Robot system and method for driving the same

• US 9,126,338 B2
• Filed: 05/03/2013
• Issued: 09/08/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 08/16/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hanwha Robotics Corporation
• Original Assignee: Hanwha Techwin Co., Ltd. (Hanwha Corporation)
• Inventors: Lee, Jin-han, Kim, Yang-hyun, Kim, Ki-sung
• Primary Examiner(s): HOLLOWAY, JASON R
• Application Number:
  US13/886,432
• Publication Number:
  US 20140052296A1
• Time in Patent Office: 858 Days
• Field of Search: 700/250, 700/253, 700/254, 700/259, 901/1
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: B25J 9/1697 Vision controlled systems
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/40298 Manipulator on vehicle, wheels, mobile
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/024 in combination with a laser lasers per se H01S
• 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

Provided is a method of driving a system for a robot including obtaining scan data which includes information about at least one of a coordinate and a direction of the robot, estimating a plurality of location changes of the robot by matching a plurality of consecutive scan data pairs of the obtained scan data, generating a path of the robot by connecting the estimated location changes, estimating a position of a corrected instantaneous center of rotation (ICR), and correcting the plurality of consecutive scan data pairs based on the corrected ICR.

Claims

1. A method of driving a robot, the method comprising:

obtaining scan data which includes information about at least one of a coordinate and a direction of the robot;

estimating a plurality of location changes of the robot by matching a plurality of consecutive scan data pairs of the obtained scan data;

generating a path of the robot by connecting the estimated location changes;

generating a plurality of extension lines, each comprising an instantaneous center of rotation (ICR) from a rotation axis of the robot at each position on the generated path;

estimating the position of a corrected ICR at a point of the closest distance from the plurality of extension lines;

generating a corrected circle having the center at the position of the corrected ICR; and

correcting the plurality of consecutive scan data pairs so that the robot may rotate with respect to the corrected circle.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein a previous location of the corrected plurality of consecutive scan data pairs is used for estimating a next location change of the robot.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein in the estimating the plurality of location changes, a relative location change of one scan data is estimated based on another earlier scan data with respect to time among the consecutive scan data pairs.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the generating the path of the robot comprises:

setting a reference point of the robot at a predetermined time; and

generating the path of the robot by connecting the estimated location changes with respect to the reference point.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the correcting the plurality of consecutive scan data pairs further comprises changing the ICR of the robot at each position on the path to the corrected ICR.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the correcting the plurality of consecutive scan data further comprises changing a position of the plurality of consecutive scan data pairs.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the correcting the plurality of consecutive scan data pairs further comprises changing a direction of the plurality of consecutive scan data pairs.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the correcting the plurality of consecutive scan data pairs further comprises changing a position and a direction of the scan data pairs.

9. The method of claim 1, before the estimating the plurality of location changes, further comprising:

sensing a travel direction of the robot by using a gyro sensor;

detecting a travel distance of the robot by using en encoder; and

correcting a location and a direction of the robot by using the travel direction and the travel distance.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the scan data is obtained, from a space where the robot moves, using a signal emitted from and received by the robot after the signal is reflected from an object around the robot.

11. The method of claim 9 further comprising setting a starting point during the matching of the plurality of consecutive scan data pairs based on data of the corrected location and direction of the robot.

12. The method of claim 9, wherein the plurality of location changes is estimated from data of the corrected location and direction and the plurality of consecutive scan data pairs.

13. A robot comprising:

a distance measurement calculator configured to obtain scan data including information about at least one of a coordinate and a direction of the robot;

a location change estimator configured to estimate a plurality of location changes of the robot by matching a plurality of consecutive scan data pairs of the obtained scan data;

a path generator configured to generate a path of the robot by connecting the estimated location changes;

a corrected instantaneous center of rotation (ICR) estimator configured to generate a plurality of extension lines, each comprising an instantaneous center of rotation (ICR) from a rotation axis of the robot at each position on the generated path and configured to estimate the position of a corrected ICR at a point of the closest distance from the plurality of extension lines; and

a primary correction processor configured to generate a corrected circle having the center at the position of the corrected ICR and configured to correct the plurality of consecutive scan data pairs so that the robot may rotate with respect to the corrected circle.

14. The robot of claim 13, wherein the corrected plurality of consecutive scan data pairs output from the primary correction processor is an input for the location change estimator.

15. The robot of claim 13, wherein the location change estimator is configured to estimate a relative location change of one scan data based on another earlier scan data with respect to time among the consecutive scan data pairs.

16. The robot of claim 13, wherein the path generator is configured to set a reference point of the robot at a predetermined time and configured to generate the path of the robot by connecting the estimated location changes with respect to the reference point.

17. The robot of claim 13, wherein the correction processor is configured to change at least one of a position and a direction of the plurality of consecutive scan data pairs.

18. The robot of claim 13, further comprising:

a gyro sensor configured to sense a travel direction of the robot;

an encoder configured to detect a travel distance of the robot; and

a secondary correction processor configured to correct a location and a direction of the robot based on the travel direction and the travel distance and configured to output the corrected location and direction of the robot to the location change estimator.

19. A non-transitory computer-readable recording medium having recorded thereon a program for executing a method of driving a robot, the method comprising:

obtaining scan data which includes information about at least one of a coordinate and a direction of the robot;

estimating a plurality of location changes of the robot by matching a plurality of consecutive scan data pairs of the obtained scan data;

generating a path of the robot by connecting the estimated location changes;

generating a plurality of extension lines, each comprising an instantaneous center of rotation (ICR) from a rotation axis of the robot at each position on the generated path;

estimating the position of a corrected ICR at a point of the closest distance from the plurality of extension lines;

generating a corrected circle having the center at the position of the corrected IRC; and

correcting the plurality of consecutive scan data pairs so that the robot may rotate with respect to the corrected circle.