Dust box, automatic cleaning apparatus and dust collection pile
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Solution Overview
Problem
Users of automatic cleaning apparatuses, such as robot vacuum cleaners, face health issues due to the need to frequently bend down to empty dust boxes with limited capacity and low positioning, which is not ergonomically favorable.
Innovation Solution
A dust box with a check valve assembly that switches from a closed to an open state in response to an external acting force greater than a threshold, allowing for efficient garbage collection and airflow transfer between the dust box and a dust collection pile, utilizing fans to manage the check valve's state during cleaning and dust exhaust modes.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If the dust box capacity is increased and positioned higher, then user ergonomics improve, but the automatic cleaning apparatus cannot effectively transfer garbage to the dust collection pile
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an airflow field as an intermediary to transfer garbage from the dust box to the dust collection pile. The airflow, generated by fans in both the automatic cleaning apparatus and the dust collection pile, creates a pressure difference that drives garbage through the first through-hole without requiring mechanical lifting or direct contact, thus resolving the contradiction between improved ergonomics and transfer efficiency.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs pneumatic principles by using airflow pressure differences to transport garbage. The check valve assembly responds to external acting forces (air pressure) to switch between closed and open states, allowing garbage to be carried by airflow through the first through-hole from the elevated dust box to the dust collection pile, eliminating the need for manual intervention while maintaining ergonomic benefits.
2Productivity
If the check valve assembly is kept open to allow garbage exit, then garbage transfer efficiency improves, but dust leakage into the accommodation space occurs during cleaning
Solution Approach 1:
The check valve assembly is designed to dynamically switch between closed and open states based on operating conditions. During cleaning, it remains closed to maintain dust containment; during garbage transfer, it opens in response to external acting forces. This dynamic behavior resolves the contradiction by adapting the valve state to the current operational requirement, ensuring both dust containment and transfer efficiency.
Solution Approach 2:
The check valve assembly responds to feedback from external acting forces (air pressure differences) to automatically switch states. When the airflow pressure exceeds a threshold during garbage transfer, the valve opens; when pressure normalizes during cleaning, the valve closes. This feedback mechanism ensures reliable dust containment while enabling efficient garbage transfer when needed.
3Speed
If the fan power is increased to improve garbage transfer, then transfer speed improves, but energy consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies partial action by using just enough fan power to create the minimum required pressure difference for garbage transfer. The check valve assembly only opens when the external acting force exceeds a threshold, meaning the fan operates at moderate power levels rather than continuously at high power. This resolves the contradiction by providing sufficient transfer speed only when necessary, minimizing overall energy consumption.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution enables ergonomic garbage collection and transfer, reducing user strain and improving the efficiency of dust collection by allowing airflow to carry garbage from the dust box into the dust collection pile, while minimizing fan power consumption during dust exhaust mode.
Implementation Method 1
an elastic component connected to the valve component, the elastic component being configured to bias the valve component to a position where the second through hole is closed
Implementation Method 2
a first fan connected to the air outlet, the first fan being configured to extract an airflow from the accommodation space via the air outlet
Implementation Method 3
the first fan works to generate the external acting force applied to the check valve assembly
Data Source
AI summary
Disclosed are a dust box, an automatic cleaning apparatus and a dust collection pile. The dust box includes: a dust box body including a bottom wall and sidewalls disposed around edges of the bottom wall, the sidewalls extend from the bottom wall away from the bottom wall, the bottom wall and the sidewalls define an accommodation space, the sidewall is defined with a first through hole, and the first through hole is a pathway for garbage to enter or move out of the accommodation space, a check valve assembly is disposed on the sidewall of the dust box, and the check valve assembly is biased in a closed state, and in response to an external acting force applied to the check valve assembly being greater than a threshold, the check valve assembly is switched from the closed state to an open state.