Floor treatment system with self-propelled and self-steering floor treatment unit

• US 7,055,210 B2
• Filed: 01/04/2005
• Issued: 06/06/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 07/08/2002
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Alfred Kã¤Rcher GmbH & Company KG
• Original Assignee: Alfred Kã¤Rcher GmbH & Company KG
• Inventors: Keppler, Joachim, Skoumal, Roger, Math, Jochen
• Primary Examiner(s): Snider, Theresa T.
• Application Number:
  US11/030,011
• Publication Number:
  US 20050166352A1
• Time in Patent Office: 518 Days
• Field of Search: 153/19, 153/401, 153/23, 153/39, 153/403, 439/660, 439/919, 439/929
• US Class Current: 15/319
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 2201/022 Recharging of batteries
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 2201/024 Emptying dust or waste liquid containers
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/009 Carrying-vehicles; Arrangements of trollies or wheels; Means for avoiding mechanical obstacles
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/106 Dust removal
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/2805 Parameters or conditions being sensed
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/2842 Suction motors or blowers
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/2852 Elements for displacement of the vacuum cleaner or the accessories therefor, e.g. wheels, casters or nozzles
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/2857 User input or output elements for control, e.g. buttons, switches or displays
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/2873 Docking units or charging stations for autonomous or robotic vacuum cleaners A47L2201/02
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/2884 Details of arrangements of batteries or their installation
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/24 resilient; resiliently-mounted

Abstract

The invention relates to a floor treatment system with a self-propelled and self-steering floor treatment unit, which comprises an electrically driven floor treatment assembly and also a rechargeable power supply unit, and with a central charging station for recharging the power supply unit, the floor treatment unit being capable of being electrically connected to the charging station by means of respective electrical connecting elements disposed on the charging station and the floor treatment unit. In order to develop the floor treatment system in such a way that improved electrical coupling of the respective connecting elements is made possible, it is proposed according to the invention that at least one of the respective connecting elements is spring-mounted.

Claims

1. Floor treatment system comprising:

a self-propelled and self steering floor treatment unit having an electrically driven floor treatment assembly and a rechargeable power supply unit, and

a central charging station for recharging the power supply unit, wherein;

the floor treatment unit is adapted to be electrically connected to the charging station by means of respective electrical connecting elements disposed on the charging station and on the floor treatment unit;

at least one of the respective connecting elements is spring-mounted;

the floor treatment unit comprises a collision detection sensor with an associated spring-mounted sensing element, the movement of the sensing element in relation to a chassis of the floor treatment unit can be sensed to provide a collision detection signal; and

the spring mounting of the at least one electrical connecting element has a lower spring constant than the spring mounting of the sensing element.

2. Floor treatment system according to claim 1, wherein the respective connecting elements form electrical contact elements for the resistive coupling of the floor treatment unit to the charging station.

3. Floor treatment system according to claim 1, wherein the electrical connecting elements comprise at least two first connecting elements, and a number of second connecting elements, each of said at least two first connecting elements being associated with at least one of said second connecting elements.

4. Floor treatment system according to claim 3, wherein the first connecting elements are vertically spaced apart.

5. Floor treatment system according to claim 1, wherein the electrical connecting elements comprise a number of spaced-apart second connecting elements and with at least one associated first connecting element.

6. Floor treatment system according to claim 5, wherein, depending on the alignment of the floor treatment unit in relation to the charging station, one or more of the second connecting elements can be electrically connected to the associated first connecting element.

7. Floor treatment system according to claim 5, wherein the second connecting elements respectively associated with a first connecting element are disposed in a plane.

8. Floor treatment system according to claim 1, wherein at least one of the respective connecting elements has an associated elongated contact area.

9. Floor treatment system according to claim 8, wherein the at least one connecting element takes the form of a strip.

10. Floor treatment system according to claim 8, wherein the at least one connecting element having said elongated contact area is spring-mounted.

11. Floor treatment system according to claim 8, wherein the at least one connecting element having said elongated contact area forms a leaf spring.

12. Floor treatment system according to claim 8, wherein the at least one connecting element having said elongated contact area is disposed on the charging station.

13. Floor treatment system according to claim 8, wherein a number of contact pins are associated with the at least one connecting element.

14. Floor treatment system according to claim 1, wherein two horizontally aligned, leaf-spring-like connecting elements are disposed on the charging station one above the other, respectively associated with which are at least two contact pins mounted on the floor treatment unit.

15. Floor treatment system according to claim 1, wherein the floor treatment unit forms a mobile suction device with a suction turbine and a dirt collecting container having a suction inlet.

16. Floor treatment system according to claim 15, wherein the charging station comprises a suction-extraction assembly and a dirt receiving container, it being possible during the recharging of the power supply unit for the dirt collecting container to be emptied at the same time by the suction-extraction assembly via the suction inlet.