Mobile Robot Virtual Wall Mapping to Avoid Physical Signal Devices
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Solution Overview
Problem
Mobile robots designed for cleaning often face challenges in navigating around obstacles without causing damage, as they may collide with or fall off stairs, thresholds, or other objects, and existing solutions require additional devices that incur costs and space constraints, and can confuse the robot about safe areas.
Innovation Solution
A mobile robot system that uses a virtual wall setup through a terminal to restrict its travel area, allowing it to avoid obstacles by registering virtual walls on its map and adjusting its route accordingly, without the need for physical signal-generating devices, thus preventing collisions and improving navigation efficiency.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the mobile robot is designed to avoid an obstacle when the mobile robot detects the obstacle, then safety is improved, but cleaning coverage deteriorates because it is impossible to perform cleaning of a corresponding area
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by pre-setting virtual walls in the cleaning area before the robot begins cleaning. These virtual walls are registered on the robot's map in advance, creating predetermined restricted zones that the robot will avoid during its cleaning operation. This allows the robot to maintain safety by staying away from hazardous areas while still achieving comprehensive cleaning coverage in the remaining accessible areas.
2Reliability
If a device for generating a signal is provided in the cleaning area to prevent the mobile robot from approaching, then safety is improved, but device complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies copying by creating a virtual representation of physical barriers through digital maps and virtual walls. Instead of installing actual physical barriers or signal-generating devices in the cleaning area, the system creates a digital copy of the restricted zones on the robot's navigation map. The robot then navigates by recognizing and avoiding these virtual wall representations, eliminating the need for additional physical safety devices while maintaining effective obstacle avoidance.
3Reliability
If a device for generating a signal is installed indoors to restrict the mobile robot, then safety is improved, but ease of operation deteriorates due to installation space constraints and repeated signal detection
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies mechanics substitution by replacing the mechanical approach of installing physical signal-generating devices with a software-based virtual wall system. The virtual walls are defined through digital coordinates on the robot's navigation map, eliminating the need for physical installation in the cleaning area. This substitution resolves the installation convenience issues by allowing virtual barriers to be set up through software configuration rather than physical deployment, while also preventing the robot from repeatedly detecting physical signal devices during its cleaning operation.
Data Source
AI summary
A mobile robot system and a related control method sets a virtual wall as a specific area so that a mobile robot cannot approach within a cleaning area to restrict a traveling of the mobile robot, registers the virtual wall on a map when the virtual wall for restrict the approach of the mobile robot is set by a terminal, calculates a location of the virtual wall for the cleaning area to avoid the virtual wall, and restricts the approach of the mobile robot by matching the virtual wall to the cleaning area, controlling the mobile robot as if an actual physical obstacle exists by setting the virtual wall on the map through the terminal and matching to an actual cleaning area, and achieving an easy cleaning setting and effectively controlling the mobile robot as it can be plurally set at a desired location irrespective of the number.