An automatically moving floor treatment appliance has an appliance housing, a drive, a detector for detecting surrounding area features, and a computer that transmits control commands to the drive, based on the surrounding area features detected by the detector. The detector has a plurality of inner and outer fall sensors arranged on an underside of the appliance housing, which detect a distance of the floor treatment appliance from the surface. The computer controls the drive to change a movement of the floor treatment appliance when the distance detected by the fall sensor is greater than a threshold value defining a slope. The fall sensors are interconnected in an evaluation circuit of the detection means so that the detection signals of the totality of inner fall sensors can be evaluated independently of the detection signals of the totality of outer fall sensors.

A cleaning system is provided. The cleaning system includes a robot cleaner and a station. The robot cleaner includes a pad fixing part on which a cleaning pad is detachably mounted, a lifter to lift a part of the robot cleaner at which the pad fixing part is positioned, and a pad detacher to detach the cleaning pad mounted on the pad fixing part. The station includes a pad storage box in which a cleaning pad that is to be provided to the robot cleaner is stored, a pad coupling part on which a cleaning pad that is to be coupled to the robot cleaner is rested, and a pad supplier to supply the cleaning pad stored in the pad storage box to the pad coupling part.

A cleaning system is provided. The cleaning system includes a robot cleaner and a station. The robot cleaner includes a pad fixing part on which a cleaning pad is detachably mounted, a lifter to lift a part of the robot cleaner at which the pad fixing part is positioned, and a pad detacher to detach the cleaning pad mounted on the pad fixing part. The station includes a pad storage box in which a cleaning pad that is to be provided to the robot cleaner is stored, a pad coupling part on which a cleaning pad that is to be coupled to the robot cleaner is rested, and a pad supplier to supply the cleaning pad stored in the pad storage box to the pad coupling part.

A surface maintenance machine includes a body, a surface maintenance tool coupled to the body, processing circuitry supported at the body, and a light projection mechanism supported at the body and coupled to the processing circuitry. The light projection mechanism includes a light housing, a light emitting element within the light housing, and a projection lens that is configured to focus light emanating from the light emitting element. The light projection mechanism is configured to project light onto a ceiling surface that is above a floor surface along which the surface maintenance machine is configured to perform a surface maintenance task using the surface maintenance tool.

A floor cleaning system may include a docking station to which an autonomous floor cleaning machine can dock between cleaning operations. The docking station can provide power to the autonomous floor cleaning machine to recharge the batteries of the machine when not in use. The docking station may also supply fresh cleaning fluid to the floor cleaning machine and remove collected waste from the machine. In practice, the floor cleaning machine may itself become dirty over repeated use, such as when cleaning greasy floor surfaces. Accordingly, the docking station may include flushing orifices to clean the floor cleaning machine itself, such as with a degreasing composition.

A floor cleaning system may include a docking station to which an autonomous floor cleaning machine can dock between cleaning operations. The docking station can provide power to the autonomous floor cleaning machine to recharge the batteries of the machine when not in use. The docking station may also supply fresh cleaning fluid to the floor cleaning machine and remove collected waste from the machine. In practice, the floor cleaning machine may itself become dirty over repeated use, such as when cleaning greasy floor surfaces. Accordingly, the docking station may include flushing orifices to clean the floor cleaning machine itself, such as with a degreasing composition.

A floor cleaning system may include a docking station to which an autonomous floor cleaning machine can dock between cleaning operations. The docking station can provide power to the autonomous floor cleaning machine to recharge the batteries of the machine when not in use. The docking station may also supply fresh cleaning fluid to the floor cleaning machine and remove collected waste from the machine. In practice, the floor cleaning machine may itself become dirty over repeated use, such as when cleaning greasy floor surfaces. Accordingly, the docking station may include flushing orifices to clean the floor cleaning machine itself, such as with a degreasing composition.

A surface maintenance machine comprises a surface maintenance head assembly with attached surface maintenance tool for collecting debris/fluid using a fluid delivery/recovery system. Embodiments include an outlet nozzle configured to dispense cleaning fluid exiting the outlet nozzle on the surface maintenance tool. The outlet nozzle is fluidly connected to a cleaning fluid source which can vary the intensity of cleaning fluid exiting the outlet nozzle such that different intensities of the cleaning fluid correspond to the cleaning fluid being dispensed on different areas of the surface maintenance tool. Embodiments also include a second outlet nozzle, located opposite the first, which is configured to dispense cleaning fluid exiting the outlet nozzle on the surface maintenance tool. Further embodiments include a pump which can vary the intensity of cleaning fluid exiting the outlet nozzle in a cyclical manner and suspend the cleaning fluid from exiting the outlet nozzle.

A system has at least two automatically moving floor processing devices, a shared computing device and a shared database, which stores an area map with several partial surface areas and a planned operational activity. A partial area designation and/or a floor type designation is stored. The computing device receives a floor processing command from a user, which indicates a floor processing activity to be performed, and having a partial area designation and/or a floor type designation. The computing device is set up to ascertain partial surface areas that correspond to the partial area designation and/or floor type designation specified in the floor processing command, and according to predefined rules, plan the performance of the floor processing activity specified in the floor processing command. The rules depend on a device parameter of the floor processing device and a position of the partial surface area in the environment to be processed.

A system has at least two automatically moving floor processing devices, a shared computing device and a shared database, which stores an area map with several partial surface areas and a planned operational activity. A partial area designation and/or a floor type designation is stored. The computing device receives a floor processing command from a user, which indicates a floor processing activity to be performed, and having a partial area designation and/or a floor type designation. The computing device is set up to ascertain partial surface areas that correspond to the partial area designation and/or floor type designation specified in the floor processing command, and according to predefined rules, plan the performance of the floor processing activity specified in the floor processing command. The rules depend on a device parameter of the floor processing device and a position of the partial surface area in the environment to be processed.