Mobile Robot Movement Control for Collision-Free Communication

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Solution Overview

Problem

In multi-agent robot systems, packet loss due to collisions and the assumption that each robot knows the real-time position and speed of others fail to ensure effective collision avoidance and communication as the number of robots increases, leading to potential failures in maintaining communication and avoiding collisions.

Innovation Solution

A mobile robot system that calculates a movable region where collision avoidance and communication overlap, using a control unit and movable region calculation unit to determine safe distances and communication ranges, allowing robots to move while maintaining communication without collisions.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Productivity

If the number of robots is increased to improve system capability, then productivity is improved, but packet loss due to packet collisions increases and real-time communication becomes difficult

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvesystem capabilityVSAvoidcommunication reliability

Core Design Contradiction:

ProductivityVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The patent segments the communication approach by dividing robots into groups that share positional information, rather than requiring all robots to communicate with all other robots. This reduces the total communication load while maintaining system capability.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The patent introduces a positional information management mechanism where robots obtain positional information from nearby robots rather than direct real-time communication with all robots. This intermediary approach reduces packet collisions while maintaining awareness of robot positions.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

2Reliability

If real-time positional information is assumed for all robots to achieve collision avoidance, then safety is improved, but communication overhead increases and packet loss occurs

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvecollision avoidanceVSAvoidcommunication amount

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSQuantity of substance

Solution Approach 1:

The patent segments the information sharing requirement so that not all robots need real-time positional information from all other robots. Instead, robots share information with nearby robots in their vicinity, reducing communication overhead while maintaining collision avoidance capability.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The patent applies local quality by having robots obtain positional information from nearby robots rather than requiring global real-time information from all robots. This localized information sharing reduces communication amount while sufficient for collision avoidance in local areas.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #3Local quality

Data Source

PatentUS20240361782A1Mobile robot, movement control device, method, and recording medium

Publication Date: 2024.10.31 NEC CORP

AI summary

In a mobile robot, a control unit performs movement control for moving toward a target direction while remaining in a movable region representing a communicable region without a collision between an own robot and another robot. A movable region calculation unit calculates, from a state of the own robot and a state of the other robot, a first region where the own robot and the other robot do not collide, a second region where the own robot and the other robot are capable of communicating, and the movable region in which the first region and the second region overlap.