Patent Application
20240423438
The present application relates to the technical field of cleaning devices, particularly to a cleaning robot.
Cleaning devices such as sweeping robots or mopping robots typically employ either tracks or spring-loaded floating drive wheels for obstacle crossing. Cleaning devices using only tracks for obstacle crossing generally have a small diameter and a short length of the tracks due to volume limits of the cleaning devices. This limits the height of the objects the cleaning devices can cross. Consequently, the cleaning devices can only cross a door sill up to 3 cm in height commonly found in indoor surfaces.
Cleaning devices with spring-loaded floating drive wheels have their drive wheels borne by springs and fixed on the device body, allowing a certain rotation range of the drive wheels on the device body. When an obstacle enters the bottom of the cleaning device, the device body is lifted under the spring force, and crosses the obstacle by the drive wheels. This method is limited by the diameter of the drive wheels and the lifting range of the springs, resulting in that the height the obstacles the cleaning devices can cross is up to 3 cm; and has a passing ability inferior to that with tracks due to relying solely on the drive wheels for crossing, leading to problems such as crossing failure and slipping.
Thus, the current cleaning devices generally cannot cross or climb tall obstacles, cannot climb to clean stairs, and cannot cross stairs to clean planes of different heights. The current cleaning devices can only clean a plane surface. Therefore, improvements are necessary to address these problems.
A series of simplified concepts are introduced in the Summary, which will be further elaborated in the Detailed Description. The Summary of this disclosure does not intend to limit the key and essential technical features of the claimed technical solution, nor does it aim to define the scope of protection of the claimed technical solution.
This application describes a cleaning device, comprising:
The following drawings of this application are hereby included as part of this application to aid in its understanding. The drawings illustrate examples of the present application and their descriptions, which are used to explain the devices and principles of the present application.
100—Device body, 110—Housing, 120—Cleaning module, 130—Quick-release mechanism; 200—Drive assembly, 210—Mounting bracket, 220—Drive track; 300—Lifting mechanism, 310—Lifting bracket, 320—First rotating shaft, 330—Second rotating shaft; 400—Sensor module; 500—Step.
In the following description, numerous specific details are presented to provide a more thorough understanding of the present application. However, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the present application may be practiced without one or more of these specific details. In other instances, well-known technical features in the art have not been described to avoid confusion with the present application.
It should be understood that the present application can be implemented in different forms and should not be construed as limited to the examples presented herein. On the contrary, these examples are provided to make the disclosure thorough and complete and to fully convey the scope of the present application to those skilled in the art. In the drawings, the sizes and relative sizes of layers and regions may be exaggerated for clarity. The same reference numerals throughout the document indicate the same elements.
It should be appreciated that although terms such as “first”, “second”, “third”, etc., may be used to describe various elements, components, regions, layers, and/or portions, these elements, components, regions, layers, and/or portions should not be limited by these terms. These terms are merely used to distinguish one element, component, region, layer, or portion from another. Therefore, the first element, component, region, layer, or portion discussed below may be represented as the second element, component, region, layer, or portion without departing from the teachings of the present application.
Spatial relationship terms such as “under”, “below”, “lower”, “beneath”, “above”, and “upper” may be used herein for convenience in describing the relationship between one element or feature and another as shown in the drawings. It should be understood that the spatial relationship terms are intended to encompass different orientations of the device during use and operation in addition to the orientations shown in the drawings.
Referring to
The device body 100 may comprise a housing 110 and a cleaning module 120 connected to the housing 110 and configured to clean a surface to be cleaned (e.g., a ground, a blanket surface, or any other surfaces requiring cleaning). In this example, the cleaning module 120 may be a sweeping module (e.g., a sweeping assembly) and may include a brush holder, a sweeping brush, and a brush drive motor. The sweeping brush may be provided with an irregular pattern and may be rotatably fixed on the brush holder. The brush drive motor drives the brush to rotate to rolling brush a surface to be cleaned, thereby cleaning the surface to be cleaned. The sweeping module may further include a suction inlet, a fan, and a dust bin. The fan sucks garbage such as dust and butts on the surface to be cleaned through the suction inlet and collects the garbage in the dust bin. The sweeping module may further include auxiliary wheels rotatably attached to thereto and configured to assist the cleaning device in proceeding on the surface to be cleaned.
Referring to
The driving assembly 200 is configured to drive the device body 100 to proceed (e.g., move in one or more directions). In an example, the driving assembly 200 includes mounting brackets 210, one or more drivers (e.g. motors), and drive tracks 220 located on two sides of the device body 100. A driver is configured to drive the drive tracks 220 to rotate and may be a motor. Both the driver and the drive tracks 220 are provided on the mounting brackets 210. An end of the mounting bracket 210 is connected to the lifting mechanism 300. For example, both sides of the drive tracks 220 protrude upward from the lifting mechanism 300, and the lifting mechanism 300 is connected to the device body 100. Consequently, when the driver drives the drive tracks 220 to rotate, the driving assembly 200 proceeds along with the rotation of the drive tracks 220, thus driving the lifting mechanism 300 connected thereto and the device body 100 connected to the lifting mechanism 300 to proceed.
The lifting mechanism 300 may be rotatably connected to the device body 100 and the driving assembly 200 to lift the device body 100, so that the device body 100 climbs obstacles (which may be either upward or downward steps, stair); or lowers the device body 100 to drive the device body 100 to proceed downward to the surface of the obstacle. In an example, the lifting mechanism 300 includes lifting brackets 310 located on both sides of the device body 100. A first end of the lifting bracket 310 is rotatably connected to a rear end of the device body 100 via a first rotating shaft 320, and a second end of the lifting bracket 310 is rotatably connected to a front end of the driving assembly 200 via a second rotating shaft 330. By controlling rotation of the lifting bracket 310 relative to the device body 100 and the driving assembly 200, a position of the device body 100 can be changed relative to the driving assembly 200 (e.g., the driving assembly 200 relative to the device body 100), enabling the device body 100 to climb upward the obstacle or proceed downward to the surface of the obstacle. Specifically, the lifting mechanism 300 may further include a first driver and a second driver provided within the lifting brackets 310. The first driver may be mechanically coupled to the first rotating shaft 320, driving rotation of the first rotating shaft 320; and the second driver may be mechanically coupled to the second rotating shaft 330, driving rotation of the second rotating shaft 330. Therefore, by controlling the first and second drivers, lifting and lowering of the device body 100 relative to the driving assembly 200 can be controlled. The first rotating shaft 320 may be fixedly connected to the device body 100 and rotatably connected to the lifting bracket 310. The first driver, which may be a motor, is mechanically coupled to the first rotating shaft 320 by a gear transmission structure to drive the first rotating shaft 320 to rotate, so that the driving assembly 200 rotates relative to the lifting mechanism 300. However, when the driving assembly 200 is obstructed (e.g., by the ground) and cannot rotate, driving of the first driver on the first rotating shaft 320 may cause the lifting assembly to rotate relative to the driving assembly 200. Correspondingly, the second rotating shaft 330 may be fixedly connected to the mounting bracket 210 and rotatably connected to the lifting bracket 310. The second driver, which may be a motor, is mechanically coupled to the second rotating shaft 330 by a gear transmission structure to drive rotation of the second rotating shaft 330, so that the device body 100 rotates relative to the lifting mechanism 300. However, when the device body 100 is obstructed (e.g., by the ground) and cannot rotate, driving of the second driver on the second rotating shaft 330 causes the lifting assembly to rotate relative to the device body 100.
The sensor module 400 is provided on the device body 100. The sensor module 400 may be fixedly provided or detachably provided on or within the device body 100, and is configured to sense obstacles encountered when the cleaning device proceeds and output sensing information. The sensing information may be distance information between the sensor module 400 and the surrounding objects, and/or image information of the surrounding objects, or the like. The sensor module 400 includes at least one of the following sensors: radar (such as microwave radar), binocular vision sensors (such as cameras), TOF sensors (such as laser radar), and structured light sensors (such as infrared sensors). Specifically, in some examples, the sensor module 400 may acquire distance information between the sensor module 400 and the surrounding objects thereof and output the distance information to a controller. The controller determines a three-dimensional shape of the obstacle based on the distance information to identify the obstacle. In other examples, the sensor module 400 may acquire images of the surrounding objects and output the image information to the controller. The controller can identify the obstacle based on the image information by image recognition algorithms. The sensor module 400 may be provided on the top of the device body 100 or in other locations of the device body 100, allowing flexibility for those skilled in the art to provide as needed.
The controller may include one or more memories and one or more processors. The processors may be a micro control unit (MCU), a central processing unit (CPU), a graphics processing unit (GPU), an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), or other forms of processing units with data processing capabilities and/or instruction execution capabilities. The memories may include volatile memories and/or non-volatile memories. The memories may include non-transitory computer-readable media that, when executed by the one or more processes, cause a cleaning device to perform the methods described herein. The volatile memories, for example, may include random access memories (RAM) and/or caches, or the like. The non-volatile memories, for example, may include read-only memories (ROM), hard disks, flash memories, or the like.
The controller may be provided within the device body 100 and connected with the driving assembly 200, the sensor module 400, and the lifting mechanism 300. Specifically, the controller may be connected to the driver within the driving assembly 200, and controls the driver to drive the tracks to rotate to control the device body 100 to proceed on the surface to be cleaned. The controller may be connected to the sensor module 400 to acquire sensing information from the module 400, and determines obstacle information of obstacles that the cleaning device needs to pass based on the sensing information. The obstacle information may include at least one of the following information: a type of the obstacle and a height of the obstacle. The type of the obstacle may include steps, table legs, or the like, where the steps may be ascending or descending, and may be a single step or multiple steps. When the sensor module 400 cannot effectively acquire obstacle information (for example, the sensor module 400 is too close to the steps and cannot acquire an accurate height of the obstacle due to a sensing range thereof), the controller can control the lifting mechanism 300 to lift the device body 100 to make the obstacle into a field of view of the sensor module 400 (e.g., change the height or position of the device body 100 to make it into an effective sensing range of the sensor).
Specifically, the controller may be connected to the first driver and the second driver within the lifting mechanism 300. By controlling the first driver to drive the first rotating shaft 320 to rotate and the second driver to drive the second rotating shaft 330 to rotate, the position of the device body 100 is raised relative to the driving assembly 200, thereby lifting the device body 100, adjusting (e.g., enlarging) the field of view (or sensing range) of the sensor module 400, and accurately acquiring the obstacle information (such as accurately acquiring the height of steps). The controller can control the drive mechanism to move to bypass the obstacle based on the obstacle information (for example, when the obstacle is a table leg).
The controller may also control the lifting mechanism 300 to climb obstacles that are higher than the current surface based on the obstacle information. Specifically, when the height of the obstacle determined based on the obstacle information is higher than a height of a first surface where the device body 100 is currently located, the lifting mechanism 300 lifts the device body 100, so that a height of at least a front end of the device body 100 (the front end refers to an end of the device body 100 that is close to the obstacle) is equal to or higher than the height of the obstacle. Subsequently, the driving assembly 200 drives the device body 100 proceed, so that the device body 100 climbs onto the surface of the obstacle (in some examples, motion of the driving assembly 200 may not be controlled, but motion of the lifting mechanism 300 is controlled such that the device body 100 climbs onto the surface of the obstacle). When most part of the device body 100 is positioned on the surface of the obstacle, the lifting mechanism 300 lifts the driving assembly 200, so that the driving assembly 200 leaves the first surface and returns to a position relative to the device body 100 before obstacle climbing.
An exemplary description of a specific process in which a cleaning device according to an example of the present application climbs steps is provided with reference to
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Correspondingly, the controller can also control the lifting mechanism 300 to descend onto an obstacle that is lower than the current surface (such as a downward step) based on the obstacle information. Specifically, when the controller determines, based on the obstacle information, that the height of the obstacle is lower than the height of the first surface where the device body 100 is currently located, the controller controls the lifting mechanism 300 to lead the driving assembly 200 to move, causing the driving assembly 200 to leave the first surface and move to the surface of the obstacle. When the driving assembly 200 is positioned on the first surface, the controller controls the driving assembly 200 to drive the device body 100 to move, and controls the lifting mechanism 300 to lower the device body 100, causing the device body 100 to leave the first surface and move to the surface of the obstacle (in some cases, the controller may not control the motion of the driving assembly 200 but instead solely control action of the lifting mechanism 300, causing the device body 100 to move onto the surface of the obstacle). The process in which the controller controls the lifting mechanism 300 to descend onto an obstacle that is lower than the current surface, may be a reverse process in which the cleaning device climbs up the obstacle. The specific steps in which the controller controls the lifting mechanism 300 to descend onto the downward step may be illustrated in
The cleaning device according to the application is capable of climbing and crossing high obstacles, usually climbing and crossing obstacles that are about 3 times its own height, and descending onto a surface of an obstacle that is lower than the current surface. Therefore, the cleaning device can climb or go down stairs and clean the stairs during the process, solving a problem that the cleaning devices in the related art cannot automatically clean stairs and reducing the need for supplemental manual labor for cleaning stairs, lifting, or the like. Furthermore, for duplex or multi-story buildings, only one cleaning device is required to clean multiple stories, eliminating the need to allocate one cleaning device to each story, thus effectively reducing costs.
Although exemplary examples have been described with reference to the accompanying drawings, it should be understood that those examples described above are merely illustrative and are not intended to limit the scope of the present application. Those of ordinary skill in the art may make various changes and modifications without departing from the scope and spirit of the present application. All such changes and modifications are intended to be included within the scope of the present application as claimed in the appended claims.
It is recognized by those of ordinary skill in the art that the units and algorithm steps of the various examples described in conjunction with the examples disclosed herein can be implemented using electronic hardware, or a combination of computer software and electronic hardware. Whether these functions are implemented in hardware or software depends on the specific application and design constraints of the technical solution. Professionals in the art can use different methods to implement the described functions for each specific application, but such implementations should not be considered as beyond the scope of the present application.
In the several examples provided in this application, it should be understood that the disclosed devices and methods can be implemented in other ways. For example, the device examples described above are merely illustrative. For instance, the division of units is merely a logical functional division, and there may be other division methods in actual implementation. For example, multiple units or components may be combined or integrated into another device, or some features may be omitted or not executed.
In the specification provided here, a large number of specific details are described. However, it should be understood that the examples of the present application can be practiced without these specific details. In some instances, well-known methods, structures, and techniques are not shown in detail in order not to obscure the understanding of the present specification.
Similarly, it should be understood that in order to streamline the present application and aid in understanding one or more of the various aspects of the disclosures, the features of the present application are sometimes grouped together in a single example, figure, or description of them. However, this should not be interpreted as reflecting an intention that the claimed disclosure requires more features than are expressly recited in each claim. Rather, as reflected in the corresponding claims, the inventive aspects lie in the ability to solve corresponding technical problems with fewer features than those of a disclosed single example. Therefore, the claims following the detailed description are expressly incorporated into the detailed description, with each claim standing as a separate example of the present application.
Those skilled in the art will appreciate that, except where features are mutually exclusive, any combination of all features disclosed in this specification (including the accompanying claims, abstract, and drawings) and all processes or units of any method or device disclosed herein may be used. Unless otherwise explicitly stated, each feature disclosed in this specification (including the accompanying claims, abstract, and drawings) may be replaced by an alternative feature that provides the same, equivalent, or similar purpose.
Furthermore, those skilled in the art will understand that although some examples described herein include certain features found in other examples while excluding others, combinations of features from different examples are within the scope of the present application and form different examples. For example, in the claims, any of the claimed examples may be used in any combination.
It should be noted that the above examples illustrate the present application rather than limit it, and those skilled in the art can design alternative examples without departing from the scope of the appended claims. In the claims, any reference signs enclosed in parentheses should not be construed as limitations on the claims. The present application can be implemented using hardware including several different elements, as well as with a suitably programmed computer. In claims enumerating several units of an apparatus, several of these units may be embodied by the same hardware. The use of words such as first, second, and third does not indicate any order. These words may be interpreted as names.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 202210474384.5 | Apr 2022 | CN | national |
This application is a continuation of and claims priority to International Application No. PCT/CN2023/081651, filed on Mar. 15, 2023, which claims priority to Chinese Application No. 202210474384.5, filed on Apr. 29, 2022. The entire disclosures of each of the above applications are incorporated herein by reference.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Parent | PCT/CN2023/081651 | Mar 2023 | WO |
| Child | 18828475 | US |
