KR102607950B1 - Air purifying robot - Google Patents

Abstract

The purpose of the present invention is to provide an automatically controlled air purifying robot. An air purifying robot according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a running part formed in the lower part of the main body and performing movement; A purifier that intakes and purifies external air and discharges the purified air in a set wind direction; and a control unit that controls the traveling unit to move along the outer path of the set space model and sets the wind direction according to the moving position.

Description

Air purifying robot {AIR PURIFYING ROBOT}

The present invention relates to an air purifying robot capable of driving.

An air purifier is a device that inhales polluted air and purifies it into clean air by filtering out dust and odor particles contained in the inhaled air. The air purified in this way is discharged back to the outside of the air purifier, that is, indoors.

In general, since air purifiers operate at specific locations, there is a problem in that the air in some spaces where the air purifier is located is intensively purified, while the air in other spaces is not purified efficiently. Even if air convection is used, air purifiers operating in specific locations have limitations in improving overall air quality.

Republic of Korea Patent Publication No. 10-0745984

The object of the present invention is to provide an air purifying robot that moves to various locations in space and purifies the air at the same time in order to overcome the limitations of air purifiers operating at specific locations.

An air purifying robot according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a running part formed in the lower part of the main body and performing movement; A purifier that intakes and purifies external air and discharges the purified air in a set wind direction; and a control unit that controls the traveling unit to move along the outer path of the set space model and sets the wind direction according to the moving position.

According to one embodiment of the present invention, an active air purification function for the space is provided, so that stagnant air in the space can be efficiently purified and circulated.

The various and beneficial advantages and effects of the present invention are not limited to the above-described content, and may be more easily understood through description of specific implementations of the present invention.

1 is a configuration diagram of an air cleaning robot according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of an air cleaning robot according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Figure 3 is a diagram for explaining a spatial model according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Figure 4 is a diagram for explaining the operation of an air cleaning robot according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Figure 5 is a diagram for explaining the operation of an air cleaning robot according to another embodiment of the present invention.
Figure 6 is a diagram illustrating the operation of an air purifying robot in a space model reset according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Figure 7 is a flowchart of a control method of an air cleaning robot according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Hereinafter, with reference to the attached drawings, embodiments of the present invention will be described so that those skilled in the art can easily practice the present invention. However, the embodiments of the present invention can be modified into various other embodiments without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention, and the scope of the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described below. Additionally, it should be understood that the various embodiments of the invention are different from one another but are not necessarily mutually exclusive.

In embodiments of the present invention, 'including' a certain component does not exclude other components unless specifically stated otherwise, but means that other components may be further included, and has similar functions and actions. For parts, the same symbols are used throughout the drawings.

In addition, the term air purification used in the embodiments of the present invention includes the meaning of humidification purification with added humidification function.

1 is a configuration diagram of an air cleaning robot according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 1, the air cleaning robot 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a cleaning unit 110, a traveling unit 120, and a control unit 130. Additionally, the air cleaning robot 100 may further include a detection unit 140 and a communication unit 150.

The purifier 110 can suck in and purify external air, and discharge the purified air in a set wind direction. To this end, the purifying unit 110 may include a suction unit 111, a filter unit 112, a blowing unit 113, and a discharge unit 114.

The blowing unit 113 creates an air flow so that external air flows into the air cleaning robot 100 through the suction unit 111 (A1). For example, the blowing unit 113 may be configured to include a blowing fan and a motor for driving it. Here, the blowing fan can be rotated by a motor to form an air flow, and the rotation speed of the motor is controlled by the control unit 130, so the wind speed of the air discharged from the purifier 110 can be controlled.

The filter unit 112 can purify the air flowing into the air purifying robot 100 by adsorbing contaminants in the air. For example, the filter unit 112 may include various types of filters, such as a prefilter, a functional filter, a High Efficiency Particulate Air filter (HEPA filter), and a deodorizing filter. Here, the pre-treatment filter is for removing relatively large dust, hair, pet hair, etc., the functional filter is for removing antibacterial agents, pollen, dust mites, germs, bacteria, etc., and the HEPA filter is for removing fine dust and indoor mold. It is used to remove various bacteria such as , and the deodorizing filter is used to remove various indoor odors and harmful gases.

Additionally, the air purified through the filter unit 112 may be discharged to the outside through the discharge unit 114 (A2).

Meanwhile, as long as the purifier 110 can perform the function of sucking in and purifying external air and discharging the purified air in a set wind direction, the specific configuration and function of the purifier 110 may be changed.

The traveling unit 120 moves the air cleaning robot 100 to travel on the bottom surface. To this end, the traveling unit 120 may include a sensing unit 121, a driving unit 122, and a charging unit 123.

The detection unit 121 consists of a plurality of sensors that detect the position of an object so that the vehicle can drive while avoiding obstacles (hereinafter referred to as objects). For example, a plurality of sensors may detect different areas, and the detection unit 121 may determine the location of an object according to the detection output of each sensor.

The driving unit 122 can move in a moving direction and moving speed according to the control of the control unit 130, and may be provided with a wheel that rotates in contact with the bottom surface and a motor that drives the wheel.

The charging unit 123 includes a power storage device such as a battery that supplies power to the components of the air cleaning robot 100 including the traveling unit 120. The charging unit 123 may receive power by connecting to an external charging station 190 and store the received power in the power storage device. Additionally, connection between the charging unit 123 and the charging station 190 may be implemented using wireless power transmission technology.

The control unit 130 includes a cleaning controller 131 that sets the wind direction and speed of the cleaning unit 110, a space controller 132 that sets a spatial model and movement path for the space in which the air cleaning robot 100 runs, and It may include a travel controller 133 that controls the travel unit 120.

The space controller 132 may set the outer path of the set space model as the movement path. Here, the spatial model may be input from the outside through the communication unit 150, or may be set based on information on the movement performed by the driving unit 120 and information on the object detected by the sensing unit 121. . Specifically, the space model can be set by a map building operation in which the air cleaning robot 100 moves along the wall of the space (i.e., the boundary of the space) and stores the path taken.

The travel controller 133 may control the travel unit 120 so that the air cleaning robot 100 moves along the movement path.

While the air purifying robot 100 moves, the purifying controller 131 can set the wind direction and wind speed of the air purifying unit 110 according to the movement position.

Meanwhile, the control unit 130 may be implemented with a processor such as a central processing unit (CPU), graphics processing unit (GPU), microprocessor, application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), or field programmable gate arrays (FPGA). , a memory for storing various data may be provided.

The detection unit 140 may measure the air pollution level outside the air cleaning robot 100 and provide the air pollution level to the control unit 130. For example, the detection unit 140 includes a temperature sensor that measures the temperature of the air to measure air pollution, a humidity sensor that measures the humidity of the air, a dust sensor that measures the concentration of dust in the air, and a sensor that measures the concentration of CO ₂ in the air. It may include various sensors such as a CO ₂ sensor that measures the concentration of volatile organic compounds (VOC), and a VOC sensor that measures the concentration of volatile organic compounds (VOC).

In one embodiment, the detector 140 may measure air pollution while the air cleaning robot 100 is moving. Additionally, the control unit 130 may control the purifier 110 to adjust the wind speed of the purified air according to the air pollution level, or control the traveling unit 120 to adjust the moving speed. For example, if the air pollution level is high, the wind speed can be increased to increase the amount of purified air, or the air can be purified for a certain period of time by stopping at a location with high air pollution level. Accordingly, the air purifying robot 100 can purify the air by actively responding to the air quality of the space while moving.

The communication unit 150 can communicate with the management server 300. For example, the communication unit 150 may be implemented using a wireless communication technology widely known to those skilled in the art, such as Wi-Fi or ZigBee. In FIG. 1, the communication unit 150 is shown to communicate with the user terminal 400 through the management server 300, but the communication unit 150 may be implemented to communicate directly with the user terminal 400.

Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of an air cleaning robot according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to Figures 1 and 2, the air cleaning robot 100 includes a cleaning unit 110, a traveling unit 120, and a control unit 130. In FIG. 2, the air cleaning robot 100 is shown as including a cleaning unit 110 forming the head of the main body, a control unit 130 disposed inside the main body, and a running unit 120 formed in the lower part of the main body. , the shape and arrangement of each component may be modified.

Additionally, the running direction of the air purifying robot and the air discharge direction can be adjusted independently of each other. To this end, the cleaning unit 110 may be rotated on the body B of the main body (d1), or the body B of the main body may be rotated on the traveling unit 120 (d2). Alternatively, the wheels of the traveling unit 120 may be rotated.

The communication unit 150 can communicate with the management server 300 and the like through the repeater 30.

The charging station 190 can convert power received through the outlet 193 and provide power by connecting to the charging unit 123 through the connection terminal 191. Additionally, the charging station 190 may further include a detection sensor 192. For example, the charging station 190 can use the detection sensor 192 to detect the air quality around where the charging station 190 is installed and transmit the detection result to the communication unit 150 of the air purifying robot 100. there is.

Figure 3 is a diagram for explaining a spatial model according to an embodiment of the present invention.

As explained with reference to FIG. 1, the spatial model can be input from the outside, or can be set based on information on the path the air purifying robot has moved and the detected objects.

Referring to FIG. 3, the space model (Rm) may be set by a map building operation in which the air purifying robot 100 moves along the wall of the space and stores the path taken. Specifically, the space model (Rm) may be set by the air cleaning robot 100 starting from the charging station 190 moving along the boundary of the space and storing the path (Ps) along which it moved. Additionally, the spatial model (Rm) may be divided into a plurality of cells (C).

Figure 4 is a diagram for explaining the operation of an air cleaning robot according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 4, in one embodiment of an automatically performed operation, the air purifying robot may move from the charging station 190 of the spatial model Rm along the outer path P1. At the same time, the air purifying robot can set the wind direction in the direction toward the designated target location (A) within the space model (Rm) and discharge the air purified by the wind direction. Specifically, the control unit 130 (FIG. 1) of the air cleaning robot may set the outer path P1 to pass through the outer cells of the space model Rm. In addition, the control unit controls the traveling unit 120 (FIG. 1) to move along the outer path P1 of the space model Rm, and at the same time moves to discharge air in the direction of the target position A. The wind direction of the purifier 110 (FIG. 1) can be continuously adjusted depending on the location.

Here, the target location (A) can be replaced with one cell (C_A) among a plurality of cells forming the spatial model (Rm).

Accordingly, the air purifying robot according to an embodiment of the present invention can purify air stagnant at the boundary of a space and circulate it into the interior of the space.

Figure 5 is a diagram for explaining the operation of an air cleaning robot according to another embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 5, in one embodiment of an automatically performed operation, the air purifying robot may move along a plurality of outer paths (P1a, P1b) of the space model. At the same time, the air purifying robot can set the wind direction in a direction toward the plurality of target positions (A, B) of the space model (Rm) according to the outer path and discharge the air purified by the wind direction.

Specifically, the control unit 130 (FIG. 1) of the air cleaning robot divides the space model into a first space model (Ra) and a second space model (Rb), and divides the outer path of the space model into the first space model (Ra). ) can be divided into a first outer path (P1a) passing through and a second outer path (P1b) passing through the second spatial model (Rb). Thereafter, the control unit may control the traveling unit 120 (FIG. 1) to move along the first and second outer paths P1a and P1b. In addition, the control unit adjusts the wind direction of the purifier 110 (FIG. 1) to discharge air in the direction of the first target position A when moving along the first outer path P1a, and the second outer path P1a. When moving along the path P1b, the wind direction of the purifier can be adjusted to discharge air in the direction of the second target position B.

Figure 6 is a diagram illustrating the operation of an air cleaning robot in a space model reset according to an embodiment of the present invention.

After the operation of the air cleaning robot described in FIG. 4 is performed, the air cleaning robot may repeatedly perform the same operation again inside the outer path along which it moved.

Referring to FIG. 6, after the movement along the outer path (P1) of the spatial model is completed, the control unit 130 (FIG. 1) may set the spatial model (Rsub) again inside the outer path. In addition, the control unit can control the traveling unit 120 (FIG. 1) to move along the outer path P2 of the re-set space model Rsub, and at the same time discharge air in the direction of the target position A. The wind direction of the purifier 110 (FIG. 1) can be continuously adjusted depending on the moving position.

Additionally, the controller may control the purifier so that the wind speed of the discharged air is reduced compared to the previous wind speed when moving along the re-established outer path.

Meanwhile, the air purifying robot may move along the path P3 returning to the charging station 190 after a series of operations are completed.

Figure 7 is a flowchart of a method for controlling an air cleaning robot according to an embodiment of the present invention, showing the process of automatically controlling the air cleaning robot described with reference to Figure 1.

Referring to Figure 7, the control method of the air cleaning robot begins with setting the space model (S20). Since the setting of the spatial model has been described with reference to FIG. 3, detailed description will be omitted.

Thereafter, the control unit 130 (FIG. 1) controls the air cleaning robot to move along the outer path of the set space model (S21). At the same time, the control unit controls the air purifying robot to discharge the purified air in a set wind direction (S22). Here, the controller may adjust the wind direction in a direction toward the target location of the space model.

Next, the control unit can set a new space model (S30). The new spatial model may be set inside the previous spatial model. Meanwhile, as described in FIG. 3, the spatial model may be composed of a plurality of cells. For example, the control unit can set the group of cells excluding the cells through which the outer path that performed the movement passed as a new spatial model.

After setting a new space model, the control unit controls the air cleaning robot to move along the outer path of the re-set space model (S31). At the same time, the control unit controls the air purifying robot to discharge the purified air in a set wind direction (S32). Similar to the previous step (S22), the controller may adjust the wind direction in a direction toward the target location of the space model. Additionally, the purifier 110 (FIG. 1) can be controlled so that the wind speed of the discharged air is reduced compared to the previous step (S22).

Additionally, the steps of setting up a new space model, moving along the outer path of the new space model, and discharging the purified air in the set wind direction (S32) may be performed repeatedly.

Finally, the air purifying robot is controlled to return to the charging station (S40).

In this way, the air purifying robot according to an embodiment of the present invention efficiently improves air quality by actively responding to the conditions of the space and air, and automatically circulates the outside of the space to convect the air, thereby continuously providing comfortable air. It can be maintained.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments and attached drawings. For those skilled in the art to which the present invention pertains, it will be clear that components according to the present invention can be replaced, modified, and changed without departing from the technical spirit of the present invention.

100: Air purifying robot
110: Cleaning Department
120: Running unit
130: control unit
140: detection unit
150: Department of Communications
190: Charging station

Claims (11)

A running part formed in the lower part of the main body and performing movement;
A purifier that intakes and purifies external air and discharges the purified air in a set wind direction;
A detection unit that measures air pollution: and
The driving unit is controlled to move along the outer path of the set space model, the wind direction is set based on the moving position according to the operation of the driving unit, and the air is purified according to the air pollution level measured by the detection unit. A control unit that controls the purifying unit to adjust the wind speed and controls the running unit to adjust the moving speed according to the air pollution level; containing
Air purifying robot.
According to paragraph 1,
The control unit is an air purifying robot that sets the wind direction in a direction toward a designated target location within the space model.
According to paragraph 1,
The space model is an air purifying robot set by a map building operation that moves along the wall of the space and stores the path taken.
According to paragraph 1,
An air purifying robot having a plurality of sensors that detect different areas and further comprising a detection unit that determines the location of an object according to the detection output of each sensor.
According to paragraph 1,
An air purifying robot further comprising a charging unit that stores power provided from an external charging station.
According to paragraph 1,
The control unit sets a space model again inside the outer path when the movement along the outer path is completed, and controls the air purifying robot to move along the outer path of the re-set space model.
According to clause 6,
The air purifying robot controls the purifying unit so that the wind speed of the discharged air is reduced when the control unit moves along the outer path of the re-set space model.
delete delete delete According to paragraph 2,
An air purifying robot wherein the control unit purifies air in the outer path and convects the purified air to the target location.

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