Mobile cleaning device and control system thereof

Abstract

To provide a mobile cleaning device suitable for a livestock rearing farm.SOLUTION: A mobile cleaning device includes a mobile body and a plurality of guide scrapers. The mobile body is configured to be movable in a livestock rearing farm. The mobile body includes a storage space and an opening part which communicate with each other. The storage space receives excrement of livestock from the livestock rearing farm through the opening part. The guide scrapers are disposed on the movable body and support the movable body. An interval between the plurality of guide scrapers gradually decreases along a direction toward the opening part.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a mobile cleaning apparatus and its control system, and more particularly to a mobile cleaning apparatus suitable for livestock farms and its control system. [Background technology]

[0002] In livestock farming, cleaning of livestock farms is usually done manually. The cleaning environment is often dirty and smelly, and the cleaning work is a heavy burden. For this reason, some livestock farmers are moving to import cleaning robots from Western countries to reduce the burden of cleaning work.

[0003] However, because livestock farms in Europe and the US are large, the construction of livestock sheds is standardized, and imported cleaning robots designed for standardized livestock sheds may not be suitable for the various domestic livestock farms. Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] The present disclosure provides a mobile cleaning device and its control system, which is suitable for various livestock farms and can effectively perform cleaning operations. [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] According to one aspect of the present disclosure, a mobile cleaning device suitable for a livestock farm includes a movable body and a plurality of guide scrapers. The movable body is configured to be movable within the livestock farm. The movable body has an accommodation space and an opening communicating with each other, and the accommodation space is configured to accommodate livestock waste from the livestock farm through the opening. The plurality of guide scrapers are disposed on the movable body and support the movable body, and a distance between the plurality of guide scrapers gradually decreases along a direction toward the opening.

[0006] According to another aspect of the present disclosure, a control system for a mobile cleaning device includes a mobile cleaning device and a control device. The mobile cleaning device includes a movable body, at least one moving module, and a plurality of guide scrapers. The movable body has a storage space and an opening communicating with each other. The at least one moving module is disposed on the movable body to enable mobility of the movable body. The plurality of guide scrapers are disposed on the movable body and support the movable body, and a distance between the plurality of guide scrapers gradually decreases along a direction toward the opening. The control device is in signal communication with the at least one moving module and controls the movement of the mobile cleaning device in the livestock farm via the at least one moving module. The mobile cleaning device collects livestock waste from the livestock farm via the plurality of guide scrapers and moves the livestock waste to the storage space via the opening.

[0007] According to the mobile cleaning device and its control system of the present invention, the mobile cleaning device is capable of running on uneven ground due to the guide scraper design, making it suitable for various livestock farms, and the mobile cleaning device is also capable of collecting livestock waste toward openings while running due to the guide scraper design, allowing for effective cleaning work. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0008] The present disclosure will be better understood from the detailed description set forth below and the accompanying drawings, which are given by way of example only and are therefore not intended to limit the disclosure, and are as follows: [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a mobile cleaning machine control system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of one mobile cleaning device according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. [Diagram 3] FIG. 3 is a bottom view of the mobile cleaning device of FIG. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is an enlarged view of a portion of the mobile cleaning device of FIG. [Diagram 5] FIG. 5 is an enlarged view of a portion of the mobile cleaning apparatus of FIG. [Figure 6] 6 is a perspective view of a guide scraper of the mobile cleaning device of FIG. 2. FIG. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0009] Aspects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. For convenience of explanation, one or more specific embodiments are provided to provide a thorough understanding of the present invention, which are described in sufficient detail to enable those skilled in the art to practice the described embodiments. It should be understood that the following description is not intended to limit the embodiments to one specific embodiment. On the contrary, it is intended to cover alternatives, modifications, and equivalents that may be included within the spirit and scope of the described embodiments, as defined by the appended claims.

[0010] Please refer to Figures 1 to 6, where Figure 1 is a block diagram of a control system of a mobile cleaning apparatus according to one embodiment of the present disclosure, Figure 2 is a perspective view of one mobile cleaning apparatus according to one embodiment of the present disclosure, Figure 3 is a bottom view of the mobile cleaning apparatus in Figure 2, Figure 4 is an enlarged view of a portion of the mobile cleaning apparatus in Figure 2, Figure 5 is an enlarged view of a portion of the mobile cleaning apparatus in Figure 3, and Figure 6 is a perspective view of a guide scraper of the mobile cleaning apparatus of Figure 2.

[0011] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, a mobile cleaning device control system 1 suitable for a livestock farm (e.g., a dairy barn, not shown) is provided. The mobile cleaning device control system 1 includes a mobile cleaning device 10 and a control device 20.

[0012] The mobile cleaning device 10 may include a movable body 100, a plurality of moving modules 200, a suction module 300, a plurality of guide scrapers 400, a plurality of brush modules 500, a plurality of side blockers 600, a plurality of guide blockers 700, an auxiliary blocker 800, and a liquid supply module 900.

[0013] The movable body 100 has an accommodation space 110 and an opening 120 which communicate with each other.

[0014] Each moving module 200 includes wheels 210 and a drive motor 230. The wheels 210 are rotatably disposed on the movable body 100 via the drive motor 230 so as to enable the movable body 100 to move in the livestock farm. The drive motor 230 is connected to the control device 20 so as to be capable of signal communication. Note that the manner of movement of the wheels 210 is not intended to limit the contents of the disclosure that are preset. Note that the drive motor 230 may be connected to the wheels 210 via a reduction gear box (not shown), and the present disclosure is not limited thereto. In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the moving module may include other suitable moving media, such as a sled for sliding, mechanical feet for walking, etc.

[0015] The suction module 300 may be, for example, a vacuum pump. The suction module 300 may be disposed on the movable body 100 and may be in signal communication with the control device 20. The suction module 300 may suck air from the accommodation space 110 so that the inside of the accommodation space 110 is under negative pressure. When the mobile cleaning device 10 moves through the livestock farm, the negative pressure in the accommodation space 110 may be used to suck livestock waste (e.g., cow waste, not shown) from the livestock farm and temporarily store the livestock waste in the accommodation space 110 through the opening 120. It should be noted that the suction module is not a limitation of the present disclosure. In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the livestock waste may be transferred to the accommodation space by a method involving physical contact, such as pushing.

[0016] Each guide scraper 400 may be pivotally connected to the movable body 100 via a cushion CS (shown in FIG. 4). The guide scraper 400 and the wheels 210 are disposed on two opposing sides of the opening 120, respectively, and together support the movable body 100. Each guide scraper 400 may include a slide portion 410, a front ridge portion 420, a rear ridge portion 430, and a scraping portion 440. Of each guide scraper 400, the slide portion 410 may be in close proximity to the ground of the livestock farm. The front ridge portion 420 and the rear ridge portion 430 are respectively connected to two opposing sides of the slide portion 410. The slide portion 410, the front ridge portion 420, and the rear ridge portion 430 may all have a skid-like appearance. The front raised portion 420 can be swung up and down by the swinging of the guide scraper 400, so that the guide scraper 400 can smoothly slide on any uneven ground (e.g., a concave portion) in the livestock farm. Furthermore, the guide scraper 400 and the wheels 210 may be aligned with each other along the traveling direction D1 of the mobile cleaning device 10, so that the mobility of the mobile cleaning device 10 on any flat or uneven ground in the livestock farm can be improved. In each guide scraper 400, a scraping portion 440 is connected to the side of the slide portion 410, the side of the front raised portion 420, and the side of the rear raised portion 430, and the scraping portion 440 can be self-supported on the ground of the livestock farm, for example. The distance between the scraping portions 440 of the guide scrapers 400 gradually decreases along the direction toward the opening 120, so that the waste of the livestock in the livestock farm can be collected toward the opening 120.

[0017] The brush module 500 includes a plurality of brushes 510 and a plurality of rotation motors 520. The brushes 510 are rotatably disposed on the movable body 100 and disposed between the guide scrapers 400. The rotation directions of the brushes 510 may be opposite to each other, as shown by directions R1 and R2 in FIG. 3, so that the waste of livestock in the livestock farm can be further collected toward the opening 120. The rotation motors 520 are connected in signal communication with the control device 20 and are connected to the brushes 510, respectively.

[0018] The side blockers 600 are disposed on the movable body 100. Each side blocker 600 includes a front block portion 610, a connection portion 620, and a rear block portion 630, which are sequentially connected. The front block portion 610 is disposed in front of the guide scraper 400 along the traveling direction D1 of the mobile cleaning apparatus 10, and each front block portion 610 may be angled with respect to the traveling direction D1 of the mobile cleaning apparatus 10, so that the livestock waste can be collected in advance toward the opening 120 by the front block portion 610 during the movement of the mobile cleaning apparatus 10. The connection portion 620 is disposed on two opposite sides of the guide scraper 400 that are spaced apart from each other, respectively, to prevent the livestock waste from leaking out of the sides of the mobile cleaning apparatus 10 during the movement of the mobile cleaning apparatus 10. The rear block portion 630 is disposed behind the guide scraper 400 along the traveling direction D1 of the mobile cleaning device 10, and is designed to prevent livestock waste that has not yet been scraped off by the guide scraper 400 from spilling out.

[0019] The guide blocker 700 is disposed on the movable body 100 and is disposed between the guide scraper 400 and the opening 120 so as to move the livestock waste scraped off by the guide scraper 400 toward the opening 120.

[0020] The auxiliary blocker 800 is arranged on the movable body 100 and is arranged behind the guide scraper 400 and behind the opening 120 along the traveling direction D1 of the mobile cleaning device 10 to prevent livestock waste that has not been sucked into the storage space 110 through the opening 120 from reaching the rear part of the mobile cleaning device 10 and affecting the rotation of the wheels 210.

[0021] It should be noted that the brush module 500, side blockers 600, guide blockers 700 and auxiliary blockers 800 are optional. In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the brush module, side blockers, guide blockers and auxiliary blockers may be omitted if all livestock waste can be adequately vacuumed during movement of the mobile cleaning apparatus.

[0022] The liquid supply module 900 is disposed on the movable body 100. The liquid supply module 900 includes a container 910, a plurality of nozzles 920, and a liquid pump 930. The container 910 may be a water tank or a water bag capable of carrying liquid such as clear water or disinfectant. The nozzles 920 may be disposed on the front and rear sides of the movable body 100. The liquid pump 930 is in fluid communication with the container 910 and the nozzles 920, and is in signal communication with the control device 20.

[0023] The drive motor 230 can be started through the command of the control device 20 so that the mobile cleaning apparatus 10 moves in the livestock farm. In addition, the drive motors 230 of different moving modules 200 can be operated at different rotation speeds through the command of the control device 20, so that the wheels 210 of different moving modules 200 have different running speeds to realize the turning of the mobile cleaning apparatus 10. The suction module 300, the rotation motor 520 and the liquid pump 930 can also be started through the command of the control device 20, so that the suction module 300 can create negative pressure in the receiving space 110, the rotation motor 520 can rotate the brush 510 along the directions R1 and R2 as shown in FIG. 3, and the liquid pump 930 can squirt the liquid in the container 910 through the nozzle 920 toward the front and rear of the mobile cleaning apparatus 10.

[0024] During the movement of the mobile cleaning device 10, the livestock waste can be pre-collected by the front block portion 610 toward the opening 120. In some cases, the livestock waste may directly contact the guide scraper 400. For example, some livestock waste that has not been pre-collected by the front block portion 610 may overflow the guide scraper 400, or some livestock waste that has not been pre-collected by the front block portion 610 may overflow the guide scraper 400 due to the rotation of the mobile cleaning device 10, or the side block portion may be omitted in some embodiments, resulting in the livestock waste directly contacting the guide scraper 400. The livestock waste that has come into contact with the guide scraper 400 can be further collected toward the opening 120 by the scraping portion 440 of the guide scraper 400. The rotating brush 510 can assist in the collection of the livestock waste by brushing the scraped livestock waste toward the opening 120. In addition, some of the livestock waste can be moved toward the opening 120 by the guide blocker 700. The livestock waste that reaches the opening 120 is sucked into the accommodation space 110 by the negative pressure created by the suction module 300, and the cleaning of the livestock waste is completed. In some cases, even if the mobile cleaning device 10 is operated at a too fast running speed, some of the livestock waste that has not yet been sucked into the accommodation space 110 can be blocked in various directions by the connection part 620, the rear block part 630, and the auxiliary blocker 800 to prevent the livestock waste from overflowing. In addition, the liquid sprayed from the nozzle 920 toward the front and rear of the mobile cleaning device 10 can clean or disinfect the livestock farm.

[0025] According to the mobile cleaning device and its control system of the present invention, the mobile cleaning device is able to run on uneven ground due to the design of the sliding portion, front ridge portion and rear ridge portion of each guide scraper, and the design of the scraping portion of each guide scraper allows the mobile cleaning device to collect livestock waste toward the opening while running, so that the mobile cleaning device can effectively perform cleaning work and is suitable for various livestock farms.

[0026] In this disclosure, a signal communication connection refers to a connection method that allows signals to be transmitted between two components, for example, by wire or wirelessly.

[0027] The embodiments have been chosen and described to best explain the principles of the disclosure and its practical application, and to thereby enable others skilled in the art to best utilize the disclosure and various embodiments, with various modifications suited to the particular uses contemplated. It is intended that the scope of the disclosure be defined by the following claims and their equivalents.

Claims

1. A movable body configured to be movable within a livestock farm; A plurality of guide scrapers are disposed on the movable body and support the movable body, The movable body has an accommodation space and an opening communicating with each other, and the accommodation space is configured to accommodate livestock waste from the livestock farm through the opening; The distance between the guide scrapers gradually decreases along a direction toward the opening. Mobile cleaning equipment suitable for livestock farms.

2. Each of the plurality of guide scrapers includes a slide portion, a front ridge portion, a rear ridge portion, and a scraping portion, the front ridge portion and the rear ridge portion are respectively connected to two opposing side surfaces of the slide portion, the scraping portion is connected to a side surface of the slide portion, a side surface of the front ridge portion, and a side surface of the rear ridge portion, and a distance between the scraping portions of the plurality of guide scrapers gradually decreases along a direction toward the opening.

2. The mobile cleaning device of claim 1.

3. The plurality of guide scrapers are pivotally connected to the movable body, and the forward protrusion swings up and down due to the pivoting of the plurality of guide scrapers.

3. The mobile cleaning device of claim 2.

4. A plurality of wheels rotatably disposed on the movable body to enable movement of the movable body, The plurality of wheels and the plurality of guide scrapers are respectively arranged on two opposing sides of the opening, and support the movable body together, and the plurality of wheels and the plurality of guide scrapers are aligned with each other along the traveling direction of the mobile cleaning device.

2. The mobile cleaning device of claim 1.

5. A plurality of brushes are rotatably disposed on the movable body and positioned between the plurality of guide scrapers, The brushes rotate in opposite directions.

2. The mobile cleaning device of claim 1.

6. and a plurality of side blockers disposed on the movable body, Each of the plurality of side blockers includes a front block portion, a connection portion, and a rear block portion that are connected in sequence, the connection portion being disposed on two mutually opposing side surfaces of the plurality of guide scrapers that are spaced apart from each other, and the front block portion and the rear block portion being disposed on the front side and the rear side of the plurality of guide scrapers, respectively, along the traveling direction of the mobile cleaning device.

2. The mobile cleaning device of claim 1.

7. and a plurality of guide blockers disposed on the movable body and positioned between the plurality of guide scrapers and the opening.

2. The mobile cleaning device of claim 1.

8. and an auxiliary blocker disposed on the movable body, positioned rearward of the plurality of guide scrapers, and positioned rearward of the opening along the travel direction of the mobile cleaning device.

2. The mobile cleaning device of claim 1.

9. a liquid supply module disposed on the movable body, the liquid supply module comprises a container, at least one nozzle, and a liquid pump, the container being configured to contain a liquid, the at least one nozzle being disposed on a side surface of the movable body, the liquid pump being in fluid communication with the container and the at least one nozzle, and configured to eject liquid in the container through the at least one nozzle; 2. The mobile cleaning device of claim 1.

10. a suction module disposed on the movable body and configured to suction air from the accommodating space, 2. The mobile cleaning device of claim 1.

11. A mobile cleaning device; a controller in signal communication with at least one mobile module and configured to control movement of the mobile cleaning device in a livestock farm via the at least one mobile module; The mobile cleaning device is a movable body having a storage space and an opening communicating with each other; At least one movement module arranged on the movable body and enabling the movement of the movable body; A plurality of guide scrapers are disposed on the movable body, support the movable body, and a distance between the plurality of guide scrapers gradually decreases along a direction toward the opening; Including, The mobile cleaning device collects livestock waste from the livestock farm via the plurality of guide scrapers and moves the livestock waste to the storage space via the opening. A control system for a mobile cleaning device.

12. The at least one moving module includes a wheel and a drive motor, the wheel is rotatably disposed on the movable body via the drive motor, and the drive motor is connected in signal communication with the control device.

12. The control system for a mobile cleaning device of claim 11.

13. The mobile cleaning device further includes a plurality of brush modules, the plurality of brush modules including a plurality of brushes and a plurality of rotary motors, the plurality of brushes being rotatably disposed on the movable body, the plurality of rotary motors being connected in signal communication with the control device and connected to the plurality of brushes, respectively.

12. The control system for a mobile cleaning device of claim 11.

14. the mobile cleaning device further includes a liquid supply module disposed on the movable body, the liquid supply module including a container, at least one nozzle, and a liquid pump in fluid communication with each other, the liquid pump being in signal communication with the controller; 12. The control system for a mobile cleaning device of claim 11.

15. The mobile cleaning device further includes a suction module disposed on the movable body, the suction module being in signal communication with the control device.

12. The control system for a mobile cleaning device of claim 11.

Images