Autonomous Robot Lawnmower Perimeter Control Using Location Tracking
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing autonomous lawn mowing robots face challenges in defining and maintaining a bounded area of confinement, leading to inefficient coverage and potential safety issues due to failures in physically defined perimeters such as wires or beacons.
Innovation Solution
An autonomous robot system that includes a server, external device, and the robot itself, equipped with a central processing unit, location tracking, and capacitive proximity sensors, allowing for the definition and transmission of the perimeter and location within the area, enabling optimal coverage and safety by preventing the robot from leaving the designated area.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a physically defined perimeter (wire, reflector, beacon) is used to confine the autonomous robot, then the area of confinement can be defined, but the system becomes complex and unreliable due to potential failures in the perimeter components
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the mechanical/physical perimeter system (wires, reflectors, beacons) with an electronic/software-based solution. The autonomous robot uses its location tracking unit and central processing unit to define and monitor the area of confinement through coordinate storage and real-time position comparison, eliminating the need for physical perimeter components and their associated failures.
2Productivity
If the autonomous robot operates randomly within the confined area, then the device complexity is reduced, but the coverage efficiency deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a feedback mechanism where the autonomous robot continuously monitors its own location through the location tracking unit, compares its position against the stored perimeter coordinates in memory, and adjusts its navigation accordingly. This feedback loop enables systematic coverage patterns while maintaining coverage efficiency without requiring overly complex navigation algorithms.
3Reliability
If the perimeter wire or beacon fails, then the area of confinement cannot be maintained, but detecting and measuring the failure becomes difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the physical perimeter system with an electronic monitoring system that continuously tracks the robot's position against stored perimeter coordinates. This substitution makes failure detection straightforward through software-based position verification, eliminating the difficulty of detecting physical wire or beacon failures.
4Productivity
If the autonomous robot leaves the desired area of confinement, then the coverage becomes non-optimal, but preventing this requires complex perimeter monitoring
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs continuous feedback monitoring where the central processing unit compares the robot's real-time location (from the location tracking unit) against the stored perimeter coordinates. This simple yet effective feedback mechanism ensures the robot remains within the desired area of confinement, maintaining optimal coverage without requiring complex monitoring systems.
Data Source
AI summary
A system and method for monitoring and controlling operation of an autonomous robot. In one aspect, the autonomous robot is a lawnmower and the system comprises: an autonomous robot lawnmower comprising a housing, a transceiver, and a central processing unit; an external device in operable communication with the autonomous robot lawnmower, the external device having a transceiver for sending signals to the autonomous robot lawnmower and a display; and wherein in response to user input, the external device is configured to modify settings related to operation of the autonomous robot lawnmower.