# US 10,500,894 B2 · Robot cleaner > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 10,500,894 B2 - Document ID: US10500894B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 15/363,292 - Filed: 2016-11-29 - Published: 2017-06-29 - Granted: 2019-12-10 - Earliest claimed: 2015-12-23 - Assignees: Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. - Applicants: Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. - Inventors: Chan-young Park; Seung-il Han; Jun-won Seo; Kyu-ha Lee; Young-mi Kim; Hyun-uk Park; Jea-won Lee; Young-kyun Jeong - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US10500894B2 ## CPC - B60B 3/02: with a single disc body integral with rim - A47L 9/009: {Carrying-vehicles; Arrangements of trollies or wheels; Means for avoiding mechanical obstacles} - B60B 3/001: {Lightweight wheels, e.g. for strollers or toys} - B60B 3/10: apertured to simulate spoked wheels - B60B 19/00: Wheels not otherwise provided for or having characteristics specified in one of the subgroups of this group - A47L 2201/00: Robotic cleaning machines, i.e. with automatic control of the travelling movement or the cleaning operation - B60B: VEHICLE WHEELS (making wheels or wheel parts by rolling B21H1/00, by forging, hammering or pressing B21K1/28); CASTORS; AXLES FOR WHEELS OR CASTORS; INCREASING WHEEL ADHESION - A47L: DOMESTIC WASHING OR CLEANING (brushes A46B; cleaning quantities of bottles or of other hollow articles of one kind B08B9/00; laundry D06F); SUCTION CLEANERS IN GENERAL (cleaning in general B08) ## Abstract A wheel for a robot cleaner includes an outer ring in contact with a surface to be cleaned, an inner ring which is disposed inside the outer ring and receives a driving force, a plurality of spokes which connect the outer ring and the inner ring, and form a plurality of independent spaces through which air passes, and a plurality of ribs disposed in the plurality of independent spaces, each of the plurality of ribs having a shorter length than a length of each of the plurality of spokes. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A robot cleaner, comprising: a wheel, comprising: an outer ring contactable with a surface to be cleaned by the robot cleaner, an inner ring disposed inside the outer ring and configured to receive a driving force, a plurality of spokes connecting the outer ring with the inner ring, a plurality of through holes through which air passes, provided between the plurality of spokes, respectively, and a plurality of ribs disposed in a portion of the plurality of through holes, respectively, the plurality of ribs having a length that is less than a length of the plurality of spokes, wherein when the outer ring is moved toward the inner ring, the plurality of ribs are configured to limit movement of the outer ring. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The robot cleaner of claim 1, further comprising: a plurality of supporting pieces disposed in another portion of the plurality of through holes, respectively, and configured to support the plurality of ribs with respect to adjacent spokes among the plurality of spokes. ### Claim 3 (depends on 2) The robot cleaner of claim 2, wherein a thickness of the supporting piece is less than a thickness of a respective rib among the plurality of ribs, and a length of the supporting piece is less than a length of the respective rib among the plurality of ribs. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The robot cleaner of claim 1, wherein the plurality of ribs are connected at one end to the inner ring. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) The robot cleaner of claim 1, wherein a width of each of the plurality of ribs is less than a width of each of the plurality of spokes. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The robot cleaner of claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of spokes has a curved surface bent in a circumferential direction of the inner ring. ### Claim 7 (depends on 6) The robot cleaner of claim 6, wherein each of the plurality of ribs has a curved surface bent in a same direction as the plurality of spokes. ### Claim 8 (depends on 7) The robot cleaner of claim 7, wherein the wheel comprises a first wheel and a second wheel that are disposed parallel to each other, and a plurality of spokes of the first wheel are bent in a same direction as a plurality of spokes of the second wheel. ### Claim 9 (depends on 8) The robot cleaner of claim 8, wherein the first wheel and the second wheel are disposed so that when each of the plurality of spokes of the first wheel and the second wheel is adjacent to the surface to be cleaned, a recessed portion of the each of the plurality of spokes of the first wheel and the second wheel is directed toward a front surface of the robot cleaner. ### Claim 10 (depends on 1) The robot cleaner of claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of ribs is spaced apart from two adjacent spokes among the plurality of spokes. ### Claim 11 (depends on 10) The robot cleaner of claim 10, wherein each of the plurality of ribs is centrally disposed between the two adjacent spokes among the plurality of spokes. ### Claim 12 (depends on 1) The robot cleaner of claim 1, wherein at least one of a width of one end of at least one spoke among the plurality of spokes connected to the inner ring and a width of an opposite end of the at least one spoke connected to an inner surface of the outer ring is greater than a width of a middle portion of the at least one spoke. ### Claim 13 (depends on 1) The robot cleaner of claim 1, wherein the inner ring is fixed to a hub having a rigid body. ### Claim 14 (depends on 1) The robot cleaner of claim 1, wherein an outer surface of the outer ring is includes a plurality of protrusions. ### Claim 15 A robot cleaner, comprising: a wheel, comprising: an outer ring contactable with a surface to be cleaned by the robot cleaner, an inner ring disposed inside the outer ring and configured to receive a driving force, a plurality of spokes connecting the outer ring with the inner ring, a plurality of through holes through which air passes, provided between the plurality of spokes, respectively, and a plurality of ribs disposed in a portion of the plurality of through holes, respectively, and configured to limit movement of the outer ring when the outer ring is moved toward the inner ring. ### Claim 16 (depends on 15) The robot cleaner of claim 15, wherein the plurality of ribs are connected at one end to the inner ring, and a length of each of the plurality of ribs is less than a length of each of the plurality of spokes. ### Claim 17 (depends on 16) The robot cleaner of claim 16, wherein each of the plurality of spokes and each of the plurality of ribs have a curved surface bent in a circumferential direction of the inner ring. ### Claim 18 (depends on 17) The robot cleaner of claim 17, further comprising: a plurality of supporting pieces disposed in another portion of the plurality of through holes, respectively, and configured to support the plurality of ribs with respect to adjacent spokes among the plurality of spokes. ### Claim 19 A robot cleaner, comprising: a main body; a cleaning device disposed in the main body and configured to suck material from a surface to be cleaned; at least one drive device disposed in the main body and configured to allow movement of the robot cleaner; and at least one wheel rotated by the at least one drive device, the at least one wheel comprising: an outer ring, an inner ring disposed concentrically inside the outer ring and configured to receive a driving force from the at least one drive unit, a plurality of spokes connecting the outer ring with the inner ring, a plurality of through holes through which air passes, provided between adjacent spokes among the plurality of spokes, respectively, and a plurality of ribs protruding from one of the inner ring and the outer ring into the plurality of through holes, respectively, and toward the other one of the inner ring and the outer ring, the plurality of ribs being spaced apart from the other one of the inner ring and the outer ring such that the plurality of through holes are substantially u-shaped, wherein when the outer ring is moved toward the inner ring, the plurality of ribs are configured to limit movement of the outer ring.