Battery assembly for autonomous mobile cleaning robot
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing autonomous mobile robots face challenges in easily and securely aligning and locking battery assemblies, requiring manual horizontal repositioning and separate locking mechanisms, which can be cumbersome and prone to misalignment.
Innovation Solution
The implementation of a dovetail joint mechanism with a deflectable arm that ensures horizontal and vertical alignment of the battery assembly with the robot's cavity, allowing for easy vertical insertion and automatic locking, eliminating the need for separate locking mechanisms and ensuring secure electrical contact.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a separate locking mechanism is used to secure the battery assembly, then the battery can be securely locked, but the device complexity and ease of operation deteriorate due to requiring manual manipulation of separate locking mechanisms
Solution Approach 1:
The locking mechanism is merged with the battery assembly structure itself. The battery housing includes integrated locking protrusions that automatically engage with corresponding recesses in the robot body when the battery is inserted, eliminating the need for separate locking mechanisms. This integration maintains secure locking while reducing device complexity and improving ease of operation.
Solution Approach 2:
The battery assembly performs self-locking through its own structural features. When the battery is inserted into the robot body, the locking protrusions on the battery housing automatically engage with the recesses in the robot body without requiring external locking mechanisms or manual intervention. The battery assembly serves its own locking function.
2Manufacturing precision
If manual horizontal repositioning is required to align the battery assembly, then the battery can be securely positioned, but the ease of operation deteriorates due to cumbersome alignment procedures
Solution Approach 1:
The battery housing and robot body feature asymmetric guiding structures including lateral guiding surfaces and positioning protrusions that are shaped to guide the battery into the correct horizontal position during insertion. The asymmetric design ensures that the battery can only be properly inserted in the correct orientation, automatically achieving precise alignment without requiring manual horizontal repositioning.
Solution Approach 2:
The guiding surfaces and positioning features are pre-configured on the battery housing and robot body to automatically perform the alignment function during the insertion process. The lateral guiding surfaces create preliminary horizontal positioning as the battery is inserted, eliminating the need for separate manual alignment steps.
3Reliability
If the battery assembly design requires separate locking mechanisms, then the locking function can be achieved, but the device complexity increases and ease of operation decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The locking function is merged into the basic structure of the battery assembly. The housing includes integrated locking protrusions and engagement features that provide secure locking as part of the normal battery structure, eliminating the need for separate locking mechanisms and making battery replacement as easy as simple insertion and removal.
Data Source
Figure 1
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Figure 2B
AI summary
An autonomous mobile cleaning robot includes a cavity along a bottom portion of the robot, and a drive configured to support the robot above a floor surface. The drive is configured to propel the robot along the floor surface. The robot further includes a first electrical terminal disposed in the cavity and connected to electrical circuitry of the robot, a battery assembly, and a dovetail joint. The battery assembly includes a battery housing, a battery contained within the battery housing, and a second electrical terminal mounted to the battery housing and configured to engage with the first electrical terminal. The dovetail joint includes a vertically extending projection portion and a vertically extending socket portion.