Vehicle interior cleaning apparatus

A vehicle interior cleaning system configured to couple to a robot arm, the system comprising:

• a cleaning apparatus coupled to the robotic arm, the cleaning apparatus comprising:
• a first housing defining a passage therethrough, the first passage having a cross-sectional area that decreases along a direction of airflow from a cleaning interface to an outlet port;
• a second housing coupled to the first housing and defining a second passage therethrough, the second passage being in communication with the first passage and having a cross-sectional area that decreases along the direction of airflow from the cleaning interface to the first passage;
• and a cartridge assembly disposed within at least one of the first and second housing, the cartridge assembly having a cartridge housing and a spinning assembly at least partially disposed within the cartridge assembly, the spinning assembly having a nozzle configured to expel pressurized air into the second passage to generate turbulence within the second passage and
• a controller configured to receive signals from at least one sensor and to control operation of the cleaning apparatus during a robotic cleaning sequence.

A cleaning apparatus, comprising:

• a first housing defining a first passage therethrough;
• a second housing coupled to the first housing and defining a second passage therethrough, the second passage being in communication with the first passage;
• and
• a cartridge assembly disposed within at least one of the first and second housing, the cartridge assembly having a cartridge housing and a spinning assembly at least partially disposed within the cartridge housing, the spinning assembly having a nozzle configured to expel pressurized air from an opening in the nozzle into the second passage to generate turbulence within the second passage, wherein a gap is provided between a lower opening in the cartridge housing and the nozzle, the gap being in communication with an outer surface of the second housing and defining a self-cleaning area through which air is drawn by a combination of the airflow expelled from the nozzle and vacuum pressure within the second housing.