Pool cleaning robot with a detachable sensor
AssigneeMaytronics Ltd.
InventorShay Witelson
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A pool cleaning robot that may include a housing, a propulsion mechanism configured to propel the pool cleaning robot along an interior surface of a pool; brushes to clean surfaces of the pool during a cleaning cycle, a filtering system, a suction mechanism to draw liquid from the pool through an inlet into the housing and to discharge it from an outlet; and a detachable sensor that is detachably coupled to the housing and comprises inductive electrical and data transfer connections.
Claims16
A pool cleaning robot comprising a housing, a propulsion mechanism configured to propel the pool cleaning robot along an interior surface of a pool;
- brushes to clean surfaces of the pool during a cleaning cycle, a filtering system, a suction mechanism to draw liquid from the pool through an inlet into the housing and to discharge it from an outlet;
- and a detachable sensor that is detachably coupled to the housing and comprises inductive electrical and data transfer connections;
- wherein the detachable sensor is detacheably coupled to the housing by a locking and unlocking mechanism.
A method for cleaning a pool, the method comprises receiving by a pool cleaning robot a detachable sensor that is detachably coupled to the housing and comprises inductive electrical and data transfer connections;
- and cleaning at least one region of the pool by the pool cleaning robot;
- and wherein the detachable sensor is detacheably coupled to the housing in a magnetic manner.
A pool cleaning robot comprising a housing, a propulsion mechanism configured to propel the pool cleaning robot along an interior surface of a pool;
- brushes to clean surfaces of the pool during a cleaning cycle, a filtering system, a suction mechanism to draw liquid from the pool through an inlet into the housing and to discharge it from an outlet;
- and a detachable sensor that is detachably coupled to the housing and comprises inductive electrical and data transfer connections;
- wherein the detachable sensor is selected out of (a) an acoustic sensor, (b) a motion sensor, (c) a heading direction measurement sensor, and (d) an optical sensor that comprises:
- at least one light source that illuminates an area of a surface of the pool being cleaned by the cleaning robot through optical lens at a non-vertical angle;
- a detector able to generate, based upon light from the area of the surface of the pool, detection signals indicative of a motion of the pool cleaning robot;
- and a processor arranged to receive the detection signals and to determine a motion characteristic or a location characteristic of the pool cleaning robot.
A pool cleaning robot comprising a housing, a propulsion mechanism configured to propel the pool cleaning robot along an interior surface of a pool;
- brushes to clean surfaces of the pool during a cleaning cycle, a filtering system, a suction mechanism to draw liquid from the pool through an inlet into the housing and to discharge it from an outlet;
- and a detachable sensor that is detachably coupled to the housing and comprises inductive electrical and data transfer connections;
- wherein the detachable sensor comprises a detachable module.
A method for cleaning a pool, the method comprises receiving by a pool cleaning robot a detachable sensor that is detachably coupled to the housing and comprises inductive electrical and data transfer connections;
- and cleaning at least one region of the pool by the pool cleaning robot;
- wherein the method further comprises illuminating by at least one light source of the detachable sensor an area of a surface of the pool being cleaned by the cleaning robot through optical lens at a non-vertical angle;
- generating, by a detector of the detachable sensor based upon light from the area of the surface of the pool, detection signals indicative of a motion of the pool cleaning robot;
- receiving by a processor of the detachable sensor the detection signals;
- and determining by the processor, a motion characteristic or a location characteristic of the pool cleaning robot.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.