DE102019213088B3 - Cleaning device, base station and operating method of such a cleaning device - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a cleaning device (1) with a self-propelled cleaning / mopping robot (2) for cleaning a floor with drive / mopping chains (3) which are at least partially covered with a cleaning material (4). A base station (6) with rotatable cleaning rollers (7) is also provided, the cleaning / wiping robot (2) being able to be arranged in / on the base station in such a way that the rotating cleaning rollers (7) clean the cleaning material (7) on the drive - / mopping chains (3) of the self-propelled cleaning / mopping robot (2). This allows an optimized cleaning result and improved comfort.

Description

The present invention relates to a cleaning device with a self-propelled cleaning / wiping robot and a base station. The invention also relates to a base station and an operating method for such a cleaning device.

Cleaning robots, regardless of whether they are pure vacuum robots or mopping robots or combined vacuum / mopping robots, are already used in a variety of ways and offer a considerable increase in comfort for managing a household. The cleaning devices known from the prior art include, in addition to the actual cleaning robot, an associated base station, which the cleaning robot repeatedly moves to in order to be charged therein.

From the DE 10 2010 018 010 A1 a generic cleaning device with a self-propelled cleaning robot is known.

From the DE 10 2010 017 258 A1 a base station for an automatically mobile device, in particular a vacuum and / or sweeping robot, is known, the device finding the base station automatically, for example to recharge the device's batteries and / or to empty a dirt container of the device. The base station also has a device for cleaning the outside of the device.

From the KR 10 2009 0 061 461 A a further cleaning device with a base station is known, a cleaning device being provided in the base station by means of which a cleaning roller rotatably arranged on an associated cleaning robot can be cleaned.

Also from the EP 2 407 077 A2 a cleaning device with a self-propelled cleaning robot and a base station is known, with a cleaning brush rotatably arranged on the cleaning robot being provided in the base station.

Common cleaning robots usually have a driven axle and a steerable axle and, depending on the equipment variant, a rotatable cleaning brush or an area that is covered with a wipe. The disadvantage of so-called mopping robots, however, is that their soiled or dirt-absorbing materials have to be replaced manually from time to time. This results in a not inconsiderable restriction in comfort for the user. Due to the fact that the mopping material of such a mopping robot has to be replaced or cleaned by hand from time to time, a cleaning result that can be achieved with such a mopping robot also increasingly decreases with the duration of use.

The present invention is therefore concerned with the problem of specifying a cleaning device which not only achieves a long-term high cleaning result, but at the same time also enables an increase in comfort for a user.

This problem is solved according to the invention by the subject matter of independent claim 1. Advantageous embodiments are the subject of the dependent claims.

The present invention is based on the general idea of specifying a completely new design of a cleaning / mopping robot with a significantly improved wiping result, combined with a base station which is able to clean cleaning material used by the cleaning / mopping robot, whereby a high long-term cleaning / wiping result can be achieved without manual intervention, in particular manual cleaning of the cleaning / wiping robot being required. The cleaning device according to the invention has a self-propelled cleaning / wiping robot for cleaning a floor, in particular for wiping a smooth floor, which has combined drive / wiping chains that are at least partially covered with a cleaning material so that the drive / wiping chains not only serve to move the cleaning / mopping robot, but can also clean or wipe the floor at the same time. In addition, the cleaning device has a base station for the self-propelled cleaning / mopping robot with rotatable cleaning rollers, wherein the cleaning / mopping robot can be received in this base station or moved into it in such a way that the rotating cleaning rollers clean the cleaning material on the drive / Effect wiping chains of the self-propelled cleaning / mopping robot. The rotating cleaning rollers thus clean those parts of the cleaning / mopping robot, namely the combined drive / mopping chains or their cleaning material, so that the cleaning / mopping robot can rotate to the base station and the cleaning material on the drive / cleaning chains can be cleaned there, whereby a satisfactory cleaning / wiping result can be guaranteed in the long term. Due to the possibility of cleaning the cleaning / wiping robot's cleaning material independently and automatically in the base station, regular manual cleaning of this cleaning material is no longer necessary, which means that the cleaning / wiping robot according to the invention can be operated independently in the long term, that is to say without external intervention.

In an advantageous further development of the solution according to the invention, the cleaning rollers have a microfiber lining and / or cleaning bristles, in particular rubber bristles. A microfiber covering enables particularly effective and clean wiping of smooth surfaces, such as tile floors, whereby covering the drive / wiping chains with such a microfiber covering or microfiber fleece enables a long-term high cleaning result. By means of the rubber bristles mentioned, which can be designed similarly to cleaning brushes in washing systems, a high cleaning result can also be guaranteed in the long term, as can a comparatively simple cleaning of the rubber bristles in the base station.

Additionally or alternatively, it can be provided that the base station has a charging device for charging a battery of the cleaning / wiping robot. The base station thus fulfills two tasks at the same time, namely on the one hand charging the cleaning / wiping robot and on the other hand cleaning it, whereby a long-term self-sufficient and automatic operation and thus a long-term optimized cleaning / wiping result can be achieved.

The base station expediently has a moistening device for moistening the cleaning rollers with water or a water-cleaning fluid mixture. Such a moistening station can, for example, have a nozzle that sprays the cleaning roller with water which is previously conveyed by means of a corresponding water pump from a fresh water tank, which can also be part of the base station. The moistening device can of course also have a covering which automatically sucks in water from a water tank of the base station using capillary effects and which then transfers the moisture or the water to the cleaning rollers.

Additionally or alternatively, the cleaning rollers can be driven uniformly or alternately in opposite directions. Uniform driving of the cleaning rollers with a simultaneous drive of the cleaning / mopping robot-side drive chain enables complete circumferential cleaning of the drive / mopping chain or the cleaning material arranged on it, without the cleaning / mopping robot having to leave the base station and start again. It is also conceivable, for example, that the cleaning rollers in the base station can be driven alternately in opposite directions during a first period of time and thereby enable the cleaning material on the drive / wiper chains to be cleaned, while they are driven uniformly during a second period of time and rotate or drive further the drive / mop chain of the cleaning / mopping robot parked in the base station. If the drive / wiper chain has continued to rotate until a section of cleaning material that has not yet been cleaned rests on the cleaning rollers, these can again be driven alternately in opposite directions. Of course, a uniform drive of the cleaning rollers in the base station is always conceivable, in which case the cleaning / wiping robot accommodated in the base station is held in the base station by means of a corresponding fixation and its drive / wiping chains, for example, slightly brakes, thereby creating a different speed the cleaning rollers and the drive / wiper chains to each other, whereby the cleaning effect can be increased.

In a further advantageous embodiment of the solution according to the invention, the base station has a fresh water tank and a waste water tank. A fresh water tank of this type can, for example, be used to hold fresh water for several cleaning processes; likewise, contaminated fresh water can be collected via the waste water tank after cleaning the cleaning material of the drive / wiper chains over several cleaning processes. With such a fresh water tank or waste water tank, the time span in which the cleaning device can be operated independently and automatically can thus be significantly increased.

The present invention is further based on the general idea of specifying a base station for such a cleaning device or such a cleaning device which has rotatable cleaning rollers for cleaning cleaning material on drive / wiping chains of a self-propelled cleaning / wiping robot. Such a base station thus has cleaning rollers which correspond in spacing and width to the drive / wiping chains of the associated cleaning / wiping robot or the cleaning material arranged thereon. By means of such a base station, the associated cleaning / wiping robot can thus be periodically cleaned, whereby its cleaning ability or functionality and the cleaning result that can be achieved with the cleaning / wiping robot can be maintained in the long term.

The base station expediently has a charging device for charging a battery of the cleaning / mopping robot. By means of such a Charging device, it is thus possible to charge the battery of the cleaning / mopping robot at the same time as cleaning the cleaning material on the drive / mopping chains of the cleaning / mopping robot, whereby two functions can be performed at the same time.

Additionally or alternatively, the cleaning rollers of the base station can have a microfiber coating and / or cleaning bristles, in particular rubber bristles, whereby the cleaning of the cleaning material on the drive / wiper chains can be facilitated and at the same time improved.

In an advantageous development of the solution according to the invention, the base station has a fresh water tank and a waste water tank. With such a fresh water tank and such a waste water tank, the cleaning ability can be maintained over a number of cleaning cycles and thus over a longer period, as a result of which the cleaning / wiping robot can operate independently for a longer period of time.

The present invention is further based on the general idea of specifying an operating method of such a cleaning device in which the cleaning / wiping robot approaches the base station and there its drive / wiping chains are cleaned by means of the rotating cleaning rollers. The cleaning rollers are arranged complementary to the drive / mopping chains of the cleaning / mopping robot so that it can immediately come into contact with the cleaning rollers with its cleaning material applied to the drive / mopping chains when it enters the base station. The base station is approached, for example, at regular intervals or when the charge level of the battery of the cleaning / wiping robot reaches or falls below a predefined limit value.

Additionally or alternatively, it can of course also be provided that the base station is approached if a degree of soiling of the drive / mopping chains of the cleaning / mopping robot exceeds a predefined degree of soiling. This can be determined for example by means of an optical sensor. First, the cleaning / wiping robot thus localizes the base station and docks to it or drives into it, with the cleaning rollers then being moistened, for example, by means of a moistening device on the base station. The cleaning material arranged on the drive / wiper chains is then cleaned by rotating the cleaning rollers, the cleaning / wiping robot being able to move slightly forwards and backwards in order to clean certain sections of the drive / wiper chain. Alternatively, it can also be provided that the cleaning / wiping robot is fixed in the base station by means of a corresponding fixing device and the cleaning rollers rotate faster than the drive / wiper chains, whereby a speed difference between the cleaning rollers and the drive / wiper chain causes cleaning of the cleaning material . At the same time, of course, a battery of the cleaning / mopping robot can be charged in order to prepare it for the next cleaning cycle. The cleaning rollers are moistened or sprayed by means of fresh water, while contaminated waste water runs off between the cleaning rollers and can be collected in a waste water tank. Overall, the cleaning material arranged on the cleaning / wiping chains can be cleaned in a significantly more convenient manner with the inventive device without manual intervention by a user being necessary for this.

Further important features and advantages of the invention emerge from the subclaims, from the drawings and from the associated description of the figures on the basis of the drawings.

It goes without saying that the features mentioned above and those yet to be explained below can be used not only in the respectively specified combination, but also in other combinations or alone, without departing from the scope of the present invention.

Preferred exemplary embodiments of the invention are shown in the drawings and are explained in more detail in the following description, with the same reference symbols referring to the same or similar or functionally identical components.

• 1 eine Schnittdarstellung durch eine erfindungsgemäße Reinigungseinrichtung mit einem auf/in einer Basisstation abgestellten Rei n igu ngs-/Wischroboter,
• 2 eine Darstellung wie in 1, jedoch beim Verfahren des Reinigungs-/Wischroboters auf Reinigungswalzen der Basisstation,
• 3 eine Schrägansicht von oben auf eine erfindungsgemäße Basisstation,
• 4 eine Schnittdarstellung durch eine Antriebs-/Wischkette des Reinigungs-/Wischroboters.

Show, each schematically,

• 1 a sectional view through a cleaning device according to the invention with a cleaning / wiping robot parked on / in a base station,
• 2 a representation as in 1 , but when moving the cleaning / mopping robot on cleaning rollers of the base station,
• 3 an oblique view from above of a base station according to the invention,
• 4th a sectional view through a drive / wiper chain of the cleaning / wiping robot.

According to the 1 and 2 , has a cleaning device according to the invention 1 a self-propelled cleaning / mopping robot 2 for cleaning a floor, the cleaning / Mopping robot 2 tank-like drive / wiper chains 3 owns, at least partially with a cleaning material 4th (see. 4th ) are occupied. The drive / wiper chains 3 are made of a carrier material 5 and the cleaning material described above 4th constructed, the cleaning material 4th for example, a microfiber covering and / or cleaning bristles, in particular rubber bristles. The carrier material 5 works, for example, with a gearwheel of the cleaning / mopping robot 2 together and is driven by this. The cleaning device according to the invention 1 further comprises a base station 6th with rotatable cleaning rollers 7th , the cleaning / mopping robot 2 such in or on the base station 6th it is possible to record that the rotating cleaning rollers 7th cleaning the cleaning material 4th on the drive / wiper chains 3 of the self-propelled cleaning / mopping robot 2 effect, provided that it is based on this.

The base station can also 6th a charging device 8th (see. 3 ), via which an accumulator of the cleaning / wiping robot 2 can be charged, especially as long as it is on / in the base station 6th is located and, for example, at the same time as cleaning the cleaning material 4th through the rotating cleaning rollers 7th . Electrically charging the battery of the cleaning / mopping robot 2 can take place here, for example, via a plug connection (not shown) or inductively.

All in all, with the cleaning device according to the invention 1 a significantly improved cleaning result can be achieved, since the cleaning material 4th on the drive / wiper chains 3 of the cleaning / mopping robot 2 be cleaned regularly. In addition, a significant increase in comfort for the user can also be achieved since the cleaning material is cleaned 4th on the drive / wiper chains 3 automatically in the base station 6th takes place without manual cleaning on the part of the user being required for this, for example.

The base station 6th can also have a humidifier 9 have (cf. 2 ), which is designed, for example, as a spray or spray device, and via which a moistening or spraying of the cleaning rollers 7th or at least a part of the cleaning rollers 7th with cleaning fluid, in particular with fresh water. The base station 6th can do this with a fresh water tank 10 and a waste water tank 11 have, with over the fresh water tank 10 Cleaning fluid can be kept available for several cleaning processes, whereby the self-sufficient operation of the cleaning device 1 can be extended. In the waste water tank 11 the dirty water is collected, which consists of the original fresh water or cleaning fluid and that of the cleaning material 4th loosened dirt exists. The cleaning rollers 7th can run uniformly, i.e. all run in one direction, in which case the cleaning / mopping robot 2 Via a fixing device (not shown) on / in the base station 6th must be kept. To do this, all sections of the carrier material 4th , i.e. the drive / wiper chain 3 to be able to clean can with a uniform rotation of the cleaning rollers 7th blocking of the drive / wiper chains 3 or at least a braking of the same take place. When braking, there is a speed difference between the rotating cleaning rollers 7th and the cleaning / wiping chain, which rolls more slowly in comparison 3 , whereby all areas of the carrier material are gradually cleaned. Alternatively, of course, an alternating counter-rotating drive of the cleaning rollers is also possible 7th conceivable, so that there is always a cleaning roller 7th clockwise and the two neighboring ones counterclockwise. However, this would only result in a certain area of the cleaning material 4th on the drive / wiper chain 3 cleaned, so that this, for example by moving back and forth, or an intermediate uniform drive of the cleaning rollers 7th , would have to be moved. The invention also includes the base station 6th (see. 3 ) with the rotating cleaning rollers 7th and optionally a charging device 8th . The cleaning rollers 7th are in this case covered or provided with a microfibre covering and / or cleaning bristles, rubber bristles being particularly suitable.

The base station 6th can also use the fresh water tank 10 , the humidifier 9 as well as the waste water tank 11 include, as well as, of course, an electric drive device for driving the cleaning rollers 7th .

The cleaning / wiping robot according to the invention is also to be placed under protection 2 separately, with these two tank-like cleaning / wiping chains 3 each with a cleaning material 4th having. It is cleaned by driving over the floor area to be cleaned.

The cleaning device according to the invention generally works 1 as follows: First the cleaning / mopping robot moves 2 the base station 6th if, for example, a certain and predefined period of time has been exceeded, a charge status of a battery of the cleaning / mopping robot 2 , reaches or falls below a predefined limit value and / or a degree of soiling of the drive / wiper chains 3 or the cleaning material arranged thereon 4th exceeds a predefined degree of pollution. The cleaning / mopping robot 2 moves to the base station like this 6th that the cleaning material 4th the drive / cleaning chains 3 with the cleaning rollers 7th can get in touch. Then the cleaning material 4th on the drive / wiper chains 3 through the rotating cleaning rollers 7th cleaned. This is where the cleaning rollers 7th for example from the humidifier 9 moistened, especially sprayed or splashed with water.

Additionally or alternatively, the cleaning / wiping robot 2 in the base station 6th via the charging device 8th can also be charged, whereby a comparatively long operation that is optimized in terms of cleanability can be guaranteed. Of course, all sections of the cleaning material are thereby removed 4th cleaned. For example, the cleaning / wiping robot 2 on the cleaning rollers 7th move back and forth or these rotate uniformly and the drive / wiper chains 3 of the cleaning / mopping robot 2 are braked. That for cleaning the cleaning material 7th The required cleaning fluid, for example fresh water, is taken from the fresh water tank 10 taken, for example pumped via a pump not described in detail and then contaminated water via a collector to the waste water tank 11 fed and collected there. Are the drive / cleaning chains 3 cleaned and has the charge status of the battery of the cleaning / mopping robot 2 If a predefined limit value is reached or exceeded, this can start a new cleaning process.

All in all, with the cleaning device according to the invention 1 a high cleaning result with long, independent operation.

List of reference symbols

1

Cleaning facility

2

Cleaning / mopping robots

3

Drive / wiper chains

4th

Cleaning material

5

Carrier material

6

Base station

7th

Cleaning rollers

8th

Charging device

9

Humidifier

10

Fresh water tank

11

Waste water tank

Claims (10)

Cleaning device (1) with a self-propelled cleaning / mopping robot (2) for cleaning a floor with drive / mopping chains (3) which are at least partially covered with a cleaning material (4), characterized in that a base station (6) with rotatable Cleaning rollers (7) are provided, the cleaning / mopping robot (2) being able to be arranged in / on the base station (6) in such a way that the rotating cleaning rollers (7) clean the cleaning material (4) on the drive / mopping chains (3 ) of the self-propelled cleaning / mopping robot (2). Cleaning facility after Claim 1 , characterized in that the cleaning rollers (7) have a microfiber coating and / or cleaning bristles, in particular rubber bristles, and / or that the base station (6) has a charging device (8) for charging a battery of the cleaning / mopping robot (2). Cleaning facility after Claim 1 or 2 , characterized in that the base station (6) has a moistening device (9) for moistening the cleaning rollers (7), and / or that the cleaning rollers (7) can be driven uniformly or alternately in opposite directions. Cleaning device according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the base station (6) has a fresh water tank (10) and a waste water tank (11). Base station of a cleaning device according to one of the preceding claims with rotatable cleaning rollers (7) for cleaning cleaning material (4) on drive / wiping chains (3) of a self-propelled cleaning / wiping robot (2). Base station after Claim 5 , characterized in that the cleaning rollers (7) have a microfiber coating and / or cleaning bristles, in particular rubber bristles. Base station after Claim 5 or 6th , characterized in that the base station (6) has a charging device (8) for charging a battery of the cleaning / mopping robot (2), and / or that the base station (6) has a moistening device (9) for moistening the cleaning rollers (7) and / or that the cleaning rollers (7) can be driven uniformly or alternately in opposite directions. Base station after one of the Claims 5 to 7th , characterized in that the base station (6) has a fresh water tank (10) and a waste water tank (11). Operating method of a cleaning device (1) according to one of the Claims 1 to 4th , in which the cleaning / mopping robot (2) moves to the base station (6) if a certain time has been exceeded, a charge level of a battery of the cleaning / mopping robot (2) reaches or falls below a predefined limit value or a degree of soiling of the cleaning material (4 ) on the drive / mopping chains (3) of the cleaning / mopping robot (2) exceeds a predefined degree of soiling, and there its drive / mopping chains (3) are cleaned by means of the rotating cleaning rollers (7). Procedure according to Claim 9 , characterized in that the cleaning / wiping robot (2) is charged in the base station (6) via a charging device (8).

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