Automatic Pool Cleaner Wall-Following for Perimeter Mapping
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing automatic swimming pool cleaners lack the ability to accurately map pool perimeters without external tools, limiting their efficiency and effectiveness in cleaning operations.
Innovation Solution
The cleaner adjusts its traction speeds on opposite sides to maintain contact with pool walls, allowing it to map the perimeter by sensing contact with vertical walls and making turns, using onboard mechanisms to measure distances and angles.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If the cleaner uses balanced traction speeds on both sides, then the cleaner can travel forward or rearward easily, but it cannot map the pool perimeter accurately
Solution Approach 1:
The system dynamically adjusts the traction speeds of left and right wheels based on wall contact detection. When a wall is detected, the cleaner transitions from balanced speeds to unbalanced speeds to maintain contact with the wall while mapping the perimeter, then returns to balanced speeds for normal forward movement. This dynamic adjustment resolves the contradiction by enabling accurate perimeter mapping only when needed.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention changes the operational parameters (traction speeds) from a constant balanced state to a variable state with three modes: normal forward movement (balanced speeds), wall following (unbalanced speeds with slower contact side), and corner turning (different speed combinations). This parameter change allows the system to achieve both easy operation and accurate mapping by using unbalanced speeds only during perimeter mapping phases.
2Measurement precision
If the cleaner uses unbalanced traction speeds to maintain wall contact, then it can map the perimeter accurately, but the movement control becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The system uses wall contact sensors to provide feedback that triggers automatic adjustment of wheel speeds. When the sensor detects wall contact, the controller automatically applies unbalanced speeds to maintain contact, and when contact is lost, it returns to balanced speeds. This feedback mechanism simplifies the control complexity by using automatic sensor-based adjustments rather than requiring complex manual or pre-programmed control sequences.
Solution Approach 2:
The cleaner performs its own perimeter mapping function using its existing wall-following capability combined with speed differential control. The system self-adjusts its operation mode based on sensor input, eliminating the need for external mapping tools or complex external control systems. The cleaner serves its own mapping needs by leveraging its inherent ability to maintain wall contact through speed adjustment.
3Measurement precision
If the cleaner traverses the entire perimeter through multiple loops, then the perimeter measurements can be refined, but the cleaning time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs perimeter mapping by traversing only the necessary portion of the pool perimeter (typically one complete loop or partial loop depending on pool shape) rather than requiring multiple complete loops. The wall-following mode with unbalanced speeds allows accurate measurement in a single pass, reducing the excessive action of multiple traversals while maintaining measurement precision.
Solution Approach 2:
The cleaner performs perimeter mapping as a preliminary action during its normal cleaning operation. By integrating the mapping function into the regular cleaning path using wall-following mode, the system accumulates perimeter data during routine operation without requiring separate dedicated mapping trips, thus avoiding additional time loss while still achieving refined measurements through repeated passes.
Data Source
AI summary
A swimming pool cleaner may include motive elements intentionally driven in an unbalanced manner. This unbalanced driving may allow a cleaner to maintain contact with ("hug") walls of a pool, allowing the cleaner to, e.g., obtain information allowing mapping of the pool perimeter.