JPH08323657A - Micro robot with charging and communicating functions by electromagnetic connection - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To charge a built-in power source and transmit and receive signals without increasing dimensions and weight by forming an electromagnetic connection between a micro robot and an external magnetic field using the exiting coil of a distribution type stepping motor, and supplying energy from the outside and transmitting and receiving signals between the robot and the outside. CONSTITUTION: A motor drive circuit 127 controls distributed stepping motors 14L and 14R mounted on micro drive units 10L and 10R. Also an induced voltage produced in an exciting coil 142a of the motors 14L and 14R is detected by a signal detecting circuit 125. Then an AC voltage induced by an external AC magnetic field which is produced in the exciting coil 142a of the motors 14L and 14R is charged into a capacitor 102 as a battery power through rectifying circuits 132 and 133. In addition, a signal generating circuit 134 outputs the pulse signals for driving the motors 14L and 14R, and also outputs the data pulse signals for transmitting signals different in pulse width from the pulse signals for motor driving.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a microrobot that is guided in response to light, magnetism, sound, etc. More specifically, it utilizes electromagnetic coupling to charge a built-in secondary power source and send and receive signals. It relates to a microrobot that can be performed. The present invention also relates to an auxiliary device that performs charging operation and signal transmission / reception by utilizing electromagnetic coupling with the microrobot. Furthermore, the present invention relates to a charging / communication system for a microrobot using electromagnetic coupling which is a combination of these microrobots and auxiliary devices.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art The present inventor has proposed a microrobot having a size of about 1 cubic centimeter or less, which is guided in response to changes in physical quantities such as light, magnetism and sound (WO93 / 090).
No. 18). This microrobot has, for example, an optical sensor, and an operator can irradiate the optical sensor mounted therein with light to guide the microrobot in the direction of the light source. There is.

Such a microrobot can be used not only for hobbies, but also for working in an extremely small space where the hands of workers or ordinary industrial robots cannot enter. It is also possible. For example, it can be used for assembling components on a circuit board of an electronic device, bonding, wiring, removing foreign matter, and the like.

[0004]

As described above, the microrobot can autonomously move in a narrow place to perform a predetermined work. Therefore, from such characteristics, it is convenient that the energy supply to the built-in secondary power source can be supplied in a non-contact manner. Further, in order to confirm the position of the micro robot moving in a narrow place, it is convenient to have a signal transmission / reception function.

The feature of the microrobot is that it is small. Therefore, even if a function for charging or transmitting / receiving is installed, it is not possible to adopt a configuration that hinders small size and light weight.

In view of the above points, an object of the present invention is to
Utilizing the structural features of the microrobot, charging operation of the built-in power supply without increasing the size and weight,
It is to propose a micro robot capable of transmitting and receiving signals.

Another object of the present invention is to propose an auxiliary device suitable for charging and transmitting / receiving signals to / from such a micro robot in a non-contact state.

A further object of the present invention is to propose a charging / communication system for a microrobot which is a combination of such a microrobot and an auxiliary device.

[0009]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the microrobot of the present invention uses an exciting coil which is a component of a distributed stepping motor incorporated as a drive source, By electromagnetic coupling formed with an external magnetic field, energy is supplied from the outside and signals are transmitted and received to and from the outside.

That is, the microrobot of the present invention is
A main body case, a secondary power source built in substantially the center of the main body case, a left side micro drive unit and a right side micro drive unit disposed on the left and right sides of the secondary power source in the main body case, and these micro units. A left output shaft and a right output shaft laterally protruding from the left and right outer surfaces of the drive unit, a left wheel and a right wheel attached to these output shafts, and a detection element capable of detecting a change in at least one physical quantity, A control circuit for controlling the driving of the right and left driving units based on the detection result of the detection element, and an excitation coil, a stator and a rotor made of a permanent magnet, which are respectively incorporated in the left and right micro driving units. Right and left distributed stepper motors and for driving these stepper motors Wherein said control and built-in motor driver circuit, rectifies the alternating current induced by an external alternating magnetic field generated in each of the exciting coils 2
A charging circuit for charging the next power supply unit, a signal detection circuit for detecting an AC voltage induced by an external AC magnetic field generated in each of the exciting coils, and a pulse having a pulse width different from that of the motor drive signal via the motor driver. A signal generating circuit for applying a signal to each of the exciting coils to excite the exciting coils for transmission is adopted.

Here, each of the exciting coils incorporated in the left and right micro-driving units may be arranged along the outer peripheral edges of these micro-driving units and may be arranged substantially parallel to each other. desirable. By arranging the two exciting coils along the outer peripheral edge in this way, it is easy to generate a magnetic field to the outside, and by adopting the parallel arrangement, a strong magnetic field is formed when these are excited at the same time. can do. In addition to this, it becomes possible to efficiently detect the parallel magnetic field from the outside.

Further, the motor driver and the rectifying circuit portion in the charging circuit are combined circuits having a CMOS structure,
A MOS type FET is used as a switching element for driving the stepping motor in the dual-purpose circuit, and the FET is
AC current induced in the exciting coil is rectified through a PN junction formed electrically in parallel with, and a parasitic diode formed between the substrate and the drain of the MOS type FET is used as the PN junction. It is desirable to adopt the configuration used. If this configuration is adopted, the rectifier circuit can be configured only by adding the parasitic diode to the switching element of the existing motor driver.

Next, as the signal generating circuit, it is desirable to employ a configuration for generating the motor drive signal having a pulse width of more than 1 msec and the transmission data signal having a pulse width of 1 msec or less. That is, if a pulse width exceeding 1 msec is used as the transmission data signal, the stepping motor responds to this data signal and vibration or the like occurs. Therefore, it is necessary to prevent such a situation.

The transmission data signal may be an ID pulse signal having a periodic pulse train for identifying the microrobot. By receiving this pulse signal externally, it is possible to identify the approaching microrobot.

Further, when the coil is excited by a pulse signal for transmission, it is preferable that the signal generating circuit is configured so that the direction of the current flowing through the coil is switched between forward and reverse for each applied pulse. . By using such a signal, the amount of change in the magnetic field can be increased, and therefore the induced voltage due to this magnetic field can be increased.

On the other hand, if the signal detection circuit has a structure including a comparison circuit for comparing the induced voltages of the two exciting coils, the direction of the external point magnetic field can be detected based on the comparison result. There are advantages.

Next, it is preferable that the control circuit includes a switching circuit for switching the two motor drivers into a series connection and a parallel connection. Generally, when the exciting coil is excited by the pulse signal different from the motor driving signal (that is, during the transmitting operation), a strong magnetic field can be generated by the exciting coils connected in parallel. Further, at the time of charging the secondary power source and at the time of detecting the induced voltage by the external magnetic field (that is, at the time of reception), 2
It is desirable to connect the two motor drivers in series to generate a double induced voltage as a whole to improve the charging operation and enhance the detection sensitivity (reception sensitivity).

In general, the detection element mounted on the microrobot is at least two light receiving elements, and the control circuit detects the left and right sides based on the detection results of these light receiving elements. Of the micro drive unit.

Next, according to the present invention, an electromagnetic coupling is formed between the microrobot having the above-mentioned structure to charge the secondary power source built in the microrobot and send and receive signals between the microrobot. The present invention relates to an auxiliary device of a microrobot having a magnetic means for performing the above.

As this auxiliary device, it is desirable that the auxiliary device be provided with a light emitting element for guiding the microrobot to a preset electromagnetic coupling region.

The magnetic means typically has a magnetic coil for detecting a magnetic field generated by the exciting coil of the microrobot.
Similarly, the magnetic means is configured to include a magnetic coil that forms a magnetic field for generating an induced voltage in the exciting coil of the microrobot. Further, the magnetic coil is configured to generate an alternating magnetic field for charging and a pulse magnetic field for signal transmission.

[0022]

In the microrobot of the present invention constructed as described above, the exciting coil of the stepping motor, which is the driving source of the microrobot, is used to form an electromagnetic coupling with the external auxiliary device, and the built-in secondary power source is formed. Is charged and signals are transmitted and received. Therefore, such a function can be mounted without increasing the size and the weight.

[0023]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

(Charging / Communication System of Microrobot) FIG. 1 shows a schematic configuration of a charging and communication system of a microrobot using electromagnetic coupling which is a combination of a microrobot according to the present invention and an auxiliary device. . As shown in this figure, the system A of this example includes at least one microrobot 1 and an auxiliary device 500.
Consists of The auxiliary device 500 has an electromagnetic coupling region 502 formed on a part of the traveling surface 501 of the microrobot 1 and formed of a magnetically permeable plate on the upper surface. This area 5
Immediately below 02, an exciting coil 504 wound around a magnetic core 503 made of a high magnetic permeability material is arranged. The exciting coil 504 is excited by the exciting circuit 505. In the auxiliary device 500 of this example, a light emitting element 506 such as an LED is arranged immediately above the end of the electromagnetic coupling region 502. The light emitting element 506 is driven by the control circuit 512 in the auxiliary device. When the light emitting element 506 is turned on, the microrobot 1 located near the electromagnetic coupling area 502
Are guided to the electromagnetic coupling region 502 by the light emitted therefrom.

(Mechanical Structure of Micro Robot) Next,
2 and 3 are a right side view and a plan view showing the appearance of a microrobot to which the present invention is applied. In the microrobot 1 of this example, the size of the robot body case 2 is less than about 1 cubic centimeter, and a pair of left and right optical sensors 3L, 3R are provided on the front surface portion 2a. A pair of tactile lead terminals 4L, 4R extend from the front lower end of the robot body case 2.
One tail-shaped lead terminal 5 extends from the rear lower end of the main body case 2. Therefore, in this example, the built-in battery power supply can be charged in a non-contact state by electromagnetic coupling by the auxiliary device 500, and these lead terminals are used as electrode terminals to connect to the built-in battery power supply. It can also be charged. Further, the lower portions of the pair of left and right wheels 6L and 6R are exposed from the lower side of the main body case 2.

The sensor of this example uses a photodiode, a phototransistor, or the like. The sensor 3L has a visual field A1 as its detection area, and the sensor 3R has a visual field A2 as its detection area. Further, the sensors 3L and 3R have a visual field A3 in which the visual fields A1 and A2 overlap each other. Therefore, when the light from the light source is in front, that is, in the visual field A3, the light is detected by both the sensors 3L and 3R.

The internal structure of the microrobot 1 of this embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 4, 5 and 6. FIG. 4 shows the positional relationship of the built-in parts when viewed from the front side, FIG. 5 shows the positional relationship of the built-in parts when the back plate 7 is removed from the lower side, and FIG. The layout of the built-in components when viewed from the right side is shown.

As can be seen from these figures, the body part 2 of the microrobot has an upper half part having a hemispherical shape as a whole, a lower half part smoothly continuing to the upper half part, and a lower end. The opening 2b has a square shape as a whole. A rectangular back plate 7 is located in the lower end opening 2b. Vertical frames 8L and 8R are fixed on the upper surface of the back plate 7 on both left and right sides, and upper end outer surfaces of the left and right vertical frames are fixed to the main body case 2. Micro drive units 10L and 10R are screwed and fixed to the inner surfaces of the vertical frames 8L and 8R by frame fixing screws 101L and 101R, respectively.

These micro drive units 10L, 1
A capacitor 102 that is a battery power source is arranged between 0R. Further, a vertical portion 111 of the circuit board 110 that constitutes a circuit block is arranged between the capacitor 102 and the left-side micro drive unit 10L, and a capacitor-side surface of the vertical portion 111 has a micro portion. A MOS-IC chip 120 having a CPU or the like, which is the center of drive control of the robot, is mounted. As can be seen from FIGS. 5 and 6, the crystal oscillator 130 for generating the operation reference clock signal of the CPU is arranged in a standing state at a position adjacent to the front side of the left side micro drive unit 10L.

The circuit board 110, as shown in FIG.
It is provided with portions 112, 113 and the like that extend to the sides of 0L and 10R and are connected to them. The pair of tactile lead terminals 4L and 4R on the front side and the tail lead terminal 5 are electrically connected to a power feed line wired on the circuit board 110, and the capacitor 102 is charged via these. Be seen.

Here, each micro drive unit 10L,
10R has the same structure as a whole, and a different point is that the output shafts 11L and 11R project toward opposite sides. Left and right wheels 6L and 6R are fixed to the protruding portions of the output shafts 11L and 11R. Each of the micro drive units 10L and 10R has a flat rectangular parallelepiped shape, and the output shafts 11L and 11R are arranged at positions eccentric to the centers of their square side surfaces.

Next, each micro drive unit 10L, 1
The structure of 0R will be described. Since these units have the same structure, the structure of the micro drive unit 10R on the right side will be described. For convenience of description, when distinguishing the corresponding parts of the left and right units, the same numbers given to the corresponding parts are marked with L and R to distinguish them.

The micro-driving unit 10R has a flat rectangular parallelepiped shape and has a thickness of about 1.7 mm.
The width and length are about 6.1 mm. This unit 10
The inner side surface of R is defined by a metal base plate 12, and the outer side surface is defined by a metal train wheel receiving plate 13.
These plates 12 and 13 are arranged in parallel with a minute gap therebetween, and a unit component is incorporated in a minute space between them. First, the planar arrangement relationship of the unit components, that is, the arrangement relationship of the plates 12 and 13 in the plane direction will be described.

FIG. 7 shows the positional relationship of the components of the unit 10R with the train wheel receiving plate 13 removed. Further, FIG. 8 shows a state in which the unit 10R is viewed from the front surface side of the train wheel receiving plate 13. The main components of the unit are a distributed stepping motor 14 and a train wheel 15 for decelerating the output rotation from this and transmitting it to the output shaft 11R. Distributed stepping motor 14
Has a coil block 142 formed by winding an exciting coil 142a around a magnetic core 141, a stator plate 143, and a rotor 144 mounted in a rotor mounting hole 143a formed in the stator plate 143. As can be seen from the figure, the stator plate 143 is arranged vertically in the central position of the unit 10R. Rotor 144
Is arranged at a position higher than the center of the unit in the vertical direction. The upper and lower end portions of the stator plate 143 extend toward the rear side of the unit and overlap the magnetic core 141.
43a and 143b are formed.

A coil block 142 is arranged in the vertical direction at a position adjacent to the stator plate 143 on the rear side of the unit. This coil block 142
Upper and lower ends of the magnetic core 141 of the magnetic core 141 extend toward the front side of the unit, and are overlapped with the stator plate 143.
41b is formed. These overlapping parts 141
a and 141b are superposed portions 1 of the corresponding stator plates.
It is superposed on 43a and 143b to ensure mutual electrical connection. That is, the upper overlapping portion 1
41a, 143a together with the coil pressing spring 17a
It is sandwiched between the main plate 12 and the train wheel receiving plate 13 and fastened to each other by the coil block guide pins 18a. Similarly, the overlapping portions 141b and 143b on the lower side together with the coil pressing spring 17b, the main plate 12, the train wheel receiving plate 13 are provided.
And is fastened to each other by a coil block guide pin 18b. The upper overlapping portion 1
The coil lead board 110a and the circuit board 110 are also inserted at the positions of 41a and 143a (FIG. 9).
reference).

At a position adjacent to the front side of the unit with respect to the stator plate 143, three gears 151, 152, 153 forming the train wheel 15 are arranged substantially vertically. That is, the fourth wheel & pinion 151 is arranged at a position adjacent to the height position corresponding to the rotor 144, and the large diameter gear 151a formed on the outer periphery thereof meshes with the rotor 144. A third wheel & pinion 152 is arranged below the fourth wheel & pinion 151, and the gear 152a formed on the outer periphery of the third wheel & pinion 152 has
It meshes with the small-diameter outer teeth 151b of the wheel & pinion 151. Further, a second wheel & pinion 153 is arranged below the third wheel & pinion, and large-diameter outer teeth 153a thereof mesh with the small-diameter outer teeth 152b of the third wheel & pinion 152. The rotary shaft of the center wheel & pinion 153 is the output shaft 11R.

Further, in this example, on the outer circumference of the rotor 144 made of a permanent magnet, portions 143e and 143f in which the stator plate 143 is narrowed are formed at both diametrical positions thereof. These portions 143e and 143f are magnetically saturated by the rotor 144.

Here, the thick coil block 142
Does not fit between the main plate 12 and the train wheel receiving plate 13. Therefore, as shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, at the edges of the main plate 12 and the train wheel receiving plate 13 on the rear side of the unit, a rectangular cut-out having a size that the coil block 142 just fits forward. Notches 121 and 131 are formed. The coil block 142 is fitted in the notches 121 and 131 from the rear side. Therefore, in the present example, the pair of left and right exciting coils 142b are arranged in parallel in the vertical outer periphery of the drive unit at regular intervals.

Next, referring to FIGS. 7 and 8, FIGS.
With reference to, the positional relationship of the unit components in the cross-sectional direction will be described. 9 is a cross-sectional structure taken along line AA in FIG. 7, FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional structure taken along line BB, and FIG. 11 is taken along line CC. It is a cross-sectional structure of a portion cut along.

As can be seen from these sectional configurations, the main plate 12 and the train wheel receiving plate 13 basically include one train wheel receiving screw 19 and two coil block guide pins 18a,
18b and 18b are fixed so as to be parallel to each other while maintaining a minute gap. The train wheel receiving screw 19 is located slightly below the center of the unit, and
The wheel train support plate 1 for the wheel train support foot 19a mounted from the side of
It is screwed and fixed from the 3 side. As shown in FIGS. 9 and 10, the upper and lower coil block guide pins 18a and 18b are mounted from the side of the main plate 12 so that both the plates 12 and 13 are
It is screwed and fixed to.

On the other hand, as shown in FIGS. 7, 9 and 11, a train wheel lower seat 21 is arranged on the side of the main plate 12 in the portion where the train wheel 15 is arranged. The upper end portion of the lower seat 21 is also in contact with the inner surface of the train wheel receiving plate 13, and the frame fixing screw 101R is screwed and fixed at this contact position. That is, at this position, the micro drive unit 10R is fixed to the frame 8R side. In this example, the screw hole 22 of the frame fixing screw 101L is also formed on the side of the main plate 12. As shown by an imaginary line in FIG. 11, when the right side micro drive unit 10R is used as the left side micro drive unit 10L, the left side frame 8L is used by using the screw hole 22 on the side of the main plate 12.
The micro drive unit will be fixed on the side of.

As can be seen from FIG. 9, the wheels 151, 152, 153 forming the train wheel 15 are located on the main plate 12 side, and on the main plate 12 side via the seats 151c, 152c, 153c. It is rotatably supported. Similarly, on the side of the train wheel receiving plate 13, the receiving seats 151d, 1
It is rotatably supported by the train wheel receiving plate 13 via 52d and 153d. Both ends of the rotor 144 are also
The base plate 12 and the train wheel receiving plate 13 are rotatably supported via the receiving seats 144c and 144d, respectively.
As described above, the rotating shaft of the center wheel & pinion 153 is the right output shaft 11R, and this output shaft 11R projects laterally outward from the train wheel receiving plate 13 by a predetermined length. The right wheel 6R is fixed to the tip of the protruding portion.

When the micro drive unit is used on the left side, the output shaft is projected from the side of the main plate 12 by the same distance as shown by the imaginary line in FIG. The wheels 6L are fixed.

As described above, the drive unit 10R of this embodiment uses the distributed stepping motor 14, and the stator plate 14 is vertically arranged at the center of the unit 10R.
3 are arranged, and the train wheel 15 is arranged on the front and rear sides with the 3 arranged.
The coil blocks 142 are arranged in a state of being displaced in the plane direction. Therefore, the drive unit 10R can be made extremely thin. Basically, as shown in FIGS. 9 and 10, the thickness can be reduced to the thickness of the coil block 141. Therefore, by using such a thin micro drive unit, the micro robot 1 of this example can be made smaller than the conventional one.

Both sides of the micro drive unit of this embodiment are defined by the base plate 12 and the train wheel receiving plate 13. If these plates are made of metal, for example,
There is also an advantage that it can be mounted on the circuit board by soldering or the like.

Further, in this example, the left and right micro drive units 10R and 10L have the same structure, and are arranged in parallel in the same direction in the main body case 2. Then, which side is the mounting position of the frame fixing screws 101L and 101R, and the output shaft 1
It suffices to change only which side the 1L and 11R are projected. Therefore, the units themselves can be shared, and the assembling work can be easily performed.

(Control System of Micro Robot) Next, referring to FIG.
An outline of the control system of the microrobot 1 of this example will be described with reference to FIG. In the figure, the CPU core 121 is AL
It is composed of U and various registers, etc., and is connected to a ROM 122 storing a program and an address decoder 123 of the ROM. A clock signal is input to the CPU 121 from an oscillator 124 connected to the crystal oscillator 130. The signal detection circuit 125 includes a sensor 3
These detection signals are input from L and 3R. The voltage regulator 126 stabilizes the voltage of the capacitor 102, which is a battery power supply, and outputs it. The motor drive control circuit 127, under the control of the CPU core 121, via the motor drivers 128 and 129,
Distributed stepping motors 14R and 14 mounted on the left and right micro drive units 10L and 10R, respectively.
Control L.

Here, the induced voltage generated in the exciting coil 142a of each of the motors 14R and 14L is the signal detection circuit 125.
To be detected by. Further, an AC voltage induced by an external AC magnetic field generated in each exciting coil 142a is configured to be charged in the cavitator 102, which is a battery power source, through each rectifying circuit 132, 133. Further, the motor control circuit 127 includes a signal generation circuit 134. The signal generating circuit 134 can output a pulse signal for driving each motor and also a data pulse signal for transmission having a pulse width different from that of the pulse signal for driving the motor.

FIG. 13 is a timing chart for explaining the basic operation of the microrobot 1 of this example. In FIG. 13A, in the period S0, both sensors 3
Light is not incident on L and 3R, and these outputs are off. On the other hand, when light is incident on the sensor, a voltage corresponding to the amount of incident light is output. The output voltage is waveform-shaped as shown in FIG. 13B based on the threshold voltage preset in the signal detection circuit 125 and input to the CPU core 121. The motor drive control circuit 127 outputs the signal from the signal generation circuit 134 to the circuit shown in FIG.
As shown in (f) and (g), the motor driver 128,
Drive pulses for driving the motor are alternately supplied to the stepping motors 14 </ b> L and 14 </ b> R via 129 alternately. Therefore, the period S1 during which the sensor 3L is receiving light
Causes the motor 14R mounted on the right side micro drive unit 10R to operate and the right side wheel 6R to rotate. On the other hand, as shown in FIG.
During the period S2 in which R is receiving light, as shown in FIG. 13 (g), the motor 14L mounted on the left side micro drive unit 10L operates and the left side wheel 6L rotates. During the period W in which both sensors are receiving light, both motors 14R and 14L are driven to drive both wheels 6R and 6R.
L rotates.

Therefore, in FIG. 3, when the light from the light source is in a portion of the visual field A1 excluding the visual field A3, the left sensor 3L detects it, and the left motor 14L responds to the received light output to the left side. Rotate the wheels 6R. At this time, since the right wheel 6L is stopped, the robot 1 turns and runs toward the left side. In the opposite case, the robot 1 turns to the right. On the other hand, when light is received by both sensors, both wheels are driven, so that the robot 1 goes straight in the direction of light. In this way, the robot 1 runs toward the light source. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 1, the auxiliary device 500 including the light emitting element 506 can turn on the light emitting element 506 and guide the microrobot 1 to reach the electromagnetic coupling region 502.

(Motor Driver and Rectifier Circuit) In this example, each motor driver and rectifier circuit is configured as a CMOS dual-purpose circuit as shown in FIG.

That is, the motor drivers 128, 129
The rectifier circuits 132 and 133 have a CMOS configuration, and a P-channel MOS type FE is used as a switching element.
T201, 202 and N-channel MOS type FET 20
3 and 204, and each FET has parasitic diodes 205, 206, 207 and 208 as rectifying elements.
Are connected in parallel.

As shown in FIG. 14B, the PN junction D1 is formed between the source and the substrate in the sectional structure of the P-channel MOS type FETs 201 and 202,
A PN junction D2 is formed between the drain and the substrate. When the FET is used as a switching element, since the source and the substrate are used at the same potential, the PN junction D1 becomes invalid and only the PN junction D2 functions as a diode. This D2 is a parasitic diode, the drain functions as an anode,
The substrate (source) functions as the cathode.
On the other hand, N channel MOS type FET is P channel MO
In contrast to the S-type FET, the substrate (source) of the parasitic diode functions as an anode and the drain thereof functions as a cathode. In this example, since these parasitic diodes are used as rectifying elements, a separate rectifying circuit is unnecessary. A driver having such a CMOS structure is
It is proposed by the present applicant in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 64-78188.

In this example, the motor coils 128 and 129 of this structure excite the exciting coil 142a to drive the respective motors 14. In this case, the exciting coil 142a functions as a motor coil, which is its original role. However, as described above, the signal generation circuit 134
Supplies a data pulse signal for transmission to each motor driver. When the motor drivers 128 and 129 excite the exciting coil 142a according to the data pulse signal, the motor drive, that is, the rotation of the rotor 144 is not generated, and a pulse magnetic field for transmission is generated in the surroundings. The microrobot 1 has an electromagnetic coupling area 50 of the auxiliary device 500.
In the case of the position 2, the transmission data pulse signal from the side of the micro robot is received on the side of the auxiliary device via the magnetic coil 504 on the side of the auxiliary device.

On the contrary, when the micro-robot 1 is located in the electromagnetic coupling area and a pulsed magnetic field is generated around it by the magnetic coil of the auxiliary device 500, this magnetic field causes the exciting coil 142a on the micro-robot 1 side.
Is electromagnetically induced, and the pulse signal is detected by the signal detection circuit 125. That is, the transmission signal from the auxiliary device 500 side is received. When an AC pulse magnetic field is generated by the magnetic coil of the auxiliary device 500, the magnetic flux links the coil 142a and an AC voltage is induced in the coil 142a by electromagnetic induction. This AC voltage is rectified through the rectifier circuits 132 and 133 composed of parasitic diodes, and the capacitor 102, which is a battery power source, is rectified.
Is charged.

(Motor Drive Pulse and Data Pulse) Here, the relationship between the motor drive pulse and the data pulse will be described. Of course, when a data pulse is generated, it is preferable that the rotor 144 of the motor does not rotate or vibrate due to the signal in terms of low power consumption. As shown in FIG. 15A, the pulse width T (M) of the motor driving pulse is generally set to a width exceeding 1 msec. Therefore, the pulse width T of the data pulse
By setting (D) to a width of 1 msec or less, it is possible to prevent the vibration of the rotor or the like from occurring when the data pulse is generated and the exciting coil 142a is excited (during the data transmission operation).

Further, the data pulse output from the signal generating circuit 134 preferably includes an ID data pulse composed of a periodic pulse train, as illustrated in FIGS. 15B and 15C. By outputting such an ID data pulse, individual identification of each microrobot can be performed based on the ID data pulse received by the auxiliary device 500.

Further, when a data pulse is generated from the signal generating circuit as shown in FIG. 16 (a), the direction of the current supplied to the exciting coil 142a by this data pulse is as shown in FIG. 16 (b). In addition, it is preferable to switch in the forward and reverse directions for each pulse. A circuit configuration example for this purpose is shown in FIG. As shown in this figure, the data pulse D is output through the AND circuit 600 and supplied to the P-channel MOS type FET 201 of the motor drivers 128 and 129, and its inverted signal is output through the knot circuit 601 to the N-channel. MOS type F
Supplied to ET204. On the other hand, the data pulse D is supplied to the latch circuit 603, its Q output is delayed by one pulse and is output, and the delayed output is the P channel MOS.
Type FET 202 and a knot circuit 604
Its inverted signal via N channel MOS type FET2
03. As a result, as shown in FIG. 16B, the energizing current flows through the exciting coil 142a in such a manner that the direction of the energizing current is alternately switched between forward and reverse for each pulse of the data pulse D.

Such energizing current is applied to the exciting coil 142a.
It is preferable to allow the strength of the generated magnetic field to be increased by flowing the magnetic field into the magnetic field.

(Switching the motor driver between serial and parallel) Here, it is preferable that the two motor drivers 128 and 129 are switched in series and in parallel according to the operation mode of the exciting coil 142a. As described above, in the present example, the excitation coil 142a of the motor operates in the operation mode as the motor coil, the operation mode as the charging coil, the operation mode for transmission, and the operation mode for reception. There is. In the case of operation mode for motor coil and transmission, these motor drivers are connected in parallel,
It is desirable to excite each exciting coil independently. With this arrangement, each motor can be driven independently, and by exciting the two exciting coils in parallel, a strong magnetic field can be generated and the data pulse D can be transmitted by electromagnetic coupling. Be advantageous.

On the other hand, in the charging and receiving operation modes, if the motor drivers are connected in series to increase the induced voltage generated in these exciting coils, the charging efficiency can be improved. , The reception sensitivity by electromagnetic coupling can be increased.

FIG. 17 shows the motor drivers 128, 12
9 shows a circuit configuration for serial / parallel switching of No. 9. As shown in this figure, by using two P-channel and N-channel switching transistors and switching the gate voltage of these transistors, the connection of the two motor drivers 128 and 129 can be switched in series and in parallel. it can. In the illustrated circuit example, a high logic signal H is applied to each transistor to form a parallel connection, and a low logic signal L is applied to form a series connection.

As shown in FIG. 17, in the signal detection circuit 125, if a comparator 125a that takes in the induced voltage induced in the exciting coil 142a in each motor driver and compares them is arranged, the direction of the strong external magnetic field is increased. Can be detected. By using such a detection result, it becomes possible to guide the microrobot in the direction in which the external magnetic field is strong.

Further, as described above, the microrobot 1 of this example is provided with the pair of optical sensors 3R and 3L. It consists of light receiving elements such as photodiodes,
As shown in FIG. 17, the output is captured by the signal detection circuit 125.

(Control System of Auxiliary Device) Here, the control system of the auxiliary device 500 will be described with reference to FIG. 12 or FIG. The auxiliary device 500 includes an exciting coil 504 wound around a magnetic core 503 made of a high magnetic permeability material, and the exciting coil 504 is excited by an exciting circuit 505. The excitation circuit 505 includes an AC signal generation circuit 510, a pulse signal generation circuit 511, and the excitation coil 5 formed by these.
A control circuit 512 for controlling the excitation operation of No. 04 is provided. The exciting coil 504 is driven by the AC signal generating circuit 510.
When driven, an AC magnetic field is generated in the surroundings, and an induced voltage is generated by electromagnetic coupling in the two exciting coils 142a incorporated in the microrobot 1 located in the electromagnetic coupling area 502, and a capacitor is generated. The charging operation of 102 is performed. On the other hand, when the excitation coil 504 is driven by the pulse signal generation circuit 511, the excitation coil 1 on the microrobot 1 side is driven by the pulse magnetic field generated around the excitation coil 504.
An electromagnetic coupling is formed between the coil 42 and the coil 42b.
The pulse signal is detected by the signal detection circuit 125 via 12a. That is, the transmission pulse from the auxiliary device 500 side is received by the microrobot 1 side.

(Charging and Communication Operations Between Micro Robot and Auxiliary Device) Next, with reference to the flow charts of FIGS. 18 and 19, the operation of the charging and communication system comprising the micro robot 1 and the auxiliary device 500 of this example. Will be explained. FIG. 18 shows the operation on the side of the microrobot 1, and FIG. 19 shows the operation on the side of the auxiliary device 500.

First, it is assumed that light is guided from the auxiliary device 500 side while the microrobot 1 side is working (step ST1 in FIG. 18) (step S in FIG. 19).
T20). The side of the microrobot 1 uses the left and right optical sensors 3L and 3R to detect the light emitting element 5 on the side of the auxiliary device 500.
The emitted light of 06 is detected, and it moves toward that direction (steps ST2 and 3 in FIG. 18). Micro robot 1
When the light is guided in this way and enters the electromagnetic coupling region 502 on the side of the auxiliary device 500, on the side of the auxiliary device 500, by the exciting coil 142a that is excited to drive each motor of the microrobot 1. The formed magnetic field is detected. When this is detected, the auxiliary device 5
At 00, the light emitting element 506 is turned off to stop the light induction (steps ST21 and 22 in FIG. 19).

On the side of the microrobot 1, the sensor 3
When it is detected that the light induction is stopped by L and 3R (step ST4 in FIG. 18), the motor drive is stopped and the motor stops at that position. That is, it is stopped in the electromagnetic coupling area 502 of the auxiliary device 500. After that, the microrobot 1 outputs an ID pulse signal as a data pulse from the signal generating circuit 134, thereby exciting the exciting coil 142b of each motor. In this way, the ID pulse signal is transmitted (step ST in FIG. 18).
5). On the side of the auxiliary device 500, the ID pulse signal is received through the electromagnetic coupling formed with the microrobot 1 and the content thereof is analyzed (step ST23 in FIG. 19).

In the control circuit 512 of the auxiliary device 500, the ID code assigned to the large number of microrobots 1 to be controlled and the information such as the charging progress thereof are stored in advance in the storage circuit thereof. Therefore, the analyzed ID
The charging progress of the microrobot 1 assigned with is searched to determine whether or not the microrobot 1 currently located in the electromagnetic coupling area 502 is a charging target (step ST24 in FIG. 19).

When it is determined that the object is to be charged, the exciting coil 504 is excited by using the AC signal generating circuit 510, and an AC magnetic field for charging is generated over a time width required for charging, After that, the generation is stopped (steps ST25 and ST26 in FIG. 19). On the side of the microrobot 1, an induced voltage is generated in the exciting coil 142a of the built-in motor by an AC magnetic field due to electromagnetic coupling. This is detected by the signal detection circuit 125 and the charging mode is entered to charge the built-in capacitor 102 (step S in FIG. 18).
T7, 8). After the charging is completed, the electromagnetic coupling area 502 of the auxiliary device 500 is left and the operation such as a predetermined work is restarted (step ST9 in FIG. 18).

On the other hand, when the auxiliary device 500 determines that the microrobot 1 to which the received ID is assigned is not the charging target, the microrobot 1 and the auxiliary device 500 are electromagnetically coupled to each other. I between 500
Data pulse signals other than D are transmitted and received (steps ST10, 11, 12 in FIG. 18, step ST2 in FIG. 19).
7, 28, 29). After that, the auxiliary device side ends the control, and the microrobot 1 side restarts the operation such as predetermined work (step ST1 in FIG. 18).
3).

[0072]

As described above, in the microrobot of the present invention, the excitation coil, which is a component of the distributed stepping motor incorporated as the drive source, is used to form the magnetic field with the external magnetic field. By the electromagnetic coupling described above, energy is supplied from the outside and signals are transmitted and received to and from the outside.

Therefore, according to the present invention, the built-in secondary power source can be charged in a non-contact state without impairing the characteristic of being small and lightweight, and signals can be transmitted and received to and from the outside. It will be possible.

In the microrobot of the present invention, a pair of left and right drive units are arranged in parallel, and each exciting coil of the stepping motor incorporated therein is used as a charging coil or a signal transmitting / receiving coil. ing. In this way, the configuration in which the left and right exciting coils are arranged in parallel at a constant interval and on the outer peripheral edge of the drive unit,
It is extremely advantageous in terms of charging efficiency due to electromagnetic coupling and reception sensitivity.

Furthermore, in the present invention, the motor driver and the rectifying circuit for charging are CMOS dual-purpose circuits,
A MOS type FET is used as a switching element for driving the stepping motor in the dual-purpose circuit, and the FET is
AC current induced in the exciting coil is rectified through a PN junction formed electrically in parallel with, and a parasitic diode formed between the substrate and the drain of the MOS FET is used as the PN junction. It has the same structure. Therefore, the rectifier circuit can be configured only by adding the parasitic diode to the switching element of the existing motor driver.

Next, in the present invention, the signal generation circuit
Since a signal having a pulse width of 1 msec or less is generated as the data pulse for transmission, the motor rotor does not vibrate when the data pulse is generated.

Since an ID pulse signal having a periodic pulse train for identifying the microrobot is provided as a data pulse for transmission, charging operation with a number of microrobots and signal transmission are performed. The transmission / reception operation can be performed efficiently.

Furthermore, the signal generating circuit is adapted to generate, as a pulse signal for transmission, a pulse signal composed of a pair of pulse trains in which the direction of the current to the exciting coil is switched between forward and reverse. If such a signal is used, the amount of change in the magnetic field can be increased, and thus the induced voltage due to this magnetic field can be increased.

On the other hand, if a signal detection circuit having a structure including a comparison circuit for comparing the induced voltages of two exciting coils is adopted, the direction of the external point magnetic field can be detected according to the comparison result. It will be possible.

Next, in the case where the control circuit is provided with a switching circuit for switching the two motor drivers to serial and parallel connection, the exciting coil is excited by the pulse signal different from the motor drive signal. Occasionally (ie, during a transmit operation), a strong magnetic field can be generated from the excitation coil by forming a parallel connection.
Further, when the secondary power source is charged and the induced voltage due to the external magnetic field is detected (that is, when receiving), if the two motor drivers are connected in series, the induced voltage doubled as a whole is generated to perform the charging operation. And the detection sensitivity (reception sensitivity) can be improved.

Next, the auxiliary device of the present invention forms an electromagnetic coupling with the microrobot to charge the secondary power source built in the microrobot and send and receive signals to and from the microrobot. It is configured to include a magnetic means for performing. It is convenient if the auxiliary device is provided with a light emitting element for guiding the microrobot to a preset electromagnetic coupling area.

As described above, if the charging and communication device of the microrobot utilizing the electromagnetic coupling consisting of the combination of the microrobot and the auxiliary device according to the present invention is used, the charging of the microrobot and the communication between the microrobot are performed. Can be done efficiently.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram showing an example of a charging / communication system for a microrobot to which the present invention is applied.

FIG. 2 is a right side view showing a microrobot that is an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a plan view of the microrobot shown in FIG.

4 is a schematic configuration diagram showing the internal structure of the microrobot of FIG. 2 as viewed from the front side in order to show the positional relationship of the built-in parts.

5 is a schematic configuration diagram showing the internal structure of the microrobot of FIG. 2 as viewed from the lower side in order to show the positional relationship of the built-in parts.

FIG. 6 is a schematic configuration diagram showing a case where the internal structure is viewed from a side surface side in order to show a positional relationship of built-in parts of the microrobot of FIG.

FIG. 7 is a schematic configuration diagram showing a state of a right side micro drive unit incorporated in the micro robot of FIG. 2 when viewed from a side with a train wheel support plate thereof removed.

FIG. 8 is a side view showing a side of a train wheel receiving plate of the micro drive unit on the right side.

9 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a portion cut along the line AA in FIG.

10 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a portion cut along line BB in FIG.

11 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a portion cut along the line CC of FIG.

12 is a schematic block diagram showing a control system of the microrobot of FIG. 1 and a control system of an auxiliary device side.

13 is a timing chart showing the operation of the control system of FIG.

14A is a circuit diagram showing a configuration of a motor driver of a microrobot, and FIG. 14B is an explanatory diagram showing a sectional configuration of a transistor that is each switching element.

FIG. 15 is a signal waveform diagram showing the relationship between the pulse widths of drive pulses and data pulses.

16A is a waveform diagram showing an example of a data pulse, FIG.
(B) is a waveform diagram showing the state of the current flowing through the exciting coil when the data pulse is applied, and (c) is a circuit diagram showing a circuit example for forming the energized state shown in (b).

FIG. 17 is a circuit diagram showing an example of a serial / parallel switching circuit of two motor drivers.

FIG. 18 is a schematic flowchart showing the operation on the microrobot side.

FIG. 19 is a schematic flowchart showing the operation of the auxiliary device side.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Micro Robot 2 Body Case 3R, 3L Optical Sensor 4R, 4L Tactile Lead Terminal 6R, 6L Wheels 10, 10R, 10L Micro Drive Unit 11R, 11L Output Shaft 14 Distributed Stepping Motor 141 Magnetic Core 142 Coil Block 142a Excitation Coil 143 Stator Plate 144 Permanent magnet rotor 102 Capacitor (secondary power source) 110 Circuit block 120 IC chip 121 CPU 125 Signal detection circuit 127 Motor drive control circuit 128, 129 Motor driver 132, 133 Rectifier circuit 134 Signal generation circuit 201, 202, 203 , 204 Transistors 205, 206, 207, 208 Parasitic diode 500 Auxiliary device 501 Travel surface 502 Electromagnetic coupling area 503 Magnetic core 504 Magnetic coil 505 Magnetic circuit 506 Optical element 510 AC signal generation circuit 511 Pulse signal generation circuit A Microrobot charging / communication system

Claims (18)

[Claims] 1. A secondary power source, a micro drive unit driven by the secondary power supply, at least one detection element capable of detecting a change in physical quantity, and control of driving of the micro drive unit based on a detection result of the detection element. And a distributed type motor incorporated in the micro drive unit, a motor driver incorporated in the control circuit for driving the distributed type motor, and the distributed type motor. A charging circuit for rectifying an alternating current induced by an external alternating magnetic field generated in an exciting coil, which is a component of a motor, to charge the secondary power supply unit, and a signal detecting circuit for detecting an induced voltage of the exciting coil by the external magnetic field. And applying a pulse signal having a pulse width different from that of the motor drive signal to the exciting coil via the motor driver. A microrobot comprising: a signal generating circuit for exciting a magnetic coil for transmission. 2. The secondary power source according to claim 1, wherein the secondary power source is incorporated substantially in the center of the main body case, and two micro driving units are arranged on the left and right sides of the secondary power source. A left wheel and a right wheel are respectively attached to a left output shaft and a right output shaft that project laterally from the distributed motor, and the distributed motor is incorporated in each of the left and right micro drive units, and an excitation coil is provided. , A right and left distributed stepping motor having a stator and a rotor made of a permanent magnet. 3. The excitation coil incorporated in each of the left and right micro-driving units according to claim 2, wherein each of the exciting coils is arranged along an outer peripheral edge of each of the micro-driving units, and each of the exciting coils is substantially formed. A micro robot characterized by being arranged in parallel. 4. The rectifier circuit portion of the motor driver and the charging circuit according to claim 1, wherein the motor driver and the rectifier circuit portion are CMOS-combined circuits, and the combined circuit is a switching circuit for driving a stepping motor. A MOS type FET is used as an element, and an AC current induced in the exciting coil is rectified through a PN junction formed electrically in parallel with the FET.
A microrobot characterized by using a parasitic diode formed between a substrate and a drain of a MOS type FET as a junction. 5. The signal generating circuit according to claim 1, wherein the signal generating circuit generates the motor drive signal having a pulse width of more than 1 msec and the transmission data signal having a pulse width of 1 msec or less. Micro robot characterized by. 6. The microrobot according to claim 5, wherein the transmission data signal includes an ID pulse signal having a periodic pulse train for identifying the microrobot. 7. The method according to claim 1, wherein when a pulse signal for transmission from the signal generating circuit is applied to the exciting coil, a direction of a current flowing through the exciting coil is changed. A micro robot characterized in that it switches between forward and reverse for each pulse input. 8. The method according to claim 1, further comprising at least two of the micro drive units, wherein the signal detection circuit includes a comparison circuit for comparing induced voltages of the two exciting coils. A micro robot characterized by going out. 9. The method according to claim 1, further comprising at least two of the micro drive units, and the control circuit includes a switching circuit that switches the two motor drivers into a series connection and a parallel connection. A micro robot characterized by 10. The micro-circuit according to claim 9, wherein the switching circuit connects two of the motor drivers in parallel when the exciting coil is excited by the pulse signal different from the motor driving signal. robot. 11. The microrobot according to claim 9, wherein the switching circuit connects the two motor drivers in series during charging of the secondary power source and detection of an induced voltage due to an external magnetic field. 12. The detection device according to claim 1, wherein the detection element is at least two light receiving elements, and the control circuit follows the light receiving direction based on a detection result of these light receiving elements. A micro robot characterized by driving the left and right micro drive units as described above. 13. The charging of the secondary power source built in the microrobot by forming an electromagnetic coupling with the microrobot according to claim 1 and the microrobot. An auxiliary device for a microrobot, comprising magnetic means for transmitting and receiving signals between the two. 14. The auxiliary device for a microrobot according to claim 13, further comprising a light emitting element for guiding the microrobot to a preset electromagnetic coupling area. 15. The auxiliary device for a microrobot according to claim 12, wherein the magnetic means includes a magnetic coil for detecting a magnetic field generated by an exciting coil of the microrobot. 16. The magnetic means according to claim 12, wherein the magnetic means includes a magnetic coil that forms a magnetic field for generating an induced voltage in an exciting coil of the microrobot. Characteristic micro robot auxiliary device. 17. The auxiliary device for a microrobot according to claim 16, wherein the magnetic coil generates an alternating magnetic field for charging and a pulse magnetic field for signal transmission. 18. A charging / communication system for a microrobot using electromagnetic coupling, which comprises a combination of the microrobot according to claim 1 and the auxiliary device according to claim 13.