WO2016096024A1

WO2016096024A1 - Side brush for robotic vacuum cleaner and robotic vacuum cleaner comprising a side brush

Info

Publication number: WO2016096024A1
Application number: PCT/EP2014/078580
Authority: WO
Inventors: Andreas KLINTEMYR; Daniel KASTENSSON
Original assignee: Electrolux AB
Current assignee: Electrolux AB
Priority date: 2014-12-18
Filing date: 2014-12-18
Publication date: 2016-06-23
Anticipated expiration: 2017-06-18

Abstract

A side brush (1', 1") and a robotic vacuum cleaner (50) are provided. The side brush (1', 1") for a vacuum cleaner, such as a robotic vacuum cleaner (50), comprises a central part (3) connected to a peripheral part (5). The side brush (1', 1") is rotatable around an axis (A) of rotation, wherein the axis (A) extends through the central part (3). The central part (3) comprises a first attachment portion (7) which is attachable to a second attachment portion (54) of the vacuum cleaner. The peripheral part (5) comprises a plurality of straws (9) extending away from the central part (3). At least a portion of the plurality of straws (9) is made of carbon fibers.

Description

SIDE BRUSH FOR ROBOTIC VACUUM CLEANER AND ROBOTIC VACUUM

CLEANER COMPRISING A SIDE BRUSH

TECHNICAL FIELD

Embodiments herein relate to a side brush for a robotic vacuum cleaner. Embodiments herein further relate to a robotic vacuum cleaner comprising the side brush.

BACKGROUND

Brushes of various kinds are typically used for brushing a surface to be cleaned, such as a floor, a carpet or similar. A brush normally comprises a plurality of straws which, when the brush is moved along the surface to be cleaned, removes debris from the surface. The debris may then be collected in a heap of debris which can be removed from the surface via a vacuum cleaner nozzle, a dustpan or similar. Some robotic vacuum cleaners comprise one or more side brushes, arranged in the vicinity of an outer contour of the vacuum cleaner. A purpose of such a side brush is to brush the surface to be cleaned such that debris is removed. The debris may be brushed towards a cleaning member or nozzle of the robotic vacuum cleaner. Such a robotic vacuum cleaner is described in WO2012/147669A1. The robotic vacuum cleaner in WO2012/147669A1 is arranged to automatically move along a surface to be cleaned and collect debris from the surface.

The side brush described in WO2012/147669A1 may be useful in some applications. However, there remains a need for an improved and/or alternative side brush which is arranged to brush a surface to be cleaned in an efficient manner. In addition, there remains a need for an improved and/or alternative robotic vacuum cleaner with a side brush which increases the efficiency of the robotic vacuum cleaner and facilitates manoeuvring of the robotic vacuum cleaner. SUMMARY

An object may be to eliminate or at least reduce problems and/or drawbacks associated with known side brushes of the above mentioned kind(s). According to an embodiment, the object is achieved by a side brush for a robotic vacuum cleaner, comprising a central part connected to a peripheral part, the side brush being rotatable around an axis of rotation. The axis extends through the central part. The central part comprises a first attachment portion which is attachable to a second attachment portion of the robotic vacuum cleaner. The peripheral part comprises a plurality of straws extending away from the central part, wherein at least a portion of the plurality of straws is made of carbon fibers. Side brushes are subject to challenges normally not occurring to other kind of brushes, such as rotary rollers, roller brushes and similar. Such other brushes are generally arranged in a vacuum cleaner nozzle and often brought to rotate with a rotation axis in parallel with the surface to be cleaned. Straws of such other brushes are therefore shorter such that they can fit in between a floor and a vacuum cleaner body. In addition, they are generally designed to lift up debris from the floor such that the debris can be sucked up by e.g. a suction nozzle of the vacuum cleaner.

The side brush according to embodiments herein, on the other hand, is typically attached in the vicinity of an outer contour part of a vacuum cleaner. The side brush as described herein typically has an axis of rotation that is substantially perpendicular to the surface to be cleaned. From this position the side brush, when brought to rotate, can brush debris towards a centrally arranged roller brush or similar.

Since at least a portion of the plurality of straws of the side brush is made of carbon fibers, the straws of the side brush are considerably more durable than other straws, for example made of plastic material. Hereby, a life-cycle of the side brush is much longer than for other kinds of side brushes. Accordingly, the side brush as disclosed herein, is capable of efficient brushing for much longer periods of time than side brushes including straws made of other materials.

In addition, thanks to an inherent stiffness of the carbon fiber, the side brush with carbon fiber straws has been found to be ideal for long sweeping movements, which are characteristic for the side brush mounted at e.g. the robotic vacuum cleaner. Hereby, the carbon fiber straws can act upon the surface to be cleaned with sufficient force such that debris is brushed away in a desired direction, e.g. towards a suction nozzle or roller brush.

Furthermore, since the straws of the side brush often are longer than straws of other kind of brushes, problems related to static electricity may be worse than in other brush applications. Static electricity may disturb or even harm electrical system of the vacuum cleaner and may also affect debris to stick to the straws of the brush. The side brush with carbon fiber straws as disclosed herein will continuously earthen the side brush. In this manner, unnecessary stops and reparations of e.g. the robotic vacuum cleaner are avoided. As a consequence, an overall performance and efficiency of the side brush is considerably increased.

Any straws in the side brush which are not made of carbon fibers may be made of e.g. plastics, polymers, natural fibers, horse hair or any other suitable material.

The side brush according to embodiments herein may brush a surface in a very efficient manner. Moreover, the side brush according to embodiments herein may also at least reduce harm from static electricity towards other parts, i.e. electrical parts, of the vacuum cleaner. In this manner, the overall performance and efficiency are increased.

According to some embodiments the portion is at least 50%. This means that the portion of the plurality of straws which is made of carbon fibers may be equal to or greater than 50%. Since at least 50% of the straws are made of carbon fibers, the side brush is particularly durable and stiff. Hereby brushing properties are further enhanced and problems related to static electricity are even further avoided.

According to some embodiments the straws extend out from the central part in a radial direction, as seen along the axis of rotation. Since the straws extend out from the central part in a radial direction, excellent brushing properties, e.g. on soft surfaces carpets and rugs are achieved. Further, the side brush is easy to manufacture in a cost efficient manner.

According to some embodiments the straws extend out from the central part at an angle a relatively a radial direction, as seen along the axis of rotation. Since the straws extend out from the central part at an angle a relatively a radial direction excellent brushing properties is achieved. In addition, straws extending out from the central part at an angle a relatively a radial direction has proven to be particularly efficient in some applications. The angle a relatively the radial direction may be in the range of 1 - 45 degrees. The angle a may be e.g. about 10, 20, 30 or 40 degrees. A smaller angle a, such as in the range of 5-20 degrees, may be preferable in some applications. A larger angle a, such as above 20 degrees may be preferable in other applications such as "climbing" over cables, carpets and other objects on a floor. Embodiments in which the straws extend out from the central part at an angle a relatively a radial direction, can remove debris, dirt and dust very efficient from soft and/or uneven floors, such as wall-to-wall-carpets, rugs and similar. As mentioned above, embodiments in which the straws extend out from the central part at an angle a relatively a radial direction are also very good at brushing floors with loose cables and other kind of small objects on, since the straws pushes away such objects but collects debris, dirt and dust. Embodiments herein also aim to provide a robotic vacuum cleaner which eliminates or at least reduces the problems and/or drawbacks associated with known robotic vacuum cleaners.

According to an embodiment, this is provided by a robotic vacuum cleaner comprising a main body including a second attachment portion, a sensor, arranged to detect a surrounding of the robotic vacuum cleaner, a driving wheel arranged to drive the robotic vacuum cleaner across a surface to be cleaned, a drive arrangement arranged to rotatably drive the driving wheel to rotate across the surface, a control arrangement, arranged to control the drive arrangement to drive the driving wheel in accordance with navigation information and/or sensor information ,a cleaning member arranged at the bottom side of the main body, facing the surface to be cleaned, for removing debris from the surface to be cleaned, wherein the robotic vacuum cleaner comprises a side brush according to embodiments described herein, the side brush being attached to the robotic vacuum cleaner via the first and second attachment portions.

Since the robotic vacuum cleaner comprises a side brush in which at least a portion of the straws are made of carbon fibers, problems related to static electricity are avoided. Furthermore, since the robotic vacuum cleaner comprises the side brush in which at least a portion of the straws are made of carbon fibers, the straws can be made longer than e.g. straws made of polymers while, thanks to the stiffness of the carbon fibers, keeping a sufficient pressure against a surface to be cleaned.

In some embodiments, the robotic vacuum cleaner comprises more than one side brush in which at least a portion of the straws are made of carbon fibers, such as two, three or four side brushes. According to some embodiments the side brush is arranged such that at least a portion of the plurality of straws is in contact with the surface to be cleaned when the at least one driving wheel is in contact with the surface to be cleaned. Since at least a portion of the plurality of straws is in contact with the surface to be cleaned debris, dirt and dust are efficiently moved by the straws.

According to some embodiments the at least a portion of the plurality of straws extends substantially in parallel with the surface to be cleaned along a length L when the at least one driving wheel is in contact with the surface to be cleaned. Since the plurality of straws extends substantially in parallel with the surface to be cleaned along a length L debris, dirt and dust are efficiently cached by the straws along the length L. Since the carbon straws are relatively stiff as compared with other kind of straws, the length L can be relatively long while the side brush keeps its ability to efficiently brush debris. The length L can be e.g. 1-15 centimeters, such as about 3 centimeters, 6 centimeters, 9 centimeters or 12 centimeters.

With a longer length L, where the straws extends substantially in parallel with the surface to be cleaned, a larger area of a floor may be brushed for every distance the robotic vacuum cleaner drives. Hence, the robotic vacuum cleaner can clean the surface faster. In addition, it is not necessary to control the robotic vacuum cleaner to drive as accurate since the side brush collects debris outside an outer contour of the vacuum cleaner, whereby imperfections in the drive pattern are compensated for. Hereby maneuvering of the robotic vacuum cleaner is facilitated. In some applications it can be advantageous with a shorter length L, such as between 0.1-1 cm. According to some embodiments, the robotic vacuum cleaner comprises means for rotating the side brush around the axis of rotation, where the straws of the side brush, when the side brush is brought to rotate, is arranged to brush debris towards the cleaning member. In this manner, both brushing and cleaning is efficiently performed. Further features of, and advantages with, the embodiments herein will become apparent when studying the appended claims and the following detailed description.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The various aspects of embodiments herein, including its particular features and advantages, will be readily understood from the following detailed description and the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1a illustrates a perspective view of a side brush according to some embodiments, Fig. 1 b illustrates a side view of the side brush in Fig. 1 a,

Fig. 1 c illustrates the side brush in Fig. 1 a and 1 b as seen from above along an axis of rotation, Fig. 2a illustrates a side view of a side brush according to another embodiment,

Fig. 2b illustrates the side brush in Fig. 2a as seen from above along the axis of rotation, and Fig. 3 illustrates a robotic vacuum cleaner comprising a side brush. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Embodiments herein will now be described more fully with reference to the

accompanying drawings, in which embodiments are shown. Well-known functions or constructions will not necessarily be described in detail for brevity and/or clarity. Fig. 1a illustrates a side brush . The side brush is referred to as a side brush since it, in some applications, is arranged to be attached towards a side portion of a robotic vacuum cleaner. Such a robotic vacuum cleaner is further discussed in conjunction with Fig. 3 below.

The side brush V comprises a central part 3 and a peripheral part 5. The central part 3 may be formed as a homogenous body, e.g. made of plastics or metal. Alternatively, the central part 3 may be formed by two or more different pieces which together form the central part 3. The central part 3 may be formed e.g. by molding.

The central part 3 comprises a first attachment portion 7 which is attachable to a second attachment portion of a vacuum cleaner. The first attachment portion 7 may be a female attachment portion such as an aperture, slot, slit or the like. Alternatively, the first attachment portion is a male attachment portion such as a through shaft, a spike, a pin, a screw or the like. The first attachment portion 7 is configured such that it is attachable to a counter-attachment portion of a vacuum cleaner. The first attachment portion 7 may be attached to such an attachment portion of a vacuum cleaner e.g. via threads, via a bayonet coupling, via press-fit, via snap-fit or via any other suitable connection which allows a secure attachment between the side brush 1 ' and a vacuum cleaner. In the embodiment of Fig. 1 a, the central part 3 comprises an attachment portion in the form of a through hole.

An axis of rotation A extends through the central part 3. In the embodiment of Fig. 1 a, the axis of rotation extends through a hole in the cylindrically shaped central part 3. In other embodiments (not shown), the central part 3 may have other shapes and an axis of rotation may be non-centrically arranged. The side brush 1 ' may be brought to rotate around the axis of rotation A when attached to a vacuum cleaner, which comprises any kind of rotation arrangement for rotation of the side brush 1 '. As illustrated in Fig. 1 a, the peripheral part 5 comprises a plurality of straws 9. The straws of the peripheral part 5 are fastened to the central part 3, either directly or indirectly. The straws 9 can e.g. be molded into the central part 3 or connected by any connection arrangement such as via glue, press-fit, clamping, by sewing or the like. The straws 9 extends away from the central part 3 and thus also from the axis of rotation A. Each straw of the plurality of straws extends away from the central part 3. The straws 9 may uniformly or non-uniformly be arranged around the central part 3. In the embodiment of Fig. 1 a, the straws 9 are collected, or gathered, in a number of bundles 90. The side brush 1 ' may be provided with any number of bundles 90, such as 2-30 bundles attached to the central part 3.

At least a portion of the plurality of straws 9 is made of carbon fibers. The portion may be expressed in terms of percentage. In some embodiments at least 10, 20, 30, 40 or 50% of the plurality of straws 9 is made of carbon fibers. In some embodiments at least 60, 70, 80, 90 or 100% of the straws are made of carbon fibers. The amount or percentage of carbon fibers may depend e.g. on the type of side brush 1 ' or where the side brush 1 ' should be used. In some applications the straws made of carbon fibers are longer than the straws of non- carbon fiber, Hereby the shape of the straws 9 can be better kept over time. In some applications the straws made of carbon fibers are shorter than the straws of non-carbon fiber, Hereby the straws 9 can be arranged to brush against the surface 11 with larger force.

The carbon fibers may also be referred to as graphite fibers or CF. Each carbon fiber in the side brush can comprise a plurality of sub-fibers made of carbon atoms, each sub- fiber having a diameter of e.g. 5-10 micrometers. In some applications the carbon fibers are mixed with another material to form a composite.

Fig. 1 b illustrates a side view of the side brush 1 ' of Fig. 1 a. A surface 11 to be cleaned and the axis of rotation A are illustrated. The surface 1 1 to be cleaned may be any surface which may be brushed by the side brush 1 ', such as a floor, a carpet or similar. In the embodiment of Fig. 1 b, it is illustrated that the plurality of straws extends substantially in parallel with the surface to be cleaned along a length L when the side brush V is arranged in a brushing position, i.e. arranged near the surface 11 to be cleaned. The side brush 1 ', 1 " Fig. 1c illustrates the side brush V from above, seen along the axis of rotation A. In Fig. 1 c a radial direction R is illustrated. The radial direction R extends out radially from the central part 3 and the axis of rotation A. In the embodiment illustrated in Fig. 1 c, the plurality of straws 9 and the bundles 90 of straws extend out from the central part 3 at an angle a relatively the radial direction R, as seen along the axis of rotation A.

The angle a may be positive or negative. In Fig. 1 c, the angle a is positive such that the straws extend out "clockwise" relatively the radial direction R. With a negative angle a, the straws will extend "counter-clockwise" relatively the radial direction. The angle a may be in the range of 1 to 45 degrees, or in the range of -1 to -45 degrees. For example, the angle a may be about ±10 degrees, ±20 degrees, ±30 degrees or ±40 degrees relatively the radial direction R.

The side brush V in Fig. 1c can preferably be brought to rotate in the "counter-clockwise" direction, as seen from above.

Fig. 2a illustrates another embodiment of the side brush 1 '. The side brush according to the embodiment of Fig. 2a is referred to as side brush 1 ", and resembles the Fig. 1 embodiment. In this embodiment of the side brush 1 ", the straws 9 of the peripheral part 5 extend out from the central part 3 in the radial direction R, as seen along the axis of rotation. As illustrated, the plurality of straws 9 extends substantially in parallel with the surface 11 to be cleaned along a length L when the side brush 1 " is arranged in a brushing position. A diameter of the side brush 1 ', 1 " can be e.g. 3-25cm.

Fig. 2b illustrates the embodiment of Fig. 2a from above, i.e. as seen along the axis of rotation A. The plurality of straws 9, the bundle 90 of straws 9 and the radial direction are illustrated.

In Fig. 3, a robotic vacuum 50 cleaner according to some embodiments is illustrated. The robotic vacuum cleaner 50 has a main body 52 which comprises a second attachment portion 54. The second attachment portion 54 may be a female attachment portion, such as an aperture, slot, slit or the like. Alternatively, the second attachment portion 54 is a male attachment portion, such as a through shaft, a spike , a pin or the like. The second attachment portion 54 is configured such that it is attachable to a counter-attachment portion of the side brush 1 ', 1 " according to embodiments described herein. The first attachment portion of the side brush 1 ', 1 " may be attached to the second attachment portion 54 of the robotic vacuum cleaner 50 e.g. via threads, via a bayonet coupling, via press-fit, via snap-fit or via any other suitable connection which allows a secure attachment between the side brush 1 ', 1 " and the robotic vacuum cleaner 50.

The robotic vacuum cleaner 50 comprises a sensor 56, arranged to detect a surrounding of the robotic vacuum cleaner 54. In some embodiments, the robotic vacuum cleaner 54 comprises a plurality of sensors 56. The sensor or sensors 56 are arranged to detect a part of or the entire surrounding of the robotic vacuum cleaner 54 and to provide information of the detected surrounding to a control arrangement of the robotic vacuum cleaner 54.

The robotic vacuum cleaner 54 comprises a driving wheel 58 arranged to move, or drive, the robotic vacuum cleaner across a surface 11 to be cleaned. In some embodiment the robotic vacuum cleaner 54 comprises more than one driving wheel 58, such as two, three or four driving wheels 58.

The robotic vacuum cleaner 54 further comprises a drive arrangement 60 arranged to rotatably drive the driving wheel and a control arrangement 62. The control arrangement 62 is arranged to control the drive arrangement 60 to drive the driving wheel or driving wheels 58 in accordance with information from the sensor or sensors 54. The

information from the sensors may include distance to detected objects, ambient temperature, visibility or the like. In some embodiments the control arrangement 62 is arranged to control the drive arrangement 60 to drive the driving wheel or driving wheels 58 in accordance with other navigation information, such as a in accordance with a driving route or maneuvering scheme provided by a user.

In order to remove debris from the surface 1 1 to be cleaned, the robotic vacuum cleaner 54 further comprises a cleaning member 64 arranged at the bottom side of the main body 54, i.e. facing the surface to be cleaned 11 when the robotic vacuum cleaner 54 stands or is driven on the surface 1 1 to be cleaned. The cleaning member 64 may be e.g. a rotary roller, a roller brush or a vacuum cleaning nozzle. The robotic vacuum cleaner 54 can be arranged to drive in a predetermined pattern, a learned pattern or a random pattern.

In some embodiments the robotic vacuum cleaner 54 further comprises other parts such as: a caterpillar track instead or in combination with the at least one driving wheel 58, one or more bumper sensors, a fan, a receptacle or bag for the dust, a dustpan and one or more filters.

Claims

1. A side brush (1 ', 1 ") for a robotic vacuum cleaner (50), comprising a central part (3) connected to a peripheral part (5), the side brush (V, 1 ") being rotatable around an axis (A) of rotation, wherein the axis (A) extends through the central part (3),

- the central part (3) comprising a first attachment portion (7) which is

attachable to a second attachment portion (54) of the robotic vacuum cleaner (50),

- the peripheral part (5) comprising a plurality of straws (9) extending away from the central part (3),

characterized in that at least a portion of the plurality of straws (9) is made of carbon fibers.

2. The side brush (1 \ 1 ") according to claim 1 , wherein the portion is at least 50%.

3. The side brush (1 \ 1 ") according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the straws (9) extend out from the central part in a radial direction (R), as seen along the axis of rotation (A).

4. The side brush (1 \ 1 ") according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the straws (9) extend out from the central part (3) at an angle (a) relatively a radial direction (R), as seen along the axis of rotation (A).

5. A robotic vacuum cleaner (50) comprising

- a main body (52) including a second attachment portion (54),

- a sensor (56), arranged to detect a surrounding of the robotic vacuum cleaner (50),

- a driving wheel (58) arranged to drive the robotic vacuum cleaner (50) across a surface (1 1 ) to be cleaned,

- a drive arrangement (60) arranged to rotatably drive the driving wheel (58) across the surface (11 ),

- a control arrangement (62), arranged to control the drive arrangement (60) to drive the driving wheel (58) in accordance with navigation information and/or sensor information, - a cleaning member (64) arranged at the bottom side of the main body (52), facing the surface (1 1 ) to be cleaned, for removing debris from the surface (1 1 ),

characterized in that the robotic vacuum cleaner (50) comprises a side brush (1 ', 1 ") according to any one of claims 1-4, the side brush (V, 1 ") being attached to the robotic vacuum cleaner (50) via the first and second attachment portions (7, 54).

The robotic vacuum cleaner (50) according to claim 5, wherein the side brush (V, 1 ") is arranged such that at least a portion of the plurality of straws (9) is in contact with the surface (1 1 ) to be cleaned when the at least one driving wheel (58) is in contact with the surface (1 1 ) to be cleaned.

The robotic vacuum cleaner (50) according to claim 5 or 6, wherein the at least a portion of the plurality of straws (9) extends substantially in parallel with the surface (1 1 ) to be cleaned along a length (L) when the at least one driving wheel (58) is in contact with the surface (1 1 ) to be cleaned.

The robotic vacuum cleaner (50) according to any one of claims 5-7, wherein the robotic vacuum cleaner (50) comprises means for rotating the side brush (1 ', 1 ") around the axis of rotation (A), and where the straws (9) of the side brush (V, 1 "), when the side brush (V, 1 ") is brought to rotate, is arranged to brush debris towards the cleaning member (64).