Robot cleaner and control method thereof

Abstract

A robot cleaner according to the present disclosure may comprise a camera, a driving unit, a microphone, a first communication interface, a second communication interface, a memory, and at least one processor, and identify the location of an electronic device capable of performing wireless communication.

Description

Robot vacuum cleaner and its control method

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a robot vacuum cleaner capable of identifying the location of an electronic device capable of wireless communication and a method for controlling the same.

[0002] Wearable devices carried by users (e.g., Bluetooth earphones) are released in small sizes, raising concerns about loss. Additionally, small-sized wearable devices are not easily visible to the user, making it difficult to locate them if lost. Conventionally, to locate a wearable device, the device could emit a beep sound when the user selected the search mode. Consequently, the user could locate the wearable device by directly hearing the beep sound. However, there may be a problem in that the user cannot locate the wearable device based on sound if they have poor hearing or are absent from the relevant space.

[0003] Accordingly, the need for technology to find lost wearable devices without user intervention has emerged.

[0004] A robot vacuum cleaner according to the present disclosure may include a camera, a driving unit, a microphone, a first communication interface, a second communication interface, a memory storing a map of an indoor space where the robot vacuum cleaner is located, and at least one processor that, when information regarding a candidate area where a wearable device is located in the map is received from a server through the first communication interface, controls the driving unit to move the robot vacuum cleaner to the candidate area based on the received information, and when the wearable device is connected through the second communication interface while the robot vacuum cleaner is moving to the candidate area, transmits a command to output an audio signal to the wearable device through the second communication interface, and when the audio signal output by the wearable device is received through the microphone, identifies the location of the wearable device based on the received audio signal, captures an area where the wearable device is located through the camera based on the location of the wearable device to acquire an image, and transmits the image to an electronic device through the first communication interface.

[0005] The above candidate area may be determined based on the location of at least one device connected to the wearable device via wireless communication among a plurality of devices located in the indoor space and the communication distance of the wireless communication.

[0006] Additionally, at least one processor controls the driving unit so that when the robot vacuum moves to the candidate area, the robot vacuum moves to the candidate area along a preset driving path, and while the robot vacuum moves to the candidate area, performs a communication connection with the wearable device through the second communication interface, and when the wearable device is connected, identifies a location to transmit the audio output command based on the strength of the signal received from the wearable device through the second communication interface, and transmits the audio signal output command to the wearable device through the second communication interface at the identified location.

[0007] Additionally, at least one processor can identify a driving path of the robot vacuum cleaner based on the strength of the received signal when the wearable device is connected, identify a location to transmit an audio output command based on the strength of the received signal while the robot vacuum cleaner is moving along the identified driving path, and when the wearable device is not connected, perform a communication connection with the wearable device through the second communication interface while the robot vacuum cleaner is moving along a preset driving path in the candidate area.

[0008] In addition, at least one processor can transmit an output command for the audio, and when the audio signal output by the wearable device is received through the microphone, identify the distance between the wearable device and the robot vacuum cleaner and the direction of the audio signal based on the received audio signal, and control the driving unit so that the robot vacuum cleaner moves to an expected location of the wearable device based on the identified distance and direction.

[0009] Additionally, at least one processor identifies the strength of the received audio signal while the robot vacuum cleaner is moving to the expected position, and if the strength of the received audio signal is identified as being greater than a preset strength, controls the driving unit to stop the robot vacuum cleaner, and can identify the position of the wearable device based on the position where the robot vacuum cleaner stopped, the direction of the audio signal obtained based on the audio signal received through the microphone at the position where the robot vacuum cleaner stopped, and the distance between the wearable device and the robot vacuum cleaner.

[0010] In addition, at least one processor identifies whether the received audio signal is the audio signal output by the wearable device based on the waveform of the audio signal received by the robot vacuum cleaner through the microphone, and if the received audio signal is identified as the audio signal output by the wearable device, the location of the wearable device can be identified based on the received audio signal.

[0011] In addition, at least one processor can transmit information about the identified location to the server through the communication interface.

[0012] A control method for a robot vacuum cleaner including a camera, a driving unit, a microphone, and a memory storing a map of an indoor space where the robot vacuum cleaner is located may include the steps of: controlling the driving unit to move the robot vacuum cleaner to the candidate area based on the received information when information about a candidate area where a wearable device is located in the map is received from a server; transmitting a command to output an audio signal to the wearable device when the wearable device is connected while the robot vacuum cleaner is moving to the candidate area; identifying the location of the wearable device based on the received audio signal when the audio signal output by the wearable device is received through the microphone; acquiring an image by photographing the area where the wearable device is located through the camera based on the location of the wearable device; and transmitting the image to an electronic device.

[0013] In addition, regarding a non-transient computer-readable recording medium that stores one or more instructions executed by a processor of an electronic device to perform an operation of a robot vacuum cleaner, the operation may include the steps of: controlling the driving unit to move the robot vacuum cleaner to the candidate area based on the received information when information about a candidate area where a wearable device is located in the map is received from a server; transmitting a command to output an audio signal to the wearable device when the wearable device is connected while the robot vacuum cleaner is moving to the candidate area; identifying the location of the wearable device based on the received audio signal when the audio signal output by the wearable device is received through the microphone; acquiring an image by photographing the area where the wearable device is located through the camera based on the location of the wearable device; and transmitting the image to an electronic device.

[0014] FIG. 1 is a drawing for explaining the operation of a robot vacuum cleaner according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0015] FIG. 2 is a drawing for explaining the configuration of a robot vacuum cleaner according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0016] FIG. 3 is a drawing for explaining the detailed configuration of a robot vacuum cleaner according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0017] FIG. 4 is a drawing for explaining a map according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0018] FIG. 5 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of a robot vacuum cleaner according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0019] FIG. 6 is a UI that can command a robot vacuum cleaner to find a wearable device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0020] FIGS. 7 and FIGS. 8 are drawings for explaining a method for setting candidate regions according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0021] FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating a method for a robot vacuum cleaner to find a wearable device in a candidate area according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0022] FIGS. 10 and 11 are drawings for illustrating a UI that displays the search results of a wearable device in an app of an electronic device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0023] The various embodiments of this document and the terms used therein are not intended to limit the technical features described in this document to specific embodiments, and should be understood to include various modifications, equivalents, or substitutions of said embodiments.

[0024] In relation to the description of the drawings, similar reference numerals may be used for similar or related components.

[0025] The singular form of the noun corresponding to an item may include one or plural items, unless the relevant context clearly indicates otherwise.

[0026] In this document, each of the phrases such as "A or B", "at least one of A and B", "at least one of A or B", "A, B or C", "at least one of A, B and C", and "at least one of A, B, or C" may include any one of the items listed together in the corresponding phrase, or all possible combinations thereof.

[0027] Terms such as "first," "second," or "first" or "second" may be used simply to distinguish a component from another component and do not limit the components in other aspects (e.g., importance or order).

[0028] Where any (e.g., 1st) component is referred to as "coupled" or "connected" to another (e.g., 2nd) component, with or without the terms "functionally" or "communicationly," it means that the component may be connected to the other component directly (e.g., via a wire), wirelessly, or through a third component.

[0029] Terms such as “include” or “have” are intended to specify the existence of the features, numbers, steps, actions, components, parts, or combinations thereof described in this document, and do not preclude the existence or addition of one or more other features, numbers, steps, actions, components, parts, or combinations thereof.

[0030] When it is said that one component is “connected,” “combined,” “supported,” or “in contact” with another component, this includes not only cases where the components are directly connected, combined, supported, or in contact, but also cases where they are indirectly connected, combined, supported, or in contact through a third component.

[0031] When it is said that a component is located “on” another component, this includes not only cases where one component is in contact with the other, but also cases where another component exists between the two components.

[0032] The term “and / or” includes a combination of multiple related described components or any of the multiple related described components.

[0033] The operating principle and embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the attached drawings.

[0034]

[0035] A home appliance may include a communication module capable of communicating with other home appliances, user devices, or servers, a user interface that receives user input or outputs information to the user, at least one processor that controls the operation of the home appliance, and at least one memory that stores a program for controlling the operation of the home appliance.

[0036] The home appliance may be at least one of various types of home appliances. For example, the home appliance may include, but is not limited to, at least one of a refrigerator, dishwasher, electric range, electric oven, air conditioner, garment care system, washing machine, dryer, and microwave oven as illustrated, and may include, for example, various types of home appliances not illustrated in the drawings, such as a cleaning robot, vacuum cleaner, and television. Furthermore, the aforementioned home appliances are merely examples, and in addition to the aforementioned home appliances, a device capable of performing the operations described below in connection with other home appliances, user devices, or servers may be included in the home appliance according to one embodiment.

[0037] A server may include a communication module capable of communicating with other servers, home appliances, or user devices, at least one processor capable of processing data received from other servers, home appliances, or user devices, and at least one memory capable of storing a program for processing data or processed data. Such a server may be implemented as various computing devices such as a workstation, cloud, data drive, or data station. The server may be implemented as one or more servers physically or logically separated based on functions, detailed configurations of functions, or data, and may transmit and receive data and process the transmitted and received data through communication between each server.

[0038] The server can perform functions such as managing user accounts, registering home appliances associated with user accounts, and managing or controlling registered home appliances. For example, a user can create a user account by accessing the server through a user device. A user account can be identified by an ID and password set by the user. The server can register home appliances to the user account according to a defined procedure. For example, the server can register, manage, and control home appliances by linking the identification information of the home appliance (e.g., serial number or MAC address, etc.) to the user account. The user device may include a communication module capable of communicating with a home appliance or a server, a user interface that receives user input or outputs information to the user, at least one processor that controls the operation of the user device, and at least one memory storing a program for controlling the operation of the user device.

[0039] The user device may be carried by the user or placed in the user's home or office, etc. The user device may include, but is not limited to, personal computers, terminals, portable telephones, smartphones, handheld devices, wearable devices, etc.

[0040] Programs for controlling home appliances, i.e., applications, can be stored in the memory of a user device. Applications may be sold pre-installed on the user device or downloaded and installed from an external server.

[0041] By running an application installed on the user's device, the user can connect to the server to create a user account and register home appliances by communicating with the server based on the logged-in user account.

[0042] For example, if a user operates a home appliance to connect to a server by following the procedures guided by an application installed on the user's device, the home appliance can be registered to the user account by the server registering the home appliance's identification information (e.g., serial number or MAC address, etc.) to the corresponding user account.

[0043] Users can control home appliances using applications installed on their devices. For example, when a user logs into a user account via an application installed on their device, the home appliances registered to the account appear, and if a control command is entered, the command can be transmitted to the home appliance through the server.

[0044] A network may include both wired and wireless networks. Wired networks include cable networks or telephone networks, etc., and wireless networks may include all networks that transmit and receive signals via radio waves. Wired and wireless networks may be connected to each other.

[0045] Networks may include wide area networks (WANs) such as the Internet, local area networks (LANs) formed around access points (APs), and short-range wireless networks that do not pass through access points (APs). Short-range wireless networks may include Bluetooth (IEEE 802.15.1), Zigbee (IEEE 802.15.4), Wi-Fi Direct, Near Field Communication (NFC), Z-Wave, etc., but are not limited thereto.

[0046] An Access Point (AP) can connect home appliances or user devices to a Wide Area Network (WAN) connected to a server. Home appliances or user devices can be connected to the server via the Wide Area Network (WAN).

[0047] Access point (AP) can communicate with home appliances or user devices using wireless communication such as Wi-Fi (Wi-Fi™, IEEE 802.11), Bluetooth (Bluetooth™, IEEE 802.15.1), and Zigbee (Zigbee, IEEE 802.15.4), and can connect to a wide area network (WAN) using wired communication, but is not limited thereto.

[0048] According to various embodiments, the home appliance may be directly connected to a user device or server without going through an access point (AP).

[0049] Home appliances can be connected to user devices or servers via a long-range wireless network or a short-range wireless network.

[0050] For example, home appliances can be connected to user devices via a short-range wireless network (e.g., Wi-Fi Direct).

[0051] As another example, home appliances can be connected to user devices or servers via a Wide Area Network (WAN) using a long-range wireless network (e.g., a cellular communication module).

[0052] As another example, home appliances can connect to a wide area network (WAN) using wired communication and connect to user devices or servers through the wide area network (WAN).

[0053] If the home appliance (10) can connect to a wide area network (WAN) using wired communication, it may operate as a connection relay. Accordingly, the home appliance can connect other home appliances to a wide area network (WAN) connected to a server. Additionally, other home appliances can connect the home appliance to a wide area network (WAN) connected to a server.

[0054] A home appliance may transmit information regarding its operation or status to other home appliances, user devices, or servers via a network. For example, a home appliance may transmit information regarding its operation or status to other home appliances, user devices, or servers when a request is received from a server, when a specific event occurs in the home appliance, or periodically or in real time. When a server receives information regarding the operation or status from a home appliance, it may update the stored information regarding the operation or status of the home appliance and transmit the updated information regarding the operation and status of the home appliance to user devices via a network. Here, updating information may include various operations that modify existing information, such as adding new information to existing information or replacing existing information with new information.

[0055] Home appliances can acquire various information from other home appliances, user devices, or servers, and provide the acquired information to the user. For example, a home appliance can acquire information related to the appliance's functions (e.g., recipes, laundry methods, etc.) and various environmental information (e.g., weather, temperature, humidity, etc.) from a server, and output the acquired information through a user interface.

[0056] A home appliance may operate in accordance with control commands received from other home appliances, user devices, or a server. For example, if the home appliance has obtained prior approval from a user to operate in accordance with control commands from a server even without user input, the home appliance may operate in accordance with control commands received from a server. Here, control commands received from a server may include, but are not limited to, control commands entered by the user through a user device or control commands based on pre-set conditions.

[0057] The user device can transmit information about the user to a home appliance or server through a communication module. For example, the user device can transmit information regarding the user's location, health status, preferences, schedule, etc., to a server. The user device can transmit information about the user to a server upon the user's prior approval.

[0058] Home appliances, user devices, or servers may determine control commands using technologies such as artificial intelligence. For example, a server may receive information regarding the operation or status of a home appliance or information regarding a user of a user device, process it using technologies such as artificial intelligence, and transmit the processing result or a control command to the home appliance or user device based on the processing result.

[0059] In the following description, the home appliance is assumed to be a robot vacuum cleaner.

[0060] An embodiment of the present disclosure will be described in more detail below with reference to the attached drawings.

[0061] FIG. 1 is a drawing for explaining the operation of a robot vacuum cleaner according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0062] Referring to FIG. 1, the robot vacuum cleaner (100) can identify a wearable device (20) located under furniture (10) and communicate with the wearable device (20) through a communication interface (140).

[0063] The robot vacuum cleaner (100) may be an autonomous home appliance that automatically cleans the floor. The robot vacuum cleaner (100) can move around the house while avoiding obstacles using various sensors and algorithms. Additionally, the robot vacuum cleaner (100) may be connected to a smartphone, and the user can remotely control the robot vacuum cleaner (100) through an app installed on the smartphone.

[0064] The wearable device (20) may be an electronic device that can be worn on the body. The wearable device (20) may include, for example, wireless earphones, a smart watch, a smart ring, etc. In this disclosure, the wearable device (20) is assumed to be wireless earphones and described accordingly.

[0065] Communication can be wireless communication using BLE (Bluetooth Low Energy). Specifically, BLE can be a low-power Bluetooth communication method. BLE uses less power than standard Bluetooth connection methods. In addition, BLE can primarily perform data communication over short distances.

[0066] When the user loses the wearable device (20), the user can input a command into the electronic device (300) so that the robot vacuum cleaner (100) finds the wearable device (20).

[0067] The electronic device (300) can command the server (200) to identify a device among a plurality of home appliances registered in the server (200) that can be connected to the wearable device (20).

[0068] When the server (200) identifies a home appliance that can be connected to the wearable device (20), it can identify the location of the identified home appliance as the space where the wearable device (20) is presumed to be located. The server (200) can transmit the location of the identified space to the robot vacuum cleaner (100).

[0069] The robot vacuum cleaner (100) can move to the identified space and attempt to establish a BLE connection with the wearable device (20). When the robot vacuum cleaner (100) identifies that the BLE signal is stable, it can command the wearable device (20) to output a signal sound.

[0070] The robot vacuum cleaner (100) can identify the direction and distance of the wearable device (20) based on the signal sound output from the wearable device (20). The robot vacuum cleaner (100) can photograph the space identified as having the wearable device (20) and transmit the location and photo of the wearable device (20) to the server (200). The server (200) can transmit the location and photo of the wearable device (20) to the electronic device (300).

[0071] Additionally, the robot vacuum cleaner (100) may photograph the space identified as having a wearable device (20) and transmit the location and photo of the wearable device (20) to an electronic device (300).

[0072] In addition, when the robot vacuum cleaner (100) identifies the location of the wearable device (20), it may also guide the wearable device (20) directly to the space where it is located at the user's request.

[0073] Specifically, the robot vacuum cleaner (100) can move to the user's current location after identifying the location of the wearable device (20). After moving to the user's current location, the robot vacuum cleaner (100) can move again to the space where the wearable device (20) is located. Details regarding this will be described later based on FIG. 10.

[0074] Unlike conventional technology where a user directly finds the wearable device (20) by generating a signal sound on the wearable device (20), the robot vacuum cleaner (100) finds the wearable device (20), making it easier for even a user with poor hearing to find the wearable device (20). In addition, the convenience of daily life is increased as the wearable device (20) can be found remotely even when the user is not at home.

[0075] A specific method for the robot vacuum cleaner (100) to find the wearable device (20) will be described later based on FIG. 5.

[0076] FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating the configuration of a robot vacuum cleaner according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0077] Referring to FIG. 2, the robot vacuum cleaner (100) may include a camera (110), a driving unit (120), a memory (130), a communication interface (140), and at least one processor (140).

[0078] The camera (110) can capture the surroundings of the robot vacuum cleaner (100) to generate an image. For example, the camera (110) can capture the front of the robot vacuum cleaner (100).

[0079] According to one example, the camera (110) may include a three-dimensional camera sensor (e.g., a depth camera). The three-dimensional camera sensor may capture the area around the robot vacuum cleaner (100) to generate three-dimensional spatial information related to the area around the robot vacuum cleaner (100). For example, the three-dimensional camera sensor may detect the distance to objects around the robot vacuum cleaner (100) to generate an image (e.g., a depth image) containing three-dimensional distance information. The image may contain depth information for each pixel. Accordingly, the data acquired by the three-dimensional camera sensor may include three-dimensional coordinate information (e.g., (x,y,z) coordinate values) of points explored by the three-dimensional camera sensor through scanning. For example, the three-dimensional camera sensor may be implemented in various ways, such as stereo vision, IR (Infra Red), and TOF (Time of Flight).

[0080] The driving unit (120) can move the robot vacuum cleaner (100). For example, the driving unit (120) may include at least one wheel, at least one motor for rotating the wheel, a brake for stopping the rotating wheel, etc. At least one processor (150) can control the driving unit (120) to perform various driving operations such as moving, stopping, speed control, turning, and changing angular velocity of the robot vacuum cleaner (100).

[0081] The memory (130) may store data necessary for the robot vacuum cleaner (100) to operate according to various embodiments of the present disclosure. For example, the memory (130) may store a map of an indoor space where the robot vacuum cleaner (100) is located.

[0082] One or more instructions may be stored in the memory (130). Additionally, programs, applications, and data for operating the robot vacuum cleaner (100) may be stored in the memory (130).

[0083] Depending on the purpose of data storage, the memory (130) may be implemented as a memory embedded in the robot vacuum cleaner (100) (e.g., volatile memory, non-volatile memory, hard drive or solid-state drive, etc.) or as a memory that can be attached to the robot vacuum cleaner (100) (e.g., memory card, external memory, etc.).

[0084] The communication interface (140) can communicate with an external device through a network. The external device may include a server, a home appliance, a mobile device (e.g., a smartphone, a tablet PC, a wearable device, etc.). The communication interface (140) may include a wireless communication module. The communication module may be implemented as at least one hardware chip.

[0085] Networks may include wide area networks (WANs) such as the Internet, local area networks (LANs) formed around access points (APs), and short-range wireless networks that do not pass through access points (APs). Short-range wireless networks may include Bluetooth (Bluetooth™, IEEE 802.15.1), Zigbee (IEEE 802.15.4), Wi-Fi Direct, Near Field Communication (NFC), Z-Wave, etc., but are not limited thereto.

[0086] According to one example, the communication interface (140) can communicate with an external device through an access point (AP). For example, the access point (AP) can connect the local network (LAN) to which the robot vacuum cleaner (100) is connected to a wide area network (WAN) to which the server is connected. The robot vacuum cleaner (100) can be connected to the server through the wide area network (WAN). The access point (AP) is Wi-Fi TMIt can communicate with the robot vacuum cleaner (100) using wireless communication such as IEEE 802.11), Bluetooth, and Zigbee, and can connect to a wide area network (WAN) using wired communication. In addition, the communication interface (140) can communicate with other external devices through a server. For example, the communication interface (140) can communicate with home appliances, mobile devices, etc., through a server.

[0087] According to one example, the robot vacuum cleaner (100) may be directly connected to an external device without going through an access point (AP). For example, the communication interface (140) may communicate with the external device via a long-range wireless network or a short-range wireless network. The robot vacuum cleaner (100) may be connected to home appliances, mobile devices, etc. via a short-range wireless network (e.g., Wi-Fi Direct). Additionally, the robot vacuum cleaner (100) may be connected to an external device via a wide area network (WAN) using a long-range wireless network (e.g., a cellular communication module).

[0088] In the present disclosure, the communication interface (140) may include a first communication interface capable of communicating with a server and an electronic device, and a second communication interface capable of performing wireless communication with a wearable device.

[0089] At least one processor (150) controls the overall operation of the robot vacuum cleaner (100). Specifically, at least one processor (150) is connected to the components of the robot vacuum cleaner (100) to control the overall operation of the robot vacuum cleaner (100). For example, at least one processor (150) is connected to a camera (110), a driving unit (120), a memory (130), and a communication interface (140) to control the robot vacuum cleaner (100). At least one processor (150) may be composed of one or more processors.

[0090] At least one processor (150) can perform the operation of a robot vacuum cleaner (100) according to an embodiment of the present disclosure by executing one or more instructions stored in memory (130).

[0091] At least one processor (150) may include one or more of a CPU (Central Processing Unit), GPU (Graphics Processing Unit), APU (Accelerated Processing Unit), MIC (Many Integrated Core), DSP (Digital Signal Processor), NPU (Neural Processing Unit), hardware accelerator, or machine learning accelerator. At least one processor (150) may control one or any combination of other components of the robot vacuum cleaner (100) and may perform operations or data processing related to communication. At least one processor (150) may execute one or more programs or instructions stored in memory (130). For example, at least one processor (150) may perform a method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure by executing one or more instructions stored in memory (130).

[0092] When a method according to one embodiment of the present disclosure includes a plurality of operations, the plurality of operations may be performed by a single processor or by a plurality of processors. For example, when a first operation, a second operation, and a third operation are performed by a method according to one embodiment, the first operation, the second operation, and the third operation may all be performed by a first processor, or the first operation and the second operation may be performed by a first processor (e.g., a general-purpose processor) and the third operation may be performed by a second processor (e.g., an artificial intelligence dedicated processor).

[0093] At least one processor (150) may be implemented as a single-core processor including one core, or as one or more multi-core processors including multiple cores (e.g., homogeneous multi-core or heterogeneous multi-core). When at least one processor (150) is implemented as a multi-core processor, each of the multiple cores included in the multi-core processor may include internal processor memory such as cache memory or on-chip memory, and a common cache shared by multiple cores may be included in the multi-core processor. Additionally, each of the multiple cores included in the multi-core processor (or some of the multiple cores) may independently read and execute program instructions for implementing a method according to one embodiment of the present disclosure, or all (or some) of the multiple cores may be linked together to read and execute program instructions for implementing a method according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0094] When a method according to one embodiment of the present disclosure includes a plurality of operations, the plurality of operations may be performed by one of the plurality of cores included in a multi-core processor, or may be performed by a plurality of cores. For example, when a first operation, a second operation, and a third operation are performed by a method according to one embodiment, the first operation, the second operation, and the third operation may all be performed by a first core included in a multi-core processor, or the first operation and the second operation may be performed by a first core included in a multi-core processor and the third operation may be performed by a second core included in a multi-core processor.

[0095] In the embodiments of the present disclosure, a processor may mean a system-on-chip (SoC) in which one or more processors and other electronic components are integrated, a single-core processor, a multi-core processor, or a core included in a single-core processor or a multi-core processor, wherein the core may be implemented as a CPU, GPU, APU, MIC, DSP, NPU, hardware accelerator, or machine learning accelerator, but the embodiments of the present disclosure are not limited thereto.

[0096] Referring to FIG. 3, the robot vacuum cleaner (100) may include a camera (110), a driving unit (120), a memory (130), a communication interface (140), one or more processors (150), a sensor unit (160), a cleaning device (170), an input interface (180), and an output interface (190). However, such configurations are exemplary, and it is understood that new configurations may be added or some configurations may be omitted in addition to such configurations when implementing the present disclosure. Meanwhile, detailed descriptions of configurations shown in FIG. 3 that overlap with configurations shown in FIG. 2 will be omitted.

[0097] The sensor unit (160) can detect the structure or objects of the indoor space. Objects may include walls and obstacles of the indoor space. Obstacles may include various objects present in the indoor space, such as furniture, home appliances, remote controls, keys, people, pets, etc. Additionally, information obtained from the sensor unit (150) can be used to generate a map of the indoor space.

[0098] The sensor unit (160) may include a light detection and ranging (LiDAR) sensor (161), an obstacle detection sensor (162), and a driving detection sensor (163).

[0099] The lidar sensor (161) emits a laser in a 360-degree direction, and when a laser reflected from an object is received, it can obtain geometry information about an indoor space by analyzing the time difference for the laser to be reflected back from the object and the signal strength of the received laser. The geometry information may include the location, distance, direction, etc. of an object. The lidar sensor (161) can provide the acquired geometry information to at least one processor (150).

[0100] The obstacle detection sensor (162) can detect obstacles around the robot vacuum cleaner (100). For example, the obstacle detection sensor (162) may include at least one of an ultrasonic sensor, an infrared sensor, an RF (radio frequency) sensor, a geomagnetic sensor, and a PSD (Position Sensitive Device) sensor. The obstacle detection sensor (162) can detect obstacles present in front, behind, on the side, or on the path of movement of the robot vacuum cleaner (100). The obstacle detection sensor (162) can provide the detected obstacle information to at least one processor (150).

[0101] The driving detection sensor (163) can detect the driving of the robot vacuum cleaner (100). For example, the driving detection sensor (163) may include at least one of a gyroscope sensor, a wheel encoder, and an accelerometer sensor. The gyroscope sensor can detect the rotation direction and rotation angle of the robot vacuum cleaner (100). The wheel encoder can detect the number of rotations of the wheels of the robot vacuum cleaner (100). The accelerometer sensor can detect changes in the speed of the robot vacuum cleaner (100). The driving detection sensor (163) can provide the detected driving information to at least one processor (150).

[0102] The cleaning device (170) can suck up foreign matter from the floor. For example, the cleaning device (170) may include at least one of a brush assembly for sweeping dust from the floor and sucking up dust, a vacuum cleaning module for sucking up dust, and a mop cleaning module for performing mop cleaning. The sucked-up foreign matter can be collected in a dust bin provided in the robot vacuum cleaner (100). At least one processor (150) can control the cleaning device (170) to suck up foreign matter from the floor while the robot vacuum cleaner (100) is stationary or while the robot vacuum cleaner (100) is moving. Accordingly, the robot vacuum cleaner (100) can clean the indoor space.

[0103] The input interface (180) includes circuitry. The input interface (180) receives user input and can transmit the user input to at least one processor (150). For example, the input interface (180) can receive various user inputs for setting or selecting various functions supported by the robot vacuum cleaner (100).

[0104] The input interface (180) may include various types of input devices.

[0105] According to one example, the input interface (180) may include a physical button. The physical button may include a function key or a dial button. The physical button may be implemented as one or more keys.

[0106] According to one example, the input interface (180) can receive user input using a touch method. For example, the input interface (180) can be implemented as a touch screen capable of performing the function of a display (180).

[0107] According to one example, the input interface (180) can receive user voice using a microphone. At least one processor (150) can perform a function corresponding to user voice using voice recognition. For example, at least one processor (150) can convert user voice into text data using a Speech To Text (STT) function, obtain control command data based on the text data, and perform a function corresponding to user voice based on the control command data. According to an embodiment, the STT function may be performed on an external server.

[0108] The output interface (190) may include a display (191) and a speaker (192).

[0109] The display (191) can display various screens. At least one processor (150) can display various notifications, messages, information, etc. related to the operation of the robot vacuum cleaner (100) on the display (191).

[0110] The display (191) may be implemented as a display including a self-emissive element or as a display including a non-emissive element and a backlight. For example, the display (191) may be implemented as various types of displays such as an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display), an OLED (Organic Light Emitting Diodes) display, an LED (Light Emitting Diodes) display, a micro LED display, a Mini LED display, a QLED (Quantum dot light-emitting diodes) display, etc.

[0111] The speaker (192) can output an audio signal. One or more processors (140) can output warning sounds, notification messages, response messages corresponding to user input, etc. related to the operation of the robot vacuum cleaner (100) through the speaker (192).

[0112] For convenience of explanation, at least one processor (150) will be referred to as processor (150) below.

[0113] FIG. 4 is a drawing for explaining a map according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0114] Referring to FIG. 4, the electronic device (300) can generate a map (400) corresponding to a home using an application installed on the electronic device (300) based on user input. The map is a 2D map or a 3D map and may include one or more rooms. The electronic device (300) can place furniture or devices in the rooms based on user input. For example, devices placed on the map may be displayed on the map with icons corresponding to the devices. Through this process, the user can generate a map having a structure substantially identical to the structure of the home and place devices in locations substantially identical to where devices are placed in the home.

[0115] It can be designated to be the same as the location placed in this home. For example, referring to FIG. 4, the map (400) is a 3D map and may include Room 1 (410), Room 2 (e.g., living room) (420), Room 3 (e.g., kitchen) (430), Room 4 (440), Room 5 (e.g., entrance) (450), Room 6 (460), and Room 7 (470). Icons corresponding to devices may be displayed in the rooms (410 to 470).

[0116] When the electronic device (300) receives user input by touching an icon corresponding to a device displayed on a map, it can display user interface (UI) elements to control the operation of the touched device. And, when the electronic device (300) receives user input through the user interface elements, the server (200) can transmit control commands to the device to control the operation of the device.

[0117] The electronic device (300) can communicate with the server (200) based on the logged-in user account and transmit map data to the server (200). The map data may include information about the map and information about the type, location, etc. of the device located in the room. The electronic device (200) can store the map data by linking it to the logged-in user account.

[0118] Although the above description explains that the user directly generates the map, the method of generating the map is not limited to this, and the robot vacuum cleaner (100) may generate the map while moving around. In the following description, it is assumed that the map stored in the server (200) and the map stored in the robot vacuum cleaner (100) are the same map.

[0119] FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating the operation of a robot vacuum cleaner according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. When instructions are executed individually or collectively, the processor (130) can perform the operations of FIG. 5.

[0120] In operation 510, the processor (150) receives from the server (200) through the first communication interface

[0121] It is possible to identify whether information about the candidate area where the wearable device (20) is located is received on the map.

[0122] The first communication interface may be an interface capable of communicating with a server (200) and an electronic device (300). The first communication interface may perform wireless communication using, for example, Wi-Fi.

[0123] Additionally, the map may be a map showing the structure of the user's house. On the map, the space may be partitioned into rooms. Also, the map may display the location of the robot vacuum cleaner (100) and the locations (200) of home appliances registered on the server (200).

[0124] Before explaining how the processor (150) identifies whether it has received information about a candidate region where the wearable device (20) is located, the method by which the server (200) identifies the candidate region is first explained based on FIG. 6.

[0125] FIG. 6 is a UI that displays a mode for finding a wearable device using a robot vacuum cleaner. Referring to FIG. 6, the user can execute the “mode for finding a wearable device (20) using a robot vacuum cleaner (100)” through an app installed on the electronic device (300). When the mode for finding a wearable device (20) using a robot vacuum cleaner (100) is executed, the electronic device (300) can identify whether the last connected location between the electronic device (300) and the wearable device (20) is a house and whether the robot vacuum cleaner (100) is present inside the house.

[0126] When the electronic device (300) connects with the wearable device (20) using GPS information, the connection location can be stored in an app installed on the electronic device (100). Therefore, the electronic device (300) can identify whether the last connected location between the electronic device (300) and the wearable device (20) is a home based on the GPS information. Additionally, the electronic device (300) can identify whether the robot vacuum cleaner (100) is present in the home based on whether the robot vacuum cleaner (100) is registered with the server (200) through the app installed on the electronic device (100).

[0127] If the last location where the electronic device (300) and the wearable device (20) are connected is a house and a robot vacuum cleaner (100) is present in the house, the electronic device (300) can command the server (200) via the first communication interface for the registered home appliance to attempt a Bluetooth connection to the wearable device (20).

[0128] Specifically, if the electronic device (300) has performed a BLE connection with the wearable device (20) at least once, it may store the BLE connection information of the wearable device (20) in the memory (130). Accordingly, the electronic device (300) can transmit the BLE connection information to the server (200).

[0129] BLE connection information may include product information of the wearable device (20) and a password required for BLE connection. The server (200) may transmit the received BLE connection information to a home appliance registered with the server (200). The home appliance may attempt to establish a BLE connection with the wearable device (20) based on the received BLE connection information of the wearable device (20).

[0130] The server (200) can identify a home appliance capable of performing BLE communication with the wearable device (20). Additionally, the server (200) can identify the location of the home appliance capable of performing communication with the wearable device (20) as a candidate area where the wearable device (20) is presumed to be located.

[0131] FIG. 7 is a drawing for explaining a method for setting candidate regions according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0132] Referring to FIG. 7, the server (200) can identify that home appliances placed in Room 1 (410) and Room 4 (440) are capable of BLE connection with the wearable device (20).

[0133] The server (200) can identify candidate areas where the wearable device (20) is presumed to be located based on the location of a home appliance capable of performing BLE communication with the wearable device (20).

[0134] The candidate area can be determined based on the location of at least one device connected to the wearable device (20) via wireless communication among a plurality of devices located in an indoor space and the communication distance of the wireless communication.

[0135] Accordingly, the server (200) can identify a range of circles with a radius of maximum wireless communication range, centered on home appliances located in Room 1 (410) and Room 4 (440), as a candidate area where the wearable device (20) is presumed to exist.

[0136] If other home appliances located within the candidate area cannot perform BLE communication with the wearable device (20), the server (200) may exclude the area where the home appliances that cannot perform communication are located from the candidate area.

[0137] In FIG. 7, a first appliance (1) located within room 4 (440) may be able to communicate with a wearable device (20). At this time, the server (200) may identify a range of circles centered on the first appliance, with the maximum distance at which wireless communication is possible as the radius, as a candidate area where the wearable device (20) is presumed to exist. However, a second appliance (2) that cannot perform BLE communication with the wearable device (20) may be located in the candidate area. At this time, the server (200) may exclude the area where the second appliance (2) is located from the candidate area.

[0138] Therefore, the server (200) can identify candidate regions as shown in Fig. 8.

[0139] The server (200) can transmit the identified candidate area to the robot vacuum cleaner (100) through the first communication interface.

[0140] In operation 520, the server (200) can control the driving unit so that the robot vacuum cleaner moves to a candidate area based on the received information.

[0141] The processor (150) can generate a path for the robot vacuum cleaner (100) based on the identified candidate regions.

[0142] The path of the robot vacuum cleaner (100) can be generated to search from the nearest candidate area to the space where the robot vacuum cleaner (100) is currently located. If there is only one candidate area, the path of the robot vacuum cleaner (100) can be a path that moves from the space where the robot vacuum cleaner (100) is currently located to the candidate area.

[0143] The processor (150) can control the driving unit (120) of the robot vacuum cleaner (100) based on the generated path. When the processor (150) detects an obstacle while driving, it can control the driving unit (120) to drive to a target location while avoiding the obstacle.

[0144] In operation 530, the processor (150) can transmit an output command of an audio signal to the wearable device through the second communication interface when the wearable device is connected through the second communication interface while the robot vacuum cleaner (100) is moving through a candidate area.

[0145] Specifically, the processor (150) can control the driving unit (120) so that when the robot vacuum cleaner moves to a candidate area, the robot vacuum cleaner (100) moves to the candidate area along a preset driving path. The preset driving path may be the movement path of the robot vacuum cleaner (100) during cleaning.

[0146] Accordingly, the processor (150) can control the driving unit (120) so that when the robot vacuum cleaner (100) reaches the first area among the candidate areas, the robot vacuum cleaner (100) moves along a cleaning path within the first area.

[0147] Additionally, the processor (150) can establish a communication connection with the wearable device (20) through a second communication interface while the robot vacuum cleaner (100) moves through a candidate area.

[0148] Specifically, the processor (150) can transmit a signal requesting communication with the wearable device (20) through the second communication interface. When the wearable device (20) receives the signal requesting communication, it can transmit a signal accepting communication and connection information to the robot vacuum cleaner (100). The processor (150) can identify whether the received connection information matches the connection information stored in the memory (130). Thus, the processor (150) can identify the wearable device (20) and perform communication with the wearable device (20).

[0149] When the robot vacuum cleaner (100) and the wearable device (20) are connected, the processor (150) can identify the location to transmit an audio output command based on the strength of the signal received from the wearable device (20) through the second communication interface.

[0150] Specifically, when the wearable device (20) is connected, the processor (150) can identify the driving path of the robot vacuum cleaner (100) based on the strength of the received signal.

[0151] The processor (150) can identify the strength of BLE communication with the wearable device (20) while moving the candidate area as a cleaning path. When the processor (150) stores more than a preset number of data on the strength of BLE communication, it can compare the data to compare the strength of BLE communication. Based on the comparison of the strength of BLE communication, the processor (150) can control the driving unit (120) so that the robot vacuum cleaner (100) moves to a place where the BLE signal is strong.

[0152] If the processor (150) does not perform BLE communication between the robot vacuum cleaner (100) and the wearable device (20) in the first candidate area, the processor (150) can control the driving unit (120) so that the robot vacuum cleaner (100) moves to the second candidate area. While the robot vacuum cleaner (100) moves in the second candidate area, the processor (150) compares the BLE communication strength and can control the driving unit (120) so that the robot vacuum cleaner (100) moves to the place where the BLE signal is strong.

[0153] If the processor (150) identifies that the strength of the BLE communication is greater than a preset strength and the communication rate is greater than a preset rate, it can control the driving unit (120) to stop the robot vacuum cleaner (100). The communication rate may indicate the speed or efficiency of data transmission in a communication system. The communication rate may be measured in bits per second (bps). If the communication rate is 100 Mbps, the robot vacuum cleaner (100) can transmit 100 megabits of data per second. Additionally, the robot vacuum cleaner (100) can identify the effective communication rate. The effective communication rate may be a value that measures the speed of data successfully transmitted in an actual network environment. The effective communication rate may be a value calculated by taking into account issues such as errors, noise, and retransmission from the theoretical communication rate. The robot vacuum cleaner (100) performs communication with the wearable device (100) and can identify the effective communication rate based on the amount of data transmitted and received and the time taken for communication.

[0154] In the method described above, the processor (150) can identify a location where the strength of the BLE communication during the driving of the robot vacuum cleaner (100) is greater than a preset strength and the communication rate is greater than a preset ratio as a location to transmit an audio output command to the wearable device (20). Additionally, when the processor (150) identifies a location to transmit an audio output command, it can control the driving unit (120) to stop the robot vacuum cleaner (100).

[0155] At this time, the processor (150) can transmit an output command of an audio signal at an identified location to a wearable device (20) through a second communication interface.

[0156] In operation 540, if the wearable device (20) is not connected, the processor (150) can establish a communication connection with the wearable device (20) through a second communication interface while the robot vacuum cleaner (100) moves along a preset driving path and a candidate area.

[0157] The preset path may be a path where the robot vacuum cleaner (100) cleans the house. Therefore, if there is no home appliance capable of communicating with the wearable device (20), the server (300) may command the robot vacuum cleaner (100) to move around the house along the cleaning path and attempt wireless communication with the wearable device (20).

[0158] The processor (150) receives a command and can control the driving unit (120) so that the robot vacuum cleaner moves around the house along a cleaning path. Additionally, the processor (150) can control a second communication interface so that the robot vacuum cleaner (100) can perform wireless communication with a wearable device (20) while moving.

[0159] In operation 550, when the wearable device (20) is connected through the second communication interface while the robot vacuum cleaner (100) is moving, the processor (150) can transmit an output command of an audio signal to the wearable device (20) through the second communication interface.

[0160] Specifically, when the wearable device (20) is connected, the processor (150) can identify the BLE communication strength between the wearable device (20) and the robot vacuum cleaner (100) while controlling the robot vacuum cleaner (100) to move along the cleaning path. When the data of the BLE communication strength is stored for more than a preset number, the processor (150) can compare the BLE communication strength by comparing the data. Based on the comparison of the BLE communication strength, the processor (150) can control the driving unit (120) so that the robot vacuum cleaner (100) moves to a place where the BLE signal is strong.

[0161] In the aforementioned operations 530 and 550, the processor (150) can attempt to re-establish a BLE connection by moving along a preset path when the robot vacuum cleaner (100) loses the BLE connection with the wearable device (100) while driving.

[0162] Additionally, the processor (150) can identify a location where the strength of the BLE communication during the driving of the robot vacuum cleaner (100) is greater than a preset strength and the communication rate is greater than a preset ratio as a location to transmit an audio output command to the wearable device (20). Additionally, when the processor (150) identifies a location to transmit an audio output command, it can control the driving unit (120) to stop the robot vacuum cleaner (100). At this time, the processor (150) can transmit an audio signal output command to the wearable device (20) through the second communication interface at the identified location.

[0163] In operation 560, when the processor (150) receives an audio signal output by the wearable device (20) through a microphone, it can identify the location of the wearable device (20) based on the received audio signal. This is explained based on FIG. 9.

[0164] FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating a method for a robot vacuum cleaner to find a wearable device in a candidate area according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0165] Before identifying the location of the wearable device (20), the processor (150) can identify whether the received audio signal is the signal output by the wearable device (20) when the audio signal output by the wearable device (20) is received through the microphone.

[0166] The waveform of an audio signal output by a wearable device (20) may be stored in the memory (130) of the robot vacuum cleaner (200). The processor (150) can identify whether the waveform of the previously stored audio signal matches the waveform of the received audio signal. If the waveform of the received audio signal matches the waveform of the previously stored audio signal, the processor (150) can identify that the waveform of the received audio signal is the waveform of the audio signal output by the wearable device (20).

[0167] If the processor (150) identifies that the received audio signal is an audio signal output by the wearable device (20), it can identify the location of the wearable device based on the received audio signal.

[0168] After the processor (150) transmits an audio output command, when the audio signal output by the wearable device (20) is received through the microphone, it can identify the distance between the wearable device (20) and the robot vacuum cleaner (100) and the direction of the audio signal based on the received audio signal.

[0169] The processor (150) can identify the direction of the received audio signal using Direction of Arrival technology.

[0170] Specifically, the robot vacuum cleaner (100) may include a plurality of microphones. The processor (150) can identify the direction of the received audio signal by identifying the time difference of the sound reaching each of the plurality of microphones. In addition, the processor (150) can identify the direction of the received audio signal by identifying the phase difference of the audio signal reaching the plurality of microphones.

[0171] The processor (150) can identify the distance between the wearable device (20) and the robot vacuum cleaner (100) based on a sound pressure calculation formula.

[0172] Sound pressure can be the change in air pressure that occurs when sound is transmitted through the air.

[0173] When an audio signal reaches the microphone, a change in air pressure can cause the diaphragm of the microphone to vibrate. Therefore, when the audio signal is input to the microphone, the processor (150) can identify the sound pressure of the audio signal by identifying the degree to which the diaphragm of the microphone vibrates due to the audio signal.

[0174] [Mathematical Formula 1]

[0175]

[0176] [Mathematical Formula 2]

[0177]

[0178] In mathematical formulas 1 and 2, I is the sound intensity, P is the sound energy (power), r is the distance between the robot vacuum cleaner (100) and the wearable device (20), p is the sound pressure, c is the speed of sound, and ρ is the density of air. At this time, the sound intensity and energy, the distance between the robot vacuum cleaner (100) and the wearable device (20), and the sound pressure are variables.

[0179] Since mathematical formulas 1 and 2 are in an equal relationship, they can be generated as an expression for r. The processor (150) can identify the strength of the audio signal received from the wearable device (20). Additionally, the processor (150) can identify the distance between the robot vacuum cleaner (100) and the wearable device (20) based on the identified sound pressure and sound energy information received from the wearable device (20).

[0180] When the processor (150) identifies the location of the wearable device (20), it can control the driving unit (120) so that the robot vacuum cleaner (100) moves to the identified location. The processor (150) can stop while moving to receive an audio signal from the wearable device (20) and analyze the received audio signal to identify whether the robot vacuum cleaner (100) is moving in the correct direction. If the robot vacuum cleaner (100) is not moving in the correct direction, the processor (150) can analyze the received audio signal to identify the direction of the wearable device (20) and control the driving unit (120) so that the robot vacuum cleaner (100) moves in the newly identified direction.

[0181] The processor (150) can identify the strength of the audio signal received while the robot vacuum cleaner is moving to an expected position, and if the strength of the received audio signal is identified as being greater than a preset strength, the driving unit (120) can be controlled to stop the robot vacuum cleaner (100).

[0182] The processor (150) can identify the location of the wearable device (100) based on the location where the robot vacuum cleaner (100) is stopped, the direction of the audio signal obtained based on the audio signal received through the microphone at the location where the robot vacuum cleaner (100) is stopped, and the distance between the wearable device and the robot vacuum cleaner.

[0183] If the processor (150) identifies that the strength of the audio signal received while moving to a target location is greater than a preset strength, it can control the driving unit (120) so that the robot vacuum cleaner (100) no longer moves.

[0184] The robot vacuum cleaner (100) can identify the direction of the acquired audio signal based on the audio signal received from the wearable device (20). At this time, the direction identified by the processor (150) may be the location where the wearable device (20) is located.

[0185] Although the robot vacuum cleaner (100) has established a BLE connection with the wearable device (20), it may not be able to identify a received sound from the wearable device (20). For example, if the wearable device (20) is under a thick blanket, the processor (150) may not be able to identify a received sound from the wearable device (20) through the microphone.

[0186] At this time, the processor (150) can identify whether a received sound is detected while controlling the driving unit so that the robot vacuum cleaner (100) moves to an area where the strength of the BLE signal is greater than or equal to a preset strength.

[0187] When the robot vacuum cleaner (100) is moving in the direction in which the received sound is analyzed and no longer receives a received sound, the processor (150) can control the driving unit (120) to return the robot vacuum cleaner (100) to the position it moved to immediately before. The processor (150) can move the robot vacuum cleaner (100) to the position it moved to immediately before, stop the driving of the robot vacuum cleaner (100), and then identify whether a received sound is received from the wearable device (20).

[0188] Alternatively, the processor (150) can identify whether a sound is received from the wearable device (20) while moving to the position immediately before.

[0189] Alternatively, the processor (150) may control the driving unit (120) of the robot vacuum cleaner (100) based on the results of analyzing a previously received signal to move it to a location where the wearable device (100) is expected to be.

[0190] When the received sound starts to be heard again through the aforementioned operation, the processor (150) can perform an operation to analyze the received sound and identify the location of the wearable device (20).

[0191] In operation 570, the processor (150) can acquire an image by taking a picture of the area where the wearable device (20) is located through the camera (110) based on the location of the wearable device (20).

[0192] If the processor (150) identifies the direction of the audio signal obtained based on the audio signal received from the wearable device (20), it can take a picture with the camera in the identified direction.

[0193] The processor (150) can photograph the surrounding area including the wearable device (20) through a camera. However, if the wearable device (20) is placed in a gap between objects or is obscured by another object, the wearable device (20) may not be identified by the camera. In this case, the processor (150) can perform photography based on the direction of the wearable device (20) identified based on the audio signal.

[0194] In operation 580, the processor (150) can transmit an image to an electronic device (300) through a first communication interface.

[0195] The processor (150) can photograph the space where the wearable device (20) is located and transmit the acquired image to the server (200) through the first communication interface. Additionally, the processor (150) can transmit location information of the identified wearable device (20) to the server (200) through the communication interface (150). The server (200) can transmit the acquired image and location information of the wearable device (20) to the electronic device (300).

[0196] Referring to FIG. 1, the user can identify images captured by the robot vacuum cleaner (100) through an app installed on the electronic device (300).

[0197] FIGS. 10 and FIGS. 11 are drawings for explaining a UI that displays the search results of a wearable device (100) in an app of an electronic device (300) according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0198] Referring to FIGS. 10 and 11, the user can identify the location of the wearable device (20) through an app installed on the electronic device (300).

[0199] FIG. 10 shows the result of finding the wearable device (20) based on the processor (150) performing BLE communication with the wearable device (20) and identifying the audio signal output from the wearable device (20). In this case, the processor (150) can show the exact location of the wearable device (20) on the map.

[0200] Additionally, the user can command the robot vacuum cleaner (100) to guide directly to the space where the wearable device (200) is located through the 'Guide' button.

[0201] When the user presses the 'Guide' button, a signal may be transmitted from the electronic device (300) to the robot vacuum cleaner (100) to instruct the user to be guided to the space where the wearable device (200) is located. When the processor (150) receives the command, it can identify the space where the user's electronic device (300) is located. The processor (150) can control the robot vacuum cleaner (100) to move to the space where the user is located.

[0202] The processor (150) can help the robot vacuum cleaner (100) move to the space where the user is located, and then move back to the space where the wearable device (20) is located, so that the user can find the wearable device (20) more easily.

[0203] FIG. 11 shows the approximate location of the wearable device (20) on a map when the processor (150) fails to locate the exact location of the wearable device (20).

[0204] Cases where the processor (150) fails to locate the exact position of the wearable device (20) may include cases where the robot vacuum cleaner (100) and the wearable device (20) cannot establish a BLE connection, cases where the communication is unstable with the BLE connection signal being below a preset strength or below a preset communication rate, cases where the BLE connection between the robot vacuum cleaner (100) and the wearable device (20) is established but no audio signal is detected, cases where the audio signal cannot be analyzed due to excessive ambient noise, etc.

[0205] Although the processor (150) cannot receive audio signals from the wearable device (20), if a BLE connection is established between the robot vacuum cleaner (100) and the wearable device (20), and the BLE signal is greater than a preset strength and greater than a preset communication rate, the space where the BLE connection between the robot vacuum cleaner (100) and the wearable device (20) is established can be identified as the approximate space where the wearable device (20) is located.

[0206]

[0207] In other cases where BLE connection between the processor (150) and the wearable device (20) is not possible or the BLE connection signal is unstable, the space where the home appliance that performed BLE communication with the wearable device (20) is located can be identified as the approximate space where the wearable device (20) is located.

[0208] Accordingly, the processor (150) can transmit the approximate location of the wearable device (20) to the server (200) or electronic device (300).

[0209] The processor (150) can return to the station of the robot vacuum cleaner (100) when the search for the wearable device (20) is completed and the location information of the space where the wearable device (20) is located and the captured image are transmitted to the server (200) or electronic device (300), or when the search for the wearable device (20) fails and the processor (150) transmits the approximate location information of the wearable device (20) to the server (200) or electronic device (300).

[0210] Various embodiments of the present document may be implemented as software comprising one or more instructions stored in a storage medium (e.g., memory (130)) readable by a machine (e.g., robot vacuum cleaner (100)). For example, a processor (e.g., processor (140)) of the machine (e.g., robot vacuum cleaner (100)) may call at least one of the one or more instructions stored in the storage medium and execute it. This enables the machine to operate to perform at least one function according to the at least one called instruction. The one or more instructions may include code generated by a compiler or code that can be executed by an interpreter. The storage medium readable by the machine may be provided in the form of a non-transitory storage medium. Here, 'non-temporary' simply means that the storage medium is a tangible device and does not contain a signal (e.g., electromagnetic waves), and the term does not distinguish between cases where data is stored semi-permanently and cases where it is stored temporarily.

[0211] According to one embodiment, the method according to the various embodiments disclosed herein may be provided by being included in a computer program product. The computer program product may be traded between a seller and a buyer as a product. The computer program product may be distributed in the form of a device-readable storage medium (e.g., compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM)) or an application store (e.g., Play Store). ™It can be distributed online (e.g., downloaded or uploaded) through ) or directly between two user devices (e.g., smartphones). In the case of online distribution, at least a portion of the computer program product may be temporarily stored or temporarily created on a device-readable storage medium, such as the memory of a manufacturer's server, an application store's server, or a relay server.

[0212] According to various embodiments, each component (e.g., module or program) of the components described above may include a singular or multiple entities, and some of the multiple entities may be separated and placed in other components. According to various embodiments, one or more of the components or operations of the aforementioned components may be omitted, or one or more other components or operations may be added. Generally or additionally, multiple components (e.g., module or program) may be integrated into a single component. In this case, the integrated component may perform one or more functions of each of the multiple components in the same or similar manner as those performed by the corresponding component among the multiple components prior to integration. According to various embodiments, operations performed by the module, program, or other components may be executed sequentially, in parallel, iteratively, or heuristically, or one or more of the operations may be executed in a different order, omitted, or one or more other operations may be added.

[0213] Although the present invention has been described above with reference to the attached drawings, the scope of the present invention is determined by the claims set forth below and should not be interpreted as being limited to the aforementioned embodiments and / or drawings. Furthermore, it should be clearly understood that improvements, changes, and modifications to the invention described in the claims that are obvious to those skilled in the art are also included within the scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. Regarding robot vacuum cleaners, camera; Driving part; mike; First communication interface; Second communication interface; A memory storing a map of the indoor space where the robot vacuum cleaner is located; and When information regarding a candidate area where a wearable device is located on the map is received from the server through the first communication interface, the driving unit is controlled so that the robot vacuum cleaner moves to the candidate area based on the received information, and When the wearable device is connected via the second communication interface while the robot vacuum cleaner is moving through the candidate area, an output command for an audio signal is transmitted to the wearable device via the second communication interface, and When an audio signal output by the wearable device is received through the microphone, the location of the wearable device is identified based on the received audio signal, and Based on the location of the wearable device, an image is obtained by photographing the area where the wearable device is located through the camera, and A robot vacuum cleaner comprising at least one processor that transmits the image to an electronic device through the first communication interface.

2. In Paragraph 1, The above candidate region is, A robot vacuum cleaner determined based on the location of at least one device connected to the wearable device via wireless communication among a plurality of devices located in the above indoor space and the communication distance of the wireless communication.

3. In Paragraph 1, The above-mentioned at least one processor is, When the robot vacuum cleaner moves to the candidate area, the driving unit is controlled so that the robot vacuum cleaner moves to the candidate area along a preset driving path, and While the robot vacuum cleaner moves through the candidate area, it establishes a communication connection with the wearable device through the second communication interface, When the above-mentioned wearable device is connected, the location to transmit the audio output command is identified based on the strength of the signal received from the wearable device through the second communication interface, and A robot vacuum cleaner that transmits an output command of the audio signal at the identified location to the wearable device through the second communication interface.

4. In Paragraph 3, The above-mentioned at least one processor is, When the wearable device is connected, the driving path of the robot vacuum cleaner is identified based on the strength of the received signal, and while the robot vacuum cleaner is moving along the identified driving path, the location to transmit the audio output command is identified based on the strength of the received signal. An electronic device that, when the above-mentioned wearable device is not connected, performs a communication connection with the wearable device through the second communication interface while the robot vacuum cleaner moves along the preset driving path to the candidate area.

5. In Paragraph 1, The above-mentioned at least one processor is, After transmitting the audio output command, when the audio signal output by the wearable device is received through the microphone, the distance between the wearable device and the robot vacuum cleaner and the direction of the audio signal are identified based on the received audio signal, and A robot vacuum cleaner that controls the driving unit so that the robot vacuum cleaner moves to an expected location of the wearable device based on the identified distance and direction.

6. In Paragraph 5, The above-mentioned at least one processor is, Identify the strength of the received audio signal while the robot vacuum cleaner moves to the expected position, and If the strength of the received audio signal is identified as being greater than a preset strength, the driving unit is controlled to stop the robot vacuum cleaner, and A robot vacuum cleaner that identifies the location of a wearable device based on the location where the robot vacuum cleaner is stopped, the direction of the audio signal obtained based on the audio signal received through the microphone at the location where the robot vacuum cleaner is stopped, and the distance between the wearable device and the robot vacuum cleaner.

7. In Paragraph 1, The above-mentioned at least one processor is, The robot vacuum cleaner identifies whether the received audio signal is the audio signal output by the wearable device based on the waveform of the audio signal received through the microphone, and A robot vacuum cleaner that identifies the location of the wearable device based on the received audio signal when the received audio signal is identified as the audio signal output by the wearable device.

8. In Paragraph 1, The above-mentioned at least one processor is, A robot vacuum cleaner that transmits information about the identified location to the server through the communication interface.

9. A method for controlling a robot vacuum cleaner including a memory storing a map of an indoor space in which a camera, a driving unit, a microphone, and the robot vacuum cleaner are located, When information regarding a candidate area where a wearable device is located in the map is received from the server, a step of controlling the driving unit so that the robot vacuum cleaner moves to the candidate area based on the received information; A step of transmitting an audio signal output command to the wearable device when the wearable device is connected while the robot vacuum cleaner is moving through the candidate area; When an audio signal output by the wearable device is received through the microphone, a step of identifying the location of the wearable device based on the received audio signal; A step of acquiring an image by photographing the area where the wearable device is located through the camera based on the location of the wearable device; and A control method comprising the step of transmitting the above image to an electronic device.

10. In Paragraph 9, The above candidate region is, A control method determined based on the location of at least one device connected to the wearable device via wireless communication among a plurality of devices located in the above indoor space and the communication distance of the wireless communication.

11. In Paragraph 9, When the wearable device is connected while the robot vacuum cleaner is moving through the candidate area, the step of transmitting an audio signal output command to the wearable device is: When the robot vacuum cleaner moves to the candidate area, a step of controlling the driving unit so that the robot vacuum cleaner moves to the candidate area along a preset driving path; A step of establishing a communication connection with the wearable device while the robot vacuum cleaner moves through the candidate area; When the wearable device is connected, a step of identifying a location to transmit an audio output command based on the strength of a signal received from the wearable device; and A control method comprising the step of transmitting an output command of the audio signal at the identified location to the wearable device through the second communication interface.

12. In Paragraph 11, When the above-mentioned wearable device is connected, a step of identifying the driving path of the robot vacuum cleaner based on the strength of the received signal; A step of identifying a location to transmit an audio output command based on the strength of the received signal while the robot vacuum cleaner moves along the identified driving path; and A control method further comprising the step of, if the wearable device is not connected, performing a communication connection with the wearable device while the robot vacuum cleaner moves along the candidate area along a preset driving path.

13. In Paragraph 9, The step of identifying the location of the wearable device based on the received audio signal is, After transmitting the audio output command, if the audio signal output by the wearable device is received through the microphone, the step of identifying the distance between the wearable device and the robot vacuum cleaner and the direction of the audio signal based on the received audio signal; and A control method comprising the step of controlling the driving unit so that the robot vacuum cleaner moves to an expected position of the wearable device based on the identified distance and direction.

14. In Paragraph 13, A step of identifying the strength of the received audio signal while the robot vacuum cleaner moves to the expected position; A step of controlling the driving unit so that the robot vacuum cleaner stops when the strength of the received audio signal is identified as being greater than a preset strength; and A control method further comprising the step of identifying the position of the wearable device based on the position where the robot vacuum cleaner is stopped, the direction of the audio signal obtained based on the audio signal received through the microphone at the position where the robot vacuum cleaner is stopped, and the distance between the wearable device and the robot vacuum cleaner.

15. In Paragraph 9, The step of identifying the location of the wearable device based on the received audio signal is, A step in which the robot vacuum cleaner identifies whether the received audio signal is the audio signal output by the wearable device based on the waveform of the audio signal received through the microphone; and A control method comprising: a step of identifying the location of the wearable device based on the received audio signal when the received audio signal is identified as the audio signal output by the wearable device.

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