Cleaning device

Abstract

The utility model relates to cleaning equipment which is provided with a rolling brush assembly, and the rolling brush assembly comprises at least one rolling brush used for cleaning a surface to be cleaned; the rolling brush cavity is used for accommodating the rolling brush; the hair cleaning device is configured to clean hair on the rolling brush; the hair cleaning device has at least a first state and a second state, where the second state is different from the first state. According to the cleaning equipment, the hair cleaning device has two different states, in one state, the hair on the rolling brush can be stripped from the rolling brush by the hair cleaning device, and in the other state, the stripped hair can be separated from the hair cleaning device and can be sucked away, interference of wound hair on rotation of the rolling brush is reduced, and the service life of the rolling brush is prolonged. And the cleaning efficiency of the rolling brush is improved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This utility model relates to the field of cleaning equipment technology, and specifically to a cleaning device. Background Technology

[0002] With the continuous development of smart technology, smart cleaning equipment has emerged to assist users in cleaning floors.

[0003] Robotic vacuum cleaners typically clean floors by using a combination of brushing and vacuuming to collect dust and debris from the floor into their dustbin. A typical robotic vacuum cleaner consists of a main body with a vacuum port at the bottom. A rotating brush at the vacuum port agitates the dust, causing it to be drawn into the machine through the vacuum port. However, because floors often contain hair, lint, and other debris, these soft impurities can easily become entangled in the brush during the vacuum process. This not only causes noise and reduced cleaning efficiency but can also move towards the rotating shaft at both ends of the brush as it rotates, potentially jamming the shaft and causing the brush to malfunction. Utility Model Content

[0004] Therefore, it is necessary to improve the current cleaning robots to remove hair and increase the cleaning efficiency of the roller brush.

[0005] The technical solution adopted by this utility model to solve the problem of the prior art is:

[0006] In a first aspect, this disclosure provides a cleaning device, comprising:

[0007] At least one roller brush is used to clean the surface to be cleaned;

[0008] The brush chamber is used to house the brush.

[0009] The hair removal device is configured to remove hair from the roller brush;

[0010] The hair removal device has at least a first state and a second state, wherein the second state is different from the first state.

[0011] Compared with the prior art, the beneficial effects of this utility model are as follows: The cleaning device provided by this disclosure, by setting a hair cleaning device on the roller brush assembly, has two different states. In one state, the hair on the roller brush can be peeled off the roller brush by the hair cleaning device. In the other state, the peeled hair can be detached from the hair cleaning device and can be sucked away, thereby leaving the roller brush cavity. For example, by setting the hair cleaning device to be deformable or movable, the hair cleaning device can have two different states. When the hair cleaning device cleans the hair on the roller brush, because the hair cleaning device is deformable or movable, the hair being cleaned falls off the hair cleaning device and is sucked away under the action of negative pressure to leave the roller brush cavity. This prevents hair from getting tangled or minimizes hair getting tangled on the hair cleaning device, reducing the interference of tangled hair on the rotation of the roller brush and improving the cleaning efficiency of the roller brush. Attached Figure Description

[0012] The above and other objects, features, and advantages of this application will become more apparent from the more detailed description of the embodiments of this application in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. The drawings are provided to further illustrate the embodiments of this application and form part of the specification. They are used together with the embodiments of this application to explain the application and do not constitute a limitation thereof. In the drawings, the same reference numerals generally represent the same components or steps.

[0013] The objectives, technical solutions, and beneficial effects of this utility model described above can be achieved through the following figures:

[0014] Figure 1 This is a top view schematic diagram of a hair cleaning device provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0015] Figure 2 This is a three-dimensional schematic diagram of a roller brush assembly provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0016] Figure 3 This is a bottom view schematic diagram of a roller brush assembly provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0017] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram showing the installation position of the hair cleaning device according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0018] Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram showing the installation position of the hair cleaning device according to another embodiment of the present invention;

[0019] Figure 6 This is a cross-sectional schematic diagram of a hair cleaning device provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0020] Figure 7 This is a cross-sectional schematic diagram of a hair cleaning device provided in another embodiment of the present invention;

[0021] Figure 8 This is a cross-sectional schematic diagram of a hair cleaning device provided in another embodiment of the present invention;

[0022] Figure 9 This is a cross-sectional schematic diagram of a roller brush assembly with a trimming roller brush provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0023] Figure 10 This is a schematic diagram showing the overlap of the hair removal device and the cleaning part provided in one embodiment of the present invention;

[0024] Figure 11 This is a schematic diagram of the hair cleaning device provided in an embodiment of the present invention in its first state;

[0025] Figure 12 This is a schematic diagram of the hair removal device provided in an embodiment of the present invention in a second state;

[0026] Figure 13 This is a schematic diagram of the hair removal device in a first state according to another embodiment of the present invention;

[0027] Figure 14 This is a schematic diagram of the hair removal device provided in another embodiment of the present invention in a second state;

[0028] Figure 15 This is a schematic diagram of the hair removal device in its first state according to another embodiment of the present invention;

[0029] Figure 16 This is a schematic diagram of the hair removal device in a second state according to another embodiment of the present invention;

[0030] Figure 17 This is a schematic diagram of a hair removal device provided in one embodiment of the present invention, in which multiple hair removal devices are arranged in the circumferential direction;

[0031] Figure 18 This is a schematic diagram of a hair removal device provided in another embodiment of the present invention, in which multiple hair removal devices are arranged in the circumferential direction;

[0032] Figure 19 This is a schematic diagram of a roller brush assembly with a baffle provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0033] Figure 20 This is a cross-sectional schematic diagram of a roller brush assembly with a baffle provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0034] Figure label:

[0035] 10-Roller brush assembly;

[0036] 100-Roller Brush;

[0037] 300-Cut bristle roller;

[0038] 1001 - First roller brush;

[0039] 1002 - Second roller brush;

[0040] 1003 - Wool Top;

[0041] 1004-Adhesive Strip;

[0042] 101-Brush chamber;

[0043] 102 - Hair removal device;

[0044] 1021 - Hair follicle action area;

[0045] 1022 - Installation Department;

[0046] 103-Dust Inlet

[0047] 104 - Air duct;

[0048] 105 - Electric motor;

[0049] 106 - Transmission mechanism;

[0050] 107-Baffle

[0051] 201 - Upper shell;

[0052] 202-Lower shell;

[0053] 203 - Cover switch;

[0054] Z-Preset Range. Detailed Implementation

[0055] The technical solutions of the embodiments of this application will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of this application, and not all embodiments. Based on the embodiments of this application, all other embodiments obtained by those of ordinary skill in the art without creative effort are within the scope of protection of this application. Unless otherwise specified, the implementation methods and features in the implementation methods of this application can be combined with each other.

[0056] In the description of this application, it should be understood that the terms "center," "longitudinal," "lateral," "upper," "lower," "left," "right," "vertical," "horizontal," "top," "bottom," "axial," "radial," and "circumferential," etc., indicating orientation or positional relationships, are based on the orientation or positional relationships shown in the accompanying drawings and are used only for the convenience of describing this application and simplifying the description, and do not indicate or imply that the device or element referred to must have a specific orientation, or be constructed and operated in a specific orientation, and therefore should not be construed as a limitation on this application. Furthermore, "inner" and "outer" refer to the inner and outer contours relative to the outline of each component itself.

[0057] Furthermore, the terms "first" and "second" are used for descriptive purposes only and should not be construed as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly specifying the number of technical features indicated. Thus, a feature defined with "first" or "second" may explicitly or implicitly include at least one of that feature.

[0058] Currently, cleaning equipment often traps dog hair and other fur from the floor onto its roller brush during cleaning. This is especially problematic because different breeds of dogs have significantly different hair characteristics, such as length, density, stickiness, and smoothness. Longer, stickier hairs tend to cling to the roller brush, making them difficult to remove, reducing cleaning efficiency, and potentially damaging the brush. In this application, the cleaning equipment may include cleaning robots and handheld cleaning devices. Cleaning robots include sweeping robots, floor scrubbing robots, and robot vacuums / mops, while handheld cleaning devices include vacuum cleaners and floor scrubbers. (For ease of explanation...)

[0059] To solve the above problems, fixing teeth can be added inside the roller brush cavity. However, although this solution can clean the hair on the roller brush to some extent through the fixing teeth, the fixing teeth can only scrape off the loose hair on the surface of the roller brush. Therefore, it can clean some short and less sticky hairs such as dog hair. However, the cleaning effect is not good for longer and stickier hairs such as dog hair. The main reason is that longer or stickier hairs will also adhere to the fixing teeth and clump together. The clumps of hair attached to the fixing teeth will block the fixing teeth, resulting in a worse and worse cleaning effect, and may even affect the rotation of the roller brush.

[0060] For ease of explanation, the foregoing embodiments of this application will not distinguish between cleaning robots and handheld cleaning devices. A roller brush assembly can be provided on the cleaning device, and the hair-operated part of the roller brush assembly can be deformable or movable. In some embodiments, the advantages and disadvantages of using movable and deformable hair-operated parts in cleaning robots will be distinguished in conjunction with the various features of the foregoing embodiments, and will be explained in detail.

[0061] In view of this, refer to Figures 1 to 20 This disclosure provides a roller brush assembly 10, including:

[0062] At least one roller brush 100 is used to clean the surface to be cleaned;

[0063] The roller brush cavity 101 is used to accommodate the roller brush;

[0064] Hair removal device 102 is configured to remove hair from the roller brush;

[0065] The hair removal device has at least a first state and a second state, the second state being different from the first state.

[0066] Regarding how to represent the differences between the first and second states:

[0067] In some embodiments, in a first state, hair can be detached from the roller brush; in other words, when the hair removal device is in the first state, the hair removal device is configured to detach hair from the roller brush or at least a portion of the hair attached to the roller brush can be detached from the roller brush by the hair removal device.

[0068] It should be noted that the hair removal can be achieved through scraping, hooking, or other methods by the hair removal device. Taking the scraping method as an example, when the hair comes into contact with the hair removal device, at least part of the hair can be removed from the roller brush under the scraping action of the hair removal device.

[0069] In some embodiments, in the second state, the hair can be sucked away to detach from the brush chamber; for example, in the second state, the hair can detach from the hair cleaning device and then be sucked away to detach from the brush chamber, thereby avoiding the effects caused by hair accumulation, the cleaning effect of the hair cleaning device, and the problem of affecting the rotation of the brush; in other words, when the hair cleaning device is in the second state, at least a portion of the hair stripped from the brush can detach from the hair cleaning device and be sucked away under negative pressure, thereby detaching from the brush chamber.

[0070] In some embodiments, negative pressure can be provided by a fan; the roller brush assembly has a dust inlet 103, and the roller brush cavity may include a dust inlet; the dust inlet can be connected to the fan through the air duct 104; at this time, in the second state, hair can reach the dust collection device (such as dust box, dust bag, dust cup, etc.) for collecting dust, hair and other foreign objects through the dust inlet and air duct under the negative pressure provided by the fan.

[0071] In summary, the hair removal device provided in this disclosure can achieve two functions: on the one hand, it can peel the hair off the roller brush, so that the hair can be removed from the roller brush; on the other hand, the hair can be removed from the hair removal device, that is, the hair can be removed from the hair removal device and then sucked away, leaving the roller brush cavity.

[0072] In order to enable hair to detach from the hair removal device, the space for hair movement can be improved. Therefore, in some embodiments, the space for hair movement is larger in the second state than in the first state, which is conducive to the hair detaching from the hair removal device.

[0073] In order to enable the hair to be sucked away quickly, in some embodiments, in the second state, the space for the hair to move towards the dust inlet is larger than that in the first state, thereby facilitating the rapid suction of the hair after it leaves the hair cleaning device and detaches it from the brush chamber.

[0074] It is understandable that the direction of the force applied by the roller brush to the hair-acting part, the direction of deformation of the deformable hair-acting part, or the direction of movement of the movable hair-acting part are the same.

[0075] It should be noted that the direction of the force applied by the roller brush to the hair-acting part is related to the rotation direction of the roller brush. The deformation direction of the deformable hair-acting part or the movement direction of the movable hair-acting part is related to the direction of the force applied by the roller brush to the hair-acting part. Therefore, by controlling the rotation direction of the roller brush, the direction of the force applied by the roller brush to the hair-acting part can be controlled, thereby achieving control over the deformation direction of the deformable hair-acting part or the movement direction of the movable hair-acting part.

[0076] In some embodiments, the roller brush assembly includes a housing for forming a roller brush cavity, the roller brush being mounted on the housing and rotatable relative to the housing.

[0077] In order to achieve the rotation of the roller brush, in some embodiments, the roller brush assembly includes a motor 105 for driving the roller brush to rotate.

[0078] In some embodiments, the roller brush assembly includes a transmission mechanism 106 connected to a motor 105. The transmission mechanism 106 transmits power from the motor 105 to the roller brush, enabling the motor to drive the roller brush to rotate. Optionally, the transmission mechanism may be a gear mechanism including a gearbox, for example; this embodiment does not limit this approach.

[0079] In some embodiments, a dust inlet is provided on the housing and can be connected to one end of a duct; the other end of the duct can be connected to a fan that provides negative pressure.

[0080] To facilitate maintenance of the roller brush, in some embodiments, the housing includes an upper housing 201, and a dust inlet is disposed on the upper housing;

[0081] Furthermore, the housing may also include a lower housing 202 (also known as a lower cover plate), and the upper housing and the lower housing surround to form a brush cavity for accommodating the brush assembly.

[0082] In some embodiments, the upper housing and the lower housing are detachably connected.

[0083] To facilitate user operation, in some embodiments, the housing may also include a cover switch 203, which is located at the connection between the upper and lower housings. By toggling the cover switch, the user can open the lower cover to maintain the roller brush.

[0084] In some embodiments, the hair removal device may be disposed within the brush chamber.

[0085] Considering that the brush chamber is formed by the upper housing and the lower cover plate, the hair removal device can be installed on the upper housing or the lower cover plate; the specific installation can be determined according to the space of the brush chamber and the requirements (e.g., in a location that is convenient for the user to disassemble).

[0086] To facilitate maintenance of the hair removal device, in some embodiments, the hair removal device is configured to be detachably connected to the brush chamber, so as to facilitate maintenance of the entire hair removal device, including the hair-acting part.

[0087] The hair removal device and the roller brush cavity can be detachably connected by means such as adhesive bonding, snap-fit ​​connection, or threaded connection. When the upper housing and lower cover are disconnected or the lower cover is opened, the detachable connecting parts (such as screws, snaps, and adhesive strips) between the hair removal device and the roller brush cavity can be exposed so that the user can disassemble and maintain the hair removal device.

[0088] In order to enable the hair removal device to have two states, or to allow the hair to move more freely in the second state than in the first state, thereby allowing it to detach from the hair removal device:

[0089] In some embodiments, the hair removal device has a hair-acting part that is deformable, in which case the hair removal device has a first state and a second state by the deformation of the hair-acting part.

[0090] To improve the cleaning effect on the brush bristles, in some embodiments, the hair cleaning device has a hair-removing part along the length of the brush.

[0091] Considering the shape of the hair-acting part, in some embodiments, the hair-acting part can also be constructed as a tooth-like structure;

[0092] In some embodiments, the hair cleaning device has a plurality of hair-acting parts arranged along the length of the roller brush, and the plurality of hair-acting parts are spaced apart. In other words, there is a gap between two adjacent hair-acting parts to form a tooth-like structure.

[0093] It should be noted that in other embodiments, the hair-cleaning part can also be constructed as a plate-shaped or strip-shaped structure; in other words, the hair-cleaning device has a hair-cleaning part as a whole along the length of the brush.

[0094] In order to achieve deformation of the hair-operating part, in some embodiments, the hair-operating part is made of a flexible material, such as bristles or rubber.

[0095] To improve the hair removal effect, in some embodiments, the peeling method uses a hooking method.

[0096] To achieve the effect of hooking or removing hair from the roller brush, for example, when the hair action part is made of brush bristles, adjacent brush bristles are spaced apart to form a tooth-like structure. For ease of description, the hair action part can be called a bristle strip.

[0097] For example, when the hair-operating part is made of a hair bundle containing multiple bristles, there is a gap between two adjacent hair bundles to form a tooth-like structure. For ease of description, the hair-operating part in this case can be called a comb tooth.

[0098] For example, when rubber is used for the hair-operating part, adjacent rubber strips are spaced apart to form a tooth-like structure. For ease of description, the hair-operating part can be called a rubber tooth.

[0099] In some embodiments:

[0100] Generally speaking, vacuum cleaners operate on a relatively high voltage, typically powered by AC power. Therefore, they can provide a high negative pressure. Consequently, the hair removal mechanism used inside can be movable or deformable. However, after extensive experimental verification by the applicant, it was found that although movable hair removal mechanisms are less expensive, their hair removal effect is not strong. After each hair removal, a strong negative pressure fan is needed to clean the remaining hair on the roller brush. Therefore, movable hair removal mechanisms are more suitable for high-voltage devices such as vacuum cleaners.

[0101] Due to limitations in size and voltage, cleaning robots typically cannot provide strong negative pressure and are usually powered by DC power (battery pack). For ease of explanation, the negative pressure (suction) data for different types of cleaning equipment are provided in Table 1.

[0102] Table 1

[0103] model suction Dyson's third-generation product (vacuum cleaner) 120AW (Air watts) Dyson's fourth-generation product (vacuum cleaner) 140AW A certain fifth-generation product (vacuum cleaner) 130AW A certain third-generation product (vacuum cleaner) 120AW This application (for a cleaning robot) 30-60AW

[0104] As can be seen from Table 1, the suction power of the cleaning robot is 2-4 times weaker than that of the vacuum cleaner on the market. This means that it cannot provide the same negative pressure as the vacuum cleaner. Therefore, it needs to use a hair removal part with a strong hair removal ability in order to deal with the hair in combination with the weaker negative pressure.

[0105] Based on extensive experiments conducted by the applicant, it was concluded that the deformable hair-removing part has a stronger ability to peel hair than the movable hair-removing part. When the deformable hair-removing part is at the same distance from the roller brush, the roller brush has fewer hairs remaining after the deformable hair-removing part peels off the hair.

[0106] As a preferred option, the deformable hair-operating part is made of a flexible material, such as brush bristles or rubber, where the peeling ability of the brush bristles is greater than that of the rubber. In scenarios where brush bristles are used, the bristles can come into contact with the roller brush. If the roller brush is not rotating and there are no hairs on its circumferential surface, the force exerted on the bristles by the roller brush is relatively small, and the hair-operating part can be considered to be in the first state. However, during the operation of the cleaning robot, the rotation of the roller brush causes it to adhere to a larger amount of hair, so the force exerted on the bristles by the roller brush is larger than in the first state, and the hair-operating part can be considered to be in the second state.

[0107] To enable those skilled in the art to better understand this application, a detailed description of the hair-operating part is provided. The hair-operating part can be a hair strip, which includes a bearing surface and hair bundles disposed on the bearing surface. At least one row of hair bundles can be disposed on the bearing surface, and the hair bundles can be arranged along the axial direction of the roller brush. There is a certain interval between the hair bundles, and each row of hair bundles has several bristles. The diameter of the bristles can be 0.05mm-0.3mm, and the density of each row of hair bundles is 240-720 bristles per centimeter. The bristles can be corrugated filaments, and the bearing surface can be nylon cloth. The diameter of the bristles can be differentiated according to the region where the cleaning robot is used. For example, in the North Caucasus region, where hair is relatively coarse, the diameter of the bristles can be set to be coarser, and the bristle density on the hair bundle can be lower; in Southeast Asia, where hair is relatively fine, the diameter of the bristles can be set to be finer, and the bristle density on the hair bundle can be higher. Therefore, the diameter of the bristles and the density of the bristles on the hair bundle are related to the average hair parameters of the region, including diameter and hardness.

[0108] At this point, because the density between the bristles is appropriate, and because the deformable bristles are more likely to stick to hair, and because the bristles can bend at will, they can better trap the hair on the roller brush. Therefore, a large portion of the hair on the roller brush can be peeled off. Compared to the movable hair-removing part, which is usually made of rigid material, the hair on the roller brush tends to slip off the rigid hair-removing part. Therefore, the deformable hair-removing part of this application has a better peeling effect than the movable rigid hair-removing part. Combined with the weaker negative pressure capability compared to a vacuum cleaner, it can basically achieve the hair removal effect of a vacuum cleaner, or even better than the hair removal effect of a vacuum cleaner.

[0109] In summary, in some preferred embodiments, the cleaning robot may use deformable bristles as the hair action part, while the vacuum cleaner may use a movable hair action part.

[0110] In another embodiment, the hair removal device has a hair-acting part that is movable, in which the hair removal device has a first state and a second state by the movement of the hair-acting part.

[0111] In order to enable the hair action part to be movable, in some embodiments, the hair action part is configured to be movably connected to the brush cavity. In other words, the hair action part is movable relative to the brush cavity, for example, by means of hinges, connecting rods or the like.

[0112] It is understandable that, since the hair-operating part is movable, it can be made of rigid materials, such as plastic or metal. Of course, in other embodiments, the hair-operating part can also be made of flexible materials when it is movable, and this embodiment does not limit this.

[0113] To address the issue of how to reset the hair-removing part, in some embodiments, the hair-removing device includes a reset element, such as a spring, so that the movable hair-removing part can be reset under the action of the spring.

[0114] It should be noted that when the hair-operating part is deformable, in order to achieve the repositioning of the hair-operating part, in some embodiments, the hair-operating part can be made of an elastic deformable material, which can achieve repositioning through its own deformation.

[0115] In consideration of how the hair-operating part can be replaced, in some embodiments the hair-operating part is detachable; in other words, the hair-operating part is detachable relative to the brush cavity (or housing).

[0116] To enable the hair-operating part to be detachable, in some embodiments, the hair-operating part is directly installed in the brush cavity by means of adhesive or snap-fit.

[0117] Considering the shape (e.g., hair tufts), quantity (e.g., multiple), and material (e.g., rigid materials that cannot be deformed, in which case the hair-cleaning part needs to be movable), in order to improve the convenience of replacement, in some embodiments, the hair cleaning device may also include a mounting part 1022. One end of the mounting part is detachably connected to the roller brush cavity (or housing), and the hair-cleaning part is disposed at the other end of the mounting part 1022. The hair-cleaning part cleans the hair of the roller brush.

[0118] For example, when the hair-operating part is deformable, the mounting part can be made of Velcro, that is, the mounting part can be detachably installed in the brush cavity by means of adhesive.

[0119] Of course, the mounting part can be detachably installed in the brush cavity using a snap-fit ​​or plug-in method.

[0120] By detachably connecting the mounting part of the hair removal device to the housing, it is easy to replace the hair removal part in a timely manner according to its usage.

[0121] For example, when the hair-operating part is movable, the mounting part can adopt a hinge mechanism with a rotating shaft, and the hair-operating part can rotate with the rotating shaft. In other words, the mounting part is detachably set in the brush cavity by means of hinge.

[0122] To characterize the first state and the second state, one approach is to characterize them by force. In the two states, the magnitude of the force applied to the hair-acting part by the roller brush is different. For example, the difference in the force applied to the hair-acting part by the roller brush can be characterized by the amount / accumulation of hair on the roller brush.

[0123] Therefore, in some embodiments, in the first state, the force applied to the hair-acting part by the brush is less than the force applied to the hair-acting part by the brush in the second state.

[0124] For example, a threshold can be used to compare the force applied to the hair's active part by the brush in the first state and the second state, respectively, to indirectly characterize that the magnitude of the force applied to the hair's active part by the brush is different in the two states.

[0125] In some embodiments, the threshold can be selected as an intrinsic force characterization of the state change of the hair action part. For example, when the hair action part is deformable, the threshold can be selected as the deformation force of the hair action part. In the first state, the force applied to the hair action part by the roller brush is less than the deformation force of the hair action part itself; in the second state, the force applied to the hair action part by the roller brush is greater than the deformation force of the hair action part itself.

[0126] Understandably, in the first state, there are fewer hairs on the roller brush, and the force exerted by the roller brush on the hair-acting part, or in other words, the force exerted by the roller brush on the hair-acting part, is smaller. At this time, the force exerted by the roller brush on the hair-acting part is less than the deformation force of the hair-acting part itself, and the hair-acting part can maintain the first state.

[0127] As hair gradually accumulates and the number of hairs on the roller brush increases, the force exerted by the roller brush on the hair-removing part increases. When the hair accumulates to a certain extent (the force exerted by the roller brush on the hair-removing part reaches a critical value), the force exerted by the roller brush on the hair-removing part is equal to the deformation force of the hair-removing part itself. If the hair increases further, it will cause the hair-removing part to deform. For example, when the force exerted by the roller brush on the hair-removing part is greater than the deformation force of the hair-removing part itself, the hair-removing part deforms, and the hair-removing device switches to the second state.

[0128] In summary, the deformable hair action part is the passive deformation caused by the accumulation of hair on the roller brush, thereby changing its state.

[0129] In some embodiments, when the hair-operated part is movable, the threshold can be selected based on the driving force of the hair-operated part, especially when the connector (such as a hinge) is driven. In the first state, the force applied to the hair-operated part by the roller brush is less than the driving force of the hair-operated part; in the second state, the force applied to the hair-operated part by the roller brush is greater than the driving force of the hair-operated part.

[0130] Understandably, in the first state, there are fewer hairs on the roller brush, and the force exerted by the roller brush on the hair-acting part, or in other words, the force exerted by the roller brush on the hair-acting part, is smaller. At this time, the force exerted by the roller brush on the hair-acting part is less than the driving force of the hair-acting part, and the hair-acting part can remain in the first state.

[0131] As hair gradually accumulates, the amount of hair on the roller brush increases, and the force exerted by the roller brush on the hair-acting part, or in other words, the force exerted by the roller brush on the hair-acting part, increases. When the hair accumulates to a certain extent (the critical value of the force exerted by the roller brush on the hair-acting part), the force exerted by the roller brush on the hair-acting part equals the driving force of the hair-acting part. If the amount of hair increases further, the connecting parts of the hair-acting part will be driven, thereby causing the hair-acting part to move. For example, when the force exerted by the roller brush on the hair-acting part is greater than the driving force of the hair-acting part, the hair-acting part moves, and the hair cleaning device switches to the second state.

[0132] In summary, the movable hair action part is the passive deformation caused by the accumulation of hair on the roller brush, which leads to a change in state.

[0133] The passive meaning mentioned above can be understood as the absence of an additional driving structure to actively drive the hair's functional part to produce deformation or activity.

[0134] On the other hand, the first state and the second state can be characterized by angles. In the two states, the angle between the hair action part and the preset direction is different. For example, in the first state, the angle between the hair action part and the preset direction is smaller than that in the second state. The preset direction here includes, but is not limited to, the vertical direction, the horizontal direction, and the extension direction of the hair action part.

[0135] Considering that the extension direction of the hair action part will change under force, the extension direction of the hair action part when it is not subjected to the force applied by the brush (also known as the natural extension direction) is selected here. It can be understood that when there are multiple hair action parts, especially when the directions of multiple hair action parts are different, the natural extension direction of the same hair action part should be used as the reference to compare the angles of the first and second states.

[0136] On the other hand, the first and second states can also be characterized by the distance between at least a portion of the hair-operated part and the center of the brush; considering that the hair-operated part can be a region, for ease of description, it can be referred to as the free end of the hair-operated part (the closest end of the hair-operated part to the brush). In the two states, the distance between the free end of the hair-operated part and the center of the brush is different; for example, in the first state, the distance between the free end of the hair-operated part and the center of the brush is smaller than that in the second state.

[0137] In some embodiments, the roller brush includes a brush roller and a cleaning section disposed on the brush roller, the cleaning section being able to tap the surface to be cleaned in order to clean the surface; the cleaning section may be, for example, a bristle strip, a rubber strip, or a combination of bristle strip and rubber strip.

[0138] It should be noted that the brush roller and the cleaning part can be integrally formed or separately formed. For example, the brush roller is provided with a slot for installing the cleaning part, and the cleaning part is installed on the brush roller through the slot. This embodiment does not limit this.

[0139] To improve the hair removal effect, in some embodiments, when the hair-removing part is deformable, the material of the hair-removing part is the same as that of the cleaning part; for example, when the cleaning part includes bristles (including the case where the cleaning part only includes bristles and the case where the cleaning part includes both bristles and rubber strips), the hair-removing part is made of the bristle material of the bristles; or, when the cleaning part only includes rubber strips, the hair-removing part is made of the rubber material of the rubber strips.

[0140] It should be noted that in other embodiments, the material of the hair-operating part is similar to that of the cleaning part. For example, when the cleaning part includes hair strips (including the case where the cleaning part only includes hair strips and the case where the cleaning part includes both hair strips and rubber strips), the hair-operating part can also be made of rubber similar to the material of the hair strips.

[0141] Understandably, when the bristle-operated part is movable, in order to further improve the cleaning effect, the material of the bristle-operated part can be the same as that of the cleaning part. For example, when the cleaning part includes bristles (including two cases: the cleaning part only includes bristles and the cleaning part includes both bristles and rubber strips), the bristle-operated part is made of bristle material; or, when the cleaning part only includes rubber strips, the bristle-operated part is made of rubber material.

[0142] By combining the movement of the bristle action with a deformable mechanism, the cleaning effect of the roller brush bristles can be further improved.

[0143] Of course, in other embodiments, when the hair-operating part is movable, the material used for the hair-operating part can be different from the material used for the cleaning part; for example, when the cleaning part includes hair strips (including the case where the cleaning part only includes hair strips and the case where the cleaning part includes both hair strips and rubber strips), the hair-operating part is made of a rigid material; or, for example, when the cleaning part only includes rubber strips, the hair-operating part can also be made of a rigid material.

[0144] It should be noted that in other embodiments, the material of the hair-operating part is similar to that of the cleaning part. For example, when the cleaning part includes hair strips (including the case where the cleaning part only includes hair strips and the case where the cleaning part includes both hair strips and rubber strips), the hair-operating part can also be made of rubber material of rubber strips.

[0145] To further improve the hair removal effect, in some embodiments, the roller brush also includes a cutting blade for cutting the hair on the roller brush; in this case, the roller brush can be called a hair-cutting roller brush 300.

[0146] By utilizing the movement or deformation of the hair-operating part, combined with the cutting blade, the hair removal effect can be further improved.

[0147] It should be noted that when the roller brush is a hair-cutting roller brush, in order to prevent the hair-acting part from being damaged by the cutting blade and affecting the hair cleaning effect, in some embodiments, there is a gap between the hair-acting part and the cutting blade, wherein the gap is greater than or equal to 0; furthermore, the gap between the hair-acting part and the cutting blade is greater than 0.

[0148] Regarding the question of how to set the height of the hair action section (along the extension direction of the hair action section), considering that different roller brushes have different sizes, the height constraint of the hair action section can be characterized by the distance between the hair action section and the cleaning section.

[0149] Given that the distance between the hair action part and the cleaning part is different in the first state and the second state, the distance between the hair action part and the cleaning part is characterized here using the first state as an example.

[0150] To prevent hair accumulation and its impact on the cleaning effect of the roller brush, in some embodiments, the hair-applying part and the cleaning part may overlap. In other words, at a predetermined position, the hair-applying part and the cleaning part may interfere with each other. Alternatively, there may be no gap or a negative gap between the hair-applying part and the cleaning part. For example, the projections of the hair-applying part and the cleaning part may at least partially overlap in a certain direction. This certain direction may be selected, for example, as the extension direction of the hair-applying part or the cleaning part.

[0151] Considering that the roller brush can rotate, that is, the cleaning part can rotate, and the position of the cleaning part is constantly changing in the circumferential direction, while the hair-acting part is usually stationary, the predetermined position here can be, for example, the setting position of the hair-acting part or the position where the cleaning part and the hair-acting part are just in contact.

[0152] For ease of understanding, taking the cleaning part including the hair strip as an example, when the hair strip reaches the predetermined position mentioned above, the hair action part and the hair strip at least partially overlap.

[0153] To characterize the degree to which the hair-operating part and the cleaning part do not overlap, the distance between the hair-operating part and the cleaning part can be used. In some embodiments, the distance between the hair-operating part and the cleaning part is less than 0 and greater than or equal to a set threshold. The set threshold is used to characterize the maximum degree to which the hair-operating part and the cleaning part can overlap. The set threshold is determined based on the smaller of the height of the hair-operating part or the cleaning part. For example, the set threshold is selected within the range of the smaller of the height of the hair-operating part or the cleaning part.

[0154] In some embodiments, the threshold value is set to within -10mm, that is, the overlap M between the hair action part and the cleaning part is 0-10mm.

[0155] Considering that hair can accumulate on the roller brush during operation, in order to reduce wear on the hair-applying part and the cleaning part and improve their service life, in some embodiments, the hair-applying part and the cleaning part may not overlap; in other words, at a predetermined position, the hair-applying part and the cleaning part do not interfere with each other, or there is a gap between the hair-applying part and the cleaning part, and the hair-applying part only begins to peel off the hair on the cleaning part when the hair on the cleaning part has accumulated to a certain extent; it should be noted that the degree of hair accumulation can be set according to actual cleaning needs (e.g., the cleaning efficiency of the roller brush, the hair removal efficiency of the hair-applying part, etc.).

[0156] To characterize the degree to which the hair-operating part and the cleaning part do not overlap, the distance between the hair-operating part and the cleaning part can be used for characterization. In some embodiments, the distance between the hair-operating part and the cleaning part is greater than 0 and less than or equal to a preset threshold, wherein the preset threshold is used to characterize the degree to which hair accumulation is allowed. Optionally, the preset threshold can be any value selected within 5 mm. Further, the preset threshold can be selected within 3 mm, for example, the value range of the preset threshold is 1 mm to 2 mm. Preferably, the preset threshold is set to 1.2-1.8 mm.

[0157] To reduce wear on the hair-operating and cleaning parts, extend their service life, and prevent hair accumulation that could affect the cleaning performance of the roller brush, in some embodiments, the distance between the free end of the cleaning part (the end furthest from the brush roller) and the free end of the cleaning part (the end facing the brush roller) is equal to 0.

[0158] Considering the different types of roller brushes or the possibility of other functional components on the roller brush, the height constraint of the hair action part in the extension direction can also be characterized by comparison with other functional components or by comparison with different cleaning parts on the roller brush.

[0159] For example, when the roller brush has different cleaning sections, such as cleaning sections including bristles and rubber strips, the roller brush can be called a rubber-bristle brush; in this case, the height constraint of the bristle action section can be characterized by comparing the distance with the rubber strip. In some embodiments, the distance between the bristle action section and the bristle is smaller than the distance between the bristle action section and the rubber strip.

[0160] For example, when the roller brush is also equipped with a cutting blade for cutting hair, the roller brush can be called a hair-cutting roller brush. In this case, the height constraint of the hair-acting part can be characterized by comparing the distance with the cutting blade. In some embodiments, the distance between the hair-acting part and the cleaning part is smaller than the distance from the hair-acting part to the cutting blade.

[0161] It is understandable that when the cleaning section includes a bristle strip, the distance between the bristle action section and the bristle strip is less than the distance between the bristle action section and the cutting blade.

[0162] Considering that the hair needs to be sucked away in the second state, the position of the hair cleaning device or the hair-removing part can be constrained in order to improve the hair cleaning effect.

[0163] Considering that hair is sucked away through the dust inlet and removed from the brush chamber, the hair removal device or hair action part should be located close to the dust inlet. In order to improve the efficiency of hair removal, the closer the hair removal device or hair action part is to the dust inlet, the better.

[0164] In some embodiments, the hair-operating part is disposed within a predetermined range Z near the dust inlet. This predetermined range Z can be characterized by the distance h between the hair-operating part and the dust inlet.

[0165] In some embodiments, the value of h ranges from 0 to 20 mm.

[0166] In some embodiments, the roller brush assembly includes a first roller brush 1001 and a second roller brush 1002, with the first roller brush (front roller brush) and the second roller brush (rear roller brush) arranged sequentially in the roller brush cavity along the forward direction of the cleaning robot.

[0167] In some embodiments, the first roller brush and the second roller brush rotate in opposite directions, for example, the first roller brush rotates counterclockwise and the second roller brush rotates clockwise, so that dust flows into the air duct through the dust inlet between the two roller brushes along the rotation direction of the roller brushes.

[0168] In some embodiments, when the roller brush assembly includes two roller brushes, at least one of the two roller brushes is equipped with a hair removal device.

[0169] Furthermore, in the case where the roller brush assembly includes two roller brushes, a hair cleaning device is provided at a preset position corresponding to each of the two roller brushes to clean the hair on the first roller brush and the second roller brush respectively.

[0170] For example, for the front roller brush, the hair removal device that works with the front roller brush can be located on the side of the front roller brush near the dust inlet, along the forward direction of the cleaning robot; for the rear roller brush, the hair removal device that works with the rear roller brush is located on the side of the rear roller brush near the dust inlet, along the forward direction of the cleaning robot.

[0171] In some embodiments, the dust inlet is disposed between the front and rear roller brushes. In this case, the side of the front roller brush closest to the dust inlet refers to the rear side of the front roller brush, and the side of the rear roller brush closest to the dust inlet refers to the front side of the rear roller brush.

[0172] To accommodate cleaning different floor types (e.g., hard and soft floors), in some embodiments, the first roller brush is a rubber brush and the second roller brush is a bristle brush, wherein the bristle brush includes pure bristle brushes and rubber bristle brushes; further, the second roller brush is a rubber bristle brush including bristle strips 1003 and rubber strips 1004.

[0173] The roller brush assembly uses a front rubber brush and a rear bristle brush to achieve cleaning of different floor types.

[0174] Furthermore, considering that bristles on a brush tend to accumulate hair more easily than rubber strips, in some embodiments, the brush is equipped with a hair removal device, which is located in the brush chamber at a position corresponding to the rear brush. For the front brush (rubber brush), a hair removal device may not be required.

[0175] In some embodiments, a baffle 107 is provided between the two rollers to prevent hair from being cleaned by the rear roller and then tangled on the front roller. This baffle 107 is provided between the two rollers to block hair from the rear roller and prevent the hair from being rolled onto the front roller again.

[0176] To improve the hair removal effect, one approach is to increase the number of hair removal devices and / or hair-removing parts, while another is to improve the orientation of the hair removal devices.

[0177] Regarding the first aspect:

[0178] Since the cleaning section of the roller brush is rotatable, the cleaning effect on the hair in the cleaning section can be improved by increasing the number of times the hair in the cleaning section comes into contact with the hair.

[0179] In order to increase the number of times the hairs in the cleaning section are touched, in some embodiments, multiple hair cleaning devices can be arranged in the circumferential direction of the outer contour of the roller brush (hereinafter referred to as the circumferential direction), so that each hair cleaning device can clean the cleaning section once, and the cleaning effect of the roller brush hairs can be achieved through multiple cleaning.

[0180] Understandable,

[0181] Considering that the hair cleaning device can be set within a preset range near the dust inlet, multiple hair cleaning devices can be set within this preset range so that each hair cleaning device can act on the hair on the roller brush once. By acting on the hair multiple times, the cleaning effect on the roller brush hair is further improved.

[0182] Since hair removal devices have hair-removing parts, the hair-removing effect can be improved by increasing the number of these parts.

[0183] For example, a hair cleaning device can be equipped with multiple hair-applying parts, which can be arranged at intervals along the length of the hair cleaning device (or the axial direction of the brush).

[0184] Considering that the hair-operating part can take on different forms, the shape of the hair-operating part can also be designed. For example, in some embodiments, the hair-operating part can be designed as a bundle structure with multiple hair-like structures, or the hair-operating part can be designed as a bundle of comb teeth with multiple comb hairs. Each comb hair can act on the hair of the roller brush once. Through the multiple actions of the comb hairs, the hair cleaning effect is improved.

[0185] Understandably, when the hair-operating part is designed as a comb, the comb can have more than one bristle in the circumferential direction of its bundle structure, and each bristle can exert a scraping effect on the brush bristles.

[0186] Furthermore, taking a comb with bristle teeth (bundled) as an example, a bristle comb must have multiple bristles in the circumferential direction.

[0187] Regarding the second aspect:

[0188] Since multiple hair removal devices can be installed, the orientation of the multiple hair removal devices (e.g., the direction in which the hair-acting part faces the roller brush or the extension direction of the hair-acting part; considering that the orientation may change in the first state and the second state, the first state is used here to represent it) can be the same or different; in other words, multiple hair removal devices can have multiple orientations.

[0189] It should be noted that the orientation of the hair removal device can also be characterized by the angle it forms with the axis of the brush, which will not be elaborated here.

[0190] For example, multiple hair cleaning devices can be installed at equal intervals along a distance H near the dust inlet, and the installation directions of the multiple hair cleaning devices can be different.

[0191] Considering that the hair removal device can be equipped with multiple hair-acting parts, and the multiple hair-acting parts can be arranged in the same or different directions; in other words, the multiple hair-acting parts can be arranged in multiple directions.

[0192] It should be noted that the orientation of the hair action part can also be represented by the extension direction of the hair action part, the direction of the hair action part toward the roller brush part, or by the angle between the extension direction of the hair action part and the axis.

[0193] Considering the different shapes of the hair's functional parts, for ease of understanding, we take the hair's functional parts as comb teeth as an example. The comb teeth can have multiple comb hairs arranged in the circumferential direction of their bundle structure, and the multiple comb hairs are arranged in multiple directions.

[0194] Regarding the question of how to set the length of the hair action part (along the axial direction of the roller brush), considering that the size of the roller brush is variable, the length constraint of the hair action part can be characterized by comparing the effective cleaning length of the hair action part with that of the roller brush; wherein the effective cleaning length of the roller brush can be characterized, for example, by the projected length of the cleaning part in the axial direction of the brush roller.

[0195] Given that the length of the hair's active part may change in the first and second states, we will take the first state as an example to characterize the length of the hair's active part.

[0196] To improve the cleaning effect of hair, such as to achieve the cleaning of hair on the entire roller brush, in some embodiments, the hair-affected portion should be greater than or equal to the effective cleaning length of the roller brush.

[0197] In some embodiments, when the hair removal device is disposed in the brush cavity, since the accommodating space of the brush cavity is limited, the length of the hair-acting part should be less than or equal to the projected length of the brush cavity in the axial direction of the brush.

[0198] In some embodiments, the ratio of the length of the hair-operated portion to the effective cleaning length of the roller brush is greater than 0.5, that is, the length of the hair-operated portion accounts for more than 50% of the effective cleaning length of the roller brush.

[0199] In some embodiments, the ratio of the length of the hair-operating portion to the effective cleaning length of the roller brush is between 0.7 and 1.3; further, the ratio of the length of the hair-operating portion to the effective cleaning length of the roller brush is equal to 0.9 to 1.1; preferably, the length of the hair-operating portion is equal to 1.

[0200] To facilitate maintenance of the hair-cleaning part, in some embodiments, at least the hair-cleaning part is detachable; furthermore, the hair cleaning device is configured to be detachable to facilitate maintenance of the entire hair cleaning device, including the hair-cleaning part.

[0201] This disclosure provides a cleaning robot, including the aforementioned roller brush assembly, for cleaning surfaces to be cleaned.

[0202] The cleaning robot disclosed herein features a hair removal device on its roller brush assembly, which prevents or minimizes the tangling of the cleaning head, such as the roller brush, when cleaning dog hair or human hair, thereby improving the cleaning efficiency and lifespan of the roller brush.

[0203] It should be noted that this hair removal device can also be applied to cleaning equipment such as vacuum cleaners with cleaning heads, and this disclosure does not limit it.

Claims

1. A cleaning device comprising a roller brush assembly, characterized in that, The roller brush assembly includes: At least one roller brush is used to clean the surface to be cleaned; The brush chamber is used to house the brush. A hair removal device is configured to clean the cleaning section on the roller brush; The hair removal device has at least a first state and a second state, wherein the second state is different from the first state.

2. The cleaning equipment according to claim 1, characterized in that, The hair removal device has a hair-acting part that is deformable.

3. The cleaning equipment according to claim 2, characterized in that, The force applied to the hair-brush in the first state is less than the force applied to the hair-brush in the second state.

4. The cleaning equipment according to claim 2, characterized in that, The functional part of the hair is the hair strip.

5. The cleaning equipment according to claim 4, characterized in that, The bristle includes a bearing surface and a bristle bundle disposed on the bearing surface. The bristle bundle has a plurality of bristles, the density of the bristles on the bristle bundle is 240-720 bristles per centimeter, and the diameter of the bristles is 0.05mm-0.3mm.

6. The cleaning equipment according to claim 1, characterized in that, In the first state and the second state, the distance between the free end of the hair-acting part and the center of the roller brush is different, wherein the free end is the closest end of the roller brush to the hair-acting part.

7. The cleaning equipment according to claim 1, characterized in that, The hair cleaning device is detachably connected to the roller brush chamber.

8. The cleaning equipment according to claim 1, characterized in that, It also includes at least one dust inlet, which is connected to a fan via an air duct, the fan being configured to provide negative pressure; At least one of the hair-operating parts is disposed within a preset range near the dust inlet, the preset range being characterized by the distance between the hair-operating part and the dust inlet, and the preset range being 0-20mm.

9. The cleaning equipment according to claim 1, characterized in that, The ratio of the length of the hair-operating part to the effective cleaning length of the roller brush is greater than a preset ratio, which is 0.

5.

10. The cleaning equipment according to claim 1, characterized in that, The cleaning equipment is a cleaning robot.

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