Unmanned vehicle

Abstract

To provide an unmanned traveling object capable of suppressing power consumption of a charged battery while enabling the start of operation immediately after charging.SOLUTION: An unmanned traveling object comprises: a traveling object main body; a plurality of drive wheels included in the traveling object main body; a traveling motor 14 provided for each driving wheel and driving the drive wheel; a controller that controls the traveling motor; a chargeable battery 15 stored in the traveling object main body; and a terminal 16 for charging that is connectable to a charging terminal included in a charging device 37 and is used to charge the battery 15. The controller performs control so as to shift to shutdown in which power supply to each part in the traveling object main body is stopped from an operable state in which power supply to each part in the traveling object main body is possible when a preset set elapsed time has elapsed after the battery 15 is charged when the charging terminal and the terminal 16 for charging are connected to each other.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an unmanned vehicle. [Background technology]

[0002] A known example of prior art related to unmanned mobile vehicles is the charging control system disclosed in Patent Document 1. The charging control system disclosed in Patent Document 1 includes a lawnmower that has a battery and performs lawn mowing while autonomously traveling, and a charging station that charges the battery. The lawnmower includes a transition unit that transitions the lawnmower from a normal state to a power-saving state. The transition unit transitions the lawnmower from the normal state to the power-saving state when the battery is fully charged. The transition unit also transitions the lawnmower from the power-saving state to the normal state when a cutoff period has elapsed. Note that the "normal state" refers to a state in which the lawnmower is capable of performing lawn mowing. For example, the "normal state" refers to a state in which power is supplied from the battery to the internal power supply circuit and from the internal power supply circuit to each component of the lawnmower. The "power-saving state" refers to a state in which the lawnmower consumes less power than in the "normal state." For example, the "power-saving state" refers to a state in which power is not supplied from the charging station to the battery and not supplied from the battery to the internal power supply circuit. In this case, power is not supplied from the internal power supply circuit to each part of the lawnmower. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] International Publication No. 2020 / 194383 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, in the lawnmower with the charging control system disclosed in Patent Document 1, when the battery is fully charged, the transition unit switches the lawnmower from the normal state to the power-saving state, which means that mowing cannot be started immediately after charging. Furthermore, because the lawnmower switches from the power-saving state to the normal state when the cut-off period has elapsed, it is necessary to wait for the transition period to elapse before mowing can begin.

[0005] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide an unmanned mobile vehicle that can start operating immediately after charging and that can reduce the power consumption of the battery after charging. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides an unmanned traveling vehicle having a traveling body, drive wheels provided on the traveling body, a traveling motor that drives the drive wheels, a controller that controls the traveling motor, a rechargeable battery housed in the traveling body, and a charging terminal that is connectable to a charging terminal provided on a charging device and is used to charge the battery, a transition-disabled time period during which the traveling body cannot transition from an operable state in which power can be supplied to each unit in the traveling body to a shutdown or standby state in which power supply to each unit in the traveling body is stopped is set in advance in the controller; The controller is configured to: , Shi Control to transition to shutdown or standby state During the time period when the transition is not possible, the system is controlled so as not to transition to a shutdown or standby state. It is characterized by:

[0007] In this invention, when a preset elapsed time has elapsed after the battery is charged, the unmanned vehicle transitions from an operable state in which power can be supplied to each component of the vehicle body to a shutdown or standby state in which power supply to each component of the vehicle body is stopped. Therefore, the unmanned vehicle can be operated immediately until the preset elapsed time has elapsed. Furthermore, because the transition to the shutdown or standby state occurs when the preset elapsed time has elapsed after charging, battery power consumption can be reduced. In addition, since a time period during which transition to a shutdown or standby state is not possible is set in advance, it becomes possible, for example, for the convenience of the operator, to select a time period during which it is not desired to shut down or transition the unmanned vehicle to a standby state as the time period during which transition is not possible.

[0008] In addition, in the above-mentioned unmanned vehicle, the vehicle body may be equipped with an alarm, and the controller may be configured to control the alarm to notify those around that it is about to shut down or transition to a standby state. In this case, the controller controls the alarm to alert those in the vicinity that the unmanned vehicle is about to shut down or transition to a standby state, so that workers near the unmanned vehicle can recognize from the alarm that the unmanned vehicle is about to shut down or transition to a standby state.

[0009] In addition, in the above-mentioned self-driving car, The set elapsed time is the time it takes for the charge capacity to decrease from 100% when fully charged to 90% when in an operable state. It may also be configured 。

[0010] Furthermore, in the above-mentioned unmanned vehicle, the controller may be configured to control the vehicle body to detach from the charging device when the set elapsed time has elapsed after the battery has been charged, and to transition to a shutdown or standby state after the vehicle body has been detached from the charging device. In this case, when the set time has elapsed after the battery has been charged, the vehicle body is detached from the charging device, so that the unmanned vehicle that has transitioned to a shutdown or standby state does not occupy the charging device, and as a result, the charging device can be used to charge another unmanned vehicle when the unmanned vehicle detaches after charging.

[0011] Furthermore, in the above-described unmanned mobile vehicle, the charging device may include a charging circuit unit and a charging control unit that controls the charging circuit unit and is capable of communicating with the controller, and the controller may be configured to transmit a signal to the charging control unit to shut down the charging device before transitioning to a shutdown or standby state. In this case, before shutting down or transitioning to a standby state, the controller transmits a signal to the charging control unit, and the charging control unit shuts down or transitions the charging device to a standby state. Therefore, not only is power consumption of the battery of the unmanned vehicle reduced, but shutting down or transitioning the charging device to a standby state also reduces power consumption of the charging device. [Effects of the Invention]

[0012] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide an unmanned mobile vehicle that can start operating immediately after charging and that can reduce the power consumption of the battery after charging. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0013] [Figure 1] 1 is a perspective view showing an outline of an automated guided vehicle according to a first embodiment. [Figure 2] 1 is a side view showing an outline of an automated guided vehicle according to a first embodiment. [Figure 3] 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of an automated guided vehicle according to a first embodiment. [Figure 4] FIG. 10 is a flow chart showing control of shutdown after charging of the automated guided vehicle. [Figure 5] FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing control of shutdown after charging of an automated guided vehicle according to a second embodiment. [Figure 6] FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing control of shutdown after charging of an automated guided vehicle according to a third embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0014] (First embodiment) An unmanned mobile vehicle according to a first embodiment will be described below with reference to the drawings. The unmanned mobile vehicle is an electric unmanned mobile vehicle that runs electrically and has the function of autonomously traveling while avoiding obstacles. In this embodiment, an unmanned mobile vehicle will be described as an example.

[0015] As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, an automated guided vehicle 10 according to this embodiment has a cylindrical vehicle body 11 as a main body of the vehicle. An upper portion of the vehicle body 11 is provided with a loading platform 12 on which a load W can be placed. A lower portion of the vehicle body 11 is provided with a plurality of drive wheels 13. The drive wheels 13 are omnidirectional wheels. An omnidirectional wheel is a wheel that rotates integrally with the axle of the drive wheel 13 and is also capable of moving in the direction of the axis line X of the axle, such as an omniwheel.

[0016] In this embodiment, the vehicle body 11 is provided with four drive wheels 13. When distinguishing between the four drive wheels 13, they are referred to as a first drive wheel 13A, a second drive wheel 13B, a third drive wheel 13C, and a fourth drive wheel 13D. The first drive wheel 13A and the second drive wheel 13B are drive wheels on the front side of the vehicle body 11, and the third drive wheel 13C and the fourth drive wheel 13D are drive wheels on the rear side of the vehicle body 11.

[0017] As shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, the automated guided vehicle 10 is equipped with travel motors 14 for rotating the drive wheels 13. A travel motor 14 is provided for each drive wheel 13. Therefore, the number of travel motors 14 is the same as the number of drive wheels 13. When distinguishing between the four travel motors 14, they are referred to as a first travel motor 14A, a second travel motor 14B, a third travel motor 14C, and a fourth travel motor 14D.

[0018] The vehicle body 11 is equipped with a battery 15 as an electricity storage device. The battery 15 is a dischargeable secondary battery, such as a lithium-ion battery. The battery 15 is connected to each part requiring power, such as the traction motor 14, via power wiring (not shown). Therefore, power from the battery 15 is supplied to each part of the vehicle body 11 via the power wiring. Furthermore, power generated during regeneration is stored in the battery 15 via the power wiring. A battery monitoring circuit (not shown) that monitors the state of the battery 15 is provided.

[0019] In this embodiment, a charging terminal 16 for charging the battery 15 is provided at the front of the vehicle body 11. The charging terminal 16 includes a positive terminal 17 and a negative terminal 18 as vehicle-side electrodes. The positive terminal 17 and the negative terminal 18 are disposed in a recess 19 formed at the front of the vehicle body 11. This prevents the positive terminal 17 and the negative terminal 18 from interfering with obstacles. The charging terminal 16 is fixed to the vehicle body 11 so that the positive terminal 17 and the negative terminal 18 are positioned above and below each other (see FIG. 3). As shown in FIG. 3, the positive terminal 17 and the negative terminal 18 are connected to terminals of the battery 15 via power lines 21 and 22. An optical communication unit 23 is provided near the charging terminal 16 on the vehicle body 11. The optical communication unit 23 is used for optical communication with a charging device 37, which will be described later.

[0020] The vehicle body 11 is equipped with multiple laser range finders (LRFs: electro-optical distance meters). The laser range finder 24 is a first laser range finder (hereinafter referred to as the "first LRF 24"), and the laser range finder 25 is a second laser range finder (hereinafter referred to as the "second LRF 25"). The first LRF 24 and the second LRF 25 are range finders that measure distance by irradiating the surrounding area with a laser and receiving light reflected from the area where the laser hits, and can obtain information about the shapes of objects present around the automatic guided vehicle 10 as surrounding objects. The first LRF 24 and the second LRF 25 correspond to obstacle detection sensors.

[0021] In this embodiment, a two-dimensional laser range finder is used that emits a laser while changing the irradiation angle in the horizontal direction. The first LRF 24 is fixed to the front of the vehicle body 11, and the second LRF 25 is fixed to the rear of the vehicle body 11. They can scan the laser in the horizontal direction and detect the direction and distance to an object as a point cloud. A certain area (not shown) around the vehicle body 11 is the area searched by the first LRF 24 and the second LRF 25.

[0022] As shown in Fig. 3, the vehicle body 11 is equipped with an on-board controller 26. The on-board controller 26 includes a CPU 27 and a storage unit 28 including RAM, ROM, and the like. The on-board controller 26 may include dedicated hardware for executing at least some of the various processes, such as an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC). The on-board controller 26 may be configured as a circuit including one or more processors that operate according to a computer program, one or more dedicated hardware circuits such as ASICs, or a combination thereof.

[0023] The memory unit 28 stores program codes or commands configured to cause the CPU 27 to execute processing. The memory unit 28 stores various programs for controlling each part of the automated guided vehicle 10. The on-board controller 26 can control the traveling direction and traveling speed of the automated guided vehicle 10, for example, by controlling the travel motor 14.

[0024] The memory unit 28 stores various programs for controlling the vehicle body 11, as well as an environmental map relating to the movement space in which the vehicle body 11 moves. The environmental map is a map created while the vehicle body 11 moves through the movement space. The technology for simultaneously estimating the self-position of the automated guided vehicle 10 and constructing the environmental map is called SLAM (Simultaneous Localization and Mapping). The memory unit 28, i.e., the computer-readable medium, includes anything that can be accessed by a general-purpose or dedicated computer.

[0025] The on-board controller 26 of this embodiment selects one of three driving modes: an automatic driving mode, a following driving mode, and a manual driving mode, and controls the automatic guided vehicle 10 to travel in the selected driving mode. The automatic driving mode is a driving mode in which a route to a destination is generated and the automatic guided vehicle 10 automatically travels to the destination. The following driving mode is a driving mode in which the automatic guided vehicle 10 travels while following a specific worker H who is the target to be followed. The manual driving mode controls the traveling of the automatic guided vehicle 10 by operating a portable communication device 35, which will be described later. Furthermore, the on-board controller 26 has a timer function in addition to a clock function, and is equipped with a function to set a time zone.

[0026] The automated guided vehicle 10 of this embodiment includes an input operation unit 29, a wireless communication unit 30, and a light-emitting unit 31. The input operation unit 29 includes a numeric keypad 32 for inputting data to the automated guided vehicle 10 and a charge execution button 33 for manually charging the automated guided vehicle 10. The charge execution button 33 corresponds to the charge operation unit, and is connected to the on-board controller 26. When the battery 15 is in a state where it can be charged, charging by a charging device 37 is started by turning on the charge execution button 33.

[0027] The wireless communication unit 30 enables wireless communication with a portable communication device 35 carried by a worker H who handles the load W and receives information about the operating status of the automated guided vehicle 10. The portable communication device 35 is, for example, a tablet or a smartphone. Therefore, the portable communication device 35 includes a CPU (not shown), a storage unit (not shown) including RAM, ROM, etc., and a communication unit (not shown).

[0028] The portable communication device 35 is equipped with a display 36 capable of displaying information and a built-in speaker (not shown). The display 36 is a touch panel that can be operated by touch. The display 36 and the built-in speaker correspond to a notification unit on the portable communication device 35 side that has a notification function. The portable communication device 35 is carried, for example, by a worker H who manages the automatic guided vehicle 10 and also handles the load W. The portable communication device 35 is equipped with directional operation keys (not shown) for operating the automatic guided vehicle 10 in manual driving mode. In the manual driving mode, the worker H carrying the portable communication device 35 can use the directional operation keys to control the driving of the automatic guided vehicle 10 in manual driving mode.

[0029] The automated guided vehicle 10 is provided with eight light-emitting units 31 on the outer periphery of the vehicle body 11. The eight light-emitting units 31 correspond to alarms, are arranged at equal intervals in the circumferential direction on the upper outer periphery of the vehicle body 11, and emit light in eight directions. These light-emitting units 31 are connected to and controlled by the on-board controller 26. In other words, the light-emitting units 31 correspond to alarm units equipped with an alarm function on the vehicle body 11 side. The on-board controller 26 controls all or some of the light-emitting units 31 to light up (including blinking). Note that the vehicle body 11 may also be provided with a buzzer that emits a notification sound as an alarm unit other than the light-emitting units 31.

[0030] The on-board controller 26 of this embodiment controls charging based on communication with the charging device 37, which will be described next. When the automated guided vehicle 10 is connected to the charging device 37 in a state where charging is possible, a charging command is issued to the charging device 37 to charge the battery 15.

[0031] Next, the charging device 37 will be described. The charging device 37 of this embodiment is installed on the road surface (floor surface). The charging device 37 has a device main body 38, a charging circuit unit 39, a charging side controller 40, a charging arm 41, and an optical communication unit 42.

[0032] A box-shaped device main body 38 houses a charging circuit unit 39 and a charging-side controller 40. The charging circuit unit 39 is connected to an external power source via wiring and is electrically connected to a charging arm 41. The charging-side controller 40 corresponds to a charging control unit and controls the charging circuit unit 39. As shown in FIG. 3 , the rod-shaped charging arm 41 protruding laterally from the device main body 38 is provided with a positive terminal 44 and a negative terminal 45 as charging terminals. The positive terminal 44 is connected to the charging circuit unit 39 via a power line 46, and the negative terminal 45 is connected to the charging circuit unit 39 via a power line 47. The positive terminal 44 and the negative terminal 45 correspond to charging device-side electrodes.

[0033] The charging-side controller 40 includes a CPU (not shown) and a storage unit (not shown) including RAM, ROM, etc. The charging-side controller 40 controls the charging circuit unit 39 and also the optical communication unit 42. The charging arm 41 protrudes laterally from the device main body 38. A positive terminal 44 and a negative terminal 43 are exposed from the tip of the charging arm 41. The positive terminal 44 can be connected to the positive terminal 17 of the charging terminal 16 of the automatic guided vehicle 10, and the negative terminal 43 of the charging terminal 16 can be connected to the negative terminal 18. The charging arm 41, the positive terminal 44, and the negative terminal 43 correspond to charging terminals.

[0034] When the automatic guided vehicle 10 is connected to the charging device 37, the optical communication unit 42 faces the optical communication unit 23 of the automatic guided vehicle 10 and is capable of optical communication. The on-vehicle controller 26 can check the status (presence or absence of an abnormality, etc.) of the battery 15 of the automatic guided vehicle 10 by optical communication via the optical communication units 23, 42. In other words, the on-vehicle controller 26 detects that the automatic guided vehicle 10 and the charging device 37 are in a chargeable state in which the battery 15 can be charged.

[0035] In this embodiment, the on-board controller 26 controls the automatic guided vehicle 10 to transition from an operable state to a shutdown state after a preset time has elapsed, provided that the charging terminal 16 and the charging arm 41 are connected after charging the battery 15. The flow diagram in Fig. 4 shows a series of steps related to the control of transitioning to a shutdown state after charging.

[0036] When charging of the battery 15 is completed (step S001), the vehicle controller 26 is unable to transition to shutdown. Na transition line inability It is determined whether it is a time zone or not (step S002). In this embodiment, the end of charging the battery 15 includes the end of charging the battery 15 when it is not fully charged, as well as the end of charging when the battery 15 is not fully charged. inability The time period is set and stored in advance in the vehicle controller 26. inability The time period is set to, for example, from 12:00 to 13:30, which includes the lunch break of the worker H, thereby preventing the automatic guided vehicle 10 from being shut down during this time period.

[0037] In step S002, the in-vehicle controller 26 inability If it is determined that the time is not within the specified time zone, the on-board controller 26 determines whether the automatic guided vehicle 10 is connected to the charging device 37 (step S003). If the on-board controller 26 determines in step S002 that the automatic guided vehicle 10 is in a time when transition is not possible, the flow ends. At this time, the automatic guided vehicle 10 is in an operable state even if it is not moving, and the remaining charge of the battery 15 decreases over time.

[0038] In step S003, when the on-board controller 26 determines that the automatic guided vehicle 10 is connected to the charging device 37, it then determines whether the time since charging ended has passed a set elapsed time T (step S004). The set elapsed time T is set and stored in the on-board controller 26 in advance. The set elapsed time T can be set freely. If the automatic guided vehicle 10 remains in an operable state after charging, the charge level of the battery 15 gradually decreases. The set elapsed time T may be, for example, the time it takes for the charge capacity to decrease from 100% when fully charged to 90% when in an operable state.

[0039] In step S004, when the in-vehicle controller 26 determines that the time since charging ended has passed the set elapsed time T, it issues a notification before shutdown (step S005). In this embodiment, the notification before shutdown is made by lighting (including blinking) the light-emitting unit 31. The in-vehicle controller 26 controls the lighting of the light-emitting unit 31. Note that the display 36 of the portable communication device 35 may display a message indicating that shutdown is imminent, or a notification sound may be emitted from the built-in speaker to indicate that shutdown is imminent.

[0040] In step S004, if the on-board controller 26 determines that the time since charging ended has not elapsed the set elapsed time T, the process returns to step S002. For example, if the operator H performs an operation to separate the automated guided vehicle 10 from the charging device 37 before the set elapsed time T has elapsed, the automated guided vehicle 10 will separate from the charging device 37 without shutting down. When the pre-shutdown notification is given in step S005, the on-board controller 26 transitions the automated guided vehicle 10 from an operable state in which power can be supplied to each part of the vehicle body 11 to a shutdown state in which power supply to each part of the vehicle body 11 is stopped (step S006). By transitioning to shutdown, the automated guided vehicle 10 can minimize the amount of charge in the battery 15. The flow ends when the automated guided vehicle 10 is shut down.

[0041] Next, charging and post-charging shutdown of the automated guided vehicle 10 of this embodiment will be described. When the automated guided vehicle 10 is in an operable state and needs to be charged, the automated guided vehicle 10 is directed to the charging device 37 by the operator H operating the automated guided vehicle 10 or the portable communication device 35, and connected to the charging device 37. The connection to the charging device 37 is achieved by connecting the charging terminal 16 to the charging arm 41. Once the connection between the charging terminal 16 and the charging arm 41 is complete and charging of the battery 15 is possible, charging of the battery 15 by the charging device 37 immediately begins. Charging of the battery 15 may be passive charging, or may be started by the operator operating the charge execution button 33.

[0042] When the charge capacity of the battery 15 reaches 100% and charging is completed, the in-vehicle controller 26 transitions to the current inability The vehicle controller 26 determines whether it is within the time period. inability If it is not within the specified time period, the on-board controller 26 determines whether the automated guided vehicle 10 is connected to the charging device 37. If the automated guided vehicle 10 is connected to the charging device 37, the on-board controller 26 determines whether the time since charging ended has exceeded the set elapsed time T. If the time since charging ended has exceeded the set elapsed time T, the on-board controller 26 lights up the light-emitting unit 31 of the automated guided vehicle 10, displays a notification on the display 36 of the portable communication device 35, and generates a notification sound from the built-in speaker. The worker H can recognize that shutdown is imminent from the light-emitting unit 31 lighting up and the notification display and notification sound.

[0043] After receiving the pre-shutdown notification, the automated guided vehicle 10 transitions from an operable state to a shutdown state. Therefore, in the automated guided vehicle 10, power consumption of the battery 15 is suppressed as much as possible by transitioning to a shutdown state while remaining connected to the charging device 37.

[0044] The automated guided vehicle 10 of this embodiment has the following advantages. (1) When a preset elapsed time T has elapsed after charging the battery 15, the automated guided vehicle 10 transitions from an operable state in which power can be supplied to each part of the vehicle body 11 to a shutdown state in which power supply to each part of the vehicle body 11 is stopped. Therefore, the automated guided vehicle 10 can be operated immediately until the set elapsed time T has elapsed. Furthermore, because the transition to shutdown occurs when the set elapsed time T has elapsed after charging, power consumption of the battery 15 can be reduced. In other words, the automated guided vehicle 10 can start operating immediately after charging, and can also reduce power consumption of the battery 15 after charging.

[0045] (2) The automated guided vehicle 10 is equipped with a plurality of light-emitting units 31 as an alarm, and the on-board controller 26 lights up the plurality of light-emitting units 31 to notify those around that the automated guided vehicle 10 is about to transition from an operable state to a shutdown state. Therefore, a worker H near the automated guided vehicle 10 can recognize that the automated guided vehicle 10 is about to transition to a shutdown state by the lighting up of the plurality of light-emitting units 31.

[0046] (3) The on-board controller 26 is preset with a non-transition time period during which transition to shutdown is not permitted. The on-board controller 26 controls the automatic guided vehicle 10 not to transition from an operable state to shutdown during the non-transition time period. Therefore, for example, due to the convenience of the operator H, it is possible to select a time period during which it is not desired to transition the automatic guided vehicle 10 from an operable state to shutdown as the non-transition time period. As a result, it is possible to reduce power consumption of the battery 15 and realize an automatic guided vehicle 10 that is more convenient during the non-transition time period.

[0047] (4) Before the automatic guided vehicle 10 is shut down, the light emitting unit 31 of the automatic guided vehicle 10 lights up to notify the automatic guided vehicle 10 of the transition to shutdown, and the automatic guided vehicle 10 is also notified of the transition to shutdown by a screen display and a notification sound on the portable communication device 35. As a result, even if the worker H is located far away from the automatic guided vehicle 10, the worker H receives the notification of the shutdown and can recognize that the automatic guided vehicle 10 is transitioning from an operable state to a shutdown.

[0048] (Second embodiment) Next, an automated guided vehicle according to a second embodiment will be described. The automated guided vehicle of this embodiment differs from the first embodiment in that, when a predetermined time has elapsed since charging, it detaches from the charging device and shuts down at a location away from the charging device. The automated guided vehicle of this embodiment has the same configuration as the first embodiment, and the description of the first embodiment will be cited and common reference numerals will be used.

[0049] In this embodiment, after charging the battery 15 of the automated guided vehicle 10, if the charging terminal 16 and the charging arm 41 are connected, the on-board controller 26 causes the automated guided vehicle 10 to separate from the charging device 37 after a preset time has elapsed. Then, the on-board controller 26 controls the automated guided vehicle 10 to transition from an operable state to a shutdown state at a position away from the charging device 37. The flow diagram in Fig. 5 shows a series of steps related to the control of transitioning to shutdown after charging.

[0050] 5, steps S101 to S104 are the same as steps S001 to S004 in the first embodiment. If in step S104 onboard controller 26 determines that the set elapsed time T has elapsed since charging ended, onboard controller 26 causes automatic guided vehicle 10 to separate from charging device 37 (step S105). Specifically, onboard controller 26 controls travel motor 14 so that charging terminal 16 separates from charging arm 41. If in step S104 it is determined that set elapsed time T has not elapsed, the process returns to step S102.

[0051] When the automated guided vehicle 10 leaves the charging device 37, the on-board controller 26 stops the automated guided vehicle 10 at a specified position (step S106). The stopping position is a position that is set and stored in advance in the on-board controller 26. It is preferable to set the stopping position at a position relatively close to the charging device 37 in terms of reducing power consumption. When the automated guided vehicle 10 stops at the specified position, a pre-shutdown notification is made (step S107). Once the pre-shutdown notification is complete, the on-board controller 26 transitions the automated guided vehicle 10 from an operable state to a shutdown state (step S108). The flow ends when the automated guided vehicle 10 is shut down.

[0052] According to this embodiment, the same effects as the effects (1) to (4) of the first embodiment are achieved. Furthermore, when the set elapsed time T has elapsed after charging the battery 15, the vehicle body 11 is detached from the charging device 37, so that the automated guided vehicle 10 that has transitioned to shutdown does not occupy the charging device 37. As a result, the charging device 37 can charge an automated guided vehicle 10 other than the automated guided vehicle 10 that has been shut down by the automated guided vehicle 10 detaching after charging. Note that in this embodiment, the notification before shutdown is made after the automated guided vehicle 10 has stopped at the specified position, but the notification before shutdown may also be made immediately before or during detachment from the charging device 37.

[0053] (Third embodiment) Next, an automated guided vehicle according to a third embodiment will be described. The automated guided vehicle of this embodiment differs from the first embodiment in that, when a predetermined time has elapsed since charging, a signal is transmitted to the charging side controller to shut down the charging device before the automated guided vehicle transitions to shutdown. The automated guided vehicle of this embodiment has the same configuration as the first embodiment, and the description of the first embodiment will be cited and common reference numerals will be used.

[0054] In this embodiment, the charging device 37 is equipped with a wireless transmission unit (not shown) capable of wireless communication with the wireless communication unit 30. After charging the battery 15 of the automatic guided vehicle 10, when a preset time has elapsed, the on-board controller 26 transmits a signal to the charging-side controller 40 to shut down the charging device 37. Then, upon receiving the signal, the charging-side controller 40 controls the automatic guided vehicle 10 at a location away from the charging device 37 to transition from an operable state to a shutdown state. The flow diagram in Figure 6 shows a series of steps related to the control of transitioning to shutdown after charging.

[0055] As shown in FIG. 6, steps S201 to S204, S206, and S207 are the same as steps S001 to S006 in the first embodiment. In step S204, when the on-board controller 26 determines that the set elapsed time T has elapsed since the end of charging, it transmits a signal to the charging-side controller 40 to shut down the charging device 37 (step S205). After transmitting the signal, the on-board controller 26 issues a pre-shutdown notification (step S206). After completing the pre-shutdown notification, the on-board controller 26 transitions the automatic guided vehicle 10 from an operable state to a shutdown state (step S207). The flow ends when the automatic guided vehicle 10 is shut down. In addition, upon receiving the signal, the charging-side controller 40 shuts down the charging device 37 before the automatic guided vehicle 10 is shut down.

[0056] This embodiment achieves the same effects as the effects (1) to (4) of the first embodiment. Furthermore, before the automated guided vehicle 10 transitions from an operable state to a shutdown state, the on-board controller 26 transmits a signal to the charging-side controller 40, and the charging-side controller 40 transitions the charging device 37 to a shutdown state. Therefore, not only is power consumption of the battery 15 of the automated guided vehicle 10 reduced, but transitioning the charging device 37 to a shutdown state can also reduce power consumption of the charging device 37. Note that, in this embodiment, the notification before shutdown is performed after transmitting a signal to the charging-side controller 40, but the notification before shutdown may also be performed immediately before transmitting a signal to the charging-side controller 40.

[0057] The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications are possible within the scope of the spirit of the invention. For example, the following modifications may be made.

[0058] In the first to third embodiments described above, the unmanned mobile vehicle transitions from the operable state to the shutdown state when a predetermined time has elapsed since charging was completed. However, this is not limited to this. The unmanned mobile vehicle may transition from the operable state to the standby state when a predetermined time has elapsed since charging was completed. In the standby state, power is supplied only to a portion of the mobile vehicle body, so battery power consumption increases compared to a shutdown state in which power supply to all components is stopped. However, compared to the power consumption in the operable state, this is a power-saving state and power consumption is sufficiently low. Therefore, even when transitioning to the standby state, battery power consumption is suppressed to the same level as when the mobile vehicle is connected to the charging device after charging, and operation can be started immediately after charging. In the first to third embodiments, the shutdown notification is exemplified by turning on the light-emitting unit, displaying a notification on a portable communication device, and emitting a notification sound, but the present invention is not limited to these. For example, the shutdown notification may be made by providing a vibration generator in the unmanned vehicle, and the notification unit may be any means capable of notifying the operator. In the first to third embodiments described above, the charging terminal of the charging device is provided on a charging arm that protrudes laterally from the device body, and the charging terminal of the unmanned mobile vehicle is provided in a recess in the mobile vehicle body, but this is not limited to this. The charging terminal of the unmanned mobile vehicle may protrude laterally from the mobile vehicle body like a charging arm, and the charging terminal of the charging device may not protrude laterally from the device body. In the first to third embodiments, a laser range finder (LRF) is used as an example of the obstacle detection sensor, but the present invention is not limited to this. The obstacle detection sensor may be, for example, a camera. In this case, an image captured by the camera may be processed to detect an obstacle. The obstacle detection sensor may be capable of detecting a specific shape part provided in the charging device and measuring the distance to the specific shape part in addition to detecting an obstacle. In the first to third embodiments, an unmanned guided vehicle is used as an example of an unmanned traveling vehicle, but the present invention is not limited to this. The unmanned traveling vehicle may be, for example, a security robot capable of autonomous traveling, or any electrically powered unmanned traveling vehicle equipped with a rechargeable battery. [Explanation of symbols]

[0059] 10 Automated Guided Vehicle 11 Body 13(13A, 13B, 13C, 13D) Drive wheels 14 (14A, 14B, 14C, 14D) Travel motor 15 Battery 16 Charging terminal 19 Recess 23 Optical Communications Department 24 1st LRF 25 2nd LRF 26 In-vehicle controller 27 CPU 31 Light-emitting part 35 Portable communication devices 37 Charging device 39 Charging circuit section 40 Charging side controller 41 Charging Arm 42 Optical Communications Department H worker T Set elapsed time

Claims

1. A running body body, A drive wheel provided on the running body; a traction motor that drives the drive wheels; a controller for controlling the travel motor; a rechargeable battery housed in the running body; An unmanned traveling vehicle having a charging terminal connectable to a charging terminal of a charging device for charging the battery, a transition disable time period during which the traveling body cannot transition from an operable state in which power can be supplied to each unit in the traveling body to a shutdown or standby state in which power supply to each unit in the traveling body is stopped is set in advance in the controller; the controller controls the device to transition to a shutdown or standby state when a preset elapsed time has elapsed after the battery has been charged by connecting the charging terminal and the charging terminal; An unmanned vehicle characterized in that the unmanned vehicle is controlled so as not to transition to a shutdown or standby state during the transition-disabled time period.

2. The running body is provided with an alarm, 2. The unmanned vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the controller controls the alarm to notify those around that the vehicle is about to transition to a shutdown or standby state.

3. An unmanned vehicle as described in claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the set elapsed time is the time until the charge capacity of 100% when fully charged decreases to 90% when in an operable state.

4. The controller When the set elapsed time has elapsed after the battery is charged, the traveling body is detached from the charging device; 3. The unmanned mobile body according to claim 1, wherein the mobile body is controlled to transition to a shutdown or standby state after being detached from the charging device.

5. The charging device is a charging circuit section; a charging control unit that controls the charging circuit unit and is capable of communicating with the controller; 3. The unmanned vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the controller transmits a signal to the charging control unit to shut down the charging device before transitioning to a shutdown or standby state.

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