Locking and unlocking device, sweeping robot and working method thereof

Abstract

This invention discloses a locking and unlocking device, comprising a coil unit, an iron core, a frame, a permanent magnet, an armature, a housing I, and a housing II. Housing I and housing II are combined to form a cavity for accommodating other components. The frame is fitted over the iron core, and the coil unit is wound around the frame. The iron core is fixedly installed inside housing II. The two ends of the permanent magnet are fixedly connected to two armatures, which are located inside housing I. When the coil unit is energized, it pushes the armature out of housing I or attracts the armature to the iron core, thus locking or unlocking. This invention also discloses a sweeping robot incorporating the above-mentioned locking and unlocking device and its operating method. At least one locking and unlocking device is installed on each inner side of the polygonal housing. When the armature extends from the inner side, it achieves self-assembly; when the armature is attracted to the iron core, it achieves self-disassembly. This invention can support multiple sweeping robots to achieve self-assembly and self-disassembly functions, and has advantages such as simple structure, low power consumption, low magnetic leakage, and minimal interference to external systems.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention belongs to the field of cleaning robot technology, specifically relating to a locking and unlocking device for enabling multiple sweeping robots to self-assemble and self-disassemble, a sweeping robot, and its working method. Background Technology

[0002] With the continuous development of science and technology and the increasing abundance of human material life, sweeping robots have gradually appeared in human life, helping people to free their hands and improve their quality of life. However, although the sweeping robots currently being developed can help people reduce their burden, they have difficulty reaching the complex and narrow ground structures to perform cleaning operations. At the same time, for large-area cleaning operations such as venues, they can only perform multiple cleaning operations, resulting in low work efficiency. Summary of the Invention

[0003] The purpose of this invention is to overcome the above-mentioned defects and provide a locking and unlocking device, a sweeping robot and its working method, which solves the technical problem of low operating efficiency of traditional sweeping robots. The locking and unlocking device of this invention can support multiple sweeping robots to achieve self-assembly and self-decomposition functions, and has the advantages of simple structure, low power consumption, low magnetic leakage and less interference to the outside world.

[0004] To achieve the above-mentioned objectives, the present invention provides the following technical solution:

[0005] A locking and unlocking device includes a coil unit, an iron core, a frame, a permanent magnet, an armature, a housing I, and a housing II;

[0006] The outer shell I and outer shell II are combined to form a cavity for accommodating the coil unit, iron core, frame, permanent magnet and armature;

[0007] The frame is fitted over the iron core, and the coil unit is wound around the frame; the iron core is fixedly installed inside the outer shell II.

[0008] The two ends of the permanent magnet are fixedly connected to two armatures respectively, and the armatures are located inside the outer shell I; the outer shell I is provided with a first through hole;

[0009] When the coil unit is energized, it pushes the armature out of the outer shell I through the first through hole or attracts the armature to the iron core; when the armatures of the two different locking and unlocking devices extend out of the outer shell I, they are locked together; when the armatures of the two different locking and unlocking devices are attracted to the iron core, they are unlocked separately.

[0010] Furthermore, the end where the outer shell I connects to the outer shell II is designated as the second end, and the first through hole is located on the end face of the first end of the outer shell I;

[0011] The inner walls on both sides of the outer casing I are provided with arc-shaped grooves, which cooperate with the outer surface of the armature to guide the movement of the armature.

[0012] Furthermore, the two armatures are parallel to each other;

[0013] The armature and the permanent magnet are perpendicular to each other.

[0014] Furthermore, the armature has a stepped surface. When the armature extends out of the outer shell I to a predetermined position, the stepped surface cooperates with the outer shell I to achieve a limiting position.

[0015] Furthermore, the parallelism of the mating surfaces of the interlocking armatures is less than 30°, and the axial deviation of the interlocking armatures is less than the armature radius value.

[0016] The parallelism of the mating surfaces when the armature and the iron core are attracted together is less than 30°.

[0017] Furthermore, pulse voltage signals are simultaneously applied to the coil units in the two different locking and unlocking devices. When the coil unit generates an electromagnetic field with the opposite polarity to that of the permanent magnet, docking and locking are achieved. When the coil unit generates an electromagnetic field with the same polarity as the permanent magnet, separation and unlocking are achieved.

[0018] Furthermore, it also includes a magnet fixing bracket, with both ends of the magnet fixing bracket fixedly connected to two armatures, and the permanent magnet passing through the magnet fixing bracket.

[0019] Furthermore, the iron core has a square rod-shaped structure;

[0020] Permanent magnet steel has a rod-shaped structure;

[0021] The armature is a cylindrical structure.

[0022] A robotic vacuum cleaner includes a polygonal shell and the aforementioned locking and unlocking device;

[0023] The locking and unlocking device is located inside the polygonal housing, and at least one locking and unlocking device is installed on each inner side of the polygonal housing.

[0024] Each inner side of the polygonal shell is provided with a second through hole. The end connecting the outer shell I and the outer shell II is referred to as the second end. The end face of the first end of the outer shell I is in contact with the inner side of the polygonal shell. When the coil unit is energized, it pushes the armature to extend out from the inner side through the first through hole and the second through hole in sequence, or attracts the armature to the iron core. When the armatures of two different sweeping robots extend out from the inner side, the different sweeping robots can be self-assembled. When the armatures of two different sweeping robots are attracted to the iron core, the different sweeping robots can be self-disassembled.

[0025] The working method of the above-mentioned robotic vacuum cleaner includes:

[0026] A pulse voltage signal is simultaneously applied to the coil unit in the locking and unlocking device of different sweeping robots, causing the coil unit to generate an electromagnetic field with the opposite polarity to the permanent magnet. The armatures in the locking and unlocking devices of different sweeping robots continuously approach each other, and the self-assembly of the sweeping robot is completed after the two armatures dock.

[0027] A pulse voltage signal is simultaneously applied to the coil unit of the locking and unlocking device in different sweeping robots, so that the coil unit generates an electromagnetic field with the same polarity as the permanent magnet. The armatures in the locking and unlocking devices in different sweeping robots separate from each other, and the two armatures are attracted to their respective iron cores to complete the self-disassembly of the sweeping robot.

[0028] Multiple robotic vacuum cleaners can self-assemble into a linear or planar structure, or self-decompose into independent units.

[0029] Compared with the prior art, the present invention has at least one of the following advantages:

[0030] (1) This invention creatively proposes a locking and unlocking device in which the coil unit is excited by a voltage pulse signal during use, which does not require long-term power supply and has low power consumption;

[0031] (2) The locking and unlocking device designed in this invention allows the sweeping robot to form a closed magnetic circuit with its internal armature and permanent magnet after self-assembly and self-disassembly. It has low magnetic leakage and no interference to the outside world.

[0032] (3) The locking and unlocking device designed in this invention has a simple structure, small size, and is easy to implement and integrate;

[0033] (4) The robot made using the locking and unlocking device of the present invention can flexibly switch between self-assembly and self-disassembly states, which is beneficial to cleaning work in various scenarios and improves cleaning efficiency. Attached Figure Description

[0034] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the iron core structure in the locking and unlocking device of the present invention;

[0035] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the skeleton structure in the locking and unlocking device of the present invention;

[0036] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the permanent magnet steel structure in the locking and unlocking device of the present invention;

[0037] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the armature structure in the locking and unlocking device of the present invention;

[0038] Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram of the magnet fixing bracket structure in the locking and unlocking device of the present invention;

[0039] Figure 6is a schematic structural diagram of the first housing in the locking and unlocking device of the present invention;

[0040] Figure 7 is a schematic structural diagram of the second housing in the locking and unlocking device of the present invention;

[0041] Figure 8 is a schematic structural diagram of the locking and unlocking device of the present invention;

[0042] Figure 9 is a schematic outline diagram of the locking and unlocking device of the present invention;

[0043] Figure 10 is a schematic internal structural diagram of a single sweeping robot in the locking and unlocking device of the present invention;

[0044] Figure 11 is a schematic diagram of a plurality of sweeping robots of the present invention arranged in a straight line;

[0045] Figure 12 is a schematic diagram of a plurality of sweeping robots of the present invention arranged in a matrix shape.

[0046] Description of Reference Signs in the Drawings:

[0047] 1—coil unit; 2—iron core; 3—bobbin; 4—permanent magnet; 5—armature; 6—magnet fixing bracket; 7—the first housing; 8—the second housing; 9—sweeping robot. Detailed Description of the Embodiments

[0048] The features and advantages of the present invention will become clearer and more definite through the detailed description of the present invention below.

[0049] As used herein, the dedicated word "exemplary" means "serving as an example, an embodiment, or an illustration". Any embodiment described herein as "exemplary" is not necessarily to be construed as superior or better than other embodiments. Although various aspects of the embodiments are shown in the drawings, the drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale unless specifically indicated.

[0050] The present invention provides an unlocking and locking device for realizing self-assembly and self-disassembly of a plurality of sweeping robots, which can support the realization of self-assembly and self-disassembly functions of a plurality of sweeping robots, perform rapid and efficient cleaning operations in complex narrow areas and large-area areas, and solves the problem of low operation efficiency of traditional sweeping robots in narrow and large-area areas. A plurality of sweeping robots can realize self-assembly and self-separation between the sweeping robots through magnetic attraction locking and unlocking between the locking and unlocking devices, thereby realizing the multi-state cleaning operation function of the sweeping robots. The locking and unlocking device designed by the present invention realizes the mutual attraction and separation function between different locking and unlocking devices through the steady-state magnetic circuit structure formed by the interaction of electromagnetism and permanent magnet, which has low power consumption, low magnetic leakage, and also has the advantages of simple structure and easy integration.

[0051] like Figure 8 and Figure 9 As shown, the locking and unlocking device of the present invention includes a coil unit 1, an iron core 2, a frame 3, a permanent magnet 4, an armature 5, a housing I 7, and a housing II 8; in a specific embodiment, it also includes a magnet fixing bracket 6. The iron core 2 is a square rod-shaped structure; the frame 3 is fitted into the middle of the outer wall of the iron core 2; the coil unit 1 is wound around the outer wall of the frame 3; the permanent magnet 4 is a rod-shaped structure; the armature 5 is a round rod-shaped structure, connecting two armatures 5 through the permanent magnet 4; the magnet fixing bracket 6 is a hollow structure, with two armatures 5 connected to each end, and the permanent magnet 4 passes through the magnet fixing bracket 6; the two armatures 5 connected by the permanent magnet 4 and the magnet fixing bracket 6 are placed in the housing I 7, forming the upper half of the locking and unlocking device; the coil unit 1, the frame 3, and the iron core 2 are installed in the housing II 8, forming the lower half of the locking and unlocking device; the upper and lower halves of the locking and unlocking device together form the locking and unlocking device. The structural schematic diagrams of the iron core, frame, permanent magnet, armature, magnet fixing bracket, housing I, and housing II are respectively shown in the figures. Figure 1 , Figure 2 , Figure 3 , Figure 4 , Figure 5 , Figure 6 , Figure 7 As shown.

[0052] In one specific embodiment, the outer shell I7 is generally rectangular in shape with a groove in the middle for placing two fixed armatures 5, permanent magnets 4, and magnet fixing brackets 6. The end face of the outer shell I7 has two through holes for matching the reciprocating linear motion of the armatures 5. The groove of the outer shell I7 has an arc-shaped surface matching the reciprocating motion of the armatures 5 (i.e., arc-shaped grooves are provided on the inner walls on both sides) for positioning during the reciprocating motion. At the same time, the outer shell I7 has mounting holes for installation and positioning.

[0053] In one specific embodiment, the outer shell II8 is a cuboid shape with a slot in the middle for mounting and fixing the iron core 2, the frame 3, and the coil unit 1. The bottom of the outer shell II8 has a slot for mounting wires. The outer shell II8 has mounting holes for mounting and positioning.

[0054] In one specific embodiment, the two armatures 5 are installed in a parallel state. Both armatures are at 90° to the permanent magnet 4 and the magnet fixing bracket 6. At the same time, the top and bottom end faces of the armatures 5 are flat. The installed armatures 5, permanent magnet 4, and magnet fixing bracket 6 can be placed in the groove of the outer shell I7 along the arc surface of the outer shell I7. The armatures 5 are restricted to linear reciprocating motion in the outer shell I7 and the outer shell II8 by the stepped surface of the armatures 5 and the end faces of the iron core 2.

[0055] In one specific embodiment, the side of the iron core 2 is flat and can fit flatly with the bottom end face of the armature 5. The iron core 2 has positioning holes at both ends, and the iron core 2 is connected to the groove of the outer shell II 8 through the positioning holes.

[0056] In one specific implementation, when in the unlocked state, the bottom end face of the armature 5 is flat and in close contact with the side of the iron core 2, and the armature 5, the iron core 2, and the permanent magnet 4 form a closed magnetic circuit. The armature is attracted to the iron core 2 by the magnetic force of the permanent magnet 4.

[0057] like Figure 10 In one specific embodiment, the sweeping robot 9 has a polygonal shell with an outer contour of a polygonal square. An unlocking and locking device is installed in the middle of each square contour surface of the sweeping robot 9, and the unlocking and locking device is installed inside the sweeping robot 9 through the mounting holes in the shell I7.

[0058] In one specific implementation, when the axial deviation of the armatures 5 in the two unlocking and locking devices located in different sweeping robots 9 is less than the radius of the armature 5, the parallelism of the mating surfaces is less than 30°, and the vertical distance is less than 10mm, a pulse voltage signal is simultaneously applied to the coil units of the two unlocking and locking devices, causing the coil unit 1 to generate an electromagnetic field with the opposite polarity to the permanent magnet 4. The permanent magnetic field and the electromagnetic field interact with each other, and the combined force pushes the armatures 5 in the different unlocking and locking devices toward the mating surface. As the armatures 5 in the different unlocking and locking devices get closer and closer, the magnetic field on the armatures 5 will gradually strengthen. Through the coarse positioning effect of the positioning port of the mating surface, when the armatures 5 in the different unlocking and locking devices are attracted to each other, the armatures 5 in the two unlocking and locking devices and the two permanent magnets 4 form a closed magnetic circuit, and the mating surfaces are in contact. At this time, the sweeping robot completes self-assembly.

[0059] A pulse voltage signal is applied to the coil unit 1 of the two unlocking and locking devices located on the same mating surface after assembly, so that the coil unit 1 generates an electromagnetic field with the same polarity as the permanent magnet 4. The permanent magnetic field and the electromagnetic field interact with each other, and the final resultant force causes the armature 5 in each unlocking and locking device to move toward the coil unit. The armature 5 is attracted to the iron core 2, forming an unlocked state. There is no force between the mating surfaces. At this time, the sweeping robot completes self-disassembly.

[0060] like Figure 11 and Figure 12 In one specific implementation, the unlocking and locking device can support multiple cleaning robots 9 in multiple states. By the self-assembly of multiple cleaning robots 9 into horizontal "one" and vertical "one" or other structures, fast and efficient cleaning operations can be achieved. By the self-disassembly of multiple cleaning robots 9 into independent units, cleaning operations can be carried out simultaneously in different areas.

[0061] In summary, the locking and unlocking device provided by this invention can support multiple robotic vacuum cleaners to achieve self-assembly and self-disassembly functions. The locking and unlocking device of this invention has a simple design structure, small size, and is easy to install and integrate. At the same time, it has low power consumption, low magnetic leakage, and minimal interference to the outside world.

[0062] The present invention has been described in detail above with reference to specific embodiments and exemplary examples; however, these descriptions should not be construed as limiting the present invention. Those skilled in the art will understand that various equivalent substitutions, modifications, or improvements can be made to the technical solutions and embodiments of the present invention without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention, and all such modifications and improvements fall within the scope of the present invention. The scope of protection of the present invention is defined by the appended claims.

[0063] The contents not described in detail in this specification are common knowledge to those skilled in the art.

Claims

1. A locking and unlocking device, applied to a robotic vacuum cleaner, characterized in that, It includes a coil unit (1), an iron core (2), a frame (3), a permanent magnet (4), an armature (5), a housing I (7), and a housing II (8); The outer shell I (7) and the outer shell II (8) are combined to form a cavity for accommodating the coil unit (1), the iron core (2), the frame (3), the permanent magnet (4) and the armature (5); The frame (3) is fitted around the iron core (2), and the coil unit (1) is wound around the frame (3); the iron core (2) is fixedly installed inside the outer shell II (8); The two ends of the permanent magnet (4) are fixedly connected to two armatures (5), and the armatures (5) are located inside the outer shell I (7); the outer shell I (7) is provided with a first through hole; When the coil unit (1) is energized, the armature (5) is pushed out of the outer shell I (7) through the first through hole or the armature (5) is attracted to the iron core (2); when the armature (5) in the two different locking and unlocking devices extends out of the outer shell I (7), they are locked together; when the armature (5) in the two different locking and unlocking devices is attracted to the iron core (2), they are unlocked separately.

2. The locking and unlocking device according to claim 1, characterized in that, The end where the outer shell I (7) is connected to the outer shell II (8) is designated as the second end, and the first through hole is located on the end face of the first end of the outer shell I (7); The inner walls on both sides of the outer shell I (7) are provided with arc-shaped grooves, which cooperate with the outer surface of the armature (5) to guide the movement of the armature (5).

3. The locking and unlocking device according to claim 1, characterized in that, The two armatures (5) are parallel to each other; The armature (5) and the permanent magnet (4) are perpendicular to each other.

4. The locking and unlocking device according to claim 1, characterized in that, The armature (5) has a stepped surface. When the armature (5) extends out of the outer shell I (7) to a predetermined position, the stepped surface cooperates with the outer shell I (7) to achieve the limit.

5. A locking and unlocking device according to claim 1, characterized in that, The parallelism of the mating surfaces of the mating armatures (5) is less than 30°, and the axial deviation of the mating armatures (5) is less than the radius value of the armatures (5); When the armature (5) and the iron core (2) are attracted together, the parallelism of the mating surfaces is less than 30°.

6. The locking and unlocking device according to claim 1, characterized in that, When a pulse voltage signal is simultaneously applied to the coil unit (1) in two different locking and unlocking devices, the coil unit (1) generates an electromagnetic field with the opposite polarity to the permanent magnet (4) to achieve docking and locking, and the coil unit (1) generates an electromagnetic field with the same polarity as the permanent magnet (4) to achieve separation and unlocking.

7. A locking and unlocking device according to claim 1, characterized in that, It also includes a magnet fixing bracket (6), with its two ends fixedly connected to two armatures (5), and a permanent magnet (4) passing through the magnet fixing bracket (6).

8. A locking and unlocking device according to claim 1, characterized in that, The iron core (2) is a square rod-shaped structure; The permanent magnet steel (4) has a rod-shaped structure; The armature (5) is a round rod structure.

9. A robotic vacuum cleaner, characterized in that, Includes a polygonal housing and a locking / unlocking device as described in any one of claims 1-8; The locking and unlocking device is located inside the polygonal housing, and at least one locking and unlocking device is installed on each inner side of the polygonal housing. Each inner side of the polygonal shell is provided with a second through hole. The end of the shell I (7) connected to the shell II (8) is called the second end. The end face of the first end of the shell I (7) is attached to the inner side of the polygonal shell. When the coil unit (1) is energized, the armature (5) is pushed to extend from the inner side through the first through hole and the second through hole in sequence or the armature (5) is attracted to the iron core (2). When the armature (5) of two different sweeping robots extends from the inner side, the self-assembly of different sweeping robots is realized. When the armature (5) of two different sweeping robots is attracted to the iron core (2), the self-disassembly of different sweeping robots is realized.

10. The working method of a sweeping robot according to claim 9, characterized in that, include: A pulse voltage signal is simultaneously applied to the coil unit (1) in the locking and unlocking device of different sweeping robots, so that the coil unit (1) generates an electromagnetic field with the opposite polarity to the permanent magnet (4). The armatures (5) in the locking and unlocking devices of different sweeping robots continuously approach each other. After the two armatures (5) are connected, the sweeping robot completes its self-assembly. A pulse voltage signal is simultaneously applied to the coil unit (1) in the locking and unlocking device of different sweeping robots, so that the coil unit (1) generates an electromagnetic field with the same polarity as the permanent magnet (4). The armatures (5) in the locking and unlocking devices of different sweeping robots separate from each other. After the two armatures (5) are attracted to their respective iron cores (2), the sweeping robot completes its self-decomposition. Multiple robotic vacuum cleaners can self-assemble into a linear or planar structure, or self-decompose into independent units.

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