APPARATUS FOR CONTROLLING MOBILE ROBOT

• US 20140005830A1
• Filed: 05/09/2013
• Published: 01/02/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 06/28/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Honda Motor Co., Ltd. (Honda Motor Company)
• Original Assignee: Honda Motor Co., Ltd. (Honda Motor Company)
• Inventors: Ogawa, Naohide, Yokoyama, Taro, Aihara, Masaki, Saito, Yoko
• Granted Patent: US 9,132,545 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 700/257
• CPC Class Codes: B25J 13/003 by means of an audio-responsive input audible safety signals B25J19/061
• CPC Class Codes: B25J 9/1602 characterised by the control system, structure, architecture
• CPC Class Codes: B62D 57/032 with alternately or sequentially lifted supporting base and legs; with alternately or sequentially lifted feet or skid B62D57/024 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 901/01 Mobile robot

Abstract

In an apparatus for controlling a mobile robot having leg locomotion mechanisms for traveling and walking and work mechanisms both connected to a body, actuators for driving them, and a controller for controlling the operation of the locomotion mechanisms and work mechanisms by supplying the actuators with a control value calculated by multiplying a deviation between a detected value and a desired value by a gain and to control operation of a speech input/output unit to recognize a human voice inputted through a microphone and utter a generated response to the human voice from a speaker, the controller calculates the gain of the control value to be supplied to at least one of the actuators at a minimum value when controlling only the operation of the speech input/output unit.

Claims

1. An apparatus for controlling a mobile robot having a body, leg locomotion mechanisms for walking operation and work mechanisms for working operation both connected to the body, a plurality of actuators for driving the leg locomotion mechanisms and work mechanisms, a speech input/output unit including a microphone and a speaker, and a controller adapted to control the operation of the locomotion mechanisms and work mechanisms by supplying the plurality of actuators with a control value which is calculated by multiplying a deviation between a detected value and a desired value by a gain and to control operation of the speech input/output unit to recognize human voice inputted through the microphone and utter a generated response to the recognized human voice from the speaker,

wherein the improvement comprises:

the controller calculates the gain of the control value to be supplied to at least one of the plurality of actuators at a minimum value when controlling only the operation of the speech input/output unit.

2. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the controller includes gain characteristics defined for at least the walking operation and the working operation whose values are decreased in order from the walking operation to the working operation, and calculates the gain of the control value to be supplied to at least one of the plurality of actuators by retrieving the values of the defined gain characteristics in a case of controlling one of the walking operation and the working operation with the operation of the speech input/output unit.

3. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the locomotion mechanisms comprises leg locomotion mechanisms for walking operation and travel operation, and

the controller includes gain characteristics defined for the travel operation, the walking operation and the working operation whose values are decreased in order from the travel operation to the walking operation to the working operation and calculates the gain of the control value to be supplied to at least one of the plurality of actuators by retrieving the values of the defined gain characteristics in a case of controlling one of the travel operation, walking operation and the working operation with the operation of the speech input/output unit.

4. The apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the values of the gain characteristics are defined as a function of time.

5. The apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the values of the gain characteristics are defined as a function of time.

6. The apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the values of the gain characteristics are increased and decreased incrementally every predetermined time interval.

7. The apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the values of the gain characteristics are increased and decreased incrementally every predetermined time interval.

8. A method for controlling a mobile robot having a body, leg locomotion mechanisms for walking operation and work mechanisms for working operation both connected to the body, a plurality of actuators for driving the leg locomotion mechanisms and work mechanisms, a speech input/output unit including a microphone and a speaker, and a controller adapted to control the operation of the locomotion mechanisms and the work mechanisms by supplying the plurality of actuators with a control value which is calculated by multiplying a deviation between a detected value and a desired value by a gain and to control operation of the speech input/output unit to recognize human voice inputted through the microphone and utter a generated response to the recognized human voice from the speaker, comprising the step of:

calculating the gain of the control value to be supplied to at least one of the plurality of actuators at a minimum value when controlling only the operation of the speech input/output unit.

9. The method according to claim 8, the controller includes gain characteristics defined for at least the walking operation and the working operation whose values are decreased in order from the walking operation to the working operation, and

the step of calculating the gain of the control value calculates the gain of the control value to be supplied to at least one of the plurality of actuators by retrieving the values of the defined gain characteristics in a case of controlling at least one of the walking operation and the working operation with the operation of the speech input/output unit.

10. The method according to claim 8, the locomotion mechanisms comprises leg locomotion mechanisms for walking operation and travel operation, and the controller includes gain characteristics defined for the travel operation, the walking operation and the working operation whose values are decreased in order from the travel operation to the walking operation to the working operation, and

the step of calculating the gain of the control value calculates the gain of the control value to be supplied to at least one of the plurality of actuators by retrieving the values of the defined gain characteristics in a case of controlling at least one of the travel operation, walking operation and the working operation with the operation of the speech input/output unit.

11. The method according to claim 9, wherein the gain characteristics are defined as a function of time.

12. The method according to claim 10, wherein the gain characteristics are defined as a function of time.

13. The method according to claim 11, wherein the values of the gain characteristics are increased and decreased incrementally every predetermined time interval.

14. The method according to claim 12, wherein the values of the gain characteristics are increased and decreased incrementally every predetermined time interval.