Patent Description:
Lawn maintenance requires a lot of manual labor, including constant watering, fertilizing, and mowing the lawn to maintain a healthy grass coverage. Although watering and fertilizing can sometimes be handled with minimal labor by using a sprinkler or a watering system, a mowing process is a process that requires a lot of manual labor of a gardener.

<CIT> discloses a smart lawn mower comprises a traveling control module configured to control the traveling and steering of the mower, an image capturing module configured to capture the surrounding images of the mower, an operation module configured to provide a surrounding-determination information, and a storage module configured to store the surrounding-determination information. The operation module determines a grass area by analyzing the surrounding images captured by the image capturing module. The mower defines a grass area accurately without a predetermined boundary.

A designer and a manufacturer of a lawn mower has made attempts for some time to manufacture an autonomous lawn mower to replace a conventional push-pull lawn mower. However, due to immaturity of technologies such as identification of an operation region, construction of a map, and planning of a moving path, operation performance of an intelligent lawn mower still remains to be improved.

Therefore, it is necessary to design a new technical solution to resolve the above technical problems.

Technical problems are to be solved by the present invention. An intelligent lawn mower having an image capturing module at a different operation position is provided.

Aspects of an invention are set out in claim <NUM>. Optional features of embodiments are set out in the remaining claims.

Compared with the prior art, the beneficial effects of the technical solution of the present invention are as follows. The operation positions of the image capturing module in the intelligent lawn mower in different operation modes are adjusted, that is, the lawn mower respectively has different operation positions in the mowing mode and the monitoring mode, so as to ensure that the intelligent lawn mower can achieve the most efficient operation effect in different operation modes.

The foregoing objects, technical solutions, and beneficial effects of the present invention can be implemented with reference to the accompanying drawings below:.

Detailed descriptions and technical content of the present invention are described below in cooperation with the accompanying drawings. However, the accompanying drawings only provide reference and description rather than limit the present invention.

The following clearly and completely describes the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention with reference to the accompanying drawings in the embodiments of the present invention. Apparently, the described embodiments are merely some but not all of the embodiments of the present invention.

Unless otherwise defined, meanings of all technical and scientific terms used in this specification are the same as that usually understood by a person skilled in the art to which the present disclosure belongs. In this specification, terms used in the specification of the present invention are merely intended to describe objectives of the specific embodiments, but are not intended to limit the present invention. In addition, the term "and/or" as used herein includes any and all combinations of one or more related listed items.

<FIG> shows an automatic operation system of this specific implementation. The automatic operation system may include an intelligent lawn mower <NUM>, a boundary <NUM>, and a charging station <NUM>. The intelligent lawn mower <NUM> moves and operates within a mowing region <NUM> defined by the boundary <NUM>, and the charging station <NUM> may be configured to receive docking of the intelligent lawn mower to supplement the intelligent lawn mower with energy in a case that the intelligent lawn mower returns due to insufficient energy.

As shown in <FIG>, the intelligent lawn mower <NUM> may include a housing <NUM>, and may further include a moving module <NUM>, an operation module <NUM>, a communication module <NUM>, a control module <NUM>, and an energy module <NUM>. The control module <NUM> is connected to and configured to control the moving module <NUM> and the operation module <NUM>, so as to realize automatic moving and operation of the intelligent lawn mower <NUM>.

Specifically, the moving module <NUM> may include a wheel set, which includes a right driving wheel and a left driving wheel, and a moving motor configured to drive the wheel set. Generally, the wheel set includes a driving wheel <NUM> driven by the moving motor and an auxiliary wheel <NUM> assisting in supporting the housing. It may be understood that the moving module <NUM> may also be a track structure. In this embodiment, the right driving wheel and the left driving wheel each are equipped with a driving motor to achieve differential output for steering control. The moving motor may be directly connected to the driving wheel, or a transmission apparatus may be arranged, that is, a same motor drives the right driving wheel and the left driving wheel through different transmission apparatuses, so as to achieve the differential output for steering control. The operation module <NUM> is a cutting module, such as a cutting blade <NUM>, which may be driven by a cutting motor <NUM> to operate. A center of the operation module <NUM> is located on a central axis of the lawn mower <NUM>, is set below the housing and between the auxiliary wheel and the driving wheel, or may be offset to a left side or a right side of the housing. The energy module <NUM> is fixedly or detachably mounted to the housing, which may be a battery pack, or the like. During operation, the battery pack discharges electric energy to maintain operation and moving of the lawn mower <NUM>. During non-operation, the battery may be connected to an external power supply to be supplemented with electric energy. The intelligent lawn mower <NUM> may also automatically search for the charging station <NUM> to be supplemented with electric energy when detecting that the battery is low. The control module <NUM> may be a controller, which may be configured to control the intelligent lawn mower <NUM> to move, turn, and automatically operate according to a preset program or a received instruction. The communication module <NUM> may include, but is not limited to, at least one of the following: a Wi-Fi module, a Bluetooth module, an infrared module, or a cellular communication module such as a <NUM> or <NUM> module.

The automatic operation system may include a navigation mechanism, which may include but is not limited to at least one of the following: a UWB sensor, an inertial navigation device, a satellite navigation system (GPS, Beidou, RTK, and the like), or an image capturing module <NUM> (also referred to as a visual sensor or a camera in this application). When the image capturing module configured to identify a boundary is arranged on the lawn mower, the lawn mower may operate in an operation region in a manner of a random move, and identifies the boundary by using the image capturing module <NUM>, to ensure safety of the lawn mower. Alternatively, navigation may be realized through a combination of a low-precision satellite navigation system and the image capturing module <NUM>, that is, a combination of a low-precision GPS and a visual sensor.

In an embodiment of this application, the automatic operation system includes the image capturing module <NUM> configured to identify the boundary. The image capturing module may be configured to assist in the mowing and monitoring. The operation region may include a mowing region and a monitoring region. The two regions may overlap each other. During mowing of the lawn, the lawn mower cuts grass in the mowing region, and the image capturing module may be configured to identify the boundary of the operation region. During monitoring, the lawn mower performs monitoring in the monitoring region, and the image capturing module may capture image information nearby to determine whether the captured image information is abnormal. If an abnormality exists, the image capturing module sounds the alarm or sends a notification message to a user.

The intelligent lawn mower identifies the boundary of the operation region by using the visual sensor, to control the intelligent lawn mower to normally move within the boundary, thereby ensuring the safety of the lawn mower in the operation process. In this application, the intelligent lawn mower may also monitor the external environment by using the visual sensor, to prevent the lawn mower from being stolen, thereby ensuring safety of the user. Certainly, the lawn mower may also include other operation modes such as mapping, which is not limited in this application. Generally, when the boundary is identified, a field of view of the visual sensor is inclined downward, so that the intelligent lawn mower can efficiently identify the boundary between grass and non-grass or a short obstacle, to prevent occurrence of an unsafe phenomenon such as going out of bounds. During the monitoring, the field of view of the visual sensor is generally parallel to or inclined upward from the ground, so as to efficiently monitor the vicinity of the lawn mower.

Considering that during the monitoring by using the intelligent lawn mower mounted with the visual sensor, if the field of view during identification of the boundary is used, the lawn mower is not be able to observe a distant object in advance, and a monitoring effect becomes poor. In this application, an intelligent lawn mower is provided. An image capturing module is mounted on the intelligent lawn mower, and is configured to capture image information near the intelligent lawn mower, and control movement and/or operation of the intelligent lawn mower according to the captured image information. The intelligent lawn mower includes at least two operation modes. When the intelligent lawn mower operates in the at least two operation modes, the image capturing module has at least two operation positions relative to the housing. Specifically, the lawn mower may include two operation modes: a mowing mode and a monitoring mode. Correspondingly, the image capturing module has a first operation position in the mowing mode, which is generally inclined downward from the ground. That is, an angle between a center line (or a central axis) of the field of view of the image capturing module and a vertical line ranges from <NUM> degrees to <NUM> degrees, which is shown by two dotted lines in <FIG>. The image capturing module has a second operation position in the monitoring mode, which is generally parallel to or inclined upward from the ground. That is, an angle between a center line (or the central axis) of the field of view of the visual sensor and the vertical line ranges from <NUM> degrees to <NUM> degrees. The lawn mower is adjusted to a corresponding operation position in different operation modes, and therefore has a better operation effect in different operation modes.

In an embodiment of this application, the intelligent lawn mower may further include an actuating mechanism, configured to be connected to the housing and the image capturing module. The control module is configured to control the actuating mechanism to drive the image capturing module to switch between the first operation position and the second operation position. That is, when the lawn mower switches the operation mode, the lawn mower is adjusted to the corresponding operation position through the actuating mechanism.

In an embodiment of this application, the actuating mechanism may include a lifting unit <NUM>. The control module is configured to control the lifting unit <NUM> to drive the image capturing module to ascend and/or descend from the first operation position to the second operation position, which may be realized through a lifting cylinder. As shown in the schematic diagram of the lawn mower in the mowing mode in <FIG>, when the lawn mower switches to the monitoring mode, a camera may be controlled to descend to the second operation position.

In another embodiment of this application, the actuating mechanism may further include a rotatable unit <NUM>. The control module controls the rotatable unit <NUM> to drive the image capturing module to rotate from the first operation position in a vertical direction by a preset angle to the second operation position, which may be realized by driving a rotary shaft by a motor <NUM>. When the lawn mower shown in <FIG> is switched to the monitoring mode shown in <FIG>, the rotatable unit <NUM> may be controlled to rotate upward by a preset angle in the vertical direction to reach the second operation position. When the lawn mower is in the mowing mode, the image capturing module is at a higher position relative to the housing, and an angle between the image capturing module and a horizontal plane is relatively small, which is convenient for the image capturing module to identify the boundary and the short obstacle as soon as possible. When the lawn mower is in the monitoring mode, the image capturing module is at a lower position relative to the housing, and an angle between the image capturing module and the horizontal plane is relatively large, which is convenient for the image capturing module to identify other target objects such as a person as soon as possible.

In an embodiment, as shown in <FIG>, the intelligent lawn mower may further include an accommodating cavity <NUM> arranged at a front end of the housing. The accommodating cavity is configured for the image capturing module to be mounted, the accommodating cavity has a set depth, and the image capturing module is partially or completely accommodated in the accommodating cavity. Further, a shielding cover is further arranged on the housing, and is configured to shield the accommodating cavity. When the lawn mower stops operating and moves in other operation modes that require no camera through satellite navigation, the camera may be received in the accommodating cavity manually through a button arranged on the housing or through remote control of a mobile phone, so that the camera can be protected and the service life of the camera can be prolonged.

In an embodiment of this application, the lawn mower may be switched between the mowing mode and the monitoring mode according to the received instruction from the user, a mowing schedule, and a monitoring schedule. Specifically, when the lawn mower is in the mowing mode, if a control instruction to switch to the monitoring mode sent by the user is received, the control module may control the lawn mower to switch to the monitoring mode, and vice versa. Alternatively, when a machine leaves a factory, the lawn mower may be set to be in the mowing mode from <NUM>:<NUM> a. to <NUM>:<NUM> p. on weekdays and to be in the monitoring mode from <NUM>:<NUM> p. to <NUM>:<NUM> p. on weekdays. If a current time is <NUM> a. on Thursday, the lawn mower is in the mowing mode. If the current time is <NUM> p. on Thursday, the lawn mower is in the monitoring mode.

In another embodiment of this application, the lawn mower is in the monitoring mode when the lawn mower returns to or at the charging station for charging. Specifically, when a low battery is detected during the mowing, the control module may control the lawn mower to switch from the mowing mode to the monitoring mode and to move to the charging station under guidance of GPS and a magnetic strip, and perform the monitoring during the charging. Alternatively, when a low battery is detected during the mowing, the control module may control the lawn mower to return to the charging station. During charging of the lawn mower after arriving at the charging station, the control module controls the lawn mower to switch to the monitoring mode. When the lawn mower is fully charged, the control module controls the lawn mower to enter the mowing mode again and to move from the charging station to the operation region where the mowing is performed to perform the mowing. The user may arrange the charging station at a position that is required to be monitored, such as near a door of a house, so that the lawn mower can be monitored at the charging station.

In one embodiment of this application, the intelligent lawn mower further includes a state switching mode. In the state switching mode, the control module controls the image capturing module to maintain an operation position before switching, and controls the lawn mower to move from a current position to the preset monitoring position and/or the preset monitoring region and/or the mowing region. When an initial state of the lawn mower is the mowing mode and is required to be switched to the monitoring mode, only when the lawn mower reaches the preset monitoring position and/or the preset monitoring region, the lawn mower is controlled to switch to the monitoring mode, and is controlled to perform the monitoring at the preset monitoring position and/or in the preset monitoring region. In this case, the cutting module stops the cutting. Before the lawn mower reaches the monitoring region, the image capturing module maintains the operation position before switching and identifies the boundary through the image capturing module, to prevent an unsafe event such as going out of bounds. When the initial state of the lawn mower is the monitoring mode and is required to switch to the mowing mode, the lawn mower is controlled to switch to the mowing mode and to perform the mowing in the mowing region when the lawn mower reaches the mowing region. In this embodiment of this application, when the lawn mower is switched to the monitoring mode, the visual sensor is adjusted to the second operation position with a higher field of view. However, when the lawn mower has the higher field of view, the lawn mower cannot normally identify the boundary, a small animal, and the short obstacle, which may cause harm to a pedestrian or the small animal during the moving. Therefore, the lawn mower may be controlled to switch the operation mode after receiving a switching instruction and moving to the corresponding operation region. For example, monitoring is continuously performed after the lawn mower reaches a preset monitoring position or a preset monitoring region, to ensure safety of the lawn mower itself and the small animal.

In another embodiment of this application, the lawn mower may also be immediately switched to the corresponding operation mode when receiving the switching instruction, and moves to the corresponding region in the operation mode. The initial state of the lawn mower is the mowing mode. The lawn mower is immediately switched to the monitoring mode when receiving the instruction to switch to the monitoring mode, the position of the visual sensor is adjusted to the second operation position, and the lawn mower is guided to the preset monitoring position in a navigation mode such as GPS. When the lawn mower reaches the preset monitoring position and/or the preset monitoring region, the monitoring is performed at the position or in the region.

In an operation scenario of the automatic operation system shown in <FIG>, except for the boundary <NUM>, a magnetic apparatus (for example a magnetic strip and an encoded magnetic strip) is arranged in the operation region by using a position A as a starting point and a position C as an end point. A visual beacon is set at or near the position A, and the visual sensor may identify the current position according to the collected beacon. Similarly, the visual beacon is also set at or near the position C. A line connecting A to C may also be a barcode (for example, a QR code), and the visual sensor determines the current position by identifying the QR code. Alternatively, a region may be laid by using the magnetic strip, so that the lawn mower can identify the QR code in the monitoring mode to complete path guidance in the region.

In this application scenario, the visual beacon arranged at the position A and the position C is used as an example. As shown in <FIG>, the lawn mower is in the mowing mode, and the visual sensor mounted on the lawn mower is at the first operation position (for example, an angle between a central axis of a field of view of a visual sensor and a vertical line is <NUM> degrees). When the lawn mower receives an instruction to switch to the monitoring mode, the control module controls the lawn mower to enter the state switching mode, maintains the lawn mower in the mowing mode that identifies the boundary, and stops moving and/or mowing. Beacons at the position A and the position C are stored in the lawn mower. In the monitoring mode, the lawn mower moves near the magnetic strip and determines the current position according to the identified visual beacon. When the lawn mower reaches the position A shown in <FIG>, the lawn mower is controlled to move along the magnetic strip to the position C shown in <FIG>. After the lawn mower reaches the position C, the control module controls the lawn mower to switch to the monitoring mode, and controls the visual sensor to rotate upward by a predetermined angle in the vertical direction to reach the second operation position (for example, the angle between the central axis of the field of view of the visual sensor and the vertical line is <NUM> degrees). The vicinity of the lawn mower is monitored at the position C. The cutting module always maintains the state of stopping cutting during the monitoring. On the contrary, when the lawn mower is in the monitoring mode, and when an instruction to switch to the mowing mode is received, the control module controls the lawn mower to stop moving and operating. The lawn mower is controlled to move along the magnetic strip from the position C to the position A, and after the lawn mower reaches the position A, the control module controls the visual sensor to rotate upward by the predetermined angle of <NUM> degrees in the vertical direction, and controls a mowing module to start mowing. That is, when the lawn mower is switched from the monitoring mode to the mowing mode, the lawn mower may perform the mowing only when the lawn mower reaches the operation region where the mowing can be performed. Through the above method, the lawn mower does not harm the pedestrian and the animal in the monitoring mode, so as to ensure the safety of the lawn mower. Further, the visual beacon may also be set at an intersection of the magnetic strip and the boundary, that is, at the position B. The lawn mower starts mowing when reaching the position B.

In an embodiment of this application, a distance detection module is mounted to the lawn mower and is configured to detect a distance between the user and the lawn mower when the lawn mower does not reach the corresponding operation position (such as the position A or the position C in the above embodiment) during the mode switching. Specifically, the distance detection module may be a communication module, and determines the distance between the user and the lawn mower depending on whether a signal is received or according to a strength of the received signal. The distance detection module may be a near field communication module, such as a Bluetooth module, an NFC module, and the like. When it is detected that the distance between the user and the lawn mower is less than or equal to a preset distance, an alarm may be sounded or a notification message related to safety reminders may be sent to the client. In this embodiment, the distance between the user and the lawn mower is controlled to ensure that the user is always near the lawn mower during the mode switching of the lawn mower, so as to ensure the safety of the lawn mower and the pedestrian and the animal nearby.

In another embodiment of this application, the lawn mower may also build a map of the entire operation region by using low-precision GPS, and capture the image information by using the image capturing module during the operation or moving of the lawn mower. The operation region includes three parts: an operation region where only the mowing mode is executed, an operation region where only the monitoring mode is executed, and an operation region where both the mowing mode and the monitoring mode can be executed. In an embodiment of this application, when the lawn mower is required to switch the operation mode, the lawn mower may be controlled to move to the corresponding operation region, and switch to the operation mode such as the mowing mode or the monitoring mode after reaching the corresponding operation region for the mowing or the monitoring, thereby ensuring the safety and efficient operation of the lawn mower.

<FIG> shows a three-dimensional view of an intelligent lawn mower <NUM> according to an embodiment of the present invention. The intelligent lawn mower <NUM> can move and operate within an operation region defined by a boundary, and includes: a housing <NUM>; a moving module <NUM>, configured to drive the intelligent lawn mower <NUM> to move; a cutting module <NUM>, configured to perform cutting of the intelligent lawn mower <NUM>; an energy module <NUM>, configured to provide energy for the intelligent lawn mower <NUM> for the intelligent lawn mower <NUM> to move and operate, where specifically, the energy module <NUM> includes a battery pack, and when the energy stored in the energy module <NUM> is insufficient, the intelligent lawn mower <NUM> can return to a docking station to be supplemented with energy, and leave the charging station after the charging is completed; and a control module <NUM>, electrically connected to the moving module <NUM> and the cutting module <NUM> and configured to control the movement and the operation of the intelligent lawn mower <NUM>, where specifically, the control module <NUM> can control the intelligent lawn mower <NUM> to perform different movement and operation strategies according to different scenarios. Specifically, the operation region of the intelligent lawn mower <NUM> is defined by the boundary. The common boundary includes a boundary line that generates a magnetic field in response to an applied current, a boundary label that can identify information, and a virtual boundary composed of a plurality of pieces of boundary positioning data. The intelligent lawn mower <NUM> includes various types of sensors corresponding to the operation region to identify various boundary types in different scenarios. For example, a magnetic sensor identifies a magnetic field region to determine the operation region, the visual sensor identifies a boundary pattern to determine the operation region, or current positioning information of the intelligent lawn mower is acquired and compared with the boundary position information to determine that the intelligent lawn mower is inside the operation region. The intelligent lawn mower <NUM> may plan a moving path according to preset moving logic when moving in the operation region, and continuously detect different information in the operation region during the moving to determine whether the moving path is required to be adjusted in time. For example, an avoidance measure is taken when the obstacle is encountered. Therefore, the intelligent lawn mower <NUM> is required to carry a plurality of sensors to adapt to a complex operation condition of the operation region. In this embodiment, the intelligent lawn mower <NUM> further includes a sensor installation compartment <NUM> arranged on the housing <NUM>. The sensor installation compartment may be configured for a sensor module <NUM> to be mounted, and the intelligent lawn mower <NUM> may match a plurality of different sensor modules <NUM> to realize different identification functions, which affects the movement and operation strategy of the intelligent lawn mower <NUM>. Specifically, the sensor module <NUM> may include the visual sensor configured to visually identify grass quality, a shadow region, and an obstacle in the operation region. The sensor module may include an ultrasonic sensor, configured to transmit an ultrasonic signal and receive an echo signal to determine whether the intelligent lawn mower <NUM> encounters the obstacle and perform an avoidance function when it is determined that the obstacle is encountered. The sensor module further includes other similar sensors configured to identify the operation region. These sensors can identify a specific operation condition in the operation region, and perform a corresponding action according to a processing logic preset by the intelligent lawn mower <NUM>. The sensor installation compartment <NUM> is configured to have a first operation position and a second operation position different from the first operation position.

Referring to <FIG> and <FIG>, <FIG> and <FIG> are schematic diagrams of the sensor installation compartment <NUM> at the first operation position and the second operation position according to an embodiment of the present invention. The intelligent lawn mower <NUM> includes the sensor installation compartment <NUM>, and the user may select a different sensor module <NUM> for the intelligent lawn mower <NUM> according to their own requirements and mount the sensor module in the sensor installation compartment <NUM>. Specifically, the sensor installation compartment <NUM> has an interface, through which the sensor module <NUM> is detachably mounted to the sensor installation compartment <NUM>. Specifically, the sensor module <NUM> may be electrically connected to the control module <NUM> of the intelligent lawn mower <NUM>, and detection information of the sensor module <NUM> is transmitted to the control module <NUM>, and the control module <NUM> processes and executes the corresponding control strategy. In this embodiment, the sensor module <NUM> is described with the visual sensor. It should be noted that, in other embodiments, various different types of sensor modules <NUM> may be mounted on the intelligent lawn mower <NUM> to satisfy diversified requirements of the intelligent lawn mower <NUM>. The visual sensor includes an image capturing unit, usually a camera, which can capture image information in the operation region, and process the image information and extract useful information to adjust the moving strategy, the cutting strategy, and the like of the intelligent lawn mower <NUM> according to the information. Specifically, in this embodiment, the intelligent lawn mower <NUM> includes a positioning module (not shown). The intelligent lawn mower <NUM> can acquire satellite positioning information through the positioning module, such as GPS, GNSS, a Beidou satellite, and the like. The intelligent lawn mower <NUM> determines the operation boundary of the intelligent lawn mower <NUM> through the positioning information, and the intelligent lawn mower <NUM> is controlled to move and operate within the operation region after the boundary is determined. In addition, the intelligent lawn mower <NUM> may determine an operation map of the operation region through the positioning module, for example, determine where an island region is located or where a poorly located shadow region is located, and the intelligent lawn mower <NUM> accordingly generates the map of the operation region and controls the movement and cutting strategy of the intelligent lawn mower <NUM>. Specifically, an operation condition in the operation region is required to be confirmed, and the map is built according to the operation condition, or the map is updated after the map is built. The visual sensor may be configured to identify environmental information in the operation region. For example, after a flower bed is identified, the flower bed is determined as a region that does not require operation, and a region having insufficient light is identified as a region with low cutting frequency. Such information is updated into the operation region map, which facilitates more accurate and more efficient cutting by the intelligent lawn mower <NUM>. Therefore, the visual sensor arranged for the intelligent lawn mower <NUM> can effectively improve an operation effect and use experience of the intelligent lawn mower <NUM>.

When the intelligent lawn mower <NUM> performs the operation in the operation region, the obstacle may exist in the operation region, such as a large rock, a small animal, and the like, and the intelligent lawn mower <NUM> is required to avoid these obstacles to perform the operation. Generally, the intelligent lawn mower <NUM> is equipped with a collision detection sensor, such as a Hall sensor, and executes the avoidance strategy when a collision is detected, so as to avoid affecting normal operation of the intelligent lawn mower <NUM> after encountering the obstacle. In some cases, the intelligent lawn mower <NUM> may be equipped with the visual sensor. The visual sensor detects an image in the operation region. It may be determined by processing these images whether the intelligent lawn mower <NUM> encounters the obstacle, and the avoidance strategy is executed after it is determined that the obstacle is encountered. The identification of the obstacle by the visual sensor is more accurate. Different obstacle avoidance strategies may be executed for different types of obstacles. Moreover, the identification of the obstacle by the visual sensor can realize non-contact obstacle avoidance, so that the intelligent lawn mower <NUM> can detect the obstacle as early as possible and execute the avoidance strategy. When the intelligent lawn mower <NUM> requires the visual sensor to assist mapping, the visual sensor identifies a condition of a surface of the operation region, so as to identify a preset scenario and cause the intelligent lawn mower <NUM> to perform a corresponding control action. When the intelligent lawn mower <NUM> requires the visual sensor to identify the obstacle in the operation region, the intelligent lawn mower <NUM> identifies whether an obstacle exists ahead in a direction of advance, so as to control execution of a corresponding avoidance behavior. Specifically, referring to <FIG>, when the visual sensor performs the identification of the surface of the operation region, the sensor installation compartment <NUM> is at the first operation position. Referring to <FIG>, when the visual sensor performs the identification in the direction of advance of the intelligent lawn mower <NUM>, the sensor installation compartment <NUM> is at the second operation position.

The sensor installation compartment <NUM> has a first operation position and a second operation position, and the first operation position and the second operation position have different heights. Specifically, during identification of the surface of the operation region, that is, when the intelligent lawn mower <NUM> identifies the condition of the surface of the operation region to assist the mapping, the visual sensor is at a lower position relative to the housing <NUM> is relatively low, so that the field of view of the visual sensor mainly covers the surface of the operation region. During identification of an object ahead in the direction of advance of the intelligent lawn mower <NUM>, the visual sensor is at a higher position relative to the housing <NUM>. The sensor installation compartment <NUM> is arranged to have the first operation position and the second operation position, so that the sensor module <NUM> mounted therein have different operation positions. A different position has a different field of view. Therefore, usage requirements in different scenarios can be satisfied, and a plurality of sets of sensor modules <NUM> are not required to be mounted simultaneously to satisfy the usage requirements for the different scenarios of the sensor modules. In this embodiment, when the sensor installation compartment <NUM> is at the first operation position, the sensor installation compartment <NUM> is at a lower position relative to the housing <NUM>, and the visual sensor mounted therein is configured to identify information on the surface of the operation region. When the sensor installation compartment <NUM> is at the second operation position, the sensor installation compartment <NUM> is at a higher position relative to the housing <NUM>, and the visual sensor mounted therein is configured to identify the object in the direction of advance of the intelligent lawn mower <NUM>.

In this embodiment, the sensor installation compartment <NUM> has a first operation position and a second operation position. An angle of rotation exists between the first operation position and the second operation position in a horizontal direction. Specifically, when the sensor module <NUM> is mounted in the sensor installation compartment <NUM>, for example, when the visual sensor is mounted therein, the sensor installation compartment <NUM> is arranged to be rotatable in the horizontal direction to have the first operation position and the second operation position, so that the visual sensor has a larger field of view.

The intelligent lawn mower <NUM> includes an adjustment unit <NUM>. The adjustment unit <NUM> is connected to the sensor installation compartment <NUM>. The position of the sensor installation compartment <NUM> is adjusted by the adjustment unit <NUM> so that the sensor installation compartment <NUM> is at the first operation position or the second operation position. Referring to <FIG>, specifically, the adjustment unit <NUM> includes a cam mechanism. The cam mechanism has a short-range axial surface and a long-range axial surface, and the cam mechanism rotates so that the short-range axial surface or the long-range axial surface contacts the sensor installation compartment <NUM>. When the short-range axial surface contacts the sensor installation compartment <NUM>, the sensor installation compartment <NUM> has the first operation position. In this case, the sensor installation compartment <NUM> is at a lower position relative to the housing <NUM>. When the long-range axial surface contacts the sensor installation compartment <NUM>, the sensor installation compartment <NUM> is at the second operation position. In this case, the sensor installation compartment <NUM> is at a higher position relative to the housing <NUM>. Specifically, the intelligent lawn mower <NUM> includes a manipulating element. The manipulating element is connected to the cam mechanism. The user may rotate the cam mechanism by operating the manipulating element, so as to adjust the position of the sensor installation compartment <NUM>. In other embodiments, the adjustment element includes an electric motor. When the operation position of the sensor installation compartment <NUM> is required to be changed, the control module <NUM> generates control information, and the electric motor rotates to adjust the position of the sensor installation compartment <NUM>.

Claim 1:
An automatic operation system, comprising an intelligent lawn mower (<NUM>,<NUM>), the intelligent lawn mower (<NUM>,<NUM>) comprising:
a housing (<NUM>,<NUM>);
a moving module (<NUM>,<NUM>), configured to drive the intelligent lawn mower (<NUM>,<NUM>) to move;
a cutting module (<NUM>), configured to perform cutting;
an energy module (<NUM>,<NUM>), configured to provide energy for the intelligent lawn mower;
an image capturing module (<NUM>), configured to capture image information near the intelligent lawn mower (<NUM>,<NUM>), and control movement and/or operation of the intelligent lawn mower according to the captured image information; and
a control module (<NUM>,<NUM>), electrically connected to the moving module (<NUM>,<NUM>), the cutting module (<NUM>), and the image capturing module (<NUM>) and configured to control the intelligent lawn mower (<NUM>,<NUM>) to move and/or operate within an operation region,
wherein the intelligent lawn mower (<NUM>,<NUM>) comprises a mowing operation mode and the image capturing module (<NUM>) has a first operation position corresponding to the mowing operation mode,
characterized in that the intelligent lawn mower (<NUM>,<NUM>) has a monitoring operation mode, and the image capturing module (<NUM>) has a second operation position corresponding to the monitoring operation mode,
wherein in the first operation mode the image capturing module (<NUM>) is generally inclined downwards with an angle between a central axis of the field of view of the image capturing module and a vertical line in a range from <NUM> degrees to <NUM> degrees, and
wherein in the second operation mode the image capturing module is disposed with the angle between the central axis of the field of view of the image capturing module and the vertical line in a range from <NUM> degrees to <NUM> degrees.