US-20260123804-A1 - ROBOT CLEANER AND CLEANER SYSTEM

US20260123804A1US 20260123804 A1US20260123804 A1US 20260123804A1US-20260123804-A1

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to a robot cleaner, in which a dust discharge port is formed in a dust separating part of the robot cleaner, and a discharge cover is provided to open or close the dust discharge port, such that fine dust remaining after a cyclone flow may be collected, and the robot cleaner is coupled to a cleaner station, such that dust and fine dust remaining in a dust bin of the robot cleaner may be automatically removed.

Inventors

Beomgyo SEO
Jinho CHUNG
Sunghun KWON

Assignees

LG ELECTRONICS INC.

Dates

Publication Date: 20260507
Application Date: 20231004
Priority Date: 20221004

Claims (15)

1 . A robot cleaner comprising: a body having therein a space in which a battery and a suction motor are accommodated and having a suction port; a dust bin coupled to the body and configured to store dust introduced through the suction port; and a dust separating part disposed in an internal space of the dust bin and configured to separate dust from air introduced through the suction port, wherein the dust bin comprises: a dust bin main body having a first dust discharge port; and a first discharge cover coupled to the dust bin main body and configured to open or close the first dust discharge port, and wherein the dust separating part comprises: a cyclone part configured to separate dust from air by means of a cyclone flow; a dust capturing part disposed below the cyclone part based on a gravitational direction, configured to capture the dust separated by the cyclone part, and having a second dust discharge port; and a second discharge cover disposed on the dust capturing part and configured to open or close the dust capturing part.
2 . The robot cleaner of claim 1 , wherein the first discharge cover is coupled to an outer peripheral surface of the dust bin main body and configured to open or close the first dust discharge port by means of pressure of the air.
3 . The robot cleaner of claim 1 , wherein the second discharge cover is coupled to a lower surface of the dust capturing part and configured to open or close the second dust discharge port by being rotated by pressure of the air.
4 . The robot cleaner of claim 3 , wherein the dust separating part further comprises a cover cap coupled to the lower surface of the dust capturing part, and one side of the second discharge cover is coupled between the cover cap and the lower surface of the dust capturing part.
5 . The robot cleaner of claim 4 , wherein a cover accommodation portion is formed in the cover cap and provides a space in which the second discharge cover rotates.
6 . The robot cleaner of claim 4 , wherein a hole is formed in the cover cap, and dust captured in the dust capturing part passes through the hole as the second discharge cover rotates.
7 . The robot cleaner of claim 1 , wherein the second dust discharge port is formed in an outer peripheral surface of the dust capturing part and disposed at a position facing the first dust discharge port, and the second discharge cover is coupled to the outer peripheral surface of the dust capturing part and configured to open or close the second dust discharge port by means of pressure of the air.
8 . The robot cleaner of claim 7 , wherein a diameter of a lower end of the dust capturing part is smaller than a diameter of an upper end of the dust capturing part.
9 . The robot cleaner of claim 1 , wherein the second discharge cover is coupled to a lower surface of the dust capturing part and configured to open or close the second dust discharge port while being may be formed upward or downward in the gravitational direction by pressure of the air.
10 . The robot cleaner of claim 1 , wherein the first discharge cover and the second discharge cover are opened while operating in conjunction with each other by means of pressure of the air.
11 . A cleaner system comprising: a robot cleaner comprising a wheel, a battery, and at least one motor and configured to suck dust-containing air through a suction port and store the sucked dust in a dust bin; and a robot cleaner station comprising a coupling part to which the robot cleaner is coupled, a flow path part configured to communicate with an internal space of the dust bin, a dust collecting part configured to capture dust present in the dust bin, and a dust collecting motor configured to generate a suction force for sucking the dust present in the dust bin into the dust collecting part, wherein the dust bin comprises: a dust bin main body having a first dust discharge port formed in an outer peripheral surface thereof; and a first discharge cover coupled to the dust bin main body and configured to open or close the first dust discharge port, and wherein the coupling part comprises: a bottom plate coupled to an upper side of the robot cleaner; a dust bin accommodation surface formed in a direction intersecting a ground surface so as to face the dust bin; and a dust collecting hole formed in the dust bin accommodation surface, configured to communicate with the flow path part, and configured to communicate with the internal space of the dust bin when the first discharge cover is opened.
12 . The cleaner system of claim 11 , wherein the robot cleaner further comprises a dust separating part disposed in the internal space of the dust bin and configured to separate dust from the air introduced through the suction port, and wherein the dust collecting hole is disposed at a position facing an outer peripheral surface of the dust separating part when the first discharge cover is opened.
13 . The cleaner system of claim 12 , wherein the dust separating part comprises: a cyclone part configured to separate dust from the air by means of a cyclone flow; and a dust capturing part disposed below the cyclone part based on a gravitational direction, configured to capture the dust separated by the cyclone part, and having a second dust discharge port, and wherein at least a part of the dust collecting hole is disposed at the same height as the second dust discharge port in a state in which the robot cleaner is coupled to the cleaner station.
14 . The cleaner system of claim 13 , wherein the dust separating part further comprises a second discharge cover disposed on the dust capturing part and configured to open or close the dust capturing part, and wherein the second discharge cover is disposed toward the dust collecting hole by being rotated by a suction force of the dust collecting motor when the dust collecting motor operates.
15 . The cleaner system of claim 13 , wherein the dust separating part further comprises a second discharge cover disposed on the dust capturing part and configured to open or close the dust capturing part, and wherein the first discharge cover is accommodated in the flow path part while passing through the dust collecting hole when the dust collecting motor operates.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD The present disclosure relates to a robot cleaner and a cleaner system, and more particularly, to a robot cleaner capable of clumping and sucking up animal hair stuck to a carpet or the like, and a cleaner system including a cleaner station capable of collecting dust stored in a dust bin of the robot cleaner. BACKGROUND ART A cleaner refers to a device that cleans a target cleaning region by sucking dust or debris or wiping the target cleaning region. The cleaners may be classified into a manual cleaner which is moved directly by a user to perform a cleaning operation, and an automatic cleaner which performs a cleaning operation while autonomously traveling. In this case, the robot cleaner sucks debris such as dust from the floor while autonomously traveling in a zone to be cleaned. In addition, the robot cleaner may clean a cleaning region while automatically traveling by using an obstacle sensor or other sensors provided in the robot cleaner. Alternatively, the robot cleaner may clean the cleaning region be manually operated by a remote controller wirelessly connected to the robot cleaner. Meanwhile, Korean Patent No. KR 1978282 B1 discloses a robot cleaner including a dust bin configured to filter out and collect dust. The dust bin is detachably coupled to a main body of the robot cleaner. With this structure, a user may separate the dust bin from the main body of the robot cleaner and empty the dust bin. In this case, the robot cleaner has a structure in which a lower casing of the dust bin is openable to easily discharge dust and fine dust collected in the dust bin. However, there is a limitation in that the dust bin of the robot cleaner cannot be automatically emptied, and the user needs to empty the dust bin by manually separating the dust bin and opening the lower casing of the dust bin. In addition, there is a limitation in that fine dust, which may accumulate in a cyclone part configured to separate dust in the robot cleaner, cannot be removed. DISCLOSURE Technical Problem The present disclosure has been made in an effort to solve the above-mentioned problem of the robot cleaner and the cleaner system in the related art, and an object of the present disclosure is to provide a robot cleaner capable of automatically emptying a dust bin Another object of the present disclosure is to provide a robot cleaner capable of discharging fine dust accumulated in a cyclone part. Still another object of the present disclosure is to provide a robot cleaner capable of automatically sealing a dust bin when a process of collecting dust in the dust bin ends. Technical Solution In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, a robot cleaner according to the present disclosure may include: a body having therein a space in which a battery and a suction motor are accommodated and having a suction port; a dust bin coupled to the body and configured to store dust introduced through the suction port; and a dust separating part disposed in an internal space of the dust bin and configured to separate dust from air introduced through the suction port. In this case, the dust bin may include: a dust bin main body having a first dust discharge port; and a first discharge cover coupled to the dust bin main body and configured to open or close the first dust discharge port. Further, the dust separating part may include: a cyclone part configured to separate dust from air by means of a cyclone flow; a dust capturing part disposed below the cyclone part based on a gravitational direction, configured to capture the dust separated by the cyclone part, and having a second dust discharge port; and a second discharge cover disposed on the dust capturing part and configured to open or close the dust capturing part. In this case, the first discharge cover may be coupled to an outer peripheral surface of the dust bin main body and configured to open or close the first dust discharge port by means of pressure of the air. In addition, the second discharge cover may be coupled to a lower surface of the dust capturing part and configured to open or close the second dust discharge port by being rotated by pressure of the air. In addition, the first discharge cover and the second discharge cover may be opened while operating in conjunction with each other by means of pressure of the air. Meanwhile, the dust separating part according to another embodiment may further include a cover cap coupled to the lower surface of the dust capturing part, and one side of the second discharge cover is coupled between the cover cap and the lower surface of the dust capturing part. In this case, a cover accommodation portion may be formed in the cover cap and provide a space in which the second discharge cover rotates. In addition, a hole may be formed in the cover cap, and dust captured in the dust capturing part may pass through the hole as the second discharge cover rotates. Meanwhile, in the robot cleaner according to still another embodiment,