Floor scrubber with function of adaptively adjusting pressure of disc brush to ground

Abstract

The invention relates to a scrubber with a function of adaptively adjusting the pressure of a disc brush to the ground, which comprises a machine body, a disc brush assembly, a lifting motor, a force detection device and a controller, and is characterized in that the lifting motor is connected with the disc brush assembly and is used for driving the disc brush assembly to move up and down; and the force detection device is constructed to be used for detecting the vertical component of the counter-acting force applied to the at least one disc brush by the ground to be cleaned during the scrubbing operation of the disc brush assembly, and the controller is in communication connection with the force detection device and the lifting motor and is configured to control the work of the lifting motor based on the detection result of the force detection device. According to the scheme, the scrubber can automatically and accurately adjust the pressure of the disc brush on the ground, so that the cleaning efficiency, the equipment adaptability and the intelligent level are improved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of floor cleaning equipment technology, and in particular to a commercial floor scrubber, specifically a floor scrubber capable of adaptively adjusting the pressure of the disc brush on the floor according to working conditions. Background Technology

[0002] Commercial floor scrubbers, including walk-behind, ride-on, and self-propelled models, have become indispensable cleaning equipment for large hard floors (such as airports, shopping malls, factory workshops, and warehouses). Their basic working principle is that cleaning brushes located at the front or bottom of the machine scrub stains by rubbing against the floor sprayed with cleaning fluid. Among these, disc brushes are widely used as the core cleaning brush due to their compact structure and high driving efficiency. Driven by a motor, the disc brush rotates at high speed around its own axis, creating continuous relative motion between the bristle tips and the floor, thus achieving scrubbing.

[0003] To improve cleaning efficiency, a common practice in existing technologies is to apply a vertical pressure load towards the ground to the disc brush assembly. By increasing the normal pressure between the disc brush and the ground, its working friction can be effectively increased, thereby improving its ability to remove attached dirt. For example, some floor scrubbers use a lifting motor to adjust the distance between the disc brush and the surface to be cleaned, thus pressurizing the disc brush and providing it with a basically constant or manually preset but unchanging downward pressure during operation.

[0004] However, in real-world operating environments, floor conditions are complex and varied, with uneven roughness, material hardness, and smoothness. For example, the cleaning path may transition from a smooth epoxy floor to a rough concrete surface, or from a dry area to an area with oil and water accumulation. When floor conditions change, the actual contact area and contact state between the brush and the floor dynamically change. Applying a constant pressure load at this time can trigger a series of problems. Current technologies lack the ability to perceive floor roughness in real time, resulting in inconsistent cleaning performance of floor scrubbers on surfaces with varying roughness. This inconsistency in cleaning performance severely impacts the overall cleaning quality and user experience of commercial floor scrubbers. Summary of the Invention

[0005] To address the aforementioned problems, the purpose of this invention is to provide a floor scrubber capable of automatically adjusting the pressure load of the disc brush on the ground according to changes in ground roughness.

[0006] Therefore, this application provides a floor scrubbing machine, comprising: a body; a disc brush assembly supported at the bottom of the body and including at least one rotatable disc brush, the disc brush assembly being configured to perform a scrubbing operation by contacting the floor to be cleaned with the at least one disc brush; a lifting motor connected to the disc brush assembly and configured to drive the disc brush assembly to move up and down; a force detection device configured to detect the vertical component of the reaction force exerted on the at least one disc brush by the floor to be cleaned during the scrubbing operation, the force detection device including at least one force sensor; and a controller communicatively connected to the force detection device and the lifting motor, the controller being configured to control the operation of the lifting motor based on the detection result of the force detection device.

[0007] In some embodiments, the number of the disc brushes is one pair, arranged side by side on the lower part of the mounting plate.

[0008] In some embodiments, the disc brush assembly includes a mounting plate, and the at least one disc brush is detachably mounted on the lower part of the mounting plate.

[0009] In some embodiments, the disc brush assembly includes at least one disc brush motor, each of which is mounted on the upper part of the mounting plate and is connected to the corresponding disc brush drive to drive the disc brush to rotate.

[0010] In some embodiments, the force detection device is disposed in a force transmission path in which the reaction force is transmitted between the mounting plate and the force detection device.

[0011] In some embodiments, the lifting motor is arranged in the force transmission path.

[0012] In some embodiments, the lifting motor is located above the mounting plate. The force detection device is located above the lifting motor.

[0013] In some embodiments, the force detection device is mounted on the bottom of the body.

[0014] In some embodiments, the system further includes a vertical pole located in the force transmission path, the vertical pole extending in a vertical direction and having its lower end engaged with the central region of the mounting plate.

[0015] In some embodiments, the floor scrubbing machine is a self-moving floor scrubbing robot.

[0016] Compared with the prior art, the beneficial effects of this application are as follows: by using a force detection device, the machine has the ability to perceive and respond to changes in ground conditions in real time, thereby controlling the lifting motor so that the pressure of its disc brush on the ground can be dynamically and adaptively adjusted according to real-time working conditions, thus maintaining optimal cleaning efficiency and economy under various complex ground conditions. Attached Figure Description

[0017] Figure 1 This is a three-dimensional structural diagram of a floor scrubbing machine according to the present invention.

[0018] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the lower part of the body after removing the outer shell, as shown in this invention.

[0019] Figure 3 for Figure 2 A partial schematic diagram of the lower part of the body;

[0020] Among them, 100 is the floor scrubber; 10 is the machine body; 20 is the disc brush assembly; 201 is the disc brush; 202 is the mounting plate; 203 is the disc brush motor; 30 is the lifting motor; 40 is the force detection device; 50 is the controller; 60 is the upright pole; and 70 is the sensor bracket. Detailed Implementation

[0021] The technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of the present invention, and not all embodiments. All other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art based on the embodiments of the present invention without creative effort are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0022] This invention provides a floor scrubbing machine, particularly a commercial floor scrubbing machine that can adaptively adjust the pressure of the disc brush on the floor according to working conditions. It is preferably a self-moving floor scrubbing robot that can autonomously move in the area to be cleaned and perform scrubbing operations.

[0023] refer to Figures 1 to 3 The floor scrubber 100 includes a body 10, a disc brush assembly 20, a lifting motor 30, a force detection device 40, and a controller 50.

[0024] The body 10 typically contains components such as a clean water tank, a wastewater tank, and a suction device. For self-moving floor cleaning robots, the bottom of the body 10 is also equipped with drive wheels and casters to enable autonomous movement.

[0025] The disc brush assembly 20 is supported at the bottom of the body 10 and is configured to use one or more disc brushes to contact the surface to be cleaned for scrubbing operations. The disc brush assembly 20 includes disc brushes 201, a mounting plate 202, and a disc brush motor 203. At least one disc brush 201 is detachably mounted on the lower part of the mounting plate 202; this detachable design facilitates the replacement and cleaning of the disc brushes 201. The disc brush motor 203 is mounted on the upper part of the mounting plate 202 and is connected to the corresponding disc brush drive to drive the disc brushes in a rotating cleaning operation.

[0026] In this embodiment, two disc brushes 201 are detachably mounted on the lower part of the mounting plate 202, and the two disc brushes are symmetrically distributed. Two disc brush motors 203 are mounted on the upper part of the mounting plate 202 at positions corresponding to the disc brushes 201, and are connected to the corresponding disc brushes 201 through a transmission mechanism (such as a gearbox, coupling, etc.) to independently drive the disc brushes 201 to rotate. This dual-disc brush design increases the scrubbing area and improves cleaning efficiency.

[0027] The lifting motor 30 is connected to the disc brush assembly 20 and is used to drive the entire disc brush assembly 20 to move up and down relative to the machine body 10. The lifting motor 30 can convert the rotational motion into linear motion through a lead screw and nut mechanism, a linkage mechanism, or a gear and rack mechanism (not shown in the figure), thereby driving the disc brush assembly 20 to rise and fall. By controlling the rise and fall of the disc brush assembly 20, the contact pressure between the disc brush 201 and the ground can be adjusted, which can adapt to various working conditions of the ground (such as smooth ground, carpet ground, complex transition areas, and deep cleaning ground).

[0028] The force detection device 40 is used to detect the mechanical state of the disc brush assembly 20 during the scrubbing operation. Specifically, when the disc brush 201 rotates and presses against the ground for scrubbing, the ground to be cleaned generates an upward reaction force on the disc brush 201. The force detection device 40 is configured to detect the vertical component of this reaction force (i.e., the force perpendicular to the ground). The force detection device 40 includes at least one force sensor, which can be a pressure sensor, a load cell, a strain gauge sensor, etc.

[0029] In this embodiment, the lifting motor 30 is located above the mounting plate 202. The force detection device 40 is located above the lifting motor 30 and is ultimately mounted on the bottom of the body 10 via the sensor bracket 70. To achieve effective force transmission and detection, the force detection device 40 and the lifting motor 30 are arranged in a force transmission path. In this path, the reaction force applied to the surface to be cleaned is transmitted to the force detection device 40 through the mounting plate 202, enabling it to sense the magnitude of the force.

[0030] To optimize force transmission and ensure detection accuracy, the floor scrubber 100 may also include a support post 60. The support post 60 is located in the force transmission path, extends vertically, and its lower end engages with the central region of the mounting plate 202. As a key component in the force transmission path, the support post 60 can concentrate and stably transmit the reaction force borne by the mounting plate 202 upwards to the force detection device 40.

[0031] The controller 50 is communicatively connected to both the force detection device 40 and the lifting motor 30. The controller 50 is configured to receive detection signals from the force detection device 40 in real time or periodically (the detection signal is the magnitude of the reaction force applied to the surface to be cleaned as sensed by the force detection device 40), and control the operation of the lifting motor 30 based on the detection results.

[0032] In a preferred embodiment, a target pressure value can be preset in the controller 50. When the actual pressure detected by the force detection device 40 is lower than the target value, the controller 50 can control the lifting motor 30 to drive the brush assembly 20 downward, increasing the pressure of the brush 201 on the ground; conversely, when the actual pressure is too high, it controls the brush assembly 20 to move upward, reducing the pressure. This closed-loop control ensures that the floor scrubber maintains optimal cleaning pressure and cleaning effect on different floor conditions, while avoiding excessive pressure that could overload the motor or damage the floor. Especially for self-moving floor scrubbers, this intelligently adapts to complex floor conditions in the home environment.

[0033] The above description is merely a specific embodiment of the present invention, but the scope of protection of the present invention is not limited thereto. Any variations or substitutions that can be easily conceived by those skilled in the art within the scope of the technology disclosed in the present invention should be included within the scope of protection of the present invention. Therefore, the scope of protection of the present invention should be determined by the scope of the claims.

Claims

1. A scrubber, characterized in that, Comprise: a machine body; a disc brush assembly supported on the bottom of the machine body and comprising at least one disc brush rotatable by driving, the disc brush assembly being configured to perform scrubbing operation by contacting the floor to be cleaned with the at least one disc brush; a lifting motor connected with the disc brush assembly and configured to drive the disc brush assembly to move up and down; a force detecting device configured to detect the vertical component of the reaction force applied to the at least one disc brush by the floor to be cleaned during the scrubbing operation of the disc brush assembly, the force detecting device comprising at least one force sensor; and a controller communicatively connected with the force detecting device and the lifting motor, the controller being configured to control the operation of the lifting motor based on the detection result of the force detecting device. The number of the disc brushes is a pair, which are arranged side by side on the lower part of the mounting plate.

2. The walk-behind scrubber of claim 1, wherein, The disc brush assembly comprises a mounting plate, and the at least one disc brush is detachably mounted on the lower part of the mounting plate.

3. The walk-behind scrubber of claim 1, wherein, The disc brush assembly comprises at least one disc brush motor, each of which is mounted on the upper part of the mounting plate and is in driving connection with the corresponding disc brush to drive the disc brush to rotate.

4. The scrubber of claim 3, wherein, The force detecting device is arranged in a force transmission path, in which the reaction force is transmitted between the mounting plate and the force detecting device.

5. The scrubber of claim 3, wherein, The lifting motor is arranged in the force transmission path.

6. The scrubber of claim 5, wherein, The lifting motor is located on the upper side of the mounting plate.

7. The machine of claim 6, wherein, The force detecting device is located on the upper side of the lifting motor.

8. The machine of claim 7, wherein, The force detecting device is mounted on the bottom of the machine body.

9. The walk-behind scrubber of claim 5, wherein, Further comprise: a vertical rod located in the force transmission path, the vertical rod extending in the vertical direction and the lower end of the vertical rod engaging with the middle area of the mounting plate.

10. The walk-behind scrubber of claim 1, wherein, The scrubber is a self-moving scrubber robot.

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