APPARATUS AND METHODS FOR SEMI-AUTONOMOUS CLEANING OF SURFACES

• US 20160309973A1
• Filed: 04/25/2016
• Published: 10/27/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 04/24/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Avidbots Corp.
• Original Assignee: Avidbots Corp.
• Inventors: Sheikh, Faizan, Cabrera, Pablo Roberto Molina, Willick, Todd, D'Alessio-Doucet, Julien, Lee, Kenneth
• Granted Patent: US 10,667,664 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 11/282 having rotary tools
• 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 11/4044 Vacuuming or pick-up tools; Squeegees
• 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 11/4066 Propulsion of the whole machine
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 11/4072 Arrangement of castors or wheels
• 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: A47L 2201/06 Control of the cleaning action for autonomous devices; Automatic detection of the surface condition before, during or after cleaning
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0219 ensuring the processing of the whole working surface
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0274 using mapping information stored in a memory device navigation using map-matching G01C21/30
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 2201/0203 Cleaning or polishing vehicle

Abstract

An apparatus includes a frame, a drive assembly supported by the frame, an electronic system supported by the frame, and a cleaning assembly coupled to the frame. The drive assembly is configured to move the frame along a surface. The cleaning assembly is configured to engage the surface to transfer detritus from the surface to a storage volume supported by the frame. The electronic system has at least a processor and a memory. The processor is configured to define a path along which the drive assembly travels and is configured to redefined a path along which the drive assembly travels based on at least one signal received from at least one sensor.

Claims

1. An apparatus, comprising:

a frame;

a drive system supported by the frame and configured to move the frame along a surface, the drive system having at least one wheel configured to rotate about a first axis and a second axis non-parallel to the first axis;

a cleaning assembly coupled to the frame, the cleaning assembly configured to engage the surface to transfer detritus from the surface to a storage volume supported by the frame; and

an electronics system supported by the frame, the electronics system having at least a processor and a memory, the processor configured to execute a set of instructions stored in the memory associated with defining a path, the drive system configured to move the cleaning assembly along the path and the cleaning assembly configured to engage the surface to transfer detritus from the surface to the storage volume, the processor configured to define a redefined path along which the drive system is configured to move the cleaning assembly based on at least one signal associated with the path.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the first axis is substantially parallel to the surface.

3. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the second axis is substantially perpendicular to the surface.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the drive system has a motor operably coupled to the at least one wheel and configured to produce an output operable in rotating the at least one wheel about at least the first axis.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the drive system has a first motor and a second motor, the first motor operably coupled to the at least one wheel and configured to produce an output operable in rotating the at least one wheel about the first axis, the second motor operable in rotating the at least one wheel about the second axis.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the at least one wheel includes a plurality of rollers, each roller from the plurality of rollers configured to rotate about an axis from a plurality of axes, the second axis being from the plurality of axis.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the electronics system is configured to at least partially control the drive system to move the cleaning assembly along the path.

8. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the electronics system is configured to at least partially control the drive system to move the cleaning assembly along the redefined path in response to receiving the at least one signal associated with the path.

9. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the cleaning assembly is configured to transfer detritus from the surface to the storage volume with a predetermined efficiency when the drive system moves the cleaning assembly along at least one of the path or the redefined path.

10. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the cleaning assembly is configured to transfer detritus from the surface to the storage volume with a first predetermined efficiency when the drive system moves the cleaning assembly along the path, and

the cleaning assembly is configured to transfer detritus from the surface to the storage volume with a second predetermined efficiency when the drive system moves the cleaning assembly along the path, the second predetermined efficiency being greater than the first predetermined efficiency.

12. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the processor is configured to receive the at least one signal associated with the path from at least one sensor, the at least one sensor configured to detect a variance along the path.

13. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the variance is an object disposed at a position along the path.

14. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the at least one sensor is at least one of a light transceiver, camera, radio, encoder, range sensor, inertial measurement unit, compass, gyroscope, or accelerometer.

15. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the electronics system is configured to transition at least one of the drive system or the cleaning assembly from a first configuration, in which the drive system or the cleaning assembly, respectively, receives a flow of electric power, to a second configuration, in which the electronics system prevents a flow of electric power to the drive system or the cleaning assembly, respectively, in response to an input.

16. An apparatus, comprising:

a frame supporting at least one storage volume;

a drive system supported by the frame and configured to move the frame along a surface, the drive system having a plurality of wheels, each wheel from the plurality of wheels configured to rotate about a wheel axis in response to an output of a different motor from a plurality of motors, an angle defined between each wheel axis being substantially equal, each wheel from the plurality of wheels having a plurality of rollers, each roller from the plurality of rollers of each wheel from the plurality of wheels configured to rotate about an independent roller axis non-parallel to the wheel axis associated with that wheel from the plurality of wheels;

a cleaning assembly coupled to the frame, the cleaning assembly configured to engage the surface to transfer detritus from the surface to the at least one storage volume; and

an electronics system supported by the frame, the electronics system configured to send one or more signals to at least one motor from the plurality of motors indicative of an instruction to rotate the associated wheel from the plurality of wheels about the associated wheel axis to move the cleaning assembly along the surface in a predetermined path.

17. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the plurality of wheels includes a first wheel, a second wheel, and a third wheel, the angle being approximately 120 degrees.

18. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein a first distance is defined between a center of rotation of the first wheel and a center of rotation of the second wheel, and a second distance is defined between a center of rotation of the third wheel and at least one of the center of rotation of the first wheel or the center of rotation of the second wheel.

19. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the cleaning assembly is configured to transfer detritus from the surface to the at least one storage volume with a predetermined efficiency when the drive system moves the cleaning assembly along the predetermined path.

20. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the electronics system includes at least a memory and a processor, the processor is configured to execute a set of instructions stored in the memory associated with defining a map of the surface based on data received from one or more sensors, the predetermined path being a predetermined path along the map.

21. The apparatus of claim 20, wherein the defining of the predetermined path is based at least in part on a calculated efficiency associated with the cleaning assembly transferring detritus from at least a portion of the surface to the at least one storage volume.

22. The apparatus of claim 20, wherein the processor is configured to execute a set of instructions stored in the memory associated with decomposing the map of the surface into a plurality of sectors collectively forming the map of the surface, the processor is configured to execute a set of instructions stored in the memory associated with defining a path along each section from the plurality of sections based at least in part on a calculated efficiency associated with transferring detritus from that section from the plurality of sections to the at least one storage volume.

23. The apparatus of claim 22, wherein the processor is configured to execute a set of instructions stored in the memory associated with combining the path along each section from the plurality of sections to define the predetermined path along the map.

24. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the electronics system is configured to transition at least one of the drive system or the cleaning assembly from a first configuration, in which the drive system or the cleaning assembly, respectively, receives a flow of electric power, to a second configuration, in which the electronics system prevents a flow of electric power to the drive system or the cleaning assembly, respectively.

25. The apparatus of claim 24, wherein the electronics system is in electronic communication with a remote electronic device, the remote electronic device configured to send, in response to a user input and to the electronics system, a signal indicative of an instruction to transition at least one of the drive system or the cleaning assembly from the first configuration to the second configuration.

26. A method of at least semi-autonomous cleaning of a surface using a cleaning robot having an electronics system configured to control at least a portion of the cleaning robot, the method comprising:

defining an initial data set representing a map of the surface to be cleaned based on data received at a processor of the electronics system from at least one sensor included in the cleaning robot;

decomposing, via the processor, the initial data set into a plurality of sector data sets, each sector data set from the plurality of sector data sets representing a sector of the map;

defining a plurality of intra-sector data sets, each intra-sector data set from the plurality of intra-sector data sets representing an intra-sector path along one sector from the plurality of sectors of the map based at least in part on a calculated efficiency associated with the cleaning robot cleaning a portion of the surface corresponding to that sector from the plurality of sectors; and

defining an inter-sector data set representing an inter-sector path along the map based at least in part on combining each intra-sector path to collectively define the inter-sector path and a calculated efficiency associated with the cleaning robot moving on the surface and substantially along the inter-sector path to clean the surface.

27. The method of claim 26, wherein the cleaning robot includes the electronics system, a frame configured to support the electronics system, a drive system coupled to the frame, and a cleaning assembly, the drive system configured to move the cleaning robot along the surface in response to a signal from the electronics system, the cleaning assembly configured to clean the surface as the drive system moves the cleaning robot along the surface.

28. The method of claim 26, wherein the defining the initial data set representing the map includes a user moving the cleaning robot along the surface such that the at least one sensor produces data representing objects relative to the surface.

29. The method of claim 28, wherein the initial data set includes the data representing objects relative to the surface produced by the at least one sensor.

30. The method of claim 26, wherein the cleaning robot is configured to move on the surface and substantially along the inter-sector path to clean the surface at least semi-autonomously.

31. The method of claim 26, further comprising:

receiving at the processor a signal indicative of an instruction to transition the cleaning robot from a first configuration, in which a drive system and a cleaning assembly of the cleaning robot receive a flow of electric power, and a second configuration, in which electric power is withheld from the drive system and the cleaning assembly.

32. The method of claim 31, wherein the electronics system is in electronic communication with a remote electronic device via a network, the receiving the signal indicative of the instruction to transition the cleaning robot from the first configuration to the second configuration includes receiving the signal at the processor from the remote electronic device.

33. The method of claim 26, wherein the electronics system is in electronic communication with a remote electronic device via a network, the method further comprising:

sending, from the processor to the remote electronic device, a signal indicative of an instruction to represent data associated with the cleaning robot on a display of the remote electronic device.