CN112806149A - Intelligent mowing system - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention discloses an intelligent mowing system, which comprises: a boundary module and an intelligent mower; the boundary module includes: a boundary line; the signal transmitting unit is used for generating a boundary signal and transmitting the boundary signal to the boundary line, and the boundary signal generates a magnetic field when flowing through the boundary line; the intelligent lawn mower includes: the signal receiving module can detect the boundary signal and generate a boundary line induction signal; the signal receiving module at least comprises a first sensor and a second sensor; and the control module is used for receiving the first boundary line induction signal and the second boundary line induction signal and calculating the pose of the opposite boundary line of the intelligent mower according to the first boundary line induction signal, the second boundary line induction signal and the preset distance between the first sensor and the second sensor so as to control the intelligent mower to walk. The intelligent mowing system disclosed by the invention can accurately identify whether the intelligent mower is in a working area and has higher efficiency of passing through a narrow passage.

Description

Intelligent mowing system

Technical Field

The invention relates to a garden tool, in particular to an intelligent mowing system.

Background

Generally, an operating handle for pushing is provided on an outdoor gardening cutting tool such as a lawn mower, and a switch box and a control mechanism for facilitating operation and control of an operator are provided on the operating handle near a holding part. The lawn mower travels on the ground by means of the pushing force applied to the operating handle by the operator and performs the cutting operation, and the operator is very labor-intensive in operating such a push mower. Along with the continuous development of artificial intelligence, the intelligent lawn mower that can walk by oneself has also been developed. Because the intelligent mower can automatically walk and execute preset related tasks, manual operation and intervention are not needed, manpower and material resources are greatly saved, and convenience is brought to an operator.

The appearance of intelligent lawn mower brings great convenience to users, and users can be relieved from heavy gardening nursing work. However, the current intelligent lawn mowers can only sense that the intelligent lawn mowers encounter obstacles or boundaries, but cannot know the original walking directions of the intelligent lawn mowers, so that the intelligent lawn mowers randomly collide in a narrow area, and the intelligent lawn mowers need a long time to leave the area and even can not leave the area.

Disclosure of Invention

In order to overcome the defects in the prior art, the invention aims to provide the intelligent mowing system which can accurately identify that the intelligent mower is positioned inside and outside the boundary line and passes through the narrow passage and has higher efficiency.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention adopts the following technical solutions:

an intelligent mowing system comprising: a boundary module and an intelligent mower; the boundary module includes: the boundary line is used for planning a working area of the intelligent mower; the signal transmitting unit is used for generating a boundary signal and transmitting the boundary signal to the boundary line, and the boundary signal generates a magnetic field when flowing through the boundary line; the intelligent lawn mower includes: the signal receiving module can detect the boundary signal and generate a boundary line induction signal; the signal receiving module at least comprises a first sensor and a second sensor, the distance between the first sensor and the second sensor is a preset distance, and the first sensor can generate a first boundary line sensing signal; the second sensor can generate a second boundary line induction signal; the control module is used for receiving the first boundary line induction signal and the second boundary line induction signal and calculating the position and posture of the intelligent mower on the boundary line according to the first boundary line induction signal, the second boundary line induction signal and the preset distance between the first sensor and the second sensor so as to control the intelligent mower to walk.

Preferably, the signal receiving module comprises an inductor.

Preferably, the boundary signal is provided with alternately occurring transmission signals and idle signals, the transmission signals being alternating current signals.

Preferably, the boundary signal includes a first sine wave signal and a second sine wave signal that are opposite in phase.

Preferably, the pose of the intelligent mower to the boundary line comprises:

the distance between the first sensor and the intersection point of the straight line where the first sensor and the second sensor are located and the boundary line;

the distance between the second sensor and the intersection point of the straight line where the first sensor and the second sensor are located and the boundary line;

and the intelligent mower has an included angle between the advancing direction and the boundary line.

Preferably, the control module is configured to determine a vertical distance from the first sensor to the boundary line and a vertical distance from the second sensor to the boundary line according to signal amplitudes of the first boundary line sensing signal and the second boundary line sensing signal.

Preferably, the control module is configured to determine whether the first sensor and the second sensor are located in the working area according to signal phases of the first boundary line induction signal and the second boundary line induction signal.

An intelligent mowing system comprises a boundary module and an intelligent mower; the boundary module includes: boundary lines including a first boundary line, a second boundary line adjacent to the first boundary line, wherein a travel channel is defined between the first boundary line and the second boundary line; the signal transmitting unit generates a boundary signal and transmits the boundary signal to the boundary line, and a magnetic field is generated when the boundary signal flows through the boundary line; the signal receiving module generates a boundary line induction signal; the signal receiving module at least comprises a first sensor and a second sensor, the distance between the first sensor and the second sensor is a preset distance, and the first sensor can generate a first boundary line sensing signal; the second sensor can generate a second boundary line induction signal; and the control module is used for receiving the boundary line induction signal and calculating the position and posture of the opposite boundary line of the intelligent mower according to the first boundary line induction signal, the second boundary line induction signal and the preset distance so as to control the intelligent mower to pass through the walking channel.

Preferably, the control module is capable of obtaining the distances of the first sensor and the second sensor from the boundary line according to the amplitudes of the first boundary line induction signal and the second boundary line induction signal, respectively.

Preferably, the pose of the intelligent mower to the boundary line comprises: the distance between the first sensor and the intersection point of the straight line where the first sensor and the second sensor are located and the boundary line; the distance between the second sensor and the intersection point of the straight line where the first sensor and the second sensor are located and the boundary line; and the intelligent mower has an included angle between the advancing direction and the boundary line.

The intelligent mowing system has the advantages that whether the intelligent mower is located in the boundary line or not can be accurately identified, and the intelligent mowing system is high in efficiency when the intelligent mower passes through a narrow passage.

Drawings

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an intelligent mowing system;

FIG. 2 is a schematic block diagram of a smart mower of the smart mowing system of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a circuit block diagram of the intelligent mowing system shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4a is a waveform diagram of a boundary line induction signal according to one embodiment;

FIG. 4b is a graph of amplitude versus frequency for the boundary line sensing signal waveform of FIG. 4a after computation by the control module;

FIG. 4c is a phase-frequency graph of the boundary line sensing signal waveform of FIG. 4a after being operated by the control module;

fig. 5 is a boundary signal waveform diagram (a), a boundary line induction signal waveform diagram (b) of the intelligent mower within the boundary line, and a boundary line induction signal waveform diagram (c) of the intelligent mower outside the boundary line in the first embodiment;

FIG. 6 is a circuit block diagram of the intelligent mowing system shown in FIG. 3;

fig. 7 is a boundary signal waveform diagram (a), a boundary line induction signal waveform diagram (b), and a processing signal waveform diagram (c) of the second embodiment;

fig. 8 is a boundary signal waveform diagram (a), a boundary line induction signal waveform diagram (b), and a processing signal waveform diagram (c) of the third embodiment;

fig. 9 is a boundary signal waveform diagram (a), a boundary line induction signal waveform diagram (b), and a processing signal waveform diagram (c) of the fourth embodiment;

fig. 10 is a boundary signal waveform diagram (a), a boundary line induction signal waveform diagram (b), and a processing signal waveform diagram (c) of the fifth embodiment;

fig. 11 is a boundary signal waveform diagram (a), a boundary line induction signal waveform diagram (b), and a processing signal waveform diagram (c) of the sixth embodiment;

fig. 12 is a boundary signal waveform diagram (a), a boundary line induction signal waveform diagram (b), and a processed signal waveform diagram (c) of the seventh embodiment;

fig. 13 is a boundary signal waveform diagram (a), a boundary line induction signal waveform diagram (b), and a processed signal waveform diagram (c) of the eighth embodiment;

fig. 14 is a boundary signal waveform diagram (a), a boundary line induction signal waveform diagram (b), and a processing signal waveform diagram (c) of the ninth embodiment;

FIG. 15 is a flowchart of a method for the intelligent mower to determine whether it is within or outside a boundary line;

FIG. 16 is a schematic view of a smart lawn mower of one embodiment walking along a boundary line;

FIG. 17 is a schematic diagram of the intelligent mower of the embodiment of FIG. 16 calculating pose related parameters of therelative boundary line 11;

FIG. 18 is a schematic diagram of the intelligent mower of the embodiment of FIG. 16 calculatingrelative boundary line 11 pose related parameters in a narrow passage;

fig. 19 is a schematic view of the intelligent mower of the embodiment shown in fig. 16 walking through a narrow passageway.

Detailed Description

The invention is described in detail below with reference to the figures and the embodiments.

Theintelligent mowing system 100 shown in fig. 1 includes aboundary module 10 and anintelligent mower 20. Theboundary module 10 includes aboundary line 11 and asignal transmitting unit 12. Theboundary line 11 is used for planning a working area of theintelligent lawn mower 20, wherein an area located inside theboundary line 11 is a working area and an area located outside theboundary line 11 is a non-working area, and theboundary line 11 can be arranged on the ground. Thesignal emitting unit 12 is electrically connected to theboundary line 11, thesignal emitting unit 12 generates a boundary signal BS to be transmitted to theboundary line 11, and the boundary signal BS generates a magnetic field when flowing through theboundary line 11. In some embodiments, thesignal emitting unit 12 periodically supplies theboundary line 11 with an alternating current signal, which generates an alternating magnetic field when flowing through theboundary line 11. Specifically, thesignal transmitting unit 12 may be a charging pile, which can periodically provide an alternating current signal to theboundary line 11, and also can charge the intelligent lawn mower.

Referring to fig. 2, thesmart lawn mower 20 includes a cutting blade (not shown) for cutting grass or vegetation; abody 21 for supporting a cutting blade; at least onewheel 23 supported by thebody 21 and rotatable; a driving module 24 connected to the at least onewheel 23, providing a driving force to drive the at least onewheel 23; apower module 25 for supplying electric power to theintelligent mower 20; and a power supply circuit electrically connected to thepower module 25 and the motor, so that the electric power output from thepower module 25 is supplied to the motor to drive the at least onewheel 23 to travel. It is understood that theintelligent mower 20 can select a full-automatic mowing mode, and can also add a manual mowing mode, that is, a user manually controls theintelligent mower 20 to perform work.

Further, the driving module 24 includes a driving motor configured to provide a torque to the at least one wheel to drive theintelligent mower 20 to advance, and a cutting motor configured to provide a torque to the cutting blade 22 to rotate the cutting blade 22 for mowing.

It will be appreciated that the drive module 24 may include only one motor that simultaneously drives both the wheel and the cutting blade 22. It is understood that the structural elements of theintelligent mower 20 may be modified to accomplish the mowing performance of theintelligent mower 20.

Theintelligent mower 20 further comprises asignal receiving module 26 and acontrol module 27. Thesignal receiving module 26 is configured to sense the magnetic field and generate a boundary line sensing signal MS according to a change of the sensed magnetic field, and thecontrol module 27 is configured to receive the boundary line sensing signal MS and control theintelligent lawn mower 20 to walk in a working area according to the boundary line sensing signal MS. The control module is configured to determine whether theintelligent mower 20 is in the working area within theboundary line 11 according to the boundary line sensing signal MS.

Thesignal receiving module 26 can convert the magnetic field into a corresponding electrical signal, and in some embodiments, thesignal receiving module 26 includes an inductor, which induces the magnetic field and generates a corresponding electromotive force, thereby converting the magnetic field into a boundary line induction signal to be transmitted to thecontrol module 27. In other embodiments, thesignal receiving module 26 includes a magnetic field detecting sensor, which can detect an alternating magnetic field and convert the alternating magnetic field into an electrical signal for output.

In some embodiments, thesignal transmitting unit 12 provides an alternating current signal to theboundary line 11, the alternating current signal generates a magnetic field when flowing through theboundary line 11, and thesignal receiving module 26 converts the magnetic field into a corresponding boundary line induction signal MS and transmits the corresponding boundary line induction signal MS to thecontrol module 27. Referring to fig. 3, thecontrol module 27 further includes asignal processor 273 and amicrocontroller 274, thesignal processor 273 receives the boundary line sensing signal MS and transmits the boundary line sensing signal MS to themicrocontroller 274, and themicrocontroller 274 receives the boundary line sensing signal MS and calculates the amplitude and phase of the boundary line sensing signal MS, so as to determine the distance from theintelligent mower 20 to theboundary line 11 and whether the working area within theboundary line 11 is the non-working area outside theboundary line 11, thereby controlling the walking direction of theintelligent mower 20.

After receiving the boundary line sensing signal MS, themicrocontroller 274 can perform multiply-add operation on the waveform function of the boundary line sensing signal MS and the sine function or the cosine function, and calculate the amplitude and the phase of the boundary line sensing signal MS, thereby determining the distance between theintelligent mower 20 and theboundary line 11 and whether the mower is located within theboundary line 11, and controlling the walking direction of theintelligent mower 20 according to the determination result.

Referring to fig. 4, fig. 4a is a boundary line sensing signal MS, wherein in the present embodiment, the frequency of the boundary line sensing signal MS is 5KHz, and the amplitude and frequency graphs shown in fig. 4b and the phase and frequency graphs shown in fig. 4c are obtained by performing a multiplication and addition operation on the waveform of the boundary line sensing signal and a sine function or a cosine function. As shown in fig. 4b and 4c, at a frequency of 5KHz, the amplitude value corresponds to 1 and the phase corresponds to-90 °. Therefore, themicrocontroller 274 can determine the distance between theintelligent mower 20 and theboundary line 11 and whether the intelligent mower is located within theboundary line 11 according to the amplitude and phase results, so as to send a control signal to the control unit to control the walking direction of theintelligent mower 20. It is understood that the frequency of the boundary line induction signal is not limited to 5 KHz.

In some embodiments, the boundary signal BS is a periodic signal in which the transmission signal ES and the auxiliary signal AS alternate, AS shown in fig. 5, the transmission signal ES is a sine wave signal, and thesignal transmitting unit 12 transmits the sine wave signal at regular intervals for a predetermined time; the auxiliary signal AS is a signal having at least one of amplitude, phase and frequency different from the transmission signal AS. Referring to fig. 5a, the amplitude of the auxiliary signal AS is different from the transmit signal ES. Thesignal receiving module 26 detects the boundary signal BS and converts it into a boundary sensing signal MS, which is transmitted to thecontrol module 27. The signal receiving module will also detect the abrupt change of the boundary signal BS corresponding to the auxiliary signal AS. Thesignal processor 273 receives the boundary line sense signal MS and determines the start point of the emission signal ES according to the auxiliary signal AS, and themicrocontroller 274 is configured to perform a multiply-add operation with a sine function or a cosine function at the start point of the emission signal to calculate the amplitude value and the phase. Since the magnetic fields inside and outside theboundary line 11 are opposite in direction, when theintelligent mower 20 is outside theboundary line 11, the phase of the boundary line induction signal MS generated by thesignal receiving module 26 is opposite to that of the boundary line induction signal MS detected when the intelligent mower is inside theboundary line 11, and other parameters are the same, as shown in fig. 5b and 5 c. Themicrocontroller 274 can determine whether theintelligent mower 20 is located within theboundary line 11 according to the phase result, and themicrocontroller 274 can determine the distance between theintelligent mower 20 and theboundary line 11 according to the amplitude value, so as to send a control signal to the driving module 24 to control the walking direction of theintelligent mower 20.

In other embodiments, the boundary signal BS is a periodic signal in which the emission signal ES and the idle signal VS alternately appear, the waveform of the emission signal ES is a continuous variation as a function of time, and the idle signal VS is a signal in which no current flows in theboundary line 11. Thesignal receiving module 26 detects the boundary signal BS and converts it into a boundary sensing signal MS, which is transmitted to thecontrol module 27.

Thecontrol module 27 is configured to determine whether theintelligent mower 20 is in the working area according to the change of the boundary line induction signal. Specifically, thecontrol module 27 includes asignal processor 273 and amicrocontroller 274. Referring to fig. 6, thesignal processor 273 further includes anamplifying unit 2731 electrically connected to thesignal receiving module 26, wherein theamplifying unit 2731 is used for amplifying the boundary line sensing signal MS transmitted by thesignal receiving module 26 and generating the processing signal PS. Thesignal processor 273 receives the boundary line sensing signal MS and transmits the processing signal PS to themicrocontroller 274, and themicrocontroller 274 receives the processing signal PS, compares the peak values or the valley values of the adjacent periods of the processing signal PS, and determines whether the mower is in the working area according to the comparison result to control the traveling direction of theintelligent mower 20. As another embodiment,microcontroller 274 receives the processed signal PS and compares the rate of change of amplitude of the pre-and post-cycle of the processed signal PS to determine if the lawnmower is in the work area based on the comparison. Themicrocontroller 274 is further configured to output a walk control signal to the drive module 24 to control the direction of travel of theintelligent lawn mower 20 depending on whether theintelligent lawn mower 20 is within the work area. For example, when theintelligent mower 20 is outside the boundary line, i.e. the intelligent mower is in the non-working area, themicrocontroller 274 outputs a walking control signal to the driving module 24 to drive theintelligent mower 20 to walk into the working area.

Since the waveforms of the transmitting signal ES and the null signal VS are not continuously changed, a sudden change of the waveform, such as a change of the amplitude, occurs at the boundary between the null signal VS and the transmitting signal ES. The processed signal PS includes a first signal and a second signal. The first signal corresponds to a waveform with sudden change at the junction of the idle signal VS and the transmitting signal ES; the second signal corresponds to an abrupt waveform appearing at the junction of the transmitting signal ES and the idle signal VS; the abrupt change may be manifested as a difference in signal amplitude. Themicrocontroller 274 further includes a detectingunit 2741, a comparingunit 2742, and acontrol unit 2743, where the detectingunit 2741 is configured to detect and record peak values and valley values of two adjacent periods of the processing signal PS, and transmit the comparing signal to the comparingunit 2742, and the comparingunit 2742 compares the received peak values and valley values of the adjacent periods, so as to determine whether theintelligent mower 20 is located in a working area within theboundary line 11 or in a non-working area outside theboundary line 11, and send a control signal to the control unit, so as to control the walking direction of theintelligent mower 20. As another embodiment, the detectingunit 2741 is configured to detect and record the change of the amplitude value of the same sampling time of the upper half wave and the lower half wave of two adjacent cycles of the processing signal PS, and transmit a comparison signal to the comparingunit 2742, where the comparing unit compares the received change rate of the amplitude value of the adjacent cycles, so as to determine whether theintelligent mower 20 is located in a working area within theboundary line 11 or in a non-working area outside theboundary line 11, and send a control signal to the control unit, so as to control the traveling direction of theintelligent mower 20.

Referring to fig. 7, as an embodiment, the boundary signal BS is a periodic signal in which a transmission signal ES and a null signal VS alternately appear, wherein the transmission signal ES is a sine wave signal, and thesignal transmitting unit 12 transmits the sine wave signal for a predetermined time period at regular time intervals. Thesignal receiving module 26 can convert the boundary signal into a boundary line sensing signal MS, and transmit the boundary line sensing signal MS to thesignal processor 273, thesignal processor 273 further processes the boundary line sensing signal MS and transmits a processing signal PS to themicrocontroller 274, a detecting unit in themicrocontroller 274 detects peak values Bh, Ah, and valley values Al, Bl of two adjacent cycles of a first signal corresponding to a sudden change at a boundary between the idle signal VS and the transmitting signal ES, records and transmits the peak values to the comparingunit 2742 for comparison, when a peak value enhancement is detected first, that is, Ah is greater than Bh, theintelligent mower 20 is determined to be located in a working area within theboundary line 11, and the comparing unit transmits a first control signal to thecontrol unit 2743 to drive theintelligent mower 20 to move. In other embodiments, the detection unit detects the amplitude change rate of the first signal at the same sampling time in two adjacent periods, records and transmits the amplitude change rate to thecomparison unit 2742 for comparison, and determines that theintelligent lawn mower 20 is in the working area within the boundary line when the increase of the amplitude change rate of the first half wave is detected first.

Referring to fig. 8, when theintelligent mower 20 is outside theboundary line 11, thesignal receiving module 26 detects the magnetic field and generates the boundary line induction signal MS as shown in fig. 7b, and since the directions of the magnetic fields inside and outside theboundary line 11 are opposite, when theintelligent mower 20 is outside theboundary line 11, the phase of the boundary line induction signal MS generated by thesignal receiving module 26 is opposite to that of the boundary line induction signal MS detected when the intelligent mower is inside theboundary line 11, and other parameters are the same. Thesignal receiving module 26 detects the boundary line sensing signal MS and transmits the boundary line sensing signal MS to thesignal processor 273, thesignal processor 273 further processes the boundary line sensing signal MS and transmits the processed signal to themicrocontroller 274, the detecting unit 3741 in themicrocontroller 274 detects peak values Bh, Ah, and valley values Al, Bl of two adjacent cycles of the first signal corresponding to the sudden change at the boundary between the idle signal VS and the emission signal ES, records and transmits the peak values to the comparingunit 2742 for comparison, when the valley value enhancement is detected first, that is, Al > Bl, it is determined that theintelligent mower 20 is located in the non-working area outside theboundary line 11, and the comparingunit 2742 transmits a second control signal to thecontrol unit 2743 to drive theintelligent mower 20 to move towards the inside of theboundary line 11. In other embodiments, the detecting unit detects the amplitude change rate of the first signal at the same sampling time in two adjacent periods, records and transmits the amplitude change rate to the comparingunit 2742 for comparison, and when the amplitude change rate of the next half-wave is increased, theintelligent mower 20 is determined to be located in the non-working area outside theboundary line 11, and the comparingunit 2742 sends a second control signal to thecontrol unit 2743 to drive theintelligent mower 20 to walk inside theboundary line 11.

To determine whether thesmart mower 20 is in the working zone within theboundary line 11 or the non-working zone outside theboundary line 11, themicrocontroller 274 may be configured to detect the peak values Bh, Ah, valley Al, Bl of the second signal in two adjacent cycles at the intersection of the emission signal ES and the idle signal VS, in addition to the above-described embodiment of detecting the peak values Bh, Ah, valley Bl of the first signal in two adjacent cycles.

Specifically, referring to fig. 9, when theintelligent mower 20 is located in a working area within theboundary line 11, thesignal receiving module 26 detects the boundary line sensing signal MS and transmits the boundary line sensing signal MS to thesignal processor 273, thesignal processor 273 further processes the boundary line sensing signal MS and transmits the processing signal PS to themicrocontroller 274, the detectingunit 2741 in themicrocontroller 274 detects peak values Bh, Ah, and valley values Al and Bl of two adjacent periods of the second signal, records and transmits the peak values to the comparingunit 2742 for comparison, when the peak value is detected to be weakened, that is, Ah is smaller than Bh, theintelligent mower 20 is determined to be located in the working area within theboundary line 11, and the comparingunit 2742 transmits a first control signal to thecontrol unit 2743 to drive theintelligent mower 20 to move.

Referring to fig. 10, when theintelligent mower 20 is located in a working area outside theboundary line 11, thesignal receiving module 26 detects the boundary line sensing signal MS and sends the boundary line sensing signal MS to thesignal processor 273, thesignal processor 273 further processes the boundary line sensing signal and transmits a processing signal PS to themicrocontroller 274, the detectingunit 2741 in themicrocontroller 274 detects peak values Bh and Ah, and valley values Al and Bl of two adjacent periods of the second signal, records and transmits the peak values to the comparingunit 2742 for comparison, and when the valley value is detected to be weakened, that is, Al is smaller than Bl, it is determined that theintelligent mower 20 is located in a non-working area outside theboundary line 11, and the comparingunit 2742 sends a second control signal to thecontrol unit 2743 to drive theintelligent mower 20 to move into theboundary line 11.

Since the waveforms of the transmitting signal ES and the null signal VS are not continuously varied, a sudden change of the waveform occurs at the boundary between the null signal VS and the transmitting signal ES. Therefore, by detecting a change in the waveform, such as a change in the amplitude, it can be accurately determined whether the intelligent lawnmower is within the working area within theboundary line 11. Because the boundary signal BS is provided with the idle signal VS, no current flows in the boundary line when the idle signal VS occurs, and the boundary module is more energy-saving. And the boundary signal BS contains only one sine wave signal, the structure of thesignal transmitting unit 12 is also simpler.

In order to determine whether theintelligent mower 20 is located in the working area within theboundary line 11 or in the non-working area outside theboundary line 11, the transmission signal ES may be a sine wave signal whose phase changes every preset time period, in addition to the transmission of the sine wave signal every fixed time period.

Referring to fig. 11, the boundary signal BS is a sine wave signal, and includes a first sine wave signal FS having a first phase and a second sine wave signal SS having a second phase, where the first sine wave signal FS is converted into the second sine wave signal SS every predetermined time period, and the second sine wave signal SS is a suppression signal. In some embodiments, the first and second sine wave signals FS and SS are in opposite phase. Since the waveforms of the first sine wave signal FS and the second sine wave signal SS are not continuously varied, an abrupt change in waveform, such as a variation in amplitude, occurs at the boundary between the first sine wave signal FS and the second sine wave signal SS. Therefore, the first signal corresponds to an abrupt waveform occurring at the intersection of the first sine wave signal FS and the second sine wave signal SS; the second signal corresponds to an abrupt waveform occurring at the intersection of the second sine wave signal SS and the first sine wave signal FS. Abrupt changes appear as differences in signal amplitude.

When theintelligent mower 20 is located in the working area within theboundary line 11, thesignal receiving module 26 senses the boundary line sensing signal MS and sends the boundary line sensing signal MS to thesignal processor 273, thesignal processor 273 further processes the boundary line sensing signal MS and transmits a processing signal PS to themicrocontroller 274, and the processing signal PS includes a first signal corresponding to the boundary between the first sine wave signal FS and the second sine wave signal SS and a second signal corresponding to the boundary between the second sine wave signal SS and the first sine wave signal FS. In some embodiments, the detectingunit 2741 in themicrocontroller 274 detects the peak values Bh, Ah, and the valley values Al, Bl of two adjacent periods of the first signal, records and transmits them to the comparingunit 2742 for comparison, and when the peak value is detected to be weakened, that is, Ah < Bh, theintelligent mower 20 is determined to be located in the working area within theboundary line 11, and the comparingunit 2742 transmits the first control signal to thecontrol unit 2743.

It is understood that, referring to fig. 12, when theintelligent mower 20 is outside theboundary line 11, thesignal receiving module 26 detects the magnetic field to generate the boundary line induction signal MS as shown in fig. 12b, and since the directions of the magnetic fields inside and outside theboundary line 11 are opposite, when theintelligent mower 20 is outside theboundary line 11, the phase of the boundary line induction signal MS generated by thesignal receiving module 26 is opposite to that of the boundary line induction signal MS detected when theintelligent mower 20 is inside theboundary line 11, and other parameters are the same. Thesignal receiving module 26 senses a boundary line sensing signal MS and sends the boundary line sensing signal MS to thesignal processor 273, thesignal processor 273 further processes the boundary line sensing signal MS and transmits a processing signal PS to themicrocontroller 274, thedetection unit 2741 in themicrocontroller 274 detects peak values Bh and Ah, and valley values Al and Bl of two adjacent periods of the first signal, records and transmits the peak values Bh and Ah, and the valley values Bl to thecomparison unit 2742 for comparison, when the valley values are first detected to be weakened, that is, Al is smaller than Bl, it is determined that theintelligent mower 20 is located in a non-working area outside theboundary line 11, and thecomparison unit 2742 sends a second control signal to thecontrol unit 2743 to drive theintelligent mower 20 to walk into theboundary line 11.

It is understood that the detectingunit 2741 in the micro-control may also record and transmit the peak values Bh, Ah, and the valley values Al, Bl of two adjacent periods in the second signal to the comparingunit 2742 for comparison, and when the peak value enhancement is detected first, that is, Bh is less than Ah, the comparingunit 2742 determines that thesmart mower 20 is located in the working area within theboundary line 11, and sends the first control signal to the controllingunit 2743. When the valley value is detected to be increased, i.e. Bl < Al, it is determined that theintelligent mower 20 is located in the non-working area outside theboundary line 11, the comparingunit 2742 sends a second control signal to thecontrol unit 2743 to drive theintelligent mower 20 to walk towards the inside of theboundary line 11.

In this way, the second sine wave signal SS with a different phase from the first sine wave signal FS is used as the boundary signal BS, wherein the second sine wave signal is equivalent to the suppression signal, and can suppress the amplitude of the first sine wave signal, so that themicrocontroller 274 can detect more obvious changes of the peak value or the valley value of the waveform of two adjacent cycles, and themicrocontroller 274 can more accurately determine the area where theintelligent lawn mower 20 is located.

The boundary signal BS may also be provided with a duration of the blanking signal VS, and in some embodiments, the first sine wave signal and the second sine wave signal of one cycle are followed by a duration of the blanking signal VS. Therefore, the first signal corresponds to an abrupt waveform occurring at the intersection of the first sine wave signal FS and the second sine wave signal SS; the second signal corresponds to an abrupt waveform occurring at the intersection of the blanking signal VS and the first sine wave signal FS. Referring to fig. 13, when theintelligent mower 20 is located in the working area within theboundary line 11, thesignal receiving module 26 senses the boundary line sensing signal MS and sends the boundary line sensing signal MS to thesignal processor 273, thesignal processor 273 further processes the boundary line sensing signal and transmits the processing signal PS to themicrocontroller 274, the detectingunit 2741 in themicrocontroller 274 detects peak values Bh, Ah, and valley values Al and Bl of two adjacent periods of the first signal, records and transmits the peak values to the comparingunit 2742 for comparison, and when the peak value is detected to be weakened, that is, Ah is less than Bh, it is determined that theintelligent mower 20 is located in the working area within theboundary line 11. It can be understood that when theintelligent mower 20 is located outside theboundary line 11, thesignal receiving module 26 detects the boundary line sensing signal MS, thesignal processor 273 further processes the boundary line sensing signal MS and transmits the processing signal PS to themicrocontroller 274, the detectingunit 2741 in themicrocontroller 274 detects the peak values Bh, Ah, and the valley values Al, Bl of the second signal in two adjacent periods, records and transmits the peak values to the comparingunit 2742 for comparison, and when the valley value is detected to be weakened, that is, Al < Bl, it is determined that theintelligent mower 20 is located in the non-working area outside theboundary line 11. It is understood that the detectingunit 2741 in the micro-control may also record and transmit the peak values Bh, Ah, and the valley values Al, Bl of two adjacent periods in the second signal to the comparingunit 2742 for comparison, and when the peak value enhancement is detected first, that is, Bh is less than Ah, the comparingunit 2742 determines that thesmart mower 20 is located in the working area within theboundary line 11, and sends the first control signal to the controllingunit 2743. When the valley value is detected to be increased, i.e. Bl < Al, it is determined that theintelligent mower 20 is located in the non-working area outside theboundary line 11, the comparingunit 2742 sends a second control signal to thecontrol unit 2743 to drive theintelligent mower 20 to walk towards the inside of theboundary line 11.

The boundary signal BS can be set as a sinusoidal signal whose amplitude, phase, and frequency change every preset duration; the boundary signal BS can also be set as a sine wave signal with changed amplitude and phase; the boundary signal may also be set as a sine wave signal that changes in frequency and phase. Referring to fig. 14, the first sine wave signal FS and the second sine wave signal SS are different in phase and frequency. When theintelligent mower 20 is located in the working area within theboundary line 11, the signal receiving unit detects the boundary line sensing signal MS and transmits the boundary line sensing signal MS to thesignal processor 273, thesignal processor 273 further processes the boundary line sensing signal MS and transmits the processing signal PS to themicrocontroller 274, and themicrocontroller 274 detects peak values Bh and Ah, and valley values Al and Bl of two adjacent periods. The detectingunit 2741 in themicrocontroller 274 detects the peak values Bh, Ah, and the valley values Al, Bl of the first signal in two adjacent periods, records and transmits the peak values to the comparingunit 2742 for comparison, and when the peak values are detected to be weakened first, that is, Ah is smaller than Bh, it is determined that theintelligent mower 20 is located in the working area within theboundary line 11. It is understood that when theintelligent mower 20 is outside theboundary line 11, the signal receiving unit detects the boundary line sensing signal MS, thesignal processor 273 further processes the boundary line sensing signal and transmits the processed signal PS to themicrocontroller 274, and themicrocontroller 274 detects the peak values Bh, Ah, valley values Al, Bl of two adjacent periods of the second signal. When it is determined that theintelligent mower 20 is located in the non-working area outside theboundary line 11 when the valley value is decreased, i.e., Al < Bl, is detected, the comparingunit 2742 sends a second control signal to thecontrol unit 2743 to drive theintelligent mower 20 to walk inside theboundary line 11.

It will be appreciated that the boundary signal BS may also be provided with a duration of the blanking signal VS, and in some embodiments, the first and second sine wave signals of each cycle are followed by a duration of the blanking signal VS. When theintelligent mower 20 is located in a working area within theboundary line 11, thesignal receiving module 26 detects the boundary line sensing signal MS and sends the boundary line sensing signal MS to thesignal processor 273, thesignal processor 273 further processes the boundary line sensing signal and transmits a processing signal PS to themicrocontroller 274, thedetection unit 2741 in themicrocontroller 274 detects peak values Bh, Ah, and valley values Al, Bl of two adjacent periods of the first signal, records and transmits the peak values to thecomparison unit 2742 for comparison, and when the peak value is detected to be weakened, that is, Ah is less than Bh, it is determined that theintelligent mower 20 is located in the working area within theboundary line 11. It is understood that when theintelligent mower 20 is located outside theboundary line 11, thesignal receiving module 26 detects the boundary line sensing signal MS, thesignal processor 273 further processes the boundary line sensing signal and transmits the processed signal PS to themicrocontroller 274, the detectingunit 2741 in themicrocontroller 274 detects the peak values Bh, Ah, Bl of the second signal in two adjacent periods, records and transmits the peak values to the comparingunit 2742 for comparison, and when the peak value is detected to be weakened, i.e., Al < Bl, the non-workingarea comparing unit 2742 determines that theintelligent mower 20 is located outside theboundary line 11, and transmits the second control signal to thecontrol unit 2743 to drive theintelligent mower 20 to walk inside theboundary line 11.

Therefore, the boundary signal BS is provided with a vacant signal with a certain time length, so that the boundary module can save more energy.

It is understood that, in order to determine whether theintelligent mower 20 is located in the working area within theboundary line 11 or in the non-working area outside theboundary line 11, themicrocontroller 274 may compare the amplitude change rate of the same sampling time in the front and back periods of the boundary line sensing signal MS, in addition to detecting the peak values Bh, Ah, and the valley values Al, Bl of the two adjacent periods, which is not limited herein.

Referring to fig. 15, a method for determining whether the intelligent mower is within the boundary line or outside the boundary line as described above includes steps S101 to S106.

In step S101, a boundary signal is received. In this step, thesignal transmitting unit 12 generates a boundary signal BS to be transmitted to theboundary line 11, the boundary signal BS generates a magnetic field when flowing through theboundary line 11, and thesignal receiving module 26 can induce the magnetic field and generate the boundary line induction signal MS.

In step S102, the peak and the bottom of the signal are detected. In this step, thecontrol module 27 is configured to receive the boundary line sensing signal MS. Thesignal processor 273 in thecontrol module 27 is configured to receive the boundary line sensing signal MS, so as to amplify the boundary line sensing signal MS and generate the processing signal PS. Themicrocontroller 274 in thecontrol module 27 is arranged to receive the processed signal PS and thedetection unit 2741 in themicrocontroller 274 is arranged to receive the processed signal PS such that peaks and troughs of the processed signal PS are detected.

In step S103, it is determined whether or not the peak value and the bottom value of two adjacent cycles change first. In this step, thecomparison unit 2742 in themicrocontroller 274 is arranged to compare the peak and valley values of adjacent cycles, respectively. Based on the first change of the peak values of two adjacent periods, the step S104 is switched to; based on the first change of the valley values of the two adjacent periods, the process goes to step S105. And S104, judging that the intelligent mower is in the boundary line.

In step S104, it is determined that the smart mower is within the boundary line. When the peak values of two adjacent periods change first and increase or decrease, the intelligent mower is judged to be in the boundary line.Comparison unit 2742 inmicrocontroller 274 sends a first control signal to controlunit 2743 to driveintelligent mower 20 to continue walking.

In step S105, it is determined whether or not the peak value and the bottom value of two adjacent cycles change before the bottom value. In this step, thecomparison unit 2742 in themicrocontroller 274 is arranged to compare the peak and valley values of adjacent cycles, respectively. Based on the valley value of two adjacent periods changing first, go to step S106; otherwise, execution is resumed from step S101.

In step S106, it is determined that the smart mower is outside the boundary line. And when the valley values of two adjacent periods change firstly and increase or decrease, judging that the intelligent mower is outside the boundary line. The comparingunit 2742 in themicrocontroller 274 sends a second control signal to thecontrol unit 2743 to drive theintelligent mower 20 to walk within theboundary line 11.

In some embodiments, referring to fig. 16, theintelligent lawn mower 30 includes at least two signal receiving modules, namely a firstsignal receiving module 311 and a secondsignal receiving module 312, the firstsignal receiving module 311 and the secondsignal receiving module 312 are disposed on theintelligent lawn mower 30, and in some embodiments, the firstsignal receiving module 311 and the secondsignal receiving module 312 are symmetrically distributed around the central axis of theintelligent lawn mower 30.

The firstsignal receiving module 311 and the secondsignal receiving module 312 are configured to detect a magnetic field emitted from theboundary line 11, convert the magnetic field into a corresponding electrical signal, and generate a boundary line sensing signal MS'. The firstsignal receiving module 311 generates a first boundary line sensing signal FMS ', and the secondsignal receiving module 312 generates a second boundary line sensing signal SMS'. The distance between the firstsignal receiving module 311 and the secondsignal receiving module 312 is a preset distance D. The control module 33 is configured to receive the first boundary line sensing signal FMS ' and the second boundary line sensing signal SMS ' of the signal receiving module 31, and the control module 33 can determine whether the signal receiving module is located in a working area within theboundary line 11 or a non-working area outside theboundary line 11 according to the boundary line sensing signal MS '. The determination method may adopt the embodiments described in fig. 4 to fig. 15, and is not described herein again. The control module 33 can determine whether the signal receiving module is located in the working area within theboundary line 11 according to the phase information of the boundary line sensing signal MS'. Further, the control module 33 may further determine the vertical distances Y1 and Y2 from theboundary line 11 between the firstsignal receiving module 311 and the secondsignal receiving module 312 according to the signal amplitudes of the first boundary line sensing signal FMS 'and the second boundary line sensing signal SMS'.

In this way, based on the above information, i.e., the preset distance D between the firstsignal receiving module 311 and the secondsignal receiving module 312, the vertical distance Y1 between the firstsignal receiving module 311 and theboundary line 11, and the vertical distance Y2 between the secondsignal receiving module 312 and theboundary line 11, the control module 33 can calculate the pose-related parameter of thesmart mower 30 with respect to theboundary line 11 to control thesmart mower 30 to walk. The pose relevant parameters of theintelligent mower 30 relative to theboundary line 11 include: an angle θ between the traveling direction of theintelligent mower 30 and theboundary line 11, a distance X1 between the firstsignal receiving module 311 and the intersection point of the line where the firstsignal receiving module 311 and the secondsignal receiving module 312 are located and the boundary line, and a distance X2 between the secondsignal receiving module 312 and the intersection point of the line where the firstsignal receiving module 311 and the secondsignal receiving module 312 are located and the boundary line are shown in fig. 17.

According to the following formula:

θ= arccos (Y1±Y2)/D；

x1 = Y1/cosθ；

x2 = Y2/cosθ。

the control module 33 can obtain the included angle θ between the traveling direction of theintelligent mower 30 and theboundary line 11, and the distance X1 between the firstsignal receiving module 311 and the boundary line along the straight line of the firstsignal receiving module 311 and the secondsignal receiving module 312 and the distance X2 between the secondsignal receiving module 312 and the boundary line along the straight line of the firstsignal receiving module 311 and the secondsignal receiving module 312. When theintelligent mower 30 travels along theboundary line 11 and the traveling direction is the same as theboundary line 11, the control module 33 calculates that the included angle θ between the traveling direction of theintelligent mower 20 and theboundary line 11 is 0 °, and the first boundary line sensing signal FMS 'of the first signal receiving module and the second boundary line sensing signal SMS' generated by the second signal receiving module have opposite phases, so that one signal receiving module is located in the working area inside theboundary line 11 and one signal receiving module is located outside the working area outside theboundary line 11, as shown in fig. 16. When the angle θ between the traveling direction of thesmart mower 30 and theboundary line 11 is not 0 °, the strength of the first boundary line induction signal FMS 'generated by the firstsignal receiving module 311 is smaller than the strength of the second boundary line induction signal SMS' generated by the secondsignal receiving module 312, and the phases of the generated boundary line induction signals FMS 'and SMS' of the firstsignal receiving module 311 and the secondsignal receiving module 312 are opposite. According to the above formula, the control module 33 can calculate the pose related parameters of theintelligent mower 30 relative to theboundary line 11 to give control signals to control theintelligent mower 30 to walk.

In this way, the controller calculates the relative pose related parameters of theintelligent mower 20 and theboundary line 11 according to the amplitude and phase of the first boundary line induction signal FMS 'of the firstsignal receiving module 311 and the second boundary line induction signal SMS' of the secondsignal receiving module 312, and controls theintelligent mower 20 to walk along theboundary line 11 by giving a control signal. Here, theboundary line 11 may be a preset route.

In some embodiments, when the working area within theboundary line 11 is narrow or a part of the working area is narrow and theboundary line 11 forms a narrow passage, the controller may further determine the pose-related parameter of theintelligent mower 30 relative to theboundary line 11 in the above-mentioned manner, and adjust the walking direction of theintelligent mower 30 to pass through the narrow passage area.

Referring to fig. 18, the borderlines include afirst borderline 11, a second borderline 11 'adjacent to the first borderline, wherein a travel path is defined between thefirst borderline 11 and the second borderline 11'.

The control module 33 may further determine the vertical distances Y1 and Y2 from theboundary line 11 according to the signal strengths of the first boundary line sensing signal FMS 'and the second boundary line sensing signal SMS', where the preset distance D is between the firstsignal receiving module 311 and the secondsignal receiving module 312. According to the above formula, the controller may further calculate an included angle θ between the traveling direction of theintelligent lawn mower 30 and theboundary line 11 according to the first boundary line induction signal FMS ', the second boundary line induction signal SMS' and the preset distance D, and a distance X1 between the firstsignal receiving module 311 and an intersection point between a straight line where the firstsignal receiving module 311 and the secondsignal receiving module 312 are located and theboundary line 11, and a distance X2 between the secondsignal receiving module 312 and an intersection point between a straight line where the firstsignal receiving module 311 and the secondsignal receiving module 312 are located and theboundary line 11. Thereby controlling theintelligent mower 20 to walk through the narrow passage area according to the above relative pose related parameters of theintelligent mower 30 and theboundary line 11. As shown in fig. 19, theintelligent lawnmower 30 continuously decreases the angle θ between the traveling direction and theboundary line 11 during the passage through the narrow passage area. In this way, the efficiency of the intelligent lawn mower through narrow passageways is higher.

The foregoing illustrates and describes the principles, general features, and advantages of the present invention. It should be understood by those skilled in the art that the above embodiments do not limit the present invention in any way, and all technical solutions obtained by using equivalent alternatives or equivalent variations fall within the scope of the present invention.

Claims (10)

1. An intelligent mowing system comprising:

a boundary module and an intelligent mower;

the boundary module includes:

the boundary line is used for planning a working area of the intelligent mower;

the signal transmitting unit is used for generating a boundary signal and transmitting the boundary signal to the boundary line, and the boundary signal generates a magnetic field when flowing through the boundary line;

the intelligent lawn mower includes:

the signal receiving modules are respectively a first signal receiving module and a second signal receiving module; the first signal receiving module and the second signal receiving module are capable of inducing the magnetic field;

the distance between the first signal receiving module and the second signal receiving module is a preset distance, and the first signal receiving module can generate a first boundary line induction signal according to the induced magnetic field change; the second signal receiving module can generate a second boundary line induction signal according to the induced magnetic field change;

the control module is used for receiving the first boundary line induction signal and the second boundary line induction signal and calculating a pose related parameter of the opposite boundary line of the intelligent mower according to the first boundary line induction signal, the second boundary line induction signal and the preset distance so as to control the intelligent mower to walk.

2. The intelligent mowing system according to claim 1, wherein:

the boundary signal is an alternating current signal.

3. The intelligent mowing system according to claim 1, wherein:

the boundary signal is provided with a transmitting signal and a vacant signal which are alternately appeared, and the transmitting signal is an alternating current signal.

4. The intelligent mowing system according to claim 1, wherein:

the boundary signal includes a first sine wave signal and a second sine wave signal that are opposite in phase.

5. The intelligent mowing system according to claim 1, wherein:

the pose related parameters of the intelligent mower to the boundary line comprise:

the distance between the first signal receiving module and the intersection point of the straight line where the first signal receiving module and the second signal receiving module are located and the boundary line is long;

the distance between the second signal receiving module and the intersection point of the straight line where the first signal receiving module and the second signal receiving module are located and the boundary line is long;

and the intelligent mower has an included angle between the advancing direction and the boundary line.

6. The intelligent mowing system according to claim 1, wherein:

the control module is configured to determine a vertical distance from the first signal receiving module to the boundary line and a vertical distance from the second signal receiving module to the boundary line according to signal amplitudes of the first boundary line induction signal and the second boundary line induction signal.

7. The intelligent mowing system according to claim 1, wherein:

the control module is configured to determine whether the first signal receiving module and the second signal receiving module are located in the working area according to signal phases of the first boundary line induction signal and the second boundary line induction signal.

8. The intelligent mowing system according to claim 3 or 4, wherein:

the control module further comprises a signal processor and a microcontroller;

the signal processor further comprises an amplifying unit, which is used for amplifying the first boundary line induction signal and the second boundary line induction signal and generating a first processing signal and a second processing signal, and the amplifying unit is electrically connected with the first signal receiving module and the second signal receiving module;

the microcontroller is capable of comparing peaks and troughs of adjacent cycles of the received first processed signal to determine whether the first signal receiving module is within the operating region;

the microcontroller is then capable of comparing peaks and troughs of adjacent cycles of the received second processed signal to determine whether the second signal receiving module is within the operating region.

9. The intelligent mowing system of claim 2,

the control module further comprises a signal processor and a microcontroller;

the signal processor can receive the first boundary line induction signal and the second boundary line induction signal and transmit the signals to the microcontroller;

the microcontroller can perform multiply-add operation on a waveform function and a sine function or a cosine function of the first boundary line induction signal, and calculate the amplitude and the phase of the first boundary line induction signal, so as to judge the vertical distance from the first signal receiving module to the boundary line and whether the first signal receiving module is in the working area;

the microcontroller can perform multiply-add operation on the waveform function and the sine function or the cosine function of the second boundary line induction signal, and calculate the amplitude and the phase of the second boundary line induction signal, so as to judge the vertical distance from the second signal receiving module to the boundary line.

10. An intelligent mowing system comprising:

a boundary module and an intelligent mower;

the boundary module includes:

boundary lines including a first boundary line, a second boundary line adjacent to the first boundary line, wherein a travel channel is defined between the first boundary line and the second boundary line;

the signal transmitting unit generates a boundary signal and transmits the boundary signal to the boundary line, and a magnetic field is generated when the boundary signal flows through the boundary line;

the intelligent lawn mower includes:

the signal receiving modules are respectively a first signal receiving module and a second signal receiving module; the first signal receiving module and the second signal receiving module are capable of inducing the magnetic field;

the distance between the first signal receiving module and the second signal receiving module is a preset distance, and the first signal receiving module can generate a first boundary line induction signal according to the induced magnetic field change; the second signal receiving module can generate a second boundary line induction signal according to the induced magnetic field change;

the control module is used for receiving the first boundary line induction signal and the second boundary line induction signal, calculating a relative pose parameter of the intelligent mower to the boundary line according to the first boundary line induction signal, the second boundary line induction signal and the preset distance, and adjusting the relative pose parameter according to the requirement to control the intelligent mower to pass through the walking channel.

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