CLEANING AUTOMATIC MACHINE, ROBOT-CONTAINING SYSTEM FOR CLEANING WITH USE OF AUTOMATIC MACHINE AND AUTOMATIC MACHINE CONTROL METHOD Russian patent published in 2004 - IPC

FIELD: cleaning automatic machine, method for controlling it and robot-containing system that may be used for automatic removal of dust and dirt from predetermined zone of cleaned surface without operator.

SUBSTANCE: automatic machine for cleaning in mode of wireless communication with outer apparatus includes unit for driving several wheels mounted on housing of cleaning automatic machine; apparatus for collection of removed dust mounted on housing for removing dirt and dust from floor surface in working zone; group of contact-free switches arranged on lower surface of housing turned to floor surface at predetermined mutual intervals for detecting presence of metallic member at side of floor surface; control unit. Control unit is used for calculating distance and motion path with use of calculated signals received from contact-free switches during motion of automatic machine and for controlling drive unit in order to provide execution of desired work by means of drive unit at using calculated motion path. Number of contact-free switches is odd and they are arranged in row along line connecting axes of wheels mounted mutually opposite. Robot -containing system for cleaning includes automatic machine for cleaning in mode of wireless communication with outer apparatus and having group of contact-free switches arranged in row on lower surface of housing and guiding plate arranged on floor in zone of work and having metallic stripes placed according to given pattern with possibility of their detection by means of contact-free switches. Method for controlling cleaning automatic machine that may determine its own position with use of metallic stripe detection signals formed by means of group of contact free switches placed on lower surface of housing of automatic machine at predetermined mutual intervals comprises steps of creating and storing pattern-map of arrangement of metallic stripes during motion of automatic machine on floor surface in working zone; determination of location of cleaning automatic machine according to signal for work execution due to comparing pattern-map with metallic stripe detection signal of contact-free pickups; calculation of motion path from predetermined position point to given point; movement of automatic machine along calculated motion path. When metallic stripe detection signals are formed by means of boundary switches during motion of automatic machine, movement of cleaning automatic machine is interrupted for calculating parameters of motion path correction including change of motion direction and rectilinear motion necessary for detecting metallic stripe by means of intermediate contact-free switches. Then cleaning automatic machine is moved according to path correction parameters. When mean contact-free switch detects metallic stripe, control process of automatic cleaning machine is going on.

EFFECT: operation of automatic machine without operator at providing sufficient accuracy of calculation of its location without complex algorithms.

8 cl, 11 dwg