A robot autonomous charging mechanism

Abstract

This invention discloses an autonomous charging mechanism for robots, comprising a charging telescopic end, a base, an electrical control cabinet, and a robot body. The charging telescopic end and the electrical control cabinet are both fixedly mounted on the base. The charging telescopic end includes a charging end base plate, a charging end housing fixed to the base plate, and a charging head disposed inside the housing formed by the charging end housing and the base plate, ensuring that the charging head is completely enclosed inside the housing when not in use. The charging head consists of a charging end copper electrode, a charging end copper electrode fixing seat, a charging end extension block, a charging end support, and multiple first springs. The charging end copper electrode is mounted on the charging end copper electrode fixing seat via the first springs, ensuring that the charging end copper electrode can float up and down. This invention, while considering the positioning error of robot automatic charging and the differences in equipment installation conditions, rationally arranges the detection sensors and designs corresponding copper electrode protection devices, ensuring a 100% success rate for the entire autonomous charging device.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of charging pile technology, and in particular to a robot autonomous charging mechanism. Background Technology

[0002] With the continuous development of robotics technology, higher demands are being placed on the autonomous operation capabilities of robots, and autonomous charging is a crucial foundation for ensuring robot intelligence. Therefore, how to quickly provide robots with safe and reliable power to maximize their autonomous operation time is a pressing technical problem that needs to be solved.

[0003] Currently, in the design of autonomous charging mechanisms for robots, for example, patent number CN108832397A "Mobile Robot and its Mobile Robot Charging Mechanism" describes a charging mechanism that can automatically adjust the angle and displacement deviation. It uses an adjusting elastic element in conjunction with the mobile robot body to change the position of the charging contacts, so that the vehicle body contacts and the charging post contacts can reliably fit together. However, it does not take into account the width of the mobile robot. If the width of the mobile robot is very large and the contacts at the robot body end do not have a telescopic function, it is easy for the robot body shell to touch and interfere with the charging end shell first, without the two contacts actually making contact.

[0004] For example, patents CN112803535A "A mobile robot fast automatic charging mechanism module" and CN105811507B "A robot charging mechanism, a robot using the mechanism and a charging method" add a telescopic mechanism to the rear end of the charging contacts to ensure that the robot body will not touch or interfere with the charging end shell even at a large deflection angle. However, neither patent describes how to ensure that the charging contacts are not energized when they are not being charged, in order to reduce safety hazards. Furthermore, neither patent describes the charging logic that the contacts are energized only after ensuring reliable contact. If charging occurs immediately upon contact, sparks may be generated at the moment of contact, which could damage the robot's electrical equipment. Summary of the Invention

[0005] To overcome the shortcomings of the prior art, the present invention aims to provide a robot autonomous charging mechanism to solve the problems mentioned in the background art.

[0006] To achieve the above objectives, the present invention adopts the following technical solution:

[0007] A robot autonomous charging mechanism includes a charging telescopic end, a base, an electrical control cabinet, and a robot body end. The charging telescopic end and the electrical control cabinet are both fixedly installed on the base. The charging telescopic end includes a charging end base plate, a charging end box cover fixed on the charging end base plate, and a charging head disposed inside the box body formed by the charging end box cover and the charging end base plate, so as to ensure that the charging head is completely wrapped inside the box body when not in use.

[0008] Preferably, the charging head consists of a charging copper electrode, a charging copper electrode fixing base, a charging extension block, a charging support, and multiple first springs; the charging copper electrode is mounted on the charging copper electrode fixing base by the first springs to ensure that the charging copper electrode can float up and down; the charging copper electrode fixing base is fixedly connected to the charging support through the charging extension block.

[0009] More preferably, the charging head further includes a charging end support, which is mounted on the charging end base plate via a guide rail assembly; the lead screw motor is fixedly mounted on the charging end base plate via a lead screw motor mounting bracket; the lead screw motor drives the charging end copper poles to reciprocate, thereby realizing the forward and backward extension of the charging head.

[0010] More preferably, the charging head further includes a sliding contact movable copper electrode, which is fixed on a sliding contact movable copper electrode fixing seat, and a second spring is installed between the two to ensure that the sliding contact movable copper electrode has the function of floating up and down; the sliding contact movable copper electrode fixing seat is installed on the guide rail assembly through a slider fixing seat, and is driven by a lead screw motor to move back and forth.

[0011] More preferably, the first limit switch and the second limit switch are mounted on the charging end base plate; when the slider fixing seat extends and retracts with the lead screw motor, the first limit switch and the second limit switch are used to detect the moving position of the slider fixing seat, thereby improving the charging reliability.

[0012] More preferably, the charging head further includes a sliding contact copper electrode, which is mounted on the charging terminal base plate via a sliding contact copper electrode fixing seat; the sliding contact copper electrode is connected to the positive and negative terminals of the power supply, and a sliding contact copper electrode protective cover is installed on the outside to prevent leakage.

[0013] Preferably, the robot body includes a robot body charging unit, a robot body, and a second sensor. The robot body charging unit consists of a guide post, multiple third springs, a robot end copper electrode protection block, a robot end copper electrode fixing seat, a robot end copper electrode, and a guide post fixing seat. The robot end copper electrode is fixed on the robot end copper electrode fixing seat, and the robot end copper electrode fixing seat is mounted on the robot body. The guide post is fixed on the guide post fixing seat, and the third spring is sleeved on the guide post and passes through the hole in the robot end copper electrode protection block. The robot end copper electrode protection block is embedded in the groove of the robot end copper electrode fixing seat, and the relative position of the guide post fixing seat and the robot end copper electrode fixing seat is ensured so that when not charging, the robot end copper electrode protection block covers the robot end copper electrode and does not expose it, reducing safety hazards.

[0014] More preferably, the electrical control cabinet includes an electrical control cabinet body and a first sensor mounted on the electrical control cabinet body, and a second sensor is mounted on the robot body; during autonomous charging operations, the fixed positions of the first sensor and the second sensor are aligned with each other to trigger a charging command.

[0015] More preferably, it also includes a height adjustment base, which consists of a charging base elevation block, a first lifting adjustment block, an adjustment screw, and a second lifting adjustment block. The charging base elevation block is fixedly connected to the first lifting adjustment block, serving as a height adjustment base. The adjustment screw is screwed into the threaded hole of the first lifting adjustment block, allowing for vertical extension and retraction through rotation. The second lifting adjustment block rests on the adjustment screw, and after adjusting to a suitable height using the adjustment screw, the second lifting adjustment block is fixedly connected to the first lifting adjustment block. Simultaneously, the charging end base plate is fixed to the second lifting adjustment block, realizing the overall height adjustment function of the charging extension end.

[0016] More preferably, the charging seat elevation block and the electrical control cabinet are respectively fixed on the base, and the base is provided with anchor bolt holes for use during on-site installation.

[0017] Compared with the prior art, the beneficial effects of the present invention are as follows:

[0018] This invention provides a robot autonomous charging mechanism that utilizes a retractable unit to ensure reliable travel of the charging end copper electrodes, preventing interference between the robot body and the charging end shell during charging docking at large deflection angles. Simultaneously, a pair of sliding contact copper electrodes are designed inside the charging retractable end to ensure that the charging end copper electrodes are not energized when not charging. A height-adjustable base is designed to adapt to the on-site installation environment, flexibly adjusting the height of the charging end copper electrodes to ensure reliable autonomous docking of the robot. Furthermore, auxiliary electrical control cabinet equipment ensures a charging logic that only applies power after reliable contact between the two pairs of copper electrodes.

[0019] Compared to existing autonomous charging mechanisms for robots, this mechanism takes into account the positioning errors of automatic robot charging and the differences in equipment installation conditions. It rationally arranges the detection sensors and designs corresponding copper electrode protection devices, ensuring a 100% success rate for the entire autonomous charging equipment. Attached Figure Description

[0020] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention, the accompanying drawings used in the description of the embodiments will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of the present invention. For those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative effort.

[0021] Figure 1 This is an overall schematic diagram of the present invention;

[0022] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the present invention excluding the robot body end;

[0023] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the movement state of the charging telescopic end of the present invention;

[0024] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the internal assembly structure of the charging telescopic end of the present invention;

[0025] Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram of the copper electrode mating at the charging telescopic end of the present invention;

[0026] Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram showing the assembly of the height adjustment seat, electrical control cabinet, and base of the present invention.

[0027] Figure 7 This is a schematic diagram of the robot end assembly structure of the present invention;

[0028] Figure 8 This is a schematic diagram of the motion state of the present invention;

[0029] Figure 9 This is a schematic diagram showing the installation of the first and second sensors of the present invention.

[0030] In the figure, the attached figures are labeled as follows:

[0031] 1-Charging telescopic end; 101-Charging end box cover; 102-Charging end base plate; 103-Charging end copper pole; 104-Charging end copper pole fixing seat; 105-Charging end extension block; 106-Charging end support; 107-Slider fixing seat; 108-Lead screw nut fixing block; 109-Lead screw motor nut; 110-Motor driver; 111-Driver fixing block; 112-Lead screw motor; 113-Lead screw motor fixing seat; 114-Guide rail assembly; 115-First limit switch; 116-Sliding contact movable copper pole; 117-Sliding contact movable copper pole fixing seat; 118-Sliding contact copper pole; 119-Sliding contact copper pole protective cover; 120-Sliding... 1. Contact copper electrode fixing seat; 121-Second limit switch; 122-First spring; 123-Second spring; 2-Height adjustment seat; 201-Charging seat raising block; 202-First lifting adjustment block; 203-Adjusting screw; 204-Second lifting adjustment block; 3-Base; 301-Base plate; 4-Electrical control cabinet; 401-Electrical control cabinet housing; 402-First sensor; 5-Robot body end; 501-Robot body; 502-Guide column; 503-Third spring; 504-Robot end copper electrode protection block; 505-Robot end copper electrode fixing seat; 506-Robot end copper electrode; 507-Guide column fixing seat; 508-Second sensor. Detailed Implementation

[0032] To more clearly illustrate the present invention, the invention will be further described in detail below with reference to embodiments and accompanying drawings. Those skilled in the art should understand that the specific description below is illustrative rather than restrictive and should not be construed as limiting the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0033] In the description of this invention, it should be noted that the terms "inner," "outer," "upper," and "lower," etc., indicate the orientation or positional relationship based on the orientation or positional relationship shown in the accompanying drawings, and are only for the convenience of describing the invention and simplifying the description, and do not indicate or imply that the device or element referred to must have a specific orientation, or be constructed and operated in a specific orientation, and therefore should not be construed as a limitation of the invention. Furthermore, unless otherwise explicitly specified and limited, the terms "installation," "connection," etc., should be interpreted broadly. For example, they can refer to a fixed connection, a detachable connection, or an integral connection; they can refer to a mechanical connection or an electrical connection; they can refer to a direct connection, an indirect connection through an intermediate medium, or a connection within two components. Those skilled in the art can understand the specific meaning of the above terms in this invention according to the specific circumstances.

[0034] Example:

[0035] like Figure 1-9 The robot autonomous charging mechanism shown includes a charging telescopic end 1, a base 3, an electrical control cabinet 4, and a robot body end 5. The charging telescopic end 1 includes a charging end base plate 102, a charging end box cover 101 fixed on the charging end base plate 102, and a charging head disposed inside the box body composed of the charging end box cover 101 and the charging end base plate 102, so as to ensure that the charging head is completely wrapped inside the box body when not in use.

[0036] The charging head consists of a charging copper electrode 103, a charging copper electrode fixing base 104, a charging extension block 105, a charging support 106, and multiple first springs 122. The charging copper electrode 103 is mounted on the charging copper electrode fixing base 104 by the first springs 122 to ensure that the charging copper electrode 103 can float up and down.

[0037] The charging end copper electrode fixing seat 104 is fixedly connected to the charging end support 106 via the charging end extension block 105. The charging end support 106 is mounted on the slider fixing seat 107, which is in turn fixed on the guide rail assembly 114. The lead screw motor 112 is mounted on the lead screw motor fixing seat 113, while the motor driver 110 and driver fixing block 111 are mounted on the lead screw motor fixing seat 113 to ensure structural compactness. The lead screw nut fixing block 108 is mounted on the slider fixing seat 107, and the lead screw motor 112 drives the lead screw motor nut 109 to reciprocate, realizing the forward and backward extension of the charging head.

[0038] The movable copper pole 116 of the sliding contact is fixed on the movable copper pole mounting base 117 of the sliding contact, and a second spring 123 is installed between the two to ensure that the movable copper pole 116 of the sliding contact has the function of floating up and down. At the same time, the movable copper pole mounting base 117 of the sliding contact is installed on the slider mounting base 107 and moves back and forth as driven by the lead screw motor 112.

[0039] The sliding contact copper electrode 118 is fixed on the sliding contact copper electrode fixing base 120, and the sliding contact copper electrode fixing base 120 is mounted on the charging terminal base plate 102. The sliding contact copper electrode 118 is connected to the positive and negative terminals of the external power supply, and a sliding contact copper electrode protective cover 119 is installed on the outside to prevent leakage.

[0040] The first limit switch 115 and the second limit switch 121 are mounted on the charging terminal base plate 102. By rationally arranging the positions of the first limit switch 115 and the second limit switch 121, they are used to detect whether the slider fixing seat 107 has moved into place when it extends and retracts with the lead screw motor 112, thereby improving the charging reliability.

[0041] The robot body end 5 includes a robot body charging unit, a robot body 501, and a second sensor 508. The robot body charging unit consists of a guide post 502, several third springs 503, a robot end copper electrode protection block 504, a robot end copper electrode fixing seat 505, a robot end copper electrode 506, and a guide post fixing seat 507. The robot end copper electrode 506 is fixed to the robot end copper electrode fixing seat 505, and the robot end copper electrode fixing seat 505 is mounted on the robot body 501. The guide post 502 is fixed to the guide post fixing seat 507, and its third spring 503 is sleeved on the guide post 502 and passes through the hole in the robot end copper electrode protection block 504. The robot end copper electrode protection block 504 is embedded in the groove of the robot end copper electrode fixing seat 505, ensuring the relative position of the guide post fixing seat 507 and the robot end copper electrode fixing seat 505. This ensures that when not charging, the robot end copper electrode protection block 504 covers the robot end copper electrode 506 and prevents it from being exposed, reducing safety hazards.

[0042] The electrical control cabinet 4 includes an electrical control cabinet body 401 and a first sensor 402 mounted on the electrical control cabinet body 401. A second sensor 508 is mounted on the robot body 501. During autonomous charging operations, the fixed positions of the first sensor 402 and the second sensor 508 are aligned with each other to trigger charging commands.

[0043] It also includes a height adjustment base 2, which consists of a charging base elevation block 201, a first lifting adjustment block 202, an adjustment screw 203, and a second lifting adjustment block 204. The charging base elevation block 201 is fixedly connected to the first lifting adjustment block 202, serving as a height adjustment base. The adjustment screw 203 is screwed into the threaded hole of the first lifting adjustment block 202, allowing for vertical extension and retraction through rotation. The second lifting adjustment block 204 rests on the adjustment screw 203. After adjusting to a suitable height using the adjustment screw 203, the second lifting adjustment block 204 is fixedly connected to the first lifting adjustment block 202. Simultaneously, the charging terminal base plate 102 is fixed to the second lifting adjustment block 204, realizing the overall height adjustment function of the charging telescopic terminal 1.

[0044] When it is necessary to adjust the height of the charging telescopic end 1, first loosen the fixing screw between the first lifting adjustment block 202 and the second lifting adjustment block 204, adjust to the appropriate height by turning the adjusting screw 203, and then tighten the fixing screw between the two adjustment blocks, so that a certain range of height adjustment can be achieved.

[0045] The base 3 includes a base plate 301, a charging seat elevation block 201 and an electrical control cabinet box 401, which are respectively fixed on the base plate 301. Anchor bolt holes are provided on the base plate 301 for use during on-site installation.

[0046] The following methods can be used to compensate for positioning errors during autonomous charging of a robot: Figure 8 and 9 As shown, ensuring that the length L1 of the charging end copper electrode 103 is greater than the size L2 of the robot end copper electrode 506 can solve the front and rear positioning errors during robot movement; ensuring that the width B1 of the charging end copper electrode fixing seat 104 is less than the size B2 of the robot end copper electrode fixing seat 505 can solve the left and right positioning errors and deflection errors during robot movement.

[0047] Obviously, the above embodiments of the present invention are merely examples to illustrate the present invention more clearly, and are not intended to limit the implementation of the present invention. For those skilled in the art, other variations or modifications can be made based on the above description. It is impossible to exhaustively list all implementation methods here. Any obvious variations or modifications derived from the technical solutions of the present invention are still within the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A robotic autonomous charging mechanism, comprising: Including charging telescopic end (1), base (3), electric control cabinet (4) and robot body end (5), the charging telescopic end (1) and electric control cabinet (4) are both fixedly installed on the base (3);The charging telescopic end (1) includes a charging end bottom plate (102), a charging end box cover (101) fixed on the charging end bottom plate (102) and a charging head arranged in the box body composed of the charging end box cover (101) and the charging end bottom plate (102), so that the charging head is completely wrapped in the box body in the unused condition; The charging head is composed of a charging end copper pole (103), a charging end copper pole fixed seat (104), a charging end extension block (105), a charging end support (106) and a plurality of first springs (122);The charging end copper pole (103) is installed on the charging end copper pole fixed seat (104) through the first spring (122), so that the charging end copper pole (103) can float up and down;The charging end copper pole fixed seat (104) is fixedly connected with the charging end support (106) through the charging end extension block (105); The charging head further includes a charging end support (106) and a guide rail assembly (114), the guide rail assembly (114) is installed on the charging end bottom plate (102), and the charging end support (106) is installed on the guide rail assembly (114) through a sliding block fixed seat (107);A lead screw motor (112) is fixedly installed on the charging end bottom plate (102) through a lead screw motor fixed seat (113);The charging end copper pole (103) is driven to reciprocate by the lead screw motor (112), so that the charging head can be telescoped forward and backward; The charging head further includes a sliding contact head movable copper pole (116), the sliding contact head movable copper pole (116) is fixed on a sliding contact head movable copper pole fixed seat (117), and a second spring (123) is installed therebetween, so that the sliding contact head movable copper pole (116) has the function of floating up and down;The sliding contact head movable copper pole fixed seat (117) is installed on the guide rail assembly (114) through the sliding block fixed seat (107), and is driven to move forward and backward by the lead screw motor (112); The charging head further includes a sliding contact head copper pole (118), the sliding contact head copper pole (118) is installed on the charging end bottom plate (102) through a sliding contact head copper pole fixed seat (120);The sliding contact head copper pole (118) is connected with the positive and negative poles of an external power supply, and a sliding contact head copper pole protective cover (119) is installed outside, so as to prevent electric leakage; A lead screw motor nut fixed block (108) is installed on the sliding block fixed seat (107), and the lead screw motor nut (109) is driven to reciprocate by the lead screw motor (112), so that the charging head can be telescoped forward and backward.

2. The robotic self-charging mechanism of claim 1, wherein, A first limit switch (115) and a second limit switch (121) are installed on the charging end bottom plate (102);When the sliding block fixed seat (107) is telescoped forward and backward with the lead screw motor (112), the first limit switch (115) and the second limit switch (121) are used to detect the moving position of the sliding block fixed seat (107), so as to improve the charging reliability.

3. The robotic autonomous charging mechanism of claim 1, wherein, The robot body end (5) includes a robot body charging unit, a robot body (501) and a second sensor (508); the robot body charging unit is composed of a guide column (502), a plurality of third springs (503), a robot end copper pole protection block (504), a robot end copper pole fixing seat (505), a robot end copper pole (506) and a guide column fixing seat (507); the robot end copper pole (506) is fixed on the robot end copper pole fixing seat (505), and the robot end copper pole fixing seat (505) is installed on the robot body (501); the guide column (502) is fixed on the guide column fixing seat (507), and the third spring (503) is sleeved on the guide column (502) and penetrates into the hole of the robot end copper pole protection block (504); the robot end copper pole protection block (504) is embedded in the groove of the robot end copper pole fixing seat (505), and the relative positions of the guide column fixing seat (507) and the robot end copper pole fixing seat (505) are ensured, so that the robot end copper pole protection block (504) covers the robot end copper pole (506) without being exposed in the uncharged state, and the safety hidden danger is reduced.

4. The robotic self-charging mechanism of claim 3, wherein, The electric control cabinet (4) includes an electric control cabinet box (401) and a first sensor (402) arranged on the electric control cabinet box (401), and the robot body (501) is provided with a second sensor (508); during the autonomous charging operation, the fixed positions of the first sensor (402) and the second sensor (508) are aligned with each other, so as to trigger the charging instruction.

5. The mechanism of any one of claims 1-4, wherein, The height adjusting seat (2) is composed of a charging seat heightening block (201), a first lifting adjusting block (202), an adjusting screw (203) and a second lifting adjusting block (204); the charging seat heightening block (201) is fixedly connected with the first lifting adjusting block (202) as a height adjusting base; the adjusting screw (203) is screwed in the threaded hole of the first lifting adjusting block (202) and can be stretched up and down by rotating; the second lifting adjusting block (204) is arranged on the adjusting screw (203), and after the adjusting screw (203) is adjusted to a suitable height, the second lifting adjusting block (204) is fixedly connected with the first lifting adjusting block (202); at the same time, the charging end bottom plate (102) is fixed on the second lifting adjusting block (204), so as to realize the overall height adjusting function of the charging telescopic end (1).

6. The robotic self-charging mechanism of claim 5, wherein, The charging seat heightening block (201) and the electric control cabinet box (401) are fixed on the base (3), and a foundation bolt hole is formed in the base (3) for use during on-site installation.

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