A control method for collaborative automatic transportation of two driverless vehicles and a driverless vehicle

Abstract

A control method for collaborative automatic transportation of two driverless vehicles. The area where it is applied includes the main road and the branch roads connected to it. The terminal of the branch road is the warehouse, and the intersection of the starting end of the branch road and the main road is the intersection. The road surface of the intersection is set with warehouse numbers. At the same time, it is specified that more than one driverless transport vehicle is used for transportation, mostly two or multiple vehicles for transportation. The control method includes the control algorithm for the first vehicle and the control algorithm for the second vehicle to achieve the coordination of two or multiple vehicles and realize the automatic transportation of all vehicles. The driverless vehicle includes a main control module and a motor drive module, a vision detection and recognition module, and a wireless communication module that are signal-connected to it. Among them, the motor drive module includes a motor drive unit and an encoder. This design can not only coordinate the automatic transportation of two or multiple vehicles, but also has a high transportation efficiency.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a control method for unmanned transportation, belonging to the field of driverless transport vehicles, and particularly relates to a control method for collaborative automatic transport of two driverless vehicles and a driverless vehicle. Background Art

[0002] Currently, with the continuous growth of the e-commerce economy, the demand for warehousing goods transportation is also increasing. At the same time, with the advent of the information age, driverless technology is also more and more widely used. Therefore, driverless transport vehicles are getting more and more attention.

[0003] However, in a large warehouse area (open space or enclosed large warehouse), more than just a single driverless vehicle will be used on site. Often two or more driverless vehicles participate in the transportation. At this time, a problem will be faced, that is, how to coordinate two or more driverless transport vehicles to work effectively. Otherwise, not only can automatic transportation not be achieved to improve transportation efficiency, but obstacles will occur, and even accidents will occur, which will damage the efficiency.

[0004] The invention patent application with the application number 201811638745.5 and the application publication date of May 7, 2019 discloses a scheduling method and device for unmanned transport vehicles based on an intelligent warehouse. The method includes: the user terminal system reads the label information and the goods position information of the RFID label pasted on the goods to be warehoused and / or to be out of the warehouse based on a label reader; the user terminal system transmits the label information and the goods position information to the warehouse management system based on Ethernet; after receiving the label information and the goods position information, the warehouse management system generates a transport instruction and transmits the transport instruction to the unmanned transport vehicle management system based on Ethernet; the unmanned transport vehicle management system analyzes the transport instruction and determines whether there is an idle unmanned transport vehicle that is not in energy-saving sleep and can execute the transport instruction during the current time period; if so, the unmanned transport vehicle management system controls the idle unmanned transport vehicle to complete the transport task in the transport instruction. Although this application schedules the unmanned transport vehicle in order to improve the transport efficiency, it has the following defects:

[0005] This application does not specifically introduce how the unmanned transport vehicle management system controls the unmanned transport vehicle to perform transportation, especially lacks an introduction on how to coordinate the cooperation between two unmanned transport vehicles or more unmanned transport vehicles, and it is difficult to achieve true two-vehicle or multi-vehicle automatic transportation, resulting in low transport efficiency.

[0006] Disclosing the information in this background art section is only intended to increase the understanding of the overall background of the present application, and should not be regarded as an admission or any form of implication that this information constitutes the prior art already known to those of ordinary skill in the art. Summary of the Invention

[0007] The object of the present invention is to overcome the defects and problems in the prior art that it is impossible to coordinate two or more vehicles for automatic transportation and the transportation efficiency is not high, and to provide a control method for unmanned two-vehicle collaborative automatic transportation and an unmanned vehicle that can coordinate two or more vehicles for automatic transportation and has a relatively high transportation efficiency.

[0008] To achieve the above object, the technical solution of the present invention is: a control method for unmanned two-vehicle collaborative automatic transportation, the control method includes a control algorithm for the first vehicle and a control algorithm for the second vehicle: the area where the automatic transportation is located includes a main road and a branch road connected thereto, the terminal of the branch road is a warehouse, and the intersection of the starting end of the branch road and the main road is a road intersection, and a warehouse number is set on the road surface of the intersection.

[0009] The control algorithm for the first vehicle includes: first, perform vehicle preparation operation on the first vehicle. At this time, the first vehicle is loaded with goods, and then judge whether it is in the two-vehicle mode. If so, send a confirmation signal to the second vehicle, and then until the target warehouse data of the second vehicle is received, then judge whether the two vehicles go to the same warehouse. If not, accept the driving command and start driving until reaching the intersection, then identify the warehouse number on the road surface and judge whether it is the first time to identify the warehouse number. If not, continue to identify the warehouse number on the road surface. If so, first send a driving command and the target warehouse data of the first vehicle to the second vehicle, then continue to identify the warehouse number on the road surface, and then judge whether there is a target warehouse number. If not, the first vehicle continues to drive. If so, the first vehicle performs a warehouse search operation, then enters the target warehouse, lights up a red light, and then starts unloading the goods until the unloading is completed. Then judge whether the target warehouse position of the first vehicle is farther than that of the second vehicle. If not, turn off the red light and return according to the memory route until returning to the initial position, and then send a return command to the second vehicle to end.

[0010] The control algorithm for the second vehicle includes: first, perform vehicle preparation operation on the second vehicle. At this time, the second vehicle is loaded with goods or empty, and then judge whether the confirmation signal of the first vehicle is received. Until it is received, then send the target warehouse data of the vehicle itself to the first vehicle, and then judge whether the driving command of the first vehicle is received. Until it is received, then start driving, and then identify the warehouse number on the road surface at each intersection, and then judge whether there is a target warehouse number. If not, the second vehicle continues to drive. If so, the second vehicle performs a warehouse search operation, then enters the target warehouse, lights up a blue light, and then starts unloading or loading the goods until the unloading or loading is completed. Then judge whether the target warehouse data of the first vehicle is received. Until it is received, then judge whether the two vehicles go to the same warehouse. If not, then judge whether the return command of the first vehicle is received. Until it is received, then turn off the blue light and return according to the memory route until returning to the initial position to end.

[0011] The control algorithm of the first vehicle further includes: when determining whether the target warehouse location of the first vehicle is farther than that of the second vehicle, if so, first send a return command to the second vehicle, then turn off the red light, and return along the memorized route until returning to the initial position, and then end.

[0012] The control algorithm of the first vehicle further includes: when determining whether the two vehicles are going to the same warehouse, if so, first receive the driving command of the first vehicle, then start driving, then identify the warehouse numbers on the road surface at each intersection, and then determine whether there is a target warehouse number. If not, the first vehicle continues to move. If so, the first vehicle performs a warehouse search operation, then enters the target warehouse, lights up the red light, and then starts unloading until the unloading is completed. Then turn off the red light and return along the memorized route until returning to the initial position, and then send a driving command and the target warehouse data of the first vehicle to the second vehicle, and then end;

[0013] The control algorithm of the second vehicle further includes: when determining whether the two vehicles are going to the same warehouse, if so, first turn off the blue light, and then return along the memorized route until returning to the initial position, and then end.

[0014] The control algorithm of the first vehicle further includes: when determining whether it is in the two-vehicle mode, if not, first receive the driving command of the first vehicle, then start driving, then identify the warehouse numbers on the road surface at each intersection, and then determine whether there is a target warehouse number. If not, the first vehicle continues to move. If so, the first vehicle performs a warehouse search operation, then enters the target warehouse, lights up the red light, and then starts unloading until the unloading is completed. Then turn off the red light and return along the memorized route, and then end.

[0015] The warehouse search operation refers to: first determine whether the target warehouse is on the right side of the intersection. If so, turn right and enter the right branch road. If not, turn left and enter the left branch road, and then continue driving until entering the target warehouse.

[0016] The standby vehicle operation refers to: first start the first vehicle or the second vehicle, then initialize the on-vehicle system, and then receive the target warehouse number.

[0017] There are six target warehouses, namely the first warehouse, the second warehouse, the third warehouse, the fourth warehouse, the fifth warehouse, and the sixth warehouse. The branch roads correspond to the warehouses one by one, namely the first branch road, the second branch road, the third branch road, the fourth branch road, the fifth branch road, and the sixth branch road. Among them, the first branch road and the second branch road are opposite to each other left and right, the third branch road and the fourth branch road are opposite to each other left and right, and the fifth branch road and the sixth branch road are opposite to each other left and right.

[0018] An unmanned vehicle, which is the first vehicle or the second vehicle in the control method for collaborative automatic transportation of the above-mentioned unmanned two-vehicle;

[0019] The driverless vehicle includes a power supply, and a main control module, a motor drive module, a vision detection and recognition module, and a wireless communication module connected thereto. The motor drive module includes a motor drive unit and an encoder;

[0020] The motor drive module, the wireless communication module, and the vision detection and recognition module are all signal-connected to the main control module, and the two vehicles communicate with each other through the wireless communication module.

[0021] The main control module is STM32F103RCT6. The vision detection and recognition module includes a K210 camera and an OpenMV camera. The K210 camera is used for the operation of identifying the warehouse number on the road surface, and the OpenMV camera is used for automatic path finding when the first vehicle or the second vehicle is driving.

[0022] The automatic path finding means first using the OpenMV camera to collect the guiding line on the main road, and then performing binaryzation processing on the collected image. This processing includes using the maximum between-class variance method to select the binaryzation threshold of the image, and then using the linear regression algorithm of computer vision to find the line, so as to find the trajectory of the guiding line, thereby finding the guiding line, and then providing feedback information to the main control module, and then the main control module controls the operation of the motor drive module to achieve automatic path finding.

[0023] Compared with the prior art, the beneficial effects of the present invention are:

[0024] 1. In the control method for collaborative automatic transportation of two driverless vehicles and the driverless vehicle of the present invention, based on a warehouse area with multiple intersections and multiple warehouses, at the same time, it is limited that more than one driverless transport vehicle is used for transportation, mostly in the scenario of two vehicles or multiple vehicles for transportation, and the control method of the driverless transport vehicle is designed to achieve the coordination of two vehicles or multiple vehicles and realize the automatic transportation of all vehicles, thereby improving the transportation efficiency. Its main advantages include:

[0025] The first point: The entire control method includes a control algorithm for the first vehicle and a control algorithm for the second vehicle to control the two vehicles simultaneously, pays attention to the communication between the two vehicles to achieve the coordination of the two vehicles, ensures that both can perform automatic transportation, and moreover, can be based on the coordination of the two vehicles to superimpose similar control algorithms to achieve the automatic transportation of multiple vehicles;

[0026] The second point: Warehouse number identification signs are set on the road surface at each intersection, so that the judgment of warehouse identification can be carried out at the intersection, so as to introduce a judgment node, thereby guiding the control algorithms of the first vehicle and the second vehicle to ensure the smooth progress of the overall control method and avoid interference between the first vehicle and the second vehicle as much as possible in the general direction;

[0027] Third point: Using the confirmation signal, target warehouse data, driving command, and return command as the signal nodes for communication between the two vehicles can not only enable the two vehicles to know each other's information, but also control the movement of the two vehicles through these signal nodes to achieve orderly scheduling and truly realize the coordination of the two vehicles;

[0028] Fourth point: During the execution of the control algorithms for Vehicle No. 1 and Vehicle No. 2, multiple judgments involving the two vehicles will be made, such as whether they are going to the same warehouse? Is the warehouse location of Vehicle No. 1 farther than that of Vehicle No. 2? Are the two vehicles going to the same warehouse? etc. These judgments can not only direct the corresponding vehicles to perform corresponding operations, but also, based on the above-mentioned multiple signal nodes, control the order of the two vehicles at a higher level, which is more conducive to realizing the coordination of the two vehicles;

[0029] Therefore, the present invention can not only coordinate the automatic transportation of two or more vehicles, but also has a relatively high transportation efficiency.

[0030] 2. In the control method for the collaborative automatic transportation of two driverless vehicles and the driverless vehicle of the present invention, on the premise that the goals of the two vehicles are inconsistent, the distance between the target warehouses of the two vehicles will be further considered to send a return command to Vehicle No. 2 at different times to achieve the coordination between Vehicle No. 2 and Vehicle No. 1, thereby improving the integrity of the control algorithm and further enhancing the accuracy and application scope of the entire control method. Therefore, the present invention has a relatively high accuracy and a wide adaptation range.

[0031] 3. In the control method for the collaborative automatic transportation of two driverless vehicles and the driverless vehicle of the present invention, on the premise that the goals of the two vehicles are consistent, the preceding Vehicle No. 1 is used as the basis for the entire control algorithm, and a driving command is sent to Vehicle No. 2 only until Vehicle No. 1 returns to the initial position. This design can not only completely avoid the interference between Vehicle No. 1 and Vehicle No. 2, but also fit this possible control algorithm with other control algorithms to the greatest extent, so as to be summarized into an overall control method for wide application on driverless transport vehicles. Therefore, the present invention considers a relatively complete range of possibilities and has strong adaptability.

[0032] 4. In the control method for the collaborative automatic transportation of two driverless vehicles and the driverless vehicle of the present invention, in addition to the collaboration of the two vehicles, the single-vehicle mode of Vehicle No. 1 is also compatible to avoid the situation of single-vehicle operation in practice, thereby further expanding the application scope of this control method to truly realize the collaborative transportation of two or more vehicles in various situations. Therefore, the present invention has a wide application scope.

[0033] 5. In the control method for collaborative automatic transportation of two driverless vehicles and the driverless vehicle of the present invention, to achieve the collaborative transportation of two or more vehicles, preferably, the driverless vehicle includes a power supply and a main control module, a motor drive module, a vision detection and recognition module (preferably including a K210 camera and an OpenMV camera), and a wireless communication module (preferably ZigBee) connected thereto. Among them, the motor drive module includes a motor drive unit and an encoder; the motor drive module, the wireless communication module, and the vision detection and recognition module are all connected to the main control module for signal connection. The two vehicles communicate with each other through the wireless communication module. During application, the K210 camera is used to identify numbers and find corresponding numbers and send the recognition information to the main control module through the serial port, so as to enter the corresponding warehouse. The OpenMV camera is used for path tracking to prevent the vehicle from deviating from the predetermined track and make it drive along the guiding line. The communication between the first vehicle and the second vehicle is completed through ZigBee to achieve the effect of collaborative transportation of the two vehicles. In addition, the main control module designs a speed closed-loop control system for the vehicle based on the information fed back by the motor encoder to achieve precise control of the transportation distance, so that each system on the vehicle can, under the coordination of the main control module, achieve vehicle speed control walking, warehouse number recognition, and automatic vehicle path finding, thereby facilitating the realization of the collaboration of two or more vehicles and achieving true automatic transportation. Therefore, the hardware system of the present invention can support the implementation of the control method, thereby coordinating two or more vehicles for automatic transportation and improving the transportation efficiency. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0034] Figure 1 is a flowchart of the control algorithm of the first vehicle in the present invention.

[0035] Figure 2 is Figure 1 an enlarged schematic diagram of a part of

[0036] Figure 3 is Figure 1 an enlarged schematic diagram of another part of

[0037] Figure 4 is Figure 1 an enlarged schematic diagram of yet another part of

[0038] Figure 5 is a flowchart of the control algorithm of the second vehicle in the present invention.

[0039] Figure 6 is Figure 5 an enlarged schematic diagram of a part of

[0040] Figure 7 is Figure 5 an enlarged schematic diagram of another part of

[0041] Figure 8 is a schematic structural diagram of the driverless vehicle in the present invention.

[0042] Figure 9 It is a schematic plan view of the warehouse area to which the present invention is applied. Specific embodiments

[0043] The present invention will be further described in detail below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments.

[0044] See Figure 1 — Figure 9 , a control method for unmanned dual-vehicle collaborative automatic transportation, the control method includes a control algorithm for the first vehicle and a control algorithm for the second vehicle: the area where the automatic transportation is located includes a main road and branch roads connected thereto, the terminal of the branch road is a warehouse, and the intersection of the starting end of the branch road and the main road is a road intersection, and a warehouse number is set on the road surface of the intersection;

[0045] The control algorithm for the first vehicle includes: first performing vehicle preparation operation on the first vehicle, at this time, the first vehicle is loading goods, then judging whether it is in dual-vehicle mode, if so, sending a confirmation signal to the second vehicle, and then until receiving the target warehouse data of the second vehicle, then judging whether the two vehicles go to the same warehouse, if not, accepting the driving command, starting to drive, until reaching the intersection, then identifying the warehouse number on the road surface, and judging whether it is the first time to identify the warehouse number, if not, continuing to identify the warehouse number on the road surface, if so, first sending a driving command to the second vehicle and the target warehouse data of the first vehicle, then continuing to identify the warehouse number on the road surface, and then judging whether there is a target warehouse number, if not, the first vehicle continues to drive, if so, the first vehicle performs a warehouse search operation, then enters the target warehouse, and lights up a red light, then starts unloading goods, until the unloading is completed, then judging whether the target warehouse position of the first vehicle is farther than that of the second vehicle, if not, turning off the red light, and returning according to the memory route until returning to the initial position, then sending a return command to the second vehicle, and ending;

[0046] The control algorithm for the second vehicle includes: first performing vehicle preparation operation on the second vehicle, at this time, the second vehicle is loading goods or empty, then judging whether it receives the confirmation signal of the first vehicle, until receiving it, then sending the target warehouse data of this vehicle to the first vehicle, then judging whether it receives the driving command of the first vehicle, until receiving it, then starting to drive, then identifying the warehouse number on the road surface at each intersection, and then judging whether there is a target warehouse number, if not, the second vehicle continues to drive, if so, the second vehicle performs a warehouse search operation, then enters the target warehouse, and lights up a blue light, then starts unloading or loading goods, until the unloading or loading is completed, then judging whether it receives the target warehouse data of the first vehicle, until receiving it, then judging whether the two vehicles go to the same warehouse, if not, then judging whether it receives the return command of the first vehicle, until receiving it, then turning off the blue light, and returning according to the memory route until returning to the initial position, and ending.

[0047] The control algorithm of the first vehicle further includes: when determining whether the target warehouse location of the first vehicle is farther than that of the second vehicle, if so, first send a return command to the second vehicle, then turn off the red light, and return according to the memorized route until returning to the initial position, and then end.

[0048] The control algorithm of the first vehicle further includes: when determining whether the two vehicles are going to the same warehouse, if so, first receive the driving command of the first vehicle, then start driving, and then identify the warehouse numbers on the road surface at each intersection, and then determine whether there is a target warehouse number. If not, the first vehicle continues to move forward. If so, the first vehicle performs a warehouse search operation, then enters the target warehouse, turns on the red light, and then starts unloading until the unloading is completed. Then turn off the red light and return according to the memorized route until returning to the initial position, and then send a driving command and the target warehouse data of the first vehicle to the second vehicle, and then end;

[0049] The control algorithm of the second vehicle further includes: when determining whether the two vehicles are going to the same warehouse, if so, first turn off the blue light, and then return according to the memorized route until returning to the initial position, and then end.

[0050] The control algorithm of the first vehicle further includes: when determining whether it is in the two-vehicle mode, if not, first receive the driving command of the first vehicle, then start driving, and then identify the warehouse numbers on the road surface at each intersection, and then determine whether there is a target warehouse number. If not, the first vehicle continues to move forward. If so, the first vehicle performs a warehouse search operation, then enters the target warehouse, turns on the red light, and then starts unloading until the unloading is completed. Then turn off the red light and return according to the memorized route, and then end.

[0051] The warehouse search operation refers to: first determining whether the target warehouse is on the right side of the intersection. If so, turn right and enter the right branch road. If not, turn left and enter the left branch road, and then continue driving until entering the target warehouse.

[0052] The standby vehicle operation refers to: first starting the first vehicle or the second vehicle, then initializing the on-vehicle system, and then receiving the target warehouse number.

[0053] There are six target warehouses, namely the first warehouse, the second warehouse, the third warehouse, the fourth warehouse, the fifth warehouse, and the sixth warehouse. The branch roads correspond to the warehouses one by one, namely the first branch road, the second branch road, the third branch road, the fourth branch road, the fifth branch road, and the sixth branch road. Among them, the first branch road and the second branch road are opposite left and right, the third branch road and the fourth branch road are opposite left and right, and the fifth branch road and the sixth branch road are opposite left and right.

[0054] An unmanned vehicle, which is the first vehicle or the second vehicle in the control method for collaborative automatic transportation of the above-mentioned unmanned double vehicles;

[0055] The driverless vehicle includes a power supply and a main control module, a motor drive module, a vision detection and recognition module, and a wireless communication module connected thereto. The motor drive module includes a motor drive unit and an encoder;

[0056] The motor drive module, the wireless communication module, and the vision detection and recognition module are all signal-connected to the main control module, and communication between two vehicles is carried out through the wireless communication module.

[0057] The main control module is STM32F103RCT6. The vision detection and recognition module includes a K210 camera and an OpenMV camera. The K210 camera is used for the operation of identifying the warehouse number on the road surface, and the OpenMV camera is used for automatic path finding when Vehicle 1 or Vehicle 2 is driving.

[0058] The automatic path finding means first using the OpenMV camera to collect the guiding line on the main road, and then performing binarization processing on the collected image. This processing includes using the Otsu method to select the binarization threshold of the image, and then using the linear regression algorithm of computer vision to find the line, so as to find the trajectory of the guiding line, and then find the guiding line, and then provide feedback information to the main control module, and then the main control module controls the operation of the motor drive module to achieve automatic path finding. The corresponding code name of the Otsu method in the present invention is Otsu, and the corresponding code name of linear regression is LinearClassification.

[0059] The supplementary technical features of the present invention are as follows:

[0060] The present invention is based on a warehouse area with multiple intersections and multiple warehouses. Among them, the main road is bounded by solid lines (preferably a single lane, which can better highlight the advantages of the present invention), and a guiding line for autonomous driving is set in the main road (represented by a dotted line). At the same time, warehouse identification signs are set on the left and right sides of each intersection (such as Figure 9 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 at the middle intersection) to identify warehouses or directions for autonomous driving. The warehouse identification signs are preferably drawn on the road surface (the warehouse number and the corresponding warehouse identification sign can be randomly arranged, not limited to as Figure 9 shown, and are determined according to the internal configuration of the distribution center in practice).

[0061] In the present invention, it is preferred that the speeds of Vehicle 1 and Vehicle 2 are the same.

[0062] The target warehouse signal in the present invention, and the driving commands received by Vehicle 1 are preferably input manually on-site or remotely by an operator.

[0063] The corresponding code name of the Otsu method in the present invention is Otsu, and the corresponding code name of linear regression is LinearClassification.

[0064] In the present invention, the main control module is preferably also signal-connected to a display and an infrared sensor.

[0065] Example 1:

[0066] Refer to Figure 1 — Figure 9 , the area where the automatic transportation is located, i.e., the warehouse area, includes the main road and the branch roads connected to it. The terminal of the branch road is the warehouse, and the intersection of the starting end of the branch road and the main road is the intersection. There is a warehouse number (preferably a warehouse identification sign) on the road surface of this intersection. The control method includes a control algorithm for the first vehicle and a control algorithm for the second vehicle;

[0067] The control algorithm for the first vehicle includes: first, perform vehicle preparation operation on the first vehicle. At this time, the first vehicle is loading goods. Then, judge whether it is in the double - vehicle mode. If so, send a confirmation signal to the second vehicle. Then, until the target warehouse data of the second vehicle is received, then judge whether the two vehicles are going to the same warehouse. If not, accept the driving order and start driving until reaching the intersection. Then, identify the warehouse number on the road surface and judge whether it is the first time to identify the warehouse number. If not, continue to identify the warehouse number on the road surface. If so, first send a driving order and the target warehouse data of the first vehicle to the second vehicle, then continue to identify the warehouse number on the road surface, and then judge whether there is a target warehouse number. If not, the first vehicle continues to move. If so, the first vehicle performs a warehouse search operation, then enters the target warehouse, lights up the red light, and then starts unloading goods until the unloading is completed. Then, judge whether the target warehouse position of the first vehicle is farther than that of the second vehicle. If not, turn off the red light and return according to the memory route until returning to the initial position, and then send a return order to the second vehicle to end; Preferably, when judging whether the target warehouse position of the first vehicle is farther than that of the second vehicle, if so, first send a return order to the second vehicle, then turn off the red light, and return according to the memory route until returning to the initial position to end;

[0068] The control algorithm for the second vehicle includes: first, perform vehicle preparation operation on the second vehicle. At this time, the second vehicle is loading goods or empty. Then, judge whether the confirmation signal of the first vehicle is received. Until it is received, then send the target warehouse data of this vehicle to the first vehicle. Then, judge whether the driving order of the first vehicle is received. Until it is received, then start driving, and then identify the warehouse number on the road surface at each intersection, and then judge whether there is a target warehouse number. If not, the second vehicle continues to move. If so, the second vehicle performs a warehouse search operation, then enters the target warehouse, lights up the blue light, and then starts unloading or loading goods until the unloading or loading is completed. Then, judge whether the target warehouse data of the first vehicle is received. Until it is received, then judge whether the two vehicles are going to the same warehouse. If not, then judge whether the return order of the first vehicle is received. Until it is received, then turn off the blue light and return according to the memory route until returning to the initial position to end.

[0069] Example 2:

[0070] The basic content is the same as that of Embodiment 1, with the difference that:

[0071] The driverless vehicle is the first vehicle or the second vehicle in the above control method for collaborative automatic transportation of two driverless vehicles; the driverless vehicle includes a power supply and a main control module, a motor drive module, a vision detection and recognition module, and a wireless communication module connected thereto, and the motor drive module includes a motor drive unit and an encoder; the motor drive module, the wireless communication module, and the vision detection and recognition module are all connected to the main control module for signal connection, and the two vehicles communicate with each other through the wireless communication module.

[0072] Preferably, the main control module is STM32F103RCT6, and the vision detection and recognition module includes a K210 camera and an OpenMV camera. Among them, the K210 camera is used for the operation of identifying the warehouse number on the road surface, and the OpenMV camera is used for automatic path finding when the first vehicle or the second vehicle is driving.

[0073] Embodiment 3:

[0074] The basic content is the same as that of Embodiment 1, with the difference that:

[0075] The control algorithm of the first vehicle further includes: when judging whether the two vehicles go to the same warehouse, if so, first receive the driving command of the first vehicle, then start driving, and then identify the warehouse number on the road surface at each intersection, and then judge whether there is a target warehouse number. If not, the first vehicle continues to drive. If so, the first vehicle performs a warehouse search operation, then enters the target warehouse, turns on the red light, and then starts unloading until the unloading is completed. Then turn off the red light, return according to the memory route until returning to the initial position, and then send the driving command and the target warehouse data of the first vehicle to the second vehicle, and end.

[0076] The control algorithm of the second vehicle further includes: when judging whether the two vehicles go to the same warehouse, if so, first turn off the blue light, and then return according to the memory route until returning to the initial position, and end.

[0077] Embodiment 4:

[0078] The basic content is the same as that of Embodiment 1, with the difference that:

[0079] The control algorithm of the first vehicle further includes: when judging whether it is a two-vehicle mode, if not, first receive the driving command of the first vehicle, then start driving, and then identify the warehouse number on the road surface at each intersection, and then judge whether there is a target warehouse number. If not, the first vehicle continues to drive. If so, the first vehicle performs a warehouse search operation, then enters the target warehouse, turns on the red light, and then starts unloading until the unloading is completed. Then turn off the red light and return according to the memory route, and end.

[0080] Embodiment 5:

[0081] The basic content is the same as that of Embodiment 1, with the difference that:

[0082] After the end, the second vehicle in the loop becomes the first vehicle, the first vehicle becomes the second vehicle, or the second vehicle becomes the first vehicle, and then another subsequent vehicle becomes the new second vehicle to keep the entire control method running continuously. Additionally, it is preferable to superimpose the control algorithms for the first vehicle and the second vehicle to achieve coordinated transportation of more vehicles.

[0083] Embodiment 6:

[0084] The basic content is the same as that of Embodiment 2, with the difference that:

[0085] The automatic path finding refers to first using an OpenMV camera to collect the guiding line on the main road, and then performing binary processing on the collected image (preferably adjusting the image to grayscale, not processing the tracked color, setting the image size to QQVGA, and at the same time, reducing the image area to increase the processing speed). This processing includes using the maximum inter-class variance method to select the binary threshold of the image, and then using the linear regression algorithm of computer vision to find the line, so as to find the trajectory of the guiding line, and then provide feedback information to the main control module, and then the main control module controls the operation of the motor drive module to achieve automatic path finding.

[0086] The above description is only the preferred embodiment of the present invention, and the protection scope of the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments. Any equivalent modification or change made by those of ordinary skill in the art according to the disclosed content of the present invention shall be included in the protection scope recorded in the claims.

Claims

1. A control method for unmanned dual-vehicle collaborative automatic transportation, characterized in that: The control method includes a control algorithm for Vehicle 1 and a control algorithm for Vehicle 2: The area where the automatic transportation is located includes a main road and branch roads connected thereto. The terminal of the branch road is a warehouse, and the intersection where the beginning of the branch road meets the main road is an intersection. A warehouse number is set on the road surface of this intersection; The control algorithm for Vehicle 1 includes: First, perform vehicle preparation operations on Vehicle 1. At this time, Vehicle 1 is loaded with goods. Then, determine whether it is in the double-vehicle mode. If so, send a confirmation signal to Vehicle 2. Then, until the target warehouse data of Vehicle 2 is received, determine whether the two vehicles are going to the same warehouse. If not, accept the driving command and start driving. When reaching the intersection, identify the warehouse number on the road surface and determine whether it is the first time to identify the warehouse number. If not, continue to identify the warehouse number on the road surface. If so, first send a driving command and the target warehouse data of Vehicle 1 to Vehicle 2, then continue to identify the warehouse number on the road surface, and then determine whether there is a target warehouse number. If not, Vehicle 1 continues to move forward. If so, Vehicle 1 performs a warehouse search operation, then enters the target warehouse, turns on the red light, and then starts unloading. Until the unloading is completed, determine whether the target warehouse location of Vehicle 1 is farther than that of Vehicle 2. If not, turn off the red light and return according to the memory route until returning to the initial position. Then send a return command to Vehicle 2 and end; The control algorithm for Vehicle 2 includes: First, perform vehicle preparation operations on Vehicle 2. At this time, Vehicle 2 is loaded with goods or empty. Then, determine whether the confirmation signal from Vehicle 1 is received. Until it is received, then send the target warehouse data of this vehicle to Vehicle 1. Then, determine whether the driving command from Vehicle 1 is received. Until it is received, then start driving. Then, identify the warehouse number on the road surface at each intersection, and then determine whether there is a target warehouse number. If not, Vehicle 2 continues to move forward. If so, Vehicle 2 performs a warehouse search operation, then enters the target warehouse, turns on the blue light, and then starts unloading or loading. Until the unloading or loading is completed, determine whether the target warehouse data of Vehicle 1 is received. Until it is received, then determine whether the two vehicles are going to the same warehouse. If not, determine whether the return command from Vehicle 1 is received. Until it is received, then turn off the blue light and return according to the memory route until returning to the initial position and end.

2. The control method for collaborative automatic transportation of two driverless vehicles according to claim 1, wherein: The control algorithm for Vehicle 1 further includes: When determining whether the target warehouse location of Vehicle 1 is farther than that of Vehicle 2, if so, first send a return command to Vehicle 2, then turn off the red light, and return according to the memory route until returning to the initial position and end.

3. A control method for unmanned dual-vehicle collaborative automatic transportation according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: The control algorithm of the first vehicle further includes: when determining whether the two vehicles are going to the same warehouse, if so, first receive the driving command of the first vehicle, then start driving, and then identify the warehouse numbers on the road surface at each intersection, and then determine whether there is a target warehouse number. If not, the first vehicle continues to move forward. If so, the first vehicle performs a warehouse search operation, then enters the target warehouse, turns on the red light, and then starts unloading until the unloading is completed. Then, turn off the red light and return according to the memorized route until returning to the initial position. Then, send the driving command and the target warehouse data of the first vehicle to the second vehicle, and end; The control algorithm of the second vehicle further includes: when determining whether the two vehicles are going to the same warehouse, if so, first turn off the blue light, and then return according to the memorized route until returning to the initial position, and end.

4. A control method for unmanned dual-vehicle collaborative automatic transportation according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: The control algorithm of the first vehicle further includes: when determining whether it is a two-vehicle mode, if not, first receive the driving command of the first vehicle, then start driving, and then identify the warehouse numbers on the road surface at each intersection, and then determine whether there is a target warehouse number. If not, the first vehicle continues to move forward. If so, the first vehicle performs a warehouse search operation, then enters the target warehouse, turns on the red light, and then starts unloading until the unloading is completed. Then, turn off the red light and return according to the memorized route, and end.

5. A control method for unmanned dual-vehicle collaborative automatic transportation according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: The warehouse search operation refers to: first determine that the target warehouse is on the right side of the intersection. If so, turn right and enter the right branch. If not, turn left and enter the left branch, and then continue driving until entering the target warehouse.

6. A control method for unmanned dual-vehicle collaborative automatic transportation according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: The standby vehicle operation refers to: first start the first vehicle or the second vehicle, then initialize the on-vehicle system, and then receive the target warehouse number.

7. A control method for unmanned dual-vehicle collaborative automatic transportation according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: There are six target warehouses, namely the first warehouse, the second warehouse, the third warehouse, the fourth warehouse, the fifth warehouse, and the sixth warehouse. The branches correspond to the warehouses one by one, namely the first branch, the second branch, the third branch, the fourth branch, the fifth branch, and the sixth branch. Among them, the first branch and the second branch are opposite to each other left and right, the third branch and the fourth branch are opposite to each other left and right, and the fifth branch and the sixth branch are opposite to each other left and right.

8. An autonomous vehicle, characterized in that: The driverless vehicle is the first vehicle or the second vehicle in the control method for collaborative automatic transportation of a driverless two-vehicle as described in claim 1 or 2; The driverless vehicle includes a power supply and a main control module, a motor drive module, a vision detection and recognition module, and a wireless communication module connected thereto. The motor drive module includes a motor drive unit and an encoder; The motor drive module, the wireless communication module, and the vision detection and recognition module are all connected to the main control module for signal connection. The two vehicles communicate with each other through the wireless communication module.

9. The driverless vehicle according to claim 8, wherein: The main control module is STM32F103RCT6. The vision detection and recognition module includes a K210 camera and an OpenMV camera. The K210 camera is used for the operation of identifying the warehouse numbers on the road surface, and the OpenMV camera is used for automatic path finding when the first vehicle or the second vehicle is driving.

10. An autonomous vehicle according to claim 9, characterized in that: The automatic path finding means that the OpenMV camera is first used to collect the guiding line on the main road, and then the collected image is binarized. This processing includes using the maximum inter-class variance method to select the binarization threshold of the image, and then using the linear regression algorithm of computer vision to find the line to find the trajectory of the guiding line, so as to find the guiding line, and then provide feedback information to the main control module, and then the main control module controls the operation of the motor drive module to achieve automatic path finding.

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