KR101503601B1 - Robot cleaner - Google Patents

Abstract

The robot cleaner according to the present invention includes a robot cleaner body, a line sensor disposed on a lower surface of the robot cleaner body for detecting a line disposed on a surface of the robot cleaner body, An obstacle detection sensor provided in a traveling direction and detecting an obstacle located in a traveling direction during traveling, a sensor detecting an obstacle detected in the area formed by the line disposed on the ground based on the line information sensed by the line sensor, And control means for outputting a control signal for adjusting the direction of travel according to the position where the obstacle is detected during traveling; And a driving motor for driving the traveling wheel and the cleaning brush provided on the robot cleaner body based on the control signal.

Description

Robot cleaner {Robot cleaner}

The present invention relates to a robot cleaner, and more particularly, it relates to a robot cleaner, in which a line is arranged on the ground, and the robot cleaner travels in an area defined by lines arranged on the ground to clean the robot cleaner, To a robot cleaner.

Generally, the robot cleaner drives the cleaning brush to perform cleaning by moving the ground while suctioning dust or small substances. Some robot cleaners are equipped with a wet-cloth to clean the wet-cloth when moving.

The traveling mode of the robot cleaner is to follow the dust, or when the obstacle appears in front of the robot cleaner, the traveling direction is changed to clean the entire floor where the robot cleaner is placed. In particular, Korean Patent Registration No. 10-0635828 discloses a cleaning robot capable of easily moving from a room to a living room beyond a floor surface such as a threshold, thereby cleaning the entire house conveniently.

However, there is a problem that the user can not adjust the cleaning area in the case of cleaning only a part of the area, not the entire area of the ground. In the case of the robot cleaner disclosed in Korean Patent No. 10-0283864, In the case where the robot cleaner is repeatedly driven in a dusty place, the cleaning of the area where the amount of dust is relatively insufficient is insufficient, and the movement of the robot cleaner becomes complicated.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a robot cleaner which is capable of easily setting a cleaning area of a robot cleaner by arranging lines on a ground surface and running and cleaning within a region formed by lines arranged on the ground surface, To provide a cleaner.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a robot cleaner comprising: a robot cleaner main body; a robot cleaner main body disposed on a lower surface of the robot cleaner main body, An obstacle detection sensor provided in the direction of travel of the robot cleaner main body and detecting an obstacle located in a running direction while the robot cleaner is running, a sensor for detecting an obstacle in a region formed by lines arranged on the ground based on the line information sensed by the line sensor, A control means for controlling the direction of travel according to the detected position of the line and outputting a control signal for adjusting the direction of travel according to the detected position of the obstacle during travel; And a driving motor for driving the traveling wheel and the cleaning brush provided on the robot cleaner body based on the control signal.

The driving motor may further include: a wheel driving motor for driving the traveling wheel; And a cleaning brush motor for driving the cleaning brush, wherein the wheel driving motor is a stepping motor, and the cleaning brush motor is a DC motor.

In addition, the line sensor and the obstacle sensor may be an infrared sensor.

In the line sensor, at least two sensors may be arranged in line between the traveling wheels on both sides of the robot cleaner main body.

The width of the line may be less than a distance between the traveling wheels provided on both sides of the robot cleaner main body.

The light emitting diode further includes a light emitting diode (LED) unit that emits light while the driving motor is driven.

The control unit may be connected to the line sensor and the obstacle detection sensor, and may be connected to the robot cleaner body based on line information sensed by at least two line sensors provided on both lower sides of the robot cleaner body, The position of the corresponding line is determined based on the center axis of the cleaner main body, and based on the obstacle information detected by the obstacle detection sensor provided on the side of the robot cleaner main body, A line sensor for detecting a line or an obstacle from the sensor sensing module, and a line sensor for detecting a line or an obstacle from the sensor sensing module, The traveling direction of the line or the obstacle, A first step motor control module and a second step motor control module for outputting a control signal to the left wheel drive motor and the right wheel drive motor according to the called running algorithm, and a second step motor control module for controlling the driving of the brush motor And a DC motor control module for outputting a control signal to stop the brush motor when a line or an obstacle is detected from the sensor detection module.

Here, in the case where a line is sensed by the line sensor provided on the left side of the robot cleaner main body during travel, the first step motor control module controls the left wheel The second step motor control module controls the right wheel driving motor to rotate in the reverse direction so that the right wheel is driven backward.

When a line is sensed by the line sensor provided on the right side of the robot cleaner main body while driving, the first step motor control module controls the left wheel The second step motor control module controls the right wheel drive motor to rotate forward so that the right wheel is driven forward.

The first step motor control module and the second step motor control module rotate the left wheel driving motor and the right wheel driving motor in reverse when the line is sensed by the line sensor during traveling, After a predetermined time lapse, the control unit is controlled to rotate leftward or rightward.

In addition, when the obstacle is detected by the obstacle detection sensor during driving, the first step motor control module and the second step motor control module rotate the robot cleaner to the left or right depending on the detected position of the obstacle And controls the left wheel drive motor and the right wheel drive motor to advance.

According to the present invention, there is an advantage in that it is possible to easily set an area to be cleaned by running and cleaning in an area formed by lines arranged on the paper surface.

In addition, there is an advantage in that cleaning efficiency is increased for the cleaning area by controlling the travel direction of the robot cleaner by simply controlling the traveling wheel based on the detected position of the line and the detected position of the obstacle.

1 is a view illustrating a robot cleaner according to the present invention.
2A to 2D are views illustrating an example of a robot cleaner main body according to the present invention.
FIG. 3 is an exemplary view showing the cleaning brush structure of the robot cleaner according to the present invention.
4 is a block diagram showing a detailed configuration of the control means of the robot cleaner according to the present invention.
FIGS. 5 and 6 are views illustrating an operation of the robot cleaner according to the present invention.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

1 is a view illustrating a robot cleaner according to the present invention.

1, the robot cleaner includes a robot cleaner main body 10, a line detection sensor 20, an obstacle detection sensor 30, a traveling wheel 40, a wheel driving motor 45, a cleaning brush 50, And a brush motor 55 as shown in FIG.

2A and 2B, the robot cleaner main body 10 will be described with reference to FIGS. 2A and 2B. FIG. 2A is a front panel of the robot cleaner main body, FIG.

In this case, the front panel of the robot cleaner main body 10 is a part where a plurality of obstacle detection sensors 30 are disposed. In order to detect a wider range of obstacles, as shown in FIG. 2A, . Here, the obstacle detecting sensor 30 is provided on the front panel of the robot cleaner body 10 to detect obstacles located in the running direction during traveling. Here, the obstacle detection sensor 30 may be an infrared sensor.

At least two line detection sensors 20 may be disposed on the lower panel of the robot cleaner body 10. [ Here, the line sensor 20 is provided on a lower panel of the robot cleaner body 10 to detect a line disposed on the ground facing the lower panel of the robot cleaner body 10 during traveling. Here, the line sensor 20 may be an infrared sensor.

The lower panel of the robot cleaner main body 10 may be formed with a space in which the cleaning brush 50 and the traveling wheel 40 are disposed, as shown in FIG. 2C. At least two of the line sensors 20 may be arranged in a line between the traveling wheels 40 disposed on both sides of the robot cleaner body 10. Here, it is assumed that the width of the line disposed on the ground surface is less than the distance between the traveling wheels 40 disposed on both sides of the robot cleaner main body 10.

The lower panel of the robot cleaner main body 10 may further include fixing means for fixing the plurality of obstacle detecting sensors 30 to the front end thereof. In this case, each of the plurality of obstacle detection sensors 30 can serve as a support that can be fixed at a fixed position without shaking while the robot cleaner is traveling.

Here, FIGS. 2A to 2D illustrate one embodiment, and the present invention is not limited thereto, and it is obvious that the present invention can be applied variously according to the embodiments.

The traveling wheel 40 can be disposed on both sides or both sides of the robot cleaner body 10. Further, the robot cleaner may further include an auxiliary wheel 41 on the front or rear of the lower portion of the main body in order to maintain the balance of the robot cleaner main body 10.

A wheel drive motor 45 is connected to a traveling wheel 40 disposed on both sides of the robot cleaner body 10 so that the traveling wheel 40 is driven by the rotation of the wheel driving motor 45. At this time, the cleaning brush motor 55 is driven by the drive signal from the control means (not shown). When the robot cleaner moves, since the rotational direction or the rotational speed of the left wheel and the right wheel may be different from each other, the wheel drive motor 45 is connected to the left wheel and the right wheel, respectively. At this time, a step motor can be used as the wheel drive motor 45 for the accuracy of running of the robot cleaner body 10 with respect to the weight.

Meanwhile, the cleaning brush motor 50 is connected to the cleaning brush 50 disposed on the lower panel of the robot cleaner, and the cleaning brush 50 is driven by the rotation of the cleaning brush motor 55. At this time, the cleaning brush motor 55 is driven by the driving signal from the control means, and the cleaning brush motor 55 may be a DC motor which does not need to control the number of pulses. The gear ratio of the cleaning brush motor 55 may vary depending on the size, rotation speed, torque, etc. of the brush fixing portion.

Here, as shown in FIG. 3, the cleaning brush 50 may be formed in a cylindrical shape, and a plurality of holes may be formed in the cylinder, and the brushes may be provided in a plurality of holes. At this time, a shrink tube may be used to prevent the brushes connected to the holes from coming off.

Although not shown in FIG. 1, the control means is provided inside the robot cleaner to control the overall operation of the robot cleaner. At this time, the control means adjusts the traveling direction according to the detected position of the line in the area formed by the lines arranged on the ground based on the line information sensed by the line sensor 20, The direction of travel is adjusted according to the detected position. The detailed configuration of the control means will be described in more detail with reference to FIG.

Meanwhile, the robot cleaner may be provided with a battery that provides power for driving the robot cleaner. At this time, the battery may provide power to each part of the robot cleaner by interlocking with at least two batteries.

The robot cleaner may further include a communication module for communication with a user terminal such as a PC. Here, the communication module may be connected to the user terminal through a serial communication And the user is communicably connected through programming created using the user terminal The operation of the robot cleaner can be controlled.

In addition, the robot cleaner may further include an LED (Light Emitting Diode) 60 that emits light while the motor is being driven. At this time, the LED 60 may be disposed on the front panel of the robot cleaner body 10 together with the obstacle detection sensor 30, and may be disposed on the upper panel, and the position where the LED 60 is disposed may be variously applied It is possible.

4 is a block diagram illustrating a detailed module configuration of the control means of the robot cleaner according to the present invention. 4, the control means 100 according to the present invention includes a sensor detection module 110, a step motor control module 120, a DC motor control module 130, and a central processing module 140 . Here, each module can be connected by a CAN communication method.

The sensor detection module 110 is connected to the line sensor 20 and the obstacle sensor 30 to receive the detection signals of the line sensor 20 and the obstacle sensor 30, respectively. Here, the IN8 module may be applied to the sensor sensing module 110, and four terminals may be assigned to the line sensing sensor 20 and the obstacle sensing sensor 30, respectively. At this time, the sensor sensing module 110 determines the sensing position of the line or the obstacle from the sensing signal received from the line sensing sensor 20 and the obstacle sensing sensor 30. In addition, the sensor detection module 110 is connected to the step motor control module 120 and the DC motor control module 130, respectively, and transmits the line or obstacle detection result to each module.

In other words, the sensor detection module 110 determines the line position when a line is sensed by the line sensor 20, and transmits the line sensing result to the step motor control module 120 and the DC motor control module 130 do.

Here, the sensor detection module 110 determines the line position based on the position information of the sensor that senses the line among the at least two line sensors 20, and determines the position of the corresponding line on the basis of the center axis of the robot cleaner body 10 The position can be determined. When the line is detected by the line sensor 20 disposed on the right side of the center axis of the robot cleaner main body 10, the current line is detected by the main body 10 of the robot cleaner, It is determined to be located on the right side. When a line is detected by the line sensor 20 disposed on the left side of the center axis of the robot cleaner main body 10, the sensor detection module 110 detects that the current line is on the left side of the robot cleaner main body 10 .

When an obstacle is detected by the obstacle detection sensor 30, the sensor detection module 110 determines an obstacle position and transmits an obstacle detection result to the step motor control module 120 and the DC motor control module 130 .

Here, the sensor detection module 110 can determine the position of the obstacle based on the position information of the sensor that detects the obstacle among the plurality of obstacle detection sensors 30. [ For example, when an obstacle is detected by the obstacle detection sensor 30 disposed on the left front side of the side surface of the robot cleaner body 10, the sensor detection module 110 determines that the obstacle is present at the left front side of the robot cleaner do. In addition, the sensor detection module 110 can determine the distance between the robot cleaner body 10 and the obstacle in consideration of the time taken to reflect and receive the signal emitted by the obstacle detection sensor 30, signal sensitivity, and the like.

The step motor control module 120 includes a first step motor control module 121 connected to the left wheel drive motor 45a disposed on the left side of the robot cleaner body and a second step motor control module 121 connected to the right wheel drive motor 45a disposed on the right side of the robot cleaner body 10. [ And a second step motor control module 125 connected to the motor 45b. The first step motor control module 121 and the second step motor control module 125 are connected to the sensor detection module 110 so as to detect the line according to the line detection result transmitted from the sensor detection module 110 And controls the left wheel drive motor 45a and the right wheel drive motor 45b, respectively, in accordance with the called running algorithm.

According to a running algorithm corresponding to a case where a line is sensed by the line sensor 20 provided on the right side of the robot cleaner body 10 and the sensing position of the line is on the right side, The second step motor control module 125 controls the right wheel drive motor 45b to rotate in the forward direction so that the right wheel is driven forward, . Therefore, when the robot cleaner detects a line on the right side, the main body rotates to the left side.

When a line is sensed by the line sensor 20 provided on the left side of the robot cleaner main body 10, the first step motor control module 121 The second step motor control module 125 controls the right wheel drive motor 45b to rotate in the reverse direction so as to drive the right wheel to be driven backward by controlling the left wheel drive motor 45a to rotate forward, do. Accordingly, when the robot cleaner detects a line on the left side, the main body rotates to the right side.

At this time, the first step motor control module 121 and the second step motor control module 125 can prevent the robot cleaner body from rotating repeatedly by sensing the line continuously in a narrow area of the line sensor 20 , The left wheel drive motor 45a and the right wheel drive motor 45 are reversely rotated for a set time (for example, 0.5 seconds) before the robot cleaner main body rotates to the right or left, You may.

The first stepping motor control module 121 and the second stepping motor control module 125 perform the corresponding traveling algorithm for each detection position of the obstacle in accordance with the obstacle detection result transmitted from the sensor detection module 110. In this case, the first step motor control module 121 and the second step motor control module 125 control the left wheel drive motor 45a and the right wheel drive motor 45 according to the direction and the distance in which the obstacle is sensed So that the robot cleaner main body can rotate to the left or right by avoiding the obstacle.

The first step motor control module 121 and the second step motor control module 125 are connected to the left wheel and the right wheel of the robot cleaner body according to the result of sensing the line or obstacle from the sensor detection module 110 And controls the driving motors 45a and 45b to adjust the running direction of the robot cleaner main body so as to run in an in-line area disposed on the ground.

The DC motor control module 130 is connected to the sensor detection module 110 and controls the cleaning brush motor 55 according to the line or obstacle detection result transmitted from the sensor detection module 110.

In other words, while the robot cleaner main body is running, the DC motor control module 130 controls the cleaning brush motor 55 to rotate forward or reverse so that the cleaning brush is driven. When a line or an obstacle is detected from the sensor detection module 110, the DC motor control module 130 controls the power supplied to the cleaning brush motor 55 to be shut off or stopped so that the driving of the cleaning brush is stopped .

The central processing module 140 controls signal transmission and reception with a user terminal (e.g., a PC, a notebook computer, etc.) 200 via a communication module (not shown). Here, the communication module may be connected to the user terminal 200 through serial communication such as RS232. When the control signal from the user terminal 200 is received through the communication module, the central processing module 140 transmits the received control signal to the corresponding module, Can be driven.

FIGS. 5 and 6 are views for explaining the operation of the robot cleaner according to the present invention.

First, FIG. 5 shows an operation example when the line sensor of the robot cleaner senses a line on the left side. As shown in Fig. 5 (a), the robot cleaner drives the left wheel, the right wheel, and the cleaning brush in the region formed by the lines arranged on the ground based on the initial running algorithm. Here, on the lower surface of the robot cleaner, two line detection sensors 20 may be disposed on the left and right sides, respectively. Each line detection sensor 20 includes a light receiving unit 21 and a light emitting unit 25. In order to prevent any one of the light receiving portions 21 from sensing the optical signal by the two light emitting portions 25, the light emitting portion 25 is disposed inside, and the light receiving portion 21 is provided with the light emitting portion 25 As shown in Fig.

5 (b), when the line is sensed through the light receiving portion 21a of the line sensor 20 disposed on the left side, the robot cleaner detects the line on the left side based on the traveling algorithm when the line is arranged on the left side, After the left and right wheels are driven backward as shown in (1) and (1), the left wheel is driven forward as shown by (2) in FIG. 5 (c) and the right wheel is driven backward as shown in Direction, i.e., the rightward direction. Then, the robot cleaner drives the left wheel, the right wheel, and the cleaning brush in an area inside the line as shown in FIG. 5 (d). In this case, the robot cleaner continues to run forward until the line is detected by the line sensor.

6 shows an operation example when the line sensor 20 of the robot cleaner senses the line on the right side. As shown in Fig. 6 (a), the robot cleaner drives the left wheel, the right wheel, and the cleaning brush in the region formed by the line based on the initial running algorithm.

When the line is sensed through the light receiving unit 21b of the line sensor 20 disposed on the right side as shown in FIG. 6 (b), the robot cleaner detects the line on the right side based on the traveling algorithm when the line is arranged on the right side. After the left and right wheels are driven backward as in (1) and (1) ', the left wheel is driven backward as shown by (2) in FIG. 6 (c) I.e., in the left direction. Thereafter, the robot cleaner drives the left wheel, the right wheel, and the cleaning brush along the line on the right side as shown in FIG. 6 (d). In this case, likewise, in this case, the robot cleaner continues to run forward until the line is sensed by the line sensor.

The foregoing description is merely illustrative of the technical idea of the present invention and various changes and modifications may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the essential characteristics of the present invention. Therefore, the embodiments disclosed in the present invention are intended to illustrate rather than limit the scope of the present invention, and the scope of the technical idea of the present invention is not limited by these embodiments. The scope of protection of the present invention should be construed according to the following claims, and all technical ideas falling within the scope of the same shall be construed as falling within the scope of the present invention.

10: robot cleaner main body 20: line sensor
30: an obstacle detection sensor 40: a traveling wheel
41: auxiliary wheel 45: wheel drive motor
50: Cleaning brush 55: Cleaning brush motor
60: LED 100: control means
110: sensor detection module 121: first step motor control module
125: second step motor control module 130: DC motor control module
140: central processing module 200: user terminal

Claims (11)

A robot cleaner main body;
A line sensor disposed on a lower surface of the robot cleaner body for detecting a line disposed on a surface of the robot cleaner main body that faces the lower surface of the robot cleaner during traveling;
An obstacle detection sensor provided in a traveling direction of the robot cleaner main body and detecting an obstacle located in a traveling direction during traveling;
And a controller for controlling the traveling direction according to the detected position of the line in the area formed by the line disposed on the ground based on the line information sensed by the line sensor, A control means for outputting a control signal for controlling the operation of the control means; And
And a driving motor for driving the traveling wheel and the cleaning brush provided on the robot cleaner body based on the control signal,
The drive motor includes:
A left wheel drive motor and a right wheel drive motor for respectively driving the traveling wheels provided on the left and right sides of the robot cleaner body; And
And a cleaning brush motor for driving the cleaning brush,
Wherein,
Wherein the robot cleaner main body is connected to the line sensor and the obstacle detection sensor to detect line information from at least two line sensors on both sides of the robot cleaner body, A sensor detecting module for determining the position of the line and determining the position of the obstacle based on the traveling direction of the robot cleaner based on the obstacle information detected from the obstacle detecting sensor provided on the side of the robot cleaner main body; And
And an obstacle detection means for detecting a line or an obstacle according to a line or an obstacle detection result from the sensor detection module among a traveling algorithm implemented to adjust a traveling direction of the line and an obstacle in a region formed by the line disposed on the ground, And a first step motor control module and a second step motor control module for outputting control signals to the left wheel drive motor and the right wheel drive motor according to the called running algorithm and,
Wherein the first step motor control module and the second step motor control module comprise:
In order to prevent the robot cleaner main body from rotating repeatedly when a line is sensed by the line sensor during driving, the robot cleaner rotates the left wheel drive motor and the right wheel drive motor in a reverse direction The control is performed so as to rotate leftward or rightward,
When a line is detected by the line sensor provided on the left side of the robot cleaner main body during traveling, the first step motor control module controls the left wheel drive motor The second step motor control module controls the right wheel drive motor to rotate in the reverse direction so that the right wheel is driven backward,
When a line is sensed by the line sensor provided on the right side of the robot cleaner main body during traveling, the first step motor control module controls the left wheel drive motor Wherein the second step motor control module controls the right wheel drive motor to rotate forward to drive the right wheel forward. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the left wheel drive motor and the right wheel drive motor are step motors, and the cleaning brush motor is a DC motor. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the line sensor and the obstacle detection sensor are infrared sensors. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the line sensor comprises at least two sensors arranged in line between traveling wheels provided on left and right sides of the robot cleaner main body. The method of claim 4,
The width of the line,
And the distance between the traveling wheels provided on the left and right sides of the robot cleaner main body is less than the distance between the traveling wheels provided on the left and right sides of the robot cleaner main body. The method according to claim 1,
Further comprising an LED (Light Emitting Diode) part emitting light while the driving motor is driven. The method of claim 2,
Wherein,
Further comprising a DC motor control module for controlling driving of the brush motor and outputting a control signal to stop the brush motor when a line or an obstacle is detected from the sensor detection module. delete delete delete The method of claim 7,
Wherein the first step motor control module and the second step motor control module comprise:
And controls the left wheel driving motor and the right wheel driving motor so that the robot cleaner rotates to the left or right when the obstacle is detected by the obstacle detecting sensor while driving, .

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