Path planning method for mobile robots

• US 10,310,512 B2
• Filed: 10/08/2016
• Issued: 06/04/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 10/08/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Zhejiang Guozi Robot Technology Co., Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Zhejiang Guozi Robot Technology Co., Ltd.
• Inventors: Chen, Kai, Tao, Yikun, Du, Xinfeng, Shen, Jizhong, Zhu, Lingfen, Zheng, Hongbo, Wang, Xia, Mi, Xudong
• Primary Examiner(s): Beaulieu, Yonel
• Application Number:
  US15/305,507
• Publication Number:
  US 20180210458A1
• Time in Patent Office: 969 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/20 Instruments for performing navigational calculations G01C21/24, G01C21/26 take precedence
• 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 1/02 Control of position or course in two dimensions
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0217 in accordance with energy consumption, time reduction or distance reduction criteria
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0274 using mapping information stored in a memory device navigation using map-matching G01C21/30
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0287 involving a plurality of land vehicles, e.g. fleet or convoy travelling traffic control systems for road vehicles G08G1/00, particularly anticollision systems G08G1/16
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 901/01 Mobile robot

Abstract

A path planning method is provided for mobile robots, including the following steps: Step 1. Searching for available paths according to the destinations of moving of the robots and the nodes properties on the map; Step 2. Determining the optimum path, according to the weights of the segments on all the available paths, with the segments being arbitrary curves made up of Bezier curves or splined curves of a plurality of control points; and Step 3. Driving the robots to move along the optimum path, and to stop at the stop points. The present path planning method for mobile robots increases the ways of connection between the nodes significantly and avoids that there is only a single way of connection between two nodes.

Claims

1. A path planning method for mobile robots, wherein the method comprises the following steps:

(1) searching for available paths according to the destinations of moving of the robots and the nodes properties on a map;

(2) determining the optimum path, according to the weights of the segments on all the available paths, with the segments being arbitrary curves made up of Bezier curves or splined curves of a plurality of control points; and

(3) driving the robots to move along the optimum path, and to stop at the stop points,

wherein in step (1), the node properties comprise rotatable properties and unrotatable properties, the mobile robots are configured to rotate in situ at the nodes with the rotatable properties, thereby switching the segments and searching for available paths, wherein at a node, if the angle of the adjacent segments exceed a certain degree (configurable), and if no properties that permit rotating are configured at the node, the segments are not connectable, and the segments will not be connected in path searching, and alternatively, if properties that permit rotating are configured at the node, the segments are connected, and the mobile robot will switch the segments in a way of rotating in situ while the mobile robot moves to that node.

2. The path planning method for mobile robots according to claim 1, wherein in step (2), the weights of the segments are equal to the lengths of the segments, taking the available path with the shortest length of the segment as the optimum path.

3. The path planning method for mobile robots according to claim 1, wherein in step (2), the weights of the segments are determined through manual inputs, taking the available path with the smallest weight of the segment as the optimum path.

4. The path planning method for mobile robots according to claim 1, wherein in step (3), the stop points are determined through the relative positions on the segments, thereby making the robots stop at arbitrary positions of the segments.