Cleaning device including vacuum cleaner and docking station and control method thereof

Abstract

A cleaning device is provided. The cleaning device includes a vacuum cleaner which includes a dust collecting bin and a docking station to which the vacuum cleaner is coupled, wherein the docking station includes a charger configured to be electrically connected to a charging terminal of the vacuum cleaner in response to the vacuum cleaner being coupled to the docking station, a door driver configured to open or close a dust collecting bin door disposed at a lower portion of the dust collecting bin, a suction device configured to move air from the dust collecting bin into the docking station, a collector configured to collect foreign matter that moves together with the air due to driving the suction device, and a controller configured to control the door driver to open the dust collecting bin door in response to the charging terminal of the vacuum cleaner being electrically connected to the charger, configured to control the suction device to supply a suctioning air flow to the dust collecting bin and perform a discharge operation in response to the dust collecting bin door being opened, and configured to control the door driver to close the dust collecting bin door in response to an end of the discharge operation.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A cleaning device comprising:
 a vacuum cleaner including:
 a dust collecting bin, 
 a battery configured to provide the vacuum cleaner with a driving force, and 
 a first charging terminal; and 
   a docking station including:
 a seating portion configured to allow the dust collecting bin to be docked to the docking station, 
 a second charging terminal configured to connect to the first charging terminal of the vacuum cleaner when the dust collecting bin is docked to the seating portion, 
 a charger configured to charge the battery of the vacuum cleaner based on the second charging terminal being connected to the first charging terminal of the vacuum cleaner when the dust collecting bin is docked to the seating portion, 
 a suction device configured to generate a suctioning air flow to move foreign matter from the dust collecting bin to the docking station, 
 a collector configured to collect the foreign matter moved by the suctioning air flow based on the generated suctioning air flow, and 
 a controller configured to control the suction device to generate the suctioning air flow moving from the dust collecting bin into the collector and control the charger to charge the battery, based on the first charging terminal of the vacuum cleaner being connected to the second charging terminal and the charger of the docking station. 
   
     
     
         2 . The cleaning device of  claim 1 , wherein the docking station further includes a position sensor configured to detect whether the dust collecting bin is connected. 
     
     
         3 . The cleaning device of  claim 2 , wherein the position sensor is disposed inside the seating portion. 
     
     
         4 . The cleaning device of  claim 1 ,
 wherein the vacuum cleaner further includes a main body, and   wherein the battery is separably mounted on the main body.   
     
     
         5 . The cleaning device of  claim 1 ,
 wherein the docking station further includes a main body and a docking housing, and   wherein the docking housing includes the seating portion.   
     
     
         6 . The cleaning device of  claim 5 ,
 wherein the charger includes the second charging terminal, and   wherein the second charging terminal is configured to come into contact with the first charging terminal of the vacuum cleaner when the vacuum cleaner is coupled to the docking station.   
     
     
         7 . The cleaning device of  claim 6 , wherein the second charging terminal of the docking station is provided at one side of the docking housing. 
     
     
         8 . The cleaning device of  claim 1 , wherein the controller is further configured to:
 control the suction device to periodically change a suction force while performing a discharge operation.   
     
     
         9 . The cleaning device of  claim 8 , wherein the controller is further configured to:
 control the suction device to periodically repeat being turned on and off.   
     
     
         10 . The cleaning device of  claim 8 , wherein the controller is further configured to:
 control the suction device to periodically change a rotation speed.   
     
     
         11 . The cleaning device of  claim 1 ,
 wherein the docking station further includes a communication interface, and   wherein the controller is further configured to:
 control the communication interface to transmit, to the vacuum cleaner, a control command for a cleaner suction device of the vacuum cleaner to operate while a discharge operation is performed. 
   
     
     
         12 . The cleaning device of  claim 11 , wherein the controller is further configured to:
 control the communication interface to transmit, to the vacuum cleaner, a control command for the cleaner suction device to operate in response to a predetermined amount of time elapsing from a start of the discharge operation.   
     
     
         13 . The cleaning device of  claim 11 , wherein the controller is further configured to:
 control the communication interface to transmit, to the vacuum cleaner, a control command for the cleaner suction device to continuously operate for a predetermined amount of time before an end of the discharge operation.   
     
     
         14 . The cleaning device of  claim 11 , wherein the controller is further configured to:
 control the suction device to continuously operate while performing the discharge operation, and   control the communication interface to transmit, to the vacuum cleaner, a control command for a suction force of the cleaner suction device to be periodically changed while the suction device continuously operates.   
     
     
         15 . The cleaning device of  claim 11 , wherein the controller is further configured to:
 control the suction device to periodically change a suction force while performing the discharge operation, and   control the communication interface to transmit, to the vacuum cleaner, a control command for the cleaner suction device to continuously operate while the suction device periodically changes the suction force.   
     
     
         16 . The cleaning device of  claim 1 ,
 wherein the charger includes the second charging terminal,   wherein the second charging terminal is provided at one side of a docking housing of the docking station, and   wherein the seating portion is provided at the one side of the docking housing.   
     
     
         17 . The cleaning device of  claim 1 ,
 wherein the vacuum cleaner further includes a main body,   wherein the battery is disposed at a top region of the main body, and   wherein the dust collecting bin and the first charging terminal are disposed on the main body in a region below the battery.   
     
     
         18 . The cleaning device of  claim 1 ,
 wherein the docking station further includes a main body,   wherein the seating portion and charger are disposed at a top region of the main body,   wherein the suction device is disposed at a bottom region of the main body, and   wherein the collector is disposed in a middle region of the main body between the top region and the bottom region.   
     
     
         19 . The cleaning device of  claim 1 , wherein the docking station supplies power from the charger through second charging terminal and the first charging terminal to charge the battery of the vacuum cleaner.