Autonomous traveling device, traveling truck, autonomous traveling method, and method for cleaning coke manufacturing equipment
Patent Information
- Authority / Receiving Office
- JP · JP
- Patent Type
- Applications
- Filing Date
- 2025-08-04
- Publication Date
- 2026-07-07
Abstract
Description
Autonomous traveling device, traveling cart, autonomous traveling method, and method for cleaning coke manufacturing equipment
[0001] The present disclosure relates to an autonomous traveling device, a traveling carriage, an autonomous traveling method, and a method for cleaning coke production equipment.
[0002] For example, in a coke plant, coal dust can fall and accumulate around the coke manufacturing equipment due to leakage from coal-loading cars or belt conveyors that load coal into the furnace. The sulfur components in the accumulated coal dust can accelerate corrosion of metal structures such as riser pipes. Furthermore, the accumulated coal dust can scatter to the surrounding area, adversely affecting the environment. Therefore, to protect the equipment and prevent dust from scattering, the accumulated coal dust around the equipment is cleaned and removed. However, the work of cleaning and removing coal dust accumulated around the equipment is heavy physical labor performed in a dusty environment, and it is also dangerous work that poses the risk of inhaling dust.
[0003] To reduce the burden of the coal dust cleaning and removal work, it is conceivable to autonomously operate a traveling carriage equipped with a cleaning member to perform the cleaning work. To autonomously operate the traveling carriage, data is used to measure the position and shape of obstacles around the traveling carriage using a range measurement device such as a LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) sensor. If noise is included in the measurement data of the range measurement device, the obstacle may be erroneously detected, hindering autonomous traveling. Patent Document 1 discloses a method for removing noise from measurement data of the range measurement device, in which measurement data within a predetermined range is removed as noise. Patent Document 2 also discloses a method for determining and removing measurement data as noise based on the difference in reflection intensity with objects located in the background.
[0004] JP 2023-136097 A JP 2014-179762 A
[0005] It is difficult to apply the noise removal methods disclosed in Patent Documents 1 and 2 to measurement data from a range measurement device in a dusty environment, such as the vicinity of a coke manufacturing facility, for the following reasons. First, the method described in Patent Document 1 is effective for removing noise that is reflected in a predetermined location, such as the wheels of a traveling device. However, it is difficult to remove noise that is reflected in an undefined location, such as dust. Furthermore, the method described in Patent Document 2 is effective for detecting noise when the background is fixed due to a fixed measuring device such as a camera, because the intensity of light reflected from the background is approximately proportional to the distance. However, when the traveling vehicle moves and the background is constantly changing, the intensity of light reflected from the background changes, making it difficult to detect noise with high accuracy. Even when noise caused by a dusty environment occurs in the measurement data, it is necessary to enable the traveling vehicle to autonomously travel stably and efficiently perform dust cleaning and removal work.
[0006] In view of the above facts, the present disclosure aims to provide an autonomous driving device and an autonomous driving method that can enable a traveling cart to travel stably and autonomously even when noise caused by a dusty environment occurs in the measurement data, a traveling cart that can travel stably and autonomously, and a cleaning method for coke manufacturing equipment that can efficiently perform dust cleaning and removal work.
[0007] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure (1), an autonomous driving device causes a traveling platform moving within a designated area to autonomously drive. The autonomous driving device acquires obstacle measurement information including at least one data set linking the intensity of reflected light from each of a plurality of directions of light emitted from the traveling platform in a plurality of surrounding directions, the direction in which the reflected light occurs as seen from the traveling platform, and the distance from the traveling platform to the position where the reflected light occurs. The autonomous driving device sets a threshold based on the maximum value of the intensity of the reflected light included in the obstacle measurement information. The autonomous driving device generates noise-removed information by removing data sets from the obstacle measurement information in which the intensity of the reflected light is equal to or less than the threshold. The autonomous driving device calculates the position of the traveling platform based on the noise-removed information and position information of an obstacle within the designated area. The autonomous driving device controls the traveling platform to autonomously drive the traveling platform based on the position of the traveling platform.
[0008] (2) When the obstacle measurement information includes multiple data sets that detect multiple reflected light beams generated in the same direction, the autonomous driving device described in (1) above may generate the noise-removed information by removing from the obstacle measurement information all of the multiple data sets in the same direction except for the data set that is linked to the intensity of the reflected light beam from the farthest position.
[0009] (3) The autonomous driving device described in (1) or (2) above may be equipped with a range measurement device that emits light in multiple directions around the traveling vehicle and detects the reflected light from each of the multiple directions to generate the obstacle measurement information.
[0010] (4) A traveling carriage according to an embodiment of the present disclosure includes the autonomous traveling device according to any one of (1) to (3) above, a range measurement device, and a drive device. The range measurement device acquires the obstacle measurement information. The drive device drives the traveling carriage under control of the autonomous traveling device.
[0011] (5) The traveling carriage described in (4) above further includes a cleaning device that cleans the deposits located within the designated area.
[0012] (6) An autonomous driving method according to one embodiment of the present disclosure is a method for autonomously driving a traveling vehicle moving within a designated area. The autonomous driving method includes a step of acquiring obstacle measurement information including at least one data set linking, of light emitted from the traveling vehicle in a plurality of surrounding directions, the intensity of reflected light from each of the plurality of directions, the direction in which the reflected light occurs as seen from the traveling vehicle, and the distance from the traveling vehicle to the position in which the reflected light occurs. The autonomous driving method includes a step of the autonomous driving device setting a threshold based on the maximum value of the reflected light intensity included in the obstacle measurement information. The autonomous driving method includes a step of the autonomous driving device generating noise-removed information by removing from the obstacle measurement information a data set in which the reflected light intensity is equal to or less than the threshold. The autonomous driving method includes a step of the autonomous driving device calculating a position of the traveling vehicle based on the noise-removed information and position information of an obstacle within the designated area. The autonomous driving method includes a step of controlling the traveling vehicle to autonomously drive the traveling vehicle based on the position of the traveling vehicle.
[0013] (7) In the step of generating the noise removal information of the autonomous driving method described in (6) above, if the obstacle measurement information includes multiple data sets in which the autonomous driving device has detected multiple reflected light beams generated in the same direction, the noise removal information may be generated by removing from the obstacle measurement information all data sets in the same direction other than the data set associated with the intensity of reflected light from the farthest position.
[0014] (8) A method for cleaning a coke production facility according to one embodiment of the present disclosure includes a step of autonomously driving the traveling carriage in a coke production facility including the designated area by the autonomous driving device executing the autonomous driving method described in (6) or (7) above. The method for cleaning a coke production facility includes a step of controlling, by the autonomous driving device, a cleaning device provided on the traveling carriage that cleans deposits located in the designated area. The method for cleaning a coke production facility includes at least one of a step of accumulating, by the autonomous driving device, the deposits at an accumulation position within the designated area, or a step of depositing the accumulated deposits at a predetermined location in the coke production facility.
[0015] According to the present disclosure, there are provided an autonomous driving device and an autonomous driving method that enable a traveling cart to travel stably and autonomously even when noise caused by a dusty environment occurs in the measurement data, a traveling cart that can travel stably and autonomously, and a cleaning method for coke manufacturing equipment that can efficiently perform dust cleaning and removal work.
[0016] 7 is a schematic diagram showing an example configuration of a traveling bogie according to the present disclosure. FIG. 8 is a block diagram showing an example configuration of a traveling bogie according to the present disclosure. FIG. 9 is a block diagram showing an example configuration of a calculation device. FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of a path along which light emitted from a range measurement device is reflected. FIG. 11 is a graph showing an example of the reflection intensity of reflected light detected by the range measurement device. FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing an example procedure of an autonomous traveling method according to the present disclosure. FIG. 12 is a diagram showing an example configuration of a traveling area of a traveling bogie. FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of a path along which the traveling bogie travels in the traveling area of FIG. 7 by executing the autonomous traveling method according to the present disclosure. FIG. 14 is a diagram showing an example of a path along which the traveling bogie travels in the traveling area of FIG. 7 by executing an autonomous traveling method according to a comparative example.
[0017] Hereinafter, embodiments of an autonomous driving device, an autonomous driving method, and a cleaning method according to the present disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings. The drawings are schematic and may differ from the actual device. Furthermore, the following embodiments exemplify devices or methods for embodying the technical ideas of the present disclosure, and are not intended to limit the configuration to those described below. In other words, the technical ideas of the present disclosure can be modified in various ways within the technical scope described in the claims.
[0018] (Embodiment) A traveling vehicle 1 (see FIG. 1) according to the present disclosure autonomously travels in a designated area included in a coke production facility or the like, and cleans coal powder and the like that has accumulated in the designated area.
[0019] The autonomous driving device and autonomous driving method according to the present disclosure autonomously drive a traveling vehicle (1) while passing through multiple waypoints within a designated area. When the traveling vehicle (1) autonomously drives from one waypoint to the next, the autonomous driving device and autonomous driving method estimate the self-position of the traveling vehicle (1), generate waypoint information based on pre-stored obstacle position information within the designated area, designated area information, and final destination point information, calculate a travel path of the traveling vehicle (1) to the next waypoint based on the estimated self-position of the traveling vehicle (1) and the generated waypoint information, and autonomously drive the traveling vehicle (1) along the calculated travel path to the next waypoint. The autonomous driving device and autonomous driving method set a threshold for obstacle measurement information used to estimate the self-position of the traveling vehicle (1) based on the maximum reflected light intensity included in the obstacle measurement information, and remove obstacle measurement information with reflected light intensity below the threshold as noise. Furthermore, when multiple reflected light beams from the same direction are detected, the autonomous driving device and autonomous driving method retain only obstacle position information including the detection result of reflected light from the farthest point. In other words, the autonomous traveling device and the autonomous traveling method remove, as noise, obstacle position information that includes the detection results of reflected light from points other than the farthest point.
[0020] The autonomous driving device and autonomous driving method according to the present disclosure acquire obstacle measurement information by emitting light from the traveling vehicle 1 in multiple directions around the traveling vehicle and measuring the reflected light. The obstacle measurement information includes data correlating the direction of the point where the reflected light occurs as seen from the traveling vehicle 1, the time from when the light is emitted until the reflected light arrives, i.e., the distance from the traveling vehicle 1 to the point where the reflected light occurs, and the intensity of the reflected light. The autonomous driving device and autonomous driving method according to the present disclosure may perform the following procedures to acquire the obstacle measurement information: The autonomous driving device and autonomous driving method emit light in multiple directions and measure the reflected light from each direction. The emission of light and the measurement of the reflected light in each direction are performed at regular intervals. The autonomous driving device and autonomous driving method generate a dataset linking the direction of the point where the reflected light occurs, the distance to the point where the reflected light occurs, and the reflected light intensity. The obstacle measurement information includes a dataset corresponding to each direction or each distance. The autonomous driving device and autonomous driving method calculate a threshold by multiplying the strongest reflected light intensity among the measured reflected light intensities by a predetermined ratio. The predetermined percentage may be, for example, 10% to 30%. The autonomous driving device and autonomous driving method may calculate the threshold only once when the obstacle measurement information is measured for the first time at the start of the traveling vehicle 1, or may calculate the threshold for each measurement period. The threshold may be set in advance. The autonomous driving device and autonomous driving method consider a data set in which reflected light intensity below the threshold is linked to direction and distance as noise and remove it from the obstacle measurement information.
[0021] The autonomous mobile device and autonomous mobile method according to the present disclosure can improve the accuracy of obstacle measurement even in dusty environments such as those around coke production facilities by acquiring obstacle measurement information using the procedures described above. Furthermore, by improving the accuracy of obstacle measurement, the autonomous mobile device and autonomous mobile method according to the present disclosure can prevent the traveling vehicle 1 from stopping during autonomous travel due to an erroneous determination of an obstacle caused by a dusty environment in which coal powder and the like are scattered, when the traveling vehicle 1 is traveling autonomously in a designated area. Since the traveling vehicle 1 does not stop during autonomous travel, cleaning of the designated area is efficiently performed. Therefore, the autonomous mobile device and autonomous mobile method according to the present disclosure are suitable for cleaning coke production facilities where coal powder and the like accumulates, and can efficiently and appropriately perform cleaning and removal work of the deposits.
[0022] Below, the traveling carriage 1 according to the present disclosure, an example configuration and operation of an autonomous traveling device that causes the traveling carriage 1 to travel autonomously, and an example procedure for an autonomous traveling method that causes the traveling carriage 1 to travel autonomously will be described.
[0023] <Configuration example of traveling cart 1> As shown in Figures 1 and 2, the traveling cart 1 according to the present disclosure includes a housing 10, a drive device 11, a calculation device 3, a movement amount detection device 4, a range measurement device 2, a recording device 12, an actuator 13, and a scraper 7.
[0024] The drive device 11 includes a rotating body for traveling such as a wheel or a caterpillar, a drive source such as a motor or an engine that drives the rotating body for rotation, or a steering means for the rotating body for traveling. In the example of Fig. 1, the drive device 11 is represented as a wheel. The wheel of the drive device 11 may be replaced with another means such as a caterpillar.
[0025] The movement amount detection device 4 detects the movement amount of the traveling carriage 1 from the operation amount of the drive device 11. The movement amount detection device 4 may be configured to include, for example, an encoder or the like that detects the number of rotations or the rotation angle of the traveling rotor.
[0026] The scraper 7 is configured to scrape up deposits 15 on the road surface 14 by the traveling carriage 1 traveling autonomously with the lower end surface of the scraper 7 in close contact with the road surface 14. The scraper 7 includes a plate-like or wall-like dozer member extending in a direction perpendicular to the traveling direction, i.e., along the width direction, ahead of the traveling direction of the traveling carriage 1, and a resin brush located in the portion that contacts the road surface 14.
[0027] The actuator 13 holds the scraper 7 so that it can move up and down, i.e., in a direction toward and away from the road surface 14. The actuator 13 may be configured to include a motor, a piezoelectric device, or the like for moving the scraper 7. The actuator 13 may be configured to include, for example, a rotary actuator, a linear motor, or a hydraulic cylinder. The actuator 13 moves the scraper 7 and can adjust the position or angle of the scraper 7 so that the scraper 7 scrapes up the deposits 15 when the traveling carriage 1 travels on the road surface 14.
[0028] The actuator 13 drives the scraper 7 by moving the scraper 7 in the vertical direction so that the scraper 7 comes into contact with or moves away from the road surface 14. The actuator 13 may also drive the scraper 7 to constantly press the scraper 7 against the road surface 14 while the scraper 7 is in contact with the road surface 14, so that the lower end of the scraper 7 is in close contact with the road surface 14. When the deposits 15 to be cleaned are coal powder, the actuator 13 does not need to control the force with which the scraper 7 is pressed against the road surface 14, but may be configured to be able to control the force with which the scraper 7 is pressed against the road surface 14 depending on the particle size or density of the deposits 15.
[0029] The main body of the scraper 7 may be typically made of a metal plate-like member or the like. At least a part of the lower end of the scraper 7 that comes into contact with the road surface 14 is preferably made up of a resin or metal brush or a rubber flat plate or the like to facilitate scraping up the deposits 15 on the road surface 14. In particular, the scraper 7 is preferably made up of a material having a particle size of 1 mm or less and a bulk density of 1.0 g / cm. ３When scraping up deposits 15 having a small particle size and bulk density, such as coal powder described below, it is effective for efficiently collecting the deposits 15 if at least a portion of the lower end of the scraper 7 includes a resin or metal brush or a rubber flat plate, etc. However, depending on the characteristics of the road surface 14, such as the unevenness, or the particle size or density of the deposits 15, a resin or metal flat plate, etc. may also be used.
[0030] The cleaning device equipped with the scraper 7 and actuator 13 as described above can reliably and efficiently scrape up the deposits 15 on the road surface 14 by running with the lower end of the scraper 7 in close contact with the road surface 14 by the actuator 13, and can move the scraped up deposits 15 to a predetermined location and accumulate them. In addition, because the scraper 7 can move up and down, when cleaning is not being performed, the traveling carriage 1 can be run with the lower end of the scraper 7 away from the road surface 14.
[0031] The traveling carriage 1 according to the present disclosure accumulates the pile 15 scraped up by the scraper 7 at a predetermined accumulation position 70 (see FIG. 7 , etc.) within a designated area. Therefore, the traveling carriage 1 according to the present disclosure does not include a suction mechanism or a storage mechanism for the pile 15. The traveling carriage 1 may include a suction mechanism or a storage mechanism for the pile 15.
[0032] The traveling vehicle 1 may be equipped with various work tools in addition to or instead of the scraper 7. For example, the traveling vehicle 1 may be equipped with a sprinkler device that sprinkles a cleaning liquid such as water, an arm that lifts an object such as a cover for an inlet for deposits in a designated area, an inspection camera, or a sensor such as a thermometer or a gas monitor. The actuator 13 may drive the work tool such as the sprinkler device or the arm to move between an in-use position and a non-use position.
[0033] The range measurement device 2 measures the direction of obstacles located around the traveling vehicle 1 as seen from the traveling vehicle 1 and the distance from the traveling vehicle 1 while the traveling vehicle 1 is traveling, and generates obstacle measurement information. The range measurement device 2 may capture images of the area around the traveling vehicle 1 to generate information on the two-dimensional or three-dimensional shapes of surrounding obstacles. The obstacle measurement information is position information of the obstacles. Obstacles are objects that may obstruct the traveling of the traveling vehicle 1 when the traveling vehicle 1 autonomously travels within a designated area, and may include, but are not limited to, structures, structural parts of buildings, equipment, or other objects. The position information of the objects may be expressed, for example, in planar coordinates set on the road surface 14 of the designated area. The range measurement device 2 may be configured to include at least one type of sensor, such as a laser distance meter, a laser range finder, a LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) sensor, or an infrared sensor. A two-dimensional or three-dimensional laser range finder may be used from the perspective of measurement accuracy, etc.
[0034] The range measurement device 2 is configured to emit light in a predetermined direction and detect the reflected light to determine the direction in which an obstacle exists, and to measure the distance to the obstacle based on the time between emitting the light and detecting the reflected light, thereby acquiring the direction and distance to the obstacle. The direction of the obstacle may be expressed as an angle with respect to a reference direction set on the road surface 14. In the present disclosure, the positive x-axis direction (see FIG. 7 , etc.) is set as the reference direction. The range measurement device 2 emits light in multiple directions and measures the reflected light from each direction. The emission of light in each direction and the measurement of the reflected light may be performed at regular intervals. The range measurement device 2 generates a dataset linking the direction of the point where the reflected light occurred, the distance to the point where the reflected light occurred, and the reflected light intensity. The obstacle measurement information is generated as information including a dataset corresponding to each direction or each distance.
[0035] The obstacle measurement information is used by the calculation device 3 to estimate the self-position of the traveling vehicle 1, as will be described later. The range measurement device 2 may be configured to generate the obstacle measurement information in real time. For example, the range measurement device 2 may generate the obstacle measurement information in time for the calculation device 3 to estimate the self-position of the traveling vehicle 1 in order to determine the next operation of the traveling vehicle 1. Conversely, the calculation device 3 may estimate the self-position of the traveling vehicle 1 after waiting for the generation of the obstacle measurement information by the range measurement device 2.
[0036] The recording device 12 records various information for autonomously driving the traveling carriage 1. The recording device 12 may be configured to include, for example, an electromagnetic recording medium such as a hard disk drive (HDD) or a semiconductor memory, but is not limited to this.
[0037] The arithmetic device 3 may be configured to include at least one processor, such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit) or a GPU (Graphics Processing Unit). Each component of the arithmetic device 3 may be configured with one processor or multiple processors. The processor constituting the arithmetic device 3 may realize the functions of the traveling carriage 1 by reading and executing a program stored in a storage unit described later.
[0038] The arithmetic device 3 may include a memory unit. The memory unit stores various types of information or data. The memory unit may store, for example, a program executed by the arithmetic device 3, or data or processing results used in processing executed by the arithmetic device 3. The memory unit may also function as a work memory for the arithmetic device 3. The memory unit may include, but is not limited to, a semiconductor memory. For example, the memory unit may be configured as an internal memory of a processor used as the arithmetic device 3, or as a hard disk drive (HDD) accessible from the arithmetic device 3. The memory unit may be configured as a non-transitory readable medium. The memory unit may be configured integrally with the arithmetic device 3 or may be configured separately from the arithmetic device 3. If the traveling bogie 1 includes a recording device 12, the arithmetic device 3 may cause the memory unit to function as the recording device 12. The memory unit of the arithmetic device 3 and the recording device 12 may be configured integrally or separately.
[0039] The arithmetic device 3 may include a communication unit. The communication unit may include a communication interface for communicating with other devices via a wired or wireless connection. The communication interface may be configured to communicate with other devices via a network. The communication unit may include an input / output port for inputting and outputting data to and from other devices. The communication unit transmits and receives necessary data and signals to and from a process computer or a higher-level system. The communication unit may communicate based on a wired communication standard or a wireless communication standard. For example, the wireless communication standard may include cellular phone communication standards such as 3G, 4G, and 5G. Furthermore, for example, the wireless communication standard may include IEEE 802.11 and Bluetooth (registered trademark). The communication unit may support one or more of these communication standards. The communication unit is not limited to these examples and may communicate with other devices or input and output data based on various standards. The communication unit may be configured integrally with the arithmetic device 3 or separately from the arithmetic device 3.
[0040] The arithmetic unit 3 may be configured to include an input device that accepts input of information or data from a human. The input device may be configured to include, for example, a touch panel or touch sensor, or a pointing device such as a mouse. The input device may be configured to include physical keys. The input device may be configured to include an audio input device such as a microphone. The arithmetic unit 3 may be configured to be connectable to an external input device. The arithmetic unit 3 may be configured to be able to acquire information or data input to the external input device from the external input device.
[0041] As shown in Fig. 3, the calculation device 3 includes a self-position estimation unit 40, a waypoint information generation unit 41, a route generation unit 42, and a control unit 43. The calculation device 3 controls the drive device 11 to cause the traveling vehicle 1 to travel autonomously in a designated area. The calculation device 3 is also called an autonomous traveling device because it causes the traveling vehicle 1 to travel autonomously. In this configuration example, it is assumed that the designated area is an area of the coke production facility to be cleaned. Various other areas may also be designated as the designated area.
[0042] The calculation device 3 is connected to each component of the traveling carriage 1 as shown in Figure 2 or Figure 3, is configured to be able to acquire information or data from each component of the traveling carriage 1, and is configured to be able to control each component of the traveling carriage 1.
[0043] The self-position estimation unit 40 of the calculation device 3 acquires obstacle position information within the specified area from the recording device 12, acquires obstacle measurement information from the range measurement device 2, and estimates the self-position of the traveling bogie 1 based on the obstacle position information and the obstacle measurement information.
[0044] The obstacle position information is position information of obstacles that are already known to exist within the specified area. The obstacle position information may include map information created in advance for the specified area. The obstacle position information may include information obtained by measurement using the range measurement device 2 when the traveling vehicle 1 travels within the specified area. The obstacle position information may include information obtained by measurement using a device other than the range measurement device 2. Here, an example of a method for creating the obstacle position information using a device other than the range measurement device 2 is a method using a 3D shape measurement device such as a 3D scanner. Specifically, the obstacle position information may be created by scanning the 3D shape of the specified area using a 3D shape measurement device separate from the traveling vehicle 1, creating a 3D CAD model from the scan data, and performing a simulation using a cross-sectional shape at a specific height or the 3D CAD model. In this way, creating the obstacle position information using a 3D shape measurement device can reduce measurement errors compared to creating the obstacle position information using the range measurement device 2 of the traveling vehicle 1. Furthermore, compared to using pre-given map information, accurate obstacle location information can be created by reflecting information that is not reflected in the map information, such as equipment installed after the map information was created or deformation of obstacles due to aging.
[0045] In this configuration example, the obstacle position information is stored in advance in the recording device 12, but it may also be acquired by communication from a device connected externally to the traveling carriage 1.
[0046] The self-position estimation unit 40 may estimate the self-position of the traveling bogie 1 by comparing the obstacle position information with the obstacle measurement information. The self-position estimation unit 40 may use a SLAM (Simultaneous Localization And Mapping) algorithm using a Kalman filter, an extended Kalman filter, a particle filter, a Bayes filter, or the like as a method for estimating the self-position of the traveling bogie 1. In particular, it is preferable to estimate the self-position of the traveling bogie 1 using a particle filter based on the SLAM algorithm. Furthermore, when estimating the self-position using the SLAM algorithm, the self-position estimation unit 40 can estimate the self-position of the traveling bogie 1 with high accuracy while reducing the calculation load by combining odometry using a movement amount detection device 4 such as a wheel encoder with the obstacle position information and the obstacle measurement information. In addition, the self-position estimation unit 40 may estimate the self-position of the traveling carriage 1 based on positioning information from a GPS (Global Positioning System) or information output from an IMU (Inertial Measurement Unit), instead of odometry using the movement amount detection device 4.
[0047] Here, the obstacle measurement information may contain noise. For example, as shown in FIG. 4 , when the range measurement device 2 emits measurement light from the traveling vehicle 1 and measures reflected light in a dusty environment 64, not only reflected light from an actual obstacle 60 located a distance D2 from the traveling vehicle 1 but also reflected light from a virtual obstacle 62 caused by dust located a distance D1 from the traveling vehicle 1 in the dusty environment 64 may occur, resulting in the false detection of a virtual obstacle 62 that does not actually exist. Information on the measured reflected light from the virtual obstacle 62 is included as noise in the obstacle measurement information. The inclusion of noise in the obstacle measurement information reduces the accuracy of the self-position estimation unit 40 estimating the self-position of the traveling vehicle 1.
[0048] The self-position estimation unit 40 may remove noise from the obstacle measurement information. The self-position estimation unit 40 may set a threshold based on the maximum value of the reflected light intensity included in the obstacle measurement information, and remove, as noise, obstacle measurement information having a reflected light intensity equal to or less than the threshold. Information obtained by removing noise from the obstacle measurement information is also referred to as noise-removed information. In other words, the self-position estimation unit 40 may remove noise from the obstacle measurement information to generate noise-removed information.
[0049] For example, in the graph of reflected light intensity shown in FIG. 5 , the self-position estimation unit 40 extracts the reflected light intensity from the actual obstacle 60, which is at a distance D2 from the traveling vehicle 1, as the maximum value. In this case, the self-position estimation unit 40 sets a value obtained by multiplying the maximum value of the reflected light intensity by a predetermined ratio as the threshold. Here, the reflected light intensity from the virtual obstacle 62, which is at a distance D1 from the traveling vehicle 1, is equal to or less than the threshold. The self-position estimation unit 40 removes, as noise, data sets associated with reflected light intensities equal to or less than the threshold from the obstacle measurement information. In this way, data sets measuring reflected light from the virtual obstacle 62 are removed as noise from the obstacle measurement information. The self-position estimation unit 40 removes noise from the obstacle measurement information to generate noise-removed information, and estimates the self-position of the traveling vehicle 1 based on the noise-removed information, thereby improving the estimation accuracy of the self-position of the traveling vehicle 1.
[0050] In a dusty environment 64, even if a portion of the measurement light is reflected by a virtual obstacle 62, the unreflected measurement light reaches the actual obstacle 60. On the other hand, the measurement light that reaches the actual obstacle 60 is blocked by the obstacle 60 and therefore does not reach points farther than the obstacle 60. In other words, since reflected light does not occur at points farther than the obstacle 60, when multiple reflected lights are detected from the same direction, it is highly likely that the reflected light from the farthest point was generated by reflection from the actual obstacle 60. Therefore, when multiple reflected lights are detected from the same direction, the self-position estimation unit 40 may leave in the obstacle measurement information only the data set associated with the reflected light intensity from the farthest point among the data sets associated with the reflected light intensity from the same direction. In other words, the self-position estimation unit 40 may remove data sets associated with the reflected light intensity from points other than the farthest point as noise from the obstacle position information.
[0051] The waypoint information generating unit 41 of the computing device 3 generates waypoint information when the traveling vehicle 1 is autonomously traveling. The waypoint information represents points that the traveling vehicle 1 passes through when autonomously traveling within the traveling area of the traveling vehicle 1. The waypoint information generating unit 41 generates the waypoint information based on obstacle position information within the designated area, the designated area information, and final destination point information. The designated area information may include information identifying the outer edge of the designated area. The outer edge of the designated area may be represented by planar coordinates set on the road surface 14 of the designated area. The final destination point information is position information of a point to which the traveling vehicle 1 will ultimately arrive to complete a predetermined task. In this configuration example, the predetermined task is cleaning work to rake up deposits 15 on the road surface 14 of the designated area, but is not limited to this. If the predetermined task is cleaning work to rake up deposits 15, the final destination point may be, but is not limited to, a predetermined collection position 70 (see FIG. 7, etc.) for collecting the collected deposits 15. In this configuration example, if the obstacle position information, the designated area information, and the final target point information are stored in the recording device 12 in advance, they may be acquired from the recording device 12, or they may be acquired by communication from a device connected to the outside of the traveling carriage 1. The designated area information and the final target point information may be information prepared in advance as map information of the designated area, or may be information measured in advance using the range measurement device 2 or a device other than the range measurement device 2.
[0052] The waypoint information generating unit 41 generates waypoint information so that the traveling carriage 1 can efficiently scrape up the piles 15 from the entire designated area and accumulate them at the accumulation position 70. Specifically, based on the obstacle position information, the designated area information, and the final target point information, the waypoint information generating unit 41 determines the positions of the waypoints of the traveling carriage 1, the turning angles that represent the attitude of the traveling carriage 1 at each waypoint, and the operation of the actuator 13 that drives the scraper 7, and generates the waypoint information.
[0053] The way point information generating unit 41 may store the generated way point information in the recording device 12 .
[0054] As shown in Table 1 below, the waypoint information may be generated as a list of the position coordinates of each waypoint, the turning angle θ representing the attitude of the traveling vehicle 1 at each waypoint, and the operation of the actuator 13 that drives the scraper 7, arranged in the order in which the traveling vehicle 1 travels. Each waypoint is represented by Pi (i = 0 to 37). P0 is the initial position of the traveling vehicle 1. The position coordinates of each waypoint are represented as x and y coordinates on the road surface 14 on which the traveling vehicle 1 travels. The position coordinates of each waypoint are set with the position coordinate of P0 as the origin. The turning angle θ of the traveling vehicle 1 at each waypoint is represented as the angle of the direction in which the scraper 7 of the traveling vehicle 1 turns with respect to the positive direction of the x-axis when the traveling vehicle 1 autonomously travels from the previous waypoint toward that waypoint. When the turning angle is 0 degrees, the traveling vehicle 1 autonomously travels with the scraper 7 of the traveling vehicle 1 facing in the positive direction of the x-axis. When the turning angle is 90 degrees, the traveling carriage 1 autonomously travels with the scraper 7 of the traveling carriage 1 facing in the positive direction of the y-axis. When the turning angle is 180 degrees, the traveling carriage 1 autonomously travels with the scraper 7 of the traveling carriage 1 facing in the negative direction of the x-axis. When the turning angle is 270 degrees, the traveling carriage 1 autonomously travels with the scraper 7 of the traveling carriage 1 facing in the negative direction of the y-axis. The operation m of the actuator 13 at each waypoint is 0 when the scraper 7 is not raised to scrape up the deposits 15 when the traveling carriage 1 autonomously travels from the immediately previous waypoint toward that waypoint, and is 1 when the scraper 7 is lowered to scrape up the deposits 15 on the road surface 14.
[0055]
[0056] The waypoint information exemplified in Table 1 includes information on P0, which is the initial position of the traveling carriage 1, and information on 37 waypoints P1 to P37 that the traveling carriage 1 travels through. The number of waypoints is not limited to 37, and may be 36 or less, or 38 or more.
[0057] The path generation unit 42 of the calculation device 3 generates a travel path for the traveling vehicle 1 based on the self-position of the traveling vehicle 1 and information on the next way point for the traveling vehicle 1. The path generation unit 42 may determine whether an obstacle exists between the self-position of the traveling vehicle 1 and the next way point based on the obstacle measurement information, and if an obstacle exists, generate a path for traveling to the next way point while avoiding the obstacle. If the path generation unit 42 cannot generate a travel path due to an obstacle existing between the self-position of the traveling vehicle 1 and the next way point, it may notify the control unit 43 that the travel path cannot be generated.
[0058] The control unit 43 of the computing device 3 controls the drive unit 11 to cause the traveling carriage 1 to travel autonomously along the travel route. The control unit 43 also controls the actuator 13 to cause the scraper 7 to scrape up deposits 15 on the road surface 14 while the traveling carriage 1 is traveling.
[0059] The route generation unit 42 and the control unit 43 generate a travel route for the traveling carriage 1 and repeat the operation of causing the traveling carriage 1 to travel autonomously along the travel route at each waypoint. The route generation unit 42 and the control unit 43 cause the traveling carriage 1 to travel autonomously until the traveling carriage 1 reaches the final target point.
[0060] When the traveling vehicle 1 travels autonomously, for example, after the traveling vehicle 1 reaches the ith way point (Pi), the calculation device 3 repeatedly causes the traveling vehicle 1 to travel autonomously to the i+1th way point (Pi+1) as the next movement target. The calculation device 3 may cause the traveling vehicle 1 to travel autonomously until the traveling vehicle 1 reaches the last jth way point. The calculation device 3 may also cause the traveling vehicle 1 to travel autonomously so that the traveling vehicle 1 returns to its initial position after the traveling vehicle 1 reaches the last jth way point.
[0061] The computing device 3 may execute an autonomous driving method including the steps of the flowchart illustrated in Fig. 6. The autonomous driving method may be realized as an autonomous driving program executed by a processor included in the computing device 3. The autonomous driving program may be stored on a non-transitory computer-readable medium.
[0062] The control unit 43 of the calculation device 3 sets the waypoint number i to 1 (step S1). The control unit 43 reads waypoint information related to the waypoint number i (step S2). The self-position estimation unit 40 of the calculation device 3 estimates the self-position of the traveling vehicle 1 (step S3). The path generation unit 42 of the calculation device 3 generates a travel path for the traveling vehicle 1 based on the waypoint information and the estimation result of the self-position of the traveling vehicle 1 (step S4). The control unit 43 of the calculation device 3 causes the traveling vehicle 1 to travel autonomously along the travel path of the traveling vehicle 1 (step S5).
[0063] The control unit 43 determines whether the traveling vehicle 1 has reached the target point, i.e., the next waypoint (step S6). The control unit 43 may determine that the traveling vehicle 1 has reached the target point when the position coordinates of the target point specified in the waypoint information match the position coordinates of the traveling vehicle 1's own position. The control unit 43 may determine that the traveling vehicle 1 has reached the target point when the distance between the position coordinates of the target point specified in the waypoint information and the position coordinates of the traveling vehicle 1's own position is less than a predetermined distance.
[0064] If the traveling carriage 1 has not reached the target point (step S6: NO), the control unit 43 returns to the procedure of estimating the self-position of the traveling carriage 1 in step S3 and repeats the procedures from steps S3 to S5 until the traveling carriage 1 reaches the target point.
[0065] If the traveling vehicle 1 has reached the target point (step S6: YES), the control unit 43 adds 1 to the way point number i (step S7). The control unit 43 determines whether the way point number i is equal to or greater than the last way point number j (step S8). If the way point number i is not equal to or greater than the last way point number j (step S8: NO), i.e., if the way point number i is less than the last way point number j, the control unit 43 returns to the way point information reading procedure of step S2 and executes the procedures from step S2 to step S6 to cause the traveling vehicle 1 to autonomously travel toward the next way point. If the way point number i is equal to or greater than the last way point number j (step S8: YES), i.e., if the traveling vehicle 1 has reached the final target point, the control unit 43 ends execution of the procedures in the flowchart of FIG. 6.
[0066] The control unit 43 may control the traveling carriage 1 to autonomously travel, while driving the actuator 13 based on waypoint information to move the scraper 7 up and down and scrape up the deposits 15 on the road surface 14. The control unit 43 may control the traveling carriage 1 to accumulate the collected deposits 15 at an accumulation position 70 (see FIG. 7 , etc.) or to deposit the collected deposits 15 at a predetermined location within the coke production facility. The predetermined location for depositing the deposits 15 may be, for example, a hole-shaped inlet. In other words, the control unit 43 may execute a cleaning method for a coke production facility, including the steps illustrated in FIG. 6 to autonomously travel the traveling carriage 1, controlling a cleaning device including the actuator 13 and the scraper 7, and accumulating the deposits 15 at the accumulation position 70 or depositing the accumulated deposits 15 into the coke production facility.
[0067] (Summary) As described above, the calculation device 3 acquires obstacle measurement information and removes noise, estimates the self-position of the traveling vehicle 1 based on the noise-removed obstacle measurement information, generates waypoint information based on the obstacle position information, designated area information and final target point information, calculates the traveling route to the next waypoint based on the self-position estimation result and the waypoint information, and causes the traveling vehicle 1 to travel autonomously.
[0068] The calculation device 3 can remove, as noise, from the obstacle measurement information, datasets associated with reflected light intensities equal to or less than a threshold set based on the maximum value of the reflected light intensities of the datasets included in the obstacle measurement information. Furthermore, when the obstacle measurement information includes multiple datasets associated with reflected light intensities from the same direction, the calculation device 3 can remove, as noise, datasets other than the dataset associated with the reflected light intensity from the farthest position from the obstacle measurement information. In this manner, noise caused by dusty environments is efficiently removed from the obstacle measurement information. By removing noise caused by dusty environments from the obstacle measurement information, the calculation device 3 can avoid falsely detecting obstacles that do not actually exist. As a result, the calculation device 3 can stably and autonomously guide the traveling vehicle 1 to the final destination point without stopping midway through the waypoint. Furthermore, the traveling vehicle 1 can stably and autonomously guide by including the calculation device 3 and the range measurement device 2. Furthermore, when the traveling carriage 1 performs cleaning work using the scraper 7 while traveling autonomously, the traveling carriage 1 travels autonomously stably, so that the cleaning and removal work of the deposits 15 can be carried out efficiently without being interrupted by the traveling carriage 1 stopping.
[0069] (Example) To evaluate the autonomous driving capability and cleaning ability of the computing device 3 that drives the traveling vehicle 1 described above, i.e., the autonomous driving device, a cleaning test was conducted in a designated area shown in FIG. 7 within a building. The position of each point in the designated area in FIG. 7 is represented by an x-y coordinate system. The initial position of the traveling vehicle 1 is the origin (0,0) of the x-y coordinate system. The attitude of the traveling vehicle 1 is represented by a turning angle with the positive x-axis direction as the reference direction. When the front of the traveling vehicle 1 faces the positive x-axis direction, the turning angle is 0 degrees. When the front of the traveling vehicle 1 faces the positive y-axis direction, the turning angle is 90 degrees. When the front of the traveling vehicle 1 faces the negative x-axis direction, the turning angle is 180 degrees. When the front of the traveling vehicle 1 faces the negative y-axis direction, the turning angle is 270 degrees. The designated area is a rectangular area where 0≦x≦5 and 1≦y≦4. The units of the values of x and y are meters.
[0070] In the test, the coal powder to be cleaned was spread over the designated area at a uniform thickness of approximately 1 kg / m². The total amount spread was approximately 15 kg. The traveling vehicle 1 autonomously traveled within the designated area, scraping up the coal powder with the scraper 7 and collecting it in a chute at a collection position 70, where the coal powder was collected, and then dropping it from there. The coordinates of the collection position 70 are (2, 2). The scraper 7 used in the test had a width of 0.4 m. The lower end of the scraper 7 was made of a resin brush with a wire diameter of 0.3 mm.
[0071] The way point information shown in Table 1 above corresponds to a cleaning and removal operation in which the traveling vehicle 1 travels autonomously in a designated area illustrated in Fig. 7 to scrape up coal powder with the scraper 7 and drop it at a collection position 70. In other words, by controlling the traveling vehicle 1 based on the way point information shown in Table 1, the calculation device 3 can cause the traveling vehicle 1 to perform the cleaning and removal operation of coal powder in the designated area illustrated in Fig. 7.
[0072] 7 is the maximum value of the reflected light intensity from a wall surface located near the origin. If the value of the reflected light intensity from a white Kent paper 1 m away from the range measurement device 2 is 10,000, the reflected light intensity from the wall surface is 5,000.
[0073] 7, a smoke source 80 is installed in the designated area used in the test. The smoke source 80 generates smoke and fills a circular smoke-emitting area 82 with smoke having a radius of approximately 1.5 m. The smoke source 80 controls the concentration of smoke in the smoke-emitting area 82 to such an extent that the measurement light emitted from the range measurement device 2 is reflected at points where no obstacles actually exist.
[0074] FIG. 8 shows the route traveled by the traveling vehicle 1 when the traveling vehicle 1 was autonomously traveling in the designated area illustrated in FIG. 7 , using the autonomous traveling method according to the present disclosure to remove noise from the obstacle measurement information based on the waypoint information illustrated in Table 1. The computing device 3 set a threshold of 1,000, which corresponds to 20% of the maximum reflected light intensity of 5,000, and removed data sets with reflected light intensity below the threshold as noise from the obstacle measurement information. Furthermore, when multiple reflected lights from the same direction were detected, data sets other than the data set associated with the reflected light intensity from the farthest point were removed as noise from the obstacle measurement information. As a result, the traveling vehicle 1 autonomously traveled from the initial position P0 via waypoints P1 to P36 to the final destination point, waypoint P37, without stopping along the way. In this case, the amount of coal powder collected by the traveling vehicle 1 at the collection position 70, i.e., the amount of coal powder recovered, was 11.8 kg. 78.7% of the amount of coal powder scattered was recovered.
[0075] On the other hand, FIG. 9 shows the route traveled by the traveling vehicle 1 when the traveling vehicle 1 was autonomously driven without removing noise from the obstacle measurement information, as a comparative example. The traveling vehicle 1 traveled from the initial position P0 via way points P1 to P15 to way point P16. However, due to erroneous detection of an obstacle due to noise in the reflected light from the smoke-emitting region 82, the calculation device 3 was unable to generate a route from way point P16 to way point P17, which was located within the smoke-emitting region 82. As a result, the traveling vehicle 1 was unable to autonomously drive toward way point P17 and stopped autonomously at way point P16. In this case, the amount of coal powder collected by the traveling vehicle 1 at the collection position 70, i.e., the amount of recovered coal powder, was 6.1 kg. This represents 40.7% of the amount of coal powder scattered. In other words, the efficiency of the cleaning work was reduced by half when the traveling vehicle 1 was autonomously driven without removing noise from the obstacle measurement information, as in the comparative example.
[0076] As described above, tests have confirmed that by removing noise from obstacle measurement information based on reflected light intensity, the traveling cart 1 can travel stably and autonomously even within the smoke-generating area 82, and cleaning work can be carried out efficiently.
[0077] Although the embodiments of the present disclosure have been described based on the drawings and examples, it should be noted that those skilled in the art could make various modifications or alterations based on the present disclosure. Therefore, it should be noted that these modifications and alterations are included within the scope of the present disclosure. For example, the functions included in each component or step can be rearranged so as not to cause logical inconsistencies, and multiple components or steps can be combined or divided into one. The embodiments of the present disclosure can also be realized as a program executed by a processor included in an apparatus or a storage medium on which a program is recorded. It should be understood that these are also included within the scope of the present disclosure.
[0078] 1 Traveling vehicle (2: Range measurement device, 3: Calculation device (40: Self-position estimation unit, 41: Waypoint information generation unit, 42: Path generation unit, 43: Control unit), 4: Movement amount detection device, 7: Scraper, 10: Housing, 11: Drive unit, 12: Recording device, 13: Actuator) 14 Road surface 15 Deposit 60 Obstacle 62 Virtual obstacle 64 Dusty environment 70 Accumulation position 80 Smoke source (82: Smoke emitting area)
Claims
1. An autonomous driving device that autonomously drives a mobile trolley moving within a designated area, The autonomous driving device, Obstacle measurement information is acquired, which includes at least one dataset that links the intensity of the reflected light from each of the multiple directions of light emitted from the trolley to the surrounding area, the direction from which the reflected light originated as seen from the trolley, and the distance from the trolley to the position from which the reflected light originated. A threshold is set based on the maximum value of the reflected light intensity included in the obstacle measurement information. In the aforementioned obstacle measurement information, data sets in which the intensity of the reflected light is below the threshold are removed to generate noise reduction information. Based on the noise reduction information and the position information of obstacles within the specified area, the position of the trolley is calculated. The system controls the trolley to autonomously move based on the position of the trolley. Autonomous driving device.
2. The autonomous driving device according to claim 1, wherein if the obstacle measurement information includes multiple datasets that detect multiple reflected lights generated in the same direction, the device removes from the obstacle measurement information all datasets except the one linked to the intensity of the reflected light from the furthest position among the multiple datasets in the same direction to generate the noise reduction information.
3. The autonomous driving device according to claim 1, further comprising a range measuring device that emits light in multiple directions around the traveling trolley and detects the reflected light from each of the multiple directions to generate the obstacle measurement information.
4. The autonomous driving device according to claim 2, further comprising a range measuring device that emits light in multiple directions around the traveling trolley and detects the reflected light from each of the multiple directions to generate the obstacle measurement information.
5. A trolley comprising an autonomous driving device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, a range measuring device, and a drive device, The measuring device acquires the obstacle measurement information, The drive unit moves the trolley based on the control of the autonomous driving unit. A trolley for running.
6. The trolley according to claim 5, further comprising a cleaning device for cleaning sediment located within the designated area.
7. An autonomous driving method for autonomously driving a mobile vehicle within a designated area, The autonomous driving device acquires obstacle measurement information, which includes at least one dataset that links the intensity of reflected light from each of the multiple directions of light emitted from the trolley, the direction from which the reflected light originated as seen from the trolley, and the distance from the trolley to the location from which the reflected light originated. The autonomous driving device includes the step of setting a threshold based on the maximum value of the reflected light intensity included in the obstacle measurement information, The autonomous driving device includes the step of generating noise reduction information by removing data sets in the obstacle measurement information in which the intensity of the reflected light is below the threshold, The autonomous driving device calculates the position of the trolley based on the noise reduction information and the position information of obstacles within the designated area. The autonomous driving device controls the trolley to autonomously drive the trolley based on the position of the trolley. An autonomous driving method, including...
8. The autonomous driving method according to claim 7, wherein, in the step of generating the noise reduction information, if the obstacle measurement information includes multiple datasets in which multiple reflected lights generated in the same direction are detected, the data sets other than the dataset linked to the intensity of the reflected light from the furthest position among the multiple datasets in the same direction are removed from the obstacle measurement information to generate the noise reduction information.
9. The autonomous driving device executes the autonomous driving method described in claim 7 or 8, thereby causing the trolley to autonomously travel within the coke production facility including the designated area; The autonomous driving device controls a cleaning device provided on the trolley for cleaning accumulated material located within the designated area, The autonomous driving device performs at least one of the following steps: accumulating the sediment at a designated accumulation location within the specified area, or depositing the accumulated sediment into a predetermined location in the coke production facility. A method for cleaning coke production equipment, including [the specified term].