Alignment control method and alignment controller for lifting appliance and container and field bridge

Abstract

The invention provides an alignment control method for a lifting appliance and a container, an alignment controller and a field bridge, and solves the technical problem of inaccurate alignment caused by inaccurate alignment of the container when the lifting appliance and the container are aligned in the prior art. The invention provides an alignment control method for a lifting appliance and a container, and the method comprises the steps: collecting the point cloud data of a target container and a reference container through a plurality of laser radars in different directions, and carrying out the fusion of the point cloud data; constructing a topological relation between the target container and a plurality of reference containers according to the fused point cloud data, and deducing and calculating the distance between the lifting appliance and the reference containers by using the principle of topological relation invariance; and when the distance between the lifting appliance and the reference container meets the preset condition, it is determined that alignment of the lifting appliance and the target container is successful, the probability that alignment is inaccurate due to the fact that the target container is shielded by the lifting appliance and part of point cloud data is lost can be reduced, and the alignment accuracy is improved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present application relates to the technical field of engineering machinery, and in particular to a method for controlling the alignment of a spreader and a container, an alignment controller, and a field crane. Background Art

[0002] Yard cranes (rail-mounted / tired container gantry cranes) are mainly responsible for the vertical loading and unloading and horizontal transportation of containers in the yard, and realize cross-container operations and multi-layer stacking through large-span main beams and support leg structures. In the process of loading and unloading containers, when the spreader stacks the container on the target container, the spreader and the target container are first aligned. After the alignment is successful, the container is stacked on the target container. In the prior art, in the process of aligning the container, a laser radar installed under the trolley is often used to obtain the point cloud data of the target container, and then the specific position of the target container is determined based on the point cloud data, and then it is determined whether the target container is successfully aligned with the spreader. However, when the laser radar installed under the trolley platform identifies and aligns the target container, it will be blocked by the spreader, resulting in the loss of part of the point cloud of the target container, resulting in inaccurate alignment. Summary of the Invention

[0003] In view of this, the present application provides a method for controlling the alignment of a spreader and a container, an alignment controller, and a yard crane, which solves the technical problem in the prior art that when aligning a spreader and a container, the alignment of the container is inaccurate, resulting in inaccurate alignment.

[0004] As a first aspect of the present application, the present application provides a method for aligning a spreader and a container, which is applicable to a yard crane, wherein the yard crane includes a spreader and multiple laser radars disposed below the spreader, wherein the laser radars are used to detect point cloud data of the container located below the spreader; wherein the alignment method includes:

[0005] Acquire multiple point cloud data detected by multiple laser radars;

[0006] performing fusion processing on the plurality of point cloud data to obtain fused point cloud data;

[0007] constructing a topological relationship between a target container and a plurality of reference containers located around the target container based on the fused point cloud data;

[0008] calculating the distances between the spreader and a plurality of the reference containers based on the topological relationship;

[0009] When the distances between the spreader and the plurality of reference containers meet a preset condition, it is determined that the spreader is successfully aligned with the target container.

[0010] In a possible implementation of the present application, constructing a topological relationship between the target container and the plurality of reference containers based on the fused point cloud data includes:

[0011] Calculating a target boundary of the target container and a reference boundary of the reference container based on the fused point cloud data;

[0012] Calculating the distance between the target container and the reference container based on the point cloud data of the target boundary and the point cloud data of the reference boundary of the reference container;

[0013] A topological relationship between the target container and the reference containers is constructed according to a plurality of distances between the target container and a plurality of reference containers.

[0014] In a possible implementation of the present application, calculating the target boundary of the target container and the reference boundary of the reference container based on the fused point cloud data includes:

[0015] Calculating a normal vector of the fused point cloud data based on the fused point cloud data;

[0016] Based on the normal vector, filtering out point cloud data whose distance from the normal vector is greater than a preset threshold in the fused point cloud data to obtain valid point cloud data;

[0017] Performing Euclidean clustering segmentation on the valid point cloud data, and calculating the boundaries of multiple planes based on the alpha-shape algorithm;

[0018] The boundaries of the multiple planes include a target boundary of the upper surface of the target container and a reference boundary of the upper surface of the reference container.

[0019] In a possible implementation of the present application, calculating the distance between the target container and the reference container based on the point cloud data of the target boundary and the point cloud data of the reference boundary of the reference container includes:

[0020] Calculating a first coordinate value of the target boundary in the vehicle forward direction according to the point cloud data of the target boundary;

[0021] Calculating a second coordinate value of the reference boundary in the forward direction of the vehicle based on the point cloud data of the reference boundary;

[0022] The distance between the target container and the reference container is calculated according to the first coordinate value and the second coordinate value.

[0023] In a possible implementation of the present application, the target boundary includes a first target boundary, which is a rear boundary of the target container in the forward direction of the vehicle;

[0024] The first reference boundary is a front boundary of the first reference container in the forward direction of the large vehicle, and the first reference container is located behind the target container in the forward direction of the large vehicle; and / or

[0025] The target boundary includes a second target boundary, which is the front boundary of the target container in the forward direction of the large vehicle; the second reference boundary is the rear boundary of the second reference container in the forward direction of the large vehicle, and the second reference container is located in front of the target container in the forward direction of the large vehicle.

[0026] In a possible implementation of the present application, when the distance between the spreader and the plurality of reference containers satisfies a preset condition, determining that the spreader and the target container are successfully aligned includes:

[0027] Obtaining an initial distance between the spreader and the reference container before alignment;

[0028] Obtaining a current distance between the spreader and the reference container after alignment;

[0029] calculating an absolute value of a distance difference between the spreader and the reference container based on the initial distance and the current distance;

[0030] When the number of absolute values of the multiple distance differences between the spreader and the multiple reference containers that is less than a first preset threshold is greater than a preset number, it is determined that the spreader and the target container are successfully aligned; and / or when the minimum absolute value of the absolute values of the multiple distance differences between the spreader and the multiple reference containers is less than a second preset threshold, it is determined that the spreader and the target container are successfully aligned.

[0031] In a possible implementation of the present application, calculating the distances between the spreader and the plurality of reference containers based on the topological relationship includes:

[0032] Calculating the distance between the target container and the reference container based on the topological relationship;

[0033] The distance between the spreader and the reference container is calculated according to the distance between the target container and the reference container.

[0034] In one possible implementation of the present application, the multiple laser radars include a target laser radar and multiple reference laser radars;

[0035] The fusing of the plurality of point cloud data to obtain fused point cloud data comprises:

[0036] Performing coordinate transformation on the point cloud data detected by the reference laser radar according to the extrinsic calibration parameters of the target laser radar and the extrinsic calibration parameters of the reference laser radar to obtain transformed point cloud data corresponding to the reference laser radar;

[0037] The point cloud data detected by the target laser radar and the converted point cloud data corresponding to multiple reference laser radars are fused to obtain fused point cloud data.

[0038] As a second aspect of the present application, the present application further provides a controller for aligning a spreader and a container, comprising:

[0039] A data acquisition unit, configured to acquire a plurality of point cloud data detected by a plurality of laser radars;

[0040] a point cloud fusion unit, configured to perform fusion processing on the plurality of point cloud data to obtain fused point cloud data;

[0041] a construction unit, configured to construct a topological relationship between a target container and a plurality of reference containers located around the target container based on the fused point cloud data;

[0042] a calculation unit, configured to calculate the distance between the spreader and the plurality of reference containers based on the topological relationship;

[0043] The alignment unit is configured to determine that the spreader is successfully aligned with the target container when the distance between the spreader and the plurality of reference containers satisfies a preset condition.

[0044] As a third aspect of the present application, the present application further provides a field bridge, comprising:

[0045] small car;

[0046] a sling disposed below the trolley, the sling being used to lift a container located below the sling;

[0047] a plurality of laser radars installed under the trolley, the laser radars being used to detect point cloud data of a container located under the spreader;

[0048] The alignment controller described above; wherein, the alignment controller is communicatively connected to multiple laser radars.

[0049] The present application provides a method for controlling the alignment of a sling and a container. First, multiple laser radars in different orientations are used to collect point cloud data of a target container located below the sling and reference containers located around the target container, and the point cloud data are fused, thereby reducing the probability of missing point cloud data of the portion blocked by the sling. After the point cloud data are fused, a topological relationship between the target container and multiple reference containers is constructed based on the fused point cloud data, and the distance between the sling and the reference containers is derived and calculated based on the topological relationship using the principle of invariance of the topological relationship; and when the distance between the sling and the reference container meets a preset condition, it is determined that the alignment of the sling and the target container is successful. Since both the fusion of point cloud data and the derivation and calculation of the distance between the sling and the target container based on the topological relationship can reduce the probability of inaccurate alignment caused by the target container being blocked by the sling and thus missing part of the point cloud data, the accuracy of the alignment is further improved. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0050] The above and other purposes, features, and advantages of the present application will become more apparent through a more detailed description of the embodiments of the present application in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. The accompanying drawings are intended to provide a further understanding of the embodiments of the present application and constitute a part of the specification. Together with the embodiments of the present application, they are used to explain the present application and do not constitute a limitation of the present application. In the drawings, the same reference numerals generally represent the same components or steps.

[0051] Figure 1 The figure shows a flow chart of a method for controlling the alignment of a spreader and a container provided in one embodiment of the present application.

[0052] Figure 2 FIG2 is a schematic diagram showing the topological relationship between a target container and a plurality of surrounding reference containers provided by an embodiment of the present application.

[0053] Figure 3 Shown is a schematic diagram of the distance between a spreader and multiple reference containers provided by an embodiment of the present application.

[0054] Figure 4 Shown is a flow chart of a method for controlling alignment between a spreader and a container provided in another embodiment of the present application.

[0055] Figure 5 Shown is a flow chart of a method for controlling alignment between a spreader and a container provided in another embodiment of the present application.

[0056] Figure 6 The figure shows a working block diagram of a spreader and container alignment controller provided by one embodiment of the present application.

[0057] Figure 7Shown is a structural block diagram of an electronic device provided in one embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0058] In the description of the application, the meaning of "multiple" is at least two, for example two, three, etc., unless otherwise clearly and specifically limited. In the embodiments of the present application, all directional indications (such as up, down, left, right, front, back, top, bottom ...) are only used to explain the relative position relationship, motion situation, etc. between each component under a certain specific posture (as shown in the drawings). If this specific posture changes, this directional indication also changes accordingly. In addition, the terms "comprise" and "have" and any deformation thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion. For example, the process, method, system, product or equipment comprising a series of steps or units is not limited to the steps or units listed, but optionally also includes the steps or units not listed, or optionally also includes other steps or units inherent to these processes, methods, products or equipment.

[0059] In addition, references to "embodiments" herein mean that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiments may be included in at least one embodiment of the present application. The appearance of such phrases in various places in the specification does not necessarily refer to the same embodiment, nor does it necessarily refer to independent or alternative embodiments that are mutually exclusive of other embodiments. It is understood, both explicitly and implicitly, by those skilled in the art that the embodiments described herein may be combined with other embodiments.

[0060] Exemplary Methods

[0061] As a first aspect of the present application, the present application provides a method for aligning a spreader and a container. Figure 1 FIG. 1 is a flow chart of a method for aligning a spreader and a container according to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in FIG. 1 , the method for aligning a spreader and a container includes the following steps:

[0062] S1: Acquire multiple point cloud data detected by multiple lidars;

[0063] Specifically, a yard crane consists of a horizontal frame, a trolley that slides on the frame, and a spreader installed below the trolley. The spreader can lift containers located below. Once the spreader grabs the container, the trolley moves on the horizontal frame to transport the container. The container is placed on a large vehicle.

[0064] Two sensor devices are mounted beneath the trolley. Each sensor device features multiple LiDAR sensors, each capable of detecting point cloud data of the containers beneath the spreader (the target container and multiple reference containers surrounding it). Each LiDAR's mirror faces downward, perpendicular to the ground.

[0065] Specifically, the two sensor devices are installed at two symmetrical positions of the vehicle. For example, the two sensors are installed at the upper left corner and the lower right corner of the lower surface of the vehicle, respectively.

[0066] Therefore, when aligning the spreader and the container, starting multiple lidars can enable the multiple lidars to collect point cloud data of the target container and the surrounding reference containers in different directions.

[0067] S2: Fusing multiple point cloud data to obtain fused point cloud data;

[0068] After acquiring point cloud data from multiple lidars, the multiple point cloud data can be fused to obtain fused point cloud data.

[0069] Since the lidars are set at different angles, fusing the point cloud data detected by multiple lidars can avoid the loss of point cloud data in the part blocked by the spreader.

[0070] Specifically, S2 (fusing the plurality of point cloud data to obtain fused point cloud data) further includes the following steps:

[0071] S21: performing coordinate transformation on the point cloud data detected by the reference laser radar according to the extrinsic calibration parameters of the target laser radar and the extrinsic calibration parameters of the reference laser radar to obtain transformed point cloud data corresponding to the reference laser radar;

[0072] First, one of the multiple laser radars is selected as the target laser radar, and the other laser radars are used as reference laser radars.

[0073] At this time, based on the extrinsic calibration parameters of the reference lidar and the extrinsic calibration parameters of the target lidar, the reference lidar is transformed, that is, the coordinates of the point cloud data detected by the reference lidar are corrected.

[0074] S22: Fusing the point cloud data detected by the target laser radar and the converted point cloud data corresponding to the multiple reference laser radars to obtain fused point cloud data.

[0075] After conversion, the point cloud data detected by each lidar can be fused to obtain fused point cloud data.

[0076] S3: Based on the fused point cloud data, a topological relationship is constructed between the target container and multiple reference containers located around the target container;

[0077] After obtaining the fused point data, the topological relationship between the target container and multiple reference containers located around the target container can be constructed based on the fused point cloud data, such as Figure 2 shown.

[0078] Specifically, the reference containers surrounding the target container are the reference containers adjacent to the target container. There can be multiple reference containers. For example, if the containers are neatly arranged in the yard in the direction of a truck's travel, the number of reference containers can be eight: three first reference containers located behind the target container in the direction of the truck's travel, three second reference containers located in front of the target container, and two third reference containers located to the left and right of the target container, respectively. For another example, there can be four reference containers: three first reference containers located behind the target container in the direction of the truck's travel, and a third reference container located to the left of the target container.

[0079] S4: Calculate the distances between the spreader and multiple reference containers based on the topological relationship;

[0080] Once the topological relationship is determined, it can describe the positional relationship between the target container and multiple reference containers. Regardless of the deformation of the geometric shape formed by the positional relationship between the target container and the reference containers, the spatial relationship characteristics remain unchanged. Therefore, the distance between the spreader and multiple reference containers can be derived and calculated based on the topological relationship.

[0081] S5: When the distances between the spreader and the plurality of reference containers meet a preset condition, it is determined that the spreader and the target container are successfully aligned.

[0082] Once the distances between the spreader and multiple reference containers are calculated, it can be determined whether the distances meet preset conditions. If so, alignment between the spreader and the target container is successful. If not, alignment between the spreader and the target container fails, and an early warning message is generated to alert the user.

[0083] The present application provides a method for controlling the alignment of a sling and a container. First, multiple laser radars in different orientations are used to collect point cloud data of a target container located below the sling and reference containers located around the target container, and the point cloud data are fused, thereby reducing the probability of missing point cloud data of the portion blocked by the sling. After the point cloud data are fused, a topological relationship between the target container and multiple reference containers is constructed based on the fused point cloud data, and the distance between the sling and the reference containers is derived and calculated based on the topological relationship using the principle of invariance of the topological relationship; and when the distance between the sling and the reference container meets a preset condition, it is determined that the alignment of the sling and the target container is successful. Since both the fusion of point cloud data and the derivation and calculation of the distance between the sling and the target container based on the topological relationship can reduce the probability of inaccurate alignment caused by the target container being blocked by the sling and thus missing part of the point cloud data, the accuracy of the alignment is further improved.

[0084] In a possible implementation of this application, Figure 4 As shown, the method for determining whether alignment is successful based on the distances between the spreader and the multiple reference containers, i.e., S5 (determining that the spreader is successfully aligned with the target container when the distances between the spreader and the multiple reference containers meet a preset condition) further includes the following steps:

[0085] S51: Obtaining the initial distance between the spreader and the reference container before alignment;

[0086] Before aligning the spreader with the target container, an initial distance between the spreader and the reference container is determined. Specifically, the initial distance between the spreader and the reference container is calculated in the same manner as the distance between the spreader and the reference container in S1-S4.

[0087] Specifically, since the number and orientation of the reference containers around the target container can be various, for example, when the number of reference containers is 5, the topological relationship formed by the initial distance between the spreader and the reference container can be as follows: Figure 3 As shown. Among them, d n is the initial distance between the spreader and the reference container. n ' is the current distance between the spreader and the reference container after alignment.

[0088] S52: Obtain the current distance between the spreader and the reference container after alignment;

[0089] The current distance between the spreader and the reference container after alignment is calculated in the same way as the distance between the spreader and the reference container in S1-S4. For example, when the number of reference containers is 5, the topological relationship formed by the initial distance between the spreader and the reference container can be as follows: Figure 3 As shown. Among them, d n ' is the current distance between the spreader and the reference container after alignment.

[0090] S53: Calculating the absolute value of the distance difference between the spreader and the reference container based on the initial distance and the current distance;

[0091] The absolute value of the distance difference between the spreader and the reference container is calculated based on the initial distance and the current distance.

[0092] S54: When the number of absolute values of multiple distance differences between the spreader and multiple reference containers that is less than a first preset threshold is greater than a preset number, it is determined that the spreader and the target container are successfully aligned; and / or when the minimum absolute value of the absolute values of multiple distance differences between the spreader and the multiple reference containers is less than a second preset threshold, it is determined that the spreader and the target container are successfully aligned.

[0093] After calculating the absolute value of the distance difference between the spreader and each reference container, the success of the alignment can be determined based on the absolute value of the distance difference. The specific judgment method is as follows:

[0094] (1) Determine the number of absolute values of the distance differences that are less than a first preset threshold value. If the number is greater than the preset number, the alignment is successful.

[0095] Specifically, the preset number may be half of the number of reference containers. For example, if the number of reference containers is 6, the preset number may be 3. The preset number may also be such that the difference between the number of reference containers and the preset number is 1. For example, if the number of reference containers is 5, the corresponding preset number is 4.

[0096] For example, there are 5 absolute values of the distance differences, the preset number is 3, and the absolute values of 4 of the distance differences are all smaller than the first preset threshold, which means that the alignment is successful.

[0097] (2) Determine the minimum absolute value of the absolute values of the distance differences. When the minimum absolute value is less than a second preset threshold, it indicates that the alignment is successful.

[0098] It should be noted that the above two methods of determining whether alignment is successful (1) and (2) can be satisfied by satisfying either one or both of them. When both satisfy the conditions, the accuracy of alignment can be further improved.

[0099] In a possible implementation of this application, Figure 5 As shown, the specific construction method for constructing the topological relationship between the target container and the reference containers, namely S3 (constructing the topological relationship between the target container and multiple reference containers based on the fused point cloud data), further includes the following steps:

[0100] S31: Calculate the target boundary of the target container and the reference boundary of the reference container based on the fused point cloud data;

[0101] Specifically, S31 (calculating the target boundary of the target container and the reference boundary of the reference container based on the fused point cloud data) includes the following steps:

[0102] S311: Calculating a normal vector of the fused point cloud data based on the fused point cloud data;

[0103] S312: Based on the normal vector, filtering out point cloud data whose distance from the normal vector is greater than a preset threshold in the fused point cloud data to obtain valid point cloud data;

[0104] Specifically, based on the normal vector, the point cloud data whose distance from the normal vector is greater than a preset threshold is filtered out in the fused point cloud data, that is, the point cloud data that is far away from the normal vector (such as noise points, sparse points, and abnormal points) is filtered out to obtain valid point cloud data, and the upper plane of the target container and the surrounding reference containers can be obtained.

[0105] S313: Perform Euclidean clustering on the valid point cloud data, and calculate the boundaries of multiple planes based on the alpha-shape algorithm; wherein the boundaries of the multiple planes include a target boundary of the upper surface of the target container and a reference boundary of the upper surface of the reference container.

[0106] Once point cloud data is determined, the valid point cloud data can be segmented using the Euclidean clustering method, and the boundaries of multiple planes can be calculated using the alpha-shape algorithm. For example, the target plane of the target container can be calculated, and the target plane is composed of multiple target boundaries. Similarly, the reference plane of the reference container can be calculated, and the reference plane is composed of multiple reference boundaries. Therefore, as long as the planes of the upper planes of multiple containers (target container and reference container) are calculated, the boundaries of the containers (such as the target boundary of the target container and the reference boundary of the reference container) can be determined based on the planes.

[0107] Specifically, whether it is the target boundary of the target container or the reference boundary of the reference container, the front boundary or the rear boundary of the upper plane of the container in the forward direction of the vehicle is selected.

[0108] S32: Calculating the distance between the target container and the reference container based on the point cloud data of the target boundary and the point cloud data of the reference boundary of the reference container;

[0109] After the target boundary of the target container and the reference boundary of the reference container are determined, the distance between the target container and the reference container can be calculated based on the point cloud data of the target boundary and the point cloud data of the reference boundary.

[0110] Specifically, the specific method for calculating the distance between the target container and the reference container, i.e., S32 (calculating the distance between the target container and the reference container based on the point cloud data of the target boundary and the point cloud data of the reference boundary of the reference container) further includes the following steps:

[0111] S321: Calculating a first coordinate value of the target boundary in the vehicle's forward direction based on the point cloud data of the target boundary;

[0112] S322: Calculating a second coordinate value of the reference boundary in the vehicle's forward direction based on the point cloud data of the reference boundary;

[0113] S323: Calculate the distance between the target container and the reference container according to the first coordinate value and the second coordinate value.

[0114] Specifically, the specific calculation formula for the distance between the target container and the reference container is:

[0115] Δd n*target =d n ―d target

[0116] Where, d target d is the first coordinate value of the target container in the forward direction of the truck, that is, the distance of the target container in the forward direction of the truck. n Δd is the second coordinate value of the reference container in the forward direction of the truck, that is, the distance of the reference container in the forward direction of the truck. n*target is the difference between the first coordinate value of the target container and the second coordinate value of the reference container, that is, the distance between the target container and the reference container, indicating the topological relationship between the target container and the reference container.

[0117] The distance between the target container and each reference container can be calculated according to S321-S323. After the distance between each reference container and the target container is calculated, a topological relationship between the target container and the reference containers can be constructed based on the multiple distances.

[0118] Correspondingly, S4 (calculating the distances between the spreader and the plurality of reference containers based on the topological relationship) further includes the following steps:

[0119] S41: Calculate the distance between the target container and the reference container based on the topological relationship;

[0120] S42: Calculate the distance between the spreader and the reference container based on the distance between the target container and the reference container.

[0121] Specifically, the distance between the spreader and the reference container is calculated as follows:

[0122] d n*spreader =Δd n*target ―(d n ―d spreader )

[0123] Among them, d n*spreader is the distance between the spreader and the reference container, Δd n*target is the difference between the first coordinate value of the target container and the second coordinate value of the reference container, that is, the distance between the target container and the reference container, d target d is the first coordinate value of the target container in the forward direction of the truck, that is, the distance of the target container in the forward direction of the truck. n It is the second coordinate value of the reference container in the forward direction of the vehicle.

[0124] S33: Constructing a topological relationship between the target container and the reference containers according to the multiple distances between the target container and the multiple reference containers.

[0125] Optional, such as Figure 2 As shown, the reference container may include:

[0126] The first reference container is located behind the target container in the forward direction of the vehicle. The first reference boundary of the first reference container is the front boundary of the first reference container in the forward direction of the vehicle.

[0127] The second reference container is located in front of the target container in the forward direction of the vehicle. The second reference boundary of the second reference container is the rear boundary of the second reference container in the forward direction of the vehicle.

[0128] The third reference container is located on the left and right sides of the target container in the direction of the vehicle's advance. There are two third reference boundaries: the front boundary and the rear boundary of the third reference container in the direction of the vehicle's advance.

[0129] The target boundary of the target container includes a first target boundary and a second target boundary. The first target boundary is the rear boundary of the target container in the forward direction of the large vehicle, and the second target boundary is the front boundary of the container in the forward direction of the large vehicle.

[0130] Correspondingly, the distance between the target container and the first reference container is the distance between the first target boundary and the first reference boundary. The distance between the target container and the second reference container is the distance between the second target boundary and the second reference boundary. The distance between the target container and the third reference container is the distance between the first target boundary and the third reference boundary behind it, and the distance between the second target boundary and the third reference boundary in front of it.

[0131] Exemplary alignment controller

[0132] As a second aspect of the present application, the present application also provides a positioning controller for a spreader and a container, such as Figure 6 As shown, the spreader and container alignment controller 100 includes:

[0133] The data acquisition unit 101 is used to acquire a plurality of point cloud data detected by a plurality of laser radars;

[0134] Specifically, the data acquisition unit 101 is used to execute S1 in the above-mentioned method for controlling the alignment of the spreader and the container.

[0135] The point cloud fusion unit 102 is used to perform fusion processing on multiple point cloud data to obtain fused point cloud data;

[0136] Specifically, the point cloud fusion unit 102 is used to execute S2 in the above-mentioned method for controlling the alignment of the spreader and the container.

[0137] A construction unit 103 is configured to construct a topological relationship between a target container and a plurality of reference containers located around the target container based on the fused point cloud data;

[0138] Specifically, the constructing unit 103 is configured to execute S3 in the above-mentioned method for controlling the alignment of the spreader and the container.

[0139] a calculation unit 104 for calculating distances between the spreader and a plurality of reference containers based on a topological relationship;

[0140] Specifically, the calculation unit 104 is configured to execute S4 in the above-mentioned method for controlling the alignment of the spreader and the container.

[0141] The alignment unit 105 is configured to determine that the spreader is successfully aligned with the target container when the distances between the spreader and the plurality of reference containers meet a preset condition.

[0142] Specifically, the alignment unit 105 is configured to execute step S5 of the above-mentioned method for controlling the alignment of the spreader and the container.

[0143] The sling and container alignment controller provided in the present application first collects point cloud data of the target container located below the sling and the reference containers located around the target container through multiple laser radars in different directions, and fuses the point cloud data, thereby reducing the probability of missing point cloud data of the part blocked by the sling. After the point cloud data is fused, the topological relationship between the target container and the multiple reference containers is constructed based on the fused point cloud data, and the distance between the sling and the reference containers is derived and calculated based on the topological relationship using the principle of topological relationship invariance; and when the distance between the sling and the reference container meets the preset conditions, it is determined that the sling and the target container are successfully aligned. Since both the fusion of point cloud data and the derivation and calculation of the distance between the sling and the target container based on the topological relationship can reduce the probability of the target container being blocked by the sling and thus missing part of the point cloud data, resulting in inaccurate alignment, the accuracy of alignment is further improved.

[0144] Exemplary field bridge

[0145] As the third aspect of the present application, the present application also provides a yard bridge, including: a trolley; a hoist arranged under the trolley, the hoist is used to hoist the container located under the hoist; multiple laser radars installed under the trolley, the laser radars are used to detect point cloud data of the container located under the hoist; the above-mentioned alignment controller 9; wherein the alignment controller is communicatively connected to the multiple laser radars.

[0146] Specifically, the container is mounted on a large truck. Two sensor devices are installed beneath the truck. Each sensor device has multiple laser radars, each capable of detecting point cloud data of the containers (the target container and multiple reference containers surrounding the target container) located below the spreader. The mirror of each laser radar is oriented vertically downward.

[0147] Specifically, the two sensor devices are installed at two symmetrical positions of the vehicle. For example, the two sensors are installed at the upper left corner and the lower right corner of the lower surface of the vehicle, respectively.

[0148] Therefore, when aligning the spreader and the container, starting multiple lidars can enable the multiple lidars to collect point cloud data of the target container and the surrounding reference containers in different directions.

[0149] Exemplary electronic devices

[0150] Next, as a fourth aspect of the present application, the present application further provides an electronic device. Figure 7 To describe the electronic device according to the embodiment of the present application.

[0151] Figure 7The figure shows a structural block diagram of an electronic device according to an embodiment of the present application.

[0152] like Figure 7 As shown, the electronic device 60 includes one or more processors 601 and a memory 602 .

[0153] The processor 601 may be a central processing unit (CPU) or other forms of processing units having data processing capabilities and / or instruction execution capabilities, and may control other components in the electronic device 60 to perform desired functions.

[0154] The memory 602 may include one or more computer program products, which may include various forms of computer-readable storage media, such as volatile memory and / or non-volatile memory. The volatile memory may include, for example, random access memory (RAM) and / or cache memory. The non-volatile memory may include, for example, read-only memory (ROM), a hard disk, flash memory, etc. One or more computer program instructions may be stored on the computer-readable storage medium, and the processor 601 may execute the program instructions to implement the methods for controlling the alignment of a spreader and a container described in various embodiments of the present application and / or other desired functions.

[0155] In one example, the electronic device 60 may further include an input device 603 and an output device 604 , and these components are interconnected via a bus system and / or other forms of connection mechanisms (not shown).

[0156] When the electronic device is a stand-alone device, the input device 603 may be a communication network connector, configured to receive collected input signals from the first device and the second device.

[0157] In addition, the input device 603 may also include, for example, a keyboard, a mouse, etc.

[0158] The output device 604 can output various information to the outside, including determined distance information, direction information, etc. The output device 604 can include, for example, a display, a speaker, a printer, a communication network and its connected remote output device, etc.

[0159] Of course, to simplify, Figure 7 Only some of the components related to the present application in the electronic device 60 are shown, and components such as a bus, an input / output interface, etc. are omitted. In addition, the electronic device 60 may further include any other appropriate components according to specific application scenarios.

[0160] As a fifth aspect of the present application, the present application provides a computer-readable storage medium, which stores a computer program for executing the steps in the method for controlling the alignment of the spreader and the container in each of the above-mentioned embodiments.

[0161] Computer readable storage media can adopt any combination of one or more readable media. The readable medium can be a readable signal medium or a readable storage medium. The readable storage medium can, for example, include but is not limited to a system, device or component of electricity, magnetism, light, electromagnetic, infrared, or semiconductor, or any combination thereof. More specific examples (non-exhaustive list) of readable storage media include: an electrical connection with one or more wires, a portable disk, a hard disk, a random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM or flash memory), an optical fiber, a portable compact disk read-only memory (CD-ROM), an optical storage device, a magnetic storage device, or any suitable combination thereof.

[0162] In addition to the above-mentioned methods and devices, an embodiment of the present application may also be a computer program product, which includes computer program information. When the computer program information is run by a processor, the processor executes the steps in the method for controlling the alignment of the spreader and the container in various embodiments of the present application.

[0163] The computer program product may be written in any combination of one or more programming languages to implement the program code for performing the operations of the embodiments of the present application, including object-oriented programming languages such as Java, C++, and conventional procedural programming languages such as "C" or similar programming languages. The program code may be executed entirely on the user's computing device, partially on the user's computing device, as a standalone software package, partially on the user's computing device and partially on a remote computing device, or entirely on a remote computing device or server.

[0164] The basic principles of the present application have been described above in conjunction with specific embodiments. However, it should be noted that the advantages, strengths, and effects mentioned in this application are merely illustrative and not restrictive, and it should not be assumed that these advantages, strengths, and effects are required of each embodiment of this application. In addition, the specific details disclosed above are merely illustrative and facilitating understanding, and are not restrictive. The above details do not limit this application to necessarily being implemented using the above specific details.

[0165] The block diagrams of the devices, devices, equipment, and systems involved in this application are merely illustrative examples and are not intended to require or imply that they must be connected, arranged, or configured in the manner shown in the block diagrams. As will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, these devices, devices, equipment, and systems can be connected, arranged, or configured in any manner. Words such as "include," "comprise," "have," and the like are open-ended words, meaning "including but not limited to," and can be used interchangeably therewith. The words "or" and "and" used herein refer to the words "and / or" and can be used interchangeably therewith, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. The word "such as" used herein refers to the phrase "such as but not limited to," and can be used interchangeably therewith.

[0166] It should also be noted that in the apparatus, device, and method of the present application, each component or each step can be decomposed and / or recombined, and such decomposition and / or recombination should be regarded as equivalent solutions of the present application.

Claims

1. A method for aligning a spreader and a container, applicable to a field crane, wherein the field crane comprises a spreader and a plurality of laser radars disposed below the spreader, wherein the laser radars are used to detect point cloud data of the container located below the spreader; characterized in that: The alignment method includes: Acquire multiple point cloud data detected by multiple laser radars; performing fusion processing on the plurality of point cloud data to obtain fused point cloud data; constructing a topological relationship between a target container and a plurality of reference containers located around the target container based on the fused point cloud data; calculating the distances between the spreader and a plurality of the reference containers based on the topological relationship; When the distances between the spreader and the plurality of reference containers meet a preset condition, it is determined that the spreader is successfully aligned with the target container.

2. The alignment method according to claim 1, wherein: The step of constructing a topological relationship between the target container and the plurality of reference containers based on the fused point cloud data includes: Calculating a target boundary of the target container and a reference boundary of the reference container based on the fused point cloud data; Calculating the distance between the target container and the reference container based on the point cloud data of the target boundary and the point cloud data of the reference boundary of the reference container; A topological relationship between the target container and the reference containers is constructed according to a plurality of distances between the target container and a plurality of reference containers.

3. The alignment method according to claim 2, wherein: The calculating, based on the fused point cloud data, a target boundary of the target container and a reference boundary of the reference container includes: Calculating a normal vector of the fused point cloud data based on the fused point cloud data; Based on the normal vector, filtering out point cloud data whose distance from the normal vector is greater than a preset threshold in the fused point cloud data to obtain valid point cloud data; Performing Euclidean clustering segmentation on the valid point cloud data, and calculating the boundaries of multiple planes based on the alpha-shape algorithm; The boundaries of the multiple planes include a target boundary of the upper surface of the target container and a reference boundary of the upper surface of the reference container.

4. The alignment method according to claim 3, wherein: Calculating the distance between the target container and the reference container based on the point cloud data of the target boundary and the point cloud data of the reference boundary of the reference container includes: Calculating a first coordinate value of the target boundary in the vehicle forward direction according to the point cloud data of the target boundary; Calculating a second coordinate value of the reference boundary in the forward direction of the vehicle based on the point cloud data of the reference boundary; The distance between the target container and the reference container is calculated according to the first coordinate value and the second coordinate value.

5. The alignment method according to claim 4, characterized in that: The target boundary includes a first target boundary, which is the rear boundary of the target container in the forward direction of the vehicle; The first reference boundary is a front boundary of the first reference container in the forward direction of the large vehicle. In the forward direction of the large vehicle, the first reference container is located behind the target container. and / or The target boundary includes a second target boundary, which is the front boundary of the target container in the forward direction of the large vehicle; the second reference boundary is the rear boundary of the second reference container in the forward direction of the large vehicle, and the second reference container is located in front of the target container in the forward direction of the large vehicle.

6. The alignment method according to claim 1, wherein: When the distance between the spreader and the plurality of reference containers satisfies a preset condition, determining that the spreader is successfully aligned with the target container includes: Obtaining an initial distance between the spreader and the reference container before alignment; Obtaining a current distance between the spreader and the reference container after alignment; calculating an absolute value of a distance difference between the spreader and the reference container based on the initial distance and the current distance; When the number of absolute values of the multiple distance differences between the spreader and the multiple reference containers that is less than a first preset threshold is greater than a preset number, it is determined that the spreader and the target container are successfully aligned; and / or when the minimum absolute value of the absolute values of the multiple distance differences between the spreader and the multiple reference containers is less than a second preset threshold, it is determined that the spreader and the target container are successfully aligned.

7. The alignment method according to claim 1, wherein: The calculating, based on the topological relationship, the distances between the spreader and the plurality of reference containers comprises: Calculating the distance between the target container and the reference container based on the topological relationship; The distance between the spreader and the reference container is calculated according to the distance between the target container and the reference container.

8. The alignment method according to claim 1, wherein: The multiple lidars include a target lidar and multiple reference lidars; The fusing of the plurality of point cloud data to obtain fused point cloud data comprises: Performing coordinate transformation on the point cloud data detected by the reference laser radar according to the extrinsic calibration parameters of the target laser radar and the extrinsic calibration parameters of the reference laser radar to obtain transformed point cloud data corresponding to the reference laser radar; The point cloud data detected by the target laser radar and the converted point cloud data corresponding to multiple reference laser radars are fused to obtain fused point cloud data.

9. A positioning controller for a spreader and a container, characterized in that: include: A data acquisition unit, configured to acquire a plurality of point cloud data detected by a plurality of laser radars; a point cloud fusion unit, configured to perform fusion processing on the plurality of point cloud data to obtain fused point cloud data; a construction unit, configured to construct a topological relationship between a target container and a plurality of reference containers located around the target container based on the fused point cloud data; a calculation unit, configured to calculate the distance between the spreader and the plurality of reference containers based on the topological relationship; The alignment unit is configured to determine that the spreader is successfully aligned with the target container when the distance between the spreader and the plurality of reference containers satisfies a preset condition.

10. A field bridge, characterized in that: include: small car; a sling disposed below the trolley, the sling being used to lift a container located below the sling; a plurality of laser radars installed under the trolley, the laser radars being used to detect point cloud data of a container located under the spreader; The alignment controller according to claim 9; Wherein, the alignment controller is communicatively connected with a plurality of the laser radars.

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