KR-20260066623-A - autonomous object retrieval apparatus and method

KR20260066623AKR 20260066623 AKR20260066623 AKR 20260066623AKR-20260066623-A

Abstract

The present invention discloses an autonomous object lifting device and an autonomous object lifting method. An autonomous object lifting device according to an embodiment of the present invention comprises: an unmanned aerial vehicle body that performs aerial movement; a winch module provided on the unmanned aerial vehicle body for adjusting the length of a binding line; and a ground unit coupled to one end of the binding line and capable of being raised or lowered by the winch module. The ground unit is placed on a support surface where a target object is located, moves along the support surface toward the target object, and is coupled to the target object. The winch module can lift the target object by winding the binding line to retrieve the ground unit.

Inventors

심현철
강규리
귀네시 오잔
이승욱
마우라나 비시르 아즈하리

Assignees

한국과학기술원

Dates

Publication Date: 20260512
Application Date: 20251021
Priority Date: 20241104

Claims (20)

An unmanned aerial vehicle body that performs aerial movement; A winch module equipped on the main body of the above-mentioned unmanned aerial vehicle for adjusting the length of the binding wire; and It includes a ground unit coupled to one end of the above-mentioned binding line and capable of being raised or lowered by the above-mentioned winch module, The above ground unit is, It is placed on a support surface where a target object is located, moves along the support surface in the direction of the target object, and combines with the target object. The above winch module is, An autonomous object lifting device that retrieves the ground unit by winding the above binding wire and lifts the target object.
In paragraph 1, The above winch module is, It includes a winding drum on which the above-mentioned binding wire is wound, and The above winding drum is an autonomous object retrieval device that rotates according to the operation of a drive motor provided in the main body of the unmanned aerial vehicle to unwind or wind the binding wire.
In paragraph 1, The above ground unit is, An autonomous object lifting device comprising a plurality of joint supports that move over the support surface and are coupled with the target object.
In paragraph 3, A plurality of the above joint supports, Each includes a joint having one or more degrees of freedom, and An autonomous object lifting device that wraps around, supports, and grips the target object by bending part or all of the plurality of joint supports.
In paragraph 1, The above ground unit is, Walking means moving over the above support surface; and An autonomous object lifting device comprising a coupling means for coupling with the above-mentioned target object.
In paragraph 5, The above walking means is, An autonomous object lifting device including a driving module including wheels.
In paragraph 5, The above coupling means is, It includes at least two finger portions, and The above finger portion is configured to have one or more degrees of freedom, and is an autonomous object lifting device for gripping the target object.
In paragraph 5, The above coupling means is, An autonomous object lifting device that combines with the target object using at least one of adsorption, adhesion, or magnetic force.
In paragraph 1, The above ground unit is, An autonomous object lifting device further comprising a vision marker recognized by an image sensor of the unmanned aerial vehicle body to estimate the relative position of the ground unit.
In paragraph 1, The above ground unit is, It further includes a pressure sensor connected to the above-mentioned binding wire to measure the load transmitted to the above-mentioned binding wire, and The above pressure sensor is, An autonomous object lifting device that determines at least one of the aerial state, landing state, and coupling or lifting state with a target object of the above-mentioned ground unit.
In paragraph 1, The above ground unit is, An autonomous object lifting device further comprising wireless communication means for wirelessly exchanging at least one of the relative position, sensor status, and control command between the unmanned aerial vehicle body and the ground unit.
In paragraph 1, The above ground unit is, It further includes a first sensor and a second sensor positioned at spaced-apart locations below the ground unit, and The first sensor and the second sensor are, They are arranged so that their detection areas partially overlap each other to form a coupling area at the bottom of the ground unit, and The above ground unit is, An autonomous object lifting device that determines whether the target object exists within the coupling possible area based on the distance measurement values of the first sensor and the second sensor.
In paragraph 1, The above ground unit is, It further includes an inertial sensor module that detects at least one of the attitude, acceleration, or angular velocity of the ground unit, and An autonomous object lifting device that determines whether the ground unit is stably seated on the support surface or in an unstable state based on the signal of the inertial sensor module.
In paragraph 1, An autonomous object lifting device further comprising a control unit that coordinates the above unmanned aerial vehicle body, the above winch module, and the above ground unit to adjust the tension or length of the binding line or direct the operation of the above ground unit.
In Paragraph 14, The above control unit is, For candidate action i based on current state S t Calculate the action validity score αi and the target proximity weight gi , An autonomous object lifting device that selects the optimal operation a t in real time based on the equation.
In a method for recovering a target object using an autonomous object lifting device, A hovering step of hovering the unmanned aerial vehicle body at a predetermined altitude relative to a support surface where a target object is located; A descent step of lowering a ground unit connected to the binding line to the vicinity of the support surface where the target object is located by controlling a winch module equipped on the main body of the unmanned aerial vehicle to loosen the binding line; A state detection step for detecting the settling state of the ground unit and the relative position of the target object; A movement step of controlling the ground unit based on data measured in the state detection step to autonomously move it over the support surface and move it toward the target object; A coupling step in which the above ground unit combines with the target object; and An autonomous object lifting method comprising a lifting step of lifting the target object combined with the ground unit to the unmanned aerial vehicle body by controlling the winch module to wind the binding line.
In Paragraph 16, Prior to the above state detection step, An autonomous object lifting method further comprising a position recognition step of estimating the relative position of the ground unit by recognizing a vision marker provided on the ground unit using an image sensor of the unmanned aerial vehicle body.
In Paragraph 16, The above state detection step is, An autonomous object lifting method comprising a load-based state determination step in which a pressure sensor connected to the binding line and measuring a load transmitted to the binding line determines at least one of the airborne state, landing state, and coupling or lifting state with a target object of the ground unit.
In Paragraph 16, The above state detection step is, An autonomous object lifting method comprising a wireless communication step of exchanging at least one of the relative position, sensor status, and control command between the unmanned aerial vehicle body and the ground unit bidirectionally using a wireless communication means.
In Paragraph 16, The above state detection step is, An autonomous object lifting method comprising an attitude determination step for verifying the attitude stability of the ground unit using the measurement value of the inertial sensor module of the ground unit.

Description

Autonomous object retrieval apparatus and method The present invention relates to an autonomous object lifting device and an autonomous object lifting method, and more specifically, to a device and method for autonomously lifting an object using an unmanned aerial vehicle and a ground unit. Recently, drone-based object transport and retrieval technologies have been researched in various fields; however, existing drone-based aerial gripper systems have limitations due to their vulnerability to changes in the external environment. In particular, in dynamic environments such as strong winds, waves, or turbulent surfaces, the drone's attitude control becomes unstable, and there is a high probability of failure during the process of accurately recognizing or grasping objects. Furthermore, when lifting objects, the strong downward airflow generated by the drone's propellers causes the target object to be pushed away or lose its attitude, thereby hindering the lifting operation. This problem is even more severe in irregular terrain or on uneven surfaces, such as offshore structures, ship decks, and mountainous areas. Conventional grab-type drones pose a risk of collision or crash because they must approach the object closely, while methods utilizing tethers also suffer from reduced gripping accuracy due to swinging or vibration. FIG. 1 is a front view schematically showing the overall configuration of an autonomous object lifting device according to one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a schematic side view illustrating the state in which a ground unit descended from a drone according to one embodiment of the present invention moves toward a target. FIG. 3 is a perspective view illustrating the combined structure of a winch module and a ground unit according to one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view showing the internal components of a ground unit according to one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating the process of coordinated operation between an unmanned aerial vehicle and a ground unit according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 6 is a front view showing an autonomous object lifting device according to another embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 7 is a drawing illustrating an example of a walking means of a ground unit according to another embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 8 is a drawing illustrating an example of a coupling means of a ground unit according to another embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 9 is a block diagram illustrating a flowchart of an autonomous object lifting method according to an embodiment of the present invention. The terms used in this application are used merely to describe specific embodiments and are not intended to limit the invention. The singular expression includes the plural expression unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. In this application, when a part is described as "comprising" a certain component, this means that, unless specifically stated otherwise, it does not exclude other components but may include additional components. Furthermore, throughout the specification, "on" means located above or below the subject part, and does not necessarily mean located on the upper side with respect to the direction of gravity. In addition, regarding the contact relationship between each component, the term "combination" is used not only to mean cases where each component is in direct physical contact with each other, but also to encompass cases where another component is interposed between each component and each component is in contact with that other component. In addition, terms such as "first," "second," etc., may be used to describe a component; however, these terms are intended merely to distinguish the component from other components and are not intended to limit the essence, order, or sequence of the component. The size and thickness of each component shown in the drawings are depicted arbitrarily for convenience of explanation, and therefore the present invention is not necessarily limited to what is illustrated. Hereinafter, embodiments according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In describing with reference to the accompanying drawings, identical or corresponding components are given the same reference numerals, and redundant descriptions thereof will be omitted. FIG. 1 is a front view schematically showing the overall configuration of an autonomous object lifting device according to one embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a side view schematically showing the state in which a ground unit descended from a drone according to one embodiment of the present invention moves toward a target, and FIG. 3 is a perspective view illustrating the combined structure of a winch module and a ground unit according to one embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2,