Autonomous Mobile Transporter and Control Method

Abstract

An embodiment of the present application provides an autonomous mobile transport vehicle and a control method. Among them, the autonomous mobile transport vehicle includes: a vehicle body; an environment detection component disposed on the vehicle body; the environment detection component includes a telescopic mechanism and an environment detection unit; the environment detection unit is disposed at the telescopic end of the telescopic mechanism; the telescopic mechanism can extend in a first direction away from the vehicle body and contract in a second direction close to the vehicle body, and the first direction is parallel to the second direction. The technical solution provided by the embodiment of the present application can effectively reduce the detection blind area, is beneficial to improving the obstacle avoidance and positioning capabilities of the autonomous mobile transport vehicle, and can effectively ensure the safety of objects.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the field of mechanical technology, and particularly to an autonomous mobile transport vehicle and a control method thereof. Background Art

[0002] Automated Guided Vehicle (AGV) has the advantages of high working efficiency, convenient operation, flexibility, etc., and is often used for loading, stacking and short-distance transporting objects, and is widely applied in the logistics field and the mechanical manufacturing field.

[0003] For an autonomous mobile transport vehicle, during the process of transporting an object, it usually senses the surrounding environment through a radar provided thereon. When the volume of the transported object is relatively large, the object will block part of the radar light, resulting in a detection blind area and inaccurate obstacle avoidance and positioning. Summary of the Invention

[0004] This application provides an autonomous mobile transport vehicle and a control method thereof that can solve the above problems or at least partially solve the above problems.

[0005] In one embodiment of this application, an autonomous mobile transport vehicle is provided. The autonomous mobile transport vehicle includes:

[0006] A vehicle body;

[0007] An environment detection component disposed on the vehicle body;

[0008] The environment detection component includes a telescopic mechanism and an environment detection unit; the environment detection unit is disposed at the telescopic end of the telescopic mechanism; the telescopic mechanism can extend along a first direction away from the vehicle body and contract along a second direction close to the vehicle body, and the first direction is parallel to the second direction.

[0009] In another embodiment of this application, a control method for an autonomous mobile transport vehicle is provided. The autonomous mobile transport vehicle includes a vehicle body and an environment detection component disposed on the vehicle body; the environment detection component includes a telescopic mechanism and an environment detection unit. The control method includes:

[0010] When an object is carried on the vehicle body, obtaining detection data of the environment detection unit;

[0011] According to the detection data, determining an exceeding length of an exceeding end surface of the object exceeding the environment detection unit; wherein, the exceeding end surface of the object refers to an end surface of the object exceeding the environment detection unit along a first direction away from the vehicle body;

[0012] According to the exceeded length, control the telescopic mechanism to extend in a first direction away from the vehicle body, so that the environmental detection unit exceeds the exceeded end face of the object.

[0013] In the technical solutions provided by the embodiments of the present application, an environmental detection component is provided on the vehicle body of the autonomous mobile transport vehicle, and the environmental detection component includes a telescopic mechanism and an environmental detection unit. The environmental detection unit is arranged at the telescopic end of the telescopic mechanism. The telescopic mechanism can extend in a first direction away from the vehicle body and contract in a second direction close to the vehicle body, and the first direction is parallel to the second direction. When an object is carried on the vehicle body of the autonomous mobile transport vehicle, by adjusting the telescopic mechanism, the detection occlusion degree of the object to the environmental detection unit can be reduced, thereby reducing the detection blind area, which is beneficial to improving the obstacle avoidance and positioning capabilities of the autonomous mobile transport vehicle. Description of the Drawings

[0014] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application or the prior art, the following will briefly introduce the drawings required to be used in the description of the embodiments or the prior art. Obviously, the drawings in the following description are some embodiments of the present application. For those of ordinary skill in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative efforts.

[0015] Figure 1 It is a three-dimensional schematic diagram of the vehicle body of the autonomous mobile transport vehicle carrying an object provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0016] Figure 2 It is a top view schematic diagram of the vehicle body of the autonomous mobile transport vehicle carrying an object provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0017] Figure 3 It is a three-dimensional schematic diagram of the vehicle body of the autonomous mobile transport vehicle carrying an object provided by another embodiment of the present application;

[0018] Figure 4 It is a top view schematic diagram of the vehicle body of the autonomous mobile transport vehicle carrying an object provided by another embodiment of the present application;

[0019] Figure 5 It is a flowchart schematic diagram of the control method of the autonomous mobile transport vehicle provided by an embodiment of the present application. Detailed Embodiments

[0020] In order to enable those skilled in the art to better understand the solutions of the present application, the following will clearly and completely describe the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application with reference to the drawings in the embodiments of the present application.

[0021] In some processes described in the specification, claims, and the above-mentioned drawings of this application, a plurality of operations that appear in a specific order are included. These operations can be executed not in the order in which they appear herein or can be executed in parallel. The serial numbers of the operations, such as 101, 102, etc., are only used to distinguish each different operation, and the serial numbers themselves do not represent any execution order. In addition, these processes can include more or fewer operations, and these operations can be executed in sequence or in parallel. It should be noted that the descriptions such as "first", "second", etc. in this article are used to distinguish different messages, devices, modules, etc., do not represent a sequence, and do not limit that "first" and "second" are different types. And the term "or / and" in this application is only a description of the association relationship of associated objects, indicating that three relationships can exist. For example: A or / and B means that A can exist alone, A and B can exist simultaneously, and B can exist alone; the character " / " in this application generally means that the front and rear associated objects are an "or" relationship. In addition, the following embodiments are only a part of the embodiments of this application, rather than all embodiments. Based on the embodiments in this application, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative efforts belong to the scope of protection of this application.

[0022] See Figures 1 to 4 , the autonomous mobile transport vehicle 1 provided by the embodiment of this application includes: a vehicle body 10; an environment detection component 20, arranged on the vehicle body 10; the environment detection component 20 includes a telescopic mechanism 21 and an environment detection unit 22; the environment detection unit is arranged at the telescopic end of the telescopic mechanism; the telescopic mechanism can extend in a first direction away from the vehicle body and contract in a second direction close to the vehicle body, and the first direction is parallel to the second direction.

[0023] Specifically, the above-mentioned autonomous mobile transport vehicle 1 can be an autonomous mobile forklift. When the autonomous mobile transport vehicle 1 is an autonomous mobile forklift, the vehicle body 10 can include a vehicle main body 11 and a fork tooth part 12. Among them, the fork tooth part 12 is used to carry objects, and it can be Figure 1 and Figure 2 the double fork tooth arm structure shown in Figure 3 and Figure 4 the single fork tooth arm structure shown, and this embodiment does not make any limitations. The fork tooth part 12 can be arranged on the second side surface of the vehicle main body 11, and this second side surface can refer to any side surface of the vehicle main body 11. Specifically, which side surface of the vehicle main body 11 the second side surface refers to can be determined according to the actual situation.

[0024] In practical applications, along the traveling direction of the autonomous mobile transport vehicle 1, such as Figures 1 to 4In the direction indicated by the arrow shown in the figure, each azimuth around the vehicle body 11 can be divided into: the front side, the rear side, the left side, and the right side. For the convenience of description, according to the above azimuth, the side surface of the vehicle body 11 can include: the front side surface, the rear side surface, the left side surface, and the right side surface. Based on this, as Figures 1 to 4 shown, the fork part 12 can be arranged on the rear side surface of the vehicle body 11, that is, the second side surface refers to the rear side surface of the vehicle body 11, and the second side surface is connected to the left side surface and the right side surface of the vehicle body 11. The front side surface of the vehicle body is the side surface facing away from the fork part 12.

[0025] Figure 1 , Figure 2 , Figure 3 , Figure 4 and Figure 5 show a schematic diagram of the working principle when an object 2 is carried on the vehicle body of the autonomous mobile transport vehicle 1 provided in an embodiment of the present application. Specifically, Figures 1 to 4 the autonomous mobile transport vehicle 1 shown in the figure is an autonomous mobile forklift, and an object is carried on the fork part 12 of the autonomous mobile transport vehicle 1; wherein, Figure 1 and Figure 3 are three-dimensional schematic diagrams when an object is carried on the fork of the autonomous mobile forklift, Figure 2 and Figure 4 are top-view schematic diagrams corresponding to Figure 1 and Figure 4 when an object is carried on the fork of the autonomous mobile forklift; Figures 1 to 4 the specific working state of the autonomous mobile forklift shown in the figure can be a working state of lifting an object, or it can also be a working state of having lifted the object and carrying out a lifting and carrying operation. The embodiments of the present application do not make specific limitations on this.

[0026] In addition, in addition to being the Figures 1 to 4 autonomous mobile forklift with a fork part structure shown in the figure, the above-mentioned autonomous mobile transport vehicle 1 can of course also be a transport vehicle without a fork part structure, such as a back-mounted autonomous mobile transport vehicle. At this time, the top of the vehicle body of the autonomous mobile transport vehicle will be an object bearing surface for carrying an object. The embodiments of the present application do not make specific limitations on the type of the autonomous mobile transport vehicle.

[0027] See Figure 2 and Figure 3As shown, the environment detection unit 22 is arranged at the telescopic end of the telescopic mechanism 21 and can be used to detect the environment around the vehicle body to obtain corresponding detection data; the telescopic mechanism 21 can extend in a first direction away from the vehicle body 10 so that the environment detection unit 22 extends away from the vehicle body 10, and the telescopic mechanism 21 can also contract in a second direction close to the vehicle body 10 so that the environment detection unit 22 retracts close to the vehicle body 10; the first direction is parallel to the second direction. In specific implementation, the above first direction can be flexibly designed according to the specific position where the environment detection component 20 is arranged. For example, the first direction can be upward, or it can be leftward or rightward, etc., which is not limited here. In addition, according to actual working requirements, the environment detection component 20 can be specifically arranged only on the vehicle body main part 11, or only on the fork part 12, or the environment detection component is arranged on both the vehicle body main part 11 and the fork part 12. The number of environment detection components arranged on the vehicle body main part 11 and the fork part 12 is not specifically limited in this embodiment and can be determined according to actual product needs.

[0028] For example, when the autonomous mobile transport vehicle 1 is carrying an object 2, according to the condition of the object carried on the vehicle body of the autonomous mobile transport vehicle 1, the working stages of the autonomous mobile transport vehicle 1 can be divided into: the non-carrying object working stage and the carrying object working stage; the non-carrying object working stage refers to the working stage when the autonomous mobile transport vehicle is moving towards the object 2, and the carrying object working stage refers to the working stage when the autonomous mobile transport vehicle 1 is lifting the object 2 and / or the working stage when it has lifted the object 2 and is carrying out lifting and transporting work. For example, when the autonomous mobile transport vehicle 1 is in the carrying object working stage, in order to be able to provide obstacle avoidance data for it to ensure the safety of the object, an environment detection component 20 can be arranged on the object carrying surface of the fork part 12 (such as the top of the fork 12). At this time, the first direction in which the telescopic mechanism 21 in the environment detection component 20 arranged on the fork part 12 extends can be the upward direction, so as to realize the detection of the corresponding space environment above the top of the object, thereby providing obstacle avoidance data for the autonomous mobile transport vehicle to lift the object through the fork or to carry out lifting and transporting work after lifting the object. In addition, in order to avoid the object from blocking the detection signal emitted by the environment detection component arranged on the fork part 12, considering that when the autonomous mobile transport vehicle is in the carrying object working stage, the tooth end of the fork 12 generally extends beyond the bottom of the object. Based on this, the environment detection component 20 can be specifically arranged at the distal end of the fork part 12 away from the vehicle body main part (hereinafter referred to as the fork distal end). The fork distal end can refer to the tooth end of the fork, that is, the end not connected to the vehicle body main part. For another example, when the autonomous mobile transport vehicle is in the working stage of lifting the object through the fork and carrying out lifting and transporting work, since there is often a situation where the width of the object is greater than or equal to the width of the vehicle body of the autonomous mobile transport vehicle. For example, see Figure 2 and Figure 3In the example shown, the width of the object 2 is greater than the width of the vehicle body 11. In this case, in order to be able to detect the environments on the left and right sides of the vehicle body 11, environmental detection components 20 may be provided on both the left side and the right side of the vehicle body 11. Correspondingly, the first direction in which the telescopic mechanism 21 in the environmental detection component 20 provided on the left side of the vehicle body 11 extends may be the leftward direction, and the first direction in which the telescopic mechanism 21 in the environmental detection component 20 provided on the right side of the vehicle body 11 extends may be the rightward direction. Of course, an environmental detection component 20 that detects upward may also be provided at the distal end of the fork teeth away from the vehicle body to detect the corresponding spatial environment above the top of the object during the process of lifting and transporting the object. It should be noted that since the second direction is parallel to the first direction, the second direction can be easily determined when the first direction is clear. Therefore, the second direction is not specifically described in this embodiment.

[0029] Based on the above, in the technical solution provided in this embodiment, the environmental detection component may be provided on the vehicle body and / or the fork tooth part. Specifically, the environmental detection component may be provided on the left side and / or the right side of the vehicle body; and / or, the environmental detection component may be provided on the object bearing surface of the fork tooth part, and the first direction in which the telescopic mechanism in the environmental detection component provided on the object bearing surface extends is upward. During specific implementation, the environmental detection component may be provided at the distal end of the fork tooth part away from the vehicle body.

[0030] Figures 1 to 4 In the example shown, it shows the situation where environmental detection components 20 are provided on both the left side and the right side of the vehicle body 11, and an environmental detection component 20 is provided on the fork tooth part 12. Specifically, for the environmental detection components 20 arranged on the left side and the right side of the vehicle body 11, such as Figure 2 and Figure 3As shown, environmental detection components 20 may be provided at position A1 on the left side of the vehicle body 11 and at position A2 on the right side of the vehicle body 11 respectively. The telescopic mechanism 21 in the environmental detection component 20 provided at position A1 can extend in a certain left direction away from the left side of the vehicle body 11 and contract in a certain right direction close to the left side of the vehicle body 11. Similarly, the telescopic mechanism 21 in the environmental detection component 20 provided at position A2 can extend in a certain right direction away from the right side of the vehicle body and contract in a certain left direction close to the right side of the vehicle body 11. The environmental detection components 20 provided on the left side and the right side of the vehicle body 11 may be symmetrically distributed with the center of the vehicle body 11 as the axis, or may not be symmetrically distributed, which is not limited here. In addition, the detection field of view (Field angle OfView, FOV) of the environmental detection unit 22 in the environmental detection components 20 provided on the left side and the right side of the vehicle body 11 at least includes the corresponding spatial range towards the rear side. For example, referring to Figure 2 As shown, taking the environmental detection component 20 provided at position A1 on the left side of the vehicle body 11 as an example, after the telescopic mechanism 21 in the environmental detection component 20 provided at this position A1 extends, the corresponding environmental detection unit 22 can be extended to be away from the left side of the vehicle body 11. The FOV of the extended environmental detection unit 22 at least includes the corresponding spatial range towards the rear side of the left side of the vehicle body 11, so as to ensure that the telescopic environmental detection unit 22 can detect the environmental information behind the left side of the vehicle body 11. And for Figure 1 and Figure 4 , due to visual reasons, only the environmental detection component 20 provided at position A1 on the left side of the vehicle body 11 is shown. For the environmental detection components 20 arranged on the fork part 12, as in the case of the double fork arm structure shown in Figure 1 and Figure 2 , environmental detection components 20 can be provided at the distal ends of both double fork arms, and the extension direction of the telescopic mechanism in the environmental detection components 20 provided on the double fork arms is upward. Specifically, referring to Figure 2 As shown, environmental detection components 20 can be provided at position B at the distal end of the fork 121 and at position C at the distal end of the fork 122. Of course, environmental detection components 20 can also be provided only at the distal end of one of the forks 121 and 122, such as only at position B at the distal end of the fork 121. This embodiment does not limit this. Figure 3 and Figure 4It shows that in the case of a single fork tooth arm structure, an environmental detection component 20 can be arranged at the central position D at the distal end of the fork tooth 12, and the telescopic mechanism in the environmental detection component 20 arranged on the single fork tooth arm extends upward. It should be noted that after the telescopic mechanism 21 in the environmental detection component 20 arranged on the fork tooth part 12 extends upward, the FOV of the corresponding extended environmental detection unit 22 at least includes the corresponding spatial range on the front side, so as to ensure that the environment of the top space of the object can be detected. For how to control the extension of the telescopic mechanism in the environmental detection component 20, refer to the following relevant content.

[0031] In a specific implementable technical solution, the environmental detection unit 22 in the above environmental detection component 20 can be a ranging sensor, such as a radar. The radar can be a lidar, an ultrasonic radar, a millimeter wave radar, etc.; or it can also be other types of ranging sensors, such as an acoustic wave sensor, an infrared sensor, etc. This embodiment does not make a limitation in this regard. In addition to being a ranging sensor, the environmental detection unit 22 can also be an image acquisition device, such as an RGBD camera or an ordinary camera for acquiring video or images. The detection data obtained by the environmental detection unit 22 for detecting the surrounding environment of the vehicle body 10 can be used for vehicle body obstacle avoidance, docking of the vehicle body with an object, controlling the telescopic movement of the telescopic mechanism 21, etc. The telescopic mechanism 21 can be a telescopic rod as shown in Figure 3 and Figure 4 , and of course it can also be in other forms. For example, the telescopic mechanism can include a driving module and a telescopic module, and the driving module can control the telescopic movement of the telescopic module. This embodiment does not make a specific limitation on the specific form of the telescopic mechanism 21. Refer to Figures 1 to 4 As shown, when an object is carried on the fork tooth 12 of the self-propelled transport vehicle, the extension of the telescopic mechanism 21 can be controlled manually, and of course it can also be automatically controlled by a controller. This embodiment does not make a limitation in this regard.

[0032] Furthermore, the above-mentioned controller can also be electrically connected to the environmental detection unit 22, and is specifically used for:

[0033] When an object is carried on the vehicle body, according to the detection data of the environmental detection unit, determine the exceeding length of the exceeding end face of the object exceeding the environmental detection unit; wherein, the exceeding end face of the object refers to the end face of the object exceeding the environmental detection unit along the first direction away from the vehicle body;

[0034] According to the exceeding length, control the telescopic mechanism to extend along the first direction away from the vehicle body, so that the environmental detection unit exceeds the exceeding end face of the object.

[0035] In specific implementation, the end face beyond of the above object refers to the end face of the object that extends beyond the end face of the environmental detection unit along the first direction away from the vehicle body. For example, referring to Figure 1 and Figure 3 As shown, an object 2 is carried on the fork teeth portion 12, and the width of the object 2 is greater than the width of the vehicle body 11. An environmental detection component 20 (hereinafter referred to as the left environmental detection component 20) is provided at position A1 on the left side of the vehicle body 11. The end face beyond of the object corresponding to the left environmental detection component 20 refers to the left side face of the object 2; and, an environmental detection component 20 is also provided at position A2 on the right side face of the vehicle body 11 (hereinafter referred to as the right environmental detection component 20, which is not shown in the figure due to visual reasons). The end face beyond of the object corresponding to the right environmental detection component 20 refers to the right side face of the object 2. At the same time, an environmental detection component 20 is also provided on the object carrying surface of the fork teeth portion 12. The end face beyond of the object corresponding to the environmental detection component 20 provided on the fork teeth portion 12 refers to the top face of the object 2. According to the detection data of the environmental detection units provided on the vehicle body 11 and the fork teeth 12, the end face beyond lengths of the corresponding objects can be determined respectively. Thus, according to the end face beyond lengths, the corresponding telescopic mechanism can be controlled to expand and contract so that the corresponding environmental detection unit extends beyond the end face beyond of the corresponding object. The calculation of the end face beyond length can be referred to the following relevant content and will not be specifically described here. It should be noted that: the side division method of the above object is the same as that of the vehicle body and will not be specifically elaborated here.

[0036] Furthermore, when the controller is used to determine the end face beyond length of the object extending beyond the environmental detection unit according to the detection data of the environmental detection unit when an object is carried on the vehicle body, it is specifically used for:

[0037] Determine a first distance and a second distance according to the detection data of the environmental detection unit; wherein, the first distance refers to the distance between the environmental detection unit and the first side face of the object; the first side face faces the environmental detection unit; the second distance refers to the second distance between the environmental detection unit and the intersection line of the first side face of the object and the end face beyond of the object.

[0038] Determine the end face beyond length according to the first distance and the second distance.

[0039] For example: Continuing with the above examples cited for Figure 1 and Figure 3 to calculate Figure 1Taking the overhanging length of the object corresponding to the left environmental detection component 20 (located at position A1 on the left side of the vehicle body) shown in the figure as an example, it will be described in detail how to determine the overhanging length of the left side of the object exceeding the left environmental detection unit 22 according to the detection data of the environmental detection unit 22 (hereinafter referred to as the left environmental detection unit 22) in the left environmental detection component 20. Specifically, refer to Figure 1 As shown, according to the detection data of the left environmental detection unit 22, the first distance d1 from the left environmental detection unit 22 to the front side of the object and the second distance d2 from the left environmental detection unit 22 to the intersection line l of the front side of the object and the left side of the object can be determined respectively; both the above-mentioned first distance d1 and second distance d2 refer to the shortest distance, that is to say, Figure 1 In Figure 1 , the line segment A1O is perpendicular to the front side of the object, and <A1OB = 90°. Therefore, after obtaining the first distance d1 and the second distance d2, the Pythagorean theorem can be used to calculate the overhanging length OB of the left side of the object exceeding the left environmental detection unit 22, that is, the overhanging length Subsequently, according to the overhanging length OB, the controller can control the telescopic mechanism 21 in the left environmental detection component 20 to expand and contract so that the left environmental detection unit 22 exceeds the left side of the object. As Figure 2 shown, the specific value h1 of the left environmental detection unit 22 exceeding the left side of the object can be 1 cm, 1.5 cm, etc., which is not limited here. Similarly, the telescopic mechanism in the environmental detection component 20 provided on the right side of the vehicle body and on the fork teeth can also be controlled to expand and contract in the above manner. For example, refer to Figure 3 As shown, the telescopic mechanism 21 in the environmental detection component 20 provided on the fork tooth part can be controlled to extend upward in the above manner so that the corresponding environmental detection unit 22 exceeds the top of the object to a certain value h2. The specific value of h2 can be 1 cm, 1.5 cm, etc., which is not limited here.

[0040] In the technical solution provided by this embodiment, an environment detection component is provided on the body of the autonomous mobile transport vehicle. The environment detection component includes a telescopic mechanism and an environment detection unit. The environment detection unit is arranged at the telescopic end of the telescopic mechanism. The telescopic mechanism can extend in a first direction away from the vehicle body and contract in a second direction close to the vehicle body. The first direction is parallel to the second direction. When an object is carried on the body of the autonomous mobile transport vehicle, by adjusting the telescopic mechanism, the detection shielding degree of the object on the environment detection unit can be reduced, thereby reducing the detection blind area, which is beneficial to improving the obstacle avoidance and positioning capabilities of the autonomous mobile transport vehicle. For example, when the autonomous mobile transport vehicle is an autonomous mobile forklift, environment detection components are provided on both the left side and the right side of the vehicle body of the autonomous mobile forklift. When the width of the object carried on the fork teeth of the autonomous mobile forklift is greater than the width of its vehicle body, by respectively controlling the telescopic mechanisms in the environment detection components on the left side and the right side of the vehicle body to extend, the corresponding environment detection units can respectively extend beyond the left side and the right side of the object, thereby avoiding the risk that the detection signals emitted by the environment detection units on the left side and the right side of the vehicle body are blocked by the object. Another example is that an environment detection component is provided at the tooth end of the fork teeth. When the autonomous mobile forklift is in the working state of carrying an object, by controlling the telescopic mechanism in the environment detection component at the tooth end of the fork teeth to extend upward, the corresponding environment detection unit can extend beyond the top of the object, thereby reducing the detection shielding of the object on the environment detection unit, enabling the environment detection unit to detect the corresponding space environment above the top of the object, and the detected detection data can provide obstacle avoidance data for scenarios such as the jacking and transportation turning of the autonomous mobile forklift.

[0041] The above mainly describes that on the left side and / or the right side of the vehicle body, and / or on the fork teeth, there is arranged an environment detection component including a telescopic mechanism and an environment detection unit. In addition, only an environment detection unit may be provided at other positions of the vehicle body and / or the fork teeth, so as to cooperate with the environment detection component arranged on the left side and / or the right side of the vehicle body, and / or on the fork teeth, which includes a telescopic mechanism and an environment detection unit, to form a full-surround data that surrounds the autonomous mobile transport forklift and the object. For example, an environment detection unit with a certain detection orientation may also be provided on the front side and / or the rear side of the vehicle body. For example, the environment detection unit on the front side of the vehicle body detects forward, and the environment detection unit on the rear side thereof detects backward. And / or, an environment detection unit and a rotating mechanism are provided on the top of the vehicle body. The rotating mechanism can rotate in a set direction (such as clockwise or counterclockwise) to rotate until the environment detection unit detects in a certain orientation; or an environment detection unit with a fixed detection orientation (such as forward or backward) is provided on the top of the vehicle body. When the environment detection unit and the rotating mechanism are provided on the top of the vehicle body at the same time, when the autonomous mobile transport vehicle is lifting or lifting a target object for lifting and carrying, the rotating mechanism can be controlled to rotate in the set direction until the environment detection unit on the top of the vehicle body detects in the forward side direction to detect the environment in the forward side direction of the vehicle body; of course, according to actual working requirements, the rotating mechanism can also be controlled to rotate until the environment detection unit on the top of the vehicle body detects in other directions, such as backward, left, right, etc. This embodiment does not limit this. In addition, considering that when an object is carried on the fork teeth of the autonomous mobile handling forklift, when the height of the object is greater than the height of the vehicle body, the environment detection unit provided on the rear side and / or the top of the vehicle body may be blocked by the object, resulting in the inability to detect the environment on the rear side of the vehicle body. To avoid this problem, the environment detection unit may not be provided on the rear side or the top of the vehicle body 10, but an environment detection unit that detects in a certain horizontal front side direction may be provided at the tooth end of the fork teeth. In this way, even when an object is carried on the fork teeth of the autonomous mobile transport forklift, the detection signal emitted by the environment detection unit provided at the tooth end and detecting in a certain horizontal front side direction will not be blocked by the object, and thus the environment on the rear side of the vehicle body (i.e., the rear side of the object) can still be detected.

[0042] Next, in combination with the specific working process of the autonomous mobile transport vehicle, how to specifically control the telescopic movement of the telescopic mechanism in the environment detection component provided on the vehicle body will be described in detail.

[0043] See Figure 3 As shown, assume that the autonomous mobile transport vehicle is Figure 3An autonomous mobile forklift with a single fork arm structure shown in the figure has environmental detection components on both the left and right sides of its vehicle body. Specifically: The telescopic mechanism in the environmental detection component (hereinafter referred to as the left environmental detection component) on the left side of the vehicle body 11 can extend in the left direction away from the vehicle body 11, and the FOV of the environmental detection unit in this left environmental detection component at least includes the spatial range corresponding to the rear left of the vehicle body 11, and the telescopic mechanism in the environmental detection component (hereinafter referred to as the right environmental detection component) on the right side of the vehicle body can extend in the right direction away from the vehicle body 11, and the FOV of the environmental detection unit in this right environmental detection component at least includes the spatial range corresponding to the rear right of the vehicle body 11; and an environmental detection component (referred to as the tooth-end environmental detection component) is provided at the tooth end of the fork teeth. The telescopic mechanism in this tooth-end environmental detection component can extend in the upward direction away from the fork teeth, and the FOV of the environmental detection unit in this tooth-end environmental detection component at least includes the spatial range corresponding to the front side.

[0044] When no object is carried on the fork teeth of the autonomous mobile forklift, that is, when the autonomous mobile forklift is in the working state of moving towards an object, the telescopic mechanisms in the environmental detection components on the vehicle body can all be in the retracted state. During the process of the autonomous mobile forklift moving towards an object, it is often necessary to obtain data on the surrounding environment of the vehicle body. When the FOVs provided by the environmental detection unit in the left environmental detection component (referred to as the left environmental detection unit for short), the environmental detection unit in the right environmental detection component (referred to as the right environmental detection unit for short), and the environmental detection unit in the tooth-end environmental detection component (referred to as the tooth-end environmental detection unit for short) are reasonable, the surrounding environment of the vehicle body can be detected only by using the left environmental detection unit, the right environmental detection unit, and the tooth-end environmental detection unit, or the above-mentioned left environmental detection unit, right environmental detection unit, and tooth-end environmental detection unit can also be combined with environmental detection units provided at other positions (such as the front side or top of the vehicle body) to detect the surrounding environment of the vehicle body, etc., so as to provide obstacle avoidance data for the autonomous mobile forklift to achieve all-round obstacle avoidance. In addition, it can also provide docking data for the precise docking of the autonomous mobile forklift with an object.

[0045] When an object is carried on the fork teeth of an autonomous mobile forklift, if the width of the object is less than the width of the vehicle body, the telescopic mechanisms in the left environmental detection component and the right environmental detection component on the vehicle body can be controlled to be in a contracted state, while the telescopic mechanism in the tooth-end environmental detection component is controlled to extend upward, so that the environmental detection unit in the tooth-end environmental detection component extends beyond the top of the object by a certain value, facilitating the detection of the corresponding space environment above the top of the object. If the width of the object is greater than or equal to the width of the vehicle body, the telescopic mechanisms in the left environmental detection component and the right environmental detection component on the vehicle body can be respectively controlled to extend in the first direction away from the vehicle body, and the telescopic mechanism in the tooth-end environmental detection component on the fork teeth is controlled to extend in the first direction away from the fork teeth, so that the corresponding environmental detection unit extends beyond the protruding end face of the object corresponding to it, reducing the detection occlusion degree of the object to the environmental detection unit. For the specific control of the extension of the telescopic mechanism, reference can be made to the above relevant content, which is not specifically limited here.

[0046] After the environmental detection units in the above-mentioned left environmental detection component, right environmental detection component, and tooth-end environmental detection component respectively extend beyond the protruding end faces of their respective corresponding objects, the data information surrounding the object can be detected by using the environmental detection units in the left environmental detection component, right environmental detection component, and tooth-end environmental detection component. This data information can provide correct obstacle avoidance data for the autonomous mobile forklift to lift the object or carry the object, or can also be used to detect whether the object is skewed or not. Specifically, for example, when the autonomous mobile forklift is in the stage of lifting the object, the environmental information corresponding to the space above the top of the object detected by the environmental detection unit in the fork-tooth-end environmental detection component can provide obstacle avoidance data for lifting the object, so as to avoid the object colliding with obstacles in the space environment above its top and damaging the object; for another example, when the autonomous mobile forklift is in the stage of carrying the object, when the width of the object is greater than the width of the vehicle body of the autonomous mobile forklift, the autonomous mobile forklift carrying the object is equivalent to increasing its own width. The data information detected by the environmental detection units in the left environmental detection component and the right environmental detection component can provide the correct turning radius data for the autonomous mobile forklift, and can also provide the correct obstacle avoidance data for it, and can also detect whether the object carried on the autonomous mobile forklift is skewed or not, so as to avoid falling off. Of course, when carrying an object on the fork teeth of the autonomous mobile forklift, it can also cooperate with the environmental detection units located at other positions (such as the front side or top of the vehicle body) of the left environmental detection component, right environmental detection component, and tooth-end environmental detection component to detect the data information about the environment around the autonomous mobile forklift and the object. Among them, the environment around the autonomous mobile forklift and the object includes the four sides and the corresponding space above the top of the autonomous mobile forklift and the object.

[0047] It should be noted that: The cooperation of the left environmental detection component, the right environmental detection component and the tooth-end environmental detection component with the environmental detection at other positions to detect the data information about the environment around the autonomous mobile forklift or the environment around the autonomous mobile forklift and the object is only exemplary in the above examples, and does not represent the actual combination situation.

[0048] The above embodiments mainly illustrate the layout of the environmental detection components from the perspective that the autonomous mobile transport vehicle is an autonomous mobile forklift. Next, the layout of the environmental detection components of the autonomous mobile transport vehicle that does not have a fork structure will be introduced and described.

[0049] When the autonomous mobile transport vehicle is a transport vehicle without a fork structure (such as a back-mounted autonomous mobile transport vehicle), the vehicle body of the autonomous mobile transport vehicle only includes the vehicle main body, and the top of the vehicle body will be an object bearing surface for bearing objects, and it can use the latent lifting method to carry objects. At this time, environmental detection components can be arranged on at least one side of the vehicle body. For example, environmental detection components can be arranged only on the front side of the vehicle body; or environmental detection components can be arranged on both the front side and the rear side of the vehicle body; or environmental detection components can be arranged on the front side, the rear side, the left side and the right side of the vehicle body, etc. For example, environmental detection components are arranged on the front side, the rear side, the left side and the right side of the vehicle body. In this way, when the width (and / or length) of the object carried on the top of the vehicle main body is greater than the width (and / or length) of the vehicle main body, the telescopic mechanisms in the environmental detection components on the left side and the right side of the vehicle body (and / or the environmental detection components on the front side and the rear side of the vehicle main body) can be controlled to extend respectively, so that the environmental detection unit extends beyond the protruding end surface of the corresponding object, so as to reduce the detection occlusion degree of the object to the environmental detection unit, thereby reducing the detection blind area, so as to improve the obstacle avoidance, positioning and other capabilities of the autonomous mobile transport vehicle. For the specific method of controlling the extension of the telescopic mechanism, reference can be made to the above relevant content, and no specific elaboration will be made here.

[0050] Figure 5 The flowchart of the control method of the autonomous mobile transport vehicle provided by an embodiment of the present application is shown. This control method can be applied to the autonomous mobile transport vehicle shown in 1 to Figure 4 as shown, and is implemented by the controller in the autonomous mobile transport vehicle; the controller can be a central processing unit (Central Processing Unit, CPU) with data processing capabilities, a single-chip microcomputer, etc., and this embodiment does not make specific limitations on this. Among them, the autonomous mobile transport vehicle can include a vehicle body and environmental detection components arranged on the vehicle body; the environmental detection components include a telescopic mechanism and an environmental detection unit. As Figure 5 shown, this control method can include the following steps:

[0051] 101. When an object is carried on the vehicle body, obtain the detection data of the environment detection unit;

[0052] 102. According to the detection data, determine the exceeding length by which the exceeding end face of the object exceeds the environment detection unit; wherein, the exceeding end face of the object refers to the end face of the object that exceeds the environment detection unit along the first direction away from the vehicle body;

[0053] 103. According to the exceeding length, control the telescopic mechanism to extend along the first direction away from the vehicle body, so that the environment detection unit exceeds the exceeding end face of the object.

[0054] In specific implementation, for the specific structural functions of the autonomous mobile transport vehicle, reference can be made to the corresponding content related to Figures 1 to 5 above, and details will not be elaborated here. The object can be any pallet object (as shown in Figure 1 and Figure 4 ), such as mechanical parts, which is not limited here.

[0055] The environment detection unit can be a ranging sensor, and the ranging sensor can specifically be, but is not limited to: lidar, acoustic wave sensor, infrared sensor, etc. In addition to being a ranging sensor, the environment detection unit can also be an image acquisition device, such as an RGBD camera or an ordinary camera for collecting video or images. The detection data of the environment detection unit can be used for vehicle body obstacle avoidance, docking of the vehicle body and the object, controlling the telescopic of the telescopic mechanism, etc. The telescopic mechanism can be the telescopic rod 21 shown in Figure 3 and Figure 4 , and of course it can also be in other forms. For example, the telescopic mechanism can include a driving module and a telescopic module, and the driving module can control the telescopic of the telescopic module. The specific form of the telescopic mechanism in this embodiment is not specifically limited either. When an object is carried on the vehicle body, the controller can determine the exceeding length by which the exceeding end face of the object exceeds the environment detection unit according to the detection data obtained by the environment detection unit, and then automatically control the corresponding telescopic mechanism to telescope according to the exceeding length, so that the environment detection unit exceeds the exceeding end face of the object.

[0056] In a specific implementable technical solution, for the above step 102 "According to the detection data, determine the exceeding length by which the exceeding end face of the object exceeds the environment detection unit", the following steps can be adopted to implement:

[0057] 1021. Determine a first distance and a second distance according to the detection data, where the first distance refers to the distance from the environment detection unit to the first side of the object, the first side faces the environment detection unit, and the second distance refers to the distance from the environment detection unit to the intersection line of the first side of the object and the extended end face of the object.

[0058] 1022. Determine the extended length according to the first distance and the second distance.

[0059] In the technical solution provided in this embodiment, by setting an environment detection component including a telescopic mechanism and an environment detection unit on an autonomous mobile transporter, when an object is carried on the autonomous mobile transporter, the extended length by which the extended end face of the object extends beyond the environment detection unit can be determined according to the detection data obtained by the environment detection unit. Here, the extended end face of the object refers to the end face of the object that extends beyond the environment detection unit along the first direction away from the vehicle body. Then, according to the extended length, the telescopic mechanism can be controlled to extend along the detection direction of the environment detection unit so that the environment detection unit extends beyond the extended end face of the object. In this way, when an object is carried on the vehicle body of the autonomous mobile transporter, by adjusting the telescopic mechanism, the detection occlusion degree of the object to the environment detection unit can be reduced, thereby reducing the detection blind area, which is beneficial to improving the obstacle avoidance and positioning capabilities of the autonomous mobile transporter.

[0060] It should be noted here that for the content not detailed in each step of the method provided in this embodiment, reference can be made to the corresponding content in the above embodiments, and details will not be repeated here. In addition, in addition to the above steps, the method provided in this embodiment may also include other parts or all of the steps in the above embodiments. For specific reference, see the corresponding content in the above embodiments, and details will not be repeated here.

[0061] Finally, it should be noted that the above embodiments are only used to illustrate the technical solutions of the present application, and are not intended to limit them. Although the present application has been described in detail with reference to the foregoing embodiments, those of ordinary skill in the art should understand that they can still modify the technical solutions recorded in the foregoing embodiments, or perform equivalent replacements for some of the technical features. However, these modifications or replacements do not make the essence of the corresponding technical solutions deviate from the spirit and scope of the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application.

Claims

1. An autonomous mobile transport vehicle, characterized in that, including: vehicle body; an environment detection assembly disposed on the vehicle body; the environment detection assembly includes a telescopic mechanism and an environment detection unit; the environment detection unit is disposed at the telescopic end of the telescopic mechanism; the telescopic mechanism can extend in a first direction away from the vehicle body and contract in a second direction close to the vehicle body, and the first direction is parallel to the second direction; a controller configured to: when an object is carried on the vehicle body, determine an overhanging length of the object's overhanging end face exceeding the environment detection unit according to the detection data of the environment detection unit; wherein, the overhanging end face refers to the end face of the object exceeding the environment detection unit in the first direction away from the vehicle body; and control the telescopic mechanism to extend in the first direction away from the vehicle body according to the overhanging length, so that the environment detection unit is disposed beyond the overhanging end face of the object; wherein, the vehicle body includes a vehicle main body and a fork portion for carrying the object; an environment detection unit and a rotation mechanism are provided on the top of the vehicle main body, and the rotation mechanism is used to control the corresponding environment detection unit to rotate and change direction; and, the environment detection assembly is provided at the distal end of the fork portion away from the vehicle main body, and the telescopic mechanism therein is controlled to extend in the upward direction according to the height of the object, so that the corresponding environment detection unit exceeds the top of the object.

2. The autonomous mobile transport vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the controller is disposed on the vehicle body and is electrically connected to the telescopic mechanism.

3. The autonomous mobile transport vehicle according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the controller is specifically configured to: determine a first distance and a second distance according to the detection data of the environment detection unit; wherein, the first distance refers to the distance between the environment detection unit and the first side of the object; the first side faces the environment detection unit; the second distance refers to the second distance between the environment detection unit and the intersection line of the first side of the object and the overhanging end face of the object; determine the overhanging length according to the first distance and the second distance.

4. The autonomous mobile transport vehicle according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, The fork portion is disposed on the second side of the vehicle main body for carrying an object.

5. The autonomous mobile transport vehicle according to claim 4, wherein, Along the traveling direction of the autonomous mobile transport vehicle, the vehicle main body includes a left side face and a right side face; the left side face and the right side face are connected to the second side face; the environment detection assembly is provided on the left side face and / or the right side face.

6. The autonomous mobile transport vehicle according to claim 4, wherein The environment detection assembly is provided on the object carrying surface of the fork portion; The first direction in which the telescopic mechanism in the environment detection assembly disposed on the object carrying surface extends is upward.

7. The autonomous mobile transport vehicle according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, The environment detection unit is a radar.

8. A control method for an autonomous mobile transport vehicle, characterized in that, The autonomous mobile transport vehicle includes a vehicle body and an environment detection assembly disposed on the vehicle body; the environment detection assembly includes a telescopic mechanism and an environment detection unit; The method includes: when an object is carried on the vehicle body, obtain the detection data of the environment detection unit; Determine the protruding length by which the protruding end face of the object protrudes beyond the environmental detection unit according to the detection data; wherein, the protruding end face of the object refers to the end face by which the object protrudes beyond the environmental detection unit along the first direction away from the vehicle body; Control the telescopic mechanism to extend along the first direction away from the vehicle body according to the protruding length, so that the environmental detection unit protrudes beyond the protruding end face of the object; Wherein, the vehicle body includes a vehicle main body and a fork portion for carrying an object; an environmental detection unit and a rotating mechanism are provided at the top of the vehicle main body, and the rotating mechanism is used to control the corresponding environmental detection unit to rotate and change direction; and, the environmental detection assembly is provided at the distal end of the fork portion away from the vehicle main body, and the telescopic mechanism is controlled to extend upward according to the height of the object, so that the corresponding environmental detection unit protrudes beyond the top of the object.

9. The method according to claim 8, wherein Determining the protruding length by which the protruding end face of the object protrudes beyond the environmental detection unit according to the detection data includes: Determine a first distance and a second distance according to the detection data; wherein, the first distance refers to the distance between the environmental detection unit and the first side face of the object; the first side face faces the environmental detection unit; the second distance refers to the second distance between the environmental detection unit and the intersection line of the first side face of the object and the protruding end face of the object; Determine the protruding length according to the first distance and the second distance.

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