Self-moving device and obstacle detection method thereof

Abstract

The present invention relates to a self-moving device, including a body, a walking mechanism, a control device and an obstacle detection system. The control device is used to control the walking and working of the self-moving device; the obstacle detection system includes a surface sensor and a judgment module. The surface sensor is arranged on at least part of the surface of the body, and is used to sense the surrounding environment of the surface sensor and generate a corresponding sensing signal; the judgment module is used to judge whether the self-moving device is close to or collides with an obstacle according to the sensing signal generated by the surface sensor. When the proximity of the self-moving device to the obstacle reaches a preset degree, the surface sensor generates a sensing signal, and the judgment module can detect the sensing signal, thereby judging whether the self-moving device has collided or is too close to the obstacle. In this way, tiny obstacles or tiny collision forces can be accurately detected to reduce the damage of the self-moving device to vegetation such as flowers, fruit and vegetable fields. An obstacle detection method for a self-moving device is also provided.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of walking equipment, and in particular to a self-moving equipment and an obstacle detection method thereof. Background Art

[0002] With the continuous advancement of science and technology, various self-moving devices have gradually entered people's lives, such as vacuum cleaner robots and automatic lawn mowers, etc. This self-moving device has a walking device, a working device and an automatic control device, so that it can walk and perform work automatically within a certain range without human operation.

[0003] Generally, there are often some obstacles in the working area of ​​the self-moving device, which may affect the working of the self-moving device or even damage the self-moving device. The existing solution is to detect whether a collision occurs through mechanical movement or changes caused by mechanical movement. For example, a floating part is set on the base of the self-moving device. When the self-moving device collides with an obstacle, the floating part and the base are relatively displaced. The relative displacement is detected by the displacement sensor, so as to identify that the self-moving device encounters an obstacle and avoid it.

[0004] Currently, existing collision detection cannot detect tiny collision forces, which may cause damage to flowers, fruits, and vegetable fields during the movement of self-moving equipment. Summary of the invention

[0005] Based on this, it is necessary to provide a self-moving device and an obstacle detection method thereof that can accurately detect small collision forces in order to address the problem that existing collision detection cannot detect small collision forces.

[0006] A self-propelled device, comprising:

[0007] body;

[0008] A walking mechanism, used to drive the self-moving device to walk; and

[0009] A control device, used to control the movement and operation of the self-moving device;

[0010] The self-moving device further includes an obstacle detection system, and the obstacle detection system includes:

[0011] An area sensor, disposed on at least a portion of the surface of the fuselage, for sensing the surrounding environment of the area sensor and generating a corresponding sensing signal;

[0012] The judging module is used to judge whether the self-moving device approaches or collides with an obstacle according to the sensing signal generated by the area sensor.

[0013] In the above self-moving device, when the proximity of the self-moving device to an obstacle reaches a preset degree, the surface sensor generates a sensing signal, and the judgment module can detect the sensing signal to judge whether the self-moving device has collided or is too close to the obstacle. In this way, tiny obstacles or tiny collision forces can be accurately detected to reduce the damage of the self-moving device to vegetation such as flowers, fruit and vegetable fields, without the need for users to physically isolate, thereby improving convenience.

[0014] In one embodiment, the surface sensor includes electronic skin, and the judgment module judges whether the self-moving device collides with an obstacle according to a change in a physical quantity generated when the electronic skin encounters an obstacle.

[0015] In one embodiment, the electronic skin comprises at least one piezoelectric sensing layer; and / or

[0016] At least one varistor sensing layer.

[0017] In one embodiment, the electronic skin further includes a base layer and a protective layer, and the at least one piezoelectric sensing layer and / or the at least one piezoresistive sensing layer is disposed between the base layer and the protective layer.

[0018] In one embodiment, the area sensor includes a capacitive sensor, and the capacitive sensor is used to sense its surrounding environment and generate the corresponding sensing signal.

[0019] In one embodiment, the judgment module is used to judge whether the self-moving device approaches or collides with an obstacle according to the strength of the sensing signal generated by the capacitive sensor.

[0020] In one embodiment, the obstacle detection system includes at least one surface sensor, and the at least one surface sensor is arranged in an array on at least a portion of the surface of the fuselage, and the judgment module determines the position of the obstacle relative to the self-moving device based on the sensing signal generated by the at least one surface sensor.

[0021] In one embodiment, the obstacle detection system includes at least one surface sensing unit, and each surface sensing unit includes at least one surface sensor arranged in an array.

[0022] In one embodiment, the at least one surface sensor unit is dispersedly arranged on at least a portion of the surface of the body.

[0023] In one embodiment, the obstacle detection system further includes a selection circuit and a controller for outputting a signal to control the selection circuit, and the selection circuit is used to control the connection and disconnection of the area sensor and the judgment module according to the output signal of the controller.

[0024] In one embodiment, the selection circuit includes an analog switch or an analog multiplexer, and the controller outputs a signal to control the selection circuit to select the connection and disconnection of the designated area sensor with the judgment module.

[0025] In one embodiment, the analog switch includes at least one row selection switch and at least one column selection switch, each row selection switch is electrically connected to each of the area sensors in a corresponding row, and each column selection switch is electrically connected to each of the area sensors in a corresponding column.

[0026] In one embodiment, the controller controls the closing and opening of each row selection switch and each column selection switch to achieve the connection between the designated area sensor and the judgment module, thereby collecting the sensing signal generated by the corresponding area sensor.

[0027] In one embodiment, the determination module includes:

[0028] A conditioning circuit, used for conditioning the sensing signal;

[0029] An analog-to-digital conversion circuit, electrically connected to the conditioning circuit, and configured to perform analog-to-digital conversion on the conditioned sensing signal;

[0030] The processor is connected to the analog-to-digital conversion circuit and is used to determine whether the self-moving device approaches or collides with the obstacle according to the sensing signal after analog-to-digital conversion.

[0031] In one embodiment, when the processor determines that the self-moving device approaches or collides with the obstacle, the processor determines the position of the obstacle relative to the self-moving device according to the sensing signal after the analog-to-digital conversion.

[0032] An obstacle detection method for a self-moving device, the self-moving device comprising an obstacle detection system, the obstacle detection system comprising a surface sensor arranged on at least a part of the surface of the body and a judgment module for judging whether the self-moving device approaches or collides with an obstacle,

[0033] The obstacle detection method of the self-moving device comprises the following steps:

[0034] The surface sensor senses the surrounding environment and generates a sensing signal;

[0035] The determination module determines whether the self-moving device approaches or collides with the obstacle according to the sensing signal.

[0036] In one embodiment, the obstacle detection method for a mobile device further includes the following steps:

[0037] When the self-moving device approaches or collides with the obstacle, the self-moving device is controlled to avoid the obstacle.

[0038] In one embodiment, when the self-moving device approaches an obstacle or collides with an obstacle, controlling the self-moving device to avoid the obstacle further includes the following steps:

[0039] When the self-moving device approaches an obstacle or collides with an obstacle, determining the position of the obstacle relative to the self-moving device according to the sensing signal of the area sensor;

[0040] The self-moving device is controlled to avoid obstacles along a preset direction.

[0041] In one embodiment, when the self-moving device approaches an obstacle or collides with an obstacle, controlling the self-moving device to avoid the obstacle further includes the following steps:

[0042] When the self-moving device approaches an obstacle or collides with an obstacle, determining the position of the obstacle relative to the self-moving device according to the sensing signal of the area sensor;

[0043] The self-moving device is controlled to avoid obstacles in a random walking manner. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0044] Figure 1 It is a schematic structural diagram of a self-moving device in one embodiment of the present invention;

[0045] Figure 2 It is a structural schematic diagram of a self-moving device in another embodiment of the present invention;

[0046] Figure 3 is a structural block diagram of an obstacle detection system for a self-moving device in one embodiment of the present invention;

[0047] Figure 4 It is a structural schematic diagram of a self-moving device in another embodiment of the present invention;

[0048] Figure 5 for Figure 4 The schematic diagram of the circuit connection between the surface sensing unit and the judgment module of the self-moving device is shown. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0049] In order to facilitate the understanding of the present invention, the present invention will be described more fully below with reference to the relevant drawings. Preferred embodiments of the present invention are provided in the drawings. However, the present invention can be implemented in many different forms and is not limited to the embodiments described herein. On the contrary, the purpose of providing these embodiments is to make the understanding of the disclosure of the present invention more thorough and comprehensive.

[0050] It should be noted that when an element is referred to as being "fixed to" another element, it may be directly on the other element or there may be a central element. When an element is considered to be "connected to" another element, it may be directly connected to the other element or there may be a central element at the same time. The terms "vertical", "horizontal", "left", "right" and similar expressions used herein are for illustrative purposes only.

[0051] Unless otherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as those commonly understood by those skilled in the art of the present invention. The terms used herein in the specification of the present invention are only for the purpose of describing specific embodiments and are not intended to limit the present invention. The term "and / or" used herein includes any and all combinations of one or more related listed items.

[0052] The self-moving device in the embodiment of the present invention automatically walks and works in the working area. Specifically, the self-moving device can be an automatic lawn mower or an automatic vacuum cleaner. They automatically walk on the lawn or the ground to mow the lawn or vacuum. Of course, the self-moving device in the present invention is not limited to automatic lawn mowers and automatic vacuum cleaners, and can also be other types of equipment, such as automatic spraying equipment or automatic monitoring equipment, etc., to achieve unattended operation of various tasks through the self-moving device.

[0053] like Figure 1 and Figure 2 As shown, in one embodiment of the present invention, the self-moving device 10 is an automatic lawn mower, and the working area is a lawn. The self-moving device 10 includes a body 12, a walking mechanism, a working mechanism, an energy storage mechanism, and a control device. The control device controls the self-moving device 10 to walk and work in the working area in a preset manner. A charging module is provided in the working area, at the boundary of the working area, or underground. When the power stored in the energy storage module is insufficient, the self-moving device 10 is charged through the charging module.

[0054] The walking mechanism is used to enable the self-moving device 10 to walk and work in the working area. In one embodiment, the walking mechanism includes a walking wheel set, and the walking wheel set includes a driving wheel 142 and an auxiliary wheel 144 for auxiliary support of the self-moving device. Figure 1 and Figure 2As shown, the left and right directions are the moving directions of the self-moving device 10, the left end is the front end of the self-moving device 10, the end opposite to the front end is the rear end, the driving wheels 142 are arranged on the left and right sides of the rear end body 12 of the self-moving device, and the auxiliary wheels 144 are arranged in the middle part of the front end of the self-moving device. Of course, there are many ways to set the walking wheel set. For example, the number of driving wheels 142 and the number of auxiliary wheels 144 can be increased or decreased as needed, and the setting positions and combination forms of the driving wheels 142 and auxiliary wheels 144 can also be modified as needed, which are not listed here one by one. The driving wheel 142 is usually driven by a plurality of motors with controllable speed or steering, so as to realize the flexible adjustment of the moving speed or moving direction during the movement of the self-moving device.

[0055] The working mechanism includes a mowing blade and a cutting motor for performing the mowing action. Of course, the working mechanisms of different self-moving devices 10 are different. For example, the working mechanism of an automatic vacuum cleaner includes a vacuum motor, a vacuum port, a dust collection device and other working parts for performing vacuuming tasks. The energy storage mechanism is usually a rechargeable battery that provides power to the self-moving device 10. It can also be charged when the reserve power is lower than a predetermined value. Of course, the energy storage mechanism can also be other types of power supply devices, such as a solar power supply device, a gasoline engine or a fuel cell.

[0056] Please also read Figure 3 The self-moving device 10 further includes an obstacle detection system 16, which includes a surface sensor 162 and a judgment module 164. The surface sensor 162 is disposed on at least a portion of the surface of the body 12, and is used to sense the surrounding environment of the surface sensor 162 and generate a corresponding sensing signal. The judgment module 164 is used to determine whether the self-moving device 10 is close to or collides with an obstacle based on the sensing signal generated by the surface sensor 162.

[0057] Specifically, the judgment module 164 is used to determine the proximity of the self-moving device 10 to the obstacle according to the sensing signal generated by the surface sensor 162 when the obstacle approaches or contacts the surface sensor 162. It should be understood that the proximity of the self-moving device 10 to the obstacle includes two situations: collision and non-collision. That is, when the self-moving device 10 collides with the obstacle, the proximity is a negative value, and when the self-moving device 10 does not collide with the obstacle, the proximity is 0 or a positive value. For example, when the obstacle contacts the surface sensor 162, at this time, the proximity is a negative value, and it is determined that the self-moving device 10 collides with the obstacle.

[0058] Thus, when the self-moving device 10 approaches obstacles such as flowers, grass, and vegetables or has a slight collision with them, the surface sensor 162 responds to generate a sensing signal, and the judgment module 164 can detect the sensing signal to determine the proximity of the self-moving device 10 to the obstacle. Thus, compared with the traditional method of detecting whether a collision occurs through mechanical movement or changes caused by mechanical movement, obstacles such as flowers and grass can be accurately detected and a slight collision force can be determined, so as to reduce the damage of the self-moving device 10 to vegetation such as flowers, fruit and vegetable fields, without the need for users to perform physical isolation, thereby improving convenience.

[0059] It is particularly emphasized that the traditional Hall collision avoidance will cause great damage to obstacles due to the collision force generated, while ultrasonic, infrared, laser and visual obstacle avoidance will not cause collisions, but there will be a blind area where they cannot work, and the cost is relatively high. The surface sensor 162 in the present application can accurately detect obstacles such as flowers and grass and can determine small collision forces to avoid large collisions, thereby reducing the damage to obstacles, and there is no visual blind area, and the cost is relatively low.

[0060] Specifically in one implementation mode, Figure 1 As shown, the surface sensor 162 is disposed at the front end, rear end and / or at least one side of the longitudinal extension direction of the body 12. During the forward, backward or turning process of the mobile device 10, the surface sensor 162 located at the front end, rear end or at least one side of the body 12 can accurately detect whether a small collision occurs, thereby ensuring the coverage of the detection. Figure 2 As shown, in another embodiment, the surface sensor 162 can also be wrapped around the surface of the body 12, that is, the surface sensor 162 covers the entire surface of the body 12 of the self-moving device 10, so as to achieve detection without blind spots. It can be understood that the arrangement of the surface sensor 162 can be determined according to actual conditions and is not limited here. For example, in some other embodiments, it can also be wrapped around a part of the surface of the body 12.

[0061] In one embodiment, the surface sensor 162 includes an electronic skin, and the judgment module 164 judges whether the self-moving device collides with an obstacle based on the change of physical quantities generated when the electronic skin encounters an obstacle. Further, the electronic skin includes at least one piezoelectric sensing layer or at least one piezoresistive sensing layer. Specifically, the piezoelectric sensing layer or the piezoresistive sensing layer is flexible so as to be arranged on the fuselage 12. More specifically, the piezoelectric sensing layer can be a polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) material layer, an EMFi material layer or other piezoelectric composite material layer. When a small collision occurs in the self-moving device 10, the piezoelectric sensing layer is affected by the impact, and the pressure applied to it changes, thereby causing itself to deform, causing the resistance of the piezoelectric sensing layer to change, and then generating a sensing signal (piezoelectric signal), and the judgment module 164 determines the collision based on the sensing signal.

[0062] The piezoresistive sensing layer may be a serrated carbon nanotube layer, a graphene composite material layer or a conductive rubber layer, etc. When a slight collision occurs to the mobile device 10, the piezoresistive sensing layer is impacted, and the pressure applied thereto changes, thereby causing its lattice parameter to change, and further causing the carrier density to change and the resistance of the piezoresistive sensing layer to change, generating a sensing signal (piezoelectric signal), and the judgment module 164 judges that a collision occurs according to the sensing signal.

[0063] Furthermore, the electronic skin further includes a base layer and a protective layer, and at least one piezoelectric sensing layer and / or at least one piezoresistive sensing layer is disposed between the base layer and the protective layer. Specifically, the base layer, the sensing layer and the protective layer are stacked and integrated, the base layer is used to be attached to the surface of the fuselage 12 and isolated from the surface of the fuselage 12, and the protective layer is located outside the sensing layer to protect the sensing layer and prevent damage to the sensing layer. Specifically, in one embodiment, the base layer and the protective layer are both polyethylene material layers.

[0064] In particular, when the electronic skin includes a piezoelectric sensing layer and / or a piezoresistive sensing layer, the surface sensor 162 may be entirely covered on the surface of the body 12. However, the structure of the surface sensor 162 includes but is not limited to the above-mentioned manner. For example, in some other embodiments, the surface sensor 162 may be a capacitive sensor.

[0065] Furthermore, the capacitive sensor is used to sense its surrounding environment and generate a corresponding sensing signal. Specifically, the judgment module 164 is used to judge whether the mobile device is close to or collides with an obstacle according to the strength of the sensing signal generated by the capacitive sensor. More specifically, the capacitive sensor includes a flexible capacitive element, which is arranged on the surface of the body 12. The aforementioned sensing signal is specifically an electrical characteristic parameter caused by a change in pressure acting on the capacitive element, or a change in an electrical characteristic parameter caused by an obstacle approaching the capacitive element.

[0066] Specifically in one embodiment, the capacitive element includes a conductive plate formed by air or an insulating material (such as a foam material, a dielectric material or an epoxy resin, etc.) to form a plate capacitor, and the electrical characteristic parameter can be a current parameter. Of course, as an optional embodiment, the capacitive element can also be only a metal sheet / metal film, which forms a capacitor with the earth, that is, the capacitive element itself can constitute a monopolar capacitive sensor. In this way, the capacitive sensor is relatively simple to form and is easy to design and arrange.

[0067] Similarly, when the surface sensor 162 includes a flexible capacitive element, for example, a flexible metal film, the surface sensor 162 can theoretically be entirely covered on the surface of the fuselage 12 as long as a certain detection accuracy can be achieved; but in actual applications, an electronic skin including a piezoelectric sensing layer and / or a piezoresistive sensing layer is usually used to cover the entire surface of the fuselage 12. This cannot be understood as the surface sensor 162 being a capacitive sensor that cannot cover the entire surface of the fuselage 12 or a large continuous surface.

[0068] It should be pointed out that the surface sensor 162 includes electronic skin, and the critical value of the proximity of the obstacle to the surface sensor 162 should be 0, that is, when the proximity of the obstacle to the surface sensor 162 is greater than or equal to 0, it is judged that the obstacle has not collided with the self-moving device 10, and when the proximity of the obstacle to the surface sensor 162 is less than 0, it can be judged that the obstacle has collided with the self-moving device 10.

[0069] If the surface sensor 162 includes a capacitive sensor, the proximity of the obstacle to the surface sensor 162 should at least include the limit value of the safety distance. For example, when the proximity of the obstacle to the surface sensor 162 reaches the critical value, the control device will control the self-moving device 10 to turn or reverse to avoid the obstacle, but the walking mechanism must first brake to slow down or stop before executing the corresponding avoidance command. During this process, the self-moving device 10 as a whole moves towards the obstacle. In order to avoid the collision between the self-moving device 10 and the obstacle, the critical value of the distance should at least include the safe distance to avoid the collision between the self-moving device 10 and the obstacle during the braking action after receiving the avoidance command.

[0070] In one embodiment, the determination module 164 is further used to determine the position of the obstacle relative to the self-moving device 10 according to the sensing signal; and / or determine the magnitude of the collision force of the self-moving device 10. Figure 4 The obstacle detection system 16 includes at least one surface sensor 162, which is arranged in an array on at least a portion of the surface of the fuselage 12. The judgment module 164 is electrically connected to the at least one surface sensor 162, and is used to determine the position of the obstacle relative to the self-moving device according to the sensing signal generated by the at least one surface sensor 162.

[0071] It should be noted that at least one surface sensor 162 is arranged in an array, which means that at least one surface sensor 162 is arranged according to a certain rule on at least a portion of the surface of the fuselage 12. Further, in one embodiment, the surface sensor 162 includes four rows, each row includes four surface sensors 162 arranged equidistantly in the horizontal direction, and the four rows of surface sensors 162 are arranged at intervals in the vertical direction, thereby forming a rectangular array of four rows and four columns.

[0072] It can be understood that in another embodiment, the area sensors 162 in each row may be arranged at unequal intervals, which is not limited here.

[0073] It can be understood that in another embodiment, each row of surface sensors 162 may not be arranged in a straight line, for example, they may be arranged on a circumference, and multiple surface sensors 162 on the circumference form concentric circles arranged at intervals from the inside to the outside, thereby forming a circumferential array. Further, the obstacle detection system 16 includes at least one surface sensor unit 160, and each surface sensor unit 160 includes at least one surface sensor 162 arranged in an array. In other words, at least one surface sensor 162 is arranged in an array to form a surface sensor unit 15. Specifically, in a preferred embodiment, there are multiple surface sensor units 160, and each surface sensor unit 160 includes multiple surface sensors 162 arranged in an array. The judgment module 164 is electrically connected to the multiple surface sensor units 160 to sample the sensing signal generated by each surface sensor 162 in the surface sensor unit 160.

[0074] More specifically, a plurality of surface sensing units 160 are arranged on different surfaces of the fuselage, for example, arranged on the front end, the rear end and both sides of the fuselage, and the judgment module 164 also stores (encodes) the arrangement position of the surface sensor 162 of each surface sensing unit 160. In the actual working process, the judgment module 164 samples the sensing signals of the surface sensors 162 in the surface sensing unit 160. When the sensing signals of some or some of the surface sensors 162 change, it can be judged that a collision occurs, and the collision position can be determined.

[0075] Specifically, in one embodiment, the position information of the surface sensors 162 arranged in an array is associated with corresponding codes, and the judgment module 164 stores the codes of the surface sensors 162. When the sensing signals of some or a part of the surface sensors 162 change, the judgment module 164 can obtain the corresponding codes to determine the collision position. For example, the surface sensors 162 with codes 101 to 120 are located at the front end of the fuselage 12. When the sensing signals of the surface sensors 162 with codes 101 to 120 change, it can be determined that the collision position is located at the front end of the fuselage 12.

[0076] It is understood that the arrangement of the surface sensor 162 in an array is one embodiment, and in some other embodiments, it can also be arranged according to a certain pattern to achieve the effect of accurate detection. It is also understood that the surface sensor 162 is arranged in an array to achieve the technical effect of determining the collision position. In some embodiments, the entire surface sensor 162 can also be divided into a plurality of sensing areas arranged in a certain pattern, which can also achieve the aforementioned technical effect.

[0077] It is understandable that the surface sensor unit 160 can be arranged on a part of the surface of the fuselage 12, such as the front end, the rear end and the two sides, and a plurality of surface sensor units 160 can be spliced ​​together to cover the entire fuselage 12, which is not limited here.

[0078] It should be emphasized that the arrangement of the surface sensor unit 160 includes but is not limited to the aforementioned arrangement. For example, in some embodiments, at least one surface sensor unit 160 may also be dispersedly arranged on at least a portion of the surface of the fuselage 12 .

[0079] In one embodiment, the obstacle detection system 16 further includes a selection circuit 166 and a controller 168 for outputting a signal to control the selection circuit 166 . The selection circuit 166 is used to control the connection and disconnection between the surface sensor 162 and the determination module 164 according to the output signal of the controller 168 .

[0080] Furthermore, the selection circuit 166 includes an analog switch or an analog multiplexer, and the controller 168 inputs a certain signal to select the designated surface sensor 162, thereby avoiding the interference between multiple surface sensors 162 when working simultaneously, so that a single judgment module 164 can also judge multiple surface sensors 162. For example, see Figure 5, the controller 168 inputs signals to select the four surface sensors 162 in the A0 column of the array in turn, respectively realize connection and disconnection with the judgment module 164, and obtain sensing signals in turn; then the controller 168 inputs signals to select the four surface sensors 162 in the A1 column of the array in turn, respectively realize connection and disconnection with the judgment module 164, and so on until the surface sensors 162 in all the surface sensing units 160 complete scanning and obtain sensing signals.

[0081] It should be understood that when the controller 168 completes the selection of a surface sensor 162, even after the selected surface sensor 162 is connected to the judgment module 164 to obtain the sensing signal, before selecting the next surface sensor 162, the controller 168 will input a signal to disconnect the selected surface sensor 162 from the judgment module 164, thereby facilitating the selection of the next surface sensor 162.

[0082] Further, in a specific embodiment, when the selection circuit is an analog switch, the analog switch includes at least one row selection switch 1662 and at least one column selection switch 1664, each row selection switch 1662 is electrically connected to each surface sensor 162 in the corresponding row, and each column selection switch 1664 is electrically connected to each surface sensor 162 in the corresponding column.

[0083] Specifically, the controller 168 controls the closing and opening of each row selection switch 1662 and each column selection switch 1664 to achieve the connection between the designated surface sensor 162 and the judgment module 164, so as to collect the sensing signal generated by the corresponding surface sensor 162. Figure 5 As shown, the plurality of area sensors 162 in the area sensor unit 160 are arranged in an array of four rows and four columns. Correspondingly, the row selection switches 1662 correspond to the number of rows of the area sensors 162 arranged in the array in the area sensor unit 160, that is, four; the column selection switches 1664 correspond to the number of columns of the area sensors 162 arranged in the array in the area sensor unit 160, that is, four. Each row selection switch 1662 is electrically connected to the area sensor 162 in the corresponding row through a wire, and each column selection switch 1664 is electrically connected to the area sensor 162 in the corresponding column through a wire.

[0084] In the actual control process, the controller 168 may first control a column selection switch 1664 to be closed, and then control the row selection switches 1662 to be closed in sequence, thereby completing the scanning sampling of the four area sensors 162 in one column. Similarly, another column selection switch 1664 is then controlled to be closed, and then the row selection switches 1662 are controlled to be closed in sequence, and so on until the area sensors 162 in all the area sensing units 160 complete the scanning and obtain the sensing signals.

[0085] In one specific embodiment, the surface sensor 162 includes at least one piezoelectric sensing layer and / or at least one piezoresistive sensing layer, and the row selection switch 1662 and the column selection switch 1664 are connected in sequence to provide an electric field to the conductive surface sensor 162. If a collision occurs at the conductive surface sensor 162, its resistance changes, resulting in a change in the generated sensing signal. In another specific embodiment, when the surface sensor 162 is a capacitive sensor, a collision occurs at the conductive surface sensor 162, and the capacitance of the surface sensor 162 changes, resulting in a change in the generated sensing signal.

[0086] It can be understood that the selection circuit includes but is not limited to the above-mentioned implementation mode. In some other embodiments, the selection circuit may also include other switch circuits for achieving on and off, which are not listed here one by one.

[0087] For further information, please refer to Figure 5 The judgment module 164 includes a conditioning circuit 1642, an analog-to-digital conversion circuit 1644, and a processor 1646. The conditioning circuit 1642 is used to condition the sensing signal, the analog-to-digital conversion circuit 1644 is electrically connected to the conditioning circuit 1642, and is used to perform analog-to-digital conversion on the conditioned sensing signal, and the processor is connected to the analog-to-digital conversion circuit 1644, and is used to determine whether the mobile device 10 is close to or collides with an obstacle according to the sensing signal after the analog-to-digital conversion.

[0088] Specifically, the conditioning circuit 1642 is electrically connected to the four row selection switches 1662 and the four column selection switches 1664, respectively, the analog-to-digital conversion circuit 1644 is electrically connected to the conditioning circuit 1642, the processor 1646 is electrically connected to the analog-to-digital conversion circuit 1644, and the processor 1646 is also used to determine the position of the obstacle relative to the self-moving device based on the sensing signal after the analog-to-digital conversion, thereby determining the position of the obstacle relative to the self-moving device 10.

[0089] Specifically, in the implementation, when the controller 168 completes scanning and sampling of the sensing signals of the area sensors 162 in the array, the sampled sensing signals are modulated by the conditioning circuit 1642 to make them suitable for the input of the analog-to-digital conversion circuit 1644, so as to facilitate the signal that is converted by the analog-to-digital conversion circuit 188 to be transmitted to the processor 1646. The processor 1646 first determines the position of the area sensor 162 in the array according to the change of the sensing signal based on the sampling result, and then further determines the position of the obstacle relative to the self-moving device 10 in combination with the position of the area sensor unit 160 located on the body 12 of the self-moving device 10.

[0090] Furthermore, the determination module 164 further includes an amplifier (not shown), which is connected between the controller 168 and the analog-to-digital conversion circuit to amplify the sensing signal, thereby ensuring the strength of the signal and thus the accuracy of the detection.

[0091] In one embodiment, the processor 1646 is connected to a control device of the self-moving device 10, and the control device is further used to control the self-moving device 10 to avoid obstacles according to the determined position where the self-moving device 10 collides. Specifically, the control device can control the walking mechanism to turn, reverse, etc., so as to avoid obstacles.

[0092] Based on the above-mentioned self-moving device 10, the present invention also provides an obstacle detection method of the self-moving device 10, which specifically includes the following steps:

[0093] Step S110: the area sensor 162 senses the surrounding environment and generates a sensing signal;

[0094] Specifically, the controller 168 controls the closing of the row selection switch 1662 and the closing of the column selection switch 1664 to scan and sample the area sensor 162. When a collision occurs, a sensing signal of the area sensor 162 can be obtained.

[0095] Step S120: the determination module 164 determines whether the mobile device 10 approaches or collides with an obstacle according to the sensing signal;

[0096] Specifically, the determination module 164 determines the proximity of the mobile device 10 to the obstacle according to the sensing signal;

[0097] In one embodiment, the surface sensor 162 includes at least one piezoelectric sensing layer and / or at least one piezoresistive sensing layer. The controller 168 applies an electric field to the surface sensors 162 in the rows and / or columns that are turned on. The resistance of the surface sensor 162 at the collision position changes, which causes the generated sensing signal (current signal) to change. In another embodiment, the surface sensor 162 is a capacitive sensor. The capacitance of the surface sensor 162 that generates a sensing signal due to the approach of an obstacle or the surface sensor 162 that has a slight collision with the obstacle changes, causing the generated sensing signal (capacitive signal) to change. In this way, the position of the obstacle is determined.

[0098] In one embodiment, the obstacle detection method of the self-moving device 10 further includes:

[0099] Step S140: When the self-moving device 10 collides with an obstacle, the self-moving device 10 is controlled to avoid the obstacle;

[0100] In one embodiment, step S140 further includes the steps of:

[0101] S142: When the self-moving device 10 approaches an obstacle or collides with an obstacle, a position where the self-moving device 10 collides is determined according to a sensing signal of the surface sensor 162;

[0102] Specifically, the surface sensing unit 160 is arranged at different positions of the body 12, and the multiple surface sensors 162 in the surface sensing unit 160 are arranged in an array. The processor 1646 first determines the position of the surface sensor 162 in the array according to the change of the sensing signal based on the sampling result, and then combines the position of the surface sensing unit 160 on the body 12 of the self-moving device 10 to further determine the position of the obstacle phenomenon relative to the self-moving device 10.

[0103] S144: Control the self-moving device 10 to avoid obstacles along a preset direction;

[0104] Specifically, the control device controls the walking mechanism to change the self-moving device 10 from the straight-line moving mode to the turning mode or the reverse mode in the preset direction. For example, the self-moving device 10 is changed from the straight-line moving mode to turn left or right, or reverses in the direction away from the obstacle (backward), so as to avoid the obstacle.

[0105] In another embodiment, step S140 further includes the steps of:

[0106] When the self-moving device 10 approaches an obstacle or collides with an obstacle, the position where the self-moving device 10 collides is determined according to the sensing signal of the area sensor 162 .

[0107] The self-moving device is controlled to avoid obstacles in a random walking manner.

[0108] Specifically, the control device controls the walking mechanism so that the self-moving device 10 moves in a random route to avoid obstacles. Further, after determining the position where the self-moving device 10 collides, the control device controls the walking mechanism so that the self-moving device 10 avoids obstacles along a moving direction, and the moving direction is arbitrary and can also change at any time. For example, the trajectory of the self-moving device 10 avoiding obstacles can be a broken line or a curve to bypass obstacles. In short, it can achieve the purpose of avoiding obstacles.

[0109] The self-propelled device 10 and the obstacle detection method thereof in the present invention have the following advantages over the prior art:

[0110] 1) When the self-moving device 10 approaches an obstacle such as flowers, grass, and vegetables or slightly collides with it, the surface sensor 162 generates a sensing signal in response to the approach or collision of the obstacle. The judgment module can detect the sensing signal to determine the proximity of the self-moving device 10 to the obstacle to avoid a larger collision that causes greater damage to the obstacle;

[0111] 2) The surface sensor 162 can accurately detect obstacles such as flowers and grass, and has no blind spots compared to traditional obstacle detection, and is less expensive;

[0112] 3) The mobile device 10 includes a plurality of surface sensing units 160 arranged on the surface of the body 12, each surface sensing unit 160 includes a plurality of surface sensors 162 arranged in an array, and the location where the collision occurs can be determined by scanning and sampling the surface sensors 162 arranged in an array;

[0113] 4) Objects can be avoided accurately based on the location where the collision occurred.

[0114] The technical features of the above-described embodiments may be arbitrarily combined. To make the description concise, not all possible combinations of the technical features in the above-described embodiments are described. However, as long as there is no contradiction in the combination of these technical features, they should be considered to be within the scope of this specification.

[0115] The above-mentioned embodiments only express several implementation methods of the present invention, and the descriptions thereof are relatively specific and detailed, but they cannot be understood as limiting the scope of the invention patent. It should be pointed out that, for ordinary technicians in this field, several variations and improvements can be made without departing from the concept of the present invention, and these all belong to the protection scope of the present invention. Therefore, the protection scope of the patent of the present invention shall be subject to the attached claims.

Claims

1. An automatic lawn mower, comprising: body; A walking mechanism, used for driving the automatic lawn mower to walk, the walking mechanism comprising a walking wheel set, the walking wheel set comprising a driving wheel arranged at the rear end of the machine body and an auxiliary wheel arranged at the front end of the machine body; A working mechanism, comprising a cutting motor and a mowing blade, wherein the cutting motor is used to drive the mowing blade to perform a mowing action; and A control device, used for controlling the movement and operation of the automatic lawn mower; Characterized in that the automatic lawn mower further comprises an obstacle detection system, and the obstacle detection system comprises: A plurality of surface sensors are arranged in an array on at least part of the surface of the fuselage, and are used to sense the surrounding environment of the surface sensor and generate corresponding sensing signals; the surface sensor includes an electronic skin and / or a capacitive sensor; the electronic skin includes at least one piezoelectric sensing layer and / or at least one piezoresistive sensing layer, the piezoelectric sensing layer is a polyvinylidene fluoride material layer or an EMFi material layer; the piezoresistive sensing layer is a serrated carbon nanotube layer or a graphene composite material layer; A judging module, used for judging whether the automatic lawn mower approaches or collides with an obstacle according to the sensing signal generated by the surface sensor; The obstacle detection system includes a plurality of surface sensing units, the plurality of surface sensing units are covered on the entire surface of the fuselage, and each of the surface sensing units includes a plurality of surface sensors arranged in an array; the plurality of surface sensing units are dispersedly arranged on different surfaces of the fuselage, the judgment module stores position information of each surface sensor, and the judgment module is used to sample the sensing signal of the surface sensor, and judge whether the automatic lawn mower collides with an obstacle according to the sensing signal generated by the surface sensor, and determine the position where the automatic lawn mower collides with the obstacle; The control device is connected to the judgment module, and the control device is also used to control the automatic lawn mower to avoid obstacles according to the determined position where the automatic lawn mower collides; The judgment module includes a conditioning circuit, an analog-to-digital conversion circuit and a processor, wherein the conditioning circuit is used to condition the sensing signal of the area sensor, the analog-to-digital conversion circuit is electrically connected to the conditioning circuit, and is used to perform analog-to-digital conversion on the conditioned sensing signal, and the processor is connected to the analog-to-digital conversion circuit, and is used to judge whether the automatic lawn mower is approaching or colliding with an obstacle according to the sensing signal after the analog-to-digital conversion; The processor determines the position of the surface sensor in the array according to the change of the sensing signal of the surface sensor, and determines the position of the obstacle relative to the automatic lawn mower in combination with the position of the surface sensor unit on the body of the automatic lawn mower; the processor is connected to the control device, and the control device is also used to control the automatic lawn mower to avoid the obstacle according to the determined position where the automatic lawn mower collides.

2. The automatic lawn mower according to claim 1, characterized in that: The judgment module judges whether the automatic lawn mower collides with an obstacle according to the change of physical quantity generated when the electronic skin encounters an obstacle.

3. The automatic lawn mower according to claim 2, characterized in that: The electronic skin further comprises a base layer and a protective layer, and the at least one piezoelectric sensing layer and / or the at least one piezoresistive sensing layer is arranged between the base layer and the protective layer.

4. The automatic lawn mower according to claim 1, characterized in that: The capacitive sensor is used to sense its surrounding environment and generate the corresponding sensing signal.

5. The automatic lawn mower according to claim 4, characterized in that: The judgment module is used to judge whether the automatic lawn mower approaches or collides with an obstacle according to the strength of the sensing signal generated by the capacitive sensor.

6. The automatic lawn mower according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that: The obstacle detection system further includes a selection circuit and a controller for outputting a signal to control the selection circuit, wherein the selection circuit is used to control the connection and disconnection between the area sensor and the judgment module according to the output signal of the controller.

7. The automatic lawn mower according to claim 6, characterized in that: The selection circuit includes an analog switch or an analog multiplexer, and the controller outputs a signal to control the selection circuit to select the connection and disconnection of the designated area sensor with the judgment module.

8. The automatic lawn mower according to claim 7, characterized in that: The analog switch includes at least one row selection switch and at least one column selection switch, each of the row selection switches is electrically connected to each of the area sensors in a corresponding row, and each of the column selection switches is electrically connected to each of the area sensors in a corresponding column; The controller controls the closing or opening of each of the row selection switches and each of the column selection switches to achieve the connection between the designated area sensor and the judgment module, thereby collecting the sensing signal generated by the corresponding area sensor.

9. The automatic lawn mower according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that: The judging module comprises: A conditioning circuit, used for conditioning the sensing signal; An analog-to-digital conversion circuit, electrically connected to the conditioning circuit, and configured to perform analog-to-digital conversion on the conditioned sensing signal; A processor is connected to the analog-to-digital conversion circuit and is used to determine whether the automatic lawn mower approaches or collides with the obstacle based on the sensing signal after analog-to-digital conversion.

10. The automatic lawn mower according to claim 9, characterized in that: When the processor determines that the automatic lawn mower approaches or collides with the obstacle, the processor determines the position of the obstacle relative to the automatic lawn mower according to the sensing signal after the analog-to-digital conversion.

11. An obstacle detection method for an automatic lawn mower, the automatic lawn mower comprising: body; A walking mechanism, used for driving the automatic lawn mower to walk, the walking mechanism comprising a walking wheel set, the walking wheel set comprising a driving wheel arranged at the rear end of the machine body and an auxiliary wheel arranged at the front end of the machine body; A working mechanism, comprising a cutting motor and a mowing blade, wherein the cutting motor is used to drive the mowing blade to perform a mowing action; A control device, used for controlling the movement and operation of the automatic lawn mower; and an obstacle detection system, the obstacle detection system comprising a surface sensor disposed on at least a portion of the surface of the body and a determination module for determining whether the automatic lawn mower approaches or collides with an obstacle; The obstacle detection system is characterized in that the obstacle detection system comprises a plurality of the surface sensors, each of which is coated on the surface of the fuselage and arranged in an array, and is used to sense the surrounding environment of the surface sensor and generate a corresponding sensing signal; the surface sensor comprises an electronic skin and / or a capacitive sensor; the electronic skin comprises at least one piezoelectric sensing layer and / or at least one piezoresistive sensing layer, and the piezoelectric sensing layer is a polyvinylidene fluoride material layer or an EMFi material layer; the piezoresistive sensing layer is a serrated carbon nanotube layer, a graphene composite material layer or a conductive rubber layer; The obstacle detection system includes a plurality of surface sensing units, each of which includes a plurality of surface sensors arranged in an array; the plurality of surface sensing units are dispersedly arranged on different surfaces of the body, the judgment module stores position information of each surface sensor, and the judgment module is used to sample the sensing signal of the surface sensor, and judge whether the automatic lawn mower collides with an obstacle according to the sensing signal generated by the surface sensor, and determine the position of the obstacle relative to the automatic lawn mower; The judgment module includes a conditioning circuit, an analog-to-digital conversion circuit and a processor, wherein the conditioning circuit is used to condition the sensing signal of the area sensor, the analog-to-digital conversion circuit is electrically connected to the conditioning circuit, and is used to perform analog-to-digital conversion on the conditioned sensing signal, and the processor is connected to the analog-to-digital conversion circuit, and is used to judge whether the automatic lawn mower is approaching or colliding with an obstacle according to the sensing signal after the analog-to-digital conversion; The processor determines the position of the surface sensor in the array according to the change of the sensing signal of the surface sensor, and determines the position of the obstacle relative to the automatic lawn mower in combination with the position of the surface sensor unit on the body of the automatic lawn mower; the processor is connected to the control device, and the control device is further used to control the automatic lawn mower to avoid the obstacle according to the determined position where the automatic lawn mower collides; the obstacle detection method of the automatic lawn mower comprises the following steps: The surface sensor senses the surrounding environment and generates a sensing signal; The judging module judges whether the automatic lawn mower approaches or collides with the obstacle according to the sensing signal; When the automatic lawn mower approaches or collides with the obstacle, the control device controls the automatic lawn mower to avoid the obstacle according to the determined position where the automatic lawn mower collides.

12. The obstacle detection method for an automatic lawn mower according to claim 11, characterized in that: In the step, when the automatic lawn mower approaches an obstacle or collides with an obstacle, the control device controls the automatic lawn mower to avoid the obstacle according to the determined position where the automatic lawn mower collides, which further includes the following steps: When the automatic lawn mower approaches an obstacle or collides with an obstacle, the judgment module determines the position of the obstacle relative to the automatic lawn mower according to the sensing signal of the surface sensor; The control device controls the automatic lawn mower to avoid obstacles along a preset direction according to the determined position where the automatic lawn mower collides.

13. The obstacle detection method for an automatic lawn mower according to claim 11, characterized in that: In the step, when the automatic lawn mower approaches an obstacle or collides with an obstacle, the control device controls the automatic lawn mower to avoid the obstacle according to the determined position where the automatic lawn mower collides, which further includes the following steps: When the automatic lawn mower approaches an obstacle or collides with an obstacle, the judgment module determines the position of the obstacle relative to the automatic lawn mower according to the sensing signal of the surface sensor; The control device controls the automatic lawn mower to avoid obstacles in a random walking manner according to the determined position where the automatic lawn mower collides.

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