Movable Obstacle Sensing for Robot Cleaner Cornering
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing automatically moving cleaning devices often have blind spots due to fixed or uniformly rotating obstacle detection systems, which can lead to collisions with obstacles, especially when cornering or navigating uneven surfaces.
Innovation Solution
The obstacle detection device is adapted to the cleaning device's current position and orientation, with a changeable detection range that shifts to anticipate and detect obstacles in the direction of movement, using movable transmitters, receivers, and signal deflection devices, such as mirrors or prisms, to ensure reliable detection of obstacles during cornering and vertical tilting, and is linked with a control device to adjust its movement accordingly.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the obstacle detection device is fixed to the cleaning device housing, then the device structure is simple, but blind spots occur during cornering and navigation
Solution Approach 1:
The obstacle detection device is made movable relative to the cleaning device housing, allowing it to dynamically adjust its detection area according to the cleaning device's movement state. The control device shifts the detection area in the direction of movement during cornering or navigation, eliminating blind spots while maintaining reliable obstacle detection.
2Adaptability or versatility
If the obstacle detection device performs uniform rotation, then 360° coverage is achieved, but detection area cannot be adapted to current movement direction
Solution Approach 1:
The control device shifts the detection area in advance in the direction of the cleaning device's movement before cornering or changing direction. This preliminary positioning of the detection area ensures that obstacles in the upcoming path are detected early, reducing detection response time while maintaining adaptability to movement direction.
3Reliability
If the detection area is shifted during cornering, then obstacles are detected early, but the device requires complex control mechanisms
Solution Approach 1:
The control device receives information about the cleaning device's movement state and automatically adjusts the detection area position accordingly. This feedback mechanism ensures that the detection area is continuously aligned with the movement direction, improving obstacle avoidance reliability while automating the control process to manage complexity.
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
This solution enhances the reliability of obstacle detection and avoidance by ensuring that obstacles are detected early and consistently, even in changing directions and orientations, preventing collisions and eliminating blind spots, allowing the cleaning device to navigate safely and efficiently.
Implementation Method 1
a transmitter for emitting a signal and a receiver for receiving a signal reflected from an obstacle
Implementation Method 2
A distance between the obstacle detection device or the cleaning device and the measured obstacle can then be calculated from a time-of-flight measurement
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2~3b
Figure 4a~4b
AI summary
The invention relates to an automatically moving cleaning device (1) comprising a device housing (2), at least one obstacle detection device (3) and a control device for controlling the cleaning device (1) within an environment according to a detection result of the obstacle detection device (3), wherein the obstacle detection device (3) is at least partially moveably mounted on the device housing (2), such that a detection region (6) of the obstacle detection device (3) can be shifted relative to the device housing (2). According to the invention, in order to optimise the detection of obstacles (4) within the environment of the cleaning device (1), the control device is configured to shift the detection region (6) of the obstacle detection device (3) relative to the device housing (2) depending on a position and/or orientation of the cleaning device (1).