AUTOMATICALLY MOVING FLOOR TREATMENT APPLIANCE

Abstract

An automatically moving floor treatment appliance has at least one wheel, which can be rotated about an axis of rotation and which has a circumferential surface, wherein the circumferential surface has a plurality of profile blocks, which, based on the axis of rotation, face radially to the outside and which are embodied in succession in the circumferential direction. To facilitate a negotiating of obstacles by means of the floor treatment appliance, the profile blocks form a profile of the circumferential surface, which is completely heterogeneous in the circumferential direction, so that the structure of the profile is not repeated in the circumferential direction.

Claims

1. An automatically moving floor treatment appliance comprising: at least one wheel, which is configured to be rotated about an axis of rotation and which has a circumferential surface, wherein the circumferential surface has a plurality of profile blocks, which, based on the axis of rotation, face radially to an outside and which are embodied in succession in a circumferential direction, wherein the profile blocks form a profile of the circumferential surface, which is completely heterogeneous in the circumferential direction, so that a structure of the profile is not repeated in the circumferential direction.

2. The floor treatment appliance according to claim 1, wherein the profile blocks have shapes that differ from one another.

3. The floor treatment appliance according to claim 1, wherein the profile blocks are formed so as to be polygonal, based on a cross section located in the circumferential direction.

4. The floor treatment appliance according to claim 1, wherein the profile blocks have different heights relative to one another, as measured in a radial direction of the wheel.

5. The floor treatment appliance according to claim 1, wherein the profile blocks have different distances relative to one another.

6. The floor treatment appliance according to claim 1, wherein the profile blocks have different spatial orientations relative to one another, based on the circumferential surface.

7. The floor treatment appliance according to claim 1, wherein the profile blocks are made of material of a different hardness relative to one another.

8. The floor treatment appliance according to claim 1, wherein the profile blocks have profile flanks, which are inclined relative to a radial direction.

9. A wheel for a floor treatment appliance, wherein the wheel can be rotated about an axis of rotation and has a circumferential surface, which has a plurality of profile blocks, which, based on the axis of rotation, face radially to the outside and which are embodied in succession in the circumferential direction, wherein the profile blocks form a profile of the circumferential surface, said profile being completely heterogeneous in the circumferential direction, so that a structure of the profile is not repeated in the circumferential direction.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0020] The invention will be described in more detail below by means of exemplary embodiments.

[0021] FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of a floor treatment appliance according to the invention,

[0022] FIG. 2 shows a wheel according to the invention for a floor treatment appliance in a side view,

[0023] FIG. 3 shows a top view onto a partial area of a circumferential surface of the wheel.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0024] FIG. 1 initially shows a floor treatment appliance 1, which is embodied here for example as autonomous vacuum cleaning robot. Here, the floor treatment appliance 1 has a housing 14 and for example two wheels 4, which are motor driven. The floor treatment appliance 1 furthermore has a distance measuring device 13, which is accommodated in the housing 14 and which preferably comprises an optical sensor system. The distance measuring device 13 can for example have a triangulation measuring device, which measures distances to obstacles in the surrounding area of the floor treatment appliance 1. From the recorded data, a navigation and self-location device of the floor treatment appliance 1 can prepare a map of the surrounding area, by means of which the floor treatment appliance 1 can orientate itself in response to an automatic movement.

[0025] In detail, the wheels 4 have a hub 10, a plurality of spokes 11, and a tire 12 comprising a circumferential surface 3 (see also FIGS. 2 to 4). The circumferential surface 3 of the wheel 4 forms a contact surface, which rolls on a surface in response to a movement of the floor treatment appliance 1. The wheel 4 rotates about an axis of rotation 2 (suggested in FIG. 2), which is accommodated by the hub 10. The tire 12 has a profile comprising a plurality of profile blocks 5, 6, 7, 8. The profile blocks 5, 6, 7, 8 consist of an elastic material. It can for example be rubber, a rubber mixture, or a thermoplastic elastomer. In particular EPDM is proposed here as flexible, rubber-like plastic. The circumferential surface 3 is formed by the profile blocks 5, 6, 7, 8, wherein the profile blocks 5, 6, 7, 8 form a heterogenous profile, based on a circumferential direction as well as on an axial direction of the wheel 4 perpendicular thereto. In response to a typical moving stress of the floor treatment appliance 1 on a flat surface and without the special case of a cooperation of the wheel 4 with an obstacle, a contact surface of the wheel 4 with the traveled surface is only at hand by the front faces of the profile blocks 5, 6, 7, 8. The profile blocks 5, 6, 7, 8, together with further surfaces of the tire 12, which point in the radial direction, form the circumferential surface 3. Every area of the circumferential surface 3 can come into contact with a surface or an obstacle, respectively, at least theoretically. Areas aside from the front faces of the profile blocks 5, 6, 7, 8 can thereby also at least temporarily become part of the contact surface of the wheel 4.

[0026] Different possible features of the profile of the wheel 4 will be illustrated below by means of FIGS. 2 to 4. Here, the profile blocks 5, 6, 7, 8 have a plurality of possible features, which could, however, also be used alone, as an alternative, so that a plurality of other embodiments with subcombinations or also features on their own can result. The shown exemplary embodiment is to not be understood to be limiting in this respect.

[0027] FIG. 2 shows a side view of an exemplary wheel 4, the circumferential surface 3 of which has a plurality of profile blocks 5, 6, 7, 8, which, based on the axis of rotation 2, face radially to the outside and which are embodied in succession in the circumferential direction. Here, only four profile blocks 5, 6, 7, 8 of the plurality of illustrated profile blocks are provided with reference numerals. The profile of the wheel 4 can be completely heterogeneous in the circumferential direction or can have segments, which have an identical arrangement of profile blocks 5, 6, 7, 8, so that the structure of the profile is repeated at defined intervals in the circumferential direction. The profile blocks 5, 6, 7, 8, which are quantified in an exemplary manner in the figure, have shapes, heights H and distances A, which differ from one another. As can be seen from FIG. 3, the profile blocks 5 to 8 also have spatial orientations, which differ from one another. The profile flanks 9 of at least some of the profile blocks 5, 6, 7, 8 are furthermore not oriented perpendicular to the circumferential surface 3, but are inclined relative to a radial direction. It goes without saying, however, that it is also possible that the profile blocks 5, 6, 7, 8 have steeply sloping profile flanks 9. On principle, overhangs of the profile flanks 9 are possible as well.

[0028] Based on their front face, i.e. running surface, which points radially to the outside, the profile blocks 5, 6, 7, 8 as well as the cross sections located therebelow are of a polygonal design, here with four or more side surfaces. The profile blocks 5, 6, 7, 8 also have different heights H. The profile block 6 for example has a smaller height H than the profile block 7. Here, there is for example a height difference H of 1 mm. The distances A of the profile blocks 5, 6, 7, 8 are furthermore also dimensioned differently. As can be seen in FIGS. 3 and 4, the distances A vary from almost 0 to up to several millimeters. The distances A are partially as large as one side of a front face of a profile block 5, 6, 7, 8.

[0029] The wheel 4 is not necessarily illustrated true to scale here. A typical wheel 4 for a floor treatment appliance 1 can for example have a diameter of 75 mm and an axial width of 13 mm. In addition, the wheel 4 also does not need to be embodied with a hub 10, spokes 11, and a tire 12. In the alternative, the wheel 4 can in fact be a full material wheel.

[0030] The illustrated features of the wheel 4, in particular the special features of the profile blocks 5, 6, 7, 8, ensure that the wheel 4 offers a plurality of completely differently oriented profile edges, when hitting an obstacle, so that, compared to regular profiles, there is an increased likelihood of finding a profile block 5, 6, 7, 8, the profile edge of which engages sufficiently firmly with the obstacle, so that the obstacle can be navigated. When moving over obstacles, such as doorsteps and/or ledges, the wheel 4 always finds a partial area of the circumferential surface 3, which can support itself on the obstacle and pull itself up thereon, as a result of the asymmetrically embodied profile structure of irregularly designed profile blocks 5, 6, 7, 8, which consist of a plurality of nub-shaped polygons here and which are distributed in random size and orientation. The profile blocks 5, 6, 7, 8 can furthermore have materials of a different hardness, so that some of the profile blocks 5, 6, 7, 8 are softer or harder than others.

LIST OF REFERENCE NUMERALS

[0031] 1 floor treatment appliance [0032] 2 axis of rotation [0033] 3 circumferential surface [0034] 4 wheel [0035] 5 profile block [0036] 6 profile block [0037] 7 profile block [0038] 8 profile block [0039] 9 profile flank [0040] 10 hub [0041] 11 spoke [0042] 12 tire [0043] 13 distance measuring device [0044] 14 housing [0045] A distance [0046] H height [0047] H height difference