KR-20260066873-A - STATION FOR ROBOT CLEANER

KR20260066873AKR 20260066873 AKR20260066873 AKR 20260066873AKR-20260066873-A

Abstract

A robot vacuum cleaner station capable of washing the mop of a robot vacuum cleaner is provided. A robot vacuum cleaner station according to one aspect of the present invention comprises: a housing; a seating portion in which a robot vacuum cleaner is accommodated; The robot vacuum cleaner includes a mop washing unit for washing the mop of the robot vacuum cleaner, wherein the mounting unit includes a washing plate, and the mop washing unit includes a fresh water supply pipe through which fresh water is supplied, a first branch valve installed in the fresh water supply pipe to branch the supplied fresh water in both directions, a first pipe connected to the first branch valve through which fresh water flowing in one direction passes, a water treatment filter installed in the first pipe to filter hardness substances from the fresh water and change it into soft water, a second branch valve installed in the first pipe to branch the soft water that has passed through the water treatment filter in both directions, a second pipe connected to the second branch valve through which soft water flowing in one direction passes, a heater installed in the second pipe to heat the soft water and change it into hot water and steam, a hot water washing pipe and a steam washing pipe through which the hot water and steam that have passed through the heater are respectively supplied to the washing plate, and a fresh water washing pipe connected to the first branch valve through which fresh water flowing in the other direction is supplied to the washing plate.

Inventors

이동재
신진혁
이동근
김미솔

Assignees

엘지전자 주식회사

Dates

Publication Date: 20260512
Application Date: 20241105

Claims (20)

Housing; A seating portion disposed within the above housing for accommodating a robot vacuum cleaner; and It includes a mop washing unit disposed within the above housing for washing the mop of the robot vacuum cleaner; and The above-mentioned seating portion is, The above-mentioned robot vacuum cleaner includes a cleaning plate that comes into contact with the mop while in a combined state, The above mop washing unit is, clean water supply pipe supplying clean water, A first branch valve installed in the above-mentioned fresh water supply pipe to branch the supplied fresh water into both directions, A first pipe connected to the above-mentioned first branch valve through which clean water flowing in one direction passes, A water treatment filter installed in the first pipe above to filter hardness substances from clean water and convert them into soft water, A second branch valve installed in the first pipe above to branch the softened water that has passed through the water treatment filter into both directions, A second pipe connected to the above-mentioned second branch valve through which soft water flowing in one direction passes, A heater installed in the second pipe above to heat soft water and convert it into hot water and steam, A hot water washing pipe and a steam washing pipe, through which hot water and steam passing through the heater are respectively supplied to the washing plate, and A robot vacuum cleaner station comprising a clean water washing pipe connected to the first branch valve above, through which clean water flowing in the other direction is supplied to the washing plate above.
In paragraph 1, The above-mentioned seating portion is, A robot vacuum cleaner station further comprising a robot supply pipe connected to the second branch valve above, through which soft water flowing in the other direction is supplied to the robot vacuum cleaner.
In paragraph 1, The above mop washing unit is, A robot vacuum cleaner station further comprising a temperature sensor for detecting the temperature of hot water and steam supplied to the above-mentioned cleaning plate.
In paragraph 3, The above mop washing unit is, A robot vacuum cleaner station further comprising a flow control valve installed in the second pipe above to control the flow rate of soft water passing through the heater.
In paragraph 1, The above mop washing unit is, It further includes a flow sensor that detects the flow rate of fresh water supplied to the above fresh water supply pipe, The above water treatment filter is a robot vacuum cleaner station in which the replacement cycle is estimated through the accumulated value of the flow rate detected by the flow sensor.
In paragraph 5, A robot vacuum cleaner station further comprising: a notification display unit that displays notification information regarding the replacement cycle of the water treatment filter to the user.
In any one of paragraphs 1 through 6, A robot vacuum cleaner station further comprising a detergent container in which a liquid containing detergent is stored and which is connected to the clean water washing pipe.
In Paragraph 7, A robot vacuum cleaner station further comprising a wastewater tank in which wastewater used for washing the mop passes through the washing plate and is stored.
In any one of paragraphs 2 through 6, The above robot vacuum cleaner is, A body having the above-mentioned mop on the lower side and It includes a water container in which water stored in the above body is supplied to the above rag, and The robot supply pipe above is connected to the water tank, and the robot vacuum cleaner station.
In Paragraph 9, The above mop is provided as a pair on the lower side of the body, and A robot vacuum cleaner station in which the above cleaning plates are arranged in pairs on the seating portion to correspond to each of the above mops.
In Paragraph 10, A robot vacuum cleaner station in which the hot water washing pipe, the steam washing pipe, and the fresh water washing pipe are each connected to the washing plate.
In any one of paragraphs 1 through 6, The above water treatment filter comprises one or more of an ion exchange resin, a polyphosphate, and a hardness reduction catalyst, in a robot vacuum cleaner station.
Housing; A seating portion disposed within the above housing for accommodating a robot vacuum cleaner; and It includes a mop washing unit disposed within the above housing for washing the mop of the robot vacuum cleaner; and The above-mentioned seating portion is, The above-mentioned robot vacuum cleaner includes a cleaning plate that comes into contact with the mop while in a combined state, The above mop washing unit is, Fresh water supply pipe supplying fresh water, A first branch valve installed in the above-mentioned fresh water supply pipe to branch the supplied fresh water into both directions, A first pipe connected to the above-mentioned first branch valve through which clean water flowing in one direction passes, A water treatment filter installed in the first pipe above to filter hardness substances from clean water and convert them into soft water, A second branch valve installed in the first pipe above to branch the softened water that has passed through the water treatment filter into both directions, A second pipe connected to the above-mentioned second branch valve through which soft water flowing in one direction passes, A third pipe connected to the first branch valve above, through which clean water flowing in the other direction passes, A third branch valve installed in the third pipe to branch the clean water passing through the third pipe into two directions, A fourth pipe connected to the above-mentioned third branch valve through which clean water flowing in one direction passes, A heater installed in the second pipe and the fourth pipe to heat soft water and convert it into steam, and to heat clean water and convert it into hot water. A hot water washing pipe and a steam washing pipe, through which hot water and steam passing through the heater are respectively supplied to the washing plate, and A robot vacuum cleaner station comprising a clean water washing pipe connected to the third branch valve above, through which clean water flowing in the other direction is supplied to the washing plate above.
In Paragraph 13, The above-mentioned seating portion is, A robot vacuum cleaner station further comprising a robot supply pipe connected to the second branch valve above, through which soft water flowing in the other direction is supplied to the robot vacuum cleaner.
In Paragraph 13, The above mop washing unit is, A robot vacuum cleaner station further comprising a temperature sensor for detecting the temperature of hot water and steam supplied to the above-mentioned cleaning plate.
In paragraph 15, The above mop washing unit is, A robot vacuum cleaner station further comprising a flow control valve installed in the second pipe and the fourth pipe to control the flow rate of soft water and fresh water passing through the heater.
In Paragraph 13, The above mop washing unit is, It further includes a flow sensor that detects the flow rate of fresh water supplied to the above fresh water supply pipe, The above water treatment filter is a robot vacuum cleaner station in which the replacement cycle is estimated through the accumulated value of the flow rate detected by the flow sensor.
Housing; A seating portion disposed within the above housing for accommodating a robot vacuum cleaner; and It includes a mop washing unit disposed within the above housing for washing the mop of the robot vacuum cleaner; and The above-mentioned seating portion is, The above-mentioned robot vacuum cleaner includes a cleaning plate that comes into contact with the mop while in a combined state, The above mop washing unit is, Fresh water supply pipe supplying fresh water, A water treatment filter installed in the above-mentioned fresh water supply pipe to filter hardness substances from fresh water and convert it into soft water, A first branch valve installed in the above fresh water supply pipe to branch the softened water that has passed through the above water treatment filter into both directions, A first pipe connected to the above-mentioned first branch valve through which soft water flowing in one direction passes, A second branch valve installed in the first pipe to branch the softened water passing through the first pipe into two directions, A second pipe connected to the above-mentioned second branch valve through which soft water flowing in one direction passes, A heater installed in the second pipe above to heat soft water and convert it into hot water and steam, A hot water washing pipe and a steam washing pipe, through which hot water and steam passing through the heater are respectively supplied to the washing plate, and A robot vacuum cleaner station comprising a softened water washing pipe connected to the first branch valve above, through which softened water flowing in the other direction is supplied to the washing plate above.
In Paragraph 18, The above-mentioned seating portion is, A robot vacuum cleaner station further comprising a robot supply pipe connected to the second branch valve above, through which soft water flowing in the other direction is supplied to the robot vacuum cleaner.
In Paragraph 18, The above mop washing unit is, A robot vacuum cleaner station further comprising a temperature sensor for detecting the temperature of hot water and steam supplied to the above-mentioned cleaning plate.

Description

Robot Cleaner Station The present invention relates to a robot vacuum cleaner station, and more specifically, to a robot vacuum cleaner station capable of washing the mop of a robot vacuum cleaner while the robot vacuum cleaner is coupled. With the recent advancement of industrial technology, robotic vacuum cleaners are being developed that can autonomously drive and clean areas requiring cleaning without user intervention. Such a robot vacuum cleaner is equipped with a sensor capable of recognizing the space to be cleaned, an agitator capable of sweeping the floor surface, and a mop capable of wiping the floor surface, and can drive while sucking up dust from the floor surface of the space recognized by the sensor and wiping with the mop. Among robot vacuum cleaners, there are dry robot vacuum cleaners that can suck up and remove foreign matter scattered on the floor surface, and wet robot vacuum cleaners that can wipe the floor surface with a mop containing moisture to effectively remove foreign matter attached to the floor surface. Dry robot vacuums are equipped with a dustbin and suck up debris from the floor surface using the suction power of a suction motor. Wet robot vacuums are equipped with a water tank, and water contained in the tank is supplied to a mop so that the mop, while consuming moisture, wipes the floor surface to effectively remove debris attached to the floor. Additionally, there are robot vacuums equipped with both an agitator and a mop. The charging dock of a robot vacuum is a device into which a robot vacuum is docked after cleaning, and which supplies power to the battery equipped in the robot vacuum to charge it. The charging dock is equipped with an internal power supply module. The charging dock is equipped with a charging terminal connected to the power supply module, and the robot vacuum is equipped with a corresponding terminal. When the charging terminal and the corresponding terminal come into contact, power is supplied to the battery to charge it. Meanwhile, there is a growing trend of developing station structures that go beyond mere charging docks for robot vacuums and incorporate additional features such as dust collection or mop cleaning functions. In relation to the robot vacuum cleaner station described above, Chinese published patent CN 114601400 A (hereinafter referred to as ‘Prior Art 1’) discloses a self-cleaning dust collection system. Specifically, the present invention discloses a dust collection sheet installed in a robot vacuum cleaner, a cleaning module for cleaning the dust collection sheet, a water purification tank installed in the cleaning module to supply cleaning water to the dust collection sheet, a wastewater tank installed in the cleaning module to store wastewater used for cleaning the dust collection sheet, and a configuration for supplying a cleaning agent when cleaning the dust collection sheet. However, the robot vacuum station of prior art 1 has a limitation in that it washes the dust collection sheet with only clean water, and therefore it is not structured to improve cleaning performance by washing the dust collection sheet at a high temperature using hot water or steam. In addition, if hot water or steam is used to wash the mop in the robot vacuum station, there is a risk that scale will form and performance will deteriorate. However, the robot vacuum station of prior art 1 has a problem in that it does not consider a structure to solve the problem of such scale formation at all. In addition, Chinese registered utility model CN 217592769 U (hereinafter referred to as ‘Prior Art 2’) discloses a self-cleaning station. Specifically, the present invention discloses a cleaning member installed in a robot vacuum cleaner, a washing tank installed in a station to wash the cleaning member, a water tank that supplies washing water to the washing tank, a wastewater tank that stores wastewater used in the washing tank, and a configuration in which a cleaning agent is supplied to the washing tank. However, the robot vacuum station of prior art 2 also has a limitation in that it washes the cleaning material using only clean water, and thus is not structured to improve cleaning performance by washing the cleaning material at a high temperature using hot water or steam. In addition, the robot vacuum station of prior art 2 also has the problem of not considering a structure to minimize performance degradation due to scale formation. As described above, the cleaning station for the mop of a robot vacuum cleaner faces challenges that must be addressed in order to improve cleaning performance through high-temperature cleaning and to minimize performance degradation that may occur during such high-temperature cleaning. However, conventional robot vacuum stations have limitations in that they cannot adequately solve these challenges. FIG. 1 is a drawing illustrating the state in which a vacuum cleaner system according to an embodiment of the present invention i