Robotic vacuum cleaning system

• US 9,675,224 B2
• Filed: 11/20/2015
• Issued: 06/13/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 04/29/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: iRobot Corporation
• Original Assignee: iRobot Corporation
• Inventors: Gilbert, Jr., Duane Leigh, Morin, Russell Walter, Bursal, Faruk Halil, Therrien, Richard Joseph
• Primary Examiner(s): REDDING, DAVID A
• Application Number:
  US14/947,826
• Publication Number:
  US 20160073846A1
• Time in Patent Office: 571 Days
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 11/24 Floor-sweeping machines, motor-driven
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 11/40 Parts or details of machines not provided for in groups A47L11/02 - A47L11/38, or not restricted to one of these groups, e.g. handles, arrangements of switches, skirts, buffers, levers
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 11/4013 Contaminants collecting devices, i.e. hoppers, tanks or the like
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 11/4027 Filtering or separating contaminants or debris
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 11/4041 Roll 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 11/4063 Driving means; Transmission means therefor
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 2201/00 Robotic cleaning machines, i.e. with automatic control of the travelling movement or the cleaning operation
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 2201/028 Refurbishing floor engaging tools, e.g. cleaning of beating brushes
• 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 7/02 with driven tools for special purposes with floor-polishing tools A47L11/20
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/0477 Rolls
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/0494 Height adjustment of dust-loosening tools
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/066 with adjustably mounted brushes, combs, lips or pads; Height adjustment of nozzle or dust loosening tools for suction cleaners with handles and nozzles fixed on the casing A47L5/34
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/0666 with tilting, floating or similarly arranged brushes, combs, lips or pads
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/2821 Pressure, vacuum level or airflow
• CPC Class Codes: B25J 11/0085 Cleaning
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 901/01 Mobile robot

Abstract

An autonomous coverage robot includes a cleaning assembly having forward roller and rearward rollers counter-rotating with respect to each other. The rollers are arranged to substantially maintain a cross sectional area between the two rollers yet permitting collapsing therebetween as large debris is passed. Each roller includes a resilient elastomer outer tube and a partially air-occupied inner resilient core configured to bias the outer tube to rebound. The core includes a hub and resilient spokes extending between the inner surface of the outer tube and the hub. The spokes suspend the outer tube to float about the hub and transfer torque from the hub to the outer tube while allowing the outer tube to momentarily deform or move offset from the hub during impact with debris larger than the cross sectional area between the two rollers.

Claims

1. A mobile cleaning robot comprising:

a chassis defining a vacuum airway;

a cleaning head supported by the chassis and arranged proximate to a floor surface supporting the mobile cleaning robot, the cleaning head in pneumatic communication with the vacuum airway; and

a collection bin releasable received by the chassis and comprising;

a bin housing defining a debris collection volume and a debris intake opening arranged to pneumatically interface the debris collection volume with the vacuum airway when the collection bin is received by the chassis, the bin housing having a top portion and a side portion relative to the floor surface, the top portion defining a filter access opening and a filter seat within the debris collection volume and accessible through the filter access opening, the side portion defining an exhaust port;

an impeller disposed within the bin housing and having an impeller intake in pneumatic communication with the debris intake opening and an impeller outlet in pneumatic communication with the exhaust port, the impeller configured to pull air into the debris collection volume from the vacuum airway through the debris intake opening and out the exhaust port;

a filter door coupled to the top portion of the bin housing at the filter access opening, the filter door moveable between a closed position and an open position that allows access through the filter access opening; and

a filter releasably received and seated in the filter seat, the filter having an inlet surface in pneumatic communication with the debris intake opening and an outlet surface opposing the filter door, the filter arranged between the debris collection volume and the impeller to define an airflow cavity between the outlet surface of the filter and the filter door, the airflow cavity pneumatically interfacing with the impeller intake and defining a longitudinal axis, wherein a cross-sectional area taken transverse to the longitudinal axis of the airflow cavity is substantially equal to a cross-sectional area of the impeller intake.

2. The mobile cleaning robot of claim 1, wherein the debris intake opening defines an intake axis arranged substantially perpendicular to the inlet surface of the filter.

3. The mobile cleaning robot of claim 1, wherein the impeller intake is diametrically aligned with the longitudinal axis of the airflow cavity.

4. The mobile cleaning robot of claim 1, wherein the filter door includes walls that extend into the debris collection volume to partially define the airflow cavity when the filter door is in the closed position.

5. The mobile cleaning robot of claim 4, wherein the filter door includes a release mechanism configured to releasably attach the filter door to the top portion of the bin housing.

6. The mobile cleaning robot of claim 5, wherein the top portion of the bin housing defines a recess and the release mechanism comprises a resilient tab configured to releasably engage with the recess.

7. The mobile cleaning robot of claim 4, wherein the filter includes a pull tab extending from the outlet surface of the filter to facilitate removal of the filter from the filter seat when the filter door is in the open position.

8. The mobile cleaning robot of claim 7, further comprising a filter presence feature disposed within the filter seat, the filter presence feature configured to prevent the filter door from moving to the closed position when the filter is not registered within the filter seat or the filter is unseated from the filter seat.

9. The mobile cleaning robot of claim 1, wherein the filter seat comprises one or more filter support members arranged to retain the seated filter within the debris collection volume.

10. The mobile cleaning robot of claim 1, wherein the filter has first and second ends and defines a longitudinal axis between the first and second ends, the filter extending longitudinally from the first end arranged adjacent the impeller intake to the second end arranged adjacent the side portion of the bin housing, the second end of the filter and the impeller intake spaced apart by a separation distance spanning the longitudinal axis of the filter, wherein the impeller extends between the first end of the filter and the side portion of the bin housing.

11. The mobile cleaning robot of claim 10, wherein the filter seat holds the filter in a tilted orientation about the longitudinal axis of the filter, wherein the outlet surface of the filter partially faces the debris intake opening.

12. The mobile cleaning robot of claim 1, wherein the impeller is positioned adjacent to the debris collection volume.

13. The mobile cleaning robot of claim 1, wherein the bin housing has top and bottom surfaces, and the impeller defines an axis of rotation extending substantially perpendicular to the top and bottom surfaces of the bin housing.

14. The mobile cleaning robot of claim 13, wherein the axis of rotation of the impeller does not intersect the filter.

15. The mobile cleaning robot of claim 13, wherein the impeller intake is coaxial with the axis of rotation of the impeller.

16. The mobile cleaning robot of claim 1, wherein the top portion of the bin housing includes a removable access panel configured to provide access to the impeller.

17. The mobile cleaning robot of claim 1, further comprising a debris access door pivotally coupled to the bin housing to move between a closed position and an open position that allows access to the debris collection volume, debris access door defining the debris intake opening.