Process for the control of active moving body relative to a local passive environment with the aid of local proximetric transducers

• US 4,747,458 A
• Filed: 11/24/1986
• Issued: 05/31/1988
• Est. Priority Date: 06/27/1984
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Commissariat a L'Energie Atomique (AES Corporation), Inria
• Original Assignee: Commissariat a L'Energie Atomique (AES Corporation), Inria
• Inventors: Espiau, Bernard, Andre, Guy
• Primary Examiner(s): Levy, Stewart J.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Raevis, Robert R.
• Application Number:
  US06/931,979
• Time in Patent Office: 554 Days
• Field of Search: 901/9, 901/35, 901/34, 901/46, 901/47, 180/79, 180/131, 180/168, 180/167, 180/169, 364/424, 364/436, 364/439, 364/432, 73/432.1
• US Class Current: 180/168
• CPC Class Codes: B25J 13/086 Proximity sensors
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0242 using non-visible light signals, e.g. IR or UV signals
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0255 using acoustic signals, e.g. ultra-sonic singals sonar systems designed for anti-collision purposes G01S15/93

Abstract

The object of the present invention is to greatly simplify the final control of a sensitive, active robot moving in a passive environment. It consists of equipping the robot with a plurality of directional proximetric transducers C_i, to which are allocated, for a given operating mode, virtual elementary actions making it possible to determine a control vector of the different actuators (4.1-4.2) responsible for the robot movements. The virtual elementary action allocated to each sensor is weighted by a virtual mass or coefficient m_i. The center of gravity of the virtual masses m_i preferably coincides with the control frame of the robot. The invention is more particularly usable in robotized remote manipulation.

Claims

1. Process for control of the movements of a sensitive, active moving body, moved by at least two actuators, relative to a local, passive environment, in accordance with at least one operating mode, characterized in that it comprises, for each operating mode,

using at least two directional proximetric transducers C_i, having a given origin mounted at a known location on the moving body and supplying a response nearly representing the distance x separating the origin of the transducer from an obstacle in the environment, in accordance with a known detection direction with respect to the moving body;

allocating to each transducer C_i a virtual elementary vectorial action A_i, whose modulus is defined by the relation A_i =m_i ·

f(x), m_i being a coefficient constituting a virtual weighing mass of the action of said transducer and f(x) being an increasing monotonic function derived from the response of the transducer to an obstacle placed at a distance x, the application point of action A_i being the origin M_i of transducer C_i ;

determining on the basis of the thus defined elementary vectorial actions A_i, a control screw of each actuator, the origin thereof coinciding with the origin 0 of a control frame associated with the actuators.

2. Process according to claim 1, characterized in that the coefficients m_i allocated to each of the transducers C_i are chosen in such a way that their center of gravity 0 defined by (Σ

m_i xOM_i) coincides with the origin 0 of the control frame of the moving body.

3. Process according to claim 1, characterized in that the coefficient m_i allocated to each of the transducers C_i are chosen in such a way that they define a main inertia mark coinciding with the control mark of the moving body.

4. Process according to one of the claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the function f(x) is a monotonic function of the distance, always positive or negative, corresponding to an attraction or repulsion.

5. Process according to one of the claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the function f(x) is a function which changes sign for a given distance of transducer C_i relative to the detected environment, corresponding to a distance control.

6. Process according to claim 5, characterized in that the elementary action direction A_i coincides with the detection direction of transducer C_i.

7. Process according to claim 5, characterized in that the elementary action direction A_i is perpendicular to the detection direction of transducer C_i.

8. Process according to claim 7, characterized in that, for each operating mode, the function f(x) and the elementary action directions A_i are the same for each of the transducers C_i.