ATTACHED CLEANING ROBOT

Abstract

The present invention discloses an attached cleaning robot. The attached cleaning robot includes a robot body and a protection assembly, where climbing track assemblies are disposed at both sides of the robot body; a probe assembly is telescopically arranged at a top of the robot body; a floating propelling mechanism is disposed on a circumference of the robot body; a cleaning mechanism is disposed on the robot body; a control unit is disposed inside the robot body; the cleaning mechanism includes a mechanical scraper, a cavitation jet base and a rotary rolling brush, where the rotary rolling brush is arranged near a rear end of the robot body, the cavitation jet base is disposed near a front end of the robot body, cavitation nozzles are disposed at a bottom of the cavitation jet base, and the mechanical scraper is disposed in front of the cavitation jet base.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[01] The present invention relates to the technical field of mariculture, and in particular to an . BACKGROUND ART

[02] At present, deep‑sea aquaculture is an important approach to expand marine food production space and guarantee food safety. A net cage is used as a main mariculture facility, and a netting of the net cage is highly prone to attachment of algae, shellfish and other organisms after long‑term immersion in seawater, resulting in mesh blockage. This seriously hinders water exchange inside and outside a cage body, causes a reduced dissolved oxygen level and accumulation of harmful substances, directly threatens survival and health of cultured fishes, and increases both structural loads and damage risks of the net cage.

[03] In the prior art, manual cleaning has the disadvantages of high risk, low efficiency and high cost, and is greatly affected by weather and sea conditions. Traditional mechanical cleaning devices usually require lifting of a netting partially above a water surface or fixed-point flushing by relying on a rigid mechanical arm, making it difficult to adapt to dynamic deformation of a flexible netting under complex flow fields in deep sea, and there are problems such as large blind cleaning areas, high risks of netting damage, and low levels of automation. SUMMARY

[04] The objective of the present invention is to provide an to solve the above-mentioned problems existing in the prior art and realize autonomous, efficient and deep cleaning of the flexible netting in complicated underwater environments.

[05] To achieve the above-mentioned objective, the present invention provides the following solution:

[06] The present invention provides an , including a robot body and a protection assembly, where climbing track assemblies are disposed at both sides of the robot body and used to drive the robot body to attach to and move along a netting surface; a probe assembly is telescopically arranged at a top of the robot body and used to extend out and obtain visual information of the robot's forward direction in turbid water environments; a floating propelling mechanism is disposed on a circumference of the robot body; a cleaning mechanism is disposed on the robot body and used for multi-stage cleaning of attachments on the netting surface; a control unit is disposed inside the robot body and used to receive information from the probe assembly telescopically arranged at the top and coordinately control actions of the climbing track assembly, the floating propelling mechanism and the cleaning mechanism; the cleaning mechanism includes a mechanical scraper, a cavitation jet base and a rotary rolling brush, where both the rotary rolling brush and the cavitation jet base are disposed at a bottom of the robot body, the rotary rolling brush is arranged near a rear end of the robot body, the cavitation jet base is disposed near a front end of the robot body, a plurality of cavitation nozzles are disposed at a bottom of the cavitation jet base, and the mechanical scraper is disposed in front of the cavitation jet base; the protection assembly includes an elastic protection frame and several buffer elastic members, where the elastic protection frame is sleeved outside the robot body, all the buffer elastic members are disposed between the elastic protection frame and the robot body and around the robot body, one end of the buffer elastic members is fixedly connected to the elastic protection frame, and the other end of the buffer elastic members is fixedly connected to the robot body.

[07] Preferably, a top end of the mechanical scraper is hinged to the front end of the robot body, an elastic support member is disposed between the mechanical scraper and the robot body, one end of the elastic support member is connected to the mechanical scraper, the other end of the elastic support member is connected to the robot body, and the elastic support member is capable of elastic deformation.

[08] Preferably, the mechanical scraper is a soft elastic scraper; the elastic protection frame is a rubber frame.

[09] Compared with the prior art, the present invention achieves the following technical effects:

[10] The robot body of the provided by the present invention integrates the functions of attached movement, environment perception, underwater maneuvering and multi-stage cleaning; during operation, the floating propelling mechanism drives the robot at first to approach the target netting and realize preliminary attachment; then the climbing track assembly drives the robot to crawl stably on the netting; the probe assembly telescopically arranged at the top extends to obtain a clear forward field of view in turbid water and provide positioning references for the control unit to plan a full- coverage cleaning path; the cleaning mechanism performs continuous cleaning operations on the attachments on the path during movement. The entire process is intelligently coordinated by the control unit, autonomous, efficient and deep cleaning of the flexible netting in complicated underwater environments is realized, netting movement and damage to the netting are reduced, and the service life of the netting is ensured. When the collides with a net cage frame, rocks and the like, the elastic protection frame and the several buffer elastic members can absorb impact energy through elastic deformation to prevent the from deforming and being damaged due to collision while avoiding damage to a net cage structure caused by the collision. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[11] To explain embodiments of the present invention or technical solutions in the prior art more clearly, drawings required in the embodiments will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings in the following description are only some embodiments of the present invention. For those of ordinary skill in the art, other drawings can also be obtained based on these drawings without any creative effort.

[12] FIG. 1 is an overall structural view of the provided by the present invention.

[13] FIG. 2 is a side schematic view of the provided by the present invention.

[14] FIG. 3 is an overall structural view of the provided by the present invention (with the protection assembly and the mechanical scraper removed).

[15] FIG. 4 is a schematic view mainly illustrating a traveling track structure of the present invention.

[16] FIG. 5 is a schematic view mainly illustrating a bottom structure of the robot body of the present invention.

[17] FIG. 6 is a schematic view mainly illustrating a water inlet structure of the present invention.

[18] FIG. 7 is a schematic view mainly illustrating a limiting groove structure of the present invention.

[19] In the figures: 1. Robot body; 2. Floating propelling device; 3. Double-head waterproof telescopic electric cylinder; 4. Pan-tilt unit; 5. Camera; 6. Traveling track; 7. Track frame; 8. Propeller; 9. Cavitation jet base; 10. Track motor; 11. Driving wheel; 12. Tension wheel; 14. Climbing inclined surface; 15. Driven wheel; 16. Cavitation nozzle; 17. High-pressure pump; 18. Rotary rolling brush; 19. Flexible bristles; 20. Water inlet; 21. Shielding net; 22. Limiting block; 23. Limiting groove; 24. Water spray hole; 25. Water spray pump; 26. Water spray cavity; 27. Mechanical scraper; 28. Elastic protection frame; 29. Buffer elastic member; 30. Elastic support member. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

[20] The technical solution in the embodiments of the present invention will be described clearly and completely below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in the embodiments of the present invention. Obviously, the embodiments described are only a part of, rather than all of, the embodiments of the present invention. Based on the embodiments in the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by those of ordinary skill in the art without making creative efforts should fall into the protection scope of the present invention.

[21] The objective of the present invention is to provide an to solve the above-mentioned problems existing in the prior art and realize autonomous, efficient and deep cleaning of the flexible netting in complicated underwater environments.

[22] To make the above-mentioned objective, characteristics and advantages of the present invention more obvious and understandable, the present invention is described in further detail below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and detailed description of the embodiments.

[23] As shown in FIGS. 1-7, the present invention provides an , including a robot body 1 and a protection assembly, where climbing track assemblies are disposed at both sides of the robot body 1 and used to drive the robot body 1 to attach to and move along a netting surface; a probe assembly is telescopically arranged at a top of the robot body 1 and used to extend out and obtain visual information of the robot's forward direction in turbid water environments; a floating propelling mechanism is disposed on a circumference of the robot body 1 and used to provide omnidirectional thrust for free movement of the robot body 1 in water; a cleaning mechanism is disposed on the robot body 1 and used for multi-stage cleaning of attachments on the netting surface; a control unit is disposed inside the robot body 1 and used to receive information from the probe assembly telescopically arranged at the top and coordinately control actions of the climbing track assembly, the floating propelling mechanism and the cleaning mechanism; the cleaning mechanism includes a mechanical scraper 27, a cavitation jet base 9 and a rotary rolling brush 18, where both the rotary rolling brush 18 and the cavitation jet base 9 are disposed at a bottom of the robot body 1, the rotary rolling brush 18 is disposed near a rear end of the robot body 1, the cavitation jet base 9 is disposed near a front end of the robot body 1, a plurality of cavitation nozzles 16 are disposed at a bottom of the cavitation jet base 9, and the mechanical scraper 27 is disposed in front of the cavitation jet base 9; a high- pressure pump 17 communicated with the cavitation nozzles 16 is disposed on the robot body 1, a rolling brush motor for driving the rotary rolling brush 18 to rotate is disposed on the robot body 1, and the rotary rolling brush 18 is provided with flexible bristles 19; the protection assembly includes an elastic protection frame 28 and several buffer elastic members 29, where the elastic protection frame 28 is sleeved outside the robot body 1, all the buffer elastic members 29 are disposed between the elastic protection frame 28 and the robot body 1 and around the robot body 1, one end of the buffer elastic members 29 is fixedly connected to the elastic protection frame 28, and the other end of the buffer elastic members 29 is fixedly connected to the robot body 1; when the collides with a net cage frame, rocks and the like, the elastic protection frame 28 and the several buffer elastic members 29 can absorb impact energy through elastic deformation to prevent the from deforming and being damaged due to collision while avoiding damage to a net cage structure caused by the collision.

[24] When the cleaning mechanism is in operation, firstly, the mechanical scraper 27 mechanically peels off large shellfish and thick layers of algae from the netting; then, the cavitation nozzles 16 of the cavitation jet base 9 eject water jets outward, numerous cavitation bubbles are generated, these bubbles collapse upon reaching the netting surface, local high-pressure micro-jets and shock waves are generated, and roots of residual attachments are impacted, thus achieving a powerful rough cleaning effect; finally, the rotary rolling brush 18 cleans the netting surface in a refined manner to ensure cleanliness, forming three-stage cleaning, i.e., "scraping‑ flushing‑brushing". This improves the removal efficiency of stubborn attachments, reduces the operating pressure of cavitation jet flow, and reduces damage to the netting caused by high‑ pressure water flow.

[25] Specifically, the flexible bristles 19 are usually made of seawater-resistant and wear-resistant polymer materials such as nylon and polypropylene.

[26] The robot body 1 of the provided by the present invention integrates the functions of attached movement, environment perception, underwater maneuvering and multi-stage cleaning; during operation, the floating propelling mechanism drives the robot at first to approach the target netting and realize preliminary attachment; then the climbing track assembly drives the robot to crawl stably on the netting; the probe assembly telescopically arranged at the top extends to obtain a clear forward field of view in turbid water and provide positioning references for the control unit to plan a full- coverage cleaning path; the cleaning mechanism performs continuous cleaning operations on the attachments on the path during movement. The entire process is intelligently coordinated by the control unit, autonomous, efficient and deep cleaning of the flexible netting in complicated underwater environments is realized, netting movement and damage to the netting are reduced, and the service life of the netting is ensured. When the collides with a net cage frame, rocks and the like, the elastic protection frame 28 and the several buffer elastic members 29 can absorb impact energy through elastic deformation to prevent the from deforming and being damaged due to collision while avoiding damage to a net cage structure caused by the collision.

[27] As a relatively preferred embodiment of the present invention, a top end of the mechanical scraper 27 is hinged to the front end of the robot body 1, an elastic support member 30 is disposed between the mechanical scraper 27 and the robot body 1, one end of the elastic support member 30 is connected to the mechanical scraper 27, the other end of the elastic support member 30 is connected to the robot body 1, and the elastic support member 30 is capable of elastic deformation to enable the mechanical scraper 27 to closely contact the netting.

[28] As a relatively preferred embodiment of the present invention, the mechanical scraper 27 is a soft elastic scraper, preferably made of polyurethane, a soft elastic material, but is not limited to polyurethane, which is resistant to seawater corrosion and wear, with certain elasticity, and can produce slight deformation when contacting the netting, so as to not only ensure a mechanical stripping force for shellfish and thick algae, but also avoid scratching netting fibers; the elastic protection frame 28 is a rubber frame.

[29] In the present embodiment, a control unit and a power supply unit are integrated inside the robot body 1. The power supply unit is preferably a high-capacity, pressure- resistant lithium-ion battery pack, which provides all the power required for underwater operation of the entire device. The control unit serves as a core processor, which may adopt an industrial computer or a high-performance embedded controller, and is responsible for processing sensor information, executing decision-making algorithms, and driving all actuators. The robot body 1 is structurally designed for high-pressure and corrosive environments in deep sea. Its main body is a cylindrical or streamlined pressure-resistant cabin made of high-strength corrosion- resistant aluminum alloy or composite materials to ensure structural strength and sealing performance. A hemispherical or flat front transparent observation window made of high- strength optical glass or polycarbonate is disposed at the front end of the robot body 1 to provide a field of view for retraction observation of possible internal auxiliary sensors or top probe assemblies. A removable protection plate is disposed at the bottom to facilitate maintenance and replacement of the cleaning mechanism.

[30] The climbing track assembly includes track frames 7 installed at both sides of the robot body 1; a driving wheel 11, a driven wheel 15 and a tension wheel 12 are installed on the track frames 7, traveling tracks 6 are transmitted and installed on the track frames 7, the traveling tracks 6 are sleeved on the driving wheel 11, the driven wheel 15 and the tension wheel 12, thus allowing the traveling tracks 6 to be sleeved on the track frames 7 much more stably, and the convenience of using the traveling tracks 6 is improved. Track motors 10 for driving the driving wheels 11 to rotate are installed on the track frames 7, and climbing inclined surfaces 14 are provided at both front and rear sides of the track frames 7. The robot body 1 is enabled to travel much more conveniently on the uneven netting through the climbing inclined surfaces 14, the traveling tracks 6 are effectively prevented from derailing or getting stuck, and a continuous operation capability on a non-flat netting surface is guaranteed to ensure traveling stability of the robot body 1.

[31] The probe body includes a double-head waterproof telescopic electric cylinder 3 installed on the robot body 1, the double-head waterproof telescopic electric cylinder 3 is arranged in a traveling direction of the robot body 1, both ends of the double-head waterproof telescopic electric cylinder 3 are telescopically connected with pan-tilt units 4, the pan-tilt units 4 adopt a two-axis or three-axis motion direction, cameras 5 are mounted on the pan-tilt units 4, and the netting can be observed much more comprehensively in combination with the rotatable pan-tilt units 4. When planning a path after floating approaching or attaching, the control unit commands the double-head waterproof telescopic electric cylinder 3 to stretch out and deliver the camera 5 forward by 0.5 to 1.5 meters to keep it away from turbid water mass that may be stirred up by the robot body 1, so as to obtain a clearer and farther forward field of view. The pan-tilt units 4 are adjustable in their pitch and yaw angles under control to expand a scanning range, accurately identify the attachment areas to be cleaned and structural characteristics of the netting, and provide accurate visual references for full-coverage path planning.

[32] The floating propelling mechanism includes four propellers 8 installed on the circumference of the robot body 1, these four propellers 8 are installed at upper- middle positions of front, rear, left and right side surfaces of the robot body 1, and all thrust axes of the four propellers 8 are located in the same horizontal plane. Through differential control of the four propellers 8 by the control unit (i.e., independent control of speeds and directions of each propeller 8), thrust in any direction within the horizontal plane can be synthesized. For example, when forward thrust is applied to both the front and rear propellers 8 while the left and right propellers 8 are turned off, the robot moves forward; if reverse thrust is applied to the left and right propellers 8, the robot body 1 will rotate around its own position. This layout enables the robot body 1 to achieve 360° omnidirectional movement and precise positioning in a floating state without pre- adjusting its own attitude, so that the operation of approaching and attaching to a vertical or inclined netting surface from a free underwater state is greatly simplified.

[33] Four floating propelling devices 2 are installed on the robot body 1 and consist of motors and rotating wheels; the floating propelling devices 2 are disposed in a vertical direction and used to drive the robot body 1 to ascend or descend. This allows the robot body 1 to ascend rapidly, and enhances the convenience of transfer to different net cages or recovery. In the case of chaotic seawater flow directions, the robot body 1 is enabled to approach the netting much more stably through the floating propelling devices 2, thus enhancing the convenience of netting cleaning.

[34] A water inlet 20 is provided at a front end of the robot body 1. The water inlet 20 is rectangular, an opening of the water inlet 20 faces the same direction as the forward movement of the robot body 1. The high-pressure pump 17 is communicated with the bottom of the water inlet 20, and a shielding net 21 is installed at the opening of the water inlet 20.

[35] A plurality of limiting blocks 22 are integrally formed at the outer side of the traveling tracks 6 and arranged at intervals along the traveling tracks 6, the limiting blocks 22 are inclined toward a traveling direction of the traveling tracks 6 in a direction away from the traveling tracks 6, and limiting grooves 23 that are snap-fitted with the netting are formed between the limiting blocks 22 and the traveling tracks 6.

[36] Water spray cavities 26 are formed in the climbing inclined surfaces 14, a water spray pump 25 communicated with the water spray cavities 26 is installed on the robot body 1, a plurality of water spray holes 24 are formed through side walls of the traveling tracks 6, and the water spray holes 24 are formed at the bottom side of the limiting grooves 23. The water spray holes 24 are cylindrical and arranged in alignment with the water spray cavities 26, and liquid is sprayed out when the water spray holes 24 align with the water spray cavities 26 during rotation of the traveling tracks 6.

[37] During operation, the water spray pump 25 sprays liquid through the water spray holes 24, so as to quickly clean areas where the traveling tracks 6 travel; combined with pressing of the tracks, substances adhering to the netting can be pressed and removed to reduce impurity accumulation; further, combined with the limiting blocks 22, on the one hand, sprayed liquid can be guided to better eject the liquid toward the netting and improve a netting cleaning effect, and on the other hand, the water spray holes 24 can increase roughness of the limiting grooves 23 when engaging the netting, so as to better press and crush the substances adhering to the netting and ensure the netting cleaning effect.

[38] A specific implementation principle of the provided by the present invention is as follows:

[39] A first step is floating approaching and attachment: The control unit controls the floating propelling mechanism to operate, so as to drive the robot body 1 to autonomously navigate to the vicinity of the netting of a target aquaculture net cage, and to make the robot body 1 slowly contact the netting through precise control to achieve initial attachment by using its own gravity or fine-tuning the propeller 8.

[40] A second step is visual exploration and path planning: Once stably attached, the control unit unfolds the top double-head waterproof telescopic electric cylinder 3. The front-view camera 5 acquires high-definition images or three-dimensional information of the netting ahead. An image processing algorithm in the control unit identifies the distribution of attachments, a netting structure and net rope positions, automatically plans an efficient cleaning path that covers a current area and avoids structural members of the net cage.

[41] A third step is attachment crawling and collaborative cleaning: The control unit activates the climbing track assembly, so as to drive the robot body 1 to crawl on the netting along a planned path. At the same time, cleaning is carried out in the order of "scraping-flushing-brushing". The control unit coordinates a moving speed and cleaning intensity in real time to ensure the cleaning effect.

[42] The entire process is carried out cyclically until a cleaning task in a predetermined area is completed. After the task is completed, the robot can switch back to a floating mode, return to the water surface or proceed to a next operation point.

[43] Specific cases are applied in the present invention to elaborate the principles and implementation methods of the present invention. The above description of the embodiments is merely used to help understand the method of the present invention and the core idea thereof; meanwhile, for those of ordinary skill in the art, changes may be made to the detailed description of the preferred embodiments and scope 5 of application based on ideas of the present invention. In summary, these contents of the description shall not be construed as limitations on the present invention.

Claims

1. Attached cleaning robot, comprising a ro- bone body and a protective assembly, whereby climbing caterpillar- band assemblies on both sides of the robot body are placed and serve to power the robot body ven to attach itself to and move over a net surface area; where a probe assembly is mounted telescopically on the upper side of the robot body and serves to itself to extend and obtain visual information about the forward direction of the robot in environments with turbid water; in which a floating propulsion mechanism is ge- places on the perimeter of the robot body; with a cleaning mechanism on the robot body is installed and serves for cleaning in multiple steps of attachments to the mesh surface; where a control unit is in the robot body placed and serves to receive information from the son- the assembly that is telescopically raised at the top establishes and the coordinated management of the actions of the climbing caterpillar assembly, the floating propulsion mechanism nisme and the cleaning mechanism; where the cleaning mechanism is a mechanical scraper, a cavitation jet base and a rotary roller brush includes, whereby both the rotary roller brush and the cavitation beam base on the underside of the robot body placed, whereby the rotary roller brush near the rear the end of the robot body is positioned, the cavitation- The beam base is placed near a front side of the ro- bone body, a multitude of cavitation nozzles at the are placed on the underside of the cavitation ray base, and the mechanical scraper in front of the cavitation jet base is placed; where the protective assembly has an elastic be- screening frame and various elastic buffer elements includes, where the elastic protection frame is outside the robot body is attached, whereby all elastic buffer elements are placed between the elastic be- screening frame and the robot body and around the robot body, where one end of the elastic buffer is Menten is firmly connected to the elastic protection frame, and where the other end of the elastic buffer elements are permanently connected to the robot body.

2. Attached cleaning robot according to conclusion 1, where an upper end of the mechanical scraper is hinged to the front end of the robot body, an elastic support element between the mechanical scraper and the robot body have been placed, one end of the elastic support element is connected to the mechanical scraper, the other end of the elastic support element is connected to the robot body, and the elastic support element is capable of elastic deformation.

3. Attached cleaning robot according to conclusion 1, where the mechanical scraper is a soft-elastic scraper. per is; where the elastic protection frame is a rub- bear frame is. -ooo- FIG. 1 FIG. 2

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