Autonomous Garden Robot Docking With Two-Stage Positioning
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing autonomous mobile gardening devices face challenges in efficient docking with charging stations, particularly due to the need for buried wires to define work regions and the labor-intensive process of relocating these wires when the charging station is moved.
Innovation Solution
The method involves a positioning approach with varying accuracy and computational load based on the distance to the charging station, allowing for efficient navigation and docking without the need for buried wires. This approach includes first and second positioning methods, with the latter providing higher accuracy when closer to the charging station.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Extent of automation
If buried wires are used to define work region boundaries and charging station locations, then the autonomous mobile device can identify edges and navigate autonomously, but the installation becomes time-consuming and cost-consuming requiring professional intervention
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the mechanical buried wire system with an optical/magnetic marker system. Markers are placed on the ground surface containing encoded information about work region boundaries and charging station locations. The autonomous device uses sensors (cameras, magnetic sensors) to detect these markers and extract positioning information, eliminating the need for complex wire burial installation while maintaining autonomous navigation capability.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of using physical wires to encode boundary and location information, the patent uses markers that contain encoded digital information about positions and boundaries. The information is copied into the markers during manufacturing, and the autonomous device reads this pre-encoded information to understand the work region structure, simplifying installation to merely placing the markers rather than burying wires.
2Ease of operation
If buried wires are used to guide the charging station, then the autonomous mobile device can follow guiding wires to return for charging, but relocating the charging station requires time-consuming and labor-consuming reconstruction of the work region
Solution Approach 1:
The charging station location information is encoded into markers rather than being physically represented by wires. When the charging station needs to be relocated, users simply move the physical charging station and place markers at the new location. The autonomous device reads the updated marker information to find the new charging station position, making relocation simple and fast without requiring wire reconstruction.
Solution Approach 2:
The system transitions from a static wire-based guidance system to a dynamic marker-based system. Markers can be easily added, removed, or moved to reflect changes in charging station location. The autonomous device dynamically updates its understanding of the environment by reading current marker positions, enabling flexible adaptation to relocated charging stations.
3Measurement precision
If high-accuracy positioning methods are used throughout the entire navigation process, then docking precision is improved, but data processing costs increase and power consumption rises
Solution Approach 1:
The navigation process is segmented into multiple phases with different positioning accuracy requirements. During long-distance navigation, lower-accuracy but energy-efficient methods are used. As the device approaches the charging station and enters the docking phase, higher-accuracy positioning methods are activated to ensure precise alignment. This segmented approach optimizes the balance between docking precision and power consumption by applying computational resources only when necessary.
Data Source
Figure 1A~1B
Figure 1C~1E
Figure 1F
AI summary
An autonomous mobile device and a method for controlling the same are provided. The method includes: performing first positioning on the autonomous mobile device to acquire a first current pose of the autonomous mobile device in a first coordinate system; performing second positioning on the autonomous mobile device when determining, based on the first current pose and a first preset pose of a charging station in the first coordinate system, that a distance between the autonomous mobile device and the charging station is less than or equal to a first preset distance, to obtain a second current pose of the autonomous mobile device in a second coordinate system, ; and determining, based on the second current pose and a second preset pose of the charging station in the second coordinate system, a second planned path for directing the autonomous mobile device to a docking position of the charging station.