Patent Description:
<CIT> concerns ultraviolet discharge lamp apparatuses and systems for controlling the operation of germicidal devices.

Aspects of the present invention are defined in the accompanying claims. According to a first aspect there is provided a method in accordance with claim <NUM>.

Preferred optional features are defined in the dependent claims.

Additional features, advantages, and implementations of the disclosed subject matter may be set forth or apparent from consideration of the following detailed description, drawings, and claims. Moreover, it is to be understood that both the foregoing summary and the following detailed description are illustrative and are intended to provide further explanation without limiting the scope of the claims.

The accompanying drawings, which are included to provide a further understanding of the disclosed subject matter, are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification. The drawings also illustrate implementations of the disclosed subject matter and together with the detailed description serve to explain the principles of implementations of the disclosed subject matter. No attempt is made to show structural details in more detail than may be necessary for a fundamental understanding of the disclosed subject matter and various ways in which it may be practiced.

An actuated mobile device, such as a mobile robot, may be used to disinfect a predetermined area such as a room, a building, surfaces, air, objects, or the like in an environment using ultraviolet (UV) light from a light source. The actuated mobile device may receive, via a user interface and/or a network interface, at least one dosage level for the predetermined area. For example, the dosage level may be based on a first dosage of UV light to be output from the light source of the actuated mobile device.

In some implementations, the actuated mobile device may autonomously enter the predetermined area, and may output UV light based on the received dosage level to disinfect the area. The actuated mobile device may have a map of the area stored in memory, may receive the map via a network interface, and/or may map the area using one or more sensors. The actuated mobile robot may receive a path via the network interface and/or determine a path to move within the area and to disinfect the area by outputting UV light from the light source. The path may be selected and/or determined so as to minimize the amount of time to apply the dosage level of UV light and disinfect the area.

Progress of applying the dosage level of UV light may be monitored by generating an exposure plot of the portions of the area that have been disinfected. In some implementations, the actuated mobile device may determine and/or detect portions of the area that have not received the dosage of UV light. For such portions, the actuated mobile device may adjust an arm with another light source to output UV light to the portion of the area. In some implementations, UV light may be output from the light source, and may be reflected from a reflective surface attached to a second actuated mobile device to provide the dosage of UV light to the portion of the area. In some implementations, two or more actuated mobile devices may be operated within the area to apply the dosage of UV light and disinfect the area in less time than a single actuated mobile device.

The actuated mobile device may be used as part of a regular cleaning cycle of a room, building, or the like, and may prevent and/or reduce the spread of infectious diseases, viruses, bacteria, and other types of harmful organic microorganisms in the environment by breaking down their DNA-structure with UV light. The actuated mobile device may reduce human error in cleaning an area, room, building, or the like by tracking the location and/or intensity (e.g., optical power of UV light) of light radiated, and determine which areas may need to be radiated and/or cleaned.

The actuated mobile device may be operated manually, autonomously, and/or may receive control signals to control the movement of the actuated mobile device with a room, building, area, or the like when operating in a tele-operation mode.

Traditional disinfection methods and devices using ultraviolet light require that a person enter a room or area with the device. With such methods and devices, the person may introduce new contaminants to the room or area. Other methods and devices use disinfectants such as wipes, chemicals, and the like. However, airborne particles may settle on the surface treated with the wipes and/or chemicals.

Implementations of the disclosed subject matter may deploy the actuated mobile device to a room, building, and/or area without putting a person (e.g., a member of a healthcare staff) at risk in a contaminated environment. That is, the actuated mobile device may disinfect air, surfaces, and/or objects without putting a member of the healthcare staff at risk, may reduce the costs of protective equipment for a person, may reduce time in disinfecting, and/or may provide a report which includes details of the surfaces and/or objects that have been disinfected.

<FIG> shows an example method <NUM> of moving an actuated mobile device within a predetermined area and outputting ultraviolet (UV) light having a dosage level to disinfect the predetermined area according to an implementation of the disclosed subject matter.

At operation <NUM>, the actuated mobile device (e.g., actuated mobile device <NUM> shown in <FIG>) may receive at least one dosage level for a predetermined area. The dosage level may be received, for example, via a user interface (e.g., user interface <NUM> shown in <FIG>) and/or via a network interface (e.g., network interface <NUM> shown in <FIG>) of the actuated mobile device. The at least one dosage level may be based on a first dosage of ultraviolet (UV) light to be output from at least one light source (e.g., light source <NUM> shown in <FIG>, <FIG>, <FIG>, and <FIG>) for at least a portion of the predetermined area (e.g., room <NUM> shown in <FIG>, <FIG>, <FIG>, and <FIG>).

At operation <NUM>, the actuated mobile device may be moved in a path (e.g., path <NUM> shown in <FIG>) within the predetermined area (e.g., room <NUM> shown in <FIG>, <FIG>, <FIG>, and <FIG>). The UV light may be output from the at least one light source (e.g., light source <NUM> shown in <FIG>, <FIG>, <FIG>, and <FIG>), onto one or more first surfaces (e.g., surfaces <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> shown in <FIG>, <FIG>, <FIG>, and <FIG>; objects <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> shown in <FIG>, <FIG>, <FIG>, <FIG>; and/or reference tag <NUM> shown in <FIG>) based on the received at least one dosage level.

In some implementations, a processor communicatively coupled to the actuated mobile device may determine the path (e.g., path <NUM> shown in <FIG>) of the actuated mobile device. For example, as shown in <FIG>, the processor may determine the path <NUM> for the actuated mobile device <NUM> in room <NUM>, having walls (e.g., surfaces <NUM>, <NUM>), floor (e.g., surface <NUM>), object <NUM> (e.g., a sink), object <NUM> (e.g., a bed), object <NUM> (e.g., <NUM>-hook IV stand), and the like. The path may be determined so that the actuated mobile device may output a dosage of UV light to the objects <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, and the surfaces <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> to disinfect them in, for example, the shortest amount of time. The processor may be, for example, controller <NUM> shown in <FIG>, and/or server <NUM> and/or remote platform <NUM> which may be communicatively coupled to the actuated mobile device <NUM> via the network <NUM> as shown in <FIG>.

In some implementations, the path (e.g., path <NUM> shown in <FIG>) may be determined based on an environment of the predetermined area (e.g., room <NUM> shown in <FIG>, <FIG>, <FIG>, and <FIG>), providing a reduced time for disinfection of the predetermined area, and/or increasing the dosage to the one or more first surfaces and the one or more second surfaces (e.g., surfaces <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> shown in <FIG>, <FIG>, <FIG>, and <FIG>; objects <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> shown in <FIG>, <FIG>, <FIG>, <FIG>; and/or reference tag <NUM> shown in <FIG>).

The path may be determined, for example, based at least in part on a two dimensional map or a three-dimensional map generated by the processor (e.g., controller <NUM> shown in <FIG>, and/or server <NUM> and/or remote platform <NUM> which may be communicatively coupled to the actuated mobile device <NUM> via the network <NUM> as shown in <FIG>) and at least one sensor (e.g., sensor <NUM> and/or sensor <NUM>) of the actuated mobile device moving within the predetermined area (e.g., room <NUM>) at a previous point in time.

In some implementations, the path may be determined based on an amount of UV light that is to be output from the light source (e.g., light source <NUM>) on the one or more first surfaces and the one or more second surfaces (e.g., surfaces <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> shown in <FIG>, <FIG>, <FIG>, and <FIG>; objects <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> shown in <FIG>, <FIG>, <FIG>, <FIG>; and/or reference tag <NUM> shown in <FIG>). In some implementations, the path may be a perimeter of the predetermined area (e.g., a perimeter of room <NUM> shown in <FIG> and <FIG>).

At operation <NUM>, the actuated mobile device may be moved within the path (e.g., path <NUM> shown in <FIG>), and may output the UV light onto one or more second surfaces (e.g., surfaces <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> shown in <FIG>, <FIG>, <FIG>, and <FIG>; objects <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> shown in <FIG>, <FIG>, <FIG>, <FIG>; and/or reference tag <NUM> shown in <FIG>) based on the received at least one dosage level. In some implementations, the moving the actuated mobile device within the path may include moving the actuated mobile device in a predetermined pattern (e.g., a grid pattern along a determined pattern within the predetermined area, or the like).

In some implementations, the method <NUM> may include using a processor communicatively coupled to the actuated mobile device (e.g., controller <NUM> shown in <FIG>, and/or server <NUM> and/or remote platform <NUM> which may be communicatively coupled to the actuated mobile device <NUM> via the network <NUM> as shown in <FIG>) to determine whether the one or more first surfaces and the one or more second surfaces (e.g., surfaces <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> shown in <FIG>, <FIG>, <FIG>, and <FIG>; objects <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> shown in <FIG>, <FIG>, <FIG>, <FIG>; and/or reference tag <NUM> shown in <FIG>) have received the first dosage. As discussed below, a second light source and/or a second actuated mobile device may be used to apply a dosage to objects, surfaces, and the like that may be determined as to not have received the first dosage.

In some implementations, the method <NUM> may include using a sensor (e.g., sensor <NUM>, <NUM> shown in <FIG>) of the actuated mobile device to detect at least one hotspot within the predetermined area (e.g., room <NUM>). The hotspot may be a predetermined object (e.g., objects <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> shown in <FIG>, <FIG>, <FIG>, and <FIG>; and/or reference tag <NUM> shown in <FIG>), at least a portion of the predetermined area (e.g., surfaces <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> shown in <FIG>, <FIG>, <FIG>, <FIG>), and/or an object having a predetermined type of contaminant. For example, the at least one hotspot may be a chair, a seat, a bed, a sink, mirror, a door, a door handle, a wall, a floor, a ceiling, a shelf, a surface of a table, and any object and/or surface defined as the at least one hotspot in a memory (e.g., memory <NUM> and/or fixed storage <NUM> shown in <FIG>; database <NUM> shown in <FIG>) that is communicatively coupled to a processor (e.g., controller <NUM> shown in <FIG>, and/or server <NUM> and/or remote platform <NUM> which may be communicatively coupled to the actuated mobile device <NUM> via the network <NUM> as shown in <FIG>) of the actuated mobile device.

In some implementations, the UV light may be output from the at least one light source (e.g., light source <NUM> shown in <FIG>) at a second dosage onto the at least one hotspot. This second dosage may be greater than the first dosage. That is, the intensity and/or duration of the UV light output to the hotspot based on the second dosage may be greater that the intensity and/or duration of the UV light output based on the first dosage.

<FIG> shows that the example method <NUM> of <FIG> may include a method of determining which surfaces of the predetermined area have not received the dosage of UV light, and outputting UV light to the determined surfaces according to an implementation of the disclosed subject matter. At operation <NUM>, a processor communicatively coupled to the actuated mobile device (e.g., controller <NUM> shown in <FIG>, and/or server <NUM> and/or remote platform <NUM> which may be communicatively coupled to the actuated mobile device <NUM> via the network <NUM> as shown in <FIG>) may determine a portion of the one or more first surfaces and the one or more second surfaces that that have not received the first dosage (e.g., surfaces <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> shown in <FIG>, <FIG>, <FIG>, and <FIG>; objects <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> shown in <FIG>, <FIG>, <FIG>, <FIG>; and/or reference tag <NUM> shown in <FIG>).

At operation <NUM>, the actuated mobile device may perform one of more operations. For example, an optically reflective surface (e.g., reflective surface <NUM> shown in <FIG>) disposed on a second actuated mobile device (e.g., actuated mobile device <NUM> shown in <FIG>) operating within the predetermined area (e.g., room <NUM>) may be used to reflect the UV light output by the at least one light source (e.g., light source <NUM>) of the actuated mobile device (e.g., actuated mobile device <NUM> shown in <FIG>) to the determined portions of the one or more first surfaces and the one or more second surfaces (e.g., surfaces <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> shown in <FIG>, <FIG>, <FIG>, and <FIG>; objects <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> shown in <FIG>, <FIG>, <FIG>, <FIG>; and/or reference tag <NUM> shown in <FIG>).

As shown in <FIG>, the reflective surface <NUM> of the actuated mobile device <NUM> may reflect UV light output from the light source <NUM> of the actuated mobile device <NUM> into the air, onto a surface, and/or onto an object. The reflective surface may be a mirror, a reflective coating, and/or any other surface that may be reflective for UV light. For example, light emitted from the light source <NUM> may be reflected by the reflective surface <NUM> onto the objects <NUM>, <NUM> and/or surface <NUM>, <NUM> shown in <FIG> to disinfect these objects and/or surfaces with a dosage of UV light.

In some implementations, UV light may be from the light source of the second actuated mobile device (e.g., light source <NUM> of the actuated mobile device <NUM> shown in <FIG>) to the determined portions of the one or more first surfaces and the one or more second surfaces. As shown in <FIG>, the actuated mobile device <NUM> may include the light source <NUM>, which may include one or more bulbs, one or more lamps, and/or an array of light emitting diodes (LEDs) or organic light emitting diodes (OLEDs) to emit UV light (e.g., light having a wavelength of <NUM> - <NUM>). In some implementations, the light source <NUM> may provide a dosage of UV light to air, surfaces, objects, and/or reference tags. For example, the light source <NUM> may provide a dosage of UV light to objects and/or surfaces that may not be reachable by the light source <NUM>.

As shown in <FIG>, the second actuated mobile device (e.g., actuated mobile device <NUM> shown in <FIG>) may be smaller than the actuated mobile device (e.g., actuated mobile device <NUM> shown in <FIG>).

In some implementations, the actuated mobile device may transmit, from a communications interface (e.g., network interface <NUM>), data including the one or more first surfaces and the one or more second surfaces (e.g., surfaces <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> shown in <FIG>, <FIG>, <FIG>, and <FIG>; objects <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> shown in <FIG>, <FIG>, <FIG>, <FIG>; and/or reference tag <NUM> shown in <FIG>) that have received the first dosage.

In some implementations, the method <NUM> may include outputting a second dosage of UV light from the at least one light source (e.g., light source <NUM> shown in <FIG>) for at least a second portion of the predetermined area that is for a different dosage level.

<FIG> shows that the example method of <FIG> may include a method of adjusting an arm of actuated mobile device, where the arm includes another light source to output UV light according to an implementation of the disclosed subject matter. At operation <NUM>, the actuated mobile device may adjust an arm (e.g., arm <NUM> shown in <FIG>) of the actuated mobile device. The arm may include a light source (e.g., light source <NUM> shown in <FIG>). At operation <NUM>, the light source may output UV light onto the one or more first surfaces and/or the one or more second surfaces (e.g., surfaces <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> shown in <FIG>, <FIG>, <FIG>, and <FIG>; objects <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> shown in <FIG>, <FIG>, <FIG>, <FIG>; and/or reference tag <NUM> shown in <FIG>) based on the received at least one dosage level. In some implementations, the light source <NUM> may be controlled to emit UV light. In some implementations, the light source <NUM> may be used to provide a dosage of UV light to air, objects, surfaces, reference tags, or the like that the light source <NUM> may not have provided a dosage of UV light for.

In some implementations, a communications interface (e.g., network interface <NUM> shown in <FIG>) of the actuated mobile device may receive a control signal to control movement of the actuated mobile device outside a door to the predetermined area. For example, the actuated mobile device <NUM> may receive a control signal via the network interface <NUM> shown in <FIG>, and the drive system <NUM> may move the actuated mobile device <NUM> outside the door <NUM> of room <NUM>. The control signal may be based on a video signal transmitted by the communication interface of the actuated mobile device. That is, the sensor <NUM>, <NUM> of the actuated mobile device <NUM> may capture video, and transmit it via the network <NUM> (shown in <FIG>) using the network interface <NUM>. The network interface <NUM> may receive the control signal for the drive system <NUM> via the network <NUM> from, for example, the server <NUM> and/or remote platform <NUM>.

<FIG> shows that the example method <NUM> of <FIG> may include a method of changing a path of the actuated mobile device when a second actuated mobile device is present within the predetermined area according to an implementation of the disclosed subject matter. At operation <NUM>, the communications interface (e.g., network interface <NUM> shown in <FIG>) of the actuated mobile device (e.g., actuated mobile device <NUM> shown in <FIG>) may receive a signal from a second actuated mobile device (e.g., actuated mobile device <NUM> shown in <FIG>) having a second path. At operation <NUM>, the path of the actuated mobile device (e.g., actuated mobile device <NUM>) may be changed, and UV light output by the light source (e.g., light source <NUM>) may be output in the predetermined area based on the second path of the second actuated mobile device (e.g., actuated mobile device <NUM> shown in <FIG>).

That is, in some implementations, an arrangement where actuated mobile device <NUM> and actuated mobile device <NUM> may be operated in respective paths in room <NUM> is shown in <FIG>. The actuated mobile device <NUM> may have light source <NUM>, and actuated mobile device <NUM> may have a similar UV light source. The actuated mobile device <NUM> may receive a signal from the actuated mobile device <NUM> with the network interface <NUM>, and may generate and/or adjust a path. The actuated mobile device <NUM> and the actuated mobile device <NUM> may have different respective paths in the room <NUM> to apply dosages of UV light to air, objects, surfaces, and/or reference tags in the room <NUM>. Such objects, surfaces, and the like within the room <NUM> may more quickly have dosages of UV light applied to them when the actuated mobile devices <NUM>, <NUM> having different paths move within the room <NUM>.

In some implementations, the actuated mobile device may detect air, surfaces, and/or objects of an area to disinfect them with the UV light as shown in <FIG>. For example, sensors <NUM> and/or <NUM> of the actuated mobile device <NUM> may be used to detect surface <NUM> (e.g., a floor of the area), surface <NUM> and/or surface <NUM> (e.g., a wall of the area). The sensors <NUM> and/or <NUM> may be used to detect object <NUM> (e.g., a mirror), object <NUM> (e.g., a sink), and/or reference tag <NUM>. The reference tag <NUM> may have a first state, and may change to a second state when a dosage of UV light is applied to the reference tag <NUM>. In some implementations, the reference tag <NUM> may be a virtual reference tag that is represented in a map of the area, which may change states when UV light is applied to the area that corresponds with the mapped area. In some implementations, the processor may determine that one or more of the objects <NUM>, <NUM> are hotspots. UV light may be emitted by the light source <NUM> to disinfect the surfaces <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> and/or the objects <NUM>, <NUM>. The map and the exposure plot may be generated by the processor of the actuated mobile device <NUM>.

<FIG> show a plurality of external views of an actuated mobile device <NUM> that includes sensors to detect surfaces and objects in an area, and a light source to output UV light having a first dosage based on a received dosage level to disinfect the air, objects, and/or surfaces in the area according to implementations of the disclosed subject matter. The actuated mobile device <NUM> may include at least a first sensor <NUM> (shown as sensor 102a and 102b in <FIG>), a light source <NUM> to output ultraviolet light, at least a second sensor <NUM>, a drive system <NUM>, a user interface <NUM>, and/or a stop button <NUM>. A controller (e.g., controller <NUM> shown in <FIG> and described below) may be communicatively coupled to the at least one first sensor <NUM>, the light source <NUM>, the at least one second sensor <NUM>, the drive system <NUM>, the user interface <NUM> and the stop button <NUM>, may control the operations of the actuated mobile device <NUM>.

The at least one first sensor <NUM> (including sensors 102a, 102b shown in <FIG>) may determine at least one of an orientation of the actuated mobile device <NUM> (e.g., a direction that a front side and/or a first side of a robot is facing), a location of the actuated mobile device <NUM> (e.g., a location of the actuated mobile device <NUM> in an area), and/or when the light source <NUM> is within a predetermined distance of a surface and/or object in the area (e.g., surface <NUM>, <NUM>, and/or <NUM>, and/or object <NUM>, <NUM> shown in <FIG>). In some implementations, the first sensor <NUM> may detect air, a surface, a reference tag, and/or objects that may disinfected with UV light from the light source <NUM>.

In some implementations, the at least one first sensor <NUM> may have a field of view of <NUM> degrees diagonally. The at least one sensor <NUM> may have a detection distance of <NUM> - <NUM> meters. As shown in <FIG>, the at least one first sensor <NUM> may be disposed over the light source <NUM>.

The at least one first sensor <NUM> may include a first side sensor disposed on a first side of the actuated mobile device <NUM> and a second side sensor that may be disposed on a second side of the device. For example, as shown in <FIG>, sensor 102a may be disposed on a first side (e.g., a front side) of the actuated mobile device <NUM>, and sensor 102b may be disposed on a second side (e.g., a back side) of the actuated mobile device <NUM>. Although sensors on two sides of the robot are shown in <FIG>, there may be a plurality of sensors disposed on different sides of the actuated mobile device <NUM> to at least detect surfaces and/or objects. In some implementations, sensor 102a and/or sensor 102b may be disposed over the light source <NUM>.

The light source <NUM> may be one or more bulbs, one or more lamps, and/or an array of light emitting diodes (LEDs) or organic light emitting diodes (OLEDs) to emit UV light (e.g., light having a wavelength of <NUM> - <NUM>). The dosage of the UV light (e.g., intensity, duration, optical power output, or the like) may be controlled by the controller <NUM>, which may also turn on or off a portion or all of the devices (e.g., bulbs, lamps, LEDs, OLEDs) of the light source <NUM>. The light source may be controlled to emit UV light when the actuated mobile device is within an area, as the actuated mobile device moves within the area, before the mapping of the area, during the mapping of the area, and/or after the mapping of the area.

In some implementations, the actuated mobile device may include a secondary light source, such as light source <NUM> which may be coupled to a robotic arm <NUM> of the actuated mobile device <NUM>. The light source <NUM> may emit UV light from one or more bulbs, one or more lamps, and/or an array of light emitting diodes (LEDs) or organic light emitting diodes (OLEDs) to emit UV light (e.g., light having a wavelength of <NUM> - <NUM>). The light source <NUM> may be controlled to emit UV light. In some implementations, the light source <NUM> may be used to provide a dosage of UV light to air, objects, surfaces, reference tags, or the like that the light source <NUM> may not have provided a dosage of UV light for. Movement of the arm <NUM> may be controlled by the controller <NUM> shown in <FIG>.

The at least one second sensor <NUM> may be communicatively coupled to the controller <NUM> shown in <FIG>, and may be used to detect air, surfaces, and/or objects that may be mapped and/or disinfected with UV light from the light source <NUM>. In some implementations, the at least one second sensor <NUM> may determine at least one of an orientation of the actuated mobile device <NUM> (e.g., a direction that a front side and/or a first side of a robot is facing), a location of the actuated mobile device <NUM> (e.g., a location of the actuated mobile device <NUM> in an area), and/or when the light source <NUM> is within a predetermined distance of a surface and/or object in the area (e.g., surface <NUM>, <NUM>, and/or <NUM>, and/or object <NUM>, <NUM> shown in <FIG>).

In some implementations, the sensor <NUM>, <NUM> may be a time-of-flight sensor, an ultrasonic sensor, a two-dimensional (2D) Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) sensor, a three-dimensional (3D) LiDAR sensor, and/or a radar (radio detection and ranging) sensor, a stereo vision sensor, 3D camera, a structured light camera, or the like. The sensor <NUM> may have a field of view of <NUM>-<NUM> degrees. In some implementations, the sensor <NUM> may have a detection distance of <NUM> - <NUM> meters.

The actuated mobile device <NUM> may include a motor to drive the drive system <NUM> to move the actuated mobile device in an area, such as a room, a building, or the like. The drive system <NUM> may include wheels, which may be adjustable so that the drive system <NUM> may control the direction of the actuated mobile device <NUM>.

In some implementations, the actuated mobile device <NUM> may include a base with the drive system <NUM>, and the sensor <NUM>, <NUM> may be disposed on the base.

The controller <NUM> may control and/or operate the actuated mobile device <NUM> in an operation mode which may be a manual mode, an autonomous mode, and/or a tele-operation mode. In the manual mode, the controller <NUM> may receive on or more control signals from the user interface <NUM> and/or the stop button <NUM>. For example, a user may control the movement, direction, and/or stop the motion of the actuated mobile device <NUM> by making one or more selections on the user interface <NUM>. The stop button <NUM> may be an emergency stop (ESTOP) button which may stop all operations and/or movement of the actuated mobile device <NUM> when selected. In some implementations, the controller <NUM> may receive at least one control signal via a network interface <NUM> (shown in <FIG>) when operating when operating in the tele-operation mode. For example, the network interface may receive control signals via network <NUM> from server <NUM>, database <NUM>, and/or remote platform <NUM>, as described below in connection with <FIG>.

In some implementations, when the actuated mobile device <NUM> is moving in a direction, the sensor <NUM>, <NUM> may detect a geometry of one or more surfaces (e.g., surfaces <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM> shown in <FIG>), objects (e.g., objects <NUM>, <NUM> shown in <FIG>), and/or reference tags (e.g., reference tag <NUM> shown in <FIG>). The output of the at least one first sensor <NUM> may be, for example, a point cloud of the one or more objects in the path of the actuated mobile device <NUM>. When the sensor <NUM> and/or sensor <NUM> is a stereo vision sensor, images from two sensors (i.e., where the two sensors may be part of the stereo vision sensor of the sensor <NUM> and/or sensor <NUM>) within a known distance from one another distance may be captured at a predetermined point in time, and/or at predetermined time intervals with a global shutter. The global shutter may be configured so that the two sensors of the stereo vision sensor may capture images about simultaneously. One or more features (e.g., surfaces <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, and/or objects <NUM>, <NUM>, and/or reference tag <NUM> shown in <FIG>) may be determined from the captured images, and be compared to one another to determine portions that are matching. As the focal length of the two sensors of the stereo vision sensor and the distance between the two sensors (e.g., about <NUM>) may be stored in memory <NUM> and/or fixed storage <NUM> (shown in <FIG>), the controller <NUM> and/or the at least one first sensor <NUM> may use the captured images and the stored values to determine the distance from the sensor <NUM>, <NUM> to the surfaces and/or objects, and may be used by the processor for outputting a dosage of UV light from the light source. In some implementations, the sensor <NUM>, <NUM> may include at least one laser, LED, and/or OLED, to radiate one or more points on surfaces of objects, when the objects may be without identifying features (e.g., blank walls).

When detecting the surface and/or object, the sensor <NUM>, <NUM> may be a time-of-flight (TOF) sensor. At least one photon of light may be output by the sensor <NUM>, <NUM>, and may be transmitted through the air. When the at least one photon of light radiates surface and/or an object, a portion of the light may be reflected by the surface and/or the object may return to a receiver portion of the sensor <NUM>, <NUM>. The sensor <NUM> may calculate the time between sending the at least one photon of light and receiving the reflection, and multiply this value by the speed of light in air, to determine the distance between the sensor <NUM>, <NUM> and surface and/or object. This may be used to generate the map of the area that the actuated mobile device is operating within.

<FIG> shows example components of the actuated mobile device <NUM> suitable for providing the implementations of the disclosed subject matter. The actuated mobile device <NUM> may include a bus <NUM> which interconnects major components of the actuated mobile device <NUM>, such as the drive system <NUM>, a network interface <NUM> operable to communicate with one or more remote devices via a suitable network connection, the controller <NUM>, a memory <NUM> such as Random Access Memory (RAM), Read Only Memory (ROM), flash RAM, or the like, the stop button <NUM>, the light source <NUM>, the at least one first sensor <NUM>, a user interface <NUM> that may include one or more controllers and associated user input devices such as a keyboard, touch screen, and the like, a fixed storage <NUM> such as a hard drive, flash storage, and the like, and the at least one second sensor <NUM>.

The bus <NUM> allows data communication between the controller <NUM> and one or more memory components, which may include RAM, ROM, and other memory, as previously noted. Typically RAM is the main memory into which an operating system and application programs are loaded. A ROM or flash memory component can contain, among other code, the Basic Input-Output system (BIOS) which controls basic hardware operation such as the interaction with peripheral components. Applications resident with the actuated mobile device <NUM> are generally stored on and accessed via a computer readable medium (e.g., fixed storage <NUM>), such as a solid state drive, hard disk drive, an optical drive, solid state drive, or other storage medium.

The network interface <NUM> may provide a direct connection to a remote server (e.g., server <NUM>, database <NUM>, and/or remote platform <NUM> shown in <FIG>) via a wired or wireless connection (e.g., network <NUM> shown in <FIG>). The network interface <NUM> may provide such connection using any suitable technique and protocol as will be readily understood by one of skill in the art, including digital cellular telephone, WiFi, Bluetooth(R), near-field, and the like. For example, the network interface <NUM> may allow the actuated mobile device <NUM> to communicate with other computers via one or more local, wide-area, or other communication networks, as described in further detail below. The actuated mobile device may transmit data via the network interface to the remote server that may include a path of operation, the surfaces and/or areas radiated with UV light, and the like.

Many other devices or components (not shown) may be connected in a similar manner. Conversely, all of the components shown in <FIG> need not be present to practice the present disclosure. The components can be interconnected in different ways from that shown. Code to implement the present disclosure can be stored in computer-readable storage media such as one or more of the memory <NUM>, fixed storage <NUM>, or on a remote storage location.

<FIG> shows an example network arrangement according to an implementation of the disclosed subject matter. Actuated mobile device <NUM> described above, and/or a similar actuated mobile device <NUM> may connect to other devices via network <NUM>. The network <NUM> may be a local network, wide-area network, the Internet, or any other suitable communication network or networks, and may be implemented on any suitable platform including wired and/or wireless networks. The actuated mobile device <NUM> and/or actuated mobile device <NUM> may communicate with one another, and/or may communicate with one or more remote devices, such as server <NUM>, database <NUM>, and/or remote platform <NUM>. The remote devices may be directly accessible by the actuated mobile device <NUM>, <NUM> or one or more other devices may provide intermediary access such as where a server <NUM> provides access to resources stored in a database <NUM>. The actuated mobile device <NUM>, <NUM> may access remote platform <NUM> or services provided by remote platform <NUM> such as cloud computing arrangements and services. The remote platform <NUM> may include one or more servers <NUM> and/or databases <NUM>.

More generally, various implementations of the presently disclosed subject matter may include or be embodied in the form of computer-implemented processes and apparatuses for practicing those processes. Implementations also may be embodied in the form of a computer program product having computer program code containing instructions embodied in non-transitory and/or tangible media, such as solid state drives, DVDs, CD-ROMs, hard drives, USB (universal serial bus) drives, or any other machine readable storage medium, such that when the computer program code is loaded into and executed by a computer, the computer becomes an apparatus for practicing implementations of the disclosed subject matter. Implementations also may be embodied in the form of computer program code, for example, whether stored in a storage medium, loaded into and/or executed by a computer, or transmitted over some transmission medium, such as over electrical wiring or cabling, through fiber optics, or via electromagnetic radiation, such that when the computer program code is loaded into and executed by a computer, the computer becomes an apparatus for practicing implementations of the disclosed subject matter.

In some configurations, a set of computer-readable instructions stored on a computer-readable storage medium may be implemented by a general-purpose processor, which may transform the general-purpose processor or a device containing the general-purpose processor into a special-purpose device configured to implement or carry out the instructions. Implementations may include using hardware that has a processor, such as a general purpose microprocessor and/or an Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC) that embodies all or part of the techniques according to implementations of the disclosed subject matter in hardware and/or firmware. The processor may be coupled to memory, such as RAM, ROM, flash memory, a hard disk or any other device capable of storing electronic information. The memory may store instructions adapted to be executed by the processor to perform the techniques according to implementations of the disclosed subject matter.

Claim 1:
A method comprising:
receiving (<NUM>), at an actuated mobile device (<NUM>), data related to at least one dosage level for a predetermined area, wherein the data related to the at least one dosage level is based on a first dosage of ultraviolet (UV) light to be output from at least one light source for at least a portion of the predetermined area; characterized by:
determining, using a processor communicatively coupled to the actuated mobile device (<NUM>), a path of the actuated mobile device (<NUM>) that provides a reduced time for disinfection of the predetermined area based on the received data related to the at least one dosage level of the UV light to be output;
moving (<NUM>) the actuated mobile device (<NUM>) in the path within the predetermined area and outputting the UV light from the at least one light source onto one or more first surfaces based on the received data related to the at least one dosage level; and
moving (<NUM>) the actuated mobile device (<NUM>) within the path and outputting the UV light onto one or more second surfaces based on the received data related to the at least one dosage level.