Method for controlling automatic pool cleaning device to move in closed loop along pool boundary, and corresponding automatic pool cleaning device

Abstract

The present application provides a method for controlling an automatic pool cleaning device to move in a closed loop along a pool boundary, and a corresponding automatic pool cleaning device. The method comprises: controlling the automatic pool cleaning device to travel along a pool boundary; acquiring, in real time, motion-related information of the automatic pool cleaning device during traveling; determining, on the basis of the motion-related information acquired in real time, whether a travel trajectory of the automatic pool cleaning device along the pool boundary forms a closed loop; and verifying, on the basis of a preset time threshold, the determination of whether the travel trajectory along the pool boundary forms a closed loop.

Description

Methods for controlling the closed-loop movement of automatic water tank cleaning equipment along the boundary of the water tank, and corresponding automatic water tank cleaning equipment.

[0001] This application claims priority to Chinese Patent Application No. 202411823296.7, filed on December 11, 2024, entitled “Method for controlling an automatic cleaning device for a water tank to move in a closed loop along the boundary of a water tank and a corresponding automatic cleaning device for a water tank”, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

[0002] This application claims priority to Chinese Patent Application No. 202411708745.3, filed on November 27, 2024, entitled "Automatic Pool Cleaning Device, Control Method, Computer Program Product and Storage Medium", the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

[0003] This application claims priority to Chinese patent application No. 202411902520.1, filed on December 20, 2024, entitled “Charging Base Station Interconnection System and Interconnection Method”, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

[0004] This application claims priority to Chinese Patent Application No. 202411717880.4, filed on November 27, 2024, entitled "Automatic Cleaning Device for Water Tanks and Control Method Thereof, and Computer Storage Medium", the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

[0005] This application claims priority to Chinese Patent Application No. 202411729064.5, filed on November 28, 2024, entitled "Automatic Cleaning Device for Water Tanks and Control Method Thereof", the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

[0006] This application claims priority to Chinese Patent Application No. 202423032379.2, filed on December 09, 2024, entitled "Filtering Device for Automatic Water Tank Cleaning Equipment and Corresponding Automatic Water Tank Cleaning Equipment", the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

[0007] This application claims priority to Chinese Patent Application No. 202423030129.5, filed on December 09, 2024, entitled “Filter basket for automatic pool cleaning device and corresponding automatic pool cleaning device”, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

[0008] This application claims priority to Chinese Patent Application No. 202411809231.7, filed on December 10, 2024, entitled "Automatic Cleaning Device for Water Tanks and Method for Automatic Cleaning Device for Water Tanks", the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. Technical Field

[0009] This application relates to the field of pool cleaning, specifically to a method for controlling an automatic pool cleaning device to move in a closed loop along the pool boundary, and the corresponding automatic pool cleaning device. Background Technology

[0010] Automatic pool cleaning equipment is generally used for cleaning pools, such as collecting and removing trash / debris from the bottom, side walls, and / or surface of pools like swimming pools, in order to filter and purify the water in the pool.

[0011] Application content

[0012] According to one aspect of this application, a method for controlling an automatic water tank cleaning device to move in a closed loop along the boundary of a water tank is proposed, comprising: controlling the automatic water tank cleaning device to move along the boundary of a water tank; acquiring motion-related information of the automatic water tank cleaning device in real time during its movement; determining whether the movement trajectory of the automatic water tank cleaning device along the boundary of the water tank forms a closed loop based on the acquired motion-related information in real time; and verifying the determination of whether the movement trajectory along the boundary of the water tank forms a closed loop based on a preset time threshold.

[0013] Furthermore, the preset time threshold includes at least one of the minimum travel time threshold or the maximum travel time threshold.

[0014] Furthermore, based on the minimum travel time threshold, the determination of whether the travel trajectory has formed a closed loop is verified, including: if it is determined that the travel trajectory has formed a closed loop, but the travel time is less than the minimum travel time threshold, then the determination that the travel trajectory has formed a closed loop is incorrect.

[0015] Furthermore, the method also includes, if the determination that the travel trajectory forms a closed loop is incorrect, controlling the automatic cleaning device of the pool to continue traveling along the boundary of the pool, and re-determining whether the travel trajectory forms a closed loop.

[0016] Furthermore, based on the maximum travel time threshold, the determination of whether the travel trajectory forms a closed loop is verified, including: if it is determined that the travel trajectory does not form a closed loop, but the travel time exceeds or is equal to the maximum travel time threshold, then the determination that the travel trajectory does not form a closed loop is considered incorrect.

[0017] Furthermore, if the judgment that the travel trajectory has not formed a closed loop is deemed incorrect, then the current travel trajectory is determined to have formed a closed loop.

[0018] Furthermore, the method also includes, if it is verified that the travel trajectory has formed a closed loop, controlling the cleaning device to stop traveling or change the travel mode.

[0019] Furthermore, the motion-related information includes at least one of the following: the yaw angle of the automatic pool cleaning device, the environmental information of the automatic pool cleaning device, the magnetometer direction of the automatic pool cleaning device, or the positioning information of the automatic pool cleaning device.

[0020] Furthermore, determining whether the trajectory of the automatic pool cleaning device along the pool boundary forms a closed loop based on real-time acquired motion-related information includes: extracting environmental feature information from the acquired environmental information of the automatic pool cleaning device during its movement; and determining whether the trajectory of the automatic pool cleaning device along the pool boundary forms a closed loop based on the extracted environmental feature information.

[0021] Furthermore, determining whether the trajectory of the automatic pool cleaning device along the pool boundary forms a closed loop based on real-time acquired motion-related information includes: accumulating the acquired yaw angles; and determining whether the trajectory of the automatic pool cleaning device along the pool boundary forms a closed loop based on the accumulated yaw angle value.

[0022] Furthermore, determining whether the trajectory of the automatic pool cleaning device along the pool boundary forms a closed loop based on real-time acquired motion-related information includes: determining whether the trajectory of the automatic pool cleaning device along the pool boundary forms a closed loop based on a comparison of acquired positioning information and preset map information.

[0023] Furthermore, determining whether the trajectory of the automatic water tank cleaning device along the water tank boundary forms a closed loop based on real-time acquired motion-related information includes: determining whether the trajectory of the automatic water tank cleaning device along the water tank boundary forms a closed loop based on the acquired changes in the direction of the magnetometer.

[0024] Furthermore, the yaw angle is obtained through an inertial measurement unit (IMU); the environmental information is obtained through at least one of a lidar, ultrasonic sensor, TOF sensor, or visual sensor.

[0025] Furthermore, the minimum travel time threshold depends on at least one of the following: the length of the pool boundary, the travel speed of the automatic pool cleaning device, or the operating mode of the automatic pool cleaning device.

[0026] This application also provides an automatic pool cleaning device, comprising: at least one processor; a memory storing executable instructions; the at least one processor being configured to cause the automatic pool cleaning device to perform the above-described method when executing the executable instructions stored in the memory.

[0027] This application also provides a control method for an automatic water tank cleaning device, used to control the automatic water tank cleaning device to clean a water tank, wherein the automatic water tank cleaning device travels along a predetermined path, wherein the control method includes: determining whether a turning condition is met; if the turning condition is met, then deflecting the travel path of the automatic water tank cleaning device by a predetermined angle; and using the path after deflecting the predetermined angle as the updated predetermined path, and controlling the automatic water tank cleaning device to travel along the updated predetermined path.

[0028] Furthermore, controlling the automatic pool cleaning device to travel along the updated predetermined path includes: controlling the automatic pool cleaning device to travel a predetermined distance along the updated predetermined path; deflecting the travel path of the automatic pool cleaning device by the predetermined angle again; and using the path after the predetermined angle deflection as the updated predetermined path, and controlling the automatic pool cleaning device to travel along the updated predetermined path.

[0029] Furthermore, the predetermined path includes a straight path, and the predetermined distance is determined based on the predetermined path before the update or the size of the pool.

[0030] Furthermore, the turning condition includes: the automatic water tank cleaning device encountering an obstacle while driving.

[0031] Furthermore, the steering condition includes: the pitch angle of the automatic pool cleaning device during operation is greater than a predetermined pitch angle.

[0032] Furthermore, the pool includes a pool bottom and pool walls, and the turning condition includes: the automatic pool cleaning device moving from the pool wall to the pool bottom.

[0033] Furthermore, the direction of the updated predetermined path is the direction pointed to by the head of the automatic pool cleaning device.

[0034] Furthermore, the direction of the updated predetermined path is the direction pointed to by the tail of the automatic pool cleaning device.

[0035] Furthermore, the predetermined angle is 5 degrees or approximately 5 degrees.

[0036] This application also provides a computer storage medium storing a computer program that, when executed by a processor, implements the method.

[0037] This application also provides an automatic water tank cleaning device, including a memory and a processor, wherein the memory stores computer program instructions, and the processor executes the method when processing the computer program instructions.

[0038] The control method of the automatic pool cleaning equipment in this application embodiment has the following beneficial effects: During the cleaning operation, when the turning condition is met, the automatic pool cleaning equipment deflects the travel path by the predetermined angle, which can ensure that there is a certain angle between the updated predetermined path and the original predetermined path, avoid repeated cleaning of the already cleaned area, and at the same time reduce the area missed or reduce the possibility of missed cleaning, thereby improving the coverage of the cleaning operation.

[0039] This application also provides a charging base station docking system for a pool cleaning robot, including a pool cleaning robot and a charging base station. The pool cleaning robot includes a buoyancy control mechanism that can control the robot to float or sink. The charging base station includes charging electrodes that are used to charge the robot after it docks with the base station. The buoyancy control mechanism can control the robot to dock with or detach from the base station in the pool.

[0040] Furthermore, the base station is located on the pool wall, and the buoyancy control mechanism can control the robot to move to the base station in a floating or suspended state, thereby achieving docking with the base station.

[0041] Furthermore, controlling the robot to move to the base station while floating or suspended includes controlling the robot to rise from underwater to the base station, or controlling the robot to sink from the water surface to the base station.

[0042] Furthermore, the robot includes a detection device capable of acquiring the location of the base station, and the robot is capable of approaching the base station based on the location. The detection device includes a camera, radar, a ranging sensor, or a communication device.

[0043] Furthermore, controlling the robot to rise from underwater to the base station includes controlling the robot to move below at least a portion of the base station and controlling the robot to rise via a buoyancy control mechanism. The base station is equipped with a limiting mechanism, which guides the robot to dock with the base station during the robot's ascent.

[0044] Furthermore, controlling the robot to sink from the water surface to the base station includes controlling the robot to move above at least a portion of the base station, and controlling at least a portion of the robot to sink via a buoyancy control mechanism. The base station is equipped with a limiting mechanism, which guides the robot to dock with the base station during the sinking process.

[0045] Furthermore, the limiting mechanism includes a magnetic suction structure or a guide rail.

[0046] Furthermore, controlling the robot to move to at least a portion of the base station includes, based on the location of the base station, controlling the robot to move at a predetermined distance from the base station on the bottom of the pool, or to move at the bottom of the pool until the sensors on the robot can detect the location of the base station.

[0047] Furthermore, controlling the robot to move above at least a portion of the base station includes, based on the location of the base station, controlling the robot to move on the water surface to a position at a preset distance from the base station, or to move on the water surface until the sensors on the robot can detect the location of the base station.

[0048] Furthermore, when the robot needs to leave the base station, the buoyancy control mechanism can control the robot to float or sink, thereby causing the robot to detach from the base station.

[0049] Furthermore, the charging electrode faces the top of the pool.

[0050] Furthermore, controlling the robot to move to the base station in a floating or levitating state includes detecting the positional relationship between the robot and the base station in real time through a detection device on the robot, and adjusting the robot's movement direction or posture based on the positional relationship. Preferably, the robot is equipped with a drive device for changing the movement direction or posture based on the control signal from the detection device.

[0051] This application also provides a method for docking a charging base station for a pool cleaning robot, comprising,

[0052] Obtain the positional relationship between the robot and the base station;

[0053] Based on the aforementioned positional relationship, the robot is controlled to move on or underwater and approach the base station;

[0054] Once the robot moves to a position that meets preset conditions, the robot is controlled to float up or sink down, thereby allowing the robot to dock with the base station for charging.

[0055] Furthermore, the preset conditions include: the distance between the robot and the base station is less than or equal to a first preset distance; the detection device on the robot detects the base station; at least a part of the robot comes into contact with the base station; the robot comes into contact with the wall of the pool; or the distance between the robot and the pool wall is less than or equal to a second preset distance.

[0056] Furthermore, controlling the robot to float or sink includes adjusting the robot's direction of movement or posture during the floating or sinking process.

[0057] This application also provides a control method for an automatic water tank cleaning device for cleaning a water tank. The automatic water tank cleaning device includes a water pump and an identification unit. The control method includes:

[0058] The automatic cleaning device for the water tank is controlled to move underwater or on the surface of the water tank. During the movement, the water pump operates at a first predetermined power.

[0059] The identification unit determines whether a first predetermined cleaning object exists in front of the automatic water tank cleaning equipment.

[0060] If it is determined that the first predetermined cleaning object exists in front of the automatic cleaning equipment for the pool, the power of the water pump is increased from the first predetermined power to the second predetermined power, and the second predetermined power is maintained until the predetermined condition is met, and then the power of the water pump is reduced from the second predetermined power to the first predetermined power.

[0061] Furthermore, the predetermined conditions include: determining, by the identification unit, that there is no first predetermined cleaning object or second predetermined cleaning object in front of the automatic pool cleaning device; the second predetermined power is maintained for a predetermined time; or the automatic pool cleaning device moves a predetermined distance after the water pump power is increased to the second predetermined power, wherein the second predetermined cleaning object is located in front of the first predetermined cleaning object.

[0062] Furthermore, the predetermined duration is greater than 5 seconds or the predetermined distance is greater than 4 meters.

[0063] Furthermore, both the first predetermined cleaning object and the second predetermined cleaning object include garbage or debris, and the identification unit is able to identify the type of object in front of the automatic cleaning equipment for the pool.

[0064] Furthermore, the recognition distance of the recognition unit is greater than 50cm.

[0065] Furthermore, the identification unit includes one or more of a depth camera, an infrared sensor, and a lidar.

[0066] Furthermore, the first predetermined cleaning object and the second predetermined cleaning object include objects that can be sucked into the bottom suction port of the automatic pool cleaning device.

[0067] Furthermore, controlling the automatic cleaning device of the pool to move underwater or on the surface of the pool includes controlling the automatic cleaning device of the pool to move along a straight path underwater or on the surface of the pool.

[0068] Furthermore, if the first predetermined cleaning object is far from the straight path, the automatic water tank cleaning device is controlled to turn towards the first predetermined cleaning object.

[0069] Furthermore, if the duration of maintaining the second predetermined power exceeds the maximum threshold, the power of the water pump is forcibly reduced from the second predetermined power to the first predetermined power.

[0070] This application also provides an automatic water tank cleaning device, including a filtration unit, a water pump, an identification unit, and a control unit, wherein the water pump is used to suck garbage into the filtration unit, and the control unit is configured to:

[0071] The automatic cleaning device for the water tank is controlled to move at the bottom or surface of the water tank, and the water pump is controlled to operate at a first predetermined power.

[0072] The identification unit is controlled to determine whether a predetermined object exists in front of the automatic water tank cleaning equipment, wherein,

[0073] If it is determined that the predetermined object exists in front of the automatic water tank cleaning equipment, the power of the water pump is increased from a first predetermined power to a second predetermined power, and the second predetermined power is maintained until the predetermined condition is met, and then the power of the water pump is reduced from the second predetermined power to the first predetermined power.

[0074] This application also provides a computer storage medium storing a computer program that, when executed by a processor, implements the method.

[0075] The technical solution provided in this application embodiment controls the automatic pool cleaning device to move underwater or on the surface of the pool. During the movement, the water pump operates at a first predetermined power. The identification unit determines whether there is a first predetermined cleaning object in front of the automatic pool cleaning device. If the first predetermined cleaning object is detected, the power of the water pump is increased from the first predetermined power to a second predetermined power and maintained at the second predetermined power until a predetermined condition is met. Then, the power of the water pump is reduced from the second predetermined power back to the first predetermined power. Through this method, when cleaning the pool, if no cleaning object is found, the automatic pool cleaning device operates at a lower power; when a cleaning object is found, the automatic pool cleaning device operates at a higher power. Therefore, the automatic pool cleaning device can adjust its power according to whether a cleaning object is found, thereby achieving the purpose of reducing power consumption.

[0076] This application also provides a control method for an automatic water tank cleaning device, used to control the automatic water tank cleaning device to clean a water tank, the automatic water tank cleaning device including a sensor unit and a phased array ultrasonic unit, the control method including:

[0077] The sensor unit acquires the first information about the object;

[0078] The second information of the object is obtained through the phased array ultrasonic unit; and

[0079] The automatic water tank cleaning equipment is controlled to perform path planning based on the first information and the second information.

[0080] Furthermore, after acquiring the first information of the object through the sensor unit, the control method further includes: identifying the first information to obtain semantic information of the object, wherein,

[0081] The step of controlling the automatic water tank cleaning device to perform path planning based on the first information and the second information includes:

[0082] The automatic water tank cleaning equipment is controlled to perform path planning based on the semantic information and the second information.

[0083] Furthermore, controlling the automatic water tank cleaning device to perform path planning based on the semantic information and the second information includes:

[0084] The semantic information and the second information are combined to form a data set; and

[0085] The cleaning device is controlled to perform path planning based on the data set.

[0086] Further, the second information includes the size information of the object, wherein acquiring the second information through the phased array ultrasonic unit includes:

[0087] Obtain the distance information of the object;

[0088] Obtain the detection angle of the phased array ultrasonic unit on the object;

[0089] The size information of the object is determined based on the distance information and the detection angle.

[0090] Furthermore, the second information is image information. After acquiring the second information through the phased array ultrasonic unit, the control method further includes:

[0091] The image information is recognized to obtain the size information of the object, and...

[0092] The step of controlling the automatic water tank cleaning device to perform path planning based on the first information and the second information includes: controlling the automatic water tank cleaning device to perform path planning based on the first information and the size information.

[0093] Furthermore, controlling the cleaning device to perform path planning includes:

[0094] The first information and the second information are image-fused to form the third information, which is image information;

[0095] Based on the third information, the semantic information and size information of the object are obtained;

[0096] The cleaning device is controlled to perform path planning based on the semantic information and the size information.

[0097] Furthermore, the sensor unit and the phased array ultrasonic unit are controlled separately to acquire the first information and the second information, respectively.

[0098] Furthermore, the sensor unit and the phased array ultrasonic unit are synchronously controlled to acquire the first information and the second information.

[0099] Furthermore, the first information includes image information or point cloud data information.

[0100] This application also provides an automatic water tank cleaning device, including:

[0101] The sensor unit is used to acquire initial information about the object;

[0102] A phased array ultrasonic unit is used to acquire second information about the object;

[0103] The processor controls the automatic water tank cleaning device to perform path planning based on the first information and the second information.

[0104] Furthermore, the sensor unit and the phased array ultrasonic unit are integrated in the same module.

[0105] Furthermore, the first information includes semantic information.

[0106] This application also provides a non-volatile storage medium storing computer program instructions, which, when executed by a processor, perform the method.

[0107] The control method and automatic water tank cleaning device provided in this application embodiment can accurately determine the attributes of obstacles by combining the different functions of different sensors, and select obstacle avoidance paths according to the attributes of obstacles, thereby achieving better obstacle avoidance effect and improving the cleaning efficiency of automatic cleaning device.

[0108] This application also provides a filtration device for an automatic water tank cleaning system, the filtration device comprising:

[0109] The first filter basket includes a first filter frame and a first filter screen disposed on the first filter frame;

[0110] The second filter basket is detachably installed into the first filter basket, and includes a second filter frame and a second filter screen disposed on the second filter frame;

[0111] The filter pore size of the second filter screen is smaller than that of the first filter screen.

[0112] Furthermore, the second filter frame includes a second side support member, and the second filter screen is sleeved on the outside of the second side support member or disposed inside the second side support member.

[0113] Furthermore, the first filter frame and the first filter screen form a first cavity with a first opening at the top, and the second filter basket is detachably installed inside the first filter basket from the first opening;

[0114] The first filter basket also includes an openable top cover that mates with the first filter frame, the top cover being capable of closing the first opening.

[0115] Furthermore, the second filter frame and the second filter screen form a second cavity with a second opening at the top;

[0116] The second filter frame is provided with a handle at the second opening.

[0117] Furthermore, the second filter screen is detachably connected to the second filter frame.

[0118] Furthermore, the first filter frame includes a first wall, on which a first water inlet is provided.

[0119] Furthermore, a one-way valve is installed at the first water inlet.

[0120] Furthermore, the second filter frame or the second filter screen includes a second wall, on which a second water inlet is provided, and the second water inlet is capable of communicating with the first water inlet.

[0121] Furthermore, the second filter screen is integrally formed.

[0122] Furthermore, the second filter screen is detachably connected to the second filter frame via fasteners.

[0123] Furthermore, the fastener is fixedly connected to the upper and / or lower part of the second filter screen.

[0124] This application also provides an automatic water tank cleaning device, which includes the aforementioned filter device, wherein the filter device is detachably installed in the automatic water tank cleaning device.

[0125] This application also provides a filter basket for an automatic water tank cleaning device, the filter basket comprising:

[0126] A filter frame and a flexible filter, wherein the flexible filter is detachably mounted on the filter frame to form a cavity with a first opening at the top, and the filter frame provides support for the flexible filter at least at the first opening.

[0127] Furthermore, the filter frame includes a side support member and a top frame and a bottom frame connecting the side support member, the side support member being used to support the side of the flexible filter screen.

[0128] Furthermore, the flexible filter screen is fitted onto the filter screen frame.

[0129] Furthermore, a positioning groove is provided at the top frame and / or the bottom frame, and a protrusion is provided at the upper edge and / or lower edge of the flexible filter screen. The flexible filter screen is positioned by the protrusion engaging with the positioning groove.

[0130] Furthermore, positioning posts are provided at the top frame and / or the bottom frame, and positioning holes are provided at the upper edge and / or lower edge of the flexible filter screen. The flexible filter screen is positioned by the positioning posts passing through the positioning holes.

[0131] Furthermore, the filter basket also includes a clamping member that clamps the upper edge and / or lower edge of the flexible filter screen onto the top frame and / or bottom frame of the filter screen frame, respectively.

[0132] Furthermore, the clamping component includes at least one of the following: a rubber retaining ring, a metal retaining ring, a plastic retaining ring, or an elastic band.

[0133] Furthermore, the filter screen is detachably connected to the filter screen frame via a connector, which includes a clamp, a strap, or an elastic flange.

[0134] Furthermore, the thickness of the filter screen is 3mm-15mm; the mesh diameter of the filter screen is no greater than 100um.

[0135] Furthermore, the filter screen is made of polyester fiber.

[0136] Furthermore, a handle is provided on the filter frame.

[0137] Furthermore, the lower part of the cavity is provided with a second opening to allow water to flow into the cavity.

[0138] This application also provides a two-stage filter for an automatic water tank cleaning device, including a filter basket as a first-stage filter and an outer filter basket as a second-stage filter. The filter basket can be placed inside the outer filter basket, and the filtration accuracy of the filter basket is greater than that of the outer filter basket.

[0139] Furthermore, a water inlet is provided at the bottom of the outer filter basket.

[0140] This application also provides an automatic water tank cleaning device, including the two-stage filter; wherein the two-stage filter is detachably installed in the automatic water tank cleaning device.

[0141] This application also provides an automatic water tank cleaning device, including:

[0142] A filter basket is detachably installed in the automatic water tank cleaning device, wherein the filter basket includes a frame and a filter screen disposed on the frame;

[0143] A water flow drive mechanism is configured to drive water flow through an inlet channel into the filter basket for filtration through a filter screen disposed on the filter basket.

[0144] The detection mechanism, located in the water inlet channel, is configured to detect the light transmittance of the water flow; and

[0145] The processing unit is configured to determine the filter clogging status based on the detection of the light transmittance of the water flow.

[0146] Furthermore, the automatic water tank cleaning device also includes a housing, and the filter basket is detachably installed in the housing of the automatic water tank cleaning device;

[0147] The automatic water cleaning device for the pool has a first water inlet on its housing and a second water inlet on the frame of the filter basket. The water inlet channel connects the first water inlet and the second water inlet.

[0148] Furthermore, the processing unit is also configured to determine the cleanliness of the water in the pool based on the light transmittance of the detected water flow.

[0149] Furthermore, the detection mechanism includes a detection sensor, which includes at least one of a turbidity sensor, an infrared sensor, and a photoelectric sensor.

[0150] Furthermore, the automatic water tank cleaning device also includes a movable baffle, wherein, in the event of a clogged filter, the movable baffle is in a first state to prevent the detection of the light transmission state of the water flow.

[0151] Furthermore, when the filter screen is not clogged, the movable baffle is in a second state, thereby allowing the detection of the light transmittance of the water flow.

[0152] Furthermore, the movable baffle is made of a flexible material.

[0153] Furthermore, the water flow can cause the movable baffle to switch between a first state and a second state.

[0154] Furthermore, the detection mechanism includes a transmitter and a receiver, and in the first state, at least a portion of the movable baffle is located between the transmitter and the receiver of the detection mechanism.

[0155] Furthermore, the processing unit is also configured to generate an alarm signal when the detection of the light transmittance state of the water flow determines that the filter is clogged.

[0156] This application also provides a method for an automatic water tank cleaning device, comprising:

[0157] The water is driven to flow through the inlet channel into the filter basket of the automatic cleaning equipment in the water tank;

[0158] The light transmittance of the water flow is detected at at least one location in the water inlet channel of the automatic water cleaning equipment for the pool;

[0159] Based on the detection of the light transmittance of the water flow, it is determined whether the filter basket is clogged. Attached Figure Description

[0160] To more clearly illustrate the solution of this application, the accompanying drawings used in the description of the embodiments will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the accompanying drawings described below are some embodiments of this application. For those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative effort.

[0161] Figures 1A-1B illustrate the schematic outline of an automatic water tank cleaning device according to an embodiment of this application.

[0162] Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of an automatic water tank cleaning device according to an embodiment of the present application moving in a water tank environment (e.g., a swimming pool).

[0163] Figures 3-7 schematically illustrate the process of a method for controlling an automatic water tank cleaning device to move along the boundary of a water tank according to an embodiment of this application.

[0164] Figure 8 is a flowchart illustrating the control method of an automatic water tank cleaning device according to an embodiment of this application.

[0165] Figure 9 is a flowchart illustrating a control method for an automatic water tank cleaning device according to another embodiment of this application.

[0166] Figure 10 is a schematic diagram simulating the cleaning path of an automatic water tank cleaning device according to an embodiment of this application.

[0167] Figure 11 is a schematic diagram of the cleaning path of an automatic water tank cleaning device according to another embodiment of this application.

[0168] Figure 12 is a schematic diagram showing an automatic water tank cleaning device according to an embodiment of the present application.

[0169] Figure 13 is a schematic diagram of the water tank cleaning robot of this application approaching the base station underwater or on the water surface and docking with the base station.

[0170] Figure 14 is a schematic diagram of a control method for an automatic water tank cleaning device according to an embodiment of this application.

[0171] Figure 15 is a schematic diagram of the movement path and cleaning object of an automatic pool cleaning device according to an embodiment of this application.

[0172] Figure 16 is a schematic diagram of a computer storage medium according to an embodiment of the present application.

[0173] Figure 17 is a schematic diagram of an automatic water tank cleaning device according to an embodiment of the present application.

[0174] Figure 18 is a structural schematic diagram of an automatic water tank cleaning device according to at least one embodiment of the present application.

[0175] Figure 19 is a flowchart of a control method for an automatic water tank cleaning device according to at least one embodiment of the present application.

[0176] Figure 20 is a flowchart of a control method for an automatic water tank cleaning device according to another embodiment of this application.

[0177] Figure 21 is a flowchart of a control method for an automatic water tank cleaning device according to another embodiment of this application.

[0178] Figure 22 is a flowchart of a control method for an automatic water tank cleaning device according to another embodiment of this application.

[0179] Figures 23A-23B schematically show the appearance of an automatic pool cleaning device according to an embodiment of this application.

[0180] Figures 24A-24C schematically illustrate a filtration device for an automatic water tank cleaning system according to an embodiment of this application.

[0181] Figures 25A-25B schematically illustrate the structure of a second filter basket according to an embodiment of this application.

[0182] Figures 26A-26B schematically illustrate the structure of the filter frame of the first filter basket according to an embodiment of this application.

[0183] Figures 27A-27B schematically show the appearance of an automatic pool cleaning device according to an embodiment of this application.

[0184] Figures 28A-28B schematically illustrate filter baskets for automatic pool cleaning equipment according to embodiments of this application.

[0185] Figures 29A-29C schematically illustrate components of a filter basket for an automatic water tank cleaning device according to an embodiment of this application.

[0186] Figure 30 schematically illustrates another structure of the filter basket's filter screen frame according to an embodiment of this application.

[0187] Figures 31A-31B schematically illustrate other structures of filter baskets for automatic pool cleaning equipment according to embodiments of this application.

[0188] Figures 32A-32B schematically show the appearance of an automatic water tank cleaning device according to an embodiment of this application.

[0189] Figure 33 schematically illustrates the internal structure of an automatic water tank cleaning device according to an embodiment of this application.

[0190] Figure 34 schematically shows a cross-sectional structure of an automatic water tank cleaning device according to an embodiment of this application.

[0191] Figure 35 is a schematic structural block diagram illustrating an automatic water tank cleaning device according to an embodiment of this application.

[0192] Figure 36 schematically shows a cross-sectional structure of an automatic water tank cleaning device according to an embodiment of this application.

[0193] Figure 37 is a flowchart schematically illustrating a method for an automatic cleaning device for a water tank according to an embodiment of this application.

[0194] Figure 38 is a flowchart schematically illustrating another method for an automatic water tank cleaning device according to an embodiment of this application.

[0195] The realization of the purpose, functional features and advantages of this application will be further explained in conjunction with the embodiments and with reference to the accompanying drawings. Detailed Implementation

[0196] The technical solutions in this application will be clearly and completely described below. Obviously, the described embodiments are only a part of the embodiments of this application, and not all of the embodiments. Based on the embodiments of this application, all other embodiments obtained by those of ordinary skill in the art without creative effort are within the protection scope of this application. It should be noted that, unless otherwise specified, the embodiments and features in the embodiments of this application can be combined with each other.

[0197] Figure 1A schematically illustrates the external appearance of an automatic pool cleaning device 100 according to an embodiment of this application. It can perform cleaning operations on the bottom, walls, water, and surface of a pool (e.g., a swimming pool) as needed, for example, to remove debris from the water, bottom, and surface, and to clean dirt from the pool bottom and walls. As shown in Figure 1A, the automatic pool cleaning device 100 may include structures / components such as a housing 110, a traveling unit 120, and a cleaning unit 130. As an example, the automatic pool cleaning device 100 may also include a buoyancy adjustment unit, allowing the device to adjust its depth in the water as needed; for example, it can float on the surface, submerge, or sink to the bottom to perform cleaning operations on the surface, in the water, or at the bottom. As an example, a control compartment, a power compartment, and a filter compartment can be arranged within the housing 100. The control compartment can house control circuits such as microprocessors, digital signal processors (DSPs), and microcontrollers. The power compartment can house drive units such as water pumps and drive motors. The filter compartment can house filter units to filter and purify the water entering the filter compartment through the inlet, removing impurities, and then discharge the cleaned water through the drain outlet to the automatic pool cleaning device. As an example, Figure 1A shows that the travel unit 120 may include tracked travel units on both sides of the lower part of the automatic pool cleaning device 100, allowing the pool cleaning unit to travel along the bottom or walls of the pool to perform cleaning operations. However, the travel unit is not limited to the type shown in Figure 1A and may include, for example, wheeled travel units; this is not a limitation.

[0198] As an example, Figure 1A also shows a drain outlet 140 symmetrically arranged about the longitudinal axis of the body of the automatic pool cleaning device 100 on the rear side of the housing 110 about the longitudinal axis of the body of the automatic pool cleaning device; and a drain outlet 150 symmetrically arranged about the top of the housing 110 about the longitudinal axis of the body of the automatic pool cleaning device; while Figure 1B further shows one of the drain outlets 160 symmetrically arranged on the front side of the housing 110 of the automatic pool cleaning device 100.

[0199] In addition, the automatic pool cleaning equipment 100 may employ a water jet propulsion unit (e.g., a motor and an impeller) as an auxiliary propulsion unit so that the thrust generated by the water flow driven by the water jet propulsion unit can be used to propel the automatic pool cleaning equipment on the water surface, in the water, on the bottom of the pool and / or on the pool wall.

[0200] It should be understood that the automatic pool cleaning equipment 100 shown in Figures 1A-1B is merely an example, and those skilled in the art can make changes to it in one or more aspects such as appearance, structure, layout, components, and functions according to actual needs, without departing from the principles of this application.

[0201] When automated pool cleaning equipment operates in a pool, such as for edge mapping on the surface or bottom, cleaning the pool walls, or cleaning the waterline, it is typically necessary to determine whether the equipment's trajectory along the pool boundary (or waterline) has achieved a closed loop. This eliminates accumulated errors from the equipment's sensors (such as inertial measurement units (IMUs) and odometers), and ensures complete cleaning of the target object, avoiding omissions and repetitions. For example, when cleaning the waterline of a swimming pool, a closed loop along the waterline indicates that the entire waterline has been cleaned. Therefore, this application proposes a method to collect motion-related information of the automated pool cleaning equipment in real time during its movement and to determine whether the equipment's trajectory along the pool boundary has formed a closed loop based on this collected information.

[0202] Figure 2 is a schematic top view illustrating the movement of an automatic pool cleaning device according to an embodiment of this application along the pool boundary in a pool environment (e.g., a swimming pool). As shown in Figure 2, in order to control the movement of the automatic pool cleaning device 100 along the pool boundary 220 in the pool environment 210, the distance measurement value along the lateral direction of the automatic pool cleaning device's body can be acquired in real time while the automatic pool cleaning device 100 is moving, and the movement of the automatic pool cleaning device is controlled based on the distance measurement value while maintaining a certain distance from the pool boundary. In addition, while the automatic pool cleaning device is moving along the edge, its motion-related information can also be acquired in real time, such as the yaw angle of the automatic pool cleaning device, the environmental information of the automatic pool cleaning device, the magnetometer direction of the automatic pool cleaning device, or the positioning information of the automatic pool cleaning device, and based on the acquired motion-related information, it can be determined whether the trajectory of the automatic pool cleaning device moving along the edge forms a closed loop.

[0203] Considering that automatic pool cleaning equipment is not easy to maintain its posture when moving in the pool, and the body is prone to shaking and drifting, resulting in poor stability, the sensors of the automatic pool cleaning equipment are prone to errors in detecting the movement status of the automatic pool cleaning equipment. The collected motion-related information is not stable and accurate enough. As a result, there is a certain error or even misjudgment in judging whether the movement trajectory of the automatic pool cleaning equipment along the boundary of the pool has formed a closed loop. Therefore, it is necessary to verify the judgment of whether the movement trajectory of the automatic pool cleaning equipment along the boundary of the pool has formed a closed loop based on the motion-related information of the automatic pool cleaning equipment.

[0204] Therefore, embodiments of this application propose to compare the duration of the automatic water cleaning device traveling along the boundary of the water tank with a preset time threshold, thereby verifying whether the trajectory of the automatic water cleaning device traveling along the boundary forms a closed loop based on motion-related information of the automatic water cleaning device.

[0205] Figure 3 is a schematic flowchart of a method for controlling an automatic water cleaning device to move in a closed loop along the boundary of a water tank according to an embodiment of this application. As shown in Figure 3, the method may include: S310, controlling the automatic water cleaning device to move along the boundary of the water tank; S320, acquiring motion-related information of the automatic water cleaning device during its movement in real time; S330, determining whether the movement trajectory of the automatic water cleaning device along the boundary of the water tank forms a closed loop based on the acquired motion-related information in real time; and S340, verifying the determination of whether the movement trajectory along the boundary of the water tank forms a closed loop based on a preset time threshold.

[0206] As an example, motion-related information may include at least one of the following: the yaw angle of the automatic pool cleaning device, the environmental information of the automatic pool cleaning device, the magnetometer orientation of the automatic pool cleaning device, or the positioning information of the automatic pool cleaning device.

[0207] As shown in Figure 2, since the automatic pool cleaning device controls its movement along the edge based on lateral distance measurement in its direction of travel, for example, during movement, the automatic pool cleaning device 100 measures distance to the right side of its direction of travel. As an example, the automatic pool cleaning device 100 can acquire the distance value of an object located to the right of its direction of travel (i.e., the side wall of the pool) in real time using a distance measurement unit such as an ultrasonic sensor, and the control unit of the automatic pool cleaning device controls the automatic pool cleaning device 100 to move along the direction extending from the pool wall based on the distance value, i.e., maintaining a certain distance from the pool wall while moving along the boundary of the pool.

[0208] According to an embodiment of this application, during the movement of the automatic water tank cleaning device, the equipped inertial measurement unit (IMU) can acquire the yaw angle of the automatic water tank cleaning device in real time. By accumulating the acquired yaw angle values, and based on the accumulated yaw angle values, it can be determined whether the trajectory of the automatic water tank cleaning device forms a closed loop.

[0209] For example, when the automatic pool cleaning device according to this application travels along the edge in the direction shown by the arrow in Figure 2, the yaw angle can be positive or negative depending on the device's posture during its travel. Therefore, the accumulated yaw angle value may vary from 0 degrees to 360 degrees (or from 0 degrees to -360 degrees). When traveling in a straight line, the accumulated yaw angle value is smaller; while when the device turns, the accumulated yaw angle value is larger, roughly corresponding to the turning angle. When the device completes one cycle along the edge, that is, when the cycle is closed, the accumulated yaw angle value is close to 360 degrees (here referring to the absolute value). In other words, when the accumulated yaw angle value is close to 360 degrees, it can be preliminarily determined that the trajectory of the automatic pool cleaning device traveling along the edge has formed a closed loop.

[0210] Therefore, based on the accumulated yaw angle value of the automatic pool cleaning equipment during its movement along the edge, it can be preliminarily determined whether the trajectory of the automatic pool cleaning equipment along the edge forms a closed loop.

[0211] According to another embodiment of this application, during the movement, the automatic pool cleaning device can also acquire environmental information by being equipped with at least one of a lidar, ultrasonic sensor, TOF sensor, or vision sensor, and extract environmental feature information from the acquired environmental information of the automatic pool cleaning device during the movement; based on the extracted environmental feature information, it is determined whether the movement trajectory of the automatic pool cleaning device along the boundary of the pool forms a closed loop.

[0212] For example, when an automatic pool cleaning device moves along the edge in the direction shown by the solid arrow in Figure 2, environmental information during its movement can be acquired in real time using sensors such as visual sensors (e.g., monocular or binocular cameras), LiDAR, ultrasonic sensors, and TOF sensors. For instance, a visual sensor can collect video frames of the environment surrounding the movement route. By extracting feature information from these video frames, the similarity of feature information between the collected video frames is compared and matched to determine their similarity. The similarity is then compared to a preset threshold; if the similarity exceeds the threshold, the two video frames are considered similar. Ultimately, it can be determined whether the automatic pool cleaning device has returned to its starting point, i.e., whether its movement along the pool boundary forms a closed loop. Alternatively, laser point cloud images can be obtained by collecting environmental information around the travel route using lidar. By extracting feature information from the images, the similarity of feature information between the collected images is compared and matched to determine their similarity. The similarity is then compared with a preset threshold. If the similarity is higher than the preset threshold, the two frames of images can be judged to be similar. Finally, it can be determined whether the automatic water tank cleaning equipment has returned to the starting point, that is, whether the travel trajectory of the automatic water tank cleaning equipment along the boundary of the water tank forms a closed loop.

[0213] As an example, prior information about landmarks can be established during the movement of the automatic cleaning equipment along the edge of the pool. When information identical to the prior information is obtained, it is determined that the trajectory of the automatic cleaning equipment along the edge of the pool has formed a closed loop.

[0214] When extracting features from environmental information, models such as bag-of-words can be used to process the features in an image into words, where different words represent different features. The words in two images are compared to determine their similarity. To analogize all features to individual words, a dictionary needs to be trained to include all possible word sets. Training with a large amount of data can improve the dictionary's versatility. Training the dictionary is essentially the process of feature clustering. During dictionary training, a kd-tree structure can be constructed, with k branches and a depth of d. The root node represents the coarse classification, with lower levels representing increasingly finer classifications, down to the leaf nodes. This kd-tree is then used for feature matching.

[0215] As an example, the K-means clustering algorithm can also be used for feature extraction and matching. That is, the feature dataset is divided into k clusters to group the features. With k initial centroids, the positions of these centroids are continuously adjusted so that each feature data point is assigned to the cluster containing its nearest centroid, thereby optimizing the similarity within clusters and the differences between clusters.

[0216] In addition, deep learning models such as convolutional neural networks or artificial intelligence processing models can be used to extract and match features to determine whether the automatic cleaning equipment for the pool has returned to its starting point, that is, to determine whether the trajectory of the automatic cleaning equipment along the pool boundary forms a closed loop.

[0217] Therefore, based on the environmental information obtained by the automatic pool cleaning equipment during its movement along Yanbian, it is possible to preliminarily determine whether the trajectory of the automatic pool cleaning equipment along Yanbian forms a closed loop.

[0218] According to the embodiments of this application, during the movement, the automatic pool cleaning device can also obtain the positioning information of the automatic pool cleaning device in real time through the equipped positioning unit; by comparing the obtained positioning information with the preset map information, it can be determined whether the movement trajectory of the automatic pool cleaning device along the boundary of the pool forms a closed loop.

[0219] For example, when the automatic pool cleaning device according to this application travels along the edge in the direction shown by the arrow in Figure 2, its positioning information can be acquired in real time during its travel. For example, the positioning information of the automatic pool cleaning device can be acquired based on an IMU and an odometer. Optionally, the automatic pool cleaning device can also be equipped with a positioning unit such as a GPS locator. When it travels along the edge of the water surface, its positioning information can be determined based on the equipped GPS locator. The automatic pool cleaning device can compare the acquired positioning information with preset map information to preliminarily determine whether the trajectory of the automatic pool cleaning device traveling along the edge forms a closed loop.

[0220] Therefore, based on the positioning information obtained by the automatic pool cleaning equipment during its movement along the edge, it can be preliminarily determined whether the trajectory of the automatic pool cleaning equipment along the edge forms a closed loop.

[0221] According to the embodiments of this application, during the movement of the automatic water tank cleaning device, the direction of the automatic water tank cleaning device during the movement can also be obtained in real time through the equipped direction detection unit (e.g., magnetometer), and based on the change process of the obtained direction, it can be determined whether the trajectory of the automatic water tank cleaning device forms a closed loop.

[0222] For example, when the automatic pool cleaning device according to this application moves along the edge in the direction shown by the arrow in Figure 2, the direction detected by its magnetometer can change from 0 degrees to 360 degrees (or from 0 degrees to -360 degrees) depending on the device's orientation. For instance, when moving along edge AB, the direction detected by the magnetometer may be close to 0 degrees; when moving along edge BC, it may be close to 90 degrees; when continuing along edge CD, it may be close to 180 degrees; and when moving along edge DA, it may be close to 360 degrees. When moving along edge AB again, the direction detected by the magnetometer is close to 0 degrees again. Thus, it can be preliminarily determined that the trajectory of the automatic pool cleaning device moving along the edge forms a closed loop.

[0223] Therefore, based on the change in the direction of the magnetometer during the movement of the automatic pool cleaning equipment along the edge, it is possible to preliminarily determine whether the trajectory of the automatic pool cleaning equipment along the edge forms a closed loop.

[0224] Optionally, as shown in Figure 4, the above method may include: S410, acquiring environmental information in real time during the movement of the automatic water tank cleaning device along the boundary; S420, extracting environmental feature information from the acquired environmental information; S430, determining whether the movement trajectory of the automatic water tank cleaning device along the boundary of the water tank forms a closed loop based on the extracted environmental feature information.

[0225] Optionally, as shown in Figure 5, the above method may include: S510, acquiring the yaw angle of the automatic cleaning device for the pool during its travel along the edge in real time; S520, accumulating the acquired yaw angle; and S530, determining whether the travel trajectory of the automatic cleaning device along the boundary of the pool forms a closed loop based on the accumulated yaw angle value.

[0226] Optionally, as shown in Figure 6, the above method may include: S610, acquiring the positioning information of the automatic water tank cleaning device during its movement along Yanbian in real time; S620, determining whether the movement trajectory of the automatic water tank cleaning device along the boundary of the water tank forms a closed loop based on the comparison between the acquired positioning information and the preset map information.

[0227] Optionally, as shown in Figure 7, the above method may include: S710, acquiring the magnetometer direction information of the automatic water tank cleaning device during its movement along the edge in real time; S720, determining whether the movement trajectory of the automatic water tank cleaning device along the boundary of the water tank forms a closed loop based on the acquired changes in the magnetometer direction.

[0228] Alternatively, in the above method, the yaw angle can be obtained by an inertial measurement unit (IMU).

[0229] Optionally, in the above method, the environmental information can be obtained by at least one of lidar, ultrasonic sensor, TOF sensor, or vision sensor.

[0230] As described above, embodiments of this application propose to compare the duration of the automatic pool cleaning device's movement along the pool boundary with a preset time threshold, thereby verifying whether the trajectory of the automatic pool cleaning device along the boundary forms a closed loop based on motion-related information of the device. As an example, the preset time threshold may include at least one of a minimum travel time threshold or a maximum travel time threshold.

[0231] For example, a minimum travel time threshold can be set for edge-traveling, and the determination of whether the edge-traveling trajectory forms a closed loop can be verified based on the minimum travel time threshold. As an example, the minimum travel time threshold can depend on at least one of the following: the length of the pool boundary, the speed of the automatic pool cleaning device, or the operating mode of the automatic pool cleaning device. Optionally, the operating mode of the automatic pool cleaning device can include at least one of the following modes: waterline cleaning mode, sidewall cleaning mode, water surface edge mapping mode, and pool bottom edge mapping mode.

[0232] According to an embodiment of this application, when it is determined that the trajectory of the automatic pool cleaning device traveling along the edge has formed a closed loop based on motion-related information of the device, the duration of this travel can be compared with a minimum travel time threshold. If the duration is less than the threshold, it indicates an error in the judgment that the trajectory has formed a closed loop, and the device needs to continue traveling along the pool boundary to re-evaluate whether a closed loop has formed. Optionally, when re-evaluating whether a closed loop has formed, different motion-related information can be used. For example, if the magnetometer direction was used previously to determine whether a closed loop has formed, the yaw angle collected by the IMU can be used during the re-evaluation.

[0233] For example, a maximum travel time threshold can be set for the edge-traveling motion, and the determination of whether the edge-traveling trajectory forms a closed loop can be verified based on the maximum travel time threshold. As an example, the maximum travel time threshold can be set based on experience, such as considering factors like the minimum speed of the automatic pool cleaning equipment's edge-traveling motion and the maximum length of the pool boundary; for example, the maximum travel time threshold for edge-traveling motion can be set to 700 seconds.

[0234] As an example, if the trajectory of the automatic pool cleaning equipment moving along the edge has not yet formed a closed loop based on motion-related information of the automatic pool cleaning equipment, but the travel time exceeds or equals the preset maximum travel time threshold, then the judgment that the trajectory of the automatic pool cleaning equipment moving along the edge has not formed a closed loop based on the corresponding motion-related information is incorrect.

[0235] In this situation, considering that the travel time along the edge has exceeded or equaled the preset maximum travel time threshold, the current travel trajectory along the edge can be determined as a closed loop, thereby controlling the automatic cleaning equipment of the pool to stop traveling or change its travel mode. Optionally, changing the travel mode may include: exiting the edge travel mode and entering a travel mode that performs cleaning operations along a specified route (such as a bow-shaped or U-shaped route).

[0236] By using a maximum travel time threshold to verify whether the trajectory of the automatic pool cleaning device traveling along the edge forms a closed loop based on motion-related information, the automatic pool cleaning device can be controlled to exit the edge-traveling mode in a timely manner, that is, to terminate the edge-traveling loop. This avoids misjudging the trajectory of the automatic pool cleaning device along the edge as not forming a closed loop based on motion-related information (e.g., abnormal situations such as detection errors in motion-related information), which would cause the automatic water surface cleaning device to continuously circle along the pool boundary.

[0237] Optionally, in the above method, the preset time threshold includes at least one of the minimum travel time threshold or the maximum travel time threshold.

[0238] Optionally, in the above method, the verification of whether the travel trajectory forms a closed loop based on the minimum travel time threshold may include: if it is determined that the travel trajectory has formed a closed loop, but the travel time is less than the minimum travel time threshold, then the determination that the travel trajectory has formed a closed loop is incorrect.

[0239] Optionally, the above method may further include: if the determination that the travel trajectory forms a closed loop is incorrect, then control the automatic cleaning device of the pool to continue traveling along the boundary of the pool, and re-determine whether the travel trajectory forms a closed loop.

[0240] Optionally, in the above method, the verification of whether the travel trajectory forms a closed loop based on the maximum travel time threshold may include: if it is determined that the travel trajectory does not form a closed loop, but the travel time exceeds or is equal to the maximum travel time threshold, then the determination that the travel trajectory does not form a closed loop is incorrect.

[0241] Optionally, the above method may further include: if the judgment that the travel trajectory has not formed a closed loop is incorrect, then determine that the current travel trajectory has formed a closed loop.

[0242] Optionally, the above method may further include: if it is verified that the travel trajectory has formed a closed loop, then control the cleaning device to stop traveling or change the travel mode.

[0243] According to an embodiment of this application, an automatic pool cleaning device is also proposed, comprising: at least one processor; a memory storing executable instructions; the at least one processor being configured to cause the automatic pool cleaning device to perform the above-described method when executing the executable instructions stored in the memory.

[0244] Therefore, various apparatuses and methods have been referenced above to present several aspects of this application. These apparatuses and methods are illustrated in the accompanying drawings by various blocks, components, circuits, processes, algorithms, etc. (collectively, "elements"). These elements can be implemented using electronic hardware, computer software, or any combination thereof. Whether these elements are implemented in hardware or software depends on the specific application and the design constraints of the overall system.

[0245] For example, a component, any part of a component, or any combination of components can be implemented as a "processing system" including one or more processors. One or more processors in the processing system can execute software. Software should be interpreted broadly as meaning instructions, instruction sets, code, code segments, program code, programs, subroutines, software components, applications, software applications, software packages, routines, subroutines, objects, executable programs, threads of execution, procedures, functions, etc., regardless of whether it is called software, firmware, middleware, microcode, hardware description languages, or something else.

[0246] Therefore, in one or more example embodiments, the described functionality can be implemented in hardware, software, or any combination thereof. If implemented in software, these functions can be stored or encoded as one or more instructions or code on a computer-readable medium. A computer-readable medium includes a computer storage medium. The storage medium can be any available medium accessible to a computer. By way of example and not limitation, such a computer-readable medium can include random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), electrically erasable programmable ROM (EEPROM), optical disk storage, magnetic disk storage, other magnetic storage devices, combinations of computer-readable media of the types described above, or any other medium that can be used to store computer-executable code in the form of computer-accessible instructions or data structures.

[0247] It should be understood that the specific order or hierarchy of blocks in the disclosed process / flowchart is illustrative of the exemplary method. Based on design preferences, it should be understood that the specific order or hierarchy of blocks in the process / flowchart can be rearranged. Furthermore, some blocks can be combined or omitted. The appended method claims present elements of various blocks in a sample order and are not intended to limit one to the specific order or hierarchy presented.

[0248] This application provides a control method for an automatic water tank cleaning device, used to control the automatic water tank cleaning device to clean a water tank, wherein the automatic water tank cleaning device travels along a predetermined path, wherein the control method includes: determining whether a turning condition is met; if the turning condition is met, deflecting the travel path of the automatic water tank cleaning device by a predetermined angle; and using the path after deflecting the predetermined angle as the updated predetermined path, and controlling the automatic water tank cleaning device to travel along the updated predetermined path.

[0249] It is understood that the automatic pool cleaning equipment is capable of cleaning the pool. The pool is, for example, a pool-shaped structure. The pool-shaped structure can be a swimming pool, a water storage tank, a spa pool, a water tank, a water storage trough, etc. The automatic pool cleaning equipment can be a device such as an automatic cleaning device or a pool cleaning robot, capable of cleaning the pool-shaped structure. This application does not limit the specific presentation of the automatic pool cleaning equipment or the pool-shaped structure, as long as the principles of this application are achieved. In the following description, unless otherwise specified, a robot will be used as an example of the automatic pool cleaning equipment, and a swimming pool will be used as an example of a pool or pool-shaped structure; the terms "pool bottom," "pool bottom surface," and "pool base" all refer to the bottom surface of the swimming pool.

[0250] The control method 100' of the automatic water tank cleaning device of this application will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Figure 8 is a flowchart of the control method 100' of the automatic water tank cleaning device according to an embodiment of this application. As shown in Figure 8, the control method 100' includes steps S101 to S104. Steps S101 to S104 will now be described in detail.

[0251] In step S101, the robot travels along a predetermined path.

[0252] The predetermined path can be a path calculated using a path planning algorithm. For example, consider the robot's entry point into the water (which can be any point on the bottom of a swimming pool). Using this entry point as the center, explore the boundaries of the area to be cleaned on the bottom of the pool at regular angles to obtain boundary points. Use these boundary points as starting points for path planning. For example, if the angle interval is 5°, then in the 360° circumference, determine an exploration direction every 5°, and then explore along these directions to obtain a boundary point. Ideally, this will result in 72 boundary points. Using each boundary point as a starting point, 72 candidate cleaning paths can be obtained. Then, calculate the ratio of the area covered by each candidate cleaning path to the area of ​​the area to be cleaned. The candidate cleaning path with the largest ratio is determined as the predetermined path.

[0253] The predetermined path can be a path preset by the user or a random path. The above description of the predetermined path is merely exemplary and is not intended to limit the meaning of the predetermined path. Those skilled in the art can selectively set the predetermined path according to actual needs, as long as the technical principles of this application are achieved.

[0254] It is understood that the predetermined path is the cleaning path the robot takes during its cleaning operation. Similarly, the new path the robot takes after turning (i.e., the updated predetermined path, which will be explained in detail below) is also the robot's cleaning path. In the following text, unless otherwise specified, the terms "predetermined path," "movement path," and "updated predetermined path" all refer to the robot's cleaning path; the terms "deflection" and "turn" all refer to the deflection operation performed by the robot on its travel path when the turning conditions are met.

[0255] In one embodiment, the predetermined path includes a straight path. The robot moves along the straight path on the bottom of the pool.

[0256] In one embodiment, the direction in which the robot's head points is the same as the direction of the predetermined path; in other words, the robot moves in the direction in which its head points, and the direction in which the head points is the same as the direction of the predetermined path.

[0257] In another embodiment, the direction pointed to by the robot's tail is the same as the direction of the predetermined path; in other words, the robot moves in the direction pointed to by its tail, which is the same as the direction of the predetermined path.

[0258] Next, proceed to step S102. In step S102, determine whether the steering conditions are met.

[0259] The robot may include a control unit that can determine whether the turning conditions are met. For example, the control unit periodically acquires data from sensors and determines whether the turning conditions are met based on the data. The sensors may be distance sensors, ultrasonic sensors, phased array ultrasonic sensors, laser sensors, inertial measurement unit (IMU) sensors, etc. The determination period may be, for example, 200 milliseconds or 300 milliseconds. The above description of the sensors and determination period is merely exemplary and is not intended to limit the meaning of these terms in the technical solution of this application. Those skilled in the art can set the sensors and determination period according to actual needs, as long as the technical principles of this application are achieved.

[0260] The purpose of setting the aforementioned turning conditions is to trigger the robot's turning action when the conditions are met, thereby preventing the robot from getting stuck due to obstacles, preventing the robot from repeatedly cleaning a certain path during climbing and descending walls, and preventing the robot from sliding downwards when climbing the curved area of ​​the "bowl-shaped" bottom of the pool, as well as preventing the robot from repeatedly walking back and forth along one long side of the "I" shape. The turning conditions will be described in detail below.

[0261] In one embodiment, the turning condition is that the robot encounters an obstacle while traveling. When the robot encounters an obstacle (such as a railing, filter, lampshade, etc.) or such an obstacle exists in the robot's travel path, the turning condition is determined to be met, and the robot can use the technical solution of this application to deflect (described in detail below) to bypass the obstacle. When the robot encounters an obstacle (such as a railing, filter, lampshade, etc.) or such an obstacle exists in the robot's travel path, the robot can also first attempt to bypass the obstacle. If the robot cannot successfully bypass the obstacle, the turning condition is determined to be met, and subsequent steps 103 and 104 are executed.

[0262] The turning condition can be that the robot's pitch angle during travel is greater than a predetermined pitch angle. If the robot's pitch angle is greater than the predetermined pitch angle, it indicates that the robot has reached the boundary between the pool bottom and the pool wall (e.g., the curved area of ​​a "bowl-shaped" pool bottom). If the robot continues to travel along the predetermined path at this point, it may slip in place or even overturn. Therefore, it is necessary to deflect the robot's travel path. Appropriately deflecting the travel path allows the robot to overcome terrain with excessive tilt angles, thus enabling it to continue cleaning operations.

[0263] The predetermined pitch angle is, for example, 30 degrees or approximately 30 degrees. Setting the predetermined pitch angle to 30 degrees or approximately 30 degrees allows the robot to adapt to pool bottoms with different curved shapes. Those skilled in the art can also selectively set the predetermined pitch angle based on the technical principles of this application, as long as the technical principles of this application are achieved.

[0264] The turning condition can also be that the robot moves from the pool wall to the pool bottom. When the robot is cleaning the pool wall, it will perform wall-mounting (i.e., moving from the pool bottom to the pool wall) and wall-mounting (i.e., moving from the pool wall to the pool bottom). When the robot moves from the pool wall to the pool bottom during the wall-mounting process, in order to avoid the robot repeatedly cleaning the already cleaned pool bottom and pool wall areas, the robot's travel path needs to be deflected. That is, the turning condition has been met.

[0265] The turning conditions may also include any combination of one or more of the conditions described above.

[0266] The steering conditions described above are exemplary and are not intended to limit the number and type of steering conditions encompassed by the technical principles of this application. Those skilled in the art can select the steering conditions according to actual circumstances, as long as the technical principles of this application can be achieved.

[0267] If the steering condition is met, proceed to step S103. In step S103, the robot's travel path is deflected by a predetermined angle; if the steering condition is not met, return to step S101 to allow the robot to continue traveling along the predetermined path.

[0268] By deflecting the robot's travel path by a predetermined angle (described in detail below), such that at least a portion of the updated predetermined path forms an angle equal to the original predetermined path, the robot can reduce repeated cleaning of already cleaned areas, thus improving cleaning efficiency. However, it should be noted that if the predetermined angle is set too large, it will increase the likelihood of missed areas or increase the area of ​​missed cleaning; conversely, if the predetermined angle is set too small, it will increase the likelihood of repeated cleaning or increase the area of ​​repeated cleaning.

[0269] The predetermined angle can be set within the range of 3-10 degrees. Optionally, the predetermined angle is within the range of 4-6 degrees. By setting such a predetermined angle, the distance between two adjacent paths will not be too large, resulting in too many missed areas, nor will too much repeated cleaning occur. Thus, after performing multiple turns and changes in the planned path, a high coverage rate and a low repetition rate of the water tank cleaning area can be achieved.

[0270] In one embodiment, the predetermined angle can be 5 degrees or about 5 degrees. Setting the predetermined angle of deflection to 5 degrees or about 5 degrees can, on the one hand, ensure that there is a certain angle between the updated predetermined path and the original predetermined path, thereby avoiding repeated cleaning of already cleaned areas to a certain extent, and on the other hand, can reduce the number of missed areas or the possibility of missed cleaning, thus improving the coverage of the cleaning operation.

[0271] The description of the predetermined angle in degrees above is exemplary and is not intended to limit the degree of the predetermined angle. Those skilled in the art can selectively set the degree of the predetermined angle according to actual needs, as long as the technical principle of this application can be achieved.

[0272] It should be noted that the steps included in the control method 100' are repeatable, especially steps S102, S103, and S104. Therefore, the robot can perform multiple turns, each using the same deflection angle (i.e., the predetermined angle). This avoids repeated cleaning of already cleaned areas and also reduces the number of missed areas or the possibility of missed cleaning to some extent.

[0273] When the updated predetermined path and the original predetermined path lie on the same plane, the predetermined angle is the angle between them within that plane. However, when the updated predetermined path and the original predetermined path are not entirely on the same plane, the predetermined angle can be expressed as the angle between the projections of the updated predetermined path and the original predetermined path onto the same plane.

[0274] Next, proceed to step S104. In step S104, the path after deflecting the predetermined angle is taken as the updated predetermined path, and the automatic water tank cleaning device is controlled to travel along the updated predetermined path.

[0275] Understandably, when the updated path is in the same or largely the same direction as the original path, the robot needs to turn by a predetermined angle. When the updated path is in the opposite or largely opposite direction to the original path, the robot may need to turn by 180 degrees minus the predetermined angle. This will be explained in detail below.

[0276] In one embodiment, the direction of the updated predetermined path is the direction pointed to by the robot's head. If the direction pointed to by the robot's head is the same as the original predetermined path (i.e., the predetermined path before the deflection), then in order to deflect the travel path by the predetermined angle (e.g., 5 degrees), the robot's head can be deflected by the predetermined angle. In other words, after deflecting by the predetermined angle, the direction pointed to by the robot's head is still its forward direction. If the direction pointed to by the robot's tail is the same as the original predetermined path (i.e., the predetermined path before the deflection), then in order to deflect the travel path by the predetermined angle (e.g., 5 degrees), the robot's head can be deflected by the predetermined angle or by a larger angle (e.g., 185 degrees or 175 degrees), so that after the deflection, the direction pointed to by the robot's head is its forward direction.

[0277] In another embodiment, the direction of the updated predetermined path is the direction pointed to by the robot's tail. If the direction pointed to by the robot's head is the same as the original predetermined path (i.e., the predetermined path before the deflection), then in order to deflect the travel path by the predetermined angle (e.g., 5 degrees), the robot's tail can be deflected by the predetermined angle; in other words, after deflecting by the predetermined angle, the direction pointed to by the robot's tail is its forward direction. If the direction pointed to by the robot's tail is the same as the original predetermined path (i.e., the predetermined path before the deflection), then in order to deflect the travel path by the predetermined angle (e.g., 5 degrees), the robot's tail can be deflected by the predetermined angle or by a larger angle (e.g., 185 degrees or 175 degrees), so that after the deflection, the direction pointed to by the robot's tail is still its forward direction.

[0278] The above description of how to adjust the direction of the robot's head or tail is merely exemplary and is not intended to limit the various possibilities of adjusting the direction of the robot's head or tail in this application. Those skilled in the art can understand and set the direction adjustment of the robot's head or tail based on the technical principles of this application, as long as the technical principles of this application can be realized.

[0279] In one embodiment, the predetermined angle can vary during the robot's multiple turns and changes in the planned path. For example, the predetermined angle can vary with each turn, as long as it remains within the range described above. Specifically, the predetermined angle can vary with each turn and is typically set between 4-6 degrees, or approximately 5 degrees.

[0280] In one embodiment, if the turning condition is met, the direction of deflection by the predetermined angle can be a first direction along the pool, such as a leftward or rightward direction facing the width of the pool, or a leftward or rightward direction facing the length of the pool. Alternatively, the first direction can be a clockwise or counterclockwise direction.

[0281] In one embodiment, the control method 100' includes performing a predetermined number of turns in the first direction. In another embodiment, the control method 100' includes performing the turns in the first direction until the robot reaches the boundary of the pool. In yet another embodiment, the control method 100' includes performing the turns in the first direction until the termination condition of the pool cleaning task is met.

[0282] In one embodiment, the direction of the predetermined deflection angle can be changed. For example, after performing a predetermined number of turns in a first direction, a predetermined number of turns and a change in the planned path can be performed in a second direction (e.g., a second direction opposite to the first direction). Assuming the first direction is to the left of the width of the pool facing the robot, the second direction could be to the right of the width of the pool facing the robot. For example, if the first direction is clockwise, the second direction could be counterclockwise. By changing the direction of deflection, since multiple turns are performed in different directions, cleaning omissions caused by a fixed deflection angle can be compensated for, thereby further improving the coverage of the pool cleaning area.

[0283] Figure 9 is a flowchart of a control method 200' for an automatic water tank cleaning device according to an embodiment of this application. For example, the method shown in Figure 9 can be a step after step S104 in Figure 8, and the description of the preceding steps (i.e., steps S101 to S104) is omitted here. The control method 200' also includes steps S205 to S207. Steps S205 to S207 will be described in detail below.

[0284] In step S205, the robot is controlled to travel a predetermined distance along the updated predetermined path.

[0285] After the robot deflects, it will take the path after deflecting the original predetermined path by the predetermined angle as the updated predetermined path, and travel a predetermined distance along the updated predetermined path.

[0286] The predetermined distance can be determined based on parameters such as the width, length, or radius of the pool. Alternatively, it can be determined based on the distance the robot travels along a pre-defined path. It can also be a distance preset by the user. Furthermore, it can be a distance set by the robot based on its movement distances during historical cleaning operations.

[0287] In one embodiment, the predetermined distance is equal to the distance the robot travels from its current turning position along the updated predetermined path to its next turning position; in other words, the predetermined distance is equal to the distance the robot travels between two adjacent turns. For example, the predetermined distance could be equal to the distance the robot travels from its current turning position along the updated predetermined path to the bottom edge of the pool wall.

[0288] For example, after turning, the robot travels along the updated predetermined path and continues to determine whether the turning conditions are met. If the turning conditions are met, the robot deflects its travel path again by the predetermined angle. Specifically, if the robot travels along the updated predetermined path to the lower edge of the pool wall (e.g., to the curved area of ​​the "bowl-shaped" pool bottom where the robot's pitch angle is greater than the predetermined pitch angle, or to the junction of the pool bottom and the pool wall), the robot deflects its travel path again by the predetermined angle. Figure 10 shows the cleaning path formed after the robot turns, travels along the updated predetermined path to the lower edge of the pool wall, and then turns again.

[0289] In one embodiment, the predetermined distance may be less than the distance the robot travels along its original predetermined path (i.e., the path before the turn); in other words, the predetermined distance may be less than the distance between two adjacent turns. For example, the predetermined distance may be equal to half the distance between the robot's two most recent adjacent turns. Preferably, the predetermined distance may be 5 meters or about 5 meters. Figure 11 illustrates the cleaning path formed after the robot turns, travels along the updated predetermined path to half the distance between the two most recent adjacent turns, and then turns again.

[0290] Therefore, the robot traveling the predetermined distance along the updated predetermined path can be used as the turning condition for the robot in step S102.

[0291] Next, proceed to step S206. In step S206, the robot's travel path is deflected again by the predetermined angle.

[0292] The robot can deflect in the same or similar manner as described in the embodiments above, which will not be repeated here.

[0293] Next, proceed to step S207. In step S207, the path after deflecting the predetermined angle again is taken as the updated predetermined path, and the automatic water tank cleaning device is controlled to travel along the updated predetermined path.

[0294] The technical concept of updating the predetermined path and traveling along the updated path has been explained above, and will not be repeated here.

[0295] The automatic pool cleaning device according to an embodiment of this application will now be described with reference to FIG12. FIG12 is a schematic diagram showing an automatic pool cleaning device 500 according to an embodiment of this application. As shown in FIG12, the automatic pool cleaning device 500 includes a control unit. The control unit is configured to: control the automatic pool cleaning device 500 to travel along a predetermined path and determine whether a turning condition is met. If the turning condition is met, the control unit controls the travel path of the automatic pool cleaning device 500 to deflect by a predetermined angle, and uses the path after deflecting by the predetermined angle as the updated predetermined path, and controls the automatic pool cleaning device to travel along the updated predetermined path.

[0296] The automatic water tank cleaning device 500 shown in Figure 12 can execute the control methods of the various embodiments described above with reference to Figures 8 to 11. Its implementation principle and technical effects will not be repeated here.

[0297] Embodiments of this application also provide a computer storage medium for implementing any of the control methods of the above embodiments, wherein the storage medium stores a computer program that is executed by a processor using the control methods of the various embodiments described above with reference to Figures 8 to 11.

[0298] In the embodiments of this application, the processor is a circuit with signal processing capabilities. In one implementation, the processor can be a circuit with instruction reading and execution capabilities, such as a central processing unit (CPU), a microprocessor, a graphics processing unit (GPU) (which can be understood as a microprocessor), or a digital signal processor (DSP). In another implementation, the processor can implement certain functions through the logical relationship of the hardware circuit. The logical relationship of the hardware circuit is fixed or reconfigurable. For example, the processor is a hardware circuit implemented by an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) or a programmable logic device (PLD), such as an FPGA.

[0299] The device embodiments described above are merely illustrative. The units described as separate components may or may not be physically separate. The components shown as units may or may not be physical units; that is, they may be located in one place or distributed across multiple network units. Some or all of the modules can be selected to achieve the purpose of this embodiment according to actual needs. Those skilled in the art can understand and implement this without any creative effort.

[0300] Through the above description of the embodiments, those skilled in the art can clearly understand that each embodiment can be implemented by means of software plus necessary general-purpose hardware platforms, and of course, it can also be implemented by hardware. Based on this understanding, the above technical solutions, in essence or the part that contributes to the prior art, can be embodied in the form of a software product. This computer software product can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium, such as ROM / RAM, magnetic disk, optical disk, etc., and includes several instructions to cause a computer device (which may be a personal computer, server, or network device, etc.) to execute the methods described in the various embodiments or some parts of the embodiments.

[0301] As shown in Figure 13, the pool cleaning robot 1, as an automatic cleaning device, can automatically clean dirt and garbage in a pool, including a swimming pool or spa pool. A charging base station 2 is installed on the pool wall. The pool cleaning robot 1 includes a buoyancy control mechanism, which comprises an airbag or a water spray mechanism. By compressing or inflating the airbag, it can sink or float. It can also sink or float by changing the direction of the water spray. When it floats to the surface, the robot can clean dirt and garbage on the surface; when it sinks to the bottom, it cleans the bottom of the pool. The charging base station 2 includes charging electrodes 3, which are used to charge the robot 1 after it docks with the base station 2. The contact surface between the robot 1 and the base station 2 can be parallel to the pool wall or the pool bottom.

[0302] The robot 1 is equipped with a detection device, such as radar, camera, ranging sensor, communication device or positioning device. The detection device can control the robot 1 to move towards the base station, so that the robot 1 moves in the pool to the vicinity of the base station 2 and approaches the limiting structure on the base station 2. As it moves further, the limiting structure will guide the robot 1 to dock with the base station.

[0303] When robot 1 is floating on the water surface, if its battery is low, it needs to dock with a base station for charging. Therefore, robot 1 approaches base station 2 from the water surface using the aforementioned detection device until at least a portion of it touches the base station or the contact surface of the base station is at a preset distance (the preset distance can be the sensor's sensing distance or a suitable distance for docking). At this time, the detection device can obtain the current positional relationship between robot 1 and base station 2. If the charging electrodes on the robot are located at the bottom, based on the detected positional relationship, the robot can sink in a floating or suspended state, bringing it close to the limiting structure. The limiting structure guides the electrodes at the bottom of the robot to dock with the electrodes of the base station. During the sinking process, the detection device is used to control the robot's direction of movement or posture. The driving device of robot 1 can include a wheel, paddles, or a water jet structure. The driving device is used to change the direction of movement and provide power for movement. The forms of movement are varied, including translation or flipping. Flipping includes head flipping or tail flipping. The specific form of movement selected depends on the positional relationship between the robot at its current position and the aforementioned contact surface.

[0304] For example, when robot 1 is floating on the water surface, it moves to a preset distance from the pool wall. The detection device monitors the positional relationship between robot 1 and base station 2 in real time. If the detection device determines that the robot's electrodes can be docked with the base station's electrodes simply by flipping the robot's tail, it commands the buoyancy adjustment device to compress the airbag, reduce the buoyancy of the tail, and cause the tail to flip and fall until the docking is achieved.

[0305] If the charging electrodes on robot 1 are located on its head, robot 1 does not need to flip over to face base station 2. It can achieve docking simply by moving horizontally or vertically while floating.

[0306] Additionally, if the robot needs to recharge due to low battery after operating at the bottom of the pool for a period of time, it can be moved from the bottom of the pool to below the base station using the aforementioned detection device. At this point, the base station is a certain distance from the robot, and the robot can be located either at the bottom of the pool or on the pool wall. Then, the robot is controlled to float upwards. The detection device is used to regulate the robot's direction of movement and attitude during the floating process, allowing the robot to gradually approach the limiting structure of the base station. The limiting structure guides the robot to dock with the base station.

[0307] In addition, the limiting mechanism includes a magnetic suction structure or a guide rail. If the detection device's detection results are accurate and its ability to control the robot's movement direction or rotation angle is strong, the limiting mechanism can be eliminated, and the robot 1 can be directly controlled to dock with the base station 2 through the detection device.

[0308] When robot 1 needs to leave base station 2, the buoyancy control mechanism can control robot 1 to rise or sink, thereby detaching the robot from the base station. If the robot needs to perform surface operations, it is controlled to rise; if underwater operations are required, it is controlled to sink. Since the robot needs a locking or fixing structure to secure it to the base station after docking, the buoyancy force on the robot during rising or sinking needs to be large enough to allow the robot to break free from the force exerted by the locking or fixing structure.

[0309] Furthermore, as shown in Figure 13, the contact surface between robot 1 and base station 2 is parallel to the pool wall. This application does not limit this; the contact surface can also be perpendicular to the pool wall, for example, with the charging electrodes facing the top or bottom of the pool. In this case, it is more convenient for the robot to dock with the base station from the water surface or the bottom of the pool. After the robot travels to the contact surface with the base station on the water surface or the bottom of the pool, it can directly sink or float to achieve docking, without the need for a detection device to control the floating or sinking action, or with minimal control.

[0310] This application also provides a control method for an automatic pool cleaning device. The automatic pool cleaning device is capable of moving and cleaning within a pool-shaped structure, such as a pool, swimming pool, water storage tank, spa pool, water tank, or water reservoir. The automatic pool cleaning device can be a device such as an automatic cleaning unit or a pool cleaning robot, capable of cleaning the pool-shaped structure. This application does not limit the specific presentation of the automatic pool cleaning device or the pool-shaped structure, as long as the principles of this application are achieved. In the following description, unless otherwise specified, a robot will be used as an example of the automatic pool cleaning device, and a pool and swimming pool will be used as examples of pool-shaped structures.

[0311] This application provides a control method for an automatic water tank cleaning device for cleaning water tanks. The automatic water tank cleaning device includes a water pump and an identification unit. The control method includes: controlling the automatic water tank cleaning device to move underwater or on the surface of the water tank; during the movement, the water pump operates at a first predetermined power; the identification unit determines whether there is a first predetermined cleaning object in front of the automatic water tank cleaning device; if the first predetermined cleaning object is detected, the power of the water pump is increased from the first predetermined power to a second predetermined power and maintained at the second predetermined power until a predetermined condition is met, then the power of the water pump is reduced from the second predetermined power back to the first predetermined power. Using this method, when cleaning the water tank, if no cleaning object is found, the water pump operates at a lower first predetermined power; when a cleaning object is found, the water pump operates at a higher second predetermined power. Therefore, the automatic water tank cleaning device can adjust the power of the water pump according to whether a cleaning object is found, thereby achieving the purpose of reducing power consumption.

[0312] The identification unit may include an image acquisition unit such as a camera, an ultrasonic sensor, or a phased array ultrasonic sensor. The identification unit is capable of acquiring images and identifying objects within those images. It is understood that the above description of the identification unit is merely exemplary and not intended to limit the type of identification unit. Those skilled in the art can select the identification unit according to actual needs, as long as it achieves the technical principles of this application.

[0313] A water pump draws water into the filter of the automatic pool cleaning device. To avoid damaging the automatic pool cleaning device, the objects to be cleaned, as referred to in this application, include objects that can be sucked into the bottom suction port of the automatic pool cleaning device (such as dirt, leaves, twigs, insects, pebbles, plastic debris, etc.), thereby achieving the purpose of cleaning the pool. In the following description, unless otherwise specified, leaves will be used as an example of various impurities in the pool.

[0314] The control method of the automatic water tank cleaning equipment of this application will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0315] First, the control method 10 of the automatic water tank cleaning device of this application will be described in detail with reference to FIG14. FIG14 is a schematic diagram of the control method 10 of the automatic water tank cleaning device according to the first embodiment of this application. The control method 10 includes steps S11 to S13. Steps S11 to S13 will be described in detail below.

[0316] In step S11, the automatic cleaning device for the water tank is controlled to move underwater or on the surface of the water tank. During the movement, the water pump operates at a first predetermined power.

[0317] During the cleaning process of the pool, the robot moves underwater or on the surface. On one hand, the robot can clean the bottom and walls of the pool; on the other hand, it can clean the surface. During movement, the water pump operates at a predetermined power level.

[0318] The water pump can have two operating modes: a low-power mode and a high-power mode. In low-power mode, the water pump's power is lower, and correspondingly, the suction force of the water pump is reduced, thus weakening the robot's water suction and cleaning ability. In high-power mode, the water pump's power is higher, and correspondingly, the suction force of the water pump is increased, thus enhancing the robot's water suction and cleaning ability. During cleaning operations, the robot can switch the water pump's operating mode based on the pollution status of the cleaning path ahead (e.g., whether there are leaves on the cleaning path ahead, and the quantity of leaves). That is, the water pump switches between low-power mode and high-power mode. If there are no leaves on the cleaning path ahead, the water pump operates in low-power mode; if there are leaves on the cleaning path ahead, or a large number of leaves, the water pump operates in high-power mode.

[0319] In the low-power mode, the water pump's power is a first predetermined power. In other words, when the robot is performing cleaning operations, if the water pump is in low-power mode, its power is the first predetermined power. It is understood that the first predetermined power can be a fixed power value or a power range.

[0320] In the high-power mode, the water pump's power is a second predetermined power. In other words, when the robot is performing cleaning operations, if the water pump is in high-power mode, its power is the second predetermined power. It is understood that the second predetermined power can be a fixed power value or a power range. Accordingly, the second predetermined power is greater than the first predetermined power.

[0321] It should be noted that, in addition to filtering water for cleaning, the water pump can also draw water into the robot's bottom or top suction port and discharge it from the top or upper drain port, thus "adhering" the robot to the surface to be cleaned (e.g., the bottom or wall of a pool), preventing the robot's head or tail from "lifting up" during movement, allowing the robot to move freely on the pool surface. Therefore, the first predetermined power should be sufficient to ensure the robot can move normally on the pool bottom or wall surface. Those skilled in the art can set the value / range of the first predetermined power according to the technical principles of this application, as long as it achieves the technical principles of this application.

[0322] Next, proceed to step S12. In step S12, the identification unit determines whether there is a first predetermined cleaning object in front of the automatic water tank cleaning device.

[0323] In one embodiment, the recognition unit is disposed at the front of the robot. The recognition unit may include one or more of a depth camera, an infrared sensor, and a lidar sensor. During cleaning operations, the robot can acquire images of the area in front of it through the recognition unit. The recognition unit can acquire images at predetermined time intervals or in real time. Furthermore, the recognition unit may be a rotatable camera, whose sensing area changes as the camera rotates.

[0324] The recognition unit can also have artificial intelligence (AI) functions. In other words, the recognition unit can perform image recognition on the acquired images using AI algorithms and / or big data algorithms to identify objects in the images, thereby determining whether the images include objects to be cleaned (e.g., a first predetermined cleaning object), and correspondingly, determining whether there is an object to be cleaned (e.g., a first predetermined cleaning object) in front of the robot. In one embodiment, the recognition unit includes an AI subunit to achieve the AI ​​functions described above. In another embodiment, the recognition unit is connected to a cloud server, sends the acquired image data to the cloud server, and runs AI algorithms and / or big data algorithms on the cloud server to achieve recognition of the acquired images, thereby determining whether there is a first predetermined cleaning object in front of the robot.

[0325] The recognition unit has a predetermined recognition distance. For example, the robot uses a camera located at the front of the robot to capture images of the cleaning path ahead within the predetermined recognition distance. The predetermined recognition distance can be determined based on the parameters of the camera (e.g., the camera's focal length). In one embodiment, the predetermined recognition distance of the recognition unit can be greater than 50cm, for example, between 50cm and 200cm. Taking a predetermined recognition distance of 100cm as an example, the recognition unit can capture images of objects within a 100cm range ahead and determine whether there is a first predetermined cleaning object ahead of the robot based on the captured images, facilitating timely adjustment of the water pump power.

[0326] The term "forward" refers to the direction in which the robot is currently moving along its cleaning path. It should be noted that when the robot is moving along its current cleaning path, it can move in the direction its head is pointing (i.e., the robot is "moving forward") or in the direction its tail is pointing (i.e., the robot is "moving backward").

[0327] The first predetermined cleaning object can be impurities and dirt such as grime, leaves, twigs, and insects. The type of the first predetermined cleaning object can be preset by the user; for example, the user can preset the robot to clean leaves and twigs from a swimming pool. The type of the first predetermined cleaning object can also be identified, counted, and categorized by the robot based on previously cleaned objects from its historical cleaning operations. In the following description, unless otherwise specified, leaves will be used as an example of the first predetermined cleaning object.

[0328] Next, proceed to step S13. In step S13, if it is determined that the first predetermined cleaning object exists in front of the automatic cleaning device for the water tank, the power of the water pump is increased from the first predetermined power to the second predetermined power, and the second predetermined power is maintained until the predetermined condition is met, and then the power of the water pump is reduced from the second predetermined power to the first predetermined power.

[0329] In one embodiment, the predetermined condition may be that the identification unit determines that there is no first predetermined cleaning object and / or second predetermined cleaning object in front of the automatic pool cleaning device, or that there are no other predetermined cleaning objects. It is understood that when the identification unit determines that there is a first predetermined cleaning object in front of the automatic pool cleaning device, the first predetermined power is increased to a second predetermined power, thereby increasing the power of the water pump. This facilitates the water pump drawing the first predetermined cleaning object into the robot's bottom suction port and filtering it through the robot's filter device, thus achieving the purpose of cleaning the first predetermined cleaning object. If a second predetermined cleaning object appears on the robot's cleaning path after the first predetermined cleaning object has been cleaned, or during the cleaning operation of the first predetermined cleaning object, the water pump can maintain the second predetermined power to clean both the second predetermined cleaning object and the first predetermined cleaning object (if the cleaning operation of the first predetermined cleaning object is still in progress), until there are no other cleaning objects within the identifiable range of the identification unit. At this point, the power of the water pump is reduced from the second predetermined power to the first predetermined power. The second predetermined cleaning object and other predetermined cleaning objects can be impurities and dirt such as grime, leaves, twigs, and insects. The second predetermined cleaning object and other predetermined cleaning objects can be the same as or different from the first predetermined cleaning object.

[0330] In another embodiment, the predetermined condition may be that the second predetermined power is maintained for a predetermined duration. For example, when the identification unit determines that there is a first predetermined cleaning object in front of the automatic pool cleaning device, the first predetermined power is increased to the second predetermined power to clean the first predetermined cleaning object. If the first predetermined cleaning object is no longer present within the identifiable range of the identification unit, the power of the water pump will not be immediately reduced from the second predetermined power to the first predetermined power. This is because, although the first predetermined cleaning object is no longer present within the identifiable range of the identification unit, it may still be located somewhere between the bottom of the robot and the surface of the pool to be cleaned, and at this time, it has not yet been sucked into the bottom suction port of the robot. Therefore, the water pump needs to maintain a higher power to facilitate the suction of the first predetermined cleaning object into the bottom suction port of the robot. Correspondingly, if the identification unit identifies a second predetermined cleaning object or other predetermined cleaning object within the predetermined duration, the water pump can continue to maintain the second predetermined power.

[0331] If, after the predetermined time has elapsed, the identification unit fails to identify the second predetermined cleaning object or any other predetermined cleaning object within the identifiable range, it indicates that there are currently no objects requiring cleaning on the robot's cleaning path. In this case, the power of the water pump can be reduced from the second predetermined power to the first predetermined power. In one embodiment, the predetermined time is greater than 5 seconds.

[0332] Furthermore, if the robot detects that the duration of maintaining the second predetermined power exceeds a maximum duration threshold, it can forcibly reduce the power of the water pump from the second predetermined power to the first predetermined power. If the duration of maintaining the second predetermined power exceeds the maximum duration threshold, it indicates that the robot is in a high power consumption state, and in order to save power, the power of the water pump can be forcibly reduced.

[0333] In one embodiment, the predetermined condition may be that the automatic pool cleaning device moves a predetermined distance after the water pump power is increased to a second predetermined power. It is understood that if the automatic pool cleaning device moves a predetermined distance at the second predetermined power, it indicates that the predetermined cleaning object within that predetermined distance has been cleaned, and at this point, the second predetermined power can be reduced to a first predetermined power. The robot can measure the distance it moves using devices such as encoders or wheel speedometers. In one embodiment, the predetermined distance is greater than 4 meters.

[0334] Understandably, the recognition unit can further process the acquired images to identify the type of object in front, such as whether the object is an obstacle (e.g., a light or step at the bottom of a pool) or trash or debris. If the recognition unit identifies the object as trash or debris that needs to be cleaned, it will be classified as a first predetermined cleaning object, a second predetermined cleaning object, or another predetermined cleaning object. If the recognition unit identifies the object as an obstacle, there is no need to adjust the predetermined power of the water pump.

[0335] The robot uses its recognition unit to acquire images of the area in front of it, and then identifies and detects these images. If it determines that there is something to be cleaned in front of it, it increases the power of the water pump from a first predetermined power to a second predetermined power, so that the water pump can work at the appropriate power level and thus improve its suction capacity. If there is no object to be cleaned in front of the robot, it reduces the power of the water pump from the second predetermined power to the first predetermined power, thereby saving energy.

[0336] It should be noted that in the low-power mode mentioned above, in addition to the low operating power of the water pump, other power devices of the robot (such as the identification unit, control unit, various sensors, signal lights, motors, etc.) can also operate at low power. Correspondingly, in the high-power mode mentioned above, in addition to the higher operating power of the water pump, other power devices of the robot can also operate at higher power. This method can effectively reduce the robot's power consumption and improve its endurance.

[0337] To improve the efficiency of pool cleaning, the automatic pool cleaning equipment is controlled to move underwater or on the surface of the pool, including controlling the automatic pool cleaning equipment to move along a straight path underwater or on the surface of the pool. For example, the automatic pool cleaning equipment moves in a "bow", "Z", or "N" pattern. This avoids missed or repeated cleaning when moving in a curved manner.

[0338] In one embodiment, if the first predetermined cleaning object is far from the straight path, the control method may further include controlling the automatic pool cleaning device to turn towards the first predetermined cleaning object. Specifically, if the first predetermined cleaning object is located at the edge of the identifiable area of ​​the identification unit (as shown in Figure 15), and the first predetermined cleaning object is far from the path of the automatic pool cleaning device, if the first predetermined cleaning object is a small object (such as leaves, insects, etc.), the automatic pool cleaning device can still suck it up and clean it while moving along the predetermined path at the second predetermined power. However, if the first predetermined cleaning object is large and the automatic pool cleaning device moving along the predetermined path cannot suck it up using the second predetermined power, the automatic pool cleaning device can be controlled to turn towards the first predetermined cleaning object, so that the cleaning object is on the front cleaning path of the robot or the distance between the cleaning object and the front cleaning path of the robot is reduced, so that the suction of the water pump can be better applied to the cleaning object, thereby completing the cleaning of the first predetermined cleaning object. Furthermore, after cleaning is completed, the automatic pool cleaning equipment can rotate back to its previous path to continue cleaning. It should be noted that if the distance between the intended cleaning object and the straight-line path of the automatic pool cleaning equipment is greater than a preset distance value, it can be determined that the intended cleaning object is far from the straight-line path.

[0339] As shown in Figure 15, at time point A, there are no objects to be cleaned in the identifiable area of ​​the cleaning path in front of the robot, so the water pump is kept at a low power (e.g., a first predetermined power). At time point B, objects to be cleaned appear in the identifiable area of ​​the cleaning path in front of the robot (e.g., a first predetermined object to be cleaned), so the power of the water pump is increased (e.g., increased to a second predetermined power) to suck the objects to be cleaned into the filter device inside the robot. At time point C, there are no objects to be cleaned in the identifiable area of ​​the cleaning path in front of the robot, so the power of the water pump is reduced (e.g., reduced to a first predetermined power) to save power.

[0340] The control method 10 of this application reduces power consumption and increases the battery life of the automatic water tank cleaning device by adjusting the power of the automatic water tank cleaning device in real time.

[0341] The computer storage medium of this application will now be described with reference to FIG16. FIG16 is a schematic diagram of a computer storage medium according to an embodiment of this application. The computer storage medium 30 stores a computer program 31 executable by a computer device. When the computer program 31 is run on the computer device, it causes the computer device to execute the control method of the automatic water tank cleaning device described in the above embodiments.

[0342] The computer program 31 described above includes program instructions that, when executed by a computer device, cause the computer device to perform the steps of the control method for the automatic water tank cleaning device described above.

[0343] Those skilled in the art will understand that embodiments of this application can be provided as methods or computer program products. Therefore, this application can take the form of a completely hardware embodiment, a completely software embodiment, or an embodiment combining software and hardware aspects. Furthermore, this application can take the form of a computer program product embodied on one or more computer-usable storage media (including but not limited to disk storage, CD-ROM, optical storage, etc.) containing computer-usable program code.

[0344] The automatic pool cleaning device of this application will now be described with reference to FIG17. FIG17 is a schematic diagram of an automatic pool cleaning device according to an embodiment of this application. The automatic pool cleaning device 40 includes a filtration unit 41, a water pump 42, an identification unit 43, and a control unit 44. The water pump 42 is used to suck garbage into the filtration unit 41. The control unit 44 is configured to: control the automatic pool cleaning device to move at the bottom or surface of the pool, and control the water pump to operate at a first predetermined power; control the identification unit to determine whether there is a predetermined object in front of the automatic pool cleaning device, wherein if the predetermined object is determined to exist in front of the automatic pool cleaning device, the power of the water pump is increased from the first predetermined power to a second predetermined power, and the second predetermined power is maintained until a predetermined condition is met, and then the power of the water pump is reduced from the second predetermined power to the first predetermined power.

[0345] The control unit 44 in this embodiment is capable of executing the control methods described in the various embodiments above. For the control and functions implemented by the control unit 44, please refer to the control methods of the various embodiments described above in this application; further details will not be repeated here.

[0346] When cleaning a water tank, the automatic water tank cleaning device 40 of this application operates at a lower power (e.g., the water pump operates at a lower power) if no cleaning target is found, and operates at a higher power (e.g., the water pump operates at a higher power) when a cleaning target is found. Thus, the automatic water tank cleaning device can adjust its power according to whether a cleaning target is found, thereby achieving the purpose of reducing power consumption.

[0347] This application is described with reference to flowchart illustrations and / or block diagrams of methods, apparatus (systems), and computer program products according to embodiments of this application. It will be understood that each block of the flowchart illustrations and / or block diagrams, and combinations of blocks in the flowchart illustrations and / or block diagrams, can be implemented by computer program instructions. These computer program instructions can be provided to a processor of a general-purpose computer, special-purpose computer, embedded processor, or other programmable data processing apparatus to produce a machine, such that the instructions, which execute via the processor of the computer apparatus or other programmable data processing apparatus, create means for implementing the functions specified in one or more blocks of the flowchart illustrations and / or one or more blocks of the block diagrams.

[0348] These computer program instructions may also be stored in a computer-readable storage medium that can direct a computer device or other programmable data processing device to function in a particular manner, such that the instructions stored in the computer-readable storage medium produce an article of manufacture including instruction means that implement the functions specified in one or more flowcharts and / or one or more block diagrams.

[0349] These computer program instructions may also be loaded onto a computer device or other programmable data processing apparatus to cause a series of operational steps to be performed on the computer device or other programmable apparatus to produce a process implemented by the computer device, such that the instructions, which execute on the computer device or other programmable apparatus, provide steps for implementing the functions specified in one or more flowcharts and / or one or more block diagrams.

[0350] This application provides a control method for an automatic pool cleaning device. The automatic pool cleaning device can move and clean within a pool-shaped structure, such as a swimming pool, water storage tank, spa pool, water tank, or water reservoir. This application does not limit the specific form of the automatic pool cleaning device or the pool-shaped structure, as long as it achieves the principles of this application.

[0351] Figure 18 is a structural schematic diagram of an automatic water tank cleaning device according to at least one embodiment of the present application; Figure 19 is a flowchart of a control method for an automatic water tank cleaning device according to at least one embodiment of the present application. The control method for an automatic water tank cleaning device provided in one embodiment of the present application will be described below with reference to Figures 18 and 19.

[0352] Figure 18 illustrates the structure of an automatic pool cleaning device. Referring to Figure 18, the automatic pool cleaning device 100 may include a sensor unit 101 and a phased array ultrasonic unit 102. The sensor unit 101 and the phased array ultrasonic unit 102 can be integrated into the same module, thus reducing the space occupied by the two units and allowing for optimized wiring connections, improving space utilization in the automatic pool cleaning device. Simultaneously, it ensures that the fields of view of the sensor unit and the phased array ultrasonic unit overlap, enabling them to sense the same target object. The sensor unit 101 acquires first information about the object. The phased array ultrasonic unit 102 acquires second information about the object.

[0353] In one embodiment, sensor unit 101 can be various types of sensors. For example, sensor unit 101 can be a single-point ultrasonic sensor. The single-point ultrasonic sensor is mainly used for distance measurement and obstacle detection. The single-point ultrasonic sensor can convert ultrasonic signals into other energy signals (e.g., electrical signals). Ultrasonic waves are mechanical waves with vibration frequencies higher than 20kHz. They have the characteristics of high frequency, short wavelength, small diffraction, and especially good directionality, being able to propagate in a directional manner as rays. The single-point ultrasonic sensor can be composed of one or more fixed ultrasonic array elements, and the distance is calculated by measuring the time it takes for the ultrasonic wave to travel from emission to reception, thereby detecting the presence and location of obstacles. The single-point ultrasonic sensor may also include components such as a drive circuit and a signal processor; detailed descriptions of these components are omitted here.

[0354] In addition, sensor unit 101 may also include one or more of a camera, a single-photon imaging sensor (DTOF), an infrared sensor, or a radar.

[0355] Cameras can be used for underwater ranging and image acquisition. For example, images can be captured underwater using a camera, and feature points can be extracted from the captured images, such as using edge detection, corner detection, and other methods. The extracted feature points can then be used for subsequent distance measurement and image recognition.

[0356] Single-photon imaging sensors (DTOF) can determine the distance to an object by measuring the time it takes for a light signal to travel from emission to return. The core principle of this technology is to use a laser or other light source to emit a single photon and time its return, thereby calculating the distance to the target object.

[0357] Infrared sensors are sensors that use infrared light for data processing. They have advantages such as high sensitivity and can control the operation of drive devices.

[0358] Radar uses radio waves to detect targets and determine their spatial location. Therefore, radar is also known as "radio location." Radar is an electronic device that uses electromagnetic waves to detect targets. It emits electromagnetic waves to illuminate a target and receives its echo, thereby obtaining information such as the target's distance from the electromagnetic wave emission point, the rate of change of distance (radial velocity), azimuth, and altitude.

[0359] It should be understood that the above description of the components and functions of various sensors is merely exemplary and does not constitute a limitation on the various parameters and functions of the above components. Those skilled in the art can select and set the above various sensors and their components, parameters, and functions according to actual needs, as long as the principle of this application can be achieved.

[0360] In one embodiment, the phased array ultrasonic unit 102 may also be referred to as a phased array ultrasonic probe, which typically includes the following components:

[0361] (1) A phased array composed of multiple independent chip units. The chip units are made of piezoelectric material. Each chip unit is called an ultrasonic element (or simply element). Each element has an independent connector and excitation circuit, and can transmit and receive ultrasonic signals through the piezoelectric effect and the inverse piezoelectric effect. The elements are insulated from each other. Therefore, functionally, each element can be regarded as an ultrasonic probe. For example, a phased array probe with 32 chip units is equivalent to 32 conventional ultrasonic probes. In practice, the commonly used size of each element is 0.5×10 mm, and the spacing between elements is, for example, 0.4~1 mm.

[0362] (2) Driving circuit. The driving circuit is used to control the excitation signals of each array element to ensure that the array elements work according to the set time and phase.

[0363] (3) Signal processor. The signal processor is used to amplify, filter and digitize the reflected ultrasonic signals.

[0364] The phased array ultrasonic unit 102 can form a synthesized ultrasonic beam by controlling the transmission timing and phase of each element, achieving directional control of the ultrasonic beam. For example, it can selectively focus on a point or a specific detection area in space. The phased array ultrasonic unit 102 can also scan simultaneously from multiple angles and use efficient algorithms (such as time-domain reflectometry and frequency-domain analysis) to process the received ultrasonic signals, extract useful information, and generate images. Due to the presence of multiple elements, the phased array ultrasonic unit 102 can employ multi-channel acquisition technology to simultaneously receive multiple signals, improving imaging accuracy.

[0365] It should be understood that the above description of the various components in the phased array ultrasonic unit is merely exemplary and does not constitute a limitation on the various parameters and functions of the above components. Those skilled in the art can select and set the phased array ultrasonic probe and its components, parameters, and functions according to actual needs, as long as the principle of this application can be achieved.

[0366] Figure 19 is a flowchart of the control method for an automatic water tank cleaning device according to this application. Referring to Figure 19, the control method for the automatic water tank cleaning device includes steps S211-S213. In step S211, first information about an object is acquired through the sensor unit. In step S212, second information about the object is acquired through the phased array ultrasonic unit. In step S213, the automatic water tank cleaning device is controlled to perform path planning based on the first information and the second information.

[0367] The following sections will describe each step in steps S211-S213.

[0368] In step S211, the first information of the object is acquired through the sensor unit.

[0369] In one example, the first information may include image information or point cloud data information.

[0370] In one example, the sensor unit can be one or more of an ultrasonic sensor, a camera, a single-photon imaging sensor (DTOF), an infrared sensor, or a lidar. Therefore, an object can be imaged using one or more of these sensor units to obtain image information of the object.

[0371] In another example, point cloud data of an object can be obtained using LiDAR.

[0372] Point cloud data of a target object acquired by LiDAR refers to a dataset of spatial points of the object obtained by LiDAR scanning. Each point cloud contains three-dimensional coordinate information, namely X, Y, and Z elements. This coordinate information allows for the acquisition of the three-dimensional structural information of the target object. Each point cloud also contains reflection intensity information, which is related to the surface material and roughness of the target object, the laser incident angle, the laser wavelength, and the energy density of the LiDAR. Furthermore, the point cloud data includes echo count information, which is the total number of echoes from a given pulse, providing information about the reflection characteristics of the target object.

[0373] In one example, a lidar system can acquire point cloud data of a target object by emitting a laser signal towards it and collecting the reflected laser signal. The distance to the target object is measured using the speed of light and the time it takes for the laser to travel from emission to return. This information, combined with data from an inertial measurement unit (IMU), odometry, and a Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS), is then used to calculate the target object's three-dimensional coordinates and distance.

[0374] After acquiring the point cloud data of an object, this data can be processed. In one example, point cloud data processing may include preprocessing and data parsing. Directly acquired point cloud data is often filled with noise and isolated points. Preprocessing involves steps such as filtering, registration, and segmentation to obtain a smoother surface. During data parsing, the raw point cloud data is extracted from the data packet and converted into a data format suitable for further processing, such as PCD format, which includes Cartesian coordinates (x, y, z) and intensity values. This yields partially processed point cloud data of the target object.

[0375] The above describes an example of acquiring first information about the detected object, such as image information or point cloud data information, through a sensor unit. Through the above example, the characteristics and functions of the sensor unit can be effectively utilized to acquire image information or point cloud data information of the detected object (such as obstacles, garbage to be cleaned, etc.). After acquiring this information, it is convenient to use the first information of the detected object to control the automatic cleaning equipment of the pool for path planning.

[0376] In step S212, the second information of the object is obtained through the phased array ultrasonic unit.

[0377] In one example, the second information may include the size information of the object.

[0378] In other words, the size information of an object can be obtained through the phased array ultrasonic unit. This size information can be obtained from the distance information of the object detected by the phased array ultrasonic unit. For example, first, the distance information of the object is obtained through the phased array ultrasonic unit, and the detection angle of the phased array ultrasonic unit towards the object is determined. Then, the size information of the object is determined based on the distance information and the detection angle.

[0379] For example, by using an array of multiple transmitters and receivers in a phased array ultrasonic unit, the phase and amplitude of each transmitter can be controlled to achieve focused and directional transmission of ultrasonic waves. By controlling the transmission time of each transmitting transducer in the phased array ultrasonic unit, the ultrasonic waves can be focused at a certain point in space. Then, by analyzing and calculating the time of the reflected echo, the spatial distance can be calculated, thereby obtaining the distance information between the phased array ultrasonic unit and the target object.

[0380] Furthermore, the phased array ultrasonic unit can use multiple detection angles when detecting an object. By controlling the phase settings of different crystals, different crystals can emit waves in different directions. When the phased array ultrasonic unit detects the target object at different angles, the amplitude distribution of particles along the axial direction of the sound field will change, and the amplitude will change with the detection angle. Different detection angles can be recorded each time the target object is detected.

[0381] After obtaining the distance and detection angle information of the phased array ultrasonic unit to the target object, the distance between each endpoint of the target object can be determined using mathematical methods such as trigonometric ranging and trigonometric functions, thereby determining the size information of the target object.

[0382] Furthermore, in another example, the size of a target object can be detected using the ultrasonic propagation technology of a phased array ultrasonic cell. For instance, ultrasonic waves in a phased array ultrasonic cell can propagate through materials. As the ultrasonic waves pass through the material, they interact with interfaces, defects, or other features within the material. The propagation speed of ultrasonic waves varies in different media, causing reflection, scattering, diffraction, and transmission. By measuring the propagation time and amplitude changes of the ultrasonic waves, information such as the size and internal structure of the target object can be obtained.

[0383] Furthermore, in another example, the size of an object can be detected using the beam control principle of a phased array ultrasonic unit. A beam refers to the propagation path and shape of ultrasonic waves in space. Traditional single-unit ultrasonic probes can only emit ultrasonic waves in a fixed direction, while phased array ultrasonic probes can change the direction and shape of the beam by controlling the emission time and amplitude of each unit. By adjusting the combination of emission time and amplitude, an oblique, electronically scanned ultrasonic beam can be formed, enabling precise measurement of the size, orientation, pose, and other parameters of the object being measured.

[0384] Furthermore, the size of an object can be detected using phase adjustment techniques based on the wave physics of phased array ultrasonic units. For example, by changing the time between a series of output ultrasonic pulses, the individual waves generated by each crystal in the array can be combined to increase or decrease energy in a predictable manner, thereby controlling and shaping the sound beam. This example allows the sound beam to be dynamically deflected at different angles, focal lengths, and focal sizes to detect the entire object under test.

[0385] The above describes various methods for obtaining the object's size information through the phased array ultrasonic unit. By using one or more of these methods, the object's size information, distance information, etc., can be obtained. Those skilled in the art can select one or more of these methods, or other methods not described, to obtain the object's size information according to actual needs. This application does not limit this approach.

[0386] Furthermore, in one embodiment, the sensor unit and the phased array ultrasonic unit are controlled independently to acquire the first information and the second information. For example, two processors can be provided to control the sensor unit 101 and the phased array ultrasonic unit 102 respectively. Thus, the cleaning device can independently control the sensor unit 101 to acquire the first information when it is needed, and independently control the phased array ultrasonic unit 102 to acquire the second information when it is needed.

[0387] In another embodiment, the sensor unit and the phased array ultrasonic unit are synchronously controlled to acquire the first information and the second information. For example, by using the same processor to synchronously control the sensor unit and the phased array ultrasonic unit, the first information and the second information can be acquired simultaneously.

[0388] It should be noted that although steps S211 and S212 are described sequentially above, i.e., step S211 is executed first to obtain the first information, and then step S212 is executed to obtain the second information, the acquisition of the first information and the second information can be performed in reverse order, i.e., step S212 is executed first to obtain the second information, and then step S211 is executed to obtain the first information. Furthermore, as mentioned above, the first information and the second information can be acquired simultaneously, i.e., steps S211 and S212 are executed concurrently.

[0389] The above describes various methods for acquiring second information about the detected object, such as its size, through the phased array ultrasonic unit. These methods effectively utilize the characteristics and functions of the phased array ultrasonic unit to acquire attribute information such as the size, orientation, pose, and structure of the detected object. After acquiring this information, it is convenient to subsequently use it to determine whether the detected object is an obstacle and its various attributes, thereby providing conditions for precise path planning for the automatic water tank cleaning equipment.

[0390] In step S213, the automatic water tank cleaning device is controlled to perform path planning based on the first information and the second information.

[0391] After obtaining the first information and the second information through the steps S211 and S212 described above, in step S213, the automatic cleaning equipment for the water tank can be controlled to perform path planning based on the first information and the second information.

[0392] For example, after identifying the semantic information of the object according to the foregoing embodiments or examples, the automatic water tank cleaning equipment can be controlled to perform path planning based on the semantic information and the second information.

[0393] For example, according to the foregoing embodiments or examples, when the second information is size information, the automatic cleaning device for the pool can be controlled to perform path planning based on the first information and the size information.

[0394] In one example, the semantic information obtained in step S211 and the second information obtained in step S212 can be combined into a data set, and then the cleaning device can be controlled to perform path planning based on the data set.

[0395] For example, in step S211, after acquiring the first information of the object through the sensor unit, the first information can be added to the first information database corresponding to the object. For example, when the first information is image information or point cloud data information, the acquired image information of the object is added to the image information database; when the first information is point cloud data information, the acquired point cloud data information of the object is added to the point cloud data information database. In step S212, after acquiring the second information of the object through the phased array ultrasonic unit, the second information can be added to the second information database corresponding to the object. Thus, in step S213, the automatic water tank cleaning device can be controlled to perform path planning based on the data set formed by combining the first information database and the second information database. For example, the first information of the detected object is obtained from the first information database of the data set, and the second information of the detected object is obtained from the second information database of the data set. The processor analyzes the first and second information to determine the attributes of the detected object, such as type, size, distance, orientation, pose, structure, etc., thereby determining whether the object is an obstacle, what kind of obstacle it is, whether it can be avoided, the passability of the obstacle, and how to plan a path to bypass the obstacle, etc.

[0396] For example, if a first object (e.g., a drain outlet) exists on the cleaning path of the automatic pool cleaning device, in step S211, the sensor unit 101 obtains the first information of the first object, i.e., image information or point cloud data, and adds the obtained first information of the object to the corresponding first information database. The processor identifies the image information and point cloud data in the information database, and determines the first features of the first object, such as basic shape and color, and the second features, such as function, attributes, relationships, and types, through the obtained semantic information. The automatic pool cleaning device can identify the first object as a drain outlet based on these features. Then, or simultaneously, in step S212, the phased array ultrasonic unit further detects the first object to obtain the second information of the first object, such as size, orientation, and pose. The second information is added to the second information database corresponding to the object.

[0397] In step S213, the processor determines that the first object is a drain outlet based on the first information in the first information database, and determines the size information of the first object based on the second information in the second information database. Combining these two pieces of information, it determines whether the drain outlet of that size is an obstacle that needs to be avoided. For example, it determines whether the size of the drain outlet is larger than a preset size (for example, the preset size corresponds to the maximum size of the obstacle when the automatic pool cleaning device can travel along a predetermined path and pass through the obstacle smoothly). If it is larger than the preset size, the automatic pool cleaning device cannot pass directly, and it is determined that the drain outlet needs to be avoided. Then, a path can be planned to bypass the drain outlet based on the information of the drain outlet (e.g., size, orientation, etc.). If it is determined that the size of the drain outlet is smaller than the preset size, the automatic pool cleaning device can pass directly, and therefore no obstacle avoidance path needs to be planned.

[0398] In another example, if a first object (e.g., a tree branch) exists in the cleaning path of the automatic pool cleaning device, in step S211, the processor determines that the first object is a tree branch based on the first information in the first information database. In step S212, the processor determines the size information of the first object based on the second information in the second information database. Combining these two pieces of information, it determines whether the tree branch of that size is an obstacle that needs to be avoided. For example, it determines whether the size of the tree branch is larger than a preset size (e.g., the preset size corresponds to the maximum size of the tree branch when the automatic pool cleaning device can travel along a predetermined path and successfully suck the tree branch into its internal trash basket / dust box). If it is larger than the preset size, the automatic pool cleaning device cannot pass directly, and it is determined that the tree branch needs to be avoided, thus planning an obstacle avoidance path. If any size of tree branch is not considered an obstacle and the cleaning device can pass directly and clean it, it is determined that no obstacle avoidance path needs to be planned.

[0399] The above describes examples of controlling the automatic water tank cleaning equipment to perform path planning based on the first and second information. These examples effectively combine the first and second information to obtain comprehensive information such as the type, structure, size, orientation, and pose of the detected object, thereby accurately determining whether the detected object is an obstacle to be avoided. This makes the obstacle identification information richer and more complete, improving the recognition rate and the accuracy of path planning, and further enhancing the cleaning efficiency of the cleaning device.

[0400] Figure 20 is a flowchart of a control method for an automatic water tank cleaning device according to another embodiment of this application. Referring to Figure 20, the control method for the automatic water tank cleaning device includes steps S311-S314. In step S311, first information of an object is acquired through the sensor unit. In step S312, the first information is identified to obtain semantic information of the object. In step S313, second information of the object is acquired through the phased array ultrasonic unit. In step S314, the automatic water tank cleaning device is controlled to perform path planning based on the semantic information and the second information.

[0401] In other words, based on the embodiment shown in Figure 19, after acquiring the first information of the object through the sensor unit, the control method of the automatic cleaning device for the pool further includes S312: identifying the first information to obtain the semantic information of the object. Steps S311, S313, and S314 are the same as or similar to steps S211, S212, and S213 of the embodiment shown in Figure 19, and will not be described again here. Only step S312 will be described in detail below.

[0402] In S312, the first information is identified to obtain the semantic information of the object. When the first information is image information or point cloud data, both image information and point cloud data can contain semantic information, and the semantic information can be obtained by analyzing and identifying the image information or point cloud data. Semantic information identification can, for example, identify objects in images or point cloud data that carry rich semantic information and can be directly associated with language descriptions. These objects not only contain low-level features such as basic shape and color, but also contain higher-level semantic information, such as function, attributes, relationships, and types.

[0403] In one example, image semantic recognition enables computers to understand image content and imbue images with deeper semantic information. Image semantic recognition can begin with feature extraction, such as converting image information into a computer-understandable form, including edges, textures, colors, and shapes. Then, image recognition is performed, mapping image features to predefined categories, including tasks such as object recognition, scene recognition, and action recognition. Afterward, semantic understanding can be performed, transforming image information into higher-level knowledge, such as recognizing the relationships between various objects in the image, and the relationships between objects and the scene.

[0404] In one example, semantic recognition of point cloud data involves analyzing and understanding 3D point cloud data to identify and classify objects and scenes within it. For instance, point cloud semantic recognition can utilize semantic segmentation algorithms, which can be categorized into traditional methods and deep learning-based methods. Deep learning methods include PointNet, PointNet++, and KPConv. These models effectively extract features from point clouds and assign corresponding semantic labels to each point. In another example, point cloud data can be used in conjunction with other sensor data, such as images, radar, and GPS, to provide more comprehensive information and achieve more accurate 3D scene understanding and perception.

[0405] Figure 21 is a flowchart of a control method for an automatic water tank cleaning device according to another embodiment of this application. Referring to Figure 21, the control method for the automatic water tank cleaning device includes steps S411 to S414. In step S411, first information about an object is acquired through the sensor unit. In step S412, second information about the object, which is image information, is acquired through the phased array ultrasonic unit. In step S413, the image information is recognized to obtain the size information of the object. In step S414, the automatic water tank cleaning device is controlled to perform path planning based on the first information and the size information.

[0406] In other words, based on the embodiment shown in Figure 19, if the second information of the object obtained through the phased array ultrasonic unit is image information, then after obtaining the image information through the phased array ultrasonic unit, the image information can be identified to obtain the size information of the object. Steps S411, S412, and S414 are the same as or similar to steps S211, S212, and S213 of the embodiment shown in Figure 19, and will not be described again here. Only step S413 will be described in detail below.

[0407] Since the second information is image information, in step S413, the image information is identified to obtain the size information of the object.

[0408] In one example, the object is imaged using a phased array ultrasonic unit to acquire image information of the object. For example, electronic scanning and focusing of the ultrasonic beam can be achieved by controlling the transmitting and receiving elements of multiple independent phased array ultrasonic units, thereby obtaining image information of the object. For example, each time the focusing unit of the phased array ultrasonic unit generates a scan line for scanning, and finally each scan line is assembled into a two-dimensional image.

[0409] In one example, the phased array ultrasonic unit can image the object using a full-focus imaging method. For example, a virtual focal point is selected in the object to be imaged. For a one-dimensional phased array, a coordinate system is established with the geometric center of the array transducer as the origin. The imaging area is divided into several pixels. The sound pressure amplitude of each pixel is calculated based on the collected data. Then, the normalization process is performed and the image is displayed to obtain the image information of the object.

[0410] The imaging methods described above enable the phased array ultrasonic unit to provide detailed internal and external images of the object under test, and to efficiently acquire information such as the type, properties, and structure of the object being detected.

[0411] After imaging an object using a phased array ultrasonic unit, the object's size information can be further identified based on the acquired image information. In one example, the image can undergo preprocessing such as denoising, enhancement, and correction to improve the accuracy of subsequent recognition. Next, feature extraction is performed on the image information to identify key features such as edges, corners, and textures. Then, machine learning or deep learning methods, such as convolutional neural networks (CNNs), can be used to identify objects in the image.

[0412] Once an object is identified, its size can be estimated using one of the following methods:

[0413] Pixel measurement: The pixel size of an object is measured directly on the image and then converted to its actual size based on the camera's calibration parameters.

[0414] Scale: An image contains a scale of known dimensions, which is then used to estimate the size of objects.

[0415] Deep learning models: Use well-trained deep learning models to directly predict the size of objects.

[0416] Calibration and calibration: To ensure measurement accuracy, the camera needs to be calibrated to determine the conversion relationship between pixel size and actual physical size. This allows us to obtain the object's dimensional information, such as its length, width, height, and diameter.

[0417] Figure 22 is a flowchart of controlling the cleaning device to perform path planning according to an embodiment of this application. Referring to Figure 22, the control method of the automatic pool cleaning device includes steps S511 to S514. In step S511, first information of the object is acquired through the sensor unit. In step S512, second information of the object is acquired through the phased array ultrasonic unit. In step S513, the first information and the second information are fused to form third information, which is image information; in step S514, semantic information and size information of the object are acquired based on the third information; in step S515, the cleaning device is controlled to perform path planning based on the semantic information and the size information.

[0418] In other words, the specific implementation of step S213 (i.e., controlling the automatic cleaning device of the pool to perform path planning based on the first information and the second information) in the embodiment shown in Figure 19 includes steps S513, S514, and S515 as shown in Figure 22. Steps S511 and S512 in the embodiment shown in Figure 22 correspond to steps S211 and S212 in the embodiment shown in Figure 19, respectively, and will not be repeated here. Only steps S513, S514, and S515 will be described in detail below.

[0419] In step S513, the first image information acquired by the sensor unit and the second image information acquired by the phased array ultrasonic unit are fused to form third information, which may be, for example, image information. In step S514, the semantic information and size information of the object are acquired based on the third information. In step S515, the cleaning device is controlled to perform path planning based on the semantic information and the size information.

[0420] In step S513, during image fusion, feature points of the first and second image information can be matched, and then fused according to the matching results to form image information. Image feature points may include, for example, edges, textures, and colors.

[0421] Feature point extraction algorithms can include SIFT (Scale Invariant Feature Transform) and SURF (Speed-Up Robust Feature Transform). SIFT extracts feature points that are invariant to rotation, scale transformations, and brightness changes. SURF is an enhanced version of SIFT, extracting feature points faster and more robustly.

[0422] After extracting feature points, feature point matching can be performed to determine the positions of the same objects in different images. Matching methods can include, for example, the KNN algorithm based on KD-trees, which can quickly find matching pairs of feature points. Alternatively, homography transformation matrix calculation can be used. In homography transformation matrix calculation, the homography transformation matrix between the first and second image information can be calculated using the matched feature point pairs. Using the homography transformation matrix, the image can be transformed from one view to another, aligning the feature points in space, thereby enabling image fusion of the first and second image information.

[0423] In step S514, the semantic information and size information of the object are obtained based on the fused image information.

[0424] Similar to the semantic recognition methods described earlier, in one example, semantic recognition can be performed based on the fused image information to obtain the semantic information of objects. For example, feature extraction can be performed first, such as converting image information into a computer-understandable form, including edges, textures, colors, and shapes. Then, image recognition is performed, mapping image features to predefined categories, including tasks such as object recognition, scene recognition, and action recognition. Afterward, semantic understanding can be performed, converting image information into higher-level knowledge, such as recognizing the relationships between various objects in the image, and the relationships between objects and the scene.

[0425] Similar to the previous embodiments, in one example, when obtaining object size information based on the fused image information, the image can undergo preprocessing such as denoising, enhancement, and correction to improve the accuracy of subsequent recognition. Then, feature extraction is performed on the image information to identify key features such as edges, corners, and textures. Machine learning or deep learning methods, such as convolutional neural networks (CNNs), can then be used to identify objects in the image. After the object is identified, its size can be calculated using methods described above, such as pixel measurement, scale bar analysis, deep learning models, calibration, and standardization, thereby obtaining the object's size information, which may include parameters such as the object's length, width, height, and diameter.

[0426] In step S515, the cleaning device is controlled to perform path planning based on the semantic information and the size information.

[0427] Similar to the previous embodiments, by analyzing the semantic and size information obtained from the third information, various parameters such as the category, structure, size, distance, and attributes of the target object are obtained. Based on these parameters, it is determined whether the target object is an obstacle that needs to be avoided. If so, the cleaning device is controlled to replan the path based on the obstacle's attributes and volume.

[0428] The above describes various embodiments of the control method for the automatic water tank cleaning equipment of this application. It can combine the different functions of different sensors to detect objects, make up for the functional defects of a single sensor, accurately obtain the attribute information of the object, thereby determining whether the object is an obstacle, and then carry out reasonable path planning and effective obstacle avoidance.

[0429] The automatic water tank cleaning device in the control method of the automatic water tank cleaning device of this application will be further described below.

[0430] Figure 18 is a structural schematic diagram of the automatic water tank cleaning device according to this application. Referring to Figure 18, the automatic water tank cleaning device 100 includes:

[0431] Sensor unit 101 is used to acquire first information about the object;

[0432] Phased array ultrasonic unit 102 is used to acquire second information about the object;

[0433] The processor 103 controls the automatic water tank cleaning device to perform path planning based on the first information and the second information.

[0434] Specific embodiments and examples of the sensor unit 101 for acquiring the first information of the object can be found in the control method of the aforementioned automatic cleaning equipment for water tanks, which details the steps corresponding to how to use the sensor unit 101 to acquire the first information of the object, and will not be repeated here.

[0435] Specific embodiments and examples of the phased array ultrasonic unit 102 for acquiring the second information of the object can be found in the control method of the aforementioned automatic water tank cleaning equipment, which details the steps corresponding to how to use the phased array ultrasonic unit 102 to acquire the second information of the object, and will not be repeated here.

[0436] The processor 103 can control the sensor unit 101 and the phased array ultrasonic unit 102 to acquire first information or second information, and control the automatic water tank cleaning device to perform path planning based on the first information and the second information. Specific embodiments and examples of how to use the processor 103 to control the automatic water tank cleaning device to perform path planning based on the first information and the second information can be found in the aforementioned control method for the automatic water tank cleaning device, which details the steps corresponding to how to use the processor 103 to control the automatic water tank cleaning device to perform path planning based on the first information and the second information; these will not be repeated here.

[0437] According to another embodiment of this application, a non-volatile storage medium is also provided, which stores computer program instructions. When the instructions are executed by a processor, they perform the control method of the automatic water tank cleaning device in any of the foregoing embodiments.

[0438] It should be understood that the above description of the components of the automatic water tank cleaning equipment is merely exemplary and does not constitute a limitation on the various parameters and functions of the above components. Those skilled in the art can select and set the sensor module and its components, parameters, and functions according to actual needs, as long as the principle of this application can be achieved.

[0439] The algorithms and descriptions provided herein are not inherently related to any particular computer, virtual system, or other device. Various general-purpose systems can also be used in conjunction with the teachings herein. The required structure for constructing such systems is apparent from the above description. Furthermore, this application is not directed to any particular programming language. It should be understood that the content of this application described herein can be implemented using various programming languages, and the above descriptions of specific languages ​​are for the purpose of disclosing the best mode of implementation of this application.

[0440] Figures 23A-23B schematically illustrate the external appearance of an automatic pool cleaning device 100 according to an embodiment of this application. The automatic pool cleaning device 100 can clean the bottom, walls, water, and surface of a pool (e.g., a swimming pool) as needed. Figure 23A schematically shows the front side of the automatic pool cleaning device 100, and Figure 23B schematically shows the rear side. As shown in Figures 23A-23B, the automatic pool cleaning device 100 may include structures / components such as a traveling mechanism 110a, cleaning mechanisms 120a and 130a; wherein the traveling mechanism 110a drives the automatic pool cleaning device 100 to move; the first cleaning mechanism 120a and the second cleaning mechanism 130a are used, for example, to clean debris in the water, at the bottom, and on the surface, and to clean dirt from the pool bottom and walls. As an example, Figures 23A-23B schematically show that the traveling mechanism 110a may include tracked traveling units on both sides of the lower part of the automatic pool cleaning device 100, allowing the pool cleaning unit to travel along the bottom or wall of the pool to perform the corresponding cleaning operations. However, the traveling unit is not limited to the type shown in Figures 23A-23B, but may include, for example, wheeled traveling units, without limitation.

[0441] It should be understood that the automatic pool cleaning equipment 100 shown in Figures 23A-23B is only an example. Those skilled in the art can make changes to it in one or more aspects such as appearance, structure, layout, components, and functions according to actual needs, without departing from the principles of this application.

[0442] Figures 24A-24B schematically illustrate a filtration device for use in an automatic pool cleaning system according to an embodiment of this application. As an example, the filtration device is detachably installed in the automatic pool cleaning system. As shown in Figures 24A-24B, the filtration device 20a includes a first filter basket 210a and a second filter basket 220a. The first filter basket 210a includes a first filter frame 2110a and a first filter screen 2120a disposed on the first filter frame; the second filter basket 220a includes a second filter frame 2210a and a second filter screen 2220a disposed on the second filter frame. Figure 24A schematically shows the second filter basket 220a installed in the first filter basket 210a, and Figure 24B schematically shows the second filter basket 220a being removed from the first filter basket 210a. As shown in Figures 24A-24B, the second filter basket 220a is detachably installed in the first filter basket 210a. According to an embodiment of this application, the pore size of the second filter 2220a is smaller than that of the first filter 2120a.

[0443] As an example, the second filter basket 220a can be detachably installed into the first filter basket 210a. This means that the second filter basket 220a can be directly placed into the first filter basket 210a or directly removed from the first filter basket 210a without the need for a separate connection structure. Of course, a separate connection structure can also be provided for the detachable connection of the two filter baskets.

[0444] According to embodiments of this application, since the pore size of the filter screen in the second filter basket is smaller than that in the first filter basket, the second filter basket provides finer filtration and can remove finer particles of dirt. Furthermore, since the second filter basket is detachably installed into the first filter basket, depending on actual needs—for example, when finer filtration of the water in the pool is required, i.e., when smaller particles need to be removed—the second filter basket can be installed into the first filter basket so that smaller particles can be filtered out via the second filter screen. When there is no such need, the second filter basket can be left out of the first filter basket, and the water can be filtered using only the filter screen of the first filter basket. This improves the flexibility of the filtration device in meeting different filtration needs.

[0445] According to an embodiment of this application, in the above-described filtering device, the second filter frame includes a second side support member, and the second filter screen is sleeved on the outside of the second side support member or disposed inside the second side support member.

[0446] As an example, Figure 25A schematically illustrates one structure of a second filter basket. As shown in Figure 25A, the second filter basket 220a includes a second filter frame 2210a, the second filter frame 2210a includes a second side support member 2230a, wherein the second filter screen 2220a is sleeved on the outside of the second side support member 2230a.

[0447] As another example, the second filter screen can also be disposed inside the side support of the second filter basket, for example, by fitting the second filter screen onto the side support of the second filter basket from inside the second filter basket. Those skilled in the art can arrange the position of the second filter screen according to actual design requirements, and no limitation is made here. As an example, FIG26A schematically shows a structure of the first filter frame 2110a of the first filter basket. As shown in FIG26A, the first filter frame 2110a can form a first cavity with the first filter screen (not shown in FIG26) having a first opening at the top, through which the second filter basket can be detachably installed inside the first filter basket.

[0448] As an example, the first filter screen can be detachably installed onto the first filter frame as a whole. For example, it can be fitted onto the first filter frame from the outside or inside as a mesh sleeve with an upper opening corresponding to the first opening; or, filter screen pieces can be correspondingly set on the frame holes of the first filter frame. For those skilled in the art, the installation method of the first filter screen can be flexibly selected according to actual needs, and the installation method of the first filter screen and the first filter frame is not limited here.

[0449] Optionally, as shown in Figure 26A, the first filter frame 2110a includes a first wall, on which a first water inlet 2160a may be provided.

[0450] In one possible implementation, the first water inlet is located on the bottom wall of the first filter frame. It is understood that the first water inlet can be located on any wall of the first filter frame, such as the side wall, as needed.

[0451] As another example, Figure 26B schematically illustrates another structure of the first filter frame 2110a. As shown in Figure 26B, the first filter basket also includes an openable and closable top cover 2180a that mates with the first filter frame 2110a, the top cover being capable of closing the first opening.

[0452] Although Figure 26B schematically shows the top cover 2180a connected to the first filter frame 2110a, the top cover can also be configured to be separable from the first filter frame, as long as the top cover can close the upper opening of the first cavity formed by the first filter frame and the first filter screen when the first filter basket is installed in the automatic water tank cleaning device. The installation form of the top cover and the first filter frame is not limited.

[0453] As an example, as shown in Figure 25A, in the above-mentioned filtration device, the second filter frame 2210a and the second filter screen 2220a form a second cavity with a second opening at the top; when the second filter basket is installed in the first filter basket, water entering through the first inlet enters the second cavity and is filtered by the second filter screen. After the micro-dust particles in the water are filtered out, the water is then filtered by the first filter screen of the first filter basket and discharged from the filtration device.

[0454] As an example, in the above-mentioned filtration device, the second filter screen is a one-piece molded structure.

[0455] As an example, the second filter is made of fibrous material, including nonwoven materials such as polyester fibers or polyester fibers.

[0456] Figure 25B schematically illustrates another structure of the second filter basket. As shown in Figure 25B, the second filter screen 2220a is detachably connected to the second filter frame 2210a by fasteners 2260a and / or fasteners 2270a, wherein the fasteners 2260a and 2270a are fixedly connected to the upper and / or lower parts of the second filter screen 2220a.

[0457] In addition, as an example, as shown in Figures 24A-24B, a handle can be provided at the second opening of the second filter frame 2210a of the second filter basket 220a to facilitate the removal of the second filter basket from the first filter basket, thereby cleaning the second filter basket, replacing the second filter screen, or cleaning the garbage / dirt trapped in the second filter basket.

[0458] As an example, as shown in Figures 25A-25B, in the second filter basket 220a, the second filter frame 2210a includes a second wall, on which a water inlet 2280a is provided, which can communicate with the first water inlet.

[0459] Possibly, the first water inlet protrudes from the first wall of the first filter frame 2110a into the interior of the first cavity, and the water inlet 2280a surrounds the first water inlet, so that when the second filter basket is installed in the first filter basket, the water entering through the first water inlet directly enters the second cavity.

[0460] In one possible implementation, the inlet 2280a is disposed on the bottom wall of the second filter frame 2210a.

[0461] As another example, the second filter screen may include a bottom wall with a corresponding water inlet that can communicate with the first water inlet. In this case, the second filter frame itself may not include a bottom wall, i.e., it may only have side supports. When the second filter screen is fitted onto the side supports of the second filter frame from the outside or inside, the water inlet on the bottom wall of the second filter screen can communicate with the first water inlet.

[0462] According to an embodiment of this application, in the second filter basket, the second filter screen is detachably connected to the second filter frame. This allows the second filter frame to be reused easily, while the second filter screen can be used as a disposable consumable.

[0463] Optionally, in the above-mentioned filtration device, a one-way valve is provided at the first inlet. Thus, when water carrying garbage / dirt is driven to enter the filtration device through the first inlet, the one-way valve opens; and when the water flow stops entering the filtration device through the first inlet, the one-way valve automatically closes, thereby preventing the garbage / dirt trapped in the filtration device from flowing out of the filtration device.

[0464] According to another aspect of this application, an automatic pool cleaning device is proposed, which includes the above-described filtration device, wherein the filtration device is detachably installed in the automatic pool cleaning device.

[0465] Therefore, various apparatuses and methods have been referenced above to present several aspects of this application. These apparatuses and methods are illustrated in the accompanying drawings by various blocks, components, circuits, processes, algorithms, etc. (collectively, "elements"). These elements can be implemented using electronic hardware, computer software, or any combination thereof. Whether these elements are implemented in hardware or software depends on the specific application and the design constraints of the overall system.

[0466] Figures 27A-27B schematically illustrate the external appearance of an automatic pool cleaning device 100 according to an embodiment of this application. The automatic pool cleaning device 100 can clean the bottom, walls, water, and surface of a pool (e.g., a swimming pool) as needed. Figure 27A schematically shows the front side of the automatic pool cleaning device 100, and Figure 27B schematically shows the rear side. As shown in Figures 27A-27B, the automatic pool cleaning device 100 may include structures / components such as a traveling mechanism 110b, cleaning mechanisms 120b and 130b; wherein the traveling mechanism 110b drives the automatic pool cleaning device 100 to move; the first cleaning mechanism 120b and the second cleaning mechanism 130b are used, for example, to clean debris in the water, at the bottom, and on the surface, and to clean dirt from the pool bottom and walls. As an example, Figures 27A-27B schematically show that the traveling mechanism 110b may include tracked traveling units on both sides of the lower part of the automatic pool cleaning device 100, allowing the pool cleaning unit to travel along the bottom or wall of the pool to perform the corresponding cleaning operations. However, the traveling unit is not limited to the type shown in Figures 27A-27B, but may include, for example, wheeled traveling units, without limitation.

[0467] Figures 27A-27B schematically illustrate the external appearance of an automatic pool cleaning device 100 according to an embodiment of this application. The automatic pool cleaning device 100 can clean the bottom, walls, water, and surface of a pool (e.g., a swimming pool) as needed. Figure 27A schematically shows the front side of the automatic pool cleaning device 100, and Figure 27B schematically shows the rear side. As shown in Figures 27A-27B, the automatic pool cleaning device 100 may include structures / components such as a traveling mechanism 110b, cleaning mechanisms 120b and 130b; wherein the traveling mechanism 110b drives the automatic pool cleaning device 100 to move; the first cleaning mechanism 120b and the second cleaning mechanism 130b are used, for example, to clean debris in the water, at the bottom, and on the surface, and to clean dirt from the pool bottom and walls. As an example, Figures 27A-27B schematically show that the traveling mechanism 110b may include tracked traveling units on both sides of the lower part of the automatic pool cleaning device 100, allowing the pool cleaning unit to travel along the bottom or wall of the pool to perform the corresponding cleaning operations. However, the traveling unit is not limited to the type shown in Figures 27A-27B, but may include, for example, wheeled traveling units, without limitation.

[0468] It should be understood that the automatic pool cleaning equipment 100 shown in Figures 27A-27B is merely an example, and those skilled in the art can make changes to it in one or more aspects such as appearance, structure, layout, components, and functions according to actual needs, without departing from the principles of this application.

[0469] Figure 28A schematically illustrates a filter basket 20b for an automatic water tank cleaning device according to an embodiment of this application. As shown in Figure 28A, the filter basket 20b includes a filter frame 210b and a flexible filter 220b, wherein the flexible filter is detachably mounted on the filter frame to form a cavity with a first opening at the top, and the filter frame provides support for the flexible filter at least at the first opening.

[0470] As shown in Figure 28A, in the filter basket 20b, the filter screen frame 210b includes a side support member 2110b and a top frame 2120b and a bottom frame 2130b connecting the side support member. The side support member is used to support the side of the flexible filter screen and plays a supporting role to prevent the flexible filter screen from deforming when the automatic water cleaning equipment draws water into the filter basket for filtration.

[0471] Optionally, in the aforementioned filter basket, the flexible filter screen is fitted onto the filter screen frame. As an example, Figure 28B schematically shows a filter basket 20b with a flexible filter screen 220b fitted onto a filter screen frame 210b.

[0472] Figure 29A schematically shows a filter frame 210b as an example, and Figure 29B schematically shows the corresponding flexible filter 220b.

[0473] As shown in Figures 29A-29B, a positioning post 2150b is provided at the top frame 2120b of the filter screen frame 210b, and a corresponding positioning hole 2210b is provided at the upper edge of the flexible filter screen 220b. When the flexible filter screen is fitted onto the filter screen frame, the flexible filter screen can be positioned by passing the positioning post 2150b on the filter screen frame through the corresponding positioning hole 2210b of the flexible filter screen.

[0474] Furthermore, as shown in Figures 29A-29B, a positioning post 2160b can be provided at the bottom frame 2130b of the filter frame 210b, and a corresponding positioning hole 2220b can be provided at the lower edge of the flexible filter 220b. When the flexible filter is fitted onto the filter frame, the flexible filter can be positioned by passing the positioning post 2160b on the filter frame through the corresponding positioning hole 2220b on the flexible filter.

[0475] As an example, the filter basket described above may also include a clamping element that clamps the upper edge and / or lower edge of the flexible filter screen onto the top frame and / or the bottom frame, respectively.

[0476] Figure 29C schematically illustrates the structure of a filter basket 20b including a clamping member as an example. As shown in Figure 29C, the filter basket 20b includes a first clamping member 2310b, which clamps the upper edge of the flexible filter screen 220b to the top frame of the filter screen frame 210b. As further shown in Figure 29C, the filter basket 20b may also include a second clamping member 2320b, which clamps the lower edge of the flexible filter screen 220b to the bottom frame of the filter screen frame 210b.

[0477] According to an embodiment of this application, unlike the structure shown in FIG29C, the clamping member and the flexible filter screen can be integrated into a single structure. When the flexible filter screen is fitted onto the filter screen frame, the upper / lower edges of the flexible filter screen are clamped to the top / bottom frame of the filter screen frame by the clamping member. As shown in FIG28A, a clamping member 2180b is integrated on the upper edge of the flexible filter screen 220b. When the flexible filter screen 220b is fitted onto the filter screen frame 210b, the upper edge of the flexible filter screen 220b can be clamped to the top frame 2120b of the filter screen frame 210b by the clamping member 2180b.

[0478] As an example, the clamping element includes at least one of the following: a rubber retaining ring, a metal retaining ring, a plastic retaining ring, or an elastic band.

[0479] As an example, Figure 30 schematically shows a partial detail of another filter frame. As shown in Figure 30, a positioning groove 2140b is provided at the top frame 2120b of the filter frame. By providing a corresponding protrusion on the upper edge of the flexible filter, when the flexible filter is fitted onto the filter frame, it can be positioned by the protrusion on the upper edge of the flexible filter engaging with the positioning groove on the filter frame. For example, a rubber ring can be provided on the upper edge of the filter, and a protrusion can be provided on the inner side of the rubber ring, which engages with the positioning groove on the filter frame for positioning.

[0480] Although Figure 30 shows a positioning groove at the top frame 2120b of the filter frame 210b, as another example, a positioning groove can also be provided at the bottom frame of the filter frame 210b, and a corresponding protrusion can be provided at the lower edge of the flexible filter, so that the flexible filter is positioned by the protrusion engaging with the positioning groove. For example, a rubber ring can be provided at the lower edge of the filter, and a protrusion can be provided inside the rubber ring, which is then engaged with the positioning groove at the bottom frame of the filter frame for positioning.

[0481] Furthermore, regarding the structure of the filter frame shown in Figure 30, to increase the tightness of the connection between the flexible filter and the filter frame, a structure similar to that shown in Figure 29C can be used, employing clamping devices to secure the flexible filter. That is, the upper edge and / or lower edge of the flexible filter are respectively clamped to the top frame and / or bottom frame of the filter frame using clamping devices.

[0482] Of course, for the structure of the filter screen frame shown in Figure 30, the snap-fit ​​form shown in Figure 29C can be omitted. Instead, the protrusions on the upper edge and / or lower edge of the filter screen can be interference-fitted with the corresponding positioning grooves on the top frame and / or bottom frame of the filter screen frame, thereby making the connection between the flexible filter screen and the filter screen frame more reliable.

[0483] Optionally, the filter screen can be detachably connected to the filter screen frame via a connector. The filter screen can be disposed outside or inside the filter screen frame, and can be connected to the filter screen frame by means such as elastic ropes, straps, elastic flanges, or clamps.

[0484] As an example, in the above-mentioned filter basket, the thickness of the filter screen is 3mm-15mm; the mesh diameter of the filter screen is no greater than 100um, thereby filtering out fine particles such as dust and achieving the purpose of deep cleaning of the water tank.

[0485] Optionally, in the above-mentioned filter basket, the filter screen is made of polyester fiber.

[0486] Optionally, as shown in Figures 28A and 31A-31B, a handle 2190b is provided on the filter screen frame in the filter basket to facilitate the removal of the filter basket and cleaning of the garbage / dirt trapped in the filter basket.

[0487] Optionally, in the filter basket described above, the lower part of the cavity is provided with a second opening to allow water to flow into the cavity.

[0488] According to embodiments of this application, since the flexible filter screen is detachably mounted on the filter screen frame, the filter screen frame can be reused, and the flexible filter screen can be used as a disposable consumable.

[0489] According to another aspect of this application, a two-stage filter for an automatic water tank cleaning device is proposed, comprising the aforementioned filter basket as a first-stage filter and an outer filter basket as a second-stage filter, wherein the filter basket can be placed inside the outer filter basket, and the filtration accuracy of the filter basket is greater than that of the outer filter basket.

[0490] According to the embodiments of this application, the two-stage filter has a smaller pore size in the filter basket (first stage filter) than in the filter screen of the outer filter basket (second stage filter) (i.e., the filtration precision of the filter basket is greater than that of the outer filter basket). Therefore, the inner filter basket provides finer filtration and can remove finer particles compared to the outer filter basket. Furthermore, since the inner filter basket is detachably installed in the outer filter basket, depending on actual needs—for example, when finer filtration of the water in a pool is required, i.e., when smaller particles need to be removed—the filter basket according to the embodiments of this application can be installed in the outer filter basket to remove smaller particles through the smaller pore size filter screen. When there is no such need, the water is filtered using only the filter screen of the outer filter basket without the need for the inner filter basket. This improves the filter's flexibility in adapting to different filtration needs.

[0491] Optionally, in the above two-stage filter, a water inlet is provided at the bottom of the outer filter basket.

[0492] According to another aspect of this application, an automatic water tank cleaning device is proposed, which includes the above-described two-stage filter; wherein the two-stage filter is detachably installed in the automatic water tank cleaning device.

[0493] Therefore, various apparatuses and methods have been referenced above to present several aspects of this application. These apparatuses and methods are illustrated in the accompanying drawings by various blocks, components, circuits, processes, algorithms, etc. (collectively, "elements"). These elements can be implemented using electronic hardware, computer software, or any combination thereof. Whether these elements are implemented in hardware or software depends on the specific application and the design constraints of the overall system.

[0494] Figures 32A-32B schematically illustrate the external appearance of an automatic pool cleaning device 100 according to an embodiment of this application. The automatic pool cleaning device 100 can clean the bottom, walls, water, and surface of a pool (e.g., a swimming pool) as needed. Figure 32A schematically shows the front side of the automatic pool cleaning device 100, and Figure 32B schematically shows the rear side. As shown in Figures 32A-32B, the automatic pool cleaning device 100 may include structures / components such as a traveling mechanism 110c, cleaning mechanisms 120c, and 130c; wherein the traveling mechanism 110c drives the automatic pool cleaning device 100 to move; the first cleaning mechanism 120c and the second cleaning mechanism 130c are used, for example, to clean debris in the water, at the bottom, and on the surface, and to clean dirt from the pool bottom and walls. As an example, Figures 32A-32B schematically show that the traveling mechanism 110c may include tracked traveling units on both sides of the lower part of the automatic pool cleaning device 100, enabling the automatic pool cleaning device to travel on the bottom or wall of the pool to perform the corresponding cleaning operation. However, the traveling units are not limited to the type shown in Figures 32A-32B, but may include, for example, wheeled traveling units, without limitation.

[0495] It should be understood that the automatic pool cleaning equipment 100 shown in Figures 32A-32B is only an example. Those skilled in the art can make changes to it in one or more aspects such as appearance, structure, layout, components, and functions according to actual needs, without departing from the principles of this application.

[0496] Figure 33 schematically illustrates the internal structure of an automatic pool cleaning device 200 according to an embodiment of this application.

[0497] As shown in Figure 33, a water cleaning chamber 230c can be provided inside the automatic water cleaning device 200. Water in the pool can enter the water cleaning chamber through the inlet 240c of the automatic water cleaning device 200. The arrows in the figure schematically indicate the approximate direction of water flow. As an example, the inlet can be located at the bottom, side, or front of the housing of the automatic water cleaning device 200. For example, the inlet can be located at the bottom of the housing of the automatic water cleaning device 200, and the water in the pool can be drawn into the inlet 240c by the suction action of the water pump 210c installed inside the automatic water cleaning device 200, thus entering the water cleaning chamber of the automatic water cleaning device for filtering the water in the pool. In addition, the inlet can also be located at the front of the automatic water cleaning device 200, so that when the automatic water cleaning device 200 moves in the water, water in the direction of movement is drawn into the water cleaning chamber. In addition, a water inlet can be provided on the side of the automatic pool cleaning device 200 along the waterline, so that when the automatic pool cleaning device 200 floats on the water surface, water can be drawn in through the water inlet to clean the water surface.

[0498] As an example, a filter unit, such as a filter basket, can be installed inside the water cleaning chamber of the automatic pool cleaning device 200. Optionally, the filter basket filters the water drawn in through the inlet 240c of the automatic pool cleaning device, trapping dirt / debris carried in the water within the filter basket, and discharges the filtered water through the outlet 250c of the automatic pool cleaning device.

[0499] As an example, the filter basket of the automatic pool cleaning device 200 can be detachably installed inside the automatic pool cleaning device. As an example, the bottom of the filter basket can have an opening to allow water drawn in via the inlet of the automatic pool cleaning device to enter the filter basket. As another example, an opening can be provided on the side of the filter basket to allow water drawn in via the water surface inlet of the automatic pool cleaning device to enter the filter basket. Optionally, a one-way valve (not shown) acting as a check valve can be provided at the water inlet of the filter basket to prevent dirt / debris entering the filter basket from flowing back into the pool. As shown in Figure 33, the filter basket can be configured as a frame structure with mesh openings on at least one side, and filter screens can be provided at the positions corresponding to the mesh openings. When water is discharged from the filter basket through the filter screen by the suction action of a water pump, dirt and / or debris carried in the water are intercepted by the filter screen inside the filter basket. As an example, at least one filter screen can be provided on at least one wall of the filter basket.

[0500] As described above, the automatic pool cleaning device 200 can perform cleaning operations on the bottom, walls, water, and surface of a pool (e.g., a swimming pool) as needed. For example, it can remove debris from the water, bottom, and surface, and clean dirt from the pool bottom and walls. As the automatic pool cleaning device operates, the trapped dirt / debris may adhere to the filter screen of the filter basket. After the automatic pool cleaning device has been working for a period of time, the dirt / debris adhering to the filter screen can clog it, reducing the cleaning efficiency of the automatic pool cleaning device.

[0501] Furthermore, when an automatic pool cleaning device uses water jet propulsion to move through water / on the surface, water filtered through the filter basket can be sprayed out through the nozzles of the device to power its movement. However, when dirt / debris adhering to the filter screen clogs it, the water flow through the screen is obstructed, leading to poor water intake and drainage. This increases propulsion power consumption and reduces drive efficiency.

[0502] Therefore, it is necessary to promptly determine the clogging status of the filter basket screen. If clogging is found, it needs to be cleaned as soon as possible.

[0503] Therefore, this application proposes a method for determining the clogging status of the filter screen in the filter basket of an automatic water tank cleaning device. This method can accurately determine the clogging status of the filter screen and automatically generate an alarm signal when the filter screen is determined to be clogged, so that the filter screen can be cleaned in a timely manner.

[0504] Figure 34 schematically shows a cross-sectional structure of an automatic pool cleaning device 300 according to an embodiment of this application. As an example, as shown in Figure 34, detection mechanisms 360c and 380c are provided in the water inlet channel 310c of the automatic pool cleaning device. Water can be driven through the water inlet channel 310c into the filter basket 320c by a water flow drive mechanism, such as a water pump. After being filtered by the filter screen of the filter basket 320c, the filtered water is discharged from the automatic pool cleaning device.

[0505] As an example, the detection mechanism may include a signal transmitter 360c and a signal receiver 380c, wherein the signal receiver 380c can receive the signal transmitted from the signal transmitter 360c to detect the light transmittance of the water flow in the inlet channel, so as to determine the clogging status of the filter screen based on the detection of the light transmittance of the water flow.

[0506] Figure 35 is a schematic structural block diagram illustrating an automatic pool cleaning device according to an embodiment of this application. As shown in Figure 35, the automatic pool cleaning device 400 includes: a filter basket 410c, detachably installed in the automatic pool cleaning device, wherein the filter basket includes a frame and a filter screen disposed on the frame; a water flow driving mechanism 420c, configured to drive water flow through an inlet channel into the filter basket 410c for filtration through the filter screen disposed on the filter basket; a detection mechanism 430c, disposed in the inlet channel, configured to detect the light transmittance of the water flow; and a processing unit 440c, configured to determine the clogging status of the filter screen based on the detection of the light transmittance of the water flow.

[0507] According to an embodiment of this application, the automatic water tank cleaning device further includes a housing, and a filter basket is detachably installed in the housing of the automatic water tank cleaning device; wherein, a first water inlet is provided on the housing of the automatic water tank cleaning device, a second water inlet is provided on the frame of the filter basket, and the water inlet channel connects the first water inlet and the second water inlet.

[0508] As an example, the water flow drive mechanism of the automatic water tank cleaning device, such as a water pump, under the control of the processing unit of the automatic water tank cleaning device, draws water from the water tank into the filter basket through the first water inlet and the second water inlet, and discharges the water filtered by the filter screen of the filter basket through the drain outlet provided on the housing of the automatic water tank cleaning device.

[0509] Figure 36 schematically shows a cross-sectional structure of an automatic water tank cleaning device 500 according to an embodiment of this application. As an example, as shown in Figure 36, a detection mechanism is provided in the water inlet channel of the automatic water tank cleaning device. The water flow drive mechanism 260c of the automatic water tank cleaning device 500, such as a water pump, can drive water flow through the water inlet channel 310c into the filter basket.

[0510] As an example, the detection mechanism may include a signal transmitter 360c and a signal receiver 380c, wherein the signal receiver 380c can receive the signal transmitted from the signal transmitter 360c, thereby detecting the light transmittance of the water flow in the inlet channel, so as to determine the clogging status of the filter screen based on the detection of the light transmittance of the water flow.

[0511] As an example, as further shown in Figure 36, the aforementioned automatic pool cleaning device also includes a movable baffle 390c. As an example, the movable baffle 390c is disposed in the water inlet channel 310c of the automatic pool cleaning device 500, wherein the movable baffle can switch between a first state and a second state depending on the clogging status of the filter screen in the filter basket. As an example, when the filter screen is clogged, the movable baffle 390c is in the first state, thereby preventing the detection of the light transmittance of the water flow; while when the filter screen is not clogged, the movable baffle 390c is in the second state, thereby allowing the detection of the light transmittance of the water flow. For example, Figure 36 schematically shows the situation where the movable baffle 390c is in the first state, that is, at least a portion of the movable baffle 390c is located between the transmitting end and the receiving end of the detection mechanism, hindering the detection mechanism from detecting the light transmittance of the water flow in the water inlet channel.

[0512] As an example, in the above-mentioned automatic water tank cleaning equipment, the detection mechanism includes a transmitter and a receiver. In the first state, at least a portion of the movable baffle is located between the transmitter and the receiver of the detection mechanism.

[0513] As an example, in the aforementioned automatic water tank cleaning device, the water flow entering the filter basket via the inlet channel can cause the movable baffle to switch between a first state and a second state. For instance, when the filter screen of the filter basket is not clogged, the entire water flow channel from the inlet on the housing of the automatic water tank cleaning device to the outlet on the housing of the automatic water tank cleaning device is unobstructed. When the water flow drive mechanism (e.g., a water pump) of the automatic water tank cleaning device draws water from the pool into the filter basket via the inlet channel, the movable baffle is pushed open by the water flow, that is, allowing light to pass through the water between the transmitting and receiving ends of the detection mechanism, and the receiving end can detect the signal. In other words, the detection mechanism can detect the light transmission state of the water flow, indicating that the filter screen of the filter basket is not clogged.

[0514] Conversely, after the automatic water cleaning equipment has been cleaning for a certain period of time, a significant amount of debris / dirt accumulates in the filter basket, potentially clogging the filter screen. In this case, the water flow channel between the inlet and outlet on the automatic water cleaning equipment housing is blocked at the filter screen, resulting in poor water flow. When the water flow drive mechanism (e.g., a water pump) of the automatic water cleaning equipment draws water from the pool into the filter basket through the inlet channel, the obstructed flow prevents the movable baffle from being pushed open, thus hindering the signal emitted by the transmitter of the detection mechanism from reaching the receiver through the water flow. In other words, the receiver cannot receive the signal emitted by the transmitter, meaning the detection mechanism cannot detect the light transmission status of the water flow. Therefore, the presence or absence of a clogged filter screen can be determined based on the detection mechanism's assessment of the water flow's light transmission status.

[0515] According to embodiments of this application, the degree of clogging of the filter basket's screen can also be determined based on the degree of light transmittance of the water flow detected by the detection mechanism. For example, as the degree of clogging increases, the water flow drive mechanism (e.g., a water pump) of the automatic water cleaning equipment, using the same drive power, experiences reduced water flow smoothness, leading to a decrease in water flow velocity / pressure. This reduces the thrust of the water flow on the movable baffle, increasing the obstruction of light transmission between the signal transmitter and receiver of the detection mechanism by the movable baffle, thereby reducing the light transmittance of the water flow detected by the detection mechanism. Therefore, the degree of clogging of the filter basket's screen can be determined based on the degree of light transmittance of the water flow detected by the detection mechanism.

[0516] According to an embodiment of this application, the detection mechanism may include a turbidity sensor, wherein the turbidity sensor can detect the light transmittance of the water at the inlet channel.

[0517] Optionally, in the above-mentioned automatic water tank cleaning equipment, the processing unit can be configured to determine the cleanliness of the water in the tank based on the light transmittance of the detected water flow.

[0518] As an example, the aforementioned processing unit may be any combination of a microprocessor, microcontroller, digital signal processor (DSP), application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), field-programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware component, or device designed to perform the relevant processing function.

[0519] For example, the detection mechanism shown in Figure 36 may include a turbidity sensor, which may include a signal transmitter and a signal receiver. Based on the light transmittance of the water between the transmitter and receiver, the turbidity sensor can generate a corresponding electrical signal indicating the turbidity of the water. As described above, since a movable baffle is provided between the transmitter and receiver, the movable baffle can switch between a first state and a second state depending on the clogging status of the filter screen in the filter basket. For example, when the filter screen is clogged, the movable baffle is in the first state, thus preventing the turbidity sensor from detecting the light transmittance of the water flow; while when the filter screen is not clogged, the movable baffle is in the second state, thus allowing the turbidity sensor to detect the light transmittance of the water flow. Specifically, when the filter screen in the filter basket is clogged, water cannot be drawn into the filter basket, resulting in obstructed water flow. This obstructs light transmission between the transmitter and receiver of the turbidity sensor, causing the turbidity sensor to detect the maximum turbidity value and determine that the filter screen in the filter basket is clogged. When the filter screen of the filter basket is not clogged, the movable baffle is sucked up by the water flow, no longer blocking the light transmission of the water between the signal transmitter and receiver of the turbidity sensor, and the turbidity sensor can detect the turbidity of the water.

[0520] Furthermore, since the automatic water tank cleaning device of this application embodiment can also use a turbidity sensor to detect water quality, such as the turbidity of the water body, the power of the water flow drive mechanism (e.g., water pump) or the cleaning operation mode of the automatic water tank cleaning device can be adjusted based on the detected water quality.

[0521] As an example, the detection sensor is not limited to a turbidity sensor, but may include other types of sensors capable of detecting the light transmittance of water, such as infrared sensors and photoelectric sensors, without limitation.

[0522] As an example, in the aforementioned automatic pool cleaning equipment, the movable baffle is made of a flexible material. Because of its flexibility, the movable baffle is sensitive to water flow velocity and can accurately reflect the clogging status of the filter basket's screen. Even if accidental external factors, such as changes in motion or instantaneous changes in the pump's speed or direction of rotation, cause sudden changes or errors in the detection data, these erroneous signals can be filtered out. This allows for appropriate processing based on the filtered signal, such as generating an alarm signal for filter basket screen clogging, adjusting the pump power, or changing the cleaning operation mode of the automatic pool cleaning equipment.

[0523] Optionally, in the above-mentioned automatic water tank cleaning equipment, the processing unit is further configured to generate an alarm signal when it is determined that the filter screen is clogged based on the detection of the light transmittance state of the water flow.

[0524] Figure 37 is a flowchart schematically illustrating a method for an automatic water tank cleaning device according to an embodiment of this application. As shown in Figure 37, the method may include: S611, driving water flow through an inlet channel into the filter basket of the automatic water tank cleaning device; S621, detecting the light transmittance of the water flow at at least one location in the inlet channel of the automatic water tank cleaning device; and S631, determining whether the filter basket is clogged based on the detected light transmittance of the water flow.

[0525] According to an embodiment of this application, since a detection mechanism is provided in the water inlet channel of the automatic water cleaning device, the state of the water flow in the water inlet channel can cause the movable baffle to switch between a first state and a second state. As an example, when the filter screen is blocked, the movable baffle is in the first state, thereby preventing the detection of the light transmission state of the water flow; while when the filter screen is not blocked, the movable baffle is in the second state, thereby allowing the detection of the light transmission state of the water flow.

[0526] As an example, when the water flow drive mechanism of the automatic water tank cleaning device draws water from the tank, if the filter screen of the filter basket is not clogged, the water flow in the inlet channel is unobstructed and can push open the movable baffle, thus allowing the detection mechanism to detect the light transmission state of the water flow. Conversely, if the filter screen of the filter basket is clogged, the water flow in the inlet channel is obstructed or even stagnant, and cannot push open the movable baffle, causing the movable baffle to obstruct the detection mechanism from detecting the light transmission state of the water flow. Therefore, based on the detection mechanism's detection of the light transmission state of the water flow, it can be determined whether the filter screen of the filter basket is clogged.

[0527] As an example, in the above-mentioned automatic water tank cleaning equipment, the detection mechanism includes a transmitter and a receiver; when the filter is clogged, the movable baffle is in a first state, and at least a portion of the movable baffle is located between the transmitter and receiver of the detection mechanism, thereby preventing the detection mechanism from detecting the light transmittance of the water flow.

[0528] Figure 38 is a flowchart schematically illustrating a method for an automatic pool cleaning device according to an embodiment of this application. As shown in Figure 38, the method may further include: S731, if it is determined that the filter screen of the filter basket is clogged based on the detection of the light transmittance of the water flow, generating an alarm signal for filter basket clogging, prompting the user to clean the filter screen of the automatic pool cleaning device, for example, displaying the alarm information for filter basket clogging on the user's smart terminal such as a mobile phone, allowing the user to start the filter screen cleaning operation mode of the automatic pool cleaning device through an application such as a smart terminal; or, automatically starting the filter screen cleaning operation mode of the automatic pool cleaning device after the alarm signal has lasted for a certain period of time; and S741, in the filter screen cleaning operation mode of the automatic pool cleaning device, for example, by vibrating the filter basket to remove the garbage / dirt clogging the filter screen, thereby cleaning the filter screen.

[0529] As another example, after generating an alarm signal for filter clogging, the automatic cleaning mode of the water tank cleaning equipment can be automatically paused, and the user can be prompted to manually clean the filter basket.

[0530] As shown in Figure 38, when it is determined that the filter screen of the filter basket is not clogged based on the detection of the light transmittance of the water flow, the method may include: S751, normally detecting the turbidity of the water body through a turbidity sensor and comparing the detected turbidity with a predetermined threshold; and S761, when the turbidity of the water body exceeds the predetermined threshold, adjusting the power of the water pump and / or changing the cleaning operation mode based on the detected turbidity of the water body to enhance the filtration of the water body and reduce the turbidity.

[0531] According to the above embodiments of this application, the detection of the light transmittance of the water flow in the inlet channel of the automatic water cleaning equipment can determine whether the filter screen of the filter basket of the automatic water cleaning equipment is clogged. When the filter screen is found to be clogged, an alarm signal can be generated so that the filter screen can be cleaned automatically or manually in a timely manner.

[0532] Furthermore, by detecting the light transmittance of the water flow, the water quality can be determined, allowing the power of the water pump to be adjusted during the cleaning operation mode of the automatic water cleaning equipment to enhance water filtration and reduce turbidity.

[0533] Therefore, various apparatuses and methods have been referenced above to present several aspects of this application. These apparatuses and methods are illustrated in the accompanying drawings by various blocks, components, circuits, processes, algorithms, etc. (collectively, "elements"). These elements can be implemented using electronic hardware, computer software, or any combination thereof. Whether these elements are implemented in hardware or software depends on the specific application and the design constraints of the overall system.

[0534] For example, a component, any part of a component, or any combination of components can be implemented as a "processing system" including one or more processors. One or more processors in the processing system can execute software. Software should be interpreted broadly as meaning instructions, instruction sets, code, code segments, program code, programs, subroutines, software components, applications, software applications, software packages, routines, subroutines, objects, executable programs, threads of execution, procedures, functions, etc., regardless of whether it is called software, firmware, middleware, microcode, hardware description languages, or something else.

[0535] Therefore, in one or more example embodiments, the described functionality can be implemented in hardware, software, or any combination thereof. If implemented in software, these functions can be stored or encoded as one or more instructions or code on a computer-readable medium. A computer-readable medium includes a computer storage medium. The storage medium can be any available medium accessible to a computer. By way of example and not limitation, such a computer-readable medium can include random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), electrically erasable programmable ROM (EEPROM), optical disk storage, magnetic disk storage, other magnetic storage devices, combinations of computer-readable media of the types described above, or any other medium that can be used to store computer-executable code in the form of computer-accessible instructions or data structures.

[0536] It should be understood that the specific order or hierarchy of blocks in the disclosed process / flowchart is illustrative of the exemplary method. Based on design preferences, it should be understood that the specific order or hierarchy of blocks in the process / flowchart can be rearranged. Furthermore, some blocks can be combined or omitted. The appended method claims present elements of various blocks in an exemplary order and are not intended to limit one to the specific order or hierarchy presented.

[0537] In the description of this specification, the references to terms such as "one embodiment," "some embodiments," "example," "specific example," or "some examples," etc., indicate that a specific feature, structure, material, or characteristic described in connection with that embodiment or example is included in at least one embodiment or example of this application. Furthermore, the specific features, structures, materials, or characteristics described may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments or examples. Moreover, without contradiction, those skilled in the art can combine and integrate the different embodiments or examples described in this specification, as well as the features of those different embodiments or examples.

[0538] Furthermore, the terms "first" and "second" are used for descriptive purposes only and should not be construed as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly specifying the number of technical features indicated. Thus, a feature defined as "first" or "second" may explicitly or implicitly include at least one of that feature. In the description of this application, "a plurality of" means two or more, unless otherwise explicitly specified.

[0539] In this application, unless otherwise stated, directional terms such as "up" and "down" are generally used in relation to the direction shown in the accompanying drawings, or in relation to the vertical, perpendicular, or gravitational direction; similarly, for ease of understanding and description, "left" and "right" are generally used in relation to the left and right shown in the accompanying drawings; "inner" and "outer" refer to the inner and outer contours of each component itself, but the above directional terms are not intended to limit this application.

[0540] The above description is merely an exemplary embodiment of this application, but the scope of protection of this application is not limited thereto. Any person skilled in the art can easily conceive of various variations or substitutions within the technical scope described in this application, and these should all be included within the scope of protection of this application. Therefore, the scope of protection of this application should be determined by the scope of the claims.

Claims

A method for controlling an automatic water tank cleaning device to move in a closed loop along the boundary of the water tank, comprising: Control the automatic cleaning equipment of the water tank to move along the boundary of the water tank; Real-time acquisition of motion-related information of the automatic water tank cleaning equipment during its movement; The system determines whether the automatic water tank cleaning device forms a closed loop along the boundary of the water tank based on real-time acquired motion-related information. as well as The system verifies whether the trajectory along the boundary of the pool forms a closed loop based on a preset time threshold. According to the method of claim 1, wherein, The preset time threshold includes at least one of the minimum travel time threshold or the maximum travel time threshold. The method of claim 2, wherein, Based on the minimum travel time threshold, the determination of whether the travel trajectory has formed a closed loop is verified, including: if it is determined that the travel trajectory has formed a closed loop, but the travel time is less than the minimum travel time threshold, then the determination that the travel trajectory has formed a closed loop is incorrect. The method according to claim 3 further includes, if the determination that the travel trajectory forms a closed loop is incorrect, controlling the automatic cleaning device of the pool to continue traveling along the boundary of the pool, and re-determining whether the travel trajectory forms a closed loop. The method of claim 2, wherein, Based on the maximum travel time threshold, the determination of whether the travel trajectory forms a closed loop is verified, including: if it is determined that the travel trajectory has not formed a closed loop, but the travel time exceeds or is equal to the maximum travel time threshold, then the determination that the travel trajectory has not formed a closed loop is incorrect. The method of claim 5, wherein, If the judgment that the travel trajectory has not formed a closed loop is deemed incorrect, then the current travel trajectory is determined to have formed a closed loop. The method according to any one of claims 2-5 further includes, if it is verified that the travel trajectory has formed a closed loop, controlling the cleaning device to stop traveling or change the travel mode. The method of claim 1, wherein, The motion-related information includes at least one of the following: the yaw angle of the automatic pool cleaning device, the environmental information of the automatic pool cleaning device, the magnetometer direction of the automatic pool cleaning device, or the positioning information of the automatic pool cleaning device. The method of claim 8, wherein, Determining whether the automatic water tank cleaning device's trajectory along the water tank boundary forms a closed loop based on real-time acquired motion-related information includes: Environmental feature information is extracted from the environmental information obtained during the movement of the automatic water tank cleaning equipment; Based on the extracted environmental feature information, it is determined whether the travel trajectory of the automatic cleaning equipment along the boundary of the pool forms a closed loop. The method of claim 8, wherein, Determining whether the automatic water tank cleaning device's trajectory along the water tank boundary forms a closed loop based on real-time acquired motion-related information includes: The acquired yaw angles are accumulated; and Based on the accumulated yaw angle values, it is determined whether the travel trajectory of the automatic cleaning equipment along the boundary of the pool forms a closed loop. The method of claim 8, wherein, Determining whether the automatic water tank cleaning device's trajectory along the water tank boundary forms a closed loop based on real-time acquired motion-related information includes: Based on the comparison between the acquired location information and the preset map information, it is determined whether the travel trajectory of the automatic cleaning equipment along the boundary of the pool forms a closed loop. The method of claim 8, wherein, Determining whether the automatic water tank cleaning device's trajectory along the water tank boundary forms a closed loop based on real-time acquired motion-related information includes: Based on the acquired change of the magnetometer direction, it is determined whether a closed loop is formed by the travel trajectory of the pool cleaning robot along the pool boundary. The method of claim 8, wherein, The yaw angle is acquired by an inertial measurement unit (IMU), and the environment information is acquired by at least one of a laser radar, an ultrasonic sensor, a TOF sensor, or a vision sensor. The method of any one of claims 2-5, wherein, The minimum travel duration threshold depends on at least one of a length of the pool boundary, a speed at which the pool cleaning robot travels, or an operating mode of the pool cleaning robot. A pool cleaning robot comprises: at least one processor; a memory storing executable instructions; the at least one processor is configured to, upon executing the executable instructions stored in the memory, cause the pool cleaning robot to implement the method of any one of claims 1-14.

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