Map creation device, map creation system, and map creation program

Abstract

To reduce the number of processes for creating a two-dimensional map.SOLUTION: A map creation device 140 comprises: an information acquisition section 141 that acquires a plurality of pieces of three-dimensional point information respectively indicating a plurality of positions on a surface of an obstacle measured by a three-dimensional measuring machine 110; an extraction section 142 that extracts, for each specific region 302, three-dimensional point information closest to the three-dimensional measuring machine 110 in a direction along a movement plane 210 among the plurality of pieces of three-dimensional point information respectively included in a plurality of specific regions 302 respectively including a plurality of extraction planes 301 arranged in an intersecting state with the movement plane 210 on which the three-dimensional measuring machine 110 moves from the plurality of pieces of three-dimensional point information; and a map creation section 143 that creates a two-dimensional map on a plane along the movement plane 210 on the basis of the plurality of pieces of three-dimensional point information extracted by the extraction section 142.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a map creation device, a map creation system, and a map creation program that create a two-dimensional map from a plurality of three-dimensional point information pieces including three-dimensional position information. [Background technology]

[0002] For example, Patent Document 1 describes a technology that utilizes a three-dimensional point cloud containing multiple pieces of three-dimensional point information to improve the accuracy of detecting the shape of an object, etc. Specifically, the technology aims to improve the accuracy of detecting the object by segmenting an area using the distance between different pieces of three-dimensional point information contained in the three-dimensional point cloud and combining it with a separately captured image. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] International Publication No. 2023 / 157622 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, when the target objects are the floors, walls, ceilings, etc. of a building, the number of three-dimensional point information pieces increases, which increases the amount of calculation required to create the map, and it takes a long time from three-dimensional measurement of the object to map creation.

[0005] The present disclosure has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned problems, and provides a map creation device, a map creation system, and a map creation program that can reduce the amount of calculation required to create a two-dimensional map from a large amount of three-dimensional point information. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] A map creation device according to one aspect of the present disclosure includes an information acquisition unit that acquires a plurality of three-dimensional point information indicating the positions of a plurality of points on the surface of an obstacle present around a movable three-dimensional measuring machine measured by the three-dimensional measuring machine; an extraction unit that extracts, from the plurality of three-dimensional point information, the three-dimensional point information that is closest to the three-dimensional measuring machine in a direction along the moving plane, from a plurality of three-dimensional point information included in a plurality of specific areas each including a plurality of extraction planes that are aligned in an intersecting state with a moving plane along which the three-dimensional measuring machine moves, for each of the specific areas; and a map creation unit that creates a two-dimensional map on a plane along the moving plane based on the plurality of three-dimensional point information extracted by the extraction unit.

[0007] A map creation system according to one aspect of the present disclosure includes a three-dimensional measuring machine that is capable of moving along a moving plane and that acquires the positions of multiple points on the surface of obstacles present in the vicinity as three-dimensional point information; a map creation device that creates a two-dimensional map on a plane along the moving plane based on the three-dimensional point information; an information acquisition unit that acquires the three-dimensional point information; an extraction unit that extracts, from the multiple pieces of three-dimensional point information, the three-dimensional point information that is closest to the three-dimensional measuring machine in a direction along the moving plane, for each specific area, each of the specific areas including multiple extraction planes that are aligned in an intersecting state with the moving plane along which the three-dimensional measuring machine moves; and a map creation unit that creates the map based on the multiple pieces of three-dimensional point information extracted by the extraction unit.

[0008] A map creation program according to one aspect of the present disclosure acquires a plurality of pieces of three-dimensional point information indicating the positions of a plurality of points on the surface of an obstacle present around a movable three-dimensional measuring machine measured by the three-dimensional measuring machine, extracts from the plurality of pieces of three-dimensional point information contained in a plurality of specific areas each including a plurality of extraction planes that are aligned in an intersecting state with a moving plane along which the three-dimensional measuring machine moves, the three-dimensional point information that is closest to the three-dimensional measuring machine in a direction along the moving plane for each of the specific areas, and causes a processor to execute a process of creating a two-dimensional map on a plane along the moving plane based on the extracted plurality of pieces of three-dimensional point information. [Effects of the Invention]

[0009] According to the present disclosure, it is possible to reduce the number of processes required to create a two-dimensional map from a large amount of three-dimensional point information. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a state in which the map creation system is creating a map of the interior of a room. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the functional configuration of a coordinate measuring machine and a map creation device. [Figure 3] FIG. 10 is a side view showing a plurality of pieces of three-dimensional point information included in one specific area. [Figure 4] FIG. 10 is a side view showing height regions used by the region limiting section. [Figure 5] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a map created by a map creation unit. [Figure 6] FIG. 10 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of a map creation system according to a first modified example. [Figure 7] FIG. 10 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of a second modified example of a map creation system. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0011] Hereinafter, embodiments of a map creation device, a map creation system, and a map creation program according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Note that the following embodiments are presented as examples to explain the present invention and are not intended to limit the present invention. For example, the shapes, structures, materials, components, relative positional relationships, connection states, numerical values, mathematical formulas, the content of each step in a method, and the order of each step shown in the following embodiments are merely examples and may include content not described below. Furthermore, while geometric expressions such as parallel and orthogonal may be used, these expressions do not indicate mathematical precision and include substantially acceptable errors, deviations, etc. Furthermore, expressions such as simultaneous and identical also include substantially acceptable ranges.

[0012] The drawings are schematic diagrams in which emphasis, omission, or adjustment of proportions is appropriately made for the purpose of explaining the present invention, and differ from the actual shapes, positional relationships, and proportions. The X-axis, Y-axis, and Z-axis shown in the drawings represent Cartesian coordinates arbitrarily set for the purpose of explaining the drawings. In other words, the Z-axis is not necessarily an axis along the vertical direction, and the X-axis and Y-axis are not necessarily located within a horizontal plane.

[0013] In addition, in the following, multiple inventions may be collectively described as one embodiment, and some of the contents described below may be described as optional components related to the present invention.

[0014] Fig. 1 is a perspective view showing a state in which a map creation system 100 is creating a map of the inside of a room 200. Note that the ceiling and the wall on the near side are not shown in Fig. 1. The map creation system 100 includes a three-dimensional measuring machine 110 and a map creation device 140.

[0015] The three-dimensional measuring machine 110 is movable along a moving plane 210 (on the floor in this embodiment). The three-dimensional measuring machine 110 may be equipped with a self-propelled device such as motor-driven wheels to move autonomously on the moving plane 210, or may be moved by other means such as human power. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the functional configuration of the three-dimensional measuring machine 110 and the map creation device 140. The three-dimensional measuring machine 110 is equipped with a three-dimensional sensor 111. In this embodiment, the three-dimensional measuring machine 110 is equipped with an odometry sensor 112 and a measuring machine control device 113. Note that an obstacle is an object that impedes the travel of a robot such as an autonomous vacuum cleaner that travels using a map created by the map creation system 100, and also includes walls, doors, and furniture installed in the room 200.

[0016] Three-dimensional sensor 111 is a sensor that measures the positions of multiple points on the surface of an obstacle present around three-dimensional measuring machine 110 as three-dimensional point information. The type of three-dimensional sensor 111 is not limited, and examples include an LRF (Laser Range Finder), a LIDAR (Laser Imaging Detection and Ranging), a ToF (Time of Flight) camera (depth camera), a stereo camera, sonar, and RADAR. Three-dimensional sensor 111 may also be a combination of multiple types of sensors. In this embodiment, the three-dimensional point information obtained from three-dimensional sensor 111 is three-dimensional information with the position of three-dimensional sensor 111 (the self-position of three-dimensional measuring machine 110) as the origin.

[0017] The odometry sensor 112 is a sensor that acquires the position and attitude of the three-dimensional measuring machine 110, which is information for creating a map together with the three-dimensional point information, i.e., the odometry information of the three-dimensional sensor 111. The odometry sensor 112 detects at least two-dimensional components parallel to the moving plane 210 of each of the movement distance, speed, acceleration, angular velocity, and attitude of the three-dimensional measuring machine 110. The type of the odometry sensor 112 is not limited, but examples include an acceleration sensor, an angular velocity sensor, an encoder that measures the rotation of wheels equipped on the three-dimensional measuring machine 110, a geomagnetic sensor, and a torque sensor. The odometry sensor 112 may also be a combination of multiple types of sensors.

[0018] The measuring machine control device 113 is a device that controls the coordinate measuring machine 110 and includes a processor. The measuring machine control device 113 includes an output unit 114 as a processing unit that is realized by causing the processor to execute a measuring machine program.

[0019] The output unit 114 acquires the three-dimensional point information acquired by the three-dimensional sensor 111 and odometry information such as the position and attitude of the three-dimensional sensor 111 when the three-dimensional sensor 111 acquired the three-dimensional point information, and outputs the three-dimensional point information and the odometry information in association with each other to the map creation device 140. The communication method between the three-dimensional measuring machine 110 and the map creation device 140 is not limited, and may be either wired communication or wireless communication.

[0020] Map creation device 140 is a device that creates a two-dimensional map on a plane along movement plane 210 based on three-dimensional point information and odometry information acquired from three-dimensional measuring device 110. Map creation device 140 includes a processor and includes an information acquisition unit 141, an extraction unit 142, and a map creation unit 143 as processing units that are realized by causing the processor to execute a map creation program. In this embodiment, map creation device 140 includes an area limitation unit 144. Note that while FIG. 1 illustrates a mode in which map creation device 140 communicates directly with three-dimensional measuring device 110, map creation device 140 may communicate with three-dimensional measuring device 110 via a network. Also, while map creation device 140 is illustrated as a mobile terminal, map creation device 140 may exist as one of the functions of a server or the like that functions as a cloud.

[0021] The information acquisition unit 141 acquires three-dimensional point information measured by the three-dimensional sensor 111 of the three-dimensional measuring machine 110 from the output unit 114. In the present embodiment, the information acquisition unit 141 acquires associated odometry information from the three-dimensional measuring machine 110 along with the three-dimensional point information.

[0022] The extraction unit 142 extracts, from the multiple three-dimensional point information acquired by the information acquisition unit 141, an extraction point 400, which is the three-dimensional point information closest to the three-dimensional measuring machine 110 in a direction along the movement plane 210 (a direction parallel to the XY plane in the figure), from multiple three-dimensional point information (see Figure 3) contained in multiple specific areas 302 (see Figure 1), each of which includes multiple extraction planes 301 (see Figure 1) that are aligned in an intersecting state with the movement plane 210 along which the three-dimensional measuring machine 110 moves, for each specific area 302.

[0023] In this embodiment, the extraction planes 301 are virtual planes that are perpendicular to the moving plane 210 and include the three-dimensional sensor 111, and there are multiple extraction planes 301. Note that FIG. 1 shows two of the multiple extraction planes 301. Also, in FIG. 1, the multiple extraction planes 301 are depicted radially around an axis that virtually extends vertically through the three-dimensional sensor 111. However, because the three-dimensional measuring machine 110 acquires three-dimensional point information while moving (while moving intermittently), the multiple extraction planes 301 are not necessarily arranged radially around a single axis. The specific region 302 is a region for including three-dimensional point information that is not included in the extraction plane 301 due to a shift in the three-dimensional point information within a plane parallel to the moving plane 210. In this embodiment, the three-dimensional sensor 111 acquires three-dimensional point information that is aligned in a straight line in the vertical direction, as shown in FIG. 1, on a plane perpendicular to the moving plane 210 (such as the wall of the room 200). The specific region has a plate-like (or columnar) shape from which only three-dimensional point information that can be regarded as at least one line aligned in the vertical direction can be acquired.

[0024] The 3D point information closest to the three-dimensional measuring machine 110 in the direction along the movement plane 210 is, for example, the 3D point information obtained by excluding height direction information (information in the Z-axis direction in the figure) from the 3D point information included in the specific region 302, and the 3D point information having the closest distance D (see FIG. 3) between the 3D point information and the position of the 3D sensor 111 when the 3D point information was acquired, excluding the height direction information. Note that although FIG. 3 shows that there are multiple pieces of 3D point information closest to the 3D sensor 111, since there is some measurement error, it is possible to identify the closest 3D point information. Furthermore, "closest" does not mean only the first 3D point information when the pieces are arranged in order of shortest distance D from the 3D sensor 111, but also means that any of the second or third 3D point information or subsequent pieces that can be equated with the first, such as the first or third 3D point information.

[0025] In this manner, the extraction unit 142 extracts one extraction point 400 for one specific region 302 .

[0026] The extraction unit 142 may select the extraction plane 301 or the specific area 302 so that there is at least one row of 3D point information aligned in the vertical direction between adjacent specific areas 302. This makes it possible to thin out the 3D point information aligned along the movement plane 210, thereby reducing the number of processes for identifying the extraction points 400. Furthermore, it is possible to reduce the number of extraction points 400 output to the map creation unit 143, thereby reducing the number of processes required for map creation by the map creation unit 143.

[0027] The region limiting unit 144 extracts a plurality of pieces of 3D point information included in a predetermined height region (a region having a width in the Z-axis direction in the figure) from the plurality of pieces of 3D point information. This reduces the number of processes in the extraction unit 142. As shown in FIG. 4, the predetermined height region is determined based on the height of the mobile robot 220 using the created map, the running ability of the mobile robot 220, and the like. The information acquisition unit 141 may acquire information indicating the height of the mobile robot 220, information indicating the running ability of the mobile robot 220, and the like in advance, and the region limiting unit 144 may acquire this information and perform processing. Note that FIG. 4 is unrelated to FIGS. 1 and 3. For example, the height region is a range T that is equal to or greater than the maximum height that a mobile robot 220, such as a vacuum cleaner, that uses the map can overcome and is equal to or less than the minimum height that the mobile robot can crawl into.

[0028] The map creation unit 143 creates a two-dimensional map (see FIG. 5) on a plane along the movement plane 210 based on a plurality of extracted points 400, which are a plurality of pieces of three-dimensional point information extracted by the extraction unit 142. The map creation method of the map creation unit 143 is not limited. For example, the map creation unit 143 creates a map using SLAM (Simultaneous Localization And Mapping) technology based on the plurality of extracted points 400 and a plurality of pieces of odometry information corresponding to these points.

[0029] It should be noted that the present disclosure is not limited to the above-described embodiments. For example, the present disclosure may be embodied in another embodiment realized by any combination of the components described in this specification or by excluding some of the components. Furthermore, the present disclosure also includes modifications obtained by applying various modifications to the above-described embodiments that would occur to a person skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of the present disclosure, i.e., the meaning of the wording of the claims.

[0030] 6, the coordinate measuring machine 110 may realize an information acquisition unit 141, an area limitation unit 144, and an extraction unit 142 as processing units by causing a processor of the measuring machine control device 113 to execute part of a map creation program. The extraction points 400 extracted by the extraction unit 142 and the corresponding odometry information are transmitted to the map creation device 140 via communication with the output unit 114. This makes it possible to reduce the amount of information transmitted to the map creation device 140 via communication.

[0031] Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 7, the three-dimensional measuring machine 110 may realize an information acquisition unit 141, an area limitation unit 144, an extraction unit 142, and a map creation unit 143 as processing units by causing the processor of the measuring machine control device 113 to execute a map creation program, thereby causing the measuring machine control device 113 to function as a map creation device 140.

[0032] The map creation device 140 of the first aspect of the present disclosure includes an information acquisition unit 141 that acquires multiple three-dimensional point information indicating the positions of multiple points on the surface of an obstacle present around the movable three-dimensional measuring machine 110 measured by the three-dimensional measuring machine 110; an extraction unit 142 that extracts, from the multiple three-dimensional point information, the three-dimensional point information closest to the three-dimensional measuring machine 110 in a direction along the moving plane 210 for each specific area 302, from multiple three-dimensional point information contained in multiple specific areas 302 each of which includes multiple extraction planes 301 that are aligned in an intersecting state with the moving plane 210 along which the three-dimensional measuring machine 110 moves; and a map creation unit 143 that creates a two-dimensional map on a plane along the moving plane 210 based on the multiple three-dimensional point information extracted by the extraction unit 142.

[0033] According to the first aspect, it is possible to extract, by simple processing, three-dimensional point information useful for creating a two-dimensional map to be used by a mobile robot or the like from a large amount of three-dimensional point information, and provide this to the map creation unit 143. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the number of processes performed by the map creation unit 143 and create a two-dimensional map quickly.

[0034] The map creation device 140 of the second aspect includes the first aspect and further includes an area limiting unit 144 that extracts multiple pieces of three-dimensional point information contained in a predetermined height area from multiple pieces of three-dimensional point information, and the extraction unit 142 extracts specific three-dimensional point information for each specific area 302 from the multiple pieces of three-dimensional point information extracted by the area limiting unit 144.

[0035] According to the second aspect, the number of pieces of three-dimensional point information included in the specific region 302 can be further reduced, and the number of processes performed by the extraction unit 142 can be reduced.

[0036] The map creation device 140 of the third embodiment includes the second embodiment, and the height region is a range from the maximum height that a mobile robot using the map can overcome to the minimum height that the mobile robot can enter.

[0037] According to the third aspect, the height region is set by the mobile robot using the created map, so that a map useful for the mobile robot can be created with a small number of processes.

[0038] The map creation device 140 of the fourth aspect includes any of the first to third aspects, and the extraction unit 142 selects the extraction plane 301 so that three-dimensional point information exists between adjacent specific areas 302.

[0039] According to the fourth aspect, the number of pieces of three-dimensional point information processed by the extraction unit 142 can be reduced, and the processing load of the extraction unit 142 can be reduced.

[0040] The fifth aspect of the map creation system 100 comprises a three-dimensional measuring machine 110 that is movable along a moving plane 210 and measures the positions of multiple points on the surface of an obstacle present around the three-dimensional measuring machine 110, and a map creation device 140 that creates a two-dimensional map on a plane along the moving plane 210 based on three-dimensional point information acquired from the three-dimensional measuring machine 110. The map creation device 140 comprises an information acquisition unit 141 that acquires the three-dimensional point information measured by the three-dimensional measuring machine 110, an extraction unit 142 that extracts, from the multiple pieces of three-dimensional point information, the three-dimensional point information that is closest to the three-dimensional measuring machine 110 in a direction along the moving plane 210 for each specific area 302, from multiple pieces of three-dimensional point information contained in multiple specific areas 302 each of which includes multiple extraction planes 301 that are aligned in an intersecting state with the moving plane 210 along which the three-dimensional measuring machine 110 moves, and a map creation unit 143 that creates a map based on the multiple pieces of three-dimensional point information extracted by the extraction unit 142.

[0041] According to the fifth aspect, it is possible to extract, by simple processing, three-dimensional point information useful for creating a two-dimensional map used by a mobile robot or the like from a large amount of three-dimensional point information, and provide the extracted information to the map creation unit 143. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the number of processes performed by the map creation unit 143 and create a two-dimensional map quickly.

[0042] The map creation program of the sixth aspect acquires a plurality of three-dimensional point information indicating the positions of a plurality of points on the surface of an obstacle present around the movable three-dimensional measuring machine 110 measured by the three-dimensional measuring machine 110, and from the plurality of three-dimensional point information, extracts, for each specific area 302, the three-dimensional point information that is closest to the three-dimensional measuring machine 110 in a direction along the moving plane 210 from a plurality of three-dimensional point information contained within a plurality of specific areas 302 each including a plurality of extraction planes 301 that are aligned in an intersecting state with the moving plane 210 along which the three-dimensional measuring machine 110 moves, and causes the processor to execute a process of creating a two-dimensional map on a plane along the moving plane 210 based on the plurality of three-dimensional point information extracted by the extraction unit 142.

[0043] According to the sixth aspect, it is possible to extract, by simple processing, three-dimensional point information useful for creating a two-dimensional map used by a mobile robot or the like from a large amount of three-dimensional point information, and provide the extracted information to the map creation unit 143. This makes it possible to reduce the number of processes performed by the map creation unit 143 and create a two-dimensional map quickly. [Industrial Applicability]

[0044] The present disclosure can be used to create maps for use in mobile robots such as vacuum cleaners. [Explanation of symbols]

[0045] 100 Mapping System 110 Coordinate measuring machine 111 Three-dimensional sensor 112 Odometry sensor 113 Measuring machine control device 114 Output section 140 Map-making device 141 Information Acquisition Department 142 Extraction part 143 Map Creation Department 144 Area restriction section 200 rooms 210 Moving plane 220 Mobile Robot 301 Extraction plane 302 Specific area 400 extraction points

Claims

1. an information acquisition unit that acquires a plurality of pieces of three-dimensional point information that indicate the positions of a plurality of points on the surface of an obstacle present around a movable three-dimensional measuring machine, the three-dimensional point information being measured by the movable three-dimensional measuring machine; an extraction unit that extracts, from the plurality of pieces of three-dimensional point information, the three-dimensional point information that is closest to the three-dimensional measuring machine in a direction along the movement plane, for each of the specific areas, from among a plurality of pieces of three-dimensional point information that are included in a plurality of specific areas each including a plurality of extraction planes that are aligned in a state intersecting with a movement plane along which the three-dimensional measuring machine moves; a map creation unit that creates a two-dimensional map on a plane along the movement plane based on the plurality of three-dimensional point information extracted by the extraction unit; A map creation device comprising:

2. Further provided is a region limiting unit that extracts a plurality of pieces of three-dimensional point information included in a predetermined height region from the plurality of pieces of three-dimensional point information, The extraction unit extracts specific three-dimensional point information for each specific region from the plurality of pieces of three-dimensional point information extracted by the region limiting unit. The map creation device according to claim 1 .

3. The height range is a range from the maximum height that a mobile robot using the map can overcome to the minimum height that the mobile robot can crawl into. The map creation device according to claim 2 .

4. The extraction unit The extraction plane is selected so that the three-dimensional point information exists between adjacent specific regions.

3. A map creation device according to claim 1 or 2.

5. a three-dimensional measuring machine that can move along a moving plane and acquires the positions of multiple points on the surface of obstacles present in the vicinity as three-dimensional point information; a map creation device that creates a two-dimensional map on a plane along the movement plane based on the three-dimensional point information; an information acquisition unit that acquires the three-dimensional point information; an extraction unit that extracts, from the plurality of pieces of three-dimensional point information, the three-dimensional point information that is closest to the three-dimensional measuring machine in a direction along the movement plane, for each of the specific areas, from among a plurality of pieces of three-dimensional point information that are included in a plurality of specific areas each including a plurality of extraction planes that are aligned in a state intersecting with a movement plane along which the three-dimensional measuring machine moves; a map creation unit that creates the map based on the plurality of pieces of three-dimensional point information extracted by the extraction unit. Mapping system.

6. acquiring a plurality of pieces of three-dimensional point information indicating the positions of a plurality of points on the surface of an obstacle present around the movable three-dimensional measuring machine, the position being measured by the movable three-dimensional measuring machine; extracting, from the plurality of pieces of three-dimensional point information, the three-dimensional point information that is closest to the three-dimensional measuring machine in a direction along the movement plane, for each of the specific areas, each of which includes a plurality of extraction planes that are aligned in a state intersecting with the movement plane along which the three-dimensional measuring machine moves; A two-dimensional map is created on a plane along the moving plane based on the extracted three-dimensional point information. A map creation program that causes a processor to execute the process.

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