Mobility mechanism and mobile robot having the mobility mechanism

Abstract

This invention discloses a mobile mechanism and a mobile robot incorporating the same. The mobile mechanism includes a housing, a slide, a moving wheel, a pressing part, and a deformable part. A guide part is provided within the housing. The slide is mounted on the guide part and can move along it. The moving wheel is fixed to the slide and partially protrudes from the surface of the housing. The pressing part presses against the slide, causing the slide to move towards the surface of the housing. The deformable part is mounted on the housing and connected to the pressing part, providing a force to the slide towards the housing surface during deformation. This invention allows the robot to move on different types of work surfaces. Especially when encountering obstacles, the pressing part provides a downward force to the slide, maximizing the proximity of the moving wheel to the work surface and generating friction, enabling the mobile robot to move and move away from obstacles.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of mobile device technology, and more particularly to a mobile mechanism applicable to home cleaning or lawn movement, and a mobile robot having the mobile mechanism. Background Technology

[0002] As people's demands for a better life increase, more and more robots serving humans are appearing on the market. Most of these robots move autonomously within a workspace, such as home cleaning robots and security robots, and commercial service robots like the public service robots launched by Ecovacs. These robots also provide intelligent services for everyday life, such as tour guides and restaurant ordering. These robots can move autonomously within a workspace and, through intelligent programming, execute designated functions at target locations, allowing users to enjoy a smart lifestyle.

[0003] Because robots need to move across work surfaces, they inevitably encounter different types of work surface environments, such as concrete, wooden floors, and carpets. These work surfaces all present unavoidable obstacles, such as height differences at transition points between different types of work surfaces, thresholds, cables, or protrusions that can cause the robot to become suspended in mid-air when traversing them. Such differences in height or protrusions not only cause the robot to become suspended in mid-air but also cause vibrations when traversing them, affecting the robot's internal electronic components. Summary of the Invention

[0004] To address the technical problems in the background art, the mobile robot technical solution provided by the present invention is as follows:

[0005] A mobile robot, comprising:

[0006] A housing, wherein a guide portion is provided inside the housing;

[0007] A slide block is mounted on the guide portion and can move along the guide portion;

[0008] The movable wheel is fixed on the slide block and partially protrudes from the surface of the housing;

[0009] The pressing part presses against the slide block and causes the slide block to move toward the surface of the housing;

[0010] The deformation part is installed on the housing and connected to the pressing part. When deformed, the pressing part provides a force to the slide block to move toward the surface of the housing.

[0011] Furthermore, the guide part is a guide rail.

[0012] In one embodiment, the guide portion is a guide post.

[0013] Furthermore, the housing includes an upper housing and a lower housing, and the guide post is disposed between the upper housing and the lower housing.

[0014] Furthermore, the guide post comprises two posts, symmetrically arranged on both sides of the slide.

[0015] Furthermore, the pressing part includes a rotating part, a first end, and a second end. The rotating part is fixed to the housing by a rotating shaft. The first end extends from the rotating part in a direction away from the slide and is connected to the housing by a deformation part. The second end extends from the rotating part in a direction towards the slide and presses against the slide.

[0016] Furthermore, the slide includes a body and a transmission part housed within the body, the transmission part being connected to the moving wheel via a transmission mechanism.

[0017] Furthermore, the slide block also includes a sliding sleeve that is slidably disposed with the guide post.

[0018] A mobile robot comprising the aforementioned mobility mechanism.

[0019] Furthermore, the aforementioned mobile robots are either sweeping robots or lawnmower robots.

[0020] Compared with the prior art, the beneficial effects of the present invention are: it can be applied to mobile robots that move on different types of working surfaces. When the mobile robot encounters an obstacle, the pressing part applies a downward force to the slide, so that the moving wheel gets as close to the working surface as possible and contacts the working surface to generate friction, enabling the mobile robot to move and leave the obstacle. Attached Figure Description

[0021] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention, the drawings used in the embodiments will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are some embodiments of the present invention. For those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative effort.

[0022] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of a sweeping robot according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

[0023] Figure 2 for Figure 1 A bottom view of a robotic vacuum cleaner;

[0024] Figure 3 for Figure 1 A schematic diagram of the moving mechanism of a robotic vacuum cleaner;

[0025] Figure 4 for Figure 3 A schematic diagram of the exploded structure;

[0026] Figure 5 for Figure 3 A schematic diagram of the mobile mechanism in use.

[0027] Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of the pressure-resistant part structure;

[0028] Figure 7 This is a schematic diagram of the slide block structure. Detailed Implementation

[0029] The technical solution of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments. Obviously, the embodiments described herein are only some embodiments of the invention, and not all embodiments. Based on the specific embodiments described in this invention, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative effort should fall within the protection scope defined by the claims of this invention. For example, the guide part described in this application may be a guide post or guide rail for guiding an object to move in a predetermined direction, and causing the slide of this application to reciprocate along the guide part; another example is that the deformable part in this application may be a spring, a rubber band, or a deformable shape with deformable recovery or elastic function.

[0030] This invention provides a mobile robot that moves autonomously on a work surface, taking a sweeping robot 100 as an example. The structure of the sweeping robot 100 is as follows: Figure 1 and Figure 2 As shown, the robotic vacuum cleaner 100 includes a main body forming its shape, and a moving mechanism 1 that carries the main body to move on the working surface. When the robotic vacuum cleaner 100 moves on the working surface, the moving mechanism 1 carries the weight of the main body and other functional components (such as dustbin, fan, cleaning components, control board, motor, etc.) mounted on the main body. The main body includes a lower housing 10 and an upper housing 20, and the moving mechanism 1... Figures 3 to 7 As shown.

[0031] In this embodiment, as Figure 3 , Figure 4 As shown, the moving mechanism 1 includes: a housing, a slide 80, a pressing part 40, a moving wheel 70, and a spring 30. The housing consists of a lower housing 10 and an upper housing 20. Two guide posts 60 are symmetrically arranged inside the housing, with the axis of each guide post 60 perpendicular to the moving surface (the working surface through which the sweeping robot moves). The slide 80 is mounted on the guide posts 60 and moves between the lower housing 10 and the upper housing 20 along the axial direction of the guide posts 60. The pressing part 40 is connected to the upper housing 20 via the spring 30 and is pressed against the slide 80 by the elastic force of the spring 30, causing the slide 80 to move downwards and closer to the working surface. The moving wheel 70 is fixed to the slide 80 and partially protrudes from the surface of the lower housing 10, contacting the working surface.

[0032] The housing constituting the moving mechanism 1 includes an upper housing 20 and a lower housing 10. The upper housing 10 is integrally formed with the main body. A guide post 60 is provided between the upper housing 20 and the lower housing 10. A slide 80 is slidably mounted on the guide post 60. When the slide 80 is subjected to external force, it moves up and down on the guide post 60. To reduce the swaying of the slide 80 during movement, there are at least two guide posts 60, each positioned diagonally opposite the slide 80 (e.g., ...). Figures 3 to 5 As shown, the guide pillars 60 are arranged symmetrically; there can also be three guide pillars arranged in a triangular shape, so that the force on the slide block 80 is more even and the movement is more stable.

[0033] See Figure 5 and Figure 6 As shown, the pressing part 40 also includes a rotating part 400, which is fixed to the upper housing 20 by a rotating shaft 50. The pressing part 40 has a first end 401 and a second end 402 that are separated from each other and extend outward at a certain angle. The first end 401 extends from the rotating part 400 in a direction away from the slide 80 and is connected to the upper housing 20 by a spring 30. The second end 402 extends from the rotating part 400 toward the slide 80 and presses against the slide 80. When the first end 401 is pulled by the spring 30, the second end 402 can move accordingly.

[0034] See Figure 7 As shown, the slide 80 includes a body 800 and a transmission part (internal component, not shown) housed within the body 800. The transmission part is connected to the moving wheel 70 in a transmission manner. The body 800 forms a cavity, and a transmission gear and / or transmission shaft serving as the transmission part are disposed within the cavity.

[0035] When the robotic vacuum cleaner 100 moves on the work surface, the moving wheels 70 contact the work surface. Since the moving wheels 70 need to bear the weight of the entire machine, and the slide 80 is movably connected to the main body, the weight of the main body forces the main body to decrease its height off the ground, causing the slide 80 to rise on the guide post 60. When the slide 80 rises, it pushes the second end 402 of the pressing part 40 to rise, which in turn causes the first end 401 to stretch the spring 30. The spring 30 generates a pulling force due to being stretched, which causes the first end 401 to move closer to one end of the second end 402. The second end 402 gives the slide 80 a downward force, causing the slide 80 to fall and push the moving wheels 70 out of the surface of the lower housing 10 as much as possible, so that the main body maintains a safe distance from the work surface. This safe distance allows the robotic vacuum cleaner 100 to keep the moving wheels 70 in contact with the work surface when crossing obstacles, preventing the moving wheels 70 from being suspended in the air.

[0036] Furthermore, such as Figure 7 As shown, the slide block 80 also includes a slide sleeve 801 that is slidably disposed with the guide post 60.

[0037] When the guide part in this application is a guide rail, the number of guide rails is at least one, and the slide has a sliding block that slides along the guide rail inside the guide rail. The slide moves inside the guide rail by its own weight or by an external force acting on the slide.

[0038] Furthermore, the transmission unit includes a rotating shaft, which is connected to the movable wheel 70 in a transmission manner.

[0039] Furthermore, such as Figure 7 As shown, a motor 802 is also provided on the slide 80. The motor 802 is connected to the moving wheel 70 through a rotating shaft, so that the mobile robot can move on the working surface when working.

[0040] The above-disclosed embodiments are merely examples of the technical solutions of the present invention and should not be construed as limiting the scope of the present invention. Therefore, any equivalent variations made in accordance with the claims of the present invention are still within the scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A mobile mechanism, characterized in that, include: A housing, wherein a guide portion is provided inside the housing; A slide block is mounted on the guide portion and can move along the guide portion; The movable wheel is fixed on the slide block and partially protrudes from the surface of the housing; The pressing part presses against the slide block and causes the slide block to move toward the surface of the housing; The deformation part is installed on the housing and connected to the pressing part. When deformed, the pressing part provides a force to the slide block to move toward the surface of the housing. The guide portion is either a guide rail or a guide post; The pressing part includes a rotating part, a first end, and a second end. The rotating part is fixed to the housing by a rotating shaft. The first end extends from the rotating part in a direction away from the slide and is connected to the housing by a deformation part. The second end extends from the rotating part in a direction towards the slide and presses against the slide.

2. The moving mechanism according to claim 1, characterized in that: The housing includes an upper housing and a lower housing, and the guide post is disposed between the upper housing and the lower housing.

3. The moving mechanism according to claim 2, characterized in that: The guide post consists of two posts, symmetrically arranged on both sides of the slide.

4. The moving mechanism according to claim 1, characterized in that: The slide includes a body and a transmission part housed within the body, the transmission part being connected to the movable wheel via a transmission mechanism.

5. The moving mechanism according to claim 1, characterized in that: The slide block also includes a sliding sleeve that is slidably disposed with the guide post.

6. A mobile robot, characterized in that: Includes the moving mechanism as described in any one of claims 1-5.

7. The mobile robot according to claim 6, characterized in that: The mobile robot is either a sweeping robot or a lawnmower robot.

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