Liquid supply device, liquid supply method, and liquid supply program

Abstract

The present invention addresses the problem of expanding a liquid supply region than in the prior art. [Solution] A liquid supply device is provided with: a moving unit that moves in a state in which a self-body device is supported; a supply unit that supplies a liquid; a three-dimensional information acquisition unit that acquires three-dimensional information of an entire region where the liquid is likely to be supplied; a communication unit that transmits the three-dimensional information and receives information indicating a position of a supplied region to which the liquid is to be supplied in the overall region; and a control unit that, on the basis of three-dimensional information on the entire region and information indicating the position of the region to be supplied, controls the moving unit so as to move the autologous device to the region to be supplied, and controls the supply unit so as to supply the liquid to the region to be supplied.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The technology of the present disclosure relates to a liquid supply device, a liquid supply method, and a liquid supply program. Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, a road marking device has been proposed, which includes a traveling cart capable of autonomous traveling, a camera mounted on the traveling cart and photographing the front thereof, a marking device mounted on the traveling cart and drawing a center line on the road surface, a target placed on the road surface in front of the traveling cart, and an electronic control device mounted on the traveling cart (Patent Document 1). The electronic control device is configured to photograph an image including the target by the camera, perform image processing on the image to identify the target, cause the traveling cart to travel toward the target, and draw a center line on the road surface by the marking device.

[0003] Prior Art Documents

[0004] Patent Documents

[0005] Patent Document 1: Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2022-148712 Summary of the Invention

[0006] Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0007] However, in the above-described road marking device, while causing the traveling cart to travel toward the target so that the target is located at the center of the image, the center line is drawn on the road surface by the marking device. Therefore, the area to be drawn has no expandability. In addition, it is necessary to configure the target composed of a plurality of special structures at the desired position by oneself from the beginning. Furthermore, in the case of drawing a pattern or a pattern and in the case where the coating part is not determined in advance, specifically, in the case of repairing a damaged part and scanning while judging whether to coat, etc., the above-described road marking device is difficult to cope with these situations.

[0008] An object of the technology of the present disclosure is to provide a liquid supply device, a liquid supply method, and a liquid supply program in which the area for supplying liquid has more expandability than the prior art.

[0009] Means for Solving the Problems

[0010] To achieve the above object, a liquid supply device according to a first aspect of the technology of the present disclosure includes a moving unit that moves while supporting the self-device, a supply unit that supplies a liquid, a three-dimensional information acquisition unit that acquires three-dimensional information of an entire area where the liquid may be supplied, a communication unit that transmits the three-dimensional information and receives information indicating the position of a supplied area where the liquid is to be supplied in the entire area, and a control unit. The control unit controls the moving unit based on the three-dimensional information of the entire area and the information indicating the position of the supplied area so that the self-device moves toward the supplied area, and controls the supply unit to supply the liquid to the supplied area.

[0011] A second aspect is a liquid supply method for the liquid supply device according to the first aspect, including: controlling the moving unit based on the three-dimensional information of the entire area and the information indicating the position of the supplied area so that the self-device moves toward the supplied area, and controlling the supply unit to supply the liquid to the supplied area.

[0012] A liquid supply program according to a third aspect causes a computer to function as the control unit according to the first aspect.

[0013] Advantages of the Invention

[0014] The technology of the present disclosure can provide a liquid supply device, a liquid supply method, and a liquid supply program in which the area for supplying a liquid has greater expandability than in the prior art. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0015] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of a liquid supply system according to a first embodiment.

[0016] Figure 2 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a liquid supply device according to the first embodiment.

[0017] Figure 3 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a staff terminal device.

[0018] Figure 4 is a timing diagram showing an example of the operation of the liquid supply system according to the first embodiment.

[0019] Figure 5 is a diagram showing an example of the entire area and the supplied area according to the first embodiment.

[0020] Figure 6 is a diagram showing an example of the position of the liquid supply device when the liquid supply device according to the second embodiment repairs a building wall surface.

[0021] Figure 7 ​​​​​​​is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of the liquid supply device according to the second embodiment.

[0022] Figure 8 is a timing chart showing an example of the operation of the liquid supply system according to the second embodiment.

[0023] Figure 9 is a diagram showing an example of each of the overall area and the supplied area according to the second embodiment. Detailed Embodiment

[0024] [First Embodiment]

[0025] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram showing an overall image of the liquid supply system according to the first embodiment. The liquid supply system of the present embodiment includes a liquid supply device 50 and a staff terminal device 70. The liquid supply device 50 coats a liquid or gel-like substance (liquid) such as paint, wax, and adhesive on the ground or the like in the supplied area in a space 10 such as indoors of a building. The staff terminal device 70 can communicate with the liquid supply device 50 by wire or wirelessly for a staff member to control the liquid supply device 50.

[0026] A three-dimensional information acquisition unit 61 is provided at a relatively high position in the liquid supply device 50 such as the top of the liquid supply device 50. The three-dimensional information acquisition unit 61 acquires information representing geometric features such as the size or shape of the layout of the supplied area. The three-dimensional information acquisition unit 61 irradiates electromagnetic waves such as laser like LIDAR (Laser Imaging Detection and Ranging) onto the supplied area, and acquires the geometric features of the supplied area through the electromagnetic waves scattered in the supplied area. In addition to LIDAR, image data obtained using a stereo camera capable of acquiring stereo image data can also be used to acquire the geometric features of the supplied area. Specifically, by triangulation based on the parallax of the two image data constituting the stereo image data obtained by the stereo camera, the spatial geometric features including the supplied area are calculated. Alternatively, a millimeter-wave radar can also be used to acquire the geometric features of the supplied area. Also, the information obtained using LIDAR, stereo camera, and millimeter-wave radar respectively can be integrated to acquire the geometric features of the supplied area. In the present embodiment, the processor 54 is configured to be able to acquire the spatial geometric features including the supplied area through machine learning using the data acquired by LIDAR, stereo camera, or millimeter-wave radar respectively as training data.

[0027] Alternatively, the information on the layout of the supplied area can be sent to the three-dimensional information acquisition unit 61 via the staff terminal device 70. ​​

[0028] The liquid supplied by the liquid supply device 50 to the supply area refers to a liquid-like composition (as long as it is a liquid composition, even if solid components with a size of several tens of nm to several mm such as pigments and other particles are added). As an example, there are waxes, adhesives, waterproof coatings or paints that are cured by ultraviolet (UV) light. The supply area, specifically the object to which the liquid is supplied, is a flat surface such as the floor of a room or the roof of a building.

[0029] The liquid supply device 50 sprays the liquid onto the supply area by an inkjet method that ejects the liquid in fine droplets. In addition to the inkjet method, the liquid can also be sprayed onto the supply area by a spraying method. Further, when the substance supplied to the supply area is in a gel state with a higher viscosity than the liquid, the substance can also be supplied to the supply area by a member such as a roller impregnated or attached with the substance.

[0030] Figure 2 It is a block diagram showing an example of the hardware configuration and the functions of the main parts of the electrical system of the liquid supply device 50 of the present embodiment. The liquid supply device 50 includes a computer 52, a storage device 62, a UV lamp 63, a coating device 64, a communication I / F 65, and a motor drive device 92.

[0031] The UV lamp 63 is an example of the "ultraviolet supply unit" of the technology of the present disclosure. The coating device 64 is an example of the "supply unit" of the technology of the present disclosure. The communication I / F 65 is an example of the "communication unit" of the technology of the present disclosure.

[0032] The computer 52 includes a processor 54, a NVM (Non-volatile memory), 56, and a RAM (Random Access Memory) 60. The processor 54, the NVM 56, and the RAM 60 are connected to a bus 66.

[0033] The processor 54 is an example of the "control unit" of the technology of the present disclosure.

[0034] The processor 54 is a processing device including a DSP (Digital Signal Processor), a CPU (Central Processing Unit), and a GPU (Graphics Processing Unit). The DSP and the GPU operate under the control of the CPU and are responsible for the execution of the processing described later. Here, as an example of the processor 54, a processing device including a DSP, a CPU, and a GPU is given, but this is only an example. The processor 54 can be one or more CPUs and DSPs integrating the GPU function, or one or more CPUs and DSPs without integrating the GPU function, and can also be equipped with a TPU (Tensor Processing Unit).

[0035] The NVM 56 is a non-volatile storage device that stores various programs and various parameters, etc. As the NVM 60, for example, a flash memory (e.g., EEPROM (Electrically Erasable and Programmable Read Only Memory)) can be cited. The RAM 60 is a memory that temporarily stores information and is used as a working memory by the processor 54. Examples of the RAM 60 include a dynamic random access memory (Dynamic Random Access Memory, DRAM) and a static random access memory (Static Random Access Memory, SRAM).

[0036] In the present embodiment, a liquid supply control program 58 is stored in the NVM 56. The processor 54 expands and executes the liquid supply control program 58 in the RAM 60. When the processor 54 executes the liquid supply control program 58, the processor 54 functions as an acquisition processing unit 54A, a communication processing unit 54B, a movement processing unit 54C, and a supply processing unit 54D. In addition, the liquid supply control program 58 can also be stored in the storage device 62.

[0037] The liquid supply control program 58 is an example of the "liquid supply program" of the technology of the present disclosure.

[0038] The communication I / F 65 is an interface including a communication processor and an antenna, etc., and is connected to the bus 66. The communication standard applicable to the communication I / F 65 is, for example, including 5G (5 thwireless communication standards such as the 5G (5th Generation Mobile Communication System), Wi-Fi (registered trademark), or Bluetooth (registered trademark).

[0039] The storage device 62 is a non-volatile storage device, such as an SSD (Solid State Drive) or an HDD (Hard Disk Drive).

[0040] Based on an instruction from the supply processing unit 54D of the processor 54, the coating device 64 coats a liquid substance such as UV coating on the supplied area, for example, by an inkjet method. The UV coating and other substances are ejected from the nozzle 130 and coated on the supplied area. The coated UV coating and the like are cured by the UV light irradiated from the UV lamp 63 controlled by the supply processing unit 54D. A protection member GD is provided around the UV lamp 63 to prevent the attachment of the liquid ejected by the coating device 64.

[0041] The nozzle 130 of the coating can be in contact with the bottom surface of the device or can be in a form extending from the device through an arm or the like. It should be noted that in the case of using a UV-curable composition, the UV lamp 63 can also be arranged at the front end of the arm together with the nozzle. At this time, it is preferably arranged such that the nozzle 130 of the coating is in the front and the UV lamp 63 is in the rear with respect to the traveling direction.

[0042] In addition, in order to miniaturize and lighten the liquid supply device 50, the UV lamp 63 can include an LED having an output peak at a wavelength of 300 to 420 nm.

[0043] The liquid supply device 50 is provided with four wheels 68 near the four corners of the housing and is configured to be able to move freely in the supplied area by moving forward, backward, turning right, and turning left. Each of the four wheels 68 of the liquid supply device 50 is provided with a motor 68M that rotates the wheel 68, and the motors 68M are respectively driven by the electric power supplied from the power source 90 via the motor driving device 92.

[0044] The four wheels 68, the four motors 68M, and the motor driving device 92 are an example of the "moving part" of the technology of the present disclosure and are not limited to this form. The number of wheels can be other than 4, or can be in the shape of a crawler.

[0045] The power source 90 is, for example, a rechargeable secondary battery such as a lithium-ion battery, a nickel-metal hydride battery, a nickel-cadmium battery, or a lead-acid battery. The power source 90 can also be supplied from the outside by wire.

[0046] The liquid supply device 50 can move forward or backward by changing the rotation directions of the four wheels 68. Additionally, the liquid supply device 50 can turn left or right by controlling the rotation speeds of the four wheels 68 respectively. For example, when the liquid supply device 50 turns right, the rotation speeds of the two wheels 68 on the right side of the liquid supply device 50 are suppressed compared to the rotation speed of the wheels 68 on the left side. Moreover, when the liquid supply device 50 turns left, the rotation speeds of the two wheels 68 on the left side of the liquid supply device 50 are suppressed compared to the rotation speed of the wheels 68 on the right side.

[0047] The motor drive device 92 modulates the power of the power source 90 based on a control signal from the movement processing unit 54C of the processor 54 via the bus 66 and supplies it to the motor 68M. When the motor 68M is a three-phase synchronous motor such as a brushless motor, for example, the motor drive device 92 is an inverter that applies a three-phase alternating voltage obtained by PWM (Pulse Width Modulation) of the power of the power source 90, which is direct current, to the windings of the motor 68M. The motor drive device 92 changes the rotation speed and rotation direction of the motor 68M by changing the frequency and execution voltage of the three-phase alternating voltage supplied to each motor 68M based on an instruction from the movement processing unit 54C, thereby causing the liquid supply device 50 to move forward, backward, turn right, and turn left. Alternatively, a steering mechanism may be provided on the wheel 68, and the liquid supply device 50 may be turned right and left by the steering mechanism.

[0048] In this way, by using the motor to rotate the wheels to move the liquid supply device 50, it is possible to prevent the generation of excessive airflows and vibrations.

[0049] A release agent layer is provided on the tire surface of the wheel 68. Thereby, the releasability of the tire surface can be improved, and even when the tire surface is placed on the supplied area after the coated liquid is UV-cured, it is possible to suppress the adhesion of the tire surface to the substance after the coated liquid is UV-cured.

[0050] In the present embodiment, in addition to the liquid supply device 50 as a coating robot, it can also be used in combination with a cleaning robot that cleans the supplied area. The cleaning robot cleans the surface of the supplied area by spraying a cleaning liquid from the coating device 64 of the liquid supply device 50. If the supplied area has already been cleaned, the cleaning robot may not be used in combination, and only the liquid supply device 50 as a coating robot may be used. The cleaning robot may also have a function of wiping or blowing off dust with air after spraying the cleaning liquid.

[0051] Additionally, the liquid supply device 50 may also have various sensors. Among these sensors, first, there is a measurement Figure 2A length measurement sensor for the distance between the liquid supply unit 130 on the lower surface and the coating surface. When there is a change in this distance, the liquid supply device 50 adjusts at least one of the ejection amount and the moving speed. In this sensor, second, there is an ultrasonic sensor that emits ultrasonic waves radially in the traveling direction and receives the reflected ultrasonic waves. The liquid supply device 50 has the following functions: based on the reception state of the ultrasonic waves by the ultrasonic sensor, it determines whether there is an object that may collide with the liquid supply device 50 in the traveling direction. When it is determined that there is such an object, it travels around the object, or temporarily stops or issues an alarm.

[0052] Figure 3 It is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of the staff terminal device 70. The staff terminal device 70 includes a computer 72, a storage device 82, a display device 78, a UI system device 84, and a communication I / F 86.

[0053] The computer 72 includes a processor 74, an NVM 7, and a RAM 80. The processor 54, the NVM 56, and the RAM 60 are connected to a bus 88. The storage device 82, the display device 78, the UI system device 84, and the communication I / F 86 are also connected to the bus 88. The UI system device 84 is an input device such as a mouse, a keyboard, or a touch panel of the display device 78, and an interface such as a USB (Universal Serial Bus). The display device 78 is a monitor such as an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display). The communication I / F 86 is configured to be able to communicate with the communication I / F 65 of the liquid supply device 50 by wire or wirelessly. The supply area indication program is stored in the NVM7 or the storage device 82.

[0054] In the technology of the present disclosure, a portable terminal device (for example, a smart phone or a tablet device) can be used instead of the staff terminal device 70 configured as described above. A program for instructing the operation of the liquid supply device 50 can also be installed in such a portable terminal device, and the operation of the liquid supply device 50 can be instructed by executing this program.

[0055] In the present embodiment, the geometric features of the supply area are obtained by the three-dimensional information acquisition unit 61 of the liquid supply device 50. However, information such as the layout of the supply area can also be registered in the storage device 82 in advance and sent to the communication I / F 65 of the liquid supply device 50 via the communication 1 / F 86 during operation. The registration of the information in the storage device 82 can be input via the UI system device 84 or via an interface such as a USB.

[0056] Figure 4This is a timing chart showing an example of the processing of the liquid supply system according to the present embodiment. In Figure 4 In the timing chart, there are a liquid supply control process (left side) executed by the processor 54 of the liquid supply device 50 by executing a liquid supply control program and a supplied area indication process (right side) executed by the processor 74 of the staff terminal device 70 by executing a supplied area indication program. In the liquid supply control process and the supplied area indication process, each step is executed in the order from top to bottom.

[0057] In step 102, in the liquid supply device 50, under the control of the acquisition processing unit 54A of the processor 54, the three-dimensional information acquisition unit 61 acquires three-dimensional information of the entire area including the supplied area. The technology of the present disclosure is not limited to the liquid supply device 50 autonomously acquiring three-dimensional information through the three-dimensional information acquisition unit 61. For example, an instruction signal for moving the liquid supply device 50 may be sent from the staff terminal device 70 operated by the staff to move the liquid supply device 50 to an area including the entire area, and three-dimensional information may be acquired.

[0058] In step 104, under the control of the communication processing unit 54B of the processor 54, the acquired three-dimensional information is sent to the terminal device 70 via the communication I / F 65. Then, in step 105, the staff terminal device 70 receives the three-dimensional information via the communication I / F 86.

[0059] In step 107, the entire area 10F of the ground representing the received three-dimensional information is displayed on the display device 78. Figure 5 This is an explanatory diagram showing an example of the entire area (such as the ground) 10F displayed on the display device 78.

[0060] On the side of the staff terminal device 70, the staff observes the image of the entire area displayed on the display device 78 and designates the supplied area 12F to which the liquid is to be supplied.

[0061] In step 109, the designation of the supplied area 12F is accepted. In the present embodiment, as Figure 5 shown, coordinates 12P1, 12P2, 12P3, 12P4, 12P5 are designated in the entire area 10F displayed on the display device 78, and the inside of the line segment connecting each of the coordinates 12P1 to 12P5 is used as the supplied area. The designation of the coordinates 12P1 to 12P5 is input via a pointer device such as a mouse as the UI system device 84 or the display device 78 that functions as a touch panel.

[0062] In step 111, the information of the supplied area 12F designated via the communication I / F 86 is sent to the communication I / F 65 of the liquid supply device 50.

[0063] In step 112, under the control of the communication processing unit 54B of the liquid supply device 50, information on the supply area is received using the communication I / F 65.

[0064] In step 114, under the control of the movement processing unit 54C, the wheels 68 are rotated to move the liquid supply device 50 toward the supply area 12F.

[0065] In step 116, under the respective controls of the movement processing unit 54C and the supply processing unit 54D, while moving the liquid supply device 50 within the supply area 12F, a liquid such as UV coating is sprayed onto the surface of the supply area 12F, and the applied liquid is cured by irradiating the supply area 12F with UV light from the UV lamp 63.

[0066] As an example, the coating order in the supply area is controlled by AI, which is constructed by having the processor 54 perform machine learning on efficient coating orders using data. In the present embodiment, an efficient movement is performed such that the liquid supply device 50 does not move on the coated surface as much as possible. For example, by performing a single-trace drawing based on graph theory, the liquid supply device 50 is made to move on the coated surface as little as possible. To enable a single-trace drawing based on graph theory, the graph representing the trajectory of the liquid supply device 50 in the supply area 12F is made into a so-called Euler graph. An Euler graph is a graph in which the number of vertices (the number of edges connected to the vertex) with an odd degree at each vertex of the graph is two or zero. Alternatively, the positional relationship between the already painted and cured area and the area to be painted next can be recognized using a sensor such as a camera device, and position adjustment can be performed to control so that desired coating can be performed at a specified position.

[0067] In addition, when moving the liquid supply device 50 within the supply area 12F, the movement processing unit 54C determines whether there is an object that the liquid supply device 50 may collide with based on the above three-dimensional information. In the case where it is determined that there is such an object, the liquid supply device 50 is moved to avoid the object. In the technology of the present disclosure, in the case where it is determined that there is such an object, it is not limited to the liquid supply device 50 autonomously moving to avoid the object. For example, in the case where it is determined that there is such an object, the liquid supply device 50 stops moving before the collision and sends an alarm signal indicating that there is an object that the liquid supply device 50 may collide with to the staff terminal device 70. When the staff terminal device 70 receives this alarm signal, the presence of an object that the liquid supply device 50 may collide with is displayed on the display device 78. The staff member who sees this display operates the staff terminal device 70 and sends a movement instruction signal from the staff terminal device 70 to the liquid supply device 50 to move the liquid supply device 50 in a manner that avoids the object.

[0068] Not only the autonomous control within the liquid supply device 50, but also the movement of the liquid supply device 50 can be controlled by a control signal received via the communication I / F 65.

[0069] As described above, according to the present embodiment, in the entire area 10F of the ground representing the three-dimensional information acquired by the three-dimensional information acquisition unit 61, in the supply area 12F designated by the staff, the liquid supply device 50 moves while spraying liquid onto the supply area 12F. As a result, a liquid supply system capable of expanding the area where the liquid is supplied compared to the prior art can be constructed.

[0070] The liquid supply device 50 of the present embodiment, for example, when transferring to Figure 4 the process of step 116, performs autonomous action without human control, so there is no trouble for the user to always operate.

[0071] In the present embodiment, the application of liquid to the supply area 12F has been described, but it is not limited thereto. For example, the liquid supply device 50 may also be provided with a determination information acquisition unit 96 that acquires image data of the surface of the supply area 12F as described in the second embodiment below, and based on the image data acquired by the determination information acquisition unit 96, detect or determine a previously specified structure or pattern in the supply area, specifically, detect or determine damaged parts such as holes or cracks, and apply or fill a repair material to the detected damaged parts.

[0072] In order to detect damaged parts from image data, etc., the processor 54 is configured to function as a determination unit by using machine learning including image data of the damaged position as training data.

[0073] [Second Embodiment]

[0074] Next, the second embodiment will be described. As Figure 6 shown, the difference between the present embodiment and the first embodiment is that the liquid supply device 55 moves on the wall surface of the building 100 or the like and supplies liquid to the wall surface. In addition, in the present embodiment, in addition to the wall surface, the liquid supply device 55 can also be applied to the wall surface state grasping and repair in tunnels and pipes.

[0075] In the present embodiment, the supplied liquid is a repair material (filler), and the liquid supply device 55 fills the repair material (filler) into a previously specified structure or pattern on the wall surface, specifically, a hole or a crack, by inkjet or spraying.

[0076] Figure 7It is a block diagram showing an example of the hardware configuration and main part functions of the electrical system of the liquid supply device 55 of the second embodiment. The difference between the liquid supply device 55 and the first embodiment is that, in order to move on the wall surface of the building 100 to apply the liquid, it is provided with a suction part 94 that sucks the wall surface and a judgment information acquisition part 96 that acquires judgment information for judging whether the designated supply area is appropriate as the area for supplying the liquid. And, the processor 54 functions as a judgment part 54F, and this judgment part 54F judges whether the designated supply area is appropriate as the area for supplying the liquid based on the information acquired by the judgment information acquisition part 96. However, other configurations are the same as those of the first embodiment, so the same reference numerals as those of the first embodiment are assigned to these configurations and detailed descriptions are omitted.

[0077] The suction part 94 is an example of the "adsorption part" of the technology of the present disclosure.

[0078] The judgment information acquisition part 96 is, for example, an imaging device such as a camera that acquires image data of the surface of the supply area. The judgment part 54F of the processor 54 performs image analysis on the image data acquired by the judgment information acquisition part 96 to detect or judge whether a previously designated structure or pattern exists in the supply area, specifically, whether there are holes or cracks. In addition, the judgment information acquisition part 96 may include an actuator that strikes the wall surface of the supply area and a microphone that acquires sound data when the actuator strikes the wall surface. The judgment part 54F of the processor 54 detects or judges the existence of holes or cracks on the wall surface based on the sound data acquired by the microphone. The technology of the present disclosure is not limited to a microphone. For example, a vibration sensor may also be used. Specifically, the vibration sensor detects the magnitude of the vibration when the actuator strikes the wall surface, and the judgment information acquisition part 96 detects or judges the existence of holes or cracks on the wall surface based on the detection result.

[0079] In the present embodiment, while the liquid supply device 55 is held on the wall surface by the suction of air by the suction part 94, the wheels 68 are rotated to move in the supply area located on the wall surface. When the wall surface is made of a magnetic material such as steel, the suction part 94 can also hold the liquid supply device 55 on the wall surface by suction based on magnetic force instead of suction based on air. And, it may also be a drone that can fly near the wall surface and can fly and stay still in the supply area.

[0080] Figure 8 It is a timing chart showing an example of the processing of the liquid supply system of the present embodiment. Steps 102 to 114 and 116 of the processing of the liquid supply system of the present embodiment are the same as those of the first embodiment, so detailed descriptions are omitted.

[0081] In step 122, the information on the surface of the supply area where the liquid supply device 55 is located is acquired by the judgment information acquisition part 96.

[0082] In step 124, the determination unit 54F of the processor 54 detects or determines whether a previously specified structure or pattern exists on the surface of the supply area, specifically, whether there are holes or cracks, thereby determining whether the supply area is appropriate. In step 124, when there are holes or cracks on the surface of the supply area (when the supply area is appropriate), the liquid supply control process transfers to step 117, and liquid is supplied to the supply area. Specifically, the supply processing unit 54D supplies liquid only to the part with holes or cracks in the supply area, that is, the part that needs to be repaired.

[0083] In step 124, when there are no holes or cracks on the surface of the supply area where the liquid supply device 55 is located (when the supply area is inappropriate), the liquid supply control process transfers to step 126.

[0084] In step 126, under the control of the communication processing unit 54B, it is sent to the staff terminal device 70 via the communication I / F 65 that there are no holes or cracks on the surface of the supply area and it is an inappropriate area.

[0085] In step 129, the staff terminal device 70 receives, via the communication I / F 86, information indicating that the surface of the supply area where the liquid supply device 55 is located is an inappropriate area.

[0086] In step 131, the designation of the supply area is accepted again and sent to the liquid supply device 55. It should be noted that it is also possible to display on the display device 78 that the currently designated supply area is inappropriate between step 129 and step 131. It should be noted that an inappropriate supply area means that there are no holes or cracks on the surface of the supply area and it is not a part that needs to be repaired, so it is an area where liquid does not need to be supplied.

[0087] Figure 9 It is an explanatory diagram showing the setting of the supply area in the entire area 100F of the wall surface. In Figure 9 It shows the initially designated supply area 120F and the re - designated supply area 120G that is determined to be inappropriate for the supply area 120F. Regarding the initially designated supply area 120F, as Figure 9As shown, coordinates 120P1, 120P2, 120P3, and 120P4 are specified in the entire area 100F displayed on the display device 78, and the inside of the line segments connecting each of the coordinates 120P1 to 120P4 is set as the supply area 120F. The specification of the coordinates 120P1 to 120P4 is input via a pointer device such as a mouse of the UI system device 84 or the display device 78 that functions as a touch panel. Similarly, for the newly specified supply area 120G, coordinates 121P1, 121P2, 121P3, and 121P4 are specified in the entire area 100F displayed on the display device 78, and the inside of the line segments connecting each of the coordinates 121P1 to 121P4 is used as the newly specified supply area 120G.

[0088] In step 133, the information of the newly specified supply area 120G specified via the communication I / F 86 is sent to the communication I / F 65 of the liquid supply device 55.

[0089] In step 134, under the control of the communication processing unit 54B of the liquid supply device 55, the information of the supply area is received using the communication I / F 65. After the reception in step 134, the liquid supply control process transfers to step 114. The liquid supply device 55 moves to the newly specified supply area 120G and performs the same processing as described above.

[0090] It should be noted that instead of steps 126 to 134, the liquid supply device 55 can also autonomously determine a new supply area. Specifically, when the initially specified supply area 120F is inappropriate, the liquid supply device 55 determines an area outside the supply area 120F in the entire area 100F, such as the periphery of the supply area 120F, specifically, an area adjacent to the supply area 120F, as the new supply area. It should be noted that the new supply area only needs to be an area outside the supply area 120F in the entire area 100F, and it does not have to be adjacent to the supply area 120F.

[0091] In the staff terminal device 70, when information indicating that the surface of the supply area where the liquid supply device 55 is located is an inappropriate area is received via the communication I / F 86 in step 129, an alarm prompting the staff to specify the supply area can also be issued again. It should be noted that the alarm is issued, for example, by sound display or lighting an alarm lamp. Thereby, it is possible to prevent the staff from always confirming the display content of the display device.

[0092] In the present embodiment, it has been described that a previously specified structure or pattern is detected or judged in the supply area. Specifically, damaged parts such as holes or cracks are detected or judged, and a repair material is applied or filled to the detected damaged parts, but it is not limited thereto. For example, the liquid supply device 50 may also be configured such that after a liquid such as a coating material that is cured by UV is applied to the supply area, the applied liquid is cured by UV irradiated from a UV lamp.

[0093] In the present embodiment, at least one of a transparent coating over the entire surface or formation of a specific pattern and design may be imparted to the supply area.

[0094] As a first modification example of the present embodiment, painting or waxing of a three-dimensional surface can be cited. The three-dimensional surface is a wall surface of a building having a curved surface structure such as a spherical surface, an elliptical surface, or a hyperbolic surface, the surface of an aircraft fuselage, or the like. In the first modification example, the liquid supply device 55 moves autonomously on the curved surface structure to perform painting or waxing.

[0095] The second modification example relates to the repair of a flat surface such as the ground. For example, when the wax on the ground becomes thin, in the second modification example, the ground is waxed by the liquid supply device 55.

[0096] As described above, according to the present embodiment, when the liquid supply device 55 moves to a designated supply area, by detecting or judging whether there is a previously specified structure or pattern in the supply area, specifically, whether there is a repair part such as a hole or a crack, it is judged whether the supply area is appropriate as an area for supplying liquid. When the supply area has a repair part and is appropriate, the liquid is autonomously supplied to the supply area. When the supply area does not have a repair part and is inappropriate, the situation is sent to the staff terminal device 70. Then, in the staff terminal device, the supply area is specified again and sent to the liquid supply device. The liquid supply device 55 judges the appropriateness or inappropriateness of the newly specified supply area. When it is appropriate, the liquid is supplied to the supply area.

[0097] The liquid supply device 55 of the present embodiment basically moves autonomously on the wall surface without human control, so there is no trouble that the user has to always operate as in the prior art. When there is no repair part in the supply area at the moving destination, the liquid supply device 55 moves autonomously to the supply area set again, so the area for supplying liquid can be made more expandable than in the prior art.

[0098] [Other modification examples]

[0099] As described above, the liquid supply device 50 and the liquid supply device 55 can use various processors shown below. As the processor, for example, a CPU can be cited, that is, a general-purpose processor that functions as a hardware resource for executing liquid supply control processing by executing software, that is, a program. In addition, as the processor, for example, a processor with a circuit structure specifically designed for executing specific processing, such as an FPGA, a PLD, or an ASIC, that is, a dedicated circuit, can be cited. A memory is built in or connected to any of the processors, and any of the processors executes the liquid supply control processing by using the memory.

[0100] The hardware resource for executing the liquid supply control processing can be constituted by one of these various processors, or can be constituted by a combination of two or more processors of the same type or different types (for example, a combination of multiple FPGAs or a combination of a CPU and an FPGA).

[0101] As an example of being constituted by one processor, first, there is a mode in which a combination of one or more CPUs and software constitutes one processor, and this processor functions as a hardware resource for executing the liquid supply control processing. Second, there is a mode represented by an SoC or the like, in which a processor that realizes the functions of the entire system including multiple hardware resources for executing the liquid supply control processing is used by one IC chip. In this way, the liquid supply control processing is realized by using one or more of the above various processors as hardware resources.

[0102] Moreover, as the hardware structure of these various processors, more specifically, a circuit formed by combining circuit elements such as semiconductor elements can be used. In addition, the above-mentioned target speed selection processing is just an example. Therefore, of course, unnecessary steps can be deleted, new steps can be added, or the processing order can be changed without departing from the gist.

[0103] The description content and the illustrated content shown above are detailed descriptions of a part related to the technology of the present disclosure, and are just an example of the technology of the present disclosure. For example, the description of the above-mentioned constitution, function, action, and effect is an example of the constitution, function, action, and effect of a part related to the technology of the present disclosure. Therefore, without departing from the gist of the technology of the present disclosure, of course, unnecessary parts can be deleted from the description content and the illustrated content shown above, or new elements can be added or replaced. In addition, in order to avoid complexity and make it easier to understand the part related to the technology of the present disclosure, in the description content and the illustrated content shown above, on the basis of being able to implement the technology of the present disclosure, descriptions related to common technical knowledge that does not require special explanation are omitted.

[0104] Regarding all the documents, patent applications, and technical standards described in this specification, each document, patent application, and technical standard is incorporated herein by reference to the same extent as if it were specifically and individually described.

[0105] Description of Reference Numerals

[0106] 10F: Overall area; 12F: Supplied area; 50: Liquid supply device; 52: Computer; 54: Processor; 54A: Acquisition processing unit; 54B: Communication processing unit; 54C: Movement processing unit; 54D: Supply processing unit; 54F: Judgment unit; 55: Liquid supply device; 56: NVM; 58: Liquid supply control program; 60: RAM; 61: Three-dimensional information acquisition unit; 62: Storage device; 63: UV lamp; 64: Coating device; 65: Communication I / F; 66: Bus; 68: Wheel; 68M: Motor; 70: Staff terminal device; 72: Computer; 74: Processor; 76: NVM; 78: Display device; 82: Storage device; 84: UI system device; 86: Communication I / F; 90: Power supply; 92: Motor drive device; 94: Suction unit; 96: Judgment information acquisition unit; 100: Building; 100F: Overall area; 120F, 120G: Supplied area; 130: Nozzle.

Claims

1. A liquid supply device, comprising: A moving unit that moves while supporting the self-device; A supply unit that supplies liquid; A three-dimensional information acquisition unit that acquires three-dimensional information of the entire area where the liquid may be supplied; A communication unit that transmits the three-dimensional information and receives information indicating the position of the supplied area where the liquid is to be supplied in the entire area, and A control unit that controls the moving unit based on the three-dimensional information of the entire area and the information indicating the position of the supplied area to move the self-device toward the supplied area, and controls the supply unit to supply the liquid to the supplied area.

2. The liquid supply device according to claim 1, wherein It further comprises a judgment information acquisition unit that, when the self-device moves to the supplied area, acquires judgment information for judging whether the supplied area is appropriate as an area for supplying the liquid; The control unit judges whether the supplied area is appropriate as an area for supplying the liquid based on the judgment information, and when it is judged that the supplied area is appropriate as an area for supplying the liquid, controls the supply unit to supply the liquid to the supplied area.

3. The liquid supply device according to claim 2, wherein, When it is not judged that the supplied area is appropriate as an area for supplying the liquid, the control unit re-sets the area other than the supplied area in the entire area as the supplied area, and when it is judged that the set supplied area is appropriate as an area for supplying the liquid, controls the supply unit to supply the liquid to the supplied area.

4. The liquid supply device according to claim 3, wherein, The information indicating the position of the area re-set as the supplied area is received through the communication unit, or is determined by the control unit based on the three-dimensional information.

5. The liquid supply device according to claim 3 or 4, wherein The judgment information acquisition unit acquires image data of the surface of the supplied area; When the control unit detects or judges a pre-specified structure or pattern in the supplied area based on the image data, it judges that the supplied area is appropriate as an area for supplying the liquid.

6. The liquid supply device according to claim 3 or 4, wherein The judgment information acquisition unit comprises: An actuator that strikes the supplied area, and A microphone that acquires sound data when the actuator strikes the supplied area; When the control unit detects a pre-specified structure or pattern in the supplied area based on the sound data acquired by the microphone, it judges that the supplied area is appropriate as an area for supplying the liquid.

7. The liquid supply device according to claim 5, wherein, The control unit controls the supply unit to supply the liquid to the damaged area.

8. The liquid supply device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein The liquid supply device is provided with an adsorption unit that adsorbs to the wall surface; The control unit controls the moving unit to move on the wall surface while holding the self-device by the attraction of the adsorption unit.

9. The liquid supply device according to claim 8, wherein, The adsorption part holds the self-device in any one of the ways of attracting air to adsorb to the wall surface and adsorbing to the wall surface by magnetic force.

10. The liquid supply device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein, The control part controls the moving part to move in the supplied area according to the single stroke drawing based on graph theory.

11. The liquid supply device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein, When the self-device moves to the supplied area, the control part controls the moving part so that the self-device moves to a part other than the part where the liquid has been supplied to the supplied area by the moving part and the supply part.

12. The liquid supply device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein The liquid cures when irradiated with ultraviolet rays. The liquid supply device further includes an ultraviolet irradiation part for irradiating ultraviolet rays. The control part controls the ultraviolet irradiation part to irradiate the ultraviolet rays to the liquid supplied to the supplied area.

13. The liquid supply device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein The moving part includes a plurality of wheels, a plurality of motors for rotating the plurality of wheels respectively, and a motor driving device for driving the plurality of motors respectively.

14. The liquid supply device according to claim 13, wherein, A release agent layer is provided on the surface of the wheel.

15. The liquid supply device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein, The supply part ejects the liquid in fine droplets.

16. A liquid supply method, which is the liquid supply method of the liquid supply device according to claim 1, comprising: Based on the three-dimensional information of the entire area and the information indicating the position of the supplied area, the moving part is controlled to move the self-device to the supplied area, and the supply part is controlled to supply the liquid to the supplied area.

17. A liquid supply program that causes a computer to function as the control part according to claim 1.

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