KR20070095558A - Cleaner system improving docking structure between robot cleaner and docking station - Google Patents

Abstract

A cleaner system improving a docking structure between a robot cleaner and a docking station is provided to allow a user to remove dust on the floor with the docking by installing a suction hole and a suction pipe to the docking station. In a cleaner system improving a docking structure between a robot cleaner(100) and a docking station(200), the robot cleaner has a dust discharge hole(114) and a sliding cover(140). The dust discharge hole is formed to discharge dust in a dust tank(120) to the docking station. The sliding cover slides, opening the dust discharge hole. The docking station includes a station body(210) and a connection pipe(212). The station body has a protrusion(142). The protrusion is formed to open the sliding cover. The connection pipe communicates with the dust discharge hole when the sliding cover slides open.

Description

Cleaner system improving docking structure between robot cleaner and docking station}

1 is a perspective view showing the appearance of a cleaner system according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

2 and 3 are side cross-sectional views respectively showing the configuration of the robot cleaner and the docking station in FIG.

Figure 4 is a side cross-sectional view showing the robot cleaner coupled to the docking station in the cleaner system of FIG.

Figure 5 is a side view schematically showing the appearance of a cleaner system according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

6 is a side cross-sectional view showing the configuration of the docking station in FIG.

Figure 7 is a side cross-sectional view showing a robot cleaner coupled to the docking station in FIG.

      * Description of symbols on the main parts of the drawings *

      100: robot cleaner 110: robot body

      114: dust outlet 120: first dust container

      140: sliding cover 141: elastic member

      200: docking station 210: station body

      211: protrusion 212: connector

      215: suction port 250: suction pipe

      280: euro switching device

      The present invention relates to a cleaner system, and more particularly to a cleaner system having a docking station which is installed to suck and remove dust stored in the robot cleaner.

      The vacuum cleaner is a mechanism for cleaning the room by removing dust and the like, and a vacuum cleaner that sucks garbage or dust by using the absorption force of the low pressure part is generally used. Recently, a robot cleaner has been developed that removes foreign substances such as dust from the indoor floor while moving by itself through an automatic driving function without a user's labor. Hereinafter, the robot cleaner removes the foreign matter while moving by itself is called 'automatic cleaning', and the user removes the foreign matter while moving with the cleaner is called 'manual cleaning'.

      In general, the robot cleaner is used in a system together with a station (hereinafter referred to as a docking station) that is disposed at a specific place in the room and functions to charge the robot cleaner or to empty dust stored in the robot cleaner.

      Examples of such cleaner systems are disclosed in US 2005/0150519. The disclosed cleaner system has a docking station having a robot cleaner and a suction unit for suction of dust. The lower part of the robot cleaner is provided with a suction port for suctioning dust, and the suction port is rotatably installed so that the dust can be used. The front of the docking station is provided with a pedestal formed with an inclined surface so that the robot cleaner can rise, one side of the inclined surface is formed with a suction port for suction of dust. Therefore, when the robot cleaner comes up along the inclined surface and reaches the docking position, the inlet of the inclined surface and the inlet of the robot cleaner face each other. At this time, the suction unit operates to remove dust from the robot cleaner.

      As described above, in the conventional cleaner system, the docking station has a pedestal so that the robot cleaner can be lifted because it has a structure to remove dust through the lower part of the robot cleaner when docking. However, this pedestal acts as a disadvantageous structure in order to give the docking station a moving function and utilize it as a separate vacuum cleaner.

      In addition, the conventional vacuum cleaner system has a structure for discharging the dust again through the suction port of the robot cleaner, due to this structure, the conventional robot system has the following problems. First, in consideration of the fact that the suction inlet part for sucking dust is formed to be able to suck dust effectively, the above structure does not effectively utilize the suction power of the docking station. In addition, a brush is installed at the inlet of the robot cleaner, and when the docking station inhales the dust, the dust inside the robot cleaner is caught and caught by the brush. Defilement problems can occur.

      The present invention is to solve such a problem, an object of the present invention is to provide a cleaner system that improves the dust removal performance of the docking station by improving the docking structure of the robot cleaner and the docking station.

      In addition, another object of the present invention to provide a cleaner system that allows the user to manually clean using a docking station that functions to remove dust in the robot cleaner.

The cleaner system according to the present invention for achieving the above object is a cleaner having a robot cleaner having a dust container for storing dust, and a docking station installed to suck dust in the dust container while the robot cleaner is docked. In the system, the robot cleaner is characterized in that it comprises a dust outlet for discharging the dust in the dust container to the docking station, and a sliding cover for sliding the opening and opening the dust outlet by the docking station when docked. .

The robot cleaner may further include an elastic member for elastically biasing the sliding cover in a direction of closing the dust outlet.

The dust outlet is formed on the top or side of the robot cleaner, the dust container is preferably formed of a material that can be deformed.

      The docking station has a station body having a protruding portion protruding to open the sliding cover when the robot cleaner is docked, and a connection port communicating with the dust outlet as the sliding cover is opened.

      The docking station may include a station main body having a suction port, a blower mounted inside the station main body for suction of dust, and a suction pipe connected to the suction port so that a user can manually clean the docking station. Have

      In addition, the cleaner system according to the present invention is a cleaner system having a robot cleaner having a first dust container, and a docking station provided to remove dust stored in the first dust container, wherein the robot cleaner is dust to the docking station And a dust cover for discharging the dust outlet, and a sliding cover which opens the dust outlet while slidingly interacting with the docking station when docking, and the docking station communicates with the dust outlet upon opening of the sliding cover. A station body having a suction port for sucking dust from a connector and a floor into the station body, a second dust container for storing dust flowing through the connector and the suction port, and a blowing air generating suction force for suctioning dust Device and the suction force of the blower It characterized in that it comprises a flow channel switching device that is installed in the station body to selectively act as a suction port or connector group.

      Hereinafter, with reference to the accompanying drawings, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail. 1 is a perspective view showing the appearance of a cleaner system according to a first embodiment of the present invention, Figures 2 and 3 are side cross-sectional views showing the configuration of the robot cleaner and the docking station in Figure 1, Figure 4 is Side view showing the robot cleaner coupled to the docking station in the cleaner system.

      As shown in Figures 1 to 4, the cleaner system according to the first embodiment of the present invention is a robot main body (110) formed with an inlet 111 for the inflow of dust and the robot main body for the storage of the incoming dust ( A robot cleaner 100 having a first dust container 120 installed inside the docking station, and a docking station for sucking and removing dust in the first dust container 120 while the robot cleaner 100 is docked ( 200). The robot cleaner 100 autonomously moves the area to be cleaned and automatically cleans the dust, and then returns to the docking station 200 to remove the dust when a certain level of dust is accumulated in the first dust container 120.

      As shown in FIG. 2, the robot cleaner 100 has a first blower 130 installed in the robot body 110 to provide power for suction of dust, and the first blower 130. And a filter 101 is installed between the first dust container 120 to prevent dust from flowing into the first blower 130. Although not shown in the drawing, the first blower 130 includes a suction motor and a blowing fan that is rotated by the suction motor, and the inside of the robot main body 110 includes dust accumulated in the first dust container 120. Dust detection sensor is installed to detect the amount.

      The lower part of the robot body 110 is provided with a pair of drive wheels 112 for the movement of the robot cleaner 100, the pair of drive wheels 112 are driven by a drive motor (not shown) for rotating each of them. It is selectively driven to allow the robot cleaner 100 to move in the required direction.

      In addition, the robot cleaner 100 receives the flow of air generated by the inlet 111 and the first blower 130 formed in the lower portion of the robot body 110 to pick up dust from the bottom B of the cleaning area. The first discharge port 113 for discharging to the outside of the robot body 110 and the robot body 110 to discharge dust to the docking station 200 when the robot cleaner 100 is docked in the docking station 200. ) Has a dust outlet 114 formed therein.

      Where the robot body 110 is adjacent to the inlet 111, the brush 115 for sweeping up the dust of the bottom (B) is rotatably installed, and connecting them between the inlet 111 and the first dust container 120 Inlet pipe 116 is located.

      In particular, in the present invention, the dust outlet 114 is formed on the upper surface of the robot body 110, and then compared to the case of removing the dust again using the inlet 111 of the robot body 110, as in the prior art first dust container Dust in the 120 is more effectively removed, and dust is not caught on the brush 115 or leaked back to the bottom B in the process of removing the dust in the first dust container 120.

      The dust outlet 114 is formed to be in communication with the first dust container 120, the dust outlet 114 is slid by the docking station 200 when the robot cleaner 100 is docked and the dust outlet 114 Sliding cover 140 to open the is installed. The sliding cover 140 is installed on the upper surface of the robot body 110 to be slidably movable, and at one end thereof, an elastic member 141 elastically biasing the sliding cover 140 in a direction of closing the dust outlet 114. Is mounted. In addition, the other end of the sliding cover 140 is provided with a locking portion 142 so that the sliding cover 140 can be opened by being caught by the docking station 200 when docked.

      Therefore, the sliding cover 140 closes the dust outlet 114 when the robot cleaner 100 automatically cleans and prevents the suction force of the first blower 130 from leaking through the dust outlet 114 and the robot. When the cleaner 100 is docked to the docking station 200 to remove dust in the first dust container 120, the dust discharge port 114 may be opened to move the dust in the first dust container 120 toward the docking station 200. Make sure

      On the other hand, the first dust container 120 is preferably formed of a material that can be freely deformed, such as cloth, which is the first dust container 120 by the suction force of the docking station 200 when the dust is removed from the first dust container 120 In order to prevent the gap between the dust outlet 114 and the connector 212 while being deformed (see Figure 4).

      As shown in FIG. 3, the docking station 200 is installed inside the station body 210 and the station body 210 to provide power for suctioning dust when the dust of the first dust container 120 is removed. The second blower 220 and the second dust container 230 is provided inside the station body 210 for the storage of the sucked dust.

      The station body 210 protrudes forward to cover the upper portion of the robot cleaner 100 when the robot cleaner 100 returns to the docking station 200 and forms a constant accommodation space S thereunder. It has a protrusion 211. In particular, the lower portion of the protrusion 211 is configured to be able to move the sliding cover 140 in contact with one end of the sliding cover 140 when the robot cleaner 100 is docked, in this embodiment the protrusion 211 is sliding The sliding cover 140 is moved in contact with the engaging portion 142 of the cover. When the robot cleaner 100 is docked to the docking station 200, a connector 212 for receiving dust from the robot cleaner 100 is formed at a point corresponding to the dust outlet 114 at the bottom of the protrusion 211. . Therefore, when the sliding cover 140 is opened in the docking process of the robot cleaner 100, the connector 212 of the docking station 200 communicates with the dust outlet 114 of the robot cleaner 100. The connector 212 may be always open as shown in FIG. 3, and a separate opening and closing member (not shown) capable of opening and closing the connector 212 is installed at the connector 212 so that the robot cleaner 100 is docked. It is also possible to make the connector 212 open.

      A flow path 213 is provided between the connector 212 and the second dust container 230 to guide the dust transferred through the connector 212 to the second dust container 230. In addition, a second discharge port 214 is formed at the rear of the station body 210 to discharge the flow of air generated by the second blower 220 to the outside of the station body 210.

      Hereinafter, the operation of the cleaner system related to the gist of the present invention will be described. When the cleaning starts, the robot cleaner 100 removes foreign substances in the area to be cleaned while moving autonomously. At this time, the sliding cover 140 of the robot cleaner 100 closes the dust outlet 114 through the elastic force of the elastic member 141 so that the suction force by the first blower 130 leaks to the dust outlet 114. To prevent them. Then, the dust of the bottom (B) is sucked through the inlet 111 and the inlet pipe 116 is collected in the first dust container (120). When dust is accumulated at a predetermined level or more in the first dust container 120, the robot cleaner 100 stops cleaning and returns to the docking station 200 to remove dust. When the robot cleaner 100 enters the accommodation space S under the protrusion 211 in the return process, the protrusion 211 of the docking station 200 pushes the locking portion 142 of the sliding cover 140. As the robot cleaner 100 continues to move, the sliding cover 140 is completely opened. Then, the dust outlet 114 of the robot cleaner 100 is exposed so that the connector 212 of the docking station 200 is in communication with each other. When the docking process is completed, the second blower 220 is operated to inhale dust stored in the first dust container 120 of the robot cleaner 100 toward the second dust container 230 so that the first dust container 120 is operated. Remove the dust inside. At this time, when the first dust container 120 is formed of a material that can be freely deformed, a part of the first dust container 120 is attracted to the docking station 200 by the suction force of the second air blower 220, and the dust outlet 114 ) So that the gap between the connector 212 is eliminated and dust is removed more efficiently.

      In the above embodiment, the dust outlet 114 and the sliding cover 140 has been described in the case where it is located on the upper surface of the robot body 110, the dust outlet 114 and the sliding cover 140 by changing the appropriate structure It is also possible to position the side of the robot body 110.

      Figure 5 is a side view schematically showing the appearance of the cleaner system according to a second embodiment of the present invention, Figure 6 is a side cross-sectional view showing the configuration of the docking station in Figure 5, Figure 7 is a robot cleaner docking station in Figure 5 Side cross-sectional view showing the coupling to. This embodiment relates to an example of using a docking station for dust removal as a general vacuum cleaner. In the following description, the same components as those in the embodiment of FIG. 1 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and only characteristic features of the present embodiment will be described.

      As shown in FIGS. 5 to 7, the docking station 200 of the cleaner system according to the second embodiment of the present invention includes a suction body 240 for suctioning dust or foreign matter from the floor B, and It has a suction pipe 250 connecting the suction body 240 and the station body 210 so that the suction force generated in the two blower 220 can be transmitted to the suction body 240.

      The suction pipe 250 includes a first suction pipe 251 and a second suction pipe 252, and various buttons are provided between the first suction pipe 251 and the second suction pipe 252 so as to be easily operated by a user. A handle 253 is provided. The first suction pipe 251 is formed of an elastic corrugated pipe, one end of which is connected to the suction port 215 of the station body 210 and the other end of which is connected to the handle 253. The second suction pipe 252 is one end is connected to the suction body 240 and the other end is connected to the handle 253 to allow the user to manually clean the foreign substances on the floor while moving freely in the standing state.

      A first suction passage 260 is provided between the suction port 215 and the connector 212, and the first suction passage 260 communicates with the first suction passage 260 between the first suction passage 260 and the second dust container 230. A second suction passage 270 is provided to guide the dust sucked through the first suction passage 260 to the second dust container 230. The first suction passage 260 is a first passage portion 261 located at the suction port 215 side with respect to the point where the second suction passage 270 communicates, and a second passage portion located at the connector 212 side ( 262).

      The first suction passage 260 is provided with a flow path switching device 280 to allow the second suction passage 270 to selectively communicate with any one of the first passage portion 261 and the second passage portion 262. When the flow path switching device 280 communicates the first flow path part 261 to the second suction flow path 270, the suction force of the second blower 220 acts toward the suction body 240 through the suction port 215. The docking station 200 may be utilized as a general vacuum cleaner (see FIG. 6). In addition, when the dust in the robot cleaner 100 is to be removed, the flow path switching device 280 communicates with the second flow path part 262 in communication with the connector 212 by the second suction flow path 270 to blow the second blower. The suction force of the 220 to act toward the first dust container 120 through the connector 212, the dust outlet 114. Then, the dust stored in the first dust container 120 of the robot cleaner 100 is sucked toward the second dust container 230 to clean the dust accumulated in the first dust container 120 (see FIG. 7).

      The flow path switching device 280 is installed to be movable up and down in the first suction flow path 260, and the flow path switching device 280 moves inside the flow path switching device 280 when the flow path switching device 280 moves downward. The first connection passage 281 connecting the second suction passage 270 and the second suction passage 270, and the second passage portion 262 and the second suction passage 270 when the flow path switching device 280 moves upward. A second connection passage 282 is provided for connecting. A partition 283 partitioning the first connection channel 281 and the second connection channel 282 is positioned between the first connection channel 281 and the second connection channel 282.

      Although not shown in the drawings, the flow path switching device 280 may be installed to be movable in the vertical direction through a drive unit including a motor, a rack gear, a pinion gear, and the like.

      Configuration of the flow path switching device 280 described above is an example, if the flow path switching device so that the suction force of the second blower 220 can selectively act on the suction port 215 or the connector 212 280 may be implemented in various forms (eg, valve type).

      As described above, the present invention is configured so that the docking station can suck the dust through the dust outlet formed on the upper surface or the side of the robot vacuum cleaner can be made smoothly docking operation for removing the dust without a separate structure such as a pedestal It has an effect. Accordingly, since the docking station does not have a structure that is an obstacle to freely moving the indoor floor, there is a convenience that the docking station can be used as a general vacuum cleaner.

      In addition, in the present invention, since the robot cleaner discharges dust through a dust outlet formed separately from the dust inlet, there is an effect of preventing dust from leaking during the dust suction process.

      In addition, when the dust container of the robot cleaner is formed of a material that is free of deformation, the suction force of the blower is reduced in the docking part of the robot cleaner and the docking station.

Claims (7)

A cleaner system comprising a robot cleaner having a dust container for storing dust and a docking station installed to suck dust in the dust container while the robot cleaner is docked. The robot cleaner comprises a dust outlet for discharging the dust in the dust container to the docking station, and a sliding cover that slides by the docking station and opens the dust outlet when docked. The method of claim 1, The robot cleaner further comprises an elastic member for elastically biasing the sliding cover in a direction of closing the dust outlet. The method of claim 1, The dust discharge port is a cleaner system, characterized in that formed on the top or side of the robot cleaner. The method of claim 1, The dust container is a cleaner system, characterized in that formed of a material capable of deformation. The method of claim 1, The docking station includes a station body having a protruding portion protruding to open the sliding cover when the robot vacuum cleaner is docked, and a connector for communicating with the dust outlet as the sliding cover is opened. system. The method of claim 1, The docking station includes a station body having a suction port, a blower mounted inside the station body for suctioning dust, and a suction pipe connected to the suction port so that a user can manually clean the docking station. Cleaner system, characterized in that.        A cleaner system having a robot cleaner having a first dust container and a docking station provided to remove dust stored in the first dust container,       The robot cleaner includes a dust outlet for discharging dust to the docking station, and a sliding cover which opens the dust outlet while slidingly moving in interaction with the docking station when docked.       The docking station stores a station main body having a connection port communicating with the dust discharge port and a suction port for sucking dust on the floor into the station main body when the sliding cover is opened, and dust flowing through the connection port and the suction port. And a second dust container, a blower for generating suction force for suction of dust, and a flow path switching device installed inside the station body so that the suction force of the blower device can selectively act on the connector or suction port. Cleaner system, characterized in that.

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