Autonomous working device for generating and working dynamic partial surfaces

• US 9,632,489 B2
• Filed: 07/30/2012
• Issued: 04/25/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 09/23/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Robert Bosch GmbH
• Original Assignee: Robert Bosch GmbH
• Inventors: Biber, Peter, Petereit, Steffen, Koch, Christoph, Albert, Amos
• Primary Examiner(s): Alharbi, Adam
• Application Number:
  US14/346,715
• Publication Number:
  US 20140324246A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,730 Days
• CPC Class Codes: A01D 34/008 for automated or remotely controlled operation
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 13/0205 not using a model or a simulator of the controlled system
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0219 ensuring the processing of the whole working surface
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0274 using mapping information stored in a memory device navigation using map-matching G01C21/30

Abstract

An autonomous working device, in particular an autonomous lawn mower, is configured to travel across a surface that is to be worked. The working device includes a processing unit configured to divide the surface that is to be worked into at least two dynamic partial surfaces to be traveled across separately by the working device.

Claims

1. An autonomous working device, comprising:

a computing unit configured to travel along a surface to be processed, the computing unit further configured to

randomly divide the surface to be processed into at least two dynamic partial surfaces to be traveled along during a first working process of the surface to be processed, wherein the at least two partial surfaces are to be traveled along separately and jointly correspond to the entire surface to be processed, such that the randomly divided at least two dynamic partial surfaces of the first working process are different from at least two dynamic partial surfaces randomly divided with the autonomous working device from the surface to be processed which jointly correspond to the entire surface to be processed for a second working process of the surface to be processed.

2. The autonomous working device as claimed in claim 1, wherein, when a maneuver fails, the computing unit is configured to (i) record the previously traveled-along surface as a traveled-along partial surface and (ii) determine a new partial surface to be traveled along.

3. The autonomous working device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the computing unit is configured to assign to at least the two dynamic partial surfaces at least one respective traveling along strategy at least partially as a function of at least one specific feature of their shape.

4. The autonomous working device as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a sensing unit configured to detect at least one sensing element that at least partially bounds the surface to be processed.

5. The autonomous working device as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a locating unit configured to determine positions.

6. The autonomous working device as claimed in claim 5, wherein the computing unit is further configured to (i) produce an outline map of the surface to be processed and (ii) determine its own position within the outline map by use of the locating unit.

7. The autonomous working device as claimed in claim 5, wherein the computing unit is further configured to take into account an inaccuracy of the locating unit by a change in the partial surfaces and a resulting overlap of the partial surfaces.

13. The autonomous working device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the autonomous working device is configured as an autonomous lawnmower.

17. The device of claim 1, wherein the computing unit is configured to randomly divide the surface to be processed by:

generating a random initial distance to be traveled, the random initial distance between zero and a length of a sensing element of the surface to be processed;

generating a random initial angle to be rotated immediately after traveling the random initial distance; and

dividing the surface to be processed based upon the generated random initial distance and random initial angle.

18. The device of claim 17, wherein the random initial angle is between zero degrees and 180 degrees.

19. The device of claim 1, wherein the computing unit is further configured to:

determine when a maneuver fails during the first working process;

identify each of the at least two dynamic surfaces which has not been processed after the determined maneuver failure;

identify a closest one of the identified at least two dynamic surfaces which has not been processed after the determined maneuver failure; and

process the identified closest one of the identified at least two dynamic surfaces before any of the other identified at least two dynamic surfaces.

8. A method of using an autonomous working device configured to travel along a surface to be processed, the method comprising:

randomly dividing with the autonomous working device the surface to be processed on an at least partially autonomous basis into at least two dynamic partial surfaces to be traveled along during a first working process of the surface to be processed, wherein the at least two partial surfaces are to be traveled along separately and jointly correspond to the entire surface to be processed, such that the randomly divided at least two dynamic partial surfaces of the first working process are different from at least two dynamic partial surfaces randomly divided with the autonomous working device from the surface to be processed which jointly correspond to the entire surface to be processed for a second working process of the surface to be processed.

9. The method as claimed in claim 8, wherein an outer edge of the surface to be processed includes a sensing element, the method further comprising:

traveling the outer edge with the autonomous working device using the sensing element; and

generating an outline map with a computing unit of the autonomous working device based upon the traveling prior to randomly dividing the surface to be processed.

10. The method as claimed in claim 8, wherein, during the first working process, the working device follows a sensing element from a starting point along an outer edge of the surface over a variable distance and subsequently rotates through a variable angle in the direction of the surface to be processed based upon the random division of the surface to be processed.

11. The method as claimed in claim 8, wherein:

during detection of an inner sensing element by a sensing unit of the autonomous working device, the autonomous working device travels around the inner sensing element once; and

a computing unit of the autonomous working device records in a stored outline map an inner cutout bounded by the inner sensing element.

12. The method as claimed in claim 8, wherein:

during detection of an irregular obstacle, the autonomous working device carries out a turn; and

a computing unit of the autonomous working device records the area in which the irregular obstacle is located as having been traveled along in a stored outline map.

14. The method of claim 8, wherein randomly dividing with the autonomous working device the surface to be processed comprises:

generating with a computing device a random initial distance to be traveled, the random initial distance between zero and a length of a sensing element of the surface to be processed;

generating with the computing device a random initial angle to be rotated immediately after traveling the random initial distance; and

dividing with the computing device the surface to be processed based upon the generated random initial distance and random initial angle.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the random initial angle is between zero degrees and 180 degrees.

16. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

determining with the autonomous working device when a maneuver fails during the first working process;

identifying each of the at least two dynamic surfaces which has not been processed after the determined maneuver failure;

identifying a closest one of the identified at least two dynamic surfaces which has not been processed after the determined maneuver failure; and

processing the identified closest one of the identified at least two dynamic surfaces before processing any of the other identified at least two dynamic surfaces.