Intelligent charging robot applied to new energy automobile

Abstract

The intelligent charging robot applied to the new energy automobile comprises a base, a mechanical arm, a driving motor, a clamp and a visual sensor, the driving motor is electrically connected with all joints of the mechanical arm, and the clamp and the visual sensor are located at the tail end of the mechanical arm; wherein the driving motor is used for driving each joint of the mechanical arm to rotate to a preset angle; the visual sensor is used for acquiring a position image of an automobile charging port so as to assist in positioning the positions of a charging port cover plate and a charging socket; the clamp comprises at least two branch structures, one end is used for clamping the charging plug, and the other end is used for opening / closing the charging port cover plate. Therefore, one clamp can be flexibly controlled to open / close the charging port cover plate and plug and pull the charging head, the execution steps and the mechanical structure of the robot are greatly simplified, operation is convenient, the automation degree is high, the requirement for fixed-point parking is lowered, a driver does not need to get off the vehicle for operation, safety is high, and user experience is good.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to intelligent manufacturing and high-end manufacturing, and in particular to an intelligent charging robot applied to new energy vehicles. Background Art

[0002] With the development of new energy vehicles at home and abroad, the demand for charging piles for new energy vehicles is also increasing. The current charging piles on the market require manual operation when charging cars, which is a cumbersome process and there is a certain risk of electric shock. Especially on rainy days, hot summers or cold winters, it is a bad experience for users to walk out of the air-conditioned car to complete a series of charging processes such as taking out the gun, inserting the gun, swiping the card to start, waiting, swiping the card to settle, and pulling the gun back to its place.

[0003] The existing intelligent charging robot has a very complex structure and control algorithm. First, the control system needs to locate the vehicle charging port, then control the gripper on the robot's mechanical arm to open the charging port cover, and then further control the gripper on the mechanical arm to complete the grabbing of the charging plug, and finally control the robot's mechanical arm to insert the grabbed charging plug into the car's charging port. When charging is completed, the control system controls the mechanical arm gripper to pull out the charging plug, place the charging plug in the designated position, and then close the charging port cover.

[0004] In the above scheme, the robot's actions of plugging and unplugging the charging plug are complicated and the execution efficiency is low. It is easy for the robot to fail to grasp the charging plug, the socket is not accurately positioned, and the charging plug cannot be placed in the specified position, resulting in problems such as crossing and entanglement of wires on site. Summary of the invention

[0005] In view of the defects in the prior art, an object of the present invention is to provide an intelligent charging robot applied to new energy vehicles.

[0006] In a first aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides an intelligent charging robot for new energy vehicles, comprising: a base, a mechanical arm, a drive motor, a fixture, and a visual sensor, wherein the mechanical arm is fastened to the base, the drive motor is electrically connected to each joint of the mechanical arm, and the fixture and the visual sensor are located at the end of the mechanical arm; wherein:

[0007] The driving motor is used to drive each joint of the robotic arm to rotate to a preset angle;

[0008] The visual sensor is used to collect the position image of the vehicle charging port to assist in locating the position of the charging port cover and the charging socket;

[0009] The clamp includes at least two branch structures, one end of which is used to clamp the charging plug, and the other end of which is used to open and / or close the charging port cover.

[0010] Optionally, the clamp is in a T-shaped or Y-shaped branch structure; a clamping mechanism for fixing the charging plug is provided at one end of the branch structure, and the other end of the branch structure is provided with a horizontal hook.

[0011] Optionally, a visual sensor is further provided on the other end of the clamp, and the visual sensor includes: a binocular camera.

[0012] Optionally, the orientation of the lens of the visual sensor is consistent with the orientation of the charging plug.

[0013] Optionally, a movable joint that rotates along the pitch angle direction is provided at the connection between the clamp and the mechanical arm;

[0014] When the movable joint is at a first angle, the end of the clamp holding the charging plug faces the charging port of the vehicle;

[0015] When the movable joint is at the second angle, the other end of the clamp faces the charging port of the car.

[0016] Optionally, the robotic arm includes: a first joint, a second joint, and a third joint, the lower end of the first joint is fixedly connected to the base, the upper end of the first joint is movably connected to one end of the second joint, the other end of the second joint is movably connected to one end of the third joint, and the other end of the third joint is movably connected to the clamp.

[0017] Optionally, between the first joint and the second joint, a first driving motor drives the second joint to rotate within a preset first angle range;

[0018] Between the second joint and the third joint, the third joint is driven by a second driving motor to rotate within a preset second angle range.

[0019] Optionally, it further comprises: a control cabinet, wherein a processor in the control cabinet is communicatively connected with the drive motor and the visual sensor;

[0020] The visual sensor sends an image including the position of the vehicle charging port to the processor, the processor generates a first control instruction, and sends the first control instruction to the drive motor;

[0021] The driving motor controls the fixture at the end of the robotic arm to complete the following operations according to the first control instruction:

[0022] Open the charging port cover;

[0023] Insert the charging plug into the charging port.

[0024] Optionally, the processor is further provided with a monitoring module for monitoring the battery power of the vehicle. When an electrical connection is established between the charging plug and the charging port, the monitoring module monitors the battery power of the vehicle in real time.

[0025] Optionally, when the car is fully charged, the processor is further configured to send a second control instruction to the drive motor;

[0026] The driving motor controls the clamp at the end of the robotic arm to complete the following operations according to the second control instruction:

[0027] Unplug the charging plug;

[0028] Close the charging port cover.

[0029] Compared with the prior art, the present invention has the following beneficial effects:

[0030] The intelligent charging robot for new energy vehicles provided in the present application comprises a base, a mechanical arm, a driving motor, a fixture, and a visual sensor. The driving motor is electrically connected to each joint of the mechanical arm, and the fixture and the visual sensor are located at the end of the mechanical arm; wherein: the driving motor is used to drive each joint of the mechanical arm to rotate to a preset angle; the visual sensor is used to collect the position image of the car charging port to assist in locating the position of the charging port cover and the charging socket; the fixture comprises at least two branch structures, one end is used to clamp the charging plug, and the other end is used to open / close the charging port cover. Thus, a fixture can be flexibly controlled to open / close the charging port cover, as well as to plug and unplug the charging head, which greatly simplifies the execution steps and mechanical structure of the robot, is easy to operate, has a high degree of automation, reduces the requirements for fixed-point parking, and does not require the driver to get off the vehicle to operate, has high safety, and provides a good user experience. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0031] In order to more clearly illustrate the embodiments of the present invention or the technical solutions in the prior art, the following will briefly introduce the drawings required for use in the embodiments or the prior art descriptions. Obviously, the drawings in the following descriptions are only embodiments of the present invention. For ordinary technicians in this field, other drawings can be obtained based on the provided drawings without creative work. By reading the detailed description of the non-limiting embodiments with reference to the following drawings, other features, purposes and advantages of the present invention will become more obvious:

[0032] Figure 1 The application scenario of the embodiment of the present application is shown as follows: Figure 1 ;

[0033] Figure 2 The application scenario of the embodiment of the present application is shown as follows: Figure 2 ;

[0034] Figure 3 A schematic diagram of the structure of an intelligent charging robot applied to new energy vehicles provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0035] Figure 4 A partially enlarged schematic diagram of the end of a robotic arm provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0036] Figure 5 The clamp state diagram provided in this embodiment Figure 1 ;

[0037] Figure 6 The clamp state diagram provided in this embodiment Figure 2 ;

[0038] Figure 7 The clamp state diagram provided in this embodiment Figure 3 ;

[0039] Figure 8 A side view of an intelligent charging robot applied to a new energy vehicle provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0040] Fig. 9 A top view of an intelligent charging robot applied to new energy vehicles provided in an embodiment of the present application.

[0041] In the figure:

[0042] 101-charging shed, 102-charging pile, 103-electric car, 200-intelligent charging robot, 201-base, 202-first joint, 203-first drive motor, 204-second joint, 205-second drive motor, 206-third joint, 207-third drive motor, 208-first branch, 209-visual sensor, 210-charging plug, 211-control cabinet. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0043] In order to make the purpose, technical solution and advantages of the embodiments of the present application clearer, the technical solution in the embodiments of the present application will be clearly and completely described below in conjunction with the drawings in the embodiments of the present application. Obviously, the described embodiments are part of the embodiments of the present application, not all of the embodiments. Based on the embodiments in the present application, all other embodiments obtained by ordinary technicians in this field without creative work are within the scope of protection of this application.

[0044] It should be noted that when a component is said to be "fixed to" another component, it can be directly on the other component or there can be a central component. When a component is said to be "connected to" another component, it can be directly connected to the other component or there can be a central component at the same time.

[0045] Unless otherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as those commonly understood by those skilled in the art to which this application belongs. The terms used herein in the specification of this application are only for the purpose of describing specific embodiments and are not intended to limit this application. The term "and / or" used herein includes any and all combinations of one or more of the related listed items.

[0046] The terms "first", "second", "third", "fourth", etc. (if any) in the specification and claims of the present invention and the above-mentioned drawings are used to distinguish similar objects, and are not necessarily used to describe a specific order or sequence. It should be understood that the data used in this way can be interchanged where appropriate, so that the embodiments of the present invention described herein, for example, can be implemented in an order other than those illustrated or described herein. In addition, the terms "including" and "having" and any variations thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusions, for example, a process, method, system, product or device that includes a series of steps or units is not necessarily limited to those steps or units that are clearly listed, but may include other steps or units that are not clearly listed or inherent to these processes, methods, products or devices.

[0047] The following specific embodiments are used to describe in detail the technical solution of the present invention and how the technical solution of the present application solves the above technical problems. The following specific embodiments can be combined with each other, and the same or similar concepts or processes may not be repeated in some embodiments.

[0048] In conjunction with the accompanying drawings, some embodiments of the present application are described in detail below. In the absence of conflict, the following embodiments and features in the embodiments can be combined with each other.

[0049] Figure 1 The application scenario of the embodiment of the present application is shown as follows: Figure 1 ,like Figure 1 As shown, in an open-air parking lot, a plurality of parking spaces are arranged on one side of the passage, and a charging shed 101 and a charging pile 102 are arranged between every two parking spaces. When an electric car 103 is parked at a preset parking position, the intelligent charging robot in the charging shed 101 will align the charging head it carries with the charging port of the car, and automatically plug in the battery gun for charging. After charging is completed, the charging head will be automatically unplugged, and finally the charging cover of the car will be closed.

[0050] Figure 2 The application scenario of the embodiment of the present application is shown as follows: Figure 2 ,like Figure 2As shown, in an underground parking lot or an indoor parking lot, there is no need to set up a shelter for the intelligent charging robot 200. This is because the outdoor ambient light can easily cause light interference to the visual sensing system of the intelligent charging robot 200, thereby affecting the recognition accuracy of the intelligent charging robot 200 for the position of the car charging port. In an indoor environment, the impact of indoor ambient light interference is almost negligible, so there is no need to set up a shelter.

[0051] It should be noted that the intelligent charging robot 200 in this embodiment can be a mobile robot, for example, its own chassis is equipped with a mobile system, or it can be moved with the help of slide rails on the ground, so as to flexibly adapt to the charging port positions of different models of cars.

[0052] An embodiment of the present application provides an intelligent charging robot applied to new energy vehicles, including: a base, a robotic arm, a drive motor, a clamp, and a visual sensor. The robotic arm is tightly connected to the base, the drive motor is electrically connected to each joint of the robotic arm, and the clamp and the visual sensor are located at the end of the robotic arm; wherein: the drive motor is used to drive each joint of the robotic arm to rotate to a preset angle; the visual sensor is used to collect a position image of the vehicle charging port to assist in locating the position of the charging port cover and the charging socket; the clamp includes at least two branch structures, one end of which is used to clamp the charging plug, and the other end is used to open and / or close the charging port cover.

[0053] In this embodiment, the motor drives each joint of the robot arm to rotate to a preset angle; the visual sensor collects the position image of the car charging port to assist in locating the position of the charging port cover and the charging socket; one end of the two branches of the clamp is used to clamp the charging plug, and the other end is used to open / close the charging port cover. In this way, a clamp can be flexibly controlled to open / close the charging port cover and plug and unplug the charging head, which greatly simplifies the execution steps and mechanical structure of the robot, is easy to operate, has a high degree of automation, reduces the requirements for fixed-point parking, and does not require the driver to get off the vehicle to operate, has high safety, and provides a good user experience.

[0054] Figure 3 A schematic diagram of the structure of an intelligent charging robot applied to new energy vehicles provided in an embodiment of the present application is shown in FIG. Figure 3As shown, the intelligent charging robot 200 in this embodiment may include: a base 201, a first joint 202, a second joint 204, and a third joint 206. The lower end of the first joint 202 is firmly connected to the base 201, the upper end of the first joint 202 is movably connected to one end of the second joint 204, the other end of the second joint 204 is movably connected to one end 206 of the third joint, and the other end of the third joint 206 is movably connected to the fixture. Between the first joint 202 and the second joint 204, the second joint 204 is driven to rotate within a preset first angle range by the first drive motor 203; between the second joint 204 and the third joint 206, the third joint 206 is driven to rotate within a preset second angle range by the second drive motor 205. The movable joint between the fixture and the third joint 206 is driven by the third drive motor 207 to control the fixture to rotate within the pitch angle range.

[0055] For example, see Figure 3 The fixture includes a first branch mechanism 208 and a second branch mechanism, wherein the first branch mechanism 208 is used to open and / or close the charging port cover, and the second branch mechanism is used to clamp the charging plug 210, or fix the charging plug through a ring buckle. The visual sensor 209 is set on the first branch mechanism 208, and is used to collect the position image of the vehicle charging port to assist in locating the position of the charging port cover and the charging socket.

[0056] Exemplarily, the clamp in this embodiment can be designed as a T-shaped or Y-shaped branch structure; a clamping mechanism for fixing the charging plug is provided at one end of the branch structure, and the other end of the branch structure has a horizontal hook.

[0057] In this embodiment, a T-shaped or Y-shaped branch structure is set to facilitate the switching of different branch ends when the clamp moves within the depression angle range. There is no need to replace the clamp or take and place the charging plug. It has high flexibility, greatly reduces the operating movements of the robot arm, and improves the efficiency of plugging and unplugging, and opening and closing the charging port cover.

[0058] After testing and verification, in this embodiment, the success rate of plugging and unplugging the charging gun is higher than 99%, the plugging and unplugging efficiency is high, and the time from charging port positioning to plugging and unplugging is less than 30 seconds. In addition, the process of opening and closing the vehicle's charging port cover and plugging and unplugging the charging gun is very smooth, and there will be no jamming or stucking.

[0059] Exemplarily, the visual sensor includes: a binocular camera. In this embodiment, the binocular camera is used to collect an image including the position of the vehicle charging port, thereby improving the recognition accuracy of the charging port position and ensuring the subsequent operation accuracy of the robotic arm.

[0060] Figure 4A partial enlarged schematic diagram of the end of the robotic arm provided in an embodiment of the present application, such as Figure 4 As shown, the first branch 208 is vertically connected to the second branch to form a T-shape. There is a horizontal hook (crossbar) on the far end of the first branch 208, which is used to assist in opening or closing the cover of the car charging port. The second branch has a ring buckle for fixing the charging plug 210, and the lens direction of the visual sensor 209 is consistent with the direction of the charging plug 210. The advantage of this design is that when the charging plug 210 is aligned with the charging port position, the visual sensor 209 can collect images, reducing the control steps of the robotic arm fixture and completing a series of image acquisition tasks in one action.

[0061] Figure 5 The clamp state diagram provided in this embodiment Figure 1 , Figure 6 The clamp state diagram provided in this embodiment Figure 2 , Figure 7 The clamp state diagram provided in this embodiment Figure 3 . Combined Figure 5 to Figure 7 As shown, when the movable joint is at the first angle, the second branch of the clamp holding the charging plug 210 is directed toward the vehicle charging port. At this time, the visual sensor 209 collects an image containing the position of the vehicle charging port (such as Figure 7 When the movable joint is at the second angle, the first branch mechanism 208 of the clamp faces the vehicle charging port, and after determining the position of the vehicle charging port, the first branch mechanism 208 on the clamp is controlled by the robot arm to open the charging port cover (as shown in FIG. Figure 5 When the charging port cover is opened, see Figure 6 In the direction shown, the clamp is adjusted so that the second branch of the clamp carries the charging plug 210 and is aligned with the charging port of the vehicle.

[0062] Figure 8 A side view of an intelligent charging robot applied to a new energy vehicle provided in an embodiment of the present application, as shown in 8, the intelligent charging robot in this embodiment also includes: a control cabinet 211, a processor in the control cabinet is communicatively connected with a drive motor and a visual sensor; the visual sensor sends an image containing the position of the vehicle charging port to the processor, the processor generates a first control instruction, and sends the first control instruction to the drive motor; the drive motor, according to the first control instruction, controls the fixture at the end of the robotic arm to complete the following operations:

[0063] Open the charging port cover;

[0064] Insert the charging plug into the charging port.

[0065] Exemplarily, the processor is also provided with a monitoring module for monitoring the battery power of the vehicle. When an electrical connection is established between the charging plug and the charging port, the monitoring module monitors the battery power of the vehicle in real time.

[0066] Exemplarily, when the car is fully charged, the processor is further configured to send a second control instruction to the drive motor; the drive motor controls the fixture at the end of the robotic arm to perform the following operations according to the second control instruction:

[0067] Unplug the charging plug;

[0068] Close the charging port cover.

[0069] Fig. 9 A top view of an intelligent charging robot for new energy vehicles provided in an embodiment of the present application, such as Fig. 9 As shown, the base 210 of the intelligent charging robot is electrically connected to the control cabinet 211 through a bus, so as to realize communication between the processor in the control cabinet and the drive motor and the visual sensor, and to supply power to the drive motor.

[0070] In this embodiment, the processor in the control cabinet can control the on and off of the current and voltage of the charging gun, and according to the instructions of the on-site system, complete the actions of power off before plugging the gun, power on after plugging the gun, and automatically power off before unplugging the gun. In addition, the processor in the control cabinet can also report abnormal charging conditions in a timely manner.

[0071] In this specification, each embodiment is described in a progressive manner, and each embodiment focuses on the differences from other embodiments, and the same and similar parts between the embodiments can be referred to each other. The above description of the disclosed embodiments enables professionals and technicians in this field to implement or use the present invention. Various modifications to these embodiments will be obvious to professionals and technicians in this field, and the general principles defined herein can be implemented in other embodiments without departing from the spirit or scope of the present invention. Therefore, the present invention will not be limited to these embodiments shown in this article, but will comply with the widest range consistent with the principles and novel features disclosed herein.

[0072] The above describes the specific embodiments of the present invention. It should be understood that the present invention is not limited to the above specific embodiments, and those skilled in the art may make various modifications or variations within the scope of the claims, which do not affect the essence of the present invention.

Claims

1. An intelligent charging robot applied to new energy vehicles, characterized in that: include: A base, a mechanical arm, a driving motor, a fixture, and a visual sensor, wherein the mechanical arm is firmly connected to the base, the driving motor is electrically connected to each joint of the mechanical arm, and the fixture and the visual sensor are located at the end of the mechanical arm; wherein: The driving motor is used to drive each joint of the robotic arm to rotate to a preset angle; The visual sensor is used to collect the position image of the vehicle charging port to assist in locating the position of the charging port cover and the charging socket; The clamp includes at least two branch structures, one end of which is used to clamp the charging plug, and the other end of which is used to open and / or close the charging port cover.

2. The intelligent charging robot for new energy vehicles according to claim 1 is characterized in that: The clamp is in a T-shaped or Y-shaped branch structure; a clamping mechanism for fixing the charging plug is provided at one end of the branch structure, and the other end of the branch structure is provided with a horizontal hook.

3. The intelligent charging robot for new energy vehicles according to claim 1 is characterized in that: A visual sensor is also arranged on the other end of the clamp, and the visual sensor comprises a binocular camera.

4. The intelligent charging robot for new energy vehicles according to claim 3 is characterized in that: The orientation of the lens of the visual sensor is consistent with the orientation of the charging plug.

5. The intelligent charging robot for new energy vehicles according to claim 1, characterized in that: A movable joint that rotates along the pitch angle direction is provided at the connection between the clamp and the mechanical arm; When the movable joint is at a first angle, the end of the clamp holding the charging plug faces the charging port of the vehicle; When the movable joint is at the second angle, the other end of the clamp faces the charging port of the car.

6. The intelligent charging robot applied to new energy vehicles according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that: The robotic arm includes: a first joint, a second joint, and a third joint. The lower end of the first joint is fixedly connected to the base, the upper end of the first joint is movably connected to one end of the second joint, the other end of the second joint is movably connected to one end of the third joint, and the other end of the third joint is movably connected to the clamp.

7. The intelligent charging robot for new energy vehicles according to claim 6, characterized in that: Between the first joint and the second joint, the second joint is driven to rotate within a preset first angle range by a first driving motor; Between the second joint and the third joint, the third joint is driven by a second driving motor to rotate within a preset second angle range.

8. The intelligent charging robot applied to new energy vehicles according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that: Also includes: A control cabinet, wherein a processor in the control cabinet is communicatively connected with the drive motor and the visual sensor; The visual sensor sends an image including the position of the vehicle charging port to the processor, the processor generates a first control instruction, and sends the first control instruction to the drive motor; The driving motor controls the fixture at the end of the robotic arm to complete the following operations according to the first control instruction: Open the charging port cover; Insert the charging plug into the charging port.

9. The intelligent charging robot for new energy vehicles according to claim 8, characterized in that: The processor is also provided with a monitoring module for monitoring the battery power of the vehicle. When the charging plug is electrically connected to the charging port, the monitoring module monitors the battery power of the vehicle in real time.

10. The intelligent charging robot for new energy vehicles according to claim 8, characterized in that: When the car is fully charged, the processor is further configured to send a second control instruction to the drive motor; The driving motor controls the clamp at the end of the robotic arm to complete the following operations according to the second control instruction: Unplug the charging plug; Close the charging port cover.

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