BUMPER WITH VIEWING WINDOW FOR AUTONOMOUS CLEANER
An autonomous cleaner includes a body, a dust collection assembly including a dust inlet disposed interior of a perimeter of the body, a brush roll mounted adjacent the dust inlet and proximate a transparent or translucent portion of the dust inlet, a drive unit configured to move the body along a cleaning surface, a controller configured to control an autonomous operation of the drive unit, and a bumper operable to sense an impact mounted to and at least partially along the perimeter of the body. The bumper has at least one viewing window configured to allow a user to view the brush roll through the at least one viewing window and the transparent or translucent portion of the dust inlet.
This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62/639,387 filed Mar. 6, 2018, the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference herein.
BACKGROUNDThe present disclosure relates to a bumper with a viewing window associated with an autonomous cleaner
Vacuum cleaners and sweepers generally use mechanical action and/or air flow to draw dust, dirt, or other debris from a surface. A vacuum cleaner typically draws a combination of air and dust, dirt, or other debris into the cleaner through a floor nozzle. This “dirty air” typically enters a dust separator in the vacuum that separates the dust, dirt, or debris from the air. A bin or bag collects the separated dust, dirt, or debris separated from the air for later disposal. The resulting “clean air” exits the dust separator where it is exhausted from the vacuum cleaner. A sweeper typically uses mechanical action to sweep dust, dirt, or other debris from a floor into the sweeper through a dirt inlet into a bin for later disposal. An autonomous cleaner may be a vacuum cleaner or sweeper that is configured to traverse and clean an area without requiring a user to operate.
SUMMARYIn some embodiments, the present disclosure relates to an autonomous cleaner. The autonomous cleaner comprises a body having a perimeter, a dust collection assembly including a dust inlet disposed interior of the perimeter and a brush roll mounted adjacent the dust inlet and proximate a transparent or translucent portion of the dust inlet, a drive unit configured to move the body along a cleaning surface, a controller configured to control an autonomous operation of the drive unit, and a bumper operable to sense an impact mounted to and at least partially along the perimeter of the body. The bumper has at least one viewing window configured to allow a user to view the brush roll through the at least one viewing window and the transparent or translucent portion of the dust inlet.
Other features and advantages of the present disclosure will become apparent by consideration of the following description and the appended claims when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings.
Before any embodiments are explained in detail, it is to be understood that the present disclosure is not limited in its application to the details of construction and the arrangement of components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the following drawings. The present disclosure is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced or of being carried out in various ways. It should be understood that the description of specific embodiments is not intended to limit the disclosure from covering all modifications, equivalents and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the disclosure as defined in the appended claims. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology used herein is for the purpose of description and should not be regarded as limiting.
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The drive assembly 48 is operably connected to a controller 110 (shown in
For example, the controller 110 may be in communication with an area sensing unit that is configured to map the area to be cleaned. In the embodiment illustrated in
In addition, the autonomous cleaner 10 can include one or more odometry encoders (not shown) operably connected to the drive wheels 50, 54, and configured to determine a distance and an estimated direction the autonomous cleaner 10 travels based on rotation of one or both of the drive wheels 50, 54. The odometry data from the encoders can be combined with the laser distance sensor data from the laser distance sensor 118 by the controller 110 using Simultaneous Localization and Mapping (SLAM) algorithms, or other mapping techniques, to develop the map of the area to be cleaned (or mapped area). The controller 110 can also control the autonomous cleaner 10 within the mapped area based on where the autonomous cleaner 10 travels.
In addition, the controller 110 may receive signals from one or more obstacle detection sensors to identify objects (or obstacles) in the area to be cleaned (e.g., a chair, a sofa, an ottoman, etc.). Obstacle detection sensors may include proximity sensors (e.g., infrared sensors, ultrasonic sensors, and tactile sensors), cliff sensors, bump sensors, or any other sensor that is configured to sense or detect an object as the autonomous cleaner travels. The controller 110 can then incorporate those objects into the map of the area to be cleaned. In the illustrated embodiment, the controller 110 may receive signals, for example, from the front bump sensor 34 to identify objects (or obstacles) in the area to be cleaned.
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The frame member 124 may be an assembly of components, as shown in the illustrated embodiment, or may be a single piece, including for example an injection molded or other unitary, one-piece, integral construction. Also, in other embodiments, the viewing windows 120 of the bumper 34 may be formed from a transparent or translucent material, thereby allowing at least some visible light to pass through the material so that the nozzle 66 behind the bumper 34 (and the brush roll 70, as described below) is visible. In addition, although the illustrated embodiment illustrates a pair of viewing windows 120, it should be appreciated that other embodiments may include a bumper having a single viewing window, for example, a single viewing window that extends uninterrupted along the entire length of the bumper, or a bumper having three or more viewing windows, which may, for example, be formed between a plurality of opaque portions of the bumper.
With reference again to
In addition, the first rear wall 136 of the bumper 34 may define one or more pass-through openings 146 that extend through the first rear wall 136. Each pass-through opening 146 may be aligned with an obstacle detection sensor 36, such as an infrared sensor or an ultrasonic sensor, that is mounted to the body 12 at the front end 18 of the autonomous cleaner 10 and is operable in combination with the controller 110 to remotely sense a surrounding environment, for example to identify objects (or obstacles) in the area to be cleaned. The pass-through openings 146 may be covered by sensor covers 148 to protect the obstacle detection sensors 36 from dust or dirt buildup or other damage without interfering with the operation of the sensors.
Thus, the present disclosure provides, among other things, a bumper with a viewing window for use with an autonomous cleaner. Various features and advantages of the present disclosure are set forth in the following claims.
Claims
1. An autonomous cleaner comprising:
- a body having a perimeter;
- a dust collection assembly including a dust inlet disposed interior of the perimeter and a brush roll mounted adjacent the dust inlet and proximate a transparent or translucent portion of the dust inlet;
- a drive unit configured to move the body along a cleaning surface;
- a controller configured to control an autonomous operation of the drive unit; and
- a bumper operable to sense an impact mounted to and at least partially along the perimeter of the body, the bumper having at least one viewing window configured to allow a user to view the brush roll through the at least one viewing window and the transparent or translucent portion of the dust inlet.
2. The autonomous cleaner of claim 1, wherein the at least one viewing window defines an aperture that extends through the bumper.
3. The autonomous cleaner of claim 1, wherein the at least one viewing window is formed from a transparent or translucent material.
4. The autonomous cleaner of claim 1, further comprising a suction motor configured for generating an air flow through the dust inlet.
5. The autonomous cleaner of claim 4, the dust collection assembly further comprising a dust collection chamber in communication with the dust inlet and the suction motor.
6. The autonomous cleaner of claim 1, the dust collection assembly further comprising a dust collection chamber proximate the dust inlet and brush roll configured for receiving dust swept by the brush roll.
7. The autonomous cleaner of claim 1, wherein the bumper defines a chamber configured to receive the transparent or translucent portion of the dust inlet therein.
8. The autonomous cleaner of claim 1, wherein the body further comprises a chassis configured to support the dust collection assembly at a front end of the autonomous cleaner, wherein the bumper is mounted to the body at the front end and the at least one viewing window is disposed adjacent the transparent or translucent portion of the dust collection assembly relative to the cleaning surface.
9. The autonomous cleaner of claim 1, wherein the bumper includes an opaque central portion and the at least one viewing window includes a pair of viewing windows that are formed on opposite sides of the opaque central portion.
10. The autonomous cleaner of claim 9,
- wherein the bumper includes a frame member having opposing first and second side walls, a neck body located between the first and second side walls, a first rear wall extending from the neck body toward the first side wall, a second rear wall extending from the neck body toward the second side wall, a first arcuate arm extending forwardly relative to the first rear wall and outwardly from the neck body to the first side wall and a second arcuate arm extending forwardly relative to the second rear wall and outwardly from the neck body to the second side wall, and
- wherein the at least one viewing window includes a first viewing window formed between the first arcuate arm and the first rear wall and a second viewing window formed between the second arcuate arm and the second rear wall.
11. The autonomous cleaner of claim 1,
- wherein the bumper includes a frame member having opposing first and second side walls and a rear wall extending from the first side wall extending toward the second side wall, and
- wherein the at least one viewing window includes a first viewing window provided in the frame member forwardly of the rear wall.
12. The autonomous cleaner of claim 11 further comprising a sensor operable in combination with the controller to sense a surrounding environment, the sensor being mounted to the body at the front end of the autonomous cleaner, wherein the rear wall of the bumper defines a pass-through opening that extends through the rear wall and is aligned with the sensor.
13. The autonomous cleaner of claim 1, wherein the dust inlet is proximate a forward portion of the perimeter of the body.
Type: Application
Filed: Mar 5, 2019
Publication Date: Feb 11, 2021
Inventors: Joseph Sexton (Huntersville, NC), David Khalil (College Park, MD)
Application Number: 16/978,001