U.S. patent application number 11/229831 was filed with the patent office on 2006-03-30 for self-propelled cleaner.
This patent application is currently assigned to Funai Electric Co., Ltd.. Invention is credited to Ryo Saeki.
Application Number | 20060069465 11/229831 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 36100303 |
Filed Date | 2006-03-30 |
United States Patent
Application |
20060069465 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Saeki; Ryo |
March 30, 2006 |
Self-propelled cleaner
Abstract
Disclosed is a self-propelled cleaner that can reduce power
consumption and that is economically advantageous. The
self-propelled cleaner normally detects an intruder using
pyroelectric sensors that consume less power, and each time a
predetermined period of time has passed, detects an intruder with
the infrared CCD sensor while turning the body BD. This can reduce
the time of operation during which the infrared CCD sensor
consuming more power is used, thus making it possible to reduce
power consumption. Moreover, since the self-propelled cleaner is
designed to cause the drive mechanism provided therein to turn the
body BD, it is not necessary to additionally provide a device to
turn the infrared CCD sensor, thus reducing the manufacturing
cost.
Inventors: |
Saeki; Ryo; (Osaka,
JP) |
Correspondence
Address: |
YOKOI & CO. U.S.A., INC.
13700 MARINA POINTE DRIVE #723
MARINA DEL RAY
CA
90292
US
|
Assignee: |
Funai Electric Co., Ltd.
Osaka
JP
574-0013
|
Family ID: |
36100303 |
Appl. No.: |
11/229831 |
Filed: |
September 19, 2005 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
700/258 ;
700/245 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A47L 2201/04 20130101;
A47L 7/0085 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
700/258 ;
700/245 |
International
Class: |
G06F 19/00 20060101
G06F019/00 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Sep 29, 2004 |
JP |
JP2004-283403 |
Claims
1. A self-propelled cleaner including a body equipped with a
cleaning mechanism, a drive mechanism to steer and drive said body,
a plurality of human sensors that detect infrared rays emitted by a
human body, and an infrared camera, wherein: said human sensor is
caused to detect said infrared rays from a human body, with the
image taking by said infrared camera disabled; an intruder
detection processor is provided that causes said infrared camera to
take images while turning said body by controlling said drive
mechanism, when the predetermined time has passed or when the value
of a random number extracted at certain time intervals matches the
predetermined value; and the detection of infrared rays by said
human sensors is disabled while said intruder detection processor
causes said infrared camera to take images.
2. A self-propelled cleaner including a body equipped with a
cleaning mechanism, a drive mechanism to steer and drive said body,
a plurality of human sensors that detect infrared rays emitted by a
human body, and a camera, wherein: an intruder detection processor
that causes said human sensors to detect said infrared rays from
said human body, with the image taking by said camera disabled, and
each time predetermined conditions are satisfied, controls said
drive mechanism to turn said body and simultaneously causes said
camera to take images.
3. The self-propelled cleaner according to claim 2, wherein said
intruder detection processor controls said drive mechanism to turn
said body and simultaneously causes said camera to take images,
each time the predetermined time period has passed.
4. The self-propelled cleaner according to claim 2, wherein said
intruder detection processor controls said drive mechanism to turn
said body and simultaneously causes said camera to take images,
each time the value of a random number extracted at certain time
intervals matches the predetermined value.
5. The self-propelled cleaner according to claim 2, wherein the
detection of infrared rays by said human sensors is disabled while
said intruder detection processor causes said camera to take
images.
6. The self-propelled cleaner according to claim 2, wherein said
camera is an infrared camera.
7. The self-propelled cleaner according to claim 2, wherein said
human sensors are disposed at the right and left sides of the front
of said body, and are pyroelectric sensors that detect a human in
the vicinity of said body by detecting infrared rays emitted by the
human body.
8. The self-propelled cleaner according to claim 2, wherein said
drive mechanism comprises two drive wheels disposed at the center
right and left edges of the bottom of said body, and three
auxiliary wheels provided at the front of the bottom of said
body.
9. The self-propelled cleaner according to claim 8, wherein said
drive mechanism comprises drive wheel motors to drive said drive
wheels, and a rotary encoder that is integrally attached to said
drive wheel motors, and the actual rotation direction and rotation
angle of said drive wheel is detected from the output of said
rotary encoder.
10. The self-propelled cleaner according to claim 6, wherein said
infrared camera comprises an infrared CCD sensor and an infrared
ray source.
11. The self-propelled cleaner according to claim 10, wherein said
infrared CCD sensor has an optical system capable of taking images
of the front side of said body, and an electric signal is generated
that corresponds to an infrared ray input from the field of view
realized by said optical system.
12. The self-propelled cleaner according to claim 2, wherein said
intruder detection processor locates flesh-colored areas that are
characteristic of a human body, based on the color images taken,
and detects an intruder based on the size and changes of said
areas.
13. The self-propelled cleaner according to claim 8, wherein said
intruder detection processor turns said body at predetermined
angles by driving only one of said left and right drive wheels, and
then stops said body.
14. The self-propelled cleaner according to claim 2, wherein said
intruder detection processor determines whether or not an intruder
is imaged based on the difference between two images of the same
area taken at different times, by detecting the difference between
frames of video signals based on imaging signals from said
camera.
15. The self-propelled cleaner according to claim 2, wherein said
intruder detection processor has a gyro sensor and determines
whether or not said body has turned around, based on the direction
angle of said body detected by said gyro sensor.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0001] 1. Field of the Invention
[0002] The present invention relates to a self-propelled cleaner
including a body with a cleaning mechanism, and a drive mechanism
to steer and drive the body.
[0003] 2. Description of the Prior Art
[0004] Conventionally, there is known a self-propelled cleaner that
is equipped with a human sensors such as a pyroelectric sensor to
detect infrared rays emitted from a human body and that is
configured to enable detection of a human located in the vicinity
of the self-propelled cleaner (refer to, for example, Japanese
Patent Laid-open numbers 02-7930 and 04-261632). A self-propelled
cleaner equipped with such a human sensor can also be functioned as
a security device to detect an intruder.
[0005] However, the above-mentioned human sensor has a problem that
its detectable range is narrow and therefore it is impossible to
detect an intruder who is not in the vicinity. Accordingly, it has
been proposed that a camera with wide detection range be provided
in a self-propelled cleaner.
[0006] Such a camera, however, consumes large amount of electric
power and therefore it is not economical to take images with the
camera over the whole period during which the user is absent.
Furthermore, if the self-propelled cleaner is battery-operated it
is necessary to provide a large capacity battery, resulting in an
increase in the manufacturing cost.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0007] The present invention has been made in view of the above
problems, and therefore an object of the invention is to provide a
self-propelled cleaner that can reduce power consumption and is
economically advantageous.
[0008] In order to achieve the above object, one aspect of the
present invention resides in a self-propelled cleaner which
includes: a body with a cleaning mechanism; a drive mechanism to
steer and drive the body; a plurality of human sensors to detect
infrared rays emitted by a human body; and a camera. The
self-propelled cleaner is designed to include an intruder detection
processor that causes the human sensors to detect the infrared rays
from the human body, with the image taking function of the camera
disabled, and each time predetermined conditions are satisfied,
controls the drive mechanism to turn the body and causes the camera
to take images.
[0009] According to the aspect, the self-propelled cleaner
includes: a body with a cleaning mechanism; a drive mechanism to
steer and drive the body; a plurality of human sensors to detect
infrared rays emitted by a human body; and a camera.
[0010] The self-propelled cleaner is further equipped with an
intruder detection processor that causes the human sensors to
detect the infrared rays from the human body, with the image taking
function of the camera disabled, and each time predetermined
conditions are satisfied, controls the drive mechanism to turn the
body and causes the camera to take images. That is, the detection
of an intruder is normally performed with the human sensors that
operate at low voltages, and the camera with wider detection range
takes over at a predetermined timing. This makes it possible to
reduce power consumption compared with when the camera takes images
all the time, thereby implementing a more economical self-propelled
cleaner. Moreover, since the self-propelled cleaner is designed to
cause its drive mechanism to turn the body, no additional device is
required to turn the camera, thus reducing the manufacturing
cost.
[0011] For the cleaning mechanism provided in the body, a suction
type, a brush type, or a combination of both types may be employed.
Also, for the drive mechanism for steering and driving the body, it
is possible to move the body forward and backward, turn left and
right, and turn at the same position. Of course, one or more
auxiliary wheels may be provided at the front and/or back of the
body. Also, the drive wheel may be implemented by driving an
endless belt instead of driving a wheel. In addition, the drive
mechanism may be implemented by various configurations such as
four-wheels or six-wheels.
[0012] As described above, according to the aspect of the present
invention, it is possible to reduce the power consumption and
manufacturing cost.
[0013] In another aspect of the present invention, the intruder
detection processor is designed to control the drive mechanism to
cause the camera to take images while turning the body, each time a
predetermined period of time has passed.
[0014] This aspect of the present invention allows the camera to
take images while turning the body each time a predetermined period
of time has passed.
[0015] In still another aspect of the present invention, the
intruder detection processor controls the drive mechanism to cause
the camera to take images while turning the body, each time the
value of a random number extracted at regular time intervals
matches a predetermined value.
[0016] This aspect of the present invention allows turning the body
and taking images by the camera to be performed at random time
intervals.
[0017] In yet another aspect of the present invention, the
detection of infrared rays by the human sensors is disabled while
the intruder detection processor causes the camera to take
images.
[0018] This aspect of the present invention disables the human
sensors while the camera is taking images, and therefore power
consumption can be further reduced.
[0019] In another aspect of the present invention, the camera is an
infrared camera.
[0020] This aspect of the present invention allows the camera to
take images of an intruder even-at night, thus making the security
by the self-propelled cleaner more effective.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0021] FIG. 1 is an external perspective view of a self-propelled
cleaner of the present invention;
[0022] FIG. 2 is a rear view of the self-propelled cleaner shown in
FIG. 1;
[0023] FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating the configuration of
the self-propelled cleaner shown in FIGS. 1 and 2;
[0024] FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the flow of the main
process;
[0025] FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the flow of the monitoring
mode performing process that is invoked and executed at step S140
in the flowchart of FIG. 4;
[0026] FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram showing the operation of the
self-propelled cleaner when the steps in the flowchart of FIG. 5
are performed; and
[0027] FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram showing the operation of the
self-propelled cleaner when the steps in the flowchart of FIG. 5
are performed.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
[0028] FIG. 1 is an external perspective view of a self-propelled
cleaner according to the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a rear
view of the self-propelled cleaner shown in FIG. 1. In FIG. 1, the
direction shown by the arrow A is the direction in which the
self-propelled cleaner travels. As shown in FIG. 1, the
self-propelled cleaner 10 has a rough cylindrical body BD, and two
drive wheels 12R and 12L (refer to FIG. 2) provided at the bottom
of the body BD, which are individually driven to enable the body BD
to move forward/backward and turn. At the center of the body BD, an
infrared CCD sensor 73 is provided as the camera. This infrared CCD
sensor 73 is movably mounted and therefore it is possible to take
images of the front side of the body BD. As will be described below
with reference to FIGS. 4 and 5, it is also possible to take images
of the inside of a dust box 90 (not shown) disposed within the body
BD.
[0029] Moreover, seven ultrasonic sensors 31 (31a to 31g) are
disposed as distance meters, below the infrared CCD sensor 73. Each
of the ultrasonic sensors 31 comprises a transmitter that generates
ultrasonic wave and a receiver that receives the ultrasonic wave
transmitted from the transmitter and reflected from a wall in front
thereof, and it is possible to calculate the distance to the wall,
from the time during which an ultrasonic wave is transmitted from
the transmitter and received by the receiver. Of these seven
ultrasonic sensors 31, a ultrasonic sensor 31d is disposed at the
center front of the body BD, and each pair of ultrasonic sensors
31a and 31g, 31b and 31f, and 31c and 31e is disposed symmetrically
at the left and right sides of the body BD. When the body BD is
traveling perpendicular to the front wall, the distances calculated
by a symmetrically disposed pair of ultrasonic sensors are
equal.
[0030] Also, at the right and left sides of the front of the body
BD, pyroelectric sensors 35 (35a and 35b) are provided respectively
as human sensors. The pyroelectric sensors 35a and 35b can detect a
human located in the vicinity of the body BD by detecting infrared
rays emitted from the human body. Also, pyroelectric sensors 35c
and 35d, not shown in FIG. 1, are disposed at both sides of the
rear of the body BD respectively. This realizes detection range of
360 degrees around the body BD.
[0031] In FIG. 2, two drive wheels 12R and 12L are provided at the
right and left edges of the bottom of the body BD. Also, at the
front (in the traveling direction) of the bottom of the body BD,
three auxiliary wheels 13 are disposed. In addition, at the upper
right, lower right, upper left, and lower left of the bottom of the
body BD, step sensors 14 are provided respectively that detects a
step or irregularity of the floor surface. A main brush 15 is
mounted lower than the center of the bottom of the body BD. The
main brush 15 is rotated by a main brush motor 52 (not shown) to
sweep the floor clear of dust. The opening adjacent to the main
brush 15 is a suction hole through which the dust collected by the
brush is sucked in. A side brush 16 is provided at the upper right
and upper left of the bottom of the body BD respectively.
[0032] The self-propelled cleaner 10 of the present invention is
equipped with various other sensors in addition to the ultrasonic
sensors 31, pyroelectric sensors 35, and step sensors 14 shown in
FIGS. 1 and 2. These other sensors are described below with
reference to FIG. 3.
[0033] FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating the configuration of
the self-propelled cleaner shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. In this figure,
a CPU 21, a ROM 23, and a RAM 22 are connected to the body BD
through a bus 24. The CPU 21 performs various controls according to
control programs and various parameter tables stored in the ROM 23,
using the RAM 22 as a work area.
[0034] The body BD contains a battery 27 and the CPU 21 can monitor
the remaining capacity of the battery via a battery monitoring
circuit 26. Also, the battery 27 has a charging terminal 27a for
charging from a charging device 100 described below. The battery 27
is charged by connecting an electrical supply terminal 101 of the
charging device 100 to the charging terminal 27a. The battery
monitoring circuit 26 detects the remaining capacity mainly by
monitoring the voltage of the battery 27. Moreover, the body BD has
a voice synthesis circuit 29a connected to the bus 24, and a
speaker 29b makes a voice sound according to a voice signal
generated by the voice synthesis circuit 29a.
[0035] Furthermore, the body BD is equipped with the ultrasonic
sensors 31 (31a to 31g) as distance meters, the pyroelectric
sensors 35 (35a to 35d) as human sensors, and the step sensors 14
(refer to FIGS. 1 and 2). In addition to these sensors, the body BD
has a sidewall sensors 36R and 36L (not shown in FIGS. 1 and 2) to
detect sidewalls. For the sidewall sensors 36R and 36L, for
example, passive sensors or ultrasonic sensors may be employed. The
body BD also has a gyro sensor 37. The gyro sensor 37 includes an
angular velocity sensor to detect an angular velocity change caused
by the traveling direction change of the body BD, and it is
possible to detect the direction angle at which the body BD faces,
by accumulating the output values of the angular velocity sensor
37a.
[0036] The self-propelled cleaner 10 of the present invention has
the drive mechanism including; motor drivers 41R and 41L; drive
wheel motors 42R and 42L; and a gear unit (not shown) intercalated
between the drive wheel motors 42R and 42L and the drive wheels 12R
and 12L. The motor drivers 41R and 41L finely control the rotation
direction and rotation angle of the drive wheel motors 42R and 42L,
when the self-propelled cleaner turns. Each of the motor drivers
41R and 41L outputs a drive signal corresponding to the instruction
from the CPU 21. The gear unit and the drive wheels 12R and 12L may
be implemented in various forms, such as circular rubber tires or
endless belts.
[0037] Furthermore, the actual rotation direction and rotation
angle of the drive wheels can be detected from the output of a
rotary encoder (not shown) attached integrally with the drive wheel
motors 42R and 42L. Also, instead of directly coupling the rotary
encoder to the drive wheels, a freely rotating driven wheel may be
provided near each of the drive wheels, and the amount of rotation
of the driven wheels may be fed back so that the actual amount of
rotation can be detected even when the drive wheels are skidding.
An acceleration sensor 44 detects the accelerations in the XYZ
axial directions, and outputs the detection results. The gear unit
and the drive wheels 12R and 12L may be implemented in various
forms, such as circular rubber tires or endless belts.
[0038] The cleaning mechanism of the self-propelled cleaner 10 of
the present invention comprises: two side brushes 16 (refer to FIG.
2) disposed at the bottom of the body BD; a main brush 15 (refer to
FIG. 12) disposed at the center of the bottom of the body BD; and a
suction fan (not shown) that sucks the dust collected by the main
brush 15 into the dust box 90 to store therein. The main brush 15
is driven by a main brush motor 52 and the suction fan is driven by
a suction motor 55. To the main brush motor 52 and suction motor
55, driving power is supplied from motor drivers 54 and 56
respectively. The cleaning by means of the main brush 15 is
controlled by the CPU 21 according to the floor condition, battery
capacity, instruction from the user, and the like.
[0039] The body BD contains a wireless LAN module 61, and the CPU
21 can communicate with an external LAN according to the prescribed
protocol. The wireless LAN module 61 assumes the existence of an
access point (not shown), and the access point can connect to an
external wide area network (for example, the Internet) via routers
or the like. This makes it possible to send/receive ordinary E
mails via the Internet and to browse Web sites. The wireless LAN
module 61 comprises a standardized card slot, a standardized
wireless LAN card connected to the card slot, and the like. Of
course, the card slot can accommodate other standardized cards.
[0040] Also, the body BD is provided with the infrared CCD sensor
73 and an infrared ray source 72. The imaging signal generated by
the infrared CCD sensor 73 is transmitted to the CPU 21 through the
bus 24, and is processed by the CPU 21. The infrared CCD sensor 73
has an optical system capable of taking images of the front side of
the body BD, and produces an electric signal according to an
infrared ray input from the field of view realized by the optical
system. Specifically, the infrared CCD sensor has a large number of
photodiodes, each of which are arranged corresponding to each pixel
at the image forming position of the optical system, and each
photodiode generates an electric signal corresponding to the
electric energy of an input infrared ray. Then, the generated
imaging signal is output to the CPU 21 accordingly.
[0041] Although this embodiment is configured using a camera that
takes advantage of changes in the infrared rays entering the
infrared CCD sensor 73, other configurations are possible. For
example, it is possible to take images in color if the processing
capacity of the CPU 21 increases, a flesh-colored area which is
characteristic of a human body is located, and an intruder based on
the size and change of the area is detected. Of course, a CMOS may
be employed instead of the CCD. Furthermore, if an extremely high
processing capacity is required from the CPU 21, an image processor
dedicated to the image processing for imaging signals may be added,
or a VRAM may be provided in addition to the RAM 22. Since the
imaging signals can be input to the bus 24 within the body BD, the
image processor, the VRAM, or the like should be provided in the
body BD and be connected to the bus 24.
[0042] Now, the operation of the self-propelled cleaner 10 of the
present invention is described.
[0043] The self-propelled cleaner 10 provides three modes: (A)
automatic cleaning mode, (B) navigation mode, and (C) monitoring
mode, from which the user can select a desired mode. A brief
description of each of these three modes will follow.
[0044] (A) Automatic Cleaning Mode:
[0045] When set to the automatic cleaning mode, the self-propelled
cleaner 10 performs cleaning while automatically traveling
according to the control program stored in the ROM 23 or the like.
If a wall or an uneven surface of the floor is detected by the
sensors, a traveling control is performed based on the control
program.
[0046] (B) Navigation Mode:
[0047] When set to the navigation mode, the self-propelled cleaner
10 moves close to the position at which the infrared beam emitted
from a remote control hits, and cleans the area around there. That
is, in the navigation mode, the self-propelled cleaner 10 does not
perform cleaning while automatically traveling, as in the automatic
cleaning mode, but the user instructs the area to be cleaned with
the remote control and navigates the self-propelled cleaner to that
area to clean there.
[0048] (C) Monitoring Mode:
[0049] When set to the monitoring mode, the self-propelled cleaner
10 monitors for an intruder. Specifically, the pyroelectric sensors
35 and the infrared CCD sensor 73 are used to monitor, and if an
intruder is detected, an alarm signal is transmitted to the user
located outside the room. This monitoring mode will be described in
detail with reference to FIGS. 5 to 7.
[0050] The flow of the main process executed by the self-propelled
cleaner 10 shown in FIGS. 1 to 3 is described with reference to the
flowchart shown in FIG. 4. First, the initialization is made at
step S100. At this step, the registers in the CPU 21, the RAM 22,
and the like are cleared for initialization.
[0051] Then, at step S110, it is determined whether or not a mode
selection instruction is issued. This step determines if an
instruction to select one of the three modes i.e. automatic
cleaning mode, navigation mode, and monitoring mode, is input. If
it is determined at step S110 that the automatic cleaning mode is
selected, then the automatic cleaning mode performing process is
performed at step S120. If it is determined at step S110 that the
navigation mode is selected, then the navigation mode performing
process is performed at step S130. Likewise, if it is determined at
step S110 that the monitoring mode is selected, then the monitoring
mode performing process is performed at step S140. This monitoring
mode performing process will be described below with reference to
FIG. 5.
[0052] In the case wherein Step S120, S130, or S140 is performed,
or, it is determined at step S110 that there is no mode selection
instruction, it is determined whether an instruction to power off
the self-propelled cleaner 10 is input or not. If the instruction
to power off the self-propelled cleaner 10 is not input, then
control returns to step S110. If the instruction is input, the main
process is terminated.
[0053] Now, the monitoring mode performing process is described
that is invoked and executed at step S140 of the flowchart shown in
FIG. 4. FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating the flow of the
monitoring mode performing process, and FIGS. 6 and 7 are schematic
diagrams showing the operation of the self-propelled cleaner 10
when the steps of the flowchart in FIG. 5 are being performed.
[0054] When the monitoring mode performing process is started, the
pyroelectric sensors 35 (35a to 35d) are enabled at step S500. When
all the pyroelectric sensors 35 are enabled, it is possible to
detect infrared rays emitted by a human body and thereby detect an
intruder in the vicinity of the body BD. Next, at step S510, it is
determined whether an intruder is detected or not by the
pyroelectric sensors 31. If it is determined that an intruder is
detected, an alarm mail is transmitted at step S520. Specifically,
an alarm mail to the effect that an intruder was detected is sent
to the user's cell phone or the like over the Internet or any other
network.
[0055] After step S520 is performed, an alarm sound is made at step
S530. Specifically, the CPU 21 sends a prescribed signal to the
voice synthesis circuit 29a, the voice synthesis circuit 29a
generates a voice signal based on the sent signal, and outputs an
alarm sound from the speaker 29b. This alarm sound informs the user
of the presence of an intruder if the user is located nearby, and
also serves as a warning to the intruder.
[0056] Step S530 is performed, or, if it is determined that an
intruder is not detected at step S510, it is determined at step
S540 whether a predetermined period of time (for example, one
minute) has passed or not. If it is determined that the
predetermined period of time has not yet passed, control returns to
step S510. If it is determined that the predetermined period of
time has passed, all the pyroelectric sensors 35 are disabled at
step S550. That is, all the pyroelectric sensors 35 are disabled to
detect infrared rays from a human body.
[0057] After step S550 is performed, the body BD is turned at a
predetermined angle (for example, 30 degrees). At this step, by
driving only one of the drive wheel motors 42R and 42L, the body BD
is turned only the predetermined angle and then is stopped. Next,
at step S570, images are taken with the infrared CCD sensor 73 with
the body BD at rest. After step S570 is performed, it is determined
whether an intruder is imaged or not with the infrared CCD sensor
73. Specifically, this step can be done by detecting the difference
between the frames (a frame of video signal) of video signals based
on the imaging signals from the infrared CCD sensor 73. That is, if
there is a difference between two images taken at different times,
it is determined that an intruder is present. If it is determined
that an intruder is imaged, steps S520 and S530 are performed.
[0058] In the case wherein step S530 is performed, or, it is
determined that no intruder is imaged, it is determined whether the
body BD has turned around. This determination can be made, for
example, based on the direction angle of the body BD detected by
the gyro sensor 37. If it is determined that the body BD has not
turned around, control is returned to step S560. By performing
steps S560, S570, and S590 repeatedly, images are taken with the
infrared CCD sensor 73 while the body BD is being rotated at
predetermined degrees at a time.
[0059] If it is determined at step S590 that the body BD has turned
around, it is determined at step S600 whether there is an
instruction to release the monitoring mode or not. If it is
determined that there is no release instruction, control is
returned to step S500. If it is determined that there is a release
instruction, the monitoring mode performing process is
terminated.
[0060] A concrete example of performing the steps of the flowchart
in FIG. 5 is described with reference to FIGS. 6 and 7. First, when
each of the pyroelectric sensors 35 (35a to 35d) is enabled (step
S500), it is possible to detect infrared rays from a human body,
thus allowing the detection of an intruder located near the body
BD. The colored portions in FIG. 6 indicate the detectable range of
the pyroelectric sensors 35. If an intruder is detected while the
pyroelectric sensors are enabled, an alarm mail is transmitted to
the user's cell phone or the like (step S520), and also an alarm
sound is output from the speaker 29b (step S530).
[0061] When a predetermined period of time (for example, one
minute) has passed after the pyroelectric sensors 35 are enabled,
the pyroelectric sensors 35 are disabled (step S550), and then
images are taken with the infrared CCD sensor 73 each time the body
BD stops, while being rotated at predetermined angles at a time
(steps S560 and S570). The colored portion in FIG. 7 indicates the
detectable range of the infrared CCD sensor 73. The outline arrow
in FIG. 7 indicates the rotation direction of the body BD. By
having the infrared CCD sensor 73 take images while the body BD is
turned around, an intruder can be detected in a wider range than
when the pyroelectric sensors shown in FIG. 6 are used. If an
intruder is detected based on the result of analyzing the imaging
signals from the infrared CCD sensor 73, an alarm mail is sent to
the user's cell phone or the like (step S520), and also an alarm
sound is output from the speaker 29b (step S530). Thus, with the
self-propelled cleaner 10 of the present invention, since the
infrared CCD sensor takes images at predetermined time intervals
(one minute), power consumption can be substantially reduced
compared with when the infrared CCD sensor takes images all the
time.
(4) Modifications:
[0062] In the above embodiment, a case is described where the
infrared CCD sensor 73 takes images at predetermined time intervals
(one minute) while the body BD is turning, in the monitoring mode.
In the present invention, the timing at which the turning of the
body BD and the image taking with the camera is started is not
limited. For example, it is possible to extract a random number at
certain time intervals (such as 3 seconds), and start the turning
of the body BD and image taking with the camera when an extracted
random number matches the predetermined value. In this embodiment,
turning of the body BD and image taking with the camera are
performed at random time intervals.
[0063] As described above, the self-propelled cleaner 10 according
to the embodiments normally detects an intruder with pyroelectric
sensors 35 which consume less power, and each time a predetermined
period of time has passed, detects an intruder with the infrared
CCD sensor 73 while turning the body BD. This can reduce the time
of operation during which the infrared CCD sensor 73 consuming more
power is used, thus making it possible to reduce power consumption.
Moreover, since the self-propelled cleaner is designed to cause the
drive mechanism provided therein to turn the body BD, it is not
necessary to additionally provide a device to turn the infrared CCD
sensor 73, thus reducing the manufacturing cost.
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