Legged mobile robot
First Claim
1. A legged mobile robot, which moves with repeated lifting off and landing on a floor of each of a plurality of legs extending from a body, the legged mobile robot comprising:
- one or more detection processors for detecting a position or location of objects around the robot;
a contact determination processor for determining a presence or absence of a predicted contact position, at which the robot has a possibility to come into contact with an object in its desired path, based on the position or location of the object measured by the one or more detection processors;
a distance calculation processor for calculating a distance from the robot to the predicted contact position when the contact determination processor determines the presence of the predicted contact position between the robot and the object;
an operation control processor for controlling operation of the robot such that when the distance calculated by the distance calculation processor is less than a first threshold, a moving speed is reduced to a first speed by controlling at least one of a length of stride and a landing cycle, and when the calculated distance is less than an (i+1)-th threshold lower than an i-th threshold (where i=1, 2, . . . ), the moving speed is reduced from an i-th speed to an (i+1)-th speed; and
a malfunction determination processor for determining a presence or absence of a detection malfunction of any detection functions of the one or more detection processors,wherein the operation control processor of the robot controls the operation of the robot such that a rate of change in the at least one of the length of stride and the landing cycle of the robot falls within a tolerable range that is set to allow sufficient deceleration while maintaining stability of the robot, andwherein when the malfunction determination processor determines that there is a detection malfunction of any of the detection functions of the one or more detection processors, the operation control processor sets the i-th speed lower than in a case when the malfunction determination processor determines that the detection function of the corresponding detection processor is normal.
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Accused Products
Abstract
When there is an object that has a possibility to come into contact with a robot 1 in a desired path, the robot 1 is decelerated stepwise according to the distance L from the robot 1 to a predicted contact position along the desired path. For example, legs 13 and the like of the robot 1 are so controlled that when the distance L is less than a first threshold L1, the moving speed is reduced to a first speed V1, and when the distance L is less than a second threshold lower than the first threshold, the moving speed is reduced from the first speed to a second speed.
10 Citations
9 Claims
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1. A legged mobile robot, which moves with repeated lifting off and landing on a floor of each of a plurality of legs extending from a body, the legged mobile robot comprising:
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one or more detection processors for detecting a position or location of objects around the robot; a contact determination processor for determining a presence or absence of a predicted contact position, at which the robot has a possibility to come into contact with an object in its desired path, based on the position or location of the object measured by the one or more detection processors; a distance calculation processor for calculating a distance from the robot to the predicted contact position when the contact determination processor determines the presence of the predicted contact position between the robot and the object; an operation control processor for controlling operation of the robot such that when the distance calculated by the distance calculation processor is less than a first threshold, a moving speed is reduced to a first speed by controlling at least one of a length of stride and a landing cycle, and when the calculated distance is less than an (i+1)-th threshold lower than an i-th threshold (where i=1, 2, . . . ), the moving speed is reduced from an i-th speed to an (i+1)-th speed; and a malfunction determination processor for determining a presence or absence of a detection malfunction of any detection functions of the one or more detection processors, wherein the operation control processor of the robot controls the operation of the robot such that a rate of change in the at least one of the length of stride and the landing cycle of the robot falls within a tolerable range that is set to allow sufficient deceleration while maintaining stability of the robot, and wherein when the malfunction determination processor determines that there is a detection malfunction of any of the detection functions of the one or more detection processors, the operation control processor sets the i-th speed lower than in a case when the malfunction determination processor determines that the detection function of the corresponding detection processor is normal. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6)
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7. A program recorded on a computer readable medium for causing a computer mounted in a legged mobile robot, which moves with repeated lifting off and landing on a floor of each of a plurality of legs extending from a body, to function as a system for controlling the robot, the system comprising:
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one or more detection processors for detecting a position or location of objects around the robot; a contact determination processor for determining a presence or absence of a predicted contact position, at which the robot has a possibility to come into contact with an object in its desired path, based on the position or location of the object measured by the one or more detection processors; a distance calculation processor for calculating a distance from the robot to the predicted contact position when the contact determination processor determines the existence of the predicted contact position between the robot and the object; an operation control processor for controlling the operation of the robot such that when the distance calculated by the distance calculation processor is less than a first threshold, a moving speed is reduced to a first speed by controlling at least one of a length of stride and a landing cycle, and when the calculated distance is less than an (i+1)-th threshold lower than an i-th threshold (where i=1, 2, . . . ), the moving speed is reduced from an i-th speed to an (i+1)-th speed; and a malfunction determination processor for determining a presence or absence of a detection malfunction of any detection functions of the one or more detection processors, wherein the operation control processor of the robot controls the operation of the robot such that a rate of change in the at least one of the length of stride and the landing cycle of the robot falls within a tolerable range that is set to allow sufficient deceleration while maintaining stability of the robot, and wherein when the malfunction determination processor determines that there is a detection malfunction of any of the detection functions of the one or more detection processors, the operation control processor sets the i-th speed lower than in a case when the malfunction determination processor determines that the detection function of the corresponding detection processor is normal. - View Dependent Claims (8)
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9. A method of controlling the operation of a legged mobile robot, which moves with repeated lifting off and landing on a floor of each of a plurality of legs extending from a body, the method comprising the steps of:
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a detection processing step of detecting a position or location of objects around the robot; a contact determination processing step of determining a presence or absence of a predicted contact position, at which the robot has a possibility to come into contact with an object in its desired path, based on the position or location of the object measured in the detection processing step; a distance calculation processing step of calculating a distance from the robot to the predicted contact position when it is determined in the contact determination processing step that there is the predicted contact position between the robot and the object; an operation control processing step of controlling the operation of the robot such that when the distance calculated in the distance calculation processing step is less than a first threshold, a moving speed is reduced to a first speed by controlling at least one of a length of stride and a landing cycle, and when the calculated distance is less than an (i+1)-th threshold lower than an i-th threshold (where i=1, 2, . . . ), the moving speed is reduced from an i-th speed to an (i+1)-th speed; and a malfunction determination processing step of determining a presence or absence of a detection malfunction of any detection functions of the one or more detection processors, wherein the operation of the robot is controlled such that a rate of change in the at least one of the length of stride and the landing cycle of the robot falls within a tolerable range that is set to allow sufficient deceleration while maintaining stability of the robot, and wherein when the malfunction determination processing step determines that there is a detection malfunction of any of the detection functions of the one or more detection processors, the operation control processing step sets the i-th speed lower than in a case when the malfunction determination processing step determines that the detection function of the corresponding detection processor is normal.
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Specification