TROLLEY AND METHOD FOR LOADING AND UNLOADING CLEANING ROBOTS INTO AND OUT OF A TROLLEY

Abstract

A trolley and method for loading and unloading cleaning robots into a trolley, including for storing, emptying and supplying energy to cleaning robots. The trolley includes an energy supply unit, storage compartments, each storage compartment having a charging contact which is designed to be contacted with a cleaning robot arranged in the corresponding storage compartment to supply the cleaning robot with energy, transport wheels configured to move the trolley over a substrate, a suction system having a foldable suction platform configured to empty one of the cleaning robots arranged on the suction platform, a lift system with a foldable receiving element configured to transport the cleaning robots individually by way of the receiving element in its unfolded state to the storage compartments and away from the storage compartments, and at least one door element configured to close or expose the foldable receiving element and the foldable suction platform.

Claims

1. A trolley for storing, emptying and supplying energy to cleaning robots, the trolley comprising: an energy supply unit that is designed to be connected to a power grid; storage compartments for storing the cleaning robots, each storage compartment having a charging contact which is designed to be contacted with a cleaning robot arranged in the corresponding storage compartment in order to supply the cleaning robot with energy by means of the energy supply unit; transport wheels which are designed to move the trolley over a substrate; a suction system, which has a foldable suction platform and is configured to empty one of the cleaning robots when it is arranged on the suction platform in its unfolded state; a lift system with a foldable receiving element, wherein the lift system is designed to transport the cleaning robots individually by way of the receiving element in an unfolded state to the storage compartments and away from the storage compartments; and at least one door element which can be arranged in such a way that it closes or exposes the foldable receiving element and the foldable suction platform.

2. The trolley according to claim 1, further comprising a hand grip configured such that the trolley can be moved as a whole using the transport wheels.

3. The trolley according to claim 1, wherein the foldable suction platform and the foldable receiving element lie in the unfolded state on a substrate on which the transport wheels stand, based on an operational set-up position of the trolley.

4. The trolley according to claim 1, wherein multiple or all of the storage compartments are stacked vertically one on top of the other, and wherein the storage compartments are mounted so that they can be detached from one another, based on an operational set-up position of the trolley.

5. The trolley according to claim 1, wherein the foldable receiving element can be moved vertically in the unfolded state, based on an operational set-up position of the trolley.

6. The trolley according to claim 1, further comprising a control panel configured that a user can operate the trolley interactively.

7. The trolley according to claim 1, further comprising adjustable blocking elements configured to block the transport wheels in a blocking state and to release the transport wheels in a non-blocking state.

8. The trolley according to claim 1, further comprising a lock designed to secure the door element.

9. The trolley according to claim 1, wherein the door element is designed as a sliding door which can be slid into a space between an outer wall and an inner space of the trolley.

10. The trolley according to claim 1, further comprising one or more electric motors configured to automatically open and close the door element and/or automatically unfold and fold in the suction platform and/or the receiving element.

11. The trolley according to claim 1, further comprising a cleaning system for cleaning the cleaning robots arranged on the suction platform.

12. A method for loading and unloading cleaning robots into and out of a trolley with storage compartments for storing the cleaning robots, a lift system with a foldable receiving element for receiving one of the cleaning robots and moving the received cleaning robot, and a door element that closes or exposes the receiving element, the method comprising the following steps: opening the door element, so that the receiving element is exposed; unfolding the receiving element, so that the receiving element rests on a substrate on which the trolley is standing in an operational set-up position; moving the receiving element to one of the storage compartments, after one of the cleaning robots has been placed on the receiving element, so that the storage compartment can be accessed by the cleaning robot in order to load one of the cleaning robots into the trolley, or by way of the lift system to enable a cleaning robot arranged in the one storage compartment to be placed on the receiving element, and moving the receiving element after receiving the one cleaning robot, so that the receiving element rests on the substrate and the cleaning robot is enabled to leave the trolley independently in order to unload the cleaning robot out of the trolley; and repeating the steps of moving the receiving element until a predetermined number of the cleaning robots are loaded into or unloaded out of the trolley.

13. The method according to claim 12, wherein, after a particular signal has been received from the cleaning robot that a particular cleaning job has been carried out by the cleaning robot and the cleaning robot has been arranged on the receiving element, the receiving element is moved in order to transport the cleaning robot arranged thereon to one of the storage compartments.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0044] An exemplary embodiment of the disclosure is shown purely schematically in the drawings and will be described in more detail below. They show, schematically and not to scale,

[0045] FIGS. 1 to 8: a sequence of part of a method according to the disclosure in partial side/partial cross-sectional view, partial top/partial cross-sectional view and cross-sectional view of a trolley according to the disclosure; and

[0046] FIG. 9: a cross-sectional view of another trolley according to the disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0047] FIGS. 1 to 8 show a sequence of part of a method according to the disclosure, in which one of the cleaning robots stored in the trolley is unloaded at the beginning of a cleaning phase in which the cleaning robots carry out cleaning tasks, in a partial side/partial cross-sectional view, partial top/partial cross-sectional view and cross-sectional view of a trolley according to the disclosure.

[0048] FIGS. 1 to 8 show the unloading of one of the cleaning robots R from the trolley 1, comprising a step of opening the door element 7 so that the receiving element 12 and the suction platform 13 are exposed, a step of unfolding the receiving element 12 and the suction platform 13, so that they rest on a substrate U on which the trolley 1 is standing in an operational set-up position, and moving the receiving element (12) by means of the lift system LI to one of the storage compartments 2 in order to enable a cleaning robot R arranged in this storage compartment 2 to be placed on the receiving element 12, and moving the receiving element 12 after receiving this cleaning robot R, so that the element rests on the substrate U and the cleaning robot R is enabled to leave the trolley 1 independently in order to unload the cleaning robot R out of the trolley 1. In a cleaning phase in which the cleaning robots R carry out cleaning tasks, the step of moving the receiving element 12 is repeated until a predetermined number of the cleaning robots R have been unloaded from the trolley.

[0049] When the cleaning phase has ended, the cleaning robots are loaded back into the trolley by repeatedly moving the receiving element after one of the cleaning robots has been placed on it to one of the storage compartments, so that the storage compartment can be accessed by the cleaning robot, which is not shown here. Then the suction platform and the receiving element are folded in manually or automatically and the door element is closed, which is not shown here. The cleaning phase is essentially ended in the reverse order to the unloading of the cleaning robots R from the trolley 1 shown in FIGS. 1 to 8.

[0050] FIG. 1 shows a partial side/partial cross-sectional view of a trolley according to the disclosure prior to the start of unloading one of the cleaning robots stored in the trolley. The trolley 1 has outer walls 10, between which a plurality of storage compartments 2 stacked vertically one above the other are accommodated, in each of which one of the cleaning robots R is stored. The trolley 1 also has transport wheels 4, which are designed to move the trolley 1 in the operational set-up position over a substrate U, with the trolley 1 also having adjustable blocking elements 5 which are designed to block the transport wheels 4 in a blocking state and to release the transport wheels 4 in a non-blocking state. As a result, the trolley 1 is fixed in the blocking state and movable in the non-blocking state. The trolley 1 has a hand grip 3 for better mobility or displaceability. The trolley 1 also has a suction system A, which has a foldable suction platform 13 and is designed to empty one of the cleaning robots R when it is arranged on the suction platform 13, which is not shown here.

[0051] In order to load and unload the cleaning robots R, the trolley 1 also has a lift system LI with a foldable receiving element (not shown). The lift system LI is designed to load the cleaning robots R individually into the storage compartments 2 and unload them out of the storage compartments 2 by means of the receiving element in its unfolded state, which is not shown here. The trolley 1 has at least one door element 7 which can be arranged in such a way that it closes or exposes the outer walls 10 by being arranged in front of the folded-in receiving element 12. In FIG. 1, the door element 7 closes the foldable receiving element 12 and the suction platform 13 so that the inside of the trolley is closed off by means of the outer walls 10 and the door element 7. The suction platform 13 can be folded by means of a hinge 14. The door element 7 is designed as two sliding doors, each of which is provided with a handle 6 and can be slid on guide rails 8.

[0052] FIG. 2 shows a partial top/partial cross-sectional view of the trolley shown in FIG. 1 prior to the start of unloading one of the cleaning robots stored in the trolley. The trolley 1 has a control panel 15 via which a user (not shown) can control the trolley 1 and, for example, load and unload the cleaning robots R into and out of the trolley 1. The trolley 1 also has a handle 16. By pulling on the handle 16, a dirt collection container (not shown) of the suction system (not shown) can be removed from the trolley 1 for emptying dirt collected in it. The door element 7 is designed as the two sliding doors which can be slid into a space 9 between an outer wall 10 and an inner space 11 of the trolley 1 by means of the guide rail (not shown), as indicated by arrows. Furthermore, the trolley 1 has an infrared interface IR, which is designed to support a cleaning robot R arranged on the suction platform 13 in positioning itself correctly on it for suction.

[0053] FIG. 3 shows a partial top/partial cross-sectional view of the trolley shown in FIG. 1 in a partially opened state. The door element 7 is located in the space 9 between the outer wall 10 and the inner space 11. As a result, the receiving element 12 and the suction platform 13 are exposed. They can now be unfolded automatically by means of an electric motor (not shown) or manually by a user (not shown) by means of the hinge 14; they are partially unfolded in FIG. 3. The receiving element 12 is segmented. The suction platform 13 is arranged between two receiving element segments of the receiving element 12.

[0054] FIG. 4 shows a partial side cross-sectional view of the trolley shown in FIG. 3 in the partially opened state. The suction platform 13 and the receiving element 12 are partially unfolded in the direction of the arrows. The blocking elements 5 are shown in a non-blocking state in which they do not block the transport wheels 4. However, they can also be in a blocking state in which they block the transport wheels 4. Both the suction platform 13 and the receiving element 12 are each provided with a hinge 14.

[0055] FIG. 5 shows a cross-sectional view of the trolley shown in FIG. 1 in an opened state. The suction platform 13 rests on the substrate U, while the receiving element 12 is moved vertically by means of the lift element LI to one of the storage compartments 2, in which a cleaning robot R to be loaded is stored, which moves in the direction of the arrow from the storage compartment 2 onto the receiving element 12. The blocking elements 5 are in the blocking state, as indicated by arrows, to fix the trolley 1 in its position. The suction system A has a dirt collection container SB for collecting dirt sucked out of cleaning robots R by means of the suction system A and a suction channel, which connects the dirt collection container to the suction platform 13 and opens into an opening (not shown) formed in the suction platform 13. The suction system also has a fan (not shown) which, when activated, generates an air flow so that dirt is sucked out of a cleaning robot R arranged on the suction platform 13 via the suction channel 19 into the dirt collection container SB. Each storage compartment 2 has a charging contact L, which is designed to be contacted with a cleaning robot R arranged in the corresponding storage compartment 2 in order to supply the cleaning robot R with energy by means of an energy supply unit (not shown) of the trolley (1).

[0056] FIG. 6 shows another cross-sectional view of the trolley shown in FIG. 5 in the opened state. The trolley 1 has a controller S which is designed to control the loading and unloading of the cleaning robots R and their suction process.

[0057] FIG. 7 shows another cross-sectional view of the trolley shown in FIG. 6 in a further opened state. The receiving element 12 is moved vertically in the direction of the substrate U with the cleaning robot R arranged on it, as indicated by an arrow.

[0058] FIG. 8 shows another cross-sectional view of the trolley shown in FIG. 7 in a still further opened state. The receiving element (not shown) now rests on the substrate U, so that the cleaning robot R can leave the trolley 1 by moving in the direction of the arrow.

[0059] FIG. 9 shows a cross-sectional view of a further trolley according to the disclosure. The trolley shown in FIG. 9 corresponds to the trolley shown in FIG. 8 with the difference that it also has expansion modules 17 . Each expansion module 17 has fasteners 18 for connecting the expansion module 17 to the trolley 1, a storage compartment 2 including charging contact L and an extension of the lift system LI, which are arranged in parts of outerwalls 10 so that the expansion module 17 can be attached to the top storage compartment 2 of the trolley 1 and connected by means of fasteners 18.

REFERENCE LIST

[0060] A suction system [0061] IR infrared interface [0062] L charging contact [0063] LI lift element [0064] R cleaning robot [0065] SB dirt container [0066] U substrate [0067] 1 trolley [0068] 2 storage compartment [0069] 3 hand grip [0070] 4 transport wheel [0071] 5 blocking element [0072] 6 handle [0073] 7 door element [0074] 8 guide rail [0075] 9 space [0076] 10 outer wall [0077] 11inner space [0078] 12 receiving element [0079] 13 suction platform [0080] 14 hinge [0081] 15 control panel [0082] 16 further handle [0083] 17 expansion module [0084] 18 fastener [0085] 19 suction channel