JPH0926821A - Driving control device for unmanned vehicles - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Abstract] [Problems] In conventional navigation used for driving control of an unmanned vehicle, accurate traveling control is difficult or the traveling range is limited due to low accuracy in measuring the current position of the unmanned vehicle. However, there is a problem that the ground equipment becomes large-scale. A computing unit (3) presents the current state of the unmanned vehicle (5) with respect to the route determined by the route information generating unit (1) based on the route data output from the route information generating unit (1) and the current position data output from the GPS (2). The amount of positional deviation is obtained, and a trajectory correction signal for correcting the amount of positional deviation is output to the travel control unit 4. Thereby, the traveling control unit 4 controls the steered wheels of the unmanned vehicle 5 to cause the unmanned vehicle 5 to travel along the route.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a travel control device for an unmanned vehicle which defines a route between a current position and a target position and travels along the route.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a device for guiding a moving body, which is mainly used for ships, detects the moving direction of the moving body using an angle sensor such as a gyro sensor, and based on the detected moving direction and moving speed. There is a method using inertial navigation that calculates the current position and guides the moving body to a predetermined route.

[0003] In addition, mainly for a flight object, a navigation method using radio waves, in which the current position of the mobile object is determined by a radio wave output from a beacon or the like to guide the mobile object,
Further, mainly for ground vehicles, there are those using navigation using ground induction wires such as electromagnetic induction wires installed on the ground.

[0004]

By the way, when the conventional navigation described above is applied to a traveling control device for an unmanned vehicle that controls an unmanned vehicle to move accurately along a predetermined route, it is detected in inertial navigation. Since the moving direction and moving speed include an error, the error accumulates when traveling for a long time and an accurate current position cannot be obtained, making it difficult to guide the moving body to a predetermined route. There was a chance Further, when the navigation using the radio waves is used, if the user goes out of the area where the radio waves output from the beacon or the like can be received, the moving body cannot be controlled, and the effective use area is limited. Further, when the navigation using the ground guide wire is used, there is a problem that it is necessary to install an electromagnetic guide wire and the like on the ground, so that the facility becomes large-scale and the cost is great.

The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and is a GPS (Global Positioning) capable of measuring a highly accurate absolute position at any position on the earth as a measuring device for the current position of a moving body. System) to measure the current position with high accuracy without the need for large-scale ground facilities, and to control the traveling of unmanned vehicles so that the moving body can travel accurately along the set route. It is an object to provide a vehicle travel control device.

[0006]

According to the first aspect of the present invention,
In a traveling control device that is mounted on an unmanned vehicle that autonomously travels between a designated movement start position and a movement stop position, and that starts and stops traveling of the unmanned vehicle, and controls the movement direction, the designated movement start A route information generating means for obtaining a route between a position and a movement stop position, and a current position measuring means for measuring the current position of the unmanned vehicle based on a radio wave from a satellite and outputting position information of the measured current position. And, based on the route information from the route information generating means and the current position information from the current position measuring means, a deviation amount of the current position of the unmanned vehicle with respect to the route is calculated, and the deviation amount is calculated according to the deviation amount. A trajectory correction means for outputting a trajectory correction signal for correcting the moving direction of the unmanned vehicle; and a traveling control means for controlling the traveling of the unmanned vehicle by the trajectory correction signal from the trajectory correction means. A travel control device of the unmanned vehicle to butterflies.

The invention according to claim 2 is mounted on an unmanned vehicle that autonomously travels between a designated movement start position and a movement stop position, and controls the start or stop of the unmanned vehicle and the movement direction. The travel control device has position data corresponding to each of a plurality of predetermined positions in the movable area of the unmanned vehicle, and has a movement start position and a movement stop position designated from the plurality of positions. Between the plurality of positions so that the movement start position is the starting point and the movement stop position is connected to the movement stop position at the shortest distance. position,
Each position data of the movement stop position, and route information generating means for outputting the passing order of each position as route data, and the current position of the unmanned vehicle is measured based on the radio wave from the satellite, and the measured current position Current position measuring means for outputting the position data of, and straight line data connecting between the respective positions based on the route data from the route information generating means, and based on the straight line data and the current position data. A trajectory correction means for calculating a deviation amount of the current position of the unmanned vehicle with respect to the route and outputting a trajectory correction signal for correcting the moving direction of the unmanned vehicle in accordance with the deviation amount; and a trajectory correction from the trajectory correction means. A traveling control device for an unmanned vehicle, comprising: a traveling control means for controlling traveling of the unmanned vehicle in response to a signal.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the traveling control device for an unmanned vehicle according to the second aspect, the position data of the route information generating means and the current position data output from the current position measuring means are based on longitude and latitude. The data is represented.

[0009]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION According to the traveling control apparatus for an unmanned vehicle according to the present invention, route information between the movement start position and the movement stop position input from the outside is determined, and the GPS is used as the current position measuring means. The current position of the unmanned vehicle is measured using the calculated amount of deviation from the route indicated by the route information, and the unmanned vehicle is allowed to travel along the determined route based on the calculated deviation amount. Control. Therefore, since the current position of the unmanned vehicle can be measured by radio waves from GPS satellites, it is possible to control the traveling of the unmanned vehicle without being restricted by ground facilities, and the current position of the unmanned vehicle is latitude and longitude. That is, since the absolute position is obtained, the distance and direction to the movement stop position can be easily obtained.

[0010]

An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a traveling control device for an unmanned vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention. In this figure, reference numeral 1 denotes a route information generation unit, which has a plurality of predetermined position information within a travelable area of the unmanned vehicle 5, and an operation unit (not shown) selects from among the plurality of position information. Based on the specified movement start position and target position, a route that moves from the movement start position to the target position with the shortest distance is obtained. Here, it is assumed that the operation unit described above is provided with various keys such as a key for designating a movement start position or a target position, a key for instructing movement start or emergency stop, and the like.

Reference numeral 2 denotes a GPS, which receives radio waves from a satellite, measures the latitude and longitude of the current position of the unmanned vehicle 5 every second, and outputs it as current position information. Reference numeral 3 denotes a calculation unit, which outputs the route information output from the route information generation unit 1 and the GPS.
The unmanned vehicle 5 based on the current position information output from 2
The deviation amount from the above route is calculated, and a trajectory correction signal for correcting the moving direction of the unmanned vehicle 5 is output based on the deviation amount, and a running start / stop signal for instructing the running start or stop of the unmanned vehicle 5. Is output. 4 is a traveling control unit,
Trajectory correction signal output from computing unit 3 and start / run
Based on the stop signal, the power supplied to the motor of the unmanned vehicle 5, a braking mechanism (not shown), and the steering angle of the steered wheels are controlled.

Next, the operation of the traveling control device for the unmanned vehicle described above will be described with reference to FIGS. 2 and 3. FIG.
FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram for explaining the position information stored in advance in the route information generating unit 1 described above and the travelable area of the unmanned vehicle 5. The route information generation unit 1 stores the latitudes and longitudes of the positions N1 to N12 shown in this drawing in advance in a storage device (not shown). Further, in FIG. 2, the travelable area of the unmanned vehicle 5 is an area surrounded by the positions N1, N3, N12 and N10.

The case where the unmanned vehicle 5 is at the position N3 in the initial state and the user moves the unmanned vehicle 5 from the position N3 to the position N10 will be described below with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. First, the user inputs the movement start position N3 and the final arrival position N10 from an operation unit (not shown).
Here, as the position input by the user, the name of the position information stored in advance (for example, "N1", "N2", ...
Etc.) should be entered.

As a result, the route information generating section 1 is moved to the position N.
3 and the position information of the position N10 are read from the storage device, and the position N
Find the route that can move between 3 and N10 in the shortest distance. That is, the route information generation unit 1 finds a route passing through the positions N3 → N5 → N8 → N10, and together with the position information of each of these positions,
The passing order of each position is output to the calculation unit 3 as route information. Next, when the user presses the movement start button from the operation unit,
The calculation unit 3 first proceeds to step S1 in FIG. 3, and the present position (movement start position N3) and the target position (relay position)
Data of a line (hereinafter referred to as a base line) connecting with N5) with a straight line is obtained, and the process proceeds to step S2.

In step S2, the arithmetic unit 3 outputs a traveling start signal to the traveling control unit 4, and the traveling control unit 4 receives the signal and supplies electric power to the motor of the unmanned vehicle 5. As a result, the unmanned vehicle 5 starts traveling. Next, in step S3, the calculation unit 3 determines whether or not the current position data from the GPS 2 is input. If the current position data is not input, the determination result is No, and the process returns to step S2 and the unmanned operation is performed. Car 5 continues to run. On the other hand, if the current position data is input, the determination result is Yes, and the process proceeds to step S4.

Next, in step S4, the computing unit 3 uses the GPS 2
A deviation amount indicating how much the current position data input from is deviated from the base line calculated in step S1 is calculated. Here, the above-mentioned shift amount is the length of a perpendicular line drawn from the position indicated by the current position data to the above-mentioned base line. Next, in step S5, a trajectory correction amount for correcting the moving direction of the unmanned vehicle 5 is calculated based on the deviation amount obtained in step S4 so that the unmanned vehicle 5 travels along the baseline.

Here, the trajectory correction amount is an unmanned vehicle 5 that returns to the base line after traveling a predetermined distance from the current position toward the target position (here, the relay position N5).
Steering angle of the steering wheel. Further, in calculating the trajectory correction amount, when the target position is within the above-described predetermined distance, the calculation unit 3 calculates a steering angle that directly reaches the target position from the current position at that time. .

Next, in step S6, the calculation unit 3 outputs a trajectory correction signal corresponding to the calculated trajectory correction amount to the traveling control unit 4. Further, the traveling control unit 4 controls the steering angle of the steered wheels of the unmanned vehicle 5 according to the input trajectory correction signal.
Next, the calculation unit 3 proceeds to step S7, and the unmanned vehicle 5 moves to the relay position N based on the current position data input from the GPS 2.
Determine if 5 is reached. Here, when the unmanned vehicle 5 has reached the relay position N5, the determination result is Yes.
Then, the process returns to step S1, and if the relay position N5 is not reached, the determination result is No and the process proceeds to step S8. Here, it is assumed that the unmanned vehicle 5 has not reached the relay position N5 and the process proceeds to step S8.

Next, in step S8, the arithmetic unit 3 determines whether or not the unmanned vehicle 5 has reached the final reaching position N10. If the unmanned vehicle 5 has reached the final reaching position N10, the determination result is Y.
The result is es, and a travel stop signal for stopping the travel of the unmanned vehicle 5 is output to the travel control unit 4. Also, the target position N10
If not, the determination result is No and the process returns to step S2. Here, the unmanned vehicle 5 is at the movement start position N.
Since it is moving from 3 to the relay position N5, the judgment result is N.
and the process returns to step S2.

Thereafter, the above-described steps S2 to S8 are repeated until the unmanned vehicle 5 reaches the relay position N5. Then, when the unmanned vehicle 5 reaches the relay position N5, the calculation unit 3 returns to step S1 to obtain a baseline between the current position (relay position N5) and the next target position (relay position N8), and , Steps S2 to S8 are repeated until the unmanned vehicle 5 reaches the relay position N8.

Thereafter, until the unmanned vehicle 5 reaches the final arrival position N10, the current position and the next target position are sequentially set to 2 positions.
Repeat movement between points. When the unmanned vehicle 5 reaches the final reaching position N10, the determination result in step S8 is Y.
es, and the calculation unit 3 outputs a travel stop signal for stopping the travel of the unmanned vehicle 5 to the travel control unit 4. As a result, the traveling control unit 4 stops the electric power supplied to the motor of the unmanned vehicle 5 and operates the braking mechanism of the unmanned vehicle 5 to cause the unmanned vehicle 5 to operate.
Stop running.

[0022]

As described above, according to the first aspect of the invention, the route information between the movement start position and the movement stop position input from the outside is generated, and the present position measuring means is used. The current position of the unmanned vehicle is measured using GPS, how much the current position of the unmanned vehicle deviates from the route indicated by the route information is calculated, and the unmanned vehicle is calculated based on the calculated displacement amount. Since the vehicle is controlled to travel along the route, it is possible to measure the current position with high accuracy, and more accurate traveling control becomes possible. Further, since the current position of the unmanned vehicle described above is measured by radio waves from GPS satellites, it is possible to control the traveling of the unmanned vehicle without being restricted by ground facilities.

According to the second aspect of the invention, the route information generating means has position data corresponding to each of a plurality of predetermined points within the movable area, and the designated movement start position. Between the movement stop position and the movement stop position, starting from the movement start position and connecting to the movement stop position at the shortest distance, sequentially selecting adjacent points from the plurality of positions, and selecting the selected points. Since the order of passage is also determined, it is possible not only to control the traveling of unmanned vehicles more accurately without being restricted by ground facilities, but also to select the movement start position and movement stop position from multiple points. By selecting the route that moves the shortest distance between them, it is not necessary to input the position information of the movement start position and the movement stop position, or the position in the middle one by one. Effort is reduced.

According to the third aspect of the invention, since the position data of the route information generating means and the current position data output from the current position measuring means are represented by longitude and latitude, The distance and direction to the target position can be easily obtained.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of an unmanned vehicle in an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram for explaining position information of the unmanned vehicle and a movable area of the unmanned vehicle.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing a process of an arithmetic unit of the unmanned vehicle.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 ... Route information generation unit, 2 ... GPS, 3 ... Calculation unit,
4 …… Running control unit, 5 …… Unmanned vehicle

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A travel control device that is mounted on an unmanned vehicle that autonomously travels between a designated movement start position and a movement stop position, and that controls the start or stop of the unmanned vehicle and the movement direction thereof. Route information generating means for obtaining a route between a specified movement start position and movement stop position, and measuring the current position of the unmanned vehicle based on radio waves from a satellite and outputting position information of the measured current position. The current position measuring means, the route information from the route information generating means, and the current position information from the current position measuring means are used to calculate the shift amount of the current position of the unmanned vehicle with respect to the route, and the shift is calculated. Trajectory correction means for outputting a trajectory correction signal for correcting the moving direction of the unmanned vehicle in accordance with the amount; travel control means for controlling the traveling of the unmanned vehicle by the trajectory correction signal from the trajectory correction means; Running controller for the unmanned vehicle, characterized by comprising. 2. A travel control device mounted on an unmanned vehicle that autonomously travels between a designated movement start position and a movement stop position, and controls the traveling start or stop of the unmanned vehicle and the traveling direction thereof. It has position data corresponding to each of a plurality of predetermined positions within the movable area of the unmanned vehicle, and moves between the movement start position and the movement stop position designated from the plurality of positions. Starting from the start position, the adjacent positions are sequentially selected from the plurality of positions so as to connect to the movement stop position with the shortest distance, and each selected position, the movement start position, and the movement stop position Each position data of, and route information generating means for outputting the passing order of each position as route data, the current position of the unmanned vehicle is measured based on the radio wave from the satellite, and the position data of the measured current position Current position measuring means for outputting and straight line data for connecting the respective positions based on the route data from the route information generating means are generated, and for the route based on the straight line data and the current position data. A trajectory correction unit that calculates a deviation amount of the current position of the unmanned vehicle and outputs a trajectory correction signal that corrects the moving direction of the unmanned vehicle according to the deviation amount; and a trajectory correction signal from the trajectory correction unit, A traveling control device for an unmanned vehicle, comprising: a traveling control means for controlling traveling of the unmanned vehicle. 3. The unmanned system according to claim 2, wherein the position data of the route information generating means and the current position data output from the current position measuring means are data represented by longitude and latitude. Vehicle drive control device.