KR20050012117A - Robot cleaner - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: A robot cleaner is provided to prevent the damage of the robot cleaner by damping the impact at the clash with an obstacle and to continuously clean by avoiding the protruded obstacle. CONSTITUTION: A robot cleaner comprises a main body(110), a bumper(200), a bumper supporting unit, a protruded obstacle detector(300) and a control unit(400). The main body has a driving unit for driving and a dust intake portion(130) for removing dirt. The bumper is installed in the main body for protecting the main body from the impact with an obstacle during the driving. The bumper supporting unit supports the bumper for moving the bumper between a first position and a second position. The first position is separated from the main body. The second position is backed from the first position. The protruded obstacle detector detects the protruded obstacle by turning on/off according to the movement of the bumper. The control unit controls the driving unit and the dust intake portion, discriminates the appearance of the obstacle by receiving a signal from the protruded obstacle detector and changes the driving direction of the main body for avoiding the obstacle at the appearance of the obstacle. Thereby, the robot cleaner is safely protected from an unexpected clash.

Description

Robot Cleaner {ROBOT CLEANER}

The present invention relates to a robot cleaner.

As is well known, the robot cleaner is a device which automatically cleans the area to be cleaned without the user's operation by driving itself.

1 is a perspective view schematically illustrating an example of a general robot cleaner, and FIG. 2 is a bottom view of FIG. 1. 1 and 2, reference numeral 10 is a robot body, 20 is a suction part, 30 is a suction port, 40 is a sensor part, 50 is a control part, and 60 is a battery.

As shown, a plurality of driving wheels 11 and 12 for driving are installed on both sides of the robot body 10. This robot body 10 is approximately disk shaped and usually has a cover.

The dust collecting unit 20 collects dust on the floor by generating a strong suction force on the suction port formed in the robot body 10, and collects the dust sucked through the suction port by driving the vacuum motor and the vacuum motor. It is configured to include a dust chamber.

The suction port 30 is formed at one side of the lower surface of the robot body 10 so as to communicate with the suction port, and a rotatable brush 31 is installed therein to shake off dust from the bottom.

The sensor unit 40 is disposed at predetermined intervals around the side surface of the robot body 10 to transmit a signal to the outside and receive the reflected signal. The sensor unit 40 includes an obstacle detecting sensor and a traveling distance detecting sensor.

The controller 50 processes signals received through the transmitter / receiver and controls each component. That is, the controller 50 receives a signal from an external control device to drive the driving wheels 11 and 12, and also to drive the vacuum motor of the suction unit 20, and from the sensor unit 40. Control the running of the robot cleaner with the received signal.

The general robot cleaner configured as described above determines the distance to an obstacle such as an appliance, office equipment, wall, etc. installed in the cleaning area through the sensor unit 40, and accordingly, the driving wheel 11 (of the robot body 10) ( By selectively driving 12), the cleaning area is cleaned while turning itself.

However, although the above-described general robot cleaner includes an obstacle sensor, such as a sudden occurrence of a protruding obstacle, the main body and other parts may be damaged due to the collision with the obstacle. have.

In addition, when the obstacle and the robot cleaner collides with the appearance of the protruding obstacle, it is necessary to perform the cleaning while avoiding the obstacle while the general robot cleaner does not have such a function or structure, which makes it inconvenient to use and inferior in cleaning efficiency. There is also.

The present invention has been made in view of the above, by providing a robot cleaner that can prevent the damage to the robot cleaner by mitigating the impact caused by the collision with the projecting obstacle, and can continue the cleaning to avoid the projecting obstacle. Its purpose is to.

1 is a perspective view showing a general robot cleaner,

2 is a bottom view of FIG. 1;

3 is an exploded perspective view of a robot cleaner according to an embodiment of the present invention;

Figure 4a and 4b is a perspective view showing the internal structure of the bumper used in the robot cleaner according to an embodiment of the present invention,

5 is a cross-sectional view showing a bumper support unit of a robot cleaner according to an embodiment of the present invention;

6 is a view illustrating a bumper assembly of a robot cleaner according to an embodiment of the present invention;

7 is a perspective view showing the internal structure of the bumper used in the robot cleaner according to another embodiment of the present invention;

8 is a cross-sectional view showing a bumper support unit of a robot cleaner according to another embodiment of the present invention;

9a and 9b is a view showing an extracting portion of the bumper support unit and the robot cleaner main body according to the present embodiment, and

10 is a view illustrating a bumper assembly of a robot cleaner according to another embodiment of the present invention.

<Description of Symbols for Main Parts of Drawings>

100: robot cleaner 110: robot cleaner body

120: cover 200: bumper

230: buffer unit 231,232: first and second members

231a, 341a: circular groove 232a, 342a: protrusion

233: elastic member 240, 340: bumper support unit

241: flange 241a: sliding groove

242: connecting member 243: fixing piece

244: pin 300: protruding obstacle detection means

310: micro switch 310a: switching unit

320: leaf spring 341: first support member

342: second support member 343: third support member

344: fourth supporting member 345: fifth supporting member

400: control unit

Robot cleaner according to the present invention for achieving the above object, the robot body having a drive for driving and dust removal for removing dirt; A bumper installed at the robot body to protect the robot body from collision with an obstacle while driving; A bumper support unit for supporting the bumper to move the bumper between a first position spaced apart from the robot body and a second position retracted from the first position in the robot body; Protruding obstacle detecting means for detecting the appearance of a protruding obstacle while the on / off operation is performed according to the positional movement of the bumper; And a controller configured to control the driving unit and the suction unit, and to determine whether an obstacle is present by receiving a signal from the protruding obstacle detecting means, and to change the driving direction of the robot body to avoid the obstacle when the obstacle appears.

The bumper support unit may include a pair of flanges each formed at both sides of the bumper and having a slide groove; A pair of connecting members having a pin inserted into the slide groove of the flange at one end thereof; And a pair of fixing pieces installed on the robot body to fix the other end of the connecting member.

In addition, the projecting obstacle detection means, the micro switch is provided on both sides of the robot body, each having a switch; And a switch installed adjacent to the micro switch of the robot body to turn on / off the switch of the micro switch, elastically biased to always turn off the switch, and the switch being elastically deformed when the bumper is moved to the second position. And a leaf spring to turn on, wherein the control unit determines that a protruding obstacle appears when the switch unit is turned on.

In addition, the robot cleaner according to the present invention includes a shock absorbing unit that elastically supports the bumper with respect to the robot body so as to maintain the first position and absorbs the shock applied to the bumper.

The shock absorbing unit includes: a first member protruding from the inside of the bumper toward the robot body, the at least one pair of guide long grooves facing each other; A second member installed to be movable in the first member, one end of which has a pair of protrusions inserted into the guide long groove, the other end of which is in contact with the robot body; And an elastic member installed inside the second member to elastically support the second member outwardly.

According to another preferred embodiment of the present invention, the bumper support unit includes: a first support member protruding from the inside of the bumper toward the robot body, the at least one pair of guide long grooves facing each other; A second support member movably installed in the first support member, the second support member having a pair of protrusions inserted into the guide long groove of the first support member; A third support member protruding from the other end of the second support member and having a hook formed at an end thereof; And a fourth support member having a hook hole provided at one side of the robot body to insert the third support member.

In addition, the other end of the second support member is provided with a fifth support member that is in contact with the fourth support member in order to maintain a constant position of the third support member inserted into the hook hole.

In addition, in another embodiment of the present invention, the protruding obstacle detecting means, respectively provided on both sides of the robot body, the micro switch having a switch; And a switch installed adjacent to the micro switch of the robot body to turn on / off the switch of the micro switch, elastically biased to always turn off the switch, and the switch being elastically deformed when the bumper is moved to the second position. Includes; leaf spring to turn on, wherein the bumper is maintained by the leaf spring in a first position.

Best Mode for Carrying Out the Invention Preferred embodiments of the present invention will now be described based on the accompanying drawings.

3 to 6 are views showing a robot cleaner according to an embodiment of the present invention, in which reference numeral 110 is a robot body, 120 is a cover, 200 is a bumper, 230 is a buffer unit, 240 is a bumper support unit, Reference numeral 300 denotes a protruding obstacle detecting means, and reference numeral 400 denotes a controller.

The robot body 110 is provided with a driving unit (not shown) for driving, a dust collecting unit 130 for collecting dust, a suction port (not shown), a sensor unit 140 and a battery (not shown), and the like. In addition, the controller 400 to be described later is also provided in the robot body 110. The above configuration is not significantly different from the general robot cleaner. Therefore, detailed description is abbreviate | omitted and it demonstrates focusing on the characteristic structure of this invention below.

The bumper 200 is for the purpose of preventing damage to the robot body 110 by mitigating the impact when the obstacle and the robot body 110 collides due to an obstacle that appears suddenly in the traveling path of the robot body 110. The member is installed in the robot body 110. The bumper 200 is usually installed to cover a part of the front and both sides of the robot body 110. That is, when the robot body 110 is in the shape of a disc, it is formed in a semi-circular ring shape, and preferably formed of plastic, etc., which is strong in impact, but the material is not necessarily limited.

Since the bumper 200 mitigates the impact when the robot cleaner collides with the obstacle due to the appearance of the protruding obstacle due to the bumper 200 as described above, the robot body 110 may be safely protected.

On the other hand, the bumper 200 is the first position that is the initial position spaced apart from the robot body 110 by a predetermined distance from the robot body 110 by the bumper support unit 240 and the second retracted from the first position Since the bumper 200 moves from the first position to the second position when the collision with the obstacle, the shock absorber can be effectively absorbed.

As shown in FIGS. 4 and 6, the bumper support unit 240 includes a flange 241 formed on the bumper 200, a fixing member 243 installed on the connection member 242, and the robot body 110. It is provided.

The flanges 241 are installed on both sides of the bumper 200, respectively, and slide flanges 241a are formed in the flanges 241, respectively. This flange 241 is preferably formed integrally with the bumper 200.

One end of the connection member 242 is inserted into the slide groove 241a by the pin 244, and the other end is fixed to the fixing piece 243. In addition, the fixing piece 243 is installed on both sides of the robot body 110 to correspond to the flange 241.

By the bumper support unit 240 as described above, the bumper 200 may move in a stroke corresponding to the length of the slide groove 241a in the longitudinal direction, that is, between the first position and the second position.

The shock absorbing unit 230 supports the bumper 200 with respect to the robot body 110 so as to maintain the first position of the bumper 200, and absorbs the shock applied to the bumper 200. do. As shown in FIG. 5, the buffer unit 230 includes a first member 231, a second member 232, and an elastic member 233.

The first member 231 is formed of a cylindrical member protruding from the inside of the bumper 200 toward the robot body 110, and at least one pair of guide grooves 231a are formed to face each other.

The second member 232 is formed of a cylindrical member movably installed inside the first member 231, and one end thereof has a pair of protrusions 232a inserted into the guide groove 231a. Is formed. The other end of the second member 232 is in contact with the robot body 110.

The elastic member 233 is installed in the second member 232 to elastically support the second member 232 to the outside with respect to the first member 231.

The protruding obstacle detecting means 300 detects the occurrence of the protruding obstacle while the on / off operation is linked to the position movement of the bumper 200. The protruding obstacle detecting means 300 is installed in the robot body 110 at which both ends of the bumper 200 are positioned, and according to the movement of the micro switch 310 having the switch part 310a and the bumper 200. It includes a leaf spring 320 to turn on / off the switch unit 310a of the micro switch 310.

Here, the micro switch 310 is used as it is commonly known. In addition, the leaf spring 320 is installed at a position adjacent to the micro switch 310 in place of the robot body 110, and is installed to be elastically biased to turn off the switch portion 310a. In addition, the leaf spring 320 turns on the switch portion 310a while elastically deforming by pushing an end of the bumper 200 to the leaf spring 320 when the bumper 200 is moved to the second position. .

As described above, when the micro switch 310 in the off state is turned on, the control unit 400 that receives a signal from the micro switch 310 determines that a protruding obstacle has appeared and collided with the robot cleaner, and subsequently, For example, the driving direction of the robot cleaner is temporarily changed to avoid obstacles. Here, if it is determined that the obstacle is avoided, the robot cleaner performs cleaning while traveling in the initially set path.

As described above, the robot cleaner 110 according to the embodiment of the present invention absorbs and cushions the shock by the bumper 200 even when an obstacle suddenly appears as a driving path and collides with the robot cleaner, so that the robot main body 110 is provided. It is possible to prevent damage to the component parts, including, and to clean the initial set area while continuing to avoid obstacles without stopping the operation.

More specifically, the action of the robot cleaner according to the present invention is as follows.

The robot cleaner performs cleaning while traveling along a predetermined path in the initially set cleaning area. At this time, when an obstacle or a wall surface approaches within a predetermined distance by a signal input from the sensor unit 140, it detects and avoids cleaning.

However, the sensor unit 140 may not detect a sudden obstacle appearing suddenly, or may occur when the cleaner already collides with the obstacle before the detection. The bumper 200 serves to protect the robot cleaner from collision with such a sudden protrusion obstacle.

That is, when the robot cleaner does not avoid due to the appearance of the sudden protrusion obstacle as described above and collides with the obstacle, the bumper 200 moves from the first position to the second position while the impact caused by the collision remains as it is. Absorb and mitigate to prevent delivery to Therefore, since the weakened shock is transmitted to the robot body 110, the robot body and a plurality of parts embedded therein may be safely protected from the impact.

On the other hand, when the bumper 200 moves from the first position to the second position due to the collision as described above, the leaf spring 320 holding the switch 310a of the micro switch 310 is applied to the bumper 200. It is pushed while being elastically deformed, whereby the micro switch 310 is turned on. When the micro switch 310 is turned on, the controller 400 determines that a protruding obstacle has appeared and collided with the robot cleaner, and controls the driving unit to reversely rotate the driving unit by moving the robot cleaner to the normal operable area by escaping the collision point. Let's move.

7 to 10 are views showing a robot cleaner according to another embodiment of the present invention. As can be seen through the drawings, the basic structure of the robot cleaner is made similar to the embodiment of the present invention described above. Therefore, the same reference numerals refer to the same parts and components as the above-described embodiments.

In the robot cleaner according to the present embodiment, the structure of the bumper support unit 340 for supporting the bumper 200 to be movable between the first position and the second position on the robot body 110 is different from that of the embodiment.

More specifically, the bumper support unit 340 is characterized in that the bumper support unit 340 by removing the shock absorbing unit 230 in one embodiment and a simple structure change of the shock absorbing unit. On the other hand, in the present embodiment, the buffer unit 230 is a role of the leaf spring 320 constituting the protruding obstacle detecting means 300 is replaced by the elasticity of the leaf spring 320 only bumper 200 It is possible to fully support the first position. Of course, the structure of the bumper support unit 240 in one embodiment is removed in this embodiment.

As illustrated in FIGS. 8 and 9A and B, the bumper support unit 340 includes a first support member 341, a second support member 342, a third support member 343, and a fourth support member ( 344 and the fifth support member 345.

The first support member 341 protrudes from the inside of the bumper 200 toward the robot body 110 and is formed at a position where at least one pair of guide grooves 341a face each other. It is preferably formed in a cylindrical shape, integrally formed in the bumper 200.

The second support member 342 is installed to be movable in the first support member 341 and includes a protrusion 342a inserted into the guide groove 341a. The second support member 342 is also preferably cylindrical.

The third support member 343 protrudes from the other end of the second support member 342, and a hook 343a is formed at the end thereof.

The fourth support member 344 is provided on one side of the robot body 110 to be connected to the third support member 343, the fourth support member 344 of the third support member 343 A hook hole 344a for locking the hook 343a is formed.

The fifth supporting member 345 is formed at the other end of the second supporting member 342 in parallel with the third supporting member 343 and has a length smaller than the length of the third supporting member 343. . Therefore, when the bumper 200 is assembled to the robot body 110, the third support member 343 is inserted into the hook hole 344a of the fourth support member 244, but the fifth support member 345 is In contact with the fourth support member 344, the position of the third support member 343 inserted into the hook hole 344a may be kept constant.

Such other configurations and operations of the robot cleaner according to another embodiment of the present invention are the same as those of the above-described embodiment. Therefore, detailed description thereof will be omitted.

The robot cleaner according to the present invention as described above is provided with a bumper that mitigates the impact caused by the collision even when the robot cleaner collides with the obstacle due to the appearance of a sudden projecting obstacle that the sensor cannot detect. Can be protected from unexpected collisions.

In addition, since the robot cleaner according to the present invention operates the micro switch while the bumper moves in the collision with an obstacle, the controller detects that a protruding obstacle has appeared and moves the robot cleaner to avoid the obstacle. Can be changed. Therefore, since the cleaning operation is not stopped due to the appearance of the protruding obstacle, the robot cleaner can be used more conveniently, and the cleaning efficiency can be increased.

While the invention has been shown and described in connection with the preferred embodiments for illustrating the principles of the invention, the invention is not limited to the construction and operation as shown and described. Rather, those skilled in the art will appreciate that many modifications and variations of the present invention are possible without departing from the spirit and scope of the appended claims. Accordingly, all such suitable changes and modifications and equivalents should be considered to be within the scope of the present invention.

Claims (9)

It is to remove dirt on the floor while driving by itself along a predetermined path, A robot body having a driving part for driving and a suction part for removing dirt; A bumper installed at the robot body to protect the robot body from collision with an obstacle while driving; A bumper support unit configured to support the bumper to move the bumper between a first position spaced apart from the robot body by a predetermined distance from the robot body and a second position retracted from the first position; Protruding obstacle detecting means for detecting the appearance of a protruding obstacle while the on / off operation is performed according to the positional movement of the bumper; And And a controller configured to control the driving unit and the suction unit, and to determine whether an obstacle is present by receiving a signal from the protruding obstacle detecting means and to change a driving direction of the robot body to avoid the obstacle when the obstacle appears. Robot cleaner. According to claim 1, wherein the bumper support unit, A pair of flanges each formed at both sides of the bumper and having a slide groove; A pair of connecting members having a pin inserted into the slide groove of the flange at one end thereof; And And a pair of fixing pieces installed on the robot body to fix the other end of the connection member. The method of claim 2, wherein the protruding obstacle detecting means, Micro-switches respectively provided at both sides of the robot body and having a switch unit; And It is installed adjacent to the micro switch of the robot body to turn on / off the switch part of the micro switch, is elastically biased to always turn off the switch part, and the switch is elastically deformed when the bumper is moved to the second position. It includes; leaf spring; The controller cleaner determines that the projecting obstacle appears when the switch is turned on. The method of claim 2 or 3, And a shock absorbing unit to elastically support the bumper with respect to the robot body so as to maintain the first position and to absorb the shock applied to the bumper. The method of claim 4, wherein the buffer unit, A first member protruding from the inside of the bumper toward the robot body and formed to face at least one guide long groove; A second member which is installed to be movable in the first member, at one end of which a pair of protrusions are inserted into the guide long groove of the first member, and the other end of which is in contact with the robot body; And And an elastic member installed inside the second member to elastically support the second member outwardly. According to claim 1, wherein the bumper support unit, A first support member protruding from the inside of the bumper toward the robot body and formed to face at least one guide long groove; A second support member movably installed in the first support member, the second support member having a pair of protrusions inserted into the guide long groove of the first support member; A third support member protruding from the other end of the second support member and having a hook formed at an end thereof; And And a fourth support member having a hook hole provided at one side of the robot body such that the third support member is inserted therein. The method of claim 6, The other end of the second support member is a robot cleaner, characterized in that the fifth support member is provided with the tip in contact with the fourth support member to maintain a constant position of the third support member inserted into the hook hole. The method of claim 6, wherein the projecting obstacle detection means, Micro-switches respectively provided at both sides of the robot body and having a switch unit; And It is installed adjacent to the micro switch of the robot body to turn on / off the switch part of the micro switch, is elastically biased to always turn off the switch part, and the switch is elastically deformed when the bumper is moved to the second position. It includes; leaf spring; The controller cleaner determines that the projecting obstacle appears when the switch is turned on. The method of claim 8, The bumper is a robot cleaner, characterized in that the elastically supported in the first position by the leaf spring.