A cleaning system and a cleaning method are provided. The cleaning system includes a main body, an air suctioning device, a light source, an optical sensor, a memory and a processing unit. The air suctioning device includes an air flow passage and a fan-motor assembly that is disposed in the air flow passage and generates a suction force to suction outside air through the air flow passage. The light source emit light to the air flow passage. The optical sensor captures a plurality of successive image frames from the air flow passage. The processing unit is configured to: obtain first and second image frames from the successive image frames; compare the first image frame with the second image frame to identify dust particles; obtain a particle feature of the dust particles; and determine a current cleanness condition according to the particle feature.

A method for operating a robotic device. Usage data and a first location of the robotic device are determined. A first sensor of the robotic device captures first data indicative of an environmental characteristic of the first location. A first operational parameter of a first actuator is adjusted based on the first data while the robotic device is at the first location. A debris map of the environment is formed based on debris data output by a second sensor configured to sense debris on a floor. A request for cleaning service at a location is received, wherein the robotic device is one of a plurality of robotic devices that provides surface cleaning services to a plurality of users. The robotic device to respond to the request is determined based on location, fill volume of a debris container, battery charge, and availability of each of the plurality of robotic devices.

Provided is an autonomous lawn mowing system having improved safety. An autonomous lawn mowing system 1 is provided with: a position-information acquisition unit 14 that acquires position information concerning the position of an autonomous lawn mower 2 that is capable of travelling by itself; a moisture-information acquisition unit 15 that acquires moisture information concerning the moisture content of turf; a wet-ground identification unit 31 that identifies a wet region on the basis of the position information and the moisture information; and a control module 34 that controls the autonomous lawn mower 2 on the basis of the result identified by the wet-ground identification unit 31.

To provide a highly reliable, cost-effective traveling collector that can determine the positions of fallen objects, such as balls, on the ground using a simple method, or determine the correct positions of fallen objects, such as balls, on the ground only by improving software and without the need for significant changes to hardware. The traveling collector includes a count sensor as a sensor for detecting the position of each collected ball at a position detected by a satellite positioning system, for example. A controller determines a position, which is obtained by reflecting, based on the positional information on the ball collector at a time point when the ball was counted by touching the count sensor, the movement distance of the ball collector from the time each ball was picked up from the ground by a ball collection wheel till the ball was counted by touching the count sensor in a direction opposite to the traveling direction of the ball collector at that time, as the actual position where each ball was picked up.

A mowing vehicle provided with a traveling machine and a mowing device includes a first image-capturing device and a controlling unit configured to control the traveling machine to travel autonomously along a boundary line of grass before and after mowing formed by the mowing device. The controlling unit includes a boundary-detecting unit configured to detect the boundary line and a traveling-controlling unit configured to control traveling directions of the traveling machine. The boundary-detecting unit is configured to generate intensity distribution information regarding texture information in a predetermined direction by filtering with a Gabor filter on a captured image. The boundary-detecting unit is configured to carry out statistical processing on the intensity distribution information per inspection area divided in plural in a vertical direction so as to detect boundary points and to detect the boundary line from the boundary points per the inspection area.

A movable electronic apparatus includes a mobile apparatus body, a contact-type detection apparatus and a control circuit. The mobile apparatus body is provided with an electrical drive assembly that drives the mobile apparatus body to move; the contact-type detection apparatus is mounted on the mobile apparatus body, and the contact-type detection apparatus is configured and when the contact-type detection apparatus contacts dispersed dirt, an electrical signal outputted by the contact-type detection apparatus changes; the control circuit is mounted on the mobile apparatus body, and the control circuit is configured to determine whether the dispersed dirt is detected according to the magnitude of the amount by which the electrical signal outputted by the contact-type detection apparatus changes, and to control the electrical drive assembly to drive the mobile apparatus body to execute a dirt dispersion prevention action when determined that dirt that may be dispersed is detected.

Provided is an autonomous working machine capable of taking appropriate measures for arranging a mowing height in mowing work and improving a finish quality of the mowing work. The autonomous working machine includes: a mower body that mows a vegetation group including a plurality of pieces of the vegetation while traveling; a controller that controls the mower body based on a recorded work operation content; and an imager that is directed rearward in an advancing direction of the mower body, in which the controller is configured to, based on an image of the vegetation group acquired by the imager, evaluate a shape of the vegetation group.

Provided is a highly reliable, cost-effective scattered object collection system that can efficiently collect scattered objects by reducing unnecessary traveling of a traveling collector. The scattered object collection system includes a traveling collector that performs a collecting operation by picking up balls B while traveling in a work area W, sets a virtual work area Z (or a virtual priority work area Za) to an area in the work area W where balls are relatively densely present and in the vicinity of the storage space of balls, and allows the traveling collector to perform a collecting operation in the virtual work area Z (or the virtual priority work area Za) with higher priority than the other areas.

The invention relates to a household robot, in particular an automatically movable cleaning robot for a floor area, having a housing, having running gear which is arranged on the underside of the housing, having a sensor system for detecting the area surrounding the housing and having a control for automatically controlling the running gear, in which the technical problem of preventing soiling by excrement from a living being is solved by providing detection element for detecting a sub-area of the floor area which has been soiled by excrement from a living being and by the control element changing the operating mode of the household robot dependent on an output signal from the detection element. The invention also relates to a method for operating a household robot.

A method for controlling a mobile, self-propelled appliance, in particular a floor cleaning appliance such as a robot vacuum cleaner and/or a sweeper and mopping robot so as to mop up an accumulation of liquid, includes driving on a floor surface intended for cleaning in a direction of travel in a forward movement of the appliance and cleaning the floor surface by using a dry cleaning module and/or a wet cleaning module of the appliance. The accumulation of liquid is detected in the direction of travel in front of the appliance in a moist area. The forward movement in front of the moist area is terminated and the appliance is rotated about substantially 180. Driving on the moist area in a reversing movement in the direction of travel of the appliance and mopping up the accumulation of liquid using the wet cleaning module is carried out.