Information processing device, control system, information processing method, control program, and recording medium

Abstract

To prevent a robot from becoming inoperable due to a communication delay without generating excessive control data for the robot.SOLUTION: An information processing device (1) according to an embodiment of the present invention generates control data for controlling a robot (2), and includes an acquisition unit (11) that acquires information indicating communication quality between the information processing device (1) and the robot (2), a generation unit (12) that repeatedly generates control data for a control time corresponding to the communication quality, and a communication processing unit (13) that transmits the generated control data to the robot (2).SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an information processing device, a control system, an information processing method, a control program, and a recording medium. [Background technology]

[0002] When generating control data for controlling a robot or the like, the time it takes to complete the generation fluctuates, so a process is known in the prior art that periodically generates control data for a time longer than the time required for the robot's operation. In this process, the control data that is not actually used in the robot's operation is discarded. Patent Document 1 discloses a guide robot that does not stop when interrupted by children or other people. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2018-144118 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In the conventional technology described above, for example, if the server that generates the control data and the robot to be controlled are located in remote locations and a delay occurs in the communication of the control data, the control data required for the robot's operation may be insufficient, causing the robot to become temporarily inoperable.

[0005] On the other hand, if the size of the control data generated at regular intervals is increased to prevent the robot from becoming inoperable, there is a problem that the cost of generating the control data and the loss of the control data portion that is discarded will increase.

[0006] One aspect of the present invention has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned problems, and aims to prevent a robot from becoming inoperable during communication delays without generating excessive control data for the robot. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] In order to solve the above problem, an information processing device according to one aspect of the present invention is an information processing device that generates control data for controlling a robot, and includes an acquisition unit that acquires information indicating the communication quality between the information processing device and the robot, a generation unit that repeatedly generates control data for a control time corresponding to the communication quality, and a communication processing unit that transmits the generated control data to the robot.

[0008] A control system according to another aspect of the present invention is a control system comprising one or more robots and an information processing device that generates control data for controlling the robots, wherein the information processing device comprises an acquisition unit that acquires information indicating the communication quality between the information processing device and the robot, a generation unit that repeatedly generates control data for a control time corresponding to the communication quality, and a communication processing unit that transmits the generated control data to the robot, and the robot performs an operation based on the control data in response to receiving the control data from the information processing device.

[0009] An information processing method according to another aspect of the present invention is an information processing method executed by an information processing device that generates control data for controlling a robot, and includes an acquisition step of acquiring information indicating communication quality between the information processing device and the robot, a generation step of repeatedly generating control data for a control time corresponding to the communication quality, and a communication step of transmitting the generated control data to the robot.

[0010] The control program of an information processing device that causes a computer to operate as each part (software element) of the information processing device according to each aspect of the present invention, thereby realizing the information processing device on the computer, and a computer-readable recording medium on which the control program is recorded, also fall within the scope of the present invention.

[0011] The control program may use various machine learning techniques in the process of causing a computer to operate as each of the above units or in other processes. In this case, the program using the machine learning technique may run on a server or on another device (for example, an edge computer or a cloud server). [Effects of the Invention]

[0012] According to one aspect of the present disclosure, it is possible to prevent the robot from becoming unable to operate due to communication delays, without generating excessive control data for the robot. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0013] [Figure 1] FIG. 2 is an example of a block diagram illustrating a functional configuration of a control system. [Figure 2] FIG. 1 is an example of a conceptual diagram illustrating processing by an existing control system. [Figure 3] FIG. 1 is an example of a conceptual diagram illustrating processing by an existing control system. [Figure 4] 10 is an example of a flowchart showing a processing flow of the control system. [Figure 5] FIG. 1 is an example of a conceptual diagram illustrating processing by a control system. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0014] Hereinafter, one embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail.

[0015] [1. Control system configuration example] 1 is an example of a block diagram showing the functional configuration of a control system 100 according to the present disclosure. The control system 100 includes a server 1, a robot 2, and a relay device 3, and is a system for controlling the robot 2 using control data generated by the server 1. The control data may include, for example, the gaze direction, joint angles, and speech content of the robot 2, the rotational speeds of the motor and tires, and command values ​​such as voltage.

[0016] The server 1 is a device that functions as a server for the robot 2, and includes a control unit 10, a storage unit 18, and a communication unit 19.

[0017] The control unit 10 is a control device that controls the entire server 1, and includes an acquisition unit 11, a generation unit 12, and a communication processing unit 13.

[0018] The acquisition unit 11 acquires information indicating the communication quality between the server 1 and the robot 2, for example, from the relay device 3. The acquisition unit 11 may also acquire information indicating the communication quality calculated by the control unit 10 based on the communication speed via the communication unit 19. The acquisition unit 11 also acquires the sensing results of the sensor 20 provided in the robot 2.

[0019] The generation unit 12 repeatedly generates control data for a control time period corresponding to the communication quality. Here, the term "control time period corresponding to the communication quality" may also have the meaning of being interpreted as "amount of control corresponding to the communication quality."

[0020] The communication processing unit 13 controls communication processing by the communication unit 19 .

[0021] The storage unit 18 is a storage device that stores various information, such as information indicating the relationship between communication quality and the control time of a single piece of control data. The generation unit 12 may refer to the information when generating control data.

[0022] The communication unit 19 performs communication processing with external devices such as the robot 2 under the control of the communication processing unit 13. As shown in FIG. 1 , in one embodiment, communication between the server 1 and the robot 2 is performed via a relay device 3.

[0023] The robot 2 is a device that operates based on control data received from the server 1. The robot 2 is not limited to a humanoid robot such as that shown in FIG. 5 (described later) and may be a vehicle-type robot, a machine tool installed in a specific location, or the like.

[0024] The robot 2 also includes one or more types of sensors 20. The sensors 20 may include an image sensor, a sound sensor, a force sensor, etc. At least a portion of the sensing results obtained by the sensors 20 is transmitted to the server 1.

[0025] Furthermore, the generation unit 12 may generate control data that instructs an operation according to the sensing result of the sensor 20 acquired by the acquisition unit 11. Furthermore, for example, the generation unit 12 may be configured to generate the control data using a machine learning model that receives the sensing result as input and outputs the operation content of the robot 2. In the above configuration, the storage unit 18 may store a parameter set that defines the machine learning model, and the control unit 10 may perform learning of the machine learning model.

[0026] The relay device 3 is a device that relays communication between devices connected to itself, for example, a device that relays communication between the server 1 and the robot 2. A plurality of relay devices 3 may be provided between the server 1 and the robot 2. In other words, communication between the server 1 and the robot 2 may be realized via a plurality of relay devices 3. The relay device 3 may include a base station device in addition to devices such as a router.

[0027] The function of a single component included in the control system 100 may be realized by a plurality of other components, and the functions of a plurality of components included in the control system 100 may be realized by a single other component.

[0028] Furthermore, a configuration may be such that a single server 1 is connected to multiple relay devices 3 and robots 2, or a configuration may be such that a single relay device 3 is connected to multiple robots 2. In these configurations, even if the communication quality is the same, the control times corresponding to the single control data for each robot 2 may be different from each other.

[0029] Furthermore, some or all of the functions of the server 1 may be realized by cloud computing or edge computing such as MEC (Multi-access Edge Computing). In the latter configuration, some or all of the functions of the server 1 may be realized by a device integrated with the relay device 3. In other words, one of the server 1 and the relay device 3 may be configured to include the other. Furthermore, the control system 100 may be configured to include a plurality of such integrated devices that operate as edge servers and perform distributed processing. The server 1 and the relay device 3 are examples of information processing devices in the present disclosure.

[0030] [2. Additional information] Next, an existing control system that controls a robot using control data generated by a server will be described with reference to FIG. 2. FIG. 2 is an example of a conceptual diagram illustrating processing by the existing control system. In FIG. 2, the control data represents a single piece of control data transmitted to the robot at one time. Each control data portion represents data constituting the control data and corresponding to control for a unit time. In this embodiment, for ease of explanation, the unit time is described as 1 second, but is not limited to this and may be 0.1 seconds, etc. In other words, each control data portion is described as data corresponding to control for 1 second, but is not limited to this and may be data corresponding to control for 0.1 seconds, etc. In addition, the sensing results of the sensors provided in the robot are transmitted to the server at any time or at predetermined time intervals.

[0031] 2, a single piece of control data includes control data portions for N+1 seconds (N+1 blocks). From another perspective, the robot can operate for up to N+1 seconds by sequentially executing the operations corresponding to the control data portions using the single piece of control data.

[0032] The server repeats the process of generating control data and sending it to the robot in an x-second cycle. In other words, the robot operates in an x-second cycle using each control data. In the example of Figure 2, x is a value less than N. As a result, as shown in the right diagram of Figure 2, the robot performs an operation for x seconds (t(+0) seconds to t+x-1 seconds) using certain control data, and then repeats the process of performing subsequent operations using the next received control data. Here, t corresponds to any current time. In the above process, the control data portion for N-x+1 seconds (t+x to t+N seconds) of each control data is not used in the robot's operation and is discarded.

[0033] Fig. 3 is an example of a conceptual diagram showing processing in a configuration in which a server and a robot communicate via a relay device in an existing control system. Fig. 3 also shows an example of a case where a communication delay occurs in the transmission of control data from the server to the robot.

[0034] A communication delay occurs between when the robot receives one control data and when it receives the next control data, and this can result in a shortage of the control data necessary for the robot's operation.

[0035] For example, the right diagram in Figure 3 shows that while a certain control data contains a control data portion for N+1 seconds, it took longer than N+1 seconds for the robot to receive the next control data due to a communication delay. As a result, the robot is unable to operate from N+2 seconds until it receives the next control data. From another perspective, x, which indicates the time it takes for the robot to operate using a single control data, temporarily becomes a value greater than N.

[0036] As described above, in existing control systems, when a communication delay in control data occurs, there is a problem that the control data portion required for the robot's operation may be insufficient, causing the robot to become temporarily unable to operate.

[0037] [3. Control system processing example] Next, an example of the flow of processing executed by the control system 100 according to the present disclosure will be described. Fig. 4 is an example of a flowchart showing the flow of processing by the control system 100. In parallel with the processing shown in Fig. 4, processing is executed as needed or at predetermined time intervals in which the sensing results of the sensor 20 provided in the robot 2 are transmitted from the robot 2 to the server 1.

[0038] In S101 (step S101), the acquisition unit 11 of the server 1 acquires information indicating the communication quality between the server 1 and the robot 2 from the relay device 3 or the like, and stores the information in the storage unit .

[0039] In S102, the generating unit 12 generates control data for a control time period according to the communication quality indicated by the information most recently acquired by the acquiring unit 11.

[0040] Fig. 5 is an example of a conceptual diagram showing the processing by the control system 100. If the transmission of control data from the server 1 to the robot 2 and the processing in which the robot 2 operates using each control data are repeated in a cycle of x seconds, the generation unit 12 generates control data for N+1 seconds (t to t+N seconds) as shown in the left diagram of Fig. 5. Here, N is a value larger than x, and the lower the communication quality described above, the larger the value becomes.

[0041] Furthermore, the N+1 seconds, which is the control time corresponding to a single piece of control data, is an example of the first time in the present disclosure, and the period of x seconds is an example of the second time in the present disclosure. That is, the generation unit 12 performs a process of generating control data for the first time period according to the communication quality each time step S102 is performed. Furthermore, the first time period is longer than the second time period, and the lower the communication quality, the longer the first time period.

[0042] In one embodiment, when the control system 100 is a QoS (Quality of Service) system that ensures that the robot 2 will not become inoperable for 99.9% of the operations corresponding to a single control data per cycle of the robot 2, the generation unit 12 may use as N a value obtained by multiplying a that satisfies the following equation 1 by the unit time.

[0043]

number

[0044] In this way, the generation unit 12 may generate the control data using an equation that includes the probability for each control data portion contained in the control data, and the probability that the next control data generated by the generation unit 12 will reach the robot 2 during the time that the robot 2 is performing the action corresponding to that control data portion.

[0045] Alternatively, the robot 2 may transmit information indicating that it has executed an action corresponding to a certain control data portion as a response to the server 1 at any time, and the generation unit 12 of the server 1 may generate the control data by referring to the information. i Regarding the parentheses in the above, iis the probability that there is no response in the 0th to i-1th steps, that is, there is no response in the 0th to i-1th control data portions, and there is a response in the i-th step.

[0046] In S103, the communication processing unit 13 transmits the control data generated by the generation unit 12 to the robot 2 via the communication unit 19. The process of this step S103 is repeated every second time period mentioned above. That is, the communication processing unit 13 transmits the control data to the robot 2 every second time period.

[0047] In S104, in response to receiving the control data from the server 1, the robot 2 performs an operation based on the control data. The robot 2 receives the control data every x seconds, which is the second time period. Therefore, as shown in the right diagram of FIG. 5, the robot 2 does not use and discards the control data portion for N-x+1 seconds (t+x to t+N seconds) of the previously received control data, and repeats the process of performing an operation from t+x seconds onwards based on the newly received control data. In other words, the robot 2 repeats the process of overwriting the control data for t+x to t+N seconds out of the control data that it references when performing an operation with the newly received control data.

[0048] In S105, the control unit 10 of the server 1 determines whether a predetermined condition is satisfied. Here, the predetermined condition is a condition that is satisfied when, for example, a "NO" determination is made in S105 a predetermined number of times in succession, including the most recent determination.

[0049] If the control unit 10 determines that the predetermined condition is satisfied (S105: YES), the process from S101 is repeated, and if the control unit 10 determines that the predetermined condition is not satisfied (S105: NO), the process from S102 is repeated.

[0050] The above description of S105 means that the information indicating the communication quality that the generation unit 12 refers to when generating the control data is updated at regular intervals or at regular intervals. Note that the determination of S105 may not be performed, and the process from S101 may be repeated every time following the process of S104.

[0051] The information processing method executed by the device has been described above, and includes an acquisition step (S101), a generation step (S102), and a communication step (S103).

[0052] According to the method of this example, the server 1 can generate control data for a suitable control time according to the communication quality and transmit it to the robot 2. In particular, if the robot 2 is mobile, the server 1 can dynamically generate control data for a suitable control time in accordance with changes in communication quality and transmit it to the robot 2. This prevents the robot 2 from becoming inoperable due to communication delays, without generating excessive control data for the robot 2.

[0053] [4. Modifications] The generation unit 12 of the server 1 may be configured to repeatedly generate control data for a control time period according to both the communication quality and the sensing result of the sensor 20 acquired by the acquisition unit 11. For example, when the sensing result indicates that the number of people in the room where the robot 2 is present has reached a predetermined number, the generation unit 12 may be configured to estimate in advance that communication will be more likely to be interrupted and to extend the control time period corresponding to a single piece of control data.

[0054] Alternatively, the acquisition unit 11 may acquire an image of a person located around the robot 2 as a sensing result of the sensor 20, and the generation unit 12 may repeatedly generate control data for a control time corresponding to the estimated posture of the person. For example, when the generation unit 12 estimates that a person around the robot 2 is staring at a smartphone, the generation unit 12 may be configured to lengthen the control time corresponding to a single piece of control data, assuming that the communication traffic of the person is greater than the communication traffic of a simple pedestrian.

[0055] The generation unit 12 may also be configured to use a machine learning model when determining a control time corresponding to a single piece of control data. For example, in the above-described configuration in which control data for a control time according to the posture of a person around the robot 2 is generated, a machine learning model may be used in which the location information of a smartphone or the posture of the person carrying the smartphone is used as an explanatory variable and the traffic of communication by the smartphone is used as a target variable. The generation unit 12 may also use the time according to the estimated traffic as the control time corresponding to a single piece of control data.

[0056] The present disclosure also includes an embodiment in which the control system 100 does not include the relay device 3, and the server 1 and the robot 2 directly perform communication processing.

[0057] In addition, if the control data portion required for the operation of the robot 2 is insufficient and the robot 2 becomes temporarily unable to operate, the robot 2 may transmit a message to the server 1 to that effect, and the generation unit 12 may extend the control time corresponding to a single piece of control data.

[0058] The robot 2 may also be configured to transmit information indicating up to what control time the control data portion of the received control data has been used to the server 1. In the above configuration, the generation unit 12 may be configured to lengthen the control time corresponding to a single piece of control data when the amount of the control data portion discarded on the robot 2 side is equal to or less than a certain standard, and to shorten the control time corresponding to a single piece of control data when the amount of the discarded control data portion is equal to or more than another standard.

[0059] Furthermore, in a configuration in which a single server 1 controls multiple robots 2, the generation unit 12 may generate each control data so that the total control time corresponding to a single control data for each robot 2 falls within a certain range. For example, when the generation unit 12 lengthens the control time corresponding to control data for a certain robot 2, the generation unit 12 may shorten the control time corresponding to control data for another robot 2. This contributes to keeping fluctuations in the processing load in the entire control system 100 within a certain range.

[0060] [5. Software implementation example] The functions of the server 1 and the robot 2 (hereinafter referred to as "devices") can be realized by a program that causes a computer to function as the device, and a program that causes a computer to function as each control block of the device (particularly each part included in the control unit 10).

[0061] In this case, the device includes a computer having at least one control device (e.g., a processor) and at least one storage device (e.g., a memory) as hardware for executing the program. The control device and storage device execute the program, thereby realizing the functions described in each of the above embodiments.

[0062] The program may be non-transitory and may be recorded on one or more computer-readable recording media. The recording media may or may not be included in the device. In the latter case, the program may be supplied to the device via any wired or wireless transmission medium.

[0063] Furthermore, some or all of the functions of the control blocks can be realized by logic circuits. For example, an integrated circuit in which a logic circuit that functions as each of the control blocks is formed is also included in the scope of the present invention. In addition, the functions of the control blocks can also be realized by, for example, a quantum computer.

[0064] Furthermore, each process described in each of the above embodiments may be executed by AI (Artificial Intelligence). In this case, the AI ​​may run on the control device or on another device (for example, an edge computer or a cloud server).

[0065] The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications are possible within the scope of the claims. Embodiments obtained by appropriately combining the technical means disclosed in different embodiments are also included in the technical scope of the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0066] 1. Server (information processing device) 2. Robot 3. Relay device (information processing device) 10 Control Unit 11 Acquisition Department 12 Generation part 13 Communication processing unit 18 Memory section 19 Communications Department 20 sensors 100 Control System

Claims

1. An information processing device that generates control data for controlling a robot, an acquisition unit that acquires information indicating communication quality between the information processing device and the robot; a generating unit that repeatedly generates control data for a control time corresponding to the communication quality; a communication processing unit that transmits the generated control data to the robot; An information processing device comprising:

2. The generation unit repeatedly generating control data for a first time period according to the communication quality; The communication processing unit transmitting the control data to the robot every second time; The first time period is longer than the second time period and is longer as the communication quality is lower. The information processing device according to claim 1 .

3. the control data includes a plurality of control data portions; The robot executes the operations corresponding to the control data portions in order, The generation unit The control data is generated using an equation including a probability for each control data portion included in the control data, the probability that the next control data generated by the generation unit will reach the robot during the time the robot is performing an action corresponding to the control data portion.

3. The information processing device according to claim 1 or 2.

4. The acquisition unit acquiring a sensing result from a sensor provided in the robot; The generation unit repeatedly generating control data for a control time period corresponding to both the sensing result and the communication quality; 3. The information processing device according to claim 1 or 2.

5. A control system comprising one or more robots and an information processing device that generates control data for controlling the robots, The information processing device includes: an acquisition unit that acquires information indicating communication quality between the information processing device and the robot; a generating unit that repeatedly generates control data for a control time corresponding to the communication quality; a communication processing unit that transmits the generated control data to the robot, The robot In response to receiving the control data from the information processing device, an operation based on the control data is performed. Control system.

6. The information processing device includes a plurality of edge servers that perform distributed processing. The control system of claim 5 .

7. An information processing method executed by an information processing device that generates control data for controlling a robot, comprising: an acquisition step of acquiring information indicating communication quality between the information processing device and the robot; a generating step of repeatedly generating control data for a control time period according to the communication quality; a communication step of transmitting the generated control data to the robot; An information processing method including:

8. 2. A control program for causing a computer to function as the information processing device according to claim 1, the control program causing a computer to function as the acquisition unit, the generation unit, and the communication processing unit.

9. A computer-readable recording medium on which the control program according to claim 8 is recorded.

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