Robot cleaner and method for controlling the same

• US 10,624,518 B2
• Filed: 02/25/2016
• Issued: 04/21/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 02/26/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Everybot Inc.
• Original Assignee: Everybot Inc.
• Inventors: Jung, Woo Chul, Kim, Bong Yun
• Primary Examiner(s): Lo, Weilun
• Application Number:
  US15/553,476
• Publication Number:
  US 20180242808A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,517 Days
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 11/16 the tools being disc brushes
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 11/282 having rotary tools
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 11/4005 Arrangements of batteries or cells; Electric power supply arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 11/4011 Regulation of the cleaning machine by electric means; Control systems and remote control systems therefor
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 11/4038 Disk shaped surface treating tools
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 11/4061 Steering means; Means for avoiding obstacles; Details related to the place where the driver is accommodated
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 11/4066 Propulsion of the whole machine
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 11/408 Means for supplying cleaning or surface treating agents
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 2201/04 Automatic control of the travelling movement; Automatic obstacle detection
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 2201/06 Control of the cleaning action for autonomous devices; Automatic detection of the surface condition before, during or after cleaning
• 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: G05D 1/0212 with means for defining a desired trajectory involving a plurality of land vehicles G05D1/0287
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0227 using mechanical sensing means, e.g. for sensing treated area
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 901/01 Mobile robot

Abstract

Provided herein is a robot cleaner. The robot cleaner includes a main body, a driving unit provided in the main body and supplying power for traveling of the robot cleaner, first and second rotary members respectively rotating about first and second rotational axes based on power from the driving unit to provide a movement power source for traveling of the robot cleaner, and allowing cleaners for wet cleaning to respectively be fixed thereto, and a controller determining a cleaning traveling pattern of the robot cleaner and controlling the driving unit such that the robot cleaner travels, while sequentially repeating forward movement and backward movement according to the determined cleaning traveling pattern.

Claims

1. A robot cleaner comprising:

a main body;

a driving unit disposed in the main body and configured to supply power for driving the robot cleaner;

first and second rotary members configured to respectively rotate about first and second rotational axes by the power from the driving unit, and configured to allow a first and second cleaners for wet cleaning to be respectively fixed thereto; and

a controller configured to determine a cleaning traveling pattern of the robot cleaner and control the driving unit such that the robot cleaner travels, while sequentially repeating forward movement and backward movement according to the determined cleaning traveling pattern,

wherein the controller controls the robot cleaner to perform straight traveling by a predetermined distance or for a predetermined period of time in order to determine whether an obstacle is present in a traveling direction and determines the cleaning traveling pattern when the controller determined that no obstacle is present in the traveling direction.

2. The robot cleaner of claim 1,

wherein a guide part for guiding a position that each of the first and second cleaners for wet cleaning is fixed to is disposed on a lower surface of each of the first and second rotary members.

3. The robot cleaner of claim 1, further comprising:

a bumper disposed on an outer circumference of the main body for protecting the main body from an external impact; and

a sensing unit configured to detect the external impact applied to the bumper,

wherein the controller controls the driving unit such that the robot cleaner performs the straight traveling by the predetermined distance or for the predetermined period of time, and

when the external impact is not detected by the sensing unit while the robot cleaner is performing the straight traveling, the controller determines that no obstacle is present in the traveling direction of the robot cleaner.

4. The robot cleaner of claim 1, wherein

when the cleaning traveling pattern is determined, the controller controls at least one of a rotation speed and a rotation direction of the driving unit to repeatedly perform one cycle including a first traveling step in which the robot cleaner moves forwards, a second traveling step in which the robot cleaner subsequently moves backwards, a third traveling step in which the robot cleaner subsequently moves forwards, and a fourth traveling step in which the robot cleaner moves backwards;

and each of rotation directions of the first and second rotary members is changed according to alternation of the forward movement and the backward movement.

5. The robot cleaner of claim 4, wherein

the driving unit includes a first driving unit for rotating the first rotary member about the first rotational axis and a second driving unit for rotating the second rotary member about the second rotational axis, and

the controller performs:

the first traveling step in which the first and second driving units are controlled to rotate the first rotary member and rotate the second rotary member in a direction opposite to a direction of the first rotary member at a speed higher than that of the first rotary member such that the robot cleaner moves forwards, while rotating in a first direction,

the second traveling step in which the first and second driving units are controlled to rotate the first rotary member and rotate the second rotary member in a direction opposite to that of the first rotary member at the same speed as that of the first rotary member such that the robot cleaner moves backwards, while rotating, in a second direction opposite to the first direction,

the third traveling step in which the first and second driving units are controlled to rotate the first rotary member and rotate the second rotary member in a direction opposite to that of the first rotary member at a speed lower than that of the first rotary member such that the robot cleaner moves forwards in the second direction, and

the fourth traveling step in which the first and second driving units are controlled to rotate the first rotary member and rotate the second rotary member in a direction opposite to that of the first rotary member such that the robot cleaner moves backwards in the first direction.

6. The robot cleaner of claim 4, wherein

the driving unit includes a first driving unit for rotating the first rotary member about the first rotational axis and a second driving unit for rotating the second rotary member about the second rotational axis, and

the controller performs:

the first traveling step in which the first and second driving units are controlled to rotate the first rotary member and rotate the second rotary member in a direction opposite to a direction of the first rotary member at the same speed as that of the first rotary member such that the robot cleaner moves forwards,

the second traveling step in which the first and second driving units are controlled to rotate the first rotary member and rotate the second rotary member in a direction opposite to that of the first rotary member at a speed higher than that of the first rotary member such that the robot cleaner moves backwards, while rotating in a first direction,

the third traveling step in which the first and second driving units are controlled to rotate the first rotary member and rotate the second rotary member in a direction opposite to that of the first rotary member at the same speed as that of the first rotary member such that the robot cleaner moves forwards, and

the fourth traveling step in which the first and second driving units are controlled to rotate the first rotary member and rotate the second rotary member in a direction opposite to that of the first rotary member at a speed lower than that of the first rotary member such that the robot cleaner moves backwards, while rotating, in the second direction opposite to the first direction.

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

rotating at least one of first and second rotary members configured to respectively rotate about first and second rotational axes for the robot cleaner to perform straight traveling by a predetermined distance or for a predetermined period of time in order to determine whether an obstacle is present in a traveling direction;

determining a cleaning traveling pattern of the robot cleaner when the controller determined that no obstacle is present in the traveling direction; and

controlling rotation of at least one of the first and second rotary members such that the robot cleaner travels, while sequentially repeating forward movement and backward movement, according to the determined cleaning traveling pattern,

wherein each of rotation directions of the first and second rotary members is changed according to alternation of the forward movement and the backward movement.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein

the first and second rotary members are configured to allow cleaners for wet cleaning to be respectively fixed thereto;

and a guide part for guiding a position that each of the first and second cleaners for wet cleaning is fixed to is disposed on a lower surface of each of the first and second rotary members.

9. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

detecting an external impact applied to a bumper disposed on an outer circumference of a main body of the robot cleaner to protect the main body from the external impact,

wherein, in the determining of the cleaning traveling pattern of the robot cleaner,

when the external impact is not detected while the robot cleaner performs the straight traveling by the predetermined distance or for the predetermined period of time, it is determined that no obstacle is present in the traveling direction of the robot cleaner.

10. The method of claim 7, wherein,

in the controlling of the rotation of at least one of the first and second rotary members,

when the cleaning traveling pattern is determined,

a driving unit is controlled such that the robot cleaner repeatedly performs a cycle including a first traveling step in which the robot cleaner moves forwards, a second traveling step in which the robot cleaner subsequently moves backwards, a third traveling step in which the robot cleaner subsequently moves forwards, and a fourth traveling step in which the robot cleaner subsequently performs backwards.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein

the driving unit includes a first driving unit for rotating the first rotary member about the first rotational axis and a second driving unit for rotating the second rotary member about the second rotational axis, and,

in the controlling of the rotation of at least one of the first and second rotary members,

the first traveling step is performed to control the first and second driving units to rotate the first rotary member and rotate the second rotary member in a direction opposite to a direction of the first rotary member at a speed higher than that of the first rotary member such that the robot cleaner moves forwards, while rotating in a first direction,

the second traveling step is performed to control the first and second driving units are controlled to rotate the first rotary member and rotate the second rotary member in a direction opposite to that of the first rotary member at the same speed as that of the first rotary member such that the robot cleaner moves backwards in a second direction opposite to the first direction,

the third traveling step is performed to control the first and second driving units to rotate the first rotary member and rotate the second rotary member in a direction opposite to that of the first rotary member at a speed lower than that of the first rotary member such that the robot cleaner moves forwards, while rotating, in the second direction, and

the fourth traveling step is performed to control the first and second driving units to rotate the first rotary member and rotate the second rotary member in a direction opposite to that of the first rotary member such that the robot cleaner moves backwards in the first direction.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein

the driving unit includes a first driving unit for rotating the first rotary member about the first rotational axis and a second driving unit for rotating the second rotary member about the second rotational axis, and,

in the controlling of the rotation of at least one of the first and second rotary members,

the first traveling step is performed to control the first and second driving units are controlled to rotate the first rotary member and rotate the second rotary member in a direction opposite to a direction of the first rotary member at the same speed as that of the first rotary member such that the robot cleaner moves forwards,

the second traveling step is performed to control the first and second driving units to rotate the first rotary member and rotate the second rotary member in a direction opposite to that of the first rotary member at a speed higher than that of the first rotary member such that the robot cleaner moves backwards, while rotating in a first direction,

the third traveling step is performed to control the first and second driving units to rotate the first rotary member and rotate the second rotary member in a direction opposite to that of the first rotary member at the same speed as that of the first rotary member such that the robot cleaner moves forwards, and

the fourth traveling step is performed to control the first and second driving units to rotate the first rotary member and rotate the second rotary member in a direction opposite to that of the first rotary member at a speed lower than that of the first rotary member such that the robot cleaner moves backwards, while rotating, in the second direction opposite to the first direction.