Robot pile returning method, device, equipment, storage medium and system

Abstract

The invention discloses a robot pile returning method, device and equipment, a storage medium and a system, and relates to the technical field of robots. The method comprises the steps that a robot is controlled to send a first signal to a workstation, so that the workstation starts to send a second signal after receiving the first signal; receiving the second signal through a receiver of the robot, and determining an area where the receiver is located according to the second signal; under the condition that the receiver is located in the first area or the second area, the robot is controlled to move so that the receiver can move to the center area; under the condition that the receiver is located in the central area, the robot is controlled to move by a preset distance based on the reference direction; the robot is controlled to rotate so that the receiver can return to the central area again, the robot is controlled to move to the workstation based on a target direction, and the target direction is determined based on the reference direction and the area where the receiver is located. By means of the technical means, the problem that in the prior art, time consumed in the process that the robot returns to the work station is long is solved, and the pile returning efficiency of the robot is improved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present application relates to the field of robotics technology, and in particular to a robot return method, device, equipment, storage medium and system. Background Art

[0002] As the application scope of intelligent robots in cleaning, security, and delivery continues to expand, the requirements for their automated operation are also increasing. In order to achieve the goal of fully replacing human labor, robots need to have autonomous return-to-pile technology to automatically return to the workstation when idle, low on power, replenishing water, discharging sewage, or completing tasks. The accuracy and success rate of automatic return-to-pile technology are important indicators of automated operation and are crucial to the user experience of intelligent robots.

[0003] In the prior art, when the intelligent robot returns to the charging pile, it continuously adjusts its moving direction based on the infrared signal emitted by the workstation, which causes the robot to take a long time to return to the charging pile and has a low efficiency. Summary of the invention

[0004] The present application provides a robot return method, device, equipment, storage medium and system to solve the problem in the prior art that the process of the robot returning to the workstation takes a long time and improve the robot's return efficiency.

[0005] In a first aspect, the present application provides a robot return method, comprising:

[0006] Control the robot to send a first signal to the workstation, so that the workstation starts to send a second signal after receiving the first signal;

[0007] receiving the second signal through a receiver of the robot, and determining an area where the receiver is located according to the second signal, wherein the area includes a first area, a second area, and a central area, and the first area and the second area are located on both sides of the central area;

[0008] When the receiver is located in the first area or the second area, controlling the robot to move so that the receiver moves to the central area;

[0009] When the receiver is located in the central area, controlling the robot to move a preset distance based on a reference direction, the reference direction being a direction of a line between a rotation center of the robot and the receiver, and the preset distance being determined based on a distance between the rotation center and the receiver;

[0010] The robot is controlled to rotate so that the receiver returns to the central area, and the robot is controlled to move to the workstation based on a target direction, where the target direction is determined based on the reference direction and the area where the receiver is located.

[0011] In a second aspect, the present application provides a robot pile return device, comprising:

[0012] A signal sending module, configured to control the robot to send a first signal to the workstation, so that the workstation starts to send a second signal after receiving the first signal;

[0013] an area determination module, configured to receive the second signal through a receiver of the robot, and determine an area where the receiver is located according to the second signal, wherein the area includes a first area, a second area, and a central area, and the first area and the second area are located on both sides of the central area;

[0014] A first movement control module is configured to control the robot to move so that the receiver moves to the central area when the receiver is located in the first area or the second area;

[0015] a second movement control module, configured to control the robot to move a preset distance based on a reference direction when the receiver is located in the central area, the reference direction being a direction of a line between a rotation center of the robot and the receiver, the preset distance being determined based on a distance between the rotation center and the receiver;

[0016] The third movement control module is configured to control the robot to rotate so that the receiver returns to the central area, and control the robot to move to the workstation based on a target direction, where the target direction is determined based on the reference direction and the area where the receiver is located.

[0017] In a third aspect, the present application provides a robot pile return device, comprising:

[0018] One or more processors; a memory storing one or more programs, when the one or more programs are executed by the one or more processors, the one or more processors implement the robot return method as described in the first aspect.

[0019] In a fourth aspect, the present application provides a storage medium comprising computer executable instructions, which, when executed by a computer processor, are used to execute the robot return method as described in the first aspect.

[0020] In a fifth aspect, the present application provides a pile return system, comprising:

[0021] A workstation is provided with an infrared module, wherein the infrared module is used to send a second signal;

[0022] A robot is provided with a receiver and a processor, wherein the receiver is used to receive the second signal; the processor is used to control the robot to send a first signal to a workstation, so that the workstation starts to send a second signal after receiving the first signal; the second signal is received by the receiver of the robot, and the area where the receiver is located is determined according to the second signal, wherein the area includes a first area, a second area and a central area, and the first area and the second area are located on both sides of the central area; when the receiver is located in the first area or the second area, the robot is controlled to move so that the receiver moves to the central area; when the receiver is located in the central area, the robot is controlled to move a preset distance based on a reference direction, wherein the reference direction is the direction of a line between the rotation center of the robot and the receiver, and the preset distance is determined based on the distance between the rotation center and the receiver; the robot is controlled to rotate so that the receiver returns to the central area, and the robot is controlled to move to the workstation based on a target direction, wherein the target direction is determined based on the reference direction and the area where the receiver is located.

[0023] In the present application, when the robot triggers the pile return operation, a first signal is sent to the workstation so that the workstation starts to send the second signal after receiving the first signal. After the receiver receives the second signal, the area where the receiver is located is determined according to the second signal. If the receiver is located in the first area or the second area, the robot is controlled to move to the central area between the first area and the second area. If the receiver is located in the central area, the robot is controlled to move a preset distance based on the reference direction so that the rotation center of the robot moves into the central area. After the rotation center moves to the central area, the robot is controlled to rotate and stop rotating after the receiver returns to the central area. At this time, the receiver and the rotation center are both in the central area. The current posture of the robot is consistent or approximately consistent with the posture in the workstation. The target direction of the robot can be determined by the reference direction and the area where the receiver is located, and the robot is controlled to move to the workstation according to the target direction. Through the above technical means, the workstation starts to send the second signal after the robot triggers the pile return operation, saving the energy consumption of the workstation while avoiding guiding other robots back to the workstation. After the robot's receiver enters the central area for the first time, the robot can be controlled to move straight and rotate to quickly adjust its posture to the posture at the workstation, and then the robot can be controlled to move to the workstation based on the target direction, thereby reducing the frequency of adjusting the robot's moving direction and the amplitude of rotation, shortening the time it takes for the robot to return to the workstation and improving the robot's pile-matching efficiency. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0024] Figure 1 is a flow chart of a robot return method provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0025] Figure 2 is a schematic top view of a workstation provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0026] Figure 3 is one of the schematic diagrams of the coverage area of ​​the second infrared signal provided in the embodiment of the present application;

[0027] Figure 4 This is a second schematic diagram of the coverage area of ​​the second infrared signal provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0028] Figure 5 This is a third schematic diagram of the coverage area of ​​the second infrared signal provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0029] Figure 6 This is a fourth schematic diagram of the coverage area of ​​the second infrared signal provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0030] Figure 7 It is one of the top view schematic diagrams of the workstation and the robot provided in the embodiment of the present application;

[0031] Figure 8 This is the second top view schematic diagram of the workstation and the robot provided in the embodiment of the present application;

[0032] Fig. 9 It is one of the top view schematic diagrams of the robot movement provided in the embodiment of the present application;

[0033] Fig.10 This is the second top view schematic diagram of the robot movement provided in the embodiment of the present application;

[0034] Fig.11 This is one of the top view schematic diagrams of the robot after rotation provided in the embodiment of the present application;

[0035] Fig.12 This is one of the top view schematic diagrams of the robot rotating in place provided in the embodiments of the present application;

[0036] Fig.13 This is the second top view schematic diagram of the robot rotating in place provided by the embodiment of the present application;

[0037] Fig.14 This is the second schematic top view of the robot after rotation provided in the embodiment of the present application;

[0038] Fig.15 It is a structural schematic diagram of a robot pile return device provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0039] Fig.16 It is a structural schematic diagram of a robot pile return device provided in an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0040] In order to make the purpose, technical scheme and advantages of the present application clearer, the specific embodiments of the present application are further described in detail below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. It is understood that the specific embodiments described herein are only used to explain the present application, rather than to limit the present application. It should also be noted that, for the convenience of description, only the part related to the present application but not all the contents are shown in the accompanying drawings. Before discussing the exemplary embodiments in more detail, it should be mentioned that some exemplary embodiments are described as processes or methods depicted as flow charts. Although the flow chart describes each operation (or step) as a sequential process, many of the operations therein can be implemented in parallel, concurrently or simultaneously. In addition, the order of each operation can be rearranged. The process can be terminated when its operation is completed, but it can also have additional steps not included in the accompanying drawings. The process can correspond to a method, a function, a procedure, a subroutine, a subprogram, etc.

[0041] The terms "first", "second", etc. in the specification and claims of the present application are used to distinguish similar objects, and are not used to describe a specific order or sequence. It should be understood that the data used in this way can be interchangeable under appropriate circumstances, so that the embodiments of the present application can be implemented in an order other than those illustrated or described here, and the objects distinguished by "first", "second", etc. are generally of one type, and the number of objects is not limited. For example, the first object can be one or more. In addition, "and / or" in the specification and claims represents at least one of the connected objects, and the character " / " generally indicates that the objects associated with each other are in an "or" relationship.

[0042] In the more common existing implementations, when the robot detects that the battery power is low and needs to be charged, or has completed the cleaning task, or has the need to return to the pile to add clean water, drain sewage, clean cleaning tools, etc., it can trigger the return operation and move to the location of the workstation. The workstation always sends infrared signals to the area in front of the charging port. When the robot's infrared receiver moves to this area, it will receive the infrared signal sent by the workstation. When the robot's infrared receiver moves out of this area, it will not receive the infrared signal sent by the workstation. The robot continuously adjusts the direction of movement based on whether the infrared receiver receives the infrared signal, so that the robot returns to the workstation with the posture aligned with the charging port. Since the robot needs to frequently adjust its moving direction during the return process to ensure that the robot can return to the workstation with the posture aligned with the charging port, this results in a long time for the robot to return to the workstation and low efficiency in returning to the pile.

[0043] In order to solve the above problem, this embodiment provides a robot return method to control the robot to return to the pole quickly.

[0044] The robot return method provided in this embodiment can be executed by a robot return device, which can be implemented by software and / or hardware, and can be composed of two or more physical entities or one physical entity. For example, the robot return device can be the robot itself or the robot's processor.

[0045] The robot pile return device is installed with at least one type of operating system, wherein the operating system includes but is not limited to the Android system, the Linux system and the Windows system. The robot pile return device can install at least one application based on the operating system, and the application can be an application that comes with the operating system or an application downloaded from a third-party device or server. In this embodiment, the robot pile return device has at least an application that can execute the robot pile return method.

[0046] For ease of understanding, this embodiment is described by taking a robot as an example of a subject that executes the robot return method.

[0047] Figure 1 A flowchart of a robot return method provided by an embodiment of the present application is given. Figure 1 , the robot return method specifically includes:

[0048] S110, controlling the robot to send a first signal to the workstation, so that the workstation starts to send a second signal after receiving the first signal.

[0049] Among them, the workstation refers to a device with functions such as dust collection, charging, water change, cleaning and / or drying. The first signal can be understood as a signal used by the robot to notify the workstation that the robot has started the return operation. In terms of the signal format, the first signal can be a visible spectrum signal, an infrared signal, a Bluetooth signal, a WiFi signal, etc. Exemplarily, if the first signal is an electromagnetic wave signal such as a Bluetooth signal or a WiFi signal, the robot broadcasts the first signal to the surrounding when the return operation is triggered. When the workstation receives the first signal broadcast by the robot, it confirms that the robot is performing the return operation, so it starts to send the second signal. If the first signal is a spectral signal such as a visible spectrum signal or an infrared signal, the robot sends the first signal to a certain area when the return operation is triggered. As the robot moves, the area covered by the first signal also moves. When the workstation enters the area covered by the first signal, the workstation receives the first signal and confirms that the robot has triggered the return operation and is located near the workstation, so it starts to send the second signal.

[0050] The second signal is a signal used by the workstation to guide the robot back to the pile, which can be a visible spectrum signal or an infrared signal. However, compared with the visible spectrum signal, the infrared signal has a longer wavelength, is not easily affected by ambient light, and has a better guiding effect. This embodiment is described by taking the second signal as an infrared signal as an example. It should be noted that compared with the traditional pile return method in which the workstation continuously sends infrared signals to the front area, this embodiment sends the first signal through the robot so that the workstation starts the infrared signal sending function after receiving the first signal and confirming that the robot triggers the pile return operation, which can effectively save the energy consumption of the workstation. Moreover, when the workstation sends the infrared signal, if there are other robots in the space and other robots are in the process of returning to other workstations, other robots may be misguided into unmatched workstations when receiving the infrared signal, resulting in errors in the pile return operation. Therefore, this embodiment starts the workstation's guide pile return function after the robot triggers the pile return operation to avoid guiding other robots back to the workstation.

[0051] The broadcast range of electromagnetic wave signals such as Bluetooth signals or wifi signals is larger than the coverage range of spectral signals such as visible spectrum signals or infrared signals. If the robot uses electromagnetic wave signals such as Bluetooth signals or wifi signals as the first signal, the workstation may receive the first signal and start sending infrared signals when the robot is far away from the workstation. Before the robot enters the area covered by the infrared signal sent by the workstation, the robot cannot receive the infrared signal. During the period from the workstation starting to send the infrared signal to the robot receiving the infrared signal, the infrared signal is an invalid signal, that is, the workstation sending the infrared signal is an invalid consumption. If spectral signals such as visible spectrum signals or infrared signals are used as the first signal, the coverage area of ​​the first signal is limited. When the robot just triggers the pile return operation, the workstation may be far away from the robot and cannot receive the first signal. As the robot moves to the vicinity of the workstation and the workstation enters the coverage range of the first signal, the workstation receives the first signal and starts sending infrared signals. At this time, the robot is near the workstation, and the robot does not need to spend much time to enter the area covered by the infrared signal sent by the workstation. Therefore, compared with using electromagnetic wave signals such as Bluetooth signals or WiFi signals as the first signal, using spectral signals such as visible spectrum signals or infrared signals as the first signal can further save energy consumption of the workstation.

[0052] This embodiment is described by taking the first signal as an infrared signal as an example. In order to distinguish the first signal from the second signal, the first signal is described as a first infrared signal and the second signal is described as a second infrared signal.

[0053] In one embodiment, the workstation is provided with an infrared module, which can send infrared signals to a certain area and receive infrared signals sent by other devices, wherein the second infrared signal is the infrared signal sent by the workstation through the infrared module. The robot is provided with an infrared receiver and an infrared transmitter, and the infrared receiver and the infrared transmitter can use the same lamp bead in design and increase the receiving angle to ensure the effective range of the pile. The infrared transmitter is used to send infrared signals to a certain area, and the infrared receiver is used to receive infrared signals, wherein the first infrared signal is the infrared signal sent by the robot through the infrared transmitter. Exemplarily, when the robot triggers the pile return operation, the first infrared signal can be sent through the infrared transmitter. As the robot moves toward the workstation, when the infrared module enters the area covered by the first infrared signal, the infrared module of the workstation receives the first infrared signal and confirms that the robot is near the workstation, and then starts to send the second infrared signal through the infrared module, so that the infrared receiver receives the second infrared signal when it enters the area covered by the second infrared signal.

[0054] Since the coverage area of ​​the first infrared signal is limited, when the robot just triggers the return operation, the workstation may be far away from the robot, and the infrared module cannot receive the first infrared signal. Therefore, during the period from when the robot triggers the return operation to when the workstation enters the coverage area of ​​the first infrared signal, the first infrared signal is an invalid signal, that is, the infrared transmitter sending the first infrared signal is an invalid consumption. In this embodiment, in order to reduce the invalid consumption of the infrared transmitter, a target return point can be set near the workstation according to the coverage range of the first infrared signal, so that when the robot moves to the target return point, the infrared module is located in the coverage area of ​​the first infrared signal.

[0055] In one embodiment, the process of the robot moving to the target return point is as follows: collecting the first point cloud data through a laser radar, generating a local map according to the first point cloud data, determining the robot's posture information according to the local map and a preset global map; planning the robot's return path according to the robot's posture information, the global map, and the posture information of the target return point; and controlling the robot to move to the target return point according to the return path. Among them, the first point cloud data can be understood as the point cloud data obtained by scanning the surrounding environment through the laser radar when the robot triggers the return operation, and the global map can be understood as a map constructed by scanning the point cloud data of the entire space through the laser radar in advance. The robot can construct a local map of the surrounding environment according to the first point cloud data, and match the local map with the global map to determine the robot's position information and posture information. The posture information of the target return point includes the position information of the target return point and the posture information when the robot moves to the target return point and sends the first infrared signal. It can be understood that the angle at which the infrared transmitter sends the first infrared signal is limited. When the robot maintains the corresponding posture information at the target return point, it can ensure that the infrared module is located within the coverage area of ​​the first infrared signal. The global map records the fixed obstacles in the space. According to the robot's posture information, the position of the target return point and the position information of each fixed obstacle in the global map, a return path that avoids various fixed obstacles can be planned. The starting point of the return path is the current position of the robot, and the end point is the position of the target return point.

[0056] In this embodiment, the robot's return path can be determined by a global path planning algorithm. The global path planning algorithm performs path planning based on a global map to find an optimal path from the robot's current location to the target return point. However, the global path planning algorithm belongs to a static planning algorithm, which is suitable for scenes where the surrounding environment does not move or change, but there may be various dynamic obstacles in the space where the robot is located, and these dynamic obstacles cannot be avoided by relying solely on the global path planning algorithm. In this regard, the robot's return path can also be planned by a dynamic path search algorithm based on the robot's posture information, the global map, and the posture information of the target return point. The dynamic path search algorithm can determine the surrounding environmental information based on the environment perception sensors installed on the robot, such as visual sensors and laser radars, and plan the robot's safe movement path. Further, the dynamic path search algorithm can use the D-Star algorithm (an incremental heuristic path search algorithm), which can correct the path in real time during calculation, adapt to environmental changes and dynamic obstacles, and ensure the safe movement of the robot. Moreover, the D-Star algorithm can efficiently process large-scale maps and provide better path planning performance under limited computing resources, thereby enabling the robot to move to the target return point by itself.

[0057] When the robot moves to the target return point and is in the posture corresponding to the target return point, the first infrared signal is sent through the infrared transmitter. At this time, the infrared module is in the coverage area of ​​the first infrared signal, and the infrared module can receive the first infrared signal and start sending the second infrared signal. It should be noted that in order to improve the efficiency of the robot's return to the pile, the target return point can be set according to the coverage area of ​​the first infrared signal and the second infrared signal, so that when the robot is in the posture of the target return point, the infrared module is in the coverage area of ​​the first infrared signal and the infrared receiver is in the coverage area of ​​the second infrared signal. Therefore, after the infrared module sends the second infrared signal, the infrared receiver can immediately receive the second infrared signal, and then the robot can return to the workstation according to the second infrared signal.

[0058] When the environment in the space where the robot is located changes frequently, the robot cannot accurately move to the target return point, that is, there is an error between the position of the target return point moved by the robot and the actual position of the target return point. Since the area covered by the first infrared signal and the second infrared signal is small, this error may cause the infrared module to not be in the coverage area of ​​the first infrared signal or the infrared receiver to not be in the coverage area of ​​the second infrared signal. In this regard, when the robot moves to the target return point, the robot's posture can be adjusted with the help of the reference object installed on the workstation so that the infrared module falls into the coverage area of ​​the first infrared signal and the infrared receiver falls into the coverage area of ​​the second infrared signal.

[0059] In one embodiment, the process of adjusting the robot posture based on the reference object is as follows: collecting the second point cloud data by laser radar, filtering out the third point cloud data of the reference object from the second point cloud data; determining the central axis of the reference object according to the third point cloud data, and controlling the robot to move toward the central axis based on the direction perpendicular to the central axis; when the robot moves to the central axis, controlling the robot to rotate so that the receiver faces the workstation. The second point cloud data can be understood as the point cloud data obtained by scanning the surrounding environment by laser radar when the robot moves to the target return point. The current robot is located near the workstation, so the second point cloud data includes the third point cloud data of the reference object installed on the workstation. The characteristics of the reference object can be distinguished from the objects in the surrounding environment. For example, the shape or material of the reference object is different from the shape or material of the surrounding objects. The third point cloud data of the reference object can be filtered out from the second point cloud data based on the characteristics of the reference object. Exemplarily, when the reference object adopts a reflector, the third point cloud data of the reference object can be filtered out from the second point cloud data according to the reflection intensity value of the second point cloud data, wherein the reflection intensity value of the third point cloud data meets the reflection intensity threshold of the reflector. Since the reflection intensity value of an object made of reflective material is much greater than that of an object made of non-reflective material, the intensity threshold of the reflector can be regarded as the minimum reflection intensity value of the point cloud data corresponding to the reflector, while the reflection intensity values ​​of other objects in the second point cloud data are less than the reflection intensity threshold of the reflector. Therefore, when screening the third point cloud data of the reference object in the second point cloud data, according to the reflection intensity value of the second point cloud data, the point cloud data with a reflection intensity value greater than or equal to the reflection intensity threshold of the reflector is screened out from the second point cloud data as the third point cloud data of the reference object. When the shape of the reference object is different from that of other surrounding objects, the third point cloud data of the reference object can be screened out from the second point cloud data according to the shape of the reference object. If the distance between the reference object and other surrounding objects is far, the second point cloud data can be clustered based on the density clustering algorithm to divide the second point cloud data corresponding to each object into each point cloud set, match the shape of the second point cloud data in each point cloud set with the shape of the reference object, and use the point cloud data in the point cloud set with matching shape as the third point cloud data of the reference object.

[0060] After determining the third point cloud data of the reference object, the central axis of the reference object is determined according to the coordinates of each point cloud in the third point cloud data. The central axis is a straight line perpendicular to the mounting surface of the reference object and passing through the center of the reference object, and the mounting surface of the reference object is the front surface of the workstation. For example, when the reference object is a plate-like object, the surface of the reference object is parallel to the mounting surface, and an expression of the reference object surface is fitted according to the third point cloud data, and the central axis perpendicular to the surface of the reference object and passing through the center point of the reference object is determined according to the expression. Figure 2 is a top view schematic diagram of a workstation provided in an embodiment of the present application. Figure 2As shown, when the infrared module 11 of the workstation 10 sends a second infrared signal to the front of the workstation 10, a coverage area 30 of the second infrared signal is formed in front of the workstation 10, and the central axis 13 of the reference object 12 falls within the coverage area 30 of the second infrared signal. The robot can plan a path to move vertically to the central axis 13 based on the position information of the central axis 13 and the current position of the robot. When the robot moves to the central axis 13, based on the coordinates of the center point of the reference object 12 and its own coordinates, the posture of the infrared receiver and the infrared transmitter facing the workstation 10 is determined. When the robot is controlled to rotate in place to meet the posture, the infrared receiver and the infrared transmitter face the workstation 10.

[0061] When the infrared receiver and the infrared transmitter are facing the workstation, the infrared module is within the coverage range of the first infrared signal, and the infrared receiver is within the coverage range of the second infrared signal. At this time, the robot can send the first infrared signal through the infrared transmitter, so that the infrared module starts sending the second infrared signal after receiving the first infrared signal, and the infrared receiver receives the second infrared signal.

[0062] S120. Receive a second signal through a receiver of the robot, and determine an area where the receiver is located according to the second signal, where the area includes a first area, a second area, and a central area, and the first area and the second area are located on both sides of the central area.

[0063] Wherein, in the case where the second signal is an infrared signal, the receiver is an infrared receiver. The infrared module includes at least two infrared transmitters, and the infrared module can send second infrared signals with different codes to different areas through different infrared transmitters. The robot can determine the area where the infrared receiver is located according to the code of the second infrared signal received by the infrared receiver, and control the robot to return to the workstation according to the area where the infrared receiver is located. In this embodiment, the coverage area of ​​the second infrared signal includes the first area, the second area and the central area, wherein the codes of the second infrared signals in the first area and the second area are different, and the code of the second infrared signal in the central area can be based on the codes of the first area and the second area, or can be different from the codes of the first area and the second area.

[0064] This embodiment is described by taking the encoding of the second infrared signal in the central area based on the encoding of the first area and the second area as an example.

[0065] In one embodiment, Figure 3 Schematic diagram of the coverage area of ​​the second infrared signal provided in the embodiment of the present application. Figure 3As shown, the infrared module 11 includes a first infrared emitter 111 and a second infrared emitter 112. The first infrared emitter 111 emits a first-coded second infrared signal to the first coded signal area, and the second infrared emitter 112 emits a second-coded second infrared signal to the second coded signal area. Among them, the central area 31 is the overlapping area of ​​the first coded signal area and the second coded signal area, the first area 32 is the area of ​​the first coded signal area except the central area 31, and the second area 33 is the area of ​​the second coded signal area except the central area 31.

[0066] In another embodiment, Figure 4 Schematic diagram of the coverage area of ​​the second infrared signal provided in the embodiment of the present application. Figure 4 As shown, the infrared module 11 includes a first infrared emitter 111, a second infrared emitter 112 and a third infrared emitter 113. The first infrared emitter 111 emits a first-coded second infrared signal to the first coded signal area, the second infrared emitter 112 emits a second-coded second infrared signal to the second coded signal area, and the third infrared emitter 113 emits a third-coded second infrared signal to the third coded signal area. Among them, the central area 31 is the overlapping area of ​​the first coded signal area, the second coded signal area and the third coded signal area, the first area 32 is the area except the central area in the overlapping area of ​​the first coded signal area and the third coded signal area, the second area 33 is the area except the central area in the overlapping area of ​​the second coded signal area and the third coded signal area, the third area 34 is the area except the first area and the central area in the first coded signal area, and the fourth area 35 is the area except the second area and the central area in the second coded signal area.

[0067] It should be noted that the more areas the second infrared signal coverage area can be divided into, the more efficient the robot can be in finding the center area, and thus the robot's return efficiency can be improved. Figure 4 The five areas shown are described as examples.

[0068] Exemplarily, when the infrared receiver only receives the second infrared signal of the first code, it can be determined that the infrared receiver is in the third area; when the infrared receiver only receives the second infrared signal of the second code, it can be determined that the infrared receiver is in the fourth area; when the infrared receiver receives the second infrared signal of the first code and the third code, it can be determined that the infrared receiver is in the first area; when the infrared receiver receives the second infrared signal of the second code and the third code, it can be determined that the infrared receiver is in the second area; when the infrared receiver receives the second infrared signal of the first code, the second code and the third code, it can be determined that the infrared receiver is in the central area.

[0069] In one embodiment, the first infrared transmitter, the second infrared transmitter and the third infrared transmitter can use 38K infrared signals for transmission to accurately transmit digital signals while avoiding interference from other signal sources. The three infrared transmitters are controlled by respective timers to modulate USART (Universal Asynchronous / Receiver / Transmitter) waveforms. The USART waveform can transmit the encoding of the infrared signal in the form of bytes, and each output is independent and does not interfere with each other. Since time-sharing transmission affects the receiving efficiency of the infrared receiver, the first infrared transmitter, the second infrared transmitter and the third infrared transmitter can synchronously send the second infrared signal. In this embodiment, in order to improve the efficiency of receiving and sending the second infrared signal, the coding information of the second infrared signal is represented by one byte, but in fact the coding of the second infrared signal only occupies two bytes. For example, the coding information of the second infrared signal of the first coding is 01000000, but in fact the first coding is 01; the coding information of the second infrared signal of the second coding is 00100000, but in fact the second coding is 10; the coding information of the second infrared signal of the third coding is 00001100, but in fact the third coding is 11. It should be noted that the two bits occupied by different codes have different positions in the coding information. As mentioned above, after the first coding occupies the first two bits of the coding information byte, the two bits of the second coding can only be selected from the last six bits of the coding information byte.

[0070] Correspondingly, when the infrared receiver receives the second infrared signal, infrared data can be generated according to the second infrared signal, and the infrared data includes one byte of coding information, and the coding information includes the coding corresponding to the second signal, and the coding occupies two bits; the infrared data is converted into a logical value, and the area where the receiver is located is determined according to the logical value. Exemplarily, if the infrared receiver receives the second infrared signal sent by the first infrared transmitter and the second infrared signal sent by the third infrared transmitter, the second infrared signal sent by the first infrared transmitter is converted into the corresponding infrared data, and the infrared data includes one byte of coding information corresponding to the first coding and one byte of frame identification at the head, and the second infrared signal sent by the third infrared transmitter is converted into the corresponding infrared data, and the infrared data includes one byte of coding information corresponding to the third coding and one byte of frame identification at the head. After parsing the headers of the two infrared data, the robot combines the coding information of the two infrared data. For example, the coding information corresponding to the first coding is 01000000, and the coding information corresponding to the third coding is 00100000, and the combined coding information is 01100000. If the infrared receiver receives a second infrared signal of a first code, a second code, and a third code, the coding information of the first code, the second code, and the third code is combined. If only one coded second infrared signal is received, the coding information of the code can be converted into a logical value. Further, in order to ensure the unified output of the infrared protocol, the combined coding information is converted into a logical value, and the area where the infrared receiver is located is determined according to the mapping relationship between each preset area and the logical value. If the infrared transmitter in the infrared module is replaced with another model and the coding is changed, each area and the corresponding logical value can be directly modified, and the area where the infrared receiver is located can be determined based on the modified mapping relationship.

[0071] S130. When the receiver is located in the first area or the second area, control the robot to move so that the receiver moves to the central area.

[0072] For example, after the robot moves to the target return point or adjusts its posture based on the central axis of the reference object, the infrared receiver faces the workstation. The infrared receiver faces the workstation, which can be understood as the connection direction between the robot's rotation center and the infrared receiver, that is, the robot's reference direction points to the workstation. At this time, no matter where the infrared receiver is located outside the central area, the robot can move the infrared receiver to the central area by moving straight based on the reference direction.

[0073] It should be noted that, due to the small width of the central area, when the robot moves at a high speed, the infrared receiver may have left the central area before the robot reacts. Therefore, the robot can be controlled to slow down so as to better control the robot to return to the pile later. In this embodiment, when the infrared receiver is located in the first area or the second area, the robot is controlled to move based on a first speed, and the first speed is less than the movement speed of the robot when the infrared receiver does not receive the second infrared signal. Among them, the movement speed of the robot when the second infrared signal is not received can be understood as the movement speed of the robot outside the coverage area of ​​the second infrared signal. Exemplarily, the robot moves to the target return point or the central axis of the reference object at the moving speed. After sending the first infrared signal through the infrared transmitter, the infrared receiver confirms in which area the infrared receiver is located based on the second infrared signal received for the first time. If the robot is located in the first area or the second area, the robot is controlled to move slowly in the reference direction at the first speed.

[0074] refer to Figure 4 , when there is a third area 34 on one side of the first area 32 and a fourth area 35 on one side of the second area 33, the infrared receiver may also be located in the third area 34 or the fourth area 34. Accordingly, when the infrared receiver is located in the third area 34 or the fourth area 35, the robot is controlled to move based on the second speed so that the infrared receiver moves to the first area 32 or the second area 33; the second speed is greater than the first speed and less than the movement speed of the robot when the infrared receiver does not receive the second infrared signal. Exemplarily, if it is confirmed that the infrared receiver is located in the third area 34 or the fourth area 35 based on the second infrared signal received by the infrared receiver for the first time, the robot can be controlled to move slowly in the reference direction at the second speed. After the infrared receiver enters the first area 32 or the second area 33, the robot is controlled to decelerate to the first speed and continue to move in the reference direction.

[0075] After the infrared receiver moves to the central area 31, the robot is decelerated from the first speed to the third speed, and then the robot moves at the third speed until it returns to the workstation.

[0076] S140. When the receiver is located in the central area, the robot is controlled to move a preset distance based on a reference direction, where the reference direction is the direction of a line between the rotation center of the robot and the receiver, and the preset distance is determined based on the distance between the rotation center and the receiver.

[0077] In this embodiment, the central area is used to guide the robot to return to the workstation in the same posture as when it was at the workstation. The width between the two sides of the central area is generally between 5 mm and 20 mm. Figure 3-Figure 5 The straight line shown can also be Figure 6 The arc shown. Figure 5 As shown, the angle between the two sides of the central area 31 is small so that the width of the two sides of the central area 31 is within a certain range. Figure 3 and 4 As shown, the two side straight lines of the central area 31 are parallel to each other. Figure 6 As shown, the arcs on both sides of the central area 31 have a larger curvature and a smaller angle, so that the widths on both sides of the central area 31 are within a certain range. In general, when the infrared receiver and the rotation center of the robot are both located in the central area 31, the current posture of the robot is consistent or nearly consistent with the posture of the robot in the workstation.

[0078] It should be noted that the smaller the width of the central area 31, the stronger the constraint force on the infrared receiver and the rotation center of the robot in the central area 31, that is, the current posture of the robot is closer to the posture of the robot in the workstation. Compared with the central area 31 with an angle on both sides, the central area 31 with two parallel sides has a stronger constraint force on the infrared receiver and the rotation center of the robot in the central area 31, and the current posture of the robot is closer to the posture of the robot in the workstation. This embodiment is described with reference to the central area 31 with two parallel sides. The infrared module and / or its light constraint structure that generates the central area 31 with two parallel sides is not particularly limited here.

[0079] Among them, the posture of the robot in the workstation can be understood as the posture of the robot when the workstation performs dust collection, charging, water change, cleaning or drying operations on the robot after the robot returns to the workstation. For example, when the workstation supplies power to the robot, the posture of the robot when the charging port of the robot is aligned with the charging port of the workstation is the posture of the robot in the workstation; when the workstation changes the water for the robot, the posture of the robot when the water replenishment port of the robot is aligned with the water supply port of the workstation is the posture of the robot in the workstation. In other words, the posture of the robot in the workstation mainly refers to the posture presented when the interface set on the robot is aligned and docked with the interface set on the base station. Among them, the interface may include at least a charging interface, an injection interface, a sewage discharge interface, a limited alignment interface specifically used for docking, etc.

[0080] In this embodiment, the posture of the robot when the charging port of the robot is aligned with the charging port of the workstation is the posture of the robot returning to the workstation. Figure 7 and Figure 8 is a top view schematic diagram of a workstation and a robot provided in an embodiment of the present application. Figure 7 As shown, the workstation 10 is provided with an infrared module 11 and a first charging port 14, the infrared module 11 is arranged above the first charging port 14, the robot 20 is provided with an infrared receiver 22 and a second charging port 21, the infrared receiver 22 is arranged above or below the second charging port 21. Alternatively, as Figure 8 As shown, the infrared module 11 of the workstation 10 is arranged on the left side of the first charging port 14 and maintains a horizontal distance a from the first charging port 14. The infrared receiver 22 of the robot 20 is arranged on the left side of the second charging port 21 and maintains a horizontal distance a from the second charging port 21. The robot 20 uses the direction of the line between the infrared receiver 22 and the rotation center 23 of the robot 20 as the reference direction of the robot 20. Figure 7 and Figure 8 It can be seen that when the infrared receiver 22 and the rotation center 23 are located in the central area 31, the current posture of the robot 20 is equivalent to or similar to the posture of the robot 20 being charged in the workstation 10. At this time, the robot 20 can quickly move to the workstation 10 based on the reference direction or fine-tune the moving direction to quickly move to the workstation 10. When the robot 20 returns to the workstation 10, the first charging port 14 is aligned with the second charging port 21, and the workstation 10 charges the robot 20. It should be noted that Figure 7 and Figure 8 The robot 20 is shown to be square, but the robot 20 may also be round or in other shapes, which is not specifically limited in this embodiment.

[0081] Fig. 9 and Fig.10 is a top view schematic diagram of the robot movement provided in the embodiment of the present application. Fig. 9 As shown, when the infrared receiver 22 of the robot 20 enters the central area 31 for the first time during the return process, the infrared receiver 22 receives the second infrared signal of the first code, the second code and the third code, and then determines that the infrared receiver 22 is in the central area 31. Since the reference direction is the direction of the line between the infrared receiver 22 and the rotation center 23, if the robot 20 moves the distance b between the infrared receiver 22 and the rotation center 23 along the reference direction, the rotation center 23 will move to the position where the infrared receiver 22 was previously located in the central area 31, that is, the rotation center 23 moves to the central area 31. It should be noted that since the rotation center 23 is a position point and the infrared receiver 22 is an object, when the size of the infrared receiver 22 is large and the width of the central area 31 is small, after the robot 20 moves the distance b along the reference direction, the rotation center 23 is still outside the central area 31. Therefore, the preset distance moved by the robot 20 can be determined based on the volume of the infrared receiver 20, the width of the central area 31, and the straight-line distance b between the infrared receiver 22 and the rotation center 23.

[0082] This embodiment is described by taking the preset distance as the distance b between the rotation center 23 and the receiver as an example. Fig.10As described above, after the robot 20 moves a distance b in the reference direction, the rotation center 23 of the robot 20 moves to the central area 31. If the infrared receiver 22 is installed at the tail of the robot 20, the robot 20 is controlled to retreat a distance b in the reference direction; if the infrared receiver 22 is installed at the head of the robot 20, the robot 20 is controlled to move forward a distance b in the reference direction.

[0083] S150, controlling the robot to rotate so that the receiver returns to the center area, and controlling the robot to move to the workstation based on a target direction, where the target direction is determined based on the reference direction and the area where the receiver is located.

[0084] For example, Fig.11 is a top view schematic diagram of the robot after rotation provided in the embodiment of the present application. Fig.10 and Fig.11 As shown, when Fig.10 When the robot 20 rotates in place, the rotation center 23 remains in the central area 31, and the infrared receiver 22 rotates around the rotation center 23. When the robot 20 confirms that the infrared receiver 22 re-receives the second infrared signal of the first code, the second code, and the third code, it is determined that the infrared receiver 22 has returned to the central area 31. At this time, the current posture of the robot 20 is equal to or similar to the posture of the robot 20 being located in the workstation for charging.

[0085] In one embodiment, there are a first area 32 and a second area on both sides of the central area. After the rotation center of the robot moves to the central area, the robot can be controlled to rotate clockwise or counterclockwise according to whether the infrared receiver is on the left or right side of the central area, thereby reducing the rotation angle of the robot and improving the robot's pile-matching efficiency. Fig.12 and Fig.13 FIG. 1 is a top view schematic diagram of a robot rotating in situ provided in an embodiment of the present application. Fig.12 and Fig.13As shown, the first area 32 is located on the left side of the central area 31, and the second area 33 is located on the right side of the central area 31. When the infrared receiver 22 is located in the first area 32, the robot 20 is controlled to rotate in a clockwise direction so that the infrared receiver 22 returns to the central area 31. It can be understood that when the infrared receiver 22 is located in the first area 32, in the clockwise direction, the angle between the line connecting the infrared receiver 22 and the rotation center 23 and the central area 31 is less than or equal to 90 degrees, so the robot 20 can be controlled to rotate in place in a clockwise direction so that the infrared receiver 22 quickly returns to the central area 31. When the infrared receiver 22 is located in the second area 33, the robot is controlled to rotate in a counterclockwise direction so that the infrared receiver 22 returns to the central area 31. Similarly, when the infrared receiver is located in the second area 33, in the counterclockwise direction, the angle between the line connecting the infrared receiver 22 and the rotation center 23 and the central area 31 is less than or equal to 90 degrees, so the robot 20 can be controlled to rotate in place in a counterclockwise direction so that the infrared receiver 22 quickly returns to the central area 31.

[0086] refer to Figure 7 or Figure 8 , when the infrared receiver 22 and the rotation center 23 of the robot 20 are both in the central area 31, the current posture of the robot 20 may be constrained to be the same as the posture in the workstation 10 in the central area 31. At this time, the reference direction can be determined as the target direction of the robot, so that the robot 20 can go straight to the workstation 10 based on the target direction. If the infrared receiver 22 is installed at the tail of the robot 20, the robot 20 is controlled to move backward in the target direction, and if the infrared receiver 22 is installed at the head of the robot 20, the robot 20 is controlled to move forward in the target direction.

[0087] When the robot 20 is returning to the workstation, when the infrared receiver 22 of the robot 20 moves out of the central area 31, the infrared receiver 22 receives the second infrared information of the first code and the third code, or receives the second infrared signal of the second code and the third code, and can immediately confirm that the infrared receiver 22 is in the first area 32 or the second area 33. At this time, there is a small deviation between the current posture of the robot 22 and the posture in the workstation, so the target direction can be obtained by fine-tuning the reference direction according to the area where the infrared receiver 22 is located, and based on the target direction, the infrared receiver 22 of the robot 20 can be quickly moved back to the central area 31, thereby improving the efficiency of the robot 20 returning to the workstation 10. Fig.14 is a top view schematic diagram of the robot after rotation provided in the embodiment of the present application. Fig.14 As shown, in Fig.12 or Fig.13When the robot 20 shown rotates to make the infrared receiver 22 return to the central area 31, the current posture of the robot 20 is consistent or nearly consistent with the posture located in the workstation 10, and the reference direction can be determined as the current target direction of the robot 20, so that the robot 20 moves based on the target direction. During the movement, if the infrared receiver 22 receives the second infrared signal of the first code, the second code and the third code, it can be determined that the infrared receiver 22 is still in the central area 31, and the reference direction is determined as the target direction to make the robot 20 move along the reference direction. If the infrared receiver 22 receives the second infrared signal of the first code and the third code, it indicates that the infrared receiver 22 has shifted to the left from the central area 31 to the first area 32, and the direction of the reference direction rotating to the right can be used as the target direction. According to the target direction, the robot 20 is controlled to gradually move to the right rear until the infrared receiver 22 returns to the central area 31, and the target direction is set back to the reference direction. If the infrared receiver 22 receives the second infrared signal of the second code and the third code, it indicates that the infrared receiver 22 has shifted to the left from the central area 31 to the second area 33, and the direction rotated to the left from the reference direction can be used as the target direction. According to the target direction, the robot 20 is controlled to gradually move to the left rear until the infrared receiver 22 returns to the central area 31 and sets the target direction back to the reference direction. When the first charging port 11 contacts the second charging port 21, it is determined that the robot 20 completes the return operation.

[0088] In summary, the robot return method provided by the embodiment of the present application sends a first signal to the workstation when the robot triggers the return operation, so that the workstation starts to send the second signal after receiving the first signal. After the receiver receives the second signal, the area where the receiver is located is determined according to the second signal. If the receiver is located in the first area or the second area, the robot is controlled to move to the central area between the first area and the second area. If the receiver is located in the central area, the robot is controlled to move a preset distance based on the reference direction so that the rotation center of the robot moves to the central area. After the rotation center moves to the central area, the robot is controlled to rotate and stop rotating after the receiver returns to the central area. At this time, the receiver and the rotation center are both in the central area, and the current posture of the robot is consistent or approximately consistent with the posture in the workstation. The target direction of the robot can be determined by the reference direction and the area where the receiver is located, and the robot is controlled to move to the workstation according to the target direction. Through the above technical means, the workstation starts to send the second signal after the robot triggers the return operation, saving the energy consumption of the workstation while avoiding guiding other robots back to the workstation. After the robot's receiver enters the central area for the first time, the robot can be controlled to move straight and rotate to quickly adjust its posture to the posture at the workstation, and then the robot can be controlled to move to the workstation based on the target direction, thereby reducing the frequency of adjusting the robot's moving direction and the amplitude of rotation, shortening the time it takes for the robot to return to the workstation and improving the robot's pile-matching efficiency.

[0089] Based on the above embodiments, Fig.15 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of a robot return device provided in an embodiment of the present application. Fig.15 The robot return device provided in this embodiment specifically includes: a signal sending module 41, an area determination module 42, a first movement control module 43, a second movement control module 44 and a third movement control module 45.

[0090] The signal sending module 41 is configured to control the robot to send a first signal to the workstation, so that the workstation starts to send a second signal after receiving the first signal;

[0091] The area determination module 42 is configured to receive the second signal through the receiver of the robot, and determine the area where the receiver is located according to the second signal, the area includes a first area, a second area and a central area, and the first area and the second area are located on both sides of the central area;

[0092] A first movement control module 43 is configured to control the robot to move so that the receiver moves to the central area when the receiver is located in the first area or the second area;

[0093] A second movement control module 44 is configured to control the robot to move a preset distance based on a reference direction when the receiver is located in the central area, the reference direction being the direction of a line between the rotation center of the robot and the receiver, and the preset distance being determined based on the distance between the rotation center and the receiver;

[0094] The third movement control module 45 is configured to control the robot to rotate so that the receiver returns to the center area, and control the robot to move to the workstation based on a target direction, where the target direction is determined based on the reference direction and the area where the receiver is located.

[0095] On the basis of the above embodiments, the robot return device also includes: a posture determination module, which is configured to collect first point cloud data through a laser radar before controlling the robot to send a first signal to the workstation, generate a local map based on the first point cloud data, and determine the robot's posture information based on the local map and a preset global map; a path planning module, which is configured to plan the robot's return path based on the robot's posture information, the global map and the posture information of the target return point; a fourth movement control module, which is configured to control the robot to move to the target return point according to the return path.

[0096] Based on the above embodiment, the path planning module includes a path planning unit, which is configured to plan the robot's return path through a dynamic path search algorithm based on the robot's posture information, the global map and the posture information of the target return point.

[0097] On the basis of the above embodiments, the robot return device also includes: a point cloud screening module, which is configured to collect second point cloud data through a laser radar when the robot moves to the target return point before controlling the robot to send a first signal to the workstation, and filter out third point cloud data of a reference object from the second point cloud data, and the reference object is installed on the workstation; a fifth movement control module, which is configured to determine the central axis of the reference object according to the third point cloud data, and control the robot to move toward the central axis based on a direction perpendicular to the central axis; a rotation control module, which is configured to control the robot to rotate when the robot moves to the central axis so that the receiver faces the workstation.

[0098] Based on the above embodiment, the point cloud screening module includes: a first screening unit, configured to screen out third point cloud data of a reference object from the second point cloud data according to a reflection intensity value of the second point cloud data; wherein the reference object is a reflective board, and the reflection intensity value of the third point cloud data satisfies a reflection intensity threshold of the reflective board; or, a second screening unit, configured to screen out the third point cloud data of the reference object from the second point cloud data according to the shape of the reference object.

[0099] Based on the above embodiment, the first mobile control module 43 includes: a first mobile control unit, configured to control the robot to move based on a first speed when the receiver is located in the first area or the second area, and the first speed is less than the movement speed of the robot when the receiver does not receive the second signal.

[0100] On the basis of the above embodiment, the area also includes a third area and a fourth area, the third area is located on one side of the first area, and the fourth area is located on one side of the second area; accordingly, the first mobile control module 43 also includes: a second mobile control unit, which is configured to control the robot to move based on a second speed to move the receiver to the first area or the second area after determining the area where the receiver is located according to the second signal received by the receiver, when the receiver is located in the third area or the fourth area; the second speed is greater than the first speed and less than the movement speed of the robot when the receiver does not receive the second infrared signal.

[0101] Based on the above embodiment, the third mobile control module 45 includes: a first rotation control unit, configured to control the robot to rotate in a clockwise direction when the receiver is located in the first area, so that the receiver returns to the center area; wherein the first area is located on the left side of the center area; a second rotation control unit, configured to control the robot to rotate in a counterclockwise direction when the receiver is located in the second area, so that the receiver returns to the center area; wherein the second area is located on the right side of the center area.

[0102] On the basis of the above embodiment, the workstation transmits the first coded second signal to the first coded signal area, transmits the second coded second signal to the second coded signal area, and transmits the third coded second signal to the third coded signal area, the central area is the overlapping area of ​​the first coded signal area, the second coded signal area and the third coded signal area, the first area is the overlapping area of ​​the first coded signal area and the third coded signal area except the central area, the second area is the overlapping area of ​​the second coded signal area and the third coded signal area except the central area, the third area is the area of ​​the first coded signal area except the first area and the central area, and the fourth area is the area of ​​the second coded signal area except the second area and the central area.

[0103] Based on the above embodiment, the area determination module 42 includes: an infrared data generation unit, configured to generate infrared data based on the second signal, the infrared data includes one byte of encoding information, the encoding information includes the encoding corresponding to the second signal, and the encoding occupies two bits; an area determination unit, configured to convert the infrared data into a logical value, and determine the area where the receiver is located according to the logical value.

[0104] As mentioned above, the robot return device provided in the embodiment of the present application sends a first signal to the workstation when the robot triggers the return operation, so that the workstation starts to send the second signal after receiving the first signal. After the receiver receives the second signal, the area where the receiver is located is determined according to the second signal. If the receiver is located in the first area or the second area, the robot is controlled to move to the central area between the first area and the second area. If the receiver is located in the central area, the robot is controlled to move a preset distance based on the reference direction so that the rotation center of the robot moves to the central area. After the rotation center moves to the central area, the robot is controlled to rotate and stop rotating after the receiver returns to the central area. At this time, the receiver and the rotation center are both in the central area, and the current posture of the robot is consistent or approximately consistent with the posture in the workstation. The target direction of the robot can be determined by the reference direction and the area where the receiver is located, and the robot is controlled to move to the workstation according to the target direction. Through the above technical means, the workstation starts to send the second signal after the robot triggers the return operation, saving the energy consumption of the workstation while avoiding guiding other robots back to the workstation. After the robot's receiver enters the central area for the first time, the robot can be controlled to move straight and rotate to quickly adjust its posture to the posture at the workstation, and then the robot can be controlled to move to the workstation based on the target direction, thereby reducing the frequency of adjusting the robot's moving direction and the amplitude of rotation, shortening the time it takes for the robot to return to the workstation and improving the robot's pile-matching efficiency.

[0105] The robot return device provided in the embodiment of the present application can be used to execute the robot return method provided in the above embodiment, and has corresponding functions and beneficial effects.

[0106] Fig.16 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of a robot pile return device provided in an embodiment of the present application, with reference to Fig.16 The robot pile return device includes: a processor 51, a memory 52, a communication device 53, an input device 54 and an output device 55. The number of processors 51 in the robot pile return device can be one or more, and the number of memories 52 in the robot pile return device can be one or more. The processor 51, memory 52, communication device 53, input device 54 and output device 55 of the robot pile return device can be connected through a bus or other methods.

[0107] The memory 52, as a computer-readable storage medium, can be used to store software programs, computer executable programs and modules, such as program instructions / modules corresponding to the robot return method of any embodiment of the present application (for example, the signal sending module 41, the area determination module 42, the first movement control module 43, the second movement control module 44 and the third movement control module 45 in the robot return device). The memory 52 may mainly include a program storage area and a data storage area, wherein the program storage area may store an operating system, an application required for at least one function; the data storage area may store data created according to the use of the device, etc. In addition, the memory 52 may include a high-speed random access memory, and may also include a non-volatile memory, such as at least one disk storage device, a flash memory device, or other non-volatile solid-state storage device. In some instances, the memory may further include a memory remotely arranged relative to the processor, and these remote memories may be connected to the device via a network. Examples of the above-mentioned network include, but are not limited to, the Internet, an intranet, a local area network, a mobile communication network and a combination thereof.

[0108] The communication device 53 is used for data transmission.

[0109] The processor 51 executes various functional applications and data processing of the device by running the software programs, instructions and modules stored in the memory 52, that is, realizes the above-mentioned robot return method.

[0110] The input device 54 may be used to receive input digital or character information and generate key signal input related to user settings and function control of the device. The output device 55 may include a display device such as a display screen.

[0111] The robot return device provided above can be used to execute the robot return method provided in the above embodiment, and has corresponding functions and beneficial effects.

[0112] An embodiment of the present application also provides a storage medium containing computer executable instructions, which are used to execute a robot return method when executed by a computer processor. The robot return method includes: controlling the robot to send a first signal to a workstation, so that the workstation starts to send a second signal after receiving the first signal; receiving the second signal through the robot's receiver, and determining the area where the receiver is located according to the second signal, the area includes a first area, a second area and a central area, and the first area and the second area are located on both sides of the central area; when the receiver is located in the first area or the second area, controlling the robot to move so that the receiver moves to the central area; when the receiver is located in the central area, controlling the robot to move a preset distance based on a reference direction, the reference direction is the direction of the line between the robot's rotation center and the receiver, and the preset distance is determined based on the distance between the rotation center and the receiver; controlling the robot to rotate so that the receiver returns to the central area, and controlling the robot to move to the workstation based on a target direction, and the target direction is determined based on the reference direction and the area where the receiver is located.

[0113] Storage medium - any of various types of memory devices or storage devices. The term "storage medium" is intended to include: installation media, such as CD-ROM, floppy disk or tape device; computer system memory or random access memory, such as DRAM, DDR RAM, SRAM, EDO RAM, Rambus RAM, etc.; non-volatile memory, such as flash memory, magnetic media (such as hard disk or optical storage); registers or other similar types of memory elements, etc. Storage media may also include other types of memory or combinations thereof. In addition, the storage medium may be located in the first computer system in which the program is executed, or may be located in a different second computer system, which is connected to the first computer system via a network (such as the Internet). The second computer system can provide program instructions to the first computer for execution. The term "storage medium" may include two or more storage media residing in different locations (for example, in different computer systems connected by a network). The storage medium may store program instructions (for example, embodied as a computer program) that can be executed by one or more processors.

[0114] Of course, the storage medium containing computer executable instructions provided in the embodiment of the present application is not limited to the above robot return method, and the computer executable instructions can also execute the related operations in the robot return method provided in any embodiment of the present application.

[0115] The embodiment of the present application also provides a pile return system, which includes a workstation and a robot. The workstation is provided with an infrared module, which is used to send a second signal; the robot is provided with a receiver and a processor, and the receiver is used to receive the second signal; the processor is used to control the robot to send a first signal to the workstation, so that the workstation starts to send the second signal after receiving the first signal; the second signal is received by the receiver of the robot, and the area where the receiver is located is determined according to the second signal, and the area includes a first area, a second area and a central area, and the first area and the second area are located on both sides of the central area; when the receiver is located in the first area or the second area, the robot is controlled to move so that the receiver moves to the central area; when the receiver is located in the central area, the robot is controlled to move a preset distance based on a reference direction, the reference direction is the direction of the line between the rotation center of the robot and the receiver, and the preset distance is determined based on the distance between the rotation center and the receiver; the robot is controlled to rotate so that the receiver returns to the central area, and the robot is controlled to move to the workstation based on a target direction, and the target direction is determined based on the reference direction and the area where the receiver is located.

[0116] The robot return device, storage medium and robot return equipment provided in the above embodiments can execute the robot return method provided in any embodiment of the present application. For technical details not described in detail in the above embodiments, please refer to the robot return method provided in any embodiment of the present application.

[0117] The above are only preferred embodiments of the present application and the technical principles used. The present application is not limited to the specific embodiments herein, and various obvious changes, readjustments and substitutions that can be made by those skilled in the art will not deviate from the protection scope of the present application. Therefore, although the present application is described in more detail through the above embodiments, the present application is not limited to the above embodiments, and may also include more other equivalent embodiments without departing from the concept of the present application, and the scope of the present application is determined by the scope of the claims.

Claims

1. A robot return method, characterized in that: include: Control the robot to send a first signal to the workstation, so that the workstation starts to send a second signal after receiving the first signal; receiving the second signal through a receiver of the robot, and determining an area where the receiver is located according to the second signal, wherein the area includes a first area, a second area, and a central area, and the first area and the second area are located on both sides of the central area; When the receiver is located in the first area or the second area, controlling the robot to move so that the receiver moves to the central area; When the receiver is located in the central area, controlling the robot to move a preset distance based on a reference direction, the reference direction being a direction of a line between a rotation center of the robot and the receiver, and the preset distance being determined based on a distance between the rotation center and the receiver; The robot is controlled to rotate so that the receiver returns to the central area, and the robot is controlled to move to the workstation based on a target direction, where the target direction is determined based on the reference direction and the area where the receiver is located.

2. The robot return method according to claim 1, characterized in that: Before the controlling robot sends the first signal to the workstation, the method further includes: Collecting first point cloud data through a laser radar, generating a local map according to the first point cloud data, and determining the position and posture information of the robot according to the local map and a preset global map; Planning a return path for the robot according to the posture information of the robot, the global map, and the posture information of the target return point; The robot is controlled to move to the target return point according to the return path.

3. The robot return method according to claim 2, characterized in that: The step of planning a return path of the robot according to the posture information of the robot, the global map and the posture information of the target return point comprises: Based on the posture information of the robot, the global map and the posture information of the target return point, the return path of the robot is planned by a dynamic path search algorithm.

4. The robot return method according to claim 2 or 3, characterized in that: Before the controlling robot sends the first signal to the workstation, the method further includes: When the robot moves to the target return point, the laser radar collects second point cloud data, and selects third point cloud data of a reference object from the second point cloud data, where the reference object is installed on the workstation; Determine the central axis of the reference object according to the third point cloud data, and control the robot to move toward the central axis based on a direction perpendicular to the central axis; When the robot moves to the central axis, the robot is controlled to rotate so that the receiver faces the workstation.

5. The robot return method according to claim 4, characterized in that: The step of filtering out the third point cloud data of the reference object from the second point cloud data comprises: According to the reflection intensity value of the second point cloud data, the third point cloud data of the reference object is screened out from the second point cloud data; wherein the reference object is a reflective plate, and the reflection intensity value of the third point cloud data meets the reflection intensity threshold of the reflective plate; or, According to the shape of the reference object, the third point cloud data of the reference object is screened out from the second point cloud data.

6. The robot return method according to claim 1, characterized in that: When the receiver is located in the first area or the second area, controlling the robot to move comprises: When the receiver is located in the first area or the second area, the robot is controlled to move based on a first speed, which is lower than the moving speed of the robot when the receiver does not receive the second signal.

7. The robot return method according to claim 6, characterized in that: The area further includes a third area and a fourth area, the third area is located on one side of the first area, and the fourth area is located on one side of the second area; accordingly, after determining the area where the receiver is located according to the second signal received by the receiver, the method further includes: When the receiver is located in the third area or the fourth area, the robot is controlled to move based on a second speed to move the receiver to the first area or the second area; the second speed is greater than the first speed and less than the movement speed of the robot when the receiver does not receive the second infrared signal.

8. The robot return method according to claim 1, characterized in that: The controlling the robot to rotate so that the receiver returns to the central area comprises: When the receiver is located in the first area, controlling the robot to rotate in a clockwise direction so that the receiver returns to the central area; wherein the first area is located on the left side of the central area; When the receiver is located in the second area, the robot is controlled to rotate in a counterclockwise direction so that the receiver returns to the central area; wherein the second area is located on the right side of the central area.

9. The robot return method according to claim 7, characterized in that: The workstation transmits a first-coded second signal to a first coded signal area, transmits a second-coded second signal to a second coded signal area, and transmits a third-coded second signal to a third coded signal area, the central area is an overlapping area of ​​the first coded signal area, the second coded signal area, and the third coded signal area, the first area is an overlapping area of ​​the first coded signal area and the third coded signal area except the central area, the second area is an overlapping area of ​​the second coded signal area and the third coded signal area except the central area, the third area is an area in the first coded signal area except the first area and the central area, and the fourth area is an area in the second coded signal area except the second area and the central area.

10. The robot return method according to claim 9, characterized in that: The determining the area where the receiver is located according to the second signal includes: generating infrared data according to the second signal, the infrared data including one byte of coding information, the coding information including a code corresponding to the second signal, the code occupying two bits; The infrared data is converted into a logical value, and the area where the receiver is located is determined according to the logical value.

11. A robot pile return device, characterized in that: include: A signal sending module, configured to control the robot to send a first signal to the workstation, so that the workstation starts to send a second signal after receiving the first signal; an area determination module, configured to receive the second signal through a receiver of the robot, and determine an area where the receiver is located according to the second signal, wherein the area includes a first area, a second area, and a central area, and the first area and the second area are located on both sides of the central area; A first movement control module is configured to control the robot to move so that the receiver moves to the central area when the receiver is located in the first area or the second area; a second movement control module, configured to control the robot to move a preset distance based on a reference direction when the receiver is located in the central area, the reference direction being a direction of a line between a rotation center of the robot and the receiver, the preset distance being determined based on a distance between the rotation center and the receiver; The third movement control module is configured to control the robot to rotate so that the receiver returns to the central area, and control the robot to move to the workstation based on a target direction, where the target direction is determined based on the reference direction and the area where the receiver is located.

12. A robot pile return device, characterized in that: include: one or more processors; A memory stores one or more programs, and when the one or more programs are executed by the one or more processors, the one or more processors implement the robot return method as described in any one of claims 1-10.

13. A storage medium containing computer executable instructions, characterized in that: The computer executable instructions are used to execute the robot return method as described in any one of claims 1-10 when executed by a computer processor.

14. A pile return system, characterized in that: include: A workstation is provided with an infrared module, wherein the infrared module is used to send a second signal; A robot, provided with a receiver and a processor, wherein the receiver is used to receive the second signal; The processor is used to control the robot to send a first signal to the workstation, so that the workstation starts to send a second signal after receiving the first signal; receive the second signal through the receiver of the robot, and determine the area where the receiver is located according to the second signal, the area includes a first area, a second area and a central area, and the first area and the second area are located on both sides of the central area; when the receiver is located in the first area or the second area, control the robot to move so that the receiver moves to the central area; when the receiver is located in the central area, control the robot to move a preset distance based on a reference direction, the reference direction is the direction of the line between the rotation center of the robot and the receiver, and the preset distance is determined based on the distance between the rotation center and the receiver; control the robot to rotate so that the receiver returns to the central area, and control the robot to move to the workstation based on a target direction, and the target direction is determined based on the reference direction and the area where the receiver is located.

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