Autonomous coverage robot
First Claim
1. A mobile robot comprising:
- a robot body having a forward drive direction;
a drive system supporting the robot body above a floor surface for maneuvering the robot across the floor surface;
a main circuit board in communication with the drive system;
a bumper frame defining a shape complementary of a front periphery of the robot body, the bumper frame supported by the robot body; and
an obstacle sensor system disposed on the bumper frame, the obstacle sensor system comprising;
a multiplexing auxiliary circuit board supported by the bumper frame, the multiplexing auxiliary circuit board including a computing processor and non-transitory memory, the computing processor capable of executing instructions stored on the non-transitory memory;
an array of proximity sensors distributed along the bumper frame, each proximity sensor having at least two wires collected in at least one wire collector, the at least one wire collector connected to the auxiliary circuit board, the array of proximity sensors comprising an array of wall proximity sensors disposed along a forward perimeter of the bumper frame, each wall proximity sensor directed outward substantially parallel to the floor surface; and
a communication line connecting the auxiliary circuit board to the main circuit board, the communication line having fewer than half the wires connecting the array of proximity sensors to the auxiliary circuit board;
wherein the multiplexing auxiliary circuit board is configured to;
receive, at the computing processor, sensor signals from the array of proximity sensors;
process the received sensor signals using the computing processor;
package the processed sensor signals into a data packet recognizable by the main circuit board; and
send the data packet from the computing processor to the main circuit board.
4 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A mobile robot that includes a robot body having a forward drive direction, a drive system supporting the robot body above a cleaning surface for maneuvering the robot across the cleaning surface, and a robot controller in communication with the drive system. The robot also includes a bumper movably supported by a forward portion of the robot body and a obstacle sensor system disposed on the bumper. The obstacle sensor system includes at least one contact sensor disposed on the bumper, at least one proximity sensor disposed on the bumper and a auxiliary circuit board disposed on the bumper and in communication with the at least one contact sensor, the at least one proximity sensor, and the robot controller.
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Citations
25 Claims
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1. A mobile robot comprising:
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a robot body having a forward drive direction; a drive system supporting the robot body above a floor surface for maneuvering the robot across the floor surface; a main circuit board in communication with the drive system; a bumper frame defining a shape complementary of a front periphery of the robot body, the bumper frame supported by the robot body; and an obstacle sensor system disposed on the bumper frame, the obstacle sensor system comprising; a multiplexing auxiliary circuit board supported by the bumper frame, the multiplexing auxiliary circuit board including a computing processor and non-transitory memory, the computing processor capable of executing instructions stored on the non-transitory memory; an array of proximity sensors distributed along the bumper frame, each proximity sensor having at least two wires collected in at least one wire collector, the at least one wire collector connected to the auxiliary circuit board, the array of proximity sensors comprising an array of wall proximity sensors disposed along a forward perimeter of the bumper frame, each wall proximity sensor directed outward substantially parallel to the floor surface; and a communication line connecting the auxiliary circuit board to the main circuit board, the communication line having fewer than half the wires connecting the array of proximity sensors to the auxiliary circuit board; wherein the multiplexing auxiliary circuit board is configured to; receive, at the computing processor, sensor signals from the array of proximity sensors; process the received sensor signals using the computing processor; package the processed sensor signals into a data packet recognizable by the main circuit board; and send the data packet from the computing processor to the main circuit board. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12)
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13. A mobile robot comprising:
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a main circuit board; an array of proximity sensors distributed along a front periphery of the mobile robot, each proximity sensor including at least one infrared emitter and at least one infrared detector, each proximity sensor having a sensor length defined between the infrared emitter and the infrared detector of the proximity sensor, a cumulative total of individual sensor lengths in the array is greater than a length of the array taken along the front periphery of the mobile robot, and each proximity sensor in the array corresponding to a predetermined proximity sensor position along the front periphery of the mobile robot; a multiplexing auxiliary circuit board supported by the front periphery of the mobile robot, the multiplexing auxiliary circuit board including a computing processor and non-transitory memory, the computing processor configured to; execute instructions stored on the memory; receive sensor signals from the array of proximity sensors; execute sensor data processing on the received sensor signals; package the processed sensor signals into a data packet recognizable by the main circuit board; and send the data packet to the main circuit board; and a communication line connecting the auxiliary circuit board to the main circuit board, the communication line having fewer than half a number of wires connecting the array of proximity sensors to the auxiliary circuit board; wherein each proximity sensor has at least two wires collected in at least one wire collector, the at least one wire collector connected to the auxiliary circuit board; and wherein at least some of the proximity sensors in the array overlap one another along the front periphery of the mobile robot. - View Dependent Claims (14, 15, 16, 17, 18)
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19. A mobile robot comprising:
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a multiplexing auxiliary circuit board; an array of proximity sensors distributed along a bumper of the mobile robot, each proximity sensor including at least one infrared emitter and at least one infrared detector, each proximity sensor having at least two wires collected in at least one wire collector, the at least one wire collector connected to the multiplexing auxiliary circuit board; and a communication line connecting the auxiliary circuit board to a main circuit board; wherein the bumper is a unified encasement including two or more mating concave receptacles, the receptacles mating along a closed rim and sealed along that rim to enclose the array of proximity sensors and the auxiliary circuit board, the unified encasement including the communication line exiting through a single sealed aperture; and wherein the multiplexing auxiliary circuit board is configured to; receive sensor signals from the array of proximity sensors; execute sensor data processing on the received sensor signals; package the processed sensor signals into a data packet recognizable by the main circuit board; and send the data packet to the main circuit board. - View Dependent Claims (20, 21, 22, 23, 24)
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25. A mobile robot comprising:
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a robot body having a forward drive direction; a drive system supporting the robot body above a floor surface for maneuvering the robot across the floor surface; a main circuit board in communication with the drive system; a bumper frame defining a shape complementary of a front periphery of the robot body, the bumper frame supported by the robot body; and an obstacle sensor system disposed on the bumper frame, the obstacle sensor system comprising; a multiplexing auxiliary circuit board supported by the bumper frame, the auxiliary circuit board including a computing processor and non-transitory memory, the computing processor capable of executing instructions stored on the memory; an array of proximity sensors distributed along the bumper frame, each proximity sensor having at least two wires collected in at least one wire collector, the at least one wire collector connected to the multiplexing auxiliary circuit board, the array of proximity sensors comprising; a first sensor array having three or more proximity sensors of a first sensor type; and a second sensor array having three or more sensors of a second sensor type distinct from the first sensor type, the first sensor array disposed vertically above the second sensor array on the bumper frame with respect to the floor surface; and a communication line connecting the auxiliary circuit board to the main circuit board, the communication line having fewer than half the wires connecting the proximity sensor array to the auxiliary circuit board; wherein the multiplexing auxiliary circuit board is configured to; receive, at the computing processor, sensor signals from the array of proximity sensors; process the received sensor signals using the computing processor; package the processed sensor signals into a data packet recognizable by the main circuit board; and send the data packet from the computing processor to the main circuit board.
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Specification