JPS59154911A - Automatic running working machine - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] This bulletin contains application data before electronic filing, so abstract data is not recorded.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention provides an automatic driving vehicle such as a lawnmowing vehicle, and more particularly, a self-driving work vehicle such as a lawnmowing vehicle, and more specifically, includes a tracing sensor that detects a predetermined boundary of a running area in order to automatically travel along a predetermined boundary of a traveling area, and
The present invention relates to an automatic traveling work vehicle in which both front wheels and rear wheels are configured to be steerable.

Conventionally, this type of self-driving work vehicle has generally been configured as follows. That is, a set of sensors is provided at the front of the vehicle body to detect deviations from a predetermined line (boundary) to be followed, and when this sensor detects deviations from the predetermined line, the deviation is corrected. The vehicle was designed to control the steering wheels (usually the front wheels).

In such a conventional configuration, it is only possible to detect that the vehicle body -b has deviated from the predetermined line, and whether the vehicle body -b has deviated from the predetermined line so that it is parallel to the predetermined line, or whether it has deviated from the predetermined line. It is not enough to determine whether the vehicle has shifted so that it has an angle with respect to the steering wheel. Since the vehicle direction is corrected using the same control method, the vehicle traveling trajectory becomes a zigzag pattern with a relatively short period, which has the disadvantage of easily falling into a so-called hunting state.

Misfire 8A was developed in view of the above-mentioned conventional situation, and its purpose is to be able to determine the type of deviation of the vehicle body from a predetermined boundary, and to identify the type of deviation determined. It is an object of the present invention to provide a self-help traveling vehicle that can perform appropriate steering control depending on the situation.

In order to achieve the above object, the automatic traveling work vehicle according to the present invention is provided with a pair of copying sensors arranged on the front, rear, left and right sides of the working device, and a pair of tracing sensors located before and after the working device and diagonally to the vehicle body. Means for automatically switching between driving one of the front wheels and the rear wheels or driving both of them for steering based on a combination of the detection results of the boundaries of the copying sensor. It is distinctive in that it is set up.

The above configuration will be explained based on FIG. 1. The boundary detection signals of the pair of copying sensors on the diagonal line, the front copying sensor and the rear copying sensor in (B) are combined into a discrimination table ti). and generates a control signal for steering operation based on the input, and in response to this control signal, the front wheel steering means (4) and the rear wheel steering means (5) control the front wheels (2).
) and the rear wheels (3), or either the front wheels (2) or the rear wheels (3), only the force is used to control the steering so that the vehicle follows the boundary.

That is, when the pair of copying sensors (B) detect a deviation in the same direction with respect to the direction of the vehicle's running force, both the front and rear wheels i2] and [:l) are steered to move the vehicle body. 1,000 lines, and if either copying sensor (A, B) deviates from the boundary, the front/rear wheel +2
The wheels to be steered (21, +31) are automatically selected and switched, such as applying only one force to the steering wheel (21, +31) to correct the running direction.

Due to the above structure, the following excellent effects have been achieved.

That is, with an extremely simple configuration in which a pair of sensors for detecting deviation from the boundary are placed before and after the working device and diagonally to the vehicle body, it is possible to reliably determine the deviation of the vehicle body from the predetermined boundary. In addition, since it is possible to perform steering operations that correspond to the state of the deviation, it is possible to perform very good control of traveling along the boundary.

What's more, a pair of sensors are installed before and after the work equipment and diagonally to the vehicle body, making it possible to carry out the above-mentioned tracking travel control not only when the vehicle is moving forward, but also when the vehicle is moving backwards. This made the effect more profound.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

As shown in FIG. 2, the front and rear axles (2) of the vehicle body (6).

Lawn mowing equipment as a working device in the middle part of (3)! +7) is suspended vertically and movable, and the tracing sensors (4), (a'), tB), (B' ) are placed on each side of the lawn mowing device (7), and the vehicle body (
6) A copying sensor (A, S) located diagonally to the
A lawn mowing vehicle is configured as an automatic traveling vehicle capable of automatically traveling along a predetermined boundary of a driving area based on a combination of boundary detection results (A', B') as a pair.

The front wheels (21, +21 and the rear wheels (3)
.

(3) As steering wheels, hydraulic cylinders (as steering means) are used based on the boundary detection results of the pair of tracing sensors (A, B), (A', B'), respectively.
4A) and (5A), the vehicle is configured to be steered by a predetermined amount in the left-right direction. In addition, front and rear single wheels (21
, [31 is configured so that both swords also function as driving wheels, and the vehicle body (
6) (the mechanism is not shown).

The optical sensor (S) constituting the copying sensor (B)
l+ Sl! ) * (Sa * S4) is the eighth
As shown in the figure, the U-shaped Senbu frame (8
), (8)' are fixed to the sensor mounting 7V-arms (9A) and (9B) provided at the front and rear of the lawn mowing device (4) so as to be arranged at a predetermined interval in the left and right direction, and
A pair of light-emitting elements (P□) and a light-receiving element (P2) are provided on the inner facing surfaces of the sensor frame (81), and between the light-emitting element (Pl) and the light-receiving confectionery (P2). In addition, the system is configured to determine the boundary between unmown land and mowed land by sensing the presence or absence of grass that is introduced as the vehicle body (6) travels.

Also, the copying sensor sensor, tlJIFi lawn mowing field (7)
The legs are arranged so that they have the same turning radius with respect to the working range of the robots, so that the sensors do not deviate from the boundaries during normal turning.

In addition, as sensors (4) and (B), the original sensor (
It is not limited to those using sensors SI), (S2), (S11), and (S4), and any type of sensor may be used, including contact and non-contact types.

In addition, Uα copying sensors (2) and (B') are arranged symmetrically with the copying sensors (B), and have the same number as the configuration shown in FIG. 8 above. It is indicated by the same # number and with a code.

Hereinafter, a control system for controlling the steering of the vehicle body (6) based on information from the tracing sensor (B) configured as described above will be explained.

As shown in FIG. 4, the control system includes input to an arithmetic and control unit (00) whose main part is a microcomputer via the above-mentioned tracing sensor (5), C
The signal from B+ is input, and based on this signal,
Activate the electromagnetic pulp (4B), (5B) to activate the hydraulic cylinder (4A,), (5A) which is the actuator.
by driving the front wheel f2+, (2) and the rear wheel +31
, +31 to the steering side, and outputs a control signal which is the calculation result to the output interface 7 ace O''4.

Next, the operation of the control device (lO) will be explained based on the flow chart shown in FIG. 5 and the table (1) shown in FIG.

This program basically uses a selection switch (not shown) to select which side of the copying sensor (A, B) or the copying sensor (2, B') is used to control the copying run before starting the run. ) etc., the detection signals from all four optical sensors (S
As shown in Figure 6, the memory ψ inside the control device (■0)
By referring to the table (1+) stored in the field, you can either steer only the front wheels +21, (21) or steer only the front wheels +21, +21 and the rear wheels +31, +3.
) is converted into each control signal of the 5 state signal of 8 states that determines the control mode, whether to steer both swords or straight forward control, and the flag signal that indicates the steering direction, and based on this control signal. Then, the electromagnetic pulps (4B) and (5B) to be controlled are driven so that the wheels are steered in a predetermined direction and by a predetermined amount, so that the unit (6) automatically runs in a predetermined direction along the boundary. In order to achieve this, the vehicle is configured to self-help correct the direction of the running force.

That is, in the table, 5tate l indicates neutral, and the electromagnetic pulp (4B) and (5B) are set as neutral bases to control the vehicle body (6) to go straight.
e 2 is a control for moving the vehicle body (6) in parallel by driving both the electromagnetic pulps (4B) and (5B) to steer both the front wheels (21, +31), 5ta
te 8 drives only the electromagnetic pulp (4B) to drive the front wheels (2
This corresponds to control for adjusting the direction of the vehicle body by steering only 1 and +21, respectively.

Further, Flag indicates the steering direction,
60" indicates steering toward the already mowed field, and +11" indicates steering toward the rice harvested field.

In this embodiment, a configuration is adopted in which only the front wheels +21 and +21 are steered to correct the running force direction when the vehicle body 1 (6) is inclined with respect to the boundary shown in 5 tBte 8. It is also possible to have a configuration in which only the wheels +31 and +31 or both the front and rear wheels are steered in opposite directions to correct the running force direction.

Also, a pair of scanning sensors (A, B) located on the diagonal line
, (λ Bl ), Which side of the set to use is naturally determined by K on which side of the vehicle body the uncut land is located, but these sensors (A, B), ( A'
, B') may be performed automatically by separately providing a sensor or the like for detecting the position of the uncut land, instead of the manual configuration adopted in this embodiment.

Furthermore, in this embodiment, the means for controlling the tracing travel when the vehicle body 16) is moving forward has been described, but it is also possible to perform the tracing traveling control in the same manner as described above when the vehicle body 16) is traveling backward.

Furthermore, the number of optical sensors (s, , %) constituting the scanning sensor (g) may be increased to control the steering amount corresponding to the boundary detection state.

Furthermore, the present invention can be easily applied to various work vehicles such as transport vehicles that travel along a travel course guideline defined by buried tracks, color lines, etc.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

Fig. 1 is a drawing for explaining the present invention in detail. Fig. 2 and subsequent figures show an embodiment of an automatic traveling work vehicle according to the present invention, Fig. 2 is an overall plan view of the lawn mowing work vehicle, and Fig. 8 is a copying diagram. FIG. 4 is a block diagram of the control system, FIG. 5 is a 70-chart showing the operation of the control device, and FIG. 6 is a sensor combination determination table. (2)...Front wheels, (3)...Rear wheels, (6)...Vehicle body, (7)...Working equipment, (a, B), (A', n')... Copying sensor.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] In order to automatically travel along a predetermined boundary of a running area, the vehicle is provided with a tracing sensor that detects the boundary, and is also capable of steering any of the front wheels +21, [2+ and rear wheels +3), +31. The self-driving work vehicle is configured with a driving function, and the above-mentioned copying sensor is disposed one set each on the front, rear, left and right sides of the work device (7), and the work device (7)
A pair of tracing sensors (A, B) located before and behind the vehicle body (6) and diagonally to the vehicle body (6). The automatic traveling work vehicle is provided with means for dynamically combining the boundary detection results of (and B').