JP2019083871A - Cleaner system - Google Patents

Abstract

To remotely transmit a command to temporarily clean a cleaning area in the vicinity of an autonomously travelling type cleaner.SOLUTION: A cleaner system that is autonomously driven for a cleaning operation includes an autonomously travelling type cleaner capable of receiving an area cleaning command signal and a remote controller. The remote controller can remotely transmit the area cleaning command signal to the autonomously travelling type cleaner. Upon receipt of the area cleaning command signal, the autonomously travelling type cleaner executes an area cleaning operation for cleaning the periphery of a point for which the area cleaning command signal is received.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 15

Description

  The present invention relates to an autonomously traveling vacuum cleaner and a vacuum cleaner system including a remote control thereof.

As an autonomous running type vacuum cleaner which cleans a room while moving indoors, the thing of patent documents 1 is known, and it is supposed that the refuse of garbage concentration place 22 is cleaned completely (0042, Drawing 6).
The autonomous running type vacuum cleaner which can not recognize the refuse on the floor surface (forward) of the path like the patent document 1 drives and passes the area where the refuse is deposited in the same manner as the normal area. There are times when
According to Patent Document 1, although a dust sensor for detecting the amount of dust sucked is provided, since there is a time difference between suction and detection, when it can be detected, it has already passed by the area where dust has accumulated. May be As shown in FIG. 14, the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner is often performed at home, and when such an operation is performed under the supervision of the user, there is a possibility that the user's complaint may be raised.

JP 2004-254735 A

  The area in which the waste is concentrated is not limited to the area that the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner S passes only once, and is not limited to the area that can be removed. There is a possibility that it is too narrow.

  In addition, if cleaning of such a dust concentration place is performed only while driving autonomously, and the user can not specify and execute it, the user will not be able to execute the operation intended by the user, which is dissatisfied. There is a risk of giving

  Also, even if the user is given a command to clean the narrow area intensively, if it is necessary to transport the autonomous vacuum cleaner at rest to the vicinity of the dust concentration place, use it. It takes time for the person.

  The present invention made in view of the above circumstances is a cleaner system having an autonomous traveling type cleaner capable of autonomously driving to execute a cleaning operation and capable of receiving an area cleaning command signal, and a remote control. The remote control can remotely transmit the area cleaning command signal to the autonomous traveling type vacuum cleaner, and when the autonomous traveling type vacuum cleaner receives the area cleaning command signal, a point around the area cleaning command signal is received. An area cleaning operation to be cleaned is performed.

The perspective view which looked at the autonomous running vacuum cleaner of the embodiment of the present invention from the left front. The bottom view of the self-propelled cleaner of an embodiment. AA sectional drawing of FIG. The perspective view which shows the internal structure which removed the case of the autonomous running vacuum cleaner of embodiment. The traveling locus of the autonomous running type vacuum cleaner at the time of cleaning of an embodiment. The figure which shows the detailed operation | movement of the in-situ rotation of embodiment. The figure which shows the speed change of the right wheel in in-situ rotation of embodiment. The figure which shows the turning operation of embodiment. The figure which shows the detailed operation | movement of turning of embodiment. The figure which shows the speed change of the right wheel in turning of embodiment. The traveling locus of the autonomous traveling type vacuum cleaner at the time of traveling by the wall of the embodiment. The figure which shows the detail of traveling by the wall of embodiment. The figure which shows the speed change of the left wheel in turning of embodiment. Use scene of the autonomous traveling type vacuum cleaner. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The top view which shows the external appearance of the remote control of embodiment. (A) The figure which shows the operation | movement which cleans | cleans any cleaning area | region from a halt condition of embodiment, The figure which shows the operation | movement which cleans | cleans an arbitrary cleaning area | region from the autonomous drive state.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the attached drawings. FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an autonomously traveling vacuum cleaner according to an embodiment of the present invention as viewed from the left front. FIG. 2 is a bottom view of the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner of the embodiment. Among the directions in which the autonomously traveling vacuum cleaner S advances, the direction in which the autonomously traveling vacuum cleaner S normally travels is forward, the vertically upward direction is upward, the direction in which the drive wheels 2 and 3 are opposite, and the drive wheel 2 side is left And the drive wheel 3 side is right. That is, as shown in FIG.

  The autonomously traveling vacuum cleaner S is an electric device that automatically cleans a predetermined cleaning area (for example, floor Y of a room) while autonomously moving it. The autonomously traveling vacuum cleaner S includes a case 1 (1 u, 1 s) forming an outer shell, and a pair of lower drive wheels 2 and 3 and an auxiliary wheel 4. In addition, the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner S includes the rotary brush 5, the guide brush 6, and the side brush 7 at the lower part, and the distance measuring sensor 8 for front as an obstacle detection means (see FIGS. 2, 3 and 4). ).

  The driving wheels 2 and 3 are wheels that move the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner S forward, backward, and swivel. The drive wheels 2 and 3 are disposed on the left and right ends, respectively, and are rotationally driven by wheel units 20 and 30 each configured of a traveling motor and a reduction gear. The auxiliary wheel 4 is a driven wheel and is a freely rotating caster. The driving wheels 2 and 3 are provided on the center side in the front-rear direction of the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner S and on the outside in the left-right direction, and the auxiliary wheel 4 is provided on the front side in the front-rear direction and at the center side in the left-right direction .

  The side brush 7 is provided on the front side of the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner S and on the outer side in the left and right direction. As shown by the arrow α1 in FIG. 1, the front outer region of the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner S is To sweep in a direction from the inside to collect dust on the floor surface on the central rotating brush 5 (see FIG. 2) side. The two guide brushes 6 are provided on the inner sides in the left-right direction with respect to the drive wheels 2 and 3 respectively, and guide the dust collected by the side brushes 7 so as not to escape from the width of the rotating brush 5 to the outside It is a brush. The rotating brush 5 is provided behind the drive wheels 2 and 3 of the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner S.

  FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA of FIG. FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing an internal configuration in which the case of the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner is removed, and shows a state in which the dust collection case 12 is removed.

  The autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner S internally includes a rechargeable battery 9, a control device 10, a suction fan 11, and a dust collection case 12. The dust collection case 12 has a suction port 12i formed above the rotary brush 5 as an inlet, and a dust sensor (not shown) is provided in this part. Further, the dust collection case 12 has a dust collection filter 13 attached to the outlet. The dust sensor can detect the amount of dust passing through the suction port 12i.

  The rechargeable battery 9 is, for example, a rechargeable secondary battery which can be reused by charging, and is accommodated in the battery accommodating portion 1s6. The power from the rechargeable battery 9 is supplied to various obstacle detection means (8, 15, 16), the control device 10, the motors of the drive wheels 2, 3 and the various brushes (5, 7) and the suction fan 11 etc. . The autonomously traveling vacuum cleaner S is generally controlled by the control device 10.

(Suction fan 11)
As shown in FIG. 4, the suction fan 11 is disposed near the center of the lower case 1s. In the air flow path by the suction fan 11, the dust collection case 12, the dust collection filter 13, the suction fan 11, and the exhaust port 1s5 (see FIG. 2) in order from the suction port 14 (see FIG. 3) toward the downstream side. Is provided. The exhaust port 1s5 is provided in front of the rotary brush 5 and inward in the left-right direction of the drive wheels 2 and 3. By driving the suction fan 11 (see FIG. 3), the air in the dust collection case 12 is discharged from the exhaust port 1s5 to the outside to generate a negative pressure, and dust is collected from the floor surface Y through the suction port 14 Inhale into the 12th.

  In the vicinity of the suction port 14, a rotating brush 5 (see FIG. 3) for scraping dust on the floor surface is provided. When the suction fan 11 and the rotary brush motor 5m (see FIG. 4) are driven, dust such as a floor surface is scraped by the rotary brush 5 (see FIG. 3). The scraped dust is introduced into the dust collection case 12 through the suction port 14 and the suction port 12i. The air from which dust has been removed by the dust collection filter 13 is exhausted through the exhaust port 1s5 (see FIG. 2). The dust collection case 12 is removable by opening a lid 1 u 1 (see FIG. 1) provided on the upper case 1 u, and the dust collection filter 13 is removed to discard dust.

(Operation outline of the autonomous traveling type vacuum cleaner S)
The autonomously traveling vacuum cleaner S is autonomously moved by the driving wheels 2 and 3 and the auxiliary wheel 4 (see FIG. 2), and can move forward, reverse, turn left and right, turn around a super low turn, and the like. The autonomously traveling vacuum cleaner S collects dust collected by the side brush 7 and the guide brush 6 and adheres around the rotating brush 5 to the dust collection case by the suction force of the suction fan 11 through the suction port 14. The air is sucked into the dust collection case 12 from the suction port 12i at the inlet 12 and retained in the dust collection case 12 by the dust collection filter 13 at the outlet.

  When dust is accumulated in the dust collection case 12, the user appropriately takes out the dust collection case 12 from the main body portion Sh, the dust collection filter 13 is removed, and the dust is discarded.

(Case 1)
The case 1 is a case which forms an outer shell and accommodates the wheel units 20 and 30, the rotating brush motor 5m, the suction fan 11, the dust collection case 12, the control device 10 and the like.

  The case 1 includes an upper case 1 u forming an upper wall, a lower case 1 s forming a bottom wall (and a partial side wall), and a bumper 1 b installed at the front lower portion of the case 1.

  The wheel units 20 and 30 in which the drive wheels 2 and 3 are supported and driven are accommodated in the wheel unit accommodation portion 1s1. A light guide tube 103 that receives an infrared signal from the remote control 101 and guides the signal to the light receiving element 102 is disposed on the upper surface of the upper case 1 u, and the signal received by the light receiving element 102 is input to the control device 10.

(Operation button Bu)
The operation button Bu includes a start button for instructing start / stop of the operation of the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner S, a cleaning mode button for selecting a cleaning mode, a reservation button for making a reservation, etc., and can instruct the operation of the main body.

(Suction part 1s4)
The suction portion 1 s 4 shown in FIG. 3 forms a part of a flow path of air including dust to be sucked by the suction fan 11. The flow passage downstream from the suction portion 1s4 communicates with the dust collection case 12, the dust collection filter 13, the suction fan 11, and the exhaust port 1s5 (see FIG. 2) in order.

  The rotary brush 5 for scraping dust is disposed in the suction portion 1s4, and a rotary brush motor 5m (see FIG. 4) for driving the rotary brush 5 is fixed. The suction portion 1 s 4 is formed with a suction port 14 for sucking the dust scraped by the rotating brush 5 into the dust collection case 12. The rotary brush 5 (see FIG. 2) has substantially the same length as the suction portion 1s4.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the suction port 14 communicates with the suction port 12 i of the opening of the dust collection case 12, and dust is collected in the dust collection case 12 via the suction port 14 and the suction port 12 i. In the suction portion 1s4, a rotary brush housing portion 14b for housing the rotary brush 5 is formed in the lower case 1s, and the above-described rotary brush 5 is disposed in the rotary brush housing portion 14b. The rotating brush 5 is rotatably attached to the suction portion 1s4. The rotating brush 5 is removably attached to the suction portion 1s4.

(Dust collection case 12)
The dust collection case 12 shown in FIG. 3 is a container for collecting the dust sucked from the floor surface Y via the suction port 14 formed in the suction portion 1s4. The dust collection case 12 has substantially the same horizontal dimension as the rotating brush 5.

(Obstacle detection means 8, 15, 16)
As an obstacle detection means, a bumper sensor 15 shown in FIG. 4, a distance measuring sensor 8 for the front, and a distance measuring sensor 16 for the floor are provided. The bumper sensor 15 is a sensor that detects that the bumper 1b (see FIG. 1) has come into contact with an obstacle by the backward movement of the bumper 1b.

  The front distance measuring sensor 8 is a distance measuring sensor that measures the distance to an obstacle using infrared light, and is installed 5 to 15 mm inside from the surface of the bumper 1 b. The vicinity of the distance measurement sensor 8 of the bumper 1b is formed of resin or glass which transmits infrared light.

  The front distance measuring sensor 8 detects reflected light of infrared light from an obstacle, and measures distance based on the intensity of the reflected light. If the intensity of the reflected light is strong, it is determined that it is near, and if it is weak, it is far. That is, the distance from the obstacle is not determined by a binary value of 0 or 1, and it is a distance measuring sensor capable of determining the distance from the obstacle in multiple stages (analogically).

  A total of five front distance measuring sensors 8 such as the front surface 8a, left side 8b, right side 8c, left front 8d between the front and left side, and right front 8e between the front and right side are provided. There is. In this embodiment, the distance measuring sensor can measure all five "distances" at a plurality of steps, but at least one of the left side surface 8b and the right side surface 8c can measure "distances" at a plurality of steps. It may be a distance sensor.

(Remote control 101)
FIG. 15 is a front view of the remote control 101 that outputs a control signal that can be interpreted by the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner S of the present embodiment. The remote control 101 includes an infrared light emitting unit 201, a mode selection button 202 for selecting the cleaning mode of the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner S, a start button 203 for starting and stopping the operation, and an advancing button 204 for instructing the advancing operation. , A right rotation button 205 for instructing a right rotation, a left rotation button 206 for instructing a left rotation, a home button 207 for returning to a charging stand, and an area cleaning button 208 for spirally cleaning around the place where the button is pressed. Are arranged, and pressing each button emits an infrared signal of a determined pattern.

(Control device 10)
The control device 10 illustrated in FIG. 3 is configured by mounting, for example, a microcomputer (Microcomputer) and peripheral circuits on a substrate. The microcomputer reads out a control program stored in a ROM (Read Only Memory), expands it in a RAM (Random Access Memory), and is executed by a CPU (Central Processing Unit) to realize various processing. The peripheral circuit includes an A / D / D / A converter, drive circuits of various motors, a sensor circuit, a charging circuit of the rechargeable battery 9, and the like.

  The control device 10 executes arithmetic processing in accordance with the operation of the operation button bu by the user and signals input from various obstacle detection means (sensors 8, 15, 16), and various motors, suction fans 11, etc. Input and output signals.

  FIG. 5 shows an example of a running track at the time of cleaning. The autonomously traveling vacuum cleaner S starts moving by operating the operation button Bu, and travels in the room 50. The room 50 is surrounded by a wall 51, and there is a desk on the lower left side thereof, and the desk leg 55 is shown in FIG. A dotted line 52 in the room 50 indicates a traveling locus.

  The reflection travel is travel in which the traveling direction is changed when an obstacle is detected by the front distance measurement sensor 8 or the bumper sensor 15. The autonomously traveling vacuum cleaner S departs from P1 in the figure, and when it approaches the wall 51b of the room 50 which is an obstacle (P2), the traveling direction is changed by rotating counterclockwise on the spot (turning on the ground). , Indicates a traveling locus as if reflecting by the wall 51b.

  After that, as the wall 51 is approached, the action of changing the traveling direction (the angle of the in-situ rotation is changed randomly) is repeated and approaches the desk leg 55a (P3). If it is determined that the obstacle is a thin (small) obstacle like the desk leg 55a, the main body is pivoted so as to go around the place very close to the obstacle, and the tip of the obstacle is further cleaned.

Then, it approaches the wall 51c, changes the traveling direction, approaches the wall 51a, changes the traveling direction, and approaches the desk leg 55c (P4). If it is determined that the obstacle is a thin (small) obstacle such as the desk leg 55c, the main body is moved so as to make one or more rounds in the vicinity of the obstacle.
In the above, the turning distance (angle) is different between the case of approaching the desk leg 55a and the case of approaching 55c, but in the present embodiment, it is randomly changed, but the detection frequency of thin obstacles The turning distance may be changed. When there are many narrow obstacles, for example, there are multiple chairs under the table, it is preferable to have a long swiveling distance to clean the dirt around the legs of the chairs.

  As described above, the autonomously traveling vacuum cleaner S rotates on the spot and turns around the obstacle, as well as going straight. The detailed operation when rotating on the spot is shown in FIG. FIG. 6 shows the autonomously traveling vacuum cleaner S in a simplified manner, showing only the main body Sh, the right driving wheel 2 and the left driving wheel 3, and P11 shows the front end (head) of the main body Sh. Further, the broken line in the figure indicates the wheel position after the main body Sh rotates in place, and P12 indicates the position of the head of the main body after movement. FIG. 6 shows the case where the right wheel 2 is rotated in place counterclockwise, and the right wheel 2 is rotated forward and the left wheel 3 is rotated backward at substantially the same angular velocity. By making the angular velocity of the wheel at the time of rotation faster than the angular velocity of the wheel at the time of going straight, the rotational speed of the main body is increased to rotate in a short time.

  Specifically, FIG. 7 shows a change in angular velocity of the wheel (right side). The moving speed when going straight is 300 mm / s, and both the left and right wheels 2, 3 are rotating forward at about 510 deg / s (L1) (wheel diameter 68 mm), but when rotating the right wheel 2 is facing forward To about 630 deg / s (L2), and the left wheel 3 is rotated backward at about 630 deg / s. The angular velocity of the wheel during rotation is approximately 1.2 times the angular velocity during straight ahead. Also, as the movement of the main body Sh, the moving speed of the main body head P11 is also moving faster than when going straight, and becomes about 550 mm / s when rotating.

  Thus, time can be shortened by making the wheel speed at the time of rotation approximately equal to or faster than the angular velocity of the wheel at the time of going straight. If the angular velocity of the wheel at the time of in-situ rotation is decelerated from the angular velocity of the wheel at the time of straight traveling, for example, when decelerating 35%, the time required to rotate the main body 150 degrees is about 1.2 seconds. When the angular velocity of the wheel is increased as in the embodiment, it takes about 0.6 seconds, and the time of about 0.6 seconds can be shortened. The number of reflections during one cleaning operation by the autonomously traveling vacuum cleaner S is about 200, and the travel distance can be increased by about 36 m.

  Note that as shown in FIG. 7, the angular velocity during straight running and in-situ rotation is not constant depending on the condition of the floor surface, etc., and when going straight with time L1a to L1b, and during in-situ rotation L2a to L2b. The angular velocity L2b at the time of in-situ rotation is at least higher than L1a.

  Next, the angular velocity of the turning wheel will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 8 shows an operation of moving around an obstacle 61 narrower than the main body width as an example of the turning operation. First, the main body approaches or contacts the obstacle 61 (solid line Sh1 in FIG. 8), and it is confirmed by the distance measurement sensor 8 and / or the bumper sensor 15 whether the obstacle 61 is on the left or right of the main body Sh1. In FIG. 8, it is on the left side of the main body Sh1, and in that case, it is rotated in place clockwise (arrow A). At this time, while monitoring the distance measuring sensor 8, the obstacle 61 is rotated in place until the obstacle 61 is located on the side of the main body. Then, it turns counterclockwise about a point outside the outer periphery of the main body as a rotation center (arrow B).

  FIG. 9 shows the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner S at the time of turning in a simplified manner, showing only the main body Sh, the right driving wheel 2 and the left driving wheel 3 and P21 showing the front end (head) of the main body Sh There is. Further, the broken line in the figure indicates the main body and the wheel position after turning, and P22 indicates the position of the head of the main body Sh after movement. When turning counterclockwise, the left and right wheels are rotated forward, but the right wheel 2 is rotated at a higher angular velocity than the left wheel 3.

  The distance to the obstacle is grasped by the distance measuring sensor 8 provided on the side surface of the main body, the turning radius (turning radius) R at the time of turning is determined, and the angular velocity of the left and right wheels is controlled based on the turning radius. At this time, the turning radius R is set so that the gap between the obstacle 61 and the outer surface of the main body Sh is about 5 mm.

  When turning based on the turning radius R, the time required for turning is shortened by making the angular velocity of the wheel opposite to the turning direction (right wheel 2 in FIG. 9) faster than the angular velocity of the right wheel when going straight. Let Specifically, the moving speed at the head of the main body at the time of turning is made substantially equal to or faster than the moving speed at the head of the main body at the time of straight movement. The moving speed at the head of the main body at the time of turning was set to 320 mm / s while the moving speed at the head of the main body at the time of straight traveling was 300 mm / s. The distance from the rotation center O to the wheel on the opposite side to the turning direction (right wheel 2) is almost the same as or slightly shorter than the distance from the rotation center O to the head P21, and the moving speed of the right wheel 2 is also about 320 mm / s It is.

The change of the angular velocity of the wheel 2 on the right side is shown in FIG. The angular velocity of the right wheel 2 at the time of turning is rotated at about 540 deg / s (L4) (wheel diameter 68 mm), and is faster than the angular velocity of the wheel at about 510 deg / s (L1) when traveling straight.
In addition, as shown in FIG. 10, the angular velocities at the time of going straight and turning are not constant depending on the state of the floor surface, etc., and go up and down in the range of L1a to L1b when going straight and L4a to L4b at the time of turning, The angular velocity L4b at the time of turning is at least higher than L1a.
However, as in the present embodiment, when the moving speed of the main body Sh is increased at the time of in-situ rotation and turning, if the obstacle contacts with the obstacle, there is a possibility that the obstacle may give a large impact. Therefore, it is desirable to detect an obstacle in the vicinity of the main body Sh using the distance measuring sensor 8 provided from the front to the side of the main body Sh. When the main body approaches an obstacle during in-situ rotation and turning, it can be stopped or decelerated so that it does not touch the obstacle or weakens the impact at the time of contact.

Although the case where the left and right wheels rotate in the forward direction is described as the turning operation in the present embodiment, the same applies to turning with one of the wheels stopped and turning with one side being slowly reversed.
In addition, as operation | movement at the time of turning, you may turn with a predetermined | prescribed rotation radius, without grasping | ascertaining the distance to an obstruction with the ranging sensor 8 provided in the side of the main body. In addition, as the operation at the time of turning, while the distance to the obstacle is grasped from time to time by the distance measuring sensor provided on the side surface of the main body, turning may be performed while changing the turning radius each time.

  After the reflection traveling is performed a plurality of times, traveling along the wall moving along the wall 51 as shown in FIG. 11 is performed. The detailed operation is shown in FIG. For traveling on the wall, the vehicle travels so as to maintain a distance of about 10 mm from the wall 51 using a distance measuring sensor 8 provided on the side of the main body. The moving speed of the main body Sh at the time of traveling on the wall is made substantially equal to or faster than the speed at the time of straight traveling during reflection traveling.

  The ideal for traveling by the wall is to go straight in parallel with the wall 51 as shown by the broken line C in FIG. 12, but in practice it approaches or separates from the wall 51 as shown by the solid arrow line D in FIG. It is meandering. This is because the distance to the wall 51 is measured by the distance measurement sensor 8, and travel control is performed so as to move away from the wall 51 so as to move away from the wall 51. When approaching the wall 51 or moving away from the wall 51, the angular velocities of the left and right wheels 2 and 3 are made different. When the main body Sh is brought close to the left wall 51 of the main body Sh, the angular velocity of the right wheel 2 is made faster than the angular velocity of the left wheel 3. When the body Sh is moved away from the wall 51, the angular velocity of the left wheel 3 is made faster than the angular velocity of the right wheel 2.

  FIG. 13 shows the change in angular velocity of the left wheel 3. When the body Sh goes straight at 300 mm / s, the left and right wheels 2 and 3 both rotate forward at about 510 deg / s (L1). When it moves to the vicinity of the wall 51, the rotation of the left and right wheels 2 and 3 is stopped, and then it is rotated there to turn the wall 51 and the main body advancing direction substantially parallel. From that state, it will move to the wall.

  While traveling near the wall, when the main body Sh is separated from the wall 51 by about 10 mm which is the target value, the left and right wheels 2 and 3 are both rotated forward at about 510 deg / s (V1 in FIG. 13). If it is slightly closer than 10 mm from the wall (if 5 mm or more and less than 10 mm from the wall), rotate the angular velocity of the right wheel 2 at 495 deg / s and the angular velocity of the left wheel 3 at 525 deg / s (V2 in FIG. 13) Gently move away from the wall 51 with a turning radius of about 1500 mm. The moving speed at the beginning of the main body Sh at this time is about 300 mm / s, which is almost the same speed as when traveling straight.

  If the angular velocity of the right wheel 2 is 525 deg / s and the angular velocity of the left wheel 3 is 495 deg / s (V3 in FIG. 13), the wall 51 is gently moved to a wall 51 of about 1500 mm. Get close. Also in this case, the moving speed at the beginning of the main body Sh is about 300 mm / s, which is substantially the same as when traveling straight.

  If it is closer to the wall 51 (if it is less than 5 mm from the wall), the angular velocity of the right wheel 2 is rotated at 440 deg / s, and the angular velocity of the left wheel 3 is rotated at 580 deg / s (V4 in FIG. 13). Rapidly move away from the wall 51 by about 300 mm. The moving speed at the beginning of the main body Sh at this time is about 330 mm / s, which is higher than when traveling straight.

Thus, by controlling the distance from the wall to be constant, by setting the angular velocity of at least one of the wheels at the time of turning at the time of traveling at the wall higher than at the time of going straight, It can be moved. As a result, it is possible to travel without lowering the speed than when going straight, and it is possible to prevent the traveling distance from being shortened and to reduce the area of the non-passed area.
In addition, by using the distance measuring sensor 8 as described above and changing the operation (turning radius) according to the distance between the wall 51 and the main body Sh, it is possible to prevent contact with the wall even when traveling at high speed. Can.
Moreover, although the autonomous running type vacuum cleaner of this embodiment was shown by substantially circular shape, it may not be substantially circular.

  As described above, the traveling distance can be increased by making the angular velocity of at least one of the wheels during in-situ rotation, turning, or traveling around a wall substantially equal to or higher than the angular velocity of the wheels when traveling straight. A large area can be cleaned and the area of the non-passing area can be reduced.

  The operation of the remote control 101 will be described. While the remote control 101 is stopped, the cleaning mode can be selected by the mode button 202, and by pressing the start button 203, autonomous driving can be started. Further, when the home button is pressed, the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner S starts the return operation to the charging stand regardless of the operating state.

  When the forward button 204, the right turn button 205, and the left turn button 206 are pressed while stopped, the autonomously traveling vacuum cleaner S manually drives to input a large input, which is about six times as large as that of the autonomous drive, into the fan motor. The traveling speed is reduced to about 200 mm / s, making it easier for the user to remove dust than usual during remote control operation and to make the operation easier.

  When the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner S receives a signal corresponding to the forward movement button 204, the right rotation button 205, and the left rotation button 206 during autonomous driving, the traveling speed is reduced to 200 mm / s while the suction force of normal traveling is maintained. Become. This makes it easier for the user to operate the remote control. When the forward button 204, the right rotation button 205, and the left rotation button 206 are pressed again during deceleration, the original autonomous drive is restored. In addition, when the autonomous vacuum cleaner S receives signals corresponding to the buttons 204 to 206 during stoppage, manual drive is performed to perform an operation corresponding to the signals, that is, forward, right rotation, or left rotation.

When the area cleaning button 208 is pressed while the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner S is stopped or manually driven, an operation as shown in FIG. 16A is performed. Specifically, it is as follows.
(1) Move forward or a predetermined distance beyond the area to be cleaned with dust.
(2) Turn right.
(3) While drawing a spiral of right rotation about the midpoint of the path advanced in the cleaning area or (1), gradually reduce the radius.
(4) Move forward again.
(5) left turn.
(6) While drawing a spiral of left rotation about the midpoint of the route advanced in the cleaning area or (4), gradually reduce the radius.
(7) Cleaning end (stop).

  Regarding (1), whether or not it exceeds the cleaning area with waste, for example, it is detected that the detection value of the waste sensor exceeds the threshold and then falls below the threshold, a predetermined time has passed since the threshold is exceeded And the like. The predetermined distance can be, for example, 50 cm or 1 m or more, 1.5 m or 1 m or less.

  In each of (3) and (6), the trajectory of the spiral is not limited to the spiral shape in which the diameter decreases, and may be a spiral shape that increases in size, a spiral shape on a polygon, or the like. Moreover, it is preferable that the total rotation angle (turning angle) is 360 degrees or more. For example, when two turns are performed, the turning angle is 720 °.

  The rotational directions of (2) and (3) and (5) and (6) may be opposite to each other. In addition, (4) to (6) may not be performed.

  In this way, the user places the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner S at the back of the area where the user wants to clean so as to face the area where the user wants to clean, or the area behind or on the area where the user wants to clean manually. By operating the cleaning button 208, the entire surrounding cleaning area can be cleaned. Furthermore, in the operation from stop or manual drive, the suction force is set to about 6 times that during autonomous drive, and the movement speed is reduced to 200 mm / s to ensure that dust can be removed .

In addition, when the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner S receives a signal corresponding to the area cleaning button 208 during autonomous driving of the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner S, an operation as shown in FIG. 16B is performed. Specifically, it is as follows.
(1 ') Go forward with the course just before signal reception. The advancing distance can be shorter, for example, half, than the advancing distance when the autonomous vacuum cleaner S receives a signal corresponding to the area cleaning button 209 at the time of stop or manual driving.
(2) Turn right.
(3) The radius is gradually decreased while drawing a spiral of right rotation centering on the cleaning target area or the middle point of the route advanced in (1).
(4) Move forward again.
(5) left turn.
(6) While drawing a spiral of left rotation about the midpoint of the route advanced in the cleaning area or (4), gradually reduce the radius.
(7 ') Return to autonomous drive.

  As a result, it is possible to clean the entire surrounding cleaning area around the position where the user presses the area cleaning button 209 during autonomous driving. In addition, since it generates continuously from the autonomous drive, the suction force is the same as the autonomous drive, and it is an operation that can effectively remove dust by lowering only the moving speed to 200 mm / s, and automatically after the operation is completed. Return to autonomous driving.

  If an obstacle is detected during (3) or (6) execution, the route may be reversed by, for example, reversing 180 degrees, and a spiral in the reverse direction may be drawn.

  It is possible to select whether to autonomously drive the autonomously traveling vacuum cleaner S or manual drive driven by an operation by the user by the remote control 101. For example, it can be autonomously driven by giving a signal corresponding to the start button 203 while the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner S is stopped, and corresponds to the forward button 204, the right rotation button 205, the left rotation button 206, or the area cleaning button 208 Can be driven manually by providing a signal to According to the present embodiment, it is possible to effectively clean the area in which the dust is deposited by giving a signal corresponding to the area cleaning button 208 even during autonomous driving, stopping or manual driving.

Note that the remote control 101 may be replaced by the infrared light emitting unit 201, and a signal may be given to the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner via a LAN or the like, and a smartphone may be used instead of the remote control 101.
In addition, a button that emits the same control signal as the area cleaning button 209 may be disposed on the autonomously traveling vacuum cleaner S main body Sh.
Moreover, the radius of the outermost circumference of the spiral or the turn during the area cleaning operation is, for example, the forward movement (the above (1) or (4)) performed before or immediately before the instruction regardless of which timing it is received. It can be approximately the same as the distance.

2, 3 Drive wheel 5 Rotating brush 8 Front distance measuring sensor (obstacle detection means)
9 rechargeable battery 11 suction fan 12 dust collection case 14 suction port 15 bumper sensor (obstacle detection means)
16 Floor Range Ranging Sensor (Obstacle Detection Means)
S Autonomous running type vacuum cleaner Sh body (non-rotating part, vehicle body)
101 remote control 102 light receiving element 103 light guide tube 104 control unit 201 infrared light emitting unit 202 mode button 203 start button 204 forward button 205 right rotation button 206 left rotation button 207 home button 208 area cleaning button

Claims (8)

It can be driven autonomously to perform the cleaning operation,
An autonomously traveling vacuum cleaner capable of receiving an area cleaning command signal,
A vacuum cleaner system having a remote control;
The remote control can remotely transmit the area cleaning command signal to the autonomously traveling vacuum cleaner.
When the autonomous traveling type vacuum cleaner receives the area cleaning command signal, an area cleaning operation is performed to clean the surroundings of the point where the area cleaning command signal is received.   The vacuum cleaner system according to claim 1, wherein the area cleaning operation includes an area step moving on a spiral or spiral trajectory. Has a waste sensor that can detect the amount of waste,
When the area cleaning command signal is received, and the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner is in the autonomous driving mode or the manual driving mode, the area cleaning operation maintains the path immediately before the area cleaning command signal is received, 3. A vacuum cleaner system according to claim 2, including the step of advancing a predetermined distance or advancing beyond a dusty cleaning area.   The area cleaning operation performs the area step after the advancing step, and performs the area step after the advancing step, and the turning directions of the two area steps are different from each other. The vacuum cleaner system according to Item 3. Optionally, the main body of the autonomously traveling vacuum cleaner is provided with a button or switch for generating an instruction to start the area cleaning operation,
When the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner at rest receives the area cleaning command signal, it performs an area cleaning operation including the step of advancing a long distance as compared with the case where it is received during the autonomous driving. The vacuum cleaner system according to claim 3 or 4.   When the area cleaning operation is performed by receiving the area operation command signal during the autonomous driving, the advancing distance in the advancing step is substantially the same as the radius of the outermost circumference of the spiral or spiral trajectory. The vacuum cleaner system according to any one of claims 3 to 5, wherein   When the area cleaning operation is performed by receiving the area cleaning command signal during the autonomous driving or the manual driving, the autonomous driving or the manual driving is resumed after the area cleaning operation is completed. The vacuum cleaner system according to any one of claims 1 to 6.   The cleaner system according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the remote controller can output a command to reduce the speed of the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner being driven.

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