Autonomous mobile robot and method of controlling the same

• US 20070185617A1
• Filed: 11/30/2006
• Published: 08/09/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 02/07/2006
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. (Samsung Group)
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. (Samsung Group)
• Inventors: Bang, Seok-won, Kim, Yeon-ho
• Application Number:
  US11/606,329
• Publication Number:
  US 20070185617A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 700/245
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0244 using reflecting strips

Abstract

An autonomous mobile robot and a method of controlling the same, A mobile robot includes: a light-emitting unit projecting light onto a target position on a motion surface, on which the robot moves under control of a user; a position coordinate calculation unit calculating position coordinates of the target position based on a distance between a body of the robot and a target position onto which the light-emitting unit projects light; and a driving unit moving the robot according to the calculated position coordinates of the target position.

Claims

1. A mobile robot comprising:

a light-emitting unit projecting light onto a target position on a motion surface, on which the robot moves, under control of a user;

a position coordinate calculation unit calculating position coordinates of the target position based on a distance between a body of the robot and a target position onto which the light-emitting unit projects light; and

a driving unit moving the robot according to the calculated position coordinates of the target position.

2. The robot of claim 1, wherein the light-emitting unit comprises a lens having a curvature which differs according to a light projection direction of the light-emitting unit such that the projected light at the target position is round-like regardless of the distance.

3. The robot of claim 1, wherein the position coordinate calculation unit calculates the distance between the body and the target position based on a distance between the motion surface and the light-emitting unit and an angle formed by a plane perpendicular to the motion surface and the projected light.

4. The robot of claim 3, wherein a linear speed of the luminous point is proportional to the calculated distance, and an angular speed of the light-emitting unit is inversely proportional to the calculated distance.

5. The robot of claim 3, wherein the position coordinate calculation unit calculates the position coordinates of the target position based on an angle formed by a direction in which the robot moves and the target position and the calculated distance.

6. The robot of claim 5, wherein the position coordinates comprise a coordinate on an axis which coincides with the direction in which the robot moves and a coordinate on an axis perpendicular to the direction in which the robot moves.

7. The robot of claim 1, further comprising a reception unit receiving a control signal for changing the light projection direction of the light-emitting unit, which is transmitted from a control device according to a value input by the user.

8. The robot of claim 7, wherein the control device comprises:

a display unit displaying the calculated position coordinates of the target position; and

an angle change unit comprising a plurality of direction keys used to change an angle at which the light-emitting unit projects light.

9. A method of controlling a mobile robot, the method comprising:

projecting light onto a target position on a motion surface, on which the robot moves, using a light-emitting device installed on one side of a body of the robot;

calculating position coordinates of the target position based on a distance between the body and a target position onto which the light-emitting device projects light; and

moving the robot according to the calculated position coordinates of the target position.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the light-emitting device comprises a lens having a curvature which differs according to a light projection direction of the light-emitting device such that the projected light at the target position is round-like regardless of the distance.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein the calculating of the position coordinates of the target position comprises calculating a distance between the body and the target position based on a distance between the motion surface and the light-emitting device and an angle formed by a plane perpendicular to the motion surface and the projected light.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein a linear speed of the luminous point is proportional to the calculated distance, and an angular speed of the light-emitting device is inversely proportional to the calculated distance.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein the calculating of the position coordinates of the target position comprises calculating the position coordinates of the target position based on an angle formed by a direction in which the robot moves and the target position and the calculated distance.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the position coordinates comprise a coordinate on an axis which coincides with the direction in which the robot moves and a coordinate on an axis perpendicular to the direction in which the robot moves.

15. The method of claim 9, further comprising receiving a control signal for changing the light projection direction of the light-emitting device, which is transmitted from a control device according to a value input by a user.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the control device comprises:

a display unit displaying the calculated position coordinates of the target position; and

an angle change unit comprising a plurality of direction keys used to change an angle at which the light-emitting unit projects light.

17. A computer-readable storage medium encoded with processing instructions for causing a processor to execute the method of claim 9.