Home appliance and method for providing resource for robot cleaner

Abstract

A household appliance (210) is described, wherein the household appliance (210) is configured to generate a resource (222, 232, 242) in connection with a function effected by the household appliance (210), and to provide at least a part of the generated resource (222, 232, 242) for use by a cleaning robot (100).

Description

[0001] The invention relates to a household appliance and a method for providing a resource for a cleaning robot.

[0002] A cleaning robot can be used to autonomously clean a surface, especially the floor in a home. Between operating phases, the cleaning robot can be located in or at a base station, where, for example, the robot's electrical energy storage is charged.

[0003] This document addresses the technical challenge of enabling particularly efficient operation of a cleaning robot in a household.

[0004] The problem is solved by the subject matter of each independent patent claim. Advantageous embodiments are defined in particular in the dependent patent claims, described in the following description, or illustrated in the accompanying drawing.

[0005] A household appliance, in particular a domestic appliance, is described according to one aspect. Examples of household appliances include an oven, a (clothes) dryer, a washing machine, a dishwasher, and / or a refrigerator. The household appliance may be designed to be installed in a kitchen, especially under a kitchen worktop. Furthermore, the household appliance may be designed to perform a specific function. Examples of functions include: Cooking food in the cooking chamber (i.e., the processing space) of the household appliance (in particular, the oven); drying laundry in the drum (i.e., the processing space) of the household appliance (in particular, the dryer); washing laundry in the washing drum (i.e., the processing space) of the household appliance (in particular, the washing machine); washing dishes arranged in the interior (i.e., the processing space) of the household appliance (in particular, the dishwasher); and / or cooling food in the cooling compartment (i.e., the processing space) of the household appliance (in particular, the refrigerator).

[0006] The appliance may have one or more components that enable its function. Examples of such components include a heating element and / or a compressor. These one or more components may be designed to generate a resource that is used for the appliance's operation.

[0007] The household appliance is thus designed to generate a resource in connection with its function. For example, an oven (especially its heating element) can generate warm air as a resource. A washing machine (especially its heating element) can generate warm water as a resource. A dishwasher (especially its heating element) can generate warm water as a resource. A refrigerator (especially its compressor) can generate warm or cold air as a resource. A dryer (especially its heating element) can generate warm air or condensation as a resource.

[0008] The function performed by the household appliance can thus include the processing of one or more objects located within the appliance's processing area. The appliance can be configured to supply the resource to the processing area for the processing of the one or more objects, and / or to remove the resource from the processing area.

[0009] The resource can include a liquid and / or gaseous fluid, in particular water and / or air, such as warm water and / or warm air. For example, the resource could include condensate produced during the operation of the appliance.

[0010] It should be noted that the resource generated by the appliance differs from electrical energy and / or water and / or air supplied to the appliance via a supply line (e.g., directly from a utility network). The resource generated by the appliance does not include, and is not, electrical energy (including electrical energy converted by the appliance's mains connection).

[0011] The resource produced by a household appliance can be a byproduct of its function, such as the condensate from a dryer and / or the warm air from a refrigerator's compressor. Alternatively or additionally, the resource produced by the appliance can be a product generated by one or more components of the appliance (e.g., a heating element and / or a compressor) for the purpose of processing one or more objects within the appliance's operating space, i.e., for the appliance's function, such as warm or cold air and / or hot water. Thus, the resource can be generated by a component (e.g., a heating element and / or a compressor) of the appliance.

[0012] The household appliance is further configured to make at least a portion of the generated resource available for use by a cleaning robot. In particular, the household appliance may be designed to provide at least a portion of the generated resource to the cleaning robot's base station. The base station may be integrated into the household appliance in a particularly efficient manner. Specifically, the base station may be integrated into the household appliance, for example, into its base. The generated resource may be made available for the (cleaning) operation of the cleaning robot and / or for conditioning, in particular for drying and / or humidifying and / or cleaning, a component (such as a mopping element) of the cleaning robot.

[0013] This describes a household appliance that is designed to make at least part of a resource generated by the appliance available for use by a cleaning robot. This allows for particularly efficient operation of the cleaning robot in a household.

[0014] According to another aspect, a system is described that includes a base station for a cleaning robot and a household appliance, the household appliance being designed as described in this document. The base station may optionally be integrated into the household appliance, in particular into its base.

[0015] The appliance can be configured to direct at least a portion of the resource it generates (via a fluid line) to the base station. The base station can include an intermediate reservoir (for receiving a fluid). The appliance can be configured to direct at least a portion of the resource it generates (via a fluid line) into the intermediate reservoir of the base station. The supplied resource can optionally be filtered.

[0016] The base station can be configured to direct the resource provided by the household appliance into a container (e.g., a fluid reservoir) of the cleaning robot when the cleaning robot is positioned at the base station. This enables the cleaning robot to utilize the resource (e.g., as cleaning water) during its cleaning operation. Alternatively or additionally, the base station can be configured to condition a component (e.g., a mopping element, such as a mop pad) of the cleaning robot using the resource provided by the household appliance, specifically to clean, moisten, and / or dry it when the cleaning robot is positioned at the base station. This allows for particularly efficient and / or high-quality operation of the cleaning robot.

[0017] The household appliance typically includes a mains connection for its electrical power supply. The base station can be designed to draw electrical energy for its operation and / or for charging the cleaning robot's electrical energy storage via the household appliance's mains connection. Thus, in addition to generating its own energy, the household appliance can also provide electrical energy for the cleaning robot. This allows for particularly efficient use of the cleaning robot in a household.

[0018] According to another aspect, a method for providing a resource to a cleaning robot is described. The method comprises detecting that the cleaning robot is positioned at a base station for the cleaning robot, the base station being coupled to a household appliance. Furthermore, in response to the detection, the method comprises causing at least a portion of a resource generated by the household appliance in connection with a function performed by the household appliance to be provided to the base station for use by the cleaning robot.

[0019] It should be noted that any aspects of the household appliance and / or system and / or method described in this document can be combined in a variety of ways and / or in any way. In particular, the features of the claims can be combined in a variety of ways and / or in any way.

[0020] The invention will now be described in more detail with reference to exemplary embodiments illustrated in the accompanying drawing. These show: Figures 1a and 1b show exemplary cleaning robots in different perspective views; Figure 1c shows exemplary components of a cleaning robot; Figure 1b shows an exemplary sectional view through a cleaning robot; Figure 2a shows an exemplary system with a cleaning robot and a household appliance; Figures 2b to 2d show different operating situations of the system. Fig. 2a ; and Figure 3 shows a flowchart of an exemplary procedure for providing a resource for a cleaning robot, in particular for the operation of a cleaning robot.

[0021] As stated at the outset, this document deals with operating a cleaning robot in a particularly efficient manner and / or with a particularly high cleaning quality within a household. In this context, we demonstrate Fig. 1a the top 121 and Fig. 1b the underside 122 of a cleaning robot 100, in particular a vacuum robot.

[0022] The underside 122 of the cleaning robot 100 faces the floor or area to be cleaned, such as a room in a household, during vacuuming operation. The underside 122 of the cleaning robot 100 typically has one or more drive units 101 (with one or more drive wheels) that allow the cleaning robot 100 to move independently to clean different areas of a floor. Furthermore, the cleaning robot 100 may have one or more guide and / or support elements 104 (e.g., non-driven wheels) that enable stable movement of the cleaning robot 100 across the floor to be cleaned. In addition, a cleaning robot 100 typically includes one or more cleaning units 106 (in particular, suction nozzles) designed to clean the floor beneath the cleaning robot 100.

[0023] A cleaning unit 106 (in particular a suction nozzle) can have a brush roller 102 designed to rotate about an axis of rotation, the axis of rotation typically being arranged parallel to the underside 122 of the cleaning robot 100. The brush roller 102 can be used to mechanically loosen dust and / or contaminants from the floor to be cleaned, so that the dust and / or contaminants can be sucked into the suction opening 107 of the cleaning unit 106 with increased reliability.

[0024] Furthermore, one or more wiping elements 109 can be arranged on the underside 122 of the cleaning robot 100, each configured to wipe the floor to be cleaned. The cleaning robot 100 can have a water supply unit (not shown) designed to supply one or more wiping elements 109 with cleaning water.

[0025] A user interface can be arranged on the top surface 121 of the cleaning robot 100, enabling a user of the cleaning robot 100 to make control inputs. Furthermore, the cleaning robot 100 can include a bumper 105 on a side wall 123 (e.g., on a side wall 123 in the front area of ​​the cleaning robot 100), wherein a bumper sensor can be arranged on the bumper 105, which is configured to acquire sensor data indicating whether the cleaning robot 100 is moving in the direction of movement 120 (see Fig. 1c ) has collided with an obstacle or not. The triggering of the impact sensor (due to the deflection of the bumper 105) by an obstacle can, for example, cause the cleaning robot 100 to rotate around its vertical axis, which is perpendicular to the ground, and thereby change its direction of movement 120 in order to avoid the obstacle.

[0026] Furthermore, a cleaning robot 100 typically has one or more environmental sensors 110 (see Fig. 1c ), which are each configured to acquire environmental and / or sensor data relating to the environment of the cleaning robot 100. The one or more environmental sensors 110 can include: one or more cameras, one or more ultrasonic sensors, one or more tactile and / or optical distance sensors, one or more acoustic sensors, one or more temperature sensors, one or more lidar and / or radar sensors, etc. A control unit 130 of the cleaning robot 100 can be configured to determine digital map information relating to the cleaning area based on the environmental data and, if necessary, to store it on a storage unit 111 of the cleaning robot 100. The cleaning robot 100 can use the digital map information to orient itself independently within the cleaning area (e.g., within a room) and / or to determine a route for cleaning the cleaning area.

[0027] Fig. 1c Figure 1 shows a Cartesian coordinate system with a longitudinal axis (i.e., an x-axis), a transverse axis (i.e., a y-axis), and a vertical axis (i.e., a z-axis). The direction of movement 120 of the cleaning device 100 typically corresponds to the longitudinal axis. The axis of rotation of the brush roller 102 typically runs along the transverse axis.

[0028] Fig. 1d Figure 1 shows a sectional view of the cleaning robot 100 within a plane defined by the longitudinal and vertical axes. The arrows indicate the flow path of the suction air from the surface to be cleaned, through the suction nozzle 107, past the cleaning roller 102, through a suction channel 142, and into the collection container 140. The collection container 140 has a filter unit 141, which retains the dirt particles in the suction air within the container. The blower (not shown), which generates the suction airflow, is located downstream of the filter unit 141.

[0029] Fig. 2a Figure 200 shows an example system comprising a cleaning robot 100 and a household appliance 210. Example household appliances 210 include a washing machine, a dishwasher, a dryer, an oven, and / or a refrigerator or freezer.

[0030] The household appliance 210 has a parking position 211 for the cleaning robot 100, which is preferably designed such that the cleaning robot 100 can move to and / or away from the parking position 211 independently. The parking position 211 can be configured as a base station 219, in particular as a charging station, for the cleaning robot 100. The household appliance 210 can be configured to be connected to an electrical power supply via an electrical supply cable 213. Furthermore, the household appliance 210 can be configured to charge the cleaning robot 100 using the electrical energy supplied via the supply cable 213 when the cleaning robot 100 is positioned at the parking position 211 and / or at the base station 219.

[0031] The household appliance 210 typically has a processing chamber 212 in which a user of the household appliance 210 can place one or more objects to cause the household appliance 210 to process the one or more objects in the processing chamber 212. Examples of such objects are laundry items processed in the processing chamber 212 of a washing machine or dryer, dishes processed in the processing chamber 212 of a dishwasher, or food cooked in the cooking chamber 212 of an oven or cooled in the cooling chamber 212 of a refrigerator.

[0032] During operation, the household appliance 210 can generate a resource, e.g., as an input product or from an output product, in particular as a waste product, resulting from the processing of one or more objects located in the processing area 212 of the household appliance 210. The household appliance 210 can be configured to utilize the resource generated during its operation for the cleaning robot 100 located at the parking position 211 and / or at the base station 219. This enables particularly efficient operation of the cleaning robot 100 in a household.

[0033] Fig. 2b Figure 210 shows a tumble dryer as an example of a household appliance. During operation, the tumble dryer produces condensate 222, which can be collected in a collection container 225 of the dryer. The condensate 222 can be drained from the dryer via a drain 216. Alternatively or additionally, the condensate 222 can be used to power the cleaning robot 100. For example, the condensate 222 can be directed into an intermediate container 215 and collected there. Furthermore, the condensate 222 can be directed from the intermediate container 215 to the cleaning robot 100 when the cleaning robot 100 is positioned at the parking position 211 and / or at the base station 219. The condensate 222 can be used, for example, as cleaning water for the one or more wiping elements 109 (generally for one or more components) of the cleaning robot 100.Alternatively or additionally, the condensate 222 can be used to clean the cleaning robot 100, in particular to clean the one or more wiping elements 109 of the cleaning robot 100.

[0034] In Fig. 2c A washing machine or dishwasher is represented as a household appliance 210, in which hot water 232 is generated for operation by means of a heating element 236 in a container 225. The hot water 232 can be generated from water supplied to the household appliance 210 via a supply line 216. The hot water 232 can be supplied to the cleaning robot 100, in particular via an intermediate container 215, e.g., as cleaning water for the one or more cleaning elements 109 and / or as water for cleaning the cleaning robot 100 and / or as water for cleaning the one or more cleaning elements 109.

[0035] The household appliance 210, in particular an oven or a clothes dryer, can, as exemplified in Fig. 2d The illustration shows a heating element 236 designed to generate warm air 242, which is used for the operation of the household appliance 210. The warm air 242 can be supplied to the cleaning robot 100 located at the parking position 211 and / or at the base station 219, e.g., to dry the one or more wiping elements 109 using the warm air 242.

[0036] This describes a system 200 in which the base station 219 of a cleaning robot 100 is integrated into a household appliance 210. The system 200 is designed such that a resource 222, 232, 242 generated by the household appliance 210 can be used and, in particular, shared by the cleaning robot 100. Through the symbiosis and / or synergy of the household appliance 210 and the base station 219, more resource-efficient, energy-saving, and / or cost-effective operation of the base station 219 and / or the cleaning robot 100 can be achieved.

[0037] The cleaning robot 100 can have a dry cleaning unit (e.g. with a suction nozzle 107, possibly a brush roller 102, a suction blower and possibly a side brush) and / or a wet cleaning module (e.g. with a water tank, a pump, a mopping pad 109, and / or possibly an actuator for moving the mopping pad 109).

[0038] The base station 219 of the cleaning robot 100 can have one or more service functions for the cleaning robot 100, e.g., emptying the collection container 140 by vacuuming, filling the water tank of the cleaning robot 100 with water, and / or cleaning the one or more mopping pads 109 by rinsing. The base station 219 and / or the one or more service functions can be integrated into and / or combined with the household appliance 210. The base station 219 and the household appliance 210 can, for example, share common domestic water and / or power connections 216, 213. Furthermore, the base station 219 and the household appliance 210 can be configured to communicate with each other directly or, for example, via a smart home environment.

[0039] An example of the use of a resource 222, 232, 242 generated by a household appliance 210 is the drainage of the condensate 222 produced in a clothes dryer. Instead of being collected in the dryer's water tank 225 and / or discharged into the wastewater system, this condensate 222 can be directed to the base station 219 of the cleaning robot 100 and used there (possibly filtered) to fill the cleaning robot's water tank 100. In this way, water can be efficiently provided for filling the robot's water tank 100 and / or for cleaning the one or more mopping pads 109 of the cleaning robot 100. This can, in particular, save tap water from a fresh water supply line 216.

[0040] Another example of a usable resource 222, 232, 242 is the water 232 heated in a washing machine and / or dishwasher. If a cleaning robot 100 is in its integrated base station 219 at the time the household appliance 210 is heating the water, the warm water 232 can be used, for example, for cleaning one or more of the cleaning robot's mop pads 109. The water 232 does not need to be heated by the base station 219 first, thus saving electrical energy. Alternatively or additionally, the heated water 232 can be used to fill the cleaning robot's water tanks 100, so that it can use warm water 232 for floor cleaning in a cleaning cycle that starts soon afterward, thereby increasing the cleaning efficiency of the cleaning robot 100.

[0041] In another example, the heat 242 generated during the use of a clothes dryer, refrigerator, freezer, or oven can be used as a resource to create a warm airflow that flows over and dries the one or more mopping pads 109 of the docked cleaning robot 100 at the base station 219. The base station 219 preferably does not have its own hot air blower or heating element, thus saving electrical energy and / or components.

[0042] Fig. 3 Figure 300 shows a flowchart of an exemplary (possibly computer-implemented) method 300 for providing a resource 222, 232, 242 to a cleaning robot 100. Method 300 can be executed, for example, by a control unit of a household appliance 210 and / or a base station 219. Method 300 includes detecting 301 that the cleaning robot 100 is located at the base station 219, the base station 219 being connected to a household appliance 210, for example, via one or more lines (for transmitting a resource 222, 232, 242).

[0043] The method 300 further comprises, in response to the detection 301, causing 302 that at least part of a resource 222, 232, 242 generated by the household appliance 210 in connection with the function effected by the household appliance 210 is made available to the base station 219 for use by the cleaning robot 100.

[0044] The measures described in this document can increase the resource efficiency and / or cleaning quality of a robotic cleaning unit (Robot 100) in a household. Furthermore, components can be saved, thus reducing the required installation space and / or the cost of the base station (219) and / or the overall cost of the robotic cleaning unit (Robot 100).

[0045] The present invention is not limited to the embodiments shown. In particular, it should be noted that the description and the figures are intended only to illustrate the principle of the household appliance and / or the system and / or the method described in this document. Bezugszeichenliste

[0046] 100 Cleaning robot 101 Drive unit 102 Brush roller 104 Guide and / or support element 105 Bumper 106 Cleaning unit / Suction nozzle 107 Suction mouth 109 Component (wiping element, especially wiper pad) 110 Environmental sensor 111 Storage unit 120 Direction of movement / Longitudinal direction 121 Top 122 Bottom 123 Side wall 130 Control unit 140 Collection container 141 Filter unit 142 Suction channel 200 System 210 Household appliance 211 Parking position 212 Working area 213 Electrical mains connection 215 Intermediate container 216 Cable 219 Base station 222 Condensation (resource) 225 Collection container 232 Hot water (resource) 236 Component (heating element) 242 Hot Air (resource) 300 Method for providing a resource for a cleaning robot 301, 302 Method steps

Claims

1. Household appliance (210), wherein the household appliance (210) is configured to: - generate a resource (222, 232, 242) in connection with a function effected by the household appliance (210); and - provide at least a part of the generated resource (222, 232, 242) for use by a cleaning robot (100).

2. Household appliance (210) according to claim 1, wherein the household appliance (210) is configured to provide at least a part of the generated resource (222, 232, 242) to a base station (219) of the cleaning robot (100).

3. Household appliance (210) according to claim 2, wherein the base station (219) is part of the household appliance (210), in particular wherein the base station (219) is integrated into the household appliance (210), for example into a base of the household appliance (210).

4. Household appliance (210) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein - the function performed by the household appliance (210) comprises the processing of one or more objects arranged in a processing chamber (212) of the household appliance (210); and - the household appliance (210) is configured to - supply the resource (222, 232, 242) to the processing chamber (212) for processing the one or more objects; and / or - remove the resource (222, 232, 242) from the processing chamber (212).

5. Household appliance (210) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein - the household appliance (210) comprises a component, in particular a heating element (236) and / or a compressor; wherein the component of the household appliance (210) is in particular used by the household appliance (210) to perform the function of the household appliance (210); and - the household appliance (210) is configured to generate the resource (222, 232, 242) using the component.

6. Household appliance (210) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the resource (222, 232, 242) comprises a liquid and / or gaseous fluid, in particular water and / or air, such as warm water and / or warm air.

7. Household appliance (210) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the resource (222, 232, 242) comprises condensate (222) produced during the operation of the household appliance (210).

8. Household appliance (210) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the household appliance (210) is configured to provide at least a part of the generated resource (222, 232, 242) for operation of the cleaning robot (100) and / or for conditioning, in particular for drying and / or cleaning, a component (109) of the cleaning robot (100).

9. Household appliance (210) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the household appliance (210) comprises an oven, a dryer, a washing machine, a dishwasher and / or a refrigerator.

10. Household appliance (210) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein - the resource (222, 232, 242) generated by the household appliance (210) differs from electrical energy and / or water and / or air supplied to the household appliance (210) via a supply line (213, 216); and / or - the resource (222, 232, 242) generated by the household appliance (210) does not include and / or is not electrical energy.

11. System (200) comprising a base station (219) for a cleaning robot (100) and a household appliance (210) configured according to one of the preceding claims.

12. System (200) according to claim 11, wherein - the household appliance (210) is configured to direct at least a portion of the resource (222, 232, 242) generated by the household appliance (210) to the base station (219); and - the base station (219) is configured to direct the resource (222, 232, 242) provided by the household appliance (210) into a container of the cleaning robot (100) when the cleaning robot (100) is arranged at the base station (219) to enable the cleaning robot (100) to utilize the resource (222, 232, 242) during the cleaning operation of the cleaning robot (100); and / or - to condition a component (109) of the cleaning robot (100) using the resource (222, 232, 242) provided by the household appliance (210), in particular to clean and / or moisten and / or dry it when the cleaning robot (100) is positioned at the base station (219).

13. System (200) according to one of claims 11 to 12, wherein - the base station (219) comprises an intermediate container (215); and - the household appliance (210) is configured to direct at least a part of the resource (222, 232, 242) generated by the household appliance (210) into the intermediate container (215) of the base station (219).

14. System (200) according to one of claims 11 to 13, wherein - the household appliance (210) comprises a mains connection (213) for the electrical power supply of the household appliance (210); and - the base station (219) is configured to obtain electrical energy for the operation of the base station (219) and / or for charging an electrical energy storage device of the cleaning robot (100) via the mains connection (213) of the household appliance (210).

15. Method (300) for providing a resource (222, 232, 242) to a cleaning robot (100); wherein the method (300) comprises: - detecting (301) that the cleaning robot (100) is located at a base station (219) for the cleaning robot (100); wherein the base station (219) is coupled to a household appliance (210); and - in response to the detection (301), causing (302) that at least part of a resource (222, 232, 242) generated by the household appliance (210) in connection with a function effected by the household appliance (210) is provided to the base station (219) for use by the cleaning robot (100).

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