A cloud robot configuration information synchronization method

Abstract

A cloud robot configuration information synchronization method, with the help of the message communication function of the intelligent robot operating system (IROS), according to the attribute that the cloud robot can link the cloud in real time, a cloud robot configuration information real-time synchronization method based on IROS is proposed. When there are multiple homogenized cloud robots in the running interval, only the configuration information modification and verification of one cloud robot terminal are needed, and the verified configuration information can be synchronized to other cloud robot terminals.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of robotics, and more specifically to a method for synchronizing cloud-based robot configuration information. Background Technology

[0002] Robots are playing an increasingly important role in people's production and life. Robots are becoming more and more powerful, and the working environment they face is becoming more and more complex. The types of tasks are becoming more complicated and tedious. It is difficult for a single robot to achieve ideal results when handling such tasks. Therefore, multiple robots are often configured to work together or take turns in the same operating area.

[0003] When multiple homogeneous robots exist in the same operating area, when modifying robot configuration information, it is necessary to select a designated terminal to adjust and verify the configuration information. After the configuration information is adjusted, it is then transmitted to other robot terminals manually or via FTP. In most cases, other terminals need to restart the service or the terminal in order to load the latest configuration information into memory. This method is not only time-consuming but also inconvenient for customers to operate. Summary of the Invention

[0004] To overcome the shortcomings of the above-mentioned technologies, this invention, leveraging the message communication function of an intelligent robot operating system and based on the real-time cloud connectivity of cloud-based robots, provides a method for synchronizing configuration information of cloud-based robots. The technical solution adopted by this invention to overcome its technical problems is as follows:

[0005] A method for synchronizing configuration information of a cloud-based robot includes the following steps:

[0006] a) Set up multiple homogeneous cloud-based robot terminals in the same operating environment. Each cloud-based robot terminal operates independently, and each cloud-based robot communicates with the cloud in real time.

[0007] b) Deploy the IROS master control node RMASTER and message communication node RMQ in the cloud;

[0008] c) Start the main control node RMASTER and message communication node RMQ in the cloud, divide the partitions and create a configuration information synchronization topic;

[0009] d) Select a cloud-based robot terminal to debug the configuration information. After debugging, save the parameter configuration information to the parameter server and upload the serialized information to the cloud.

[0010] e) Other cloud-based robot terminals subscribe to cloud-based topics. When the information in the topic is updated, they read the latest serialized information and deserialize the obtained serialized information according to custom rules to obtain specific configuration information.

[0011] f) After other cloud-based robots obtain the configuration information, they can modify the configuration information of the running program or save the configuration information to a local file.

[0012] Preferably, in step a), the cloud-based robot communicates with the cloud in real time via 4G, 5G, WIFI, or Ethernet cable.

[0013] Furthermore, in step c), the cloud sets up topics for synchronizing configuration information based on different partitions.

[0014] Furthermore, the step d) of uploading the serialized information to the cloud is as follows: d-1) Open the configuration information synchronization upload master control node RMASTER. The configuration information synchronization upload master control node RMASTER reads the latest configuration information from the parameter server and displays it through the visual interface; d-2) The user selects the configuration items to be synchronized on the visual interface. The configuration information synchronization upload master control node RMASTER performs serialization operation on the configuration information according to the custom rules.

[0015] d-3) Call the IROS topic publishing interface to upload the serialized configuration information to the cloud.

[0016] Furthermore, in step d), the serialized information runs in the background on the cloud, and each cloud-based robot constantly subscribes to topics on the cloud.

[0017] Furthermore, in step e), the message communication node RMQ automatically triggers the callback processing function to read the latest serialized information.

[0018] Furthermore, in step f), after other cloud-based robots obtain the configuration information, they call the dynamic parameter configuration client interface to correct the configuration information of the running program.

[0019] Furthermore, in step f), when all the acquired configuration information is read from the parameter server, the configuration information of the parameter server is immediately updated, and the modified information is saved locally in the form of a file.

[0020] Furthermore, in step f), if the obtained configuration information is inconsistent with the number or name read by the parameter server, a message will be displayed indicating that the configuration information is different and the update of the parameter server configuration information fails. The configuration information will be saved locally as a file and updated when the parameter server restarts.

[0021] Furthermore, in step f), when the connection to the parameter server fails, a message indicating failure to modify configuration information is displayed, and the configuration information is saved locally as a file. The configuration information is updated when the parameter server restarts. The beneficial effects of this invention are: leveraging the message communication function of the Intelligent Robot Operating System (IROS), running on Linux and Windows systems, it provides standardized development interfaces and data processing flows, including hardware abstraction description, inter-program message communication, and package management. IROS enables rapid acquisition, transmission, and distribution of robot configuration information. Based on the real-time cloud connectivity of cloud-based robots, a real-time synchronization method for cloud-based robot configuration information based on IROS is proposed. When multiple homogeneous cloud-based robots exist within the operating range, only one cloud-based robot terminal needs to have its configuration information modified and verified; the verified configuration information can then be synchronized to other cloud-based robot terminals. Attached Figure Description

[0022] Figure 1 This is a communication framework diagram of the present invention;

[0023] Figure 2 This is a flowchart illustrating the configuration information synchronization process of the present invention. Detailed Implementation

[0024] The following is in conjunction with the appendix Figure 1 Appendix Figure 2 The present invention will be further described below.

[0025] A method for synchronizing configuration information of a cloud-based robot includes the following steps:

[0026] a) Multiple homogeneous cloud-based robot terminals are set up in the same operating environment. Each cloud-based robot terminal operates independently, and each cloud-based robot communicates with the cloud in real time. Preferably, the cloud-based robot communicates with the cloud in real time via 4G, 5G, WIFI, or Ethernet cable.

[0027] b) Deploy the IROS master control node RMASTER and message communication node RMQ in the cloud. For example, for the 5 cloud-based robots in region SUBARE_A (network segment 192.168.10.1), set up a topic / config_synchronization / subarea_a for configuration information synchronization. This topic can only be subscribed to and published to by robots in the SUBARE_A network segment.

[0028] c) Start the master control node RMASTER and message communication node RMQ in the cloud, divide the partitions, and create configuration information synchronization topics. Preferably, the cloud sets up configuration information synchronization topics according to different partitions.

[0029] d) Select a cloud-based robot terminal to debug the configuration information. After debugging, save the parameter configuration information to the parameter server and upload the serialized information to the cloud config_synchronization / subarea_a topic.

[0030] e) Other cloud-based robot terminals subscribe to cloud-based topics. When the information in the topic is updated, they read the latest serialized information and deserialize the obtained serialized information according to custom rules to obtain specific configuration information.

[0031] f) After other cloud-based robots obtain the configuration information, they can modify the configuration information of the running program or save the configuration information to a local file.

[0032] This method allows for the synchronization of configuration information to other cloud-based robots when multiple homogeneous cloud robots exist within a runtime environment. It only requires modifying and verifying the configuration information of one cloud robot terminal. To implement this, the cloud robot terminal uploads its configuration information to the cloud via a topic. The cloud configuration information synchronization service then uses timestamp analysis and validity monitoring to distribute the latest configuration information to other homogeneous robots within the same runtime environment via the same topic. Finally, other robot terminals within the runtime environment read the latest configuration information from the topic and modify it in real-time by calling a dynamic parameter configuration interface, thus achieving timely updates to the cloud robot's configuration information.

[0033] Example 1:

[0034] Step d) involves uploading the serialized information to the cloud as follows:

[0035] d-1) Enable the configuration information synchronization upload master control node RMASTER. The RMASTER reads the latest configuration information from the parameter server and displays it through a visual interface. d-2) On the visual interface, the user selects the configuration items to be synchronized. The RMASTER then serializes the configuration information according to custom rules.

[0036] d-3) Call the IROS topic publishing interface to upload the serialized configuration information to the cloud.

[0037] Example 2:

[0038] In step d), the serialized information runs in the background on the cloud, and each cloud-based robot always subscribes to the cloud topic config_synchronization / subarea_a.

[0039] Example 3:

[0040] In step e), the message communication node RMQ automatically triggers the callback processing function to read the latest serialized information.

[0041] Example 4:

[0042] In step f), after other cloud-based robots obtain the configuration information, they call the dynamic parameter configuration client interface to correct the configuration information of the running program. This process can be categorized into the following situations:

[0043] The first method: In step f), when all the configuration information is read from the parameter server, the configuration information of the parameter server is updated immediately, and the modified information is saved locally in the form of a file.

[0044] The second method: In step f), if the obtained configuration information is inconsistent with the number or name read by the parameter server, a message will be displayed indicating that the configuration information is different and the update of the parameter server configuration information fails. The configuration information will be saved locally as a file and updated when the parameter server restarts.

[0045] The third method: In step f), when the connection to the parameter server fails, a message is displayed indicating that the configuration information modification failed. At the same time, the configuration information is saved locally as a file. When the parameter server restarts, the configuration information will be updated.

[0046] This method requires custom rules to serialize and deserialize configuration information. The serialization process involves obtaining the parameter type, name, and value, and then calling the serialization interface provided by IROS for conversion. The deserialization process first obtains the parameter type, which is 4-byte fixed-length data, and then calls the corresponding IROS deserialization interface for conversion based on the parameter type, ultimately obtaining the corresponding parameter name and value.

[0047] Finally, it should be noted that the above descriptions are merely preferred embodiments of the present invention and are not intended to limit the present invention. Although the present invention has been described in detail with reference to the foregoing embodiments, those skilled in the art can still modify the technical solutions described in the foregoing embodiments or make equivalent substitutions for some of the technical features. Any modifications, equivalent substitutions, improvements, etc., made within the spirit and principles of the present invention should be included within the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A method for synchronizing configuration information of a cloud-based robot, characterized in that, Includes the following steps: a) Set up multiple homogeneous cloud-based robot terminals in the same operating environment. Each cloud-based robot terminal operates independently, and each cloud-based robot communicates with the cloud in real time. b) Deploy the IROS master control node RMASTER and message communication node RMQ in the cloud; c) Start the main control node RMASTER and message communication node RMQ in the cloud, divide the partitions and create a configuration information synchronization topic; d) Select a cloud-based robot terminal to debug the configuration information. After debugging, save the parameter configuration information to the parameter server and upload the serialized configuration information to the cloud. e) Other cloud-based robot terminals subscribe to cloud-based topics. When the information in the topic is updated, they read the latest serialized configuration information and deserialize the obtained serialized configuration information according to custom rules to obtain the specific configuration information. f) After obtaining the configuration information, other cloud-based robots can modify the configuration information of the running program or save the configuration information to a local file. Step d) involves uploading the serialized configuration information to the cloud as follows: d-1) The master control node RMASTER reads the latest configuration information from the parameter server and displays it through a visual interface; d-2) Users select the configuration items that need to be synchronized on the visual interface, and the main control node RMASTER performs serialization operations on the configuration information according to the custom rules; d-3) Call the IROS topic publishing interface to upload the serialized configuration information to the cloud.

2. The cloud-based robot configuration information synchronization method according to claim 1, characterized in that: In step a), the cloud-based robot communicates with the cloud in real time via 4G, 5G, WIFI, or wired network.

3. The cloud-based robot configuration information synchronization method according to claim 1, characterized in that, In step c), the cloud synchronizes the topic based on the configuration information of different partitions.

4. The cloud-based robot configuration information synchronization method according to claim 1, characterized in that: The serialized configuration information in step d) runs in the background on the cloud, and each cloud-based robot always subscribes to topics on the cloud.

5. The cloud-based robot configuration information synchronization method according to claim 1, characterized in that: In step e), the message communication node RMQ automatically triggers the callback processing function to read the latest serialized configuration information.

6. The cloud-based robot configuration information synchronization method according to claim 1, characterized in that: In step f), after other cloud-based robots obtain the configuration information, they call the dynamic parameter configuration client interface to correct the configuration information of the running program.

7. The cloud-based robot configuration information synchronization method according to claim 1, characterized in that: In step f), when all the configuration information is read from the parameter server, the local configuration information is updated immediately, and the modified information is saved locally as a file.

8. The cloud-based robot configuration information synchronization method according to claim 1, characterized in that: In step f), if the obtained configuration information is inconsistent with the number or name read by the parameter server, a message will be displayed indicating that the configuration information is different and the update of the parameter server configuration information fails. The configuration information will be saved locally as a file and updated when the parameter server restarts.

9. The cloud-based robot configuration information synchronization method according to claim 1, characterized in that: In step f), if the connection to the parameter server fails, a message will be displayed indicating that the configuration information modification failed. At the same time, the configuration information will be saved locally as a file. When the parameter server restarts, the configuration information will be updated.

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