Modular robot

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10070763-B2
Application number	US-201715487591-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 14, 2017
Priority date	Dec 2, 2005
Publication date	Sep 11, 2018
Grant date	Sep 11, 2018

Abstract

A coverage robot including a chassis, multiple drive wheel assemblies disposed on the chassis, and a cleaning assembly carried by the chassis. Each drive wheel assembly including a drive wheel assembly housing, a wheel rotatably coupled to the housing, and a wheel drive motor carried by the drive wheel assembly housing and operable to drive the wheel. The cleaning assembly including a cleaning assembly housing, a cleaning head rotatably coupled to the cleaning assembly housing, and a cleaning drive motor carried by cleaning assembly housing and operable to drive the cleaning head. The wheel assemblies and the cleaning assembly are each separately and independently removable from respective receptacles of the chassis as complete units.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A coverage robot comprising:
a chassis;
multiple drive wheel assemblies carried by the chassis, each drive wheel assembly comprising:
a wheel; and
a wheel drive motor operable to drive the wheel;
a power connector configured to establish an electric power connection to the drive wheel assembly; and

a cleaning assembly carried by the chassis, the cleaning assembly comprising:
a cleaning brush; and
a cleaning drive motor operable to drive the cleaning brush; and
a power connector configured to establish an electric power connection to the cleaning assembly;

a side cleaning assembly, the side cleaning assembly comprising:
a side brush; and
a side brush drive motor operable to drive the side brush; and
a power connector configured to establish an electric power connection to the side cleaning assembly;

wherein the drive wheel assemblies and the side cleaning assembly are each separately and independently removable from the chassis as complete units.

2. The robot of claim 1 further comprising a removable caster wheel assembly carried by the chassis, the caster wheel assembly including a caster wheel configured to roll about a horizontal axis, wherein the removable caster wheel assembly is separately and independently removable from the chassis as a complete unit.

3. The robot of claim 1 wherein the power connectors of each of the drive wheel assemblies are disposed on an outer surface of a drive wheel assembly housing and configured to mate with a corresponding chassis power connector within a respective receptacle as the drive wheel assembly is placed within the receptacle, to establish an electric power connection to the wheel assembly.

4. The robot of claim 1 wherein the power connector of the cleaning assembly is disposed on an outer surface of a cleaning assembly housing and configured to mate with a corresponding chassis power connector within a respective receptacle as the cleaning assembly is placed within the receptacle, to establish an electric power connection to the cleaning assembly.

5. The robot of claim 1 wherein each drive wheel assembly further comprises a linkage suspending the wheel from a forward portion of the chassis.

6. The robot of claim 1 further comprising a removable cover disposed on an upper portion of the chassis.

7. The robot of claim 1 further comprising a removable bumper disposed on a forward portion of the chassis.

8. The robot of claim 1 further comprising a cleaning bin carried by the chassis and arranged to collect debris removed from a work surface by the cleaning head.

9. The robot of claim 8 wherein the cleaning bin comprises:
a bin housing defining a debris cavity and a filter cavity, the debris cavity configured to collect debris removed from a work surface by the cleaning head, the filter cavity configured to collect debris removed from a work surface by a vacuum fan in fluid communication with the filter cavity;
a bin filter disposed in the filter cavity, the filter configured to substantially inhibit particulate from entering the vacuum fan; and
a bin cover attached to the bin housing and configured to move between a bin closed position and a bin open position, exposing the filter cavity and the bin filter for servicing.

10. The robot of claim 8 , wherein the cleaning bin comprises a bin cover spring actuator configured to bias a bin cover in an open position and a latch configured to hold the bin cover in a closed position.

11. The robot of claim 1 , further comprising a data module comprising a recording device configured to record a distance driven by the robot.

12. The robot of claim 1 , wherein each drive wheel assembly further comprises at least one proximity sensor comprising an infrared emitter and receiver pair, the at least one proximity sensor being configured to detect an absence of an adjacent floor surface when an emitted infrared beam is not received by the receiver.

13. The robot of claim 1 , further comprising a segmented maintenance display.

14. The robot of claim 1 , wherein the side brush is configured to be tilted with respect to a plane of contact of the wheel and a floor surface.

15. The robot of claim 14 , wherein the side brush is configured to be tilted in forward and side to side directions.

16. The robot of claim 14 , wherein the side brush is configured to be tilted at an angle of about 45 degrees with respect to a direction of travel of the coverage robot.

17. The robot of claim 15 , wherein an axis offset of the side brush is configured to be adjustable to change an amount of tilt of the side brush.

18. The robot of claim 17 , wherein the axis offset is adjustable based on a floor surface type being cleaned by the robot.

19. The robot of claim 1 , wherein the side cleaning assembly is configured to be placed in a corresponding receptacle of the chassis such that the power connector of the side cleaning assembly mates with a corresponding mating connector in the receptacle to provide power to the side cleaning assembly.

20. The robot of claim 19 , wherein the receptacle comprises parallel guide walls configured to guide the power connector of the side cleaning assembly to mate with the corresponding mating connector in the receptacle.

Assignees

• Irobot Corp

Inventors

• Won Chikyung
• Burnett Scott Thomas
• Hickey Stephen A
• Kapoor Deepak Ramesh
• Dubrovsky Zivthan A
• Svendsen Selma
• Rizzari Robert
• Sandin Paul E

Classifications

• Y02T90/14

  Plug-in electric vehicles · CPC title

• Y02T10/72

  Electric energy management in electromobility · CPC title

• Y02T10/7072

  Electromobility specific charging systems or methods for batteries, ultracapacitors, supercapacitors or double-layer capacitors · CPC title

• H04L1/16

  in which the return channel carries supervisory signals, e.g. repetition request signals · CPC title

• B60L2260/32

  Auto pilot mode · CPC title