Facility navigation localization for mobile autonomous robot
AssigneeInternational Business Machines Corporation
InventorsJoseph Scaglione, William J. Green, Karl Owen Casserly, Mateusz Koziol
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Facilitating navigation localization for a mobile robot operating autonomously can include a deployment of a retractable landmark in a work area in response to an operational threshold not being met for a mobile robot to autonomously operate traversing the work area. The operational threshold not being met can be based on a determination of when landmarks in the work area for the mobile robot to use as perimeter markers do not meet the operational threshold.
Claims20
A method for facility navigation localization for a mobile robot operating autonomously, comprising:
- deploying, using a computer, a retractable landmark in a work area in response to an operational threshold not being met for a mobile robot to autonomously operate traversing the work area;
- the operational threshold not being met being based on, determining, using the computer, when landmarks in the work area for the mobile robot to use as perimeter markers to provide a perimeter for the mobile robot to autonomously operate, do not meet the operational threshold;
- wherein the deploying of the retractable landmark obstructs a floor of the work area, and provides a landmark for the mobile robot which detects the retractable landmark using one or more sensors mounted on the robot;
- and
- retracting the retractable landmark into a recess such that the floor of the work area is unobstructed when the landmark is retracted.
A system for facility navigation localization for a mobile robot operating autonomously, which comprises:
- a scanning device, capable of communication with a computer, to detect landmarks in a work area for operation of a mobile robot, and the computer having computer readable storage medium with embodied program instructions to determine when landmarks in the work area do not provide perimeter markers to define a perimeter meeting an operational threshold for the mobile robot to autonomously operate traversing the work area;
- one or more retractable landmarks being deployable in the work area, using the computer, in response to the operational threshold not being met;
- wherein the deploying of the retractable landmark obstructs a floor of the work area, and provides a landmark for the mobile robot which detects the retractable landmark using one or more sensors mounted on the robot;
- and
- retracting the retractable landmark into a recess such that the floor of the work area is unobstructed when the landmark is retracted.
A method for facility navigation localization for a mobile robot operating autonomously, comprising:
- determining, using a computer, when landmarks in a work area do not provide perimeter markers to define a perimeter meeting an operational threshold for a mobile robot to autonomously operate traversing the work area;
- initiating, using the computer, deployment of a retractable landmark in the work area in response to the operational threshold not being met;
- wherein the deploying of the retractable landmark obstructs a floor of the work area, and provides a landmark for the mobile robot which detects the retractable landmark using one or more sensors mounted on the robot;
- and
- retracting the retractable landmark into a recess such that the floor of the work area is unobstructed when the landmark is retracted.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.