Robot cleaner

• US 9,452,526 B2
• Filed: 12/04/2013
• Issued: 09/27/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 12/05/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Original Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Inventors: Jeong, Jimann, Lee, Byounggi, Lee, Kyuho
• Primary Examiner(s): TRAN, KHOI H
• Assistant Examiner(s): Rink, Ryan
• Application Number:
  US14/096,646
• Publication Number:
  US 20140156076A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,028 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: B25J 9/0003 Home robots, i.e. small robots for domestic use
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0016 characterised by the operator's input device input arrangements for computing systems in general G06F3/00
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0033 by having the operator tracking the vehicle either by direct line of sight or via one or more cameras located remotely from the vehicle

Abstract

Provided is a robot cleaner. The robot cleaner includes a main body defining an outer appearance of the robot cleaner, a moving unit for moving or rotating the main body, a plurality of receiving units disposed in the main body to receive a user'"'"'s voice command, and a control unit recognizing a call command occurring direction when the voice command inputted from the plurality of receiving units is a call command. The control unit controls the moving unit so that the main body is moved in the recognized call command occurring direction along the preset detour route.

Claims

1. A robot cleaner comprising:

a main body comprising a receiving unit;

a moving unit to move the main body;

a control unit to control the moving unit;

a voice recognition unit to analyze a pattern of a voice command inputted into the receiving unit to detect whether a call command is inputted;

a direction detection unit to detect a direction in which the call command occurs; and

a detection unit to determine whether the main body is rotatable in the call command occurring direction at a position at which the main body is disposed when the voice command occurs,

wherein the control unit is configured to set a linear path (PL) from an initial position (a0) of the main body to a position (s0) of a caller when a call command is inputted,

the control unit is configured to determine that the main body is not rotatable in the call command occurring direction when the robot cleaner is docked to a charging platform,

wherein, when the main body is not movable in the voice command occurring direction, the main body controls the moving unit so that the main body goes out of the initial position (a0) and moves along a detour route (Pd),

after moving along the detour route (Pd), the main body enters into one point in the linear path (PL) to move to the position (s0) of a caller.

2. The robot cleaner according to claim 1, wherein the detour route (Pd) comprises:

a first detour route (Pd1) along which the main body is moved up to a first position (a1) spaced apart from the initial position (a0) of the main body; and

a second detour route (Pd2) along which the main body is moved from the first position (a1) to a second position (a2) that is one point in the linear path (PL).

3. The robot cleaner according to claim 2, wherein the second detour route (Pd2) is a linear line.

4. The robot cleaner according to claim 2, wherein the second detour route (Pd2) is a curved line, and

the control unit controls the moving unit so that the main body retreats from the initial position (a0) of the main body to move up to the first position (a1) and is forwardly moved and switched in direction from the first position (a1) at the same time to move up to the second position (a2).

5. The robot cleaner according to claim 4, wherein the moving unit comprises:

a first wheel disposed on one side of the main body; and

a second wheel disposed on the other side of the main body,

wherein the first wheel has a rotating rate different from that of the second wheel.

6. The robot cleaner according to claim 1, wherein the control unit controls the moving unit so that the main body is rotated in a voice occurring direction and moved from an initial position (a0) of the main body to a position (s0) of a caller along a linear path (PL) when the main body is movable in the voice command occurring direction at a position at which the main body is disposed.

10. The robot cleaner according to claim 1, wherein the detection unit comprises a position detection unit to detect a position of the main body.

11. The robot cleaner according to claim 10, further comprising a camera to photograph surrounding environments of the main body,

wherein the position detection unit compares information of the surrounding environments photographed by the camera to previously stored map information to detect the position of the main body.

12. The robot cleaner according to claim 1, further comprising at least one object detection sensor to detect whether an obstacle exists around the main body,

wherein the detection unit detects whether the obstacle detected by the object detection sensor interferes with rotation of the main body.

13. The robot cleaner according to claim 1, wherein when the voice command occurring direction corresponds to a direction facing or passing through a wall, a preset informing message is outputted.

7. A method for controlling a robot cleaner, the method comprising:

receiving a voice command of a user through a receiving unit of the robot cleaner;

detecting a direction of a call position at which the voice command occurs;

detecting a current position of the robot cleaner;

setting a linear path (PL) from the current position of the robot cleaner to the call position;

determining whether the robot cleaner is movable from the current position in the direction of the call position along a linear path (PL);

moving the robot cleaner in the direction of the call position along a preset detour route when the robot cleaner is not movable along the linear path (PL);

entering the robot cleaner the linear path (PL); and

ending the movement of the robot cleaner in the call position direction,

wherein it is determined that the robot cleaner is not rotatable and not movable in the linear path (PL) in the call position direction when the robot cleaner is docked to a charging platform.

8. The method according to claim 7, wherein the detour route comprises:

a first route going out of an initial position; and

a second detour route entering into the linear path (PL).

9. The method according to claim 7, wherein

when the robot cleaner detects a user while being moved, the robot cleaner ends a movement or

when the robot cleaner reaches a preset moving distance, the robot cleaner ends a movement.