Navigation method and system for autonomous machines with markers defining the working area
US6850024B2 · kind B2 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | May 16, 2002 |
| Grant date | Feb 1, 2005 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | May 16, 2022 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC A)Human Necessities
- CPC primaryA01D2101/00
- WIPO fieldControl
- WIPO sectorInstruments
Abstract
A method for automatically operating a robot, attached to a lawnmower or other unmanned machine, within an enclosed area is disclosed. The method includes the steps of: 1) providing the following elements: a proximity sensor positioned on the robot, a boundary along the perimeter of the working area and along the perimeter of each area enclosed in the working area in which the robot should not operate, the boundaries being detectable by the proximity sensor, a processing unit connected to the proximity sensor and receiving an input therefrom, a navigation unit on the robot to determine the coordinates of the robot relative to an arbitrary origin, a direction finder, and a memory to store values generated by the processing unit; and 2) causing the robot to move along each of the boundaries provided around or within the working area, to detect the boundaries and to memorize their shape, and to store in the memory values representative of the coordinates of the boundaries, thereby to generate a basic map of the working area. When the robot is to operate within the area, the method includes the steps of: (a) causing the robot to start from a starting point having known coordinates with…
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.