Mobile body motion control system and mobile body motion control method

Abstract

To provide a moving body control system which controls movement while considering states of a preceding moving body and a succeeding moving body.SOLUTION: In a moving body motion control system 100, a control unit 11 of each machine body 1 sets at least either one of a preceding machine 24 of an own machine 25 or a seceding machine 26 of the own machine 25, determines a designated time point t being a time point in the past at a prescribed period, transmits the designated time point t by communication, acquires a state quantity history S being a history of a state quantity of the preceding machine 24 from the present to a certain past time point when the preceding machine 24 and the succeeding machine 26 have been set, acquires the designated time point t transmitted by the preceding machine 24 by communication, specifies a designated time point state quantity St being a state quantity of the preceding machine 24 at the designated time point t on the basis of the state quantity history S, acquires a current state quantity Sn being a current state quantity of the succeeding machine 26, and generates a target state quantity Sa of the own machine 25 on the basis of the designated time point state quantity St of the preceding machine 24 and the current state quantity Sn of the succeeding machine 26.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a mobile object motion control system and a mobile object motion control method. [Background technology]

[0002] BACKGROUND ART Mobile object control systems have been known for some time (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

[0003] This mobile body control system is provided in a first mobile body and controls the movement of the first mobile body so that a predetermined positional relationship is formed between the first mobile body and a second mobile body, and includes a relative position relationship calculation unit that calculates the relative position and speed of the first mobile body with respect to the second mobile body, and a command generation unit that generates a relative position adjustment command for adjusting the position of the first mobile body relative to the second mobile body so that the predetermined positional relationship is formed between the first mobile body and the second mobile body, based on the relative position and speed of the first mobile body. This makes it possible to control the movement paths, etc. of the multiple mobile bodies as a whole when multiple mobile bodies are operated. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-25971 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] However, the mobile object control system described in Patent Document 1 has a problem in that the first mobile object cannot move in coordination with a mobile object preceding it. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In order to solve the above problem, a mobile body control system according to one aspect of the present invention is a mobile body motion control system provided on a plurality of mobile bodies, and includes: a control unit provided on each of the mobile bodies that generates a target state quantity, which is a target value of the state quantity of the mobile body; a drive unit that moves the mobile body based on the target state quantity; and a communication unit that communicates with other mobile bodies under the control of the control unit, wherein the control unit sets at least one of a preceding mobile body of the mobile body and a following mobile body of the mobile body, determines a designated time point, which is a point in the past, at a predetermined period, and transmits the designated time point through the communication, and when the preceding mobile body and the following mobile body are set, acquires a state quantity history, which is a history of the state quantities of the preceding mobile body from the present to a certain point in the past, acquires the designated time point transmitted by the preceding mobile body through the communication, identifies a designated time state quantity, which is the state quantity of the preceding mobile body at the designated time point based on the state quantity history, acquires a current state quantity, which is the current state quantity of the following mobile body, and generates the target state quantity of the mobile body based on the designated time state quantity of the preceding mobile body and the current state quantity of the following mobile body.

[0007] Since the movement can be controlled taking into account the situations of the leading and following moving bodies, coordinated movement of multiple moving bodies becomes possible. In addition, the system instructs which past state quantity of the leading moving body should be used to control its movement, so the distance interval can be controlled. [Effects of the Invention]

[0008] The present invention has the effect of being able to control the movement of a leading moving body and a following moving body in consideration of the situations of the leading moving body and the following moving body. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] 1 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a configuration example of a mobile object motion control system according to an embodiment; [Figure 2] 2 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of a control system of the mobile object motion control system of FIG. 1. FIG. [Figure 3]2 is a flowchart showing an example of control processing of the moving body motion control system of FIG. 1, and is a flowchart of the entire control processing of the moving body. [Figure 4] 4 is a flowchart showing an example of control processing of the mobile body motion control system of FIG. 1, and is a flowchart of the control input generation processing of FIG. 3. [Figure 5] 4 is a flowchart showing an example of a control process of the mobile body motion control system of FIG. 1, and is a flowchart of an instruction transmission process of FIG. 3. [Figure 6] 4 is a flowchart showing an example of control processing of the moving body motion control system of FIG. 1, and is a flowchart of preceding vehicle information reception processing of FIG. 3. [Figure 7] 4 is a flowchart showing an example of a control process of the mobile object motion control system of FIG. 1, and is a flowchart of a follower aircraft information reception process of FIG. 3. [Figure 8] 2 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of the configuration when performing offset addition processing of the mobile body motion control system of FIG. 1. FIG. [Figure 9] 10 is a flowchart showing an example of control processing of the mobile body motion control system of FIG. 1, and is a flowchart showing an example of instruction transmission processing when a first offset addition processing is performed. [Figure 10] 10 is a flowchart showing an example of control processing of the mobile body motion control system of FIG. 1, and is a flowchart showing instruction transmission processing when a second offset addition processing is performed. [Figure 11] 10 is a flowchart showing an example of control processing of the mobile body motion control system of FIG. 1, and is a flowchart showing preceding vehicle information reception processing when second offset addition processing is performed. [Figure 12] 10 is a flowchart showing an example of control processing of the mobile body motion control system of FIG. 1, and is a flowchart showing control input generation processing when a second offset addition processing is performed. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0010] Hereinafter, embodiments will be described with reference to the drawings. Note that the present invention is not limited to the following embodiments. In addition, the same or corresponding elements will be denoted by the same reference numerals throughout the drawings, and redundant description will be omitted.

[0011] The functions of the elements disclosed herein can be performed using circuits or processing circuits, including general-purpose processors, special-purpose processors, integrated circuits, application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), conventional circuits, and / or combinations thereof, configured or programmed to perform the disclosed functions. A processor is considered a processing circuit or circuit because it includes transistors and other circuitry. In this disclosure, a circuit, unit, or means is hardware that performs the recited functions or hardware that is programmed to perform the recited functions. The hardware may be hardware disclosed herein or other known hardware that is programmed or configured to perform the recited functions. Where the hardware is a processor, which is considered a type of circuit, the circuit, means, or unit is a combination of hardware and software, and the software is used to configure the hardware and / or processor.

[0012] Fig. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of the configuration of a mobile object motion control system 100 according to an embodiment. Fig. 2 is a block diagram showing an outline of an example of the configuration of a control system of the mobile object motion control system 100.

[0013] As shown in Figures 1 and 2, a mobile body motion control system 100 is a system that controls a plurality of vehicles 1 (mobile bodies) by controlling controllers provided in these vehicles 1 so that these vehicles 1 move in a coordinated manner. The control example illustrated in Figure 1 is an example in which the mobile body motion control system 100 controls a plurality of vehicles 1 so that they move in a single file formation. Examples of vehicles 1 include aircraft, ships, underwater vessels, and automobiles.

[0014] The controller provided in each vehicle 1 is an electrical circuit and includes a computing unit such as a CPU. As shown in FIG. 2, this controller includes a control unit 11 that generates a target state quantity Sa, which is a target value of the state quantity s of the vehicle (vehicle) 25, and a storage unit 12 that has memories such as ROM and RAM and stores various programs and data. The controller may be configured as a single controller for centralized control, or may be configured as multiple controllers that cooperate with each other for distributed control. The vehicle 1 also includes a drive unit 13 that moves the vehicle 25 based on the target state quantity Sa, and a communication unit 14 that communicates with other vehicles 1 under the control of the control unit 11. Data stored in the storage unit 12 includes the state quantity history S and specified time t of the leading vehicle 24, and the current state quantity Sn of the following vehicle 26. The data stored in the storage unit 12 may also include a predetermined formation order of the vehicles 1. Furthermore, communication with other devices 1 in the communication unit 14 may be two-way communication with a specified destination, or one-way communication in which data is transmitted in one direction without specifying a destination.

[0015] Next, a description will be given of an example of control of a moving body by the moving body motion control system 100. In this operation example, a case where a plurality of bodies 1 are moved in one direction will be illustrated.

[0016] 3 to 7 are flowcharts showing examples of control processing of the mobile object motion control system 100. Of these, FIG. 3 is a flowchart of the overall control processing of the mobile object. Also, FIG. 4 is a flowchart of the control input generation processing of FIG. 3. Furthermore, FIG. 5 is a flowchart of the instruction transmission processing of FIG. 3. Also, FIG. 6 is a flowchart of the preceding aircraft information reception processing of FIG. 3. Furthermore, FIG. 7 is a flowchart of the following aircraft information reception processing of FIG. 3.

[0017] 3, after processing step S10, the control unit 11 repeatedly executes steps S20 to S90. This repeated processing is executed at predetermined intervals.

[0018] First, the control unit 11 sets at least one of the preceding aircraft (leading moving body) 24 of the own aircraft 25 and the following aircraft (following moving body) 26 of the own aircraft 25 (step S10). When multiple aircraft 1 are arranged in a line, the control unit 11 of the leading aircraft 21 sets the second aircraft 1 in the lining order as the following aircraft 26. The control unit 11 of the second aircraft 1 sets the leading aircraft 21 as the leading aircraft 24 and sets the third aircraft 1 as the following aircraft 26. In this way, the control unit 11 of the Nth intermediate aircraft excluding the leading aircraft 21 and the tail aircraft 29 sets the N-1th aircraft 1 as the leading aircraft 24 and further sets the N+1th aircraft 1 as the following aircraft 26. The control unit 11 of the tail aircraft 29 sets the second-from-the-last aircraft 1 in the lining order as the leading aircraft 24 and does not set it as the following aircraft 26. In FIG. 2, the control unit 11, the memory unit 12, the drive unit 13, and some or all of the communication unit 14 are omitted from the illustration of the leading machine 21, the preceding machine 23 described later, and the trailing machine 29.

[0019] Next, the control unit 11 determines whether or not there is a set preceding aircraft 24 (step S20). If the control unit 11 determines that there is a preceding aircraft 24 (Yes in step S20), it executes preceding aircraft information reception processing (step S30).

[0020] As shown in FIG. 6, the preceding aircraft information reception process includes processing when communication is interrupted (step S310 and steps S325 to S365), which will be described later. In the preceding aircraft information reception process, the control unit 11 receives the state quantity history S and the designated time point t transmitted from the set preceding aircraft 24 (step S315). The state quantity history S and the designated time point t transmitted from the preceding aircraft 24 are information transmitted by the preceding aircraft 24 in the instruction transmission process of step S90, which will be described later. The state quantity history S is a history made up of data sets of the state quantities s of the preceding aircraft 24 at predetermined time intervals from the present to a certain point in the past. The state quantity history S made up of j data sets is defined, for example, as follows: S:=[s(1), s(2), s(3), ... s(j)] The numbers in parentheses are subscripts. The state quantity s(1) is the current state quantity s, and the larger the value of the subscript of the state quantity s, the more past the state quantity s.

[0021] The state quantity s is at least one of the state quantities of the aircraft's position, aircraft's speed, aircraft's attitude, aircraft's control command, aircraft's control amount, aircraft's attitude change rate, and aircraft's acceleration / deceleration rate. The state quantity s may also be a state quantity from which the position of the aircraft 25 can be calculated.

[0022] The designated time point t is a command value that the preceding aircraft 24 uses to specify to its own aircraft 25, which is a succeeding aircraft of the preceding aircraft 24, which state quantity s at which point of time among the state quantities s(1) to s(j) included in the state quantity history S should be used to set the target state quantity Sa of the own aircraft 25. This designated time point t is specified, for example, using the subscript of the state quantity s included in the data set.

[0023] Next, the control unit 11 stores the received state quantity history S and the designated time point t in the storage unit 12, and updates the values ​​of the state quantity history S and the designated time point t (step S320). Then, the control unit 11 ends the preceding vehicle information receiving process. Note that the state quantity history S and the designated time point t before updating may be accumulated as past history in the storage unit 12 so as to be kept as past state quantity history S and the designated time point t at the time of updating.

[0024] The state quantity s of the preceding aircraft 24 may be acquired by the aircraft 25 observing the preceding aircraft 24 using a camera or radar.

[0025] On the other hand, if the control unit 11 determines in step S20 that there is no preceding unit 24 set, that is, that it is the leading unit 21 (No in step S20), it skips the preceding unit information receiving process in step S30.

[0026] Next, the control unit 11 determines whether or not a set subsequent device 26 exists (step S40). If the control unit 11 determines that a set subsequent device 26 exists (Yes in step S40), it executes a subsequent device information reception process (step S50).

[0027] As shown in FIG. 7 , in the succeeding machine information reception process, the control unit 11 first receives the current state quantity Sn transmitted from the set succeeding machine 26 (step S510). The current state quantity Sn transmitted from the succeeding machine 26 is information transmitted by the succeeding machine 26 in the process of step S70, which will be described later, of the succeeding machine 26. The current state quantity Sn is the current state quantity s of the succeeding machine 26 transmitted by the succeeding machine 26. This current state quantity Sn may be the current state quantity s(1) included in the state quantity history S transmitted by the succeeding machine 26. In this case, the self-machine 25 receives the state quantity history S transmitted by the succeeding machine 26, and the control unit 11 may extract the current state quantity s(1) from the state quantity history S and handle it as the current state quantity Sn of the succeeding machine 26.

[0028] Next, the control unit 11 stores the current state quantity Sn received in the successor machine information reception process in the storage unit 12, and updates the value of the current state quantity Sn (step S515). Then, the control unit 11 ends the successor machine information reception process.

[0029] The state quantity s of the following aircraft 26 may be acquired by the aircraft 25 observing the following aircraft 26 using a camera or radar.

[0030] As described above, the state quantity history S, the specified time point t, and the current state quantity Sn are acquired through communication. Therefore, even in a situation where it is difficult to acquire the state quantity history S of the preceding aircraft 24 or the following aircraft 26 through observation, it is possible to acquire the state quantity history S of the preceding aircraft 24 and the current state quantity Sn of the following aircraft 26.

[0031] On the other hand, if the control unit 11 determines in step S40 that there is no set subsequent machine 26, that is, that the machine is the last machine 29 (No in step S40), it skips the subsequent machine information receiving process in step S50.

[0032] Next, the control unit 11 executes a control input generation process (step S60). As shown in Fig. 4, in the control input generation process, the control unit 11 first determines whether or not both the preceding unit 24 and the succeeding unit 26 of the own unit 25 are set, that is, whether or not the own unit 25 is an intermediate unit (step S610). Then, when the control unit 11 determines that both the preceding unit 24 and the succeeding unit 26 of the own unit 25 are set (Yes in step S610), it reads and acquires the state quantity history S and the designated time point t of the preceding unit 24 from the storage unit 12 (step S615).

[0033] Next, the control unit 11 identifies the designated time state quantity St, which is the state quantity s of the preceding aircraft 24 at the designated time t (step S620). Fig. 1 illustrates an example in which s(5), which is the state quantity s of the preceding aircraft 24 when t = 5, is identified as the designated time state quantity St of the own aircraft 25. Also, an example in which s(7), which is the state quantity s of the own aircraft 25 when t = 7, is identified as the designated time state quantity St of the following aircraft 26.

[0034] Next, the control unit 11 reads and acquires the current state quantity Sn of the succeeding machine 26 from the storage unit 12 (step S625).

[0035] Next, the control unit 11 generates a target state quantity Sa of the host aircraft 25 based on the state quantity St at the designated time of the preceding aircraft 24 and the current state quantity Sn of the following aircraft 26 (step S630). As a specific example, the control unit 11 sets the state quantity St at the designated time as a tentative target state quantity. Then, the control unit 11 determines whether the interval between the host aircraft 25 and the following aircraft 26 is greater than a predetermined threshold. If the control unit 11 determines that this interval is smaller than the predetermined threshold, that is, that the following aircraft 26 is following the host aircraft 25 without delay, the control unit 11 sets the tentative target state quantity as the target state quantity Sa. On the other hand, if the control unit 11 determines that this interval is greater than the predetermined threshold, that is, that the following aircraft 26 is following with a delay, the control unit 11 corrects the tentative target state quantity and sets it as the target state quantity Sa. To correct the tentative target state quantity, for example, the value of t is increased, and the state quantity s at a time point earlier than the state quantity s at the designated time t is set as the target state quantity Sa. Then, the control unit 11 ends the control input generation process. Then, the drive unit 13 moves the own aircraft 25 based on the target state quantity Sa. In this way, the drive unit 13 is controlled by the control unit 11. As described above, the aircraft 1 related to the intermediate aircraft controls its movement taking into consideration the situations of the leading aircraft 24 and the following aircraft 26. This enables coordinated movement of multiple aircraft. Furthermore, the specified time t indicates at which point in time the movement should be controlled based on the state quantity s of the leading aircraft 24 in the past, so the distance interval between adjacent aircraft 1 in the lineup can be controlled.

[0036] On the other hand, if the control unit 11 determines in step S610 that either the preceding unit 24 or the succeeding unit 26 of its own unit 25 is not set, i.e., that it is the leading unit (leading moving body) 21 or the trailing unit (trailing moving body) 29 (No in step S610), it further determines whether the trailing unit 26 is set, i.e., whether it is the leading unit 21 (step S635).

[0037] Then, when the control unit 11 determines that the subsequent machine 26 is set, that is, the leading machine 21 (Yes in step S635), it reads and acquires the current state quantity Sn of the subsequent machine 26 from the storage unit 12 (step S640).

[0038] Next, the control unit 11 generates a target state quantity Sa of the own aircraft 25 based on the predetermined command state quantity Si and the current state quantity Sn of the following aircraft 26 (step S645). The predetermined command state quantity Si is, for example, a state quantity generated when moving along a predetermined route. The command state quantity Si may also be a state quantity calculated based on an operation instruction given by the pilot of the leading aircraft 21 via communication. Specifically, the control unit 11 sets the command state quantity Si as a provisional target state quantity. Then, as in step S630, the control unit 11 corrects the provisional target state quantity according to the interval between the own aircraft 25 and the following aircraft 26 and sets it as the target state quantity Sa. Then, the control unit 11 ends the control input generation process. Then, the drive unit 13 moves the own aircraft 25 based on the target state quantity Sa. In this way, the control unit 11 of the leading aircraft 21 can autonomously control its movement. Furthermore, the control unit 11 of the second aircraft 1 following it moves based on the specified time point state quantity St of the leading aircraft 21, as described in steps S615 to S630. The aircraft 1 following this are controlled in the same way, and as a result, the other aircraft 1 following the lead aircraft 21 move in formation based on the state quantity St of the lead aircraft 21 at the specified time point.

[0039] On the other hand, in step S635, if the control unit 11 determines that a subsequent machine 26 has not been set, that is, that the machine is the last machine 29 (No in step S635), similarly to steps S615 and S620, it reads and acquires the state quantity history S and the designated time point t of the preceding machine 24 from the storage unit 12 (step S655), and identifies the designated time point state quantity St (step S660). Then, the control unit 11 generates a target state quantity Sa, which is a target value of the state quantity, based on the designated time point state quantity St of the preceding machine 24 (step S665). As a specific example, the control unit 11 sets the designated time point state quantity St as the target state quantity Sa. Then, the control unit 11 ends the control input generation process.

[0040] In this way, in the control input generation process, the control unit 11 determines whether the machine is the head machine 21, the middle machine, or the tail machine 29, and executes different processes for each machine.

[0041] When the control unit 11 finishes the control input generation process, it then transmits the current state quantity Sn (step S70). Note that the control unit 11 may transmit a state quantity history S including the current state quantity Sn instead of transmitting the current state quantity Sn. Furthermore, the control unit 11 may transmit the failure status of the own device 25 or the failure status of the subsequent device 26.

[0042] Next, the control unit 11 determines whether a subsequent device 26 has been set, i.e., whether the device is the last device 29 (step S80). If the control unit 11 determines that a subsequent device 26 has been set, i.e., that the device is not the last device 29 (Yes in step S80), the control unit 11 executes an instruction transmission process (step S90). As shown in Fig. 5, in the instruction transmission process, the control unit 11 first acquires the current state quantity Sn of the device 25 (step S910).

[0043] Next, the control unit 11 reads out the past state quantity s of the own device 25 from the storage unit 12, and generates a state quantity history S that includes the current state quantity Sn as the state quantity s(1) (step S915).

[0044] Next, the control unit 11 acquires the current state quantity Sn of the succeeding machine 26 (step S920).

[0045] Next, the control unit 11 determines the designated time t using the subscript of the state quantity at time 1 among the state quantities s(1) to s(j) included in the state quantity history S. At this time, the control unit 11 may advance the designated time t and decrease the subscript as the interval between the current state quantity Sn of the own device 25 and the current state quantity Sn of the subsequent device 26 increases, using one state quantity among the state quantities s(1) to s(j) included in the state quantity history S as a reference. Alternatively, the control unit 11 may delay the designated time t and increase the subscript as the interval between the current state quantity Sn of the own device 25 and the current state quantity Sn of the subsequent device 26 decreases.

[0046] At this time, the control unit 11 determines the current designated time t so that the time difference from the previously determined designated time t is smaller than a predetermined threshold value, thereby preventing a sudden change in the behavior of the aircraft 1.

[0047] The control unit 11 may also acquire the time at which each state quantity was acquired when the state quantities (1) to s(j) were acquired, and include this time in the state quantity history S. Then, the control unit 11 may specify the specified time point t by the time.

[0048] Next, the control unit 11 transmits the state quantity history S and the specified time point t via communication (step S930). This enables the control unit 11 to notify the following aircraft 26 that the target state quantity Sa of the following aircraft 26 and the current state quantity Sn of the following aircraft 26 are deviating from each other. This enables the following aircraft 26 to take action such as increasing its speed. Then, the control unit 11 ends the control input generation process and executes step S20 again. Note that the control unit 11 may transmit the state quantity history S including information related to the aircraft's flight mode, such as in flight or stopped, at each time point.

[0049] On the other hand, if the control unit 11 determines that the succeeding device 26 has not been set (No in step S80), it executes step S20 again.

[0050] As described above, the control unit 11 executes step S20 again after a predetermined period has elapsed after step S80 or step S90, thereby determining the target state quantity Sa, the designated time point t, etc., at predetermined intervals.

[0051] In this way, the control unit 11 controls the movement taking into consideration the conditions of the leading aircraft 24 and the following aircraft 26. This enables coordinated movement of multiple aircraft. Furthermore, the control unit 11 instructs which state quantity at which point in time, among the past state quantities of the leading aircraft 24, should be used to control the movement, thereby controlling the distance interval. Furthermore, because these controls are performed autonomously by the aircraft, it is possible to suppress an increase in the operator's workload that accompanies an increase in the number of aircraft.

[0052] (Handling when communication is interrupted) In the preceding aircraft information reception process executed when the preceding aircraft 24 is set, the control unit 11 determines whether communication with the preceding aircraft 24 is interrupted (step S310) prior to step S315. If the control unit 11 determines in step S310 that communication is not interrupted, it executes step S315 and the subsequent steps. On the other hand, if the control unit 11 determines in step S310 that communication has been interrupted, it further determines whether the communication interruption lasts for a predetermined time or longer (step S325). This predetermined time may be set according to the duration of communication interruption due to a temporary cause such as deterioration in communication quality. If the control unit 11 determines that the communication interruption does not last for a predetermined time or longer (No in step S325), it calculates a predicted state quantity based on the state quantity history S of the preceding aircraft 24 acquired from the preceding aircraft 24 via communication and stored in the storage unit 12, i.e., the state quantity history S acquired from the preceding aircraft 24 before communication was interrupted. The predicted state quantity is a prediction of the state quantity of the preceding device 24 at a point in time after communication is interrupted and no data has been accumulated. Then, the control unit 11 generates a state quantity history S by complementing the state quantity s that could not be acquired from the preceding device 24 due to the temporary interruption of communication with the predicted state quantity (step S330). Next, the control unit 11 determines a designated time t that could not be acquired from the preceding device 24 due to the temporary interruption of communication (step S335). This designated time t determined by the own device 25 may be a time that has been set in advance.

[0053] Next, the control unit 11 stores the generated state quantity history S and the determined designated time point t in the storage unit 12, and updates the values ​​of the state quantity history S and the designated time point t (step S340). Then, the control unit 11 ends the preceding aircraft information reception process. As a result, in steps S620, S630, etc. of the control input generation process following the preceding aircraft information reception process, the designated time point state quantity St is specified based on the state quantity history S in which the state quantity of the preceding aircraft 24 at the time determined by the host aircraft 25 is complemented with the predicted state quantity of the preceding aircraft 24. Then, the target state quantity Sa is generated based on this designated time point state quantity St. Therefore, it is possible to avoid inappropriate motion control being executed when communication is interrupted.

[0054] Furthermore, when the control unit 11 determines in step S325 that the communication outage has lasted for a predetermined time or longer (Yes in step S325), it determines whether or not there is a second-preceding aircraft (second-preceding mobile body) 23 that is a preceding aircraft of the preceding aircraft 24, based on the arrangement order of the aircraft 1 stored in the memory unit 12 (step S345). Then, when the control unit 11 determines that there is a second-preceding aircraft 23 (Yes in step S345), it resets the second-preceding aircraft 23 to the preceding aircraft 24, replacing the currently set preceding aircraft 24. Then, similar to step S315, the control unit 11 receives the state quantity history S and the designated time point t transmitted from the reset preceding aircraft 24. Then, similar to step S320, the control unit 11 stores the received state quantity history S and the designated time point t in the memory unit 12 and updates the values ​​of the state quantity history S and the designated time point t. Then, the control unit 11 ends the preceding aircraft information reception process. As a result, the control unit 11 can form a formation with the second preceding aircraft 23 as the new preceding aircraft in place of the preceding aircraft 24 with which communication has been interrupted, and can maintain the formation.

[0055] Furthermore, if the control unit 11 determines in step S345 that there is no second preceding aircraft 23, that is, that the second preceding aircraft 23 is the second aircraft 1 in the line-up, it erases the setting of the preceding aircraft 24, resets it to no preceding aircraft, and ends the preceding aircraft information reception process. This allows this aircraft 1 to lead the formation as the lead aircraft 21, and maintain the formation.

[0056] (First offset addition process) Fig. 8 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of the configuration of mobile body motion control system 100 when performing offset addition processing. Fig. 9 is a flowchart showing an example of control processing of mobile body motion control system 100, and is a flowchart showing an example of instruction transmission processing when performing first offset addition processing.

[0057] The control unit 11 may add an offset to the state quantity to be transmitted in the instruction transmission process.

[0058] Specifically, as shown in FIG. 9, after step S915 of the instruction transmission process, the control unit 11 acquires the state quantity history S of the aircraft 25 and corrects the state quantity history S so as to add an offset amount D, which is the amount of positional deviation between the aircraft 25 and the following aircraft 26, to the position of the aircraft 25 calculated from the state quantity history S of the aircraft 25 for each of the state quantities s(1) to s(j) included in the state quantity history S of the aircraft 25 (step S916). Then, in step S930, the control unit 11 may transmit the corrected state quantity history S via communication. As a result, the control unit 11 of the following aircraft 26 that receives this state quantity history S generates the target state quantity Sa based on the state quantity s to which the offset amount D has been added. Therefore, it is possible to appropriately maintain the interval between the aircraft 25 and the leading aircraft 24. This allows smooth temporary stops such as hovering, and allows the formation to be appropriately maintained.

[0059] (Second offset addition process) 10 to 12 are flowcharts showing an example of the control processing of the mobile body motion control system 100, and are flowcharts showing the instruction transmission processing, the preceding vehicle information reception processing, and the control input generation processing when the second offset addition processing is performed.

[0060] As shown in FIG. 10, in step S931 following the above-described step S925 of the instruction transmission process, the control unit 11 transmits the offset amount D, which is the positional deviation amount between the own device 25 and the subsequent device 26, together with the state quantity history S and the specified time point t.

[0061] Then, as shown in FIG. 11 , the control unit 11 receives and acquires the offset amount D along with the set state quantity history S and the designated time point t in step S316 following step S310 of the preceding aircraft information reception processing or step S356 following step S350 if step S310 is No, and updates the value of the offset amount D along with the state quantity history S and the designated time point t in step S321 following step S316 or step S361 following step S356. Then, as shown in FIG. 12 , the control unit 11 acquires the offset amount D in step S626 following step S620 or step S661 following step S660 of the control input generation processing following this preceding aircraft information reception processing. Then, in step S631 following step S626 or step S670 following step S661, the control unit 11 generates the target state amount Sa so that a positional deviation corresponding to the offset amount D occurs between the preceding aircraft 24 and the host aircraft 25. This makes it possible to appropriately maintain the distance between the host aircraft 25 and the preceding aircraft 24. Therefore, temporary stops such as hovering can be smoothly performed, and the formation can be maintained appropriately.

[0062] In this way, the mobile body motion control system 100 is a mobile body motion control system 100 provided in a plurality of aircraft 1, and includes a control unit 11 provided in each aircraft 1, which generates a target state quantity Sa that is a target value of the state quantity of the own aircraft 25, a drive unit 13 that moves the own aircraft 25 based on the target state quantity Sa, and a communication unit 14 that communicates with other aircraft 1 under the control of the control unit 11, and the control unit 11 sets at least one of a preceding aircraft 24 of the own aircraft 25 and a succeeding aircraft 26 of the own aircraft 25, determines a specified time point t that is a point in the past at a predetermined period, and communicates A designated time point t is transmitted by communication, and when a leading aircraft 24 and a following aircraft 26 are set, a state quantity history S, which is a history of the state quantities of the leading aircraft 24 from the present to a certain time in the past, is acquired, the designated time point t transmitted by the leading aircraft 24 is acquired by communication, a designated time point state quantity St, which is the state quantity of the leading aircraft 24 at the designated time point t, is identified based on the state quantity history S, a current state quantity Sn, which is the current state quantity of the following aircraft 26, is acquired, and a target state quantity Sa of the own aircraft 25 is generated based on the designated time point state quantity St of the leading aircraft 24 and the current state quantity Sn of the following aircraft 26. This makes it possible to control movement taking into account the situations of the leading aircraft 24 and the following aircraft 26, thereby enabling coordinated movement of multiple aircraft 1. Furthermore, since it is instructed which of the past state quantities of the leading aircraft 24 should be used to control movement, the distance interval can be controlled.

[0063] When a leading aircraft 24 is not set, the control unit 11 may generate state quantities so as to move along a predetermined route, and generate a target state quantity Sa for the own aircraft 25 based on the generated state quantities. This allows the own aircraft 25 to autonomously control its movement as the leading aircraft 21. Furthermore, the following aircraft 1 can be controlled to move in formation based on the state quantities St at the designated time point of the leading aircraft 21.

[0064] The control unit 11 may transmit the state quantity history S and the current state quantity Sn of its own aircraft 25 by communication, and when a preceding aircraft 24 is set, may acquire the state quantity history S of the preceding aircraft 24 by communication, and when a following aircraft 26 is set, may acquire the current state quantity Sn of the following aircraft 26 by communication. This makes it possible to acquire the state quantity history S of the preceding aircraft 24 and the current state quantity Sn of the following aircraft 26 even in a situation where it is difficult to acquire the state quantity history S of the preceding aircraft 24 by observation.

[0065] When the control unit 11 determines that communication with the preceding aircraft 24 has been interrupted while the preceding aircraft 24 is set, the control unit 11 may interpolate predicted state quantities that predict the state quantities of the preceding aircraft 24 after communication has been interrupted based on the state quantity history S acquired from the preceding aircraft 24 before communication was interrupted, to obtain the state quantity history S, and may specify the state quantities of the preceding aircraft 24 at the time when the own aircraft 25 was determined based on the state quantity history S that interpolated the predicted state quantities of the preceding aircraft 24, to obtain the specified time point state quantities St. This makes it possible to avoid inappropriate motion control when communication is interrupted.

[0066] Each aircraft 1 has a memory unit 12 that stores the arrangement order of the multiple aircraft 1, and when a leading aircraft 24 is set and communication with the leading aircraft 24 has been cut off for a predetermined time, the control unit 11 may, if it determines based on the arrangement order that there is a second-leading aircraft 23 that is the aircraft 24 preceding the leading aircraft 24, reset the second-leading aircraft 23 as the leading aircraft 24 of its own aircraft 25 in place of the leading aircraft 24, or may delete the setting of the leading aircraft 24 if it determines that there is no second-leading aircraft 23. This makes it possible to maintain the formation when communication is cut off.

[0067] The state quantities are state quantities that can be used to calculate the position of the aircraft 25, and the control unit 11 may acquire the state quantity history S of the aircraft 25, correct the state quantity history S so as to add an offset amount D, which is the amount of positional deviation between the aircraft 25 and the following aircraft 26, to the position of the aircraft 25 calculated from the state quantity history S of the aircraft 25, and transmit the corrected state quantity history S via communication. This makes it possible to maintain an appropriate interval between the aircraft 1.

[0068] The state quantity is a state quantity that can calculate the position of the own aircraft 25, and the control unit 11 transmits an offset amount D, which is the amount of positional deviation between the own aircraft 25 and the following aircraft 26, by communication, and when a leading aircraft 24 is set, the control unit 11 may obtain the offset amount D transmitted by the leading aircraft 24 by communication and generate a target state quantity Sa so that a positional deviation according to the offset amount D occurs between the leading aircraft 24 and the own aircraft 25. This makes it possible to properly maintain the formation.

[0069] The control unit 11 may determine the current designated time t so that the time difference from the previously determined designated time t is smaller than a predetermined threshold value, thereby preventing a sudden change in the behavior of the aircraft 1.

[0070] The state quantity may be at least one of the state quantities of the position of the aircraft 25, the speed of the aircraft 25, the attitude of the aircraft 25, the control command for the aircraft 25, the control amount for the aircraft 25, the attitude change rate of the aircraft 25, and the acceleration / deceleration rate of the aircraft 25. This allows the motion of the aircraft 1 to be appropriately controlled.

[0071] From the above description, many modifications and other embodiments of the present invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art. Therefore, the above description should be construed as illustrative only and is provided for the purpose of teaching those skilled in the art the best mode for carrying out the present invention. Details of the structure and / or function thereof may be substantially changed without departing from the spirit of the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0072] S State history Sa target state quantity Sn Current state quantity St State quantity at specified time t specified time 1 aircraft 11 Control section 13 Drive unit 14 Communications Department 24 Leading aircraft 25. Own ship 26 Successor 100 Mobile Motion Control System

Claims

1. A mobile object motion control system provided to a plurality of mobile objects, a control unit provided in each of the moving bodies, which generates a target state quantity that is a target value of a state quantity of the moving body itself; a drive unit which moves the moving body itself based on the target state quantity; and a communication unit which communicates with other moving bodies under the control of the control unit, The control unit At least one of a preceding moving body of the moving body and a succeeding moving body of the moving body is set; determining a designated time point, which is a time point in the past, at a predetermined period and transmitting the designated time point through the communication; When the preceding moving body and the following moving body are set, a state quantity history, which is a history of the state quantities of the preceding moving body from the present to a certain point in the past, is acquired, the specified time point transmitted by the preceding moving body is acquired through the communication, a specified time point state quantity, which is the state quantity of the preceding moving body at the specified time point, is identified based on the state quantity history, a current state quantity, which is the current state quantity of the following moving body, is acquired, and the target state quantity of the own moving body is generated based on the specified time point state quantity of the preceding moving body and the current state quantity of the following moving body.

2. 2. The mobile body motion control system according to claim 1, wherein the control unit generates the state quantity for moving along a predetermined route when the preceding mobile body is not set, and generates the target state quantity for the mobile body based on the generated state quantity.

3. 3. The mobile body motion control system according to claim 1, wherein the control unit transmits the state quantity history and the current state quantity of the mobile body through the communication, and when the preceding mobile body is set, acquires the state quantity history of the preceding mobile body through the communication, and when the following mobile body is set, acquires the current state quantity of the following mobile body through the communication.

4. 4. The mobile body motion control system of claim 3, wherein when the control unit determines that communication with the preceding moving body has been interrupted while the preceding moving body is set, the control unit complements a predicted state quantity that predicts the state quantity of the preceding moving body after the communication has been interrupted based on the state quantity history obtained from the preceding moving body before the communication has been interrupted, and sets the predicted state quantity as the state quantity history, and determines the state quantity of the preceding moving body at the time the moving body is determined based on the state quantity history that complements the predicted state quantity of the preceding moving body, and sets the specified time state quantity as the specified time state quantity.

5. Each of the moving bodies has a storage unit that stores the order of the moving bodies, The mobile body motion control system described in claim 3 or 4, wherein when the preceding moving body is set and communication with the preceding moving body has been lost for a predetermined period of time, if the control unit determines based on the arrangement order that there is a second preceding moving body that is a preceding moving body of the preceding moving body, it resets the second preceding moving body as a preceding moving body of the own moving body in place of the preceding moving body, and if it determines that there is no second preceding moving body, it erases the setting of the preceding moving body.

6. the state quantity is a state quantity that allows the position of the own moving body to be calculated, 6. The mobile body motion control system according to claim 3, wherein the control unit acquires the state quantity history of the own moving body, modifies the state quantity history so as to add an offset amount, which is a positional deviation amount between the own moving body and a following moving body, to the position of the own moving body calculated from the state quantity history of the own moving body, and transmits the modified state quantity history via the communication.

7. the state quantity is a state quantity that allows the position of the own moving body to be calculated, the control unit transmits an offset amount, which is a positional deviation amount between the own moving body and the following moving body, through the communication; A mobile body motion control system as described in any one of claims 3 to 5, wherein when the preceding moving body is set, the offset amount transmitted by the preceding moving body is obtained through the communication, and the target state quantity is generated so that a positional deviation corresponding to the offset amount occurs between the preceding moving body and the moving body itself.

8. 8. The mobile body motion control system according to claim 1, wherein the control unit determines the current designated time point so that a time difference from the previously determined designated time point is smaller than a predetermined threshold value.

9. 8. A mobile body motion control system according to claim 1, wherein the state quantity is at least one of the state quantities of the mobile body position, the mobile body speed, the mobile body attitude, the control command for the mobile body, the control amount for the mobile body, the attitude change rate of the mobile body, and the acceleration / deceleration rate of the mobile body.

10. At least one of a preceding moving body of the moving body and a succeeding moving body of the moving body is set; determining a designated time point, which is a time point in the past, at a predetermined period and transmitting the designated time point through communication; When the preceding moving body and the following moving body are set, a state quantity history is acquired, which is a history of the state quantities of the preceding moving body from the present to a certain time in the past, the specified time point transmitted by the preceding moving body is acquired by communication, a specified time point state quantity is identified, which is the state quantity of the preceding moving body at the specified time point, based on the state quantity history, a current state quantity is acquired, which is the current state quantity of the following moving body, and a target state quantity is generated based on the specified time point state quantity of the preceding moving body and the current state quantity of the following moving body; A method for controlling the motion of a moving body, which causes the moving body to move based on the target state quantity.

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