Horizontal 360-degree sound-controlled positioning and steering system and control method thereof

Abstract

The application provides a horizontal 360-degree sound control positioning and turning system and a control method, comprising a display device transmission mechanism connector, a microphone array plate module, a transmission mechanism module and a control circuit board module. The application provides a low-cost and reliable turning solution, realizes product requirements of audio and video products for guiding correct turning of the equipment through sound positioning, and realizes accurate positioning of a sound source position direction and initial position determination and accurate turning of the equipment.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to a mechanical control system for an intelligent voice device, specifically, to a horizontal 360-degree voice-controlled positioning and steering system and its control method. Technical Background

[0002] With the rapid development of science and technology, smart home technologies are also constantly evolving and improving. Smart home voice control technology enables the free control and management of all home appliances anytime, anywhere. Simultaneously, the development of voice control technology lays the foundation for the rapid development of the Internet of Things (IoT). The smart grid, comprised of smart homes, smart parks, and electric vehicle charging / swapping facilities, will place higher and more comprehensive demands on intelligent voice control systems in the future. Therefore, voice control must not only achieve voice recognition but also location determination. Sound source location recognition, combined with mechanical control systems, enables voice-controlled positioning and steering systems, which is of great significance in robotics and intelligent control. Summary of the Invention

[0003] This invention provides a low-cost, reliable steering solution, fulfilling the product requirement of audio-visual products to guide devices to correct direction through sound localization. Specifically, this invention provides a horizontal 360-degree voice-controlled positioning and steering system, comprising:

[0004] The lower end of the transmission mechanism connector is connected to the central shaft of the transmission mechanism module by screws, and the upper end is used to fix and support the display device.

[0005] The microphone array board module includes individual microphone units and data transmission lines. The individual microphone units are used to receive sound sources, and the data transmission lines transmit commands to the control chip, which uses logic algorithms to determine the direction of the sound source.

[0006] The transmission mechanism module includes a stepper motor, a drive synchronous pulley, a driven synchronous pulley, a synchronous belt, a worm gear with a self-locking function, a worm wheel with a preload bearing, a central shaft, a spur gear with a shielding plate, an encoder spur gear, and a preload bearing. It is connected to the transmission mechanism connector of the display device and is used to drive the transmission mechanism connector of the display device to rotate horizontally.

[0007] The control circuit board module, including an optical chopper, an EC11 incremental encoder, and a control chip, is used to determine the current position and rotation direction of the display device.

[0008] The microphone array board module has a ring structure and includes six digital microphone devices arranged in a ring at equal angles of 60 degrees.

[0009] Preferably, the worm gear has a self-locking function.

[0010] Preferably, the straight gear with shielding pieces is connected with the middle shaft, and the straight gear with shielding pieces contains four shielding pieces, which cooperate with two light choppers on the control circuit board module to determine the position and rotation angle.

[0011] Preferably, the encoder straight gear is installed on the EC11 incremental encoder of the control circuit module, and is engaged with the straight gear with shielding pieces, and the reduction ratio is set to 40:16.

[0012] Preferably, the output signal mode of the EC11 incremental encoder is two positions and one pulse, 360° rotation outputs 15 pulses and 30 positions, and the angle range of each position is 12°.

[0013] Preferably, the minimum positioning angle of the middle shaft and the encoder straight gear is 4.8°.

[0014] Correspondingly, the application provides a control method of a horizontal 360-degree sound-controlled positioning and steering system, which comprises the following steps:

[0015] a. After the power-on system initialization of the whole machine, the display device is rotated to the system default centered state, and the EC11 incremental encoder is zeroed.

[0016] b. During the operation of the whole machine, the current position of the display device is recorded by the EC11 incremental encoder regardless of whether the transmission mechanism module is rotated in the automatic mode or the manual mode, and the data is fed back to the control chip.

[0017] c. When the sound positioning function is started, the microphone device receives the sound source, judges the sound source direction through a logic algorithm, and then transmits the instruction to the control chip through the data transmission line.

[0018] d. Regardless of the angle of the current display device, the control chip can calculate and send correct pulses to the stepping motor to drive the transmission mechanism module to drive the display device to the correct direction.

[0019] In the step b, the working mode of the automatic mode is that the stepping motor drives the middle shaft to rotate along the axial direction through the synchronous gear-synchronous belt-driven synchronous gear-worm-worm gear set reduction ratio, so as to drive the display device transmission mechanism connecting piece to rotate together.

[0020] In the step b, the working mode of the manual mode is that when the external torque applied to the display device is less than the pre-tightening force of the pre-tightening bearing on the worm wheel, the display device will not rotate due to the self-locking function of the worm; when the external torque is greater than the pre-tightening force of the pre-tightening bearing on the worm wheel, the pre-tightening bearing and the middle shaft slide relative to each other, and the display device rotates.

[0021] The present invention provides a horizontal 360-degree voice-controlled positioning and steering system and its control method, which realizes accurate positioning of the sound source location and direction, determination of the initial position of the equipment, and precise steering. Attached Figure Description

[0022] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of a horizontal 360-degree voice-controlled positioning and steering system according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown.

[0023] Figure 2 A schematic diagram of the connecting parts of the transmission mechanism of the display device is shown.

[0024] Figure 3 A schematic diagram of the microphone array module is shown.

[0025] Figure 4 A schematic diagram of the transmission mechanism module is shown.

[0026] Figure 5 A top view showing the relative positions of the spur gear with a shield and the optical chopper when the display device is centered.

[0027] Figure 6 A top view showing the relative positions of the spur gear with a shield and the optical chopper when the device is turned left to its maximum angle.

[0028] Figure 7 A top view showing the relative positions of the spur gear with a shield and the optical chopper when the display device is turned to its maximum right angle.

[0029] The same or similar reference numerals in the accompanying drawings represent the same or similar parts. Detailed Implementation

[0030] To make the objectives, technical solutions, and advantages of the present invention clearer, the embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0031] The sound localization of the intelligent voice product of this invention is achieved through a microphone array. To accurately locate the direction of the sound source, the microphones are typically arranged in a circular pattern. The direction of each microphone is determined by the intensity of the sound source using a software logic algorithm. This principle, combined with mechanical transmission components, enables precise turning of the device (head, neck, or eyes, hereinafter collectively referred to as the display device). During the rotation process, to achieve the most appropriate left or right turn, an initial position determination of the display device is required.

[0032] The structure of the horizontal 360-degree voice-controlled steering system is as follows: Figure 1 As shown, it includes: a display device transmission mechanism connector, a microphone array board module, a transmission mechanism module, and a control circuit board module.

[0033] Display device transmission mechanism connecting parts, such as Figure 2 As shown, the lower end of the transmission mechanism connector is connected to the central shaft of the transmission mechanism module by screws, and the upper end is used to fix and support the display device.

[0034] The microphone array board module includes individual microphone units and data transmission lines. The individual microphone units receive sound from the source, and the data transmission lines transmit commands to a control chip. A logic algorithm then determines the direction of the sound source. Figure 3 As shown, the six digital microphone devices on the microphone array board module are arranged in a ring at 60-degree angles. The direction of each microphone is determined by the software's logic algorithm based on the strength of the sound source, so as to accurately locate the position and direction of the sound source.

[0035] Transmission mechanism module, such as Figure 4 As shown, it includes a stepper motor, a drive synchronous pulley, a driven synchronous pulley, a synchronous belt, a worm gear with a self-locking function, a worm wheel with a preload bearing, a central shaft, a spur gear with a shielding plate, an encoder spur gear, and a preload bearing, which are connected to the display device transmission mechanism connector to drive the display device transmission mechanism connector to rotate horizontally.

[0036] The control circuit board module, including an optical chopper, an EC11 incremental encoder, and a control chip, is used to determine the current position and rotation direction of the display device.

[0037] The following is combined Figures 4 to 6 The control method of the horizontal 360-degree voice-controlled positioning and steering system is explained.

[0038] The transmission mechanism module can operate in automatic and manual modes. (See reference...) Figure 4 The structure is as follows. In automatic mode, the stepper motor drives the central shaft to rotate axially by a set reduction ratio through a synchronous pulley-synchronous belt-driven synchronous pulley-worm gear-worm wheel, thereby causing the connecting parts of the display device's transmission mechanism to rotate together.

[0039] In manual mode, when external force is applied to the display device, there are two states:

[0040] When the external torque is less than the preload of the preload bearing on the worm gear, the display device will not rotate due to the self-locking function of the worm.

[0041] When the external torque exceeds the preload of the preload bearing on the worm gear, the preload bearing slides relative to the central shaft, causing the display device to rotate.

[0042] When the transmission mechanism module works in the automatic mode, its movement is controlled by the control circuit board module. The straight gear with a shield in the transmission mechanism module cooperates with the light chopper of the control circuit board module to generate a light feedback signal. When the middle shaft rotates, the four shields on the straight gear with a shield pass through the light choppers of the control circuit module respectively. We set the triggered state of the light chopper as 1 and the untriggered state as 0. According to the different positions of the shields, three state results of the feedback signal of the light chopper are generated.

[0043] Display device centering state: when the shield a is positioned in the middle of the light path of the light chopper I and the shield b is positioned in the middle of the light path of the light chopper II, the light chopper I and the light chopper II are triggered at the same time, and the result is counted as 1-1, as shown in the following formula: Figure 5 ;

[0044] Display device left turning to the maximum angle state (the straight gear with a shield rotates clockwise): when the shield c is positioned in the middle of the light path of the light chopper I, the light chopper I is triggered, and the result is counted as 1-0, as shown in the following formula: Figure 6 ;

[0045] Display device right turning to the maximum angle state (the straight gear with a shield rotates counterclockwise): when the shield d is positioned in the middle of the light path of the light chopper II, the light chopper II is triggered, and the result is counted as 0-1, as shown in the following formula: Figure 7 .

[0046] The straight gear with a shield is connected with the middle shaft of the transmission mechanism module, and the encoder straight gear is installed on the EC11 incremental encoder of the control circuit module. The set reduction ratio of the two straight gears is 40:16. The output signal mode of the EC11 incremental encoder is two positions and one pulse. The output of 360° rotation is 15 pulses, which is equivalent to 30 positions of the EC11 incremental encoder per 360° rotation, that is, the angle range of each position is 12° (360 / 15 / 2). After the reduction ratio of the two straight gears, the middle shaft can obtain a minimum positioning angle of 4.8° (12x16 / 40), which can meet the rotation positioning accuracy requirements of the current intelligent household products.

[0047] The working mode of the control circuit module is that after the whole machine power-on system is initialized, the display device rotates to the system default centering state, and the EC11 incremental encoder is reset to zero. During the whole machine operation, whether the transmission mechanism module rotates through the automatic mode or the manual mode, the current position of the display device is recorded by the EC11 incremental encoder, and the data is fed back to the control chip. When the sound positioning function is started, the microphone device receives the sound source, judges the sound source direction through the logic algorithm, and then transmits the instruction to the control chip through the data transmission line. No matter where the current display device is located, the control chip can calculate and send the correct pulse to the stepping motor to drive the transmission mechanism module to drive the display device to the correct direction.

[0048] While the example embodiments and their advantages have been described in detail, it should be understood that various changes, substitutions and alterations can be made herein without departing from the spirit and scope of the application as defined by the appended claims. Moreover, it should be understood that the order of steps in the control steps can be changed while remaining within the scope of the application.

[0049] Furthermore, the application is not limited to the specific embodiments of the structure, mechanisms, manufacture, material composition, means, methods and steps described in the specification. As those skilled in the art will readily appreciate from the disclosure herein, structures, mechanisms, manufacture, material composition, means, methods and steps now known or later developed that perform substantially the same function or achieve substantially the same result as the corresponding embodiments described herein can be utilized according to the present application. Accordingly, the appended claims are intended to cover all structures, mechanisms, manufacture, material composition, means, methods and steps falling within the scope of the claims.

Claims

1. A horizontal 360-degree sound-controlled positioning steering system, comprising: a display device transmission mechanism connector, a microphone array board module, a transmission mechanism module, and a control circuit board module; wherein: the lower end of the display device transmission mechanism connector is fixedly connected to the central shaft of the transmission mechanism module by a screw, and the upper end is used to fix and support the display device; the central shaft is connected to a spur gear with a blocking piece, and the spur gear is provided with four blocking pieces a, b, c, and d for triggering the signal of a light chopper; the microphone array board module comprises six digital microphone device units arranged in a ring at an equal angle of 60 degrees for receiving sound source signals; sound source direction data is transmitted to a control chip through a data transmission line; the transmission mechanism module comprises: a stepper motor, the output shaft of which is connected to a driving synchronous wheel; a synchronous belt connects the driving synchronous wheel and a driven synchronous wheel to transmit power to a worm; the worm is engaged with a worm gear provided with a pre-tightening bearing, and the worm gear is located on the central shaft; an encoder spur gear is installed on an EC11 incremental encoder of the control circuit module; the control circuit board module comprises: a light chopper cooperates with the blocking pieces a, b, c, and d to generate binary signals 1-1, 1-0, and 0-1 for judging the centering, left turning, or right turning state of the device, wherein the four blocking pieces a, b, c, and d are distributed along the circumference, and the binary signal combination of the light chopper is: when the blocking pieces a and b are triggered, 1-1 indicates that the device is in a centered state; when the blocking piece c is triggered, 1-0 indicates that the device is in a left turning to maximum angle state; when the blocking piece d is triggered, 0-1 indicates that the device is in a right turning to maximum angle state; an EC11 incremental encoder cooperates with the encoder spur gear, and the output signal mode is two positions and one pulse, 15 pulses are output for 360° rotation, each position corresponds to 12°, and the minimum positioning angle is 4.8°; a control chip receives data from the EC11 incremental encoder and sends correct pulses to the stepper motor; the operation mode of the sound-controlled positioning steering system comprises: automatic mode: the control chip drives the stepper motor to rotate the central shaft through the synchronous belt and the worm gear to make the display device turn to the correct direction; manual mode: when an external force is applied to the display device, if the external torque exceeds the pre-tightening force of the worm gear pre-tightening bearing, the pre-tightening bearing and the central shaft slide relative to each other to allow manual rotation, and the EC11 encoder records the position change in real time.

2. A control method of the horizontal 360-degree sound-controlled positioning steering system of claim 1, comprising: a. after the initialization of the whole machine power-on system, the display device is rotated to the system default centered state, and the EC11 incremental encoder is zeroed; b. during the operation of the whole machine, the current position of the display device is recorded by the EC11 incremental encoder regardless of whether the transmission mechanism module is rotated through the automatic mode or the manual mode, and the data is fed back to the control chip; c. when the sound positioning function is started, the microphone device units receive the sound source, judge the sound source direction through a logical algorithm, and then transmit the instruction to the control chip through the data transmission line. d. The control chip can calculate and send correct pulse to the stepping motor to drive the transmission mechanism module to rotate the display device to the correct direction, no matter the display device is located at any angle.

3. The control method of the horizontal 360-degree acoustic control positioning turning system according to claim 2, characterized in that, The working mode of the automatic mode in step b is that the stepping motor drives the middle shaft to rotate through the synchronous wheel-synchronous belt-driven synchronous wheel-worm-worm gear with a set reduction ratio, thereby driving the display device transmission mechanism connector to rotate.

4. The control method of the horizontal 360-degree acoustic control positioning turning system according to claim 3, characterized in that, The working mode of the manual mode in step b is that when the external torque applied to the display device is less than the pre-tightening force of the pre-tightening bearing on the worm gear, the display device will not rotate due to the self-locking function of the worm; when the external torque is greater than the pre-tightening force of the pre-tightening bearing on the worm gear, the pre-tightening bearing and the middle shaft slide relative to each other, and the display device rotates.

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