WO2022105658A1

WO2022105658A1 - Automatic working system

Info

Publication number: WO2022105658A1
Application number: PCT/CN2021/129861
Authority: WO
Inventors: 杨勇
Original assignee: 深圳市杉川机器人有限公司
Priority date: 2020-11-20
Filing date: 2021-11-10
Publication date: 2022-05-27
Also published as: CN214626393U

Abstract

An automatic working system, comprising an autonomous mobile device (10) and a charging station (20); the autonomous mobile device (10) comprises: a body; and a first charging terminal group and a first signal terminal group which are provided on the body; the charging station (20) comprises: a second charging terminal group constructed to be connected to the first charging terminal group, and a second signal terminal group connected to the first signal terminal group; when the autonomous mobile device (10) is connected to the charging station (20), the second charging terminal group is connected to the first charging terminal group to form a charging circuit, and the second signal terminal group is connected to the first signal terminal group to form a communication circuit; the communication circuit and the charging circuit are independent from each other, and the charging station transmits electric energy to the autonomous mobile device by means of the charging circuit, and also, signal and/or data transmission can be performed between the charging station and the autonomous mobile device by means of the communication circuit.

Description

automatic work system

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the priority of the Chinese patent application with the application number "202022694153.4", filed by Shenzhen Shanchuan Robot Co., Ltd. on November 20, 2020, with the application name "Automatic Working System".

technical field

The present application relates to an automatic working system, in particular to an automatic working system.

Background technique

The automatic working system includes self-moving equipment and charging station. The self-moving equipment autonomously moves and performs work tasks in the work area, and automatically returns to the charging station for charging when the battery is low.

In the related art, an automatic lawn mower, as a kind of self-moving equipment, is used for lawn maintenance. The existing automatic lawn mower and the charging station only use a pair of pole pieces to complete charging and communication, and cannot communicate during the charging process, because the voltage on the pole piece is changed to the charging voltage during the charging process, and communication cannot be performed. On the one hand, the charging station cannot know the battery information of the automatic lawn mower, so it cannot adjust the charging strategy; The time of the charging station, especially when a large amount of data communication is required, shortens the time that the smart lawn mower is actually used to maintain the lawn and reduces the working efficiency of the smart lawn mower.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present application aims to solve at least one of the technical problems existing in the prior art. To this end, the present application proposes an automatic working system, the communication loop and the charging loop of the automatic working system are independent of each other, which can improve charging efficiency and working efficiency, improve charging safety, and prolong battery life.

An automatic working system according to an embodiment of the present application includes a self-moving device that moves autonomously and performs work tasks within a defined work area, and a charging station for docking the self-moving device to supplement electrical energy, the self-moving device includes: a body; a first charging terminal group and a first signal terminal group disposed on the body; the charging station includes: a second charging terminal group configured to be docked with the first charging terminal group, and a second charging terminal group configured to be connected with the first charging terminal group A second signal terminal group docked with a signal terminal group; when the self-mobile device is docked with the charging station, the second charging terminal group is docked with the first charging terminal group to form a charging loop, the The second signal terminal group is connected with the first signal terminal group to form a communication loop; the communication loop and the charging loop are independent of each other, and the charging station transmits electric energy to the self-moving device through the charging loop, while all the The charging station and the self-moving device can transmit signals and/or data through the communication loop.

In this way, an independent communication circuit and a charging circuit can be formed, so that charging and communication do not interfere with each other, and can be carried out at the same time. While charging, the status of each other can be obtained in real time, and real-time control can be performed to improve charging efficiency and work efficiency. It can improve charging safety and prolong battery life.

Additional aspects and advantages of the present application will be set forth, in part, from the following description, and in part will become apparent from the following description, or may be learned by practice of the present application.

Description of drawings

The above and/or additional aspects and advantages of the present application will become apparent and readily understood from the following description of embodiments in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a schematic structural diagram of a module of an automatic working system provided by an embodiment of the present application.

Detailed ways

The following describes in detail the embodiments of the present application, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein the same or similar reference numerals refer to the same or similar elements or elements having the same or similar functions throughout. The embodiments described below with reference to the accompanying drawings are exemplary and are only used to explain the present application, but should not be construed as a limitation on the present application.

In the description of this application, it should be understood that the terms "center", "upper", "lower", "front", "rear", "left", "right", "vertical", "horizontal", The orientation or positional relationship indicated by "top", "bottom", "inner", "outer", etc. is based on the orientation or positional relationship shown in the drawings, and is only for the convenience of describing the present application and simplifying the description, rather than indicating or implying that The device or element referred to must have a particular orientation, be constructed and operate in a particular orientation, and therefore should not be construed as a limitation of the present application.

It should be noted that the terms "first" and "second" are only used for descriptive purposes, and cannot be understood as indicating or implying relative importance or implying the number of indicated technical features. Thus, a feature defined as "first" or "second" may expressly or implicitly include one or more of that feature. Further, in the description of the present application, unless otherwise specified, "plurality" means two or more.

The following describes an automatic working system according to an embodiment of the present application with reference to FIG. 1 .

As shown in FIG. 1 , the automatic working system according to the embodiment of the present application includes a self-mobile device 10 and a charging station 20 . Wherein, the self-mobile device 10 moves autonomously and performs work tasks within a limited work area. When the power of the self-mobile device 10 is lower than a preset threshold, it automatically returns to the self-charging station 20 and docks with the charging station 20 for charging.

The self-moving device 10 may be an automatic lawn mower. However, the self-moving device 10 of the present application is not limited to this. In other embodiments, the self-moving device 10 may also be an automatic cleaning device, an automatic watering device, an automatic snow blower, and other suitable unattended devices.

The self-moving device 10 includes a body, a first charging terminal group and a first signal terminal group disposed on the body.

The first charging terminal group includes two first charging terminals c1, and the first signal terminal group includes two first signal terminals s1. The charging station 20 is provided with a second charging terminal group and a second signal terminal group, the second charging terminal group includes two second charging terminals c2, and the second signal terminal group includes two second signal terminals s2. The second charging terminal group is used for docking with the first charging terminal group, and the second signal terminal group is used for docking with the first signal terminal group.

When the self-mobile device 10 returns to the charging station 20, the self-mobile device 10 performs a docking action. When the self-mobile device 10 is docked with the charging station 20, the second charging terminal group is docked with the first charging terminal group to form a charging loop, and the second signal terminal group is docked with the first signal terminal group to form a communication loop.

That is, the two second charging terminals c2 are connected with the two first charging terminals c1 one by one to form a charging loop, and the two second signal terminals s2 are connected with the two first signal terminals s1 one by one to form a communication loop. The communication circuit and the charging circuit are independent from each other and do not affect each other. The charging station 20 transmits power to the self-mobile device 10 through the charging circuit, and the charging station 20 and the self-mobile device 10 can transmit signals and/or data through the communication circuit.

The automatic working system provided by the present application can form a communication circuit independent of the charging circuit during docking by setting the signal terminals (the first signal terminal and the second signal terminal) independent of the charging terminal, so as to realize interaction during the charging process Information or data, obtain each other's status in real time, and carry out real-time control. For example, during the charging process, the battery charging state of the mobile device 10 is obtained in real time through the communication loop, so as to adjust the charging strategy of the charging station 20 to avoid mismatching the charging strategy with the battery state, resulting in reduced battery life or even damage.

Since the charging station 20 is fixed on the work area, the self-mobile device 10 is often upgraded. In order to improve the versatility of the charging station 20 and make the charging station 20 suitable for various upgrade products, the upgrade data package is transmitted from the mobile device 10 to the charging station 20 through the communication loop, so as to realize the software upgrade of the charging station 20 without the need for professional A person manually updates the software of the charging station 20 , and the data packet can be transmitted during the charging process from the mobile device 10 and the charging station 20 . The user only needs to pre-download the upgrade package on the mobile device 10 through the wireless network.

In this embodiment, if the first signal terminal group and the second signal terminal group are successfully connected, the first charging terminal group and the second charging terminal group are also connected successfully. Therefore, by detecting whether the first signal terminal group and the second signal terminal group are successfully docked, it can be determined whether the first charging terminal group and the second charging terminal group are successfully docked, so that the charging can be restarted on the premise of confirming that the docking is successful.

The charging station 20 is also provided with a signal transmitting circuit 24, the signal transmitting circuit 24 is electrically connected to the second signal terminal group s2, the signal transmitting circuit 24 continuously transmits a detection signal to the second signal terminal group s2, and is determined according to the feedback signal of the detection signal. Whether the communication loop is connected, that is, whether the second signal terminal s2 is connected to the first signal terminal s1. In the case of re-confirmation that the signal circuit is connected, it can be confirmed that the charging circuit is also connected to start charging.

Usually, the second charging terminal c2 on the charging station 20 is exposed, in order to avoid the risk of electric shock caused by the person touching the exposed second charging terminal c2. When the self-mobile device 10 is not docked to the charging station 20, the second charging terminal c2 is disconnected from the charging power source, so that the second charging terminal c2 has no charging voltage in the non-charging state, thereby avoiding the risk of electric shock. When it is not detected that the communication loop is connected, the charging station 20 disconnects the electrical connection between the charging power source and the second charging terminal group, and the second charging terminal group has no charging voltage.

In some embodiments, the charging station 20 further includes a control circuit 26, the control circuit 26 is electrically connected to the signal transmitting circuit 24, and when it is detected that the communication loop is connected, the control circuit 26 electrically connects the charging power source with the second charging terminal group, The second charging terminal group has a charging voltage.

Wherein, the self-moving device 10 includes a signal receiving circuit 14, the signal receiving circuit 14 is electrically connected with the first signal terminal group, and the signal receiving circuit 14 includes a normally closed electronic switch connected between the two first signal terminals s1. The device 10 is in an off state, and the normally closed electronic switch short-circuits the two first signal terminals s1. When the self-mobile device 10 is in the off state, the first signal terminal s1 is in a short-circuit state. If the self-mobile device 10 is moved to the docking position for docking with the charging station 20 in this case, one of the second signals of the charging station 20 The detection signal sent by the terminal s2 is fed back through another second signal terminal s2, and the signal transmitting circuit 24 receives the feedback signal consistent with the transmitted signal, thereby identifying the docking from the mobile device 10 in the off state, and by sending the second signal to the second When the charging terminal group is powered on, the control circuit 16 of the mobile device 10 is activated, and the control circuit 16 controls the normally closed electronic switch to be turned off, so that the communication circuit is normally connected and data communication can be performed normally.

When the first charging terminal group receives the charging voltage, the normally closed electronic switch is turned off by activating the control circuit 16; and when the self-moving device 10 is turned on, the control circuit 16 also controls the normally closed electronic switch to be in the off state. Then, the short circuit of the two first signal terminals s1 is released, and the second signal terminal group is connected with the first signal terminal group to form a communication loop. Specifically, the normally closed electronic switch is a triode or a field effect transistor.

Since the communication loop is also used to confirm whether the first and second charging terminal groups are connected reliably, the risk of charging sparks caused by poor connection of the first and second charging terminal groups is reduced. During the docking process of the self-mobile device 10 and the charging station 20, after the first charging terminal group and the second charging terminal group are docked, the first signal terminal group and the second signal terminal group are docked.

In this way, when the communication circuit is connected, the charging circuit has been successfully connected, and the first and second charging terminal groups are confirmed by the connection of the communication circuit, and the charging can be restarted under the condition of reliable connection. During disconnection, after the first signal terminal group and the second signal terminal group are disengaged, the first charging terminal group and the second charging terminal group are disengaged, so that after detecting that the first and second signal terminal groups are disengaged, the The charging power is cut off before the first charging terminal group and the second charging terminal group are separated, so as to avoid ignition during the separation.

The self-moving device 10 further includes an energy module 11 for providing energy to the self-moving device 10. Specifically, the energy module may be a battery, such as lithium electronics. When the charging station 20 transmits electric energy to the mobile device 10 through the charging circuit, the charging station obtains the charging status data of the energy module 11 of the mobile device 10 in real time through the signal circuit, and adjusts the charging parameters of the charging station 20 according to the charging status data. In this way, when the batteries are at different power levels, voltages or temperatures, the charging station 20 can adjust the charging current or voltage based on these parameters to avoid overcharging or overheating of the batteries, and ensure safe battery charging.

In the description of this specification, reference to the terms "one embodiment," "some embodiments," "exemplary embodiment," "example," "specific example," or "some examples", etc., is meant to incorporate the embodiments A particular feature, structure, material, or characteristic described by an example or example is included in at least one embodiment or example of the present application. In this specification, schematic representations of the above terms do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment or example. Furthermore, the particular features, structures, materials or characteristics described may be combined in any suitable manner in any one or more embodiments or examples.

Although the embodiments of the present application have been shown and described, it will be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art that various changes, modifications, substitutions and alterations can be made in these embodiments without departing from the principles and spirit of the present application, The scope of the application is defined by the claims and their equivalents.

Claims

An automatic working system, comprising a self-moving device that moves autonomously and performs work tasks within a defined work area, and a charging station for docking the self-moving device to supplement electrical energy, characterized in that:

The self-moving equipment includes:

body;

a first charging terminal group and a first signal terminal group arranged on the fuselage;

The charging station includes: a second charging terminal group configured to interface with the first charging terminal group, and a second signal terminal group configured to interface with the first signal terminal group;

When the self-moving device is docked with the charging station, the second charging terminal group is docked with the first charging terminal group to form a charging loop, and the second signal terminal group is docked with the first signal terminal group A communication loop is formed; the communication loop and the charging loop are independent of each other, the charging station transmits electrical energy to the self-moving device through the charging circuit, and the charging station and the self-moving device can communicate through the communication loop The loop carries out signal and/or data transmission.
The automatic working system according to claim 1, wherein the charging station is further provided with a signal transmitting circuit, the signal transmitting circuit is electrically connected with the second signal terminal group, and the signal transmitting circuit is continuously directed to the The second signal terminal group transmits a detection signal to detect whether the communication loop is connected.
The automatic working system according to claim 2, wherein the charging station disconnects the electrical connection between the charging power source and the second charging terminal group when it is not detected that the communication circuit is connected, and the first charging There is no charging voltage on the two charging terminal groups.
The automatic working system according to claim 2, wherein the charging station further comprises a control circuit, the control circuit is electrically connected with the signal transmitting circuit, and when it is detected that the communication circuit is connected, the The control circuit electrically connects a charging power source to the second charging terminal, and the second charging terminal group has a charging voltage.
The automatic working system according to claim 2, wherein the self-moving device includes a signal receiving circuit, and the signal receiving circuit is electrically connected to the first signal terminal group; the first signal terminal group includes at least Two first signal terminals, the signal receiving circuit includes a normally closed electronic switch connected between the two first signal terminals, when the self-moving device is in a shutdown state, the normally closed electronic switch switches the two. Each of the first signal terminals is short-circuited.
The automatic working system according to claim 5, wherein when the first charging terminal group receives a charging voltage or the self-moving device is in a power-on state, the normally closed electronic switch is in an off state, and the two The first signal terminal is released from short-circuit, and the second signal terminal group is connected with the first signal terminal group to form a communication loop.
The automatic working system according to claim 5, wherein the normally closed electronic switch is a triode or a field effect transistor.
The automatic working system according to any one of claims 1-7, characterized in that, in the process of docking the self-moving device with the charging station, the first charging terminal group and the second charging terminal After the docking of the groups is completed, the first signal terminal group and the second signal terminal group are docked.
The automatic working system according to any one of claims 1-7, wherein the self-moving device can transmit an upgrade data package to the charging station through the communication loop.
The automatic working system according to any one of claims 1-7, characterized in that, when the charging station transmits power to the self-mobile device through the charging circuit, the charging station passes the signal circuit. Acquire charging state data of the energy module of the self-mobile device, and adjust charging parameters of the charging station according to the charging state data.