Autonomous movement device, autonomous movement method and program recording medium

• US 10,627,828 B2
• Filed: 05/17/2018
• Issued: 04/21/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 06/30/2017
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Casio Computer Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Casio Computer Company Limited
• Inventors: Maeno, Yasushi
• Primary Examiner(s): Cass, Jean Paul
• Application Number:
  US15/982,354
• Publication Number:
  US 20190004520A1
• Time in Patent Office: 705 Days
• Field of Search: 701420
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0214 in accordance with safety or protection criteria, e.g. avoiding hazardous areas monitoring the location of vehicles within a certain area, e.g. forbidden or allowed areas, in traffic control systems for road vehicles G08G1/13
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0223 involving speed control of the vehicle vehicle fittings for automatically controlling, i.e. preventing speed from exceeding an arbitrarily established velocity or maintaining speed at a particular velocity, as selected by the vehicle operator B60K31/00
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0236 in combination with a laser lasers per se H01S
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/024 in combination with a laser lasers per se H01S
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0274 using mapping information stored in a memory device navigation using map-matching G01C21/30

Abstract

An autonomous movement device includes an obstacle detector, a map creator, an obstacle canceller, and a router. The obstacle detector detects an obstacle. The map creator records information about the obstacle detected by the obstacle detector on an environment map. The obstacle canceller cancels the information about the obstacle recorded by the map creator from the environment map. The router sets a moving route based on the information recorded on the environment map.

Claims

1. An autonomous movement device comprising:

a first sensor configured to detect that an obstacle exists by detecting a collision between the autonomous movement device and the obstacle;

a second sensor configured to detect whether an obstacle exists from a distance without approaching the obstacle; and

a processor configured to;

record first information indicating an existence probability of the obstacle that the first sensor detects on a first environment map;

record second information indicating an existence probability of the obstacle that the second sensor detects on a second environment map;

create an environment map by integrating the first environment map and the second environment map;

calculate information indicating an existence probability of the obstacle at a position on the environment map corresponding to a position of the obstacle, and record the information on the environment map using logarithm odds;

cancel the first information recorded on the first environment map from the first environment map by setting a first attenuating degree of the existence probability indicated by the first information to be greater as a time in which a condition that the first sensor continuously detects that the obstacle does not exist becomes longer;

cancel the second information recorded on the second environment map from the second environment map by setting a second attenuating degree of the existence probability indicated by the second information to be greater as a time in which a condition that the second sensor continuously detects that the obstacle does not exist becomes longer;

set a moving route so that the autonomous movement device does not contact with the obstacle corresponding to the information based on the information recorded on the environment map; and

control the autonomous movement device to move based on the set moving route,

wherein an amount by which the first attenuating degree is set to be greater is greater than an amount by which the second attenuating degree is set to be greater.

2. The autonomous movement device according to claim 1, wherein the processor records the information about the obstacle at the position of the obstacle on the environment map.

3. The autonomous movement device according to claim 2, wherein the processor adjusts, at a position on the first environment map, the first attenuating degree, depending on a number of times that the first sensor has detected that the obstacle exists at the position.

4. The autonomous movement device according to claim 3, wherein when the first sensor detects that the obstacle exists, the processor decreases, by a reference-obstacle adjusting value, the first attenuating degree at the position where the obstacle has been detected.

5. The autonomous movement device according to claim 1, wherein the processor is configured to:

decrease the first attenuating degree when the first sensor has detected that the obstacle exists, and

decrease the second attenuating degree when the second sensor has detected that the obstacle exists, and

wherein an amount by which the first attenuating degree is decreased is greater than an amount by which the second attenuating degree is decreased.

6. The autonomous movement device according to claim 3, wherein when the first sensor has detected that the obstacle does not exist, the processor increases, by a reference-non-obstacle adjusting value, the first attenuating degree at the position where the first sensor has detected that the obstacle does not exist.

7. A method for movement performed by an autonomous movement device, the method comprising:

detecting, by a first sensor, whether an obstacle exists by detecting whether the autonomous movement device has a collision with the obstacle;

detecting, by a second sensor, whether an obstacle exists from a distance without the autonomous movement device approaching the obstacle;

recording first information indicating an existence probability of the obstacle that the first sensor detects on a first environment map;

recording second information indicating an existence probability of the obstacle that the second sensor detects on a second environment map;

creating an environment map by integrating the first environment map and the second environment map;

calculating information indicating an existence probability of the obstacle at a position on the environment map corresponding to a position of the obstacle, and recording the information on the environment map using logarithmic odds;

cancelling the first information recorded on the first environment map from the first environment map by setting a first attenuating degree of the existence probability indicated by the first information to be greater as a time in which a condition that it is continuously detected by the first sensor that the obstacle does not exist becomes longer;

cancelling the second information recorded on the second environment map from the second environment map by setting a second attenuating degree of the existence probability indicated by the second information to be greater as a time in which a condition that it is continuously detected by the second sensor that the obstacle does not exist becomes longer;

setting a moving route so that the autonomous movement device does not contact with the obstacle corresponding to the information based on the information recorded on the environment map; and

moving the autonomous movement device based on the set moving route,

wherein an amount by which the first attenuating degree is set to be greater is greater than an amount by which the second attenuating degree is set to be greater.

8. A non-transitory computer-readable recording medium storing a program for causing a computer of an autonomous movement device to control execution of processes comprising:

detecting, by a first sensor, whether an obstacle exists by detecting whether the autonomous movement device has a collision with the obstacle;

detecting, by a second sensor, whether an obstacle exists from a distance without the autonomous movement device approaching the obstacle;

recording first information indicating an existence probability of the obstacle that the first sensor detects on a first environment map;

recording second information indicating an existence probability of the obstacle that the second sensor detects on a second environment map;

creating an environment map by integrating the first environment map and the second environment map;

calculating information indicating an existence probability of the obstacle at a position on the environment map corresponding to a position of the obstacle, and recording the information on the environment map using logarithmic odds;

cancelling the first information recorded on the first environment map from the first environment map by setting a first attenuating degree of the existence probability indicated by the first information to be greater as a time in which a condition that it is continuously detected by the first sensor that the obstacle does not exist becomes longer;

cancelling the second information recorded on the second environment map from the second environment map by setting a second attenuating degree of the existence probability indicated by the second information to be greater as a time in which a condition that it is continuously detected by the second sensor that the obstacle does not exist becomes longer;

setting a moving route so that the autonomous movement device does not contact with the obstacle corresponding to the information based on the information recorded on the environment map; and

moving the autonomous movement device based on the set moving route,

wherein an amount by which the first attenuating degree is set to be greater is greater than an amount by which the second attenuating degree is set to be greater.