Pool cleaner with laser range finder system and method

• US 10,024,073 B2
• Filed: 06/03/2015
• Issued: 07/17/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 06/27/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Pentair Water Pool And Spa Incorporated (Pentair Plc (Ireland)), Virginia Tech Intellectual Properties, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Pentair Water Pool And Spa Incorporated (Pentair Plc (Ireland)), Virginia Tech Intellectual Properties, Inc.
• Inventors: Leonessa, Alexander, Cain, Christopher H., Boothe, Brian
• Primary Examiner(s): Ratcliffe, Luke D
• Application Number:
  US14/730,068
• Publication Number:
  US 20150267433A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,140 Days
• CPC Class Codes: E04H 4/1654 Self-propelled cleaners
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 15/002 Active optical surveying means optical plumbing G01C15/105
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 3/08 Use of electric radiation detectors
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0214 in accordance with safety or protection criteria, e.g. avoiding hazardous areas monitoring the location of vehicles within a certain area, e.g. forbidden or allowed areas, in traffic control systems for road vehicles G08G1/13
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0238 using obstacle or wall sensors G05D1/0246 and G05D1/0289 take precedence; lidar systems designed for anti-collision purposes G01S17/93
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/024 in combination with a laser lasers per se H01S

Abstract

A swimming pool cleaner includes a chassis that supports a motor and a camera that is associated with the chassis and configured to identify at least one object. A controller is in communication with the camera and is configured to control movement of the pool cleaner based on output from the camera.

Claims

1. A swimming pool cleaner, the swimming pool cleaner comprising:

a chassis that supports a motor;

an intake port associated with the chassis, the intake port configured to pull water and debris into the cleaner;

a camera associated with the chassis and configured to identify specific locations of debris within an underwater environment; and

a controller in communication with the camera and configured to optimize a cleaning route based on the specific locations of the debris within the underwater environment and control movement of the pool cleaner to navigate the pool cleaner through the underwater environment based on the optimized cleaning route such that the debris can be retrieved.

2. The swimming pool cleaner of claim 1, wherein the controller further includes a processor and a storage medium with stored program code.

3. The swimming pool cleaner claim 2, wherein the program code can be executed by the processor to retrieve output in the form of data from the camera.

4. The swimming pool cleaner of claim 3, wherein the data retrieved from the camera includes visual odometry data.

5. The swimming pool cleaner claim 1, wherein the camera is oriented to provide visual data of features or surfaces in front of the pool cleaner.

6. The swimming pool cleaner of claim 1 further including a sensor assembly.

7. The swimming pool cleaner of claim 6, wherein the sensor assembly is configured to map a surrounding environment of the pool cleaner and track the pool cleaner'"'"'s position within the environment.

8. The swimming pool cleaner of claim 1, wherein the controller utilizes localization or mapping algorithms to optimize the cleaning route.

9. The swimming pool cleaner of claim 1, wherein the optimized cleaning route is optimized to traverse the underwater environment within a certain period of time.

10. An autonomous robotic pool cleaner for an underwater environment, the pool cleaner comprising:

a chassis that supports a motor;

a sensor assembly designed to map the underwater environment; and

a controller in communication with the sensor assembly, the controller configured to;

operate the sensor assembly,

receive an input from the sensor assembly,

identify specific locations of debris within the underwater environment,

create an optimized cleaning route for the underwater environment based on the specific locations of debris; and

navigate the pool cleaner throughout the underwater environment based on the optimized cleaning route such that the debris can be retrieved.

11. The pool cleaner of claim 10, wherein the sensor assembly includes at least one of a laser or a camera.

12. The pool cleaner of claim 11, wherein the camera is configured to capture images of a floor surface of the underwater environment under the pool cleaner.

13. The pool cleaner of claim 10, wherein the sensor assembly is in communication with at least one of the controller or the motor.

14. A swimming pool cleaner, the swimming pool cleaner comprising:

a chassis that supports a motor;

an intake port associated with the chassis, the intake port configured to pull water and debris into the cleaner;

a camera associated with the chassis and configured to identify debris;

a sensor assembly coupled to the chassis; and

a controller in communication with the sensor assembly and the camera, the controller configured to;

operate at least one of the sensor assembly or the camera,

receive an input from at least one of the sensor assembly or the camera,

identify specific locations of debris within an underwater environment,

create an optimized cleaning route for the underwater environment based on the specific locations of debris; and

navigate the pool cleaner throughout the underwater environment based on the optimized cleaning route such that the debris can be retrieved through the intake port.

15. The swimming pool cleaner of claim 14, wherein the swimming pool cleaner detects a physical distance to an object in front of the pool cleaner.

16. The swimming pool cleaner claim 14, wherein the controller maps at least one cleaning route through the underwater environment.

17. The swimming pool cleaner claim 14, wherein the controller executes one or more distance measuring algorithms based on the input from the sensor assembly or the camera.

18. The swimming pool cleaner of claim 14, wherein the swimming pool cleaner determines its location within the underwater environment and remembers the location of debris within the environment.

19. The swimming pool cleaner of claim 14 further including a laser line generator that emits parallel laser lines.

20. The swimming pool cleaner of claim 19, wherein the camera captures an image of the parallel laser lines and the controller calculates a pixel distance between the laser lines in the image and further calculates a physical distance between the camera and the debris.