Robot Cleaner Manual Region Setting Without Ceiling Marks
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional robot cleaners face inefficiencies in cleaning large spaces, requiring position recognition marks or laser points for region setting, which can be cumbersome and prone to malfunctions due to dust accumulation, and struggle with precise positioning on uneven floors, leading to incomplete cleaning and reduced efficiency.
Innovation Solution
A robot cleaner system that allows for manual setting of a designated cleaning region using a terminal device, which generates remote control signals to guide the robot cleaner to set and clean specific areas without relying on traditional position recognition marks or laser points, enabling precise and concentrated cleaning operations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If position recognition marks are mounted on the ceiling for region setting, then the robot cleaner can distinguish multiple operation regions, but the recognition function degrades as dust or foreign materials cling to the marks and additional installation costs occur
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the position recognition function from the ceiling-mounted marks and relocates it to the floor surface. The robot cleaner uses its own sensors to detect boundary marks placed on the floor, eliminating the need for ceiling installation and improving reliability by removing marks from dust-prone ceiling surfaces.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces boundary marks as intermediary elements placed on the floor surface to mediate between the robot cleaner and the region definition. These marks serve as detectable references without requiring ceiling infrastructure, solving both the installation complexity and recognition reliability issues.
2Ease of operation
If laser points from a remote controller are used to set a specific region, then the robot cleaner can be directed to clean targeted areas, but precise position detection becomes difficult on uneven floors and some points within the region cannot be reached
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the optical laser point system with a physical boundary mark detection system. Instead of using laser reflection which is affected by floor unevenness, the robot uses onboard sensors to detect physical boundary marks placed on the floor, achieving more reliable and precise position detection.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates a simplified copy of the region boundary using physical marks on the floor that the robot can detect. This copy of the boundary information is more reliable than laser points because it is tangible and detectable by the robot's sensors regardless of floor surface variations.
3Area of stationary object
If the robot cleaner cleans large spaces, then comprehensive coverage is achieved, but cleaning time increases significantly and some regions may not be cleaned
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the large cleaning space into multiple designated regions using boundary marks. The robot cleaner can then selectively clean specific regions rather than the entire space, allowing users to segment the cleaning task by setting boundaries around only the areas that need cleaning, thereby reducing overall cleaning time while maintaining comprehensive coverage of targeted areas.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies local quality by enabling the robot to concentrate cleaning efforts on specific designated regions rather than uniformly cleaning the entire space. Users can define local areas of interest using boundary marks, and the robot adapts its cleaning behavior to focus on these specific zones, improving efficiency by avoiding unnecessary cleaning in already clean or unwanted areas.
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2~3
Figure 4
AI summary
Disclosed are a robot cleaner (100), a controlling method of the same, and a robot cleaning system (100, 200). The robot cleaner (100) can perform a cleaning operation with respect to only a user's desired region, in a repeated and concentrated manner. Further, as the robot cleaner (100) runs on a user's desired region in a manual manner, a designated region can be precisely set. Further, as the robot cleaner (100) performs a cleaning operation by setting a user's desired region, only a simple configuration is added to a terminal device (200) such as a remote control unit. Accordingly, additional costs can be reduced, and a malfunction can be prevented.