Robot control method and apparatus, and robot

Abstract

A robot control method and apparatus, and a robot (102). The robot control method comprises: in a human-machine interaction scenario, controlling first foot ends of first limbs and second foot ends of second limbs of a robot (102) to respectively reach corresponding support positions; controlling the first limbs and the second limbs of the robot (102) to perform a semi-crouched motion until second joints and the second foot ends of the second limbs are on the ground, first joints of the first limbs are on the ground and first structural members of the first limbs are perpendicular to the ground in a side view, wherein the landing points of the second foot ends are the support positions corresponding to the second foot ends, and the landing points of the first joints are directly below the rotation axes of third joints of the first limbs in a semi-crouched state of the robot; and reducing the output torque of joint motors at joints of the robot to control the robot to maintain the semi-crouched state. The control method is applicable to long-time human-machine interaction scenarios.

Description

Robot control method, device and robot

[0001] Cross-reference to Related Applications

[0002] The present application claims priority to the Chinese patent application No. 202411102946.9, filed on August 13, 2024, and entitled "Robot control method, device and robot", the whole content of which is incorporated herein by reference. TECHNICAL FIELD

[0003] The present application relates to the technical field of robots, in particular to a robot control method, device and robot. BACKGROUND

[0004] With the continuous development of robot technology, robots are becoming more and more intelligent and automated, and the richness, stability and flexibility of actions have been improved to varying degrees. Robots can perform specific tasks in users' production and life to bring convenience to users.

[0005] In the traditional technology, the crouching posture of a quadruped robot is that all four limbs are retracted, the belly is close to the ground, and the body is supported by the bottom of the belly to achieve a low-power standby state. Although this method is simple enough and can achieve the most stable standby state, it is not suitable for long-term human-robot interaction scenarios. SUMMARY

[0006] Therefore, it is necessary to provide a robot control method, device, robot, computer readable storage medium and computer program product suitable for long-term human-robot interaction scenarios.

[0007] In a first aspect, the present application provides a robot control method. The method comprises:

[0008] In a human-robot interaction scenario, controlling a first foot end of a first limb and a second foot end of a second limb of a robot to reach corresponding support positions, respectively;

[0009] Controlling the first limb and the second limb of the robot to perform a half-crouching action until the second joint of the second limb and the second foot end are both on the ground, and the first joint of the first limb is on the ground and the first structural member of the first limb is perpendicular to the ground in a side view angle; wherein the landing point of the second foot end is the support position corresponding to the second foot end, and the landing point of the first joint is directly below the third joint axis of the first limb of the robot in the half-crouching state;

[0010] Reducing the output torque of the joint motors of each joint of the robot to control the robot to maintain the half-crouching state.

[0011] In a second aspect, the present application also provides a robot control device. The device comprises:

[0012] a foot end adjustment module configured to control a first foot end of a first limb and a second foot end of a second limb of the robot to reach corresponding support positions respectively in a human-robot interaction scenario;

[0013] a half-crawling control module configured to control the first limb and the second limb of the robot to perform a half-crawling action until the second joint and the second foot end of the second limb both land on the ground, and the first joint of the first limb lands on the ground and the first structural member of the first limb is perpendicular to the ground in a side view angle; wherein the landing position of the second foot end is the corresponding support position of the second foot end, and the landing position of the first joint is directly below a third joint rotation shaft of the first limb of the robot in the half-crawling state;

[0014] a torque adjustment module configured to reduce the output torque of the joint motors of the joints of the robot to control the robot to maintain the half-crawling state.

[0015] In a third aspect, the present application also provides a robot. The robot comprises a memory and a processor, the memory stores a computer program, and the processor implements the following steps when executing the computer program:

[0016] controlling a first foot end of a first limb and a second foot end of a second limb of the robot to reach corresponding support positions respectively in a human-robot interaction scenario;

[0017] controlling the first limb and the second limb of the robot to perform a half-crawling action until the second joint and the second foot end of the second limb both land on the ground, and the first joint of the first limb lands on the ground and the first structural member of the first limb is perpendicular to the ground in a side view angle; wherein the landing position of the second foot end is the corresponding support position of the second foot end, and the landing position of the first joint is directly below a third joint rotation shaft of the first limb of the robot in the half-crawling state;

[0018] reducing the output torque of the joint motors of the joints of the robot to control the robot to maintain the half-crawling state.

[0019] In a fourth aspect, the present application also provides a computer readable storage medium. The computer readable storage medium stores a computer program, and the computer program is executed by a processor to implement the following steps:

[0020] controlling a first foot end of a first limb and a second foot end of a second limb of the robot to reach corresponding support positions respectively in a human-robot interaction scenario;

[0021] The first limb and the second limb of the robot are controlled to perform a half-crawling action until the second joint and the second foot end of the second limb are both landed, and the first joint of the first limb is landed and the first structural member of the first limb is perpendicular to the ground in a side view angle; wherein the landing position of the second foot end is the support position corresponding to the second foot end, and the landing position of the first joint is directly below the third joint rotation shaft of the first limb of the robot in the half-crawling state;

[0022] The output torque of the joint motor of each joint of the robot is reduced to control the robot to maintain the half-crawling state.

[0023] In a fifth aspect, the present application also provides a computer program product. The computer program product comprises a computer program which, when executed by a processor, implements the following steps:

[0024] In a human-computer interaction scene, the first foot end of the first limb and the second foot end of the second limb of the robot are controlled to reach the corresponding support positions, respectively;

[0025] The first limb and the second limb of the robot are controlled to perform a half-crawling action until the second joint and the second foot end of the second limb are both landed, and the first joint of the first limb is landed and the first structural member of the first limb is perpendicular to the ground in a side view angle; wherein the landing position of the second foot end is the support position corresponding to the second foot end, and the landing position of the first joint is directly below the third joint rotation shaft of the first limb of the robot in the half-crawling state;

[0026] The output torque of the joint motor of each joint of the robot is reduced to control the robot to maintain the half-crawling state.

[0027] The robot control method, device, robot, storage medium and computer program product described above, in the human-machine interaction scene, by pre-adjusting the first foot end to the corresponding support position, the first joint of the first limb is directly below the third joint rotation axis of the first limb in the half-crawling state after the first limb is down, and the equivalent force arm of the hip joint is almost zero. By pre-adjusting the second foot end to the corresponding support position of the second foot end, the second foot end is on the corresponding support position of the second foot end after the second limb is completely down, and the second foot end does not need to slide. The second joint of the second limb and the second foot end of the robot are controlled to land, that is, the second limb is completely down, and the support position is mainly the appearance structure of the hip joint of the second limb. Therefore, the joint motors of the second limb do not need to output power. At the same time, the first joint of the first limb is controlled to land and the first structure of the first limb is perpendicular to the ground in the side view angle, the first limb mainly relies on the first structure itself for support, and the first structure of the first limb does not need to output power to support the body weight in the state of being perpendicular to the ground in the side view angle, the calf of the first limb is suspended, and the elbow joint also does not need to output power. Therefore, the joint motors of the robot do not need to output torque to support the body weight, and only need to keep the first structure of the first limb perpendicular to the ground in the side view angle. In the absence of forward and backward inclination of the first structure, the output torque of the joint motors of the robot is zero. Therefore, the robot can reduce the output torque of the joint motors to zero, and does not need to output torque, so as to consume no power, and can control the robot to keep the half-crawling state for a long time, thereby realizing low power consumption. In addition, the second limb of the robot is completely down, and the position of the rear half of the body is low. The first limb is supported by the first structure and the first joint, and the position of the front half of the body is high, the front view angle of the robot is upward, and the camera can collect the position close to the user's face which is relatively high relative to the robot, thereby realizing a high view angle, and solving the problem of low power consumption and high view angle in the long-time human-machine interaction scene. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0028] FIG. 1 is an application environment diagram of a robot control method in an embodiment;

[0029] FIG. 2 is a flow diagram of a robot control method in an embodiment;

[0030] FIG. 3 is a front view of a robot in a normal standing state in an embodiment;

[0031] FIG. 4 is a side view of a robot in which the second joint and the second foot end of the second limb are both landed, and the first joint of the first limb is landed and the first structure of the first limb is perpendicular to the ground in an embodiment;

[0032] FIG. 5 is a side view of a robot in a completely down state in an embodiment;

[0033] Fig. 6 is a front view of the first limb of the robot in a half-prone target state in one embodiment;

[0034] Fig. 7 is a flowchart of controlling the first foot end of the first limb and the second foot end of the second limb of the robot to reach corresponding support positions in one embodiment;

[0035] Fig. 8 is a top view of the robot without the head of the robot in one embodiment;

[0036] Fig. 9 is a front view of controlling the first foot end of the first limb of the robot to reach just below the rotation axis of the third joint of the first limb in one embodiment;

[0037] Fig. 10 is a flowchart of controlling the robot to reach a state in which the second joint and the second foot end of the second limb are on the ground, and the first joint of the first limb is on the ground and the first structural member of the first limb is perpendicular to the ground in a side view in one embodiment;

[0038] Fig. 11 is a flowchart of determining the target angles of the joints of the first limb according to the length of the third joint of the first limb, the length of the first structural member of the first limb, the body length of the robot, and a preset angle in one embodiment;

[0039] Fig. 12 is a flowchart of determining the target angles of the joints of the second limb according to the length of the fourth joint of the second limb, the length of the second structural member of the second limb, the body length of the robot, a preset angle, and the structural limit of the fourth structural member of the second limb in one embodiment;

[0040] Fig. 13 is a structural block diagram of the robot control device in one embodiment;

[0041] Fig. 14 is an internal structural diagram of the robot in one embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0042] In order to make the purpose, technical scheme and advantages of the present application clearer, the present application will be further described in detail below with reference to the drawings and embodiments. It should be understood that the specific embodiments described herein are only used to explain the present application and should not be used to limit the present application.

[0043] In the prior art, the crouching posture of the quadruped robot is that the four limbs are retracted, the belly is close to the ground, and the body is supported by the bottom of the belly to achieve a low-power standby state. Although this method is simple and can achieve the most stable standby state, when the robot's belly is close to the ground, the front of the robot is parallel to the ground, and the height is relatively low, so the camera on the front of the robot cannot observe the face of a person at close range, which is not suitable for human-computer interaction scenarios. In addition, although the standing state of the robot has a high viewing angle, the joint motor needs to be continuously powered, so it is not suitable for long-term human-computer interaction scenarios. Therefore, in order to adapt to long-term human-computer interaction scenarios, a robot control method is provided to solve the problem of low power consumption and high viewing angle in long-term human-computer interaction scenarios.

[0044] The robot control method provided by the embodiments of the present application can be applied to the application environment as shown in FIG. 1. In the human-computer interaction scenario between the robot 102 and the user 104, the front of the robot 102 is pre-installed with a camera, and the robot 102 controls the first foot end of the first limb and the second foot end of the second limb to reach the corresponding support positions respectively, so that the first limb and the second limb perform a half-crouching action until the second joint of the second limb and the second foot end are both on the ground, and the first joint of the first limb is on the ground and the first structural member of the first limb is perpendicular to the ground in the side view angle. The landing point of the second foot end is the corresponding support position of the second foot end, and the landing point of the first joint is directly below the third joint axis of the first limb of the robot in the half-crouching state. Then the output torque of the joint motor of each joint is reduced to control the robot to maintain the half-crouching state. The robot 102 can be various quadruped robots, but is not limited thereto.

[0045] In an exemplary embodiment, as shown in FIG. 2, a robot control method is provided, which is applied to the robot in FIG. 1 as an example for illustration, including the following steps:

[0046] Step 202, in the human-computer interaction scenario, the first foot end of the first limb and the second foot end of the second limb of the robot are controlled to reach the corresponding support positions respectively.

[0047] The robot can be a quadruped robot, for example, a robot dog. The robot includes a body, a first limb and a second limb. The first limb can be two front legs, and the first foot end can be two front feet. The second limb can be two back legs, and the second foot end can be two back feet. The support position corresponding to the first foot end refers to the position directly below the hip joint rotation axis before the robot performs a half-crawling action. The hip joint rotation axis is a straight line, and the position directly below the hip joint rotation axis refers to the projection of the hip joint rotation axis onto the ground, which is also a straight line. The support position corresponding to the second foot end refers to the rearward position of the second foot end when the robot is normally standing, and also refers to the landing position of the second foot end when the robot is in a target posture of half-crawling.

[0048] Specifically, the robot is in a normal standing state in a natural state. The front view of the robot excluding the head when the robot is in the normal standing state can be as shown in FIG. 3, and the first limb and the second limb of the robot are both in a vertical state with the ground. The front of the body of the robot can be provided with a camera for acquiring a human face image. When the robot includes a head, the camera can be installed on the head. In a human-robot interaction scenario, in order to enable the camera to capture a human face image of a user, the robot controls the first foot end and the second foot end to perform a step-in-place action to adjust the positions of the first foot end and the second foot end until the first foot end and the second foot end respectively reach the corresponding support positions. The support positions corresponding to the first foot end and the second foot end are different.

[0049] By adjusting the first foot end to the position directly below the hip joint rotation axis, when the first limb is laid down, the landing position of the first joint is the position directly below the hip joint rotation axis in the current half-crawling state, so that the force arm is close to zero, and the joint motor does not need to output force to stably support. In addition, the landing position of the first joint can also be a position close to the position directly below the hip joint rotation axis. Because the joint structure member usually has a certain frictional resistance, even if the landing position of the first joint has a distance from the position directly below the hip joint rotation axis, resulting in a few millimeters or even centimeter-level equivalent force arm, in actual situations, the posture can also be fixed by frictional resistance, and the joint motor does not need to have obvious force output. The second foot end is adjusted to the support position corresponding to the second foot end, and the support position is the rearward position in the normal standing state. Because the body of the robot will shift backward during the process of laying down, if the second foot end is not moved backward in advance, the second foot end will slide on the ground during the process of laying down, damaging the floor.

[0050] Step 204, controlling the first limb and the second limb of the robot to perform a half-crawling action until the second joint of the second limb and the second foot end are both landed, and the first joint of the first limb is landed and the first structure of the first limb is perpendicular to the ground in a side view angle; wherein the landing position of the second foot end is the support position corresponding to the second foot end, and the landing position of the first joint is the position directly below the third joint rotation axis of the first limb of the robot in a half-crawling state.

[0051] The first limb can include a first joint and a first structural member, the first joint can be an elbow joint of the front leg, and the first structural member can be a thigh. The second limb can include a second joint, and the second joint can be a knee joint of the rear leg. The third joint can be a hip joint of the front leg.

[0052] Specifically, when the robot performs the half-crawling action, the robot can first determine target angles of the joints of the first limb and the second limb. The target angles are angles of the joints of the first limb and the second limb in a target state of the half-crawling, i.e., angles of the joints when the second joint and the second foot end of the second limb are both on the ground, and the first joint of the first limb is on the ground and the first structural member of the first limb is perpendicular to the ground in a side view. The robot determines reference angles of the joints of the first limb at each time during the performance of the half-crawling action according to the target angles of the joints of the first limb, and determines reference angles of the joints of the second limb at each time during the performance of the half-crawling action according to the target angles of the joints of the second limb. Thus, the robot controls the first limb and the second limb to perform the half-crawling action according to the reference angles of the joints of the first limb and the second limb at each time during the performance of the half-crawling action.

[0053] When the robot reaches the target state of the half-crawling, the second limb is completely down, and the landing position of the second foot end is a support position corresponding to the second foot end or is close to the support position. The landing position of the first joint of the first limb is directly below the third joint pivot of the first limb of the robot in the half-crawling state or is close to the directly below the third joint pivot of the first limb in the half-crawling state. The first structural member of the first limb is in a vertical state to the ground in a side view. The third structural member of the first limb is in a retracted state and does not need to exert force to support the weight of the robot body.

[0054] A side view of the robot when the second joint and the second foot end of the second limb are both on the ground, and the first joint of the first limb is on the ground and the first structural member of the first limb is perpendicular to the ground can be as shown in FIG. 4. In the side view, the second limb of the robot is completely down, and the rear half of the robot body is in a low position. The first limb is supported by the first structural member and the first joint, and the front half of the robot body is in a high position. The robot is in a forward-upward posture, the front view is upward, and the camera can capture a face of a user who is relatively high with respect to the robot. The robot can perform the half-crawling action from the state shown in FIG. 1 to the target state of the half-crawling shown in FIG. 4. Optionally, the ground in this embodiment can be a horizontal plane.

[0055] Optionally, when the robot performs the half-crawling action, the robot can first control the first limb and the second limb to be completely down, and a side view of the robot when the robot is completely down can be referred to FIG. 5. Then, the robot can perform the half-crawling action from the state shown in FIG. 5 to the state shown in FIG. 4. That is, the robot can perform the half-crawling action from FIG. 1 to FIG. 5, and then to the state shown in FIG. 4.

[0056] Referring to Fig. 6, Fig. 6 shows a front view of the first limb of the robot in the target state of half-crawling, wherein the falling point of the elbow joint, i.e. the first joint, is directly below the rotation axis of the hip joint.

[0057] In step 206, the output torque of the joint motor of each joint of the robot is reduced to control the robot to keep the half-crawling state.

[0058] Since the second limb of the robot is fully down, the joint motors of the second limb do not need to output force. The falling point of the first joint of the first limb is directly below the rotation axis of the third joint of the first limb of the robot in the half-crawling state, the equivalent force arm of the hip joint is almost zero, the first limb mainly relies on the first structural member itself for support, the lower leg of the first limb is in the air, the elbow joint also does not need to output force, and the joint motors of the whole robot do not need to output torque to support the body weight, and only need to keep the first structural member of the first limb perpendicular to the ground in the side view angle. Without the occurrence of the front and rear inclination of the first structural member, the output torque of the joint motors of the robot is zero. Therefore, the robot can reduce the output torque of the joint motors, and can be reduced to zero in particular, does not need to output torque, and does not need to consume electric energy, and can control the robot to keep the half-crawling state for a long time.

[0059] In the above robot control method, in the human-robot interaction scene, by pre-adjusting the first foot end to the corresponding support position, the landing position of the first joint is directly below the third joint rotation axis of the first limb in the half-crouching state, and the equivalent force arm of the hip joint is almost zero. By pre-adjusting the second foot end to the corresponding support position of the second foot end, the second foot end lands on the corresponding support position of the second foot end after the second limb is completely crouched, and the second foot end does not need to slide. The second joint of the second limb and the second foot end of the robot are controlled to land, i.e., the second limb is completely crouched, and the support position is mainly the external appearance structure of the hip joint of the second limb. Therefore, the joint motors of the second limb do not need to output power. At the same time, the first joint of the first limb is controlled to land and be in a state in which the first structure of the first limb is perpendicular to the ground in the side view angle, the first limb mainly relies on the first structure itself for support, and the first structure of the first limb does not need to output power to support the body weight in the state in which the first structure is perpendicular to the ground in the side view angle, the calf of the first limb is suspended, and the elbow joint also does not need to output power. Therefore, the joint motors of the robot do not need to output torque to support the body weight, and only need to keep the first structure of the first limb perpendicular to the ground in the side view angle. In the absence of forward and backward inclination of the first structure, the output torque of the joint motors of the robot is zero. Therefore, the robot can reduce the output torque of the joint motors to zero, does not need to output torque, and does not need to consume power, so that the robot can be controlled to maintain a long-time half-crouching state, and low power consumption is achieved. In addition, the second limb of the robot is completely crouched, and the position of the rear half of the body is low. The first limb is supported by the first structure and the first joint, and the position of the front half of the body is high. The front view angle of the robot is upward, and the camera can collect the position close to the user's face which is relatively high with respect to the robot, and high view angle is achieved, thereby solving the problem of low power consumption and high view angle in the long-time human-robot interaction scene.

[0060] In one exemplary embodiment, as shown in FIG. 7, in step 202, controlling the first foot end of the first limb and the second foot end of the second limb of the robot to reach the corresponding support positions respectively includes:

[0061] In step 702, the first foot end of the first limb of the robot is controlled to reach directly below the third joint rotation axis of the first limb before performing the half-crouching action.

[0062] In step 704, the support position of the second foot end of the second limb is determined according to the length of the second structure of the second limb, the length of the fourth structure, and the body length of the robot.

[0063] In step 706, the second foot end of the second limb of the robot is controlled to reach the support position of the second foot end.

[0064] The third joint refers to the hip joint of the front leg. The second structural member and the fourth structural member refer to the thigh and the shank of the rear leg, respectively.

[0065] Referring to FIG. 3, the first and second limbs of the robot each include a hip joint, a thigh rotation joint, and a shank rotation joint. Each joint is provided with a corresponding actuator for driving the corresponding joint to move. For example, the actuator for driving the hip joint to move is a hip joint actuator, the actuator for driving the thigh rotation joint to move is a thigh rotation joint actuator, and the actuator for driving the shank rotation joint to move is a shank rotation joint actuator. The body width of the robot is W body meters, and the body width refers to the distance between the rotation shafts of the left and right hip joint actuators. The actuators can be referred to as motors. The length of the hip joint is L0 meters, and the length of the hip joint refers to the distance between the rotation shaft of the hip joint actuator and the central axis of the shank (the line connecting the ball center of the foot and the ball center of the shank rotation joint). The length of the thigh of the front leg is L1, and the length of the shank is L2.

[0066] Referring to FIG. 8, FIG. 8 shows a top view of the robot without the robot head, wherein the body length of the robot is L body meters, and the body length refers to the distance between the rotation shafts of the front and rear thigh joint actuators, i.e., the distance between the front and rear feet when the front and rear legs have the same posture. When standing normally, the distance between the landing position of the first foot end of the robot and the front-rear center line of the robot body is dX meters.

[0067] Specifically, the first foot end of the robot is controlled to be positioned directly below the third joint of the first limb, and at this time, the front view of the first limb is as shown in FIG. 9. The corresponding support position of the second foot end is a position that is offset rearward by dX meters relative to the position when standing normally, and the calculation formula is as follows:

[0068] In this embodiment, by adjusting the first foot end to be directly below the hip joint rotation shaft, the landing position of the first joint after the first limb is laid down is directly below the hip joint rotation shaft, or close to directly below the hip joint rotation shaft, so that the force arm is close to zero, and the joint motor does not need to output power to stably support. The second foot end is adjusted to the rearward offset position when standing normally. During the process of laying down, the body of the robot will be offset rearward, and if the second foot end is not moved backward in advance, the second foot end will slide on the ground during the process of laying down, damaging the floor.

[0069] Alternatively, when designing the structure of the robot, the position of the first foot end can also be directly set to be directly below the hip joint, and in this case, it is not necessary to adjust the landing position of the first foot end by taking steps in place.

[0070] In an example embodiment, as shown in FIG. 10, in step 204, the first and second limbs of the robot are controlled to perform a half-crouch action until a state is reached in which the second joint and the second foot end of the second limb are both on the ground, and the first joint of the first limb is on the ground and the first structural member of the first limb is perpendicular to the ground in a side view angle, which includes:

[0071] In step 1002, target angles of the joints of the first limb are determined according to the length of the third joint of the first limb, the length of the first structural member of the first limb, the body length of the robot, and a preset angle.

[0072] In step 1004, target angles of the joints of the second limb are determined according to the length of the fourth joint of the second limb, the length of the second structural member of the second limb, the body length of the robot, the preset angle, and the structural limit of the fourth structural member of the second limb.

[0073] In step 1006, the first and second limbs of the robot are controlled to perform a half-crouch action according to the target angles of the joints of the first limb and the target angles of the joints of the second limb, and when the target angles of the joints of the first limb and the target angles of the joints of the second limb are reached, a state is reached in which the second joint and the second foot end of the second limb are both on the ground, and the first joint of the first limb is on the ground and the first structural member of the first limb is perpendicular to the ground in a side view angle.

[0074] In the example embodiment, the robot can include 12 joints, each of the first and second limbs includes three joints, the first limb includes a first joint (a lower leg rotation joint, also referred to as an elbow joint), a third joint (a hip joint), and a fifth joint (a thigh rotation joint). The first limb further includes a first structural member (a thigh) and a third structural member (a lower leg). The second limb includes a second joint (a lower leg rotation joint, also referred to as a knee joint), a fourth joint (a hip joint), and a sixth joint (a thigh rotation joint). The second limb further includes a second structural member (a thigh) and a fourth structural member (a lower leg). The target angles are the angles of the joints of the first and second limbs in the target state of the half-crouch, i.e., the angles of the joints when a state is reached in which the second joint and the second foot end of the second limb are both on the ground, and the first joint of the first limb is on the ground and the first structural member of the first limb is perpendicular to the ground.

[0075] Since the posture of the robot is determined by the angles of the joints of the first and second limbs, in order to make the robot reach the target half-crouch state, the target angles of the joints of the first and second limbs in the target state of the half-crouch can be determined first.

[0076] Specifically, for the first limb, the robot obtains the length of the third joint of the first limb, the length of the first structural member of the first limb, the body length of the robot, and a preset angle, which can be According to the acquired parameters, the adduction angle of the third joint of the first limb of the robot, the adduction angle of the first structural member, and the angle of the third structural member relative to the extension line of the first structural member are determined.

[0077] For the second limb, the robot acquires the length of the fourth joint of the second limb, the length of the second structural member of the second limb, the body length of the robot, a preset angle, and the structural limit of the fourth structural member of the second limb, which is the maximum adduction angle of the fourth structural member. According to the acquired parameters, the abduction angle of the fourth joint of the second limb of the robot, the rear adduction angle of the second structural member, and the adduction angle of the fourth structural member are determined.

[0078] After the target angles of the joints of the robot are determined, the first limb and the second limb are controlled to perform a half-crawling action according to the target angles until the target angles of the joints of the first limb and the second limb are reached, at which time the robot reaches the target half-crawling state in which the second joint of the second limb and the second foot end are both on the ground, and the first joint of the first limb is on the ground and the first structural member of the first limb is perpendicular to the ground.

[0079] Alternatively, the target angles of the joints of the robot can also be obtained experimentally, that is, the robot can be first placed in the target half-crawling state, and the current angles of the joints of the robot at this time can be read as the target angles of the joints.

[0080] In this embodiment, the target angles of the joints of the first limb and the second limb are determined by the structural parameters of the robot itself, which can obtain accurate and reasonable joint angles, thereby achieving the state in which the second joint of the second limb and the second foot end are both on the ground, and the first joint of the first limb is on the ground and the first structural member of the first limb is perpendicular to the ground.

[0081] In the above exemplary embodiment, as shown in FIG. 11, according to the length of the third joint of the first limb of the robot, the length of the first structural member of the first limb, the body length of the robot, and a preset angle, the target angles of the joints of the first limb are determined, including:

[0082] In step 1102, according to the length of the third joint of the first limb of the robot and the length of the first structural member of the first limb, the target angle of the third joint of the first limb is determined.

[0083] In step 1104, according to the body length of the robot and the length of the first structural member, the target angle of the first structural member is determined.

[0084] In step 1106, according to the target angle of the first structural member and the preset angle, the target angle of the third structural member of the first limb is determined.

[0085] The target angles of the joints of the first limb in the target state of semi-crouching are as follows:

[0086] The third joint of the first limb is in an adduction state, and the adduction angle is where L0 is the length of the third joint, and L1 is the length of the first structural member.

[0087] The first structural member of the first limb is perpendicular to the horizontal plane and slightly retracted relative to the position perpendicular to the fuselage, and the retraction angle is where L body is the length of the body.

[0088] The angle of the third structural member of the first limb relative to the extension line of the first structural member is

[0089] In the embodiment, according to the angle calculation relationship between the joints of the first limb and the structures of the fuselage in the target state of semi-crouching of the robot, the target angles of the joints of the first limb can be quickly and accurately determined.

[0090] In the above exemplary embodiment, as shown in FIG. 12, step 1004, the target angles of the joints of the second limb are determined according to the length of the fourth joint of the second limb of the robot, the length of the second structural member of the second limb, the length of the body of the robot, a preset angle, and the structural limit of the fourth structural member of the second limb, including:

[0091] Step 1202, the target angle of the fourth joint of the second limb is determined according to the length of the fourth joint of the second limb of the robot, the length of the second structural member of the second limb, and the structural limit of the fourth structural member of the second limb.

[0092] Step 1204, the target angle of the second structural member of the second limb is determined according to the length of the second structural member of the second limb, the length of the body of the robot, and the preset angle.

[0093] Step 1206, the structural limit of the fourth structural member is determined as the target angle of the fourth structural member.

[0094] The target angles of the joints of the second limb in the target state of semi-crouching are as follows:

[0095] The fourth joint of the second limb is in an abduction state, and the abduction angle is where q 2,max is the structural limit of the fourth structural member.

[0096] The second structural member of the second limb is retracted relative to the position perpendicular to the fuselage, and the retraction angle is

[0097] The fourth structural member of the second limb is adducted to the structural limit, and the angle is

[0098] In the embodiment, according to the angle calculation relationship between the joints of the second limb and the structures of the robot body in the target state of the robot half-crawling, the target angles of the joints of the second limb can be quickly and accurately determined.

[0099] In an exemplary embodiment, in step 1006, controlling the first limb and the second limb of the robot to perform the half-crawling action according to the target angles of the joints of the first limb and the target angles of the joints of the second limb includes: determining the reference angles of the joints of the first limb at each time during the performance of the half-crawling action by the robot according to the angles of the joints of the first limb at each time, the desired time length of the half-crawling action, and the target angles of the joints of the first limb; determining the reference angles of the joints of the second limb at each time during the performance of the half-crawling action by the robot according to the angles of the joints of the second limb at each time, the desired time length of the half-crawling action, and the target angles of the joints of the second limb; and controlling the first limb and the second limb of the robot to perform the half-crawling action according to the reference angles of the joints of the first limb at each time and the reference angles of the joints of the second limb at each time.

[0100] The angles of the joints of the robot at each time are taken as initial angles q initial The angles of the joints of the robot in the target state of the half-crawling are taken as final angles q final The final angles are the target angles of the joints, the desired time length of the half-crawling action is T, each time is t, and the reference angles of the joints at each time during the performance of the half-crawling action are The reference angular velocities of the joints at each time are zero. The position gain and the velocity gain are relatively large, for example, the position gain can be 6 and the velocity gain can be 0.5.

[0101] According to the above formula, the reference angles of the joints of the first limb and the second limb at each time can be calculated, so that the robot can accurately perform the half-crawling action.

[0102] In an exemplary embodiment, in step 906, controlling the first limb and the second limb of the robot to perform the half-crawling action according to the target angles of the joints of the first limb and the target angles of the joints of the second limb includes: determining the reference angles of the joints of the first limb at each time during the performance of the half-crawling action by the robot according to the target angles of the joints of the first limb by a linear interpolation method or a Bezier curve method, and determining the reference angles of the joints of the second limb at each time during the performance of the half-crawling action by the robot according to the target angles of the joints of the second limb; and controlling the first limb and the second limb of the robot to perform the half-crawling action according to the reference angles of the joints of the first limb at each time and the reference angles of the joints of the second limb at each time.

[0103] In this embodiment, after the target angles of the joints of the first and second limbs are determined, a linear interpolation method or a Bezier curve method can be used to calculate the reference angles of the joints at each time during the execution of the half-crawling action. The linear interpolation method is simple and fast in calculation, and can quickly calculate the reference angles of the joints at each time. The Bezier curve method has high control accuracy, good continuity, smooth motion, etc., and can more accurately control the angles of the joints of the robot, and can also perform smooth angle control, thereby reducing the difficulty of robot control.

[0104] In an exemplary embodiment, in step 206, reducing the output torque of the joint motors of the joints of the robot includes: reducing the position gain and the speed gain of the third joint and the fifth joint of the first limb of the robot; and reducing the position gain and the speed gain of the joints other than the third joint and the fifth joint to zero.

[0105] In this embodiment, the position control mode can be used to control the output torque of the joint motors of the robot.

[0106] The position control mode can be as follows: τ desired = (q desired -q current ) × K p + (qd desired -qd current ) × K d

[0107] Wherein, τ desired is the expected output torque, q desired is the expected joint position (angle), q current is the current joint angle, K p is the position gain, qd desired is the expected joint angular velocity, qd current is the current joint angular velocity, K d is the speed gain.

[0108] The robot can calculate the expected output current size by calculating τ desired , so as to control the output torque of the joint motors of the robot. Specifically, the robot adjusts the position gain and the speed gain of all actuators (motors) other than the third joint and the fifth joint of the first limb to zero. At the same time, the position gain and the speed gain of the third joint and the fifth joint of the first limb are reduced, for example, the position gain can be reduced to 2 and the speed gain can be reduced to 0.2.

[0109] In the embodiment, since the second limb of the robot is completely prone, the second limb does not need to exert force. The landing position of the first joint of the first limb is directly below the rotation axis of the third joint, and the first limb does not need to exert force either. The third structural member of the first limb is in the retracted state, and no force needs to be exerted. Only the third joint of the first limb needs to keep the first structural member vertical, and the output torque is zero without the first structural member tilting forward and backward. The fifth joint is the rotation joint corresponding to the first structural member. Considering that the first structural member may tilt, the position gain and the velocity gain of the joints outside the third joint and the fifth joint are reduced to zero, and the third joint and the fifth joint are adjusted to a smaller value. In the case of maintaining the half-prone state for a long time, the power consumption is reduced.

[0110] It should be understood that, although each step in the flowchart involved in each embodiment as described above is shown in sequence according to the direction of the arrow, these steps are not necessarily executed in sequence according to the direction of the arrow. Unless otherwise specified herein, the execution of these steps is not strictly limited in sequence, and these steps can be executed in other sequences. Moreover, at least part of the steps in the flowchart involved in each embodiment as described above can include multiple steps or stages, which are not necessarily executed at the same time, but can be executed at different times, and the execution sequence of these steps or stages is not necessarily sequential, but can be executed alternately or alternately with at least part of other steps or steps or stages in other steps.

[0111] Based on the same inventive concept, the embodiments of the present application also provide a robot control device for implementing the above-mentioned robot control method. The implementation scheme for solving the problem provided by the device is similar to the implementation scheme described in the above method, so the specific limitations in one or more robot control device embodiments provided below can refer to the limitations of the robot control method described above, which will not be repeated here.

[0112] In one exemplary embodiment, as shown in FIG. 13, a robot control device is provided, comprising: a foot end adjusting module 1302, a half-prone control module 1304, and a torque adjusting module 1306, wherein:

[0113] The foot end adjusting module 1302 is configured to control the first foot end of the first limb and the second foot end of the second limb to reach the corresponding support positions, respectively, in a human-robot interaction scenario.

[0114] The semi-crouch control module 1304 is configured to control the first limb and the second limb of the robot to perform a semi-crouch action until the second joint of the second limb and the second foot end of the second limb both land on the ground, and the first joint of the first limb lands on the ground and the first structure of the first limb is perpendicular to the ground in a side view.

[0115] The torque adjustment module 1306 is configured to reduce the output torque of the joint motors of the joints of the robot to control the robot to maintain the semi-crouch state.

[0116] In an example embodiment, the semi-crouch control module 1304 is further configured to determine target angles of the joints of the first limb according to the length of the third joint of the first limb, the length of the first structure of the first limb, the body length of the robot, and a preset angle; determine target angles of the joints of the second limb according to the length of the fourth joint of the second limb, the length of the second structure of the second limb, the body length of the robot, the preset angle, and the structure limit of the fourth structure of the second limb; and control the first limb and the second limb of the robot to perform a semi-crouch action according to the target angles of the joints of the first limb and the target angles of the joints of the second limb, and determine that the second joint of the second limb and the second foot end of the second limb both land on the ground, and the first joint of the first limb lands on the ground and the first structure of the first limb is perpendicular to the ground in a side view when the target angles of the joints of the first limb and the target angles of the joints of the second limb are reached.

[0117] In an example embodiment, the semi-crouch control module 1304 is further configured to determine a target angle of the third joint of the first limb according to the length of the third joint of the first limb and the length of the first structure of the first limb; determine a target angle of the first structure according to the body length of the robot and the length of the first structure; and determine a target angle of the third structure of the first limb according to the target angle of the first structure and a preset angle.

[0118] In an example embodiment, the semi-crouch control module 1304 is further configured to determine a target angle of the fourth joint of the second limb according to the length of the fourth joint of the second limb, the length of the second structure of the second limb, and the structure limit of the fourth structure of the second limb; determine a target angle of the second structure of the second limb according to the length of the second structure of the second limb, the body length of the robot, and a preset angle; and determine the structure limit of the fourth structure as the target angle of the fourth structure.

[0119] In an example embodiment, the half-crawling control module 1304 is further configured to determine, according to the angles of the joints of the first limb at each time instant during the execution of the half-crawling action by the robot, the desired duration of the half-crawling action, and the target angles of the joints of the first limb, the reference angles of the joints of the first limb at each time instant during the execution of the half-crawling action by the robot; determine, according to the angles of the joints of the second limb at each time instant during the execution of the half-crawling action by the robot, the desired duration of the half-crawling action, and the target angles of the joints of the second limb, the reference angles of the joints of the second limb at each time instant during the execution of the half-crawling action by the robot; and control the first limb and the second limb of the robot to perform the half-crawling action according to the reference angles of the joints of the first limb and the reference angles of the joints of the second limb at each time instant.

[0120] In an example embodiment, the half-crawling control module 1304 is further configured to determine, according to the target angles of the joints of the first limb, the reference angles of the joints of the first limb at each time instant during the execution of the half-crawling action by the robot by using a linear interpolation method or a Bezier curve method, and determine, according to the target angles of the joints of the second limb, the reference angles of the joints of the second limb at each time instant during the execution of the half-crawling action by the robot by using a linear interpolation method or a Bezier curve method; and control the first limb and the second limb of the robot to perform the half-crawling action according to the reference angles of the joints of the first limb and the reference angles of the joints of the second limb at each time instant.

[0121] In an example embodiment, the foot end adjustment module 1302 is further configured to control the first foot end of the first limb of the robot to reach the rotation shaft of the third joint of the first limb; determine the support position of the second foot end of the second limb of the robot according to the length of the second structural member of the second limb, the length of the fourth structural member, and the body length of the robot; and control the second foot end of the second limb of the robot to reach the support position of the second foot end.

[0122] In an example embodiment, the torque adjustment module 1306 is further configured to reduce the position gain and the velocity gain of the third joint and the fifth joint of the first limb of the robot; and reduce the position gain and the velocity gain of the joints other than the third joint and the fifth joint to zero.

[0123] The modules in the robot control device described above can be implemented in whole or in part by software, hardware, or a combination thereof. The modules described above can be embedded in or independent of a processor in a computer device in hardware form, or stored in a memory in a computer device in software form, so as to be called and executed by a processor to perform the operations corresponding to the modules.

[0124] In an example embodiment, a robot is provided, and an internal structure diagram of the robot can be as shown in FIG. 14. The robot includes a processor, a memory, an input / output interface (I / O) and a communication interface. The processor, the memory and the input / output interface are connected through a system bus, and the communication interface is connected to the system bus through the input / output interface. The processor of the robot is configured to provide computing and control capabilities. The memory of the robot includes a non-volatile storage medium and an internal memory. The non-volatile storage medium stores an operating system, a computer program and a database. The internal memory provides an environment for running the operating system and the computer program in the non-volatile storage medium. The database of the robot is configured to store robot structure parameter data, such as a length of a third joint of a first limb of the robot, a length of a first structural member of the first limb, a body length of the robot and a preset angle. The input / output interface of the robot is configured to exchange information between the processor and external devices. The communication interface of the robot is configured to communicate with external terminals through a network connection. The computer program is configured to be executed by the processor to implement a robot control method.

[0125] Those skilled in the art can understand that the structure shown in FIG. 14 is only a block diagram of part of the structure related to the scheme of the present application, and does not constitute a limitation on the robot to which the scheme of the present application is applied. Specifically, the robot can include more or fewer components than those shown in the figure, or combine certain components, or have a different arrangement of components.

[0126] In an example embodiment, a computer readable storage medium is provided, and the computer readable storage medium stores a computer program. The computer program is configured to be executed by a processor to implement the steps in the above method embodiments.

[0127] In an example embodiment, a computer program product is provided, and the computer program product includes a computer program. The computer program is configured to be executed by a processor to implement the steps in the above method embodiments.

[0128] Those skilled in the art can understand that all or part of the processes in the above-mentioned embodiment methods can be completed by instructing the relevant hardware through a computer program. The computer program can be stored in a non-volatile computer readable storage medium, and when the computer program is executed, the processes of the above-mentioned embodiments of the methods can be included. Any reference to memory, database or other medium used in the embodiments provided in the present application can include at least one of non-volatile and volatile memory. Non-volatile memory can include read-only memory (Read-Only Memory, ROM), magnetic tape, floppy disk, flash memory, optical storage, high-density embedded non-volatile memory, resistive memory (ReRAM), magnetoresistive memory (Magnetoresistive Random Access Memory, MRAM), ferroelectric memory (Ferroelectric Random Access Memory, FRAM), phase change memory (Phase Change Memory, PCM), graphene memory, etc. Volatile memory can include random access memory (Random Access Memory, RAM) or external cache memory, etc. As an illustration but not limitation, the RAM can be in various forms, such as static random access memory (Static Random Access Memory, SRAM) or dynamic random access memory (Dynamic Random Access Memory, DRAM), etc. The database involved in the embodiments provided in the present application can include at least one of a relational database and a non-relational database. The non-relational database can include a distributed database based on a block chain, etc., without being limited thereto. The processor involved in the embodiments provided in the present application can be a general-purpose processor, a central processing unit, a graphics processing unit, a digital signal processor, a programmable logic device, a data processing logic device based on quantum computing, etc., without being limited thereto.

[0129] Any combination of the technical features of the above embodiments can be made. In order to make the description simple, all possible combinations of the technical features in the above embodiments are not described, however, as long as the combination of the technical features does not exist contradictory, it should be considered as the scope of the present application.

[0130] The above embodiments only express several implementation manners of the present application, and the description is more specific and detailed, but it should not be understood as a limitation on the scope of the patent of the present application. It should be pointed out that for ordinary skilled in the art, without departing from the concept of the present application, a number of modifications and improvements can be made, which are within the scope of protection of the present application. Therefore, the protection scope of the present application should be subject to the appended claims.

Claims

1. A robot control method characterized by, The method comprises: In a human-robot interaction scenario, controlling a first foot end of a first limb of a robot and a second foot end of a second limb to reach corresponding support positions respectively; controlling the first limb and the second limb of the robot to perform a half-crawling action until the second joint of the second limb and the second foot end are both on the ground, and the first joint of the first limb is on the ground and the first structural member of the first limb is perpendicular to the ground in a side view angle; wherein the landing position of the second foot end is the support position corresponding to the second foot end, and the landing position of the first joint is directly below the third joint pivot of the first limb of the robot in a half-crawling state; reducing the output torque of the joint motors of each joint of the robot to control the robot to maintain the half-crawling state.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein, The control of the first limb and the second limb of the robot to perform a half-crawling action until the second joint of the second limb and the second foot end are both on the ground, and the first joint of the first limb is on the ground and the first structural member of the first limb is perpendicular to the ground in a side view angle comprises: determining target angles of each joint of the first limb according to the length of the third joint of the first limb, the length of the first structural member of the first limb, the body length of the robot, and a preset angle; determining target angles of each joint of the second limb according to the length of the fourth joint of the second limb, the length of the second structural member of the second limb, the body length of the robot, the preset angle, and the structural limit of the fourth structural member of the second limb; controlling the first limb and the second limb of the robot to perform a half-crawling action according to the target angles of each joint of the first limb and the target angles of each joint of the second limb, and when the target angles of each joint of the first limb and the target angles of each joint of the second limb are reached, determining that the second joint of the second limb and the second foot end are both on the ground, and the first joint of the first limb is on the ground and the first structural member of the first limb is perpendicular to the ground in a side view angle.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein, The determination of the target angles of each joint of the first limb according to the length of the third joint of the first limb, the length of the first structural member of the first limb, the body length of the robot, and a preset angle comprises: determining the target angle of the third joint of the first limb according to the length of the third joint of the first limb and the length of the first structural member of the first limb; determining the target angle of the first structural member according to the body length of the robot and the length of the first structural member; determining the target angle of the third structural member of the first limb according to the target angle of the first structural member and the preset angle.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein, The determination of the target angles of each joint of the second limb according to the length of the fourth joint of the second limb, the length of the second structural member of the second limb, the body length of the robot, the preset angle, and the structural limit of the fourth structural member of the second limb comprises: determining a target angle of the fourth joint of the second limb according to a length of the fourth joint of the second limb, a length of the second structural member of the second limb, and a structural limit of the fourth structural member of the second limb; determining a target angle of the second structural member of the second limb according to the length of the second structural member of the second limb, a body length of the robot, and a preset angle; determining the structural limit of the fourth structural member as the target angle of the fourth structural member.

5. The method according to any one of claims 2 to 4, characterized in that, controlling the first limb and the second limb of the robot to perform the half-crawling action according to the target angles of the joints of the first limb and the target angles of the joints of the second limb includes: determining a reference angle of each joint of the first limb at each time during the performance of the half-crawling action by the robot according to the angle of each joint of the first limb at each time, a desired time length of the half-crawling action, and the target angles of the joints of the first limb; determining a reference angle of each joint of the second limb at each time during the performance of the half-crawling action by the robot according to the angle of each joint of the second limb at each time, the desired time length of the half-crawling action, and the target angles of the joints of the second limb; controlling the first limb and the second limb of the robot to perform the half-crawling action according to the reference angles of the joints of the first limb at each time and the reference angles of the joints of the second limb at each time.

6. The method according to any one of claims 2 to 4, characterized in that, controlling the first limb and the second limb of the robot to perform the half-crawling action according to the target angles of the joints of the first limb and the target angles of the joints of the second limb includes: determining a reference angle of each joint of the first limb at each time during the performance of the half-crawling action by the robot according to the target angles of the joints of the first limb, and determining a reference angle of each joint of the second limb at each time during the performance of the half-crawling action by the robot according to the target angles of the joints of the second limb, by a linear interpolation method or a Bezier curve method; controlling the first limb and the second limb of the robot to perform the half-crawling action according to the reference angles of the joints of the first limb at each time and the reference angles of the joints of the second limb at each time.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein, controlling the first foot end of the first limb and the second foot end of the second limb of the robot to reach corresponding support positions respectively includes: controlling the first foot end of the first limb of the robot to reach a position directly below a rotation shaft of the third joint of the first limb before the performance of the half-crawling action; determining a support position of the second foot end of the second limb according to a length of the second structural member of the second limb, a length of the fourth structural member, and a body length of the robot; controlling the second foot end of the second limb of the robot to reach the support position of the second foot end.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein, reducing the output torque of the joint motors of the joints of the robot includes: reducing the position gain and the speed gain of the third joint and the fifth joint of the first limb of the robot; reducing the position gain and the speed gain of the joints other than the third joint and the fifth joint to zero.

9. A robot control device characterized by comprising: The device includes: a foot end adjusting module configured to control the first foot end of the first limb and the second foot end of the second limb of the robot to reach corresponding support positions respectively in a human-robot interaction scenario. The semi-crouch control module is configured to control the first limb and the second limb of the robot to perform a semi-crouch action until the second joint of the second limb and the second foot end both land on the ground, and the first joint of the first limb lands on the ground and the first structural member of the first limb is perpendicular to the ground in a side view angle; wherein the landing position of the second foot end is a support position corresponding to the second foot end, and the landing position of the first joint is directly below a third joint pivot of the first limb of the robot in the semi-crouch state; The torque adjustment module is configured to reduce the output torque of the joint motor of each joint of the robot to control the robot to maintain the semi-crouch state.

10. A robot comprising a memory and a processor, said memory storing a computer program, characterized in that, The processor, when executing the computer program, implements the steps of the method of any one of claims 1 to 8.

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