Robot cleaner and controlling method of the same

• US 9,511,494 B2
• Filed: 06/18/2013
• Issued: 12/06/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 06/18/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Original Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Inventors: Noh, Dongki, Baek, Seungmin, Yoon, Jeongsuk
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen, Bao Long T
• Application Number:
  US13/920,612
• Publication Number:
  US 20130338831A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,267 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: B25J 9/0003 Home robots, i.e. small robots for domestic use
• CPC Class Codes: B25J 9/1676 Avoiding collision or forbidden zones
• CPC Class Codes: B25J 9/1697 Vision controlled systems
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0248 in combination with a laser lasers per se H01S

Abstract

A robot cleaner is provided. The robot cleaner may precisely detect a peripheral obstacle using a particular optical pattern. An asymmetric cross-shaped optical pattern may be irradiated, and a pattern image with respect to the optical pattern-irradiated region may be analyzed to determine whether or not an obstacle is in the moving path, and a width or a height of the obstacle. Further, the robot cleaner may perform operations such as a forward motion, a backward motion, a stopping motion and a detour motion, based the obstacle detection result.

Claims

1. A robot cleaner, comprising:

a body;

a cleaning device operably coupled in the body and configured to draw dust from a cleaning region into the body;

an optical pattern sensor provided on a front surface of the body and configured to irradiate an optical pattern and generate a corresponding pattern image; and

a controller configured to recognize an obstacle based on the pattern image generated by the optical pattern sensor, wherein the optical pattern sensor includes;

an optical source module configured to irradiate one or more optical patterns outward from a front side of the body;

a camera module configured to capture the pattern image of a region irradiated by the one or more optical patterns; and

a filter connected to a front end of the optical source module, and configured to pass at least a portion of the one or more optical patterns irradiated from the optical source module, wherein the portion of the one or more optical patterns is included in a prescribed frequency band, wherein the optical source module is configured to irradiate an asymmetric cross-shaped optical pattern having a horizontal pattern and a vertical pattern, wherein a length of the horizontal pattern is greater than a length of the vertical pattern, wherein the horizontal pattern and the vertical pattern are generated by the same optical source module and irradiated from a single point on a surface of the optical source module, wherein the controller includes an obstacle recognition module configured to process the pattern image to recognize the obstacle, and wherein the obstacle recognition module recognizes a height of the obstacle using the vertical pattern and the horizontal pattern of the pattern image, determines a position of the horizontal pattern from the pattern image when no obstacle is present, calculates a moving distance of the position of the horizontal pattern when the obstacle is present, and recognizes the height of the obstacle by the moving distance.

2. The robot cleaner of claim 1, further including an image detector configured to capture a peripheral image and to output corresponding image information.

3. The robot cleaner of claim 2, wherein the controller includes a position recognition module configured to recognize a position of the robot cleaner within the clearing region using the image information.

4. The robot cleaner of claim 3, wherein the controller further includes a map module configured to generate a peripheral map using the recognized position of the robot cleaner.

5. The robot cleaner of claim 1, wherein the obstacle recognition module recognizes a width of the obstacle using the horizontal pattern of the pattern image.

6. The robot cleaner of claim 1, further including an input that receives an input from a user for operation of the robot cleaner.

7. The robot cleaner of claim 1, further including an output that outputs information of the robot cleaner.

8. A robot cleaner, comprising:

a body;

a cleaning device operably coupled in the body and configured to draw debris from a cleaning region into the body;

a driver including a wheel motor configured to drive one or more wheels installed at a lower portion of the body, wherein the driver is configured to move the body in response to a drive signal;

an optical pattern sensor provided on a front surface of the body and configured to irradiate one or more cross-shaped optical patterns outward from a front side of the body and to generate a corresponding pattern image; and

a controller configured to recognize an obstacle in a moving path of the robot cleaner based on the pattern image, and to generate the drive signal based on recognition of the obstacle, wherein the optical pattern sensor is configured to irradiate an asymmetric cross-shaped optical pattern including a horizontal pattern having a horizontal length and a vertical pattern having a vertical length, wherein the horizontal length is greater than the vertical length, wherein the optical pattern sensor includes;

an optical source module configured to irradiate the asymmetric cross-shaped optical pattern outward from the front side of the body;

a camera module configured to capture the pattern image of a region irradiated by the optical pattern, wherein the camera module is provided below the optical source module; and

a filter connected to a front end of the optical source module, and configured to pass at least a portion of the one or more cross-shaped optical patterns irradiated from the optical source module, wherein the portion of the one or more cross-shaped optical patterns is included in a prescribed frequency band, wherein the controller includes an obstacle recognition module configured to process the pattern image to recognize the obstacle, wherein the obstacle recognition module recognizes a height of the obstacle using the vertical pattern and the horizontal pattern of the pattern image, determines a position of the horizontal pattern from the pattern image when no obstacle is present, wherein the horizontal pattern and the vertical pattern are generated by the same optical source module and irradiated from a single point on a surface of the optical source module, calculates a moving distance of the position of the horizontal pattern when the obstacle is present, and recognizes the height of the obstacle by the moving distance.

9. The robot cleaner of claim 8, wherein the optical pattern sensor further includes an image processing module configured to detect an obstacle by processing the pattern image.

10. The robot cleaner of claim 8, wherein the controller generates the drive signal corresponding to one of a forward motion, a backward motion, a stopping moon, or a detour motion of the body, based on recognition of the obstacle in the moving path of the robot cleaner.

11. The robot cleaner of claim 8, wherein the controller recognizes a width of the obstacle using the horizontal pattern of the pattern image.

12. A method for controlling a robot cleaner including a body, a cleaning device configured to draw debris into the body, and an optical pattern sensor configured to irradiate an optical pattern and output a corresponding pattern image, the method comprising:

irradiating an optical pattern outward from a front side of the body toward a cleaning region;

filtering at least a portion of the optical pattern irradiated from the optical source sensor, wherein the portion of the optical pattern is included in a prescribed frequency band;

capturing a pattern image from a region irradiated by the optical pattern; and

recognizing an obstacle in a moving path of the robot cleaner based on the captured pattern image, wherein the optical pattern is an asymmetric cross-shaped optical pattern and includes one or more horizontal patterns and one or more vertical patterns, wherein the horizontal pattern and the vertical pattern are generated by the same optical source sensor and irradiated from a single point on a surface of the optical source sensor, wherein a length of the horizontal pattern is greater than a length of the vertical pattern, wherein the obstacle is recognized using a change in shape of the pattern image, and wherein the recognizing of the obstacle includes;

recognizing a height of the obstacle using the vertical pattern and the horizontal pattern of the pattern image;

determining a position of the horizontal pattern from the pattern image when no obstacle is present;

calculating a moving distance of the position of the horizontal pattern when the obstacle is present; and

recognizing the height of the obstacle by the moving distance.

13. The method of claim 12, further including:

capturing a peripheral image and acquiring corresponding image information; and

recognizing a position of the robot cleaner in the cleaning region based on the captured peripheral image.

14. The method of claim 13, further including generating a peripheral map based on the acquired image information.

15. The method of claim 12, further including:

determining whether the robot cleaner can pass through the obstacle or not; and

performing one of a forward motion, a detour motion, a stopping motion, or a backward motion, based on a result of the determination.

16. The method of claim 12, wherein the recognizing the obstacle includes recognizing a width of the obstacle using the horizontal pattern.