Collaborative control system and method for hydropower station maintenance tool transfer robots based on multiple operating platforms

Abstract

A collaborative control system and method for a hydropower station maintenance tool transfer robot based on multiple operating platforms includes a main control system, a wireless network communication system, and a transfer robot system. The wireless network communication system is electrically connected to the main control system and the transfer robot system. A control module analyzes and calls appropriate motion models and controls the transfer robot system to execute task instructions. A data processing module is used to uniformly convert data across multiple operating platforms. The wireless network communication system establishes a communication channel between the main control system and the transfer robot system. The transfer robot system receives control instructions and collaboratively performs tasks such as material handling, grasping, placing, and sorting. This system integrates monitoring and control to achieve unified, centralized, and collaborative control of transfer robots across multiple operating platforms, eliminating operator switching between different control platforms. This effectively reduces operational difficulty and personnel burden, improves material transfer efficiency and safety, and saves labor costs.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention belongs to the technical field of robot control, and relates to a collaborative control system and method for a hydropower station maintenance tool transfer robot based on multiple operating platforms. Background Art

[0002] During the maintenance of large generator sets, many large and heavy tools and parts need to be grasped and transported to the work site by transfer robots. A wide variety of smaller tools also need to be sorted and transported to the work site by transfer robots. Due to their diverse functions and tasks, current transfer robots are designed to be controlled and executed by different operating platforms. Typically, to meet maintenance cycle requirements, multiple operators are required to independently control the transfer robots and coordinate the tasks. Practical applications have exposed the following problems: High operator qualifications are required, requiring extensive training before they can be employed, resulting in high training costs; operators have limited skills, making it difficult to handle the task of rotating transfer robots across multiple operating platforms, resulting in poor risk management capabilities; Communication difficulties between operators during long-distance transport lead to unclear division of labor and inefficient coordination; and operators are prone to operational errors, which can damage the transferred objects at best and even cause personal injury at worst, posing a safety hazard. Summary of the Invention

[0003] The technical problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide a collaborative control system and method for hydropower station maintenance tool transfer robots based on multiple operating platforms. A control interface is used to control the transfer robots on different operating platforms, replacing manual operation with instructions. The collaborative control of the transfer robots is achieved through rapid roaming technology, effectively reducing the operating difficulty and personnel burden, improving material transfer efficiency and safety, and saving labor costs.

[0004] In order to solve the above technical problems, the technical solution adopted by the present invention is: a collaborative control system and method for a hydropower station maintenance tool transfer robot based on multiple operating platforms, which includes a main control system, a wireless network communication system, and a transfer robot system; the wireless network communication system is electrically connected to the main control system and the transfer robot system; the main control system is located at any position in the working area and is moved according to the needs of the operator; the wireless network communication system is arranged according to the location of the generator set to be repaired and the material warehouse, and the number of wireless access point devices is obviously increased according to the actual working range; the transfer robot system performs transfer work on the designated channel of the workshop building; the transfer robot system is used to receive control instructions and collaboratively perform material handling, grasping, placement, and sorting tasks.

[0005] The main control system includes an instruction module, a data processing module, and a control module, wherein the instruction module is used to receive user task objectives, the data processing module is used for data uniformity conversion of multiple operating platforms, and the control module is used to analyze and call appropriate motion models and control the transfer robot system to execute task instructions; the main control system includes at least one workstation and a logic controller; the main control system and the transfer robot system both have wired and wireless communication connection capabilities.

[0006] The wireless network communication system is used to establish a communication channel between the main control system and the transfer robot system; the wireless network communication system includes at least one wireless access point device and a network hub device, which connects the main control system and the transfer robot system through 802.11k / v / r fast roaming technology.

[0007] The workstation is used to run the command module, data processing module, and control module of the control system; the logic controller is used to control the execution components in the transfer robot system; the execution components include at least one three-axis motion mechanism and one six-axis robotic arm; the workstation, logic controller, and wireless access point device are connected to the network hub device in a wired manner by default; the transfer robot system and the wireless network communication system are connected in a wireless manner by default.

[0008] The interactive mode of the instructions and data of the multi-operation platform includes but is not limited to API and communication protocol; the instructions and data include but are not limited to: tasks, status, parameter signals of devices, units, and components; the communication protocols include but are not limited to: MODBUS TCP / IP, PROFINET, ETHERNET / IP.

[0009] The transfer robot system includes at least four types of transfer robots: a first transfer robot, a second transfer robot, a third transfer robot, and a fourth transfer robot; the first transfer robot is used to perform mobile sorting tasks, the second transfer robot and the fourth transfer robot are used to perform handling tasks, and the third transfer robot is used to perform mobile grasping and placement tasks; the four transfer robots in the transfer robot system are multi-operation platforms.

[0010] It also includes a safety module for safely monitoring the task actions of the transfer robot system; obtaining the risk factors of the work site through the environmental perception equipment applied to the transfer robot system; performing feature conversion on the risk factors through the feature extraction template applied to the transfer robot system to generate a risk factor description.

[0011] The risk factor description includes: a risk factor description of the path that has been passed on the trajectory path planned by the transfer robot system, a risk factor description of the path that has not been passed on the trajectory path planned by the transfer robot system, a risk factor description of the rotation behavior expansion path, and a risk factor description of the predicted risk factor on the corrected trajectory path; based on the risk factor description, a risk level assessment is performed, and then the transfer robot system is controlled to execute a safe behavior strategy; the main control system is accessed through the API and communication protocol to provide system monitoring and reminders to the operator.

[0012] The activation process of the safety module includes obtaining the hazardous factors of the work site and the depth and height information of obstacles on the travel path through the environmental perception equipment applied to each transfer robot. According to the hazardous factor judgment method, when the depth information is less than the threshold and the height information is greater than the threshold, the target is judged to be a hazardous factor, and then the three-dimensional contour information and other characteristic information of the hazardous factor are further measured.

[0013] The method for constructing a collaborative control system for a hydropower station maintenance tool transfer robot based on multiple operating platforms as described above includes the following steps:

[0014] S1, deploying the hardware and software of the main control system, wireless network communication system, and transfer robot system;

[0015] S2, starting and running the hardware and software of the main control system, wireless network communication system, and transfer robot system, and establishing a communication connection;

[0016] S3, setting the mission goal of the transfer robot;

[0017] S4 processes the conversion task information and issues the task to the transfer robot system to execute the task.

[0018] The main beneficial effects of the present invention are:

[0019] It integrates multiple operating platforms into one and unifies multiple operating interfaces and instructions. When there is a large-scale generator set maintenance task, the operator only needs to use this system to issue task instructions to all transfer robots. There is no need to learn how to use multiple operating platforms separately, which lowers the usage threshold, improves personnel utilization, and saves labor costs.

[0020] A wireless network communication system based on 802.11k / v / r fast roaming technology is used to build a wireless communication network framework that can be expanded according to the needs of the maintenance work space, achieving the goal of global wireless network coverage of the generator set maintenance space, thereby breaking through the spatial communication barriers of operators and ensuring the quality and stability of network communication.

[0021] The multi-core processing mode of the workstation CPU is used to parallelly process instructions, control, and data processing tasks, and the coordinated control of the transfer robot system is achieved through the motion model algorithm, which can improve the efficiency and safety of material transfer during unit maintenance. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0022] The present invention will be further described below with reference to the accompanying drawings and examples.

[0023] Figure 1 This is a system architecture diagram of the present invention.

[0024] Figure 2 This is a diagram of the device network relationship of the present invention.

[0025] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the three-dimensional coordinate identification of risk factors of the present invention.

[0026] Figure 4 Construct a flow chart for the system of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0027] like Figures 1 to 4 In the present invention, a collaborative control system for a hydropower station maintenance tool transfer robot based on a multi-operation platform is proposed, which includes a main control system, a wireless network communication system, and a transfer robot system; Figure 1 In the process, the wireless network communication system is electrically connected to the main control system and the transfer robot system.

[0028] Example 1,

[0029] Main control system, such as Figure 2 In the system, the main control system includes a workstation and a logic controller, both of which have wired and wireless communication connection capabilities, and by default use a wired network connection method and a network hub device for connection. The main control system has a certain degree of mobility and can be installed at any location in the workshop hall and can be moved according to the needs of the operator. The workstation mainly runs the instruction module, data processing module, and control module, which are used to receive user instructions and issue collaborative tasks to the transfer robot system based on multiple operating platforms. The logic controller mainly runs the control program of the execution component in the transfer robot system, which controls the execution mechanism to complete tasks such as grasping, placing, and sorting. The execution component includes at least one three-axis motion mechanism and one six-axis robotic arm, wherein the three-axis motion mechanism is used for grasping and placing tasks, and the six-axis robotic arm is used for sorting tasks.

[0030] The instruction module is a functional module in this system that receives user task objectives and includes an independent graphical user interface. The user task objective configuration includes at least: the transfer robot object, the quantity, attributes, and location of the materials to be transferred, the tasks of performing grabbing, placing, and sorting, and the material transfer destination.

[0031] The data processing module is a functional module in this system that converts data uniformly across multiple operating platforms. The four transfer robots in the transfer robot system are controlled by four independent operating platforms. The data processing module processes the external API, MODBUS TCP / IP communication protocol, PROFINET communication protocol, and ETHERNET / IP communication protocol for each operating platform. It receives data signals, processes them uniformly, and then uses them for other system functions. It also transmits reverse-converted data signals to each transfer robot. Data signals cover each transfer robot and its actuators, and signal types include at least: device, unit, and component task, status, and parameter signals.

[0032] The control module is responsible for analyzing and invoking appropriate motion models and controlling the transfer robot system to execute task instructions. This module uses data collected by the data processing and instruction modules as input evaluation criteria, utilizes the G-MAPF algorithm to perform instruction calculations, and issues coordinated motion control instructions to each transfer robot. Based on the matching status between the transfer robot and the target node, the transfer robot's actuators are controlled to execute the user task. The control module's functions include at least: path planning, resource utilization, automated tasks, task allocation, status monitoring, route blocking, detours, and exception handling.

[0033] Example 2,

[0034] Wireless network communication systems, such as Figure 2 The wireless network communication system includes at least one wireless access point device and a network hub device. The network devices are arranged based on the location of the generator set to be repaired and the material warehouse. The number of wireless access points is increased based on the actual working range to ensure that the transfer robot has sufficient wireless network coverage along the transfer route. The wireless network system connects the main control system and the transfer robot system via 802.11k / v / r fast roaming technology. This technology enables the transfer robot system to automatically switch to the access point with the best signal when roaming between multiple wireless access points. The switching time does not exceed 20ms, ensuring that the transfer robot system is always connected to the wireless network with the best signal during operation.

[0035] Example 3,

[0036] Transfer robot systems, such as Figure 2The transfer robot system includes four transfer robots controlled by four independent operating platforms: a first transfer robot, a second transfer robot, a third transfer robot, and a fourth transfer robot. The first transfer robot is equipped with a six-axis robotic arm and an end effector, and is transferred to the workspace by a mobile chassis. A 3D vision camera is used for material identification, and the six-axis robotic arm cooperates with the end effector to complete the sorting task. The second and fourth transfer robots are equipped with mechanical actuators and are spatially transferred by a mobile chassis to perform handling tasks. The fourth transfer robot is equipped with a three-axis motion mechanism and an end effector for performing material grabbing and placement tasks, and is spatially transferred by a mobile chassis.

[0037] Example 4,

[0038] Since the generator maintenance process is a three-dimensional space operation process, the transfer robot system often encounters many moving and fixed obstacles during the transfer process. To prevent damage to personnel and equipment, a safety module is required to monitor the task actions of the transfer robot system. The safety module takes effect as follows:

[0039] 1. The environmental perception equipment applied to each transfer robot obtains the hazardous factors of the work site, including the depth and height information of obstacles on the travel path. According to the hazardous factor determination method, when the depth information is less than the threshold and the height information is greater than the threshold, the target is determined to be a hazardous factor. Then, the three-dimensional contour information and other characteristic information of the hazardous factor are further measured. Figure 3 As shown, the left and right three-dimensional coordinates of the risk factors are obtained from the environmental perception device, and a risk factor dataset is constructed: D = { d 1, d 2, ... , d n},in D is the risk factor dataset, d i It is i The original data of risk factors.

[0040] 2. Perform feature conversion on the risk factors by using the feature extraction template applied to the transfer robot system: OXYZ and the left imaging three-dimensional coordinate system O l X l Y l Z l overlap, point P For a point in space, P l andP r Points P The imaging point in the left and right imaging three-dimensional coordinate system. f l and f r are the focal lengths of the left and right environmental sensing devices respectively. P The relationship between the coordinates of the imaging points in the left and right imaging spaces and the coordinate system of the environment perception device is:

[0041] ;

[0042] ;

[0043] Where, 、 Indicates that the left environmental perception device is along x and y The normalized focal length in the direction, 、 Indicates that the right environmental perception device is along x and y The normalized focal length in the direction. M lr To represent the left environment perception device coordinates O l X l Y l Z l and the right environmental perception device coordinate system O r X r Y r Z r Position relationship:

[0044] ;

[0045] The risk factor characteristics are then converted into the following description:

[0046] ;

[0047] ;

[0048] ;

[0049] Generate a risk factor description set: F = { f 1, f 2, ... , fn},in F is the risk factor description set after feature transformation, f i It is extracted from the feature template d i The features extracted from .

[0050] 3. Hazard factor descriptions include: descriptions of hazard factors for paths already traveled on the planned trajectory of the transfer robot system, descriptions of hazard factors for paths not traveled on the planned trajectory of the transfer robot system, descriptions of hazard factors for paths expanded by rotational behavior, and descriptions of hazard factors predicted on the corrected trajectory. K-means image segmentation was used to determine the hazard factor region, and the cvFindContours function in OpenCV was used to detect the hazard factor contour. The boundingRect function was used to obtain the hazard factor envelope information. Objects were marked with an external rectangular box, and the hazard factor contour was extracted and fitted.

[0051] 4. Based on the description of the risk factors, the risk level is assessed. The assessment method is: randomly select the pixel points within the rectangular box circumscribing the outline of a single risk factor and calculate their three-dimensional coordinates in the world coordinate system ( x , y , z ).in x and z Respectively represent the horizontal distance and height distance of the risk factor relative to the environmental perception device, and then determine whether it is an obstacle based on the set threshold. The specific steps are: first calculate the three-dimensional coordinates of several randomly selected pixel points in the rectangular box di(x,y, z) ,Will x Median of values x Setting 0 as the threshold will satisfy x - x 0> to remove the pixels with errors; then take the remaining pixels x The coordinate average of x * As the horizontal distance of the object, take z The maximum value of the coordinate z m As the height distance of the object. x * and z m With threshold X d 、 Z d For comparison, when z m > Z d and x* < X d When , it is determined that the risk factor has a high risk level, and the transfer robot system needs to be controlled to execute a safe behavior strategy.

[0052] 5. Access the main control system through API and communication protocol to provide system monitoring reminders to the operators, assisting operators to quickly judge, locate, and check dangerous factors, thereby improving operational convenience.

[0053] Example 5,

[0054] The method for constructing a collaborative control system for a hydropower station maintenance tool transfer robot based on multiple operating platforms as described above includes the following steps:

[0055] S1, deploying the hardware and software of the main control system, wireless network communication system, and transfer robot system;

[0056] S2, starting and running the hardware and software of the main control system, wireless network communication system, and transfer robot system, and establishing a communication connection;

[0057] S3, setting the mission goal of the transfer robot;

[0058] S4, processes the conversion task information and issues the task to the transfer robot system to execute the task.

[0059] In the above embodiment, monitoring and control are integrated into one to realize unified centralized collaborative control of transfer robots under multiple operating platforms, avoiding the operator's operation switching under different control platforms, which can effectively reduce the operation difficulty and personnel burden, improve material transfer efficiency and safety, and save labor costs.

[0060] The above embodiments are merely preferred technical solutions of the present invention and should not be construed as limiting the present invention. The embodiments and features in the embodiments of this application may be arbitrarily combined with each other unless they conflict. The scope of protection of the present invention shall be the technical solutions described in the claims, including equivalent alternatives to the technical features of the technical solutions described in the claims. Equivalent alternatives and improvements within this scope are also within the scope of protection of the present invention.

Claims

1. A collaborative control system for a hydropower station maintenance tool transfer robot based on multiple operating platforms, characterized by: It includes a main control system, a wireless network communication system, and a transfer robot system; the wireless network communication system is electrically connected to the main control system and the transfer robot system; the main control system is located at any position in the work area and can be moved according to the needs of the operator; the wireless network communication system is arranged according to the location of the generator set to be repaired and the material warehouse, and the number of wireless access point devices is increased according to the actual working range; the transfer robot system performs transfer work on the designated channel of the workshop building; the transfer robot system is used to receive control instructions and coordinate the execution of material handling, grasping, placement, and sorting tasks; It also includes a safety module for monitoring the safety of the task actions of the transfer robot system; obtaining the dangerous factors of the work site through the environmental perception equipment applied to the transfer robot system; The feature extraction template applied to the transfer robot system is used to transform the risk factors into features and generate risk factor descriptions; The risk factor description includes: a risk factor description of a path that has been passed on the planned trajectory path of the transfer robot system, a risk factor description of a path that has not been passed on the planned trajectory path of the transfer robot system, a risk factor description of a rotation behavior expansion path, and a risk factor description of a predicted path on the corrected trajectory path; based on the risk factor description, a risk level assessment is performed, thereby controlling the transfer robot system to execute a safe behavior strategy; The main control system is accessed through API and communication protocol to provide system monitoring reminders to the operator.

2. The collaborative control system for a hydropower station maintenance tool transfer robot based on multiple operating platforms according to claim 1 is characterized by: The main control system includes an instruction module, a data processing module, and a control module, wherein the instruction module is used to receive user task objectives, the data processing module is used for data uniformity conversion of multiple operating platforms, and the control module is used to analyze and call appropriate motion models and control the transfer robot system to execute task instructions; the main control system includes at least one workstation and a logic controller; the main control system and the transfer robot system both have wired and wireless communication connection capabilities.

3. The collaborative control system for a hydropower station maintenance tool transfer robot based on multiple operating platforms according to claim 1 is characterized by: The wireless network communication system is used to establish a communication channel between the main control system and the transfer robot system; the wireless network communication system includes at least one wireless access point device and a network hub device, which connects the main control system and the transfer robot system through 802.11k / v / r fast roaming technology.

4. The collaborative control system for a hydropower station maintenance tool transfer robot based on multiple operating platforms according to claim 2 is characterized by: The workstation is used to run the command module, data processing module, and control module of the control system; the logic controller is used to control the execution components in the transfer robot system; the execution components include at least one three-axis motion mechanism and one six-axis robotic arm; the workstation, logic controller, and wireless access point device are connected to the network hub device in a wired manner by default; the transfer robot system and the wireless network communication system are connected in a wireless manner by default.

5. The collaborative control system for a hydropower station maintenance tool transfer robot based on multiple operating platforms according to claim 2 is characterized by: The interactive mode of the instructions and data of the multi-operation platform includes but is not limited to API and communication protocol; the instructions and data include but are not limited to: tasks, status, parameter signals of devices, units, and components; the communication protocols include but are not limited to: MODBUS TCP / IP, PROFINET, ETHERNET / IP.

6. The collaborative control system for a hydropower station maintenance tool transfer robot based on multiple operating platforms according to claim 1 is characterized by: The transfer robot system includes at least four types of transfer robots: a first transfer robot, a second transfer robot, a third transfer robot, and a fourth transfer robot; the first transfer robot is used to perform mobile sorting tasks, the second transfer robot and the fourth transfer robot are used to perform handling tasks, and the third transfer robot is used to perform mobile grasping and placement tasks; the four transfer robots in the transfer robot system are multi-operation platforms.

7. The collaborative control system for a hydropower station maintenance tool transfer robot based on multiple operating platforms according to claim 1 is characterized by: The process of the safety module includes obtaining the dangerous factors of the work site and the depth and height information of obstacles on the travel path through the environmental perception equipment applied to each transfer robot. According to the dangerous factor judgment method, when the depth information is less than the threshold and the height information is greater than the threshold, the target is judged to be a dangerous factor, and then the three-dimensional contour information and other characteristic information of the dangerous factor are further measured.

8. The method for constructing a collaborative control system for a hydropower station maintenance tool transfer robot based on multiple operating platforms according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein: The steps include: S1, deploying the hardware and software of the main control system, wireless network communication system, and transfer robot system; S2, starting and running the hardware and software of the main control system, wireless network communication system, and transfer robot system, and establishing a communication connection; S3, setting the mission goal of the transfer robot; S4, processes the conversion task information and issues the task to the transfer robot system to execute the task.

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