Vacuum cleaner

• US 10,582,822 B2
• Filed: 02/28/2017
• Issued: 03/10/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 02/29/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Original Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Inventors: Son, Jungkyu, Nam, Bohyun, Park, Jaeyong, Bae, Sehwan, Seo, Jonghyun, Lee, Jinwoo, Kwak, Donghoon, Ko, Jaehwan
• Primary Examiner(s): Carlson, Marc
• Application Number:
  US15/445,214
• Publication Number:
  US 20170245711A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,106 Days
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 5/362 of the horizontal type, e.g. canister or sledge type
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/00 Details or accessories of suction cleaners, e.g. mechanical means for controlling the suction or for effecting pulsating action; Storing devices specially adapted to suction cleaners or parts thereof; Carrying-vehicles specially adapted for suction cleaners
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/0081 Means for exhaust-air diffusion; Means for sound or vibration damping
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/009 Carrying-vehicles; Arrangements of trollies or wheels; Means for avoiding mechanical obstacles
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/108 Dust compression means
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/122 flat
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/1608 Cyclonic chamber constructions
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/1683 Dust collecting chambers; Dust collecting receptacles
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/22 Mountings for motor fan assemblies
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/242 Hose or pipe couplings
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/28 Installation of the electric equipment, e.g. adaptation or attachment to the suction cleaner; Controlling suction cleaners by electric means
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/2805 Parameters or conditions being sensed
• 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 9/2884 Details of arrangements of batteries or their installation
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/327 for suction cleaners with hose between nozzle and casing

Abstract

A vacuum cleaner includes a cleaner body, a suction hose mounted at a front surface of the cleaner body to suck in dust, moving wheels provided at both sides of the cleaner body, rotating to move the cleaner body and rotatably supporting the cleaner body, wheel motors connected to the moving wheels and rotating the moving wheels, a detecting unit provided in the cleaner body and sensing inclination of the cleaner body to determine whether the cleaner moves and stops, a plurality of detecting members provided at a front surface of the cleaner body and located at both sides of the suction hose to detect an obstacle, and a controller for controlling the wheel motors according to detected signals of the detecting unit and the obstacle detecting members.

Claims

1. A vacuum cleaner comprising:

a cleaner body;

a suction hose that is located at a front surface of the cleaner body and that is configured to guide dust to the cleaner body;

wheels that are located at both sides of the cleaner body, that are configured to move the cleaner body by rotating, and that are configured to support the cleaner body;

wheel motors that are connected to the wheels and that are configured to rotate the wheels;

a detecting unit that is located in the cleaner body and that is configured to determine whether the cleaner is moving or stopped by sensing an inclination angle of the cleaner body;

a plurality of obstacle detecting members that are located at a front surface of the cleaner body, that are located at both sides of the suction hose, and that are configured to detect an obstacle; and

a controller that is configured to control the wheel motors based on signals from the detecting unit and the plurality of obstacle detecting members.

2. The vacuum cleaner of claim 1, wherein the plurality of obstacle detection members comprise a laser sensor, an ultrasonic sensor, a proximity sensor, or a vision camera.

3. The vacuum cleaner of claim 1, wherein the plurality of obstacle detecting members are located on both sides of the suction hose and are spaced apart from each other by a predetermined angle.

4. The vacuum cleaner of claim 1, wherein the plurality of obstacle detecting members are located on a curved surface of the front surface of the cleaner body at predetermined intervals and are flush with the curved surface.

5. The vacuum cleaner of claim 1, wherein the plurality of obstacle detecting members are located at positions around the suction hose that prevent the plurality of obstacle detecting members from detecting the suction hose.

6. The vacuum cleaner of claim 1, wherein the plurality of obstacle detecting members comprises:

front sensors that are located at both sides of the suction hose and that are configured to sense an obstacle located in front of the cleaner body by emitting light forward; and

lateral sensors that are located between the front sensors and a rear of the vacuum cleaner and that are configured to sense an obstacle located at a lateral side of the cleaner body by emitting light to the lateral side,

wherein the front sensors and the lateral sensors are laser sensors.

7. The vacuum cleaner of claim 6, wherein one of the lateral sensors and the suction hose are separated by 90 degrees.

8. The vacuum cleaner of claim 7, wherein the front sensors are located between the suction hose and the lateral sensors and are configured to emit light between the front side and the lateral side in a direction perpendicular to an edge of the vacuum cleaner.

9. The vacuum cleaner of claim 6, wherein the front sensors are configured to detect objects that are farther from the vacuum cleaner than the lateral sensors.

10. The vacuum cleaner of claim 1, further comprising:

a handle that is connected to the suction hose; and

a distance sensor that is configured to sense a distance between the handle and the cleaner body,

wherein the controller is configured to control the wheel motors based on the inclination angle detected by the detecting unit and the distance between the handle and the cleaner body.

11. The vacuum cleaner of claim 10, wherein:

the controller is configured to drive the wheel motors based on the inclination angle of the cleaner body being equal to or greater than a reference angle and based on the wheel motors being stopped, and

the reference angle changes based on the distance between the handle and the cleaner body.

12. The vacuum cleaner of claim 11, wherein the reference angle decreases based on the distance between the handle and the cleaner body increasing.

13. The vacuum cleaner of claim 11, wherein:

each of a plurality of reference angles corresponds to a different distance between the handle and the cleaner body, and

the reference angle decreases based on the distance between the handle and the cleaner body increasing.