US-12617099-B2 - In-vehicle robot

US12617099B2US 12617099 B2US12617099 B2US 12617099B2US-12617099-B2

Abstract

An in-vehicle robot includes a base member, an outer member, an inner member, and first, second, and third power transmission units. The base member is rotatably mounted to a mounting object. The outer member is supported by the base member. The inner member is positioned inside the outer member and supported by the outer member. The first power transmission unit allows the inner member to rotate around a first axis with respect to the outer member. The first axis passes through a portion of the inner member supported by the outer member. The second power transmission unit allows the outer member to rotate around a second axis. The second axis passes through a portion of the outer member supported by the base member. The third power transmission unit allows the outer member to rotate around a third axis that is non-parallel to both the first axis and the second axis.

Inventors

Laiqiang Zhang
Lihong Wang
Liang Chen
Xiaolin Bai
Yuqing Luo

Assignees

NISSAN MOTOR CO., LTD.

Dates

Publication Date: 20260505
Application Date: 20220622
Priority Date: 20210910

Claims (13)

1 . An in-vehicle robot comprising: a base member mounted to a dashboard; an outer member supported by the base member; an inner member positioned inside the outer member and supported by the outer member; a first power transmission unit that allows the inner member to rotate around a first axis with respect to the outer member, the first axis passing through a portion of the inner member supported by the outer member; a second power transmission unit that allows the outer member to rotate around a second axis, the second axis passing through a portion of the outer member supported by the base member; and a third power transmission unit that allows the outer member to rotate around a third axis that is non-parallel to both the first axis and the second axis, wherein the third power transmission unit is positioned inside a casing fixed to a lower surface of the dashboard, wherein the inner member is formed in a ring shape, and an inside of the inner member is provided with a first display that displays information, and wherein an outer peripheral surface of the inner member is provided with a second display constituted as a part of the outer peripheral surface of the inner member.
2 . The in-vehicle robot according to claim 1 , wherein the second axis is positioned in a same plane as the first axis and intersects with the first axis, and wherein the third axis intersects with the plane in which the first axis and the second axis are present.
3 . The in-vehicle robot according to claim 2 , wherein the third axis passes through an intersection point of the first axis and the second axis.
4 . The in-vehicle robot according to claim 1 , wherein the third power transmission unit includes a guiding member fixed to the base member and a moving member fixed to the outer member, and by configuring the moving member and the guiding member to be relatively movable, the outer member is linked to move so as to rotate around the third axis with respect to the base member.
5 . The in-vehicle robot according to claim 4 , wherein the guiding member includes a rail member, and wherein the moving member is movable along a rail surface of the rail member.
6 . The in-vehicle robot according to claim 5 , wherein the rail member includes a plurality of rails and/or the moving member includes a plurality of moving parts.
7 . The in-vehicle robot according to claim 5 , wherein the rail member includes a first rail and a second rail that each have an arc shape, the first rail is positioned between the outer member and the second rail, an arc center of the first rail and an arc center of the second rail overlap, and wherein the moving member includes a first moving part and a second moving part, the first moving part is movable along the first rail, and the second moving part is movable along the second rail.
8 . The in-vehicle robot according to claim 5 , wherein the moving member includes wheel portions and/or sliders provided at end parts in a moving direction of the moving member.
9 . The in-vehicle robot according to claim 4 , wherein the third power transmission unit includes a third shaft motor that drives the outer member to rotate around the third axis by an intermediate gear.
10 . The in-vehicle robot according to claim 9 , wherein the moving member is provided with an arc-shaped teeth portion that meshes with the intermediate gear.
11 . The in-vehicle robot according to claim 1 , wherein the outer member and the inner member are formed in a circular ring shape.
12 . The in-vehicle robot according to claim 1 , wherein the first axis, the second axis, and the third axis are mutually orthogonal in a reference state at an initial position, wherein at least one of the following conditions is satisfied: the inner member rotates from the reference state around the first axis in an angle range of −90° to 90°, the outer member rotates from the reference state around the second axis at an angle of −175° to 175°, and the outer member rotates from the reference state around the third axis at an angle of −19° to 19°.
13 . The in-vehicle robot according to claim 1 , wherein the outer member includes a pair of shaft portions that extend inward and are mutually opposed, the inner member is supported by the pair of shaft portions, the first axis passes through the pair of shaft portions, and the first power transmission unit includes a first shaft motor mounted to the inner member or the outer member, and wherein the inner member is rotatable around the pair of shaft portions by driving of the first shaft motor.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a field of in-vehicle robots, especially regarding an in-vehicle robot in an interior of an intelligent vehicle. BACKGROUND ART In association with intelligentization of automobiles, vehicle interiors applied with techniques of A1 perception and thinking, such as vision, audio, and front-end incremental learning, are gaining popularity, and human-computer interaction is becoming more and more important. An in-vehicle robot is used as the main interface, and the head of the robot interacts with and offers feedback to a passenger according to the state or command of the passenger. This allows avoiding a mechanical image and a sense of command upon the interaction, and performing a more personified and natural interaction. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses an in-vehicle robot that simulates nodding and head shaking movements of a human by the head of the robot rotating up and down and rotating right and left within a predetermined angle range using power transmission between gears. PRIOR ART DOCUMENT Patent Document Patent Document 1: CN-A-111872945 SUMMARY OF INVENTION Problems to be Solved by Invention However, in Patent Document 1, since the head of the in-vehicle robot can rotate only in two directions of the up-down direction and the right-left direction, and cannot simulate the movement of a human head rotating freely, personification and intelligentization are still not enough. Means for Solving Problems The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-described circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide an in-vehicle robot that can realistically and intelligently simulate movements of a human head. A first aspect of the present invention provides an in-vehicle robot including a base member, an outer member, an inner member, a first power transmission unit, a second power transmission unit, and a third power transmission unit. The base member is rotatably mounted to a mounting object. The outer member is supported by the base member. The inner member is positioned inside the outer member and is supported by the outer member. The first power transmission unit allows the inner member to rotate around a first axis with respect to the outer member. The first axis passes through a portion of the inner member supported by the outer member. The second power transmission unit allows the outer member to rotate around a second axis. The second axis passes through a portion of the outer member supported by the base member. The third power transmission unit allows the outer member to rotate around a third axis that is non-parallel to both the first axis and the second axis. A second aspect of the present invention provides an in-vehicle robot in which the second axis is positioned in a same plane as the first axis and intersects with the first axis, and the third axis intersects with the plane in which the first axis and the second axis are positioned. A third aspect of the present invention provides an in-vehicle robot in which the third axis passes through an intersection point of the first axis and the second axis. A fourth aspect of the present invention provides an in-vehicle robot in which the third power transmission unit includes a guiding member fixed to the base member and a moving member fixed to the outer member, and by configuring the moving member and the guiding member to be relatively movable, the outer member is linked to move so as to rotate around the third axis with respect to the base member. A fifth aspect of the present invention provides an in-vehicle robot in which the guiding member includes a rail member, and the moving member is movable along a rail surface of the rail member. A sixth aspect of the present invention provides an in-vehicle robot in which the third power transmission unit includes a third shaft motor that drives the outer member to rotate around the third axis by an intermediate gear. A seventh aspect of the present invention provides an in-vehicle robot in which the moving member is provided with an arc-shaped teeth portion that meshes with the intermediate gear. An eighth aspect of the present invention provides an in-vehicle robot in which a plurality of the rail members and/or a plurality of the moving members are provided. A ninth aspect of the present invention provides an in-vehicle robot in which the rail member includes a first rail and a second rail that each have an arc shape, the first rail is positioned between the outer member and the second rail, an arc center of the first rail and an arc center of the second rail overlap, and the moving member includes a first moving member and a second moving member, the first moving member is movable along the first rail, and the second moving member is movable along the second rail. A tenth aspect of the present invention provides an in-vehicle robot in which the moving member includes wheel portions and/or sliders provided at both end parts