JP2020039740A - Autonomous travel type cleaner - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide an autonomous travel type cleaner capable of suppressing entanglement of dust to a side brush, for extending a service life of a bristle bundle of the side brush.SOLUTION: An autonomous travel type cleaner comprises: a side brush (44) which is provided on a floor surface of a body (20) for sweeping and collecting dust on a floor surface; and a cleaning raising cloth (121) for sweeping and removing dust adhering to the side brush (44) and being provided in a rotation region of the side brush (44). Since a prescribed gap is provided between the cleaning raising cloth (121) and the floor surface, the side brush (44) passes through a gap between the cleaning raising cloth (121) and the floor surface, and passes in contact with the cleaning raising cloth during rotation of the side brush, thereby wiping and removing dust adhering to the side brush (44).SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 12

Description

  The present invention relates to an autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner.

  Conventionally, an autonomous traveling type vacuum cleaner having a body, a drive unit, a main brush, a suction unit, a side brush, and the like has been disclosed (for example, see Patent Literatures 1 to 4). The body of the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner has various components mounted thereon. The drive unit moves the body. The main brush is disposed at a suction opening formed in the body, and collects dust present on the cleaning surface. The suction unit sucks dust from a suction port of the body. The side brush collects dust on the floor existing on the bottom of the body of the body. That is, the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner is configured to rotate the side brush to collect dust such as dust on the cleaning surface and guide the dust to the suction port.

  The conventional autonomous traveling cleaner described in each of the above patent documents is configured to collect dust on the floor surface by rotating a side brush provided in front of the body bottom surface of the body. Therefore, much of the dust collected by the side brush is collected through the suction port on the bottom surface of the body.

JP 2012-231937 A JP 2013-146303 A JP-A-2006-116541 JP-A-2006-154597

  However, a part of the dust attached to the side brush may be swept out of the body again by the centrifugal force generated by the rotation of the side brush, and may be scattered on the floor.

  Further, the side brush is provided on the front side of the body bottom surface of the body in order to improve dust collecting performance on the floor surface. Then, the side brush rotates at a position relatively close to the floor surface. Therefore, when carpet or fibrous dust is easily entangled with the side brush and strong entanglement that locks the rotation of the side brush occurs, the motor is driven by the rotation of the motor at the root (adhesive part) of the side brush. Stress is applied directly. As a result, the implanted bristle bundles tend to shrink and fall off.

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention solves the above-mentioned conventional problems, and prevents the dust from being swept out of the machine body again by the rotation of the side brush, and further suppresses the entanglement of the dust with the side brush. An object of the present invention is to provide an autonomous traveling type vacuum cleaner capable of extending the life of a bundle.

An autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner according to the present invention includes a body, a side brush provided on a bottom surface of the body, sweeping dust on a floor surface, and a cleaning brush cloth for sweeping dust adhered to the side brush in a rotation area of the side brush. And is arranged so as to be slightly separated from the floor surface so as to leave a predetermined gap. The side brush includes a brush shaft arranged at a predetermined distance above the floor surface and a pair of bristle bundles having different lengths. The bristle bundle having a short length is configured such that at least a tip portion has a length in contact with the cleaning raising cloth.

  According to this configuration, when the side brush passes through the cleaning brush during rotation, the pair of bristle bundles having different lengths pass through the gap between the cleaning brush and the floor surface while spreading, and adhere to the side brush. Dust is swept away without waste. Therefore, it is possible to prevent dust adhering to the side brush from being swept out of the body by the centrifugal force again.

  Further, the brush shaft of the side brush is provided at a predetermined distance above the floor surface. Therefore, entanglement of a carpet or the like with the brush shaft can be suppressed. In addition, the collision between the brush shaft of the side brush and the step, which is caused when the vehicle gets over the step or the like, is largely avoided. Therefore, the brush shaft can be prevented from being damaged or damaged.

  Further, the length of the bristle bundle provided on the side brush is short because the tip portion is in contact with the cleaning brush. Therefore, the entanglement of dust such as hair or fiber on the side brush can be effectively suppressed. In addition, the bristle bundle of the side brush can be prevented from being deformed due to entanglement of dust. For this reason, it is possible to effectively prevent the side brush from slipping off or fraying and to effectively prevent the side brush from shrinking, thereby extending the life of the side brush. Thereby, the number of times of maintenance and replacement of the side brush can be significantly reduced.

A side brush is provided on the bottom of the body to sweep dust on the floor, and a cleaning brush is provided in the rotation area of the side brush to sweep off dust attached to the side brush. When the side brush rotates, the side brush passes through the gap between the cleaning raising cloth and the floor surface and passes while contacting the cleaning raising cloth, so that dust attached to the side brush can be wiped off.

FIG. 1 is an overall perspective view of an autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a plan view of the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner. Fig. 3 is a bottom view of the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner. FIG. 4 is a front view of the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner. FIG. 5 is a left side view of the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner. FIG. 6 is a plan view of the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner with a lid opened. FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner in a state where a trash can unit is taken out. FIG. 8 is a perspective view of a lower unit of the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner. FIG. 9 is a perspective view of an upper unit of the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner. FIG. 10 is a left sectional view of the autonomous traveling type vacuum cleaner. FIG. 11 is a left sectional view of the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner with a trash can unit removed. FIG. 12 is a partial view showing the rotation area of the side brush viewed from the bottom of the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner. FIG. 13 is a cross-sectional view of a main part of the side brush, illustrating a cross section taken along line AA of FIG. FIG. 14 is a cross-sectional view of a main part of the cleaning brushing cloth, showing a cross section taken along line BB of FIG. FIG. 15 is a partial view showing a state when the side brush is rotated as viewed from the bottom of the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner. FIG. 16 is a partial view showing a state in which the side brush is rotated as viewed from the bottom of the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The present invention is not limited by the embodiment.

(Embodiment 1)
Hereinafter, the configuration of the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner 10 (may be simply referred to as “cleaner 10”) in the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 16.

  FIG. 1 is an overall perspective view of an autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a plan view of the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner. FIG. 3 is a bottom view of the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner. FIG. 4 is a front view of the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner. FIG. 5 is a left side view of the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner. FIG. 6 is a plan view of the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner with a lid opened. FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner in a state where a trash can unit is taken out. FIG. 8 is a perspective view of a lower unit of the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner. FIG. 9 is a perspective view of the upper unit of the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner. FIG. 10 is a left sectional view of the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner. FIG. 11 is a left sectional view of the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner in a state where a trash can unit is taken out. FIG. 12 is a partial view showing the rotation area of the side brush viewed from the bottom of the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner. FIG. 13 is a cross-sectional view of a main part of the side brush, illustrating a cross section taken along line AA of FIG. 12. FIG. 14 is a partial cross-sectional view of the cleaning blanket, showing a BB cross section of FIG. 12. FIG. 15 shows a state when the side brush is rotated as viewed from the bottom surface of the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner, and shows a state where the cleaning brushing cloth is 0.5 mm or less from the floor surface. FIG. 16 shows a state when the side brush is rotated as viewed from the bottom surface of the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner, and indicates a state when the cleaning brushing cloth is separated from the floor surface by 0.5 mm or more.

  The autonomous traveling cleaner 10 according to the present embodiment is, for example, a robot-type cleaner that autonomously travels on a cleaning surface in a target area and sucks dust such as dust existing on the cleaning surface. Vacuum cleaner 10 includes a plurality of structural functional blocks. The target area is, for example, a room. The cleaning surface is, for example, a floor of a room.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 to 13, a cleaner 10 according to the present embodiment includes a body 20, a cleaning unit 40, a suction unit 50, a trash can unit 60, a pair of drive units 30, a control Unit 70, a power supply unit 80, and the like. A part of the drive unit 30, a part of the cleaning unit 40, the trash can unit 60, the suction unit 50, the control unit 70, and the power supply unit 80 are arranged in the body 20.

  Hereinafter, as shown in the drawing, the front surface 21 side of the body 20 will be described as a front direction, and the rear top portion 24 side will be described as a rear direction. Further, the cleaning surface side of the body 20 will be referred to as a lower side, the opposite side will be referred to as an upper side, and further, the right side and the left side toward the front surface 21 of the body 20 will be described as a left side.

  Specifically, the cleaning unit 40 collects refuse existing in a target area such as a room. The suction unit 50 sucks the collected dust into the body 20. The trash box unit 60 accumulates trash sucked by the suction unit 50.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the drive units 30 are formed, for example, as a pair, and are provided on the bottom surface side of the body 20. The drive unit 30 moves the body 20 in a predetermined direction in cooperation with a caster 90 that rotates following the rotation of the drive unit 30, which will be described later. The control unit 70 controls operations of the drive unit 30, the cleaning unit 40, the suction unit 50, and the like. The power supply unit 80 supplies power to the drive unit 30, the cleaning unit 40, the suction unit 50, the control unit 70, and the like.

The body 20 includes a lower unit 100 (see FIG. 8) and an upper unit 200 (see FIG. 9). The lower unit 100 forms the lower outer shape of the body 20. The upper unit 200 forms the upper outer shape of the body 20. An outer shell of the body 20 is configured by combining the lower unit 100 and the upper unit 200.

  The upper unit 200 includes a cover 210, a lid 220 (see FIGS. 1 and 7), a bumper 230, and the like. The cover 210 forms a main part of the upper unit 200. The lid 220 is provided on the cover 210 so as to be freely opened and closed. The bumper 230 is provided on the front surface 21 side of the cover 210. The bumper 230 forms an outer shell of the upper unit 200, is configured to be displaceable with respect to the lower unit 100, and absorbs or reduces an impact caused by a collision with an obstacle or the like.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 3, the drive unit 30 is arranged on the bottom side of the lower unit 100 and includes a plurality of elements. The plurality of elements include a pair of, for example, a tire 34, a wheel 33 (see FIG. 10), a traveling motor 31, a housing 32, a support shaft 35, and the like. The tire 34 travels on the cleaning surface to move the body 20. The wheel 33 holds a tire 34. The traveling motor 31 gives a rotational torque to the wheel 33. The housing 32 houses the traveling motor 31. The housing 32 is housed in a recess (not shown) formed in the lower unit 100. The housing 32 rotatably supports the tire 34 by the lower unit 100.

  The wheel 33 is arranged outside the traveling motor 31 in the width direction (longitudinal direction) of the main brush 43. With this arrangement, the distance between the right wheel 33 and the left wheel 33 is wider than when the wheels 33 are arranged inside the traveling motor 31. Therefore, the stability of the body 20 during traveling or the like is improved.

  The vacuum cleaner 10 according to the present embodiment is operated by an opposed two-wheel drive system. That is, in the cleaner 10, the right drive unit 30 and the left drive unit 30 are arranged to face each other in the width direction (left-right direction) of the body 20. The rotation axis H of the right wheel 33 and the rotation axis H of the left wheel 33 shown in FIG. 3 are provided in the same direction parallel to the support shaft 35 that rotates the drive unit 30. Further, the rotation axes H of the left and right wheels 33 are fixed to a suspension 36 (see FIG. 8) via a support shaft 35. The suspension 36 plays a role of a cushion that alleviates vibration applied to the body 20 due to irregularities such as a surface to be cleaned during driving.

  The lower unit 100 includes the above-described casters 90 near the rear top 24 of the body 20 on the lower rear surface side. The caster 90 is rotatably supported by the lower unit 100 via a support shaft 91 and further via a support shaft 92. That is, the body 20 is supported on the surface to be cleaned at three points: the left and right drive units 30 and the casters 90. Therefore, the body 20 can always be moved stably.

  The cleaning unit 40 is disposed on the lower unit 100 and includes a plurality of elements, as shown in FIGS. The plurality of elements include, for example, a brush driving motor 41, a gear box 42, a main brush 43, a side brush 44, and the like. The brush drive motor 41 and the gear box 42 are arranged inside the body 20. The main brush 43 is provided at the suction port 101 of the body 20. As shown in FIG. 2, the side brushes 44 are disposed on the left and right front apex portions 23 at intersections of the front surface 21 of the body 20 and the left and right side surfaces 22. The side brush 44 includes a brush shaft 44A and a bristle bundle 44B fixed to the brush shaft 44A and arranged to protrude downward from the body 20. The brush shaft 44A is fixed to the gear box 42 (see FIG. 8).

As shown in FIG. 12, the side brush 44 includes, for example, two to four bristle bundles 44B including a first bristle bundle 44BA and a second bristle bundle 44BB having different lengths. At this time, the first bristle bundle 44BA is arranged at a position ahead of the second bristle bundle 44BB in the rotation direction. The length of the first bristle bundle 44BA is formed to be longer than the length of the second bristle bundle 44BB. At this time, the length of the second bristle bundle 44BB is set to such a length that the tip portion at least contacts the cleaning brushed cloth 121 (see FIG. 3) described later during rotation. Specifically, the length of the first bristle bundle 44BA is about 52 mm, and the length of the second bristle bundle 44BB is about 44 mm.

  Further, one pair of bristle bundles 44B and the other pair of bristle bundles 44B are provided at rotationally symmetric positions of 180 degrees with respect to the rotation axis of the brush shaft 44A.

  Further, the first bristle bundle 44BA and the second bristle bundle 44BB forming the pair of bristle bundles 44B are implanted at different angles with respect to the brush shaft 44A. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 12, the first bristle bundle 44BA and the second bristle bundle 44BB have different rotations in a substantially V shape (including the V shape) with respect to the brush shaft 44A in the rotation direction. Flocked at an angle. For example, based on the second bristle bundle 44BB, the first bristle bundle 44BA is implanted at a rotational angle advanced from 8 ° to 10 ° in the rotational direction with respect to the brush shaft 44A.

  In addition, the second bristle bundle 44BB is implanted at a different inclination angle, for example, 12 ° from the horizontal direction, inclining more downward than the first bristle bundle 44BA in the vertical direction. Specifically, the first bristle bundle 44BA is implanted at an inclination angle of 31 ° from the horizontal direction on the brush shaft 44A, and the second bristle bundle 44BB is implanted at an inclination angle of 43 °.

  That is, in the present embodiment, the lengths and angles of the first bristle bundle 44BA and the second bristle bundle 44BB constituting the pair of bristle bundles 44B are appropriately set so that the collection area during rotation is increased. Is determined.

  As described above, the side brush 44 is disposed on the front top 23 projecting left and right forward of the cleaner 10 (see FIG. 1). With this arrangement, dust in the corner of the room can be collected with higher collection performance.

  Further, the brush drive motor 41 and the gear box 42 are attached to the lower unit 100 as shown in FIG. An output shaft (not shown) of the brush drive motor 41 is connected to a gear box 42, a main brush 43 (see FIG. 3), and left and right front side brushes 44. Thus, the rotation output of the brush drive motor 41 is transmitted to the main brush 43 and the side brush 44.

  The length in the longitudinal direction of the main brush 43 is substantially the same as the length in the longitudinal direction of the suction port 101 formed in the lower unit 100. The main brush 43 is rotatably supported on the lower unit 100 by a bearing (not shown). The bearing portion is disposed, for example, on one or both of the gear box 42 and the lower unit 100. At this time, the main brush 43 rotates, for example, in a direction in which dust is sent to the front side of the body 20.

  The main brush 43 is protected by a brush cover 120 as shown in FIGS. The brush cover 120 includes a cleaning brush cloth 121 disposed on the side to be cleaned. As shown in FIG. 14, the cleaning brushing cloth 121 is provided at a position slightly separated from the floor surface to provide a small gap E described later between the cleaning brushed cloth 121 and the floor surface.

  As shown in FIG. 16, when the rotating side brush 44 passes through the cleaning brushing surface, the side brush spreads through a slight gap provided between the cleaning brushing surface and the floor surface. The purpose is to sweep off dust adhering to the side brush 44 and clean it.

  Therefore, the side brush 44 is always maintained in a state where no dust adheres to the ground contact area of the bristle bundle 44B. That is, when collecting dust in a state where the main body is activated in the front-back direction, relatively heavy dust is collected in the suction port 101 via the side brush 44 when the side brush 44 rotates, and is sucked. Is done. However, for example, sebum components and fine dust having a small mass in a fibrous state are likely to remain attached to the side brush 44. For this reason, fine dust may not be reliably sucked and removed at the suction port 101, and may be swept out again by centrifugal separation of the side brush 44. Therefore, in the present embodiment, a cleaning brush is provided in the rotation area of the side brush 44, and the dust attached to the floor grounding area of the side brush 44 can be swept off by the cleaning brush 121 so as to be suction-removed. It is composed.

  As shown in FIG. 14, it is effective for the cleaning brushing cloth 121 to provide a slight gap from the floor surface, and the gap E is set to be at least 0.5 mm or more and 2.0 mm or less. It is desirable that the cleaning brushing cloth 121 has a distance from the floor surface set to, for example, 1.0 mm as a more effective dimension within the range.

  On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 15, when the gap between the cleaning brush and the floor is set to be smaller than 0.5 mm, the first bristle bundle 44BA of the side brush 44 is moved to the gap between the cleaning brush 121 and the floor. , And comes into contact with the cleaning brushing cloth 121, so that the first bristle bundle 44BA and the second bristle bundle 44BB both have a shape in which the bristle bundle is bent in accordance with the rotation operation of the side brush.

  In such a state as shown in FIG. 15, dust adhering to the first bristle bundle 44BA through the cleaning brushing cloth 121 is swept away, but the second bristle bundle 44BB is replaced with the first bristle bundle 44BA. , And is not brought into contact with the cleaning blanket 121, so that the attached dust is swept out again by centrifugal separation of the side brush 44 without being swept away.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 13, in the cleaner 10 according to the present embodiment, the distance D between the brush shaft 44A of the side brush 44 and the floor surface in a state where the cleaner 10 is installed on a horizontal flat surface. , And is set to be 10 mm or more and 18 mm or less.

  When the distance D exceeds 18 mm, the first bristle bundle 44BA and the second bristle bundle 44BB of the side brush 44 are implanted in the vertical direction at an inclination angle exceeding about 60 ° from the horizontal direction of the brush shaft 44A. Thereby, the area in which the first bristle bundle 44BA and the second bristle bundle 44BB are in contact with the cleaning surface is reduced. Therefore, there is a possibility that the cleaning area by the side brush 44 decreases and the cleaning efficiency decreases.

  Specifically, in the vacuum cleaner 10 of the present embodiment, the distance D from the floor surface is set to, for example, 12 mm when the tire 34 is at the lowest level. Normally, the cleaner 10 is configured so that the body 20 is lifted by the suspension 36 in order to cope with the ability to climb over a step. Therefore, when the tire 34 completely protrudes from the body 20, it protrudes about 40 mm from the body 20.

However, in practice, the step sensor works when it is far away from the floor. In addition, due to the weight of the body 20, the suspension 36 cannot be lifted up to 40 mm. Further, when the side brush 44 is largely separated from the floor, the side brush 44 is separated from the floor, and the cleaning area is reduced. Therefore, in consideration of the above points, the distance D is about 20 to 25 mm or less, preferably 18 mm or less.

  On the other hand, if the distance D close to the floor is set to less than 10 mm, the side brush 44 and the carpet are likely to be entangled when the body 20 approaches a soft base material or a long carpet. Further, at the time of stepping over the step, the brush shaft 44A first comes into contact with the step of the carpet, and the carpet cannot be stepped over.

  Therefore, the brush shaft 44A of the side brush 44 serving as the rotating body is disposed at a distance of about 10 mm or more and 18 mm or less from the floor surface. Thereby, the entanglement between the brush shaft 44A and the carpet or the like is suppressed. Furthermore, collision between the brush shaft 44A and, for example, a step corresponding to the thickness of the carpet can be avoided.

  The suction unit 50 is disposed in the lower unit 100 and includes a plurality of elements, as shown in FIGS. Specifically, the suction unit 50 is disposed, for example, on the rear side of the trash can unit 60 and on the front side of the power supply unit 80. The plurality of elements include, for example, a fan case 52, an electric fan 51 disposed inside the fan case 52, and the like.

  The fan case 52 includes an air inlet 52A disposed in front thereof and in contact with the outlet 61B of the trash can unit 60. The electric fan 51 sucks the internal air from the outlet 61B of the trash box unit 60 via the air inlet 52A. The sucked air is discharged outward behind the electric fan 51. Specifically, the air discharged from the electric fan 51 passes through the space inside the fan case 52 and the space inside the body 20. Then, the air is exhausted from the inside of the body 20 to the outside via an exhaust port 211 (see FIG. 7) formed in the upper unit 200.

  As shown in FIGS. 10 and 11, the trash can unit 60 is provided on the rear side of the main brush 43 and on the front side of the suction unit 50, and between the pair of drive units 30 (see FIG. 3). Located inside. The trash box unit 60 is detachably attached to the body 20 by opening the lid 220. That is, the trash can unit 60 has a detachable structure that can be attached to the body 20 and detached from the body 20.

  Further, the trash box unit 60 is stored in the trash box storage section 250 and includes a plurality of elements (see FIG. 11). The plurality of elements include, for example, a dustbin 61 having an inlet 61A, an outlet 61B, and a bottom 61C for collecting dust, a filter 62 for collecting fine dust, and the like.

  The trash can unit 60 functions as follows.

  First, the suction unit 50 sucks the dust on the floor surface together with the air through the suction port 101 of the cleaning unit 40 (see FIG. 3). The air containing the sucked dust enters the trash can 61 from the inlet 61A through the duct 110 (see FIG. 8) provided in the lower unit 100. Large dust that has entered the trash bin 61 accumulates on the bottom 61C. On the other hand, air containing fine dust (small dust or the like) that has entered the inside of the trash box 61 is filtered by the filter 62 of the suction unit 50, which is in contact with the outlet 61B of the trash box 61. Then, the air from which the dust is filtered is discharged to the outside through the exhaust port 211 (see FIG. 7) of the body 20 via the suction unit 50. As a result, the dust is collected in the trash box unit 60 in a disposable state.

The control unit 70 is disposed inside the body 20 behind the suction unit 50, as shown in FIGS.

  Further, the vacuum cleaner 10 according to the present embodiment includes a plurality of sensors, as shown in FIGS. The plurality of sensors include, for example, an obstacle detection sensor 71, a side surface distance measurement sensor 72, a collision detection sensor 73, a floor surface detection sensor 74, a wheel release detection switch 75, and the like.

  The obstacle detection sensor 71 (see FIG. 1) is provided at the front center of the body 20 and detects an obstacle existing ahead. The obstacle detection sensor 71 includes a laser emitting unit 71A and a laser receiving unit 71B. Specifically, the obstacle detection sensor 71 irradiates a laser beam forward from the laser emitting unit 71A. Then, the reflected light from an obstacle or the like is received by the laser receiving unit 71B and read. Further, an ultrasonic wave transmitting section 71C and an ultrasonic wave receiving section 71D are provided. Specifically, the obstacle detection sensor 71 transmits ultrasonic waves forward from the ultrasonic wave transmitting unit 71C. Then, the reflection from the obstacle or the like is received and read by the ultrasonic wave receiving unit 71D. Accordingly, the obstacle detection sensor 71 detects an obstacle existing in front of the body 20.

  For example, two side distance measuring sensors 72 (see FIG. 4) are provided on the left and right of the front side of the side surface of the body 20, and detect the distance between the body 20 and an obstacle present on the side surface, and perform cleaning of the wall. Realize. The collision detection sensor 73 (see FIG. 9) is provided in front of the upper unit 200 of the body 20, and detects a collision between the body 20 and a surrounding object. A plurality of floor surface detection sensors 74 (see FIG. 3) are provided at various positions of the lower unit 100 of the body 20 and detect whether or not a surface to be cleaned exists on the bottom surface side of the body 20. The derailing detection switches 75 (see FIG. 8) are arranged behind the left and right drive units 30, respectively, and detect derailing of the tire 34 or the like.

  The obstacle detection sensor 71, the side surface distance measurement sensor 72, the collision detection sensor 73, the floor surface detection sensor 74, and the derailment detection switch 75 each output a detection signal to the control unit 70. The control unit 70 controls each unit based on the input detection signal.

  Further, the vacuum cleaner 10 of the present embodiment includes an interface unit 240 as shown in FIG. The interface unit 240 includes, for example, a panel 241, operation buttons 242, a display unit 243, and the like. The user can check the operation status, operation status, and the like of the vacuum cleaner 10 via the interface unit 240.

  More specifically, the display unit 243 of the interface unit 240 displays the cleaner, which is detected by the obstacle detection sensor 71, the side surface distance measurement sensor 72, the collision detection sensor 73, the floor surface detection sensor 74, and the wheel release detection switch 75. 10 error status and the like are displayed. Thus, the user can check the error status of the vacuum cleaner 10 via the display unit 243.

  Further, the user can instruct each operation of the body 20 via the operation buttons 242 of the interface unit 240 and the buttons of the panel 241.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 10, the vacuum cleaner 10 of the present embodiment further includes a power supply unit 80 including a plurality of elements. The power supply unit 80 supplies power to the drive unit 30, the cleaning unit 40, the suction unit 50, and the control unit 70. Specifically, the power supply unit 80 is disposed on the rear side of the center of the body 20 in the front-rear direction and on the rear side of the suction unit 50. The plurality of elements include, for example, a battery case 81, a storage battery 82, and the like. The battery case 81 is attached to the lower unit 100. The storage battery 82 is housed in a battery case 81. The storage battery 82 is exemplified by a secondary battery such as a lithium battery.

  As described above, the autonomous traveling cleaner 10 of the present embodiment is an autonomous traveling cleaner that collects dust on the floor surface. Specifically, the cleaner 10 includes a suction unit 50 that generates a suction wind and a trash can unit 60 that collects dust. The vacuum cleaner 10 has, on a bottom surface side, a suction port 101 on which a main brush 43 for collecting dust is mounted, and a side disposed on the left and right in front of the suction port 101 for collecting dust on the floor surface into the suction port 101. The brush 44 is mounted. Then, the vacuum cleaner 10 causes the suction unit 50 to generate a flow of air that sucks dust. Thereby, the dust on the floor surface is sucked from the suction port 101, and the sucked dust is collected in the trash box unit 60.

  Further, the cleaner 10 further includes a driving unit 30, a power supply unit 80, a control unit 70, and the like. The drive unit 30 includes tires 34 that are provided on the left and right sides on the bottom surface side of the cleaner 10 and that move in the front-back direction on the floor surface and turn in the left-right direction. The power supply unit 80 supplies electric power to the suction unit 50 and the traveling motor 31 mounted on the drive unit 30.

  The control unit 70 has an obstacle detection sensor 71, a side distance measurement sensor 72, a collision detection sensor 73, a floor surface detection sensor 74, and the like for detecting an obstacle or the like. And the drive unit 30 are controlled. Thereby, the cleaner 10 is configured to be able to clean while driving on the surface to be cleaned by driving the tire 34 of the drive unit 30 based on the control of the control unit 70.

  Vacuum cleaner 10 of the present embodiment includes at least one pair of side brushes 44 arranged on the bottom side of vacuum cleaner 10. Specifically, the side brushes 44 are provided on the left and right front tops 23 of the cleaner 10. The rotation trajectory of the right side brush 44 and the rotation trajectory of the left side brush 44 rotate around the outer periphery of the cleaner 10 in a direction from the front surface 21 toward the suction port 101, respectively.

  That is, the left and right side brushes 44 rotate in directions opposite to each other. Thus, when the cleaner 10 is moving forward, dust is raked by the side brush 44 toward the suction port 101. As a result, dust on the floor is collected by the vacuum cleaner 10, and the room is cleaned.

  Each of the side brushes 44 includes, for example, two to four bristle bundles 44B and a brush shaft 44A. The one-to-two bristle bundle 44B is configured by bundling two kinds of first and second bristle bundles 44BA and 44BB having different lengths. The long first bristle bundle 44BA has a large turning radius and can pick up farther dust. On the other hand, the short second bristle bundle 44BB has a small turning radius and can more reliably pick up nearby dust. Furthermore, each of the first bristle bundle 44BA and the second bristle bundle 44BB is implanted with a different rotation angle or a different inclination angle with respect to the brush shaft 44A in the rotation direction and the vertical direction. Thereby, the dust collecting area on the floor surface can be widely covered.

Further, the brush cover 120 includes a cleaning brush cloth 121 in a rotation area of the bristle bundle 44B of the side brush 44, and a slight gap is provided between the cleaning brush cloth 121 and the floor surface. Therefore, the bristle bundle 44B passes through the gap between the cleaning brushed cloth 121 and the floor surface while contacting the cleaning brushed cloth 121. Thus, dust adhering to the bristle bundle 44B when the side brush 44 rotates is wiped off by contact with the cleaning brush cloth 121. For example, in the vacuum cleaner of the present embodiment, the gap between the cleaning brushed cloth 121 and the floor is set to 1.0 mm as a more effective gap dimension. Then, the wiped dust is sucked into the trash box unit 60 from the suction port 101. As a result, dust such as fine dust adhered to the bristle bundle 44B is prevented from being swept out of the cleaner 10 again by the centrifugal force of the side brush 44.

  Further, in the vacuum cleaner of the present embodiment, brush shaft 44A of side brush 44 is arranged at a position of 10 mm or more and 18 mm or less from the floor surface. Thereby, the entanglement of a carpet or the like with the bristle bundle 44B can be suppressed as compared with the conventional autonomous traveling type vacuum cleaner having a brush shaft arranged at about 5 mm. Furthermore, the frequency of collision with a step or the like can be reduced when climbing over a step or the like. Thus, a vacuum cleaner having high reliability and excellent cleaning performance can be realized.

  In addition, as one form of the cleaner 10 of the present embodiment, a plurality of drive units 30 for running the cleaner 10 are provided, and the plurality of drive units 30 are a first drive unit 30 and a second drive unit 30. including. Furthermore, the first drive unit 30 and the second drive unit 30 may have a configuration having a rotation axis (not shown) existing coaxially. Thereby, each drive unit 30 can be driven independently.

  Further, as one mode of the cleaner 10 of the present embodiment, a control unit 70 that controls the plurality of drive units 30 is provided, and the control unit 70 is configured such that at least a part of a rectangular track is formed by the body 20. Alternatively, the first drive unit 30 and the second drive unit 30 may be controlled.

  According to the above configuration, by operating each drive unit 30 individually, the front part of the cleaner 10 can be moved to the vertex of the corner of the target area to be cleaned or to the vicinity thereof. That is, the suction port 101 of the vacuum cleaner 10 can be further brought closer to the vertex of the corner of the target area. As a result, more and more dust present in the corners of the target area can be sucked and reliably cleaned.

  As described above, the autonomous traveling cleaner of the present invention includes a body, a plurality of side brushes 44 provided on the bottom surface of the body and sweeping dust on the floor surface, and a side brush 44 within a rotation area of the side brushes 44. A cleaning brushing cloth 121 for sweeping dust attached to the cleaning cloth 44 is provided.

  A slight gap is provided between the cleaning brushing cloth 121 and the floor surface, and the bristle bundle 44B passes through the gap between the cleaning brushing cloth 121 and the floor surface while contacting the cleaning brushing cloth 121. I do.

  The side brush 44 includes a brush shaft disposed at a predetermined distance above the floor surface and a pair of bristle bundles 44B having different lengths. The short bristle bundle 44BB having a short length is configured so that at least the leading end thereof has a length in contact with the cleaning brush cloth 121.

  According to this configuration, the dust adhering to the side brush during rotation is swept down through the cleaning brush 121, so that the dust adhering to the side brush 44 is again removed from the body by centrifugal force. Can be prevented from being swept out. Further, the length of the bristle bundle 44B provided on the side brush 44 is short because the tip portion is in contact with the cleaning brush. Therefore, entanglement of dust such as hair and fiber can be suppressed.

  In the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner of the present invention, the predetermined distance may be 10 mm or more and 18 mm or less. Thereby, entanglement of a carpet or the like with the brush shaft can be suppressed. In addition, the collision between the brush shaft of the side brush 44 and the step, which occurs when the vehicle climbs over the step, is largely avoided. Therefore, the brush shaft of the side brush 44 can be prevented from being damaged or damaged.

  Further, in the autonomous traveling type vacuum cleaner of the present invention, the side brush 44 may be disposed at a position protruding left and right forward of the body. Thereby, dust existing in the corner of the room can be collected more reliably.

  In the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner of the present invention, the pair of bristle bundles 44B includes a first bristle bundle 44BA and a second bristle bundle 44BB formed by flocking. In the first bristle bundle 44BA, the flocking direction in the rotation direction of the side brush may be set such that a predetermined rotation angle is provided with respect to the second bristle bundle 44BB. Further, in the autonomous traveling type vacuum cleaner of the present invention, the predetermined different rotation angles may be not less than 8 ° and not more than 10 °.

  In the autonomous traveling cleaner of the present invention, the pair of bristle bundles 44B includes a first bristle bundle 44BA and a second bristle bundle 44BB formed by flocking. In the first bristle bundle 44BA, the flocking direction in the up-down direction may be different from the second bristle bundle 44BB at a predetermined different inclination angle to perform the flocking.

  Further, in the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner of the present invention, the predetermined different inclination angles may be 31 ° or more and 43 ° or less.

  In the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner of the present invention, the gap between the cleaning brushed cloth 121 and the floor may be 0.5 mm or more and 2.0 mm or less.

  According to these configurations, the frequency of maintenance of the side brush can be reduced while securing the collection performance.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION In the autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner of this invention, the entanglement of dust to a bristle bundle of a side brush can be suppressed, and it can prevent shrinkage and falling off, and can extend the life of a bristle bundle. Therefore, the present invention can be applied to various autonomous traveling type vacuum cleaners used in various environments regardless of whether they are for home use or for business use, which requires a reduction in the maintenance frequency of the side brush.

10 Autonomous traveling type vacuum cleaner (vacuum cleaner)
REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 20 body 21 front surface 22 side surface 23 front top portion 24 rear top portion 30 drive unit 31 traveling motor 32 housing 33 wheel 34 tire 35 support shaft 36 suspension 40 cleaning unit 41 brush drive motor 42 gear box 43 main brush 44 side brush 44A brush shaft 44B Bristle bundle 44BA First bristle bundle 44BB Second bristle bundle 50 Suction unit 51 Electric fan 52 Fan case 52A Intake port 60 Dust bin unit 61 Dust bin 61A Inlet 61B Exit 61C Bottom 62 Filter 70 Control unit 71 Obstacle detection sensor 71A Laser light emitting unit 71B Laser receiving unit 71C Ultrasonic wave transmitting unit 71D Ultrasonic wave receiving unit 72 Side distance measuring sensor 73 Collision detection sensor 74 Floor detection Sensor 75 Derailment detection switch 80 Power supply unit 81 Battery case 82 Storage battery 90 Caster 91 Support shaft 92 Prop shaft 100 Lower unit 101 Suction port 110 Duct 120 Brush cover 121 Cleaning brush 200 Upper unit 210 Cover 211 Exhaust port 220 Cover 230 Bumper 240 Interface unit 241 Panel 242 Operation buttons 243 Display unit 250 Recycle bin storage unit

Claims (7)

Body and
A side brush that is provided on the bottom surface of the body and sweeps out dust on the floor surface;
A cleaning brushing cloth for sweeping dust adhered to the side brush in a rotation area of the side brush,
The side brush includes a brush shaft and a pair of bristle bundles having different lengths, and the bristle bundle having a shorter length is configured to have a length at least at a tip portion of which contacts the cleaning raising cloth. The cleaning brushing cloth is disposed with a predetermined gap between the cleaning brushing cloth and the floor surface, and when the side brush rotates, the bristle bundle causes the clearance between the cleaning brushing cloth and the floor surface. And an autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner configured to wipe off dust attached to the bristle bundle by passing through the cleaning brushing cloth while contacting the cleaning brush cloth. The autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined gap is not less than 0.5 mm and not more than 2.0 mm. The autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner according to claim 1, wherein the side brush is disposed at a position protruding left and right forward of the body. The pair of bristle bundles includes a first bristle bundle and a second bristle bundle formed by flocking, and the first bristle bundle has a flocking direction in a rotation direction of the side brush that is different from that of the second bristle bundle. The autonomous traveling type vacuum cleaner according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the hairs are implanted at predetermined different rotation angles. The autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner according to claim 4, wherein the predetermined different rotation angles are not less than 8 ° and not more than 10 °. The pair of bristle bundles includes a first bristle bundle and a second bristle bundle formed by flocking, and the first bristle bundle has a predetermined flocking direction in a vertical direction with respect to the second bristle bundle. The autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the hairs are implanted with different inclination angles. The autonomous traveling vacuum cleaner according to claim 6, wherein the predetermined different inclination angles are not less than 31 ° and not more than 43 °.