Autonomous Behaviors for a Remote Vehicle

• US 20090037033A1
• Filed: 04/14/2008
• Published: 02/05/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 05/14/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Flir Detection, Inc. (Teledyne Technologies Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: iRobot Corporation
• Inventors: Taka, Orjeta, Wolf, James Gordon JR., Frost, Tom, Rudakevych, Pavlo E., Phillips, Emilie
• Granted Patent: US 8,255,092 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 701/2
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0088 characterized by the autonomous decision making process, e.g. artificial intelligence, predefined behaviours using knowledge based models G06N5/00
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0251 extracting 3D information from a plurality of images taken from different locations, e.g. stereo vision stereoscopic image analysis H04N13/00; depth recovery from images G06T7/593
• 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 1/0278 using satellite positioning signals, e.g. GPS
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/451 Execution arrangements for user interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 5/008 communicating information to a remotely located station transmission systems for measured values G08C

Abstract

A system for allowing an operator to switch between remote vehicle tele-operation and one or more remote vehicle autonomous behaviors. The system comprises: an operator control unit receiving input from the operator including instructions for the remote vehicle to execute an autonomous behavior; a control system on the remote vehicle for receiving the instruction to execute an autonomous behavior from the operator control unit; and a GPS receiver, an inertial measurement unit, and a navigation CPU on the remote vehicle. Upon receiving the instruction to execute an autonomous behavior, the remote vehicle executes that autonomous behavior using input from the GPS receiver, the inertial measurement unit (IMU), and the navigation CPU.

Claims

1. A system for allowing an operator to switch between remote vehicle tele-operation and one or more remote vehicle autonomous behaviors, comprising:

an operator control unit receiving input from the operator including instructions for the remote vehicle to execute an autonomous behavior;

a control system on the remote vehicle for receiving the instruction to execute an autonomous behavior from the operator control unit; and

a GPS receiver, an inertial measurement unit, and a navigation CPU on the remote vehicle;

wherein, upon receiving the instruction to execute an autonomous behavior, the remote vehicle executes that autonomous behavior using input from the GPS receiver, the inertial measurement unit (IMU), and the navigation CPU.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the remote vehicle executes the autonomous behavior if permitted.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the autonomous behavior is not permitted if one or more of the remote vehicle'"'"'s position within its environment, the current internal state of the remote vehicle, the current operational behavior of the remote vehicle, or the remote vehicle'"'"'s environment are incompatible with the autonomous behavior.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the control system comprises an arbiter, and wherein the autonomous behavior sends a vote to the arbiter requesting control of one or more actuators on the remote vehicle necessary to perform the autonomous behavior.

5. The system of claim 4, wherein, if the voting autonomous behavior has a higher priority than a behavior currently in control of the one or more actuators, the autonomous behavior executes.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the autonomous behavior includes one of retrotraverse, re-traverse, and leader/follower behaviors.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the leader/follower behavior assumes that the leader is equipped with a GPS that continuously transmits the leader'"'"'s position, and the remote vehicle receives the leader'"'"'s position from the leader'"'"'s GPS and uses the leader'"'"'s position an it'"'"'s own GPS position to maintain a specified following distance from the leader.

8. A system for allowing an operator to switch between remote vehicle tele-operation and one or more remote vehicle autonomous behaviors, comprising:

an operator control unit receiving input from the operator including instructions for the remote vehicle to execute an autonomous behavior;

a control system on the remote vehicle for receiving the instruction to execute an autonomous behavior from the operator control unit; and

a manipulator arm with a gripper and a camera for viewing gripper on the remote vehicle and in communication with the control system on the remote vehicle;

wherein, upon receiving the instruction to execute a click-to-grip autonomous behavior, the remote vehicle executes that autonomous behavior in a way that avoids collisions with its own frame using information received from the camera.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the camera is a lower tilt camera.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the camera automatically tracks the gripper.

11. The system of claim 8, wherein an operator selects an object to grip with the click-to-grip behavior by clicking on the object in two display areas of the operator control unit.

12. The system of claim 8, wherein the control system determines a gripper motion that best matches that will successfully grip the object while avoiding self collision with the remote vehicle and any payloads on the remote vehicle.

13. The system of claim 13, wherein, to prevent accidental collisions of the manipulator arm with the ground, the control system maintains at least one part of the manipulator arm above an artificial ground plane.

14. A system for implementing remote vehicle autonomous behaviors, comprising:

an operator control unit receiving instructions for the remote vehicle to execute an autonomous behavior;

a control system on the remote vehicle for one or more of executing a persistent autonomous behavior and receiving the instruction to execute an autonomous behavior from the operator control unit; and

a stereo vision module on the remote vehicle and in communication with the control system on the remote vehicle;

wherein, upon receiving the instruction to execute an autonomous behavior, the remote vehicle executes that autonomous behavior using input from the stereo vision module, and

wherein the autonomous behaviors include one of retro traverse and re-traverse.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein the remote vehicle executes the autonomous behavior if permitted.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein the autonomous behavior is not permitted if one or more of the remote vehicle'"'"'s position within its environment, the current internal state of the remote vehicle, the current operational behavior of the remote vehicle, or the remote vehicle'"'"'s environment are incompatible with the autonomous behavior.

17. The system of claim 14, wherein the control system comprises an arbiter, and wherein the autonomous behavior sends a vote to the arbiter requesting control of one or more actuators on the remote vehicle necessary to perform the autonomous behavior.

18. The system of claim 17, wherein, if the voting autonomous behavior has a higher priority than a behavior currently in control of the one or more actuators, the autonomous behavior executes.

19. The system of claim 14, wherein the stereo vision module is a Tyzx G2 stereo vision module.

20. The system of claim 14, wherein the remote vehicle retro traverses when communication with the operator control unit is degraded.

21. The system of claim 20, wherein the remote vehicle retro traverses until communication with the operator control unit is no longer degraded.