Robot cleaner, and system and method for remotely controlling the same

• US 9,582,000 B2
• Filed: 09/06/2012
• Issued: 02/28/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 09/07/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Original Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Inventors: Choe, Suuk, Lee, Sunghun, Jang, Junho, Baek, Seungmin, Kim, Yiebin
• Primary Examiner(s): SCRUGGS, ROBERT J
• Application Number:
  US13/605,469
• Publication Number:
  US 20130056032A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,636 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 2201/04 Automatic control of the travelling movement; Automatic obstacle detection
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/0488 Combinations or arrangements of several tools, e.g. edge cleaning tools
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/2805 Parameters or conditions being sensed
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/2857 User input or output elements for control, e.g. buttons, switches or displays
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0038 by providing the operator with simple or augmented images from one or more cameras located onboard the vehicle, e.g. tele-operation images analyzed by a computer and used for automatic navigation G05D1/0246
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0044 by providing the operator with a computer generated representation of the environment of the vehicle, e.g. virtual reality, maps maps used for automatic navigation G05D1/0274; flight directors G01C23/005

Abstract

A robot cleaner is accessed to a terminal through a network. A situation inside a house can be real-time checked from the outside, and the situation can be rapidly handled according to a state of the robot cleaner. The robot cleaner can patrol a predetermined region or move to a user'"'"'s desired location, and can provide, to the user through the terminal, images captured on a moving path or the user'"'"'s desired location. The robot cleaner can provide image information captured during the cleaning to the terminal. And, the terminal can video-record the image information.

Claims

1. A system for remotely-controlling a robot cleaner, the system comprising:

a robot cleaner configured to perform a control command by extracting the control command from a control signal, to move along a moving path based on the control command, and to create image information by capturing the periphery, to detect an obstacle information, and to create a map by using the obstacle information; and

a terminal configured to control the robot cleaner using the control signal, configured to receive one or more data including the image information from the robot cleaner, and to output the received data,

wherein the robot cleaner transmits the map to the terminal,

wherein the terminal includes;

a radio communication unit configured to transmit the control signal to the robot cleaner by accessing the robot cleaner, and to receive the image information from the robot cleaner;

a controller configured to create the control signal corresponding to the control command, and to create a control screen using the image information;

a display unit having a touch recognition region for receiving an input of the control command, and configured to display the control screen,

wherein the control signal is created at the terminal while the display unit displaying the transmitted image information,

wherein the radio communication unit receives, from the robot cleaner, the map divided into a cleaned region and a non-cleaned region,

wherein if a touch input applied to one or more points on the map is sensed, the controller sets the moving path using said one or more points, and

wherein the touch recognition region includes an image information region and a map region, wherein the image information is displayed in the image information region, and the map is displayed in the map region,

wherein if the image information region having been touched is dragged to the map region, or if the map region having been touched is dragged to the image information region, data displayed on the image information region is switched from data displayed on the map region.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the terminal further includes:

a memory configured to store the image information therein.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the touch recognition region includes:

a first region having a preset size, on which the control screen is displayed and the control command is input; and

a second region having a size equal to or larger than the size of the first region.

4. The system of claim 2, wherein the display unit further includes a light icon for turning on or off power of a light of the robot cleaner.

5. The system of claim 2, wherein the moving path is a patrol path connected to the current position of the robot cleaner, and

wherein the moving command includes a patrol command for moving the robot cleaner along the patrol path.

6. The system of claim 2, wherein the controller sets a prescribed time, video-records the image information for the preset time, and stores the video-recorded image information in the memory.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the radio communication unit is accessed to an external storage unit, and transmits the video-recorded image information to the external storage unit for storage.

8. The system of claim 2, wherein the terminal is configured to display the map and receive an input of a moving path on the map.