Mobile robot with a head-based movement mapping scheme

• US 9,766,624 B2
• Filed: 02/09/2015
• Issued: 09/19/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 07/13/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Jonata Sub Two, Inc. (Teladoc Health, Inc.), Teladoc Health, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Touch Technologies Incorporated
• Inventors: Wang, Yulun, Jordan, Charles S., Laby, Keith P., Southard, Jonathan, Pinter, Marco, Miller, Brian
• Primary Examiner(s): STREGE, JOHN B
• Application Number:
  US14/617,801
• Publication Number:
  US 20160161948A1
• Time in Patent Office: 953 Days
• Field of Search: 382153
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 34/30 Surgical robots
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 34/70 Manipulators specially adapted for use in surgery
• CPC Class Codes: B25J 11/009 Nursing, e.g. carrying sick persons, pushing wheelchairs, distributing drugs
• CPC Class Codes: B25J 13/02 Hand grip control means handles or pedals for crane control B66C13/56; for measuring the force applied to control members G01L5/22; hand-held casings for switching devices, e.g. joy-sticks H01H9/0214
• CPC Class Codes: B25J 19/023 including video camera means
• CPC Class Codes: B25J 5/007 mounted on wheels
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0038 by providing the operator with simple or augmented images from one or more cameras located onboard the vehicle, e.g. tele-operation images analyzed by a computer and used for automatic navigation G05D1/0246
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/033 Pointing devices displaced or positioned by the user , e.g. mice, trackballs, pens or joysticks; Accessories therefor digitisers characterised by the transducing means G06F3/041
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 901/01 Mobile robot

Abstract

A robotic system that includes a mobile robot and a remote input device. The input device may be a joystick that is used to move a camera and a mobile platform of the robot. The system may operate in a mode where the mobile platform moves in a camera reference coordinate system. The camera reference coordinate system is fixed to a viewing image provided by the camera so that movement of the robot corresponds to a direction viewed on a screen. This prevents disorientation during movement of the robot if the camera is panned across a viewing area.

Claims

1. A mobile robot system that is controlled through an input device, comprising:

a robot that has a camera and a mobile platform with a drive vector that is mapped to one of a plurality of different coordinate systems; and

,

a remote station coupled to the robot via a network, the remote station including a mode selector for selecting one of the plurality of different coordinate systems and an input device that causes movement of the mobile platform within the selected coordinate system.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein said input device is a mouse.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the plurality of different coordinate systems includes a camera reference coordinate system and a platform reference coordinate system.

4. The system of claim 3, wherein said mobile platform rotates to align an axis of the platform reference coordinate system with an axis of the camera reference coordinate reference coordinate system.

5. The system of claim 3, wherein movement of said mobile platform is accompanied by a movement of said camera.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the input device is a joystick and twisting said joystick causes rotation of said camera and pivoting said joystick causes said mobile platform to move.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the remote station includes a camera and a monitor.

8. The system of claim 1, further comprising a wireless base station coupled to said robot and said remote station.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the plurality of different coordinate systems includes a world platform system.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein said robot includes a monitor.

11. A method for controlling a robot, comprising:

selecting, via an interface of a remote station, one a plurality of different coordinate systems in which a robot can move;

mapping a drive vector of a mobile platform of the robot to the selected coordinate system;

moving the robot in the selected coordinate system in response to input received via an input device of the remote station.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the plurality of different coordinate systems includes a camera reference coordinate system and a platform reference coordinate system.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the mobile platform is rotated so that an axis of the platform reference coordinate system is aligned with an axis of the camera reference coordinate system.

14. The method of claim 11, wherein the robot receives commands from a wireless base station.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the command is transmitted through a broadband network.

16. The method of claim 11, wherein the input device is a mouse.