Maintenance Station For Cleaning Robot

Abstract

A maintenance station for a cleaning robot includes a base, a cleaning container, and a dirt receiving component. The cleaning container is positioned on the base and configured to clean a cleaning component of the cleaning robot. The dirt receiving component is detachably positioned below the cleaning container and includes a sewage collection chamber. Sewage produced in the cleaning container is capable of automatically flowing into the sewage collection chamber by gravity.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0001] The present disclosure claims priority of Chinese Patent Application No. 202010572425.5, filed on Jun. 22, 2020, titled "MAINTENANCE STATION FOR AUTOMATICALLY CLEANING MOP", the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0002] The disclosure relates to the field of cleaning equipments, and particularly to a maintenance station for a cleaning robot.

BACKGROUND

[0003] With the increasing demand and expectation of people for intelligent cleaning, all kinds of cleaning robots have continuously been launched in market. Cleaning robots can automatically clean floors and carpets, bringing great convenience to people.

[0004] The mopping module of a typical cleaning robot usually includes a detachable mop. After finishing the cleaning work, the mop needs to be detached from the cleaning robot and cleaned manually, which increases the workload of users. To solve the problem, an intelligent machine for automatically mop washing has been developed in recent years. The machine includes a cleaning container for cleaning the mop, a clean water tank for supplying clean water to the cleaning container, and a sewage tank for storing the sewage resulting from the cleaning of the mop. The sewage is drained out of the sewage tank through a water pump and a sewage pipe. The cleaning container generally includes a cleaning plate for cleaning the mop. To facilitate the cleaning robot to climb into the cleaning container, the cleaning plate is positioned at a lower part of the intelligent machine. When in use, the cleaning robot moves onto the cleaning plate. The mop rotates and is scrubbed by the cleaning plate, and clean water is sprayed to clean the mop.

SUMMARY

[0005] An embodiment of the present disclosure provides a maintenance station for a cleaning robot. The maintenance station includes a base, a cleaning container, and a dirt receiving component. The cleaning container is positioned on the base and configured to clean a cleaning component of the cleaning robot. The dirt receiving component is detachably positioned below the cleaning container and includes a sewage collection chamber. Sewage produced in the cleaning container is capable of automatically flowing into the sewage collection chamber by gravity.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0006] FIG. 1 is a front view of a maintenance station for a cleaning robot according to an embodiment of the disclosure;

[0007] FIG. 2 is a side view of the maintenance station of FIG. 1;

[0008] FIG. 3 is a schematic view of a base of the maintenance station of FIG. 1;

[0009] FIG. 4 is a three-dimensional view of a dirt receiving component of the maintenance station of FIG. 1, the dirt receiving component is in use;

[0010] FIG. 5 is another three-dimensional view of the dirt receiving component of FIG. 4, the dirt receiving component is in other states;

[0011] FIG. 6 is a schematic view of a sewage collection chamber of the maintenance station of FIG. 1 according to another embodiment of the disclosure;

[0012] FIG. 7 is a schematic view of a dirt receiving component according to another embodiment of the disclosure;

[0013] FIG. 8 is a local enlarged view of part B in FIG. 7;

[0014] FIG. 9 is a local enlarged view of part A in FIG. 1;

[0015] FIG. 10 is a schematic view of a cleaning plate of the maintenance station of FIG. 1;

[0016] FIG. 11 is a local enlarged view of part C in FIG. 10;

[0017] FIG. 12 is a schematic view of a cleaning plate according to another embodiment of the disclosure; and

[0018] FIG. 13 shows a connection of a water inlet pipe and a magnetic valve according to an embodiment of the disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0019] It should be noted that all directional descriptions (such as top, bottom, left, right, front, rear, etc.) in the embodiments of the disclosure are only used to explain the relative position and motion of the components under a certain attitude (as shown in the attached figure). If the specific attitude changes, the directional indication will change accordingly. Therefore, these or other terms of orientation should not be construed as restrictive.

[0020] The embodiments described in the following exemplary embodiments do not represent all embodiments consistent with the present disclosure. Rather, they are only examples consistent with some aspects of this disclosure as detailed in the attached claims.

[0021] The terms used in the disclosure are for the purpose of describing specific embodiments only and not intended to limit the disclosure. The singular forms "a", "the" and "said" used in the disclosure and the claims are also intended to include the plural forms thereof, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It should also be understood that the term "and/or" as used herein refers to and includes any or all possible combinations of one or more associated items.

[0022] FIG. 1 is a front view of a maintenance station for a cleaning robot. When the maintenance station is in use, a cleaning robot 1 is positioned in the maintenance station. The cleaning robot 1 includes a scrubbing component 11, and the maintenance station includes a protrusion part 31. The scrubbing component 11 can be rotated, such that the fixed protrusion part 31 scrubs the rotating scrubbing component 11 to remove the dirt on the scrubbing component 11. Optionally, the protrusion part 31 in the cleaning container 3 can be rotated to scrub the rotating scrubbing component 11 that is rotated in an opposite direction or fixed, such that the protrusion part 31 removes the dirt on the scrubbing component 11. Furthermore, an ultrasonic module can be positioned on the base 2 of the maintenance station to clean the scrubbing component 11 by using ultrasonic wave. In the ultrasonic cleaning process, the scrubbing component 11 is immersed in clean water in the cleaning container 3, and the ultrasonic module produces and transmits the ultrasonic wave in the clean water to realize the ultrasonic cleaning of the scrubbing component 11. In this embodiment, the scrubbing component 11 is rotatable and the protrusion part 31 is fixed, and the scrubbing component 11 is cleaned by the friction between the scrubbing component 11 and the protrusion part 31.

[0023] In some embodiments, the scrubbing component 11 can be any suitable cleaning component, such as, rotatable mop, slidable mop, fixed mop, or rolling brushes, etc.

[0024] The cleaning robot 1 can be a sweeping robot or a sweeping and towing machine including the scrubbing component 11. The cleaning robot 1 can be manually positioned in the maintenance station or automatically walks into the maintenance station.

[0025] The scrubbing component 11 refers to cloth, sponge or the like secured to the cleaning robot 1 to clean a to-be-cleaned surface.

[0026] The sewage is generated when the scrubbing component 11 is scrubbed or ultrasonically cleaned in the cleaning container 3.

[0027] As shown in FIGS. 1-2, FIG. 2 is a side view of the maintenance station for a cleaning robot of the present disclosure.

[0028] The maintenance station for a cleaning robot according to an embodiment of the present disclosure includes: a base 2, a cleaning container 3, and a dirt receiving component 4.

[0029] The base 2 includes a cavity 22. In this embodiment, the cavity 22 is positioned in the lower part of the base 2, such that the cleaning robot 1 can expediently walk into the cavity 22 from a clean ground. In other embodiments, the cavity 22 can be positioned in the upper part of the base 2, which is convenient for a user to pull out the dirt receiving component 4 for cleaning.

[0030] The cleaning container 3 is positioned on the base 2 and configured to clean the scrubbing component 11 of the cleaning robot 1. The cleaning container 3 includes a protrusion part 31 configured to scrub and clean the scrubbing component 11 of the cleaning robot 1 through the friction therebetween. The cleaning container 3 further includes a cleaning plate 32 and the protrusion part 31 is positioned on the cleaning plate 32. The cleaning plate 32 is positioned in the cavity 22 whereby the cleaning plate 32 and the cavity 22 is cooperative to form the cleaning container 3. The cleaning plate 32, as a bottom plate, is connected to the sidewall and the top wall of the cavity 22 to form the cleaning container 3. The cleaning plate 32 can be flat or the center part of the cleaning plate 32 is concave. The cleaning plate 32 can define a plurality of through holes or slots, such that the sewage generated by the cleaning of the scrubbing component 11 can automatically flow to the sewage collection chamber 41 by gravity, or defines a plurality of holes communicating with pipelines, and the outlets of the pipelines are connected to the sewage collection chamber 41, such that the sewage automatically flows to the sewage collection chamber 41.

[0031] The dirt receiving component 4 is detachably positioned below the cleaning container 3 and includes the sewage collection chamber 41. The sewage produced in the cleaning container 3 can automatically flow into the sewage collection chamber 41 by gravity. The dirt receiving component 4 is positioned below the cleaning container 3, at the side of or exactly right below the cleaning container 3, such that the sewage in the cleaning container 3 can automatically flow into the dirt receiving component 4 by gravity. In this embodiment, the sewage collection chamber 41 is a space below the cleaning plate 32 and over the dirt receiving component 4, not excluding the concave space of the dirt receiving component 4. In other embodiments, the sewage collection chamber 41 can include the concave space of the dirt receiving component 4 itself, for example, as shown in FIG. 6, the cleaning plate 32 is superposed on the dirt receiving component 4.

[0032] The maintenance station further includes a sewage discharger 5 configured to discharge the sewage out of the sewage collection chamber 41. The sewage discharger 5 increases the sewage treatment capacity of the maintenance station. The sewage discharger 5 includes a sewage tank 51 and a drainage pipe 52. The drainage pipe 52 includes a first end communicating with the sewage collection chamber 41, and a second end communicating with the swage tank 51. The arrangement of the swage tank 51 and the drainage pipe 52 extend the serviceable range of the maintenance station, that is, the maintenance station is not necessary to be set up next to a sewer pipe. In the embodiment, the base 2 includes an independent swage tank 51, the drainage pipe 52 communicates the sewage collection chamber 41 with the swage tank 51. In other embodiments, the sewage collection chamber 41 can be connected to a drain pipe.

[0033] The maintenance station further includes a water feeding mechanism 6 configured to convey clean water to the cleaning container 3. The water feeding mechanism 6 includes: a water inlet pipe 61, a magnetic valve 63, and a controller. An end of the water inlet pipe 61 communicates with the cleaning container 3, and another end of the water inlet pipe 61 is connected to an external water supply, such as a tap. The magnetic valve 63 is connected to the water inlet pipe 61. The controller is electronically connected to the magnetic valve 63. The water inlet pipe 61 is communicated with the cleaning container 3 and the tap, such that the pressurized water source in the tap flows directly to the cleaning container 3 to clean the scrubbing component 11 without additional power source, which is energy-saving and environmentally friendly. The arrangement of the magnetic valve 63 and the controller facilitates the water inlet. The on-off between the water inlet pipe 61 and the cleaning container 3 is directly controlled by the controller. In this embodiment, the water inlet pipe 61 is directly connected to the cleaning container 3 and the tap. The arrangement of the water feeding mechanism 6 contributes to reducing the volume of the maintenance station with a clean water tank. The water feeding mechanism 6 is connected to an external water source and the clean water tank does not need to be taken out for reloading, which is convenient for use.

[0034] In another embodiment, a clean water tank can be positioned on the base 2. Thus, the maintenance station can be established away from a tap, thus extending the application range thereof. As needed, a cleaning solution can be added to the clean water tank, thus improving the cleaning effect for the scrubbing component 11.

[0035] In certain embodiments, the water inlet pipe 61 includes a first water inlet pipe and a second water inlet pipe. An end of the first water inlet pipe is connected to the cleaning container 3, and the other end is connected to a water pump. One end of the second water inlet pipe is connected to the water pump, and the other end of the second water inlet pipe is connected to an external container having water.

[0036] Optionally, to speed up the sewage discharge or liquid admission and facilitate the taking out of the sewage tank 51 and the clean water tank, a booster pump can be positioned in the sewage discharger 5 and the water feeding mechanism 6, such that the sewage tank 51 or the clean water tank is positioned in a position higher than the cleaning container 3. Specifically, air pump can be used for pressurization.

[0037] As shown in FIG. 3, FIG. 3 is a schematic view of the base.

[0038] The dirt receiving component 4 and the base 2 are detachably connected to each other.

[0039] The dirt receiving component 4 is detachably positioned on the bottom wall of the maintenance station, specifically, on the bottom wall of the cavity 22. The dirt receiving component 4 includes a first connection part, the base 2 includes a second connection part, the first connection part is engaged with the second connection part, such that the dirt receiving component 4 and the base 2 are detachably connected to each other. The first connection part can be a bulge, and the second connection part can be a groove, or vice versa, thereby achieving the cooperation. For example, the dirt receiving component 4 includes a bulge and the bottom wall defines a groove, such that the bulge can be detachably received in the groove. Optionally, the first connection part and the second connection part can be detachably connected to each other through the engagement of a sliding slot with a sliding rail. The sliding slot or the sliding rail can be positioned on the bottom wall or the sidewall of the cavity 22. The dirt receiving component 4 includes a sliding rail or a sliding slot engaging with the sliding slot or the sliding rail on the bottom wall or the sidewall of the cavity 22 to form a sliding pair. To facilitate the cleaning robot to climb into the cleaning container 3, the drop height between the front baffle plate 43 and the upper surface of the cleaning plate 32 is small. In some embodiments, the front baffle plate 43 is roughly flush with the upper surface of the cleaning plate 32.

[0040] In certain embodiments, the dirt receiving component 4 and the base 2 can form a sliding pair. The sliding pair can be of a sliding guide or a rolling guide, which is convenient for a user to pull out the dirt receiving component 4.

[0041] The base 2 includes slotted guides 21, and the slotted guides 21 are positioned at two opposite sides of the cavity 22. The slotted guides 21 can be L-shaped, T-shaped, or the like. In this embodiment, the slotted guides 21 are L-shaped, so as to match the guide rail 42 protruding upwards from the dirt receiving component 4. The slotted guides 21 on the base 2 and the guide rails 42 on the dirt receiving component 4 form sliding pairs in a sliding mode. Each of the slotted guides 21 includes a front end face and a rear end face, and the guide rail 42 can be extend through the front end face and the rear end face, so as to be detached from the slotted guide 21. Specifically, two ends of the slotted guide 21 are open for the insertion of the guide rail 42. The front end face is capable of facing the front baffle plate 43 of the dirt receiving component 4, and the rear end face is capable of facing the rear baffle plate 44 of the dirt receiving component 4. The front baffle plate 43, the rear baffle plate 44, and the guide rail 42 on the sidewall of the dirt receiving component 4 can cooperatively block the sewage from flowing out from the edge of the dirt receiving component 4. FIGS. 1-3 show the detailed structure of the dirt receiving component 4. To facilitate the cleaning robot to climb into the cleaning container 3, the drop height between the front baffle plate 43 and the upper surface of the cleaning plate 32 is small, in some embodiments, the front baffle plate 43 is roughly flush with the upper surface of the cleaning plate 32.

[0042] As shown in FIG. 1, FIG. 2, and FIG. 3.

[0043] The dirt receiving component 4 is plate-shaped, and a center part of the dirt receiving component 4 is concave to form the sewage collection chamber 41. Compared with a barrel-shaped dirt receiving component, the plate-shaped dirt receiving component 4 is lighter, occupies less space, and is easy to dismount. In some embodiments, the dirt receiving component 4 and the base 2 can form a sliding pair, and the dirt receiving component 4 includes a base plate, a guide rail 42, a front baffle plate 43, and a rear baffle plate 44.

[0044] The guide rail 42 is matching the slotted guide 21, the guide rail 42 protrudes upwards from the base plate and is configured to block the sewage from flowing out from a side edge of the base plate.

[0045] The front baffle plate 43 protrudes upwards from the base plate and is configured to block the sewage from flowing out from a front edge of the base plate.

[0046] The rear baffle plate 44 is positioned on the cleaning container 3 and abuts against the rear end face of the slotted guide 21.

[0047] when the dirt receiving component 4 slides into a use state where the base plate abuts against the rear baffle plate 44, the front baffle plate 43 abuts against the front end face, thereby forming the dirt receiving component 4 capable of blocking the sewage from flowing out from all the side edges of the base plate.

[0048] Both the guide rail 42 and the front baffle plate 43 protrude upwards from the base plate, thus preventing the sewage in the cleaning container 3 from splashing out of the dirt receiving component 4 or flowing to the bottom of the base 2 via the guide rail 42 when the sewage falls from the cleaning container 3 to the dirt receiving component 4, preventing the dirt from accumulating in the slotted guide 21, reducing the maintenance workload; in addition, the front baffle plate 43 can operate as a handle, which facilitates the detachment of the dirt receiving component 4. In other embodiments, the handles in other structures can be arranged to facilitate the detachment of the dirt receiving component 4. Owing to the existence of the rear baffle plate 44, when the dirt receiving component 4 slides into the use state where the base plate abuts against the rear baffle plate 44, the front baffle plate 43 abuts against the front end face, thereby forming the dirt receiving component 4 capable of blocking the sewage from flowing out from all the side edges of the base plate. Specifically, the front baffle plate 43, the rear baffle plate 44, the slotted guide 21 positioned on the sidewall of the base, the base plate, the guide rail 42 positioned on the base plate, the sidewalls where the guide rails 42 are positioned, and the cleaning plate 32 cooperatively define the sewage collection chamber 41 with a top opening. Because all the four sides of the base plate can block the sewage, the falling sewage all accumulates in the sewage collection chamber 41 without splashing outside. The sewage is discharged finally via the sewage discharger 5, no need to worry about the sewage flowing into the bottom of the base 2 or splashing on the floor, this improves the user experience.

[0049] In alterative embodiments, a waterproof seal is positioned between the front baffle plate 43 and the front end face of the slotted guide 21, between the rear baffle plate 44 and the rear end face of the slotted guide 21, and between the guide rail 42 and the slotted guide 21, thus preventing the sewage from leaking out of the sewage collection chamber 41. The waterproof seal can be a rubber gasket or the like.

[0050] In another embodiment, the dirt receiving component 4 can be detachably positioned on the lower part of the cleaning container 3 through a snap-fit connection, threaded connection, or the like.

[0051] As shown in FIGS. 4-5, FIG. 4 is a three-dimensional view of the dirt receiving component in a use state, and FIG. 5 is a three-dimensional view of the dirt receiving component in other states.

[0052] The arrangement of the sliding pair enables the sewage collection chamber 41 to be opened or closed like a drawer. The dirt receiving component 4 has the following two states:

[0053] when the dirt receiving component 4 slides from an original position as shown in FIG. 5 until the base plate abuts against the rear baffle plate 44, as shown in FIG. 4, the front baffle plate 43 abuts against the front end face, thereby forming the dirt receiving component 4 capable of blocking the sewage from flowing out from all the side edges of the base plate, in this state, the sewage collection chamber 41 is a sealed chamber with a top opening;

[0054] when the dirt receiving component 4 slides from an original position as shown in FIG. 4 until the base plate is separated from the rear baffle plate 44, as shown in FIG. 5, the dirt receiving component 4 continues sliding and completely separates from the base 2, at this time, the detached dirt receiving component 4 can be cleaned independently, and there is no need for the users to squat down or lift the whole maintenance station to clean the bottom of the cavity 22, which is very convenient. Moreover, the plate-shaped dirt receiving component 4 is lighter and easy to pull out compared with a barrel-shaped one.

[0055] In this embodiment, the dirt receiving component 4 operates as a transfer station of the sewage, and can be connected to the sewage discharger 5 to discharge the sewage. In another embodiment, the dirt receiving component 4 defines a bottom opening communicating with a sewer, or is positioned next to a sewer, or one end of the drainage pipe 52 communicates with the bottom opening, the other end of the drainage pipe 52 is connected to the swage tank.

[0056] As shown in FIG. 6, FIG. 6 is a schematic view of the sewage collection chamber according to another embodiment.

[0057] The sewage collection chamber 41 can be formed in the following connection relationship: the cleaning plate 32 can be directly superposed on the dirt deposition plate. The sewage collection chamber 41 is a chamber concave in the dirt deposition plat. In this way, the front baffle plate 43, the rear baffle plate 44, and the guide rail 42 protruding upwards from the base plate can be omitted, the sewage directly falls into the sewage collection chamber 41 via the drain holes 321 by gravity.

[0058] As shown in FIGS. 7-8, FIG. 7 is a schematic view of the dirt receiving component according to another embodiment, and FIG. 8 is a local enlarged view of part B in FIG. 7.

[0059] The center of the dirt receiving component 4 can be concave in various forms. As shown in FIG. 1, the central part of the dirt receiving component 4 includes an ellipsoid or spherical groove; as shown in FIG. 7, the dirt receiving component 4 includes a bottom plate and a plurality of side plates connected to the bottom plate, and the bottom plate and the plurality of side plates cooperatively form a cavity structure. In this way, the dirt receiving component 4 has a larger storage space. The cross-section of the cavity structure can be rectangular, or the cavity structure is cone-shaped and other shapes, all of which defines a concave in the center thereof.

[0060] The front baffle plate 43 protrudes upwards, thus facilitating to draw out the dirt receiving component 4 for cleaning; the guide rail 42 also protrudes upwards, thus effectively preventing the sewage from entering the slotted guide 21 from a side of the slotted guide 21, further preventing the contamination from be generated in the slotted guide 21. When the guide rail 42 is not raised upwards and bent, the sewage can enter into the slotted guide 21 to produce dirt, and the narrow space in the slotted guide 21 is difficult to clean up, so it is easy to cause odor in the slotted guide 21. The guide rail 42 protruding upwards can effectively prevent the dirt and odor from be generated in the slotted guide 21.

[0061] As shown in FIG. 9, FIG. 9 is a local enlarged view of part A in FIG. 1.

[0062] The cleaning plate 32 can be flat in shape or a center of the cleaning plate 32 is concave. Optionally, the concave center of the cleaning plate 32 is the same as that of the dirt receiving component 4, or other concave structures such that the sewage can flow from the edge into the concave center, for example, the entire cleaning plate 32 is a curved panel with higher edge and lower middle part. In this embodiment, the cleaning plate 32 defines a plurality of drain holes 321 which form the sewage outlet. The plurality of drain holes 321 communicates with the sewage collection chamber 41. When the center of the dirt receiving component 4 is concave to form an ellipsoidal or spherical cavity, the plurality of drain holes 321 is preferably arranged above the ellipsoidal or spherical cavity vertically. The plurality of drain holes 321 can also be positioned at any position on the cleaning plate 32, as shown in FIG. 12. The connection mode of the cleaning plate 32 and the base 2 can be a fixed connection or movable connection. For example, the cleaning plate 32 can be detachably connected to the base through the engagement of a slide rail with d a slide slot.

[0063] The maintenance station further includes a clean water nozzle 62 positioned in the cleaning container 3 and facing the scrubbing component 11, the clean water nozzle 62 communicates with the water inlet pipe 61. The clean water nozzle 62 is positioned in the cleaning container 3, when in use, the clean water nozzle 62 faces the scrubbing component 11, the clean water from the water inlet pipe 61 is sprayed on the scrubbing component 11. The sewage generated during the cleaning flows naturally to the sewage collection chamber 41 through the drain holes 321 by gravity. FIG. 11 shows the detailed arrangement of the clean water nozzle 62.

[0064] The scrubbing component 11 of the cleaning robot 1 is in contact with the protrusion part 31 of the cleaning container 3. The rotating scrubbing component 11 is cleaned by the protrusion part 31. The protrusion part 31 can be a protrusion part including a ribbed plate structure, and the ribbed plate structure can be in various forms. In this embodiment, the protrusion part 31 is an integrated protrusion part 31 including a plurality of ribbed plates as shown in FIG. 9, and the plurality of ribbed plates is positioned at equal angles with the vertical straight line as the axis. In another embodiment, as shown in FIG. 10, the protrusion part 31 is a split-type structure including a plurality of ribbed plates. As a variant, the protrusion part 31 can be a protrusion part including a structure different from the ribbed plate structure, for example, can be a spherical or ellipsoidal protrusion part 31 protruding upwards as a whole.

[0065] The maintenance station further includes a drainage pipe 52. The drainage pipe 52 includes a detachable part 521 and a fixed part 522. The detachable part 521 communicates with the sewage collection chamber 41. An end of the fixed part 522 is detachably connected to the detachable part 521, and another end of the fixed part 522 is connected to the sewage tank 51. The detachable part 521 is detachably connected to the fixed part 522, when the drainage pipe 52 is blocked, the detachable part 521 is detached from the fixed part 522. Compared with a conventional structure that the drainage pipe 52 is directly connected to the sewage collection chamber 41 and the sewage discharge end, the detachable drainage pipe 52 of this embodiment of the present disclosure can easily clean and discharge the sediment. Specifically, the detachable part 521 is connected to the sewage collection chamber 41, the detachable part 521 runs through the bottom or the side of the sewage collection chamber. The detachable part 521 can be detachably connected to the sewage collection chamber 41 through a screw connection, a snap-fit connection or the like. The detachable part 521 can also directly extend into the sewage collection chamber 41 from the upper part of the dirt receiving component 4. In this way, the fixed mode of the detachable part 521 and the sewage collection chamber 41 can be snap-fit connection, muff-coupling or the like. For example, the detachable part 521 includes a hook, and the dirt receiving component 4 includes a hanging ring matching with the hook, and the hook is hung on the hanging ring for detachable fixed connection.

[0066] The maintenance station further includes a filtering structure positioned on the end of the detachable part 521 connected to the sewage collection chamber 41. The end of the detachable part 521 connected to the sewage collection chamber 41 is equipped with the filtering structure, such that hair and large-sized garbage larger than the holes of the filtering structure are blocked in the sewage collection chamber 41, thus preventing the blockage of the pipeline. The filtering structure can be detachably connected to the end of the detachable part 521 connected to the sewage collection chamber 41.

[0067] As shown in FIG. 10, FIG. 10 is a schematic view of the cleaning plate.

[0068] The ribbed plate structure of the protrusion part 31 can include a plurality of ribbed plates positioned at equiangular intervals with a vertical line as the axis, and the protrusion part 31 can include at least one ribbed plate structure. In the embodiment, the protrusion part 31 includes two ribbed plate structures configured to clean two scrubbing components 11 of the cleaning robot 1 correspondingly, each ribbed plate structure is an integrated structure, the plurality of ribbed plates can be made in one piece, which is convenient for installation. The rib plates in one piece can be fixed on the cleaning plate 32 through fixed connection such as threaded connection or the like. Optionally, the ribbed plate structure can be a split-type structure, the plurality of ribbed plates can be positioned at equiangular intervals with a vertical line as the axis and is independently mounted on the cleaning plate 32, the water inlet pipe 61 can be connected to more than one ribbed plate for spraying water. The ribbed plate connected to the water inlet pipe 61 is a hollow ribbed plate with through holes, and the water can be sprayed through the through-hole. Optionally, the water inlet pipe 61 and the rib plate can be connected to each other by such as a threaded connection or clamping connection between a shower head and a water pipe. In another embodiment, one scrubbing component 11 of the cleaning robot 1 can be cleaned by a plurality of ribbed plate structures, or two or more scrubbing components 11 of the cleaning robot 1 can be cleaned by one ribbed plate structure.

[0069] The cleaning plate 32 includes wheel fixing grooves, and the wheel fixing groove can be concave with respect to the surface of the cleaning plate 32, or can also be a fixing groove protruding upwards from the surface of the cleaning plate 32. In some embodiments, two wheel fixing grooves are positioned apart from each other. The distance between the two wheel fixing grooves corresponds to the distance between the left and right running wheels of the cleaning robot 1. After the cleaning robot 1 climbs up the cleaning plate 32, the running wheels are correspondingly clamped into the two wheel fixing grooves for positioning, so as to prevent the shaking or moving of the cleaning robot 1.

[0070] The drain holes 321 can be positioned equidistantly in the width and length directions, or positioned at equal angles with a vertical axis as the center, or positioned at equal angles in different radii, or positioned in a honeycomb fashion.

[0071] As shown in FIG. 11, FIG. 11 is a local enlarged view of part C of FIG. 10.

[0072] The clean water nozzle 62 is positioned in the cleaning container 3, for example, positioned over or below the scrubbing component 11 of the cleaning robot 1. The clean water nozzle 62 can extend out of the cleaning container 3, for example, extending from the sidewall, the top surface of the cleaning container 3, or from the cleaning plate 32. Specifically, the clean water nozzle 62 is positioned on the pipeline or sprayer of the cleaning container 3, the pipeline can be a threaded hose, and the spray angle and the distance between the clean water nozzle 62 and the scrubbing component 11 can be manually adjustable. In some embodiments, the clean water nozzle 62 extends from the cleaning plate 32. The clean water nozzle 62 can be positioned on the ribbed plates and faces up to the scrubbing component 11, which facilitates the integration of the water feeding mechanism 6 and the protrusion part 31 and makes the structure compact. The clean water nozzle 62 can also be positioned on the cleaning plate 32 and face the scrubbing component 11, and the cleaning plate 32 includes a water inlet chamber communicating with the water inlet pipe 61. The clean water nozzle 62 can be a plurality of through holes, which are equidistant in one direction or in different directions, or are positioned at an equal angle with a vertical line as the center. The plurality of through holes can be set in other honeycomb fashions.

[0073] Each ribbed plate includes a plurality of bumps 311. The cross-section of each ribbed plate is in curved shape and is convex in the middle of each ribbed plate. For example, the cross-section of each ribbed plate is semicircular or semielliptical. The curved shape makes the scrubbing component 11 be scrubbed more clean, and the through hole of the ribbed plate communicated with the water inlet pipe 61 cannot be completely blocked by the scrubbing component 11, thus solving a common issue that the clean water nozzle 62 of the protrusion part 31 with a flat top surface tends to be blocked by the scrubbing component 11. The bumps 311 can also be replaced by convex bars.

[0074] In another embodiment, the protrusion part 31 is rotatable. For example, a plurality of ribbed plates is fixed on a rotation shaft. When rotating, the protrusion part 31 can clean the non-rotating scrubbing component. For example, when the scrubbing component 11 of the cleaning robot is fixed at the bottom of the cleaning robot and cannot be rotated, the rotatable protrusion part 31 can be used for cleaning. In this embodiment, the clean water nozzle 62 can be arranged below or on the side of the protrusion part 31.

[0075] As shown in FIG. 2, FIG. 12 is a schematic view of the cleaning plate according to another embodiment.

[0076] The drain holes 321 can be arranged at any position on the cleaning plate 32, especially when used in combination with the dirt receiving component 4 shown in FIG. 7, the number of the drain holes 321 can be more, the drain holes 321 are positioned at any position all over the cleaning plate 32. The drain holes 321 are positioned around the protrusion part 31 as shown in FIG. 6.

[0077] As shown in FIG. 13, FIG. 13 shows a connection of the water inlet pipe and the magnetic valve.

[0078] The magnetic valve 63 is connected to the water inlet pipe 61. The magnetic valve 63 is configured to control the on or off of the water inlet pipe 61; the controller is electrically connected to the magnetic valve 63, and is configured to control the magnetic valve 63. One end of the water inlet pipe 61 is connected to the cleaning container 3, and the other end of the water inlet pipe 61 is connected to an external water source such as a tap. The pressurized water source in the tap can directly flow to the cleaning container 3 to clean the scrubbing component 11 without additional power source, which is energy-saving and environmentally friendly. The arrangement of the magnetic valve 63 and the controller facilitate the water inlet. The on-off between the water inlet pipe 61 and the cleaning container 3 can be directly controlled by the controller.

[0079] The maintenance station further includes two charging terminals 7. The two charging terminals 7 extend or are exposed out from the sidewall of the cleaning container 3, and the two charging terminals 7 corresponds to two charging electrodes of the cleaning robot 1 in position, such that the cleaning robot 1 can be charged through the charging terminals 7 while being cleaned. The positions of the charging terminals 7 and the wheel fixing grooves can be arranged according to the distance between the charging port and the running wheel of the cleaning robot 1, as so to simultaneously cleaning and charging the cleaning robot. The charging terminal 7 and the water feeding mechanism 6 can also be independently connected to independent switches to control the on or off thereof, so as to realize the single function of charging or cleaning.

[0080] In assembling the sewage collection chamber 41: the dirt receiving component 4 is inserted along the slotted guide 21 of the base 2 until the front baffle plate 43 of the dirt receiving component 4 is in contact with the front end face of the slotted guide 21. In this way, the front baffle plate 43, the rear baffle plate 44, the slotted guide 21 positioned on the sidewall of the base, the base plate, the guide rails 42 positioned on the base plate, the sidewalls where the guide rails 42 are positioned, and the cleaning plate 32 cooperatively form the sewage collection chamber 41 with the drain holes 321 over the sewage collection chamber 41.

[0081] When in use, the cleaning robot 1 is positioned in the cavity 22 of the base 2, and the running wheels of the cleaning robot 1 are received in the wheel fixing grooves. The scrubbing component 11 is in contact with the protrusion part 31, and the charging electrodes of the cleaning robot 1 contact with the charging terminals 7 on the base 2 to charge the cleaning robot. The scrubbing component 11 and the water feeding mechanism 6 are both turned on, the scrubbing component 11 begins to rotate. The clean water or the clean water mixed with the cleaning liquid flows to the clean water nozzle 62 via the water inlet pipe 61 and sprays to the scrubbing component 11 of the cleaning robot 1. The rotating scrubbing component 11 is scrubbed by the protrusion part 31, and the dirt is mixed with the clean water or the clean water mixed with the cleaning liquid to form sewage. The sewage flows into the sewage collection chamber 41 through the drain holes 321, and is discharged by the sewage discharger 5.

[0082] After use, the dirt receiving component 4 can be drawn out along the slotted guide 21 of the base 2 for cleaning, and the dirt in the dirt receiving component 4 will not remain at the bottom of the base 2.

[0083] Compared with the related arts, the maintenance station of the present disclosure includes the base 2, the cleaning container 3 is positioned on the base 2 for cleaning the scrubbing component 11 of the cleaning robot 1, and the dirt receiving component 4 including the sewage collection chamber 41 is positioned below the cleaning container 3. When in use, the sewage produced in the cleaning container 3 automatically flows into the sewage collection chamber 41 by gravity. The sewage collection chamber 41 is detachably positioned, so the dirt receiving component 4 can be detached off at any time to remove the accumulated dirt. Compared with a conventional structure where the sewage in the cleaning container 3 directly flows into the bottom of the base 2, the dirt deposits on the bottom of the base 2 is transferred to the dirt receiving component 4, so as to solve the problem that the dirt on the mop can easily stay at the bottom of the base 2. Thus, the dirt receiving component is easy to clean, and the users do not necessarily squat down or lift the entire maintenance station to clean the sewage collection chamber 41. The maintenance station of the present disclosure has the advantages of convenient cleaning, convenient maintenance, wide application range, no blockage of pipelines, energy saving and environmental friendliness.

[0084] The above embodiments only express several exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure, and their descriptions are relatively specific and detailed, but cannot be interpreted as limitations on the scope of the present disclosure. It should be pointed out that, for ordinary technical persons skilled in the art, a number of deformations and improvements can be made on the premise of not breaking away from the idea of the present disclosure, which belong to the protection scope of the present disclosure.

Claims

1. A maintenance station for a cleaning robot, comprising: a base; a cleaning container, the cleaning container positioned on the base and configured to clean a cleaning component of the cleaning robot; and a dirt receiving component, the dirt receiving component detachably positioned below the cleaning container and comprising a sewage collection chamber, and sewage produced in the cleaning container being capable of automatically flowing into the sewage collection chamber by gravity.

2. The maintenance station of claim 1, further comprising a bottom wall; wherein the dirt receiving component is detachably positioned on the bottom wall, the dirt receiving component comprises a first connection part, the base comprises a second connection part, and the first connection part engages with the second connection part, such that the dirt receiving component is detachably connected to the base.

3. The maintenance station of claim 1, wherein the dirt receiving component is plate-shaped, and a center part of the dirt receiving component is concave to form the sewage collection chamber.

4. The maintenance station of claim 1, wherein the dirt receiving component and the base form a sliding pair.

5. The maintenance station of claim 4, wherein the base comprises a slotted guide, and the slotted guide comprises a front end face and a rear end face; the dirt receiving component comprises: a base plate; a guide rail engaged with the slotted guide, the guide rail capable of extending through the front end face and the rear end face, the guide rail protruding from the base plate and capable of blocking the sewage from flowing out from a side edge of the base plate; a front baffle plate protruding from the base plate to prevent the sewage from flowing out from a front edge of the base plate; and a rear baffle plate positioned on the cleaning container and abutting against the rear end face; when the dirt receiving component slides into a use state where the base plate abuts against the rear baffle plate, the front baffle plate abuts against the front end face, thereby forming the dirt receiving component capable of blocking the sewage from flowing out from all the side edges of the base plate.

6. The maintenance station of claim 1, wherein the cleaning container comprises a protrusion part configured to scrub and clean the cleaning component of the cleaning robot.

7. The maintenance station of claim 6, wherein the protrusion part comprises a plurality of ribbed plates.

8. The maintenance station of claim 7, wherein each ribbed plate comprises a plurality of bumps.

9. The maintenance station of claim 7, wherein a cross-section of each ribbed plate is in curved shape and is convex in a middle of each ribbed plate.

10. The maintenance station of claim 9, further comprising a water inlet pipe, an end of the water inlet pipe configured to be connected to an external water supply, another end of the water inlet pipe connected to at least one ribbed plate, wherein the at least one ribbed plate connected to the water inlet pipe is hollow and defines a plurality of through holes for spraying water towards the cleaning component.

11. The maintenance station of claim 1, further comprising a drainage pipe and a sewage tank, wherein the drainage pipe comprises: a detachable part communicating with the sewage collection chamber; and a fixed part, an end of the fixed part detachably connected to the detachable part, and another end of the fixed part connected to the sewage tank.

12. The maintenance station of claim 11, further comprising a filtering structure positioned on an end of the detachable part connected to the sewage collection chamber.

13. The maintenance station of claim 12, further comprising a water feeding mechanism configured to convey clean water to the cleaning container.

14. The maintenance station of claim 13, wherein the water feeding mechanism comprises: a water inlet pipe, an end of the water inlet pipe communicated with the cleaning container, another end of the water inlet pipe configured to be connected to an external water supply; a magnetic valve connected to the water inlet pipe; and a controller electronically connected to the magnetic valve.

15. The maintenance station of claim 1, wherein the base comprises a cavity, and the maintenance station further comprises: a cleaning plate positioned in the cavity, the cleaning plate and the cavity being cooperative to form the cleaning container; a clean water nozzle positioned in the cleaning container and facing the cleaning component, and the clean water nozzle communicating with the water inlet pipe; and a sewage outlet positioned on the cleaning plate and communicating with the sewage collection chamber.

16. The maintenance station of claim 15, wherein the cleaning plate comprises wheel fixing grooves for receiving running wheels of the cleaning robot.

17. The maintenance station of claim 15, wherein the cleaning plate defines a plurality of drain holes which form the sewage outlet, and the drain holes communicates with the sewage collection chamber and are positioned over the sewage collection chamber.

18. The maintenance station of claim 1, further comprising a sewage discharger configured to discharge the sewage out of the sewage collection chamber.

19. The maintenance station of claim 18, wherein the sewage discharger comprises a drainage pipe and a sewage tank; an end of the drainage pipe communicates with the sewage collection chamber, and another end of the drainage pipe communicates with the swage tank.

20. The maintenance station of claim 1, further comprising charging terminals configured to be in contact with charging electrodes of the cleaning robot.