Automated fleet-connected cleaning and inspection system

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2024336234-A1
Application number	US-202318296846-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Apr 6, 2023
Priority date	Apr 6, 2023
Publication date	Oct 10, 2024
Grant date	—

Abstract

Systems and methods for automated cleaning and inspection of electric vehicles. The systems and methods for automated cleaning eliminate the need for human interaction with the vehicle and/or cleaning system. Vehicle cleaning is typically a heavily manual task that consumes operation personnel time and resources. Providing automated systems and methods for vehicle cleaning can reduce human resources used for cleaning. Additionally, automated cleaning systems and methods can increase vehicle utilization efficiency by decreasing downtime for cleaning. In various implementations, systems and methods are provided for automated vehicle inspections. In some examples, automated vehicle inspections can occur concurrently with automated vehicle cleaning.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . A system for fleet cleaning, comprising:
a dispatch service in communication with each of a plurality of fleet vehicles, wherein the dispatch service is configured to:
receive a cleaning request from a fleet vehicle of the plurality of fleet vehicles, identify a cleaning facility with an available parking spot for cleaning, and transmit a message indicating that the fleet vehicle is arriving at the identified cleaning facility at a first time;
the cleaning facility, including:
a plurality of parking spots;
a robotic cleaner, wherein the robotic cleaner has access to a vacuum system and a cleansing system, and wherein the robotic cleaner is configured to clean the fleet vehicle parked in at least one of the plurality of parking spots;
a vacuum system including a plurality of vacuum system end effectors configured for deployment by the robotic cleaner to vacuum at least a portion of the fleet vehicle; and
a cleansing system including a plurality of cleansing system end effectors configured for deployment by the robotic cleaner to cleanse at least a portion of the fleet vehicle;
wherein the robotic cleaner is configured to identify at least one of a vacuum system end effector and a cleansing system end effector corresponding to a vehicle cleanliness issue.

2 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the fleet vehicle is configured to identify the vehicle cleanliness issue, wherein the cleaning request includes the vehicle cleanliness issue, and wherein the robotic cleaner is configured to receive the vehicle cleanliness issue.

3 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the vacuum system further comprises a vacuum canister and a vacuum hose, wherein the vacuum canister is configured to collect vacuumed debris via the vacuum hose, and wherein the robotic cleaner is configured to couple ones of the plurality of vacuum system end effectors to the vacuum hose.

4 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the cleansing system further comprises a plurality of reservoirs, wherein each of the plurality of reservoirs holds a cleaning solution.

5 . A method for vehicle cleaning, comprising:
detecting a first cleanliness issue on a vehicle; parking the vehicle in a parking spot in a cleaning facility, wherein the parking spot is accessible by a robotic cleaner; identifying a first cleaning end effector corresponding to the first cleanliness issue; adjusting the robotic cleaner to deploy the first cleaning end effector; cleaning the vehicle using the robotic cleaner and the first end effector, wherein cleaning includes addressing the first cleanliness issue; and inspecting the vehicle for a second cleanliness issue.

6 . The method of claim 5 , wherein detecting the first cleanliness issue includes receiving images from vehicle image sensors and processing the images at an image processor to identify the first cleanliness issue.

7 . The method of claim 6 , wherein processing the images at the image processor includes processing the images at a vehicle onboard computer, wherein inspecting the vehicle includes inspecting the vehicle using the robotic cleaner, and further comprising detecting, by the robotic cleaner, a second cleanliness issue on the vehicle.

8 . The method of claim 5 , further comprising:
identifying a sequence of end effectors for addressing the first cleanliness issue, wherein the sequence of end effectors includes the first cleaning end effector and a second cleaning end effector; adjusting the robotic cleaner to deploy the second cleaning end effector; and cleaning the vehicle using the robotic cleaner and the second end effector.

9 . The method of claim 8 , wherein adjusting the robotic cleaner to deploy the first cleaning end effector includes connecting, by the robotic cleaner, a vacuum end effector to a vacuum tube for vacuuming the vehicle, and wherein adjusting the robotic cleaner to deploy the second cleaning end effector includes using a cleansing end effector for one of spraying, wiping, and scrubbing the vehicle.

10 . The method of claim 5 , further comprising identifying the cleaning facility having the parking spot available, and directing the vehicle to the cleaning facility.

11 . The method of claim 5 , further comprising evaluating the area around the vehicle in the parking spot for a presence of a human, and, when the presence of the human is detected, generating an alarm to alert the human of the robotic cleaner.

12 . The method of claim 5 , further comprising connecting the vehicle with a charging station, and wherein cleaning the vehicle occurs while charging the vehicle.

13 . A system for vehicle cleaning, comprising:
a plurality of parking spots; a robotic cleaner, wherein the robotic cleaner has access to a vacuum system and a cleansing system, and wherein the robotic cleaner is configured to clean a vehicle in at least one of the parking spots; a vacuum system including a plurality of vacuum system end effectors configured for deployment by the robotic cleaner to vacuum at least a portion of the vehicle; and a cleansing system including a plurality of cleansing system end effectors configured for deployment by the robotic cleaner to cleanse at least a portion of the vehicle; wherein the robotic cleaner is configured to identify at least one of a vacuum system end effector and a cleansing system end effector corresponding to a vehicle cleanliness issue.

14 . The system of claim 13 , wherein the robotic cleaner is configured to inspect the vehicle for the cleanliness issue and to identify the cleanliness issue.

15 . The system of claim 14 , wherein the vacuum system includes a vacuum hose coupled to a vacuum canister, wherein the vacuum canister is configured to collect vacuumed debris via the vacuum hose, and wherein the robotic cleaner is configured to couple ones of the plurality of vacuum system end effectors to the vacuum hose.

16 . The system of claim 14 , further comprising a plurality of reservoirs coupled to the cleansing system, wherein each of the plurality of reservoirs holds a cleaning solution.

17 . The system of claim 16 , further comprising a water hose coupled to the cleansing system wherein the robotic cleaner is configured to access water from the water hose.

18 . The system of claim 13 , wherein the robotic cleaner further comprises an image processor configured to process vehicle images to identify the cleanliness issue.

19 . The system of claim 13 , wherein the robotic cleaner is a first robotic cleaner and further comprising a plurality of robotic cleaners, wherein each of the plurality of robotic cleaners has at least one corresponding parking space.

20 . The system of claim 13 , wherein the robotic cleaner is a mobile robotic cleaner configured to travel to the parking spot.

Assignees

• Gm Cruise Holdings Llc

Inventors

• Ferguson Kenneth
• Brandon Jeffrey

Classifications

• A47L7/0076

  adapted for vehicle cleaning (vehicle cleaning apparatus for interior of land vehicles B60S3/008) · CPC title

• A47L9/2805

  Parameters or conditions being sensed · CPC title

• B60S3/008 Primary

  for interiors of land vehicles · CPC title

• A47L2201/04

  Automatic control of the travelling movement; Automatic obstacle detection · CPC title

• A47L2201/06

  Control of the cleaning action for autonomous devices; Automatic detection of the surface condition before, during or after cleaning · CPC title