Mobile robot and method for docking the mobile robot with charging station

• US 9,874,875 B2
• Filed: 07/15/2015
• Issued: 01/23/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 01/14/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Varram System Co., Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Varram System Co., Ltd.
• Inventors: Suh, Byung Jo
• Primary Examiner(s): Waggoner, Timothy
• Application Number:
  US14/897,645
• Publication Number:
  US 20160370804A1
• Time in Patent Office: 923 Days
• Field of Search: 320107
• CPC Class Codes: B25J 9/00 Programme-controlled manipulators
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/305 Communication interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0225 involving docking at a fixed facility, e.g. base station or loading bay parking aids B62D15/027
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0246 using a video camera in combination with image processing means
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/00 Circuit arrangements for charging or depolarising batteries or for supplying loads from batteries
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/70 Energy storage systems for electromobility, e.g. batteries
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/7072 Electromobility specific charging systems or methods for batteries, ultracapacitors, supercapacitors or double-layer capacitors
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 90/12 Electric charging stations
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 90/16 Information or communication technologies improving the operation of electric vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 901/01 Mobile robot

Abstract

The present invention relates to a mobile robot and a method for docking the mobile robot with a charging station.

The method for docking a mobile robot with a charging station according to the present invention includes a step of photographing peripheral images when the mobile robot receives a charging command signal from a user terminal; a step of determining whether the charging station is recognized or not based on the peripheral images; a step of generating a robot-driving command signal for determining whether the mobile robot should be moved or not and which direction the mobile robot should be moved depending on a result of the previous determination; a step of determining whether the mobile robot faces the front of the charging station or not when the mobile robot starts to move in accordance with the robot-driving command signal and then approaches the charging station; a step of generating a rotation command signal for rotating the charging station depending on a result of previous determination and transmitting the rotation command signal to the charging station; a step of docking the mobile robot with the charging station by driving the mobile robot when the charging station is rotated in accordance with the rotation command signal.

In this way, according to the present invention, a speedy and accurate docking becomes possible by rotating the charging station for the mobile robot to be accurately docked with the charging station.

Claims

1. A method for docking a mobile robot with a charging station, comprising:

photographing peripheral images when the mobile robot receives a charging command signal from a user terminal;

determining whether the charging station is recognized or not based on the peripheral images;

generating a robot-driving command signal for determining whether the mobile robot should be moved or not and which direction the mobile robot should be moved depending on a result of the previous determination;

determining whether the mobile robot faces the front of the charging station or not when the mobile robot starts to move in accordance with the robot-driving command signal and then approaches the charging station;

generating a rotation command signal for rotating the charging station depending on a result of previous determination and transmitting the rotation command signal to the charging station; and

docking the mobile robot with the charging station by driving the mobile robot when the charging station is rotated in accordance with the rotation command signal.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the determining whether the charging station is recognized or not includes regarding the charging station as having been recognized if a situation that LEDs provided at the charging station are irradiating is photographed after the charging station receives a signal for requesting an irradiation of the LEDs.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the determining whether the charging station is recognized includes generating a robot-driving command signal for rotating the mobile robot by regarding the charging station as not having been recognized if a situation that the LEDs provided at the charging station are irradiating is not photographed.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the determining whether the mobile robot faces the front of the charging station or not includes determining the front of the charging station based on colors of the LEDs provided at the charging station, speeds of flickering, intervals among the LEDs, and a shape that the LEDs are disposed.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the generating the rotation command signal for rotating the charging station and the transmitting the rotation command signal to the charging station includes generating the rotation command signal for rotating the charging station so that the front of the mobile robot can face the front of the charging station with each other when the front of the mobile robot dose not face the front of the charging station, and transmitting the rotation command signal to the charging station.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising rotating the charging station to monitor all directions when the mobile robot is docked with the charging station.

7. A mobile robot comprising:

an image-capturing unit which photographs peripheral images when receiving a charging command signal;

a sensor which determines whether a charging station is recognized or not depending on the peripheral images;

a controller which generates g a robot-driving command signal for determining whether the mobile robot should be moved or not and which direction the mobile robot should be moved depending on a result of the previous determination, and determines whether the mobile robot faces the front of the charging station or not when the mobile robot starts to move in accordance with the robot-driving command signal and then approaches the charging station;

a communication unit which generates a rotation command signal for rotating the charging station depending on a result of previous determination, and transmits the rotation command signal to the charging station; and

a driver which docks the mobile robot with the charging station by driving the mobile robot when the charging station is rotated in accordance with the rotation command signal.

8. The mobile robot of claim 7, wherein the sensor regards the charging station as having been recognized if a situation that LEDs provided at the charging station are irradiating is photographed after the charging station receives a signal for requesting an irradiation of the LEDs.

9. The mobile robot of claim 8, wherein the sensor regards the charging station as not having been recognized if a situation that the LEDs provided at the charging station are irradiating is not photographed and the controller generates the robot-driving command signal for rotating the mobile robot when the charging station is regarded as not having been recognized.

10. The mobile robot of claim 7, wherein the controller determines the front of the charging station based on colors of the LEDs provided at the charging station, speeds of flickering, intervals among the LEDs, and a shape that the LEDs are disposed.

11. The mobile robot of claim 7, wherein the controller generates the rotation command signal for rotating the charging station so that the front of the mobile robot can face the front of the charging station with each other when the front of the mobile robot dose not face the front of the charging station, and transmitting the rotation command signal to the charging station.

12. The mobile robot of claim 7, wherein the controller rotates the charging station to monitor all directions when the mobile robot is docked with the charging station.