Wet robot docking station

• US 20190059680A1
• Filed: 08/31/2017
• Published: 02/28/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 08/31/2017
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: iRobot Corporation
• Original Assignee: iRobot Corporation
• Inventors: Fox, Levi, Williams, Marcus R., Li, Yanhan, Suchman, Jason Jeffrey, Driscoll, Lucile
• Granted Patent: US 10,383,499 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 11/24 Floor-sweeping machines, motor-driven
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 11/28 Floor-scrubbing machines, motor-driven A47L11/29 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 11/4005 Arrangements of batteries or cells; Electric power supply arrangements
• 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 11/4036 Parts or details of the surface treating tools
• 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 11/4072 Arrangement of castors or wheels
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 11/4083 Liquid supply reservoirs; Preparation of the agents, e.g. mixing devices
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 11/4088 Supply pumps; Spraying devices; Supply conduits
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 11/4091 Storing or parking devices, arrangements therefor; Means allowing transport of the machine when it is not being used
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 2201/022 Recharging of batteries
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 2201/04 Automatic control of the travelling movement; Automatic obstacle detection
• CPC Class Codes: B25J 11/0085 Cleaning
• CPC Class Codes: B25J 19/005 using batteries, e.g. as a back-up power source
• CPC Class Codes: B25J 9/0003 Home robots, i.e. small robots for domestic use
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/14 Conductive energy transfer
• 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: Y02T 10/70 Energy storage systems for electromobility, e.g. batteries
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/7072 Electromobility specific charging systems or methods for batteries, ultracapacitors, supercapacitors or double-layer capacitors
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 90/14 Plug-in electric vehicles

Abstract

The present disclosure provides a base station for receiving a mobile cleaning robot including a docking structure. The docking structure includes a horizontal surface and at least two electrical charging contacts, each of the electrical charging contacts having a contact surface positioned above the horizontal surface. The base station also includes a platform that is connectable to the docking structure. The platform includes a raised rear surface having a front portion and a rear portion, two wheel wells located in the front portion of the raised rear surface of the platform, and a plurality of raised surface features forward of the raised rear surface configured to support an underside portion of the mobile cleaning robot.

Claims

1. A base station for receiving a mobile cleaning robot comprising:

a docking structure comprising;

a horizontal surface; and

at least two electrical charging contacts, each of the electrical charging contacts having a contact surface positioned above the horizontal surface; and

a platform that is connectable to the docking structure, the platform comprising;

a raised rear surface having a front portion and a rear portion, the rear portion configured to be substantially co-planar with the horizontal surface of the docking structure when the platform is connected to the docking structure;

two wheel wells located in the front portion of the raised rear surface of the platform, each wheel well having a recessed surface being configured to receive a wheel of the robot, the recessed surface of each wheel well having raised tread to complement grooves of the respective wheels of the robot; and

a plurality of raised surface features forward of the raised rear surface configured to support an underside portion of the mobile cleaning robot.

2. The base station of claim 1, wherein the underside portion of the mobile cleaning robot includes a cleaning pad configured to hold liquid.

3. The base station of claim 1, wherein the underside portion of the mobile cleaning robot includes a cleaning pad holder.

4. The base station of claim 1, wherein the plurality of raised surface features causes the received mobile cleaning robot to tilt into a charging position.

5. The base station of claim 4, wherein when the mobile cleaning robot is in the charging position, one of the at least two electrical charging contacts experiences at least one pound of downward force, wherein the mobile cleaning robot has a weight of between 2 and 3 pounds.

6. The base station of claim 1, wherein each of the at least two electrical contacts is connected to an extension spring.

7. The base station of claim 1, further comprising at least two bumpers on the raised rear surface, the bumpers being located to guide the robot into a charging position.

8. The base station of claim 7, wherein the bumpers include sloping side walls for directing the wheels of the mobile cleaning robot into the wheel wells.

9. The base station of claim 1, wherein the raised surface features are arranged in a pattern to allow wheels of the mobile cleaning robot to traverse a portion of the platform.

10. The base station of claim 1, wherein a front edge of the platform has a height less than a height of the raised rear surface of the platform.

11. A base station for receiving a mobile cleaning robot comprising:

a docking structure comprising;

a horizontal surface; and

at least two electrical charging contacts, each of the electrical charging contacts having a contact surface positioned above the horizontal surface; and

a platform that is connectable to the docking structure, the platform comprising;

a raised rear surface having a front portion and a rear portion, the rear portion configured to be substantially co-planar with the horizontal surface of the docking structure when the platform is connected to the docking structure; and

a first fluid management area being defined by a first sloping surface and a second sloping surface of the platform, the first sloping surface tapering from a forward portion of the platform, and the second sloping surface tapering from the raised rear surface.

12. The base station of claim 11, wherein the first fluid management area includes a fluid collection area proximate to the second sloping surface.

13. The base station of claim 11, wherein the platform comprises a plurality of raised surface features configured to support an underside portion of the mobile cleaning robot.

14. The base station of claim 11, wherein the docking structure comprises a second fluid management area located below the electrical charging contacts, the second fluid management area comprising a fluid collection tray.

15. The base station of claim 14, wherein the fluid collection tray comprises a plurality of fluid collecting compartments.

16. The base station of claim 11, wherein the first sloping surface has a sloping angle of between 5 and 15 degrees and wherein the second sloping surface has a sloping angle of between 5 and 15 degrees.

17. The base station of claim 11, wherein the first fluid management area is sloped downward toward the second sloping surface at an angle of between 0.5 and 2 degrees.

18. The base station of claim 11, wherein the first sloping surface is inbound from a front edge of the platform.

19. A method of docking a mobile cleaning robot comprising:

sensing a presence of a base station with the mobile cleaning robot, the mobile cleaning robot comprising a wet cleaning pad;

approaching the base station with the mobile cleaning robot;

upon reaching a threshold distance from the base station, turning the mobile cleaning robot such that a rear of the mobile cleaning robot is presented to the base station;

reversing the mobile cleaning robot onto the base station; and

contacting at least two charging contacts on the mobile cleaning robot with at least two corresponding electrical charging contacts on the base station, the electrical charging contacts on the base station each having a contact surface being positioned above a horizontal surface of the base station.

20. The method of claim 19, further comprising charging a battery of the mobile cleaning robot as the robot sits on the base station.