Robot cleaner

• US 8,733,796 B2
• Filed: 03/31/2011
• Issued: 05/27/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 04/01/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Original Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Inventors: Lee, Jeihun, Yoon, Jeongsuk, Park, Jongwon, Kim, Jichul, Yi, Donghoon, Baek, Seungmin, Kwak, Yunkeun
• Primary Examiner(s): Shriver II, J. Allen
• Assistant Examiner(s): CLEMMONS, STEVE M
• Application Number:
  US13/076,909
• Publication Number:
  US 20110239382A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,153 Days
• Field of Search: 280/855, 280/856, 15/3, 15/40, 15/411, 15/48, 152/565, 152/565.1, 153/19, 153/401, 153/403, 153/404, 153/63, 301/36.3
• US Class Current: 280/855
• 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 9/009 Carrying-vehicles; Arrangements of trollies or wheels; Means for avoiding mechanical obstacles
• CPC Class Codes: B60B 19/12 Roller-type wheels B60B19/06 takes precedence

Abstract

A robot cleaner includes wheels mounted at a lower side of a main body of the robot cleaner to allow for traveling of the main body, and wire winding prevention members mounted at the lower side of the main body, each wire winding prevention member having one end extending to be contactable with a rim of the corresponding wheel. The wire winding prevention member is preferably a torsion spring.

Claims

1. A robot cleaner comprising:

wheels rotatably mounted at a lower side of a main body of the robot cleaner to allow travel of the main body; and

wire winding prevention members mounted at the lower side of the main body, each wire winding prevention member having an extending portion to contact a rim of a corresponding wheel, wherein a portion of the wheel is disposed within the lower side of the main body and a gap is formed between a lower surface of the main body and the wheel, and wherein the extending portion of the wire winding prevention member extends across the gap, and wherein each rim of the wheel comprises a guide slit configured to accommodate an end of the extending portion of the corresponding wire winding prevention member, the guide slit extends continuously and circumferentially of the rim of wheel, and the extending portion of the wire winding prevention member further extends from a point of contact with the rim of the wheel.

2. The robot cleaner of claim 1, wherein the extending portion of the wire winding prevention member is disposed perpendicularly to a rotation shaft of the wheel.

3. The robot cleaner of claim 2, wherein the extending portion of the wire winding prevention member has elasticity toward a center of a rotation shaft of the wheel in contact with the rim of the wheel.

4. The robot cleaner of claim 1, wherein the wire winding prevention member is a torsion spring.

5. The robot cleaner of claim 1, wherein the extending portion of the wire winding prevention member extends in a forward direction of the main body to contact with the rim of the wheel.

6. A robot cleaner comprising:

a main body having a lower surface, an opening being formed in the lower surface;

a wheel that permits travel of the cleaner, the wheel being rotatably mounted within the main body and extending through the opening, a gap formed between an edge of the opening and a rim of the wheel;

a wire winding prevention member mounted at the lower surface of the main body, the wire winding prevention member extends across the gap and contacts the rim of the wheel, and wherein the rim of the wheel comprises a guide slit accepts an end of the wire winding prevention member, the guide slit extends continuously and circumferentially of the rim of the wheel, and the end of the wire winding prevention further extends from a point of contact with the rim of the wheel.

7. The robot cleaner according to claim 6, wherein the opening comprises a plurality of opening and the wheel comprises a plurality of wheels, each wheel being disposed within a respective opening.

8. The robot cleaner according to claim 7, wherein the wire winding prevention member comprises a plurality of wire winding prevention member and wherein the rim of each wheel comprises a guide slit which accepts an end of one of the wire winding prevention members.

9. The robot cleaner according to claim 8, wherein each wire winding prevention member is biased against the wheel in contact with the guide slit.

10. The robot cleaner according to claim 9, wherein each wire winding prevention member is a torsion spring.

11. The robot cleaner according to claim 10, wherein the torsion spring is pivotably mounted within the main body.