Method, system and self-moving robot for returning a self-moving robot to a base station

Abstract

The application discloses a method and system for returning a self-moving robot to a base station and the self-moving robot. The method comprises the following steps: acquiring a guide signal sent by the base station; marking position information of the self-moving robot on a working area map when the self-moving robot acquires the guide signal; when a condition for triggering the self-moving robot to return to the base station is met, controlling the self-moving robot to move to the marked position information, searching for the guide signal of the base station, and controlling the self-moving robot to return to the base station according to the guide signal, so that the self-moving robot can quickly find the base station and return to the base station, and the efficiency of returning the self-moving robot to the base station is improved.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present application belongs to the field of robot technology, and particularly relates to a method and system for returning a self-moving robot to a base station and a self-moving robot. BACKGROUND

[0002] With the development of information technology and the increasing demand for quality of life, intelligent home products gradually appear in people's daily life, among which, a representative cleaning robot is increasingly loved by people. The cleaning robot can replace people to perform cleaning work on an area.

[0003] When the existing cleaning robot needs to return to the base station for charging, it searches for a guiding signal emitted by the base station at the original position, navigates according to the guiding signal and returns to the base station. Since the guiding signal emitted by the existing base station has a small range and covers a fan-shaped area in front of the base station, many cleaning areas are not covered by the guiding signal. If the cleaning robot searches for the guiding signal in the cleaning area not covered by the guiding signal, it cannot find the guiding signal, cannot obtain the position of the base station and cannot navigate to return to the base station. Especially when the position of the base station changes or the cleaning robot does not start from the base station, the cleaning robot cannot obtain the accurate position of the base station according to the historical data, and thus the navigation of the return path fails.

[0004] Therefore, it is necessary to improve the prior art to overcome the defects in the prior art. SUMMARY

[0005] Therefore, the technical problem to be solved by the present application is that the self-moving robot cannot search for the guiding signal of the base station in the prior art, resulting in navigation failure of the return path and low return efficiency.

[0006] To solve the above technical problems, the present application provides a method for returning a self-moving robot to a base station, comprising:

[0007] obtaining a guiding signal emitted by the base station;

[0008] marking position information of the self-moving robot in a working area map when the self-moving robot obtains the guiding signal;

[0009] in the case of triggering a condition for the self-moving robot to return to the base station, controlling the self-moving robot to move to the marked position information, search for the guiding signal of the base station, and control the self-moving robot to return to the base station according to the guiding signal.

[0010] In one embodiment, the obtaining of the guiding signal emitted by the base station specifically comprises:

[0011] acquiring an alignment guide signal sent by the base station; or, acquiring an alignment guide signal and a near field signal sent by the base station;

[0012] The coverage range of the alignment guide signal comprises a plurality of alignment guide signal areas, and different alignment guide signal areas cover different types of alignment guide signals.

[0013] In one embodiment, the marking of the position information of the self-moving robot in the working area map when the self-moving robot acquires the guide signal specifically comprises:

[0014] During the continuous acquisition of the alignment guide signal of one alignment guide signal area, the start position of the acquisition of the alignment guide signal of the alignment guide signal area and the end position when the alignment guide signal of the alignment guide signal area is last acquired are recorded;

[0015] The start position and / or the end position are marked.

[0016] In one embodiment, the marking of the start position and / or the end position specifically comprises:

[0017] If the start position and the end position comprise a plurality of pairs, the distance value of each pair of the start position and the end position is calculated, and one or both of the start position and the end position of the pair with a smaller distance value than other distance values are marked.

[0018] In one embodiment, the marking of the start position and / or the end position specifically comprises:

[0019] The distance information of the start position and the end position from the alignment axis of the base station is identified;

[0020] One of the start position and the end position closer to the alignment axis is marked.

[0021] In one embodiment, the identification of the distance information of the start position and the end position from the alignment axis of the base station specifically comprises:

[0022] The distance values of a plurality of pairs of the start position and the end position are calculated, and the orientation of the base station relative to the self-moving robot is identified according to the distance value size relationship between the plurality of pairs of the start position and the end position.

[0023] The moving direction of the self-moving robot is acquired, and the distance size relationship between the start position and the end position and the alignment axis is identified according to the moving direction and the orientation of the base station relative to the self-moving robot.

[0024] In one of the embodiments, the alignment signal guiding area comprises at least a center signal guiding area and left and right signal guiding areas; correspondingly, the center signal guiding area, the left signal guiding area and the right signal guiding area cover center alignment guiding signals, left alignment guiding signals and right alignment guiding signals respectively.

[0025] The position information of the self-moving robot in the working area map is marked, specifically comprising:

[0026] If the self-moving robot identifies the left alignment guiding signal and the right alignment guiding signal in the same cleaning direction, the midpoint position of the position information of the identified left alignment guiding signal and the right alignment guiding signal is marked.

[0027] In one of the embodiments, the alignment signal guiding area comprises at least a center signal guiding area and left and right signal guiding areas; correspondingly, the center signal guiding area, the left signal guiding area and the right signal guiding area cover center alignment guiding signals, left alignment guiding signals and right alignment guiding signals respectively.

[0028] The position information of the self-moving robot in the working area map is marked, specifically comprising:

[0029] When the center alignment guiding signal is received, the current position information of the self-moving robot is marked.

[0030] In one of the embodiments, the method further comprises:

[0031] If the self-moving robot receives the near field signal at the same time when the alignment guiding signal is received, the marked position information is added with a near field mark.

[0032] In one of the embodiments, the method further comprises:

[0033] All the marked position information is searched, the position information of a first priority is selected according to a preset priority order, and the self-moving robot is controlled to move to the position information of the first priority.

[0034] The preset priority order is that the marked position information is arranged in order from near to far from the base station.

[0035] In one of the embodiments, the method further comprises:

[0036] The position information of the self-moving robot in a working area map is marked while the walking posture of the self-moving robot is also marked.

[0037] In addition, the application further provides a system for returning a self-moving robot to a base station, comprising:

[0038] A guide signal acquisition module is configured to acquire a guide signal of the base station.

[0039] A position information marking module is in communication connection with the guide signal acquisition module and is configured to mark position information of the self-moving robot in a working area map when the self-moving robot acquires the guide signal.

[0040] A control module is in communication connection with the position information marking module and is configured to, in the case of a condition triggering the self-moving robot to return to the base station, control the self-moving robot to move to the marked position information, search for the guide signal of the base station, and control the self-moving robot to return to the base station according to the guide signal.

[0041] In addition, the application further provides a self-moving robot, comprising:

[0042] A robot body,

[0043] A control device is arranged on the robot body.

[0044] The control device is configured to perform the following operations:

[0045] Acquire a guide signal emitted by a base station.

[0046] Mark position information of the self-moving robot in a working area map when the self-moving robot acquires the guide signal.

[0047] In the case of a condition triggering the self-moving robot to return to the base station, control the self-moving robot to move to the marked position information, search for the guide signal of the base station, and control the self-moving robot to return to the base station according to the guide signal.

[0048] The technical solution provided by the application has the following advantages:

[0049] The application provides a method, system and self-moving robot for returning the self-moving robot to a base station. The method comprises the following steps: acquiring a guide signal emitted by the base station, marking position information of the self-moving robot in a working area map when the self-moving robot acquires the guide signal, controlling the self-moving robot to move to the marked position information when a condition for triggering the self-moving robot to return to the base station is met, searching for the guide signal of the base station, and controlling the self-moving robot to return to the base station according to the guide signal. Thus, when the self-moving robot needs to return to the base station, the self-moving robot can navigate to the base station according to the marked position information, and the efficiency of returning the self-moving robot to the base station is improved. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0050] 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 needed to be used in the specific embodiments or prior art description. Obviously, the drawings described below are some embodiments of the present application, and other drawings can also be obtained by those skilled in the art without creative effort on the basis of these drawings.

[0051] Figure 1 A flowchart of a method for returning a self-moving robot to a base station is provided for an embodiment of the present application.

[0052] Figure 2 A schematic diagram of a base station and a guide signal emitted by the base station is provided for an embodiment of the present application.

[0053] Figure 3 A simple schematic diagram of a self-moving robot at different positions in a working area relative to a base station is provided for an embodiment of the present application.

[0054] Figure 4 A module schematic diagram of a system for returning a self-moving robot to a base station is provided for an embodiment of the present application.

[0055] Reference signs:

[0056] 200 - base station; 100 - self-moving robot; 1000 - system for returning a self-moving robot to a base station; 110 - guide signal acquisition module; 130 - position information marking module; 150 - control module. EMBODIMENT

[0057] The technical solutions of the present application will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some of the embodiments of the present application, not all the embodiments. Hereinafter, the present application will be described in detail with reference to the drawings and embodiments. It should be noted that the embodiments and features in the embodiments can be combined with each other without conflict.

[0058] It should be noted that the terms "first", "second", etc. in the specification and claims of the present application and the above-mentioned drawings are used to distinguish similar objects, and do not necessarily describe a specific order or sequence.

[0059] In the present application, the orientation words such as "upper", "lower", "top", "bottom" used without the opposite description are generally directed to the direction shown in the drawings, or to the vertical, perpendicular or gravity direction of the components themselves; similarly, for the convenience of understanding and description, "inner" and "outer" refer to the inner and outer relative to the contour of the components themselves, but the above-mentioned orientation words are not used to limit the present application.

[0060] The embodiment of the present application provides a method for self-moving robot returning to base station. The method is used for a self-moving robot which automatically performs a work task in a work area. Please refer to Figure 2 and Figure 3 The above-mentioned work area can be specifically understood as an area where the base station 200 is arranged, and the self-moving robot 100 performs the work task in the work area.

[0061] The above-mentioned self-moving robot can specifically include at least one of the following: cleaning robot, monitoring robot, mowing robot, etc. Among them, the cleaning robot can be a sweeper, a mop or a sweeper-mop integrated machine. In a specific implementation scenario, the method is used for a cleaning robot, and the corresponding work area is a surface to be cleaned, such as a room floor. Of course, it should be noted that the above-mentioned self-moving robot is only an illustrative description. In specific implementation, according to the specific application scene and processing requirement, the above-mentioned self-moving robot can also include a patrol robot, a nanny robot, etc. For this, the present specification is not limited.

[0062] In a specific implementation scenario, the base station 200 can be used to supplement the electric energy for the self-moving robot 100, therefore, the base station 200 can also be called a charging station. In another specific implementation scenario, the base station 200 can also provide other services for the self-moving robot 100, such as for the application scenario of the cleaning robot, the base station 200 can also provide cleaning services of cleaning components, water supplement services of water tanks, etc.

[0063] In order to guide the self-moving robot 100 to return to the base station 200 and dock with the base station 200, the base station 200 is usually provided with a guide signal generator for emitting a guide signal, and the self-moving robot 100 can receive the guide signal, so as to return to the base station 200 according to the guide signal and realize the docking with the base station 200. However, the work area is usually large, the guide signal coverage range of the base station 200 is limited, and the self-moving robot 100 often cannot search for the guide signal when it needs to return to the base station 200, and cannot quickly return to the base station 200.

[0064] The application provides a method for returning to a base station, which comprises the following steps Figure 1 The method comprises the following steps:

[0065] S10, acquiring a guide signal sent by a base station 200;

[0066] S20, marking position information of the self-moving robot 100 in a working area map when the self-moving robot 100 acquires the guide signal;

[0067] S30, in the case that a condition for triggering the self-moving robot 100 to return to the base station 200 is met, controlling the self-moving robot 100 to move to the marked position information, searching for the guide signal of the base station 200, and controlling the self-moving robot 100 to return to the base station 200 according to the guide signal.

[0068] The self-moving robot 100 is provided with at least a guide signal receiver for receiving the guide signal sent by the base station 200. In an embodiment, the self-moving robot 100 acquires the guide signal of the base station 200 during the process of performing a working task in a working area. For a cleaning robot, a single cleaning task needs to cover the entire working area, so the cleaning robot will identify the guide signal of the base station 200 during the process of covering the working area.

[0069] The condition for triggering the self-moving robot 100 to return to the base station 200 can be triggered by a user or automatically recognized by the self-moving robot. For the automatically recognized trigger condition, the self-moving robot needs to return to the base station 200 for charging when the power is lower than a preset threshold. The condition for returning to the base station 200 can be different for different types of self-moving robots. For example, for a cleaning robot 100, the condition for returning to the base station 200 can be that the cleaning assembly needs to be cleaned or the water tank needs to be refilled.

[0070] In an embodiment, the marked position information of the self-moving robot 100 can include multiple marked position information or only the position information closest to the base station 200.

[0071] The method for returning to the base station provided in this embodiment can improve the efficiency of the cleaning robot returning to the base station.

[0072] Especially for some working scenarios, the self-moving robot is often not started from the base station. In this case, it can be considered that the self-moving robot has no information about the position of the base station. When the condition for triggering the self-moving robot to return to the base station is met, if the current position of the self-moving robot is not within the coverage range of the base station guiding signal, the robot cannot know the position of the base station, and it is impossible to plan the returning path. In this case, the existing self-moving robot uses the blind random walking and searching method to find the base station. On the one hand, the searching efficiency is very low, and the robot may run out of power without finding the base station. On the other hand, the intelligence of the self-moving device and the user experience are also reduced.

[0073] For another scenario, the self-moving robot starts from the base station, but the position of the base station changes during the work. The self-moving robot cannot find the base station according to the recorded initial starting position of the base station, resulting in invalid returning path planning.

[0074] The method provided in this embodiment can solve the technical problems of the above two working scenarios and significantly improve the efficiency of the self-moving robot returning to the base station.

[0075] Please continue to refer to Figure 2 and Figure 3 In an implementation scenario, the guiding signal emitted by the base station 200 includes an alignment guiding signal. The coverage range of the alignment guiding signal is approximately fan-shaped and located in front of the base station 200. The alignment guiding signal can be used for the returning alignment of the self-moving robot 100 and the base station 200.

[0076] In another implementation scenario, the guiding signal emitted by the base station 200 further includes a near-field signal. The distance of the self-moving robot 100 relative to the base station 200 can be identified through the near-field signal. When the self-moving robot identifies the near-field signal, it means that the self-moving robot is close to the base station 200.

[0077] In an embodiment, the step S10, i.e., the step of "acquiring the guiding signal emitted by the base station", specifically includes the following steps:

[0078] S11, acquiring the alignment guiding signal emitted by the base station 200.

[0079] In the above step, the self-moving robot 100 acquires the alignment guide signal. The alignment guide signal is divided into a plurality of alignment guide signal regions according to the different signals covered by the alignment guide signal, that is, the different alignment guide signal regions cover different types of alignment guide signals. According to the positional relationship of the alignment guide signal relative to the alignment axis L of the base station 200, the alignment signal guide region at least includes a center signal guide region and a left signal guide region and a right signal guide region. Correspondingly, the center signal guide region, the left signal guide region and the right signal guide region cover the center alignment guide signal, the left alignment guide signal and the right alignment guide signal respectively. In a specific scenario, the alignment axis L is usually the center line of the base station 200, and the self-moving robot can be aligned with the base station 200 along the alignment axis L, so as to realize the accurate docking of the self-moving robot 100 and the base station 200, and the alignment accuracy is high.

[0080] Specifically, please refer to Figure 2 and Figure 3 The alignment guide signal region sequentially includes regions 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5, wherein regions 1, 2 and 4, 5 are symmetrical to each other, regions 1 and 2 are right signal guide regions, regions 4 and 5 are left signal guide regions, and region 3 is a center signal guide region. The alignment axis L is the axis of symmetry of region 3. The above left and right are relative to the base station 200, and the direction in which the guide signal is emitted is the front, the opposite direction is the back, the left hand side is the left side, and the right hand side is the right side. More specifically, the angles of the coverage sectors of regions 1, 2, 4 and 5 are 10 degrees, and the angle of the sector of region 3 is 20 degrees. The entire alignment guide signal region is symmetrical about the alignment axis L.

[0081] In another embodiment, the above step S10, that is, the step of "acquiring the guide signal emitted by the base station", specifically includes the following steps:

[0082] S13, acquiring the alignment guide signal and the near field signal emitted by the base station 200.

[0083] In the above step S13, the guide signal emitted by the base station 200 includes the alignment guide signal and the near field signal, and the self-moving robot 100 acquires the above two kinds of guide signals. In this step S13, the self-moving robot 100 acquires the detailed content of the alignment guide signal, which is the same as the above step S11, and will not be repeated here.

[0084] Only the related content of acquiring the near field signal is introduced below.

[0085] Specifically, the self-moving robot 100 identifies the distance to the base station 200 according to the strength of the acquired near-field signal. When the self-moving robot 100 is within the near-field signal range of the base station 200, the distance information to the base station 200 can be obtained through the strength analysis of the near-field signal, so as to determine the position relative to the base station 200. When the self-moving robot 100 is far away from the base station 200, the near-field signal is very weak and cannot be acquired by the self-moving robot 100. In this case, it is considered that the self-moving robot 100 is far away from the base station, and the distance relative to the base station 200 cannot be determined.

[0086] In one embodiment, the step S20, i.e., the step of "marking the position information of the self-moving robot on the working area map when the self-moving robot acquires the guide signal", specifically comprises:

[0087] S21, in the process of continuously receiving the alignment guide signal of the alignment guide signal area, recording the start point position of the alignment guide signal of the alignment guide signal area when the alignment guide signal is first received and the end point position when the alignment guide signal of the alignment guide signal area is last received;

[0088] S23, marking the start point position and / or the end point position.

[0089] For example, when the self-moving robot 100 starts to receive the alignment guide signal of the alignment guide signal area 2 (referred to as area 2) and cannot receive the alignment guide signal of the area 2, the start point position of the alignment guide signal of the area 2 when the alignment guide signal of the area 2 is first received and the end point position when the alignment guide signal of the area 2 is last received are recorded. The start point position or the end point position can be marked, or both the start point position and the end point position can be marked.

[0090] It can be understood that the closer the position information marked in the step S20 to the base station 200, the more helpful it is for the self-moving robot to quickly return to the base station. Since the alignment guide signal area is approximately fan-shaped, the closer it is to the base station 200, the closer the distance between the start point position and the end point position.

[0091] In order to improve the efficiency of the self-moving robot 100 returning to the base station 200, in one embodiment, the step S23, i.e., the step of "marking the start point position and / or the end point position", specifically comprises:

[0092] If the start point position and the end point position include multiple pairs, the distance value of each pair of the start point position and the end point position is calculated, and one or both of the start point position and the end point position of the pair with the smallest distance value is marked.

[0093] In the above steps, the pairs of start point positions and end point positions are all for the same alignment guide signal region. In the normal working process of the self-moving robot 100, the self-moving robot 100 will pass in front of the base station 2 for many times, and can obtain many pairs of start point positions and end point positions of the same alignment guide signal region. In this embodiment, the start point position or the end point position of the pair with the minimum distance value is marked, or both of them are marked, so as to obtain the position information of the alignment guide signal region closest to the base station, and facilitate the self-moving robot to quickly navigate to the vicinity of the base station.

[0094] In another embodiment, the step S23, i.e. the step of "marking the start point position and / or the end point position", specifically comprises:

[0095] S232, identifying distance information of the start point position and the end point position from the alignment axis of the base station;

[0096] S234, marking one of the start point position and the end point position which is closer to the alignment axis.

[0097] According to the marked start point position and end point position, the boundary of the corresponding alignment guide signal region can be obtained, and for the left signal guide region and the right signal guide region, one of the start point position and the end point position is closer to the base station. The above step marks one of the start point position and the end point position which is closer to the alignment axis L by identifying the distance information of the start point position and the end point position from the alignment axis of the base station.

[0098] In an embodiment, the step S232, i.e. the step of "identifying distance information of the start point position and the end point position from the alignment axis of the base station", specifically comprises:

[0099] calculating distance values of the pairs of start point positions and end point positions, and identifying the orientation of the base station relative to the self-moving robot according to the distance value size relationship between the pairs of start point positions and end point positions;

[0100] obtaining a moving direction of the self-moving robot, and identifying the distance size relationship between the start point position and the end point position from the alignment axis according to the moving direction and the orientation of the base station relative to the self-moving robot.

[0101] Similarly, in the above steps, each pair of start position and end position is for the same alignment guide signal region. Since the alignment guide signal region is approximately a sector, and the closer to the base station 200, the closer the distance between the start position and the end position, therefore, by calculating the distance value size relationship between the multiple pairs of start position and end position, the orientation of the base station 200 relative to the self-moving robot 100 can be identified. That is, the direction in which the distance value of the start position and the end position gradually decreases is the approximate orientation of the base station 200 relative to the self-moving robot. Further, in combination with the moving direction of the self-moving robot 100, the distance size relationship between the start position and the end position and the alignment axis L can be identified.

[0102] Exemplary, Figure 3 Three position states of the self-moving robot 100 are shown, which are positions a, b and c respectively. The distance between the start position and the end position marked by the self-moving robot 100 when walking through the region 2 at position c is greater than the distance between the start position and the end position marked by the self-moving robot 100 when walking through the region 2 at position b, therefore, it can be identified that the base station 200 is approximately located at the position close to position b. In combination with the moving direction of the self-moving robot at position b, it is identified that the end position of the marked region 2 is closer to the alignment axis L; in the case of position c, it is identified that the start position of the marked region 2 is closer to the alignment axis L.

[0103] In an embodiment, the step S20, i.e. the step of "marking the position information of the self-moving robot when obtaining the guide signal on the working area map", specifically comprises:

[0104] If the self-moving robot successively identifies the left alignment guide signal and the right alignment guide signal in the same cleaning direction, the midpoint position of the position information of the identified left alignment guide signal and the right alignment guide signal is marked.

[0105] That is, when the self-moving robot 100 identifies the right alignment guide signal region 2 (region 2 for short) and the left alignment guide signal region 4 (region 4 for short), the midpoint position of the region 2 and the region 4 is calculated according to the position information of the respectively marked region 2 and region 4, and the midpoint position is marked. Specifically, if the region 2 marks the start position and the end position, and the region 4 also marks the start position and the end position, the above midpoint position is calculated based on the adjacent two marked position information of the region 2 and the region 4. Specifically, the midpoint position of the start position and the end position of the region 2 is calculated as the midpoint position of the start position and the end position of the region 4. Figure 3 Taking the marked end position of the region 2 and the marked start position of the region 4 as the reference in the state of the self-moving robot at position b, the midpoint of the end position and the start position is calculated as the position information marked in the above step. In this way, the position information close to the alignment axis L of the base station 200 can be more accurately obtained, and the regression docking efficiency of the self-moving robot can be improved.

[0106] In another embodiment, the step S20, i.e. the step of marking the position information of the self-moving robot on the working area map when the self-moving robot acquires the guide signal, specifically comprises:

[0107] When the centering alignment guide signal is received, the current position information of the self-moving robot is marked.

[0108] Specifically, for the centering alignment guide signal, i.e. the alignment guide signal of the region 3, the current position information of the self-moving robot is directly marked. The current position information can be all the position information during the process of continuously identifying the centering alignment guide signal, or one of the position information.

[0109] For the case that the guide signal transmitted by the base station 200 comprises a near field signal, in an embodiment, the above method further comprises the following steps:

[0110] If the self-moving robot receives the near field signal at the same time when the alignment guide signal is received, the marked position information is added with a near field mark.

[0111] Specifically, please refer to Figure 3 When the self-moving robot 100 is at the position a and can identify the near field signal, in this case, the marked position information is added with a near field mark, i.e. the position information is marked as the position information closer to the base station 200.

[0112] In an embodiment, the above method further comprises the following steps:

[0113] When the position information of the self-moving robot on the working area map is marked, the walking posture of the self-moving robot is also marked.

[0114] The walking posture of the self-moving robot 100 at least comprises the walking direction. When the position information is marked, the walking posture of the self-moving robot is also marked, so that the position relationship with the base station 200 can be determined based on the walking posture of the self-moving robot 100, and the walking posture of the self-moving robot when returning to the marked position information is adjusted based on the position relationship, so as to more accurately align with the base station. Specifically, when it is determined that the alignment axis L of the base station 200 is perpendicular to the walking direction, or the included angle between the alignment axis L of the base station 200 and the walking direction, when the self-moving robot 100 needs to navigate to the position, the walking posture of the self-moving robot 100 is adjusted in advance, so that the returned walking posture is always in the same direction as the alignment axis L of the position mark, so as to adjust the angle between the self-moving robot and the base station 200 based on the walking posture, and improve the alignment accuracy with the base station.

[0115] In an embodiment, the step S30, i.e. the step of "controlling the self-moving robot to return to the base station according to the guiding signal", further comprises:

[0116] finding all the position information of the markers, selecting the position information of the first priority according to the preset priority order, and controlling the self-moving robot to move to the position information of the first priority.

[0117] The preset priority order is that the position information of the markers is arranged in the order from the nearest to the farthest to the base station 200.

[0118] In an embodiment, the preset priority order can be:

[0119] 1. The position information of the center signal guiding area corresponding to the marker with the near-field signal marker; 2. The position information of the center signal guiding area corresponding to the marker without the near-field signal marker; 3. The midpoint position of the position information of the left and right signal guiding areas corresponding to the marker with the near-field signal marker; 4. The midpoint position of the position information of the left and right signal guiding areas corresponding to the marker without the near-field signal marker; 5. The position information of the left / right signal guiding area corresponding to the marker with the near-field signal marker; 6. The position information of the left / right signal guiding area corresponding to the marker without the near-field signal marker.

[0120] The first priority is understood as the position information in the position information of the marker, which is arranged according to the above-mentioned preset priority order. For example, assuming that there is no position information corresponding to the first point in the position information of the marker, the position information corresponding to the second point is taken as the first priority, and the order is sequentially extended.

[0121] In addition, the present application also provides a self-moving robot returning base station system 1000, please see Figure 4 The returning base station system 1000 comprises:

[0122] The guiding signal acquisition module 110 is configured to acquire the guiding signal of the base station 200 in real time during the execution of the work task by the self-moving robot 100.

[0123] The position information marking module 130 is in communication connection with the guiding signal acquisition module 110, and when the self-moving robot 100 receives the guiding signal, the position information of the self-moving robot 100 in the work area map is marked.

[0124] The control module 150 is in communication connection with the position information marking module 130, and in the case that the condition of triggering the self-moving robot 100 to return to the base station 200 is met, the control module 150 controls the self-moving robot 100 to move to the marked position information, search for the guiding signal of the base station 200, and control the self-moving robot 100 to return to the base station 200 according to the guiding signal.

[0125] In an embodiment, the guiding signal acquisition module 110 is configured to acquire the alignment guiding signal emitted by the base station 200. In another embodiment, the guiding signal acquisition module 110 is further configured to acquire the near-field signal emitted by the base station. The coverage range of the alignment guiding signal includes a plurality of alignment guiding signal areas, and different alignment guiding signal areas cover different types of alignment guiding signals.

[0126] In an embodiment, the position information marking module 130 records the start point position at which the alignment guiding signal of an alignment guiding signal area is first received and the end point position at which the alignment guiding signal of the alignment guiding signal area is last received during the process of continuously receiving the alignment guiding signal of the alignment guiding signal area, and marks the start point position or the end point position, or both.

[0127] In an embodiment, if the start point position and the end point position include a plurality of pairs, the distance value of each pair of start point position and end point position is calculated, and one or both of the start point position and the end point position of the pair with the smallest distance value is marked.

[0128] In an embodiment, the position information marking module 130 identifies the distance information between the start point position and the end point position and the alignment axis L of the base station 200, and marks one of the start point position and the end point position that is closer to the alignment axis.

[0129] Specifically, the position information marking module 130 identifies the orientation of the base station 200 relative to the self-moving robot 100 according to the distance value relationship between the plurality of pairs of start point position and end point position by calculating the distance value of the plurality of pairs of start point position and end point position, and acquires the moving direction of the self-moving robot, and identifies the distance relationship between the start point position and the end point position and the alignment axis L according to the moving direction and the orientation of the base station 200 relative to the self-moving robot 100.

[0130] The self-moving robot returning system 100 described in the embodiment corresponds to the method of returning to the base station described above, and the functions of the modules in the self-moving robot returning system 100 in the embodiment are described in detail in the corresponding method embodiment, which will not be described here.

[0131] In addition, the application also provides a self-moving robot, which comprises a robot body and a control device arranged on the robot body.

[0132] The control device is configured to perform the following operations:

[0133] During the execution of the work task by the self-moving robot 100, the guiding signal of the base station 200 is acquired in real time;

[0134] When the self-moving robot 100 receives the guiding signal, the position information of the self-moving robot 100 in the work area map is marked;

[0135] In the case that the condition of triggering the self-moving robot 100 to return to the base station 200 is met, the self-moving robot 100 is controlled to navigate to the marked position information, search for the guiding signal of the base station 200, and control the self-moving robot 100 to return to the base station 200 according to the guiding signal.

[0136] Similarly, the function of the control device is to realize the method of returning the self-moving robot to the base station, and the specific content can be referred to the description of the method of returning the self-moving robot to the base station, which will not be described here.

[0137] Those skilled in the art should understand that the embodiments of the present application can be provided as a method, a system, a server or a computer program product. Therefore, the present application can take the form of an entirely hardware embodiment, an entirely software embodiment, or an embodiment combining software and hardware aspects. Moreover, the present application can take the form of a computer program product implemented on one or more computer-usable storage media (including, but not limited to, disk storage and optical storage, etc.) containing computer-usable program code.

[0138] The present application is described with reference to flowcharts and / or block diagrams of methods, devices (systems), servers and computer program products according to embodiments of the present application. It should be understood that each flow and / or block in the flowcharts and / or block diagrams, and the combination of flows and / or blocks in the flowcharts and / or block diagrams can be implemented by computer program instructions. These computer program instructions can be provided to the processor of a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, an embedded processor or other programmable data processing device to produce a machine, so that the instructions executed by the processor of the computer or other programmable data processing device produce a device that implements the functions specified in the flowcharts and / or block diagrams. Figure 1 The functions specified in one flow or multiple flows and / or blocks Figure 1 The device that implements the functions specified in one flow or multiple flows and / or blocks.

[0139] Obviously, the above-described embodiments are only a part of the embodiments of the present application, not all the embodiments. Based on the embodiments in the present application, those skilled in the art can make other different forms of changes or modifications without creative labor, which should all belong to the protection scope of the present application.

Claims

1. A method for a self-propelled robot to return to a base station, characterized in that, include: The guidance signal emitted by the base station is acquired. The guidance signal includes at least an alignment guidance signal. The coverage area of ​​the alignment guidance signal includes multiple alignment guidance signal regions. Different alignment guidance signal regions cover different types of alignment guidance signals. Marking the position information of the self-moving robot on the work area map when it acquires the guidance signal specifically includes: during the continuous receipt of the alignment guidance signal of the alignment guidance signal area, recording the starting position when the alignment guidance signal of the alignment guidance signal area is first received and the ending position when the alignment guidance signal of the alignment guidance signal area is last received; marking the starting position and / or the ending position; the marking of the starting position and / or the ending position specifically includes: If the starting position and the ending position include multiple pairs, calculate the spacing value of each pair of the starting position and the ending position, and mark one or both of the starting positions and the ending positions whose spacing value is less than the other spacing values; When the conditions for triggering the self-moving robot to return to the base station are met, if the location of the base station changes or the self-moving robot does not depart from the base station, the self-moving robot is controlled to move to the marked location information, search for the guidance signal of the base station, and return to the base station according to the guidance signal.

2. The method for a self-moving robot to return to a base station according to claim 1, characterized in that, The guidance signal also includes: Near-field signal.

3. The method for a self-moving robot to return to a base station according to claim 1, characterized in that, The marking of the start position and / or the end position specifically includes: Identify the distance information between the starting point position and the ending point position and the alignment axis of the base station; Mark the starting position and the ending position that are closer to the alignment axis.

4. The method for a self-moving robot to return to a base station according to claim 3, characterized in that, The identification of the distance information between the starting position and the ending position and the alignment axis of the base station specifically includes: Calculate the distance values ​​between multiple pairs of starting positions and ending positions, and identify the orientation of the base station relative to the self-moving robot based on the relationship between the distance values ​​between multiple pairs of starting positions and ending positions; The movement direction of the self-moving robot is obtained, and the distance relationship between the starting position and the ending position and the alignment axis is identified based on the movement direction and the position of the base station relative to the self-moving robot.

5. The method for a self-moving robot to return to a base station according to claim 1, characterized in that, The alignment guide signal area includes at least a center signal guide area, a left signal guide area, and a right signal guide area; correspondingly, the center signal guide area, the left signal guide area, and the right signal guide area cover the center alignment guide signal, the left alignment guide signal, and the right alignment guide signal, respectively. The location information of the self-moving robot on the work area map is marked, specifically including: If the self-moving robot successively identifies the left alignment guide signal and the right alignment guide signal in the same cleaning direction, then the midpoint of the position information of the identified left alignment guide signal and right alignment guide signal is marked.

6. The method for a self-moving robot to return to a base station according to claim 1, characterized in that, The alignment guide signal area includes at least a center signal guide area, a left signal guide area, and a right signal guide area; correspondingly, the center signal guide area, the left signal guide area, and the right signal guide area cover the center alignment guide signal, the left alignment guide signal, and the right alignment guide signal, respectively. The marking of the self-moving robot's position information on the work area map when it acquires the guidance signal specifically includes: When the center alignment guidance signal is received, the current position information of the self-moving robot is marked.

7. The method for a self-moving robot to return to a base station according to claim 2, characterized in that, The method further includes: If the self-moving robot receives the alignment guidance signal and the near-field signal at the same time, it adds a near-field marker to the marked position information.

8. The method for a self-moving robot to return to a base station according to any one of claims 2-6, characterized in that, The step of controlling the self-moving robot to return to the base station according to the guidance signal specifically includes: Find all the marked location information, select the location information with the first priority order according to the preset priority order, and control the self-moving robot to move to the location information with the first priority order; The preset priority order is that the marked location information is arranged in order of distance from the base station from closest to furthest.

9. The method for a self-moving robot to return to a base station according to any one of claims 2-6, characterized in that, The method further includes: While marking the location information of the self-moving robot on the work area map, the walking posture of the self-moving robot is also marked.

10. A system for a self-moving robot to return to a base station, characterized in that, include: A guidance signal acquisition module is used to acquire guidance signals from the base station. The guidance signals include at least alignment guidance signals, wherein the coverage area of ​​the alignment guidance signals includes multiple alignment guidance signal regions, and different alignment guidance signal regions cover different types of alignment guidance signals. A location information marking module, communicatively connected to the guidance signal acquisition module, is used to mark the location information of the self-moving robot on the work area map when acquiring the guidance signal. Specifically, this includes: recording the starting position when the alignment guidance signal of the alignment guidance signal area is first received and the ending position when the alignment guidance signal of the alignment guidance signal area is last received during the continuous receipt of the alignment guidance signal of the alignment guidance signal area; marking the starting position and / or the ending position; the marking of the starting position and / or the ending position specifically includes: If the starting position and the ending position include multiple pairs, calculate the spacing value of each pair of the starting position and the ending position, and mark one or both of the starting positions and the ending positions whose spacing value is less than the other spacing values; The control module, which is communicatively connected to the location information marking module, is used to control the self-moving robot to move to the marked location information when the location of the base station changes or the self-moving robot does not depart from the base station, under the condition that the self-moving robot is triggered to return to the base station, to search for the guidance signal of the base station, and to control the self-moving robot to return to the base station according to the guidance signal.

11. A self-moving robot, characterized in that, include: Robot body The control device is mounted on the robot body; The control device is configured to perform the following operations: The guidance signal emitted by the base station is acquired. The guidance signal includes at least an alignment guidance signal. The coverage area of ​​the alignment guidance signal includes multiple alignment guidance signal regions. Different alignment guidance signal regions cover different types of alignment guidance signals. Marking the position information of the self-moving robot on the work area map when it acquires the guidance signal specifically includes: during the continuous receipt of the alignment guidance signal of the alignment guidance signal area, recording the starting position when the alignment guidance signal of the alignment guidance signal area is first received and the ending position when the alignment guidance signal of the alignment guidance signal area is last received; marking the starting position and / or the ending position; the marking of the starting position and / or the ending position specifically includes: If the starting position and the ending position include multiple pairs, calculate the spacing value of each pair of the starting position and the ending position, and mark one or both of the starting positions and the ending positions whose spacing value is less than the other spacing values; When the conditions for triggering the self-moving robot to return to the base station are met, if the location of the base station changes or the self-moving robot does not depart from the base station, the self-moving robot is controlled to move to the marked location information, search for the guidance signal of the base station, and return to the base station according to the guidance signal.

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