Transport robot

Abstract

To provide a transfer robot that contributes to improvement in detection accuracy of a detection sensor.SOLUTION: A transfer robot (2) for transferring a transfer object of a rigid body includes: a detection sensor for detecting a peripheral environment of the transfer robot (2); a movable carriage (21); a sensor pole part (22) standing up from the movable carriage (21) to support the detection sensor; and a coupling part (25) provided in the sensor pole part (22) and coupled to a coupler part (32) of a transfer object.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a transport robot, for example, a transport robot that transports a rigid object. [Background technology]

[0002] For example, a typical autonomous mobile robot moves based on information indicating the robot's surrounding environment detected by a detection sensor mounted on the robot. In this case, it is preferable that the detection sensor is placed in a position where the detection of the surrounding environment of the robot is not obstructed when the robot moves. For example, the robot disclosed in Patent Document 1 has a detection sensor mounted on the platform of a mobile platform. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 7-281753 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] The present applicant has found the following problem: The robot of Patent Document 1 has a problem in that the detection accuracy of the detection sensor is adversely affected by the shaking of the platform while the robot is moving.

[0005] The present disclosure has been made to solve such problems, and realizes a transport robot that contributes to improving the detection accuracy of a detection sensor. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] A transport robot according to one aspect of the present disclosure is a transport robot that transports a rigid object, a detection sensor for detecting the surrounding environment of the transport robot; A mobile cart and a sensor pole portion that stands upright on the movable carriage and supports the detection sensor; a coupling portion provided on the sensor pole portion and coupled to a coupled portion of the transported object; Equipped with.

[0007] In the transport robot described above, the coupling portion is provided on the sensor pole portion and includes a pin protruding downward from the sensor pole portion or a hole extending in the vertical direction of the transport robot, and is provided on the upper end of the transported object as the coupled portion and is connected to the transport robot. thing It is preferable that the conveying member is connected to a hole extending in the vertical direction of the conveying member or a pin protruding upward from the conveying member.

[0008] In the above-mentioned transport robot, it is preferable that the coupling portion has a friction plate that protrudes from the sensor pole portion in the forward and backward directions of the transport robot, and is frictionally coupled to a friction surface provided on the upper surface of the transported object as the coupled portion.

[0009] In the above-described transport robot, it is preferable that the coupling portion includes a magnet provided on the sensor pole portion and be magnetically coupled to a magnet provided on the transported object as the coupled portion.

[0010] In the above-mentioned transport robot, the sensor pole section comprises a pole body and an installation section provided at the upper end of the pole body and on which the detection sensor is provided, and it is preferable that the pole body is a wall extending in the left-right direction of the transport robot. [Effects of the Invention]

[0011] The present disclosure makes it possible to realize a transport robot that contributes to improving the detection accuracy of a detection sensor. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0012] [Figure 1] 1A, 1B, and 1C are diagrams showing the configuration of a transfer system according to a first embodiment, in which (a) is a side view of the transfer system, (b) is a front view of the transfer system, and (c) is a rear view of the transfer system. [Figure 2]3A and 3B are diagrams for explaining the shapes of an engaging portion of the transport robot and an engaged portion of the transport platform car according to the first embodiment. [Figure 3] FIG. 10 is a rear view showing the configuration of a transport system according to another embodiment. [Figure 4] FIG. 10 is a side view showing the configuration of a transport system according to another embodiment. [Figure 5] FIG. 10 is a side view showing the configuration of a transport system according to another embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0013] Specific embodiments to which the present disclosure is applied will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings. However, the present disclosure is not limited to the following embodiments. The following description and drawings have been simplified as appropriate.

[0014] <First Embodiment> The transport system of this embodiment is suitable for transporting rigid objects by a transport robot. Figure 1 shows the configuration of the transport system of this embodiment, where (a) is a side view of the transport system, (b) is a front view of the transport system, and (c) is a rear view of the transport system.

[0015] As shown in Figures 1(a) to 1(c), the transport system 1 includes a transport robot 2 and a transport vehicle 3. The transport robot 2 transports the transport vehicle 3. The transport robot 2 includes a movable vehicle 21, a sensor pole unit 22, a first detection sensor 23, a second detection sensor 24, and a connecting unit 25.

[0016] 1(a) to 1(c), the movable carriage 21 is configured such that left and right driven wheels 21a and left and right drive wheels 21b are mounted on a base 21c, and a control unit 21d controls the left and right drive wheels 21b, and forward movement, backward movement, and turning are realized based on the rotation difference between the left and right drive wheels 21b. The base 21c may be, for example, approximately rectangular when viewed from the top and bottom, but the shape of the base 21c is not limited thereto.

[0017] 1(a) to 1(c), the movable dolly 21 is configured such that an elevator 21e is provided on a base 21c, and the elevator 21e moves up and down relative to the base 21c as a result of the control unit 21d controlling the elevator 21e. The elevator 21e may be configured to be able to raise and lower the transporting dolly 3, and may be disposed, for example, approximately in the center of the base 21c when viewed from the top and bottom. The movable dolly 21 may be configured to be autonomously controlled by the control unit 21d, for example.

[0018] 1(a) to 1(c), the sensor pole section 22 protrudes upward from the rear end of the base 21c. The sensor pole section 22 includes, for example, a pole body 22a and an installation section 22b. The pole body 22a may be, for example, a substantially rectangular shape when viewed from the top-bottom direction, and may be a wall extending in the left-right direction of the transport robot 2.

[0019] 1(a) to 1(c), the installation section 22b is fixed to the upper end of the pole body 22a. The installation section 22b may be, for example, a plate body that has a substantially rectangular shape when viewed from the top-bottom direction and extends in the left-right direction of the transport robot 2. The upper surface of the installation section 22b may be disposed substantially horizontally with the left and right driven wheels 21a and the left and right drive wheels 21b of the transport robot 2 in contact with a horizontal surface.

[0020] In this case, the width dimension in the left-right direction of the installation section 22b may be wider than the width dimension in the left-right direction of the base 21c, for example, as shown in Figures 1(b) and 1(c). Also, the front end of the installation section 22b may protrude forward from the pole main body 22a, as shown in Figure 1(a). The pole main body 22a and the installation section 22b may be symmetrical about an axis that passes through approximately the center of the base 21c in the left-right direction when viewed from the front-rear direction and extends in the up-down direction.

[0021] 1(a) to 1(c), the first detection sensor 23 is fixed to the installation portion 22b of the sensor pole portion 22 in order to detect the surrounding environment of the transport robot 2. In this case, the first detection sensor 23 is mainly used, for example, when the transport robot 2 transports the transport vehicle 3. Therefore, it is preferable that the first detection sensor 23 is placed in a position that does not interfere with the detection of the surrounding environment of the transport robot 2 when the transport vehicle 3 is transported.

[0022] 1(a) to 1(c), the present embodiment includes a right-side first detection sensor 23a and a left-side first detection sensor 23b as first detection sensors 23. The right-side first detection sensor 23a is preferably fixed to the right end of the upper surface of installation section 22b. The left-side first detection sensor 23b is preferably fixed to the left end of the upper surface of installation section 22b.

[0023] 1(a) to 1(c), the second detection sensor 24 is fixed to the base 21c in order to detect the surrounding environment of the transport robot 2. In this case, the second detection sensor 24 is mainly used, for example, when the transport robot 2 is not transporting the transport vehicle 3. Therefore, it is preferable that the second detection sensor 24 is disposed in a stable position on the transport robot 2 when the transport robot 2 is traveling without transporting the transport vehicle 3.

[0024] 1(a) to 1(c), the present embodiment includes a right-side second detection sensor 24a and a left-side second detection sensor 24b as second detection sensors 24. The right-side second detection sensor 24a is preferably fixed to the base 21c so as to protrude from the right side surface of the base 21c. The left-side second detection sensor 24b is preferably fixed to the base 21c so as to protrude from the left side surface of the base 21c.

[0025] In this case, it is preferable that the second detection sensor 24a on the right side and the second detection sensor 24b on the left side are disposed at positions where they do not interfere with the transport vehicle 3 when the transport robot 2 transports the transport vehicle 3. These first detection sensor 23 and second detection sensor 24 may be sensors used for general environmental recognition, such as an RGBD camera or Lidar.

[0026] The coupling portion 25, which will be described in detail later, is coupled to a coupled portion of the transporting carriage 3. As shown in Fig. 1(a) to Fig. 1(c), the coupling portion 25 includes a right pin 25a and a left pin 25b. The right pin 25a and the left pin 25b are arranged with a gap between them in the left-right direction.

[0027] The right-side pin 25a and the left-side pin 25b are, for example, as shown in Figures 1(b) and 1(c), pillars that protrude downward from the portion that protrudes forward from the pole body 22a at the installation portion 22b of the sensor pole portion 22.

[0028] That is, the right pin 25a and the left pin 25b extend in the vertical direction. These right pin 25a and left pin 25b may be symmetrical about an axis that passes through approximately the center of the base 21c in the horizontal direction when viewed from the front to back and that extends in the vertical direction.

[0029] The transporting vehicle 3 stores luggage in order to transport the luggage to a destination. As shown in, for example, FIGS. 1(a) to 1(c), the transporting vehicle 3 includes a carriage body 31 and a coupling portion 32. The carriage body 31 includes a storage portion 31a and casters 31b. The storage portion 31a is, for example, a box body capable of storing luggage, and is substantially rectangular when viewed from above.

[0030] 1(b) and 1(c), the left-right width of the storage section 31a should be approximately equal to the left-right width of the installation section 22b of the sensor pole section 22 of the transport robot 2. The front-rear length of the storage section 31a should be approximately equal to the front-rear length of the portion of the base 21c of the mobile carriage 21 of the transport robot 2 that is forward of the pole body 22a of the sensor pole section 22. The up-down height of the storage section 31a should be shorter than the height from the upper end of the elevator 21e of the mobile carriage 21 of the transport robot 2 to the lower end of the coupling section 25 when the elevator 21e is in the lowest position.

[0031] The casters 31b are arranged, for example, at the four corners of the storage section 31a when viewed from the top-bottom direction, and as shown in Figures 1(a) to 1(c), each caster 31b is fixed to the storage section 31a via a support 31c. In this case, the distance between adjacent support columns 31c on the left and right is wider than the width dimension in the left-right direction of the base 21c of the movable carriage 21 of the transport robot 2.

[0032] In addition, the vertical height from the lower end of the caster 31b to the underside of the storage section 31a is set to a height that allows the mobile cart 21 of the transport robot 2 to be inserted below the storage section 31a of the cart body 31 of the transport cart 3 when the elevator 21e of the mobile cart 21 of the transport robot 2 is in the lowest position.

[0033] The joinable part 32 is joined to the joining part 25 of the transport robot 2. As shown in Fig. 1(a) and Fig. 1(b), the joinable part 32 has a right hole 32a into which the right pin 25a of the transport robot 2 can be inserted, and a left hole 32b into which the left pin 25b of the transport robot 2 can be inserted, for example.

[0034] 1(a) to 1(c), the right-side hole 32a and the left-side hole 32b are formed at the rear end of the top surface of the storage section 31a of the cart main body 31, with an interval in the left-right direction that is approximately equal to the interval between the right-side pin 25a and the left-side pin 25b of the transport robot 2. The right-side hole 32a and the left-side hole 32b extend, for example, in the vertical direction, and have shapes that correspond to the inserted pins 25a, 25b.

[0035] Next, a description will be given of the flow of connecting the connecting portion 25 of the transport robot 2 and the connectable portion 32 of the transport cart 3 in this embodiment. First, with the elevator 21e of the transport cart 21 of the transport robot 2 in the lowest position, the transport cart 21 of the transport robot 2 is inserted below the storage portion 31a of the cart body 31 of the transport cart 3.

[0036] At this time, an operator may position the transport robot 2 and the transport carriage 3 so that the relative positions of the transport robot 2 and the transport carriage 3 are set to a predetermined position, or the transport robot 2 may move based on the detection result of the first detection sensor 23.

[0037] As a result, the right hole 32a of the transport vehicle 3 is positioned directly below the right pin 25a of the transport robot 2, and the left hole 32b of the transport vehicle 3 is positioned directly below the left pin 25b of the transport robot 2.

[0038] Next, the elevator 21e of the moving carriage 21 of the transport robot 2 rises to raise the transport carriage 3, and the pin 25a on the right side of the transport robot 2 is inserted into the hole 32a on the right side of the transport carriage 3, and the pin 25b on the left side of the transport robot 2 is inserted into the hole 32b on the left side of the transport carriage 3. At this time, the transport carriage 3 is supported by the transport robot 2 in a floating state.

[0039] 2 is a diagram illustrating the shapes of the engaging portion of the transport robot and the engaged portion of the transport platform in this embodiment. As shown in Fig. 2, it is preferable that engaging portions 26 each having a convex cone shape that decreases in diameter as it goes upward are formed at intervals on the upper surface of the elevator 21e of the transport robot 2.

[0040] Furthermore, a concave conical engaged portion 33 that decreases in diameter as it approaches the upper side is formed on the underside of the storage portion 31a of the carriage body 31 of the transport carriage 3, and is preferably shaped to correspond to the engaging portion 26 of the transport robot 2. The engaging portion 26 of the transport robot 2 and the engaged portion 33 of the transport carriage 3 engage with each other when the relative positions of the transport robot 2 and the transport carriage 3 are arranged near a predetermined position.

[0041] As a result, even if the relative position between the transport robot 2 and the transport cart 3 is slightly shifted from the predetermined position, when the engaging portion 26 of the transport robot 2 engages with the engaged portion 33 of the transport cart 3, the mutual conical surfaces can guide the relative position between the transport robot 2 and the transport cart 3 to the predetermined position.

[0042] Therefore, it is possible to easily couple the coupling portion 25 of the transport robot 2 and the coupled portion 32 of the transport carriage 3. In this embodiment, the engaging portion 26 of the transport robot 2 has a convex cone shape, and the coupled portion 33 of the transport carriage 3 has a concave cone shape, but the opposite configuration may also be used.

[0043] Then, the elevator 21e of the moving carriage 21 of the transport robot 2 rises further to raise the transport carriage 3, and the accommodation section 31a of the carriage body 31 of the transport carriage 3 comes into contact with the installation section 22b of the sensor pole section 22 of the transport robot 2. This completes the coupling operation between the coupling section 25 of the transport robot 2 and the coupled section 32 of the transport carriage 3.

[0044] Thereafter, the transport system 1 transports the transport vehicle 3 to the destination based on the detection result of the first detection sensor 23. On the other hand, when the transport robot 2 moves without transporting the transport vehicle 3, the transport robot 2 moves based on the detection result of the second detection sensor 24.

[0045] However, if the vibration of the transport robot 2 is small when the transport carriage 3 is not being transported, for example because the vibration of the transport robot 2 becomes large when the transport carriage 3 is supported, the transport robot 2 may move based on the detection result of the first detection sensor 23 even when the transport carriage 3 is not being transported. In this case, the second detection sensor 24 may be omitted.

[0046] In such a transport system 1, for example, when the transport robot 2 moves autonomously to transport the transport cart 3 based on the detection results of the first detection sensor 23, the connecting portion 25 of the transport robot 2 and the connected portion 32 of the transport cart 3 are connected, so that the vibration of the sensor pole portion 22 of the transport robot 2 can be suppressed and the detection accuracy of the first detection sensor 23 can be improved.

[0047] Furthermore, since the pole body 22a of the sensor pole portion 22 of the transport robot 2 in this embodiment is a wall extending in the left-right direction of the transport robot 2, it has high rigidity in the left-right direction, which can further suppress the shaking of the sensor pole portion 22 of the transport robot 2 and improve the detection accuracy of the first detection sensor 23.

[0048] In this embodiment, the installation portion 22b of the sensor pole portion 22 of the transport robot 2 is brought into contact with the accommodation portion 31a of the carriage body 31 of the transport carriage 3. In other words, the installation portion 22b of the sensor pole portion 22 of the transport robot 2 functions as a friction plate, and the upper surface of the accommodation portion 31a of the carriage body 31 of the transport carriage 3 functions as a friction surface, and by bringing them into contact with each other, it is possible to further suppress the vibration of the sensor pole portion 22 of the transport robot 2 and improve the detection accuracy of the first detection sensor 23.

[0049] However, as long as the connecting portion 25 of the transport robot 2 and the connected portion 32 of the transport cart 3 are connected, the storage portion 31a of the cart body 31 of the transport cart 3 does not have to come into contact with the installation portion 22b of the sensor pole portion 22 of the transport robot 2.

[0050] <Other embodiments> In the first embodiment, the pole body 22a of the sensor pole portion 22 of the transport robot 2 is configured as a wall extending in the left-right direction of the transport robot 2, but it may also be configured as a rod extending in the up-down direction, as shown in FIG.

[0051] The pins 25a, 25b of the transport robot 2 in the first embodiment are columns extending in the vertical direction, but may be, for example, convex conical in shape with a diameter that decreases downward, and the holes 32a, 32b of the transport vehicle 3 may be concave conical in shape corresponding to the pins 25a, 25b. This makes it possible to absorb any deviation in the relative position when the transport robot 2 is placed with respect to the transport vehicle 3. Alternatively, the coupling part 25 of the transport robot 2 may have a hole, and the coupled part 32 of the transport vehicle 3 may have a pin.

[0052] In embodiment 1, the connecting portion 25 of the transport robot 2 has pins 25a and 25b, and the coupled portion 32 of the transport cart 3 has holes 32a and 32b. However, as shown in FIG. 4, the connecting portion 25 of the transport robot 2 may have a magnet 27, and the coupled portion 32 of the transport cart 3 may have a magnet 34, so that the transport robot 2 and the transport cart 3 are magnetically coupled when they are positioned at a predetermined relative position.

[0053] Alternatively, the connecting portion 25 of the transport robot 2 may be provided with a friction plate such as rubber, and the connected portion 32 of the transport cart 3 may also be provided with a friction plate such as rubber, so that when the relative positions of the transport robot 2 and the transport cart 3 are positioned at a predetermined position, the friction plates come into contact with each other and are frictionally connected.

[0054] In other words, the means by which the connecting portion 25 of the transport robot 2 and the connected portion 32 of the transport cart 3 are connected is not limited to mechanical means, as long as a part of the transport cart 3 is in contact with the sensor pole portion 22 of the transport robot 2.

[0055] In embodiment 1, the transport cart 3 is supported in a floating state on the elevator 21e of the movable cart 21 of the transport robot 2 when the transport cart 3 is being transported, but as shown in Figure 5, when the relative positions of the transport robot 2 and the transport cart 3 are arranged at a predetermined position, the connecting pin 28, which is movable up and down on the movable cart 21 of the transport robot 2, may be inserted into an insertion hole (not shown) formed on the underside of the storage section 31a of the cart body 31 of the transport cart 3, thereby connecting the transport robot 2 to the transport robot 2.

[0056] As a result, the transporting platform 3 follows the movement of the transporting robot 2 with the casters 31b of the transporting platform 3 in contact with the ground. At this time, with the connecting pins 28 of the moving platform 21 of the transporting robot 2 inserted into the insertion holes of the accommodation section 31a of the platform body 31 of the transporting platform 3, the vibration of the sensor pole section 22 may be suppressed by bringing the sensor pole section 22 of the transporting robot 2 into contact with a contact member 35 such as rubber or a shock absorber provided in the accommodation section 31a of the platform body 31 of the transporting platform 3.

[0057] In this case, the portion of the sensor pole portion 22 of the transport robot 2 that comes into contact with the contact member 35 of the transport platform 3 becomes the coupling portion 25, and the contact member 35 of the transport platform 3 becomes the coupled portion 32. The transport robot 2 may be configured to be able to tow the transport platform 3. Furthermore, the transport object is not limited to the transport platform 3, and may be any object that can be transported by the transport robot 2, for example, any object that can be placed on the movable platform 21 of the transport robot 2.

[0058] The present disclosure is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and can be modified as appropriate within the scope of the present disclosure. [Explanation of symbols]

[0059] 1. Transport system 2 transport robot, 21 mobile cart, 22 sensor pole part, 22a pole body, 22b installation part, 23 first detection sensor, 25 connection part 3 transport vehicle, 32 coupled part

Claims

1. A transport robot that transports a rigid transport vehicle, a first detection sensor for detecting the surrounding environment of the transport robot; a movable carriage that can be inserted below a storage section of the transporting carriage in which luggage is stored; a second detection sensor provided on the movable carriage for detecting a surrounding environment of the transport robot; an elevator that raises and lowers the transporting carriage in a state where the movable carriage is inserted below the accommodation section of the transporting carriage; a sensor pole portion that stands upright on the movable carriage and supports the first detection sensor; a coupling portion provided on the sensor pole portion, the coupling portion being coupled to a coupled portion arranged in a storage portion of the transporting carriage when the elevator raises and supports the transporting carriage; Equipped with The transport robot moves based on the detection result of the first detection sensor when the transport vehicle is being transported, and moves based on the detection result of the second detection sensor when the transport vehicle is not being transported.

2. The transport robot of claim 1, wherein the coupling portion is provided on the sensor pole portion and includes a pin that protrudes downward from the sensor pole portion or a hole that extends in the vertical direction of the transport robot, and the coupled portion is provided at the upper end of the storage portion of the transport platform and is pin-coupled to a hole that extends in the vertical direction of the transport platform or a pin that protrudes upward from the storage portion of the transport platform.

3. 2. The transport robot according to claim 1, wherein the coupling portion includes a friction plate protruding from the sensor pole portion in the forward and backward directions of the transport robot, and is frictionally coupled to a friction surface provided on the upper surface of the storage portion of the transport platform as the coupled portion.

4. 2. The transport robot according to claim 1, wherein the coupling portion includes a magnet provided on the sensor pole portion, and is magnetically coupled to a magnet provided as the coupled portion in a storage portion of the transport platform.

5. 5. The transport robot according to claim 1, wherein the sensor pole portion comprises a pole body and an installation portion provided at an upper end of the pole body and on which the first detection sensor is provided, and the pole body is a wall extending in the left-right direction of the transport robot.

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