Systems and methods for performing simultaneous localization and mapping using machine vision systems

• US 10,222,805 B2
• Filed: 11/16/2016
• Issued: 03/05/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 11/26/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: iRobot Corporation
• Original Assignee: iRobot Corporation
• Inventors: Munich, Mario, Romanov, Nikolai, Goel, Dhiraj, Fong, Philip
• Primary Examiner(s): Dunn, Alex C
• Application Number:
  US15/353,368
• Publication Number:
  US 20170097643A1
• Time in Patent Office: 839 Days
• CPC Class Codes: B25J 19/005 using batteries, e.g. as a back-up power source
• CPC Class Codes: B25J 5/007 mounted on wheels
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/206 specially adapted for indoor navigation
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0088 characterized by the autonomous decision making process, e.g. artificial intelligence, predefined behaviours using knowledge based models G06N5/00
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0246 using a video camera in combination with image processing means
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0274 using mapping information stored in a memory device navigation using map-matching G01C21/30
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 901/01 Mobile robot
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 901/47 Optical

Abstract

The present invention provides a mobile robot configured to navigate an operating environment, that includes a controller circuit that directs a drive of the mobile robot to navigate the mobile robot through an environment using camera-based navigation system and a camera including optics defining a camera field of view and a camera optical axis, where the camera is positioned within the recessed structure and is tilted so that the camera optical axis is aligned at an acute angle of above a horizontal plane in line with the top surface and is aimed in a forward drive direction of the robot body, and the camera is configured to capture images of the operating environment of the mobile robot.

Claims

1. A mobile robot, comprising:

a body having a top surface;

a recessed structure beneath a horizontal plane along the top surface of the body;

a drive supporting the body;

a controller circuit in communication with the drive, wherein the controller circuit is configured to direct the drive to navigate the mobile robot through an operating environment; and

a camera configured to capture images of the operating environment of the mobile robot, the camera including optics defining a camera field of view and a camera optical axis, wherein the camera is positioned within the recessed structure and is tilted so that the camera optical axis defines a non-zero angle relative to the horizontal plane and is aimed in a forward drive direction of the mobile robot.

2. The mobile robot of claim 1, wherein the drive comprises wheel modules at opposite ends of a transverse axis;

a caster wheel; and

a cleaning head assembly,

wherein the transverse axis is between the cleaning head assembly and the caster wheel.

3. The mobile robot of claim 2, wherein the cleaning head assembly is cantilevered.

4. The mobile robot of claim 2, wherein the body defines a tombstone shape.

5. The mobile robot of claim 1, further comprising:

one or more cliff sensors, one or more proximity sensors, and a side brush adjacent a periphery of the body.

6. The mobile robot of claim 1, further comprising:

a bumper adjacent a periphery of the body; and

a user interface on the top surface of the body, wherein the user interface is between the bumper and the camera.

7. The mobile robot of claim 1, wherein a lower periphery of the camera field of view is unoccluded by the body.

8. The mobile robot of claim 1, wherein a lower periphery of the camera field of view is partially occluded by the body, and wherein the controller circuit is configured to discard the lower periphery of the field of view in imaging features observed by the camera.

9. The mobile robot of claim 1, wherein features observed at a top of a detected image move upward between successive images at a faster rate than an ego-motion of the camera in the forward drive direction, and features at a bottom of the detected image move downward between the successive images at an equal or slower rate than the ego-motion in the forward drive direction.

10. The mobile robot of claim 1, wherein the angle defined by the camera optical axis above the horizontal plane is between 10 and 60 degrees.

11. The mobile robot of claim 10, wherein the angle defined by the camera optical axis above the horizontal plane comprises an acute angle of 30-40 degrees.

12. The mobile robot of claim 11, wherein the camera field of view spans 45-65 degrees in the vertical direction, and spans 65-75 degrees in the horizontal direction.

13. The mobile robot of claim 1, wherein the controller circuit is configured to direct a processor to identify landmarks comprising static features detected by the camera, and wherein the angle and the position of the camera are configured to detect the static features in a range of 3 feet to 8 feet above the top surface and at a distance of 3 feet to 10 feet along the camera optical axis.

14. The mobile robot of claim 1, wherein the controller circuit is configured to direct a processor to build a map of the operating environment and direct the drive to navigate the mobile robot through the operating environment using visual simultaneous localization and mapping (VSLAM) based on the images of the operating environment captured by the camera.

25. The mobile robot of claim 1, wherein the mobile robot comprises a robotic vacuum cleaner, the robotic vacuum cleaner further comprising a bumper and a brush adjacent a periphery of the body, and a cleaning head assembly.

15. A mobile robot, comprising:

a body;

a caster wheel;

a drive supporting the body, wherein the drive comprises left and right wheel modules at opposite ends of a transverse axis;

a cleaning head assembly, wherein the transverse axis is between the cleaning head assembly and the caster wheel;

a controller circuit in communication with the drive and configured to direct the drive to navigate the mobile robot through an operating environment; and

a camera configured to capture images of the operating environment of the mobile robot in a forward drive direction of the mobile robot, the camera including optics defining a camera field of view and a camera optical axis, wherein the camera optical axis is oriented such that the mobile robot does not move along the camera optical axis.

16. The mobile robot of claim 15, wherein the body defines a tombstone shape, and wherein the camera optical axis defines an angle between 10 and 60 degrees above a horizontal plane in line with a top surface of the body.

17. The mobile robot of claim 16, wherein the body comprises a recessed structure beneath the horizontal plane, and wherein the camera is positioned within the recessed structure and is tilted so that the camera optical axis defines an acute angle above the horizontal plane.

18. The mobile robot of claim 15, wherein the cleaning head assembly is cantilevered.

19. The mobile robot of claim 15, further comprising:

a bumper adjacent a periphery of the body; and

a user interface on the top surface of the body, wherein the user interface is between the bumper and the camera.

20. The mobile robot of claim 15, further comprising:

one or more cliff sensors, one or more proximity sensors, and a side brush adjacent a periphery of the body.

26. The mobile robot of claim 15, wherein the mobile robot comprises a robotic vacuum cleaner, the robotic vacuum cleaner further comprising a bumper and a brush adjacent a periphery of the body.

21. A mobile robot, comprising:

a recessed structure beneath a horizontal plane along a top surface of the mobile robot;

a drive;

a controller circuit in communication with the drive, wherein the controller circuit is configured to direct the drive to navigate the mobile robot through an operating environment;

a camera configured to capture images of the operating environment of the mobile robot, the camera including optics defining a camera field of view and a camera optical axis, wherein the camera is positioned within the recessed structure and is tilted so that the camera optical axis defines an angle relative to the horizontal plane and is aimed in a forward drive direction of the mobile robot;

a caster wheel; and

a cleaning head assembly, wherein the cleaning head assembly is cantilevered.

22. The mobile robot of claim 21, wherein the mobile robot comprises a robotic vacuum having a tombstone shape.

23. The mobile robot of claim 22, wherein the drive comprises wheel modules at opposite ends of a transverse axis, wherein the transverse axis is between the cleaning head assembly and the caster wheel, and further comprising a brush adjacent a periphery of the mobile robot.

24. The mobile robot of claim 23, further comprising:

a bumper adjacent the periphery of the mobile robot, wherein the caster wheel is disposed opposite the bumper; and

a user interface on the top surface of the mobile robot, wherein the user interface is between the bumper and the camera.