Self-adaptive path planning method for glass cleaning robot

Abstract

The invention provides a self-adaptive path planning method for a glass cleaning robot, which aims at enabling the robot to be adaptively switched to a better working mode according to a glass boundary, and is characterized in that a plurality of path modes are defined, the path modes comprise a Z mode, an N mode and a depth mode, and the depth mode is that the Z mode is executed firstly and then the N mode is executed; selecting any path mode; before operation, the robot firstly detects glass boundary information to calculate the width and height of glass, and then executes the following logic: if in a Z mode, judging whether the width is greater than or equal to a first threshold value; if yes, the Z mode operation is kept; otherwise, switching to an N mode for operation; if in the depth mode, judging whether the width is greater than or equal to a first threshold value; if yes, the Z mode operation is kept, and the N mode is executed after the Z mode operation is finished; otherwise, directly switching to the N mode for operation; the N-mode includes a conventional N-mode and a small glass N-mode with different feed strokes.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The application relates to a self-adaptive path planning method for a glass cleaning robot. BACKGROUND

[0002] At present, the working modes of a glass cleaning robot generally include N mode, Z mode and mixed mode (combination of N mode and Z mode), and in each mode, the robot plans its running path and turning position by detecting the glass boundary to clean the whole glass. We know that it is time-consuming for the robot to adjust the row-changing posture, and frequent row-changing operation will lengthen the overall cleaning time, so reducing the row-changing frequency of the robot during running is an important means to ensure the cleaning efficiency. In addition, the row-changing turning position is also prone to the problem of insufficient cleaning.

[0003] Generally speaking, the Z mode is suitable for cleaning a glass with a large width, so that the robot can run in the maximum horizontal path to reduce the row-changing frequency; and the N mode is suitable for cleaning a glass with a large height, so that the robot can run in the maximum vertical path to reduce the row-changing frequency. However, the working mode of the existing robot is set by the user through an APP or a function key of the robot, and the user may not consider the width / height of the glass when setting, and the robot cannot adjust or switch according to the glass boundary, so it is inevitable that the working mode is not optimal, resulting in frequent turning and row-changing of the robot. Even worse, if the width / height of the glass is too narrow, the robot may be stuck at a certain position due to the inability to turn. SUMMARY

[0004] The application provides a self-adaptive path planning method for a glass cleaning robot, which aims to switch the robot to an optimal working mode according to the glass boundary to improve the cleaning efficiency, and the specific technical content is as follows: A self-adaptive path planning method for a glass cleaning robot, which defines several path modes, including Z mode, N mode and deep mode, wherein the deep mode is to execute the Z mode first and then execute the N mode; any one path mode is selected; before running, the robot detects the glass boundary information to calculate the width and height of the glass, and then executes the following logic: If in the Z mode, it is judged whether the width is greater than or equal to a first threshold value; if yes, the Z mode is kept running; otherwise, the N mode is switched to run; If in the deep mode, it is judged whether the width is greater than or equal to the first threshold value; if yes, the Z mode is kept running, and the N mode is executed after the Z mode running is completed; otherwise, the N mode is directly switched to run.

[0005] In one or more embodiments of the present application, the N mode includes a regular N mode with a regular line change stroke and a small glass N mode with a small line change stroke smaller than the regular line change stroke; a glass height determination is performed when directly selecting or switching into the N mode, and if the height is greater than or equal to a second threshold, the regular N mode is executed, otherwise the small glass N mode is executed.

[0006] In one or more embodiments of the present application, the path mode further includes an along edge mode, in which it is determined whether the height is greater than or equal to the second threshold; if yes, the along edge mode is kept running, otherwise the Z mode is switched to run.

[0007] In one or more embodiments of the present application, in the along edge mode, if the height is greater than or equal to the second threshold, it is further determined whether the width is greater than or equal to a first threshold; if yes, the along edge mode is run, otherwise the small glass N mode is run; if the height is less than the second threshold, it is further determined whether the width is greater than or equal to the first threshold, if yes, the Z mode is executed, otherwise the small glass N mode is executed.

[0008] Compared with the prior art, the present application has the beneficial effects that: in each path mode, corresponding mode switching logic is set, the robot can be planned an optimal path according to the width and height of the glass, the robot can travel a longer distance in a straight line and change lines less, so as to minimize the overall cleaning time and improve the cleaning efficiency. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0009] Figure 1 A logic diagram of a glass cleaning robot adaptive path planning method. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0010] The following will be described in conjunction with the accompanying Figure 1 Further description of the scheme of the present application: Embodiment 1 A glass cleaning robot adaptive path planning method, specifically: Three path modes of Z mode, N mode and deep mode are defined; wherein, The Z mode means that the robot has a left-right back-and-forth cleaning path; The N mode means that the robot has an up-down back-and-forth cleaning path; The deep mode means that the Z mode is executed first, and then the N mode is executed, i.e., first left-right back-and-forth cleaning, and then up-down back-and-forth cleaning.

[0011] The user can select any one of the Z mode, the N mode and the deep mode, and before running, the robot first detects the glass boundary information to calculate the width and height of the glass; The following logic is then executed: If in Z mode, judge whether the width is greater than or equal to the first threshold value; if yes, keep Z mode running; otherwise, switch to N mode running.

[0012] If in depth mode, judge whether the width is greater than or equal to the first threshold value; if yes, keep Z mode running and execute N mode after Z mode running ends; otherwise, directly switch to N mode running.

[0013] The robot completes logical judgment on the width before cleaning starts, and generates corresponding path planning (i.e. switches to corresponding path mode) according to the logical judgment result. The first threshold value can be set according to the robot size or industry common value, for example, the first threshold value is set to 70 cm, that is, if in Z mode, when the width is greater than or equal to 70 cm, keep Z mode running, and when the width is less than 70 cm, switch to N mode running.

[0014] It can be seen that when the glass size is large enough, the robot runs in the path mode selected by the user, and when the glass width is small, it switches to the more general N mode. The embodiment mainly solves the problem that running Z mode on glass with a width less than the first threshold value will result in more frequent line changes.

[0015] Embodiment 2 On the basis of the above embodiment 1, the N mode is further subdivided into a general N mode and a small glass N mode with different line change distances, and the line change distance of the small glass N mode is smaller than that of the general N mode, for example, the line change distance of the small glass N mode can be one half, two thirds, three fourths, etc. of that of the general N mode.

[0016] When directly selecting or switching into N mode, the glass height is judged, and if the height is greater than or equal to the second threshold value, the general N mode is executed, otherwise the small glass N mode is executed. The second threshold value can be set according to the robot size or industry common value, for example, the second threshold value is set to 50 cm, that is, if in N mode, when the height is greater than or equal to 50 cm, the general N mode is run, and when the height is less than 50 cm, the small glass N mode is run.

[0017] The line change distance refers to the distance that the robot moves from the current line to the next line. A smaller line change distance can clean more meticulously and cleanly, and is suitable for application on small-sized glass, avoiding the problem that the robot is stuck at a certain position on the glass due to inability to turn.

[0018] Embodiment 3 A self-adaptive path planning method for a glass cleaning robot, specifically: Four path modes, Z mode, N mode, depth mode and edge-following mode are defined; wherein, Z mode refers to a path in which the robot sweeps back and forth left and right; N mode refers to a robot that has a path for cleaning up and down; Deep mode means that Z mode is executed first, followed by N mode, that is, first cleaning left and right back and forth, and then cleaning up and down back and forth. Edge-following mode refers to a robot having a path that wraps around the edge of the glass; Specifically, the N mode is further subdivided into a regular N mode and a small glass N mode with different line-changing distances. The line-changing distance of the small glass N mode is smaller than that of the regular N mode. For example, the line-changing distance of the small glass N mode can be one-half, two-thirds, or three-quarters of that of the regular N mode. The line-changing distance refers to the distance the robot moves from the current line to the next line. A smaller line-changing distance allows for more thorough cleaning and is also suitable for applications on smaller glass surfaces.

[0019] Users can choose any path mode from Z mode, N mode, depth mode and edge mode. Before running, the robot first detects the glass boundary information to calculate the width and height of the glass. Then the following logic is executed: If in Z mode, first determine if the width is greater than or equal to the first threshold; if so, continue running in Z mode; otherwise, switch to N mode and further determine if the height is greater than or equal to the second threshold; if so, execute the regular N mode, otherwise execute the small glass N mode.

[0020] If in N mode, determine whether the height is greater than or equal to the second threshold; if so, execute the regular N mode; otherwise, execute the small glass N mode.

[0021] If in depth mode, first determine if the width is greater than or equal to the first threshold; if so, keep running in Z mode and execute N mode after Z mode finishes running; otherwise, switch directly to N mode; when pointing to N mode, further determine if the height is greater than or equal to the second threshold; if so, execute regular N mode; otherwise, execute small glass N mode.

[0022] In edge-following mode, first determine whether the height is greater than or equal to the second threshold; If so, maintain the edge-following mode and further check whether the width is greater than or equal to the first threshold. If the width is greater than or equal to the first threshold, run in edge-following mode; if the width is less than the first threshold, run in small glass N mode. Otherwise, switch to Z mode and further check if the width is greater than or equal to the first threshold. If the width is greater than or equal to the first threshold, run in Z mode; if the width is less than the first threshold, run in N mode.

[0023] Before cleaning begins, the robot performs a logical determination of the width and height, and generates a corresponding path plan based on the logical determination result (i.e., switches to the corresponding path mode). The first threshold and the second threshold can be set according to the robot size or commonly used industry values. For example, the first threshold is set to 70cm and the second threshold is set to 50cm.

[0024] As can be seen, when the glass size is large enough, the robot runs according to the path mode selected by the user. However, when the width or height of the glass is small, the robot plans the optimal path through the judgment logic set by the robot, so as to make the robot travel a longer distance in a straight line and make fewer turns, thereby minimizing the overall cleaning time and improving cleaning efficiency.

[0025] In embodiments 1, 2, and 3 above, the default path mode is set to Z mode, N mode, or depth mode; the user selects the desired path mode through the APP, remote control, or function keys on the robot; otherwise, the robot runs in the default path mode, which can be changed.

[0026] The above preferred embodiments should be regarded as illustrative examples of the embodiments of the present application. Any technical deductions, substitutions, improvements, etc. that are similar to or based on the present application should be considered within the scope of protection of this patent.

Claims

1. An adaptive path planning method for a glass cleaning robot, characterized in that: Several path modes are defined, including Z mode, N mode and deep mode, wherein the deep mode executes Z mode first and then N mode; Choose any path mode. Before running, the robot first detects the glass boundary information to calculate the width and height of the glass, and then executes the following logic: In Z mode, determine whether the width is greater than or equal to the first threshold; If so, continue running in Z mode; otherwise, switch to N mode. In depth mode, determine whether the width is greater than or equal to the first threshold; If so, continue running in Z mode and execute N mode after Z mode finishes running; otherwise, switch directly to N mode.

2. The adaptive path planning method for a glass cleaning robot according to claim 1, characterized in that: The N mode includes a regular N mode with different line break travel and a small glass N mode. The line break travel of the small glass N mode is shorter than that of the regular N mode. When directly selecting or switching to the N mode, the glass height is judged. If the height is greater than or equal to the second threshold, the regular N mode is executed; otherwise, the small glass N mode is executed.

3. The adaptive path planning method for a glass cleaning robot according to claim 2, characterized in that: The path mode also includes an edge mode, in which the height is determined to be greater than or equal to a second threshold; if so, the edge mode is maintained, otherwise the Z mode is switched to operation.

4. The adaptive path planning method for a glass cleaning robot according to claim 3, characterized in that: In edge-following mode, if the height is greater than or equal to the second threshold, then it is further determined whether the width is greater than or equal to the first threshold; if so, it runs in edge-following mode, otherwise it runs in small glass N mode.

5. The adaptive path planning method for a glass cleaning robot according to claim 3, characterized in that: In edge mode, if the height is less than the second threshold, it is further determined whether the width is greater than or equal to the first threshold. If so, Z mode is executed; otherwise, N mode for small glass is executed.

6. The adaptive path planning method for a glass cleaning robot according to any one of claims 1-5, characterized in that: Before cleaning begins, the robot performs a logical determination of its height and width, and generates a corresponding path plan based on the logical determination result.

7. The adaptive path planning method for a glass cleaning robot according to claim 1, characterized in that: Set the default path mode to Z mode, N mode, or depth mode; the user selects the desired path mode via the APP, remote control, or function keys on the robot; otherwise, the robot runs in the default path mode.

8. The adaptive path planning method for a glass cleaning robot according to claim 7, characterized in that: The default path pattern can be changed.

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