Apparatus, method, and medium for sensing slip in mobile robot

• US 8,271,133 B2
• Filed: 07/23/2008
• Issued: 09/18/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 12/14/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: Park, Jun-ho, Jeong, Woo-yeon
• Primary Examiner(s): Trammell, James P
• Assistant Examiner(s): ALSOMIRI, MAJDI A
• Application Number:
  US12/219,549
• Publication Number:
  US 20090157227A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,518 Days
• Field of Search: 700/245, 700/258, 901/1, 901/46
• US Class Current: 700/253
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/027 comprising intertial navigation means, e.g. azimuth detector inertial navigation G01C21/16; inertial navigation combined with non-inertial navigation instruments G01C21/165
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0272 comprising means for registering the travel distance, e.g. revolutions of wheels measuring distance traversed on the ground by vehicles, e.g. using odometers G01C22/00

Abstract

An apparatus, method, and medium for sensing a slip in a mobile robot is provided. The apparatus for sensing a slip in a mobile robot includes a driving motor control unit to control a driving motor that rotates a plurality of driving wheels of the mobile robot, a first rotation sensor to sense a first rotation angle of the mobile robot by using the difference between traveling distances of the plurality of driving wheels, a second rotation sensor to sense a second rotation angle of the mobile robot by sensing a rotation of the mobile robot, and a slip-sensing unit to sense the slip of the mobile robot by comparing the first rotation angle with the second rotation angle. The driving motor control unit controls the driving motor to travel straight in a specified pattern.

Claims

1. An apparatus for sensing a slip in a mobile robot, comprising:

a driving motor control unit to control a driving motor that rotates a plurality of driving wheels of the mobile robot;

a first rotation sensor to sense a first rotation angle of the mobile robot by using a difference between traveling distances of the plurality of driving wheels;

a second rotation sensor to sense a second rotation angle of the mobile robot by sensing a rotation of the mobile robot; and

a slip-sensing unit to sense slip of the mobile robot by comparing the first rotation angle with the second rotation angle,

wherein the driving motor control unit controls the driving motor to travel straight in an S-pattern, and

wherein the slip-sensing unit senses the slip occurrence if the difference between the first rotation angle and the second rotation angle is larger than a predetermined non-zero threshold value,

wherein each of the first rotation angle and the second rotation angle of the mobile robot measured by the first rotation sensor and the second rotation sensor is a rotation angle around an axis in a direction perpendicular to a bottom surface, such that the first rotation angle and the second rotation angle are perpendicular to each other, and

wherein the plurality of driving wheels are rotated independently.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the first rotation sensor is an encoder.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the second rotation sensor is a gyrosensor.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the first rotation angle is obtained by calculating a difference between a product of a radius of the driving wheel and a rotation angle of the driving wheel, for each of a left and a right driving wheel, and dividing the calculated difference by a distance between the left and the right driving wheel.

8. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the S-pattern of the path of the traveling mobile robot is a zigzag-pattern.

9. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the slip-sensing unit to sense slip of the mobile robot when the first rotation angle and the second rotation angle are not changed in a similar pattern.

4. A method of sensing a slip in a mobile robot, comprising:

controlling a driving motor that rotates a plurality of driving wheels of the mobile robot so that the mobile robot travels straight in an S-pattern;

sensing a first rotation angle of the mobile robot by using the difference between traveling distances of the plurality of driving wheels, and sensing a second rotation angle of the mobile robot by sensing a rotation of the mobile robot; and

sensing slip of the mobile robot by comparing the first rotation angle with the second rotation angle,

wherein the slip sensing comprises sensing slip if a difference between the first rotation angle and the second rotation angle is larger than a predetermined non-zero threshold value,

wherein each of the first rotation angle and the second rotation angle of the mobile robot measured by the first rotation sensor and the second rotation sensor is a rotation angle around an axis in a direction perpendicular to a bottom surface, such that the first rotation angle and the second rotation angle are perpendicular to each other, and

wherein the plurality of driving wheels are rotated independently.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein sensing the first rotation angle is implemented by an encoder.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein sensing the second rotation angle is implemented by a gyrosensor.