Vacuum Cleaner AI Floor Type Detection for Adaptive Suction Control

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing vacuum cleaners struggle with accurately determining floor types due to user interference and obstacles, leading to unintended suction force variations and device malfunctions.

Innovation Solution

A vacuum cleaner equipped with an AI unit using machine learning to analyze current and voltage information, along with nozzle shutter states, to predict floor types and adjust suction force accordingly.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Device complexity

If a single threshold is used to predict floor type based on current load, then the device complexity is low, but the measurement precision and reliability deteriorate due to unintended results from user cleaning pattern changes and obstacles

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvefloor type detection mechanismVSAvoidfloor type prediction accuracy
Core Design Contradiction:
Device complexityVSMeasurement precision

Solution Approach 1:

The patent combines multiple detection parameters (current load, voltage, cleaning speed, acceleration) into a composite feature set for floor type prediction. This merging of multiple data sources enables the AI model to distinguish between genuine floor type changes and transient variations caused by obstacles or user behavior, thereby improving prediction accuracy without requiring a single complex detection mechanism.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #5Merging (Combining)

Solution Approach 2:

The patent transforms the detection approach from using a single parameter (current load threshold) to using multiple varying parameters (current, voltage, speed, acceleration) that change dynamically during cleaning. This parameter transformation allows the system to capture the nuanced differences between floor types while filtering out noise from obstacles and user patterns through temporal and multi-dimensional analysis.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #35Parameter changes

2Reliability

If multiple composite data parameters are used for floor type prediction, then the measurement precision and reliability improve, but the device complexity and data processing requirements increase

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvefloor type sensing reliabilityVSAvoiddata processing system
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent implements self-service through the AI model that automatically processes multiple data parameters and makes autonomous floor type predictions without requiring manual intervention or complex external processing systems. The model learns from training data and independently handles the complexity of multi-parameter analysis, converting what would be a complex processing requirement into an intelligent autonomous function.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #25Self-service

Solution Approach 2:

The patent applies preliminary action by pre-training the AI model with labeled floor type data before deployment. This preliminary training phase allows the system to learn the relationships between multiple parameters and floor types in advance, so that during actual operation, the complex data processing is already optimized and the system can reliably predict floor types using the pre-learned patterns without requiring complex real-time processing architecture.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

Data Source

PatentUS12490874B2Vacuum cleaner
Publication Date: 2025.12.09 LG ELECTRONICS INC
  • US12490874B2 patent drawing
  • US12490874B2 patent drawing
  • US12490874B2 patent drawing

AI summary

Disclosed is a vacuum cleaner. The present disclosure includes a suction motor providing a suction force, a nozzle unit sucking dust on a floor surface, a nozzle motor transferring a drive force to a rotating part, a nozzle shutter adjusting a size of a dust inlet, a battery providing power, a model selecting unit generating information on an operating state corresponding to a drive mode of the suction motor and an open/closed state of the nozzle shutter, an artificial intelligence unit generating probability information through an artificial intelligence model using current information, voltage information and the information on the operating state, and a controller controlling the drive mode in response to the probability information.