AUTOMATIC MACHINE AND METHOD FOR CONTROLLING THE SAME

• US 20110295425A1
• Filed: 05/05/2011
• Published: 12/01/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 05/28/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Compal Electronics Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Compal Electronics Incorporated
• Inventors: Hsu, Fu-Kuan
• Granted Patent: US 8,666,549 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 700/250
• CPC Class Codes: B25J 11/0015 Face robots, animated artificial faces for imitating human expressions

Abstract

An automatic machine includes N output units, a storage unit and a control unit. The control unit is electrically connected to the output units and the storage unit. The storage unit stores a first reaction pattern corresponding to a first command. The first reaction pattern includes a header and N reaction modes and each of the reaction modes is corresponding to one of the output units. Each of the reaction modes includes M reaction frames. The header records a number of the reaction frames of each reaction mode. The control unit receives the first command, looks the first reaction pattern up in the storage unit according to the first command, and selectively controls at least one of the output units to perform the reaction frames correspondingly according to the header and the reaction modes.

Claims

1. An automatic machine comprising:

N output units, N being a positive integer;

a storage unit for storing a first reaction pattern corresponding to a first command, the first reaction pattern comprising a header and N reaction modes, each of the reaction modes being corresponding to one of the output units, each of the reaction modes comprising M reaction frames, M being 0 or a positive integer, the header recording a number of the reaction frames of each reaction mode; and

a control unit electrically connected to the N output units and the storage unit, the control unit receiving the first command, looking the first reaction pattern up in the storage unit according to the first command, and selectively controlling at least one of the output units to execute the reaction frames correspondingly according to the header and the reaction modes.

2. The automatic machine of claim 1, further comprising:

a command input unit for receiving the first command and then transmitting the first command to the control unit.

3. The automatic machine of claim 1, wherein the output units comprise a set of motors, the reaction modes comprise a motion mode, each of the reaction frames, which is corresponding to the motion mode, records a set of motor information and a time tag, the control unit controls the set of motors to rotate according to the set of motor information and the time tag, the time tag is a suspend time or a time stamp.

4. The automatic machine of claim 1, wherein the output units comprise a light emitting array, the reaction modes comprise a facial expression mode, each of the reaction frames, which is corresponding to the facial expression mode, records a light emitting serial number and a time tag, the control unit controls the light emitting array to emit light according to the light emitting serial number and the time tag, the time tag is a suspend time or a time stamp.

5. The automatic machine of claim 1, wherein the output units comprise a speaker, the reaction modes comprise a voice mode, each of the reaction frames, which is corresponding to the voice mode, records a voice type, a string, a length of the string and a time tag, the control unit controls the speaker to sound a voice according to the voice type, the string, the length of the string and the time tag, the time tag is a suspend time or a time stamp, the voice is generated by a text-to-speech technique or a voice file.

6. The automatic machine of claim 2, wherein the first reaction pattern has a first priority, the storage unit further stores a second reaction pattern, the second reaction pattern is corresponding to a second command and has a second priority, once the control unit receives the second command from the command input unit during execution of the first reaction pattern, the control unit looks the second reaction pattern up in the storage unit according to the second command and determines whether the second priority is prior to the first priority, if the second priority is prior to the first priority, the control unit pauses or abandons the execution of the first reaction pattern and executes the second reaction pattern.

7. A method for controlling an automatic machine, the automatic machine comprising N output units, a control unit and a storage unit, N being a positive integer, the method comprising:

the control unit receiving a first command;

the control unit looking a first reaction pattern up in the storage unit according to the first command, the first reaction pattern comprising a header and N reaction modes, each of the reaction modes being corresponding to one of the output units, each of the reaction modes comprising M reaction frames, M being 0 or a positive integer, the header recording a number of the reaction frames of each reaction mode; and

the control unit selectively controlling at least one of the output units to execute the reaction frames correspondingly according to the header and the reaction modes.

8. The method of claim 7, the automatic machine further comprising a command input unit, the method further comprising:

the command input unit receiving the first command; and

the command input unit transmitting the first command to the control unit.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein the output units comprise a set of motors, the reaction modes comprise a motion mode, each of the reaction frames, which is corresponding to the motion mode, records a set of motor information and a time tag, the time tag is a suspend time or a time stamp, the method further comprises:

controlling the set of motors to rotate according to the set of motor information and the time tag.

10. The method of claim 7, wherein the output units comprise a light emitting array, the reaction modes comprise a facial expression mode, each of the reaction frames, which is corresponding to the facial expression mode, records a light emitting serial number and a time tag, the time tag is a suspend time or a time stamp, the method further comprises:

controlling the light emitting array to emit light according to the light emitting serial number and the time tag.

11. The method of claim 7, wherein the output units comprise a speaker, the reaction modes comprise a voice mode, each of the reaction frames, which is corresponding to the voice mode, records a voice type, a string, a length of the string and a time tag, the time tag is a suspend time or a time stamp, the voice is generated by a text-to-speech technique or a voice file, the method further comprises:

controlling the speaker to sound a voice according to the voice type, the string, the length of the string and the time tag.

12. The method of claim 7, wherein the first reaction pattern has a first priority, the method further comprises:

once the control unit receives a second command during execution of the first reaction pattern, looking a second reaction pattern up in the storage unit according to the second command, the second reaction pattern having a second priority;

determining whether the second priority is prior to the first priority; and

if the second priority is prior to the first priority, pausing or abandoning the execution of the first reaction pattern and executing the second reaction pattern.