Height Adjustable Autonomous Floor Cleaner Balancing System

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Solution Overview

Problem

Autonomous floor cleaners face limitations in navigating over obstacles due to their fixed clearance, which restricts their ability to traverse over objects that exceed their height or require avoiding sensitive surfaces, leading to potential damage or inefficient cleaning paths.

Innovation Solution

The autonomous floor cleaner incorporates a motorized drive system, adjustable actuators to change clearance, and a balancing system with gyroscopic flywheel, reaction wheel, or movable mass assembly to self-balance and adjust its height, allowing it to hover over obstacles and maintain stability while cleaning.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Adaptability or versatility

If the cleaner maintains a fixed clearance between the body and floor surface, then the structure is simple and stable, but the cleaner cannot navigate over obstacles that exceed its clearance height

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveability to navigate over obstaclesVSAvoidclearance adjustment mechanism

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent applies the dynamics principle by making the clearance between the cleaner body and floor surface dynamically adjustable. The cleaner includes actuators that can change the clearance height from a first height (for normal cleaning) to a second height (for obstacle clearance). This allows the cleaner to adapt its structure in real-time based on terrain requirements, resolving the contradiction between fixed simplicity and adaptive capability.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #15Dynamics

Solution Approach 2:

The patent changes the clearance parameter from a fixed value to a variable parameter. By controlling the actuators to adjust the clearance between the body and floor surface, the system can transition between different operational states (normal cleaning vs. obstacle traversal). This parameter change enables the cleaner to handle varying obstacle heights without requiring completely different designs for each scenario.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #35Parameter changes

2Reliability

If the cleaner raises its body to hover over obstacles, then it avoids damage and sensitive surface contact, but the cleaner loses stability and requires balancing control

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveprotection from damageVSAvoidbody balance

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSStability of the object's composition

Solution Approach 1:

The patent implements feedback control through sensors that detect the cleaner's tilt angle and position relative to obstacles. The control system continuously monitors these parameters and adjusts the actuators and wheel forces to maintain stability during height adjustment. This closed-loop feedback enables the cleaner to safely hover over obstacles while automatically correcting any balance deviations.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #23Feedback

Solution Approach 2:

The patent uses counterbalancing forces generated by the actuators and wheel mechanisms to offset the gravitational torque that causes instability when the body is raised. By coordinating the actuation of multiple wheels and the body height adjustment, the system creates counteracting moments that maintain rotational equilibrium, allowing stable obstacle traversal.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #8Anti-weight (Counterweight)

3Reliability

If the cleaner uses navigation systems to avoid obstacles, then it preserves the cleaning implement from damage, but it increases cleaning time due to longer paths

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvecleaning implement protectionVSAvoidcleaning cycle duration

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

Instead of statically avoiding obstacles through extended navigation paths, the patent dynamically adjusts the clearance height to traverse over obstacles directly. This dynamic height adjustment allows the cleaner to maintain its original cleaning path while protecting the cleaning implement by temporarily raising the body during obstacle traversal, thereby reducing unnecessary travel time.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #15Dynamics

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

Enables the cleaner to effectively navigate over obstacles and maintain stability, avoiding damage and ensuring efficient cleaning by dynamically adjusting its height and balance, thereby improving navigation and cleaning efficiency.

Implementation Method 1

The balancing system may include a gyroscopic flywheel operable to generate the balancing force.

Methodology Applied

Scientific EffectGyroscopic effect: Gyroscope

Implementation Method 2

The balancing system may include a reaction wheel operable to generate the balancing force.

Methodology Applied

Scientific EffectConservation of angular momentum: Angular Momentum Conservation

Implementation Method 3

The balancing system may include moveable mass assembly operable to generate the balancing force.

Methodology Applied

Scientific EffectCenter of gravity adjustment: Gravitation

Data Source

PatentUS20240099531A1Height adjustable self-balancing autonomous floor cleaner

Publication Date: 2024.03.28 BISSELL INC

AI summary

An autonomous surface cleaner for cleaning a floor or other surface. The cleaner may include a body, a cleaning implement for cleaning a surface, a motorized drive system, a pair of wheels operable with the motorized drive system to assist moving the body relative to the surface, one or more actuators operable for controllably adjusting a height of the body, and/or a balancing system operable to self-balance the body.