Recognizing a location of a robot shared in multiple data centers

• US 10,040,195 B2
• Filed: 06/21/2016
• Issued: 08/07/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 06/21/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Geraghty, Edward T., Lubars, Steven L., Nelson, John C., Oral, Tolga
• Primary Examiner(s): MANCHO, RONNIE M
• Application Number:
  US15/188,021
• Publication Number:
  US 20170361463A1
• Time in Patent Office: 777 Days
• Field of Search: 700251
• CPC Class Codes: B25J 9/1664 characterised by motion, path, trajectory planning
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0261 using magnetic plots
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/028 using a RF signal
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0285 using signals transmitted via a public communication network, e.g. GSM network
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 901/01 Mobile robot
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 901/46 Sensing device

Abstract

A method for recognizing a location of a robotic device includes collecting first environmental data corresponding to a first current location of the robotic device, generating a first location signature based on the first environmental data, driving the robotic device to enter a standby mode at a first time, driving the robotic device to wake up from the standby mode after a predetermined time elapses at a second time after the driving the robotic device to enter the standby mode, collecting second environmental data corresponding to a second current location of the robotic device, generating the second location signature generated based on the second environmental data, comparing the first and second location signatures, and determining whether a location of the robotic device has been changed between the first and second times based on a comparison result between the first and second location signatures.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method for recognizing a location of a robotic device in one or more data centers, the method comprising performing, by one or more processors, steps of:

controlling a data collecting unit to collect first environmental data corresponding to a first current location of the robotic device in the one or more data centers;

generating a first location signature based on the first environmental data;

driving the robotic device to enter a standby mode at a first time;

driving the robotic device to wake up from the standby mode at a second time after a predetermined time elapses after the driving the robotic device to enter the standby mode;

controlling the data collecting unit to collect second environmental data corresponding to a second current location of the robotic device;

generating a second location signature generated based on the second environmental data;

comparing the second location signature with the first location signature; and

determining whether the location of the robotic device has been changed between the first and second times based on a comparison result of the second location signature with the first location signature.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the determining whether a location of the robotic device has been changed comprises:

determining that the location of the robotic device has not been changed when the first and second location signatures are matched; and

determining that the location of the robotic device has been changed when the first and second location signature are not matched.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the first location signature includes at least one of first raw data or a first hash signature,

wherein the first raw data is generated by reorganizing the first environmental data according to a predetermined rule, and the first hash signature is generated by using a hashing algorithm to the first raw data,

wherein the second location signature includes at least one of second raw data or a second hash signature, and

wherein the second raw data is generated by reorganizing the second environmental data according to the predetermined rule, and the second hash signature is generated by applying the hashing algorithm to the second raw data.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the comparing of the second location signature with the first location signature comprises at least one of comparing of the second raw data with the first raw data and comparing of the second hash signature with the first hash signature,

wherein the comparing of the second raw data with the first raw data includes determining whether the first and second raw data are matched within a predetermined threshold and

determining that the location of the robotic device has been changed when the first and second raw data are not matched within the predetermined threshold.

5. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

comparing the second location signature with other one or more location signatures stored in a database when it is determined that the location of the robotic device has been changed; and

updating the location of the robotic device to a location corresponding to a third location signature when the second location signature is matched with the third location signature of the other one or more location signatures.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein each of the first and second environmental data includes at least one of an ID of a network in the vicinity of the robotic device, a connection strength to a network device in the vicinity of the robotic device, radio-frequency identifier (RFID) information obtained by reading from a tag in the vicinity of the robotic device, a camera picture in the vicinity of the robotic device, or a global position system in the vicinity of the robotic device.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein each of the first and second environmental data is static for a predetermined period.

8. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

generating a false positive signal when it is determined that the location of the robotic device has been changed, upon receiving a conformation signal indicating that the location of the robotic device has not been changed.

9. The method of claim 8, further updating the first location signature corresponding the first current location to the second location signature.

10. The method of claim 3, wherein each of the first and second hash signatures is generated using at least one of hashing algorithms of MD5 message-digest algorithm or secure hash algorithm (SHA).

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the determining whether the location of the robotic device has been changed includes determining whether a data center in which the robotic device is located has been changed to another data center.

12. A system for recognizing a location of a robotic device in one or more data centers, comprising:

a signal collecting unit configured to collect first environmental data corresponding to a first current location of the robotic device prior to the robotic device entering a standby mode and to collect second environmental data corresponding to a second current location of the robotic device after the robotic device waking up from the standby mode; and

a processing unit generating a first location signature based on the first environmental data and a second location signature using the second environmental data, comparing the second location signature with the first location signature, and determining whether the location of the robotic device has been changed during the standby mode of the robotic device based on a comparison result of the second location signature with the first location signature.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the processing unit determines that the location of the robotic device has not been changed when the first and second location signatures are matched, and

the processing unit determines that the location of the robotic device has been changed when the first and second location signatures are not matched.

14. The system of claim 12, wherein the first location signature includes at least one of first raw data or a first hash signature,

wherein the processing unit generates the first raw data by reorganizing the first environmental data according to a predetermined rule, and generates the first hash signature by applying a hashing algorithm to the first raw data,

wherein the second location signature includes at least one of second raw data or a second hash signature, and

wherein the processing unit generates the second raw data by reorganizing the second environmental data according to the predetermined rule, and generates the second hash signature by applying the hashing algorithm to the second raw data.

15. The system of claim 13, wherein the processing unit generates a false positive signal when it is determined that the location of the robotic device has been changed, upon receiving a conformation signal indicating that the location of the robotic device has not been changed.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein the processing unit generates each of the first and second hash signatures using at least one of hashing algorithms of MD5 message-digest algorithm or secure hash algorithm (SHA).

17. A computer program product stored in a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having computer readable program instructions, the computer readable program instructions read and carried out by a processor for performing a method of recognizing a location of a robotic device in one or more data centers,

wherein the method comprises:

collecting first environmental data corresponding to a first current location of the robotic device in the one or more data centers;

generating a first location signature based on the first environmental data;

driving the robotic device to enter a standby mode at a first time;

driving the robotic device to wake up from the standby mode at a second time after a predetermined time elapses after the driving the robotic device to enter the standby mode;

collecting second environmental data corresponding to a second current location of the robotic device;

generating a second location signature generated based on the second environmental data;

comparing the second location signature with the first location signature; and

determining whether the location of the robotic device has been changed between the first and second times based on a comparison result of the second location signature with the first location signature.

18. The computer program product of claim 17, wherein the determining whether a location of the robotic device has been changed comprises:

determining that the location of the robotic device has not been changed when the first and second location signatures are matched; and

determining that the location of the robotic device has been changed when the first and second location signature are not matched.

19. The computer program product of claim 17, wherein the first location signature includes at least one of first raw data or a first hash signature,

wherein the first raw data is generated by reorganizing the first environmental data in a predetermined rule, and the first hash signature is generated by applying a hashing algorithm to the first raw data,

wherein the second data includes at least one of second raw data or a second hash signature, and

wherein the second raw data is generated by reorganizing the second environmental data in the predetermined rule, and the second hash signature is generated by applying the hashing algorithm to the second raw data.

20. The computer program product of claim 18, wherein the method further comprises:

comparing the second location signature with other one or more location signatures stored in a database when it is determined that the location of the robotic device has been changed; and

updating the location of the robotic device to a location corresponding to a third location signature when the second location signature is matched with the third location signature of the other one or more location signatures.