Autonomous cleaner

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10939792-B2
Application number	US-201816014994-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 21, 2018
Priority date	May 20, 2016
Publication date	Mar 9, 2021
Grant date	Mar 9, 2021

Abstract

A robot cleaner comprising: a cleaner body including a controller, the cleaner body having a dust container accommodation part formed therein; a wheel unit mounted in the cleaner body, the wheel unit of which driving is controlled by the controller; and a dust container detachably coupled to the dust container accommodation part, wherein a first opening and a second opening are disposed at the same height in an inner wall of the dust container accommodation part, wherein the dust container includes: an entrance and an exit, disposed side by side along the circumference of the dust container, the entrance and the exit, respectively communicating with the first opening and the second opening when the dust container is accommodated in the dust container accommodation part; and a flow separating part extending downwardly inclined along the inner circumference of the dust container, the flow separating part separating the flow of air introduced into the entrance from the flow of air discharged toward the exit to be respectively guided to lower and upper portions thereof.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A robot cleaner, comprising:
a cleaner body;
a dust container dock formed in the cleaner body, the dust container dock being recessed from one side to the other side of the cleaner body and being opened toward at least one of a rear or a top of the cleaner body; and
a dust container detachably mounted in the dust container dock through at least one of the opened rear or the opened top of the dust container dock to filter and collect foreign substances from sucked air,
wherein the dust container comprises:
a body case and a lower case to accommodate a multi-cyclone;
a hinge rotatably coupling the lower case to the body case, the hinge being configured to open and close a lower opening of the body case such that the dust collected in the dust container is discharged when the lower opening is opened; and
a lock provided apart from the hinge to fix or release the lower case to or from the body case, respectively, and

wherein a mounting groove to fix the dust container when mounted on the dust container dock and a mounting protrusion to be accommodated in the mounting groove are configured to be coupled to each other at a position spaced apart from a center of a bottom surface of the lower case.

2. The cleaner of claim 1 , wherein the hinge and the lock are hidden from view by an inner wall of the dust container dock when the dust container is placed in the dust container dock, and
wherein the hinge and the lock are provided at positions facing each other with a center of the lower case therebetween.

3. The cleaner of claim 1 , wherein the mounting groove is formed at the bottom surface of the lower case, and the mounting protrusion corresponding to the mounting groove is formed at a bottom surface of the dust container dock.

4. The cleaner of claim 3 , wherein the mounting groove is formed at each of positions adjacent to the hinge and the lock.

5. The cleaner of claim 3 , wherein a groove is formed at a center of the bottom surface of the lower case, and a protrusion corresponding to the groove is formed at a center of the bottom surface of the dust container dock.

6. The cleaner of claim 1 , further comprising a dust container cover rotatably coupled by a hinge to the cleaner body and configured to engage with the dust container for covering the dust container,
wherein the dust container is provided with a button to release an engagement with the dust container cover, and the button is exposed at a rear of the cleaner body when the dust container is accommodated in the dust container dock.

7. The cleaner of claim 6 , wherein a portion of the dust container cover is accommodated in the dust container dock when the dust container cover covers the dust container.

8. A robot cleaner, comprising:
a cleaner body;
a dust container dock formed in the cleaner body, the dust container dock being recessed from one side to the other side of the cleaner body and being opened toward at least one of a rear or a top of the cleaner body; and
a dust container of a cylindrical shape detachably mounted in the dust container dock through at least one of the opened rear or the opened top of the dust container dock and configured to filter and collect foreign substances from sucked air,
wherein the cleaner body at least partially covers a bottom surface and an outer circumferential surface of the dust container when the dust container is placed in the dust container dock,
wherein a mounting groove is formed in a bottom surface of the dust container at a position spaced apart from a center of the bottom surface, and
wherein a mounting protrusion corresponding to the mounting groove is formed at the bottom surface of the dust container dock.

9. The cleaner of claim 8 , wherein a groove is formed at a center of the bottom surface of the dust container, and a protrusion corresponding to the groove is formed at a center of the bottom surface of the dust container dock.

10. The cleaner of claim 8 , wherein a locking hook protrudes from an outer circumferential surface of the dust container, and the cleaner body is provided with a step to which the hook is hooked when the dust container is accommodated in the dust container dock.

11. The cleaner of claim 10 , wherein the locking hook has an shape that protrudes from the outer circumferential surface of the dust container.

12. The cleaner of claim 8 , wherein the dust container comprises:
a body case and a lower case to accommodate a multi-cyclone therein;
a hinge rotatably coupling the lower case to the body case, the hinge configured to open and close a lower opening of the body case such that the foreign substances collected in the dust container is discharged when the lower opening is opened; and
a lock spaced apart from the hinge to hold or release the lower case to or from the body case, respectively.

13. The cleaner of claim 12 , wherein the hinge and the lock are provided at positions facing each other with a center of the lower case therebetween.

14. The cleaner of claim 12 , wherein the hinge and the lock are hidden from view by an inner wall of the dust container dock when the dust container is mounted at a predetermined position in the dust container dock.

15. The cleaner of claim 12 , wherein the mounting groove is formed at each of positions adjacent to the hinge and the lock.

16. A cleaner comprising:
a cleaner body;
a dust container dock formed in the cleaner body, the dust container dock being recessed from one side to the other side of the cleaner body and being opened toward at least one of a rear or a top of the cleaner body; and
a dust container detachably mounted in the dust container dock through at least one of the opened rear or the opened top of the dust container dock to filter and collect foreign substances from sucked air,
wherein the dust container includes:
a body case and a lower case to accommodate a multi-cyclone;
a hinge rotatably coupling the lower case to the body case, the hinge configured to open and close a lower opening of the body case such that the dust collected in the dust container is discharged when the lower opening is opened; and
a lock provided apart from the hinge to fix or release the lower case to or from the body case, respectively,

wherein the hinge and the lock are hidden from view by an inner wall of the dust container dock when the dust container is placed in the dust container dock,
wherein the robot cleaner further comprises a dust container cover rotatably coupled by a hinge to the cleaner body and configured to engage with the dust container for covering the dust container, and
wherein the dust container includes a button to release an engagement with the dust container cover, and the button is exposed at a rear of the cleaner body when the dust container is accommodated in the dust container dock.

17. The cleaner of claim 16 , wherein a portion of the dust container cover is accommodated in the dust container dock when the dust container cover covers the dust container.

Assignees

• Lg Electronics Inc

Inventors

• Nam Bohyun
• Shim Inbo
• Sung Jihoon
• Park Sojin
• Song Seunghyun
• Lee Sangkyu
• Jun Woochan

Classifications

• A47L9/0477 Primary

  Rolls · CPC title

• A47L9/1691

  Mounting or coupling means for cyclonic chamber or dust receptacles · CPC title

• A47L9/1633

  Concentric cyclones · CPC title

• A47L11/4066

  Propulsion of the whole machine · CPC title

• A47L2201/00

  Robotic cleaning machines, i.e. with automatic control of the travelling movement or the cleaning operation · CPC title