JP2009000372A - Self-propelled vacuum cleaner - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a self-propelled vacuum cleaner capable of reliably picking up dust on a surface to be cleaned without requiring a user to perform troublesome work such as replacing a suction port implement. <P>SOLUTION: In the vacuum cleaner 1, a ranging sensor 18 provided near a rotation brush device measures a distance between the ranging sensor 18 and a floor surface. Then, in accordance with the distance, a brush having a most appropriate length of the brush with respect to the floor surface on which the rotation brush device abuts is selected from among brushes 9A to 9H, it is sent to a position where the brush abuts on the floor surface, and cleaning is performed. That is, a brush out of brushes 9A to 9H to use for cleaning operation facing the floor surface is determined on the basis of the distance to the floor surface measured by the ranging sensor 18. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a self-propelled cleaner, and more particularly to a self-propelled cleaner equipped with a cleaning head including a brush.

  In recent years, various studies have been made on electric vacuum cleaners to cope with the diversification of objects to be cleaned such as carpets. For example, in Patent Document 1 (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-243901), a self-propelled cleaner is provided with a dust sensor that detects the amount of dust (hereinafter also referred to as dust) reaching a dust collection chamber, and the detection of the sensor. A technique is disclosed in which when the amount of garbage to be carried is large, traveling is stopped and cleaning is performed reliably. And with the advent of such a self-propelled cleaner, the cleaning work has been automated. Self-propelled vacuum cleaners are self-propelled in a room driven mainly by a battery, but they have a structure that collects and sucks up dust on the floor with a rotating brush, etc., so that labor can be saved. It is coming.

Regarding a self-propelled cleaner (cleaning robot), Patent Document 2 (Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 5-46239) is given as a representative example of a technique disclosed for automating a cleaning operation as described above. Specifically, this document discloses a technique for acquiring information in the traveling space, creating a map in the traveling space, and traveling efficiently based on the map. Planned travel by map travel has the advantage that it can travel efficiently without overlapping in the travel space, and that it takes less time to travel in the entire region of the travel space.
JP-A-10-243901 Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 5-46239

  In addition, in order for self-propelled cleaners (cleaning robots) to be used in general households and become more widespread, it is necessary to meet some great requests from users.

  One such request is to eliminate the cleaning residue that occurs when the cleaning robot advances the cleaning while going straight in one direction. In particular, when the cleaning robot wipes and cleans the flooring of the floor, it may be difficult to remove dirt simply by wiping and sweeping straight in one direction, and it may not be possible to pick up garbage that has entered the carpet. .

  Another requirement is that the cleaning robot can perform cleaning without replacing the suction port even when the material of the floor (surface to be cleaned) is different. When humans use an electric vacuum cleaner for cleaning, they often use different suction mouths depending on the place to be cleaned. However, in the case of the cleaning robot, since the main body size is large and the weight is heavy, the replacement of the suction mouthpiece is a complicated operation. That is, it is desired that the cleaning robot can perform cleaning without causing the user to perform such complicated work.

  The present invention has been conceived in view of such circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide a self-propelled cleaner that can reliably pick up dust on a surface to be cleaned without causing a user to perform complicated operations. .

  The self-propelled cleaner according to the present invention is a self-propelled cleaner having a cleaning head including a brush, and changes the length of the brushed feet facing the surface to be cleaned of the cleaning head. A changing means, a measuring means for measuring the distance to the surface to be cleaned, and a determining means for determining the length of the hair of the cleaning head based on the distance measured by the measuring means, The length of the bristles facing the surface to be cleaned of the cleaning head is changed to the length of the bristles determined by the determining means.

  In the self-propelled cleaner according to the present invention, the cleaning head includes a shaft and a plurality of brushes attached to the shaft, and the shaft rotates in a direction intersecting the longitudinal direction of the shaft. And the plurality of brushes include brushes having at least two types of different lengths of hairs, and the brushes of hairs having different lengths depending on the rotation angle of the rotation means are arranged on the surface to be cleaned. The changing means attaches the shaft to the rotating means by a rotation angle at which the brush having the length of the bristle foot determined by the determining means faces the surface to be cleaned of the cleaning head. It is preferable to rotate.

  In the self-propelled cleaner according to the present invention, the cleaning head includes a suction opening, and the moving means for moving the cleaning head and the shaft rotate in a direction intersecting the longitudinal direction. The suction opening is preferably provided rearward with respect to the movement direction of the cleaning head by the moving means.

  Moreover, in the self-propelled cleaner according to the present invention, it is preferable that the rotating means comprises a rotary solenoid.

  The self-propelled cleaner according to the present invention is connected to the suction opening, and is provided with a dust collection chamber for collecting dust, and dust provided on a path to the suction opening or the dust collection chamber. It is preferable that the moving unit controls the moving speed of the cleaning head according to the amount of dust detected by the detecting unit.

  The self-propelled cleaner according to the present invention further includes a discriminating unit that discriminates the material of the surface to be cleaned, and a storage unit that stores the length of the brush hair in association with the material of the surface to be cleaned. And the changing means changes the length of the hair feet facing the surface to be cleaned of the cleaning head to the length of the hair feet stored in association with the material determined by the determining means in the storage means. It is preferable.

  Moreover, it is preferable that the self-propelled cleaner according to the present invention further includes elastic means for urging the brush toward the surface to be cleaned.

  In the self-propelled cleaner according to the present invention, the cleaning head includes a suction opening, and is connected to the suction opening to move the cleaning head, and to collect dust that is connected to the suction opening. And a detection unit that detects dust provided on a path leading to the suction opening or the dust collection chamber, and the moving unit is configured to detect the dust according to the amount of dust detected by the detection unit. It is preferable to control the moving speed of the cleaning head.

  According to the present invention, in the self-propelled cleaner, the length of the bristle of the brush in the cleaning head is changed according to the distance between the measuring means and the surface to be cleaned.

  As a result, even if it is necessary to change the length of the brush head of the cleaning head because the main body of the self-propelled cleaner or the surface to be cleaned is tilted, it is difficult for the user to replace the cleaning head. The head brush bristles are changed according to the need, without causing any troublesome work. And since the length of a bristle leg can be changed as needed, the dust on the surface to be cleaned can be surely collected with a brush.

  Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a self-propelled cleaner that can reliably pick up dust on the surface to be cleaned without causing the user to perform complicated operations.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
[First Embodiment]
Drawing 1 is a figure showing typically the longitudinal section of the vacuum cleaner which is a 1st embodiment of the self-propelled cleaner of the present invention.

  Referring to FIG. 1, the vacuum cleaner 1 has an outer shell covered with a cover 8. The cover 8 is made of, for example, a synthetic resin. An arrow C <b> 1 in FIG. 1 indicates the traveling direction of the cleaner 1.

  A web camera 19 and a distance measuring sensor (infrared distance measuring sensor) 18 are attached to the front surface of the cleaner 1 in the traveling direction. A region A1 and a region A2 in FIG. 1 indicate the range of the visual field of the distance measuring sensor 18 and the web camera 19, respectively.

  Drive wheels 2 are provided inside the cover 8 and at the rear of the cleaner 1. The drive wheel 2 is rotationally driven in the direction of arrow C3 by a wheel drive motor 3.

  A control board 22 is installed inside the cover 8 and above the drive wheels 2. The control board 22 is supplied with power from the rechargeable battery 4. The wheel driving motor 3 is electrically connected to the control board 22.

  Inside the cover 8, in front of the drive wheel 2 and in order from the rear side, a suction motor 7, a dust case 6, a suction opening 10 connected to the dust case 6, and a rotating brush device to be described later A rotating brush cover 91 covering 9 is provided. A rotating brush device (a rotating brush device 9 described later with reference to FIGS. 5 and 6) includes a shaft 9X and brushes 9A to 9H provided on the outer periphery of the shaft 9X.

  The rotating brush device 9 is rotated in the direction indicated by the double arrow C2, that is, in the traveling direction and the retreating direction of the cleaner 1 by transmitting the driving force from the brush driving motor 12 via the driving belt 15. Driven. Thereby, since the rotary brush apparatus 9 can repeat reciprocating motion in the direction of the double arrow C2, for example, it is possible to scrape dust that has entered the carpet.

  The suction motor 7 is electrically connected to the control board 22. When the suction motor 7 rotates, the air in the dust case 6 is guided to the outside of the dust case 6 through the filter 6A provided at the rear part of the dust case 6. Thereby, the dust scraped up by the rotating brush device 9 is guided into the dust case 6 through the suction opening 10. The suction opening 10 is provided with a light projecting element 25 and a light receiving element 26, and the light projecting element 25 and the light receiving element 26 are electrically connected to the control board 22. Further, the light receiving element 26 is installed in a direction and a position where the light emitted from the light projecting element 25 can be received. The detection output of the light receiving element 26 is input to the control board 22.

  In the present embodiment, a vacuum cleaner unit 80 is configured by the dust case 6 and the suction motor 7, and a cleaning head 90 is configured by the rotating brush device 9 and the suction opening 10.

FIG. 2 is a diagram schematically illustrating a hardware configuration of the vacuum cleaner 1.
In the cleaner 1, the control part 50 which controls operation | movement of the said cleaner 1 as a whole is provided. The control unit 50 includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit). The control unit 50 is mounted on the control board 22.

  The controller 50 controls the operation of the wheel driving motor 3, the suction motor 7, the brush driving motor 12, the distance measuring sensor 18, and the web camera 19 by receiving power from the rechargeable battery 4.

  The vacuum cleaner 1 further includes a storage device 51 and an operation unit 52. The storage device 51 is configured by a memory included in the control board 22. The storage device 51 stores a program to be executed by the control unit 50 and data necessary for executing the program. The operation unit 52 is configured from, for example, an operation button that is operated from the outside.

FIG. 3 is a control block diagram of the cleaner 1.
Referring to FIG. 3, drive traveling unit 60 is a part that operates for traveling in the direction of arrow C <b> 1 of cleaner 1, and includes wheel driving motor 3. As described above, the cleaner unit 80 includes the dust case 6 and the suction motor 7, and the cleaning head 90 includes the rotary brush device 9 and the suction opening 10.

  The floor surface detection unit 70 is a part for detecting the distance between the distance measurement sensor 18 and the surface to be cleaned (floor surface) and the state of the floor surface (such as the material of the floor surface), and includes the distance measurement sensor 18.

  The dust detection sensor 91 includes a light projecting element 25 and a light receiving element 26. In the vacuum cleaner 1, dust guided from the suction opening 10 to the dust case 6 depending on how much the light receiving element 26 receives the light emitted from the light projecting element 25, that is, depending on the received light intensity in the detection output of the light receiving element 26. The amount of detected.

The image capturing device 92 includes a web camera 19.
The control unit 50 includes a calculation unit 501 that performs calculations according to a program stored in the storage device 51, a data storage unit 502 that is a part of the storage device 51 and stores various data, and an image pickup device 92. An image processing unit 503 that processes an image input from the image processing unit 503, and a determination unit 504 that determines the material of the floor according to the image processing result of the image processing unit 503. The control unit 50 is supplied with electric power from the power supply unit 40 and controls the operation of each unit. In the present embodiment, the calculation unit 501, the image processing unit 503, and the determination unit 504 are realized by, for example, a CPU executing a predetermined program, but a dedicated LSI (Large Scale) that executes the operation of each unit. Integration).

  The power supply unit 40 includes the rechargeable battery 4. The power supply unit 40 supplies power to the drive travel unit 60, the cleaner unit 80, the cleaning head 90, the floor surface detection unit 70, the dust detection sensor 91, and the image capturing device 92.

  The distance measuring sensor 18 includes an infrared sensor, and is configured to measure a distance in a range of 2 cm to 15 cm, for example.

  FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the rotating brush device 9. FIG. 5 is a side view of the rotating brush device 9 in the direction of arrow V in FIG. 4 and 5, the illustration of the rotating brush cover 91 is omitted.

  With reference to FIGS. 4 and 5, in the rotating brush device 9, eight brushes 9A to 9H are attached to the outer periphery of the shaft 9X. As can be understood from FIG. 5 in particular, the length of each brush is different. When the lengths of the hairs of the brushes 9A, 9B, 9C, 9D, 9E, 9F, 9G, and 9H are RA, RB, RC, RD, RE, RF, RG, and RH, respectively, ) To Expression (7).

RB = RA + 2 [mm] (1)
RC = RB + 2 [mm] (2)
RD = RC + 2 [mm] (3)
RE = RD + 2 [mm] (4)
RF = RE + 2 [mm] (5)
RG = RF + 2 [mm] (6)
RH = RG + 2 [mm] (7)
That is, the radial dimension (length of the hairs) of the bottom surface of the cylindrical shaft 9X of the eight brushes 9A to 9H is configured to increase by 2 mm in order.

  4 and 5 indicates the same direction as the direction of the double arrow C2 in FIG.

FIG. 6 is an enlarged view of the rotating brush device 9 and the brush driving motor 12.
An opening 91A is formed in a part of the rotating brush cover 91, and the driving belt 15 connects the brush driving motor 12 and the shaft 9X via the opening 91A.

  When the brush drive motor 12 rotates in the direction of the double arrow C4, the power is transmitted to the shaft 9X via the drive belt 15, and the shaft 9X is rotated in the direction of the double arrow C2.

  FIG. 7 is an enlarged view of the suction opening 10, the dust case 6, and the suction motor 7. A filter 10 </ b> X is provided at a portion where the suction opening 10 is connected to the dust case 6. Garbage guided to the suction opening 10 is introduced into the dust case 6 via the filter 10X. The suction opening 10 constitutes a path for dust introduced into the dust case 6, and the light projecting element 25 and the light receiving element 26 are installed in the middle of the path. Note that if the light projecting element 25 and the light receiving element 26 are installed so as to face each other across the path, the front end part of the path or the rear end part of the path (for example, adjacent to the filter 10X). To be attached).

  FIG. 8 is a diagram for explaining the measurement of the distance between the distance measuring sensor 18 and the floor surface by the distance measuring sensor 18.

  In the vacuum cleaner 1 of the present embodiment, the brushes 9A to 9H that abut against the floor surface for cleaning and the drive wheels 2 that abut against the floor surface for traveling are relatively separated from each other at the rear and the front. Is provided. Therefore, for example, as shown in FIG. 8, even when the drive wheel 2 is at the height of the floor surface F1, the drive wheel 2 comes into contact so that the surface to be cleaned with which the brush 9A contacts is indicated by the floor surface F2. A case where the floor surface is different from the floor surface F1 is conceivable. In FIG. 8, the distance (in the vertical direction) from the distance measuring sensor 18 to the floor surface F1 is indicated as d1, and the distance (in the vertical direction) between the distance measuring sensor 18 and the floor surface F2 is indicated as d2. Has been.

  In the vacuum cleaner 1 of the present embodiment, the distance measuring sensor 18 provided in the vicinity of the rotary brush device 9 measures the distance between the distance measuring sensor 18 and the floor surface, so that the inside of the brushes 9A to 9H. The brush having the most suitable length of the bristle with respect to the floor surface against which the rotating brush device 9 abuts is selected, and the brush is sent to a position where it abuts against the floor surface for cleaning. FIG. 8 shows a state in which the brush 9A is sent to a position facing the floor surface F2 and cleaning is performed. When cleaning is performed, the shaft 9X is driven so that the brush sent to the position facing the floor surface F2 slides back and forth alternately in the direction indicated by the double arrow C2, that is, in the direction of travel of the cleaner 1. Is done. The angle at which the brush is slid in the direction of the double arrow C2 during the cleaning operation can be set to about 5 °, for example.

  In the vacuum cleaner 1, the brush drive motor 12 is composed of a rotary solenoid. Thereby, when rotating the axis | shaft 9X, the rotation angle can be made exact. Thus, when a brush suitable for contacting the floor surface is determined from the brushes 9A to 9H based on the distance d2 measured by the distance measuring sensor 18, the brush is surely placed on the floor surface. The shaft 9X can be rotated so as to face each other.

  Further, the brush drive motor 12 is a rotary solenoid and has a structure that converts a suction force generated when a DC voltage is applied to a coil into a rotational motion. It can only be rotated instantaneously.

  Next, the content of the process performed by the CPU of the control unit 50 when the cleaner 1 performs the cleaning operation will be described with reference to FIGS. 9 and 10 which are flowcharts of the process.

  First, referring to FIG. 9, when information for starting cleaning is input via operation unit 52 or when a time designated to start cleaning by operation on operation unit 52 is reached, CPU starts running. The mode is entered and processing is started from step S2. The control unit 50 has a built-in timer, and the CPU determines whether or not the designated time has come based on the time measured by the timer.

In step S <b> 2, the CPU turns on the power supply unit 4 and activates the control unit 50.
Next, in step S3, the CPU activates the drive travel unit 60, the cleaner unit 80, and the cleaning head 90, and advances the process to step S4. Here, the CPU resets the obstacle flag (flag F1) and the garbage flag (flag F2) used in the following processing. The setting state of both flags is stored in a memory in the control unit 50, for example.

  In step S4, the CPU checks the detection signal of the distance measuring sensor 18 (floor surface detection sensor), and proceeds to step S5.

  In step S5, the CPU determines whether or not the distance to the floor can be specified from the detection signal of the distance measuring sensor 18. If it is determined that the distance can be specified, the CPU proceeds to step S6. Return processing to.

  In step S6, the CPU determines the distance to the floor (distance d2 in FIG. 8) based on the detection signal of the distance measuring sensor 18, and advances the process to step S7.

  In step S7, the CPU stores the distance to the floor determined in step S6 in the data storage unit 502, and proceeds to step S8.

  In step S8, the CPU determines a brush to be opposed to the floor surface (from among the brushes 9A to 9H) based on the distance to the floor surface determined in step S6, and makes the brush face the floor surface. The necessary rotation angle of the shaft 9X is calculated, the brush driving motor 12 is driven and controlled to rotate the shaft 9X by the angle, and the process proceeds to step S9.

  In step S9, the CPU stops driving the motor so that the shaft 9X rotates by the rotation angle determined in step S8, and proceeds to step S10.

  In step S10, the CPU starts control of the brush drive motor 12 so as to cause the rotary brush device 9 to slide in the direction indicated by the double arrow C2, and proceeds to step S11.

  In step S11, the CPU causes the brush driving motor 12 to rotate alternately in the forward direction and the reverse direction in order to slide the shaft 9X in the direction of the double arrow C2 for the sliding motion of the rotary brush device 9. To start the control, and the process proceeds to step S12.

  Referring to FIG. 10, in step S <b> 12, the CPU determines whether there is an obstacle in front of the cleaner 1 based on the image captured by the web camera 19, and if it is determined, the process proceeds to step S <b> 13. If it is determined that there is no advance, the process proceeds to step S18. In step S12, the CPU, for example, causes the image processing unit 503 to compare the image captured by the web camera 19 with the image pattern of the obstacle stored in the data storage unit 502, for example. Whether or not there is an obstacle is determined in 504 based on whether or not an image pattern stored in advance as an obstacle is included in the image captured by the web camera 19 based on the comparison result (for example, similarity).

  In step S13, the above-described flag F1 is set, and the process proceeds to step S14.

  In step S <b> 14, the CPU switches the control mode to control for the drive travel unit 60 and advances the process to step S <b> 15. Note that the CPU controls the details of the driving travel unit 60 in steps S14 and S19 (and steps S118 and S123 in FIG. 12) (for wheel driving) depending on whether or not the flags F1 and F2 are set. The rotational speed of the motor 3 is changed. Specifically, if either flag F1 or flag F2 is set, the rotational speed of the wheel driving motor 3 is set to a low speed, and if both are reset, the rotational speed is set to a normal speed. In this specification, for the sake of convenience, it is assumed that there are two types of rotation speeds of the wheel driving motor 3: “normal” and “low speed”. Further, hereinafter, the normal speed is appropriately described as “R1”, and the “low speed” lower than the normal speed is described as “R2” (R1> R2). In the present embodiment, for example, R1 can be 15 cm / second and R2 can be 7.5 cm / second.

  In step S15, the CPU stops the wheel driving motor 3 and advances the process to step S16. Thereby, the rotation of the drive wheel 2 stops.

  In step S16, the CPU executes a control operation for avoiding the obstacle, and advances the process to step S17. The action for avoiding the obstacle is, specifically, identifying the position of the obstacle based on the image taken by the web camera 19, calculating a traveling pattern that avoids the position, and In other words, the operation of the wheel driving motor 3 is controlled so as to travel with the calculated travel pattern. In FIG. 1, only the driving wheel 2 attached to the rear left side of the vacuum cleaner 1 and the wheel driving motor 3 for driving the driving wheel 2 are shown, but the same driving is also shown on the rear right side. A wheel and a motor for driving the driving wheel are attached. Further, the vacuum cleaner 1 is also provided with a mechanism for controlling the traveling direction of such a pair of left and right drive wheels. In the case of the obstacle avoidance code in step S16, control of the traveling direction using such a mechanism is also executed in order to avoid the obstacle.

  In step S17, the CPU reduces the rotation speed of the wheel driving motor 3 to a low speed (R2) and returns the process to step S12.

  On the other hand, in step S18, the CPU resets the flag F1 in response to determining that there is no obstacle in step S12, and proceeds to step S19.

  In step S19, as in step S14, the CPU switches the control mode to control for the drive travel unit 60, and proceeds to step S20.

  In step S20, the CPU rotates the wheel driving motor 3 in the forward direction and advances the process to step S21. Thereby, the driving wheel 2 rotates in the direction of the arrow C3 in FIG. 1, whereby the cleaner 1 travels in the direction of the arrow C1 in FIG. 1.

  In step S21, the CPU checks the detection signal of the dust detection sensor 91, that is, the detection output of the light receiving element 26, and proceeds to step S22.

  In step S22, the CPU specifies the amount of dust passing through the suction opening 10 based on the amount of light received by the light receiving element 26, and compares it with a predetermined amount. The specified amount is stored in, for example, the data storage unit 502 (storage device 51).

  In step S23, the CPU determines whether or not the amount of garbage specified in step S22 is larger than the specified amount described above. If so, the process proceeds to step S24, and if not, step S26. Proceed to the process.

  In step S24, the CPU sets the flag F2 described above in response to determining that the amount of garbage is larger than the specified amount in step S23, and advances the process to step S25.

  In step S25, the CPU sets the rotational speed of the wheel driving motor 3 to the low speed (R2) described above, and proceeds to step S28. Here, “decrease in rotational speed” can be, for example, a reduction to a rotational speed at which the traveling speed of the cleaner 1 is half that of the previous speed.

  On the other hand, in step S26, the CPU resets the above-described flag F2 in response to determining that the amount of garbage is equal to or less than the specified amount in step S23, and advances the process to step S27.

  In step S27, the CPU sets the rotation speed of the wheel driving motor 3 to the normal speed R1, and proceeds to step S28. However, if the flag F1 is set here, the CPU sets the rotation speed to R2 and advances the process to step S28.

  In step S28, the CPU determines whether or not the cleaner 1 has returned to the position (starting point) when the cleaning operation is started. If it is determined that the cleaner 1 has returned, the process proceeds to step S29, and if it is determined that the cleaner has not yet returned, step. The process returns to S12. Whether or not the vehicle has returned to the starting point is determined by, for example, storing a travel pattern after starting the processing in step S2 in the data storage unit 502 and referring to the pattern.

  In step S29, the CPU stops supplying electric power to the drive travel unit 60, the cleaner unit 80, and the cleaning head 90, and advances the process to step S30.

  In step S30, the CPU stops supplying power to the control unit 50, turns off the power supply unit 40, and ends the process.

  In the vacuum cleaner 1 of the present embodiment described above, the distance measuring sensor 18 is provided in the vicinity of the rotating brush device 9, and the rotating brush device 9 is based on the distance from the floor surface measured by the distance measuring sensor 18. It is determined which of the brushes 9A to 9H that are provided is to be used for the cleaning operation by facing the floor. Here, how the detection output of the distance measuring sensor 18 is used to determine the brush to be opposed to the floor surface will be described.

  For example, it is assumed that the variable TX is set as in Expression (8) and the variable d3 (see FIG. 8) in Expression (8) is set as in Expression (9).

TX = d2-d3 (8)
d3 = [distance from the measurement site of the distance measuring sensor to the portion of the shaft surface facing the floor surface] (9)
In this case, according to the TX value calculated based on the detection output (d2) of the distance measuring sensor 18, the brush to be opposed to the floor is determined as in the following a) to e). RA, RB, RC, RD, RE, RF, RG, and RH are the lengths of the hair feet of the brushes 9A, 9B, 9C, 9D, 9E, 9F, 9G, and 9H, respectively, as shown in FIG. Say it.

B) When TX <RA, brush 9A
B) When RA ≦ TX <RB, brush 9B
C) When RB ≦ TX <RC, brush 9C
D) When RC ≦ TX <RD, brush 9D
E) When RD ≦ TX <RE, brush 9E
F) When RE ≦ TX <RF, brush 9F
G) When RF ≦ TX <RG, brush 9G
H) When RG ≦ TX, brush 9H
In the present embodiment described above, a plurality of brushes having different lengths of hairs are attached to the shaft 9X of the rotary brush device 9, and the distance from the floor surface detected by the distance measuring sensor 18 is set. Although the brush used for cleaning was determined accordingly, the structure of the self-propelled cleaner according to the present invention is not limited to this. In other words, instead of attaching multiple brushes with fixed lengths of hair to the shaft, the brush can be inserted into and removed from the shaft, and the length of the brush coming out of the shaft (length of the hair) The rotating brush device 9 may be configured so that it can be changed. In such a case, according to the distance from the floor surface detected by the distance measuring sensor 18, the length of the brush protruding from the shaft (length of the bristles) is adjusted in the rotating brush device 9.

  Moreover, in the cleaner 1 of this Embodiment, the suction opening part 10 is provided in the back side with respect to the running direction of the cleaner 1 rather than the rotary brush apparatus 9. FIG. Thereby, the dust swept up by the rotating brush device 9 can be reliably guided to the dust case 6.

[Second Embodiment]
In the first embodiment described above, the rotating brush device 9 includes a plurality of brushes having different lengths of hairs, and has an optimal hairs length according to the distance between the distance measuring sensor 18 and the floor surface. It was comprised so that the brush which it has might be utilized for cleaning operation | movement.

  The vacuum cleaner of the present embodiment is configured such that the rotating brush device 9 includes a plurality of brushes having different lengths of hairs and different materials. Hereinafter, the self-propelled cleaner of the present embodiment will be described. Note that the self-propelled cleaner of the present embodiment differs from the cleaner 1 of the first embodiment only in the content of the brush attached to the shaft 9X and the processing content executed by the CPU. The overlapping contents will not be repeated here.

  FIG. 13 is a diagram for explaining the types of brushes attached to the shaft 9X in the rotating brush device 9 of the present embodiment, and the rotating brush device as shown in FIG. 5 in the first embodiment. 9 corresponds to the right side view.

  Referring to FIG. 13, four brushes 9B, 9R, 9Q, and 9S are attached to the shaft 9X. The brush 9P and the brush 9R have the same length of hair, but are different in material. Specifically, the material of the brush 9P is cotton, and the material of the brush 9R is nylon. Further, the brush 9Q and the brush 9S have the same length of bristle, but are different in material. The material of the brush 9Q is polyester, and the material of the brush 9S is silicon. In the present embodiment, for example, when the floor material is flooring, it is determined that the material of the brush used for the cleaning operation is suitable for silicon, and in the case of a carpet, polyester is used rather than silicon. It is judged that a brush is suitable.

  Next, processing executed by the CPU when the cleaner of the present embodiment performs a cleaning operation will be described with reference to FIGS. 11 and 12 which are flowcharts of the processing.

  First, in step S101, the CPU activates the control unit 50 with the power supply unit 4 turned on. Next, in step S102, the CPU activates the drive travel unit 60, the cleaner unit 80, and the cleaning head 90. In step S103, the detection signal of the distance measuring sensor 18 (floor surface detection sensor) is checked, and the process proceeds to step S104. Here, the CPU resets the obstacle flag (flag F1) and the garbage flag (flag F2) used in the following processing.

  In step S104, the CPU determines whether or not the distance to the floor surface can be specified from the detection signal of the distance measuring sensor 18. If it is determined that the distance can be specified, the CPU proceeds to step S105. Return processing to.

  In step S105, the CPU causes the web camera 19 to capture an image of the floor, reads the captured image, and proceeds to step S106.

  In step S106, the CPU stores the image read in step S105 in the data storage unit 502 and advances the process to step S107.

  In step S107, the CPU performs a process of extracting feature points from the image data read in step S105 and stored in step S106, and the process proceeds to step S108.

  In step S108, the CPU generates an image pattern using the feature points extracted in step S107, and advances the process to step S109.

  In step S109, the CPU compares the image pattern stored in advance in the data storage unit 502 with the image pattern generated in step S108, and proceeds to step S110.

  In step S110, the CPU identifies an image pattern having the highest degree of coincidence with the image pattern generated in step S108 among the plurality of image patterns corresponding to the plurality of floor materials stored in advance in the data storage unit 502. Then, the process proceeds to step S111.

  In step S111, the CPU determines whether or not the floor surface material can be specified in the process of step S110. If the CPU determines that it is possible, the process proceeds to step S112 and determines that it is not possible. Then, the process proceeds to step S114. Whether or not the floor surface material can be specified is determined based on, for example, at least one of the image patterns generated in step S108 for each floor surface material stored in advance in the data storage unit 502. Judgment is made based on whether or not the degree of coincidence exceeds a certain value.

  In step S112, the CPU starts to rotate the brush driving motor 12 so that the brush corresponding to the floor material specified in step S110 is opposed to the floor surface among the brushes 9P, 9R, 9Q, and 9S. Then, the process proceeds to step S113.

  In step S113, the CPU stops the rotation of the brush driving motor 12 so that the rotation of the shaft 9X is stopped at the position where the brush corresponding to the material of the floor faces the floor, and the process proceeds to step S114. Proceed.

  The processing after step S114 is the same as the processing after step S10 in the first embodiment.

  That is, in step S114, the CPU starts control of the brush driving motor 12 so as to cause the rotary brush device 9 to slide in the direction indicated by the double arrow C2 (see FIG. 1 and the like). In S115, control for driving the brush drive motor 12 to rotate alternately in the forward direction and the reverse direction is started, and the process proceeds to Step S116.

  Referring to FIG. 12, in step S116, the CPU determines whether there is an obstacle in front of the cleaner 1 based on the image captured by the web camera 19, and if it is determined, the process proceeds to step S117. If it is determined that there is no advance, the process proceeds to step S122. In step S116, as in step S12, the CPU, for example, causes the image processing unit 503 to compare the image captured by the web camera 19 with the image pattern of the obstacle stored in the data storage unit 502 to determine. Whether or not there is an obstacle is determined based on whether or not an image pattern stored in advance as an obstacle in the unit 504 is included in the image captured by the web camera 19 based on the comparison result (for example, similarity).

  In step S117, the CPU sets the flag F1 described above. In step S118, the CPU switches the control mode to control the drive travel unit 60. Next, in step S119, the CPU stops the wheel driving motor 3, In step S120, a control operation for avoiding an obstacle is executed. Next, in step S121, the rotational speed of the wheel driving motor 3 is reduced (R2), and the process returns to step S116.

  On the other hand, in step S122, the CPU resets flag F1 based on the determination that there is no obstacle in step S116, and advances the process to step S123.

  In step S123, similarly to step S118, the CPU switches the control mode to control for the drive travel unit 60, and proceeds to step S124.

  In step S124, the CPU rotates the wheel driving motor 3 in the forward direction. In step S125, the CPU checks the detection signal of the dust detection sensor 91 (detection output of the light receiving element 26). In step S126, the light receiving element. Based on the amount of received light 26, the amount of dust passing through the suction opening 10 is specified and compared with a predetermined amount.

  Then, in step S127, the CPU determines whether or not the amount of garbage specified in step S126 is greater than a predetermined amount, and if so, proceeds to step S128, otherwise. If determined, the process proceeds to step S130.

  In step S128, the CPU sets a flag F2 in response to determining that the amount of garbage is larger than the specified amount in step S127, and advances the process to step S129.

  In step S129, the CPU reduces the rotation speed of the wheel driving motor 3 to a low speed (R2), and advances the process to step S132. Here, “decrease in rotational speed” can be, for example, a reduction to a rotational speed at which the traveling speed of the cleaner 1 is half that of the previous speed.

  On the other hand, in step S130, the CPU resets the flag F2 in response to determining that the amount of garbage is equal to or less than the specified amount in step S127, and proceeds to step S131.

  In step S131, the CPU sets the rotation speed of the wheel driving motor 3 to the normal speed (R1), and proceeds to step S132. In step S131, the CPU checks whether or not the flag F1 is set. If the flag F1 is set, the CPU sets the rotation speed to a low speed (R2) and advances the process to step S132.

  In step S132, the CPU determines whether or not the cleaner 1 has returned to the position (starting point) when the cleaning operation is started. If it is determined that the cleaner 1 has returned, the process proceeds to step S133. The process returns to S116. Whether or not the vehicle has returned to the starting point is determined by, for example, storing a travel pattern after starting the processing in step S2 in the data storage unit 502 and referring to the pattern.

  In step S133, the CPU stops the supply of power to the drive travel unit 60, the cleaner unit 80, and the cleaning head 90, and proceeds to step S134.

  In step S134, the CPU stops supplying power to the control unit 50, turns off the power supply unit 40, and ends the process.

[Third Embodiment]
FIG. 14 is a diagram schematically showing the rotating brush device 9 and the brush driving motor 12 that rotates the shaft 9X of the rotating brush device 9 in the cleaner according to the third embodiment of the self-propelled cleaner of the present invention. It is. In the cleaner of the present embodiment, an elastic member is provided that urges the brushes 9A to 9H facing the floor surface toward the floor surface.

  Specifically, as shown in FIG. 14, in the cleaner of the present embodiment, the other end of a spring 99 having one end fixed to the rotating brush cover 91 is attached to the shaft 9X. As a result, the shaft 9X is biased in the direction of the arrow L1 in FIG. The self-propelled cleaner of the present embodiment has been described in the first embodiment except that the spring 99 is provided and the position of the brush driving motor 12 with respect to the rotating brush device 9 is changed. Since it has the same configuration as that of the vacuum cleaner 1, the description of the overlapping contents will not be repeated here.

  In the cleaner 1 of the present embodiment, when the cleaner 1 passes over the obstacle OB installed on the floor surface, the rotary brush device 9 comes into contact with the obstacle OB, and the cleaner 1 can travel. It is assumed that it will disappear. However, in the cleaner of the present embodiment, when the shaft 9X is urged in the direction of the arrow L1 by the spring 99 in the rotary brush device 9, the brush in contact with the floor surface comes into contact with the obstacle OB. However, the shaft 9X can move in the direction opposite to the obstacle OB by contracting the spring 99. Thereby, the cleaner 1 can get over the obstacle OB easily (with a small impact).

The elastic member is not limited to the spring 99 but may be made of rubber or the like.
Each embodiment disclosed this time must be considered as illustrative in all points and not restrictive. The scope of the present invention is defined by the terms of the claims, rather than the description above, and is intended to include any modifications within the scope and meaning equivalent to the terms of the claims. The embodiments described above are intended to be applied in combination as much as possible.

It is a figure which shows typically the longitudinal cross-section of the cleaner which is one Embodiment of the self-propelled cleaner of this invention. It is a figure which shows typically the hardware constitutions of the cleaner of FIG. It is a control block diagram of the cleaner of FIG. It is a perspective view of the rotating brush apparatus of FIG. It is a side view of the rotating brush apparatus of the arrow V direction of FIG. FIG. 2 is an enlarged view of a rotating brush device and a brush driving motor of FIG. 1. It is an enlarged view of the suction opening part, dust case, and suction motor of FIG. It is a figure for demonstrating the measurement of the distance of the said ranging sensor and floor surface by the ranging sensor of FIG. It is a flowchart of the process which CPU of the control part of the said cleaner performs when the cleaner of FIG. 1 performs cleaning operation | movement. It is a flowchart of the process which CPU of the control part of the said cleaner performs when the cleaner of FIG. 1 performs cleaning operation | movement. It is a flowchart of the process which CPU of the control part of the said cleaner performs when the cleaner of 2nd Embodiment of the self-propelled cleaner of this invention performs cleaning operation | movement. It is a flowchart of the process which CPU of the control part of the said cleaner performs when the cleaner of 2nd Embodiment of the self-propelled cleaner of this invention performs cleaning operation | movement. It is a figure which shows the brush attached to the axis | shaft of the rotating brush apparatus with which the cleaner of 2nd Embodiment of the self-propelled cleaner of this invention is provided, and the said axis | shaft. It is a figure which shows typically the rotating brush apparatus and the motor for brush drive in the cleaner of 3rd Embodiment of the self-propelled cleaner of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Vacuum cleaner, 2 Drive wheel, 3 Wheel drive motor, 4 Rechargeable battery, 6 Dust case, 7 Suction motor, 8 Cover, 9 Rotating brush device, 9A-9H brush, 9X axis, 10 Suction opening, 12 Brush drive Motor, 18 Distance sensor, 19 Web camera, 40 Power supply unit, 50 Control unit, 51 Storage device, 52 Operation unit, 60 Drive traveling unit, 70 Floor surface detection unit, 80 Vacuum cleaner unit, 90 Cleaning head, 91 Garbage Detection sensor, 92 image pickup device, 99 spring, 501 calculation unit, 502 data storage unit, 503 image processing unit, 504 determination unit.

Claims (8)

A self-propelled cleaner with a cleaning head including a brush,
Changing means for changing the length of the bristle of the brush facing the surface to be cleaned of the cleaning head;
Measuring means for measuring the distance to the surface to be cleaned;
Determining means for determining the length of the hair feet of the cleaning head based on the distance measured by the measuring means;
The said change means is a self-propelled cleaner which changes the length of the hair foot which opposes the surface to be cleaned of the said cleaning head to the length of the hair foot which the said determination means determined. The cleaning head includes a shaft and a plurality of brushes attached to the shaft,
Rotating means for rotating the shaft in a direction intersecting with its longitudinal direction,
The plurality of brushes are
A brush having at least two different lengths of bristle feet,
The hair shaft brush is attached to the shaft so as to face the surface to be cleaned depending on the rotation angle of the rotating means,
The said change means makes the said rotation means rotate the said axis | shaft only the rotation angle which the brush which has the length of the bristle foot determined by the said determination means opposes the to-be-cleaned surface of the said cleaning head. Self-propelled vacuum cleaner. The cleaning head includes a suction opening;
Moving means for moving the cleaning head;
A rotation means for rotating the shaft in a direction intersecting with the longitudinal direction;
The self-propelled cleaner according to claim 2, wherein the suction opening is provided rearward with respect to the brush in the moving direction of the cleaning head by the moving means.   The self-propelled cleaner according to claim 3, wherein the rotating means is a rotary solenoid. A dust collection chamber connected to the suction opening and collecting dust;
A detection unit for detecting dust provided on a path leading to the suction opening or the dust collection chamber;
The self-propelled cleaner according to claim 3 or 4, wherein the moving means controls the moving speed of the cleaning head in accordance with the amount of dust detected by the detection unit. Discriminating means for discriminating the material of the surface to be cleaned;
Storage means for storing the length of the bristles of the brush in association with the material of the surface to be cleaned;
The changing means changes the length of the hair feet facing the surface to be cleaned of the cleaning head to the length of the hair feet stored in association with the material determined by the determining means in the storage means. The self-propelled cleaner according to any one of claims 1 to 5.   The self-propelled cleaner according to any one of claims 1 to 5, further comprising elastic means for urging the brush toward the surface to be cleaned. The cleaning head includes a suction opening;
Moving means for moving the cleaning head;
A dust collection chamber connected to the suction opening and collecting dust;
A detection unit for detecting dust provided on a path leading to the suction opening or the dust collection chamber;
The self-propelled according to claim 1, 2, 6, or 7, wherein the moving means controls the moving speed of the cleaning head according to the amount of dust detected by the detection unit. Type vacuum cleaner.

Images