Robot device, method of controlling robot device, computer program, and program storage medium

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10675764-B2
Application number	US-201916543617-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Aug 19, 2019
Priority date	May 25, 2011
Publication date	Jun 9, 2020
Grant date	Jun 9, 2020

Abstract

Provided is an excellent robot device capable of preferably detecting difference between dirt and a scratch on a lens of a camera and difference between dirt and a scratch on a hand. A robot device detects a site in which there is the dirt or the scratch using an image of the hand taken by a camera as a reference image. Further, this determines whether the detected dirt or scratch is due to the lens of the camera or the hand by moving the hand. The robot device performs cleaning work assuming that the dirt is detected, and then this detects the difference between the dirt and the scratch depending on whether the dirt is removed.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A signal processing device for a moving apparatus, the signal processing device comprising:
circuitry configured to
determine whether there is a foreign object on an image capturing device by comparing a first image captured by the image capturing device with a reference image captured at a position different from a position at which the first image is captured, wherein
information indicating there is the foreign object is used to control performance of a cleaning work on the image capturing device.

2. The signal processing device according to claim 1 , wherein the circuitry is further configured to:
control capturing of a second image captured by the image capturing device after the cleaning work on the image capturing device.

3. The signal processing device according to claim 2 , wherein the circuitry is further configured to:
determine whether there is the foreign object on the image capturing device by comparing the second image with the reference image.

4. The signal processing device according to claim 1 , wherein the circuitry is further configured to:
control capturing of the first image captured by the image capturing device of the moving apparatus.

5. The signal processing device according to claim 1 , wherein the circuitry is further configured to:
control performance of the cleaning work on the image capturing device using the information indicating there is the foreign object.

6. The signal processing device according to claim 1 , wherein the circuitry is further configured to:
determine whether there is the foreign object on the image capturing device based on a correlation between the first image and the reference image.

7. The signal processing device according to claim 6 , wherein the circuitry is further configured to:
determine that there is the foreign object on the image capturing device in a case that a site exists in which the correlation between the first image and the reference image is higher than a predetermined value.

8. The signal processing device according to claim 7 , wherein the information indicating there is the foreign object is used to control performance of the cleaning work on the site of the image capturing device.

9. The signal processing device according to claim 8 , wherein the circuitry is further configured to:
control performance of the cleaning work on the site of the image capturing device using the information indicating there is the foreign object.

10. A signal processing method for a moving apparatus, the signal processing method comprising:
determining, using circuitry, whether there is a foreign object on an image capturing device by comparing a first image captured by the image capturing device with a reference image captured at a position different from a position at which the first image is captured, wherein
information indicating there is the foreign object is used to control performance of a cleaning work on the image capturing device.

11. The signal processing method according to claim 10 , further comprising:
controlling capturing of the first image captured by the image capturing device of the moving apparatus.

12. The signal processing method according to claim 10 , further comprising:
controlling capturing of a second image captured by the image capturing device after the cleaning work on the image capturing device.

13. The signal processing method according to claim 12 , further comprising:
determining whether there is the foreign object on the image capturing device by comparing the second image with the reference image.

14. The signal processing method according to claim 10 , further comprising:
controlling performance of the cleaning work on the image capturing device using the information indicating there is the foreign object.

15. The signal processing method according to claim 10 , further comprising:
determining whether there is the foreign object on the image capturing device based on a correlation between the first image and the reference image.

16. The signal processing method according to claim 15 , further comprising:
determining that there is the foreign object on the image capturing device in a case that a site exists in which the correlation between the first image and the reference image is higher than a predetermined value.

17. The signal processing method according to claim 16 , wherein the information indicating there is the foreign object is used to control performance of the cleaning work on the site of the image capturing device.

18. The signal processing method according to claim 17 , further comprising:
controlling performance of the cleaning work on the site of the image capturing device using the information indicating there is the foreign object.

Assignees

• Sony Corp

Inventors

• Sawada Tsutomu

Classifications

• B25J9/1697 Primary

  Vision controlled systems · CPC title

• B25J19/023

  including video camera means · CPC title

• B25J9/1674

  characterised by safety, monitoring, diagnostic · CPC title

• G06K9/00664

  Physics · mapped topic

• G05B2219/39053

  Probe, camera on hand scans many points on own robot body, no extra jig · CPC title