Vacuum cleaner and method for controlling the same

Abstract

A vacuum cleaner is disclosed, comprising: a drum with a brush installed; a first motor for rotating the drum; a sensor for sensing a load applied to the first motor; a second motor for generating suction pressure; and a processor for controlling at least one of the first motor and the second motor according to the magnitude of the load sensed from the sensor.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a vacuum cleaner and a method for controlling the same, and more particularly, to a vacuum cleaner capable of adaptively controlling the operation of a motor according to a load of the motor rotating a brush-mounted drum, and a method for controlling the same. Background Art

[0002] The vacuum cleaner includes: a main body of the vacuum cleaner on which a vacuum suction device and a dust collecting device are installed; and a suction module coupled to the main body. Recently, a rotating brush is installed on the suction module for more easily sucking foreign matter on a surface to be cleaned.

[0003] However, the load applied to the motor driving the brush may vary according to the environment of the surface to be cleaned. In addition, the current supplied to the motor driving the brush also varies according to the varying load, but there is a disadvantage that the operation of the motor cannot be adaptively controlled. Summary of the invention

[0004] Technical issues

[0005] In order to overcome the above problems, the present disclosure is directed to providing a vacuum cleaner capable of adaptively controlling the operation of a motor according to the load of a motor rotating a drum on which a brush is mounted, and a control method thereof.

[0006] Technical Solution

[0007] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure to achieve the above-mentioned purpose, a vacuum cleaner includes: a drum equipped with a brush; a first motor for rotating the drum; a sensor for sensing the load applied to the first motor; a second motor for generating suction pressure; and a processor for controlling at least one of the first motor and the second motor according to the size of the load sensed from the sensor.

[0008] Based on the load sensed from the sensor being a first threshold or greater, the speed of the second motor is reduced.

[0009] The processor may reduce the speed of the first motor based on the load sensed from the sensor being a second threshold or less than the first threshold.

[0010] The processor may reduce the speed of the first motor to 60% to 80% of the current speed based on the load sensed from the sensor being a second threshold or greater.

[0011] The processor may control the first motor so that a speed of the first motor has a speed inversely proportional to a magnitude of the load sensed from the sensor based on the load sensed from the sensor being a second threshold or more.

[0012] The processor may terminate the driving of the first motor based on the load sensed from the sensor being a third threshold or greater than the first threshold.

[0013] The vacuum cleaner also includes: a main body including a second motor; and a suction module installed to be detachable from the main body and including a roller and the first motor, wherein the processor can confirm the type of the suction module and control the speed of the second motor based on a threshold corresponding to the confirmed type.

[0014] The vacuum cleaner of the present invention further includes a user interaction unit, and the user interaction unit is configured to provide a notification guiding replacement of a suction module having a relatively smaller load than a currently installed suction module based on the load sensed from the sensor being a first threshold or more.

[0015] The vacuum cleaner may further include a second motor and a secondary battery for supplying power to the second motor.

[0016] According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, a control method for a vacuum cleaner includes: generating suction pressure using a second motor based on an input drive instruction; rotating a roller equipped with a brush using a first motor; sensing a load applied to the first motor; and controlling at least one of the first motor and the second motor according to the magnitude of the sensed load.

[0017] The controlling may include reducing the speed of the second motor based on the sensed load being a first threshold or greater, and reducing the speed of the first motor based on the sensed load being a second threshold or less than the first threshold.

[0018] The controlling may include reducing the speed of the first motor based on the load sensed from the sensor being the second threshold or less than the first threshold.

[0019] The controlling may include reducing the speed of the first motor to 60% to 80% of a current speed based on the load sensed from the sensor being a second threshold or more.

[0020] The controlling may include controlling a speed of the first motor of the first motor to have a speed inversely proportional to a magnitude of the sensed load based on the load sensed from the sensor being a second threshold or more.

[0021] The controlling may include terminating the operation of the first motor based on the load sensed from the sensor being a third threshold or greater than the first threshold. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0022] Figure 1 is a block diagram provided to illustrate a simple configuration of a vacuum cleaner according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0023] Figure 2is a block diagram provided for illustrating a specific configuration of a vacuum cleaner according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0024] Figure 3 is a diagram provided to illustrate an exemplary form of the vacuum cleaner of the present disclosure;

[0025] Figure 4 is provided for specific illustration Figure 3 A diagram of the form of a suction module;

[0026] Figure 5 is a diagram provided for specifically describing the control operation of the first motor of the present disclosure;

[0027] Figure 6 is a diagram provided for describing an embodiment of a vacuum cleaner provided with a user interface portion;

[0028] Figure 7 is a flowchart provided for describing a control method of a vacuum cleaner according to an embodiment of the present disclosure; and

[0029] Figure 8 is a flowchart provided for specifically describing a control method of a vacuum cleaner according to various embodiments of the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0030] The present embodiment may be suitable for various modifications and may have various embodiments. Therefore, specific embodiments will be shown in the drawings and will be described in detail in the specific embodiments. However, it should be understood that the embodiments are not intended to limit the scope of the specific forms of the embodiments, but include various modifications, equivalents and / or substitutions of the embodiments disclosed herein. When describing the embodiments, the same reference numerals may be used for the same components.

[0031] In describing the present disclosure, in the case where it is determined that a detailed description of a related known function or configuration may unnecessarily obscure the gist of the present disclosure, the detailed description thereof will be omitted.

[0032] In addition, the following embodiments can be modified in various forms, and it should be noted that the scope of the technical concept of the present disclosure is not limited to the following embodiments. On the contrary, these embodiments are provided to make the present disclosure more comprehensive and complete, and to fully convey the technical concept of the present disclosure to those skilled in the art.

[0033] The terms used in the present disclosure are for the purpose of describing specific embodiments herein and are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure.Unless otherwise specified, a singular expression includes a plural expression.

[0034] In the present disclosure, expressions such as “having”, “may have”, “including” or “may include” are used to indicate the existence of features (e.g., numerical values, functions, elements of operations or components, etc.), and do not exclude the existence or possibility of additional features.

[0035] In the present disclosure, expressions such as "A or B", "A and / or B", or "at least one of A and / or B" may include all possible combinations of the listed items. For example, expressions such as "A or B", "at least one of A and B", or "at least one of A or B" may specify all cases of (1) including at least one of A, (2) including at least one of B, or (3) including at least one of A and at least one of B.

[0036] Expressions such as “first” and “second” used in the present disclosure are used to modify various elements regardless of order and / or importance, are used only for the purpose of distinguishing one element from another, and are not included in limiting the relevant elements.

[0037] If a certain element (e.g., a first element) is disclosed as being "(operably or communicatively) coupled" or "connected" to another element (e.g., a second element), it should be understood that the certain element may be directly coupled to the other element or may be coupled through other elements (e.g., a third element). On the other hand, if a certain element (e.g., a first element) is referred to as being "directly coupled" or "directly connected" to another element (e.g., a second element), it should be understood that no other elements (e.g., a third element) are located between the certain element and the other element.

[0038] The expression "configured to (or set to)" used in the present disclosure may be used interchangeably with, for example, "suitable for (or having the ability to)", "designed to (or)", "suitable for (or)", "according to (or)", or "capable of (or)" depending on the situation. The term "configured to (or set to)" may not necessarily mean "specially designed" for hardware.

[0039] On the contrary, in any case, the expression "a device configured to..." may mean that the device "may be configured with..." another device or component. For example, the phrase "a processor configured to (or set to) perform A, B, or C" may represent a processor (e.g., an embedded processor) specifically used to perform the relevant operations, or a general-purpose processor (e.g., a CPU or an application processor) that can perform the relevant operations by executing one or more software programs stored in a storage device.

[0040] In the embodiments, terms such as "module" or "unit" are used to perform at least one function or operation, and can be implemented as hardware or software, or a combination of hardware and software. In addition, except when it is necessary to implement a "module" or "unit" as specific hardware, multiple "modules" or multiple "units" can be integrated into at least one module to be implemented as at least one processor (not shown).

[0041] Herein, the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0042] The embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings to those of ordinary skill in the art to easily implement the present invention. However, it should be noted that the present disclosure can be implemented in various forms and is not limited to the embodiments described herein. In addition, in the accompanying drawings, parts that are not related to the description have been omitted to clearly describe the present disclosure, and the same reference numerals are attached to the same parts throughout the specification.

[0043] Figure 1 1 is a block diagram provided to illustrate a simple configuration of the vacuum cleaner 100 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0044] Reference Figure 1 , the vacuum cleaner 100 may include a first motor 110, a second motor 120, a sensor 130, and a processor 140. The vacuum cleaner 100 is provided with a suction module separated from the main body, and may be a canister type coupled by an extension tube, or may be an upright suction module formed integrally with the main body. In addition, the vacuum cleaner 100 may be a vacuum cleaner 100 of various forms, such as a wireless control vacuum cleaner, a robot vacuum cleaner, a handheld vacuum cleaner, etc.

[0045] The first motor 110 rotates the roller equipped with the brush. Specifically, based on the driving command input to the first motor 110 and the power supplied to the first motor 110, the roller equipped with the brush is rotated by the driving of the first motor 110. The first motor 110 can be selected from various motors, such as a direct current motor (DC motor), an alternating current motor (AC motor), a brushless DC motor (BLDC), etc.

[0046] The drum is rotated by the driving of the first motor 110. Specifically, the drum may be rotated by the kinetic energy of the first motor 110, and the drum may be cylindrical in shape. The drum may be installed with a brush to form one or more spiral tracks along its circumferential surface.

[0047] The brush is formed to protrude to the outside of the suction inlet by a predetermined length, and based on the rotation of the drum, the brush acts on impurities such as dust, soil, and hair attached to the surface to be cleaned. Then, the impurities are separated from the surface to be cleaned and can be easily sucked by the suction inlet. The brush can be a material with a small friction coefficient and strong wear resistance, such as natural hair or polyamide (e.g., nylon, PA), but is not limited thereto.

[0048] The specific forms of the first motor, the roller, the brush and the suction inlet can be Figure 4 Shown in.

[0049] The load applied to the first motor based on the type of surface to be cleaned may vary, and the magnitude of the current supplied to the first motor 110 may vary accordingly.

[0050] For example, compared to when the surface to be cleaned is a wooden floor, the load applied to the first motor is greater based on the surface to be cleaned being a carpet, and thus the magnitude of the current flowing to the first motor 110 is correspondingly greatly increased. Even if the surface to be cleaned is a carpet, compared to the opposite case, in the case where the length of the carpet hair is longer and the friction coefficient is composed of a material with a large friction coefficient, the magnitude of the current flowing to the first motor 110 becomes relatively larger.

[0051] The sensor 130 can sense the load applied to the first motor 110, and can also sense the first current based on the load. Specifically, the sensor 130 can sense the magnitude of the current supplied to the first motor 110 based on the voltage value at both ends of the resistance of the first motor 110. In addition, a Hall sensor 130 using a Hall voltage is installed, and a method of sensing the current of the first motor 110 can be used, and in addition, the sensor 130 of various different methods can be used.

[0052] The second motor 120 can generate suction pressure. Specifically, based on the input drive command of the second motor 120 and the power provided to the second motor 120, the impeller is rotated by the driving of the second motor 120. The rotation of the impeller generates suction pressure, and the air containing impurities is sucked into the suction inlet by the suction pressure. Here, as the speed of the second motor 120 increases, the suction pressure becomes greater.

[0053] The processor 140 controls the overall operation of the vacuum cleaner 100. The processor 140 controls the driving of the vacuum cleaner 100 based on a user's driving instruction.

[0054] In this case, the processor 140 can selectively control whether to drive the first motor 110. That is, the processor 140 can control the function of rotating the brush mounted on the drum according to the driving of the first motor based on the user's driving instruction to assist the function of sucking impurities based on the suction pressure according to the driving of the second motor.

[0055] Then, the processor can adjust the suction force of the vacuum cleaner 100. Specifically, the processor 140 can adjust the magnitude of the suction force generated by the second motor 120 based on the user's manipulation of the suction force adjustment part. In addition, as described below, the processor 140 can control various configurations in the vacuum cleaner 100, such as the processor 140, the first motor 110, and the second motor 120.

[0056] As described above, the load applied to the first motor 110 based on the type of the surface to be cleaned may vary, and the magnitude of the current supplied to the first motor 110 may vary accordingly.

[0057] For example, based on the increase in the magnitude of the current supplied to the first motor 110, the temperature of the first motor 110 may increase, and the possibility of damage to the first motor 110 may increase. If the driving of the first motor 110 is terminated for a predetermined time in consideration of these possibilities, in order to drive the first motor 110 again, the user may press the power button to terminate the entire driving of the cleaner, and then press the power button again to drive the cleaner again, thereby having to endure the inconvenience.

[0058] In order to overcome problems such as those described above, the processor 140 according to the present disclosure may control at least one of the first motor 110 and the second motor 120 according to the size of the load sensed from the sensor 130 .

[0059] Based on the load sensed from the sensor 130 being greater than or equal to the first threshold, the second threshold, or the third threshold, and based on being less than the above thresholds, a specific control process performed by the processor 140 will be described below.

[0060] Here, the first threshold value may be a value corresponding to 50% of the magnitude of the load that can be sensed from the sensor 130, and the second threshold value that is less than the first threshold value may be a value corresponding to 30% of the magnitude of the load that can be sensed from the sensor 130, and the second threshold value that is greater than the first threshold value may be a value corresponding to 70% of the magnitude of the load that can be sensed from the sensor 130.

[0061] However, numerical limits such as the above are merely examples, and the magnitude of the load corresponding to a specific threshold value may vary based on the first motor 100 used and other various factors. Therefore, these threshold values ​​are not limited to specific numerical values.

[0062] The processor 140 may reduce the speed of the second motor 120 based on the load sensed from the sensor 130 being a first threshold value or more.

[0063] Specifically, the processor 140 may adjust the voltage applied to the second motor 120 and reduce the speed of the second motor 120. For example, the processor 140 may reduce the speed of the second motor 120 based on adjusting the magnitude and frequency of the sine wave of the voltage applied to the second motor 120.

[0064] However, various methods for reducing the speed of the second motor 120 in addition to the above methods may be applied to the present disclosure, and specific details for reducing the speed of the second motor 120 may also be applied with respect to controlling the increase in the speed of the second motor 120 .

[0065] As the speed of the second motor 120 increases, the suction pressure increases, so that the brush and the surface to be cleaned are firmly in contact, and the load applied to the first motor 110 increases, and as the speed of the second motor 120 decreases, the contact force between the brush and the surface to be cleaned decreases, and the applied load decreases. Therefore, based on the decrease in the speed of the second motor 120, the magnitude of the current supplied to the first motor 110 can be reduced.

[0066] The processor 140 may reduce the speed of the first motor 110 based on the load sensed from the sensor 130 being the second threshold or less than the first threshold. Figure 5 The control operation of the first motor 110 is described in the description of FIG.

[0067] If the speed of the first motor is greatly reduced, based on the load sensed from the sensor 130 being the second threshold or more, the processor 140 can significantly reduce the influence of the driving of the first motor 110. Therefore, the processor 140 can reduce the speed of the first motor 110, preferably within the range in which the current supplied to the first motor 110 can be reduced, based on maintaining the rotational force of the first motor 110.

[0068] According to an embodiment taking these factors into consideration, the processor 140 may reduce the speed of the first motor 110 to 60% to 80% of the current speed based on the load sensed from the sensor 130 being the second threshold or more.

[0069] However, the speed reduction range described above is only an example and may vary depending on the first motor 110 used and other various factors. Therefore, the speed reduction range is not limited to a specific numerical range.

[0070] Based on the load sensed from the sensor being the second threshold or more, the processor 140 may control the first motor 110 so that the speed of the first motor has a speed inversely proportional to the magnitude of the sensed load.

[0071] For example, based on the load sensed from the sensor 130 being a second threshold or greater, the processor 140 may reduce the speed of the first motor 110 to 80% of the current speed, and may continuously reduce to a value from 100% to 80%, which is inversely proportional to the sensed load size.

[0072] Although the control of the processor 140 is performed as described above, there may be a case where the magnitude of the sensed load continues to increase, and in this case, terminating the self-driving of the first motor 110 may be preferable.

[0073] Therefore, based on the load sensed from the sensor 130 being the third threshold or greater than the first threshold, the processor 140 may terminate the driving of the first motor 110 .

[0074] According to an embodiment, the processor 140 may concurrently perform control based on the load sensed from the sensor 130 being a specific threshold or more, and the processor 140 may perform control after reaching a specific threshold or more and after a predetermined time has passed.

[0075] For example, based on the load sensed from the sensor 130 being a third threshold or greater, the processor 140 can concurrently terminate the driving of the first motor, and based on the load sensed from the sensor 130 being a third threshold or greater and then failing to drop below the third threshold for five seconds, the processor 140 can terminate the driving of the first motor 110.

[0076] According to the present disclosure, no specific order is determined between the control processes. For example, based on the load sensed from the sensor 130 being the second threshold or greater, the processor 140 may first reduce the speed of the first motor 110, and although as described above, based on the load sensed from the sensor 130 being the first threshold or greater than the second threshold, the processor 140 may reduce the speed of the second motor 120.

[0077] However, according to another embodiment of the present disclosure, based on the load sensed from the sensor 130 being a second threshold or greater, the processor 140 may first reduce the speed of the second motor 120, and based on the load sensed from the sensor 130 being a first threshold or greater than the second threshold, the sensor 130 may reduce the speed of the first motor 110.

[0078] In the above content, the control process of the processor 140 is described when a load of a specific threshold or greater is sensed from the sensor 130, but as described below, the processor can control at least one of the first motor 110 and the second motor 120 even when a load less than a specific threshold is sensed from the sensor 130.

[0079] That is, when a load of a specific threshold or greater is sensed from the sensor 130 and the processor 140 reduces the speed of the first motor 110 or the speed of the second motor 120, or terminates the drive of the first motor 110, and then when a load of a specific threshold or less is sensed from the sensor 130, the processor 140 may be required to control the first motor 110 or the second motor 120 again.

[0080] According to an embodiment thereof, the processor 140 may drive the first motor 110 based on the load sensed from the sensor 130 being less than a third threshold.

[0081] Specifically, based on the processor 140 terminating the driving of the first motor when the load sensed from the sensor 130 reaches a third threshold or higher, and then based on the load sensed from the sensor 130 being less than the third threshold, the processor 140 can re-drive the terminated first motor 110.

[0082] However, in a case where the first motor has been driven based on the load sensed from the sensor 130 failing to reach the third threshold or more, the processor 140 may not perform specific control.

[0083] The processor 140 may increase the speed of the second motor 120 based on the load sensed from the sensor 130 being less than the first threshold.

[0084] Specifically, after the processor 140 reduces the speed of the second motor 120 based on the load sensed from the sensor 130 reaching a first threshold or greater, and when the load sensed from the sensor 130 again is less than the first threshold, the reduced speed of the second motor can be increased.

[0085] However, in the case where the speed of the second motor 120 is not reduced based on the load sensed from the sensor 130 failing to reach the first threshold or more, the processor 140 may not perform specific control.

[0086] The processor 140 may increase the speed of the first motor 110 based on the load sensed from the sensor 130 being less than the second threshold.

[0087] Specifically, after the processor 140 reduces the speed of the first motor 110 based on the load sensed from the sensor 130 being the second threshold or greater, the reduced speed of the first motor 110 may be increased when the load sensed from the sensor 130 is less than the second threshold again.

[0088] However, in the case where the speed of the first motor is not reduced based on the load sensed from the sensor 130 failing to reach the second threshold or more, the processor 140 may not perform specific control.

[0089] According to an embodiment, the processor 140 may concurrently perform control based on the load sensed from the sensor 130 being less than a specific threshold, and may perform control after reaching less than a specific threshold and a predetermined time has passed.

[0090] For example, based on the load sensed from the sensor 130 being less than a specific threshold, the processor 140 can concurrently terminate the driving of the first motor 110, or after the load sensed from the sensor 130 becomes less than a third threshold, the processor 140 can terminate the driving of the first motor 110 if the load fails to reach the third threshold or higher for five seconds.

[0091] There is no specific order determined between the control processes according to the present disclosure. For example, based on the load sensed from the sensor 130 being less than the first threshold, the processor 140 may first reduce the speed of the second motor 120, and although as described above, based on the load sensed from the sensor 130 being less than the second threshold that is smaller than the first threshold, the processor 140 may reduce the speed of the first motor 110.

[0092] However, according to another embodiment of the present disclosure, based on the load sensed from the sensor 130 being less than a first threshold, the processor 140 may first reduce the speed of the first motor 110, and as described above, based on the load sensed from the sensor 130 being less than a second threshold that is smaller than the first threshold, the processor 140 may reduce the speed of the second motor 120.

[0093] In the above, a description based on a simple configuration of the vacuum cleaner 100 has been provided, but the vacuum cleaner 100 may also include Figure 2 The following will refer to Figure 2 A specific configuration of the vacuum cleaner 100 is described.

[0094] Figure 2 1 is a block diagram provided to illustrate a specific configuration of the vacuum cleaner 100 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0095] Reference Figure 2The vacuum cleaner 100 according to the embodiment may include a first motor 110 , a second motor 120 , a sensor 130 , a processor 140 , a manipulation input portion 160 , a user interface portion 170 , and a battery 150 .

[0096] The configuration of the first motor 110, the second motor 120 and the sensor 130 is Figure 1 The configuration is the same as in , and repeated descriptions will be omitted.

[0097] The manipulation input part 160 includes a power button, a suction force adjustment part, etc., and may receive an input of a user manipulation of the vacuum cleaner 100 .

[0098] Specifically, the user can input a driving instruction of the vacuum cleaner 100 through the power button, and the user can selectively control whether to drive the first motor 110. That is, the user can control the function of rotating the brush mounted on the drum according to the driving of the first motor as an auxiliary function of the function of sucking foreign matter based on the suction pressure according to the driving of the second motor.

[0099] In addition, the user may manipulate the suction force adjustment portion to adjust the magnitude of the suction pressure generated by the second motor 120 .

[0100] The user interface portion 170 is configured to interact with a user of the vacuum cleaner 100. Specifically, the user interface portion 170 may include an indicator, and may also additionally include a vibrator, a speaker, etc. Figure 6 The description is used to describe specific embodiments related thereto.

[0101] The processor 140 may control each configuration of the vacuum cleaner 100 based on the user input input to the operation input part 160. In addition, the processor 140 may control the user interface part 170, and may also receive an input regarding a user interaction from the user interface part 170.

[0102] The processor 140 may include a read-only memory (ROM), a random access memory (RAM), a graphics processing unit (GPU), a central processing unit (CPU), and a bus. In addition, the ROM, RAM, GPU, CPU, etc. may be coupled to each other through a bus.

[0103] The vacuum cleaner 100 according to the present disclosure includes a battery 150, and through the battery 150, power can be provided to each configuration in the vacuum cleaner 100. Specifically, the battery 150 can supply power to the first motor 110, the second motor 120, the sensor 130, the processor 140, the manipulation input part 160, the user interface part 170, and the like.

[0104] According to an embodiment in relation thereto, the vacuum cleaner 100 may further include a secondary battery that supplies power to the first motor 110 and the second motor 120 .

[0105] Here, the secondary battery may be a nickel cadmium (NiCd) battery, a nickel metal hydride (NiMH) battery, a lithium ion (Li-ion) battery, a lithium ion polymer (Li-ion polymer) battery, etc., but is not limited to its type.

[0106] The vacuum cleaner 100 according to the embodiment of the present disclosure as described above can adaptively control the operation of the motor according to the load of the motor rotating the roller on which the brush is installed. Therefore, the user of the vacuum cleaner 100 can effectively clean various surfaces to be cleaned without any trouble regardless of the use environment, and the percentage of failures occurring in the vacuum cleaner 100 is reduced.

[0107] Figure 3 1 is a diagram provided to illustrate an exemplary form of the vacuum cleaner 100 of the present disclosure.

[0108] like Figure 3 As shown, the vacuum cleaner 100 of the present disclosure may include a second motor and a main body 20 , the main body 20 including an impeller rotated by the second motor 120 , a suction module 30 coupled by the main body 20 , and a handle 10 including a manipulation input portion 160 and a user interface portion 170 .

[0109] exist Figure 2 The configuration of the handle 10 and the body 20 has been described in the description of FIG. 1 , and its repeated description will be omitted, and reference will be made to FIG. Figure 4 The detailed form of the suction module 30 will be described in detail.

[0110] Despite Figure 3 The handheld vacuum cleaner 100 is shown as an example in the various types of vacuum cleaners 100 in FIG. 1 , but the present disclosure is not limited to a specific type of vacuum cleaner 100. That is, the present disclosure can be implemented as various types of vacuum cleaners 100, including the second motor 120 generating suction pressure together with the first motor 110 to rotate the drum on which the brush is installed.

[0111] Figure 4 is provided for specific illustration Figure 3 FIG. 3 is a diagram of the form of a suction module 30 .

[0112] like Figure 4 As shown, the suction module 30 may include: a suction inlet 31 that sucks air containing impurities; a drum 32 rotated by a first motor 110; a brush 33 mounted on the drum 32; and a first motor 110 that rotates the drum 32 on which the brush 33 is mounted. Figure 1A description of each current configuration is recorded in the description, and its repeated description is omitted.

[0113] There are various types according to uses thereof in the suction module 30, such as a general type and a bedding type, and various types capable of installing a brush 33, a drum 32, and a first motor 110 may be applied to various embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0114] In addition, even though the suction modules 30 may be used for the same purpose, the suction modules 30 may be varied according to the length, material, etc. of the brush 33 included therein. Furthermore, the position in the suction module 30 where the brush 33 is installed may be variably selected.

[0115] Therefore, the magnitude of the load that a specific suction module 30 has for the same surface to be cleaned can vary based on the length, material, installation position, etc. of the selected brush 33. In other words, the magnitude of the load applied to the first motor 110 and the magnitude of the current from the first motor 110 can vary not only according to the type of surface to be cleaned, but also according to the type of suction module 30.

[0116] According to the above embodiments of the present disclosure, the vacuum cleaner 100 may further include a suction module 30 installed to be detachable from the main body 20, and including a roller 32 on which a brush 33 is installed and a first motor 110, and the processor 140 may identify the type of the suction module 30, and based on a threshold value corresponding to the confirmed type, may control the speed of the second motor 120.

[0117] In this regard, the Figure 6 An embodiment of providing notification instructions for replacing the suction module 30 by the user is recorded in the description.

[0118] Figure 5 is a diagram provided to specifically describe a control operation of the first motor 110 of the present disclosure.

[0119] As described above, the processor 140 may reduce the speed of the first motor 110 based on the load sensed from the sensor 130 being the second threshold or less than the first threshold.

[0120] Reference Figure 5 Based on the current value of the first motor 110 calculated according to the voltage across the resistor, the processor 140 can control the voltage duty cycle value applied to the first motor 110 through a proportional integral (PI) controller under a feedback system. In addition, the magnitude of the current supplied to the first motor 110 can be controlled, and the speed of the first motor 110 can be controlled.

[0121] For example, based on the load sensed from the sensor 130 being the first threshold or greater, the processor 140 may reduce the voltage duty cycle value applied to the first motor 110 to 70%. The voltage duty cycle value such as the above may be determined within a range in which the current supplied to the first motor 110 may be reduced while maintaining the rotational force of the first motor 110.

[0122] In addition, based on the load sensed from the sensor 130 being a first threshold or greater, the processor 140 can reduce the voltage duty cycle value applied to the first motor 100 to 70%, and can sequentially reduce the value from 100% to 70%, which is inversely proportional to the increase in the magnitude of the sensed load.

[0123] However, the reduction range of the voltage duty ratio such as the above is only an example and may vary based on the first motor 110 used and other various factors. Therefore, the reduction range herein is not limited to a specific numerical value.

[0124] In addition, in addition to the method of reducing the voltage duty cycle as a method for reducing the speed of the first motor 110, various other methods can be applied to the present disclosure, and the specific description of reducing the speed of the first motor 110 can be applied in the same way in controlling the speed of the first motor 110.

[0125] Figure 6 1 is a diagram provided to describe an embodiment of a vacuum cleaner 100 provided with a user interface part 170 .

[0126] Reference Figure 6 , the handle 10 of the vacuum cleaner 100 may include an indicator 12 corresponding to the power button 11 and the user interface part 170. Although not shown, the user interface part 170 may include not only the indicator 12 but also a vibrator, a speaker, and the like.

[0127] In addition, as described above, the suction module 30 can be detached from the body 20, and the magnitude of the load applied to the first motor 110 and the magnitude of the current from the first motor 110 can vary according to the type of the suction module 30. In addition, information such as the above about the load of each suction module 30 can be provided to the user in advance.

[0128] Therefore, based on whether the load sensed from the sensor 130 is a specific threshold or greater than or less than a specific threshold, a notification guiding the user to replace the suction module 30 is provided, and based on the user selecting and replacing the suction module 30 suitable for the use environment, the purpose of the present disclosure can be achieved.

[0129] According to the embodiment as described above, the vacuum cleaner 100 may further include a user interface portion 170, and based on the load sensed from the sensor 130 being a first threshold or greater, the user interface portion 170 may provide a notification guiding replacement of the suction module 30 with a relatively smaller load than the currently installed suction module 30.

[0130] Notifications such as those described above may be implemented by way of signs providing visual information to the user.

[0131] For example, Figure 6 As shown, the vacuum cleaner 100 may also include an indicator 12 at a position that is easily visually recognized by the user at the upper end of the handle 10, etc., and may provide a notification to guide the user to replace the suction module 30 by turning on or off the lighting or changing the lighting color of the indicator 12. Therefore, the indicator 12 may be a light emitting diode (LED) indicator, but is not limited to its type.

[0132] The provision of the visual information as described above may also include display of the vacuum cleaner 100 , and may include a method of displaying text guiding replacement of the suction module 30 through display.

[0133] Notifications such as those described above may be implemented by providing tactile information to the user through vibration.

[0134] For example, the vacuum cleaner 100 may further include a vibrator at a position that is easily tactilely recognized by the user, such as the upper end of the handle 10 , and may provide a notification guiding replacement of the suction module 30 by transmitting specific vibrations to the user via the vibrator.

[0135] Notifications such as the above may be implemented by providing auditory information to the user through voice.

[0136] For example, the vacuum cleaner may further include a speaker at a position easily audibly recognized by the user at the upper end of the handle 10 or the like, and may provide a notification guiding replacement of the suction module 30 by delivering a specific voice to the user via the speaker.

[0137] Figure 7 is a flowchart provided for describing a control method of the vacuum cleaner 100 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0138] First, based on a driving command input to the vacuum cleaner 100, the second motor 120 is used to generate suction pressure (S710), and the first motor 110 is used to rotate the drum 32 on which the brush 33 is mounted (S720).

[0139] Then, the load applied to the first motor 110 is sensed (S730), and at least one of the first motor 110 and the second motor 120 is controlled according to the magnitude of the sensed load (S740). Figure 8 A detailed description of the control process is described.

[0140] Figure 8 1 is a flowchart for specifically describing a control method of the vacuum cleaner 100 according to various embodiments of the present disclosure. Figure 7 The load sensed when sensing the load applied to the first motor is described below with reference to controlling at least one of the first motor and the second motor to describe various embodiments.

[0141] Specifically, according to an embodiment, based on the sensed load being a first threshold or greater (S810), the speed of the second motor 120 may be reduced (S820). In addition, based on the sensed load being a second threshold or less than the first threshold (S830), the speed of the first motor 110 may be reduced (S840). Furthermore, based on the sensed load being a third threshold or greater than the first threshold (S850), the driving of the first motor 110 may be terminated (S860).

[0142] Based on the sensed load being less than the third threshold value (S850), the first motor 110 may be driven (S870). In addition, based on the sensed load being less than the first threshold value (S830), the speed of the second motor 120 may be increased (S880). Furthermore, based on the sensed load being less than the second threshold value (S810), the speed of the first motor 110 may be increased (S890).

[0143] As noted above in the description of the processor 140 of the vacuum cleaner 100 , specific control may not be performed based on the sensed load never reaching a specific threshold or more before reaching less than a specific threshold.

[0144] For example, based on the sensed load reaching the third threshold or more and the driving of the first motor 110 is never terminated, specific control may not be performed even if the sensed load is less than the third threshold.

[0145] Although not shown, the control method of the vacuum cleaner according to the present disclosure may reduce the speed of the first motor to 60% to 80% of the current speed based on the sensed load being the second threshold or more.

[0146] Based on the sensed load being the second threshold or more, the first motor may be controlled so that the speed of the first motor 110 has a speed inversely proportional to the magnitude of the sensed load.

[0147] When describing the control method of the vacuum cleaner 100 above, the meaning of the threshold used, the meaning of the threshold or greater than and less than the threshold, the increase and decrease of the speed of the first motor, the increase and decrease of the speed of the second motor, the control of whether to drive the first motor, etc. have been described above, and their repeated description will be omitted.

[0148] The control method of the vacuum cleaner 100 according to the embodiment may be implemented as other various embodiments. However, the processor 140 of the vacuum cleaner 100 according to the present disclosure has also been described in detail above, so its repeated description will be omitted.

[0149] According to the control method of the vacuum cleaner 100 of the embodiment as described above, the operation of the motor can be adaptively controlled according to the load of the motor rotating the drum 32 mounted with the brush 33. Therefore, the user of the vacuum cleaner 100 can effectively clean various surfaces to be cleaned without any trouble regardless of the use environment, and the percentage of failures occurring in the vacuum cleaner 100 is reduced.

[0150] like Figure 7 and Figure 8 The control method of the vacuum cleaner 100 shown can be used in a Figure 1 or Figure 2 The present invention may be performed on a vacuum cleaner 100 having a configuration of, and may also be performed on a vacuum cleaner 100 having other configurations.

[0151] The control method of the vacuum cleaner 100 according to the above-described embodiment may be implemented as a program and provided to the vacuum cleaner 100. Specifically, the program including the control method of the vacuum cleaner 100 may be stored and provided in a non-transitory computer-readable medium.

[0152] In addition, although exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure are shown and described above, the present disclosure is not limited to the above-mentioned specific embodiments or drawings, and those skilled in the art to which the present disclosure belongs will understand the present disclosure, and various changes in form and details may be made therein without departing from the defined spirit and scope, and these various changes in form and details should not be understood as being independent of the technical idea or scope of the present disclosure.

Claims

1. A vacuum cleaner comprising: a main body configured to detachably mount a suction module, the suction module including a drum having a brush and a first motor configured to rotate the drum, and having a second motor configured to generate a suction force; a sensor configured to sense a load applied to the first motor, wherein the load applied to the first motor varies based on a type of surface on which the suction module performs a cleaning operation and / or a type of the suction module performing the cleaning operation; as well as The processor is configured as: obtaining, by the sensor, a signal corresponding to a load applied to the first motor when the suction module performs the cleaning operation, In response to identifying the type of the suction module and identifying based on the signal that the load sensed from the sensor when the first motor is driven is greater than or equal to a first threshold, reducing the speed of the second motor for generating a suction force, The first threshold is preset to correspond to the type of the suction module.

2. The vacuum cleaner according to claim 1, wherein the processor is further configured to: Based on the load sensed from the sensor being greater than or equal to the first threshold, the speed of the first motor is reduced while the speed of the second motor is reduced.

3. The vacuum cleaner according to claim 1, wherein: The processor is further configured to: The speed of the first motor is reduced based on the load sensed from the sensor being less than the first threshold and greater than or equal to a second threshold, the second threshold being less than the first threshold.

4. The vacuum cleaner according to claim 1, wherein: The sensor is further configured to sense a load applied to the first motor based on a magnitude of a current supplied to the first motor.

5. The vacuum cleaner according to claim 3, wherein: The processor is further configured to reduce the speed of the first motor to 60% to 80% of a current speed based on the load sensed from the sensor being greater than or equal to the second threshold.

6. The vacuum cleaner according to claim 3, wherein the processor is further configured to: based on the load sensed from the sensor being greater than or equal to the second threshold, control the speed of the first motor so that the first motor has a speed inversely proportional to the magnitude of the load sensed from the sensor.

7. The vacuum cleaner according to claim 1, wherein: The processor is further configured to terminate driving of the first motor based on the load sensed from the sensor being greater than or equal to a third threshold, the third threshold being greater than the first threshold.

8. The vacuum cleaner according to claim 6, further comprising: User Interaction Department; as well as The user interaction unit is configured to provide a notification guiding replacement of a suction module with a relatively smaller load than a currently installed suction module based on the load sensed from the sensor being greater than or equal to the first threshold.

9. A method for controlling a vacuum cleaner, the vacuum cleaner comprising: a main body configured to detachably mount a suction module, the suction module including a drum having a brush and a first motor configured to rotate the drum, and having a second motor configured to generate a suction force; as well as a sensor configured to sense a load applied to the first motor, wherein the load applied to the first motor varies based on a type of surface on which the suction module performs a cleaning operation and / or a type of the suction module performing the cleaning operation, The control method comprises: obtaining, by the sensor, a signal corresponding to a load applied to the first motor when the suction module performs the cleaning operation, In response to identifying the type of the suction module and identifying based on the first signal that the load sensed from the sensor when the first motor is driven is greater than or equal to a first threshold, reducing the speed of the second motor for generating a suction force, The first threshold is preset to correspond to the type of the suction module.

10. The control method according to claim 9, wherein the control method further comprises: Based on the load sensed from the sensor being greater than or equal to the first threshold, the speed of the first motor is reduced while the speed of the second motor is reduced.

11. The control method according to claim 9, wherein the control method further comprises: The speed of the first motor is reduced based on the load sensed from the sensor being less than the first threshold and greater than or equal to a second threshold, the second threshold being less than the first threshold.

12. The control method according to claim 11, wherein: The control method further comprises: Based on the load sensed from the sensor being greater than or equal to the second threshold, the speed of the first motor is controlled so that the first motor has a speed inversely proportional to the magnitude of the load sensed from the sensor.

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