Underwater cleaning robot
An underwater cleaning robot contains a movement device for moving the underwater cleaning robot under water, a cleaning device for cleaning an object located under water, a control device for controlling the movement device and/or the cleaning device and a communication device for receiving and/or transmitting signals from outside the underwater cleaning robot and vice versa. The communication device contains a first ultrasonic transducer for receiving ultrasonic signals transmitted under water and is designed to transmit electrical signals, corresponding to the ultrasonic signals received, to the control device.
1 . A system for underwater cleaning, including
an underwater cleaning robot operating below a water surface, the underwater cleaning robot comprising:
a movement device for moving the underwater cleaning robot under water,
a cleaning device for cleaning an object located under water,
a control device for controlling the movement device and/or the cleaning device, and
a communication device for receiving and/or transmitting signals from outside the underwater cleaning robot, and vice versa,
wherein the communication device includes a first ultrasonic transducer for receiving ultrasonic signals transmitted under water, and
wherein the communication device is designed to transmit electrical signals corresponding to the received ultrasonic signals to the control device,
a control unit for controlling the underwater cleaning robot, the control unit being arranged outside the water,
a second ultrasonic transducer arranged below the water surface, which is connected to the control unit, for converting signals output by the control unit into ultrasonic signals and for emitting the ultrasonic signals under water, and
a modem, which is included in or connected to the control unit, for modulating the signals output by the control unit and for transmitting the modulated signals to the second ultrasonic transducer.
2 . The system according to claim 1 , wherein the underwater cleaning robot further includes a first modem for demodulating the electrical signals corresponding to the received ultrasonic signals and for transmitting the demodulated signals to the control device.
3 . The system according to claim 1 , in which the communication device is designed to re-emit ultrasonic signals corresponding to the received ultrasonic signals via the first ultrasonic transducer.
4 . The system according to claim 1 , wherein the underwater cleaning robot further includes a battery for supplying the movement device and/or the cleaning device with electrical energy.
5 . The system according to claim 4 , wherein the battery is designed to be rechargeable and the underwater cleaning robot further includes external connections, which are connected to the battery, for recharging the battery with electrical energy supplied from outside.
6 . A method for controlling an underwater cleaning robot operating below a water surface, comprising the steps of:
converting electrical signals for controlling the underwater cleaning robot into ultrasonic signals by means of a second ultrasonic transducer attached below the water surface,
transmitting the ultrasonic signals via an underwater ultrasonic path to the underwater cleaning robot,
receiving the transmitted ultrasonic signals and converting the received ultrasonic signals into electrical signals for controlling the underwater cleaning robot by means of a first ultrasonic transducer attached to the underwater cleaning robot,
wherein the underwater cleaning robot comprises a movement device for moving the underwater cleaning robot under water, a cleaning device for cleaning an object located under water, a control device for controlling the movement device and/or the cleaning device, and a communication device for receiving and/or transmitting signals from outside the underwater cleaning robot, and vice versa, wherein the communication device includes the first ultrasonic transducer for receiving ultrasonic signals transmitted under water, and wherein the communication device is designed to transmit electrical signals corresponding to the received ultrasonic signals to the control device.
7 . The method according to claim 6 , in which
the electrical signals for controlling the underwater cleaning robot are modulated by means of a second modem before being converted into ultrasonic signals, and
the electrical signals output by the first ultrasonic transducer are demodulated by means of a first modem ( 26 ).
8 . The method according to claim 7 , in which a multitone modulation is used for modulation, with 50 tones at intervals of about 100 Hz, wherein each single tone is modulated using a frequency shift keying (FSK).
9 . The method according to claim 7 , in which a multitone modulation is used for modulation, with 50 tones at intervals of about 100 Hz, wherein each single tone is modulated using a frequency shift keying (FSK), with a deviation of about 25 Hz.
10 . The method according to claim 7 , in which a multitone modulation is used for modulation.
11 . The method according to claim 6 , in which data packets with a predetermined number of bits are sent out for transmission.
12 . The method according to claim 11 , wherein a predetermined guard time is maintained between the transmission of successive data packets to compensate for reflections of the ultrasonic signals.
13 . The method according to claim 6 , in which a data transmission takes place both from a control unit to the underwater cleaning robot and from the underwater cleaning robot to the control unit,
wherein a modem, which is included in or connected to the control unit, modulates the signals output by the control unit and transmits the modulated signals to the second ultrasonic transducer.
14 . The method according to claim 13 , in which
the data transmission is half-duplex in two separate frequency bands of a predetermined bandwidth, or
the data transmission is simplex in a frequency band of a predetermined bandwidth.
15 . The method according to claim 6 , in which
the underwater cleaning robot turns around when the reception of the ultrasonic signals becomes too weak or fails and moves back to where it had better reception before, and/or
the underwater cleaning robot stops when the reception of the ultrasonic signals fails and waits until ultrasonic signals are received again, and/or
the underwater cleaning robot automatically returns to the starting position when the remaining capacity of the battery falls below a predetermined value, and/or
the underwater cleaning robot automatically returns to the starting position after completion of the cleaning.
16 . The method according to claim 6 , in which
the ultrasonic signals are used for distance measurements and for supporting the navigation of the underwater cleaning robot in the pool, and/or
the ultrasonic transducers are used for collecting data relating to water and pool quality.
17 . The method according to claim 6 , in which
for the surfacing of underwater cleaning robot, air is sucked in from above the water surface and pumped into a surfacing bell and/or
for the surfacing of the underwater cleaning robot, air compressed by an air expansion cartridge is released into the surfacing bell and/or
for the descending of the underwater cleaning robot, the air in the surfacing bell is sucked out by a suction pump.
18 . A system for underwater cleaning, including
two or more underwater cleaning robots,
a control unit for controlling the underwater cleaning robots,
a second ultrasonic transducer, which is connected to the control unit, for converting signals output by the control unit into ultrasonic signals and for emitting the ultrasonic signals under water, and
a modem, which is included in or connected to the control unit, for modulating the signals output by the control unit and for transmitting the modulated signals to the second ultrasonic transducer,
wherein each of the two or more underwater cleaning robots comprises a movement device for moving the underwater cleaning robot under water, a cleaning device for cleaning an object located under water, a control device for controlling the movement device and/or the cleaning device, and a communication device for receiving and/or transmitting signals from outside the underwater cleaning robot, and vice versa, wherein the communication device includes a first ultrasonic transducer for receiving ultrasonic signals transmitted under water, and wherein the communication device is designed to transmit electrical signals corresponding to the received ultrasonic signals to the control device.