Environmental map correction device and autonomous mobile device

• US 8,515,613 B2
• Filed: 08/25/2009
• Issued: 08/20/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 09/16/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Murata Machinery Limited (Muratec)
• Original Assignee: Murata Machinery Limited (Muratec)
• Inventors: Nakano, Tsuyoshi, Tanaka, Shoji
• Primary Examiner(s): Trammell, James
• Assistant Examiner(s): MELTON, TODD M
• Application Number:
  US13/063,962
• Publication Number:
  US 20110178668A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,456 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 701/25
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/024 in combination with a laser lasers per se H01S
• 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: G09B 29/106 using electronic means

Abstract

An environmental map correction device that acquires an environmental map that matches an actual ambient environment includes a conversion unit arranged to convert object existence probability information of respective grids configuring a global map into image information (shading information of a black and white image), a display unit arranged to display a global map image based on the converted image information, an operation input unit arranged to receive a correcting operation from a user, a correction unit arranged to correct the global map image displayed by the display unit according to the correcting operation by the user, and an inversion unit arranged to acquire a corrected global map by inverting the corrected global map image (shading information) into the object existence probability information.

Claims

1. An environmental map correction device, comprising:

a display device arranged to display an environmental map showing an object area in which an object exists;

an input device arranged to receive a correcting operation from a user to correct the environmental map displayed by the display device;

a correction device arranged to correct the environmental map displayed by the display device based on the correcting operation received by the input device;

a conversion device arranged to convert, into image information, object existence probability information of a plurality of grids configuring the environmental map; and

an inversion device arranged to invert the image information into the object existence probability information;

wherein

the display device displays an environmental map image based on image information converted by the conversion device;

the correction device corrects the environmental map image displayed by the display device; and

the inversion device inverts the image information of the environmental map image corrected by the correction device into the object existence probability information.

2. The environmental map correction device according to claim 1, wherein the image information is shading information of a black and white image.

3. The environmental map correction device according to claim 2, wherein the object existence probability information and the shading information of the black and white image are both one-dimensional data.

4. An autonomous mobile device, comprising:

an environmental map acquisition device arranged to acquire an environmental map showing an object area in which an object exists;

the environmental map correction device according to claim 3 arranged to correct the environmental map acquired by the environmental map acquisition device;

a travel route planning device arranged to plan a travel route from the environmental map corrected by the environmental map correction device; and

a moving device arranged to drive the autonomous mobile device to travel along the travel route planned by the travel route planning device.

5. An autonomous mobile device, comprising:

an environmental map acquisition device arranged to acquire an environmental map showing an object area in which an object exists;

the environmental map correction device according to claim 1 arranged to correct the environmental map acquired by the environmental map acquisition device;

a travel route planning device arranged to plan a travel route from the environmental map corrected by the environmental map correction device; and

a moving device arranged to drive the autonomous mobile device to travel along the travel route planned by the travel route planning device.