Pool cleaning system and positioning method of pool cleaning robot

Abstract

The invention provides a pool cleaning system and a positioning method of a pool cleaning robot. The pool cleaning system includes: a base station; and the pool cleaning robot is provided with a sound signal transmitter I. The base station is provided with at least two sound signal receivers I, and the sound signal receivers I are used for receiving sound signals transmitted by the sound signal transmitter I. A sound signal transmitted by the sound signal transmitter I can be received by a sound signal receiver I on the base station. The distance between the pool cleaning robot and the base station can be obtained through the time from emission to reception of the acoustic signal. Besides, the number of the sound signal receivers I is at least two, the moments when different sound signal receivers I receive sound signals are different, so that time differences are formed, the distance differences between different sound signal receivers I and the sound signal transmitter I can be obtained through the time differences and the sound velocities, and the distance differences between the different sound signal receivers I and the sound signal transmitter I can be obtained by combining the positions of the sound signal receivers I. The azimuth angle of the pool cleaning robot relative to the base station can be obtained.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present application relates to the field of robotics technology, and in particular to a pool cleaning system and a positioning method for a pool cleaning robot. Background Art

[0002] A pool cleaning robot is a robot that can perform cleaning tasks in a pool. For example, a pool cleaning robot can be used to clean the bottom and walls of a swimming pool, fish pond, etc. A pool cleaning robot is usually used in conjunction with a base station, which can charge the pool cleaning robot so that the pool cleaning robot is in a relatively sufficient power state before performing a task.

[0003] The ideal design goal is that the pool cleaning robot can automatically return to the location of the base station and connect to the base station after completing the task. The premise for achieving this goal is to be able to accurately position the pool cleaning robot. However, in actual applications, the pool cleaning robot is often difficult to return to the base station or cannot smoothly connect to the base station due to inaccurate positioning. At the same time, the existing products cannot perform more accurate absolute positioning, resulting in low cleaning efficiency and inability to provide comprehensive coverage.

[0004] Therefore, how to accurately position the pool cleaning robot is an urgent problem to be solved. Summary of the invention

[0005] The present application provides a pool cleaning system and a positioning method for a pool cleaning robot, aiming to accurately position the pool cleaning robot.

[0006] The specific technical solutions are as follows:

[0007] An embodiment of the first aspect of the present application provides a pool cleaning system, the pool cleaning system comprising:

[0008] Base stations; and

[0009] A pool cleaning robot, wherein the pool cleaning robot is provided with an acoustic signal transmitter I, and the base station is provided with at least two acoustic signal receivers I, and the acoustic signal receivers I are used to receive the acoustic signal transmitted by the acoustic signal transmitter I.

[0010] In the pool cleaning system in the embodiment of the present application, the pool cleaning robot is provided with an acoustic signal transmitter I, and the base station is provided with an acoustic signal receiver I. In this way, when the pool cleaning robot is in the pool, the acoustic signal emitted by the acoustic signal transmitter I can be received by the acoustic signal receiver I on the base station. The distance between the pool cleaning robot and the base station can be obtained by the time it takes for the acoustic signal to be emitted to be received. In addition, the number of acoustic signal receivers I on the base station is at least two, so that different acoustic signal receivers I receive the acoustic signal at different times, thereby forming a time difference. Through the time difference and the speed of sound, the distance difference between different acoustic signal receivers I and the acoustic signal transmitter I can be obtained. Combined with the position distribution of each acoustic signal receiver I, the azimuth of the acoustic signal transmitter I relative to the base station can be obtained, that is, the azimuth of the pool cleaning robot relative to the base station. When the distance between the pool cleaning robot and the base station and the azimuth of the pool cleaning robot relative to the base station are obtained, the position or area of ​​the pool cleaning robot relative to the base station is obtained, thereby achieving accurate positioning of the pool cleaning robot.

[0011] In some embodiments, the vibration element of the acoustic signal transmitter 1 and / or the acoustic signal receiver 1 comprises piezoelectric ceramics;

[0012] The acoustic signal transmitter 1 and / or the acoustic signal receiver 1 include a metal casing.

[0013] In some embodiments, the acoustic signal transmitter I and / or the acoustic signal receiver I include an annular or tubular vibrator.

[0014] In some embodiments, the frequency of the acoustic signal emitted by the acoustic signal transmitter I is greater than or equal to 10 KHz and less than or equal to 100 KHz.

[0015] In some embodiments, the base station is provided with at least three acoustic signal receivers I, and the acoustic signal receivers I are used to receive the acoustic signal transmitted by the acoustic signal transmitter I;

[0016] The distance between the two closest acoustic signal receivers I is L1, the distance between the two farthest acoustic signal receivers I is L2, and L1 and L2 satisfy the condition: L2≥2L1.

[0017] In some embodiments, L1 and L2 also satisfy the condition:

[0018] L2≤50L1.

[0019] In some embodiments, L1 and L2 also satisfy the condition:

[0020] L2≤10L1.

[0021] In some embodiments, the base station is further provided with an acoustic signal transmitter II, and the pool cleaning robot is further provided with an acoustic signal receiver II, and the acoustic signal receiver II is used to receive the acoustic signal emitted by the acoustic signal transmitter II.

[0022] In some embodiments, the number of the acoustic signal transmitter II is one, and the number of the acoustic signal receiver II is one.

[0023] In some embodiments, the frequency of the acoustic signal emitted by the acoustic signal transmitter II is greater than or equal to 10 KHz and less than or equal to 100 KHz.

[0024] In some embodiments, the number of the acoustic signal transmitter I is one, and the number of the acoustic signal receivers I is three.

[0025] In some embodiments, the three acoustic signal receivers I are distributed on the same straight line.

[0026] In some embodiments, the two acoustic signal receivers I that are closest to each other and the two acoustic signal receivers I that are farthest from each other are distributed on the same straight line.

[0027] In some embodiments, the pool cleaning robot further includes a posture sensor and / or a depth sensor.

[0028] In some embodiments, the position or area of ​​the pool cleaning robot relative to the base station is obtained through the acoustic signal.

[0029] In some embodiments, the pool cleaning robot is capable of docking with the base station.

[0030] An embodiment of the second aspect of the present application provides a positioning method for a pool cleaning robot, which is implemented based on the pool cleaning system in any of the above embodiments, and the positioning method includes:

[0031] Enable the acoustic signal transmitter 1 to transmit an acoustic signal;

[0032] Acquiring acoustic signal information of at least two of the acoustic signal receivers;

[0033] Based on the acoustic signal information, an area or position of the pool cleaning robot relative to the base station is obtained.

[0034] In some embodiments, the acoustic signal information includes the time difference between the acoustic signals received by different acoustic signal receivers I.

[0035] In some embodiments, acquiring the acoustic signals of at least two of the acoustic signal receivers comprises:

[0036] The time difference between the acoustic signals received by the two acoustic signal receivers I that are closest to each other is obtained, and a group of time differences between the acoustic signals received by the two acoustic signal receivers I that are farthest from each other is obtained.

[0037] In some embodiments, the positioning method includes:

[0038] Make the sound signal transmitter I emit a sound signal;

[0039] Obtaining the time difference of the acoustic signals received by the two acoustic signal receivers I that are closest to each other, and obtaining a group of time differences of the acoustic signals received by the two acoustic signal receivers I that are farthest from each other;

[0040] Based on the position information of the two closest acoustic signal receivers I and the time difference of the acoustic signals received by the two acoustic signal receivers I, the position information I of the pool cleaning robot relative to the base station is obtained; based on the position information of the two farthest acoustic signal receivers I and a group of time differences of the acoustic signals received by the two acoustic signal receivers I, a group of position information II of the pool cleaning robot relative to the base station is determined;

[0041] A set of position information II is compared with the position information I, and a piece of position information II is determined from the set of position information II to serve as the current position of the pool cleaning robot. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0042] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of a base station provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0043] Figure 2 A schematic diagram of a pool cleaning robot provided in one embodiment of the present application;

[0044] Figure 3 A schematic diagram of a base station provided in another embodiment of the present application;

[0045] Figure 4 A schematic diagram of a base station provided in another embodiment of the present application;

[0046] Figure 5 A schematic flow chart of a positioning method for a pool cleaning robot provided in one embodiment of the present application.

[0047] The reference numerals are as follows:

[0048] 10. Base station; 11. Acoustic signal receiver I; 12. Acoustic signal transmitter II;

[0049] 20. Pool cleaning robot; 21. Sound signal transmitter I; 22. Sound signal receiver II. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0050] In order to make the purpose, technical solution and advantages of the present application more clearly understood, the present application is further described in detail below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and embodiments. It should be understood that the specific embodiments described herein are only used to explain the present application and are not used to limit the present application.

[0051] In the description of this application, it should be understood that if the terms "upper", "lower", "left", "right", etc. indicate an orientation or positional relationship based on the orientation or positional relationship shown in the drawings, it is only for the convenience of describing the present application and simplifying the description, and does not indicate or imply that the device or element referred to must have a specific orientation, be constructed and operated in a specific orientation. Therefore, the terms describing the positional relationship in the drawings are only used for illustrative purposes and cannot be understood as a limitation on this patent. For ordinary technicians in this field, the specific meanings of the above terms can be understood according to specific circumstances.

[0052] In addition, the terms "first" and "second" are used for descriptive purposes only and should not be understood as suggesting or implying relative importance or implicitly indicating the number of technical features indicated. Thus, a feature defined as "first" or "second" may explicitly or implicitly include one or more of the features. In the description of this application, the meaning of "plurality" is at least two, such as two, three, etc., unless otherwise clearly and specifically defined.

[0053] In the description of this application, unless otherwise clearly specified and limited, the terms "installed", "connected", "connected", "fixed" and the like should be understood in a broad sense, for example, it can be a fixed connection, a detachable connection, or an integral connection; it can be a mechanical connection or an electrical connection; it can be a direct connection or an indirect connection through an intermediate medium, it can be the internal connection of two elements or the interaction relationship between two elements, unless otherwise clearly defined. For ordinary technicians in this field, the specific meanings of the above terms in this application can be understood according to specific circumstances.

[0054] The embodiment of the first aspect of the present application provides a pool cleaning system, such as Figure 1 , Figure 2 As shown, the pool cleaning system includes a base station 10 and a pool cleaning robot 20, wherein the pool cleaning robot 20 is provided with an acoustic signal transmitter 121, and the base station 10 is provided with at least two acoustic signal receivers I11, and the acoustic signal receivers I11 are used to receive the acoustic signal emitted by the acoustic signal transmitter I21.

[0055] The pool cleaning system in the embodiment of the present application can obtain the position or area of ​​the pool cleaning robot 20 relative to the base station 10 through the acoustic signal.

[0056] Specifically, in the pool cleaning system in the embodiment of the present application, the pool cleaning robot 20 is provided with an acoustic signal transmitter 121, and the base station 10 is provided with an acoustic signal receiver 111. With such a configuration, when the pool cleaning robot 20 is in the pool, the acoustic signal emitted by the acoustic signal transmitter 121 can be received by the acoustic signal receiver 111 on the base station 10. The distance between the pool cleaning robot 20 and the base station 10 can be obtained by the time it takes for the acoustic signal to be emitted and received.

[0057] In addition, the number of sound signal receivers I11 on the base station 10 is at least two, so that different sound signal receivers I11 receive the sound signal at different times, thereby forming a time difference. Through the time difference and the speed of sound, the distance difference between different sound signal receivers I11 and the sound signal transmitter I21 can be obtained. Combined with the position distribution of each sound signal receiver I11, the azimuth angle of the sound signal transmitter I21 relative to the base station 10 can be obtained, that is, the azimuth angle of the pool cleaning robot 20 relative to the base station 10.

[0058] By obtaining the distance between the pool cleaning robot 20 and the base station 10, and the azimuth of the pool cleaning robot 20 relative to the base station 10, the position or area of ​​the pool cleaning robot 20 relative to the base station 10 is also obtained, thereby achieving accurate positioning of the pool cleaning robot 20.

[0059] In some embodiments, the vibration element of the acoustic signal transmitter 121 includes piezoelectric ceramics, and the acoustic signal transmitter 121 includes a metal housing.

[0060] For the acoustic signal transmitter 121 with a lower operating frequency, the size of its vibration element is often larger, and the larger size is not conducive to the structural design and positioning accuracy of the acoustic signal transmitter 121. The applicant has found that when the acoustic signal transmitter 121 has a metal shell and the vibration element of the acoustic signal transmitter 121 includes piezoelectric ceramics, it is beneficial to reduce the overall resonant frequency, thereby helping to reduce the size of the vibration element. In this way, the flexibility of the structural design can be improved, and it is also beneficial to improve the positioning accuracy.

[0061] In some embodiments, the vibration element of the acoustic signal receiver I11 includes piezoelectric ceramics, and the acoustic signal receiver I11 includes a metal housing.

[0062] For the acoustic signal receiver I11 with a lower operating frequency, the size of its vibration element is often larger, and the larger size is not conducive to the structural design and positioning accuracy of the acoustic signal receiver I11. The applicant has found that when the acoustic signal receiver I11 has a metal shell and the vibration element of the acoustic signal receiver I11 includes piezoelectric ceramics, it is beneficial to reduce the overall resonant frequency, thereby reducing the size of the vibration element. In this way, the flexibility of the structural design can be improved, and it is also beneficial to improve the positioning accuracy.

[0063] Furthermore, the metal shell of the acoustic signal transmitter 121 can be equipped with one or more layers of other materials, such as ABS or PP, etc., to further prevent water, oxidation or corrosion. Similarly, the metal shell of the acoustic signal receiver I11 can also be equipped with one or more layers of other materials, such as ABS or PP.

[0064] Furthermore, the acoustic signal transmitter I21 and / or the acoustic signal receiver I11 include an annular or tubular vibrator. The applicant has also found that by optimizing the shape of the vibrator, for example, setting the shape of the vibrator to be annular or tubular, the resonant frequency can also be reduced, thereby achieving the purpose of reducing the size of the vibration element.

[0065] In some embodiments, the frequency of the acoustic signal emitted by the acoustic signal transmitter I is greater than or equal to 10 KHz and less than or equal to 100 KHz.

[0066] The higher the frequency of the acoustic signal, the stronger the directivity, and the stronger the directivity, the more conducive it is to improving the accuracy of positioning. However, at the same time, too high a directivity can also make positioning difficult or inefficient. Therefore, in the actual positioning process, it is necessary to consider not only the directivity of the acoustic signal, but also the range of the acoustic signal propagation. The applicant has carried out a lot of testing work, and the acoustic signal with a frequency range of 10KHz to 100KHz is a better choice, which can not only ensure good directivity, but also make the acoustic signal have a reasonable propagation range, which can take into account both the accuracy and efficiency of positioning.

[0067] In some embodiments, Figure 3 As shown, the base station 10 is provided with at least three acoustic signal receivers I11, and the acoustic signal receivers I11 are used to receive the acoustic signal transmitted by the acoustic signal transmitter I21. Among them, the distance between the two closest acoustic signal receivers I11 is L1, and the distance between the two farthest acoustic signal receivers I11 is L2, and L1 and L2 meet the condition: L2 ≥ 2L1.

[0068] As can be seen from the foregoing, the distance between the acoustic signal transmitter I21 and different acoustic signal receivers I11 can be obtained based on the time difference between the acoustic signal being transmitted and being received by different acoustic signal receivers I11 on the base station 10. After obtaining the above distance, the azimuth of the acoustic signal transmitter I21 relative to the base station 10 can be further obtained. It is not difficult to understand that if the above positioning process is to be implemented, the number of acoustic signal receivers I11 on the base station 10 must be at least two.

[0069] Taking the case where two acoustic signal receivers I11 are provided on the base station 10 as an example, the distance between the two acoustic signal receivers I11 should not be too small, otherwise the accuracy of the calculation result will be insufficient because the two acoustic signal receivers I11 are too close. However, the applicant also found that when the distance between the two acoustic signal receivers I11 is large, when using conventional sinusoidal wave phase detection, the time when the acoustic signal reaches one of the acoustic signal receivers I11 is used as the timing start point, and the time when the acoustic signal reaches the other acoustic signal receiver I11 is used as the timing end point. In the time period from the above timing start point to the timing end point, the frequency number that can be identified will be difficult to distinguish. This is mainly because the amplitude of the first wave is not necessarily the same, so it is difficult to give a very accurate result. If the above frequency number is not determined accurately, the time difference between the acoustic signal reaching different acoustic signal receivers I11 is inaccurate, which in turn leads to inaccurate calculated distance between the acoustic signal transmitter I21 and the acoustic signal receiver I11, affecting the final positioning accuracy. In summary, when two acoustic signal receivers I11 are provided on the base station 10 , if the distance between the two acoustic signal receivers I11 is too small, the positioning accuracy will be affected, and if the distance is too large, the positioning accuracy will be affected.

[0070] In order to resolve the contradiction between the above positioning precision and positioning accuracy, the applicant proposed the following solution:

[0071] The base station 10 is provided with at least three acoustic signal receivers I11, wherein the distance between the two closest acoustic signal receivers I is L1, and the distance between the two farthest acoustic signal receivers I is L2, and L1 and L2 satisfy the condition: L2≥2L1.

[0072] Based on the above settings, when the sound signal transmitter I transmits a sound signal, the time difference of the sound signals received by the two closest sound signal receivers I and a set of time differences of the sound signals received by the two farthest sound signal receivers I can be obtained.

[0073] Based on the position information of the two closest acoustic signal receivers I and the time difference of the acoustic signals received by the two acoustic signal receivers I, the position information I of the pool cleaning robot 20 relative to the base station 10 is obtained. It can be understood that the time when the acoustic signal reaches one of the acoustic signal receivers I11 is the timing start point, and the time when the acoustic signal reaches the other acoustic signal receiver I11 is the timing end point. Since the distance between the two acoustic signal receivers I is small, the number of cycles in the time period from the above timing start point to the timing end point will be relatively small, so it is more advantageous for determining the cycle beam.

[0074] Based on the position information of the two farthest acoustic signal receivers I and the time difference of the acoustic signals received by the two acoustic signal receivers I, a set of position information II of the pool cleaning robot 20 relative to the base station 10 is determined. In the process of determining the time difference of the acoustic signals received by the two farthest acoustic signal receivers I, since there are many frequency numbers in the time period from the timing start point to the timing end point, it is difficult to identify. Therefore, several more frequency values ​​can be determined, such as 2 or 3. In this way, a set of time differences (for example, including 2 to 3 time differences) is obtained, and accordingly, the position information II of the pool cleaning robot 20 relative to the base station 10 finally obtained is a set of results (for example, including 2 to 3 possible results).

[0075] Finally, a set of position information II is compared with the position information I, and a position information II is determined from the set of position information II as the current position of the pool cleaning robot 20. Thus, the current position of the pool cleaning robot 20 finally determined can take into account both precision and accuracy.

[0076] In some of the embodiments, L1 and L2 also satisfy the condition: L2≤50L1.

[0077] If the value of L2 is large, the size of the base station 10 also needs to be designed to be large, which will significantly increase the material cost of the base station 10. In addition, if the size of the base station 10 is large, it will also face problems such as inconvenience in transportation and poor appearance after installation. Therefore, in this embodiment, L1 and L2 also meet the condition: L2≤50L1, thereby avoiding the problem of the base station 10 being too large.

[0078] Furthermore, L1 and L2 also satisfy the condition: L2≤10L1.

[0079] Such a configuration is also conducive to miniaturization of the size of the base station 10 while satisfying the positioning precision and accuracy.

[0080] In some embodiments, Figure 2 , Figure 4As shown, the base station 10 is further provided with an acoustic signal transmitter II 12 , and the pool cleaning robot 20 is further provided with an acoustic signal receiver II 22 , which is used to receive the acoustic signal emitted by the acoustic signal transmitter II 12 .

[0081] The acoustic signal receiver I is located at the base station 10. The base station 10 can obtain the time when the acoustic signal is received through the acoustic signal receiver I. However, since the acoustic signal transmitter I is located at the pool cleaning robot 20, the time when the acoustic signal is transmitted is difficult to know. In this way, it is difficult to obtain the time from the transmission to the reception of the acoustic signal.

[0082] In this embodiment, the base station 10 is further provided with an acoustic signal transmitter II 12, and the pool cleaning robot 20 is further provided with an acoustic signal receiver II 22. When the pool cleaning robot 20 needs to be positioned, the acoustic signal transmitter II 12 first transmits an acoustic signal, and after the acoustic signal receiver II 22 on the pool cleaning robot 20 receives the acoustic signal, the acoustic signal transmitter I on the pool cleaning robot 20 immediately transmits an acoustic signal, and after the acoustic signal is received by the acoustic signal receiver I on the base station 10, the base station 10 can obtain the total time from the acoustic signal transmitter II 12 transmitting the acoustic signal to the acoustic signal receiver I receiving the acoustic signal, and the distance between the pool cleaning robot 20 and the base station 10 can be obtained based on the total time combined with the speed of sound. Of course, the time when the acoustic signal transmitter I transmits the acoustic signal can also be indirectly obtained through the above total time.

[0083] Furthermore, the number of the acoustic signal transmitter II 12 is one, and the number of the acoustic signal receiver II 22 is one. That is, the acoustic signal transmitter II 12 and the acoustic signal receiver II 22 do not need to be redundantly arranged, which is conducive to saving costs.

[0084] In some embodiments, the frequency of the acoustic signal emitted by the acoustic signal emitter II 12 is greater than or equal to 10 KHz and less than or equal to 100 KHz.

[0085] As mentioned above, the acoustic signal with a frequency range of 10KHz to 100KHz is a better choice, which can ensure good directivity and a reasonable propagation range of the acoustic signal, and can take into account both the accuracy and efficiency of positioning. Therefore, the acoustic signal emitted by the acoustic signal transmitter II 12 is preferably within the above frequency range.

[0086] In some embodiments, the number of the acoustic signal transmitter I is one, and the number of the acoustic signal receiver I is three.

[0087] By using any two of the three acoustic signal receivers I, a calculation result indicating the position of the pool cleaning robot 20 can be obtained. By comparing multiple calculation results, an optimal solution that takes into account both precision and accuracy can be determined.

[0088] Furthermore, the three sound signal receivers I are distributed on the same straight line.

[0089] When specifically calculating the position information of the pool cleaning robot 20, two of the acoustic signal receivers I are usually used to determine a reference plane, and then calculate the coordinates of the pool cleaning robot 20 relative to the reference plane. If the three acoustic signal receivers I are located on different straight lines, then the three acoustic signal receivers I can determine multiple reference planes, and there are angles between the multiple reference planes. This will make the calculation process more complicated and increase the amount of calculation. Therefore, in this embodiment, the three acoustic signal receivers I are distributed on the same straight line, so that the three acoustic signal receivers I can only determine one reference plane, which can simplify the calculation process and reduce the amount of calculation.

[0090] Similarly, when at least three acoustic signal receivers I are arranged on the base station 10, the two closest acoustic signal receivers I and the two farthest acoustic signal receivers I are distributed on the same straight line. In other words, if the number of acoustic signal receivers I is three, then the three acoustic signal receivers I are distributed on the same straight line. If the number of acoustic signal receivers I is greater than three, and no acoustic signal receiver I is shared between the two closest acoustic signal receivers I and the two farthest acoustic signal receivers I, then four acoustic signal receivers I are involved, and then the four acoustic signal receivers I are distributed on the same straight line. This is conducive to simplifying the calculation process and reducing the amount of calculation.

[0091] In some embodiments, the pool cleaning robot 20 further includes a posture sensor and / or a depth sensor. In this way, the posture information and depth information of the pool cleaning robot 20 can also be obtained. Through the information such as the position, posture and depth of the pool cleaning robot 20, the path of the pool cleaning robot 20 can be better planned and adjusted, so that the pool cleaning robot 20 can return to the base station 10 after completing the work.

[0092] In some embodiments, the pool cleaning robot 20 can be docked with the base station 10. It is understood that, based on the pool cleaning robot 20 being able to be positioned, the pool cleaning system can plan a path for the pool cleaning robot 20 to return to the base station 10, and can adjust the direction of travel of the pool cleaning robot 10 according to the path and the real-time positioning result. Finally, the pool cleaning robot 10 returns to the location of the base station 10 and docks with the base station 10. When the pool cleaning robot 20 is docked with the base station 10, the base station 10 can charge the pool cleaning robot 20.

[0093] The second aspect of the present application provides a method for positioning a pool cleaning robot 20. The positioning method is implemented based on the pool cleaning system in any of the above embodiments. Figure 4 As shown, the positioning method includes:

[0094] Step S100: enabling the acoustic signal transmitter I21 to transmit an acoustic signal;

[0095] Step S200: Acquire acoustic signal information of at least two acoustic signal receivers I11;

[0096] Step S300: Based on the acoustic signal information, the area or position of the pool cleaning robot 20 relative to the base station 10 is obtained.

[0097] Through the positioning method of the pool cleaning robot 20 in the embodiment of the present application, the distance between the pool cleaning robot 20 and the base station 10, and the azimuth of the pool cleaning robot 20 relative to the base station 10 can be obtained, so that the position or area of ​​the pool cleaning robot 20 can be obtained, thereby realizing accurate positioning of the pool cleaning robot 20.

[0098] In some of the embodiments, the acoustic signal information includes the time difference between the acoustic signals received by different acoustic signal receivers I11.

[0099] Through the above-mentioned time difference and sound speed, the distance difference between different sound signal receivers I11 and sound signal transmitters I21 can be obtained. Based on the distance difference and combined with the position distribution of each sound signal receiver I11, the azimuth angle of the pool cleaning robot 20 relative to the base station 10 can be obtained.

[0100] In some embodiments, obtaining the acoustic signals of at least two acoustic signal receivers includes:

[0101] The time difference of the acoustic signals received by the two acoustic signal receivers I that are closest to each other is obtained, and a group of time differences of the acoustic signals received by the two acoustic signal receivers I that are farthest from each other is obtained.

[0102] In this way, it is convenient to determine the optimal solution representing the position information of the pool cleaning robot 20 by comparison.

[0103] In some of the embodiments, the positioning method includes:

[0104] Make the sound signal transmitter I emit a sound signal;

[0105] Obtaining the time difference of the acoustic signals received by the two acoustic signal receivers I that are closest to each other, and obtaining a set of time differences of the acoustic signals received by the two acoustic signal receivers I that are farthest from each other;

[0106] Based on the position information of the two closest acoustic signal receivers I and the time difference of the acoustic signals received by the two acoustic signal receivers I, the position information I of the pool cleaning robot 20 relative to the base station 10 is obtained; based on the position information of the two farthest acoustic signal receivers I and a set of time differences of the acoustic signals received by the two acoustic signal receivers I, a set of position information II of the pool cleaning robot 20 relative to the base station 10 is determined;

[0107] A group of position information II is compared with the position information I, and a position information II is determined from the group of position information II as the current position of the pool cleaning robot 20.

[0108] In this embodiment, the position information I of the pool cleaning robot 20 relative to the base station 10 is obtained based on the position information of the two closest acoustic signal receivers I and the time difference of the acoustic signals received by the two acoustic signal receivers I. It can be understood that the timing start point is the time when the acoustic signal reaches one of the acoustic signal receivers I11, and the timing end point is the time when the acoustic signal reaches the other acoustic signal receiver I11. Since the distance between the two acoustic signal receivers I is small, the number of cycles in the time period from the above timing start point to the timing end point will be relatively small, so it is more advantageous for determining the cycle beam.

[0109] Based on the position information of the two farthest acoustic signal receivers I and the time difference of the acoustic signals received by the two acoustic signal receivers I, a set of position information II of the pool cleaning robot 20 relative to the base station 10 is determined. In the process of determining the time difference of the acoustic signals received by the two farthest acoustic signal receivers I, since there are many frequency numbers in the time period from the timing start point to the timing end point, it is difficult to identify. Therefore, several more frequency values ​​can be determined, such as 2 or 3. In this way, a set of time differences (for example, including 2 to 3 time differences) is obtained, and accordingly, the position information II of the pool cleaning robot 20 relative to the base station 10 finally obtained is a set of results (for example, including 2 to 3 possible results).

[0110] Finally, a set of position information II is compared with the position information I, and a position information II is determined from the set of position information II as the current position of the pool cleaning robot 20. Thus, the current position of the pool cleaning robot 20 finally determined can take into account both precision and accuracy.

[0111] The above contents are only specific implementation methods of the present application, but the protection scope of the present application is not limited thereto. Any technician familiar with the technical field can easily think of changes or substitutions within the technical scope disclosed in the present application, which should be included in the protection scope of the present application. Therefore, the protection scope of the present application should be based on the protection scope of the claims.

Claims

1. A pool cleaning system, characterized in that: include: Base station; as well as A pool cleaning robot, wherein the pool cleaning robot is provided with an acoustic signal transmitter I, and the base station is provided with at least two acoustic signal receivers I, and the acoustic signal receivers I are used to receive the acoustic signal transmitted by the acoustic signal transmitter I.

2. The pool cleaning system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The vibration element of the acoustic signal transmitter 1 and / or the acoustic signal receiver 1 includes piezoelectric ceramics; The acoustic signal transmitter 1 and / or the acoustic signal receiver 1 include a metal casing.

3. The pool cleaning system according to claim 2, characterized in that: The acoustic signal transmitter 1 and / or the acoustic signal receiver 1 comprises an annular or tubular vibrator.

4. The pool cleaning system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The frequency of the acoustic signal emitted by the acoustic signal transmitter I is greater than or equal to 10 KHz and less than or equal to 100 KHz.

5. The pool cleaning system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The base station is provided with at least three acoustic signal receivers I, and the acoustic signal receivers I are used to receive the acoustic signal transmitted by the acoustic signal transmitter I; The distance between the two closest acoustic signal receivers I is L1, the distance between the two farthest acoustic signal receivers I is L2, and L1 and L2 satisfy the condition: L2≥2L1.

6. The pool cleaning system according to claim 5, characterized in that: L1 and L2 also meet the following conditions: L2≤50L1.

7. The pool cleaning system according to claim 6, characterized in that: L1 and L2 also meet the following conditions: L2≤10L1.

8. The pool cleaning system according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that: The base station is also provided with an acoustic signal transmitter II, and the pool cleaning robot is also provided with an acoustic signal receiver II, and the acoustic signal receiver II is used to receive the acoustic signal emitted by the acoustic signal transmitter II.

9. The pool cleaning system according to claim 8, characterized in that: The number of the acoustic signal transmitter II is one, and the number of the acoustic signal receiver II is one.

10. The pool cleaning system of claim 8, wherein: The frequency of the acoustic signal emitted by the acoustic signal transmitter II is greater than or equal to 10 KHz and less than or equal to 100 KHz.

11. The pool cleaning system according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that: The number of the acoustic signal transmitter I is one, and the number of the acoustic signal receiver I is three.

12. The pool cleaning system of claim 11, wherein: The three sound signal receivers I are distributed on the same straight line.

13. The pool cleaning system of claim 5, wherein: The two acoustic signal receivers I that are closest to each other and the two acoustic signal receivers I that are farthest from each other are distributed on the same straight line.

14. A pool cleaning system according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that: The pool cleaning robot further comprises a posture sensor and / or a depth sensor.

15. The pool cleaning system according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that: The position or area of ​​the pool cleaning robot relative to the base station is obtained through the acoustic signal.

16. The pool cleaning system of claim 1, wherein: The pool cleaning robot is capable of docking with the base station.

17. A positioning method for a pool cleaning robot, implemented based on the pool cleaning system according to any one of claims 1 to 16, characterized in that: The positioning method comprises: Enable the acoustic signal transmitter 1 to transmit an acoustic signal; Acquiring acoustic signal information of at least two of the acoustic signal receivers; Based on the acoustic signal information, an area or position of the pool cleaning robot relative to the base station is obtained.

18. The positioning method according to claim 17, characterized in that: The acoustic signal information includes the time difference between the acoustic signals received by different acoustic signal receivers I.

19. The positioning method according to claim 17, characterized in that: Acquiring the acoustic signals of at least two of the acoustic signal receivers comprises: The time difference between the acoustic signals received by the two acoustic signal receivers I that are closest to each other is obtained, and a group of time differences between the acoustic signals received by the two acoustic signal receivers I that are farthest from each other is obtained.

20. The method for positioning a pool cleaning robot according to claim 17, characterized in that: The positioning method comprises: Make the sound signal transmitter I emit a sound signal; Obtaining the time difference of the acoustic signals received by the two acoustic signal receivers I that are closest to each other, and obtaining a group of time differences of the acoustic signals received by the two acoustic signal receivers I that are farthest from each other; Based on the position information of the two closest acoustic signal receivers I and the time difference of the acoustic signals received by the two acoustic signal receivers I, the position information I of the pool cleaning robot relative to the base station is obtained; based on the position information of the two farthest acoustic signal receivers I and a group of time differences of the acoustic signals received by the two acoustic signal receivers I, a group of position information II of the pool cleaning robot relative to the base station is determined; A set of position information II is compared with the position information I, and a piece of position information II is determined from the set of position information II to serve as the current position of the pool cleaning robot.

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