US-20260127518-A1 - POSITIONING SYSTEM

Abstract

A positioning system positioning a worker, comprising: a posture sensor worn by the worker, the posture sensor detecting a physical quantity relating to a change in posture of the worker; an optical tracker device optically detecting a physical quantity representing a position of a tracker worn by the worker; and a position identification unit identifying a position of the worker by selectively using at least one detection result of first detection result by the posture sensor and second detection result by the optical tracker device in a plurality of patterns.

Inventors

• Tomohiro Tsubota

Assignees

• TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA

Dates

Publication Date

20260507

Application Date

20250929

Priority Date

20241105

Claims (5)

1. 1 . A positioning system positioning a worker, comprising: a posture sensor worn by the worker, the posture sensor detecting a physical quantity relating to a change in posture of the worker; an optical tracker device optically detecting a physical quantity representing a position of a tracker worn by the worker; and a position identification unit identifying a position of the worker by selectively using at least one detection result of first detection result by the posture sensor and second detection result by the optical tracker device in a plurality of patterns.
2. 2 . The positioning system according to claim 1 , wherein the position identification unit selectively uses the at least one detection result in the plurality of patterns according to an area in which the worker is located.
3. 3 . The positioning system according to claim 1 , further comprising, A receiving unit configured to receive the first detection result from the posture sensor and the second detection result from the optical tracker device, wherein the position identification unit uses the at least one detection result received by the receiving unit selectively in the plurality of patterns, when only the first detection result among the first detection result and the second detection result is received by the receiving unit, uses the first detection result and executes a first process of identifying the position of the worker without using the second detection result, and when the first detection result and the second detection result that temporally correspond to each other are received by the receiving unit, executes a second process of identifying the position of the worker using the first detection result and the second detection result.
4. 4 . The positioning system according to claim 3 , wherein the position identification unit identifies, as the position of the worker, at least a position of a foot of the worker, the tracker is mounted on a head of the worker, and the second process is a process of identifying at least the position of the foot using the posture calculated using the first detection result and a position of the head represented by the second detection result.
5. 5 . The positioning system according to claim 3 , wherein when executing the first process immediately after the second process, the position identification unit identifies the position of the worker by using the position of the worker identified by the second process executed immediately before as a reference position and calculating a displacement from the reference position using the first detection result.

Description

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS The present application claims priority based on a Japanese patent application, application number 2024-193480, filed November 5, 2024, the entire disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. BACKGROUND FIELD This disclosure relates to a positioning system. RELATED ART Regarding a positioning system for positioning a worker, International Publication No. 2018/087844 discloses a technique for recognizing an operation performed by the worker using position coordinates of a body part of the worker acquired using a sensor. In the positioning system positioning the worker, a technique to ensure positioning accuracy and the positioning robustness is desired. SUMMARY According to one aspect of the present disclosure, a positioning system positioning a worker is provided. The positioning system includes: a posture sensor worn by the worker, the posture sensor detecting a physical quantity relating to a change in posture of the worker; an optical tracker device optically detecting a physical quantity representing a position of a tracker worn by the worker; and a position identification unit identifying a position of the worker by selectively using at least one detection result of first detection result by the posture sensor and second detection result by the optical tracker device in a plurality of patterns. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing a schematic configuration of a positioning system in the first embodiment; FIG. 2 is a flow chart of the position identification process in the first embodiment; FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an exemplary position identification process in the first embodiment; FIG. 4 is a flow chart of the position identification process in the second embodiment; FIG. 5 is a diagram for explaining an exemplary position identification process in the second embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION A. First Embodiment FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing a schematic configuration of a positioning system 10 in the first embodiment. The positioning system 10 is used to position a worker WK performing an operation. The positioning system 10 is used in a workshop where the worker WK performs the operation. The workshop in this embodiment is a factory FC for manufacturing a vehicle VC. The operation in the present embodiment is a variety of operations for manufacturing the vehicle VC, including, for example, assembly of the vehicle VC, assembly of components to the vehicle VC, and inspecting the vehicle VC. The positioning system 10 comprises a posture sensor 50, an optical tracker device 60 and a position identification device 100. The posture sensor 50 is worn by the worker WK. In the present embodiment, the posture sensor 50 is mounted one by one on the head, the right arm, the left arm, the chest, the abdomen, the right leg and the left leg of the worker WK. The posture sensor 50 is configured to be capable of detecting physical quantity relating to change in posture of the worker WK. More specifically, the posture sensor 50 detects accelerations and angular velocities occurring in the worker WK as the physical quantity relating to the change in the posture of the worker WK. In the present embodiment, the posture sensor 50 is configured as an inertial measuring device (IMU) including a three-axis acceleration sensor, a three-axis gyro sensor, and a three-axis geomagnetic sensor. The present detection result by the posture sensor 50 is also referred to as "first detection result". The first detection result is associated with information representing timing in which the first detection result is detected. The posture sensor 50 transmits the detected first detection result to the position identification device 100. The optical tracker device 60 has a tracker 61 and a base station 62. The optical tracker device 60 is configured to be capable of optically detecting physical quantity representing the position of the tracker 61 worn by the worker WK. In the present embodiment, the single tracker 61 is worn by the worker WK. More specifically, in the present embodiment, the single tracker 61 is mounted on the head of the worker WK. The body part on which the tracker 61 is worn may be optional, but is preferably a body part that does not easily hinder the operation such as the head. The detection result by the optical tracker device 60 is also referred to as second detection result. The second detection result is associated with information representing timing in which the second detection result is detected. In the factory FC, the base station 62 is located in the vicinity of the area where the operation by the worker WK is to be performed. In the present embodiment, two base stations 62 are arranged in the factory FC. The base station 62, at predetermined time-intervals, emits detection light for detecting the position of the tracker 61. The detection light is scanned within the irradiation range of the detection