JP5957407B2 - Autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an autonomously traveling vacuum cleaner that autonomously travels.

  An autonomous traveling type vacuum cleaner is a vacuum cleaner to which a drive device is added, and performs cleaning while autonomously moving in a cleaning area. Various controls have been proposed as autonomous running control that evenly covers the cleaning region, and various methods have been proposed as a cleaning method near the wall and a cleaning method at the corner where two wall surfaces intersect.

  For example, in paragraph 0049 and FIG. 8 of Patent Document 1, a mechanism may be attached in which the arm extends and contracts so that the brush reaches the corner and is scraped with the brush. A vacuum cleaner is described that performs control such that the arm extends to the maximum at the central time.

JP 2006-26028 A

  However, in the case of Patent Document 1, when an obstacle is detected and the traveling direction is changed, an arm protruding from the autonomous mobile vacuum cleaner main body may contact the obstacle or be caught by the obstacle. Also, when changing the direction of travel at the corner where the two wall surfaces intersect, it is necessary to rotate the body at a position far from the corner to prevent contact with the wall, and eventually the rotating brush at the end of the arm reaches the corner. Therefore, the corner cannot be properly cleaned (see FIG. 8B of Patent Document 1). As a proposal to avoid such a problem, a method of extending and retracting an arm that supports a brush when cleaning the corner may be considered. However, in this case, an arm expansion and contraction mechanism is required and the structure becomes complicated. In addition, control for extending the arm in accordance with the rotation operation of the main body is required, and the control is complicated.

  Therefore, the present invention provides an autonomous traveling type vacuum cleaner that can clean corners without providing a complicated mechanism or performing complicated control.

In order to solve the above-mentioned problem, in the autonomous traveling type vacuum cleaner according to claim 1, a substantially disc-shaped main body, a suction port provided on the bottom surface of the main body for collecting dust on the floor surface, and the suction port on the bottom surface of the main body A left driving wheel and a right driving wheel that are independently driven, obstacle detecting means for detecting obstacles around the main body, and provided on the bottom surface of the main body in front of the left and right driving wheels. A first brush for guiding dust outside the main body to the suction port by rotational driving, and a bottom surface of the main body on the rear side of the left and right driving wheels. A second brush having a length reaching the intersection of the straight lines, the left and right drive wheels, and a control circuit for controlling the first brush are provided.

The autonomously traveling vacuum cleaner according to claim 5 is provided with a substantially disc-shaped main body, a suction port provided on the bottom surface of the main body, for collecting dust on the floor surface, and provided behind the suction port, each independently. Left driving wheel and right driving wheel to be driven, obstacle detection means for detecting obstacles around the main body, and provided on the bottom surface of the main body in front of the left and right driving wheels, and to the outside of the main body by rotational driving A brush for guiding dust to the suction mouth, the left and right drive wheels, and a control circuit for controlling the brush, the brush being in contact with the main body and reaching an intersection of two straight lines perpendicular to each other The control circuit controls the left and right drive wheels so that the main body alternately rotates or swings clockwise and counterclockwise at a corner where two wall surfaces intersect. .

Furthermore, in the autonomous traveling type vacuum cleaner according to claim 8, a substantially disc-shaped main body, a suction port that is provided on the bottom surface of the main body and collects dust on the floor surface, and an electric blower that generates suction force at the suction port; , An exhaust port for exhausting the exhaust of the electric blower, a left drive wheel and a right drive wheel that are provided behind the intake port and are independently driven, and an obstacle detection unit that detects an obstacle around the body A brush that is provided on the bottom surface of the main body in front of the left and right drive wheels and that guides dust outside the main body to the suction port by rotational drive, the left and right drive wheels, and a control circuit that controls the brush And when the corner where the two wall surfaces intersect each other is cleaned, the control circuit rotates and swings alternately in the clockwise and counterclockwise directions, and from the exhaust port. So that the exhaust air is directed to the corner. It was decided to control the left and right drive wheels.

According to the present invention, the operation of the main body of the autonomous vacuum cleaner times translocated or rocking can brush or exhaust is scraped dust of the corners, clean the corners. Brush is because it is attached to the body, it will not be used particularly complex mechanism.

  The operation of rotating the main body is also an operation that is frequently performed when the traveling direction is changed, and is not particularly complicated control. Therefore, the corners can be cleaned without providing a complicated mechanism or performing complicated control.

The external appearance perspective view from the upper direction of the autonomous running type vacuum cleaner of Example 1. FIG. The external appearance perspective view from the downward direction of the autonomous running type vacuum cleaner of Example 1. FIG. FIG. 3 is a vertical sectional view of the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner according to the first embodiment. FIG. 3 is a horizontal sectional view of the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner according to the first embodiment. The block diagram which shows the control apparatus of the autonomous running type vacuum cleaner of Example 1. FIG. The figure which shows the driving | running locus | trajectory of a reflective driving | running | working pattern. The figure which shows the driving | running locus | trajectory of a parallel driving | running | working pattern. The figure which shows the driving | running | working locus | trajectory of a wall-side traveling pattern. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of a rear brush in the first embodiment. FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram illustrating an operation during corner cleaning in the first embodiment. The top view which shows the inside of the autonomous running type vacuum cleaner of Example 2. FIG. The operation | movement at the time of the corner cleaning in the form example of Example 2 is shown. The bottom view of the autonomous running type vacuum cleaner of Example 3. FIG. FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram illustrating an operation during corner cleaning in the third embodiment. The left sectional view of the autonomous running type vacuum cleaner of Example 4. FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing an exhaust louver mechanism in Embodiment 4. FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing an exhaust louver mechanism in Embodiment 4. The schematic diagram which shows the operation | movement at the time of the corner cleaning in Example 4. FIG.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

  The structure of the autonomous traveling type vacuum cleaner 101 of Example 1 is demonstrated using FIGS. FIG. 1 is an external perspective view from above of the autonomously traveling cleaner 101, and FIG. 2 is an external perspective view from below. FIG. 3 is a vertical sectional view of the autonomously traveling cleaner 101 cut vertically in the front-rear direction, and FIG. 4 is a horizontal sectional view cut horizontally in the height direction. Furthermore, FIG. 5 is a block diagram of a control device of the autonomous traveling type vacuum cleaner 101.

  First, the external appearance of the autonomous traveling type vacuum cleaner 101 is demonstrated using the external view of FIG. 1 and FIG.

  In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 denotes a substantially cylindrical body, which includes an upper case 2 a including an upper plane, a lower case 2 b including a bottom surface, and a front bumper 3. On the upper plane of the upper case 2a, a cover 15, a display panel 24, a start button 25, a travel mode selection button 26, and a power button 27 are provided. Reference numerals 18a and 18b are side brushes, and 43 is a rear brush.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 2, on the bottom surface of the lower case 2 b, wheels 4 a and 4 b that are rotationally driven during autonomous running, a brush 11 and a suction port 5 that collect dust from the floor surface, auxiliary wheels 10 a, 10 b, 10 c, There are provided distance measuring sensors 23a, 23b, 23c for the floor, brush holders 19a, 19b serving as rotation axes of the side brushes 18a, 18b, and a rear brush holder 61 serving as a rotation axis of the rear brush 43.

  Next, the internal structure of the autonomous traveling cleaner 101 will be described with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4. FIG. 3 is a vertical sectional view of the autonomous traveling cleaner 101 cut in the front-rear direction, and FIG. 4 is a horizontal sectional view of the autonomous traveling cleaner 101 viewed horizontally from above. The autonomously traveling cleaner 101 according to the present embodiment moves forward in the direction in which the bumper 3 is provided, and moves mainly in this direction. Therefore, when the autonomously traveling cleaner 101 comes into contact with an obstacle or the like when moving forward, first, the bumper 3 comes into contact with the obstacle or the like and moves backward. And the contact with an obstacle is detectable by detecting the movement to the back of bumper 3 with the microswitch mentioned below. Hereinafter, the structure of the bumper 3 and the obstacle detection method will be described in detail.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the bumper 3 is supported by the lower case 2b by two bumper springs 6a and 6b so as to be able to swing in the front-rear direction, and moves backward when pressed from the front, and is released from the force. It returns to its original position by the restoring force of the spring. The bumper springs 6 a and 6 b are thin metal plates, are fixed to the left and right of the outer peripheral surface of the lower case 2 b, extend toward the center front side, and are in contact with the bumper 3. The bumper springs 6a and 6b are bent at their tips so that the bumper 3 can swing smoothly, and are in contact with the inner surface of the bumper 3 at the curved portions. Further, the two bumper springs 6a and 6b are separated from and in contact with the bumper 3 so that the bumper 3 can swing smoothly regardless of whether the force from the front side or the right side of the bumper 3 is applied. When a force is applied from the right side of the bumper 3, the right side of the bumper 3 swings more greatly, and when a force is applied to the bumper 3 from the left side, the left side of the bumper 2 swings more greatly as shown in FIG. 6b is attached like a letter C when viewed from above. By doing so, for example, when a force is applied from the right side, the right bumper spring 6a is easily bent, but the left bumper spring 6b is not easily bent, and the bumper 3 is received at the tip curved portion. Swings more greatly.

  Bumper sensors 7a and 7b for detecting the movement of the bumper 3 are fixed to the left and right of the lower case 2b. The bumper sensors 7 a and 7 b are micro switches, and the movable contact side of the micro switch is in contact with the tips of the convex portions 3 a and 3 b provided on the left and right sides inside the bumper 3. When the bumper 3 is pushed rearward, the contact point of the micro switch comes into contact, and it is detected that a force is acting on the bumper 3. The bumper sensor 7a is on the right side, and is detected when a force is applied mainly to the right side of the bumper 3, and the bumper sensor 7b is detected on the left side, and is detected when a force is applied mainly to the left side of the bumper 3. When a force acts near the center of the bumper 3, both the bumper sensors 7a and 7b detect it, and it can be seen that the force is applied near the center.

  In addition, the lower case 2b has two independent wheels 4a and 4b symmetrically at a substantially central position in the front-rear direction. By driving the two wheels 4a and 4b independently of each other, forward movement, backward movement and rotation can be performed. The surfaces of the wheels 4a and 4b are covered with uneven rubber so as to make it difficult to slip when traveling.

  The wheels 4a and 4b receive power from the traveling motors 9a and 9b via speed reducers 8a and 8b each composed of a plurality of stages of gears. The reduction gears 8a and 8b are desirably bevel gears in order to reduce running noise. In particular, the gears in the first stage from the traveling motors 9a, 9b having a high rotational speed have a great effect of reducing noise, and therefore it is desirable that they are bevel gears. Traveling motor encoders 38a and 38b (FIG. 5) are attached to the traveling motors 9a and 9b, respectively, and the rotational speed and the rotational angle are detected. The movement speed and movement distance of 101 are grasped. Further, the wheels 4a and 4b, the traveling motors 9a and 9b, and the speed reducers 8a and 8b are formed as a single unit on the left and right sides, and this unit is attached to the lower case 2b via a suspension (not shown). . In order for the autonomously traveling vacuum cleaner 101 to smoothly get on and off the running step, it is necessary to keep the wheels 4a and 4b in contact with the running surface as much as possible, and the wheels 4a and 4b are swung up and down by the suspension. It can be moved.

  Further, a total of three auxiliary wheels 10a, 10b, and 10c are provided on the left and right of the front and rear of the bottom surface of the lower case 2b. The auxiliary wheel 10a in front of the bottom surface is mounted lower than the other auxiliary wheels 10b and 10c. On a flat floor surface, the auxiliary wheel 10a and the wheels 4a and 4b in front of the bottom surface support the autonomous traveling type vacuum cleaner 101. The bottom surface of the case 2b is kept at a height of about 10 mm from the floor surface. Further, when riding on a step or the like, the front is lifted, and the auxiliary wheels 10b and 10c provided on the left and right behind the bottom face come into contact with the floor surface, so that the step can be smoothly overcome.

  Near the center of the lower case 2b, there is a suction port 5 that is opened substantially squarely with respect to the floor surface. The suction port 5 is located in the vicinity of a straight line connecting the center of the wheel 4a and the center of the wheel 4b. A brush 11 is incorporated in the suction port 5, and the brush 11 is rotated by a brush motor 12, so that dust on the floor surface can be efficiently sucked.

  An opening 5a is provided in the upper rear part of the suction port 5, and a dust collecting part is formed on the rear side. The dust collecting part is composed of a dust collecting case 13 and a dust collecting filter 14. The dust collecting case 13 has an opening at a position facing the opening 5a, and is connected by packing between them, and the dust collected from the suction port 5 is guided to the dust collecting case 13 through the opening 5a. A dust collection filter 14 that is located behind the dust collection case 13 and also serves as a wall behind the dust collection case 13 separates air and dust, accumulates the dust in the dust collection case 13, and collects the air in the dust collection filter 14. To pass. The dust collecting case 13 can be detached by opening the lid 15 provided on the upper case 2a.

  In addition, an electric blower 16 is provided behind the dust collection filter 14 and in the approximate center in the width direction of the main body 1. The electric blower 16 is disposed in the lower case 2b via an elastic body. By virtue of the elastic body, the vibration generated by the electric blower 16 is attenuated to be difficult to transmit to the main body 1 and vibration noise is reduced. A suction force is generated by the electric blower 16, and dust on the floor is sucked from the suction port 5, passes through the dust collection case 13, is dammed by the dust collection filter 14, and is collected in the dust collection case 13. And the air which isolate | separated dust is suck | inhaled by the electric blower 16, is discharged from the side surface of the electric blower 16, and is exhausted to the outer side of the main body 1 from the grid | lattice-shaped exhaust port 17 provided in the back of the lower case 2b.

  The exhaust port 17 is made of a lattice-shaped plastic or metal, and the hole through which air is formed by the lattice is formed so as to be directed obliquely upward to the rear. Therefore, the exhaust from the electric blower 16 is exhausted obliquely rearward and upward so as not to wind up dust on the floor surface.

  In addition, side brushes 18a and 18b are rotatably provided on the bottom surface of the lower case 2b on the front side of the wheels 4a and 4b. These side brushes 18a and 18b are constituted by brush holders 19a and 19b and three bundles of brushes, respectively, and these three bundles of brushes are attached to the brush holders 19a and 19b radially at substantially equal intervals. The brush holders 19a and 19b are rotatably attached to the bottom surface of the lower case 2b. The rotation shafts of the brush holders 19a and 19b are connected to the side brush motors 21a and 21b via the speed reducers 20a and 20b. Rotated. Further, the brushes of the side brushes 18a and 18b are inclined so as to be lower toward the front ends, and the front ends are in contact with the floor surface. The side brushes 18a and 18b rotate in directions opposite to each other, and when viewed from above, the right side brush 18a is counterclockwise and the left side brush 18b when viewed from above so that dust on the front side is fed into the suction port 5. Is rotating clockwise. In the present embodiment, the side brushes 18a and 18b are provided on the left and right, but only one of the right and left sides may be provided. Further, the number of brush bundles may be one bundle, two bundles, four bundles, and five bundles instead of three bundles, or may be spread radially from the entire circumference of the brush holders 19a and 19b without being bundled.

  Further, the autonomously traveling vacuum cleaner 101 is autonomously movable, and in order to prevent the main body 1 from colliding with a wall or furniture of the room, a plurality of distance measuring sensors 22a to 22g are provided from the front surface to the side surface of the main body 1. Provided. In this embodiment, a total of seven distance measuring sensors are provided, one (22d) on the front of the main body 1 and three on the left and right sides of the main body 1 toward the side. These distance measuring sensors 22a to 22g are distance measuring sensors using infrared rays, and are composed of a light emitting portion that emits infrared rays and a light receiving portion that receives reflected light that is reflected from the infrared rays and reflected by the object. It is a sensor that measures the distance to the reflected object by detecting the intensity of the light. These distance measuring sensors 22 a to 22 g are arranged at different angles toward the outside in the vicinity of the outer periphery of the lower case 2 b, and detect the distance through the bumper 3. Therefore, at least the vicinity of the distance measuring sensors 22a to 22g of the bumper 3 is made of a resin or glass that can transmit infrared rays. In addition, in order to reduce the noise of distance measurement by the distance measuring sensors 22a to 22g, the resin or glass that allows infrared rays to be provided in the bumper 3 has a characteristic of blocking visible light having a shorter wavelength than the infrared rays. It is desirable to have.

  The detection directions of the distance measuring sensors 22a to 22g are different from each other. Specifically, the distance measuring sensor arranged on the side surface is provided so as to face the side surface. It is not necessary for all of the distance measuring sensors 22a to 22g to be in different directions, but the distance measuring sensor 22d at the center and the distance measuring sensors 22a and 22g on the most side surface need to be in different directions, and at least different 3 The direction can be detected. In addition, the autonomously traveling vacuum cleaner 101 often goes straight forward, and it is important to monitor the front. In particular, among the distance measuring sensors 22a to 22g, within 50 degrees left and right with respect to the front front of the main body 1. The installed distance measuring sensors 22b to 22f are set to face inward by about 5 to 15 degrees so that the detection direction is not directed to the normal direction of the outer periphery of the main body 1 and is directed slightly forward from the normal direction. It is desirable. Further, the distance measuring sensors 22a and 22g located on the most side surfaces detect the distance from the wall with a small error when running near the wall, which will be described later, so that the normal direction is not directed to the normal direction of the outer periphery of the main body 1. It is desirable to install it so that it faces in a slightly lateral direction.

  Moreover, it is desirable that the sensors 22a to 22g be located at substantially the center in the height direction of the autonomous traveling cleaner 101. If it is too low, the floor surface may be judged as an obstacle, and if it is too high, the bottom surface of the bed or sofa may be judged as an obstacle, and it may not be able to enter the space below and be cleaned.

  Further, the distance measuring sensors 22a to 22g are not the type that detects the intensity of the reflected light, but may be the type that measures the light receiving position of the reflected light in the light receiving unit and measures the distance from the position to the object. Alternatively, visible light may be used. In the case of a distance measuring sensor using visible light, at least the vicinity of the distance measuring sensors 22a to 22g of the bumper 3 needs to be made of a resin or glass capable of transmitting visible light. Further, a distance measuring sensor using ultrasonic waves may be used instead of the infrared sensor. In the case of an ultrasonic sensor, the bumper 3 needs to be perforated so that ultrasonic waves can pass. Further, these sensors may be combined.

  Further, in order to grasp the distance to the obstacle by the distance measuring sensor and appropriately avoid it, it is desirable that the sensor output changes according to the distance, and only the presence or absence of the obstacle is judged. It is desirable to change in analog or multistage rather than a value sensor.

  A plurality of floor surface ranging sensors 23a to 23c for measuring the distance to the floor are provided on the lower surface of the lower case 2b. 23b is provided on the front side of the lower case 2b, and 23a and 23c are provided in front of the wheels 4a and 4b and in the vicinity of the outer periphery thereof downward. These floor surface distance measuring sensors 23a to 23c are also distance measuring sensors using infrared rays, and have infrared light emitting portions and light receiving portions. These floor surface ranging sensors 23a to 23c measure the distance to the floor surface, and are provided to detect a large step such as a staircase in the advancing direction, thereby preventing the main body 1 from falling from the step. doing. If the step is small, even if it falls, it can get over the step again and continue cleaning, but if it falls at a step larger than the step that can not be overcome, it can not return to the original floor surface, Cleaning will end in the middle. In order to avoid such a situation, it is necessary to find a step that is larger than the step that cannot be overcome and continue to travel so as not to fall. Specifically, the purpose is to detect a level difference of about 30 mm. Accordingly, the floor surface ranging sensors 23a to 23c only need to be able to distinguish between less than 30 mm and 30 mm or more, and therefore, the sensor output value may be a binary change sensor instead of an analog change sensor according to the distance.

  As described above, the autonomously traveling vacuum cleaner 101 includes a number of distance measuring sensors. However, a large number of distance measuring sensors are arranged on the front side, which is mainly in the direction of movement, to prevent contact with obstacles and dropping from steps. It is preventing.

  The upper case 2a has a display panel 24, a start button 25 for instructing the start and end of cleaning, a travel mode selection button 26 for changing the travel mode of autonomous travel, and a power button 27. The display panel 24 is composed of a plurality of LEDs and a 7-segment display, and displays an operation state and the like.

  The control device drives the traveling motors 9a and 9b, the brush motor 12, the electric blower 16, and the side brush motors 21a and 21b based on the instructions from the operation buttons 25 to 27 and the information from the plurality of sensors. . FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the control device.

  The control device is configured on the control board 31, and travel motor drive devices 33a and 33b for rotating the travel motors 9a and 9b, an electric blower drive device 34 for rotating the electric blower 16, and a brush motor for rotating the brush motor 12. A driving device 35, side brush motor driving devices 36a and 36b for rotating the side brush motors 21a and 21b, and a display panel driving device 37 are controlled by the microcomputer 32. Further, the microcomputer 32 includes bumper sensors 7a and 7b, distance measuring sensors 22a to 22g, floor surface distance measuring sensors 23a to 23c, traveling motor encoders 38a and 38b for detecting rotation of the traveling motors 9a and 9b, a traveling motor 9a, Current measuring devices 39a and 39b for driving motors that measure the current of 9b, current measuring device 40 for electric blower 16, current measuring device 41 for brush motor 12, current measuring devices 42a and 42b for side brush motors 21a and 21b, Operation buttons 25 to 27 are connected.

  Further, as will be described later, this embodiment has a rear brush 43 behind the main body 1, and is also applied to a rear brush motor driving device 45 that drives a rear brush motor 44 that swings the rear brush 43. The microcomputer 32 instructs. Further, a current measuring device 46 for the rear brush motor 44 and rear brush hall elements 47 a and 47 b for detecting the position of the rear brush 43 are also connected to the microcomputer 32.

  These sensor values and current values are input to the microcomputer 32, and each time the microcomputer 32 determines the situation and gives an instruction to each drive device. Each current value detects the locked state of various motors, and if the motor is energized in the locked state, the motor may be damaged, and is used for control to prevent this.

  The lower case 2b includes a battery storage 51 between the wheels 4a and 4b and the auxiliary wheel 10a, and includes a battery 52 that supplies electric power to the inside. The battery 52 and the battery storage part 51 are arranged so as to be approximately at the center in the left-right direction of the lower case 2b. As the battery 52, a secondary battery that can be reused by charging is used. Electric power is supplied to each drive device, each sensor, and the control device by the battery 52, and autonomous running and cleaning are performed.

  The autonomously traveling vacuum cleaner 101 having such a configuration is mainly used in a room, and automatically cleans the room on behalf of a person. While traveling autonomously, dust and dust on the floor are scraped by the brush 11 and simultaneously sucked by the electric blower 16 and collected from the suction port 5 to the dust collecting case 13. Further, by rotating the side brushes 18a and 18b inward in the front of the main body 1, dust and dust outside the suction port 5 can be moved to the front of the suction port 5, and more dust and dirt can be moved. Can be recovered.

  The state of autonomous traveling is shown in FIGS. 6-8 is a figure which shows a room from upper direction, The shelf 55 is arrange | positioned at the upper right of the room, and the sofa 56 is arrange | positioned at the approximate center of the left side. These shelves 55 and sofas 56 are obstacles for the autonomously traveling cleaner 101. The vehicle travels while detecting these obstacles and walls by the bumper sensors 7a and 7b and the distance measuring sensors 22a to 22f. In addition, the dotted line in a figure has shown the driving | running | working locus | trajectory of the autonomous traveling type vacuum cleaner 101. FIG.

  FIG. 6 shows a reflective traveling pattern in which cleaning is performed while changing the advancing direction when contacting or approaching a wall or an obstacle. This traveling pattern is a traveling pattern suitable for cleaning the entire room. Walls and obstacles are detected by distance measuring sensors 22a to 22g and bumper sensors 7a and 7b, and when detected, the traveling motors 9a and 9b are controlled so as to move away from them. Specifically, when a wall or an obstacle is detected, the traveling motors 9a and 9b are stopped, and then the traveling motors 9a and 9b are rotated in opposite directions to rotate the main body 1 on the spot to change the direction. To do. The angle for changing the direction varies depending on the size of the obstacle, the position with respect to the main body 1, and the like, but may be changed at random. After the direction change, the vehicle is moved forward, and when a wall or an obstacle is detected again, the traveling motors 9a and 9b are similarly controlled to change the direction. It is desirable that the angle for changing the direction at this time is different from the angle for changing the previous direction. If the direction is changed at the same angle, depending on the arrangement of the obstacles, the same place may be moved back and forth. To avoid this, it is better to change the angle for changing the direction at random.

  FIG. 7 shows a parallel traveling pattern in which cleaning is performed while moving the traveling direction in parallel when contacting or approaching a wall or an obstacle. This traveling pattern is also a traveling pattern suitable for cleaning the entire room. If a wall or an obstacle is detected, the traveling motors 9a and 9b are stopped, then the traveling motors 9a and 9b are rotated in opposite directions, and the main body 1 is rotated about 90 degrees on the spot. After that, when it is advanced by the width of the suction port 5, it is stopped and the main body 1 is further rotated about 90 degrees on the spot. This operation moves to a position shifted laterally by the width of the suction port 5 as compared with before detecting a wall or an obstacle, and the traveling direction is opposite. From this state, the vehicle is moved forward again, and when walls and obstacles are detected, the traveling motors 9a and 9b are similarly controlled to change the direction, and the inside of the room is regularly cleaned in parallel.

  Further, FIG. 8 shows a running locus when cleaning the wall of the room, and shows a running pattern of the wall that cleans along the walls and obstacles. The vehicle is run while maintaining the state in which the side surface of the main body 1 is separated from the wall or obstacle by about 15 mm. In this travel pattern, while the main body 1 is moved forward, the travel motor 9a is configured such that the distance to the wall or the obstacle is substantially constant by the distance measurement sensor 22a or 22g disposed near the side surface among the distance measurement sensors 22a to 22g. , 9b.

  Here, the case where it is driving | running | working clockwise at the wall side is demonstrated concretely. First, when the walls are detected by the distance measuring sensors 22a to 22g and the bumper sensors 7a and 7b, the traveling motors 9a and 9b are stopped and the main body 1 is positioned in the vicinity of the walls. Thereafter, the traveling motors 9a and 9b are rotated in opposite directions to rotate the main body 1 on the spot. At this time, the distance measuring sensor 22g on the left side surface of the main body 1 is rotated until it can detect the wall, so that the left side surface of the main body 1 is adjacent to the wall. Thereafter, both the travel motors 9a and 9b are rotated in the forward direction, and the main body 1 is advanced. At this time, the main body 1 is moved forward while adjusting the speeds of the traveling motors 9a and 9b so that the distance measuring sensor 22g has a predetermined value. When the value of the distance measuring sensor 22g on the left side surface of the main body 1 is larger than the predetermined value, the main body 1 is moving away from the wall. Therefore, the right traveling motor 9a is rotated faster than the left traveling motor 9b. Move to the left as you move forward. Conversely, if the value of the distance measuring sensor 22g on the left side surface of the main body 1 is smaller than the predetermined value, the left side driving motor 9b is rotated faster than the right side driving motor 9a because the main body 1 is approaching the wall, The main body 1 is moved forward to the right so as to be away from the wall. At this time, while the right traveling motor 9a is rotated fast and the left traveling motor 9b is rotated slowly, the speed of only one of the traveling motors may be changed. In addition, since the closer the distance between the main body 1 and the wall can improve the cleaning performance at the wall, it is preferable to increase the rotational speed of the right traveling motor 9a for a very short time. By such control, the main body 1 moves forward while changing its direction from right to front and from left to right, and travel along the wall becomes possible.

  The autonomous traveling type vacuum cleaner 101 can travel in at least two traveling patterns obtained by adding at least one of the reflective traveling pattern in FIG. 6 and the parallel traveling pattern in FIG. The automatic mode when cleaning is performed without instructing the travel pattern is a travel mode in which at least these two travel patterns are combined. In addition, a high-speed mode that aims to quickly clean the entire room using the reflective driving pattern without combining driving patterns, a polite mode that aims to carefully clean the room using the parallel driving pattern, and a wall-side driving pattern. It also has three separate running modes, the wall-side mode, which aims to clean up the dust collected by the wall. These travel modes can be selected with a travel mode selection button 26.

  Next, a method in which the autonomous traveling type vacuum cleaner 101 according to the present embodiment cleans a corner where two walls intersect will be described. For example, when the front wall is detected during the parallel running pattern (FIG. 7) or the near-wall running pattern (FIG. 8) (ie, when a corner where two walls intersect) is detected, the autonomous running type immediately before the front wall is detected. After the vacuum cleaner 101 is stopped, the left and right wheels 4a and 4b are rotated in reverse at the same speed, and the autonomously traveling vacuum cleaner 101 is rotated on the spot (super turning). At this time, the corners are cleaned by the side brushes 18a, 18b protruding outward from the main body 1 to scavenge dust at the corners. However, in order to prevent the wheels 4a and 4b from getting caught, the side brushes 18a and 18b are short enough not to reach the wheels 4a and 4b. The tips of the brushes 18a and 18b do not reach the back of the corner where the two walls intersect, and the side brushes 18a and 18b cannot sufficiently clean the corner.

  Therefore, in the present embodiment, a rear brush 43 longer than the side brushes 18a and 18b is provided behind the autonomous traveling cleaner 101, and dust at the back of the corner is scraped out by the rear brush 43 during super-sound turning. The dust was guided to the suction port 5 with the side brush 18 so that the dust could be collected. In addition, if the superspindle turning is set to 360 ° or more, the rear brush 43 passes through the corner at least once, so that dust can be surely scraped out from the corner.

  In addition, as shown in FIG. 4, by providing a rear brush 43 having a length exceeding the corner of a substantially square area (indicated by a dotted line in FIG. 4) where the autonomous traveling cleaner 101 is inscribed, The dust on the wall that could not be collected by the side brush 18b can be moved forward by the rear brush 43, and when the corner turns, the dust collected by the wall while traveling around the wall is also sucked together. 5 can collect dust.

  4 illustrates the rear brush 43 having a length exceeding the corner of a substantially square (indicated by a dotted line in FIG. 4) in which the autonomous traveling cleaner 101 is inscribed, the autonomous traveling cleaner of the present embodiment. The configuration of 101 is not limited to this. If the protruding length of the rear brush 43 is longer than the protruding length of the side brushes 18 a and 18 b outward of the main body 1, cleaning is performed as compared with the case where the rear brush 43 is not provided. Performance can be increased.

  Next, details of the rear brush 43 will be described. The rear brush 43 is swingably attached to the lower surface of the lower case 2b via a gear with respect to the rear brush motor 44 fixed to the rear left side inside the lower case 2b. FIG. 4 shows a state in which the rear brush 43 protrudes outward from the lower case 2b. However, the rear brush 43 can be stored under the lower case 2b by being rotated counterclockwise by the rear brush motor 44. When the rear brush 43 protrudes and is housed, a magnet (not shown) is arranged in the vicinity of the outer periphery of the rear brush holder 61 serving as the root of the brush of the rear brush 43, and the rear brush holder 61 in which this magnet is arranged. By providing the rear brush Hall elements 47a and 47b (FIG. 5) at two locations on the lower case 2b facing each other in the vicinity of the outer periphery, the rotational position of the rear brush 43 is detected and controlled.

  The rear brush 43 is a brush made of a bundle of resin or animal hair extending in one direction from the rear brush holder 61 and spreads toward the tip. The length of the rear brush 43 is longer than the lengths of the side brushes 18a and 18b, and has a length that reaches a corner (portion A in FIG. 4) formed when the main body 1 is surrounded by a square. The rear brush 43 is arranged behind the wheels 4a and 4b both when protruding and stored, so that there is no risk of being stepped on the wheels 4a and 4b, and there is no problem even if the length is longer than the distance to the corner. . With such a configuration, the rear brush 43 can reach farther than the side brushes 18a and 18b.

  Since the rear brush 43 is longer than the side brushes 18a and 18b, it is easy to bend, and it is desirable that the rear brush 43 is harder than the brush of the rear brush 43 in order to remove dust at the corners. Therefore, it is desirable that the material of the bristles of the rear brush 43 is harder or thicker than the side brushes 18a and 18b.

  It is more desirable that all the hairs of the rear brush 43 have short hairs instead of long hairs. Long hair reaches the corner and can scavenge accumulated dust, but it is too long for the wall near the side of the main body 1 (B portion in FIG. 4), so the hair bends greatly and rises upward along the wall surface. It may be in a state where it faces and does not touch the floor surface, and it may not be possible to scrape off dust on the wall. Therefore, it is desirable to have not only long hairs but also short hairs. Moreover, the brush which spread the brush in fan shape may be sufficient as the back brush 43 instead of a bundle of brushes. Further, a brush composed of a plurality of bundles of brushes may be used. In this case, the length may be varied for each bundle. The plurality of bundles may be arranged at an equal angle around the rear brush holder 61, but may be arranged close to one side as shown in FIG.

  Further, the brush of this embodiment is composed of a bundle of straight hairs, but it may be composed of a curved, bent, or meandering brush. In the case of a straight brush, there is a possibility that it will not touch the floor surface near the side of the main body 1 as described above. In the case of a brush that is bent in advance or a meandering brush, the bent portion is the center. By bending, it is possible to prevent the tip of the brush from separating from the floor surface.

  An operation of scraping off dust accumulated in the corners using the rear brush 43 will be described with reference to FIG. First, FIG. 10A shows a state where the main body 1 is moved along the side wall 111 and is running near the wall. At this time, the distance measuring sensor 22g on the left side is mainly used to advance while controlling the traveling motors 9a and 9b so as to keep the distance between the side wall 111 and the main body 1 constant. At this time, the side brushes 18 a and 18 b are rotated to collect dust near the wall toward the suction mouth 5. In addition, the rear brush 43 may be stepped on by a person or pet while traveling or stopped, or the tip of the hair may be caught in a narrow gap and cannot be pulled out, so that it does not interfere with traveling during stopping and normal traveling. The bristles are stored in positions that are concealed under the lower case 2b with the hair tips facing to the right. At this time, the rear brush 43 may be protruded so as to move forward while collecting dust on the wall.

  FIG. 10B shows a state in which the front wall 112 is approached to the front wall 112 in front of the main body 1 and the front wall 112 is detected by the distance measuring sensors 22a to 22f or the bumper sensors 7a and 7b and stopped. This state is a state in which the side wall 111 is detected by the distance measuring sensor 22g and the front wall 112 is detected by another sensor, and a corner is detected. After detecting the corners in this way, the rear brush 43 provided at the rear of the main body 1 is rotated clockwise so that the tip protrudes from the lower case 43. At this time, it is desirable that the rear brush 43 is positioned so as to protrude most from the lower case 2b. In the present embodiment, since the rear brush 43 is provided at about 45 degrees to the left rear of the lower case 2b, the rear brush 43 is also projected toward the direction of about 45 degrees left rear. Further, although the side brushes 18a and 18b do not reach the corners, the side brushes 18a and 18b continue to rotate so that the dust 113 in front of the corners is collected in front of the suction mouth 5 in advance.

  FIGS. 10C and 10D show the corner operation for scraping out dust 113 accumulated in the corner. By rotating the left and right traveling motors 9a and 9b in the opposite directions at the same speed, the main body 1 is rotated on the spot as shown by the arrows in the figure without moving from the position near the corner. The direction of rotation is opposite to the side wall 111 as shown by the arrow in FIG. 10C, and when the side wall 111 is on the left side, it is rotated clockwise. When the main body 1 is rotated about 90 degrees, the rear brush 43 reaches the corner (FIG. 10C), and further rotated, the rear brush 43 deflects the brush and removes the dust 113 in the corner from the front wall 112. When it is further rotated and rotated about 180 degrees (FIG. 10 (d)), the brush of the bent rear brush 43 is straightened and the dust 113 is blown off. Thus, since the rear brush 43 is arranged behind the wheels 4a and 4b, the direction of the brush is attached at an angle larger than at least 90 degrees with respect to the front direction, and in order to reach the corner It is necessary to rotate at least 45 degrees, and further to rotate about 90 degrees in order to blow off the dust 113, and at least 135 degrees or more in total. In other words, the dust 113 at the corners is blown off and cleaned by rotating it more than the angle formed by the side wall 111 and the front wall 112. As described above, since the direction when the front wall 112 is detected and stopped is not always parallel to the side wall 111, the main body 1 can be reliably rotated by one or more rotations, specifically 3 to 5 rotations. Let it clean. Further, by rotating the main body 1 to the opposite side of the side wall 111, the dust 113 is easily blown off in the direction along the front wall 112, and is collected from the suction mouth 5 when traveling near the wall along the front wall 112 after cleaning the corners. Therefore, it is preferable to rotate the side wall 111 so as to face the opposite side.

  FIG. 10E shows a state in which the main body 1 is rotated in the opposite direction after being rotated clockwise. Dust that is caught by unevenness on the floor surface and difficult to move clockwise can be moved by rotating it to the opposite side, and it is desirable to rotate it to the opposite side at least frequently. In addition, after rotating in the opposite direction (counterclockwise) in this way, it is preferable to rotate clockwise in the end and send out dust in the next traveling direction. Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 10 (f), the main body so that the traveling direction is substantially parallel to the front wall 112 while monitoring at least the distance measuring sensor 22g on the left side surface so that the vehicle can run against the front wall 112. Rotate 1 to the right. Thereafter, the rear brush 43 is rotated counterclockwise, is stored below the lower case 2 b, continues to run near the wall along the front wall 112, and scraped dust is collected from the suction mouth 5. Note that FIGS. 10E and 10F may be omitted, and the control shown in FIG. 10G may be performed immediately after FIG.

  As described above, by the operation of rotating the main body 1 one or more times, the rear brush 43 provided on the main body 1 can sweep out the dust at the corner and clean it. The operation of rotating the main body 1 is an operation frequently performed at the time of changing the direction, and is not particularly complicated control. Further, since the rear brush 43 is also attached to the main body 1, no particularly complicated mechanism is used.

  Although the present embodiment shows the operation when the vehicle runs clockwise against the wall, in the case of counterclockwise rotation, the corners can be similarly cleaned by reversing the direction of rotation of the main body 1. In the present embodiment, the rear brush 43 is arranged on the left side of the lower case 2b, but it may be arranged on the right side. In this embodiment, the rear brush 43 protrudes to the outside of the outer periphery of the lower case 2b when approaching the vicinity of the corner, and is returned to the position hidden behind the bottom surface of the lower case 2b after the corner cleaning operation is completed. It is possible to project the outer periphery of the lower case 2b at the point of time and store it below the lower case 2b at the end of running near the wall.

  Further, in this embodiment, the rear brush 43 is swingable and protrudes to the outside of the outer periphery of the lower case 2b when cleaning the corners. It may be fixed to the bottom surface of the lower case 2b so as to protrude from the outer periphery of the lower case 2b. At that time, it is desirable that the rear brush 43 extends in the direction opposite to the traveling direction so as not to obstruct the running as much as possible, and the tip thereof does not protrude outside the lateral width of the main body 1.

  In addition, it is desirable that the tip of the rear brush be suppressed to a height of 20 mm or less from the floor so that the rear brush 43 can enter under the door and scrape out dust on the back side of the door.

  Furthermore, in the present embodiment, a configuration in which the rear brush 43 can be stored below the lower case 2b is shown, but a configuration in which the rear brush 43 protrudes constantly using a fixed rear brush 43 may be used.

  Next, Example 2 will be described with reference to FIGS. The present embodiment shows a configuration for cleaning the corner more efficiently than the first embodiment. In addition, description is abbreviate | omitted about the point which is common in Example 1 among the structure concerning the autonomous running type vacuum cleaner 102 of a present Example, and an effect.

  FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view of the interior of the autonomously traveling cleaner 102 of this embodiment as viewed from above. The rear brush 71 of the present embodiment is provided on the lower surface of the lower case 2 b near the center of the main body 1 in the width direction. Accordingly, the rear brush motor 72 is also fixed near the center in the width direction of the main body 1.

  The corner cleaning operation by the autonomous traveling cleaner 102 will be described with reference to FIG. First, FIG. 12A shows a state where the main body 1 is moved along the wall 101 and is running near the wall. At this time, the distance measuring sensor 22g at the left end is mainly used to advance while controlling the traveling motors 9a and 9b so as to keep the distance between the side wall 111 and the main body 1 substantially constant. At this time, the side brushes 18 a and 18 b are rotated to collect dust near the wall toward the suction mouth 5. Further, the rear brush 71 is stored with its hair tips facing forward slightly so as not to protrude from the bottom of the lower case 2b.

  Next, FIG. 12 (b) approaches the front wall 112 in front of the main body 1, detects the front wall 112 by the distance measuring sensors 22 a to 22 f or the bumper sensors 7 a and 7 b, and detects the corner. And stopped.

  After stopping at the corner, as shown in FIG. 12C, the main body 1 is rotated to the right by about 135 degrees toward the corner so that the rear brush 71 is close to the corner. The rotation angle of the main body 1 is calculated and controlled from the rotation angles of the left and right traveling motors 9a and 9b obtained from the output values of the traveling motor encoders 38a and 38b. Although not provided in this embodiment, when a gyro sensor is provided, the rotation angle of the main body 1 may be controlled from the value of the gyro sensor.

  12 (d) and 12 (e), the orientation of the main body 1 remains the same as in FIG. 12 (c), and the rear brush 71 is continuously rotated in the clockwise direction that is opposite to the side wall 111. It shows how the part is being cleaned. The length of the rear brush 71 is longer than the side brushes 18a and 18b and reaches the corner. Since the rear brush 71 is provided in the vicinity of the rear end of the lower case 2b as in this embodiment, the distance to the wheels 4a and 4b is long, and the brush is lengthened in a range where the wheels 4a and 4b cannot be stepped on. The length reaches the department. With this configuration, the rear brush 71 can reach farther than the side brushes 18a and 18b.

  When the rear brush 71 is rotated, the rear brush 71 that has been stored under the lower case 2b until now appears outside the outer periphery of the lower case 2b, advances along the side wall 111, and reaches the corner (FIG. 12). (D)). The rear brush 71 reaches the corner, and the dust 113 in the corner is sent out along the front wall 112 as the rear brush 71 rotates, and the tip of the rear brush 71 moves away from the front wall 112 and is flipped to the right (FIG. 12). (E)). By continuously rotating the rear brush 71, dust is scraped from the corner. Similar to the side brushes 18a and 18b, the rear brush 71 rotates continuously, but unlike the side brushes 18a and 18b, it does not feed dust into the suction port 5 but aims to sweep out dust at the corners. In order to prevent the dust that has been scraped off from flying too far, it is desirable that the dust be rotated slower than the side brushes 18a and 18b. Therefore, the side brushes 18a and 18b are rotated at about 400 revolutions per minute, while the rear brush 71 is about 350 revolutions per minute and is rotated slightly slower. However, this rotational speed is faster than the rotational speed for rotating the main body 1. Therefore, the rear brush 71 can be applied to the corner more frequently than in the first embodiment, which is efficient. In addition, the dust 113 is easily blown off in the direction along the front wall 112 by rotating to the opposite side of the side wall 111, and can be collected from the suction mouth 5 when traveling near the wall along the front wall 112 after cleaning the corners. It is preferable to rotate the side wall 111 in the opposite direction.

  In addition to the rotation operation of the rear brush 71 described above, the main body 1 is swung left and right as shown in FIGS. 12F and 12G, that is, the main body 1 is alternately rotated clockwise and counterclockwise in small increments. Is preferable. As shown in FIG. 12C, the rear brush 71 and the corner are opposed to each other by rotating about 135 degrees, but the direction of the main body 1 when the corner is detected and stopped, that is, the wheel The directions of 4a and 4b are not parallel to the side wall 111, and may be facing right front and left front, and it is difficult to accurately face the rear brush 71 to the corner. Therefore, after rotating about 135 degrees, the position of the rear brush 71 is moved by swinging the main body 1 left and right by about 30 degrees. Even when the corner is detected and stopped, the rear brush 71 is moved to the corner. Even if it does not face the part accurately, it is possible to create a state in which the rear brush 71 reaches the corner, and it is possible to scrape out dust at the corner. This swinging operation is performed about 10 seconds in a cycle of about 1 second, and is performed for a total of about 10 seconds.

  When the back brush 71 is swung very fast with respect to the rotation of the rear brush 71, the brush of the rotating back brush 71 may not come close to the corner during one reciprocation of the swing operation. In order to keep the brush of the rear brush 71 close to the corner at least once during one reciprocation of the swinging motion, considering the number of bundles of the rear brush 71 and the rotational speed, the cycle of the swinging motion is I think it takes about 0.5 seconds or more. Further, if the period of the swinging operation is lengthened, the number of times the brush of the rear brush 71 approaches the corner can be increased. However, by frequently changing the direction of the rear brush 71, it is caught by unevenness on the floor surface, In order to scrape the rear brush 71 at a different angle frequently with respect to dust that is difficult to be scraped out only by applying the rear brush 71 from one direction, it is not a slow swinging motion but a cycle of 5 seconds or less. It is desirable to rock it.

  Also, more dust is scraped off over time, but in order to clean the entire room within the limited battery capacity of the battery 52, it is better not to stay in one place for a long time. For this purpose, the dust scraping operation at the corners described above is at least equal to the average time required for the autonomous traveling cleaner 102 to rotate 90 degrees when it is not running near the wall, and the opposing walls constituting the room. It is desirable that the time is less than or equal to the time required for the autonomous traveling cleaner 102 to make one reciprocation between the wall and about 2 to 20 seconds. In this embodiment, the rocking is performed by about 30 degrees to the left and right. However, the rocking may be performed at a smaller angle in order to shorten the time of the rocking operation efficiently.

  In this way, after dusting out at the corners for a predetermined time, while monitoring at least the distance measuring sensor 22g on the left side so that it can run against the front wall 112 as shown in FIG. The main body 1 is rotated clockwise so that the traveling direction is substantially parallel to the front wall 112. Thereafter, the rear brush 71 is rotated and stored so as to be hidden under the lower case 2b, and the running near the wall is continued. At this time, the dust that has been scraped in the direction along the front wall 112 while traveling near the wall is collected from the suction port 5.

  Although the present embodiment shows the operation when traveling along the wall in the clockwise direction, in the case of counterclockwise rotation, while traveling along the wall using mainly the distance measuring sensor 22a on the right side, The rotation direction of the rear brush 71 is reversed and the corners are similarly cleaned.

  Further, in this embodiment, when approaching the vicinity of the corner, the rear brush 71 is protruded to the outer periphery of the lower case 2b and returned to the position hidden on the bottom surface of the lower case 2b after the corner cleaning operation is completed. At this point, it may be protruded outside the outer periphery of the lower case 2b, and stored below the lower case 2b at the end of the wall run.

  Further, in this embodiment, the rear brush 71 is arranged substantially in the center with respect to the width direction of the main body 1, but this prevents the long rear brush 71 from being stepped on the left and right wheels 4 a, 4 b. This is because the wheels 4a and 4b do not step on the rear brush 71 and may be moved to the left side or the right side. In that case, in order to confront the corner, the main body 1 is rotated at an angle corresponding to the position of the rear brush 71 instead of 135 degrees.

  In this embodiment, the rotational speed of the rear brush 71 is rotated slower than the rotational speed of the side brushes 18a and 18b. However, it is desirable to increase the rotational speed depending on the place where it is difficult to move dust such as carpets.

  Next, Example 3 will be described with reference to FIGS. The present embodiment is an example in which a corner portion is cleaned using a side brush provided on the front side of the main body 1, and has an easier configuration. In addition, description is abbreviate | omitted about the point which is common in Example 1 among the structure concerning the autonomous running type vacuum cleaner 103 of a present Example, and an effect.

  FIG. 13: is the bottom view which looked at the bottom part of the autonomous running type vacuum cleaner 103 of a present Example from the downward direction. In this embodiment, the lengths of the brushes of the side brushes 81a and 81b provided on the left and right sides of the front side of the main body 1 are set to be longer than the corners (A portion in FIG. 13) of the substantially square area in which the main body 1 is inscribed. Yes. Further, the left and right wheels 4a and 4b are arranged rearward from the center of the main body 1 in the front-rear direction so as to be away from the side brushes 81a and 81b so that the side brushes 81a and 81b are not stepped on during traveling.

  The side brushes 81a and 81b of the present embodiment are composed of three bundles of brushes extending in three directions from the side brush holders 82a and 82b, which are the rotation centers, and spread toward the tip. The length of the brush has a length that reaches the corner (A portion in FIG. 13) formed when the main body 1 is surrounded by a square. However, it is desirable that all the hairs of the brush have short hairs instead of long hairs. Long hair reaches the corner and can scavenge accumulated dust, but it is too long for the wall near the side of the main body 1 (part B in FIG. 13), so the hair bends greatly and rises along the wall. It may be in a state where it is not in contact with the floor surface and may not be able to scrape off dust on the wall. Therefore, it is desirable to have not only long hairs but also short hairs. In the present embodiment, the brush is composed of three bundles of brushes. However, four or five bundles may be used, and the length may be different for each bundle. Moreover, the side brush which extended the hair over the perimeter of the side brush holders 82a and 82b without putting it into a plurality of bundles may be used. In that case, the hairs with different lengths are arranged over the entire circumference. Alternatively, short hair regions and long hair regions may be arranged separately.

  In the present embodiment, the brush is composed of a bunch of straight hairs, but may be composed of curled, bent, or meandering hairs. In the case of straight hair, as mentioned above, the situation where it does not contact the floor surface may occur near the side of the main body 1, but in the case of hair that is bent in advance or meandering, the bent portion is the center. By bending, it is possible to prevent the hair tips from separating from the floor surface.

  Further, the side brush holders 82a and 82b are made of a substantially circular resin harder than the brush and are sized to fit inside the outer periphery of the main body 1. However, it is desirable that the side brush holders 82a and 82b reach as close to the outer periphery of the main body 1 as possible. The side brushes 81a and 81b are for scavenging dust. Since the hairs of the side brushes 81a and 81b in this embodiment are long, the hairs are easily bent and the performance of scavenging dust tends to be weak. Therefore, it is desirable to enlarge the side brush holders 82a and 82b to shorten the hair portion as much as possible and to reduce the deflection of the hair. However, since the rotating side brush holders 82a and 82b may come into contact with an obstacle or the like if they protrude outside the outer periphery of the main body 1, they need to be stored inside the outer periphery of the main body 1. is there.

  The corner cleaning operation by the autonomous traveling cleaner 103 having the side brushes 81a and 81b that reach the corners but not the wheels 4a and 4b will be described with reference to FIG. First, FIG. 14A shows a state where the main body 1 is moved along the side of the side wall 111 and is running near the wall. At this time, the distance measuring sensor 22g on the side is mainly used to advance while controlling the traveling motors 9a and 9b so as to keep the distance between the side wall 111 and the main body 1 substantially constant. At this time, the side brushes 81 a and 81 b are rotated at a speed of about 400 revolutions per minute, which is the same speed as when traveling, and the dust near the wall is being collected toward the suction mouth 5.

  Next, FIG. 14 (b) shows that the autonomously traveling cleaner 103 approaches the front wall 112, detects the front wall 112 by the distance measuring sensors 22a to 22f or the bumper sensors 7a and 7b, and detects the corner. And stopped. The tips of the side brushes 81a and 81b reach the corner, and this state is maintained for 1 to 5 seconds, and the dust 113 at the corner is scraped out.

  Subsequently, in order to scrape out the dust 113 at the corner more reliably, the main body 1 is swung left and right while rotating the side brushes 81a and 81b as shown in FIGS. 14 (c) and 14 (d). When the corner 1 is detected and stopped, the direction of the main body 1, that is, the direction of the wheels 4a and 4b is not parallel to the side wall 111 but is directed to the front right and the left front, from the side brush 81b to the corner Is not the shortest distance, and the tip of the side brush 81b may not reach the corner. For this reason, it is preferable to rotate the main body 1 alternately clockwise and counterclockwise. For example, the main body 1 is rotated about 30 degrees to the left, which is the corner side, and then rotated about 60 degrees clockwise, thereby swinging it about 30 degrees left and right. Even if the direction of the main body 1 when the corner portion is detected and stopped by this swinging operation is not parallel to the side wall 111 and the side brush 81b moves away from the corner portion, the position of the side brush 81b Can move toward the corner, the tip of the side brush 81b reaches the corner, and dust in the corner can be scraped out. This swinging operation is performed about 10 seconds in a cycle of about 0.5 seconds, for a total of about 5 seconds.

  If the main body 1 is swung very quickly with respect to the rotation of the side brush 81b, the brush of the rotating side brush 81b may not come close to the corner while the swinging operation is reciprocated once. It is desired that the brush of the side brush 81b is brought close to the corner at least once during one reciprocation of the swinging operation. In consideration of the number of bundles of the side brush 81b and the rotation speed, the cycle of the swinging operation is desired. Was about 0.2 seconds or longer. In addition, if the period of the swinging operation is lengthened, the number of times the brush of the side brush 81b comes close to the corner can be increased. However, by frequently changing the direction of the side brush 81a, 81b, the unevenness of the floor surface can be increased. It takes 5 seconds instead of a slow swinging motion to pick up the side brush 81a, 81b frequently at different angles against dust that is difficult to be caught by catching and simply hitting the side brush 81a, 81b from one direction. It is desirable to rock at the following cycle.

  Further, although dust is scraped out as time goes on, in order to clean the entire room within the limited battery capacity of the battery 52, it is better not to stay at one place for a long time. For this reason, the dust scraping operation at the corners described above is at least longer than the time required for the autonomously traveling cleaner 103 to rotate 90 degrees when it is not running near the wall, and between the opposing walls and walls constituting the room. It is preferably less than or equal to the time required for the autonomously traveling cleaner 103 to make one reciprocation, preferably about 2 to 20 seconds.

  In this embodiment, the rocking is performed by about 30 degrees clockwise and counterclockwise. However, the rocking may be performed at a smaller angle in order to shorten the time of the rocking operation efficiently.

  After dusting out the corners for a predetermined time in this manner, at least the distance measuring sensor 22g on the left side is monitored so that the traveling direction is substantially parallel to the front wall 112 as shown in FIG. The main body 1 is rotated about 90 degrees clockwise. Then, the wall-side travel is continued with respect to the front wall 112.

  Although the present embodiment shows the operation when traveling along the wall in the clockwise direction, in the case of counterclockwise rotation, while traveling along the wall mainly using the distance measuring sensor 22a on the right side, the rotation direction of the main body 1 is changed. Conversely, the corners are cleaned by the right side brush 81a.

  In this embodiment, the rotational speeds of the side brushes 81a and 81b at the corners are the same as the rotational speed during traveling, but it is desirable to change the rotational speed according to the situation of the floor.

  As described above, in this embodiment, the corners can be cleaned using the side brushes 81a and 81b provided on the front side of the main body 1, and an easier configuration can be achieved.

  Finally, Example 4 will be described with reference to FIGS. The present embodiment is an example in which corners are cleaned using the exhaust gas discharged from the main body 1, and the configuration is such that the risk of damaging the corner walls with a brush is reduced. In addition, description is abbreviate | omitted about the point which is common in Example 1 among the structure concerning the autonomous running type vacuum cleaner 104 of a present Example, and an effect.

  FIG. 15 is a view of a cross section cut from the left in the center of the autonomous traveling type vacuum cleaner 104 of this embodiment as viewed from the left. In the present embodiment, an exhaust louver mechanism 91 that changes the direction of the exhaust provided behind the main body 1 is provided behind the electric blower 16. The operation of the exhaust louver mechanism 91 is shown in FIGS. Moreover, FIG. 19 is a figure which shows the operation | movement of the corner cleaning in a present Example.

  As shown in FIG. 16, the exhaust louver mechanism 91 has one end of three louvers 92 rotatably attached to the exhaust port 17 provided at the rear of the lower case 2 b, and the other end of the louver 92 rotates to the arm 93. It is attached as possible. A solenoid 94 fixed to the lower case 2 b is provided at the lower end of the arm 93, and the arm 93 moves up and down by driving the solenoid 94. When the arm 93 is lowered as shown in FIG. 16, the louver 92 faces obliquely upward, and the air discharged from the electric blower 16 is exhausted obliquely upward. On the other hand, when the arm 93 is raised as shown in FIG. 17, the louver 92 faces obliquely downward and exhausts the air discharged from the electric blower 16 obliquely downward.

  The corner cleaning by the autonomous traveling type cleaner 104 having the exhaust louver mechanism 91 that changes the direction of the exhaust in this way will be described with reference to FIG.

  First, FIG. 18A shows a state where the main body 1 is moved along the side wall 111 and is running near the wall. At this time, the distance measuring sensor 22g on the left side is mainly used to advance while controlling the traveling motors 9a and 9b so as to keep the distance between the side wall 111 and the main body 1 substantially constant. At this time, the side brushes 18 a and 18 b are rotated to collect dust on the wall toward the suction mouth 5. Further, the exhaust louver 92 is directed obliquely upward and exhausted obliquely upward so that dust on the floor surface is not scattered.

  Next, FIG. 18B shows that the autonomous traveling cleaner 104 approaches the front wall 112, detects the front wall 112 by the distance measuring sensors 22a to 22f or the bumper sensors 7a and 7b, and detects the corner. And stopped. In this state, the solenoid 94 is operated to exhaust the exhaust louver 92 obliquely downward and obliquely downward.

  Subsequently, as shown in FIG. 18C, the main body 1 is rotated about 135 degrees clockwise so that the corners are close to the exhaust port 17 behind the lower case 2b. The rotation angle of the main body 1 is calculated and controlled from the rotation angles of the left and right traveling motors 9a and 9b obtained from the output values of the traveling motor encoders 38a and 38b. Although not provided in this embodiment, when a gyro sensor is provided, the rotation angle of the main body 1 may be controlled by the gyro sensor.

  The obliquely downward exhaust from the exhaust port 17 during the rotation reaches the side wall 111, and as the main body 1 rotates, the dust accumulated near the corner is pushed toward the front wall 112, and finally As shown in FIG. 18C, the corners are cleaned by blowing rightward along the wall of the front wall 112.

  Further, as shown in FIGS. 18D and 18E, the main body 1 of the autonomously traveling cleaner 104 is alternately rotated clockwise and counterclockwise and rocked. As shown in FIG. 18 (c), it is rotated about 135 degrees so that the corners of the exhaust port 17 are close to each other, but it is more accurate due to variations in the orientation of the main body 1 when the corners are detected and stopped. It is difficult to make the exhaust port 17 face the corner. Therefore, by rotating the tube after rotating it about 135 degrees, even if the exhaust port 17 is not exactly facing the corner, it is possible to create a state where the exhaust from the exhaust port 17 reaches the corner. It becomes possible to blow off the dust of the part. The range to be swung is 30 degrees or less to the left and right, and the period is desirably 5 seconds or less. Dust that is difficult to blow off only with a uniform wind speed and direction due to minute irregularities on the floor may be blown off by changing the wind direction, and it is desirable to change the direction of the exhaust port 17 more frequently. For this purpose, it is desirable that the rocking motion is not a slow rocking motion but a cycle of 5 seconds or less.

  In addition, although dust is blown off as time goes on, it is better not to stay at one place for a long time in order to clean the entire room within the limited battery capacity of the battery 52. For this purpose, the cleaning operation at the corner is preferably about 2 to 20 seconds. At least the time required for the autonomous traveling cleaner 104 to rotate 90 degrees when it is not running against the wall faces each other and constitutes a room. It is desirable that the time is less than or equal to the time required for the autonomously traveling cleaner 104 to travel between the walls.

  After pushing out dust at the corner for a predetermined time in this way, while monitoring at least the distance measuring sensor 22g on the left side so that it can run against the front wall 112 as shown in FIG. The direction of the main body 1 is changed by approximately 45 degrees counterclockwise, the exhaust louver mechanism 91 is operated to return the exhaust gas to the diagonally upward direction, and the running near the wall is continued. At this time, the dust pushed out to the right side is collected from the suction port 5 while running near the wall.

  As described above, in this embodiment, the corners can be cleaned using the exhaust discharged from the main body 1, and the risk of damaging the corner walls with the brush can be reduced.

  Although the present embodiment shows the operation when traveling along the wall in the clockwise direction, in the case of counterclockwise rotation, while traveling along the wall mainly using the distance measuring sensor 22a on the right side, the rotation direction of the main body 1 is reversed. In the same way, clean the corners.

  Further, in this embodiment, the exhaust louver mechanism 91 is operated to change the exhaust in the diagonally downward direction when approaching the vicinity of the corner, but the exhaust may be changed in the diagonally downward direction at the time of running near the wall.

  Further, in the present embodiment, the exhaust port 17 is arranged substantially in the center with respect to the width direction of the main body 1, but it may be on the left side or the right side. In that case, the main body 1 is rotated at an angle that matches the position of the exhaust port 17 instead of 135 degrees to rotate the main body 1 to confront the corner.

  Further, the exhaust port 17 may be provided separately on the left and right of the main body 1. When traveling along the wall clockwise, the left exhaust port may be directed toward the corner, and when traveling along the wall counterclockwise, the right exhaust port may be directed toward the corner. Thereby, the angle which rotates the main body 1 can be made small, and an exhaust port can be made to face a corner part in a short time, and it is efficient. Furthermore, if the exhaust port on the side not facing the corner has a function of reducing the opening area or closing the exhaust port, the exhaust port on the side facing the corner It is even better because the amount of exhaust can be increased and dust can be blown away.

  Further, in this embodiment, the exhaust louver mechanism 91 is mounted to change the direction of exhaust. However, without mounting the exhaust louver mechanism 91, the direction of the exhaust port 17 is set to be horizontal or slightly downward in advance. You may clean a corner by the operation | movement which orient | assigns the opening | mouth 17 to a corner. The exhaust port 17 at that time is provided behind the suction port 5 or the side brushes 18a and 18b, and the floor on which the exhaust hits during advance is once cleaned by the suction port 5 or the side brushes 18a and 18b, so that it is wound up. Dust can be reduced.

  The present invention is not limited to the four embodiments described above, and includes various modifications. For example, the corners may be cleaned by combining the above-described embodiments. Moreover, it is not necessary to include all the above-described configurations.

  In the first to third embodiments, the rear brush or the side brush has a length that reaches the corner, but even in the case of a brush that does not reach the corner, the first to third embodiments have shown. By performing the corner cleaning operation, dust that cannot be removed due to variations in the orientation of the main body 1 when the corner is detected and stopped, and dust that is difficult to remove due to minute unevenness on the floor, etc., are more reliably removed. Therefore, it is preferable to perform the corner cleaning operation described above.

  According to the above embodiment, a rear brush longer than the side brush is provided at the rear of the main body 1 with respect to the corner which is difficult to clean with the substantially circular autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner, and the main body 1 is rotated to remove the dust at the corner. Can be scraped and cleaned. Further, by providing a long brush reaching the corner and swinging the autonomously traveling cleaner itself, the dust at the corner can be more scraped and cleaned. Further, by exhausting the exhaust port of the autonomously traveling vacuum cleaner toward the corner, dust can be blown away and cleaned. Further, the corner is cleaned not only by changing the direction in the vicinity of the corner as in these operations, but also by adding an operation for cleaning the corner.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Main body 2a Upper case 2b Lower case 3 Bumper 4 Wheel 5 Suction port 17 Exhaust port 18 Side brush 22 Ranging sensor 43 Rear brush 101 Autonomous traveling type cleaner 102 of Example 1 Autonomous traveling type cleaner 103 of Example 2 Example 3 Autonomous Traveling Vacuum Cleaner 104 Autonomous Traveling Vacuum Cleaner 111 of Example 4 Side Wall 112 Front Wall

Claims (9)

A substantially disc-shaped body,
A suction port provided on the bottom surface of the main body for collecting dust on the floor surface;
A left driving wheel and a right driving wheel, which are provided so as to sandwich the suction port on the bottom surface of the main body, and each independently drive;
Obstacle detection means for detecting obstacles around the body;
A first brush provided on the bottom surface of the main body on the front side of the left and right drive wheels, and guiding dust on the outside of the main body to the suction port by rotational driving;
A second brush provided on the bottom surface of the main body on the rear side of the left and right drive wheels, and having a length reaching the intersection of two straight lines that are in contact with the main body and orthogonal to each other;
A control circuit for controlling the left and right drive wheels and the first brush;
An autonomous traveling type vacuum cleaner characterized by comprising: In the autonomous traveling type vacuum cleaner according to claim 1,
The autonomous traveling type vacuum cleaner, wherein a length of the second brush protruding outside the main body is longer than a length of the first brush protruding outside the main body. In the autonomous traveling type vacuum cleaner according to claim 1,
The said control circuit selects the state which the said 2nd brush protrudes on the outer side of the said main body, and the state which does not protrude, The autonomous traveling type vacuum cleaner characterized by the above-mentioned. In the autonomous traveling type vacuum cleaner as described in any one of Claim 1 to 3,
The autonomous traveling type vacuum cleaner, wherein the control circuit controls the left and right drive wheels so that the main body rotates one or more times at a corner where two wall surfaces intersect. A substantially disc-shaped body,
A suction port provided on the bottom surface of the main body for collecting dust on the floor surface;
A left driving wheel and a right driving wheel which are provided on the rear side of the suction port and each independently drive;
Obstacle detection means for detecting obstacles around the body;
A brush that is provided on the bottom surface of the main body in front of the left and right drive wheels, and that guides dust outside the main body to the suction port by rotational driving;
A control circuit for controlling the left and right drive wheels and the brush;
Comprising
The brush is in contact with the main body and has a length that reaches the intersection of two straight lines orthogonal to each other.
The control circuit controls the left and right driving wheels so that the main body alternately rotates or swings clockwise and counterclockwise at a corner where two wall surfaces intersect. Machine. In the autonomous traveling type vacuum cleaner according to claim 5,
The autonomous traveling type vacuum cleaner, wherein the brush is provided in a side brush holder having a size that fits inside the outer periphery of the main body. In the autonomous traveling type vacuum cleaner according to claim 5 or 6,
The two wall surfaces are a side wall located on the side of the autonomously traveling cleaner and a front wall located on the front side,
Of the alternating rotations or swings, the direction of one or both of the first rotation or swing or the last rotation or swing is a direction toward the opposite direction to the side wall. Vacuum cleaner. A substantially disc-shaped body,
A suction port provided on the bottom surface of the main body for collecting dust on the floor surface;
An electric blower for generating a suction force at the suction port;
An exhaust port for exhausting the exhaust of the electric blower;
A left driving wheel and a right driving wheel which are provided on the rear side of the suction port and each independently drive;
Obstacle detection means for detecting obstacles around the body;
A brush that is provided on the bottom surface of the main body in front of the left and right drive wheels, and that guides dust outside the main body to the suction port by rotational driving;
A control circuit for controlling the left and right drive wheels and the brush;
Comprising
When cleaning the corner where the two wall surfaces intersect, the control circuit rotates or swings the main body alternately clockwise and counterclockwise, and the exhaust from the exhaust port is the corner An autonomous traveling type vacuum cleaner, wherein the left and right drive wheels are controlled so as to face the vehicle. In the autonomous traveling type vacuum cleaner according to claim 8,
The exhaust port is provided with a louver mechanism that exhausts by switching upward or downward,
The control circuit controls the louver mechanism to control the exhaust port so as to exhaust upward when traveling near the wall and to exhaust downward when cleaning the corner. Autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner.