An apparatus for controlling contamination in a region to be kept clean and a method of controlling contamination in a region to be kept clean

Abstract

A method and apparatus 1 for controlling contamination in a region to be kept clean comprises the steps of: (a) using a camera 4 to provide a plurality of images of the region to be kept clean; (b) ge

Claims

1. An apparatus for controlling contamination in a region to be kept clean, the apparatus comprisinga portable camera;a processor configured to receive a plurality of images from the camera and perform the steps of(a) generate a digital map of the region to be kept clean from the plurality of images, the digital map comprising at least one digital region, the digital region being a map of at least a portion of the region to kept clean;(b) for each digital region calculate a cleanable area associated therewith;(c) generate a cleaning specification from the digital map, the cleaning specification comprising a net cleanable area, the net cleanable area being a function of the at least one cleanable area; and,(d) send a message over a network to a cleaning scheduler, the message comprising the cleaning specification.

2. An apparatus as claimed in claim 1, where the cleanable area of a digital region is a function of the area of the portion of the region to be kept clean mapped by the digital region.

3. An apparatus as claimed in either of claims 1 or 2, wherein the digital map comprises a plurality of digital regions, the net cleanable area being the sum of the cleanable areas of each digital region.

4. An apparatus as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein each digital region has a surface type associated therewith, the cleanable area of the digital region being a function of the associated surface type.

5. An apparatus as claimed in claim 4, wherein the cleaning specification comprises an amount of at least one cleaning chemical, the amount of at least one cleaning chemical being determined from the cleanable area of the at least one digital region and its associated surface type.

6. An apparatus as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the cleaning specification comprises at least one cleaning route, the processor being configured to calculate the at least one cleaning route from the at least one digital region to be kept clean.

7. An apparatus as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the cleanable area of the at least one digital region is a function of the shape of the at least one digital region.

8. An apparatus as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the apparatus further comprises an interface connected to the processor;the interface being configured to receive an input from a user and in response provide at least one excluded area to the processor;the processor being configured to remove the at least one excluded area from the at least one digital region before calculating the cleanable area of the at least one digital region.

9. An apparatus as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 8, further comprising at least one sensor connected to the processor, the processor being configured to modify the cleaning specification in response to data received from the at least one sensor.

10. An apparatus as claimed in claim 9, wherein the cleaning specification comprises a cleaning frequency, the processor being configured to determine the cleaning frequency from the digital map and the data received from the at least one sensor.

11. An apparatus as claimed in either of claims 9 or 10, wherein the at least one sensor comprises at least one of a desk occupancy sensor, a footfall sensor, a door use sensor, a room usage sensor and an air quality sensor.

12. A method of controlling contamination in a region to be kept clean, the method comprising the steps of(a) providing a plurality of images of the region to be kept clean;(b) generating a digital map of the region to be kept clean from the plurality of images,the digital map comprising at least one digital region, the digital region being a map of at least a portion of the region to be kept clean;(c) for each digital region calculate a cleanable area associated therewith;(d) generating a cleaning specification from the digital map, the cleaning specification comprising a net cleanable area, the net cleanable area being a function of the at least one cleanable area; and,(e) sending a message over a network to a cleaning scheduler, the message comprising the cleaning specification.

13. A method as claimed in claim 12, wherein the cleanable area of a digital region is a function of the area of the portion of the region to be kept clean mapped by the digital region.

14. A method as claimed in either of claims 12 or 13, wherein the digital map comprises a plurality of digital regions and the net cleanable area is the sum of the cleaning durations of each digital region.

15. A method as claimed in any one of claims 12 to 14, wherein each digital region has a surface type associated therewith, the cleanable area of the digital region being a function of the associated surface type.

16. A method as claimed in claim 15, wherein the cleaning specification comprises an amount of at least one cleaning chemical, the amount of at least one cleaning chemical being determined from the cleanable area of the at least one digital region and its associated surface type.

17. A method as claimed in any one of claims 12 to 16, wherein the cleaning specification comprises at least one cleaning route, the at least one cleaning route being determined from the at least one digital region to be kept clean.

18. A method as claimed in any one of claims 12 to 17, wherein the cleanable area of the at least one digital region is a function of its shape.

19. A method as claimed in any one of claims 12 to 18, wherein the method further comprises the step of removing at least one excluded area from the at least one digital region before calculating the cleanable area of the at least one digital region.

20. A method as claimed in any one of clams 12 to 19 further comprising the step of receiving data from at least one sensor and modifying the cleaning specification in response to the received data.

21. A method as claimed in claim 20, wherein the cleaning specification comprises a cleaning frequency, the method further comprising the step of determining the cleaning frequency from the digital map and the data received from the at least one sensor.

22. A method as claimed in either of claims 20 or 21, wherein the at least one sensor comprises at least one of a desk occupancy sensor, a footfall sensor, a door use sensor, a room use sensor and an air quality sensor.A

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