SELF-DRIVEN FLOOR CLEANING DEVICE

• US 20140115797A1
• Filed: 01/07/2014
• Published: 05/01/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 07/11/2011
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Alfred Kã¤Rcher GmbH & Company KG
• Original Assignee: Alfred Kã¤Rcher GmbH & Company KG
• Inventors: Duenne, Markus
• Application Number:
  US14/149,181
• Publication Number:
  US 20140115797A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 15/3
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 11/24 Floor-sweeping machines, motor-driven
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 2201/04 Automatic control of the travelling movement; Automatic obstacle detection
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/009 Carrying-vehicles; Arrangements of trollies or wheels; Means for avoiding mechanical obstacles
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/2805 Parameters or conditions being sensed
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0225 involving docking at a fixed facility, e.g. base station or loading bay parking aids B62D15/027
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0242 using non-visible light signals, e.g. IR or UV signals
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 2201/0203 Cleaning or polishing vehicle

Abstract

A self-driven floor cleaning device is provided, including a chassis with a center plane oriented parallel to a forward direction of travel and on which a front end of the floor cleaning device is arranged, wherein the front end is the furthest forward projecting end; and an optical sensor mechanism arranged on the chassis, which includes a first transceiver unit arranged to the left of the center plane and having a first detection field crossing the center plane in front of the front end and directed to the front right; a second transceiver unit arranged to the right of the center plane and having a second detection field crossing the center plane in front of the front end and directed to the front left; and a crossing region spaced between 0.8 and 6 cm from the front end, at which the first and/or second detection field cross the center plane.

Claims

1. A self-driven floor cleaning device, comprising:

a chassis with a center plane, which is oriented parallel to a forward straight-ahead direction of travel and on which a front end of the floor cleaning device in relation to the forward straight-ahead direction of travel is arranged or formed, wherein the front end is an end of the floor cleaning device which projects forward the furthest; and

an optical sensor mechanism, which is arranged on the chassis;

wherein the optical sensor mechanism comprises;

a first transceiver unit, which, in relation to the forward straight-ahead direction of travel, is arranged to the left of the center plane and has a first detection field, which crosses the center plane in front of the front end and is directed to the front right, and

at least one second transceiver unit, which is arranged to the right of the center plane and has a second detection field, which crosses the center plane in front of the front end and is directed to the front left,

wherein a crossing region, at which at least one of the first detection field and the second detection field crosses the center plane, has a spacing in a range between 0.8 cm and 6 cm from the front end of the floor cleaning device.

2. The self-driven floor cleaning device according to claim 1, wherein the first detection field and the second detection field intersect at least approximately on the center plane.

3. The self-driven floor cleaning device according to claim 1, wherein the first transceiver unit and the second transceiver unit are arranged at least approximately symmetrically with respect to the center plane.

4. The self-driven floor cleaning device according to claim 1, wherein the optical sensor mechanism is arranged at or close to the front end.

5. The self-driven floor cleaning device according to claim 1, wherein the first transceiver unit and the second transceiver unit in each case have a transmitter for optical transmitted light and a receiver for received light, received light comprising transmitted light reflected at an object.

6. The self-driven floor cleaning device according to claim 1, wherein the first detection field extends beyond an extension of a right-hand side of the floor cleaning device and extends beyond the front end of the floor cleaning device.

7. The self-driven floor cleaning device according to claim 1, wherein the second detection field extends beyond an extension of a left-hand side of the floor cleaning device and beyond the front end of the floor cleaning device.

8. The self-driven floor cleaning device according to claim 1, wherein a main direction of at least one of the first detection field and the second detection field lies at an angle in the range between 10°

and 45°

with respect to a perpendicular to the center plane.

9. The self-driven floor cleaning device according to claim 1, wherein the first transceiver unit is located closer to a left-hand side of the floor cleaning device than to the center plane.

10. The self-driven floor cleaning device according to claim 1, wherein the second transceiver unit is located closer to a right-hand side of the floor cleaning device than to the center plane.

11. The self-driven floor cleaning device according to claim 1, wherein the first transceiver unit is located closer to the center plane than to a left-hand side of the floor cleaning device.

12. The self-driven floor cleaning device according to claim 1, wherein the second transceiver unit is located closer to the center plane than to a right-hand side of the floor cleaning device.

13. The self-driven floor cleaning device according to claim 1, wherein a spacing between the first transceiver unit and the second transceiver unit is greater than or equal to at least one of a spacing between the first transceiver unit and a closest exterior side of the floor cleaning device and a spacing between the second transceiver unit and a closest exterior side of the floor cleaning device.

14. The self-driven floor cleaning device according to claim 1, wherein the optical sensor mechanism carries out a distance measurement.

15. The self-driven floor cleaning device according to claim 14, wherein the distance measurement is clocked with respect to time.

16. The self-driven floor cleaning device according to claim 1, wherein a brush mechanism is arranged on or close to the front end.

17. The self-driven floor cleaning device according to claim 16, wherein the optical sensor mechanism is arranged above the brush mechanism in relation to the direction of gravity.

18. The self-driven floor cleaning device according to claim 1, said self-driven floor cleaning device being configured as a cleaning robot.

19. The self-driven floor cleaning device according to claim 1, said self-driven floor cleaning device comprising a control mechanism, which has an effective signal connection to the optical sensor mechanism and which controls a drive operation of the floor cleaning device depending on sensor signals.

20. The self-driven floor cleaning device according to claim 19, wherein the control mechanism comprises at least one of the following sub-units:

a braking mechanism for reducing a speed of the floor cleaning device, said braking mechanism being controlled by an object detection by means of sensor signals;

an object detection device for detecting at least one of the type and orientation of an object;

a station detection device for detecting a floor station for the floor cleaning device.

21. The self-driven floor cleaning device according to claim 1, said self-driven floor cleaning device comprising a floor station, which is provided with an optically detectable detection pattern.

22. The self-driven floor cleaning device according to claim 1, wherein a wheel mechanism is arranged on the chassis.

23. The self-driven floor cleaning device according to claim 1, wherein the first detection field and the second detection field are each of lobe form.