Patent Description:
A development of the Internet has promoted a construction of machine room of IDC (Internet Data Center). With a large-scale and standardized construction of the IDC machine room, a machine room inspection robot is gradually applied to the IDC machine room to perform a repetitive inspection task of machine room cabinet. A main job of the machine room inspection robot during an inspection is to identify whether a computer device in the cabinet is operating normally. In a related art, the machine room inspection robot may take a photo of an indicator light indicating a running state of the computer device by using a camera and then perform an image recognition on the photo, so as to determine whether the computer device is running normally.

In a process of achieving a concept of the present disclosure, the inventors found that at least the following problems exist in the related art. In some machine rooms, a metal door with mesh holes may be installed on the cabinet due to a requirement of construction specifications. A non-mesh part of the metal door, for example, may block a running state indicator light, and an image for the running state indicator light may be missing from the photo taken by the camera, so that it is difficult to accurately determine whether the computer is running normally according to the photo taken.

<CIT> relates to an electrodynamic apparatus. The electrodynamic apparatus includes a first arm extending in a first direction, a second arm supported by the first arm, and a first linear actuator that is provided in the first arm or the second arm and moves the second arm along the first direction with respect to the first arm. The first arm includes a first power transmission antenna. The second arm includes a first power reception antenna. The first power transmission antenna supplies electric power to the first power reception antenna wirelessly. The first power reception antenna supplies the supplied electric power to a load electrically connected to the first power reception antenna.

<CIT> relates to a telescopic system. The telescopic system comprised of modules, of which the essential element is a screw and nut system. A mechanical transmission imposes rotations with a ratio which is constant and different from one between a screw and the nut, and therefore a predetermined translation of the screw for a predetermined rotation of the nut. The screw is linked to the nut of the following stage. The simultaneous and uniform extension of all the modules of the system is thus controlled. Furthermore, the screws may be concentric and the system is not very heavy. In particular, the system is applied to robotics.

<CIT> relates to a detector for harvesting object of fruit vegetable. An image pickup means S1 is provided to photograph a specified range including the harvesting object A1 of a fruit vegetable and an air blowing means to move others A2 lighter than the object A1 so as to run apart from the object A1 present within the range for the image pickup means S1. A means to detect the position of the object A1 based on the information from the means S1 detects the position based on the image pickup information in the actuation of the air blowing means, or based on this information and the information in the non-actuation.

<CIT> relates to systems and methods for removing an occluding object from a surgical image. An image capture device is inserted into a patient and captures an initial image of a surgical site inside the patient during a surgical procedure. A controller receives the image and determines that the occluding object is present in the initial image. The controller executes a removal algorithm that includes controlling the image capture device to perform a plurality of movements, controlling the image capture device to capture a plurality of images, wherein each image among the plurality of images corresponds to a movement among the plurality of movements, and applying an image filter to combine the initial image and the plurality of images and generate a processed image where the occluding object is removed from the processed image.

In view of this, embodiments of the present disclosure provide a robot, a method of capturing an image, and a computer-readable storage medium.

According to independent claim <NUM>, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides a robot, including: a robot body; a workbench; a telescopic structure having one end connected to the robot body, so that the telescopic structure is movable with respect to the robot body in a vertical direction and a horizontal direction, and the other end of the telescopic structure is connected to the workbench; a driving mechanism arranged on the robot body and configured to drive the telescopic structure to extend, retract and/or move relative to the robot body; an image capture device arranged on the workbench, wherein the image capture device is configured to capture a plurality of images of a target object partially blocked at different positions from different angles with the extension, retraction and/or movement of the telescopic structure; and an image processing device configured to stitch or fuse the plurality of images to obtain an unobstructed image of the target object partially blocked.

According to the embodiments of the present disclosure, the telescopic structure includes a gear and a telescopic component arranged on the gear, the robot body is provided with a guide groove with serrations used in cooperation with the gear, and the driving mechanism is configured to drive the telescopic component to move vertically relative to the robot body by driving the gear to move vertically in the guide groove.

According to the embodiments of the present disclosure, the telescopic structure includes a sliding component and a telescopic component arranged on the sliding component, the robot body is provided with a sliding groove used in cooperation with the sliding component, and the driving mechanism is configured to drive the telescopic component to move vertically relative to the robot body by driving the sliding component to slide vertically in the sliding groove.

According to the embodiments of the present disclosure, the sliding component includes a limiting structure. The telescopic component includes: a nut arranged within the limiting structure; and a screw used in cooperation with the nut. The driving mechanism is configured to drive the screw to extend from the robot body or retract into the robot body by driving the nut to rotate in the limiting structure.

According to the embodiments of the present disclosure, the robot further includes: a light filling device arranged on the workbench and configured to fill light into a surrounding environment of the target object when capturing the image using the image capture device.

According to the embodiments of the present disclosure, the robot further includes: an image processing device configured to process a plurality of images to obtain an unobstructed image of the target object, wherein the plurality of images are captured by the image capture device for the target object from a plurality of angles.

Another aspect of the embodiments of the present disclosure provides a method of capturing an image applied to a robot, the robot includes: a robot body; a workbench; a telescopic structure having one end pivotally connected to the robot body and the other end connected to the workbench; a driving mechanism arranged on the robot body; and an image capture device arranged on the workbench. The method includes: driving, by using the driving mechanism, the telescopic structure to extend, retract and/or move relative to the robot body; capturing an image of a target object to obtain a first image by using the image capture device, in response to the image capture device reaching a first position with an extension, retraction and/or movement of the telescopic structure; and capturing an image of the target object to obtain a second image by using the image capture device, in response to the image capture device reaching a second position with the extension, retraction and/or movement of the telescopic structure, wherein an unobstructed image of the target object is obtained by processing the first image and the second image.

According to the embodiments of the present disclosure, the first position and the second position are located on the same horizontal plane; or the first position and the second position are located on the same vertical plane.

According to the embodiments of the present disclosure, the robot further includes a light filling device. The method further includes: before capturing an image of the target object to obtain the first image by using the image capture device and/or capturing an image of the target object to obtain the second image by using the image capture device, filling light into a surrounding environment of the target object by using the light filling device.

Another aspect of the embodiments of the present disclosure provide a computer-readable storage medium having executable instructions stored thereon, wherein the executable instructions, when executed by a processor, are allowed to implement the method of the embodiments of the present disclosure.

The embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented to capture images of the target object respectively from a plurality of angles. Therefore, even in a case that a partial region of the target object is blocked by an occluder, a complete image of the target object may be obtained by, for example, stitching images captured from a plurality of angles.

The above and other objectives, features and advantages of the present disclosure will be more apparent through the following description of embodiments of the present disclosure with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:.

Embodiments of the present disclosure will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. It should be understood, however, that these descriptions are merely exemplary and are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure. In the following detailed description, for ease of interpretation, many specific details are set forth to provide a comprehensive understanding of the embodiments of the present disclosure. However, it is clear that one or more embodiments may also be implemented without these specific details. In addition, in the following description, descriptions of well-known structures and technologies are omitted to avoid unnecessarily obscuring the concepts of the present disclosure.

The terms used herein are for the purpose of describing specific embodiments only and are not intended to limit the present disclosure. The terms "including", "containing", and the like used herein indicate the presence of the feature, step, operation and/or part, but do not exclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, steps, operations or parts.

All terms used herein (including technical and scientific terms) have the meanings generally understood by those skilled in the art, unless otherwise defined. It should be noted that the terms used herein shall be interpreted to have meanings consistent with the context of this specification, and shall not be interpreted in an idealized or too rigid way.

In a case of using the expression similar to "at least one of A, B and C", it should be explained according to the meaning of the expression generally understood by those skilled in the art (for example, "a system including at least one of A, B and C" should include but not be limited to a system including only A, a system including only B, a system including only C, a system including A and B, a system including A and C, a system including B and C, and/or a system including A, B and C). In a case of using the expression similar to "at least one of A, B or C", it should be explained according to the meaning of the expression generally understood by those skilled in the art (for example, "a system including at least one of A, B or C" should include but not be limited to a system including only A, a system including only B, a system including only C, a system including A and B, a system including A and C, a system including B and C, and/or a system including A, B and C). Those skilled in the art should also understand that any adversative conjunction and/or phrase connecting two or more optional items, whether in the description, claims or drawings, should be understood to give a possibility of including one of these items, any one of these items, or two items. For example, the phrase "A or B" should be understood to include a possibility of "A" or "B" or "A and B".

The terms "first" and "second" are only used for descriptive purposes, and should not be construed as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly indicating the number of technical features indicated. Thus, a feature defined with "first", "second" may expressly or implicitly include one or more features.

The embodiments of the present disclosure provide a robot. The robot may include, for example, a robot body, a workbench, a telescopic structure having one end pivotally connected to the robot body and the other end connected to the workbench, a driving mechanism arranged on the robot body and used to drive the telescopic structure to extend, retract and/or move relative to the robot body, and an image capture device arranged on the workbench. The telescopic structure is configured to allow the image capture device to capture an image of a target object from different angles with an extension, retraction and/or movement of the telescopic structure.

<FIG> schematically shows an application scenario <NUM> of a robot according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. It should be noted that <FIG> is only an example of the application scenario to which the robot of the embodiments of the present disclosure may be applied, so as to help those skilled in the art to understand the technical content of the present disclosure, but it does not mean that the embodiments of the present disclosure may not be used to other devices, systems, environments or scenarios.

As shown in <FIG>, the application scenario <NUM> according to this embodiment may include cabinets <NUM>, <NUM> and <NUM>, a robot <NUM>, a network <NUM>, and a server <NUM>. The network <NUM> is used to provide a medium of a communication link between the robot <NUM> and the server <NUM>. The network <NUM> may include various connection types, such as wired, wireless communication links, or fiber optic cables, etc..

The cabinets <NUM>, <NUM> and <NUM> may be metal cabinets for accommodating an electrical or electronic device. The cabinets <NUM>, <NUM> and <NUM> are generally provided with a door with a hole or/and gap, removable or non-removable side panel and back panel. In terms of types, the cabinets <NUM>, <NUM> and <NUM> may include a computer cabinet, a server cabinet, a network cabinet, a console cabinet, a power cabinet and a monitoring cabinet, etc. The cabinets <NUM>, <NUM> and <NUM> may be applied to a central machine room, a data machine room, a computer room, a control center, a monitoring room, a monitoring center and other places.

The robot <NUM> may interact with the server <NUM> through the network <NUM> to receive or send messages and the like. Various devices, such as a camera, a video camera, an LED light, a hygrometer, a lift mechanism, a mechanical arm, a pickup, a speaker and an alarm, etc. may be mounted on the robot <NUM>.

The robot <NUM> may be various robots with a function of walking and navigation, including but not limited to an operating robot, a program robot, a teaching and reproducing robot, an intelligent robot, and an integrated robot. The robot <NUM> may walk to a specific position to perform a related operation on the cabinets <NUM>, <NUM> and <NUM>, for example, acquire an image information of the cabinets <NUM>, <NUM> and <NUM>.

The server <NUM> may be a server that provides various services, such as an analysis and storage server that analyzes and stores the information acquired by the robot <NUM>. The analysis and storage server may analyze and process data such as image, temperature and voice acquired by the robot <NUM>, and feedback a processing result to the robot <NUM>, so that the robot <NUM> may perform a subsequent operation.

It should be understood that the number of cabinet, robot, network and server in <FIG> are merely illustrative. Any number of cabinet, robot, network and server may be provided according to an implementation need.

<FIG> schematically shows a structural diagram of a robot according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

As shown in <FIG>, as an optional embodiment, the robot may include a robot body <NUM>, a workbench <NUM>, a telescopic structure <NUM>, a driving mechanism <NUM> and an image capture device <NUM>.

Optionally, the telescopic structure <NUM> has one end pivotally connected to the robot body <NUM> and the other end connected to the workbench <NUM>.

In the embodiments of the present disclosure, the robot body <NUM> may be a robot for machine room inspection with functions of walking, navigation and positioning. The robot body <NUM> may be equipped with an image capture system, a voice system, a temperature capture device, a humidity capture device, an information transceiver device, a data processing device, a data storage device, and the like.

In the embodiments of the present disclosure, a fixed end of the telescopic structure <NUM> is connected to the robot body <NUM>, and a free end of the telescopic structure <NUM> is connected to the workbench <NUM>. One end of the telescopic structure <NUM> being pivotably connected to the robot body <NUM> means that the free end of the telescopic structure <NUM> may move vertically or/and horizontally relative to the robot body <NUM> so that the free end of the telescopic structure <NUM> may move the workbench <NUM> to a target position. The vertical movement may be a movement of the telescopic structure <NUM> in a vertical direction, and the horizontal movement may be a movement of the telescopic structure <NUM> on a plane perpendicular to the vertical direction.

In the embodiments of the present disclosure, the workbench <NUM> may specifically carry an image capture device, a lighting device, a temperature capture device and a humidity capture device, etc. The workbench <NUM> may also move relative to the robot body <NUM> under the driving of the telescopic structure <NUM> so that the device carried on the workbench <NUM> may be moved to a specific position for a related operation.

In the embodiments of the present disclosure, the telescopic structure <NUM> may include a mechanical arm, a robot hand, a telescopic rod and a sliding rail, etc. The free end of the telescopic structure <NUM> is connected to the workbench <NUM>, and the telescopic structure <NUM> may move the workbench <NUM> to a specific position so that the device carried on the workbench <NUM> may perform the related operation.

Optionally, the driving mechanism <NUM> is arranged on the robot body <NUM>, and the driving mechanism <NUM> is used to drive the telescopic structure <NUM> to extend, retract and/or move relative to the robot body <NUM>.

In the embodiments of the present disclosure, the driving mechanism <NUM> may include an electric motor, a hydraulic motor, and the like. The driving mechanism <NUM> may drive the telescopic structure <NUM> to move the workbench <NUM> to a specific position so that the device carried on the workbench <NUM> may perform a related operation at the specific position. A movement of the telescopic structure <NUM> relative to the robot body <NUM> includes a vertical movement and a horizontal movement.

Optionally, the image capture device <NUM> is arranged on the workbench <NUM>. With an extension, retraction and/or movement of the telescopic structure <NUM>, the image capture device <NUM> may capture images of the target object from different angles.

In the embodiments of the present disclosure, the image capture device <NUM> may include a camera, a video camera, a two-dimensional camera, a three-dimensional camera, and the like. The image capture device <NUM> has an auto-focus function, and in some scenarios, the camera of the image capture device <NUM> may be rotated so that an optical axis of the camera of the image capture device <NUM> passes through the target object, so as to better capture the image of the target object.

In the embodiments of the present disclosure, the workbench <NUM> may transport the image capture device <NUM> to different positions, so that the image capture device <NUM> may capture images of the target object at different positions. Since a partial region of the target object is blocked by an occluder (for example, blocked by a metal mesh), a single image of the target object captured by the image capture device <NUM> always contain a partial region blocked by the occluder. However, different regions are blocked by the occluder in the images of the target object captured at different positions. Therefore, a plurality of images of the target object captured by the image capture device <NUM> at different positions may reflect the whole target object more comprehensively.

In the embodiments of the present disclosure, the telescopic structure <NUM> may move the image capture device <NUM> to different positions, and the image capture device <NUM> may capture images of the target object at different positions. Since the position of the image capture device <NUM> changes, an angle of the image capture device <NUM> relative to the target object changes accordingly, that is, an angle at which the image capture device <NUM> captures the image of the target object changes, so that the image capture device <NUM> may capture images of the target object from a plurality of angles.

In the embodiments of the present disclosure, the robot may further include a processor <NUM>.

Specifically, the processor <NUM> may be connected to the driving mechanism <NUM>.

In the embodiments of the present disclosure, the processor <NUM> may include a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a DSP (Digital Signal Processor), a microprocessor, and the like. The driving mechanism <NUM> may include a single-chip microcomputer, a motor server, and a motor. The single-chip microcomputer is connected to the motor server, the motor server is connected to the motor, and the single-chip microcomputer controls an operation of the motor through the motor server (for example, as shown in <FIG>). The processor <NUM> is connected to the single-chip microcomputer of the driving mechanism <NUM>, and the processor <NUM> may transmit an instruction to the single-chip microcomputer, so that the single-chip microcomputer may control the operation of the motor through the motor server.

In the embodiments of the present disclosure, the processor <NUM> is connected to a bus (e.g., a CAN bus), and the single-chip microcomputer is mounted to the bus through a bus transceiver (e.g., as shown in <FIG>). In addition, the temperature capture device, the humidity capture device and other devices may be mounted to the bus to communicate with the processor <NUM>. A user may mount a required device to the bus according to a specific need, which may greatly improve a scalability of the robot.

Specifically, the processor <NUM> may be connected to the image capture device <NUM>.

In the embodiments of the present disclosure, the processor <NUM> may transmit an instruction to the image capture device <NUM> to control the image capture device <NUM> to capture an image of the target object. For example, the processor <NUM> may control the image capture device <NUM> to capture an image of the target object when the workbench <NUM> moves to a position, and the processor <NUM> may control the image capture device <NUM> to capture another image of the target object when the workbench <NUM> moves to another position.

In the embodiments of the present disclosure, the image capture device <NUM> may be moved to different positions by using the telescopic structure <NUM> to capture images of the target object, that is, may capture images of the target object from different angles. If the images captured from different angles are stitched or fused to obtain a stitched or fused image, the stitched or fused image may avoid an occlusion of the target object by an occluder, so that a more comprehensive image of the target object may be obtained.

The robot shown in <FIG> will be further described below with reference to <FIG> in conjunction with specific embodiments.

<FIG> schematically shows a structural diagram of a telescopic structure according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Specifically, as an optional embodiment, as shown in <FIG>, the telescopic structure <NUM> may include a gear <NUM> and a telescopic component <NUM> arranged on the gear <NUM>.

Optionally, the robot body <NUM> is provided with a guide groove <NUM> with serrations used in cooperation with the gear <NUM>. By driving the gear <NUM> to move vertically in the guide groove, the driving mechanism <NUM> may drive the telescopic component <NUM> to move vertically relative to the robot body.

In the embodiments of the present disclosure, the gear <NUM> may be sleeved on a bearing, and the telescopic component <NUM> may be provided on the bearing sleeved by the gear <NUM>, so that the telescopic component <NUM> does not rotate with the gear <NUM> but the gear <NUM> may carry the telescopic component <NUM> to move together. In addition, the serrations of the guide groove <NUM> may mesh with the teeth of the gear <NUM>, so that the gear <NUM> may move stably along the guide groove <NUM>.

<FIG> schematically shows a structural diagram of a telescopic structure according to another embodiment of the present disclosure.

Specifically, as an optional embodiment, as shown in <FIG>, the telescopic structure <NUM> may include a sliding component <NUM> and a telescopic component <NUM> arranged on the sliding component <NUM>.

Optionally, the robot body <NUM> is provided with a sliding groove <NUM> used in cooperation with the sliding component <NUM>. By driving the sliding component <NUM> to slide vertically in the sliding groove <NUM>, the driving mechanism <NUM> may drive the telescopic component <NUM> to move vertically relative to the robot body <NUM>.

In the embodiments of the present disclosure, the sliding component <NUM> may include a slider, a sliding wheel, a rolling ball, and the like. The sliding groove <NUM> may have a notch and a groove cavity. A cross-sectional area of the notch is slightly less than a cross-sectional area of the groove cavity, so that the slider, the sliding wheel and the rolling ball of the sliding component <NUM> may move in the groove cavity without falling out of the notch.

<FIG> schematically shows a structural diagram of a telescopic component according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Specifically, as an optional embodiment, as shown in <FIG>, the sliding component <NUM> may include a limiting structure <NUM>, and the telescopic component <NUM> may include a nut <NUM> and a screw <NUM>.

Optionally, the nut <NUM> is arranged in the limiting structure <NUM>, and the screw <NUM> is used in cooperation with the nut <NUM>. By driving the nut <NUM> to rotate in the limiting structure <NUM>, the driving mechanism <NUM> may drive the screw <NUM> to extend from the robot body <NUM> or retract into the robot body <NUM>, that is, the nut <NUM> drives the screw <NUM> to move horizontally, and the screw <NUM> further drives the workbench <NUM> to move horizontally.

In the embodiment of the present disclosure, the nut <NUM> may have an internal thread, the screw <NUM> may have an external thread, and the internal thread of the nut <NUM> matches the external thread of the screw <NUM>. In addition, the limiting structure <NUM> may be two parallel plates fixed on the robot body <NUM>, and the two parallel plates have corresponding holes. A diameter of the hole is greater than a diameter of the screw <NUM> but less than an outer diameter of the nut <NUM> (the outer diameter of the nut <NUM> refers to a circumscribed circle of the nut <NUM>). The nut <NUM> is sandwiched between the two parallel plates, and the screw <NUM> is screwed with the nut <NUM> after passing through the holes in the parallel plates. Therefore, the nut <NUM> may rotate but may not be displaced. With a forward rotation or a reverse rotation of the nut <NUM>, the screw <NUM> may make a telescopic motion.

In the embodiment of the present disclosure, only a partial region of the screw <NUM> may be provided with a thread. For a region without threads, a cross section perpendicular to an axial direction may be a polygon, such as a triangle, a square, and the like. If the cross section of one end of the screw <NUM> connected to the workbench <NUM> is a square, the sliding component <NUM> may further include a square sleeve that may be sleeved outside the end of the square screw <NUM>, so as to prevent the screw <NUM> from rotating together with the nut <NUM> when the nut <NUM> rotates. In this way, the nut <NUM> may drive the screw <NUM> to stably make the telescopic motion.

<FIG> schematically shows a block diagram of a robot according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Specifically, as an optional embodiment, as shown in <FIG>, the robot may further include a light filling device <NUM> and an image processing device <NUM>.

Specifically, the light filling device <NUM> is provided on the workbench <NUM>, and the light filling device <NUM> is used to fill light into a surrounding environment of the target object when the image is captured by the image capture device <NUM>.

In the embodiment of the present disclosure, the light filling device <NUM> may include an LED light and an LED control circuit, and the LED light is connected to the LED control circuit. The LED control circuit may be connected to the single-chip microcomputer of the driving mechanism <NUM>, and the single-chip microcomputer receives an instruction of the processor <NUM> to control a switch of the LED light through the LED control circuit. The LED control circuit may also be directly connected to the processor <NUM>, and the LED control circuit receives an instruction from the processor <NUM> to control the switch of the LED light. Therefore, for a place with insufficient light, the light emitted by the LED light may fill the environment where the target object is located, so that the image capture device <NUM> may capture a clear image.

The image processing device <NUM> is used to process a plurality of images captured by the image capture device <NUM> for the target object from a plurality of angles, so as to obtain an unobstructed image of the target object.

In the embodiment of the present disclosure, the image processing device <NUM> may be a GPU (graphics processing unit). The image processing device <NUM> may be arranged between the image capture device <NUM> and the processor <NUM>, and the image processing device <NUM> may process the image of the target object captured by the image capture device <NUM>. For example, the image processing device <NUM> may stitch or fuse images captured by the image capture device <NUM> at different positions, so as to form a complete image of the target object. In addition, an image processor <NUM> may transmit the stitched or fused image to the processor <NUM>, and the processor <NUM> stores the stitched or fused image in a memory. For example, various image stitching and image fusion methods may be used to perform image stitching or image fusion operations, which are not limited by the embodiments of the present disclosure.

In the embodiment of the present disclosure, the image processing device <NUM> may receive image data from the image capture device <NUM> through USB3. <NUM>, and transmit the stitched or fused image to the processor <NUM> through Ethernet. Since the Ethernet has a large data transmission bandwidth, the stitched or fused image may be quickly transmitted to the processor <NUM>.

In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the robot may further include a transceiver <NUM>.

Specifically, the transceiver <NUM> may be connected to the processor <NUM>. The transceiver <NUM> may be a transceiver antenna.

In the embodiment of the present disclosure, the processor <NUM> may transmit the stitched or fused image to the server through the transceiver <NUM>, so that the server may store and analyze the stitched or fused image and then determine an operating state of the target object. For example, the stitched or fused image include a photo of an indicator light, a display screen, etc., and the server may determine the operating status of the target object according to a color of the indicator light and a content of the display screen.

<FIG> schematically shows a flowchart of a method of capturing an image according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Optionally, the method shown in <FIG> may be implemented to capture an image of the target object by using the robot described in the above embodiments.

As an optional embodiment, the robot to which the method of capturing the image is applied may include a robot body, a workbench, a telescopic structure, a driving mechanism, and an image capture device.

Specifically, one end of the telescopic structure is pivotably connected to the robot body, and the other end of the telescopic structure is connected to the workbench; the driving mechanism is provided on the robot body; and the image capture device is provided on the workbench.

The method of capturing the image may include operations S710-S730.

In operation S710, the telescopic structure is driven by the driving mechanism to extend, retract and/or move relative to the robot body.

In the embodiment of the present disclosure, the telescopic structure may move vertically and/or horizontally relative to the robot body under the driving of the driving mechanism.

Next, in operation S720, the image capture device captures an image of the target object to obtain a first image when the image capture device reaches a first position with an extension, retraction and/or movement of the telescopic structure.

Then, in operation S730, the image capture device captures an image of the target object to obtain a second image when the image capture device reaches a second position with the extension, retraction and/or movement of the telescopic structure. An unobstructed image of the target object may be obtained by processing the first image and the second image.

In the embodiment of the present disclosure, the first position and the second position are located on the same horizontal plane; or the first position and the second position are located on the same vertical plane.

<FIG> schematically shows a flowchart of a method of capturing an image according to another embodiment of the present disclosure.

As an optional embodiment, as shown in <FIG>, the robot to which the method of capturing the image is applied may include a light filling device.

Specifically, the method of capturing the image may further include operation S810 before operation S720 or S730. For convenience of description, for example, the method includes operation S810 before operation S720.

In operation S810, light is filled into a surrounding environment of the target object by the light filling device.

In the embodiment of the present disclosure, when the environment of the target object is dim and the image capture device may not image clearly, light may be filled into the surrounding environment of the target object by the light filling device, so that the image capture device is in a good imaging environment.

<FIG> schematically shows a block diagram of an electronic device suitable for implementing the method described above according to the embodiments of the present disclosure. The electronic device shown in <FIG> is merely an example, and should not bring any limitation to the function and scope of use of the embodiments of the present disclosure.

As shown in <FIG>, an electronic device <NUM> according to the embodiments of the present disclosure includes a processor <NUM> that may execute various appropriate actions and processes according to a program stored in a read only memory (ROM) <NUM> or a program loaded from a storage part <NUM> into a random access memory (RAM) <NUM>. The processor <NUM> may include, for example, a general-purpose microprocessor (for example, CPU), an instruction set processor and/or a related chipset and/or a special-purpose microprocessor (for example, an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC)), and the like. The processor <NUM> may further include an on-board memory for a caching purpose. The processor <NUM> may include a single processing unit or a plurality of processing units for executing different actions of the method flow according to the embodiments of the present disclosure.

Various programs and data required for an operation of the electronic device <NUM> are stored in the RAM <NUM>. The processor <NUM>, the ROM <NUM> and the RAM <NUM> are connected to each other through a bus <NUM>. The processor <NUM> executes various operations of the method flow according to the embodiments of the present disclosure by executing the program in the ROM <NUM> and/or the RAM <NUM>. It should be noted that the program may also be stored in one or more memories other than the ROM <NUM> and the RAM <NUM>. The processor <NUM> may also execute various operations of the method flow according to the embodiments of the present disclosure by executing the program stored in the one or more memories.

According to the embodiments of the present disclosure, the electronic device <NUM> may further include an input/output (I/O) interface <NUM> that is also connected to the bus <NUM>. The electronic device <NUM> may further include one or more of the following components connected to the I/O interface <NUM>: an input part <NUM> including a keyboard, a mouse, etc.; an output part <NUM> including a cathode ray tube (CRT), a liquid crystal display (LCD), etc. and a speaker, etc.; a storage part <NUM> including a hard disk, etc.; and a communication part <NUM> including a network interface card such as a LAN card, a modem, and the like. The communication part <NUM> performs communication processing via a network such as the Internet. A driver <NUM> is also connected to the I/O interface <NUM> as required. A removable medium <NUM>, such as a magnetic disk, an optical disk, a magnetooptical disk, a semiconductor memory, etc., is installed on the driver <NUM> as required, so that the computer program read therefrom is installed into the storage part <NUM> as needed.

According to the embodiments of the present disclosure, the electronic device <NUM> may further include an electronic device body, a workbench, a telescopic structure, a driving mechanism, and an image capture device. One end of the telescopic structure is pivotally connected to the electronic device body, and the other end of the telescopic structure is connected to the workbench. The driving mechanism is arranged on the electronic device body, and the image capture device is arranged on the workbench. It should be noted that a function and a structure of the electronic device body are the same as or similar to those of the robot body in the above-mentioned embodiments. In addition, a function and a structure of the workbench, the telescopic structure, the driving mechanism and the image capture device correspond to those of the workbench, the telescopic structure, the driving mechanism and the image capture device in the above-mentioned embodiments.

The method flow according to the embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented as a computer software program. For example, the embodiments of the present disclosure include a computer program product containing a computer program carried on a computer-readable storage medium. The computer program contains a program code for execution of the method shown in the flowchart. In such an embodiment, the computer program may be downloaded and installed from the network through the communication part <NUM>, and/or installed from the removable medium <NUM>. When the computer program is executed by the processor <NUM>, the above-mentioned functions defined in the electronic device of the embodiments of the present disclosure may be performed. According to the embodiments of the present disclosure, the above-described electronic device, device, apparatus, module, unit, etc. may be implemented by a computer program module.

The present disclosure further provides a computer-readable storage medium, which may be included in the device/apparatus/system described in the above embodiments; or exist alone without being assembled into the device/apparatus/system. The above-mentioned computer-readable storage medium may carry one or more programs that when executed, implement the method according to the embodiments of the present disclosure.

According to the embodiments of the present disclosure, the computer-readable storage medium may be a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium that, for example, may include but is not limited to: a portable computer disk, a hard disk, a random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM or flash memory), a portable compact disk read-only memory (CD-ROM), an optical storage device, a magnetic storage device, or any suitable combination of the above. In the present disclosure, the computer-readable storage medium may be any tangible medium that contains or stores programs that may be used by or in combination with an instruction execution system, apparatus or device. For example, according to the embodiments of the present disclosure, the computer-readable storage medium may include the ROM <NUM> and/or the RAM <NUM> described above and/or one or more memories other than the ROM <NUM> and the RAM <NUM>.

Those skilled in the art may understand that the various embodiments of the present disclosure and/or the features described in the claims may be combined in various ways, even if such combinations are not explicitly described in the present disclosure. In particular, the various embodiments of the present disclosure and/or the features described in the claims may be combined in various ways without departing from the scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.

Claim 1:
A robot, comprising:
a robot body (<NUM>);
a workbench (<NUM>);
a telescopic structure (<NUM>) having one end connected to the robot body (<NUM>), so that the telescopic structure (<NUM>) is movable with respect to the robot body (<NUM>) in a vertical direction and a horizontal direction, and the other end of the telescopic structure (<NUM>) is connected to the workbench (<NUM>);
a driving mechanism (<NUM>) arranged on the robot body (<NUM>) and configured to drive the telescopic structure (<NUM>) to extend, retract and/or move relative to the robot body (<NUM>);
an image capture device (<NUM>) arranged on the workbench (<NUM>), the robot being characterised in that
the image capture device (<NUM>) is configured to capture a plurality of images of a target object partially blocked at different positions from different angles with the extension, retraction and/or movement of the telescopic structure (<NUM>); and
and in that it further comprises an image processing device (<NUM>) configured to stitch or fuse the plurality of images to obtain an unobstructed image of the target object partially blocked.