Device control method, sweeping robot and base station

Abstract

The application discloses a device control method, a sweeping robot and a base station, and relates to the technical field of smart homes. The device control method comprises the following steps: in the process of cleaning by the sweeping robot, according to the ground dirt degree of a to-be-cleaned area and the area information of the to-be-cleaned area, determining a cleaning time required for completing cleaning of the to-be-cleaned area; in the case that the cleaning time meets a preset condition, sending a target control instruction to the base station, so that the base station moves to a parking position specified by the target control instruction; and in the case that the sweeping robot needs to return to the base station, controlling the sweeping robot to move to the parking position. The device control method, the sweeping robot and the base station provided by the application can make the sweeping robot not need to consider the number of times of returning to the base station, can reduce the capacity of a water tank, can improve the endurance time of the sweeping robot, and can improve the sweeping and mopping efficiency of the sweeping robot.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the field of smart home technology, and in particular to a device control method, a robotic vacuum cleaner, and a base station. Background Technology

[0002] With the development of modern technology, although the widespread use of household floor cleaning tools such as vacuum cleaners and robot vacuums has greatly reduced people's hygiene and cleaning burden, tedious manual operation is still required. Therefore, automated household robot vacuums are gradually entering thousands of households.

[0003] In related technologies, robotic vacuum cleaners are usually used in conjunction with base stations, which can not only charge the robotic vacuum cleaner, but also provide functions such as dust removal, water replenishment, mop washing and mop drying, which largely avoids tedious manual operations.

[0004] However, increasing the water tank capacity to reduce the number of times the robot vacuum cleaner travels to and from the base station will shorten its battery life; conversely, decreasing the water tank capacity to increase battery life will increase the number of trips to and from the base station. It is difficult to achieve a balance between battery life and the number of trips in existing robot vacuum cleaner systems. Summary of the Invention

[0005] The purpose of this application is to provide a device control method, a sweeping robot, and a base station. By adding a mobility function to the base station, the sweeping robot does not need to consider the number of times it travels back and forth to the base station, and the water tank capacity can be reduced. This not only improves the battery life of the sweeping robot, but also improves the sweeping and mopping efficiency of the sweeping robot.

[0006] In a first aspect, this application provides a device control method for a robotic vacuum cleaner, comprising:

[0007] During the cleaning process of the robotic vacuum cleaner, the cleaning time required to complete the cleaning of the area to be cleaned is determined based on the degree of dirt on the ground and the area of ​​the area to be cleaned. If the cleaning time meets a preset condition, a target control command is sent to the base station to move the base station to the docking position specified by the target control command. If the robotic vacuum cleaner needs to return to the base station, it is controlled to move to the docking position to return to the base station and complete the self-cleaning work of the robotic vacuum cleaner. The preset condition includes that the cleaning time is greater than a preset multiple of the maximum battery life of the robotic vacuum cleaner.

[0008] Optionally, before sending the target control command to the base station when the cleaning time meets the preset conditions, the method further includes: testing the first communication connection established between the sweeping robot and the base station through a first communication method; if the sweeping robot cannot communicate with the base station through the first communication connection, sending a communication connection request to the base station through a second communication method, and establishing a second communication connection with the base station based on the communication connection response fed back by the base station; wherein, the first communication method is a communication method for direct communication between the sweeping robot and the base station; and the second communication method is a communication method for indirect communication between the sweeping robot and the base station.

[0009] Optionally, before sending a target control command to the base station when the cleaning time meets a preset condition, the method further includes: sending indoor map information to the base station through a target communication connection established between the sweeping robot and the base station; wherein the target communication connection is either the first communication connection or the second communication connection; and the indoor map information is generated by the sweeping robot based on its cleaning trajectory during the indoor cleaning process.

[0010] Optionally, before sending a target control command to the base station when the cleaning time meets a preset condition, the method further includes: determining the location information of the target position of the sweeping robot at the end of the remaining cleaning time based on the planned cleaning path for the area to be cleaned and the remaining cleaning time; determining the target docking position of the base station based on the location information of the target position; wherein, the remaining cleaning time is the time until the sweeping robot returns to its next location; the target docking position is any position within a preset range of the target position, and the target docking position is located in an area of ​​the area to be cleaned that has already been cleaned.

[0011] Optionally, the target control command includes: target location information; sending the target control command to the base station when the cleaning time meets the preset conditions includes: sending the target control command to the base station when the cleaning time meets the preset conditions, so that the base station can move to the docking position indicated by the target location information based on the indoor map information; wherein, the target location information includes any one of the following: first location information, second location information; the first location information is the location information of the location of the sweeping robot; the second location information is the location information corresponding to the target docking position.

[0012] Secondly, this application provides a device control method applied to a base station, comprising:

[0013] The system receives a target control command from the robot vacuum cleaner when the cleaning time meets a preset condition; according to the target control command, the system controls the base station to move to the docking position specified by the target control command; wherein, the cleaning time is determined by the robot vacuum cleaner based on the degree of dirt on the ground in the area to be cleaned and the area information of the area to be cleaned; the preset condition includes: the cleaning time is greater than a preset multiple of the maximum battery life of the robot vacuum cleaner.

[0014] Optionally, before receiving the target control command sent by the robotic vacuum cleaner, the method further includes: receiving a communication connection request sent by the robotic vacuum cleaner when it is unable to communicate with the base station through the first communication connection; in response to the communication connection request, sending a communication connection response to the robotic vacuum cleaner, so that the robotic vacuum cleaner establishes a second communication connection with the base station based on the communication connection response; wherein, the first communication connection is established based on a first communication method; the second communication connection is established based on a second communication method; the first communication method is a communication method for direct communication between the robotic vacuum cleaner and the base station; the second communication method is a communication method for indirect communication between the robotic vacuum cleaner and the base station.

[0015] Optionally, controlling the base station to move to the docking position specified by the target control command according to the target control command includes: moving to the docking position indicated by the target location information included in the target control command based on indoor map information; wherein, the indoor map information is generated by the robot vacuum cleaner based on the cleaning trajectory of the robot vacuum cleaner during the cleaning process of the room; the target location information includes any one of the following: first location information, second location information; the first location information is the location information of the robot vacuum cleaner's current location; the second location information is the location information corresponding to the target docking position; the target docking position is determined by the robot vacuum cleaner based on the cleaning path planned for the area to be cleaned and the remaining cleaning time; the remaining cleaning time is the time until the robot vacuum cleaner returns to its next location.

[0016] Thirdly, this application also provides a robotic vacuum cleaner, including a memory and a processor, wherein the memory stores a computer program, and the processor is configured to execute, through the computer program, steps of implementing the device control method as described in any of the first aspects above.

[0017] Fourthly, this application also provides a base station, including a memory and a processor, wherein the memory stores a computer program, and the processor is configured to execute, through the computer program, steps of implementing the device control method as described in any of the second aspects above.

[0018] This application also provides a computer-readable storage medium comprising a stored program, wherein the program, when executed, implements the steps of any of the device control methods described above.

[0019] This application also provides a computer program product, including a computer program that, when executed by a processor, implements the steps of any of the device control methods described above.

[0020] The device control method, robotic vacuum cleaner, and base station provided in this application determine the cleaning time required to complete the cleaning of the area to be cleaned based on the degree of dirt on the ground and the area of ​​the area to be cleaned during the cleaning process. Then, if the cleaning time meets preset conditions, a target control command is sent to the base station to move the base station to the docking position specified by the target control command. This allows the robotic vacuum cleaner to return to the base station and complete its self-cleaning work when needed. By adding a mobility function to the base station, the robotic vacuum cleaner no longer needs to consider the number of times it travels back and forth to the base station, and the water tank capacity can be reduced, thus improving both the robot's battery life and its sweeping and mopping efficiency. Attached Figure Description

[0021] The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and form part of this specification, illustrate embodiments consistent with this application and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of this application.

[0022] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in this application or the prior art, the drawings used in the description of the embodiments or the prior art will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are some embodiments of this application. For those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative effort.

[0023] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the hardware environment for an interaction method of a smart device according to an embodiment of this application;

[0024] Figure 2 This is a flowchart illustrating the device control method for a sweeping robot provided in this application;

[0025] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram illustrating an application scenario of the device control method provided in this application;

[0026] Figure 4 This is a flowchart illustrating the device control method for base stations provided in this application;

[0027] Figure 5This is a schematic diagram of the electronic device provided in this application. Detailed Implementation

[0028] To enable those skilled in the art to better understand the present application, the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of the present application, and not all embodiments. Based on the embodiments in the present application, all other embodiments obtained by those of ordinary skill in the art without creative effort should fall within the scope of protection of the present application.

[0029] It should be noted that the terms "first," "second," etc., in the specification, claims, and accompanying drawings of this application are used to distinguish similar objects and are not necessarily used to describe a specific order or sequence. It should be understood that such data can be interchanged where appropriate so that the embodiments of this application described herein can be implemented in orders other than those illustrated or described herein. Furthermore, the terms "comprising" and "having," and any variations thereof, are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion; for example, a process, method, system, product, or apparatus that comprises a series of steps or units is not necessarily limited to those steps or units explicitly listed, but may include other steps or units not explicitly listed or inherent to such processes, methods, products, or apparatus.

[0030] According to one aspect of the embodiments of this application, a device control method is provided. This device control method is widely applicable to whole-house intelligent digital control application scenarios such as smart homes, smart home ecosystems, and intelligencehouse ecosystems. Optionally, in this embodiment, the above-mentioned device control method can be applied to, for example... Figure 1 The hardware environment shown consists of terminal device 102 and server 104. For example... Figure 1 As shown, server 104 is connected to terminal device 102 via a network and can be used to provide services (such as application services) to the terminal or clients installed on the terminal. A database can be set up on the server or independently of the server to provide data storage services for server 104. Cloud computing and / or edge computing services can be configured on the server or independently of the server to provide data processing services for server 104.

[0031] The aforementioned network may include, but is not limited to, at least one of the following: wired network, wireless network. The aforementioned wired network may include, but is not limited to, at least one of the following: wide area network, metropolitan area network, local area network. The aforementioned wireless network may include, but is not limited to, at least one of the following: Wi-Fi (Wireless Fidelity), Bluetooth. The terminal device 102 may not be limited to PC, mobile phone, tablet computer, smart air conditioner, smart range hood, smart refrigerator, smart oven, smart stove, smart washing machine, smart water heater, smart washing equipment, smart dishwasher, smart projector, smart TV, smart clothes rack, smart curtains, smart audio-visual equipment, smart socket, smart speaker, smart speaker box, smart fresh air equipment, smart kitchen and bathroom equipment, smart bathroom equipment, smart robot vacuum cleaner, smart window cleaning robot, smart mopping robot, smart air purifier, smart steam oven, smart microwave oven, smart water heater, smart air purifier, smart water dispenser, smart door lock, etc.

[0032] In related technologies, the water tank of a robotic vacuum cleaner cannot be too large, otherwise the weight will reduce the battery life. Frequent back-and-forth movements will not only reduce the battery life, but also greatly affect the sweeping and mopping efficiency of the robotic vacuum cleaner.

[0033] To address the technical problems existing in related technologies, this application provides a device control method for a robotic vacuum cleaner and a base station. Based on a mobile base station and the device control method provided in this application, the robotic vacuum cleaner no longer needs to consider the number of trips to and from the base station, and the water tank capacity can also be reduced. This not only improves the robot vacuum cleaner's battery life but also significantly enhances its sweeping and mopping efficiency.

[0034] The device control method provided in this application will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings, through specific embodiments and application scenarios.

[0035] like Figure 2 The image shows a device control method for a sweeping robot provided in an embodiment of this application. The method may include the following steps 201 to 203:

[0036] Step 201: During the cleaning process of the sweeping robot, the cleaning time required to complete the cleaning of the area to be cleaned is determined based on the degree of dirt on the ground and the area of ​​the area to be cleaned.

[0037] For example, during the cleaning process of a robotic vacuum cleaner, sensors installed on the robot can detect the degree of dirt on the floor in the area to be cleaned in real time. Specifically, the degree of dirt can be detected by images captured by a camera installed on the robot, or by a laser generator installed on the robot that emits a laser beam towards the area to be cleaned, and the degree of dirt is determined by the stark contrast between the shadows cast by the dust and the floor.

[0038] For example, the area of ​​the floor to be cleaned can be determined based on the historical cleaning trajectories of the robot vacuum cleaner.

[0039] For example, based on the degree of dirt on the floor in the cleaning area and the area of ​​the floor to be cleaned, the cleaning time required for the robot vacuum to complete the cleaning of the area to be cleaned can be determined.

[0040] Specifically, the cleaning time can be calculated based on the cleaning time for the corresponding area and degree of dirt on the ground in the historical cleaning records, or it can be determined by combining the cleaning ability of the robot vacuum cleaner.

[0041] It should be noted that the cleaning ability of a robot vacuum cleaner can be expressed by the time required to clean a unit area of ​​floor with different levels of dirt. For example, the cleaning ability of a robot vacuum cleaner can be expressed as follows: it takes 1 minute to clean 1 square meter of lightly dirty floor; 1.5 minutes to clean 1 square meter of moderately dirty floor; and 2 minutes to clean 1 square meter of heavily dirty floor.

[0042] Step 202: If the cleaning time meets the preset conditions, send a target control command to the base station so that the base station moves to the docking position specified by the target control command.

[0043] The preset conditions include: the cleaning time is greater than a preset multiple of the maximum battery life of the robot vacuum cleaner.

[0044] For example, the maximum battery life mentioned above can be understood as the time required for a robotic vacuum cleaner to complete its self-cleaning task from the start of the floor cleaning process to its return to the base station for further self-cleaning due to meeting the return-to-base conditions. The maximum battery life is related to the degree of dirt on the floor; the dirtier the floor, the shorter the maximum battery life of the robotic vacuum cleaner.

[0045] It is understandable that meeting the above-mentioned return-to-base conditions means that the robot vacuum cleaner cannot continue to perform sweeping and mopping tasks. For example, when the robot vacuum cleaner's remaining battery is low, it needs to return to the base station to recharge; when the robot vacuum cleaner's water tank is low, it needs to return to the base station to refill; when the robot vacuum cleaner's mop is dirty, it needs to return to the base station to clean; when the robot vacuum cleaner's dustbin is full, it needs to return to the base station to empty the dust.

[0046] For example, the preset multiplier can be set according to the actual situation. For example, the preset multiplier can be 3, which means that the robot vacuum cleaner needs to travel to and from the base station at least twice to complete the cleaning of the area to be cleaned.

[0047] For example, when the cleaning time is greater than a preset multiple of the maximum battery life of the robot vacuum cleaner, in order to reduce the number of times the robot vacuum cleaner travels back and forth to the base station and improve the sweeping and mopping efficiency of the robot vacuum cleaner, a target control command can be sent to the base station so that the base station can move to an area closer to the robot vacuum cleaner.

[0048] Step 203: If the sweeping robot needs to return to the base station, control the sweeping robot to move to the docking position so as to return to the base station and complete the self-cleaning work of the sweeping robot.

[0049] For example, when the base station moves to an area close to the robot vacuum cleaner according to the target control command, if the robot vacuum cleaner needs to return to its starting point because it meets the return-to-home conditions, it can achieve self-cleaning with a shorter travel distance. After the robot vacuum cleaner completes self-cleaning, it can continue to clean the uncleaned areas in the aforementioned area to be cleaned.

[0050] It should be noted that if the robot vacuum needs to return multiple times to complete cleaning of the area, the base station can be moved to an area closer to the robot vacuum to reduce the time the robot vacuum spends traveling back and forth to the base station. This not only increases the battery life to some extent, but also effectively improves the sweeping and mopping efficiency of the robot vacuum.

[0051] like Figure 3 As shown, this is a device control method for a base station provided in an embodiment of this application. The method may include the following steps 301 and 302:

[0052] Step 301: Receive the target control command sent by the robot vacuum cleaner when the cleaning time meets the preset conditions.

[0053] For example, a communication connection can be established between the base station and the robot vacuum cleaner. The communication method can include direct communication, such as Bluetooth or infrared; or indirect communication, such as Wi-Fi or mobile network.

[0054] For example, communication between the base station and the robot vacuum cleaner can be achieved based on the communication connection established between the base station and the robot vacuum cleaner.

[0055] Step 302: According to the target control command, control the base station to move to the docking position specified by the target control command.

[0056] The cleaning time is determined by the robot vacuum cleaner based on the degree of dirt on the floor and the area of ​​the area to be cleaned; the preset conditions include: the cleaning time is greater than a preset multiple of the maximum battery life of the robot vacuum cleaner.

[0057] For example, after receiving the target control command sent by the robot vacuum cleaner, the base station can move the base station to an area closer to the robot vacuum cleaner by means of the drive device installed on the base station, in accordance with the instructions of the target control command.

[0058] For example, such as Figure 4 The diagram shows an application scenario of the device control method provided in this application. When the robot vacuum cleaner in bedroom 2 detects that the floor of bedroom 2 is seriously dirty and requires multiple trips to the base station to complete the cleaning work, the robot vacuum cleaner can send a control command to the base station in the living room, so that the base station can move to the doorway of bedroom 2, so that the robot vacuum cleaner can easily complete the self-cleaning work and improve the cleaning efficiency.

[0059] For example, since the base station needs to provide services such as charging and cleaning for the robot vacuum cleaner, it still needs a power source to supply power after it is moved.

[0060] In one possible implementation, the mobile base station provided in this application can be powered by a battery installed inside the base station, enabling the base station to move. Moreover, after moving to a designated area, it still has enough power to provide charging and cleaning services for the robot vacuum cleaner.

[0061] In another possible implementation, the mobile base station provided in this application can also be powered by a power extension line. When the base station moves, the power extension line can be released by a winch on the base station; when the base station returns, the power extension line can be retrieved by the winch.

[0062] Optionally, in this embodiment of the application, in order to ensure that the sweeping robot can send the target control command to the base station, a communication connection between the base station and the sweeping robot can be established through either of the two communication methods described above.

[0063] For example, prior to step 202 above, the device control method provided in this application embodiment may further include steps 204 and 205:

[0064] Step 204: Test the first communication connection established between the sweeping robot and the base station through the first communication method.

[0065] For example, before sending the target control command to the base station, the robot vacuum cleaner needs to test the first communication connection established based on the default communication method between the robot vacuum cleaner and the base station (i.e., the first communication method mentioned above). If the test is successful, the target control command is sent directly to the base station through the first communication connection; otherwise, a second communication connection with the base station needs to be established through the second communication method.

[0066] Step 205: If the robot vacuum cleaner cannot communicate with the base station through the first communication connection, it sends a communication connection request to the base station through the second communication method, and establishes a second communication connection with the base station based on the communication connection response fed back by the base station.

[0067] The first communication method is a direct communication method between the sweeping robot and the base station; the second communication method is an indirect communication method between the sweeping robot and the base station.

[0068] For example, for a base station, prior to step 301 above, the device control method provided in this application embodiment may further include steps 303 and 304:

[0069] Step 303: Receive the communication connection request sent by the sweeping robot when it is unable to communicate with the base station through the first communication connection.

[0070] Step 304: In response to the communication connection request, send a communication connection response to the robot vacuum cleaner so that the robot vacuum cleaner establishes a second communication connection with the base station based on the communication connection response.

[0071] Wherein, the first communication connection is established based on a first communication method; the second communication connection is established based on a second communication method; the first communication method is a direct communication method between the sweeping robot and the base station; the second communication method is an indirect communication method between the sweeping robot and the base station.

[0072] For example, if the first communication connection is unavailable, the robot vacuum cleaner can establish a second communication connection with the base station through a second communication method and send target control commands to the base station through the second communication connection.

[0073] Optionally, in this embodiment of the application, in order to enable the base station to move to the area indicated by the target control command, an indoor map is also required for the base station.

[0074] For example, prior to step 202 above, the device control method provided in this application embodiment may further include the following step 206:

[0075] Step 206: Send indoor map information to the base station through the target communication connection established between the sweeping robot and the base station.

[0076] The target communication connection is either the first communication connection or the second communication connection; the indoor map information is generated by the sweeping robot based on its cleaning trajectory during the indoor cleaning process.

[0077] For example, the aforementioned indoor map information can be generated based on the cleaning trajectory of the robot vacuum cleaner during the indoor cleaning process; or it can be generated based on the wall position determined by the information collected by the robot vacuum cleaner through sensors during daily cleaning.

[0078] For example, the location of the base station needs to be determined before sending the target control command to the base station.

[0079] For example, based on step 206 above, prior to step 203 above, the device control method provided in this application embodiment may further include the following steps 207 and 208:

[0080] Step 207: Based on the cleaning path planned for the area to be cleaned and the remaining cleaning time, determine the location information of the target position of the sweeping robot at the end of the remaining cleaning time.

[0081] Step 207: Determine the target docking location of the base station based on the location information of the target location.

[0082] Wherein, the remaining cleaning time is the time until the robot vacuum returns to its next destination; the target docking position is any position within a preset range of the target location, and the target docking position is located in an area of ​​the area to be cleaned that has already been cleaned.

[0083] For example, in order to minimize the distance between the base station and the robot vacuum cleaner and reduce the robot vacuum cleaner's return path, the base station can dock at an area that has already been cleaned in the area to be cleaned, and the base station's docking position is also affected by the target docking position predicted by the robot vacuum cleaner.

[0084] For example, as the robot vacuum cleaner progresses, the remaining cleaning time decreases, and its judgment of the target docking location becomes more accurate. When the target docking location changes, the robot vacuum cleaner can send a second control command to the base station, causing the base station to move to the updated target docking location.

[0085] For example, the target control command includes: target location information; based on the above steps of determining the target docking location, step 202 may include the following step 202a:

[0086] Step 202a: If the cleaning time meets the preset conditions, send a target control command to the base station so that the base station can move to the docking position indicated by the target location information based on the indoor map information.

[0087] The target location information includes any one of the following: first location information, second location information; the first location information is the location information of the location where the sweeping robot is located; the second location information is the location information corresponding to the target docking location.

[0088] For example, the docking location of the base station can be the aforementioned target docking location, or it can be the current location of the robotic vacuum cleaner. Furthermore, the base station can always maintain a certain distance from the robotic vacuum cleaner, that is, the base station moves as the robotic vacuum cleaner moves.

[0089] For example, for the aforementioned base station, step 302 may include the following step 302a:

[0090] Step 302a: Move to the parking position indicated by the target location information contained in the target control command based on the indoor map information.

[0091] Wherein, the indoor map information is generated by the robot vacuum cleaner based on its cleaning trajectory during the cleaning process; the target location information includes any one of the following: first location information, second location information; the first location information is the location information of the robot vacuum cleaner's current location; the second location information is the location information corresponding to the target docking location; the target docking location is determined by the robot vacuum cleaner based on the cleaning path planned for the area to be cleaned and the remaining cleaning time; the remaining cleaning time is the time until the robot vacuum cleaner returns to its next destination.

[0092] For example, after receiving the target control command, the base station plans the movement path based on the indoor map information and moves to the docking position indicated by the target location information according to the planned movement path.

[0093] It should be noted that the specific steps for planning a movement path based on indoor map information can be referred to the path planning scheme in related technologies, and will not be repeated in the embodiments of this application.

[0094] The device control method provided in this application determines the cleaning time required to complete the cleaning of the area to be cleaned based on the degree of dirt on the ground and the area of ​​the area to be cleaned during the cleaning process of the robotic vacuum cleaner. Then, if the cleaning time meets preset conditions, a target control command is sent to the base station to move the base station to the docking position specified by the target control command. This allows the robotic vacuum cleaner to return to the base station and complete its self-cleaning work when needed. By adding a mobility function to the base station, the robotic vacuum cleaner does not need to consider the number of times it needs to travel back and forth to the base station, and the water tank capacity can be reduced, thus improving both the robot's battery life and its sweeping and mopping efficiency.

[0095] This application also provides a robotic vacuum cleaner, including a memory and a processor, wherein the memory stores a computer program, and the processor is configured to execute, through the computer program, steps to implement any of the device control methods described above for the robotic vacuum cleaner.

[0096] This application also provides a base station, including a memory and a processor, wherein the memory stores a computer program, and the processor is configured to execute, through the computer program, steps of any of the device control methods described above for application to a base station.

[0097] Figure 5 An example is a schematic diagram of the physical structure of an electronic device, such as... Figure 5As shown, the electronic device may include a processor 510, a communications interface 520, a memory 530, and a communication bus 540, wherein the processor 510, communications interface 520, and memory 530 communicate with each other via the communication bus 540. The processor 510 can call logical instructions in the memory 530 to execute a device control method, which includes: during the cleaning process of the sweeping robot, determining the cleaning time required to complete the cleaning of the area to be cleaned based on the degree of dirt on the ground and the area of ​​the area to be cleaned; if the cleaning time meets a preset condition, sending a target control command to a base station to move the base station to a docking position specified by the target control command; and if the sweeping robot needs to return to the base station, controlling the sweeping robot to move to the docking position to return to the base station and complete the self-cleaning work of the sweeping robot; wherein the preset condition includes: the cleaning time being greater than a preset multiple of the maximum runtime of the sweeping robot. Alternatively, the method may include: receiving a target control command sent by the robot vacuum cleaner when the cleaning time meets a preset condition; controlling the base station to move to the docking position specified by the target control command according to the target control command; wherein the cleaning time is determined by the robot vacuum cleaner based on the degree of dirt on the ground of the area to be cleaned and the area information of the area to be cleaned; the preset condition includes: the cleaning time is greater than a preset multiple of the maximum battery life of the robot vacuum cleaner.

[0098] Furthermore, the logical instructions in the aforementioned memory 530 can be implemented as software functional units and, when sold or used as independent products, can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium. Based on this understanding, the technical solution of this application, in essence, or the part that contributes to the prior art, or a part of the technical solution, can be embodied in the form of a software product. This computer software product is stored in a storage medium and includes several instructions to cause a computer device (which may be a personal computer, server, or network device, etc.) to execute all or part of the steps of the methods described in the various embodiments of this application. The aforementioned storage medium includes various media capable of storing program code, such as USB flash drives, portable hard drives, read-only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), magnetic disks, or optical disks.

[0099] On the other hand, this application also provides a computer program product, which includes a computer program stored on a computer-readable storage medium. The computer program includes program instructions, and when the program instructions are executed by a computer, the computer can execute the device control method provided by the above methods. The method includes: during the cleaning process of the sweeping robot, determining the cleaning time required to complete the cleaning of the area to be cleaned based on the degree of dirt on the ground and the area information of the area to be cleaned; when the cleaning time meets a preset condition, sending a target control command to a base station to move the base station to a docking position specified by the target control command; when the sweeping robot needs to return to the base station, controlling the sweeping robot to move to the docking position to return to the base station and complete the self-cleaning work of the sweeping robot; wherein, the preset condition includes: the cleaning time is greater than a preset multiple of the maximum battery life of the sweeping robot. Alternatively, the method may include: receiving a target control command sent by the robot vacuum cleaner when the cleaning time meets a preset condition; controlling the base station to move to the docking position specified by the target control command according to the target control command; wherein the cleaning time is determined by the robot vacuum cleaner based on the degree of dirt on the ground of the area to be cleaned and the area information of the area to be cleaned; the preset condition includes: the cleaning time is greater than a preset multiple of the maximum battery life of the robot vacuum cleaner.

[0100] In another aspect, this application also provides a computer-readable storage medium, the computer-readable storage medium including a stored program, wherein the program, when running, executes the device control method provided by the above methods, the method comprising: during the cleaning process of the sweeping robot, determining the cleaning time required to complete the cleaning of the area to be cleaned based on the degree of dirt on the ground of the area to be cleaned and the area information of the area to be cleaned; when the cleaning time meets a preset condition, sending a target control command to a base station to cause the base station to move to a docking position specified by the target control command; when the sweeping robot needs to return to the base station, controlling the sweeping robot to move to the docking position to return to the base station and complete the self-cleaning work of the sweeping robot; wherein the preset condition includes: the cleaning time is greater than a preset multiple of the maximum battery life of the sweeping robot. Alternatively, the method may include: receiving a target control command sent by the robot vacuum cleaner when the cleaning time meets a preset condition; controlling the base station to move to the docking position specified by the target control command according to the target control command; wherein the cleaning time is determined by the robot vacuum cleaner based on the degree of dirt on the ground of the area to be cleaned and the area information of the area to be cleaned; the preset condition includes: the cleaning time is greater than a preset multiple of the maximum battery life of the robot vacuum cleaner.

[0101] The device embodiments described above are merely illustrative. The units described as separate components may or may not be physically separate. The components shown as units may or may not be physical units; that is, they may be located in one place or distributed across multiple network units. Some or all of the modules can be selected to achieve the purpose of this embodiment according to actual needs. Those skilled in the art can understand and implement this without any creative effort.

[0102] Through the above description of the embodiments, those skilled in the art can clearly understand that each embodiment can be implemented by means of software plus necessary general-purpose hardware platforms, and of course, it can also be implemented by hardware. Based on this understanding, the above technical solutions, in essence or the part that contributes to the prior art, can be embodied in the form of a software product. This computer software product can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium, such as ROM / RAM, magnetic disk, optical disk, etc., and includes several instructions to cause a computer device (which may be a personal computer, server, or network device, etc.) to execute the methods described in the various embodiments or some parts of the embodiments.

[0103] Finally, it should be noted that the above embodiments are only used to illustrate the technical solutions of this application, and are not intended to limit them. Although this application has been described in detail with reference to the foregoing embodiments, those skilled in the art should understand that modifications can still be made to the technical solutions described in the foregoing embodiments, or equivalent substitutions can be made to some of the technical features. Such modifications or substitutions do not cause the essence of the corresponding technical solutions to deviate from the spirit and scope of the technical solutions of the embodiments of this application.

Claims

1. A device control method, characterized in that, Applied to robotic vacuum cleaners, the method includes: During the cleaning process of the sweeping robot, the cleaning time required to complete the cleaning of the area to be cleaned is determined based on the degree of dirt on the ground and the area of ​​the area to be cleaned. If the cleaning time meets the preset conditions, a target control command is sent to the base station to make the base station move to the docking position specified by the target control command; When the robot vacuum needs to return to the base station, control the robot vacuum to move to the docking position to return to the base station and complete the self-cleaning work of the robot vacuum. The preset conditions include: the cleaning time is greater than a preset multiple of the maximum battery life of the robot vacuum cleaner.

2. The equipment control method according to claim 1, characterized in that, Before sending a target control command to the base station when the cleaning time meets a preset condition, the method further includes: Test the first communication connection established between the sweeping robot and the base station via a first communication method; If the robot vacuum cleaner is unable to communicate with the base station through the first communication connection, it sends a communication connection request to the base station through the second communication method, and establishes a second communication connection with the base station based on the communication connection response fed back by the base station. The first communication method is a direct communication method between the sweeping robot and the base station; the second communication method is an indirect communication method between the sweeping robot and the base station.

3. The equipment control method according to claim 2, characterized in that, Before sending a target control command to the base station when the cleaning time meets a preset condition, the method further includes: Indoor map information is sent to the base station through the target communication connection established between the sweeping robot and the base station; The target communication connection is either the first communication connection or the second communication connection; the indoor map information is generated by the sweeping robot based on its cleaning trajectory during the indoor cleaning process.

4. The equipment control method according to claim 3, characterized in that, Before sending a target control command to the base station when the cleaning time meets a preset condition, the method further includes: Based on the cleaning path planned for the area to be cleaned and the remaining cleaning time, the location information of the target position of the sweeping robot at the end of the remaining cleaning time is determined. The target docking location of the base station is determined based on the location information of the target location. Wherein, the remaining cleaning time is the time until the robot vacuum returns to its next destination; the target docking position is any position within a preset range of the target location, and the target docking position is located in an area of ​​the area to be cleaned that has already been cleaned.

5. The equipment control method according to claim 4, characterized in that, The target control command includes: target location information; When the cleaning time meets a preset condition, sending a target control command to the base station includes: If the cleaning time meets the preset conditions, a target control command is sent to the base station so that the base station can move to the docking position indicated by the target location information based on the indoor map information. The target location information includes any one of the following: first location information, second location information; the first location information is the location information of the location where the sweeping robot is located; the second location information is the location information corresponding to the target docking location.

6. A device control method, characterized in that, Applied to a base station, the method includes: Receive target control commands sent by the robot vacuum cleaner when the cleaning time meets preset conditions; According to the target control command, control the base station to move to the docking position specified by the target control command; The cleaning time is determined by the robot vacuum cleaner based on the degree of dirt on the floor and the area of ​​the area to be cleaned; the preset conditions include: the cleaning time is greater than a preset multiple of the maximum battery life of the robot vacuum cleaner.

7. The equipment control method according to claim 6, characterized in that, Before receiving the target control command sent by the robotic vacuum cleaner, the method further includes: Receive a communication connection request sent by the sweeping robot when it is unable to communicate with the base station through the first communication connection; In response to the communication connection request, a communication connection response is sent to the robot vacuum cleaner, so that the robot vacuum cleaner establishes a second communication connection with the base station based on the communication connection response; Wherein, the first communication connection is established based on a first communication method; the second communication connection is established based on a second communication method; the first communication method is a direct communication method between the sweeping robot and the base station; the second communication method is an indirect communication method between the sweeping robot and the base station.

8. The equipment control method according to claim 7, characterized in that, The step of controlling the base station to move to the docking position specified by the target control command according to the target control command includes: Based on indoor map information, move to the docking position indicated by the target location information contained in the target control command; Wherein, the indoor map information is generated by the robot vacuum cleaner based on its cleaning trajectory during the cleaning process; the target location information includes any one of the following: first location information, second location information; the first location information is the location information of the robot vacuum cleaner's current location; the second location information is the location information corresponding to the target docking location; the target docking location is determined by the robot vacuum cleaner based on the cleaning path planned for the area to be cleaned and the remaining cleaning time; the remaining cleaning time is the time until the robot vacuum cleaner returns to its next destination.

9. A robotic vacuum cleaner, comprising a memory and a processor, characterized in that, The memory stores a computer program, and the processor is configured to execute the device control method of any one of claims 1 to 5 through the computer program.

10. A base station, comprising a memory and a processor, characterized in that, The memory stores a computer program, and the processor is configured to execute the device control method of any one of claims 6 to 8 through the computer program.

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