Parking robots and parking robot systems

Abstract

The invention relates to a parking robot. It comprises a gripper (6) for a wheel (8) of a motor vehicle (10), as well as a first lifting device (22) for raising a vehicle floor (24) of the motor vehicle (10) relative to the gripper (6) in the vertical direction (H), wherein the first lifting device (22) is deformable, in particular elastically. Furthermore, the invention relates to a parking robot system (36) comprising such a parking robot (2).

Description

The invention relates to a parking robot and to a parking robot system for automatically transporting a motor vehicle.A parking robot system is to be understood in particular as a keyless transport system for a motor vehicle, in particular a passenger car, which parks the motor vehicle automatically. Such a parking robot system comprises parking robots, which respectively grip a wheel of the motor vehicle and lift it. The parking robot system is usually designed to transport the motor vehicle within a predefined infrastructure environment, for example a parking garage or a workshop, to a predefined parking position (parking space, parking space).For this purpose, the parking robots lift the motor vehicle on the respective wheel a few centimeters, and then move with the lifted motor vehicle to the predefined parking position, at which the motor vehicle is set down again. By means of such parking robots, motor vehicles can be moved automatically and thus without the assistance of a driver of the motor vehicle within the infrastructure environment.DE 10 2018 221 172 B4 discloses a parking robot which has a base body on which a pair of wheel support arms, which are pivotable in each case between a folded-in position and a folded-out position, is arranged. Furthermore, the parking robot comprises a chassis carrying the base body, a height-adjustable chassis on which the chassis carrying the base body is arranged and which comprises at least one drive wheel, wherein the chassis is designed to adjust the chassis carrying the base body between a lowered position and a raised position relative to the at least one drive wheel. The parking robot is configured to autonomously approach a wheel of a motor vehicle from outside with the chassis arranged in the lowered position and the wheel support arms folded in, lift the wheel by folding out the pair of the wheel support arms and then adjust the chassis carrying the base body into the raised position in order to increase a parking robot floor clearance of the parking robot.DE 10 2017 220 597 A1 describes a parking robot. This comprises a height-adjustable transport surface for transporting a motor vehicle, an adjusting device for adjusting a height of the transport surface relative to a travel surface, a control device which is designed to control the adjusting device in such a way that, after loading the transport surface with a motor vehicle, said adjusting device displaces the height of the transport surface relative to the travel surface from a loading position in which the transport surface has been loaded with the motor vehicle into a transport position in which the motor vehicle is to be transported. The transport position is located above the loading position, so that the height of the transport surface relative to the travel surface is greater in the transport position than in the loading position.If the parking robot is arranged under the vehicle during transport of the vehicle, then a road clearance of the motor vehicle, i.e. the space under the vehicle floor of the motor vehicle, is correspondingly reduced. During ramp travel, there is therefore the risk, depending on the gradient of the ramp, that the vehicle floor undesirably contacts the floor, that is to say the travel surface, and / or the parking robot.The object of the invention is to specify a particularly suitable parking robot. In particular, damage to the vehicle to be transported during ramp travel should be avoided or a risk thereof should at least be reduced. Furthermore, a parking robot system with such a parking robot is to be specified.This object is achieved according to the invention by a parking robot having the features of claim 1 and by a parking robot system having the features of claim 8. The explanations in connection with the parking robot also apply analogously to the parking robot system and vice versa.The parking robot is provided for a parking robot system, on the basis of which a motor vehicle can be transported automatically and, in particular, autonomously. Such a parking robot system comprises at least two, in particular four, parking robots, wherein a single one of the wheels of the motor vehicle is assigned to each of the parking robots. The parking robot is therefore provided to lift the motor vehicle in the region of a (single) wheel thereof.The parking robot comprises a gripper which is provided and configured to grip a (single) wheel of a motor vehicle, in particular of a passenger vehicle. In particular, the gripper is configured to grip the wheel on the tread of the tire thereof.Furthermore, the parking robot comprises a first lifting device for lifting the motor vehicle, in particular its vehicle floor relative to the gripper and / or to a frame- or plate-like base body of the parking robot, to which base body the gripper is fastened. At most, the first lifting device serves to increase a free space between the vehicle floor and the parking robot. The wheel remains in contact with the gripper, for example. In particular, the lifting takes place in a direction perpendicular to a ground, i.e. to a travel surface. This direction is also referred to below as the vertical direction.The first lifting device is deformable, in particular elastically. The first lifting device is therefore not dimensionally stable.As a result, when the motor vehicle is lifted by means of the first lifting device, the shape of the first lifting device adapts to the shape and / or to the orientation of the motor vehicle relative to the parking robot. Thus, during ramp travel, in particular when the ramp changes over to a flat roadway, the vehicle floor may incline toward the parking robot in comparison to travel on a flat roadway. Due to the deformable configuration of the first lifting device, the shape of this changed orientation of the motor vehicle relative to the parking robot adjusts itself. Furthermore, during ramp travel on the basis of the first lifting device, the free space beneath the vehicle floor of the motor vehicle is increased, with the result that undesired contact of the vehicle floor of the motor vehicle with the parking robot and, associated therewith, a risk of damage to the motor vehicle is at least reduced.In summary, the first lifting device is thus designed such that it can deform due to the weight force of the motor vehicle, in particular during lifting and / or when the orientation of the motor vehicle relative to the parking robot changes. Thus, the first lifting device is resilient when acted upon by a force or a pressure.According to an expedient configuration, the first lifting device forms an, in particular flexible, support surface for the vehicle floor of the motor vehicle. The first lifting device is thus provided and configured to contact the motor vehicle on the vehicle floor, i.e. to engage there.In particular, the first lifting device is provided to contact the motor vehicle at an engagement point provided for a vehicle jack. For this purpose, the first lifting device is arranged offset in a direction referred to as the longitudinal direction with respect to a receiving region of the gripper for the wheel of the motor vehicle.The longitudinal direction here refers to the direction which extends from a parking robot rear to a parking robot front. With regard to this direction, the gripper and / or the receiving region of the gripper is therefore arranged between the parking robot rear and the parking robot front.When the motor vehicle is transported by means of the parking robot, the first lifting device is therefore arranged offset in the vehicle longitudinal direction of the motor vehicle, that is to say in a direction from a rear of the motor vehicle to a front of the motor vehicle, with respect to the wheel gripped by the parking robot.According to a preferred embodiment, the first lifting device is an air cushion. Particularly expediently, the air cushion is not permanently inflated with gas, i.e. not completely filled with gas, and / or is not sealed in a gas-tight manner. Preferably, the air cushion can be filled with gas and emptied again, in particular during operation of the parking robot, i.e. the gas can be discharged from the air cushion. For this purpose, the air cushion is connected in terms of flow, for example, to an air pump or to a compressor. In this way, it is possible for the parking robot to travel under the motor vehicle with the air cushion not inflated, and thus with a comparatively low overall height). To raise the motor vehicle, the air cushion is filled, i.e. inflated, with a gas, in particular air.The air cushion is expediently designed in such a way that the distance between the vehicle floor and the base body is between 150 mm and 280 mm, in particular between 180 mm and 250 mm, when the air cushion is inflated and when a motor vehicle rests thereon. These values for the distance apply in particular when the parking robot is located on a level ground.During operation of the parking robot, and when a motor vehicle is lifted by means of the air cushion, the force of the weight force of the motor vehicle is distributed to the air cushion and to the gripper. During this operation, the air cushion is preferably filled with gas in such a way that a force acting on the air cushion due to the motor vehicle, in particular its amount, is equal to a force acting on the gripper due to the motor vehicle, in particular its amount. In this way, a load on the grippers is advantageously reduced. Bending of the gripper and / or of the base body on account of a portion of the force acting on the gripper oriented parallel to the base is thus avoided or a risk thereof is at least reduced.The parking robot is preferably embodied to be flat or flat. This means that the parking robot has a low overall height. In this context, a "low overall height" is to be understood as meaning, in particular, an overall height which is less than or equal to a vertical ground clearance of the motor vehicle to be transported / parked. The vertical ground clearance is in particular the clear distance between the underlying surface and the vehicle floor (underbody) of the motor vehicle with respect to the vertical direction (vertical direction). The vertical ground clearance is, for example, at least 110 mm (millimeters). The parking robot has, for example, an overall height (with the air cushion not inflated) of 110 mm, so that the parking robot can travel at least in sections under the motor vehicle.According to an advantageous development, the parking robot comprises a second lifting device, on the basis of which the gripper and / or the first lifting device can be moved in the vertical direction, that is to say in the direction away from the travel surface. For example, the parking robot comprises a base body, for example a base plate or a frame, to which the gripper and / or the first lifting device are fastened. Expediently, the parking robot further comprises wheels, wherein the base body can be moved away from the wheels in the vertical direction by means of the second lifting device. The second lifting device is designed, for example, as a hydraulic lifting device or as a spindle drive. The second lifting device is provided and configured to lift the wheel of the motor vehicle gripped by the gripper from the ground in the vertical direction. If the travel surface is flat, i.e. in particular if no ramp is being traveled on, the motor vehicle is expediently raised only by means of the second lifting device.According to a suitable embodiment, the gripper comprises two gripper arms that can be moved towards one another with respect to the longitudinal direction. To lift the motor vehicle, the parking robot is initially positioned in such a way that the wheel of the motor vehicle to be gripped by the gripper is arranged in the receiving space formed between the gripper arms. The gripping arms are then moved towards one another, so that the gripping arms bear against the wheel, in particular against the tread of the tire thereof. Subsequently, the gripper is moved in the vertical direction by means of the second lifting device, wherein the gripped wheel of the motor vehicle is also lifted from the ground.A further aspect of the invention relates to a parking robot system which comprises a parking robot in one of the variants illustrated above. The parking robot system particularly preferably comprises four such parking robots. One of the parking robots is expediently assigned for each wheel of the motor vehicle.The parking robots of the parking robot system expediently comprise a communication interface for data and / or signal exchange with one another. Preferably, at least one of the parking robots further comprises a sensor system for detecting the environment and / or the motor vehicle. The communication interface and / or the sensor system make possible automatic and / or autonomous transport of a motor vehicle to a parking area.Exemplary embodiments of the invention are explained in more detail below with reference to a drawing. In the drawings, schematic and simplified representations show: FIG. 1 shows a top view of a parking robot, which has a gripper for a wheel of a motor vehicle and a deformable lifting device for lifting the motor vehicle relative to the gripper, FIG. 2 shows a side view of the parking robot, wherein the parking robot grips a wheel of the motor vehicle, FIG. 3 shows a side view of the parking robot, wherein the parking robot grips a wheel of the motor vehicle and lifts the motor vehicle by means of a second lifting device, FIG. 4 is a side view of the parking robot, wherein the motor vehicle is lifted relative to the gripper by means of a first lifting device, and FIG. 5 shows a side view of the motor vehicle, wherein the motor vehicle is transported over a ramp on the basis of a parking robot system having the parking robot.Corresponding parts are always provided with the same reference numerals in all figures.FIG. 1 schematically shows a plan view of a parking robot 2. This comprises a base body 4, which is expediently plate-like or frame-like, to which a gripper 6 for gripping a wheel 8 of a motor vehicle 10 is fastened. The gripper 6 forms a receiving region 12 for the wheel 8 of the motor vehicle 10, wherein the wheel 8 is arranged in the receiving region 12 for gripping.With regard to a direction designated as the longitudinal direction L, the rear end forms the parking robot rear 14 and the front end forms the parking robot front 16.According to the exemplary embodiment shown here, the gripper 6 comprises arms 18 which can be moved towards one another (gripper arms, gripper arms) and which have a roller 20, in particular a roller, at their mutually facing ends, which roller bears against a running surface of the wheel 8 of the motor vehicle 10 when the wheel 8 is gripped by the gripper 6. In summary, the two gripping arms 6 for gripping the wheel 8 can be moved towards one another with respect to the longitudinal direction L.The parking robot 2 furthermore comprises at least one first lifting device 22, which serves to move the vehicle floor 24 of the motor vehicle 10 in the vertical direction H relative to the base body 4 and / or to the gripper 6. A free space in the vertical direction H between the vehicle floor 24 and the base body 4 of the parking robot 2 can thus be changed, in particular enlarged. The distance d between the vehicle floor 8 and the base body 4 and / or the gripper 6 can therefore be increased by means of the first lifting device 22. The vertical direction H is understood to mean a direction perpendicular to the underlying surface 26, i.e. to the roadway, and / or the direction perpendicular to the base body 4. The at least one first lifting device 22 is expediently fastened to the base body 4.The respective first lifting device 22 is designed to be elastically deformable. The respective lifting devices 22 are designed as an air cushion for this purpose. The air cushion is not continuously inflated. The air cushion can be filled with a gas and emptied. In this case, the air cushion is expediently connected to a compressor, not shown in any more detail, or to an air pump, on the basis of which the air cushion can be filled with gas or with air in order to inflate the latter. Furthermore, air can be discharged from the air cushion-for example by means of the or a compressor or the or an air pump-in particular can be sucked off in order to empty the air cushion. In summary, the air cushion is designed to be repeatedly filled with a gas and emptied again. The inflation of the air cushion is thus reversible. To raise the motor vehicle 10, in particular its vehicle floor 24, relative to the gripper 6, the air cushion is correspondingly inflated. For lowering, the air cushion is correspondingly emptied.When the motor vehicle 10 is lifted by means of the first lifting device 22 and / or when the motor vehicle 10 is being transported, in which the motor vehicle 10 is lifted by means of the first lifting device 22, the motor vehicle 10 rests on the first lifting device 22. The first lifting device 22 thus forms a support surface 28 for the motor vehicle 10, in particular for its vehicle floor 24. Due to the configuration of the first lifting device 22 as an air cushion, this support surface 28 is flexible and can adapt to a change in position / to a change in orientation of the motor vehicle 10 relative to the parking robot 2, as can occur, for example, during ramp travel, cf. in particular FIG. 5.The parking robot 2 further comprises wheels 30 spaced apart from one another in the longitudinal direction L. At least one of these wheels 30 is coupled to a drive motor, not shown in more detail, so that the parking robot 2 can travel. The first holding device 22 is expediently arranged above one of these wheels 30 or between them with respect to the longitudinal direction L. Consequently, a comparatively uniform load distribution to the wheels 30 is realized.According to the exemplary embodiment shown here, the parking robot comprises two first lifting devices 22, one of which is arranged upstream of the receiving region 12 of the gripper 6 with respect to the longitudinal direction L and the other is arranged downstream of the receiving region 12 of the gripper 6 with respect to the longitudinal direction L. Thus, the two first lifting devices 22 are each arranged offset with respect to the receiving region 12 with respect to the longitudinal direction L. In this way, it is made possible for the first holding device 22 to engage at an engagement point 32 (cf. FIG. 4 ) of the motor vehicle 10 provided for a vehicle jack, that is to say for the first holding device 22 to contact the vehicle floor 24 at the engagement point 32 and, as a result, damage to the vehicle floor 24 is avoided or a risk thereof is at least reduced.According to an alternative, further illustrated embodiment of the parking robot 2, the parking robot comprises only a first lifting device 22, wherein the latter is preferably arranged offset with respect to the receiving region 12 with respect to the longitudinal direction L.The parking robot 2 furthermore comprises a second lifting device 34. For this purpose, the second lifting device 34 is configured to lift the base body 4, to which the gripper and / or the first lifting device 22 are fastened, in the vertical direction H. For example, the wheels 30 are coupled to the base body 4 by means of the second lifting device 34, so that the wheels 30 can be extended relative to the base body 4, in particular moved away from the latter. The second lifting device 34 is designed, for example, as a hydraulic system or as a spindle, by means of which the base body can be moved away from the respective wheel.FIG. 2 schematically illustrates the motor vehicle 10, wherein the latter has not yet been lifted. The parking robot 2 is driven under the motor vehicle 10, wherein the wheel 8 of the motor vehicle 10 is arranged in the receiving region 12 of the gripper 6. For gripping, the two gripping arms 18 are moved towards one another in the longitudinal direction L, so that they bear against the wheel 8, in particular against the tread of the tire thereof, thus gripping the latter.FIG. 3 schematically illustrates the motor vehicle 10, wherein the latter has been lifted by means of the second lifting device 34. The wheels 8 of the motor vehicle are therefore no longer in contact with the ground surface 26. If the underlying surface, i.e. the roadway, is flat, the motor vehicle can be transported to a parking space in this position.FIG. 4 schematically illustrates the motor vehicle 10, wherein the latter has been raised by means of the second lifting device 34, and wherein the vehicle floor 24 of the motor vehicle 10 has been raised by means of the first lifting device 22 relative to the gripper 6 and to the base body 4 in the vertical direction H. The distance d between the vehicle floor 24 and the base body 4 and the distance between the vehicle floor 24 and the gripper 6 of the parking robot 2 are increased in this way. The vehicle floor 24 of the motor vehicle 10 lies with its contact point 32 on the contact surface 28 of the air cushion.FIG. 5 shows the motor vehicle 10, wherein the latter is driven automatically and autonomously on the basis of a parking robot system with parking robots 2 in one of the variants illustrated above in the transition region between a ramp and a planar underlying surface.As can be seen there, the vehicle floor of the motor vehicle 10 is inclined with respect to the respective parking robot 2, in particular its base body 4, in comparison with a journey on a planar underlying surface. Owing to the air cushion, that is to say owing to the first lifting device 22, however, the distance d between the base body 4 of the respective parking robot 2 and the vehicle floor 24 is advantageously large enough for undesired contact of the respective base body 4 with the vehicle floor 24 to be avoided.The parking robot system 36 comprises four parking robots 2, wherein one wheel 8 of the motor vehicle 10 is lifted from one of the parking robots 2, respectively.The invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments. Rather, within the scope of the claims, other variants of the invention can also be derived from this by the person skilled in the art without departing from the subject matter of the invention. In particular, all individual features described in connection with the exemplary embodiments and / or in the claims can also be combined with one another in another manner without departing from the subject matter of the invention.List of reference characters2 Parking robot 4 Base body 6 Gripper 8 Wheel of the motor vehicle 10 Motor vehicle 12 Receiving region 14 Parking robot rear 16 Parking robot front 18 Gripper arm 20 Roller 22 First lifting device 24 Vehicle floor 26 Base 28 Support surface of the first lifting device 30 Wheel of the parking robot 32 Engagement point for a car lifter 34 Second lifting device 36 Parking robot system d Distance between the vehicle floor and the base body of the parking robot H Vertical direction L Longitudinal directionReferences included in the specificationThis list of documents cited by the applicant has been produced in an automated manner and is only included for the better information of the reader. The list is not part of the German patent application or utility model application. The DPMA does not take any adhesion for any faults or omissions.Patent Literature citedDE 10 2018 221 172 B4

[0004] DE 10 2017 220 597 A1

[0005]

Claims

Parking robot (2) for a parking robot system (36), having - a gripper (6) for a wheel (8) of a motor vehicle (10), and - a first lifting device (22) for lifting a vehicle floor (24) of the motor vehicle (10) relative to the gripper (6) in the vertical direction (H), - wherein the first lifting device (22) is deformable, in particular elastically.Parking robot (2) according to Claim 1, characterized in that the first lifting device (22) forms an, in particular flexible, supporting surface (28) for a vehicle floor (24) of the motor vehicle (10).Parking robot (2) according to claim 1 or 2, characterised in that the first lifting device (22) is an air cushion.Parking robot (2) according to Claim 3, characterized in that the air cushion can be filled with a gas and emptied.Parking robot (2) according to one of Claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the first lifting device (22) is arranged offset in a longitudinal direction (L) extending from a parking robot rear (14) to a parking robot front (16) with respect to a receiving region (12) of the gripper (6) for the wheel (8) of the motor vehicle (10).Parking robot (2) according to one of Claims 1 to 5, characterized bya second lifting device (34), by means of which the gripper (6) and / or the first lifting device (22) can be moved in the vertical direction (H).Parking robot (2) according to one of Claims 1 to 6, characterized in that the gripper (6) has two gripper arms (18) which can be moved towards one another in the longitudinal direction (L).Parking robot system (36) for automatically transporting a motor vehicle (10), having a parking robot (2) according to one of Claims 1 to 7.

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