Patent ID: 11925306
Assignee: BISSELL INC.
Field: Furniture, games (Other fields)
Classification: CPC A  G  H  Y | IPC A  G  H

Claim 12:
13. A docking station for an autonomous floor cleaner, comprising:
a housing having a bottom side on which the docking station rests and a backstop;
charging contacts disposed on the housing configured to charge a battery of the autonomous floor cleaner;
springs biasing the charging contacts to a neutral position corresponding to a condition in which the autonomous floor cleaner is not docked with the docking station, the charging contacts moveable to a contact position corresponding to a condition in which the autonomous floor cleaner is docked with the docking station, wherein the charging contacts are located on the backstop;
an activating switch controlling the supply of power to the charging contacts, the activating switch configured to be actuated by at least one of the charging contacts in the contact position;
a plurality of docking signal transmitters within the housing configured to transmit light signals that are detectable by the autonomous floor cleaner, the plurality of docking signal transmitters comprising:
a center transmitter configured to emit at least one light signal within a first transmission zone;
a right transmitter disposed laterally of the center transmitter and configured to emit at least one light signal within a second transmission zone; and
a left transmitter disposed laterally of the center transmitter and configured to emit at least one light signal within a third transmission zone;

a shroud within the housing, the shroud comprising:
a center shroud section enclosing the center transmitter and defining a first light chamber, the center shroud section comprising an opaque first wall around the center transmitter and a first aperture in the first wall through which light is emittable, the first aperture defining a direction and angle of the first transmission zone;
a right shroud section enclosing the right transmitter and defining a second light chamber, the right shroud section comprising an opaque second wall around the right transmitter and a second aperture in the second wall through which light is emittable, the second aperture defining a direction and angle of the second transmission zone; and
a left shroud section enclosing the left transmitter and defining a third light chamber, the left shroud section comprising an opaque third wall around the left transmitter and a third aperture in the third wall through which light is emittable, the third aperture defining a direction and angle of the third transmission zone.