Invensense, Inc.

Tony Lei

Daniela Hall

Joe Youssef

Stefon Shelton

Zhongyang Li

Ben Eovino

A robotic cleaning appliance includes a housing to which is coupled a surface treatment item and a sensor assembly with first and second transducers and an acoustic interface. The first sonic transducer transmits sonic signals through an acoustic interface and out of a first acoustic opening toward a surface beneath the robotic cleaning appliance. The sonic signals reflect from the surface as corresponding returned signals received by the second sonic transducer via a second acoustic opening port of the acoustic interface. A first plurality of annular rings is defined in the external surface around the first acoustic opening port and a second plurality of annular rings is defined in the external surface around the second acoustic opening port. The pluralities of annular rings attenuate direct path echoes from a subset of the transmitted sonic signals which attempt to travel across the external surface to the second acoustic opening port.

Ultrasonic direct echo path reduction

A robotic cleaning appliance includes a housing to which is coupled a surface treatment item and a sensor assembly with first and second transducers and an acoustic interface. The first sonic transducer transmits sonic signals through an acoustic interface and out of a first acoustic opening toward a surface beneath the robotic cleaning appliance. The sonic signals reflect from the surface as corresponding returned signals received by the second sonic transducer via a second acoustic opening port of the acoustic interface. A first annular ring is defined around the first acoustic opening port and a second annular rings is defined around the second acoustic opening port. The annular ring attenuate direct path echoes between the acoustic opening ports. The first and second acoustic opening ports are coupled the first and sonic transducers, respectively, via first and second horns; and the horns are tilted from orthogonal with the surface.

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San Francisco, CA, United States of America

Tony Lei