CLEANING ROBOT

• US 20140223675A1
• Filed: 02/11/2014
• Published: 08/14/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 02/12/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hako GmbH
• Original Assignee: Hako GmbH
• Inventors: Bavendiek, Rainer, Klssendorff, Jan Helge, Forouher, Dariush, Zimny, Axel
• Granted Patent: US 9,468,352 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 15/49.1
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 11/293 the tools being disc brushes
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 11/305 the tools being disc brushes
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 11/4011 Regulation of the cleaning machine by electric means; Control systems and remote control systems therefor
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 11/4061 Steering means; Means for avoiding obstacles; Details related to the place where the driver is accommodated
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 2201/00 Robotic cleaning machines, i.e. with automatic control of the travelling movement or the cleaning operation
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 2201/04 Automatic control of the travelling movement; Automatic obstacle detection
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0242 using non-visible light signals, e.g. IR or UV signals
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0246 using a video camera in combination with image processing means
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/027 comprising intertial navigation means, e.g. azimuth detector inertial navigation G01C21/16; inertial navigation combined with non-inertial navigation instruments G01C21/165
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0272 comprising means for registering the travel distance, e.g. revolutions of wheels measuring distance traversed on the ground by vehicles, e.g. using odometers G01C22/00

Abstract

A floor-cleaning robot having a chassis for moving the floor-cleaning robot in a direction of travel over a surface to be cleaned, a cleaning implement, a control unit and first and second measuring devices for three-dimensional distance measurement. Each of the first and second measuring devices is configured to sense distance between the measuring device and a plurality of surface elements within a respective solid angle that is spanned from the measuring device. The first and second measuring devices are aligned in such a manner that the direction of travel runs through the first solid angle. The second solid angle is offset in relation to the first solid angle. The control unit is designed to generate and/or update a representation of the surface to be cleaned, on the basis of the distances from surface elements sensed by first and second measuring devices.

Claims

1-15. -15. (canceled)

16. A floor-cleaning robot comprising:

a housing;

a chassis with a drive for moving the floor-cleaning robot in a direction of travel over a surface to be cleaned,

a cleaning implement is adapted to engage with the surface to be cleaned,

a first measuring device for three-dimensional distance measurement within a first volume that is defined in part by a first solid angle, the first solid angle spanning from the first measuring device, the first measuring device being adapted to sense distances between the first measuring device and each of a plurality of first surface elements within the first solid angle,

a second measuring device for three-dimensional distance measurement within a second volume that is defined in part by a second solid angle, the second solid angle spanning from the second measuring device, the second measuring device being adapted to sense distances between the second measuring device and each of a plurality of second surface elements within the second solid angle, and

a control unit that is configured to generate and/or update a representation of the surface to be cleaned based on the distances from the first and second surface elements sensed by the first and second measuring devices, respectively, the control unit guiding the floor-cleaning robot over the surface to be cleaned based at least partly on the representation of the surface to be cleaned,

wherein the first measuring device and the second measuring device are aligned in such a manner that the direction of travel runs through the first solid angle, and the second solid angle is offset in relation to the first solid angle.

17. The robot according to claim 16, wherein the cleaning implement projects towards a first side of the floor-cleaning robot, perpendicularly in relation to the direction of travel and parallelwise in relation to the surface to be cleaned, and

wherein the second measuring device is aligned in such a manner that the second solid angle is located on a second the side of the floor-cleaning robot that faces away from the first side, the second solid angle further being disposed outside of the travel path of the floor cleaning robot such that the travel path does not intersect the second solid angle.

18. The floor-cleaning robot according to claim 16, wherein each of the first and the second measuring devices comprises a light source, a camera and a controller,

each of the light sources emitting light having a wavelength in a range of between 780 nm and 3000 nm, and illuminating, with a matrix, surface elements that are disposed within a respective one of the first and second solid angles,

each of the cameras sensing light that has been emitted by a respective one of the light sources and reflected by associated ones of the surface elements toward the camera within the respective one of the first and second solid angles and responsively generating a camera signal, and

each of the controllers is configured to determine, from the matrix reflected by the surface elements and the camera signal of an associated one of the cameras, the distances between the respective one of the first and second measuring devices and associated ones of the surface elements.

19. The floor-cleaning robot according to claim 18, wherein the light source of the first measuring device and the light source of the second measuring device are pulsed, and

the light source of the first measuring device is correlated with the light source of the second measuring device in such a manner that the light source of the first measuring device does not emit any light when the light source of the second measuring device emits light.

20. The floor-cleaning robot according to claim 16, wherein the first and the second solid angles are horizontally adjacent to each other and do not overlap.

21. The floor-cleaning robot according to claim 16, wherein the cleaning implement is disposed at least partially in the direction of travel in front of the housing, and

the cleaning implement has a cover that projects beyond the housing, parallelwise in relation to a surface to be cleaned, and at least one of a) in the direction of travel) and b) perpendicularly in relation to the direction of travel.

22. The floor-cleaning robot according to claim 21, wherein the cleaning implement comprises one or more rotating cleaning brushes disposed beneath the cover.

23. The floor-cleaning robot according to claim 21, wherein an under-run protection device is disposed on the cover,

wherein the under-run protection device comprises a distance measuring device that senses a distance between the under-run protection device and one of the surface elements that is located in the direction of travel in front of the housing of the floor-cleaning robot, and

the under-run protection device is configured to transmit a stop signal to the control unit.

24. The floor-cleaning robot according to claim 23, wherein the measurement region of the distance measuring device is aligned substantially perpendicularly to the surface to be cleaned.

25. The floor-cleaning robot according to claim 23, wherein the distance measuring device of the under-run protection device comprises at least one of an ultrasonic sensor and an infrared sensor.

26. The floor-cleaning robot according to claim 23, wherein the distance measuring device of the under-run protection device is configured to sense a presence of an object that is located in front of the floor-cleaning robot and in the path of travel that is too close to the floor-cleaning robot to be sensed by either of the first and second measuring devices.

27. The floor-cleaning robot according to claim 21, wherein the floor-cleaning robot comprises one or more lateral distance measuring devices that are disposed on the cover, and

wherein each lateral distance measuring device is configured to sense a distance between the cleaning implement and an associated one of the surface elements in a direction that is perpendicular to the direction of travel and parallel to the surface to be cleaned.

28. The floor-cleaning robot according to claim 16, wherein the floor-cleaning robot comprises a gyroscope that is configured to sense rotation of the floor-cleaning robot about an axis that is orthoganal to the surface to be cleaned and the path of travel.

29. The floor-cleaning robot according to claim 16, wherein the chassis comprises an encoder that senses a distance travelled by the floor-cleaning robot and responsively produces an encoder signal.

30. The floor-cleaning according to claim 29, wherein the floor-cleaning robot comprises a gyroscope that is configured to sense rotation of the floor-cleaning robot about an axis that is orthogonal to the surface to be cleaned and the path of travel and to responsively generate a gyroscope signal, and wherein the control unit is configured to determine a position of the floor-cleaning robot in the representation of the surface to be cleaned, the position being determined on the basis of the gyroscope signal and the encoder signal.