CLEANING ROBOT AND MOTION CONTROL METHOD THEREOF

Abstract

 A cleaning robot and a motion control method thereof are provided. The cleaning robot comprises: a cleaning element, which is configured to be in contact with a surface to be cleaned and form a chamber with the surface to be cleaned; a suction module, which is communicated with the chamber and is configured to draw air in the chamber to form negative pressure so that the cleaning element is adsorbed on the surface to be cleaned; a driving module, which is connected with the cleaning element and drives the cleaning element to rotate with the axis perpendicular to the surface to be cleaned as the rotation axis; a controller, which is coupled to and controls the suction module and the driving module; and a bridge, which connects a plurality of cleaning elements and the driving module, wherein at least one of the cleaning elements is configured to be able to deflect with respect to the bridge, so as to enable the rotation axis corresponding to the cleaning element to be staggered with the rotation axes corresponding to other cleaning elements to form an included angle. Compared with the existing cleaning robot, the cleaning robot described above can adapt to the surface to be cleaned with a certain curvature, and can meet the cleaning requirements of different materials at different degrees of dirt, which has a wider application range.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present disclosure relates to the technical field of cleaning devices, in particular to a cleaning robot and a motion control method thereof.

BACKGROUND

[0002] Chinese patent document CN102920393A discloses a cleaning machine for cleaning plates, which makes the cleaning machine adhered to the plates by forming negative pressure between the cleaning machine and the plates. Specifically, the cleaning machine comprises a link arm (i.e., a machine body) arranged between two cleaning elements. The two cleaning elements are both fixedly connected to the machine body. The driving module does not rotate one of the cleaning elements, and the other cleaning element is driven to rotate along a first rotation direction, so that a torsion force is generated between the rotating cleaning element and the machine body. The machine body swings to a second rotation direction (the second rotation direction is opposite to the first rotation direction) by the torsion force. The two cleaning elements are alternately driven to rotate, so that the cleaning machine walks on the plate in a twisting manner.

[0003] Chinese patent document CN104414573A discloses a window cleaning device with a similar structure. The window cleaning device is absorbed on the glass by negative pressure generated in a suction cup by a vacuum pump. The adsorption turntable of the window cleaning device is connected with the machine body through a bearing (the outer ring of the bearing is fixedly connected with the machine body, and the inner ring of the bearing is fixedly connected with the adsorption turntable). The control unit controls the magnitude and direction of power output on the two adsorption turntables, respectively. A pair of adsorption turntables are driven to rotate or are stationary around the vertical axis perpendicular to the glass surface, so that the pair of adsorption turntables alternately become high-speed ends or low-speed ends, resulting in a difference in rotation speed. Therefore, the window cleaning device twists alternately, so that the window cleaning device walks in a twisting manner.

[0004] Almost all the existing cleaning machines/window cleaning devices that walk in a twisting manner use structures similar to those of the above patents, in which two adsorption turntables are adsorbed on the surface of the plate, and the two adsorption turntables are rigidly connected into a whole to walk in a twisting manner on the plate. Because of this, almost all twisting cleaning devices require that the surface of the plate on which the cleaning devices work must be a very flat plane. When the plate is bent to form an arc surface, air leakage results from the increasing gap between the adsorption turntable and the surface of the plate, so that the machine may fall off in the process of walking. In order to prevent the machine from falling off, the usual means is to provide a sensor to monitor the pressure change in the negative pressure area. Once the pressure in the negative pressure area exceeds the set threshold, the machine will be immediately controlled to turn around instead of moving forward. Therefore, almost all the existing twisting cleaning devices are not suitable for working on the surface of a plate with a certain radian.

SUMMARY

[0005] One of the technical problems to be solved by the present disclosure is to provide a cleaning robot with a wider application range.

[0006] In order to solve the above technical problems, the present disclosure uses the following technical solution: a cleaning robot for removing particles attached to a surface to be cleaned, comprising: a cleaning element, which is configured to be in contact with the surface to be cleaned to perform a cleaning function and define at least one chamber 1a with the surface to be cleaned; a suction module, which is communicated with the chamber and is configured to draw air in the chamber to form negative pressure in the chamber so that the cleaning element is adsorbed on the surface to be cleaned; a driving module, which is connected with the cleaning element and drives the cleaning element to rotate with the axis perpendicular to the surface to be cleaned as the rotation axis; a controller, which is coupled to and controls the suction module and the driving module; a bridge, which connects a plurality of cleaning elements and the driving module, wherein at least one of the cleaning elements is configured to be able to deflect with respect to the bridge, so as to enable the rotation axis corresponding to the cleaning element to be staggered with the rotation axes corresponding to other cleaning elements to form an included angle.

[0007] In an embodiment, the cleaning robot further comprises a deflection driving mechanism, which is configured to apply deflection acting force, which causes the cleaning element to deflect, to the cleaning element configured to deflect with respect to the bridge, so that when the cleaning element is placed on the surface to be cleaned, one side of the cleaning element is in contact with the surface to be cleaned first, and after the cleaning element is adsorbed on the surface to be cleaned, the pressure of the side on the surface to be cleaned is greater than that of other parts thereof on the surface to be cleaned.

[0008] In an embodiment, at least two cleaning elements of the plurality of cleaning elements are connected with the bridge through rotating shafts arranged at intervals, the rotating shafts are perpendicular to the rotation axes corresponding to the at least two cleaning elements, the deflection driving mechanism is configured to apply deflection acting force, which causes the cleaning element to deflect, to the at least two cleaning elements, so that when the at least two cleaning elements are placed on the surface to be cleaned, one side of the cleaning elements is in contact with the surface to be cleaned first, and after the at least two cleaning elements are adsorbed on the surface to be cleaned, the pressure of the side on the surface to be cleaned is greater than that of other parts thereof on the surface to be cleaned.

[0009] When the at least two cleaning elements are adsorbed on the surface to be cleaned, the pressure of one side of the at least two cleaning elements subjected to the deflection acting force on the surface to be cleaned is greater than or less than the pressure of other parts thereof on the surface to be cleaned.

[0010] In an embodiment, the deflection driving mechanism comprises an elastic part arranged between the bridge and the corresponding cleaning element, both ends of the elastic part abut against the bridge and the corresponding cleaning element, respectively, alternatively, both ends of the elastic part are fixedly connected with the bridge and the corresponding cleaning element, respectively, and the elastic part which generates elastic deformation applies deflection acting force, which causes the cleaning element to deflect, to the cleaning element configured to deflect with respect to the bridge.

[0011] In an embodiment, the deflection driving mechanism comprises magnetic components which are fixedly installed on the bridge and the corresponding cleaning elements and attract or repel each other, and applies deflection acting force, which causes the cleaning element to deflect, to the cleaning element configured to deflect with respect to the bridge, by means of the attractive or repulsive interaction between the magnetic components.

[0012] Preferably, the magnetic component comprises an electromagnet, and the control circuit of the electromagnet is coupled to the controller.

[0013] The suction module comprises fans or vacuum pumps as many as the cleaning elements, the chambers defined by each of the cleaning elements and the surface to be cleaned are independent of each other, and the fans or vacuum pumps are connected to the chambers one by one.

[0014] In another aspect, the present disclosure further relates to a motion control method of the cleaning robot described above, wherein a plurality of cleaning elements of the cleaning robot at least comprise 1# cleaning element and 2# cleaning element, which are used to move the cleaning robot on the surface to be cleaned. In an embodiment, the motion control method comprises the following steps:

S01. controlling the corresponding suction module so that the negative pressure of the chamber defined by the 1# cleaning element and the surface to be cleaned is greater than the negative pressure of the chamber defined by the 2# cleaning element and the surface to be cleaned, and controlling the corresponding driving module to apply an appropriate driving force to the 1# cleaning element and the 2# cleaning element along a first rotation direction, so that the 2# cleaning element and the bridge twist around the 1# cleaning element along a second rotation direction opposite to the first rotation direction;

S02. controlling the corresponding suction module so that the negative pressure of the chamber defined by the 1# cleaning element and the surface to be cleaned is less than the negative pressure of the chamber defined by the 2# cleaning element and the surface to be cleaned, and controlling the corresponding driving module to apply an appropriate driving force to the 1# cleaning element and the 2# cleaning element along the second rotation direction, so that the 1# cleaning element and the bridge twist around the 2# cleaning element along the first rotation direction opposite to the second rotation direction;

executing the above steps S01 and S02 alternately.

[0015] In another embodiment, the motion control of the cleaning robot is that the at least two cleaning elements are driven simultaneously to rotate in a proper direction with respect to the surface to be cleaned via the corresponding driving module, and the deflection driving mechanism applies deflection acting force to the at least two cleaning elements, so that the resultant force of all static friction forces applied to all cleaning elements by the surface to be cleaned is greater than zero, thereby driving the cleaning robot to walk straight in the direction of the resultant force.

[0016] Preferably, in an embodiment where a magnetic component including an electromagnet is used as the deflection driving mechanism, the motion of the cleaning robot is controlled as follows: first, controlling the corresponding suction module so that the negative pressure of the chamber defined by the 1# cleaning element of the at least two cleaning elements and the surface to be cleaned is greater than the negative pressure of the chamber defined by the 2# cleaning element and the surface to be cleaned, and turning off a power supply circuit of an electromagnet corresponding to the 1# cleaning element, and turning on a power supply circuit of an electromagnet corresponding to the 2# cleaning element, so that the pressure of one side of the 2# cleaning element on the surface to be cleaned is greater than or less than that of other parts thereof on the surface to be cleaned, and controlling the corresponding driving module to apply an appropriate driving force to the 1# cleaning element and the 2# cleaning element along a first rotation direction, so that the 2# cleaning element and the bridge twist around the 1# cleaning element along a second rotation direction opposite to the first rotation direction; subsequently, controlling the corresponding suction module so that the negative pressure of the chamber defined by the 1# cleaning element and the surface to be cleaned is less than the negative pressure of the chamber defined by the 2# cleaning element and the surface to be cleaned, and turning on a power supply circuit of an electromagnet corresponding to the 1# cleaning element, and turning off a power supply circuit of an electromagnet corresponding to the 2# cleaning element, so that the pressure of one side of the 1# cleaning element on the surface to be cleaned is greater than or less than that of other parts thereof on the surface to be cleaned, and controlling the corresponding driving module to apply an appropriate driving force to the 1# cleaning element and the 2# cleaning element along the second rotation direction, so that the 1# cleaning element and the bridge twist around the 2# cleaning element along the first rotation direction opposite to the second rotation direction; executing the above steps alternately, so that the cleaning machine walks on the surface to be cleaned in a twisting manner.

[0017] Different from the existing machines, the present disclosure configures at least one of the cleaning elements to be able to deflect with respect to the bridge, and correspondingly, other parts of the machine (including the bridge, other cleaning elements, etc.) can also deflect with respect to the cleaning element. By using a deflectable/floating structure, the cleaning element can better fit the surface to be cleaned with a certain radian, which can improve the adsorption effect between the cleaning element and the surface to be cleaned, reduce the risk that the machine falls off, and better ensure the cleaning effect. In addition, when the existing machine cleans the flat surface to be cleaned, if there are hard-to-erase solid attachments (such as solidified cement blocks and hard glue blocks) on the surface to be cleaned, even if the height of the solid attachments protruding from the surface to be cleaned is not large. The machine will misjudge the position of the solid attachments as the plate boundary (in order to prevent the machine from falling off) because the cleaning element is pushed by the interference of the solid attachments. The present disclosure can avoid the solid attachments in a certain extent through the deflection/floating structure of the cleaning element, thereby reducing the misjudgment caused by interference. To sum up, compared with the existing cleaning robot, the present disclosure has better adaptability and a wider application range.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0018] 

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an external structure of a cleaning robot in Embodiments 1-2.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of a connection structure among a cleaning element, a driving module, a suction module and a bridge in Embodiment 1.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a bridge in Embodiment 1.

FIG. 4 is a schematic plan view of a cleaning robot in Embodiment 1.

FIG. 5 is a schematic cross-sectional view taken along A-A in FIG. 4.

FIG. 6 is a schematic side view of a cleaning robot in Embodiment 1.

FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram of a cleaning robot adsorbed on an arc-shape surface to be cleaned in Embodiment 1.

FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram of a movement trajectory of a cleaning robot on a surface to be cleaned in Embodiment 1.

FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram of a connection structure among a cleaning element, a driving module, a suction module and a bridge in Embodiment 2.

FIG. 10 is a partial enlarged view of part I in FIG. 9.

FIG. 11 is a perspective view of a bridge in Embodiment 2.

FIG. 12 is a schematic side view of a cleaning robot in Embodiment 2.

FIG. 13 is a first schematic diagram of a movement trajectory of a cleaning robot on a surface to be cleaned in Embodiment 2.

FIG. 14 is a second schematic diagram of a movement trajectory of a cleaning robot on a surface to be cleaned in Embodiment 2.

[0019] In the figures:
1-cleaning element, 2-suction module, 3-driving module, 4-controller, 5-bridge, 6-deflection driving mechanism, 7-rotating shaft, 1a-chamber, 1-1-1 # cleaning element, 1-2-2 # cleaning element

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0020] In the description of the present disclosure, it should be understood that the orientational or positional relationships indicated by the terms "center", "upper", "lower", "front", "back", "top", "bottom", "inside" and "outside" are based on the orientational or positional relationships shown in the drawings only for the convenience of describing the present disclosure and simplifying the description, rather than indicate or imply that the indicated devices or elements must have a specific orientation, be constructed and operated in a specific orientation, and therefore should not be construed as limiting the present disclosure. In addition, the terms "1#" and "2#" are only used for purpose of description, and cannot be understood as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly indicating the number of indicated technical features.

[0021] In order to facilitate those skilled in the art to understand the concept of the present disclosure more clearly, the present disclosure will be further explained with reference to embodiments and drawings hereinafter.

Embodiment 1

[0022] FIGS. 1, 4, and 6 show the external structure of the cleaning robot in the embodiment. According to FIGS. 2, 5, and 7, the cleaning robot mainly comprises a cleaning element 1, a suction module 2, a driving module 3, a controller 4, and a bridge 5 (the bridge 5 is equivalent to a bracket connecting the cleaning elements 1. Since the cleaning elements 1 are independent of each other, the bracket connects the independent cleaning elements 1 and acts like a connecting bridge, so that the bracket is referred to as a bridge). It should be pointed out in advance that although the number of cleaning elements 1 is two in the above figure, those skilled in the art should understand that in practical application, a plurality of cleaning elements 1 can also be configured as required, and the figure shows only the simplest structure of the cleaning robot. In addition, the suction module 2 comprises, but is not limited to, a fan (a negative pressure fan) or a vacuum pump. The driving module 3 can be a motor (of course, a speed reducer can be connected to the output of the motor as required). Because the air duct and the control circuit of the cleaning robot in the embodiment are similar to those of the existing cleaning robot, for the purpose of simplifying the description, the above contents will not be described in detail here.

[0023] In the cleaning robot illustrated above, the cleaning element 1 is mainly configured to be in contact with the surface to be cleaned to perform a cleaning function and define at least one chamber 1a with the surface to be cleaned. In addition to taking the shape of a wheel disc as shown in the figure, the cleaning element 1 can also take the shape of a Reuleaux triangle. In addition, it should be understood by those skilled in the art that the aforementioned surface to be cleaned comprises but is not limited to the surface of a flat plate (for example, an upright glass window), which can also be a floor surface or a curved surface with a certain radian (for example, a glass surface with a certain radian like the front windshield of an automobile). In this embodiment, the cleaning element 1 is adsorbed on the surface to be cleaned by the suction module 2. Specifically, the suction module 2 comprises two negative pressure fans. The chambers 1a formed by the two cleaning elements 1 are independent of each other, and the two negative pressure fans are connected to the two chambers 1a one by one. In the operation, the negative pressure fans pump air in the chamber 1a to form negative pressure in the chamber 1a, so that the corresponding cleaning element 1 is adsorbed on the surface to be cleaned. After each cleaning element 1 uses a separate negative pressure fan and its corresponding chambers 1a are independent of each other, the adsorption forces of each cleaning element 1 do not affect each other. Even if one of the cleaning elements 1 moves out of the working area of the surface to be cleaned and air leaks, as long as one of the cleaning elements 1 is still located in the safe working area, the cleaning element 1 in the safe working area will still be firmly adsorbed on the surface to be cleaned, which will not result in the risk that the machine falls off. This is higher in security. In addition, the cleaning function of the cleaning element 1 is powered by the driving module 3 connected to the cleaning element. The driving module 3 drives the cleaning element 1 to rotate with the axis perpendicular to the surface to be cleaned as the rotation axis, so that the cleaning element 1 and the surface to be cleaned have a relative displacement. Under the action of friction, the cleaning element 1 erases the particles attached to the surface to be cleaned. Like the existing cleaning robot, the suction module 2 and the driving module 3 can be powered by rechargeable battery modules, or can be powered by the commercial power after voltage reduction by providing a power cord externally connected to the commercial power. When the commercial power is used for power supply, the battery module can be used as a backup power supply. When the commercial power is cut off (for example, in the case of power failure), the suction module 2 and driving module 3 are switched to the battery module for power supply. Meanwhile, the controller 4 is coupled with the suction module 2 and the driving module 3 to control the suction module 2 and the driving module 3. Unlike the existing cleaning robot, which fixedly connects each adsorption turntable into a whole through the machine body/casing, in this embodiment, two cleaning elements 1 are connected through the bridge 5, and the two cleaning elements 1 are both configured to be able to deflect with respect to the bridge 5. Specifically, the two cleaning elements 1 are connected to the bridge 5 through two sets of rotating shafts 7 arranged in parallel at intervals on the bridge 5, respectively. In the figure, the rotating shafts 7 are perpendicular to the rotation axes corresponding to the two cleaning elements 1. After either of the cleaning elements 1 deflects, its corresponding rotation axis will be staggered with the rotation axis corresponding to the other cleaning element 1 to form an included angle. The main purpose that the cleaning element 1 uses the above-mentioned structure that can deflect/float with respect to the bridge 3, is to enable the cleaning element to better fit the surface to be cleaned with a certain radian, so as to improve the adsorption effect between the cleaning element 1 and the surface to be cleaned, reduce the risk that the machine falls off, and ensure the cleaning effect. Moreover, the solid attachments existing on the surface to be cleaned can be avoided in a certain extent through the deflection/floating of the cleaning element 1, thus reducing the situation that the machine misjudges the position of the solid attachments as the boundary due to the interference and pushing between the solid attachments and the cleaning element 1. It should be clear that, in another embodiment, only one of the cleaning elements 1 can be configured to deflect with respect to the bridge. According to the principle of relativity of motion, other parts of the machine (including the bridge 5, other cleaning elements 1, etc.) can also deflect with respect to the cleaning element 1 with the cleaning element 1 as a reference, so that the above purpose can also be achieved.

[0024] Next, the motion control method of the above-mentioned cleaning robot is described in detail. For convenience of description, the two cleaning elements 1 in the figure are numbered as 1# cleaning element 1-1 and 2# cleaning element 1-2, respectively.

[0025] As shown in FIG. 8, after the cleaning robot is adsorbed on the surface to be cleaned by the negative pressure generated by the suction module 2, the 1# cleaning element 1-1 and the 2# cleaning element 1-2 are located at A0 and B0 positions in the figure, respectively.

[0026] First, the suction modules 2 corresponding to the 1# cleaning element 1-1 and the 2# cleaning element 1-2 are controlled, respectively, so that the negative pressure of the chamber 1a corresponding to the 1# cleaning element 1-1 is greater than that of the chamber 1a corresponding to the 2# cleaning element 1-2. The corresponding driving module 3 is controlled to drive the 1# cleaning element 1-1 and the 2# cleaning element 1-2 clockwise. The driving force applied by the driving module 3 should be within an appropriate range. For the 1# cleaning element 1-1, the driving force applied by the driving module 3 should be less than the maximum static friction force with the surface to be cleaned. However, for the 2# cleaning element 1-2, the driving force applied by the driving module 3 should be greater than the maximum static friction force with the surface to be cleaned, so that the 2# cleaning element 1-2 rotates with the axis perpendicular to the surface to be cleaned as the rotation axis. The 2# cleaning element 1-2 and the surface to be cleaned have a relative displacement. The 1# cleaning element 1-1 is stationary with respect to the surface to be cleaned. According to the principle of acting force and counter-acting force, the counter-acting force corresponding to the driving force applied to the 1# cleaning element 1-1 (the counter-acting force is equal to the static friction force generated by the surface to be cleaned) will be transmitted to the bridge 5. Because the sliding friction force between the rotating 2# cleaning element 1-2 and the surface to be cleaned is less than the static friction force between the 1# cleaning element 1-1 and the surface to be cleaned, when driven by the above counter-acting force, the bridge 5 and the 2# cleaning element 1-2 will twist counterclockwise around the 1# cleaning element 1-1, so that the 2# cleaning element 1-2 moves to the B1 position and the 1# cleaning element 1-1 is still located at the A0 position.

[0027] Thereafter, the suction modules 2 corresponding to the 1# cleaning element 1-1 and the 2# cleaning element 1-2 are controlled, respectively, so that the negative pressure of the chamber 1a corresponding to the 1# cleaning element 1-1 is less than that of the chamber 1a corresponding to 2# cleaning element 1-2. Moreover, the corresponding driving module 3 is controlled to drive the 1# cleaning element 1-1 and the 2# cleaning element 1-2 counterclockwise, similar to the previous steps. The driving force applied by the driving module 3 should also be within an appropriate range. Different from the previous steps, in this step, for the 1# cleaning element 1-1, the driving force applied by the driving module 3 should be greater than the maximum static friction force with the surface to be cleaned. However, for the 2# cleaning element 1-2, the driving force applied by the driving module 3 should be less than the maximum static friction force with the surface to be cleaned, so that the 1# cleaning element 1-1 rotates with the axis perpendicular to the surface to be cleaned as the rotation axis. The 1# cleaning element 1-1 and the surface to be cleaned have a relative displacement. The 2# cleaning element 1-2 is stationary with respect to the surface to be cleaned. According to the principle of acting force and counter-acting force, the counter-acting force corresponding to the driving force applied to the 2# cleaning element 1-2 (the counter-acting force is equal to the static friction force generated by the surface to be cleaned) will be transmitted to the bridge 5. Because the sliding friction force between the rotating 1# cleaning element 1-1 and the surface to be cleaned is less than the static friction force between the 2# cleaning element 1-2 and the surface to be cleaned, when driven by the above counter-acting force, the bridge 5 and the 1# cleaning element 1-1 will twist counterclockwise around the 2# cleaning element 1-2, so that the 1# cleaning element 1-1 moves to the A1 position and the 2# cleaning element 1-2 is still located at the B 1 position.

[0028] By executing the above two steps alternately, the cleaning robot can walk on the surface to be cleaned in a twisting manner. In the process that the cleaning robot walks on the surface to be cleaned in a twisting manner, the 1# cleaning element 1-1 and the 2# cleaning element 1-2 alternately rotate with respect to the surface to be cleaned and erase the dirt particles attached to the surface to be cleaned, thus realizing the cleaning operation of the surface to be cleaned.

Embodiment 2

[0029] In this embodiment, the cleaning robot also uses the external structure as shown in FIG. 1. As can be seen from FIG. 9, similar to Embodiment 1, the cleaning robot also mainly comprises a cleaning element 1, a suction module 2, a driving module 3, a controller 4 and a bridge 5. As shown in FIGS. 9-11, in this embodiment, the two cleaning elements 1 are both configured to be able to deflect with respect to the bridge 5. Similarly, the two cleaning elements 1 are also connected to the bridge 5 through two sets of rotating shafts 7 arranged in parallel at intervals on the bridge 5, and the rotating shafts 7 are perpendicular to the rotation axes corresponding to the two cleaning elements 1.

[0030] The biggest difference between this embodiment and Embodiment 1 is that a deflection driving mechanism 6 is further provided, which is configured to apply deflection acting force, which causes the cleaning element to deflect, to the two cleaning elements 1 configured to deflect with respect to the bridge 5. When the cleaning element 1 is placed on the surface to be cleaned by means of the deflection acting force applied by the deflection driving mechanism 6, one side of the cleaning element is in contact with the surface to be cleaned first, and after the two cleaning elements 1 are adsorbed on the surface to be cleaned, the pressure of the aforementioned side (i.e., the side that is in contact with the surface to be cleaned first) on the surface to be cleaned is greater than that of other parts thereof on the surface to be cleaned. Specifically, in this embodiment, a deflection driving mechanism 6 is arranged between the bridge 5 and the two cleaning elements 1, respectively, as shown in FIGS. 9 and 10. The deflection driving mechanism 6 is a coil spring arranged between the bridge 5 and the cleaning elements 1. The lower end of the coil spring abuts against the positioning hole provided at the end of the bridge 5, and the upper end of the coil spring abuts against the positioning hole of the cleaning element 1 provided near the bridge 5, so that the coil spring is in a compressed state (a compressed spring). Without the action of other external forces, as shown in FIG. 12, one of the cleaning elements 1 of the cleaning robot deflects counterclockwise with respect to the bridge 5 under the elastic force of the corresponding compressed spring, and the other cleaning element 1 deflects clockwise with respect to the bridge 5 under the elastic force of the corresponding compressed spring, so that the rotation axes corresponding to the cleaning elements 1 are staggered to form an included angle. It should be pointed out that the coil spring is not limited to the above arrangement, which can also be arranged such that the upper end of the coil spring is fixedly connected with the end of the bridge 5 and the lower end of the coil spring is fixedly connected with the part of the cleaning element 1 near the bridge 5. In this way, the coil spring is in a stretched state (a tension spring). With the elastic force of the tension spring, one of the cleaning elements 1 can deflect counterclockwise with respect to the bridge 5, and the other cleaning element 1 can deflect clockwise with respect to the bridge 5, thus showing the state shown in FIG. 12.

[0031] Next, the motion control method of the cleaning robot in this embodiment will be described in detail. For convenience of description, the two cleaning elements 1 in the figure are numbered as 1# cleaning element 1-1 and 2# cleaning element 1-2, respectively. As shown in FIG. 13, the cleaning robot of this embodiment can control the movement trajectory of its working process in the same way as that of Embodiment 1. As in Embodiment 1, after the cleaning robot is adsorbed on the surface to be cleaned by the negative pressure generated by the suction module 2, the 1# cleaning element 1-1 and the 2# cleaning element 1-2 are located at the A0 position and the B0 position in the figure, respectively. At this time, the pressure at the distal ends of the 1# cleaning element 1-1 and the 2# cleaning element 1-2 (the ends of the 1# cleaning element 1-1 and the 2# cleaning element 1-2 relatively far away from the bridge 5, that is, the lowest point of the 1# cleaning element 1-1 and the 2# cleaning element 1-2 in FIG. 12) on the surface to be cleaned is higher than that of other parts thereof on the surface to be cleaned.

[0032] Referring to the control steps in Embodiment 1, the 1# cleaning element 1-1 and the 2# cleaning element 1-2 are driven to walk in a twisting manner, so that the 1# cleaning element 1-1 and the 2# cleaning element 1-2 move to the A1 position and the B1 position in the figure, respectively. As shown in FIG. 13, in the process that the cleaning robot walks on the surface to be cleaned in a twisting manner, the 1# cleaning element 1-1 and the 2# cleaning element 1-2 alternately rotate with respect to the surface to be cleaned and erase the dirt particles attached to the surface to be cleaned, thus realizing the cleaning operation of the surface to be cleaned. Different from Embodiment 1, this embodiment is provided with a coil spring that applies deflection acting force to the cleaning element 1, so that when the 1# cleaning element 1-1 and the 2# cleaning element 1-2 are adsorbed on the surface to be cleaned, the pressure of its distal end side on the surface to be cleaned is greater than that of other parts thereof on the surface to be cleaned. Thus, during the rotation of the 1# cleaning element 1-1 and the 2# cleaning element 1-2 with respect to the surface to be cleaned, the counter-acting force applied to the distal end side by the surface to be cleaned is greater than the counter-acting force applied to other parts. That is, the counter-acting force applied by the rotating cleaning element 1 (the 1# cleaning element 1-1 or the 2# cleaning element 1-2) from the surface to be cleaned is unbalanced, which means that the counter-acting force applied to the whole cleaning element 1 by the surface to be cleaned forms an acting force that deflects the cleaning element 1, thus making it easier for the cleaning element 1 to deflect around another cleaning element 1 that is stationary with respect to the surface to be cleaned. Because it is easier to deflect, the situation that the machine falls off from the surface to be cleaned due to excessive torque in the process of walking can be greatly reduced. At the same time, the driving force applied to the cleaning element 1 at the opposite stationary side by the driving module 3 can be correspondingly reduced, and the output power of the suction module 2 can be correspondingly reduced. The use of the suction module 2 and the driving module 3 with lower power can save the manufacturing cost of the cleaning robot, reduce the energy consumption required by the cleaning robot in the process of walking, and achieve many purposes at one time.

[0033] In addition to the above motion control method, the cleaning robot of this embodiment can also be used to clean horizontal surfaces to be cleaned (such as floors). As shown in FIG. 14, the 1# cleaning element 1-1 and the 2# cleaning element 1-2 are simultaneously driven to rotate in opposite directions (one cleaning element in the counterclockwise direction and the other cleaning element in the clockwise direction) with respect to the surface to be cleaned via the corresponding driving module 3. Under the deflection acting force simultaneously applied by their respective coil springs of the 1# cleaning element 1-1 and the 2# cleaning element 1-2, the resultant force of all static friction forces applied to the 1# cleaning element 1-1 and the 2# cleaning element 1-2 by the surface to be cleaned is greater than zero and points to one side of the cleaning robot, so that the cleaning robot walks straight in the direction of the resultant force. Of course, the above two methods are combined to control the movement trajectory of the cleaning robot.

[0034] It should be emphasized that the aforementioned deflection driving mechanism 6 is not limited to the structure of the coil spring, but can be other elastic parts or other parts besides the elastic parts that can be arranged between the bridge 5 and the cleaning elements 1 and apply deflection acting force to the cleaning elements 1. In an embodiment, the deflection driving mechanism 6 can be magnetic components which are fixedly installed on the bridge 5 and the corresponding cleaning elements 1 and attract (with respect to the tension spring) or repel (with respect to the compressed spring) each other. The deflection acting force can also be applied to the cleaning elements 1 by means of the attractive or repulsive interaction between the magnetic components. Preferably, the magnetic component comprises an electromagnet, and the control circuit of the electromagnet is coupled to the controller 4. The controller 4 can control the ON/OFF of the electromagnet to control the deflection driving mechanism 6. After the electromagnet is used as the deflection driving mechanism 6, the cleaning robot can walk on the surface to be cleaned in a twisting manner as follows. First, the corresponding suction module 2 is controlled so that the negative pressure of the chamber 1a corresponding to the 1# cleaning element 1-1 is greater than the negative pressure of the chamber 1a corresponding to the 2# cleaning element 1-2. A power supply circuit of an electromagnet corresponding to the 1# cleaning element 1-1 is turned off, and a power supply circuit of an electromagnet corresponding to the 2# cleaning element 1-2 is turned on, so that the pressure of one side of the 2# cleaning element 1-2 on the surface to be cleaned is greater than or less than that of other parts thereof on the surface to be cleaned. The corresponding driving module 3 is controlled to apply an appropriate driving force to the 1# cleaning element 1-1 and the 2# cleaning element 1-2 clockwise. The requirement of an "appropriate" driving force in this embodiment is the same as that in Embodiment 1 (that is, one cleaning element 1 is stationary with respect to the surface to be cleaned, and the other cleaning element 1 rotates with respect to the surface to be cleaned), so that the 2# cleaning element 1-2 and the bridge 5 twist around the 1# cleaning element 1-1 counterclockwise. Thereafter, the corresponding suction module 2 is controlled so that the negative pressure of the chamber 1a corresponding to the 1# cleaning element 1-1 is less than the negative pressure of the chamber 1a corresponding to the 2# cleaning element 1-2. A power supply circuit of an electromagnet corresponding to the 1# cleaning element 1-1 is turned on, and a power supply circuit of an electromagnet corresponding to the 2# cleaning element 1-2 is turned off, so that the pressure of one side of the 1# cleaning element 1-1 on the surface to be cleaned is greater than or less than that of other parts thereof on the surface to be cleaned. The corresponding driving module 3 is controlled to apply an appropriate driving force to the 1# cleaning element 1-1 and the 2# cleaning element 1-2 counterclockwise, so that the 1# cleaning element 1-1 and the bridge 5 twist around the 2# cleaning element 1-2 clockwise. By executing the above steps alternately, the cleaning robot can be controlled to walk on the surface to be cleaned in a twisting manner. After the electromagnet is used, the cleaning element 1 which is stationary with respect to the surface to be cleaned is not subjected to the deflection acting force in the process of walking in a twisting manner, but only the clean element 1 which rotates with respect to the surface to be cleaned is subjected to the deflection acting force. The stationary cleaning element 1 is balanced in force and firmly adsorbed on the surface to be cleaned, and only the rotating cleaning element 1 is subjected to unbalanced counter-acting force from the surface to be cleaned, so that it is easier for the rotating cleaning element 1 to deflect around another cleaning element 1 which is stationary with respect to the surface to be cleaned, and the risk that the cleaning robot falls off from the surface to be cleaned in the process of walking in a twisting manner is further reduced.

[0035] The above embodiments are preferred implementations of the present disclosure, and any obvious substitutions fall within the scope of protection of the present disclosure without departing from the concept of this technical solution.

[0036] Some drawings and descriptions of the present disclosure have been simplified to make it easier for those skilled in the art to understand the improvement of the present disclosure over the prior art. Moreover, for the sake of clarity, some other elements are omitted in the application. Those skilled in the art should realize that these omitted elements can also constitute the content of the present disclosure.

Claims

1. A cleaning robot for removing particles attached to a surface to be cleaned, characterized by comprising:

a cleaning element (1), which is configured to be in contact with the surface to be cleaned to perform a cleaning function and define at least one chamber (1a) with the surface to be cleaned;

a suction module (2), which is communicated with the chamber (1a) and is configured to draw air in the chamber (1a) to form negative pressure in the chamber (1a) so that the cleaning element (1) is adsorbed on the surface to be cleaned;

a driving module (3), which is connected with the cleaning element (1) and drives the cleaning element (1) to rotate with the axis perpendicular to the surface to be cleaned as the rotation axis;

a controller (4), which is coupled to and controls the suction module (2) and the driving module (3);

a bridge (5), which connects a plurality of cleaning elements (1), wherein at least one of the cleaning elements (1) is configured to be able to deflect with respect to the bridge (5), so as to enable the rotation axis corresponding to the cleaning element (1) to be staggered with the rotation axes corresponding to other cleaning elements (1) to form an included angle.

2. The cleaning robot according to claim 1, further comprising:
a deflection driving mechanism (6), which is configured to apply deflection acting force, which causes the cleaning element to deflect, to the cleaning element (1) configured to deflect with respect to the bridge (5), so that when the cleaning element (1) is placed on the surface to be cleaned, one side of the cleaning element is in contact with the surface to be cleaned first, and after the cleaning element (1) is adsorbed on the surface to be cleaned, the pressure of the side on the surface to be cleaned is greater than that of other parts thereof on the surface to be cleaned.

3. The cleaning robot according to claim 2, wherein:
at least two cleaning elements (1) of the plurality of cleaning elements (1) are connected with the bridge (5) through rotating shafts (7) arranged at intervals, the rotating shafts (7) are perpendicular to the rotation axes corresponding to the at least two cleaning elements (1), the deflection driving mechanism (6) is configured to apply deflection acting force, which causes the cleaning element to deflect, to the at least two cleaning elements (1), so that when the at least two cleaning elements (1) are placed on the surface to be cleaned, one side of the cleaning elements is in contact with the surface to be cleaned first, and after the at least two cleaning elements (1) are adsorbed on the surface to be cleaned, the pressure of the side on the surface to be cleaned is greater than that of other parts thereof on the surface to be cleaned.

4. The cleaning robot according to claim 2 or 3, wherein the deflection driving mechanism (6) comprises an elastic part arranged between the bridge (5) and the corresponding cleaning element (1), both ends of the elastic part abut against the bridge (5) and the corresponding cleaning element (1), respectively, alternatively, both ends of the elastic part are fixedly connected with the bridge (5) and the corresponding cleaning element (1), respectively, and the elastic part which generates elastic deformation applies deflection acting force, which causes the cleaning element to deflect, to the cleaning element (1) configured to deflect with respect to the bridge (5).

5. The cleaning robot according to claim 3, wherein the deflection driving mechanism (6) comprises magnetic components which are fixedly installed on the bridge (5) and the corresponding cleaning elements (1) and attract or repel each other, and applies deflection acting force, which causes the cleaning element to deflect, to the cleaning element (1) configured to deflect with respect to the bridge (5), by means of the attractive or repulsive interaction between the magnetic components.

6. The cleaning robot according to claim 5, wherein the magnetic component comprises an electromagnet, and the control circuit of the electromagnet is coupled to the controller (4).

7. The cleaning robot according to any one of claims 1-3, wherein the suction module (2) comprises fans or vacuum pumps as many as the cleaning elements (1), the chambers (1a) defined by each of the cleaning elements (1) and the surface to be cleaned are independent of each other, and the fans or vacuum pumps are connected to the chambers (1a) one by one.

8. A motion control method of the cleaning robot according to claim 7, which is used to move the cleaning robot on the surface to be cleaned, wherein the plurality of cleaning elements (1) at least comprise 1# cleaning element (1-1) and 2# cleaning element (1-2), the motion control method characterized by comprising the following steps:

S01. controlling the corresponding suction module (2) so that the negative pressure of the chamber (1a) defined by the 1# cleaning element (1-1) and the surface to be cleaned is greater than the negative pressure of the chamber (1a) defined by the 2# cleaning element (1-2) and the surface to be cleaned, and

controlling the corresponding driving module (3) to apply an appropriate driving force to the 1# cleaning element (1-1) and the 2# cleaning element (1-2) along a first rotation direction, so that the 2# cleaning element (1-2) and the bridge (5) twist around the 1# cleaning element (1-1) along a second rotation direction opposite to the first rotation direction;

S02. controlling the corresponding suction module (2) so that the negative pressure of the chamber (1a) defined by the 1# cleaning element (1-1) and the surface to be cleaned is less than the negative pressure of the chamber (1a) defined by the 2# cleaning element (1-2) and the surface to be cleaned, and

controlling the corresponding driving module (3) to apply an appropriate driving force to the 1# cleaning element (1-1) and the 2# cleaning element (1-2) along the second rotation direction, so that the 1# cleaning element (1-1) and the bridge (5) twist around the 2# cleaning element (1-2) along the first rotation direction opposite to the second rotation direction;

executing the above steps S01 and S02 alternately.

9. The motion control method of the cleaning robot according to claim 3, which is used to move the cleaning robot on the surface to be cleaned, wherein:
the at least two cleaning elements (1) are driven simultaneously to rotate in a proper direction with respect to the surface to be cleaned via the corresponding driving module (3), and the deflection driving mechanism (6) applies deflection acting force to the at least two cleaning elements (1), so that the resultant force of all static friction forces applied to all cleaning elements (1) by the surface to be cleaned is greater than zero, thereby driving the cleaning robot to walk straight in the direction of the resultant force.

10. The motion control method of the cleaning robot according to claim 6, which is used to move the cleaning robot on the surface to be cleaned, wherein the motion of the cleaning robot is controlled as follows:

S01. controlling the corresponding suction module (2) so that the negative pressure of the chamber (1a) defined by the 1# cleaning element (1-1) of the at least two cleaning elements (1) and the surface to be cleaned is greater than the negative pressure of the chamber (1a) defined by the 2# cleaning element (1-2) and the surface to be cleaned, and

turning off a power supply circuit of an electromagnet corresponding to the 1# cleaning element (1-1), and turning on a power supply circuit of an electromagnet corresponding to the 2# cleaning element (1-2), so that the pressure of one side of the 2# cleaning element (1-2) on the surface to be cleaned is greater than or less than that of other parts thereof on the surface to be cleaned, and

controlling the corresponding driving module (3) to apply an appropriate driving force to the 1# cleaning element (1-1) and the 2# cleaning element (1-2) along a first rotation direction, so that the 2# cleaning element (1-2) and the bridge (5) twist around the 1# cleaning element (1-1) along a second rotation direction opposite to the first rotation direction;

S02. controlling the corresponding suction module (2) so that the negative pressure of the chamber (1a) defined by the 1# cleaning element (1-1) and the surface to be cleaned is less than the negative pressure of the chamber (1a) defined by the 2# cleaning element (1-2) and the surface to be cleaned, and

turning on a power supply circuit of an electromagnet corresponding to the 1# cleaning element (1-1), and turning off a power supply circuit of an electromagnet corresponding to the 2# cleaning element (1-2), so that the pressure of one side of the 1# cleaning element (1-1) on the surface to be cleaned is greater than or less than that of other parts thereof on the surface to be cleaned, and

controlling the corresponding driving module (3) to apply an appropriate driving force to the 1# cleaning element (1-1) and the 2# cleaning element (1-2) along the second rotation direction, so that the 1# cleaning element (1-1) and the bridge (5) twist around the 2# cleaning element (1-2) along the first rotation direction opposite to the second rotation direction;

executing the above steps S01 and S02 alternately.

Drawing