1. An apparatus for vision processing on a network based intelligent service robot comprising:
a stereo camera unit acquiring images from two cameras of left and right cameras incorporated therein;
an input image pre-processing unit for calibrating characteristic differences between the left and right cameras with respect to the left and right images inputted through the stereo camera unit;
a stereo matching unit for performing a stereo matching by computing a disparity map through the stereo matching over the left and right images inputted through the input image pre-processing unit;
an image post-processing unit for extracting a depth map for the image outputted from the stereo matching unit, and performing a segmentation for segmenting different objects from the extracted depth map; and
an image output selection unit for selectively outputting the output image of the respective units.
2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the input image pre-processing unit uses camera 20 calibration, scale-down of the image, rectification of the image, brightness control of the image, or the like, in order that the stereo matching unit may perform the stereo matching over the image inputted from the stereo camera unit with ease.
3. The apparatus of claim 1 or 2, wherein the image output selection unit, which selects the output image of the vision processing unit of the intelligent service robot, selects and outputs a predetermined image selected from the group consisting of the image acquired from the left and right camera, the resultant image of the input image pre-processing unit, the resultant image of the stereo matching unit, and the resultant image of the image post-processing unit, according to applications of the intelligent service robot terminal.
4. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein the image post-processing unit segments a target to track and an obstacle on the basis of a three-dimensional image information computed through the stereo matching unit, and uses the horizontal, vertical lengths and the distance of the segmented object as information for the robot’s traveling and moving.
5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the image outputted from the stereo matching unit is represented such that distance information is represented as a bright color for a close object and as a light color for a distant object.
6. A method for vision processing on a network based intelligent service robot, the method comprising:
acquiring an input image of at least one of an object to track and an obstacle from two cameras comprising a left camera and a right camera;
performing an input image pre-processing to calibrate the left and right image signals acquired from the left and right cameras to have the at least one of the object to track and the obstacle, using at least one or more image processing methods;
performing a stereo matching, at a stereo matching unit, by computing a disparity map after finding out points corresponding to each other in the left and right images calibrated in an input image pre-processing unit;
extracting a depth map by calculating a depth based on the disparity map computed at the stereo matching unit, and performing an image post-processing for segmenting different objects by the extracted depth map; and
selectively extracting the horizontal length, the vertical length, and the distance of the segmented object from at least one of the acquired input image, the performed input image pre-processing, the performed stereo matching, and the extracted depth map by calculating the depth based on the disparity map computed at the stereo matching unit and the performed image post-processing for segmenting the different objects by the extracted depth map of a robot terminal, and
controlling the robot to travel and move by at least one of segmenting and recognizing the object to track and the obstacle based on the selected extraction result.
7. The method of claim 6, wherein the controlling of the robot is performed by the robot terminal information provided by a robot server.
8. A system using an apparatus for vision processing on a network based intelligent service robot, comprising:
a robot terminal including a vision processing unit of a robot having the apparatus claimed in claim 1 for acquiring an external image, a robot control unit for controlling a whole robot terminal, a robot server communication unit for serving a role of communicating with a robot server, and a robot sensordrive unit for sensing an external circumstance and driving the robot; and
the robot server interfaced with the robot terminal over network, for controlling the robot under predetermined circumstances.
The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.
1. A toilet comprising a main tank which is connected with a toilet bowl, an inlet valve which is operable to an open condition to enable water to flow into said main tank and is operable to a closed condition to block a flow of water into said main tank, an outlet valve which is operable to an open condition to enable water to flow from said main tank into the toilet bowl and is operable to a closed condition to at least partially block a flow of water from said main tank into the toilet bowl, a handle which is movably mounted on said main tank and is manually actuatable from outside of said main tank, and a force transmission assembly connected with said handle and with said outlet valve and said inlet valve, said force transmission assembly being operable to effect operation of said outlet valve from a closed condition to an open condition under the influence of mechanical force transmitted from said handle upon manual actuation of said handle, said force transmission assembly being operable to effect operation of said inlet valve from a closed condition to an open condition under the influence of mechanical force transmitted from said handle upon manual actuation of said handle, said force transmission assembly being operable to effect operation of said inlet valve from an open condition to the closed condition, wherein said force transmission assembly includes a container which is disposed in said main tank and holds a body of water, and a float which is at least partially disposed in said container and is connected with said inlet valve, said float being movable from a first position in said container to a second condition in said container under the influence of mechanical force transmitted from said handle upon manual actuation of said handle, said container contains a first quantity of water when said float is in the first position, said container contains a second quantity of water when said float is in the second position, said second quantity of water is less than said first quantity of water, said float being movable from the second position in said container to the first position in said container to effect operation of said inlet valve from the open condition to the closed condition in response to accumulation of water in said container.
2. A toilet as set forth in claim 1 wherein said force transmission assembly is operable under the influence of mechanical force transmitted from said handle to induce a flow of water from said container to reduce the quantity of water in said container from said first quantity of water to said second quantity of water.
3. A toilet as set forth in claim 2 wherein said force transmission assembly includes a lever which is connected with said inlet valve, said float being connected with said lever, said force transmission assembly includes a flexible force transmission element which is connected with said lever and said handle, said flexible force transmission element being effective to transmit mechanical force which pulls said lever and said float downward relative to said container to force water to flow from said container and to operate said inlet valve from the closed condition to an open condition.
4. A toilet as set forth in claim 1 wherein said force transmission assembly includes a pump which is operable under the influence of mechanical force transmitted from said handle to induce a flow of water from said container to reduce the quantity of water in said container.
5. A toilet as set forth in claim 1 wherein said force transmission assembly is effective to maintain said outlet valve in the open condition as long as said handle is manually held in an actuated position, said force transmission assembly includes an outlet valve timer which prevents operation of said outlet valve from the open condition to the closed condition for a predetermined period of time after said handle has been manually released and has moved to an unactuated position so that said outlet valve remains in the open condition for the period of time for which said handle is manually held in the actuated position plus the predetermined period of time during which said outlet valve timer prevents operation of said outlet valve to the closed condition.
6. A toilet as set forth in claim 1 wherein said force transmission assembly includes an inlet valve timer which effects operation of said inlet valve from the open condition to the closed condition after said inlet valve has been in the open condition for a predetermined period of time.
7. A toilet comprising a main tank which holds water and is connected with a toilet bowl, an inlet conduit, an inlet valve which is connected with said inlet conduit and is operable to an open condition to enable water to flow through said inlet conduit into the main tank and is operable to a closed condition to block a flow of water through said inlet conduit into the main tank, an outlet valve which is operable to an open condition to enable water to flow from the main tank into the toilet bowl and is operable to a closed condition to at least partially block a flow of water from the main tank into the toilet bowl, a handle which is movably mounted on said main tank and is manually actuatable from outside of said main tank, a force transmission assembly connected with said handle and with said outlet valve, said force transmission assembly being operable to effect operation of said outlet valve from a closed condition to an open condition under the influence of mechanical force transmitted from said handle upon manual actuation of said handle, a container disposed in said main tank, and a float which is at least partially disposed in said container and is connected with said inlet valve and said handle, said float moves downward in said container under the influence of mechanical force transmitted from said handle to expel water from said container upon operation of said outlet valve from the closed condition to the open condition and while an upper surface of a body of water in said main tank is adjacent to an upper end portion of said container, said float moves upward in said container to transmit mechanical force from said float to said inlet valve to operate said inlet valve to the closed condition in response to said container filling with water.
8. A toilet as set forth in claim 7 wherein said force transmission assembly is connected with said float and is operable to transmit mechanical force from said handle to said float upon operation of said outlet valve from the closed condition to the open condition.
9. A toilet as set forth in claim 7 wherein said container has an upper end portion, said float being movable downward in said container to expel water from said container by inducing a flow of water from said upper end portion of said container.