Cleaning base station of intelligent robot, sewage discharge system and control method

Abstract

The invention relates to a cleaning base station of an intelligent robot, a sewage discharge system and a control method, the cleaning base station comprises the sewage discharge system, and the sewage discharge system comprises a pump body unit and a water discharge chamber. The pump body unit is provided with an impeller cavity, an impeller located in the impeller cavity, a water inlet and a water outlet, the drainage chamber is provided with a drain outlet and a sewage inlet used for being communicated with an upstream sewage source, and the drain outlet is communicated with the impeller cavity through a water inlet; according to the sewage discharge system, reserved liquid is formed in the drainage cavity before the pump body unit is started so as to submerge the impeller. The liquid seal formed by the reserved liquid can effectively prevent external air from invading, rapid loss of negative pressure is avoided, the strict air tightness requirement for the water path at the downstream of the water outlet is not needed, the problem of function failure caused by air leakage of the sewage tank or the water path is avoided, and the use experience of a user is improved.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present disclosure relates to the technical field of cleaning equipment, in particular to a cleaning base station of an intelligent robot, a sewage discharge system and a control method. BACKGROUND

[0002] With the development of household cleaning equipment and the increasing demand of household users for cleaning effect, the scrubber is favored by consumers due to its high efficiency, convenience, environmental protection and dry-wet dual use characteristics. The scrubber is usually equipped with a cleaning base station, which can automatically clean and maintain the scrubber, such as automatically adding water, automatically charging, washing the sewage tank, discharging sewage and the like, thereby further liberating the hands of the user.

[0003] In the prior art, the cleaning base station usually adopts a diaphragm pump to perform negative pressure suction on the sewage tank, and the sewage in the cleaning base station bottom cleaning tank is sucked into the sewage tank by the negative pressure suction force, so as to complete the sewage recovery. However, this scheme has strict requirements on the air tightness of the sewage tank and the entire waterway system. Once the local sealing fails or air leakage occurs, the negative pressure environment is immediately destroyed, the sewage collection function fails, and the user's use experience is greatly affected. SUMMARY

[0004] In order to solve the problems existing in the prior art, the present disclosure provides a cleaning base station of an intelligent robot, a sewage discharge system and a control method.

[0005] According to a first aspect of the present disclosure, a cleaning base station of an intelligent robot is provided, the cleaning base station comprising a sewage discharge system, wherein the sewage discharge system comprises: a pump body unit having an impeller cavity, an impeller located in the impeller cavity, and a water inlet and a water outlet in communication with the impeller cavity; a drainage chamber having a sewage discharge port and a sewage inlet for communicating with an upstream sewage source, the sewage discharge port being configured to communicate with the impeller cavity through the water inlet; wherein the sewage discharge system is configured to form a reserved liquid in the drainage chamber before the pump body unit is started to submerge the impeller.

[0006] In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the sewage discharge port is arranged at a position close to the bottom of the drainage chamber and is configured to communicate with the water inlet of the pump body unit; the liquid level of the liquid in the drainage chamber is not lower than the impeller under the action of gravity.

[0007] In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the pump body unit is located below or at a side position of the drainage chamber and directly communicates with the sewage discharge port or communicates through a pipeline.

[0008] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the sewage inlet is in communication with an upstream sewage source through a sewage inlet pipe; and a volume of liquid above the impeller before the pump unit is started is configured to be at least greater than a volume of the sewage inlet pipe.

[0009] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, a volume of liquid above the impeller before the pump unit is started is configured to be greater than a sum of a volume of the sewage inlet pipe and a volume of air in the drainage chamber.

[0010] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the cleaning base station comprises a cleaning tank, and the sewage inlet pipe is configured to be in communication with the cleaning tank.

[0011] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the drainage chamber is configured to have a water replenishing port in communication with an external water source, and configured to inject a reserved liquid into the drainage chamber before the pump unit is started.

[0012] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the cleaning base station further comprises a clean water pipe, and the water replenishing port is configured to be in communication with the clean water pipe through a control valve; wherein the clean water pipe is configured to be in communication with a clean water tank to supply water to the clean water pipe through the clean water tank, or the clean water pipe is configured to be in communication with an external water source to supply water to the clean water pipe through the external water source.

[0013] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, a liquid level sensor is arranged in the drainage chamber, and when a liquid level in the drainage chamber is lower than a predetermined liquid level, an external water source is controlled to inject liquid into the drainage chamber through the water replenishing port.

[0014] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the water outlet of the pump unit is configured to be in communication with a sewage discharge pipe, and the pump unit is configured to discharge sewage through the sewage discharge pipe in a start-up state. wherein at least part of the sewage discharge pipe is arranged at a position higher than the drainage chamber, and after the pump unit is shut down, liquid in the sewage discharge pipe is configured to flow back to the drainage chamber through the pump unit to form the reserved liquid.

[0015] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the sewage discharge pipe is configured to be in communication with a sewage tank to deliver sewage to the sewage tank for storage, or the sewage discharge pipe is configured to be in communication with a ground drain to deliver sewage to the ground drain.

[0016] According to a second aspect of the present disclosure, a sewage discharge system of an intelligent robot is also provided, comprising: a pump unit having an impeller chamber, an impeller arranged in the impeller chamber, and a water inlet and a water outlet in communication with the impeller chamber; a drain chamber having a drain outlet configured to be in communication with the impeller chamber through the water inlet, and a sewage inlet configured to be in communication with an upstream sewage source; wherein the sewage discharge system is configured to form a reserved liquid in the drain chamber before the pump unit is started, so that a liquid level in the drain chamber is higher than the impeller.

[0017] According to a third aspect of the present disclosure, a cleaning base station of a smart robot is also provided, the cleaning base station comprising a sewage discharge system, wherein the sewage discharge system comprises: a pump unit having an impeller chamber, an impeller located in the impeller chamber, and a water inlet and a water outlet in communication with the impeller chamber; wherein the sewage discharge system is configured to form a reserved liquid in the impeller chamber before the pump unit is started, so that a liquid level in the impeller chamber is not lower than a highest point of the impeller.

[0018] According to a fourth aspect of the present disclosure, a control method of a cleaning base station of a smart robot is also provided, the cleaning base station being of the cleaning base station provided according to the first aspect of the present disclosure, and the control method comprising the following steps: injecting liquid into the drain chamber so that a liquid level in the drain chamber is not lower than the impeller of the pump unit; controlling the pump unit to start, and sequentially discharging the upstream sewage source through the drain chamber, the impeller chamber, and the water outlet through the sewage inlet.

[0019] In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the control method further comprises: when the cleaning base station is started for the first time, controlling an external water source to inject liquid into the drain chamber so that a liquid level in the drain chamber is not lower than the impeller of the pump unit.

[0020] In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the control method further comprises: obtaining a liquid level height in the drain chamber; when the liquid level height in the drain chamber is lower than a preset threshold, controlling an external water source to inject liquid into the drain chamber.

[0021] According to a fifth aspect of the present disclosure, a cleaning base station of a smart robot is also provided, the cleaning base station comprising a sewage discharge system, wherein the sewage discharge system comprises: a pump unit having an impeller chamber, an impeller located in the impeller chamber, and a water inlet and a water outlet in communication with the impeller chamber; a drain chamber having a drain outlet configured to be in communication with the impeller chamber through the water inlet, and a sewage inlet configured to be in communication with an upstream sewage source; The sewage discharge system is configured to have a liquid storage state before the pump body unit is started, and when in the liquid storage state, the liquid level in the drainage chamber is not lower than the impeller of the pump body unit.

[0022] One beneficial effect of the present disclosure is that by forming a reserved liquid in the drainage chamber before the pump body unit is started, the liquid level is not lower than the impeller, thereby forming a natural liquid seal. When sewage discharge is required, the pump body unit can discharge the liquid in the impeller chamber, so that the liquid level in the drainage chamber or the impeller chamber drops, thereby naturally forming a negative pressure in the drainage chamber to suck the upstream sewage source. The liquid seal formed by the reserved liquid can effectively prevent external air from entering and avoid rapid loss of negative pressure. The present disclosure does not require strict air tightness of the waterway downstream of the water outlet, thereby avoiding the functional failure problem caused by air leakage of the sewage tank and improving the user experience.

[0023] Other features and advantages of the present disclosure will become apparent from the following detailed description of exemplary embodiments thereof, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0024] The accompanying drawings incorporated in and forming a part of the specification illustrate embodiments of the present disclosure and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the present disclosure.

[0025] Figure 1 is a structure schematic diagram of a sewage discharge system provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure; Figure 2 is a waterway schematic diagram of a sewage discharge system provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure; Figure 3 is a structure schematic diagram of a cleaning base station provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure; Figure 4 is a structure schematic diagram of a sewage discharge system and a sewage tank provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure; Figure 5 is a structure schematic diagram of a sewage discharge system provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0026] Figures 1 to 5 The one-to-one correspondence between the names of the components and the reference numerals in the drawings is as follows: 100, sewage discharge system; 1, pump body unit; 11, impeller chamber; 12, impeller; 13, water inlet; 14, water outlet; 2, drainage chamber; 21, sewage discharge port; 22, sewage inlet; 23, water supplement port; 3, sewage inlet pipeline; 4, clean water pipeline; 5, sewage discharge pipeline; 200, cleaning tank; 300, clean water tank; 400, sewage tank. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0027] Various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Note that the relative arrangement of the components and steps set forth in the embodiments, numerical expressions, and numerical values are not limiting to the scope of the present disclosure unless specifically stated otherwise.

[0028] The following description of at least one exemplary embodiment is merely illustrative in nature and is in no way intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure and its applications or uses.

[0029] Techniques, methods, and apparatus known to those of ordinary skill in the relevant art can not be discussed in detail herein, but should be considered part of the specification as appropriate.

[0030] Note that similar reference numerals and letters indicate similar items throughout the drawings, and thus once an item is defined in one drawing, it need not be further discussed in the subsequent drawings.

[0031] In this document, "upper", "lower", "front", "back", "left", "right", and the like are used to describe relative positions between the relevant parts, and do not limit the absolute positions of the relevant parts.

[0032] In this document, "first", "second", and the like are used to distinguish between the relevant parts from each other, and do not indicate importance and order, and the existence of each other.

[0033] In this document, "equal", "same", and the like are not strictly limited in the mathematical and / or geometric sense, but also include errors that can be understood by those skilled in the art and allowed in manufacturing or use.

[0034] The present disclosure provides a cleaning base station and a sewage discharge system. The cleaning base station includes the sewage discharge system. The specific structure and working principle of the cleaning base station provided by the present disclosure will be described in detail below in combination with the drawings, and the specific structure and working principle of the sewage discharge system provided by the present disclosure will also be introduced.

[0035] The present disclosure provides a cleaning base station for an intelligent robot. The cleaning base station is used in conjunction with the intelligent robot for cleaning work. The intelligent robot can be a cleaning device for cleaning a work surface such as a floor or a carpet. The cleaning device and the cleaning base station can be docked with each other so that the cleaning device discharges sewage into the cleaning base station. In addition, the cleaning base station can charge the cleaning device, replenish cleaning liquid, and the like. The cleaning base station of the present disclosure can be used for a sweeping robot, a window cleaning robot, and a lawn mower.

[0036] In the embodiment of the intelligent robot as a cleaning device, the cleaning device can be a handheld cleaning device such as a handheld cleaner, a handheld wet vacuum cleaner, a handheld scrubber, a handheld fabric cleaner, and the like known to those skilled in the art, or a self-moving cleaning device such as a sweeping robot, a scrubbing robot, a sweeping and mopping integrated robot, and the like known to those skilled in the art. After completing the cleaning work, the cleaning device can be docked in the cleaning base station to drain the sewage and perform self-cleaning.

[0037] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, referring to Figure 3 , the cleaning base station includes a sewage tank 400 and a sewage drain communicating with the sewage tank 400. When the cleaning device is docked on the cleaning base station, the sewage bucket of the cleaning device can be docked to the sewage drain, and then communicated to the sewage tank 400, so that the dirt collected during cleaning can be discharged into the sewage tank 400. When the sewage tank 400 reaches a preset capacity, the user can manually pour or discharge by an automatic emptying device.

[0038] In another embodiment of the present disclosure, the sewage tank 400 can also not be provided on the cleaning base station, and the sewage drain can be directly communicated to an external sewer. The sewage discharged from the sewage bucket of the cleaning device directly flows to the sewer through the sewage drain without being temporarily stored in the sewage tank 400. The two sewage discharge paths can be flexibly selected according to the installation environment of the cleaning base station and the actual needs of the user.

[0039] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, referring to Figure 3 , the cleaning base station includes a cleaning tank 200. When the cleaning device is docked on the cleaning base station, the cleaning unit (such as a roller brush, a roller, a cloth tray, etc.) of the cleaning device can be placed in the cleaning tank 200, so that self-cleaning is performed in the cleaning tank 200. After self-cleaning, sewage is generated in the cleaning tank 200, and the cleaning base station needs to recover the sewage for subsequent centralized treatment and discharge.

[0040] The cleaning base station of the present disclosure includes a sewage discharge system 100, which can be used to collect the sewage generated in the cleaning tank 200, so as to avoid long-term accumulation of the sewage in the cleaning tank 200, resulting in bacterial growth and odor generation. Optionally, in the embodiment in which the sewage tank 400 is provided, the sewage in the cleaning tank 200 can flow to the sewage tank 400 through the sewage discharge system 100 for temporary storage; in the embodiment in which the sewage tank 400 is not provided, the sewage in the cleaning tank 200 can flow to the sewer through the sewage discharge system 100, thereby being directly discharged externally.

[0041] Referring to Figure 1 , Figure 2 and Figure 5The sewage discharge system 100 comprises a pump body unit 1 and a drainage chamber 2. The pump body unit 1 is the power core, and has a closed impeller cavity 11 inside, and an impeller 12 located in the impeller cavity 11. The impeller 12 can rotate at high speed in the impeller cavity 11 to generate fluid conveying power. Optionally, the pump body unit 1 can be a centrifugal pump.

[0042] The pump body unit 1 has a water inlet 13 and a water outlet 14 which are in communication with the impeller cavity 11. The drainage chamber 2 is configured to have a sewage outlet 21 and a sewage inlet 22. The sewage outlet 21 is in communication with the impeller cavity 11 of the pump body unit 1 through the water inlet 13, and the sewage inlet 22 is used to communicate with the upstream sewage source. Specifically, the sewage inlet 22 can be in communication with the cleaning tank 200 described above, so that the sewage in the cleaning tank 200 can flow into the drainage chamber 2 through the sewage inlet 22. The water inlet 13 of the pump body unit 1 is used to receive liquid from the drainage chamber 2, and the liquid in the drainage chamber 2 can flow into the impeller cavity 11 through the sewage outlet 21 and the water inlet 13. The water outlet 14 is used to guide the liquid in the impeller cavity 11 to the outside sewage discharge path.

[0043] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, as shown in Figure 3 the sewage inlet 22 is in communication with the upstream sewage source through the sewage inlet pipe 3. In the specific embodiment in which the upstream sewage source is the sewage in the cleaning tank 200, the sewage inlet pipe 3 is configured to be in communication with the cleaning tank 200. Specifically, the sewage inlet pipe 3 is in sealed communication with the cleaning tank 200 and the sewage inlet 22 respectively, thereby ensuring that the sewage can flow stably into the drainage chamber 2 along the sewage inlet pipe 3. This embodiment forms a complete sewage treatment path of "sewage generated by the cleaning tank 200 → collected by the sewage inlet pipe 3 → temporarily stored in the drainage chamber 2 → discharged by the pump body unit 1", thereby ensuring that the sewage generated during the self-cleaning process can be collected and treated immediately.

[0044] Further, a filter assembly can be arranged in the drainage chamber 2 adjacent to the sewage inlet 22. The filter assembly can be a filter screen arranged on the sewage inlet path. It can be understood that, in addition to liquid such as sewage, the dirty water from the cleaning tank 200 also contains large-particle solid waste such as hair, paper sheets, and debris. During the flow in the sewage discharge system 100, the solid waste is easy to cause blockage of the pipeline, and the large-particle solid waste can cause the impeller 12 to be stuck, thereby causing the pump body unit 1 to fail. Therefore, the filter assembly is arranged in the drainage chamber 2 in this embodiment, so as to filter the dirty water entering the drainage chamber 2, and the solid waste can be filtered out by the filter assembly, thereby ensuring that the sewage discharge system 100 is not blocked.

[0045] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, referring to Figure 3The water outlet 14 of the pump body unit 1 is configured to communicate with the sewage pipeline 5, and the pump body unit 1 is configured to discharge sewage through the sewage pipeline 5 in a start-up state. Further, the sewage pipeline 5 is configured to communicate with the sewage tank 400 to store the sewage in the sewage tank 400, or the sewage pipeline 5 is configured to communicate with a ground drain to discharge the sewage to the ground drain. The two different sewage discharge paths can be adapted to different use scenarios, and the user can flexibly select according to the installation environment and actual needs of the cleaning base station, thereby expanding the application range and user group of the cleaning base station.

[0046] In the embodiment in which the sewage tank 400 is provided, the sewage pipeline 5 is in sealed communication with the water outlet 14 and the sewage tank 400, respectively. The sewage discharged by the pump body unit 1 through the water outlet 14 is temporarily stored in the sewage tank 400, and is manually poured or discharged by an automatic emptying device when the sewage tank 400 reaches a preset capacity. This sewage discharge path is particularly suitable for scenarios lacking a ground drain, such as a family bedroom, a shopping mall, a hotel, a temporary office area, etc. The sewage tank 400 can temporarily store sewage, avoiding direct external discharge of sewage to pollute the environment.

[0047] In the embodiment in which the sewage tank 400 is not provided, one end of the sewage pipeline 5 is in sealed communication with the water outlet 14, and the other end extends to a ground drain, which can be a municipal sewer, a dedicated sewage discharge pipeline, or other external structure of the cleaning base station. The sewage discharged by the pump body unit 1 through the water outlet 14 can be directly discharged to the outside through the ground drain system without temporary storage in the cleaning base station. For scenarios with a ground drain, such as a family bathroom, a commercial cleaning room, a cleaning area of an office building, etc., the direct discharge of the ground drain can achieve immediate treatment of the sewage, without the need for the user to frequently clean the sewage tank 400, thereby reducing the maintenance burden.

[0048] Reference Figure 1 The sewage discharge system 100 is configured to form a reserved liquid in the drainage chamber 2 before the pump body unit 1 starts to submerge the impeller 12. Specifically, before the sewage discharge system 100 starts the sewage discharge work (i.e., before the pump body unit 1 starts), a sufficient amount of liquid can be injected into the impeller cavity 11 and the drainage chamber 2, and the liquid level in the drainage chamber 2 is not lower than the impeller 12, preferably higher than the impeller 12, to ensure that the impeller 12 is always submerged in the liquid, laying a foundation for subsequent power transmission and negative pressure formation. The present disclosure forms a liquid seal by providing the drainage chamber 2 and injecting liquid into it, thereby submerging the impeller 12. It should be noted that after the pump body unit 1 starts, the liquid level in the drainage chamber 2 can be dynamically maintained: during the process of discharging the liquid in the impeller cavity 11 through the water outlet 14, the liquid from the cleaning tank 200 flows into the drainage chamber 2 through the sewage inlet pipeline 3, thereby replenishing the liquid level and preventing the liquid level from falling below the impeller 12.

[0049] The present disclosure forms a liquid seal by reserving liquid in the drainage chamber 2 not lower than the impeller 12 before the pump body unit 1 starts, thereby forming a natural liquid seal. When sewage needs to be discharged, the pump body unit 1 can discharge the liquid in the impeller cavity 11, so that the liquid level in the drainage chamber 2 or the impeller cavity 11 drops, thereby naturally forming negative pressure in the drainage chamber 2 to suck the upstream sewage source (such as the sewage in the cleaning tank 200). The liquid seal formed by the reserved liquid can effectively prevent external air from entering and avoid rapid loss of negative pressure. The present disclosure does not require strict air tightness of the waterway downstream of the water outlet 14, thereby avoiding the functional failure problem caused by air leakage of the sewage tank 400 or the waterway, and improving the user experience.

[0050] In the prior art, a diaphragm pump is usually used to extract negative pressure for sewage suction. Once any sealing point (such as a pipeline joint, a water tank weld, etc.) in the waterway is aged or loose to cause air leakage, the negative pressure environment is immediately destroyed, and the sewage collection function is directly disabled. The present disclosure forms a liquid seal by injecting liquid not lower than the impeller 12 of the pump body unit 1 in the drainage chamber 2 in advance, thereby not needing to use a diaphragm pump to extract negative pressure, significantly reducing the air tightness requirement of the sewage discharge system 100, and reducing the high-precision selection and detection cost of the waterway sealing components.

[0051] In addition, for a cleaning base station with “water supply and drainage” function, the prior art usually needs to integrate a diaphragm pump (for extracting negative pressure) and a centrifugal pump (for discharging water) in the cleaning base station, thereby causing high production cost of the cleaning base station. The present scheme only needs to set a single pump body unit 1 to complete the whole process of sucking sewage and discharging sewage, without the need for additional pump body and supporting pipeline, thereby simplifying the overall structure of the sewage discharge system 100, and greatly reducing the production cost, installation difficulty and later maintenance burden of the cleaning base station. The cleaning base station of the present disclosure can be used for a sweeping robot, a window cleaning robot and a mowing robot.

[0052] In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the sewage discharge port 21 is arranged near the bottom of the drainage chamber 2, for example, can be arranged on the bottom end face of the drainage chamber 2, or arranged at the bottom of the side wall of the drainage chamber, and is configured to communicate with the water inlet 13 of the pump body unit 1. The liquid level of the liquid in the drainage chamber 2 is not lower than the impeller 12 under the action of gravity. Figure 1 In the scheme shown, the sewage discharge port 21 is arranged on the bottom end face of the drainage chamber 2; Figure 4In the illustrated scheme, the drain opening 21 is arranged at the bottom of the side wall of the drainage chamber 2. By arranging the drain opening 21 at the bottom of the drainage chamber 2, the liquid in the drainage chamber 2 can be naturally collected at the drain opening 21 by gravity, reducing the residue of sewage in the drainage chamber 2. At the same time, the liquid reserved in the drainage chamber 2 does not need to be driven by additional power, but can be completely covered on the impeller 12 by relying on its own gravity. The liquid naturally settles under the action of gravity, and the liquid level is stably maintained above the impeller 12. By arranging the drain opening 21 at the bottom of the drainage chamber 2, the pump body does not need to consume additional power to extract low-position sewage, which reduces energy loss and reduces the retention of sewage at the bottom of the drainage chamber 2. The long-term retention of sewage can avoid deterioration and odor or block the pipeline, and improve the cleanliness of the internal environment of the cleaning base station. In addition, the gravity-driven liquid flowing out of the drainage chamber 2 does not need to rely on auxiliary control components such as liquid level sensors and electric valves, thereby reducing the failure points of the system (such as sensor failure and valve jamming), and reducing the manufacturing cost and maintenance frequency of the cleaning base station.

[0053] In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the pump body unit 1 is located below or at the side of the drainage chamber 2 and directly communicates with the drain opening 21 or communicates through a pipeline. Specifically, the installation position of the pump body unit 1 can be flexibly selected according to the arrangement position of the drain opening 21 on the drainage chamber 2 and the internal space layout of the cleaning base station, such as Figure 1 As shown, the pump body unit 1 can be arranged directly below the drainage chamber 2, such as Figure 4 As shown, the pump body unit 1 can also be installed at the side of the drainage chamber 2.

[0054] The connection mode of the pump body unit 1 and the drainage chamber 2 can be flexibly selected according to the opening position of the water inlet 13, the opening position of the drain opening 21, and the specific layout mode of the cleaning base station. As shown, Figure 1 As shown, the water inlet 13 of the pump body unit 1 can be directly connected with the drain opening 21 of the drainage chamber 2 (i.e. hard connection without additional pipeline), and the water inlet 13 can be arranged on the upper end face of the pump body unit 1, thereby forming a spatial layout of the upper drainage chamber 2 and the lower pump body unit 1. The liquid in the drainage chamber 2 can naturally flow into the impeller cavity 11 under the action of gravity, and continue to flow downward in the impeller cavity 11 until the liquid level reaches the required height.

[0055] As shown, Figure 4As shown, the water inlet 13 of the pump body unit 1 can be indirectly connected with the drain outlet 21 of the drain chamber 2 through a short distance of sealed pipeline. The water inlet 13 can be arranged on the upper portion of the side wall of the pump body unit 1, and the drain chamber 2 is located obliquely above the pump body unit 1. The liquid in the drain chamber 2 can flow out of the drain outlet 21 under the action of gravity and flow to the water inlet 13 through the pipeline. The liquid from the water inlet 13 can flow downward in the impeller cavity 11 under the action of gravity until the liquid level reaches the required height.

[0056] It should be noted that when there is sufficient space in the cleaning base station, the pump body unit 1 can be preferably installed below the drain chamber 2, so that the natural flow of sewage can be realized by gravity, and the pipeline resistance can be reduced. In contrast, when the bottom of the cleaning base station is occupied by other components, the side installation mode can effectively utilize the lateral space and avoid interference between components, thereby adapting to the compact layout requirements of the small-sized cleaning base station.

[0057] In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the volume of the liquid above the impeller 12 before the pump body unit 1 is started is configured to be at least greater than the volume of the inlet pipeline 3. In this way, the air in the inlet pipeline 3 can be prevented from entering the impeller cavity 11 when the sewage flows in, thereby ensuring the liquid sealing effect of the sewage discharge system 100 and the stability of the negative pressure environment, and improving the stability of the system operation.

[0058] Specifically, if the reserved liquid volume is insufficient, the liquid level of the reserved liquid will continue to decrease before the inlet pipeline 3 sucks all the sewage in the cleaning tank 200 into the drain chamber 2. It can be understood that the sewage discharge pipeline 5 simultaneously discharges the liquid in the impeller cavity 11 while the suction is being performed. If the amount of liquid sucked by the inlet pipeline 3 cannot make up for the amount of discharged liquid, the liquid level will continue to decrease. When the liquid level decreases below the height of the impeller 12, the liquid sealing is lost, the negative pressure environment above the liquid surface is destroyed, and the inlet pipeline 3 cannot continue to perform the suction.

[0059] In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the volume of the liquid above the impeller 12 before the pump body unit 1 is started is configured to be greater than the sum of the volumes of the air in the inlet pipeline 3 and the drain chamber 2. Specifically, the total volume of the reserved liquid inside the impeller cavity 11 and the reserved liquid above the impeller 12 in the drain chamber 2 needs to cover the sum of the volume of the air in the inlet pipeline 3 and the volume of the air naturally retained in the drain chamber 2 in the initial state (above the reserved liquid). This embodiment takes into account the actual working condition that the drain chamber 2 cannot completely exclude the air, and uses volume redundancy to cope with the influence of the space occupied by the air on the liquid level. In actual work process, a certain amount of air is retained at the top of the drainage chamber 2. When the discharge speed is greater than the liquid inlet speed, the liquid level will drop faster due to the existence of air space, which may cause the liquid level to be lower than the impeller 12 in advance. In the embodiment, the space occupied by the air is included in the buffer range, so as to ensure that the liquid level in the chamber is not lower than the impeller 12, and further ensure that the liquid seal is stable, the negative pressure environment is not destroyed, and the stability of the system operation is improved.

[0060] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, with reference to Figure 2 and Figure 5 , the drainage chamber 2 is configured to have a water supplement port 23, which is in communication with an external water source and is configured to inject a reserved liquid into the drainage chamber 2 before the pump body unit 1 is started. Specifically, the water supplement port 23 can be opened at the top end face of the drainage chamber 2 or at the upper position of the side wall. By opening the water supplement port 23 in communication with the external water source, the drainage chamber 2 is provided with a water supplement function. The water supplement operation needs to be completed before the pump body unit 1 is started, for example, when the cleaning base station is started for the first time (at this time, the impeller chamber 11, the drainage chamber 2, etc. are in a dry state), a sufficient amount of liquid is injected into the drainage chamber 2 through the water supplement port 23 (such as injection to two-thirds of the position in the drainage chamber 2), to ensure that the liquid level is at least not lower than the preset height of the impeller 12, and to establish a stable liquid seal for the subsequent operation of the sewage discharge system 100. In addition to the first use scenario, in actual application, the cleaning base station may be caused by long-term shutdown to cause the reserved liquid in the drainage chamber 2 to evaporate, or caused by slight leakage of the pipeline to cause liquid loss. If not supplemented in time, the volume of the reserved liquid in the chamber is insufficient when the pump body unit 1 is started next time, which causes the functions of suction and sewage discharge to be unable to be normally realized. The present disclosure sets the water supplement port 23, so as to actively supplement the liquid before the pump body unit 1 is started, to ensure that the liquid seal height meets the standard and to avoid the above-mentioned failure. The water supplement operation is completed before starting, so as not to affect the sewage discharge efficiency in the system operation process, and to ensure the operation continuity of the cleaning base station. In one embodiment of the present disclosure, a liquid level sensor is arranged in the drainage chamber 2, and when the liquid level in the drainage chamber 2 is lower than a predetermined liquid level, the external water source is controlled to inject liquid into the drainage chamber 2 through the water replenishing port 23. Specifically, the liquid level sensor can be signal-connected with the main control system of the cleaning base station, and its detection end corresponds to a preset minimum safe liquid level (i.e. the predetermined liquid level), and when the liquid surface is at the predetermined liquid level, the liquid surface can still submerge the impeller 12. The liquid level sensor can be selected from a float ball sensor, an electrode sensor, an ultrasonic sensor, etc., and the present disclosure does not limit the specific type of the liquid level sensor. The liquid level sensor can monitor the liquid level in the drainage chamber 2 in real time, and when it is detected that the liquid level is lower than the predetermined liquid level, the liquid level sensor can send a trigger signal to the main control system, and based on the trigger signal, the main control system controls to start water replenishment, so that sufficient liquid is injected into the drainage chamber 2 through the water replenishing port 23. By arranging the liquid level sensor and controlling water replenishment based on the trigger signal of the liquid level sensor, the present disclosure avoids the risk of liquid seal failure caused by liquid level fluctuation during sewage discharge, and improves the stability and automation degree of the sewage discharge system 100. At the same time, the automatic water replenishment design does not require the user to manually check the liquid level or add liquid frequently, which reduces the labor maintenance cost.

[0061] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, referring to Figure 3 , the cleaning base station further comprises a clean water pipeline 4, and the water replenishing port 23 is configured to communicate with the clean water pipeline 4 through a control valve. The control valve can be an electromagnetic valve, a stop valve, etc. arranged on the clean water pipeline 4, as long as the control valve is opened to open the path between the external water source and the water replenishing port 23 when water replenishment is needed. In other states, such as the state that the pump body unit 1 is working, the water replenishing port 23 remains in a sealed state, so as to avoid damaging the negative pressure environment in the drainage chamber 2.

[0062] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the clean water pipeline 4 is configured to communicate with the clean water tank 300 to supply water to the clean water pipeline 4 through the clean water tank 300. Specifically, in the cleaning base station without water supply function, a clean water tank 300 is usually needed to be arranged, which is mainly used for replenishing liquid for the cleaning device, and the clean water tank 300 stores cleaning medium. When water replenishment is needed, the liquid in the clean water tank 300 can flow into the drainage chamber 2 through the clean water pipeline 4, so as to ensure that the liquid seal height meets the standard. This embodiment reuses the inherent clean water tank 300 in the cleaning base station as a water source to realize the liquid replenishment function, so that a water source dedicated for liquid replenishment does not need to be additionally arranged, thereby reducing the production cost.

[0063] In another embodiment of the present disclosure, the clean water pipeline 4 is configured to communicate with an external water source to supply water to the clean water pipeline 4 by the external water source. Specifically, part of the cleaning base station is equipped with a water supply function, which directly communicates with the external water pipeline, so that the external water source can be used to replenish the drain chamber 2. The scheme of directly connecting the external water source makes the user not need to frequently replenish the clean water tank 300, thereby reducing the user's maintenance burden and improving the user's experience.

[0064] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, referring to Figure 4 , at least part of the blowdown pipeline 5 is arranged at a position higher than the drain chamber 2, and after the pump body unit 1 stops, the liquid in the blowdown pipeline 5 is configured to flow back to the drain chamber 2 through the pump body unit 1 to form a reserved liquid. Specifically, when the pump body unit 1 stops running, based on the principle of communicating vessels, the part of the liquid in the blowdown pipeline 5 that is higher than the drain chamber 2 will flow in the opposite direction along the blowdown pipeline 5 under the action of gravity, and the liquid flows back to the drain chamber 2 through the water outlet 14, impeller cavity 11, water inlet 13 and blowdown port 21 of the pump body unit 1, thereby playing a role in supplementing the reserved liquid. The present disclosure realizes autonomous replenishment of the reserved liquid through the liquid backflow of the blowdown pipeline 5, avoids frequent replenishment of the external water source, saves water resources, and reduces the use cost of the cleaning base station. The backflow liquid can timely make up for the liquid loss of the drain chamber 2 due to evaporation and slight leakage, maintain the stability of the liquid level height, and avoid functional failures caused by the decrease of the liquid level. The backflow replenishment mechanism can ensure that the liquid seal is in a qualified state before each start, without the need for additional inspection of the liquid level, thereby improving the automation degree of the sewage discharge system 100. In addition, the present disclosure can realize liquid backflow only through the height difference between the blowdown pipeline 5 and the drain chamber 2, without the need for additional backflow pumps or control valves, thereby simplifying the system structure. The present disclosure also provides a cleaning base station, which comprises a sewage discharge system 100. The sewage discharge system 100 comprises a pump body unit 1 and a drainage chamber 2. The specific structure and connection relationship of the pump body unit 1 and the drainage chamber 2 can be completely consistent with the foregoing embodiments. The sewage discharge system 100 is configured to have a liquid storage state before the pump body unit 1 is started. When in the liquid storage state, the liquid level in the drainage chamber 2 is not lower than the impeller 12 of the pump body unit 1. Specifically, before the pump body unit 1 is started, for example, before the first start, or when the pump body unit 1 is in standby, the sewage discharge system 100 is in the liquid storage state. At this time, a sufficient amount of liquid can be injected or pre-stored in the drainage chamber 2 to ensure that the impeller 12 is always immersed in the liquid. Further, when in the liquid storage state, the sewage discharge system 100 can monitor the liquid level in the drainage chamber 2, thereby ensuring that the liquid level is above the impeller 12 and the natural liquid seal is not damaged. When sewage discharge is needed, the pump body unit 1 can immediately form a stable negative pressure in the drainage chamber 2 after being started, thereby achieving effective sewage discharge.

[0065] The present disclosure also provides a cleaning base station of a smart robot, which comprises a sewage discharge system 100. The sewage discharge system 100 comprises a pump body unit 1. The specific structure and working principle of the pump body unit 1 can be completely consistent with the foregoing embodiments. In the sewage discharge system 100 of the present embodiment, the drainage chamber 2 can not be provided, and the water inlet 13 of the impeller cavity 11 can be directly communicated with an upstream sewage source, for example, the cleaning tank 200. Thus, the sewage in the cleaning tank 200 can flow into the impeller cavity 11 through the water inlet 13. The sewage discharge system 100 is configured to form a reserved liquid in the impeller cavity 11 before the pump body unit 1 is started, so that the liquid level in the impeller cavity 11 is not lower than the highest point of the impeller 12.

[0066] In the present embodiment, a natural liquid seal is formed in the impeller cavity 11. When sewage discharge is needed, the pump body unit 1 can discharge the liquid in the impeller cavity 11, so that the liquid level in the impeller cavity 11 decreases, thereby naturally forming a negative pressure in the impeller cavity 11 to suck the upstream sewage source. The liquid seal formed by the reserved liquid can effectively prevent external air from invading and avoid rapid loss of negative pressure. The present disclosure does not require strict air tightness of the waterway downstream of the water outlet, thereby avoiding the functional failure problem caused by air leakage of the sewage tank 400 and improving the user experience.

[0067] The present disclosure also provides a control method of a cleaning base station of a smart robot. The cleaning base station can be the cleaning base station provided in the foregoing embodiments. The control method comprises the following steps: The liquid level in the drainage chamber 2 is not lower than the impeller 12 of the pump body unit 1. The present disclosure forms a liquid seal by setting the drainage chamber 2 and injecting liquid into it, thereby immersing the impeller 12. It should be noted that after the pump body unit 1 is started, the liquid level in the drainage chamber 2 can be dynamically maintained: during the process of discharging the liquid in the impeller cavity 11 through the water outlet 14, the liquid from the cleaning tank 200 flows into the drainage chamber 2 through the sewage inlet pipe 3, thereby replenishing the liquid level and preventing the liquid level from being lowered to expose the impeller 12. Further, at least part of the sewage pipe 5 can be arranged at a position higher than the drainage chamber 2, so that after the pump body unit 1 is stopped, the liquid in the sewage pipe 5 can flow back to the drainage chamber 2 in reverse, thereby replenishing the reserved liquid in the drainage chamber 2 and maintaining the liquid level at the height of the impeller 12.

[0068] In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the control method further comprises: when the cleaning base station is started for the first time, controlling the external water source to inject liquid into the drainage chamber 2, so that the liquid level in the drainage chamber 2 is not lower than the impeller 12 of the pump body unit 1. Specifically, when the cleaning base station is started for the first time (at this time, the impeller cavity 11, the drainage chamber 2, etc. are in a dry state), the external water source can be injected into the drainage chamber 2 through the water replenishment port 23, so that the liquid level in the drainage chamber 2 is at least not lower than the height of the impeller 12, thereby establishing a stable liquid seal for subsequent operation of the sewage discharge system 100. In addition to maintaining the liquid level through water circulation, the present disclosure can also actively replenish water, thereby coping with the scenario of starting the cleaning base station for the first time. In addition to the scenario of first use, in actual application, the cleaning base station may, due to long-term shutdown, cause the reserved liquid in the drainage chamber 2 to evaporate, or due to slight leakage of the pipeline, cause the liquid to flow out. If not replenished in time, the volume of the reserved liquid in the chamber is insufficient when the pump body unit 1 is started next time, resulting in failure to normally implement the functions of pumping and sewage discharge. The present disclosure sets the water replenishment port 23, thereby actively replenishing liquid before the pump body unit 1 is started, ensuring that the liquid seal height meets the standard and avoiding the above-mentioned failure. The water replenishment operation is completed before starting, thereby not affecting the sewage discharge efficiency during system operation and ensuring the operation continuity of the cleaning base station.

[0069] The pump body unit 1 is controlled to be turned on, and the upstream sewage source is discharged through the sewage outlet 22, the drainage chamber 2, the impeller cavity 11 and the water outlet 14 in sequence. Specifically, the upstream sewage source can be the sewage in the cleaning tank 200, the cleaning tank 200 is communicated with the sewage inlet 22 of the drainage chamber 2 through the sewage inlet pipeline 3, the sewage outlet 21 of the drainage chamber 2 is communicated with the water inlet 13 of the impeller cavity 11, and the water outlet 14 of the impeller cavity 11 is communicated with the sewage tank 400 through the sewage outlet pipeline 5. When the sewage discharge work needs to be performed, the pump body unit 1 can discharge the liquid in the impeller cavity 11, so that the liquid level in the drainage chamber 2 or the impeller cavity 11 is lowered, thereby naturally forming a negative pressure in the drainage chamber 2 to suck the sewage in the cleaning tank 200; the sewage in the cleaning tank 200 enters the drainage chamber 2 through the sewage inlet pipeline 3, and then flows into the impeller cavity 11, the flowing-in sewage can dynamically replenish the liquid level, so as to avoid the liquid level being lowered to expose the impeller 12, and in the continuous flowing process, the sewage is discharged to the sewage tank 400 through the water outlet 14 and the sewage outlet pipeline 5.

[0070] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the control method further comprises: acquiring the liquid level height in the drainage chamber 2; and in the case that the liquid level height in the drainage chamber 2 is lower than a preset threshold, controlling the external water source to inject liquid into the drainage chamber 2. In this embodiment, a water level sensor can be arranged in the drainage chamber 2, when the liquid level height in the drainage chamber 2 is lower than the highest point of the impeller 12, i.e. the liquid level height is lower than the preset threshold, the water level sensor will send a water replenishment signal; based on the water replenishment signal, the control module in the sewage discharge system 100 can execute an active water replenishment program, and the external water source can be injected into the drainage chamber 2 through the water replenishment inlet 23, so that the liquid level in the drainage chamber 2 is raised to not lower than the height of the impeller 12, thereby establishing a stable liquid seal for the subsequent operation of the sewage discharge system 100. The above has described the embodiments of the present disclosure, the above description is exemplary, not exhaustive, and is not limited to the disclosed embodiments. Many modifications and changes are obvious to those skilled in the art without departing from the scope and spirit of the described embodiments. The selection of the terms used herein is intended to best explain the principles, practical applications or technical improvements in the market of the embodiments, or to enable other ordinary skilled persons in the art to understand the embodiments disclosed herein. The scope of the present disclosure is defined by the appended claims.

Claims

1. A cleaning base station for an intelligent robot, characterized in that, The clean base station includes a wastewater discharge system (100), wherein the wastewater discharge system (100) includes: Pump body unit (1), the pump body unit (1) has an impeller cavity (11), an impeller (12) located in the impeller cavity (11), and an inlet (13) and an outlet (14) communicating with the impeller cavity (11). The drainage chamber (2) has a drain outlet (21) and an inlet (22) for communicating with an upstream sewage source. The drain outlet (21) is configured to communicate with the impeller chamber (11) through an inlet (13). The wastewater discharge system (100) is configured to form a reserved liquid in the drainage chamber (2) before the pump unit (1) is started, so as to submerge the impeller (12).

2. The clean base station according to claim 1, characterized in that, The drain outlet (21) is located near the bottom of the drainage chamber (2) and is configured to communicate with the inlet (13) of the pump body unit (1); the liquid level in the drainage chamber (2) is not lower than the impeller (12) under the action of gravity.

3. The clean base station according to claim 2, characterized in that, The pump unit (1) is located below or to the side of the drainage chamber (2) and is directly connected to the sewage outlet (21) or connected through a pipe.

4. The clean base station according to claim 1, characterized in that, The inlet (22) is connected to the upstream sewage source through the inlet pipe (3); before the pump unit (1) is started, the volume of the liquid above the impeller (12) is configured to be at least greater than the volume of the inlet pipe (3).

5. The clean base station according to claim 4, characterized in that, Before the pump unit (1) is started, the volume of liquid above the impeller (12) is configured to be greater than the sum of the volumes of air in the inlet pipe (3) and the drain chamber (2).

6. The clean base station according to claim 4, characterized in that, The cleaning base station includes a cleaning tank (200), and the sewage inlet pipe (3) is configured to communicate with the cleaning tank (200).

7. The clean base station according to claim 1, characterized in that, The drainage chamber (2) is configured to have a water inlet (23) connected to an external water source and configured to inject reserved liquid into the drainage chamber (2) before the pump unit (1) is started.

8. The clean base station according to claim 7, characterized in that, The clean base station also includes a clean water pipe (4), and the water inlet (23) is configured to be connected to the clean water pipe (4) via a control valve; wherein the clean water pipe (4) is configured to be connected to a clean water tank (300) to supply water to the clean water pipe (4) through the clean water tank (300), or the clean water pipe (4) is configured to be connected to an external water source to supply water to the clean water pipe (4) through the external water source.

9. The clean base station according to claim 7, characterized in that, A liquid level sensor is installed in the drainage chamber (2). When the liquid level in the drainage chamber (2) is lower than the predetermined liquid level, the external water source is controlled to inject liquid into the drainage chamber (2) through the water inlet (23).

10. The clean base station according to claim 1, characterized in that, The outlet (14) of the pump unit (1) is configured to be connected to the sewage pipe (5), and the pump unit (1) is configured to discharge sewage through the sewage pipe (5) when the pump is in operation. At least part of the sewage pipe (5) is located above the drainage chamber (2). After the pump unit (1) stops, the liquid in the sewage pipe (5) is configured to flow back to the drainage chamber (2) through the pump unit (1) to form a reserved liquid.

11. The clean base station according to claim 10, characterized in that, The sewage pipe (5) is configured to communicate with a sewage tank (400) to transport sewage to the sewage tank (400) for storage; or, the sewage pipe (5) is configured to communicate with a ground drain to transport sewage to the ground drain.

12. A sewage discharge system for an intelligent robot, characterized in that, include: Pump body unit (1), the pump body unit (1) has an impeller cavity (11), an impeller (12) located in the impeller cavity (11), and an inlet (13) and an outlet (14) communicating with the impeller cavity (11). The drainage chamber (2) has a drain outlet (21) and an inlet (22) for communicating with an upstream sewage source. The drain outlet (21) is configured to communicate with the impeller chamber (11) through an inlet (13). The wastewater discharge system (100) is configured to form a reserved liquid in the drainage chamber (2) before the pump unit (1) is started, so that the liquid level in the drainage chamber (2) is higher than that in the impeller (12).

13. A cleaning base station for an intelligent robot, characterized in that, The clean base station includes a wastewater discharge system (100), wherein the wastewater discharge system (100) includes: Pump body unit (1), the pump body unit (1) has an impeller cavity (11), an impeller (12) located in the impeller cavity (11), and an inlet (13) and an outlet (14) communicating with the impeller cavity (11). The wastewater discharge system (100) is configured to form a reserved liquid in the impeller cavity (11) before the pump unit (1) is started, so that the liquid level in the impeller cavity (11) is not lower than the highest point of the impeller (12).

14. A control method for a cleaning base station of an intelligent robot, wherein the cleaning base station adopts the cleaning base station according to any one of claims 1-11, characterized in that, The control method includes the following steps: Liquid is injected into the drainage chamber (2) so that the liquid level in the drainage chamber (2) is not lower than the impeller (12) of the pump body unit (1). The pump unit (1) is turned on, and the upstream sewage source is discharged through the sewage inlet (22) in sequence through the drainage chamber (2), impeller chamber (11) and outlet (14).

15. The control method according to claim 14, characterized in that, The control method further includes: When the cleaning base station is started for the first time, the external water source is controlled to inject liquid into the drainage chamber (2) so that the liquid level in the drainage chamber (2) is not lower than the impeller (12) of the pump body unit (1).

16. The control method according to claim 14, characterized in that, The control method further includes: Obtain the liquid level in the drainage chamber (2); When the liquid level in the drainage chamber (2) is lower than a preset threshold, the external water source is controlled to inject liquid into the drainage chamber (2).

17. A cleaning base station for an intelligent robot, characterized in that, The clean base station includes a wastewater discharge system (100), wherein the wastewater discharge system (100) includes: Pump body unit (1), the pump body unit (1) has an impeller cavity (11), an impeller (12) located in the impeller cavity (11), and an inlet (13) and an outlet (14) communicating with the impeller cavity (11). The drainage chamber (2) has a drain outlet (21) and an inlet (22) for communicating with an upstream sewage source. The drain outlet (21) is configured to communicate with the impeller chamber (11) through an inlet (13). The sewage discharge system (100) is configured to have a liquid storage state before the pump unit (1) is started. When in the liquid storage state, the liquid level in the drainage chamber (2) is not lower than the impeller (12) of the pump unit (1).

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