Information processing device, control method, and program

Abstract

An information processing device 10 has: a leader path planning unit 14 that sets a dynamic constraint condition for mobile bodies 20a, 20b in a formation which is controlled such that a leader mobile body 20a causes a follower mobile body 20b to follow, and a path constraint condition concerning a path for the leader mobile body 20a based on relative coordinates between the leader mobile body 20a and the follower mobile body 20b, and that generates a path for the leader mobile body 20a in such a manner as to satisfy both the path constraint condition and a waypoint condition concerning a sequence of sets of positions and time points of the leader mobile body 20a on the path; and a follower path planning unit 15 that generates a path for the follower mobile body 20b from the path for the leader mobile body 20a generated by the leader path planning unit 14.

Description

Information processing device, control method, and computer-readable recording medium

[0001] The present disclosure relates to an information processing device and control method for planning a route when multiple moving bodies move in coordination, and further to a computer-readable recording medium on which a program for realizing these is recorded.

[0002] A control method in which a small number of leader mobile units (hereinafter referred to as "leader mobile units" or "leaders") cause a large number of follower mobile units (hereinafter referred to as "follower mobile units" or "followers") to follow them is called leader-follower control. The mobile units are, for example, robots.

[0003] The advantage of leader-follower control is that if a small number of leaders are highly efficient, even if the large number of followers have low performance, they can compensate for the low performance by following the leader's instructions. By using this mechanism, it is not necessary to make all mobile units highly efficient, but only a small number of mobile units can be made highly efficient, which can reduce costs, etc.

[0004] Non-Patent Document 1 proposes a method of moving in formation, in which only the leader knows the route and moves along the route, and the followers move so as to maintain their relative positions to the leader.

[0005] Non-Patent Document 2 proposes a method of determining only the leader's route and generating follower routes (routes for followers to move in formation with the leader) from the leader's route.

[0006] Takashi Ikeda and three others, Formation Control of Nonholonomic Vehicles, IEEJ Transactions on Industrial Applications, Vol. 124, No. 8, pp. 814-819; Manabu Suzuki and four others, Leader-following Formation Navigation with Virtual Trajectories for Dynamic Multi-agents, Transactions of the Institute of Systems, Control and Information Engineers, Vol. 29, No. 8, pp. 382-389, 2016.

[0007] For example, when a mobile object travels long distances, functions such as infrared sensors and GPS to detect obstacles and measure its own position are essential. In leader-follower control, only the leader mobile object has these functions, and it determines the need to avoid obstacles, checks its own position, and measures the difference from the route. The leader then instructs the followers on future actions, such as avoidance, using a communication device. By following the leader's instructions, the followers can avoid obstacles even without detection functions.

[0008] The method proposed in Non-Patent Document 1 has the problem that the target position to be followed by the follower becomes non-smooth when, for example, the leader starts turning after moving straight ahead. Many mobile objects have movement constraints, such as the inability to make sudden turns, and are therefore unable to follow non-smooth trajectories.

[0009] In the method of Non-Patent Document 2, if the leader's route is smooth, it is guaranteed that the generated route for the follower will also be smooth. However, even if the leader's route is smooth, there may be cases where the route generated for the follower is impossible for the follower to follow.

[0010] For example, when a leader turns, the followers on the outside must move faster than the leader to maintain formation and follow the leader, while the followers on the inside must make tighter turns, or sharper turns, than the leader to maintain formation and follow the leader.

[0011] An example of an objective of the present disclosure is to provide a mechanism for planning a path that followers can follow from a leader.

[0012] In order to achieve the above object, an information processing device according to one aspect of the present disclosure is characterized by having: a leader path planning means for setting dynamic constraint conditions for each moving body in a formation in which a leader moving body is controlled to cause follower moving bodies to follow, and path constraint conditions for the leader moving body from the relative coordinates of the leader moving body and the follower moving body, and for generating a path for the leader moving body so as to satisfy both the path constraint conditions and waypoint conditions relating to a sequence of pairs of positions and times on the path of the leader moving body; and a follower path planning means for generating paths for each of the follower moving bodies from the path of the leader moving body generated by the leader path planning means.

[0013] In addition, in order to achieve the above-mentioned object, a control method in one aspect of the present disclosure is characterized in that a computer sets dynamic constraint conditions for each moving body in a formation in which a leader moving body is controlled to follow follower moving bodies, and path constraint conditions for the leader moving body from the relative coordinates of the leader moving body and the follower moving bodies, generates a path for the leader moving body so as to satisfy both the path constraint conditions and waypoint conditions related to a sequence of pairs of positions and times on the path of the leader moving body, and generates paths for each of the follower moving bodies from the path of the leader moving body generated by the leader path planning means.

[0014] Furthermore, in order to achieve the above-mentioned object, a computer-readable recording medium according to one aspect of the present disclosure is characterized in that it causes a computer to: set dynamic constraint conditions for each moving body in a formation in which a leader moving body is controlled to follow follower moving bodies, and path constraint conditions for the leader moving body from the relative coordinates of the leader moving body and the follower moving body; generate a path for the leader moving body so as to satisfy both the path constraint conditions and waypoint conditions relating to a sequence of pairs of positions and times on the path of the leader moving body; and generate paths for each of the follower moving bodies from the path of the leader moving body generated by the leader path planning means.

[0015] As described above, according to the present disclosure, a route can be planned that allows followers to follow the leader.

[0016] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of an information processing device according to a first embodiment. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating the example of the information processing device according to the first embodiment in more detail. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of relative coordinates of a leader mobile object and a follower mobile object. FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of the positional relationship between the leader mobile object and the follower mobile object. FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of the turning radius of the leader mobile object and the follower mobile object. FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of the operation of the information processing device according to the first embodiment. FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an example of a path of the leader mobile object generated in Example 1. FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating an example of a path of the follower mobile object generated in Example 1. FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating an example of a computer that realizes the first embodiment and Example 1.

[0017] (Embodiment 1) Hereinafter, an embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings. In the drawings described below, elements having the same or corresponding functions are denoted by the same reference numerals, and repeated description thereof may be omitted.

[0018] 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of an information processing device according to embodiment 1. As shown in FIG. 1, an information processing device 10 includes a leader path planning unit 14 and a follower path planning unit 15.

[0019] The leader path planning unit 14 sets dynamic constraint conditions for each of the moving bodies 20a, 20b in the formation, in which the leader moving body 20a is controlled to have the follower moving body 20b follow it, as well as path constraint conditions for the leader moving body 20a from the relative coordinates of the leader moving body 20a and the follower moving body 20b, and generates a path for the leader moving body 20a that satisfies both the path constraint conditions and waypoint conditions related to the sequence of pairs of positions and times on the path of the leader moving body 20a. The leader path planning unit 14 functions as leader path planning means.

[0020] The follower path planning unit 15 generates a path for the follower mobile unit 20b from the path for the leader mobile unit 20a generated by the leader path planning unit 14. The follower path planning unit 15 functions as a follower path planning means.

[0021] In the first embodiment, the path of the follower mobile body 20b that can follow the leader mobile body 20a can be planned from the path of the leader mobile body 20a generated as described above. The mobile bodies 20a and 20b are, for example, mobile robots, automated guided vehicles, autonomous vehicles, autonomous flying bodies, autonomous ships, etc.

[0022] 2 is a diagram for more specifically explaining an example of the information processing device according to embodiment 1. As shown in FIG. 2 , the information processing device 10 may further include a dynamic constraint acquisition unit 11, a formation coordinate acquisition unit 12, a waypoint acquisition unit 13, and a group path output unit 16.

[0023] The dynamic constraint acquisition unit 11 receives input of dynamic constraint conditions for each of the moving bodies 20 a and 20 b. The movement constraints include, for example, maximum and minimum speeds, maximum and minimum accelerations, and minimum turning radius. The minimum turning radius is the radius of a circle that the moving body can make when making a sharp turn.

[0024] The formation coordinate acquisition unit 12 accepts input of the relative coordinates of each follower mobile body 20b relative to the leader mobile body 20a. The relative coordinates (relative position) are input, for example, as (-10m, 5m). FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of the relative coordinates of the leader mobile body and the follower mobile bodies. As shown in FIG. 3, the relative coordinates mean a position 10m behind the direction of the leader mobile body 20a and 5m in a direction rotated 90 degrees counterclockwise from the direction of the leader mobile body 20a. The shape of the formation made up of the leader mobile body 20a and the follower mobile bodies 20b is determined by the relative coordinates.

[0025] The waypoint acquisition unit 13 accepts input of a sequence of pairs of coordinates (positions) and times that form the basis of the route of the leader mobile unit 20a. A pair of coordinates and times is called a waypoint. A waypoint represents a target to be reached at a specified coordinate by a specified time. By specifying these waypoints as a sequence such as [wp1, wp2, wp3, ...], it is possible to determine which points the leader mobile unit 20a should pass through.

[0026] In other words, the leader mobile unit 20a represents a rough route in which it reaches the coordinates specified by wp1 at the specified time, then reaches the coordinates specified by wp2 at the specified time, and then reaches the coordinates specified by wp3 at the specified time.

[0027] Then, in the information processing device 10 equipped with these, the dynamic constraint conditions of each moving body 20a, 20b input into the dynamic constraint acquisition unit 11, the relative coordinates of the leader moving body 20a and follower moving body 20b input into the formation coordinate acquisition unit 12, and the waypoint conditions related to the sequence of pairs of positions and times on the route input into the waypoint acquisition unit 13 are transmitted to the leader route planning unit 14, and a route for the leader moving body 20a is generated.

[0028] The group route output unit 16 outputs the route of the leader mobile unit 20a generated by the leader route planning unit 14 and the route of the follower mobile unit 20b generated by the follower route planning unit 15. However, if the leader route planning unit 14 is unable to calculate a route, the group route output unit 16 outputs a message indicating that route generation was impossible.

[0029] The following is a specific description of the configuration and functions of the leader path planning unit 14. Fig. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of the positional relationship between the leader mobile body and the follower mobile bodies, and Fig. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of the turning radii of the leader mobile body and the follower mobile bodies.

[0030] In the example shown in Figure 4, when a virtual leader mobile 21a is set at a position offset from the leader mobile 20a by a relative coordinate in the y-axis direction in a coordinate system centered on the leader mobile 20a (the direction of movement of the leader mobile 20a is the X-axis and the direction perpendicular to that is the Y-axis), the follower mobile 20b moves along a path that follows behind the virtual leader mobile 21a by -1 times the relative coordinate in the x-axis direction on the trajectory taken by the virtual leader mobile 21a. Figure 5 shows the turning radius when the leader mobile 20a makes a right turn, the turning radius of the follower mobile 20b located inside the turning of the leader mobile 20a, and the turning radius of the follower mobile 20b located outside the turning of the leader mobile 20a.

[0031] The leader path planning unit 14 generates a smooth path that satisfies the waypoints using an appropriate method, but at this time, the curvature of the path is restricted in the following manner based on the values ​​input to the dynamic constraint acquisition unit 11 and the formation coordinate acquisition unit 12. Incidentally, the curvature is the reciprocal of the turning radius.

[0032] The leader path planning unit 14 calculates the reciprocal of the sum of the minimum turning radius and the absolute value of the y-axis value of the relative coordinate to the leader mobile unit 20a (0 in the case of the leader mobile unit 20a) for each of the mobile units 20a and 20b using equation 2.

[0033]

[0034] The leader path planning unit 14 sets the minimum value of the curvature calculated for each moving body 20a, 20b as the maximum value of the curvature of the leader's path. In other words, the curvature of the leader moving body 20a's path cannot be set to be larger than this maximum value. This is a restriction on the geometric shape of the path.

[0035] The leader path planner 14 also imposes a limit on the speed. The maximum and minimum speed values ​​at each point on the path trajectory are calculated based on the values ​​input to the dynamic constraint acquirer 11 and the formation coordinate acquirer 12, using the following procedure.

[0036] That is, the maximum and minimum values ​​of the speed are calculated for any point p on the route trajectory. First, the reciprocal of the curvature of the route at point p, i.e., the turning radius, is set to r. Next, the following values ​​are calculated for each of the mobile units 20a and 20b.

[0037]

[0038]

[0039] Equation 2 is the minimum speed at point p, and Equation 3 is the maximum speed. In other words, the speed of the leader mobile body 20a at point p can only be set to a value equal to or greater than Equation 2 and equal to or less than Equation 3.

[0040] The leader path planning unit 14 also calculates the following values ​​for acceleration using the same procedure.

[0041]

[0042]

[0043] Equation 4 is the minimum acceleration at point p, and Equation 5 is the maximum acceleration. That is, the acceleration of the leader mobile body 20a at point p can only be set to a value equal to or greater than Equation 4 and equal to or less than Equation 5.

[0044] The leader path planning unit 14 calculates the constraints (curvature, speed, and acceleration) related to the path of the leader mobile unit 20a using the procedure described above. The leader path planning unit 14 calculates a path that satisfies the constraints related to the path of the leader mobile unit 20a obtained in this manner and also satisfies the waypoint conditions related to the sequence of pairs of positions and times on the path. This calculation can be performed using a normal mobile unit trajectory planning algorithm (such as Dynamic Window Approach). At this time, a virtual mobile unit model having the constraints calculated using the procedure described above is input as the mobile unit model, and a path that satisfies the constraints is calculated. However, depending on the values ​​input to the dynamic constraint acquisition unit 11 and the formation coordinate acquisition unit 12, it may be impossible to calculate a path that satisfies the waypoints.

[0045] Next, it will be explained that the group route output in the first embodiment is a route that can be followed by both the leader mobile unit 20a and the follower mobile units 20b.

[0046] First, it is clear that the leader mobile unit can follow the outputted route of the leader mobile unit 20a. Since the relative coordinates between the leader mobile unit and the leader mobile unit 20a are naturally (0,0), the values ​​calculated by Equations 1 to 5 are the reciprocal of the minimum turning radius of the leader mobile unit, the minimum speed, the maximum speed, the minimum acceleration, and the maximum acceleration. Satisfying all of these is the same as satisfying the dynamic constraints of the leader mobile unit, so the output route is one that the leader mobile unit 20a can follow.

[0047] Next, let's consider the follower mobile unit 20b. The curvature, speed, and acceleration of the path of the follower mobile unit 20b fall within the range of the curvature, speed, and acceleration of the path of the virtual leader mobile unit 21a, which is set at a position offset from the leader mobile unit 20a by the relative coordinate in the y-axis direction in the leader-centered coordinate system. This is because the follower mobile unit 20b simply follows behind the path of the virtual leader mobile unit 21a by the relative coordinate in the x-axis direction, tracing the path of the virtual leader mobile unit 21a.

[0048] 5, when the distance in the y-axis direction between the virtual leader mobile 21a and the leader mobile 20a is Y, the turning radius (the reciprocal of the curvature) of the path of the virtual leader mobile 21a is the value obtained by adding or subtracting Y from the turning radius of the path of the leader mobile 20a. Also, if the turning radius on the path of the leader mobile 20a at point p is r, the speed is v, and the acceleration is a, the virtual leader mobile 21a on the outside moves at a speed of (r+Y) / r×v and an acceleration of (r+Y) / r×a, while the virtual leader mobile 21a on the inside moves at a speed of (r-Y) / r×v (r-Y) / r×a.

[0049] To simplify the calculations, consider a situation in which the constraints on the path of the leader mobile unit 20a are determined only by the dynamic constraints of one follower mobile unit 20b. In this case, the minimum turning radius, maximum and minimum speeds, and maximum and minimum accelerations on the path output by the follower mobile unit 20b can be calculated as follows based on the above-mentioned equations 1 to 5.

[0050]

[0051]

[0052]

[0053]

[0054]

[0055] From the above calculation results, the route of the follower mobile unit 20b generated from the route of the leader mobile unit 20a generated by the leader path planning unit 14 satisfies the dynamic constraints of the follower mobile unit 20b. In reality, the leader path planning unit 14 determines the constraint conditions for the route of the leader mobile unit 20a based on the dynamic constraint conditions of multiple follower mobile units 20b, so each condition adopts the strictest condition among all the follower mobile units 20b. Therefore, a route that satisfies the dynamic constraints is generated even for follower mobile units 20b that are not adopted in the constraint conditions.

[0056] The constraints calculated by the leader path planning unit 14 may be only some of those described above, or may include other constraints. For example, it is conceivable that the minimum turning radius will have different values ​​when moving at high speed and when moving at low speed. To accommodate this condition, the dynamic constraint acquisition unit 11 may accept input of the minimum turning radius for each speed. Even in such a case, constraints can be easily set by calculating the curvature, speed, and acceleration of the virtual leader moving body 21a from the curvature, speed, and acceleration of the leader moving body 20a and then calculating the constraint conditions by reverse calculation.

[0057] [Device Operation] Next, the operation of the information processing device in the first embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. 6. FIG. 6 is a diagram for explaining an example of the operation of the information processing device in the first embodiment. In the following description, reference will be made to FIGS. 1 to 5 as appropriate. In the first embodiment, the control method is implemented by operating the information processing device. Therefore, the description of the control method in the embodiment will be replaced by the description of the operation of the information processing device below.

[0058] 6, first, the dynamic constraint acquisition unit 11 accepts and acquires input of dynamic constraint conditions for each of the mobile units 20a and 20b in the formation (step S1). The waypoint acquisition unit 13 accepts and acquires input of waypoint conditions related to a sequence of pairs of positions and times on the route of the leader mobile unit 20a (step S2). The formation coordinate acquisition unit 12 accepts and acquires input of the relative coordinates of the leader mobile unit 20a and the follower mobile units 20b (step S3).

[0059] The leader path planning unit 14 then sets dynamic constraints for each of the mobile units 20a and 20b in the formation, in which the leader mobile unit 20a controls the follower mobile unit 20b to follow, as well as path constraints for the path of the leader mobile unit 20a based on the relative coordinates of the leader mobile unit 20a and the follower mobile units 20b, and generates a path for the leader mobile unit 20a that satisfies both the path constraints and waypoint conditions for the sequence of pairs of positions and times on the path of the leader mobile unit 20a (step S4). Next, the follower path planning unit 15 generates a path for the follower mobile unit 20b from the path of the leader mobile unit 20a generated by the leader path planning unit 14 (step S5).

[0060] Next, if the leader path planning unit 14 has generated a path for the leader mobile unit 20a, the group path output unit 16 outputs the path for the leader mobile unit 20a and the paths for the follower mobile units 20b (step S6). On the other hand, if the leader path planning unit 14 has not generated a path for the leader mobile unit 20a, the group path output unit 16 does not plan paths for the followers, and outputs a message that path generation was not possible (step S7).

[0061] (Example 1) The first embodiment will be described in more detail using the following conditions as an example. (Dynamic constraint conditions) Minimum turning radius = 10 m for leader and all followers Maximum speed = 10 m / s for leader and all followers Minimum speed = 1 m / s for leader and all followers (Assuming there are no acceleration constraints) (Waypoint conditions) [Coordinates (0, 0), time 0 seconds] [Coordinates (20, 0), time 2 seconds] [Coordinates (35, 10), time 6 seconds] (Relative coordinates of follower moving bodies) Relative coordinates of follower 1 = (-5, -5) Relative coordinates of follower 2 = (-5, 3)

[0062] The leader path planning unit 14 generates a path based on the Dubins path. The Dubins path is a path consisting only of arcs with the same radius as straight lines, and is compatible with the information processing device 10, allowing for easy calculation of constraint conditions. Specifically, the leader path planning unit 14 determines the radius of the arc from the result of calculation by substituting the above conditions into Equation 1. Furthermore, the leader path planning unit 14 separates the path into straight line portions and arc portions, and determines the speed of the leader mobile unit 20a from the result of calculation by substituting the above conditions into Equations 2 and 3.

[0063] The maximum value of the curvature is the minimum value of Equation 1 for each moving body, and is therefore given by Equation 11 below.

[0064]

[0065] This is equivalent to the minimum turning radius of the leader mobile unit 20a's route being 15. In other words, the radius of the arc of the Dubins route must be 15 m or more. Here, the turning radius of the leader mobile unit 20a's route is set to 15 m.

[0066] In calculations for straight sections, the curvature is 0 and the turning radius is infinite. Therefore, if we use the property that r in equations 2 and 3 is infinite and ∞ / (∞ + constant) = 1, then equations 2 and 3 simply calculate the maximum and minimum speeds of the moving bodies. That is, the speed constraints on the path of the leader moving body 20a in the straight sections are given below. Also, from equation 11, the curvature is 1 / 15, so the speed constraints on the path of the leader moving body 20a in the arc sections are given below. Minimum speed in straight sections of the path = Minimum speed of moving body = 1 m / s Maximum speed in straight sections of the path = Maximum speed of moving body = 10 m / s Minimum speed in arc sections of the path = Minimum speed of moving body × 15 / (15-5) = 1.5 m / s Maximum speed in arc sections of the path = Maximum speed of moving body × 15 / (15+5) = 7.5 m / s

[0067] As a result of the above, constraints on the route of the leader mobile unit 20a can be determined. Next, the route of the leader mobile unit 20a is calculated so as to satisfy both the constraints on the route of the leader mobile unit 20a and the waypoint conditions on the sequence of pairs of positions and times on the route. FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an example of a route of the leader mobile unit generated in Example 1. Regarding the waypoint conditions, the shape of the route of the leader mobile unit 20a set based on the Dubins route when the radius of the arc is 15 m is as shown in FIG. 7. Next, the speed is calculated. To depart from the first waypoint coordinates (0,0) at time 0 and arrive at the second waypoint coordinates (20,0) at time 2 seconds, it is sufficient to travel along the first straight line at 20 / 2 = 10 m / s. Since 10 m / s is greater than the minimum and less than the maximum speed on the straight line, the first and second waypoints can be satisfied without violating the constraints.

[0068] The route length from the second waypoint to the third waypoint is given by the following equation (12).

[0069]

[0070] In Equation 12, the first term is the length of the arc, and the second term is the length of the straight line. If we consider moving at a constant speed along the path from the second waypoint to the third waypoint, the speed is approximately 7.14 m / s, as shown in Equation 13 below.

[0071]

[0072] This speed satisfies the constraints because it is within the maximum and minimum speeds of the straight and arc portions of the route. Therefore, the route of the leader mobile unit 20a is calculated to have the shape shown in Figure 7, with the first straight line moving at 10 m / s and the subsequent arcs and straight lines moving at 7.14 m / s.

[0073] The follower path planning unit 15 calculates the path of each follower mobile object 20b from the path of the leader mobile object 20a.

[0074] Fig. 8 is a diagram illustrating an example of a path of a follower mobile body generated in Example 1. The path of the follower mobile body 20b generated from the path of the leader mobile body 20a has a shape as shown in Fig. 8. In addition, the circles on the path of the follower mobile body 20b in Fig. 8 represent points on the path where the speed changes.

[0075] The speed of the follower moving body 20b revolving on the inside is 10 m / s before the circle, and is approximately 5.71 m / s after the circle, as shown in the following equation (14).

[0076]

[0077] On the other hand, the path of the follower moving body 20b turning on the outside is 10 m / s before the circle, and approximately 9.52 m / s after the circle, as shown in the following equation (15).

[0078]

[0079] It can be seen that the speed of both follower moving bodies 20b on the path falls within the maximum and minimum moving speeds of the moving bodies.

[0080] In this way, the information processing device 10 can generate a path for the leader mobile unit 20a and a path for the follower mobile unit 20b that can follow the leader mobile unit 20a, which is useful when moving multiple mobile units in formation using leader-follower control.

[0081] In this embodiment, a storage unit may be provided, which may be realized by storing data files constituting the above in a storage device such as a hard disk provided in the computer, or may be realized by a storage device of another computer.

[0082] Furthermore, examples of computers include general-purpose PCs, smartphones, and tablet terminal devices.

[0083] The program in this embodiment may be executed by a computer system constructed by a plurality of computers. In this case, for example, each computer may function as either the leader path planning unit 14 or the follower path planning unit 15.

[0084] [Program] The program in embodiment 1 may be any program that causes a computer to execute steps S1 to S7 shown in Fig. 6. By installing and executing this program in a computer, the information processing device and control method in embodiment 1 can be realized. In this case, the processor of the computer functions as a dynamic constraint acquisition unit 11, a formation coordinate acquisition unit 12, a waypoint acquisition unit 13, a leader path planning unit 14, a follower path planning unit 15, and a group path output unit 16, and performs processing.

[0085] The program in embodiment 1 may be executed by a computer system constructed by a plurality of computers. In this case, for example, each computer may function as one of the dynamic constraint acquisition unit 11, the formation coordinate acquisition unit 12, the waypoint acquisition unit 13, the leader path planner 14, the follower path planner 15, and the group path output unit 16.

[0086] [Physical Configuration] A computer that implements the information processing device 10 by executing a program in the first embodiment will now be described with reference to Fig. 9. Fig. 9 is a block diagram showing an example of a computer that implements the information processing device 10 in the first embodiment.

[0087] 9, the computer 110 includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 111, a main memory 112, a storage device 113, an input interface 114, a display controller 115, a data reader / writer 116, and a communication interface 117. These components are connected to each other via a bus 121 so as to be able to communicate data with each other.

[0088] Furthermore, the computer 110 may include a GPU (Graphics Processing Unit) or an FPGA (Field-Programmable Gate Array) in addition to or instead of the CPU 111. In this aspect, the GPU or FPGA can execute the programs in the embodiments.

[0089] The CPU 111 loads a program in the embodiment, which is composed of a group of codes and stored in the storage device 113, into the main memory 112 and executes each code in a predetermined order to perform various calculations. The main memory 112 is typically a volatile storage device such as a DRAM (Dynamic Random Access Memory).

[0090] The program in the embodiment is provided in a state stored in a computer-readable recording medium 120. The program in the embodiment may be distributed over the Internet connected via the communication interface 117.

[0091] Specific examples of the storage device 113 include a hard disk drive and a semiconductor storage device such as a flash memory. The input interface 114 mediates data transmission between the CPU 111 and input devices 118 such as a keyboard and a mouse. The display controller 115 is connected to a display device 119 and controls the display on the display device 119.

[0092] The data reader / writer 116 mediates data transmission between the CPU 111 and the recording medium 120, reads programs from the recording medium 120, and writes processing results from the computer 110 to the recording medium 120. The communication interface 117 mediates data transmission between the CPU 111 and other computers.

[0093] Specific examples of the recording medium 120 include general-purpose semiconductor storage devices such as CF (Compact Flash (registered trademark)) and SD (Secure Digital), magnetic recording media such as flexible disks, or optical recording media such as CD-ROMs (Compact Disk Read Only Memory).

[0094] The information processing device 10 in the embodiment can be realized not by a computer on which a program is installed, but by hardware corresponding to each unit, such as an electronic circuit. Furthermore, the information processing device 10 may be partially realized by a program and the remaining unit by hardware. In the embodiment, the computer is not limited to the computer shown in FIG. 9.

[0095] Some or all of the above-described embodiments can be expressed by (Supplementary Note 1) to (Supplementary Note 9) described below, but are not limited to the following descriptions.

[0096] (Supplementary Note 1) An information processing device having: a leader path planning means that sets dynamic constraint conditions for each moving body in a formation in which a leader moving body is controlled to have follower moving bodies follow it, and path constraint conditions for the leader moving body from the relative coordinates of the leader moving body and the follower moving body, and generates a path for the leader moving body so as to satisfy both the path constraint conditions and waypoint conditions related to a sequence of pairs of positions and times on the path of the leader moving body; and a follower path planning means that generates paths for each of the follower moving bodies from the path of the leader moving body generated by the leader path planning means.

[0097] (Supplementary Note 2) The information processing device according to Supplementary Note 1, wherein the leader path planning means calculates constraints including curvature, speed, and acceleration at any point on the path of each of the moving bodies based on the minimum turning radius, maximum and minimum speed, and maximum and minimum acceleration of each of the moving bodies, and generates a path for the leader moving body.

[0098] (Supplementary Note 3) The information processing device according to Supplementary Note 2, wherein the leader path planning means generates a path for the leader mobile body by combining straight lines and arcs based on a Dubins path.

[0099] (Supplementary Note 4) A control method in which a computer sets dynamic constraint conditions for each moving body in a formation in which a leader moving body is controlled to cause follower moving bodies to follow, and path constraint conditions for the leader moving body from the relative coordinates of the leader moving body and the follower moving body, generates a path for the leader moving body so as to satisfy both the path constraint conditions and waypoint conditions related to a sequence of pairs of positions and times on the path of the leader moving body, and generates paths for each of the follower moving bodies from the generated path of the leader moving body.

[0100] (Supplementary Note 5) The control method according to Supplementary Note 4, wherein constraints including curvature, speed, and acceleration are calculated at any point on the path of each of the moving bodies based on the minimum turning radius, maximum and minimum speed, and maximum and minimum acceleration of each of the moving bodies, and a path of the leader moving body is generated.

[0101] (Supplementary Note 6) The information processing device according to Supplementary Note 5, wherein the route of the leader mobile body is generated by combining straight lines and arcs based on a Dubins route.

[0102] (Supplementary Note 7) A computer-readable recording medium having recorded thereon a program including instructions to: set dynamic constraint conditions for each moving body in a formation in which a leader moving body is controlled to follow follower moving bodies, and path constraint conditions for the leader moving body from the relative coordinates of the leader moving body and the follower moving body; generate a path for the leader moving body so as to satisfy both the path constraint conditions and waypoint conditions related to a sequence of pairs of positions and times on the path of the leader moving body; and generate paths for each of the follower moving bodies from the generated path of the leader moving body.

[0103] (Supplementary Note 8) The computer-readable recording medium according to Supplementary Note 7, wherein constraints including curvature, speed, and acceleration are calculated at any point on the path of each of the moving bodies based on the minimum turning radius, maximum and minimum speed, and maximum and minimum acceleration of each of the moving bodies, and a path of the leader moving body is generated.

[0104] (Supplementary Note 9) The computer-readable recording medium according to Supplementary Note 8, wherein the path of the leader mobile body is generated by combining straight lines and arcs based on a Dubins path.

[0105] Although the present invention has been described above with reference to the embodiments, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments. Various modifications that can be understood by those skilled in the art can be made to the configuration and details of the present invention within the scope of the present invention.

[0106] As described above, according to the present disclosure, a route can be planned that allows followers to follow the leader.

[0107] 10 Information processing device 11 Dynamic constraint acquisition unit 12 Formation coordinate acquisition unit 13 Waypoint acquisition unit 14 Leader path planning unit 15 Follower path planning unit 16 Group path output unit 20a Leader mobile body 20b Follower mobile body 21a Virtual leader mobile body 110 Computer 111 CPU 112 Main memory 113 Storage device 114 Input interface 115 Display controller 116 Data reader / writer 117 Communication interface 118 Input device 119 Display device 120 Recording medium 121 Bus

Claims

1. a leader path planning means for setting dynamic constraints for each moving body in the formation, in which the leader moving body is controlled to cause the follower moving bodies to follow, and path constraints for the leader moving body based on the relative coordinates of the leader moving body and the follower moving body, and for generating a path for the leader moving body so as to satisfy both the path constraints and waypoint conditions for a sequence of pairs of positions and times on the path of the leader moving body; a follower path planning means for generating paths for the follower mobile units from the path of the leader mobile unit generated by the leader path planning means; An information processing device having the above.

2. the leader path planning means calculates constraints including curvature, speed and acceleration at any point on the path of each of the moving bodies based on the minimum turning radius, maximum and minimum speed and maximum and minimum acceleration of each of the moving bodies, and generates a path for the leader moving body; The information processing device according to claim 1 .

3. the leader path planning means generates a path for the leader mobile body by combining straight lines and arcs based on the Dubins path; The information processing device according to claim 2 .

4. The computer A route constraint for the leader mobile is set based on the dynamic constraints of each mobile of the formation, in which the leader mobile is controlled to make the follower mobile follow, and the relative coordinates of the leader mobile and the follower mobile, and a route for the leader mobile is generated so as to satisfy both the route constraints and waypoint conditions for a sequence of pairs of positions and times on the route of the leader mobile; generating routes for each of the follower mobiles from the generated route of the leader mobile; Control method.

5. Calculating constraints including curvature, speed, and acceleration at any point on the path of each of the moving bodies based on the minimum turning radius, maximum and minimum speed, and maximum and minimum acceleration of each of the moving bodies, and generating a path for the leader moving body. The control method according to claim 4.

6. generating a path for the leader mobile unit by combining straight lines and arcs based on the Dubins path; The control method according to claim 5 .

7. On the computer, A dynamic constraint condition for each moving body of a formation in which a leader moving body is controlled to follow a follower moving body is set, and a route constraint condition for the leader moving body is set from the relative coordinates of the leader moving body and the follower moving body, and a route for the leader moving body is generated so as to satisfy both the route constraint condition and a waypoint condition for a sequence of pairs of positions and times on the route of the leader moving body; generating routes for each of the follower mobile units from the generated route of the leader mobile unit; A program containing instructions.

8. Calculating constraints including curvature, speed, and acceleration at any point on the path of each of the moving bodies based on the minimum turning radius, maximum and minimum speed, and maximum and minimum acceleration of each of the moving bodies, and generating a path for the leader moving body. The program according to claim 7.

9. generating a path for the leader mobile unit by combining straight lines and arcs based on the Dubins path; The program according to claim 8.