Disclosure of Invention
The invention aims to provide a self-moving robot system with longer service life.
In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a self-moving robot system, including a self-moving robot, a charging station, and a non-closed boundary line defining a working area and a charging channel, wherein the self-moving robot has a central axis, the central axis divides the self-moving robot into two sides, boundary sensors are respectively disposed on the two sides, the charging channel connects the charging station and the working area, the working area is connected with the charging station only through the charging channel, y < x, x is a distance between the boundary sensors on the two sides, y is a width of the charging channel, and the boundary sensors are used for sensing boundary signals or charging signals sent by the boundary line.
As a preferable mode of an embodiment of the present invention, in an operating state, the boundary line emits the boundary signal, the boundary sensor receives the boundary signal, and the self-moving robot avoids the boundary line.
As a preferred embodiment of the present invention, in a charging state, the boundary line emits the charging signal different from the boundary signal, the boundary sensor receives the charging signal, and the self-moving robot returns to the charging station along the boundary line.
As a preferred embodiment of the invention, y is not less than 2/3*x.
As a preferred embodiment of the invention, the charging station is at least partially enclosed by the working area.
As a preferred embodiment of the invention, the charging station is located in the middle of the working area, and the boundary line bypasses at least three sides of the charging station.
As a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the charging station is located outside the working area.
As a preferable mode of an embodiment of the present invention, the charging path includes a first section boundary line and a second section boundary line parallel to each other, a plurality of rows of nails are provided between the first section boundary line and the second section boundary line, and the lengths of the plurality of rows of nails are equal to the width of the charging path.
As a preferred embodiment of the present invention, both ends of the non-closed boundary line are connected to the same side of the charging station,
As a preferable mode of the specific embodiment of the invention, the self-moving robot is a mower.
The invention has the beneficial effects that: the effect of avoiding the charging station is achieved by changing the wiring scheme, no other signals are needed, the cost is low, the use is reliable, the situation that the mower collides with the charging station in the working process of the mower is avoided, and the service life of the charging station is prolonged
Detailed Description
The present invention will be described in detail below with reference to embodiments shown in the drawings. The embodiment is not intended to limit the present invention, and structural, methodological, or functional modifications of the invention according to the embodiment are included in the scope of the invention.
The self-moving robot system of the invention comprises a self-moving robot, a charging station and a non-closed boundary line defining a working area and a charging channel, wherein the self-moving robot can be a lawn mower or an automatic dust collector and the like, and can automatically walk in the working area to mow and collect dust. Of course, the self-moving robot is not limited to a lawn mower and a dust collector, but may be other devices, such as a spraying device, a snow removing device, a monitoring device, and the like, which are suitable for unattended devices.
In a specific embodiment of the present invention, the self-moving robot is a mower, the mower comprising: organism, the walking module that sets up on the organism, limit detection module, energy module and control module. In addition, the mower further comprises a working module for performing specific working tasks of the mower, wherein the working module comprises a mowing blade, a cutting motor and the like, and possibly comprises a mowing height adjusting mechanism and other components for optimizing or adjusting mowing effect.
The walking module is used for driving the mower to walk and turn in a working area and is generally composed of a wheel set arranged on the mower and a driving motor for driving the wheel set to walk. The limit detection module is used for detecting the relative position relationship between the mower and the boundary line, and specifically may include one or more of distance, angle and internal and external directions of the boundary line. The composition and principle of the limit detection module can be various, such as infrared ray type, ultrasonic wave type, collision detection type, magnetic induction type and the like, and the setting positions and the number of the sensors and the corresponding signal generating devices are also various.
The energy module is used for providing energy for various operations of the mower, and comprises a rechargeable battery and a charging connection structure, wherein the charging connection structure is a charging electrode plate which can be exposed outside the mower.
The control module is used for controlling the mower to automatically walk and work, is electrically connected with the walking module and the limit detection module, is a core component of the mower, and performs the functions of controlling the working module to start or stop working, generating a walking path, controlling the walking module to judge the electric quantity of the energy module according to walking, timely instructing the mower to return to the charging station for automatic docking and charging and the like. The control module typically includes a single chip microcomputer and memory, as well as other peripheral circuitry.
The aforementioned lawnmowers also include various sensors for sensing the walking state of the lawnmower, such as: dumping, ground clearance, collision sensors, etc., are not described in detail herein.
Wherein the mower and the boundary line defining its working area constitute a self-moving robot system, which further comprises a charging station. The charging station may be located inside or outside the work area and connected to a utility or other power supply system for recharging the mower. The charging station can emit pulse code signals along boundary lines so as to form electromagnetic signals near the boundary lines, and the control module can control the driving motor to operate according to the intensity change of the electromagnetic signals near the boundary lines and the difference between the internal and external signals of the boundary lines acquired by the state sensor, so that the mower can timely turn to avoid the boundary lines when detecting the boundary lines and smoothly return to the charging station along the boundary lines to charge, and the wiring mode for avoiding collision to the charging station when the mower walks in the specific embodiment of the invention is described in detail below.
As shown in fig. 1 and 2, in the present embodiment, the charging station 200 is disposed on the side of the work area 300. The mower 100 includes a body 10, a controller 30, a pair of driving wheels 21 provided on the body, a pair of travel motors 25 respectively driving the two driving wheels, at least one driven wheel 23, a cutting assembly 41, a cutting motor 43 driving the cutting assembly 41, a boundary line sensor 60, and the like. Specifically, referring to fig. 2, the mower 10 has a center axis AR that divides the mower into two sides, left and right sides, respectively, and a distance between boundary sensors of the left and right sides is x. The left and right sides are only used to illustrate different portions of the mower along the central axis, and are not particularly limited. The boundary line sensors are respectively arranged on the left side and the right side, and the preferred boundary line sensors comprise a left sensor and a right sensor which are symmetrically arranged about the central axis of the machine body.
The boundary line 340 is electrically connected with the charging station 200, i.e. the boundary line 340 forms a closed circuit with the charging station 200, the boundary line 340 being non-closed, which defines the working area 300 and the charging channel 400, the working area 300 being connected with the charging station 200 only through the charging channel 400. The signal generator in the charging station 200 causes the boundary line 340 to emit a signal, the boundary line sensor 60 detects the signal, and the controller 30 adjusts the posture and the travel path of the mower according to the signal. The signal sent by the boundary line 340 may be a boundary signal or a charging signal, and the boundary signal may be the same as or different from the charging signal.
As shown in fig. 2, in the preferred first embodiment of the present invention, the charging station 200 is at least partially surrounded by the working area 300, and taking the example of the charging station 200 being a quadrangle, the charging station 200 extends into the working area 300 from the edge portion of the working area 300, the charging path 400 is located inside the working area 300, and the boundary line 340 bypasses at least 1/3 of the circumference of the charging station. The boundary line forming charging channel 400 includes a first section 403 and a second section 405 parallel to each other, preferably, first section 403 and second section 405 are connected to the same side of charging station 200, and the distance from first section 403 to second section 405 is the width y of charging channel 400, where y < x, so as to prevent the mower from running through the middle of the two sections to strike charging station 200, and preferably, the distance y between the two sections cannot be less than 2/3 of the distance between mower boundary sensor 60, and y is equal to or greater than 2/3*x, i.e. prevent failure when the mower returns to charging station 200 along the boundary line. That is, the width of the charging path 400 is required to ensure that the mower does not enter during operation and returns reliably during return to charge.
Among the boundary lines forming the working area 300, the boundary line bypassing a portion of the charging station 200 has a preset distance m to the charging station 200, and the boundary line formed by the boundary line 340 is intangible, so that the situation that the mower portion is located outside the boundary line 340 is also allowed, and in the working state, the boundary line 340 emits a boundary signal, the boundary sensor 60 receives the boundary signal, and the mower avoids the boundary line in various ways, such as stopping first and then linearly retreating (the retreating distance may be zero) in the direction opposite to the advancing direction, and then rotating in place by one angle and then continuing the advancing; or the robot does not move backward, and the robot moves forward directly when the robot direction and the original direction reach a random angle. In particular, the latter may occur that a portion is located outside the boundary line, and thus, the distance m of the boundary line near the charging station 200 needs to satisfy a longest distance greater than a portion of the mower located outside the boundary line.
When the mower detects a shortage of energy, i.e. signals the charging station 200, a signal generator within the charging station 200 causes the boundary line 340 to emit a charging signal different from the boundary signal, and the mower returns to the charging station 200 along the boundary line 340. Preferably, the mower may select a boundary line having the shortest path to return to charge according to a distance between its own position and the charging station 200.
In addition, for ease of routing, the gang nail 401 may be used to assist in routing to ensure a spacing y between the two sections of the charging channel 400, i.e., there are multiple gang nails between the first section and the second section, each of which has a length equal to y. Two sections of wires of the charging channel can be conveniently fixed by arranging the chain riveting and the distance between the two sections of wires is ensured.
As shown in fig. 3, in the preferred second embodiment of the present invention, the charging station 200 may be considered to be surrounded by the working area 300, the charging station 200 is located substantially in the middle of the working area 300, and taking the charging station 200 as an example of a quadrangle, the boundary line 340 bypasses at least three sides of the charging station 200, and the perimeter of the charging station 200 bypassed by the preferred boundary line 340 is the perimeter of the charging station minus the width y of the charging channel 400, although the charging station 200 is disposed in the middle of the working area 300, the boundary line 340 is avoided based on the boundary signal when the mower works, and the charging station 200 is avoided. In this embodiment, the distance between the boundary line adjacent to the charging station 200 and the charging path 400 and the width of the charging path 400 are the same as those of the first embodiment, and will not be described again.
As shown in fig. 4, in the preferred third embodiment of the present invention, the charging station 200 can be considered to be located entirely outside the working area 300, the charging path 400 is located outside the outer contour of the working area 300, and only the boundary line of the charging path 400 is close to the charging station 200 due to the limitation of the width y of the charging path 400, so that the mower does not enter the charging path 400 nor approach the charging station 200 in the working state, and thus collision with the charging station 200 does not occur. The width setting of the charging channel is also the same as that of the first embodiment, and will not be described again here.
In the fourth preferred embodiment of the present invention, as shown in fig. 5, both ends of the boundary line 340 are connected to the adjacent sides of the charging station 200, unlike the first embodiment, and the mower is prevented from colliding with the charging station 200 in the operating state.
According to the embodiment, the charging station is partially surrounded by the boundary line, the charging channel from the working area to the charging station is formed, and the width of the charging channel is reasonably set, so that the charging station is prevented from being collided in the working process of the mower, and the service life of the charging station is prolonged.
It should be understood that although the present disclosure describes embodiments, not every embodiment is provided with a separate embodiment, and that this description is for clarity only, and that the skilled artisan should recognize that the embodiments may be combined as appropriate to form other embodiments that will be understood by those skilled in the art.
The above list of detailed descriptions is only specific to practical embodiments of the present invention, and they are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention, and all equivalent embodiments or modifications that do not depart from the spirit of the present invention should be included in the scope of the present invention.