the minimum direction error value ⁇ e2 , whether the forward/backward direction value FlagR is set to '0' is determined.
- step 2184 if the forward/backward direction value FlagR is set to ⁇ 0', the robot moves backward by a predetermined minimum distance. Then, the step 2173 for determining the magnitude of the angle difference ⁇ is repeated.
- step 2181 If it is determined at the step 2181 that the number Nc of the correction operation is not greater than the reference number Ncth of the correction operation, the step 2183 for determining the forward/backward direction value FlagR is repeated.
- Fig. 22 is a flow chart illustrating sequential steps of the plane structure analysis for analyzing whether the plane structure is a closed-loop or not.
- a movement distance Dtrace from the initial operation is greater than a predetermined minimum distance D_round.
- a coverage distance of the robot is analyzed. At this time, the coverage distance within a predetermined space and data having a direction are processed by considering the movement distance as a locus of a contour trace.
- step 2291 If it is determined at the step 2291 that the movement distance Dtrace is not greater than the predetermined minimum distance D_round, the step for the plane structure analysis is finished.
- segments of movement direction components is extracted. That is, the segments are extracted by offsetting opposite components, to thereby obtain one long segment having a constant direction.
- a closed-loop analysis is performed at a point when the added angle becomes 360°.
- step 2295 since a reliability of the closed-loop analysis is very high when a longest segment is repeated two times, whether concurrence of a length and a direction with respect to the longest segment are analyzed. If there is a concurrence, whether or not the plane structure is a closed-loop having the added angle being 360° is determined.
- the plane structure analysis is completed.
- Fig. 23 is a diagram illustrating a procedure of the plane structure analysis.
- the angle has a positive (+) sign in moving counterclockwise.
- the angle has a positive (+) sign in moving clockwise.
- the angle between the movement directions is a negative (-) sign. Therefore, if the added angle of the segments is below -360°, it is determined that the robot is continuously rotating around the specific object. In that case, in order to escape that looping, when moving in a predetermined direction, the robot is turned as much as 90° and then moves forward until the front distance becomes the reference near distance Near. Then, an entire system is made to be an initial status and restarted .
- the charger having a sound signal generator is allowed to give a sound signal periodically under a control of the remote control unit 122, thereby making it possible for the robot to find the place of the charger.
- Fig. 24 is a flow chart illustrating sequential steps of searching the place of the sound source.
- an initial value of a movement mode TraceMode for moving in a direction of the sound source is set to '0' .
- amovement direction and distances between the robot's body and the walls disposed at the front, the left side and the right side are detected, and a current status of the robot is determined by using the detected distance and direction.
- step 2403 after determining the current status of the robot, an operation for searching the position of the sound source is set.
- step 2404 whether a current statusisa detour operation mode.
- step 2405 if it is determined as the detour operation mode, a setup operation is performed.
- step 2406 if not the detour operation mode, the robot moves in a direction of the sound source.
- step 2407 whether the robot docks the sound source or not is determined.
- step 2408 if it is determined that the robot docks the charger having the sound source, the battery is charged for a predetermined time, and the place of the charger is stored in the RAM 129.
- the detour operation mode for detouring an obstacle disposed in a direction of the sound source is set and then the step 2402 is repeated.
- the detour operation mode is set, to thereby make the robot tomove along the right-side wall or the left-side wall .
- Fig. 25 is a flow chart illustrating sequential steps of the sound source search.
- step 2511 whether a current status is the detour operation mode or not is checked.
- step 2512 if the current status is the detour operation mode, whether the right-side priority mode is or not is determined.
- step 2513 if it is determined as the right-side priority mode, commands with respect to the right-side priority mode is set up.
- step 2514 if it is determined at the step 2512 that it is not the right-side priority mode, commands with respect to the left-side priority mode is set up.
- step 2515 if it is determined at the step 2511 that it is not the detour operation mode, a direction of the sound source and a distance between the robot's body and the sound source are detected.
- Fig. 26 is a flow chart illustrating sequential steps of the movement to the sound source.
- a movement direction of the robot is detected by using the electronic compass 120.
- the robot's body is turned to a direction of the sound source according to the detected movement direction.
- the robot moves forward to the direction by a predetermined minimum distance.
- a front distance Fdist between the robot and the sound source is detected in order to sense the sound source or the obstacle.
- whether the detected front distance Fdist is equal to the reference near distance Near or not is determined. If the detected front distance Fdist is equal to the reference near distance Near, a forward movement is stopped.
- the step 2624 for moving forward to the sound source is performed.
- Fig. 27 is a flow chart illustrating sequential steps of the detour operation mode.
- step 2731 whether the current mode of the robot is the detour operation mode or not is determined.
- step 2732 if the current mode is not the detour operation mode, whether the detected front distance Fdist is equal to the reference near distance Near or not is determined. If not equal, the operation mode is finished.
- the front distance Fdist is equal to the reference near distance Near, it is determined that there is an obstacle in a front direction and an initialization of the detour operation is performed as follows .
- a maximum value and a minimum coordinate value of X axis are initialized to ⁇ 0' , respectively.
- the direction of the sound source is detected.
- a current position of the robot is set to (0,0) as a starting point.
- step 2736 if it is determined at the step 2731 that it is the detour operation mode, whether the distance Dtrace moving during the detour operation mode is equal to or greater than the predetermined minimum reference distance Dth3 is determined. If the distance Dtrace is not equal to or greater than the minimum reference distance Dth3, the operation is stopped without setting the operation mode.
- a coordinate component of X axis is added to a previous coordinate component of X axis, to thereby set a current coordinate Px.
- the coordinate component of X axis is set according to the direction and the distance moved from the previous status to the current status.
- the coordinate component of X axis is set by performing the step 2735.
- the minimum value is extracted as a minimum coordinate value Xmin of the current coordinate Px. If the current coordinate Px is greater than the maximum value of the X axis, the maximum value is extracted as a maximum coordinate value Xmax of the current coordinate Px.
- step 2739 whether the operation mode is the right-side priority mode or the left-side priority mode is determined by using the maximum and the minimum coordinate values Xmax and Xmin.
- step 2740 if it is the right-side priority mode, whether the value of the current coordinate Px is greater than half the minimum value Xmin/2 or not is determined.
- step 2741 if the value of the current coordinate Px is greater than half the minimum value Xmin/2. the operation for moving to the direction of the sound source is set.
- the step of the detour operationmode is performed.
- step 2742 if it is determined at the step 2739 that the operation mode is the right-side priority mode, whether the value of the current coordinate Px is smaller than half the maximum value Xmax/2 or not is determined. If the value of the current coordinate Px is smaller than half the maximum value Xmax/2, the step 2741 of moving to the direction of the sound source is performed. At this time, in case of the left-side priority mode, when the current coordinate Px is a component increasing in the direction of X axis, the detour operation mode is escaped. In.case of the right-side priority mode, the detour operation mode is escaped at a point when the current coordinate Px is decreased in tne direction cf X axis.
- the detour operation mode is maintained.
- Fig. 28 is a diagram explaining the detour operation.
- a reference numeral Bll represents an obstacle, Cll a locus of the movement distance with respect to the right-side priority mode, and All a locus of the movement distance with respect to the left-side priority mode, respectively.
- the minimum value Xmin is updated moving the robot to the left side, and the detour operation mode is completed at a point when the current coordinate Px is smaller than half the maximum value Xmax, i.e., Xmax/2, by again moving to the left side.
- a sensor for a human body senses a human body by detecting a wavelength of an infraredray, generated at a body temperature .
- the sensor detects only human body, and does not detect a deviation of temperature in the environment and noise.
- Fig. 29 is a flow chart illustrating sequential steps of tracing human body in Fig. 14. Referring to Fig. 29, at step 2901, whether the sound signal generated from the sound signal generator is detected or not is determined. This is because the robot is allowed to preferentially move to a human body having the sound signal generator. At step 2902, if the sound signal is detected, the robot is moved to the sound source that generates the sound signal. At step 2903, if it is determined at the step
- the robot detects the human body by rotating by 60° in the left/right direction.
- Whether the human body is detected within a range of 120° or not is determined.
- step 2904 if the human body is not detected, whether the scan number, performed to detect the human body is checked, is greater than a predetermined reference scan number, e.g., 2 and 3, is determined.
- step 2905 if the scan number is greater than the reference scan number, whether the human body is detected within a range of 360° or not is determined.
- step 2906 if it is determined at the step 2905 that the human body is detected, whether the direction of the detected human body is more than two is determined.
- step 2907 if the direction is more than two, a direction considered as a nearest to a previous trace direction is selected and the robot moves to the selected direction.
- step 2908 if it is determined at the step 2906 that the direction is only one, the robot moves to the detected direction.
- step 2909 if the human body is not detected at. the step 2905, whether a predetermined time is passed after an operation for detecting the human body is determined.
- step 2910 if the predetermined time is passed, the robot moves to a wall or a corner and then maintains a standby status. However, if it is determined at the step 2909 the predetermined time is not passed, the step 2901 for detecting the sound signal is performed.
- Fig. 30 is a flow chart illustrating a guard operation mode.
- step 3001 after a predetermined time is passed from transfer of commands for instructing the guard operation mode, the guard operation is started.
- the front distance Fdistl, the left-side distance Ldistl and the right-side distance Rdistl are detected.
- the front distance Fdistl, the left-side distance Ldistl, and the right-side distance Rdistl are stored in the RAM 129.
- a next front distance Fdist2, a next left-side distance Ldist2 and a next right-side distance Rdist2 are detected.
- whether there is any change or not is determined by comparing the previous front distance Fdistl, the previous left-side distance Ldistl and the previous right-side distance Rdistl with the current front distance Fdist2, the current left-side distance Ldist2 and the current right-side distance Rdist2, respectively.
- a first alarm is set.
- a voice data is analyzed in order for identification.
- step 3008 whether the analyzed voice data is a registered voice or not is determined. If the analyzed voice data is the registered voice, the step 1304 is repeated after a delay of a predetermined time.
- step 3009 if the analyzed voice data is not the registered voice, the alarm is given and the step 3007 is then performed.
- step 3006 is repeated .
- the step 3002 of the distance measurement is repeated.
Abstract
Description
Claims
Priority Applications (2)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
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AU41495/00A AU4149500A (en) | 1999-04-20 | 2000-04-20 | Robot apparatus for detecting direction of sound source to move to sound source and method for operating the same |
US09/719,866 US6308114B1 (en) | 1999-04-20 | 2000-04-20 | Robot apparatus for detecting direction of sound source to move to sound source and method for operating the same |
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KR1999/14029 | 1999-04-20 | ||
KR1019990014029A KR20000066728A (en) | 1999-04-20 | 1999-04-20 | Robot and its action method having sound and motion direction detecting ability and intellectual auto charge ability |
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WO2000063721A1 true WO2000063721A1 (en) | 2000-10-26 |
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PCT/KR2000/000372 WO2000063721A1 (en) | 1999-04-20 | 2000-04-20 | Robot apparatus for detecting direction of sound source to move to sound source and method for operating the same |
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US (1) | US6308114B1 (en) |
KR (1) | KR20000066728A (en) |
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Cited By (1)
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CN103845003A (en) * | 2012-12-05 | 2014-06-11 | Lg电子株式会社 | Robot cleaner |
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WO2001095043A1 (en) * | 2000-06-05 | 2001-12-13 | Hideyuki Yoshikawa | Remote control traveling device |
US6780077B2 (en) | 2001-11-01 | 2004-08-24 | Mattel, Inc. | Master and slave toy vehicle pair |
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Also Published As
Publication number | Publication date |
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KR20000066728A (en) | 2000-11-15 |
US6308114B1 (en) | 2001-10-23 |
AU4149500A (en) | 2000-11-02 |
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