Fan Cheng Mobile robots will have great prospects
Published on:2020-07-21
Mobile robot is controlled by computer and has the functions of mobile, automatic navigation, multi-sensor control, network interaction and so on. In actual production, the main purpose is transportation. It can be said that as long as there is transportation demand, there is the application possibility of mobile robot.
For mobile robots, the chassis is a very important actuator, which is responsible for the movement and steering of the robot and is the actuator of the robot. Driven by the wave of intelligence, the mobile robot market continues to heat up, which also gave birth to the subdivided category of mobile chassis.
Crawler and wheel -- two major structures of mobile chassis
The robot chassis carries the basic functions of the robot itself, such as positioning, navigation and obstacle avoidance, which can help the robot realize intelligent walking. With the continuous expansion of mobile robot application scenarios and service modes, the demand for mobile chassis development based on robot bottom application is becoming stronger and stronger.
At present, the mobile robot chassis on the market is mainly divided into crawler and wheeled robot chassis.
Crawler robot chassis is mainly used in special robots. It has the advantages of large traction, not easy to slip and good off-road performance. It can be applied to field and urban environments. It can move on all kinds of complex ground, such as sand and mud, but the speed is relatively low and the motion noise is large.
Wheeled robot chassis is mainly used in industrial logistics and commercial service robots. For example, logistics handling robots and meal delivery service robots mostly use wheeled robot chassis structure. Wheeled robot chassis has the advantages of fast motion speed and low motion noise, which is suitable for the application of general indoor and outdoor scenes.
The wheeled robot chassis can be divided into front wheel steering, rear wheel differential drive, two wheel drive + universal wheel and four-wheel drive.
1. The wheeled robot chassis of front wheel steering + rear wheel drive and front wheel steering + rear wheel drive mainly adopts the forms of electric cylinder, worm gear and worm to realize the front wheel steering. As long as a motor and differential reducer are added to the rear wheel, the movement requirements of the robot can be completed. It has the advantages and disadvantages of low cost and simple control, but the disadvantage is that the turning radius is large and the use is relatively inflexible.
2. Two wheel drive + universal wheel, two wheel drive + universal wheel can arrange the universal wheel and driving wheel in different forms according to the requirements of the robot for the design center of gravity and turning radius. The structure and motor control are also relatively simple, the robot has strong flexibility, and the algorithm is easy to control.
3. Four wheel drive. Four wheel drive has strong ability in straight-line walking and large driving force, but the cost is too high and the motor control is complex. In order to prevent the robot from slipping, it needs more detailed structural design.
In addition to the driving part, the mobile chassis needs to assemble many different sensors such as lidar, vision, ultrasonic and infrared sensors. Technicians should use corresponding algorithms and software for fusion. It can be said that the completion of the chassis is basically equivalent to about 70% of the development of the robot body. The chassis R & D capability undoubtedly adjusts the entry threshold of the robot industry to a very high position.
Lowering the market threshold and commercial services become the main field
The emergence of professional mobile chassis enterprises has undoubtedly reduced the entry threshold of the mobile robot industry and promoted the large-scale application of mobile robots.
At present, the mobile chassis enterprises in the market are mainly service-oriented robot market and special application industry. Although there are also some in the industrial field, there are few. This is mainly because AGV applications in the industrial field are very mature, there are many enterprises and rich technology accumulation. Therefore, most of the products are finished products directly oriented to terminal applications, Dedicated chassis providers are relatively uncompetitive in this market.
The field of service robot is the main market of chassis manufacturers at present. Service robot is an emerging field. Everyone is in the exploratory stage. The emergence of special chassis can not only save development time and cost, but also speed up product R & D and seize the market outlet of rapid growth of service robot. Therefore, with the continuous expansion of service robot application scenarios and service modes, the demand for service robot chassis based on robot bottom application and upper development is becoming stronger and stronger.
In addition, it is worth noting that some chassis manufacturers are gradually changing to end product providers. As mentioned earlier, the completion of chassis is basically equivalent to about 70% of the development of robot ontology, and the remaining 30% is not difficult for chassis manufacturers who have mastered the core technology, We only need to carry some application design to develop specific application products. Therefore, at present, many manufacturers begin to choose one or two directions to launch their own service robot products under the advantages of their own chassis technology.
In fact, mobile chassis still faces some problems in order to achieve rapid development as an industry. For example, in terms of cost, the higher the functional requirements of robots on the market, the higher the price of chassis is, which will affect the acceptance of the application end to a certain extent. If the robot chassis wants to make a breakthrough and drive the commercialization of service robots, The trend of low cost is inevitable. The second is the technical problem. Now, the service robot chassis generally adopts the general chassis, but with the development of subdivision, it becomes more and more mature, the requirements for chassis will vary according to different scenarios. In other words, the chassis may develop towards specialization, customization and high performance in the future. In this case, Chinese enterprises also need to solve technical problems such as sensor fusion.
On the basis of using visual navigation, mobile robot (AGV) can also increase inertial navigation, adapt to various ups and downs and bumpy routes, and ensure the accuracy of operation. Compared with the previous mobile robot (AGV) using laser, inertia, magnetic stripe and other navigation methods, low cost and high precision.
For mobile robots, the chassis is a very important actuator, which is responsible for the movement and steering of the robot and is the actuator of the robot. Driven by the wave of intelligence, the mobile robot market continues to heat up, which also gave birth to the subdivided category of mobile chassis.
Crawler and wheel -- two major structures of mobile chassis
The robot chassis carries the basic functions of the robot itself, such as positioning, navigation and obstacle avoidance, which can help the robot realize intelligent walking. With the continuous expansion of mobile robot application scenarios and service modes, the demand for mobile chassis development based on robot bottom application is becoming stronger and stronger.
At present, the mobile robot chassis on the market is mainly divided into crawler and wheeled robot chassis.
Crawler robot chassis is mainly used in special robots. It has the advantages of large traction, not easy to slip and good off-road performance. It can be applied to field and urban environments. It can move on all kinds of complex ground, such as sand and mud, but the speed is relatively low and the motion noise is large.
Wheeled robot chassis is mainly used in industrial logistics and commercial service robots. For example, logistics handling robots and meal delivery service robots mostly use wheeled robot chassis structure. Wheeled robot chassis has the advantages of fast motion speed and low motion noise, which is suitable for the application of general indoor and outdoor scenes.
The wheeled robot chassis can be divided into front wheel steering, rear wheel differential drive, two wheel drive + universal wheel and four-wheel drive.
1. The wheeled robot chassis of front wheel steering + rear wheel drive and front wheel steering + rear wheel drive mainly adopts the forms of electric cylinder, worm gear and worm to realize the front wheel steering. As long as a motor and differential reducer are added to the rear wheel, the movement requirements of the robot can be completed. It has the advantages and disadvantages of low cost and simple control, but the disadvantage is that the turning radius is large and the use is relatively inflexible.
2. Two wheel drive + universal wheel, two wheel drive + universal wheel can arrange the universal wheel and driving wheel in different forms according to the requirements of the robot for the design center of gravity and turning radius. The structure and motor control are also relatively simple, the robot has strong flexibility, and the algorithm is easy to control.
3. Four wheel drive. Four wheel drive has strong ability in straight-line walking and large driving force, but the cost is too high and the motor control is complex. In order to prevent the robot from slipping, it needs more detailed structural design.
In addition to the driving part, the mobile chassis needs to assemble many different sensors such as lidar, vision, ultrasonic and infrared sensors. Technicians should use corresponding algorithms and software for fusion. It can be said that the completion of the chassis is basically equivalent to about 70% of the development of the robot body. The chassis R & D capability undoubtedly adjusts the entry threshold of the robot industry to a very high position.
Lowering the market threshold and commercial services become the main field
The emergence of professional mobile chassis enterprises has undoubtedly reduced the entry threshold of the mobile robot industry and promoted the large-scale application of mobile robots.
At present, the mobile chassis enterprises in the market are mainly service-oriented robot market and special application industry. Although there are also some in the industrial field, there are few. This is mainly because AGV applications in the industrial field are very mature, there are many enterprises and rich technology accumulation. Therefore, most of the products are finished products directly oriented to terminal applications, Dedicated chassis providers are relatively uncompetitive in this market.
The field of service robot is the main market of chassis manufacturers at present. Service robot is an emerging field. Everyone is in the exploratory stage. The emergence of special chassis can not only save development time and cost, but also speed up product R & D and seize the market outlet of rapid growth of service robot. Therefore, with the continuous expansion of service robot application scenarios and service modes, the demand for service robot chassis based on robot bottom application and upper development is becoming stronger and stronger.
In addition, it is worth noting that some chassis manufacturers are gradually changing to end product providers. As mentioned earlier, the completion of chassis is basically equivalent to about 70% of the development of robot ontology, and the remaining 30% is not difficult for chassis manufacturers who have mastered the core technology, We only need to carry some application design to develop specific application products. Therefore, at present, many manufacturers begin to choose one or two directions to launch their own service robot products under the advantages of their own chassis technology.
In fact, mobile chassis still faces some problems in order to achieve rapid development as an industry. For example, in terms of cost, the higher the functional requirements of robots on the market, the higher the price of chassis is, which will affect the acceptance of the application end to a certain extent. If the robot chassis wants to make a breakthrough and drive the commercialization of service robots, The trend of low cost is inevitable. The second is the technical problem. Now, the service robot chassis generally adopts the general chassis, but with the development of subdivision, it becomes more and more mature, the requirements for chassis will vary according to different scenarios. In other words, the chassis may develop towards specialization, customization and high performance in the future. In this case, Chinese enterprises also need to solve technical problems such as sensor fusion.
On the basis of using visual navigation, mobile robot (AGV) can also increase inertial navigation, adapt to various ups and downs and bumpy routes, and ensure the accuracy of operation. Compared with the previous mobile robot (AGV) using laser, inertia, magnetic stripe and other navigation methods, low cost and high precision.
