A cleaning robot

Abstract

This invention relates to the field of equipment cleaning technology, specifically to a cleaning robot. The cleaning robot includes two or more movable units, at least one of which is equipped with a cleaning device. Any two adjacent movable units are connected by a movable connection structure, and any two adjacent movable units are also provided with a telescopic structure. The cleaning robot also includes a telescopic drive device for driving the telescopic structure to extend and retract. The telescopic structure is used to drive the two adjacent movable units to rotate relative to each other during extension and retraction, thereby changing the included angle between the two adjacent movable units and realizing the active adjustment of the included angle between the two adjacent movable units. When the cleaning robot cleans the surface of a structure, it can actively adapt to the shape changes of the surface of the structure, without relying on the surface of the structure to constrain and guide the cleaning robot. It can also adapt to cleaning curved surfaces, which is beneficial to improving versatility.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of equipment cleaning technology, and more specifically to a cleaning robot. Background Technology

[0002] When underwater structures such as ship submersion areas, wind turbine foundations, shafts, tunnels, and pipelines are submerged for extended periods, their surfaces often accumulate mud, stains, algae, rust, and other deposits, affecting their lifespan. Currently, there are cleaning robots used to clean the surfaces of these structures. For example, a pipeline cleaning robot disclosed in Chinese invention patent application CN116475183A includes independent head and tail sections. The head and tail sections are connected by flexible joint connectors. The angle between the head and tail sections can be adjusted according to the shape of the pipeline. Multiple walking mechanisms are distributed on the outer periphery of both the head and tail sections, each including a tension wheel supported on the inner wall of the pipeline, allowing the robot to move along the pipeline wall. A cleaning device is installed on the front side of the head section for cleaning the inner wall of the pipeline. The flexible joint connector includes at least two sequentially connected steering joints with ball joint structures, allowing the head and tail sections to adjust their angle according to the shape of the pipeline. The head section and the tail section are movable units, and adjacent movable units are movably connected by flexible joint connectors, which constitute a movable connection structure.

[0003] The cleaning robot described above can be adapted to cleaning the inner surface of pipes. For curved sections of pipes, constrained and guided by the pipe, the moving units of the cleaning robot can passively adjust their included angles to adapt to changes in pipe shape. However, for curved outer surfaces of some structures, due to the lack of external constraints, the included angle between two adjacent moving units is uncontrollable without external force, which may result in the robot failing to adhere to the outer surface of the structure, affecting the cleaning effect and limiting its application. Summary of the Invention

[0004] The purpose of this invention is to provide a cleaning robot that solves the problem that the adjustment of the angle between the various moving units of current cleaning robots requires constraint guidance from the surface of the structure, which limits the application scenarios and reduces versatility.

[0005] The technical solution of the cleaning robot of the present invention is:

[0006] A cleaning robot includes two or more movable units, at least one of which is equipped with a cleaning device. Any two adjacent movable units are connected by a movable connection structure, and any two adjacent movable units are also provided with a telescopic structure. The cleaning robot also includes a telescopic drive device for driving the telescopic structure to extend and retract. The telescopic structure is used to drive the two adjacent movable units to rotate relative to each other during extension and retraction to change the included angle between the two adjacent movable units.

[0007] Furthermore, the telescopic structure is a flexible telescopic tube, and the telescopic drive device is a hydraulic generator. The hydraulic generator is used to deliver hydraulic oil to the flexible telescopic tube so as to control the telescopic range of the flexible telescopic tube by adjusting the volume of hydraulic oil in the flexible telescopic tube.

[0008] Furthermore, adjacent flexible expansion joints are connected by a control valve, which is used to connect or disconnect the adjacent flexible expansion joints.

[0009] Furthermore, the cleaning robot also includes a traveling device for moving the cleaning robot, the traveling device constituting a movable unit, and a hydraulic generator is mounted on the traveling device.

[0010] Furthermore, the cleaning robot includes a main road and branch roads connected to the main road. The main road includes at least two movable units, and the branch road includes at least one movable unit. The movable units on the main road and the movable units on the branch road are respectively equipped with hydraulic generating devices.

[0011] Furthermore, the cleaning robot includes a main road and branch roads connected to the main road. The main road includes at least two moving units, and the branch road includes at least one moving unit.

[0012] Furthermore, the branch roads have two or more branches in each direction of the activity unit arrangement of the trunk road.

[0013] Furthermore, branch roads are provided on both sides of the main road.

[0014] Furthermore, the movable connection structure is a hinged structure.

[0015] Furthermore, the cleaning device includes a brush head and a brush head drive mechanism for driving the brush head to rotate.

[0016] Beneficial effects: This invention improves upon existing cleaning robots by setting a telescopic structure between any two adjacent movable units and using a telescopic drive device to actively extend and retract the structure. The telescopic structure's extension and retraction causes the adjacent movable units to rotate relative to each other, thereby changing the angle between them. This allows for active adjustment of the angle between adjacent movable units. When the cleaning robot cleans the surface of a structure, it can actively adapt to changes in the shape of the surface, eliminating the need for constraints and guidance from the surface. It can also handle curved surfaces, thus improving versatility. Attached Figure Description

[0017] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of a cleaning robot according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0018] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of a cleaning robot working on the surface of a structure, according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0019] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of a cleaning robot working on the surface of another structure, according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0020] Figure 4 for Figure 1 A schematic diagram of the structure of the trunk road operation unit.

[0021] In the diagram: 100, Structural surface; 1, Three-way solenoid valve; 2, Traveling device; 3, Camera; 4, Forward-looking sonar; 5, Battery watertight compartment; 6, Control watertight compartment; 7, Support wheel; 8, Vector thruster; 9, Hydraulic generator; 10, Main road operation unit; 11, Branch road operation unit; 12, Articulated shaft; 13, Flexible telescopic tube; 14, Two-way solenoid valve; 15, Motor; 16, Brush head; 17, Plug. Detailed Implementation

[0022] The cleaning robot of this invention features a telescopic structure between any two adjacent movable units. This telescopic structure, driven by a telescopic drive device, actively extends and retracts. As it extends and retracts, it causes the two adjacent movable units to rotate relative to each other, thereby changing the angle between them. This allows for active adjustment of the angle between the two adjacent movable units. When cleaning the surface of a structure, the robot can actively adapt to changes in the shape of the surface, eliminating the need for constraints and guidance from the surface. It can also handle curved surfaces, thus improving its versatility.

[0023] The following is a detailed description of an embodiment of the cleaning robot of the present invention:

[0024] like Figure 1-4As shown, the cleaning robot includes a traveling device 2 and several working units. Both the traveling device 2 and the working units constitute mobile units. Each working unit is divided into main road working units 10 and branch road working units 11. The main road working units 10 are connected sequentially to the traveling device 2 to form a main road. The foremost main road working unit 10 is connected to the traveling device 2. Each main road working unit 10 is connected to a branch road, and branches are connected to both the left and right sides of each main road working unit 10. Each branch road includes several sequentially connected branch road working units 11. The branch road working unit 11 closest to the main road is connected to the adjacent main road working unit 10. In this embodiment, there are four main road working units 10, such as... Figure 1 As shown in the dashed box containing the trunk road work unit 10, each branch road has two branch road work units 11, such as... Figure 1 The dotted-line box shows the branch operation unit 11. Each operation unit is equipped with a cleaning device, which includes a brush head 16 and a brush head drive device for driving the brush head 16 to rotate. The brush head drive device is a motor 15. The travel device 2 drives each operation unit to move so that the cleaning robot can clean the attached objects on the surface 100 of the structure while walking.

[0025] Each working unit includes a housing, which is generally square in shape, with the cleaning device installed at the bottom of the housing. The main road working unit 10 has connecting structures on its front and rear sides, and left and right sides. One side of the front and rear sides of the main road working unit 10's housing has a hinge lug, and the other side has a hinge seat. The hinge seat has a hinge groove into which the hinge lug extends, allowing the hinge lug to be hinged to the hinge seat via a hinge shaft 12. Each main road working unit 10 is hinged together via the hinge lug, hinge seat, and hinge shaft 12. The main road working unit 10 closest to the traveling device 2 is also hinged to the traveling device 2 via the hinge lug, hinge seat, and hinge shaft 12. The left and right sides of the main road working unit 10's housing have a hinge lug on one side and a hinge seat on the other side, used to connect the branch roads on both sides. The left and right sides of the shell of the branch operation unit 11 are also provided with connecting structures. One side of the connecting structure on the left and right sides of the shell of the branch operation unit 11 is a hinge lug, and the other side is a hinge seat. Each branch operation unit 11 is hinged through the hinge lug and hinge seat in conjunction with the hinge shaft 12. The branch operation unit 11 of the closest main road operation unit 10 of each branch is also hinged to the adjacent main road operation unit 10 through the hinge lug and hinge seat in conjunction with the hinge shaft 12. The hinge lug and hinge seat in conjunction with the hinge shaft 12 form a hinge structure, which constitutes a movable connection structure, so that any two adjacent movable units can be connected through the movable connection structure. Any two adjacent movable units can rotate relative to each other around the hinge shaft 12 to change the included angle between the two adjacent movable units and adapt to the shape of the surface 100 of the structure.

[0026] Each main road work unit 10 has the same structure, and each branch road work unit 11 has the same structure, which facilitates the combination of different numbers of work units as needed. The arrangement direction of each main road work unit 10 is perpendicular to the arrangement direction of each branch road work unit 11. The rotation axis of the movable unit on the main road is perpendicular to the rotation axis of the movable unit on the branch road. Each main road work unit 10 is connected to branch road work units 11 on both sides, which helps to expand the cleaning area of ​​the cleaning robot and also helps to stabilize its movement.

[0027] To better adapt to different shaped structural surfaces 100, a telescopic structure is provided between any two adjacent movable units. The telescopic structure is a flexible telescopic tube 13. The traveling device 2 is equipped with a hydraulic generator 9, which constitutes a telescopic drive device for driving the telescopic structure to extend and retract. The hydraulic generator 9 is used to deliver hydraulic oil to the flexible telescopic tube 13 so as to control the extension and retraction of the flexible telescopic tube 13 by adjusting the volume of hydraulic oil in the flexible telescopic tube 13. The flexible telescopic tube 13 can drive the two adjacent movable units to rotate relative to each other when extending and retracting. By controlling the extension and retraction of the flexible telescopic tube 13, the included angle between the two adjacent movable units can be controlled, so that the relative position of each movable unit can adapt to the curved structural surface 100, ensuring that the brush head 16 of each working unit can be well attached to the structural surface 100.

[0028] Any two adjacent flexible telescopic pipes 13 are connected by a control valve, which is fixed to the working unit. Each main working unit 10 has a two-way solenoid valve 14 on its housing, fixed to the center of the upper side of the housing. The two-way solenoid valve 14 on the main working unit 10 is used to connect the flexible telescopic pipes 13 on the main line. Three-way solenoid valves 1 are also provided on both sides of the two-way solenoid valves 14 on the housing of each main working unit 10. Each branch working unit 11 has a two-way solenoid valve 14 at the center of the upper side of its housing, used to connect the flexible telescopic pipes 13 on the branch. Both the two-way solenoid valve 14 and the three-way solenoid valve 1 are control valves. Each movable unit on the main line and each movable unit on the branch has an independent hydraulic generator 9. Each branch on either side of the main line has a corresponding hydraulic generator 9. Different hydraulic generators 9 control the flexible telescopic pipes 13 on their respective working units.

[0029] In this embodiment, there are three hydraulic generating devices 9. The middle hydraulic generating device 9 is connected to a two-way solenoid valve 14 on the main road operation unit 10 adjacent to the traveling device 2 via a flexible telescopic pipe 13. The two-way solenoid valves 14 on each main road operation unit 10 are connected to each other via flexible telescopic pipes 13 to form a middle hydraulic circuit. The left hydraulic generating device 9 is connected to a left-side three-way solenoid valve 1 on the main road operation unit 10 adjacent to the traveling device 2 via a flexible telescopic pipe 13. The three-way solenoid valves 1 on the left side of each main road operation unit 10 are connected to each other via flexible telescopic pipes 13. The three-way solenoid valves 1 on the left side of each main road operation unit 10 are connected to the two-way solenoid valves 14 on the adjacent branch road operation unit 11 on the left side via flexible telescopic pipes 13. The two-way solenoid valves 14 on each branch road operation unit 11 are connected to each other via flexible telescopic pipes 13. A hydraulic generator 9 on the left side is connected in series with the three-way solenoid valve 1 on the left side of each main working unit 10 via a flexible telescopic pipe 13 to form a main hydraulic circuit on the left side. The three-way solenoid valve 1 on the left side of each main working unit 10 and the two-way solenoid valve 14 on the corresponding branch working unit 11 are connected via the flexible telescopic pipe 13 to form a branch hydraulic circuit on the left side. The branch hydraulic circuits on the left side of each main working unit 10 are connected in parallel to the main hydraulic circuit on the left side via their respective three-way solenoid valves 1. Similarly, a hydraulic generator 9 on the right side, the three-way solenoid valve 1 on the right side of each main working unit 10, and the two-way solenoid valve 14 on each branch working unit 11 are connected via flexible telescopic pipes 13. Each hydraulic generator 9 controls the extension and retraction of the flexible telescopic pipe 13 on its corresponding circuit. The interfaces of each two-way solenoid valve 14 and three-way solenoid valve 1 that are not connected to the flexible telescopic tube 13 are all sealed with plugs 17. When it is necessary to add a main road operation unit 10 or a branch road operation unit 11, the plugs 17 can be replaced with flexible telescopic tubes 13.

[0030] Flexible expansion joints can be made of stainless steel corrugated pipes. These corrugated pipes are readily available on the market and can convert pressure into displacement. During operation, under the action of internal pressure, they can extend along the direction of the pipe, producing a displacement that is related to the pressure.

[0031] The cleaning robot in this embodiment is used to clean the surface 100 of an underwater structure. The traveling device 2 can tow the cleaning robot forward. The traveling device 2 integrates a camera 3, a forward-looking sonar 4, a battery watertight compartment 5, a control watertight compartment 6, support wheels 7, a vector thruster 8, and a hydraulic generator 9. The camera 3 and the forward-looking sonar 4 are the detection and perception systems of the underwater cleaning robot, used to perceive the environmental conditions in front of the cleaning robot. The camera 3 integrates a supplementary light function to provide supplementary lighting when underwater lighting is insufficient. The forward-looking sonar 4 is used when the water quality is poor and visual perception is not suitable. The camera 3 and the forward-looking sonar 4 work together to combine the advantages of acoustic and optical environmental perception, ensuring universality in various scenarios. The battery watertight compartment 5 is the power supply system of the cleaning robot, which integrates a high-density battery. The control watertight compartment 6 is the control system of the cleaning robot, which contains a control computer and integrates environmental perception, path planning, and other algorithms to control the normal operation of various equipment components. The support wheel 7 is located on the duct inlet side of the vector thruster 8, preventing the duct inlet from being completely blocked by the underwater structure surface 100 and also preventing sliding friction between the traveling device 2 and the structure surface 100. The vector thruster 8 is installed at the tail of the traveling device 2, and its propeller and fairing can adjust the propulsion direction. The duct inlet of the vector thruster 8 is located below the traveling device 2. When the vector thruster 8 is working, it will drive the water flow to generate suction at the duct inlet and discharge the water to the tail, so that the traveling device 2 can firmly adhere to the structure surface 100 to be cleaned.

[0032] When cleaning the inner wall of the pipe, such as Figure 2As shown, the number of branch operation units 11 can be adjusted according to the inner diameter of the pipeline, and the number of main operation units 10 can be adjusted according to the length of the pipeline. The cleaning robot is submerged in the water, and the control system inside the watertight chamber 6 is activated. The battery watertight chamber 5 supplies power to the cleaning robot, causing the vector thruster 8 of the propulsion device 2 to adjust its propulsion direction, and the robot to submerge until the support wheel 7 contacts the surface 100 of the underwater structure, allowing the propulsion device 2 to adhere to the surface 100. The camera 3 and forward-looking sonar 4 detect the shape of the underwater structure and transmit the information to the control computer controlling the watertight chamber 6. The hydraulic generator 9 delivers its internal hydraulic oil to the flexible telescopic pipes 13 in each section. On the main line, the adjustment begins with the flexible telescopic pipe 13 furthest from the corresponding hydraulic generator 9. The volume and pressure of the hydraulic oil in the flexible telescopic pipe 13 are adjusted, and then the two-way solenoid valves 14 above the main line working units 10 at both ends of that flexible telescopic pipe 13 are closed to keep the length and curvature of that flexible telescopic pipe 13 constant. The length and curvature of the next flexible telescopic pipe 13 are then adjusted in the same way until all the main line working units 10 rotate around the hinge axis 12 to their respective expected angles, so that all the main line working units 10 are in close contact with the inner wall of the pipe. On the branch line, the hydraulic oil is first transferred from the main line to the branch line through the three-way solenoid valve 1. The adjustment method of the branch line working unit 11 is the same as that of the main line working unit 10. The adjustment also begins with the flexible telescopic pipe 13 furthest from the corresponding hydraulic generator 9. Each time a flexible telescopic pipe 13 is adjusted, the control valves at both ends of it are closed until all the branch line working units 11 rotate around the hinge axis 12 to their respective expected angles, so that all the branch line working units 11 are in close contact with the inner wall of the pipe. The control system inside the watertight chamber 6 starts the motors 15 on the main road operation unit 10 and the branch road operation unit 11, and the motors 15 drive the brush head 16 to work.

[0033] When cleaning the undulating surfaces of a structure, such as Figure 3 As shown, the adjustment method of each working unit is consistent with the method used when cleaning the inner wall of the pipeline. This causes each section of the flexible telescopic pipe 13 to bend to a corresponding degree, thereby creating different multi-joint postures for the entire main road and the entire branch road.

[0034] Each working unit's brush head 16 is also equipped with a pressure sensor, which can sense the pressure between the working unit and the structure surface 100, and adjust the control based on the feedback from the pressure sensor. The control circuit on the corresponding working unit uses flexible wire, which can bend as the working unit rotates.

[0035] This cleaning robot utilizes a two-way solenoid valve 14 and a three-way solenoid valve 1 to adjust the volume and pressure of hydraulic oil in the flexible telescopic tubes 13 between different main road operation units 10 and branch road operation units 11. This allows different flexible telescopic tubes 13 to have different extension lengths and bending states, thereby changing the connection angle between the main road operation unit 10 and the branch road operation unit 11. This enables the cleaning robot to achieve multi-joint bending functions in the main road and branch road, which helps the cleaning robot adapt to different parameters such as diameter, curvature, slope, and shape of the underwater structure surface 100. It is applicable in various underwater scenarios such as ship flooding areas, wind power pile foundations, shafts, tunnels, and pipelines, and always ensures that the brush head 16 is in close contact with the structure surface 100, thus improving the versatility of the cleaning robot.

[0036] The cleaning robot's cleaning function is achieved by combining multiple main road operation units 10 and branch road operation units 11. Depending on the size and shape of the wall to be cleaned, the number of main road operation units 10 and branch road operation units 11 can be changed. When the area of ​​the surface to be cleaned is large, increasing the number of main road operation units 10 and branch road operation units 11 can enable multiple brush heads 16 to work simultaneously, which is beneficial to improving the efficiency of underwater cleaning operations.

[0037] In other implementations, only one trunk road operation unit and one branch road operation unit may be set up, so that the trunk road has two activity units and the branch road has only one activity unit.

[0038] In other implementations, branch paths may be omitted, and each active unit may be connected in series sequentially.

[0039] In other embodiments, only two active units may be provided: one active unit is a traveling device, and the other active unit is a working unit with a cleaning device.

[0040] In other embodiments, the telescopic structure can also be a hydraulic cylinder, which controls the included angle between two adjacent movable units. To facilitate the rotation of the movable units, the hydraulic cylinder can be hinged to the movable units.

[0041] In other embodiments, each flexible telescopic tube may be equipped with a hydraulic generator.

[0042] In other implementations, only one branch may be set.

[0043] In other embodiments, the movable connection structure may also be a ball joint structure.

[0044] Finally, it should be noted that the above descriptions are merely preferred embodiments of the present invention and are not intended to limit the present invention. Although the present invention has been described in detail with reference to the foregoing embodiments, those skilled in the art can still make modifications to the technical solutions described in the foregoing embodiments without creative effort, or make equivalent substitutions for some of the technical features. Any modifications, equivalent substitutions, improvements, etc., made within the spirit and principles of the present invention should be included within the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A cleaning robot comprising two or more movable units, at least one movable unit being equipped with a cleaning device, and any two adjacent movable units being connected by a movable connection structure, characterized in that, A telescopic structure is also provided between any two adjacent movable units. The cleaning robot also includes a telescopic drive device for driving the telescopic structure to extend and retract. The telescopic structure is used to drive the two adjacent movable units to rotate relative to each other during extension and retraction to change the included angle between the two adjacent movable units. The telescopic structure is a flexible telescopic tube, and the telescopic drive device is a hydraulic generator. The hydraulic generator is used to deliver hydraulic oil to the flexible telescopic tube so as to control the extension and retraction of the flexible telescopic tube by adjusting the volume of hydraulic oil in the flexible telescopic tube. The two adjacent flexible telescopic tubes are connected by a control valve, which is used to connect and disconnect the two adjacent flexible telescopic tubes.

2. The cleaning robot according to claim 1, characterized in that, The cleaning robot also includes a traveling device for moving the cleaning robot. The traveling device constitutes a movable unit, and a hydraulic generator is mounted on the traveling device.

3. The cleaning robot according to claim 1, characterized in that, The cleaning robot includes a main road and branch roads connected to the main road. The main road includes at least two movable units, and the branch road includes at least one movable unit. The movable units on the main road and the movable units on the branch road are respectively equipped with hydraulic generating devices.

4. The cleaning robot according to claim 1, characterized in that, The cleaning robot includes a main road and branch roads connected to the main road. The main road includes at least two moving units, and the branch road includes at least one moving unit.

5. The cleaning robot according to claim 4, characterized in that, There are two or more branch roads in each activity unit arrangement direction of the main road.

6. The cleaning robot according to claim 4, characterized in that, Branch roads are located on both sides of the main road.

7. The cleaning robot according to claim 1, characterized in that, The active connection structure is a hinged structure.

8. The cleaning robot according to claim 1, characterized in that, The cleaning device includes a brush head and a brush head drive mechanism for driving the brush head to rotate.

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