Systems and Methods for Performing Simultaneous Localization and Mapping using Machine Vision Systems

• US 20170097643A1
• Filed: 11/16/2016
• Published: 04/06/2017
• 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
• Granted Patent: US 10,222,805 B2
• Time in Patent Office: 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. (canceled)

2. A mobile robot, comprising:

a body having a top surface, a rearward portion, and forward portion comprising a square-shaped front;

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

a drive mounted to the body between the forward portion and the rearward portion;

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 an angle above the horizontal plane and is aimed in a forward drive direction of the body.

3. The mobile robot of claim 2, wherein the drive comprises left and right wheel modules at opposite ends of a transverse axis extending between left and right sides of the body, and further comprising:

a caster wheel mounted to the body; and

a cleaning head assembly mounted to the body,

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

4. The mobile robot of claim 3, wherein the caster wheel is mounted to the rearward portion of the body, and wherein the cleaning head assembly is cantilevered thereby.

5. The mobile robot of claim 3, wherein the body defines a tombstone shape.

6. The mobile robot of claim 2, further comprising:

one or more cliff sensors, one or more proximity sensors, and/or a side brush mounted to the forward portion of the body adjacent a periphery thereof.

7. The mobile robot of claim 2, further comprising:

a bumper mounted to the forward portion 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.

8. The mobile robot of claim 2, wherein the angle defined by the camera optical axis is sufficient such that a lower periphery of the camera field of view is unoccluded by the body.

9. The mobile robot of claim 2, wherein the angle defined by the camera optical axis is such that 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.

10. The mobile robot of claim 2, wherein the angle defined by the camera optical axis is sufficient such that 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.

11. The mobile robot of claim 2, wherein the angle defined by the camera optical axis above the horizontal plane is between 10 and 60 degrees.

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

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

14. The mobile robot of claim 2, 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 about 3 feet to about 8 feet above the top surface and at a distance of about 3 feet to about 10 feet along the camera optical axis.

15. The mobile robot of claim 2, 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.

16. A mobile robot, comprising:

a body having a rearward portion and a forward portion comprising a square-shaped front;

a caster wheel mounted to the body;

a drive mounted to the body between the forward portion and the rearward portion, wherein the drive comprises left and right wheel modules at opposite ends of a transverse axis extending between left and right sides of the body;

a cleaning head assembly mounted to the body, 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 body, 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.

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

18. The mobile robot of claim 17, 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.

19. The mobile robot of claim 16, wherein the caster wheel is mounted to the rearward portion of the body, and wherein the cleaning head assembly is cantilevered thereby.

20. The mobile robot of claim 16, further comprising:

a bumper mounted to the forward portion 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.

21. The mobile robot of claim 16, further comprising:

one or more cliff sensors, one or more proximity sensors, and/or a side brush mounted to the forward portion of the body adjacent a periphery thereof.