阅读说明：本技术 一种清洁机构及清洁机器人 (Cleaning mechanism and cleaning robot ) 是由 李振 陈召 陈博 刘国中 朱传绪 王生贵 杨玉杯 程昊天 于 2020-06-19 设计创作，主要内容包括：本发明公开了一种清洁机构及清洁机器人,其属于清洁技术领域,清洁机构包括刷盘组件、吸水扒组件和控制组件,在清洁路径的前进方向上所述刷盘组件位于所述吸水扒组件的前端,还包括顶升组件和缓冲组件；在所述刷盘组件处于抬升状态时,所述顶升组件随着抬升并向上顶升所述吸水扒组件,所述缓冲组件为所述吸水扒组件提供支撑力；在所述控制组件驱动所述刷盘组件沿所述前进方向的反方向向远离地面的一侧倾斜时,所述吸水扒组件下落,所述缓冲组件为所述吸水扒组件提供缓冲力。清洁机器人包括上述清洁机构。通过缓冲组件与顶升组件配合,借助刷盘组件的抬升,实现吸水扒组件抬升和下落,吸水扒组件的抬升和下落平稳,提高了吸水扒组件的灵活性。(The invention discloses a cleaning mechanism and a cleaning robot, and belongs to the technical field of cleaning, wherein the cleaning mechanism comprises a brush disc assembly, a water absorption rake assembly and a control assembly, wherein the brush disc assembly is positioned at the front end of the water absorption rake assembly in the advancing direction of a cleaning path, and the cleaning mechanism also comprises a jacking assembly and a buffer assembly; when the brush disc assembly is in a lifting state, the jacking assembly lifts and jacks the water absorption rake assembly upwards along with the lifting, and the buffer assembly provides supporting force for the water absorption rake assembly; when the control assembly drives the brush disc assembly to incline towards one side far away from the ground along the direction opposite to the advancing direction, the water absorption rake assembly falls down, and the buffer assembly provides buffer force for the water absorption rake assembly. The cleaning robot comprises the cleaning mechanism. Through the cooperation of the buffer assembly and the jacking assembly, the water absorption lifting and falling of the raking assembly are realized by means of the lifting of the brush disc assembly, the water absorption lifting and falling of the raking assembly are stable, and the flexibility of the water absorption raking assembly is improved.)

1. A cleaning mechanism comprises a brush disc component (2), a water absorption rake component (3) and a control component, wherein the brush disc component (2) is positioned at the front end of the water absorption rake component (3) in the advancing direction of a cleaning path, and the cleaning mechanism is characterized by further comprising a jacking component (4) and a buffer component (5);

when the brush disc assembly (2) is in a lifting state, the jacking assembly (4) lifts the water absorption rake assembly (3) upwards along with lifting, and the buffer assembly (5) provides supporting force for the water absorption rake assembly (3);

when the control component drives the brush disc component (2) to incline towards one side far away from the ground along the direction opposite to the advancing direction, the water absorption rake component (3) falls, and the buffer component (5) provides buffer force for the water absorption rake component (3).

2. The cleaning mechanism according to claim 1, wherein the water absorbing rake assembly (3) is in a falling state when the brush disc assembly (2) is lifted from an initial position to a first preset position;

when the brush disc assembly (2) continues to be lifted to a second preset position, the jacking assembly (4) jacks the water absorption raking assembly (3) upwards, and the buffer assembly (5) provides supporting force for the water absorption raking assembly (3);

when the brush disc assembly (2) rotates to a third preset position from a second preset position, the water absorption rake assembly (3) overcomes the supporting force of the buffer assembly (5) to fall under the action of self gravity, and the buffer assembly (5) provides buffer force for the water absorption rake assembly (3).

3. The cleaning mechanism according to claim 2, wherein when the brush disc assembly (2) is located at the second preset position, an included angle between a force-bearing direction of the jacking assembly (4) and a force-bearing direction of the water sucking and raking assembly (3) is an acute angle;

when the brush disc assembly (2) rotates to the third preset position from the second preset position, the included angle between the stress direction of the jacking assembly (4) and the stress direction of the water absorption raking assembly (3) is changed from an acute angle to an obtuse angle.

4. The cleaning mechanism according to claim 2, characterized in that the jacking assembly (4) and the buffer assembly (5) form a triangular structure with the brush disc assembly (2);

when the brush disc assembly (2) rotates to a third preset position from the second preset position, the edge where the buffer assembly (5) is located extends gradually.

5. The cleaning mechanism according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the jacking assembly (4) is arranged below a water absorption rake swing arm (31) of the water absorption rake assembly (3), one end of the jacking assembly (4) is rotatably connected with the first position of the brush disc assembly (2), and the other end of the jacking assembly can be abutted against the water absorption rake swing arm (31).

6. The cleaning mechanism according to claim 5, wherein the jacking assembly (4) comprises a jacking rod (41) and a roller (42), one end of the jacking rod (41) is rotatably connected with the brush disc assembly (2), the roller (42) is arranged at the other end of the jacking rod (41), and the roller (42) is rotatably connected with the jacking rod (41) and can be abutted against the water sucking rake swing arm (31).

7. The cleaning mechanism according to claim 6, wherein the buffer assembly (5) is arranged at the rear side of the jacking assembly (4), one end of the buffer assembly (5) is rotatably connected with the jacking assembly (4), and the other end of the buffer assembly is rotatably connected with the second position of the brush disc assembly (2).

8. The cleaning mechanism according to claim 7, wherein the buffer member (5) comprises a gas spring, one end of the gas spring is rotatably connected with the brush disc assembly (2), the other end of the gas spring is rotatably connected with the shaft of the push rod (41), and the gas spring is a stretching type gas spring.

9. The cleaning mechanism according to claim 8, wherein the ejector rod (41) and the gas spring form a triangular structure with the brush disc assembly (2).

10. A cleaning robot comprising the cleaning mechanism according to any one of claims 1 to 9.

Technical Field

The invention relates to the technical field of cleaning, in particular to a cleaning mechanism and a cleaning robot.

Background

With the development of automation technology and artificial intelligence, the demand of intelligent robots is more and more extensive. The cleaning robot can clean the ground and is suitable for various indoor and outdoor environments, such as roads, parks, hotels, stations and the like. The cleaning robot generally includes a brush plate for washing the ground and a water absorption rake provided at a rear side of the brush plate to recover garbage and sewage into a sewage tank by contacting the ground.

Disclosure of Invention

The invention aims to provide a cleaning mechanism and a cleaning robot, and aims to solve the technical problem that the lifting and descending processes of a water absorption rake in the prior art are not flexible.

As the conception, the technical scheme adopted by the invention is as follows:

a cleaning mechanism comprises a brush disc assembly, a water sucking raking assembly and a control assembly, wherein the brush disc assembly is positioned at the front end of the water sucking raking assembly in the advancing direction of a cleaning path, and the cleaning mechanism also comprises a jacking assembly and a buffer assembly;

when the brush disc assembly is in a lifting state, the jacking assembly lifts and jacks the water absorption rake assembly upwards along with the lifting, and the buffer assembly provides supporting force for the water absorption rake assembly;

when the control assembly drives the brush disc assembly to incline towards one side far away from the ground along the direction opposite to the advancing direction, the water absorption rake assembly falls down, and the buffer assembly provides buffer force for the water absorption rake assembly.

When the brush disc assembly is lifted from the initial position to a first preset position, the water absorption rake assembly is in a falling state;

when the brush disc assembly continues to be lifted to a second preset position, the jacking assembly jacks the water absorption rake assembly upwards, and the buffer assembly provides supporting force for the water absorption rake assembly;

when the brush disc assembly rotates from the second preset position to the third preset position, the water absorption rake assembly overcomes the supporting force of the buffer assembly to fall under the action of self gravity, and the buffer assembly provides buffer force for the water absorption rake assembly.

When the brush disc assembly is located at a second preset position, an included angle formed between the stress direction of the jacking assembly and the stress direction of the water absorption raking assembly is an acute angle;

when the brush disc assembly rotates to the third preset position from the second preset position, an included angle between the stress direction of the jacking assembly and the stress direction of the water absorption raking assembly changes from an acute angle to an obtuse angle.

The jacking assembly, the buffer assembly and the brush disc assembly form a triangular structure;

when the brush disc assembly rotates from the second preset position to the third preset position, the edge where the buffer assembly is located extends gradually.

The jacking assembly is arranged below the water absorption rake swing arm of the water absorption rake assembly, one end of the jacking assembly is rotatably connected with the first position of the brush disc assembly, and the other end of the jacking assembly can be abutted against the water absorption rake swing arm.

The jacking assembly comprises an ejector rod and a roller, one end of the ejector rod is rotatably connected with the brush disc assembly, the other end of the ejector rod is provided with the roller, and the roller is rotatably connected with the ejector rod and can be abutted to the water absorption rake swing arm.

The buffer assembly is arranged on the rear side of the jacking assembly, one end of the buffer assembly is rotatably connected with the jacking assembly, and the other end of the buffer assembly is rotatably connected with the second position of the brush disc assembly.

The buffer assembly comprises a gas spring, one end of the gas spring is rotatably connected with the brush disc assembly, the other end of the gas spring is rotatably connected with the rod body of the ejector rod, and the gas spring is a stretching gas spring.

The ejector rod, the gas spring and the brush disc assembly form a triangular structure.

A cleaning robot comprising a cleaning mechanism as described above.

The invention has the beneficial effects that:

according to the cleaning mechanism provided by the invention, the brush disc assembly is lifted, the jacking assembly is lifted along with the brush disc assembly, the water absorption rake assembly is jacked upwards, and the buffer assembly provides supporting force for the jacking assembly so that the brush disc assembly and the water absorption rake assembly are both kept in jacking states; along with the brush dish subassembly continues the lifting, the atress direction of jacking subassembly and the atress direction of picking up the subassembly with absorbing water change, and the subassembly is picked up to absorbing water overcomes the holding power whereabouts of buffering subassembly under the effect of self gravity, and the buffering subassembly provides the cushion force for picking up the subassembly with absorbing water. Through the cooperation of the buffer assembly and the jacking assembly, the water absorption lifting and falling of the raking assembly are realized by means of the lifting of the brush disc assembly, the buffer assembly can provide supporting force when the water absorption raking assembly is lifted and provide buffering force when the water absorption raking assembly falls, the water absorption raking assembly is stable in lifting and falling, and the water absorption raking assembly flexibility is improved.

Drawings

FIG. 1 is a schematic structural diagram of a cleaning mechanism provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a schematic view of a portion of the cleaning mechanism provided in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged view at A in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a schematic view of a cleaning mechanism provided by an embodiment of the present invention in an initial state;

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of the brush tray assembly in a preliminary lifting state and the water absorption rake assembly in a falling state according to the embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram of a brush plate assembly and a water absorption rake assembly both in a lifted state according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 7 is a schematic view of the brush tray assembly tilted backward and the wiper assembly in a falling state according to an embodiment of the present invention.

In the figure:

11. a drive assembly; 12. a traction member;

2. a brush tray assembly; 21. brushing a disc; 22. a brush tray support plate; 23. a brush disc swing arm; 24. the brush disc lifts the guide; 25. the brush disc lifts the guide post;

3. a water absorption rake assembly; 31. a water absorption rake swing arm; 32. a water absorption rake body;

4. a jacking assembly; 41. a top rod; 42. a roller;

5. a buffer assembly.

Detailed Description

Reference will now be made in detail to embodiments of the present invention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein like or similar reference numerals refer to the same or similar elements or elements having the same or similar function throughout. The embodiments described below with reference to the drawings are illustrative and intended to be illustrative of the invention and are not to be construed as limiting the invention.

In the description of the present invention, unless expressly stated or limited otherwise, the terms "connected," "connected," and "fixed" are to be construed broadly, e.g., as meaning permanently connected, removably connected, or integral to one another; can be mechanically or electrically connected; either directly or indirectly through intervening media, either internally or in any other relationship. The specific meanings of the above terms in the present invention can be understood in specific cases to those skilled in the art.

In the present invention, unless otherwise expressly stated or limited, "above" or "below" a first feature means that the first and second features are in direct contact, or that the first and second features are not in direct contact but are in contact with each other via another feature therebetween. Also, the first feature being "on," "above" and "over" the second feature includes the first feature being directly on and obliquely above the second feature, or merely indicating that the first feature is at a higher level than the second feature. A first feature being "under," "below," and "beneath" a second feature includes the first feature being directly under and obliquely below the second feature, or simply meaning that the first feature is at a lesser elevation than the second feature.

The technical scheme of the invention is further explained by the specific implementation mode in combination with the attached drawings.

Referring to fig. 1 to 3, an embodiment of the present invention provides a cleaning mechanism, including a brush disc assembly 2, a water absorption rake assembly 3 and a control assembly, wherein the brush disc assembly 2 is located at a front end of the water absorption rake assembly 3 in an advancing direction of a cleaning path, the brush disc assembly 2 is used for washing a ground, and the water absorption rake assembly 3 recovers garbage and sewage by contacting the ground.

The brush disc component 2 and the water absorption raking component 3 are rotatably connected with the frame. Specifically, the brush plate assembly 2 comprises a brush plate 21, a brush plate support plate 22 and a brush plate swing arm 23, wherein the brush plate 21 is connected with the brush plate support plate 22, one end of the brush plate swing arm 23 is rotatably connected with the frame, and the other end of the brush plate swing arm is rotatably connected with the brush plate support plate 22. When the floor is washed, the brush disc 21 is in contact with the ground, when the brush disc assembly 2 is lifted, the brush disc swing arm 23 rotates relative to the frame, the brush disc support plate 22 is used for supporting the brush disc 21, and the number of the brush discs 21 can be set according to actual requirements.

The brush disc assembly 2 further comprises a brush disc lifting guide 24 and a brush disc lifting guide pillar 25, the brush disc lifting guide 24 is connected with the brush disc supporting plate 22, a guide groove is formed in the brush disc lifting guide 24, one end of the brush disc lifting guide pillar 25 is fixedly connected with the rack, and the other end of the brush disc lifting guide pillar is located in the guide groove.

The guide slot is the arc, and when lifting brush dish subassembly 2, brush dish backup pad 22 is lifted, has two actions, and one is that it rotates around brush dish swing arm 23, and its second is the relative slip of guide slot and brush dish lifting guide pillar 25, and brush dish backup pad 22 moves along the orbit that the guide slot was injectd, and brush dish lifting guide 24 removes along brush dish backup pad 22 for brush dish lifting guide pillar 25 and the relative slip of guide slot production between.

The water absorption rake assembly 3 comprises a water absorption rake swing arm 31 and a water absorption rake body 32, one end of the water absorption rake swing arm 31 is rotatably connected with the rack, the other end of the water absorption rake swing arm 31 is connected with the water absorption rake body 32, and the water absorption rake body 32 is located on the rear side of the brush disc 21. The front side of the brush disc 21 is provided with a forward wheel at the bottom of the frame.

The cleaning mechanism further comprises a driving assembly 11, a traction piece 12, a jacking assembly 4 and a buffer assembly 5, the driving assembly 11 is arranged on the rack, one end of the traction piece 12 is connected with the output end of the driving assembly 11, the other end of the traction piece 12 is connected with the brush disc assembly 2, and the driving assembly 11 can drive the brush disc assembly 2 to be lifted through the traction piece 12; the jacking assembly 4 is arranged below the water absorbing rake swing arm 31 of the water absorbing rake assembly 3, one end of the jacking assembly 4 is rotatably connected with the first position of the brush disc assembly 2, and the other end of the jacking assembly 4 can be abutted against the water absorbing rake swing arm 31; the buffer component 5 is arranged at the rear side of the jacking component 4, one end of the buffer component 5 is rotatably connected with the jacking component 4, and the other end of the buffer component 5 is rotatably connected with the second position of the brush disc component 2; along with the lifting of the brush disc component 2, the stress direction of the jacking component 4 and the stress direction of the water absorption rake swing arm 31 are changed, and the buffer component 5 is configured to provide supporting force when the water absorption rake component 3 is lifted and provide buffer force when the water absorption rake component 3 falls.

The control component controls the driving component 11 to drive the traction component 12 to move so as to drive the brush disc component 2 to lift. When the brush disc assembly 2 is in a lifting state, the jacking assembly 4 lifts and jacks the water absorption raking assembly 3 upwards along with the lifting, and the buffer assembly 5 provides supporting force for the water absorption raking assembly 3; when the control component drives the brush disc component 2 to incline towards one side far away from the ground along the opposite direction of the advancing direction, the water absorption rake component 3 falls, and the buffer component 5 provides buffer force for the water absorption rake component 3.

Through the cooperation of buffer unit 5 and jacking subassembly 4, with the help of the lifting of brush dish subassembly 2, realize absorbing water and take off the lifting and the whereabouts of subassembly 3, buffer unit 5 can provide the holding power when taking off swing arm 31 lifting for absorbing water and provide the cushion power when taking off swing arm 31 whereabouts absorbing water, and the lifting and the whereabouts of subassembly 3 are taken off in absorbing water are steady, have improved the flexibility of taking off subassembly 3 that absorbs water. Only one set of driving assembly 11 is matched with the traction piece 12, the brush disc assembly 2 and the water absorption raking assembly 3 can be independently in a lifting state or simultaneously in a lifting state, the number of parts is reduced, and the layout of the traction piece 12 is simplified.

Specifically, the jacking assembly 4 and the buffer assembly 5 are both connected with a brush disc supporting plate 22, a hanging ring is arranged on the brush disc supporting plate 22, and the traction piece 12 is connected with the hanging ring.

The jacking assembly 4 comprises a jacking rod 41 and a roller 42, one end of the jacking rod 41 is rotatably connected with the brush disc assembly 2, the other end of the jacking rod 41 is provided with the roller 42, and the roller 42 is rotatably connected with the jacking rod 41 and can be abutted against the water sucking raking swing arm 31. When the brush plate assembly 2 is lifted, the roller 42 will abut against the water sucking swing arm 31, and when the brush plate assembly 2 is lifted, the ejector rod 41 will rotate relative to the brush plate assembly 2.

Specifically, a mounting seat is arranged on the brush tray supporting plate 22, and one end of the ejector rod 41 is rotatably connected with the mounting seat. The top rod 41 may be a straight rod or a bent rod, and is not limited herein.

The buffer component 5 comprises a gas spring, one end of the gas spring is rotatably connected with the brush disc component 2, the other end of the gas spring is rotatably connected with the rod body of the ejector rod 41, and the gas spring is a stretching gas spring. During rotation of the carrier rod 41 relative to the brush disc assembly 2, the spring exerts a pulling force on the carrier rod 41.

Alternatively, the damping assembly 5 may be another telescopic rod with adjustable stroke, which is not limited herein.

The ejector rod 41 and the air spring form a triangular structure with the brush disc component 2. During the lifting of the brush tray assembly 2, the ejector rod 41 rotates relative to the brush tray assembly 2, and the side of the triangle where the gas spring is located is gradually extended.

The driving assembly 11 may be a push rod motor and the pulling member 12 may be a pull cord.

In the working state, as shown in fig. 4, the push rod motor is completely extended, the pull rope is completely unloaded at the moment, the brush disc assembly 2 and the water absorption rake assembly 3 are both in the falling state, and the brush disc 21 and the water absorption rake body 32 are in contact with the ground and work normally.

In the state of ending the work, as shown in fig. 5, the push rod motor retracts to the first stroke, the brush disc 21 leaves the ground to the first height (vertically lifted by about 1-2 cm), and the water absorption rake assembly 3 is not lifted, so as to continuously absorb the sewage on the ground.

In the working end state, as shown in fig. 6, the push rod motor continues to retract to the second stroke, the brush disc 21 continues to be lifted upwards to the second height, at this time, the push rod 41 jacks up the water absorption rake swing arm 31, so that the water absorption rake assembly 3 is lifted, and the water absorption rake body 32 leaves the ground.

In the maintenance state, as shown in fig. 7, the push rod motor continues to retract until the third stroke (complete retraction), the bottom surface of the brush disc 21 rotates parallel to the ground to incline to a certain angle (e.g. 30 degrees, the inclination is convenient for replacing the brush disc 21 and maintenance) towards the direction of the water-absorbing rake body 32, the water-absorbing rake assembly 3 falls under the action of self gravity against the supporting force of the gas spring, and the gas spring provides a buffering force for the water-absorbing rake assembly 3. The suction paddle assembly 3 is dropped to provide a larger operating space at the brush plate 21.

In the process from the working to the working end state, the position of the contact point of the guide groove and the brush disc 21 for lifting the guide column gradually moves downwards from the upper end of the guide groove, and in the working end state, the contact point is a certain distance away from the lowest end of the guide groove, and at the moment, the brush disc swing arm 23 is stopped and cannot continuously rise; if the maintenance state needs to be entered, the push rod motor is completely retracted, the pull rope continues to pull, so that the brush disc supporting plate 22 rotates around the brush disc swing arm 23 and moves upwards, the contact point of the guide groove and the brush disc lifting guide post 25 reaches the bottommost part of the guide groove, and the brush disc 21 rotates, namely, the brush disc rotates from the horizontal direction to the direction inclined towards the water absorption rake assembly 3.

The specific lifting process of the cleaning mechanism is as follows:

when the brush disc component 2 is lifted from the initial position to the first preset position, the water absorption rake component 3 is in a falling state.

When the brush disc assembly 2 continues to be lifted to the second preset position, in the process, the jacking assembly 4 jacks upwards along with the brush disc assembly 2 to lift the water absorbing rake swing arm 31, the buffer assembly 5 provides supporting force for the water absorbing rake swing arm 31, and the brush disc assembly 2 and the water absorbing rake assembly 3 are both in a lifting state.

When the brush disc component 2 rotates from the second preset position to the third preset position, in the process, the stress direction of the jacking component 4 and the stress direction of the water absorption rake swing arm 31 are changed, the water absorption rake component 3 overcomes the supporting force of the buffer component 5 to fall under the action of self gravity, the buffer component 5 provides buffer force for the water absorption rake swing arm 31, and at the moment, the brush disc component 2 inclines backwards, and the water absorption rake component 3 is in a falling state.

When the brush disc component 2 is located at the third preset position, the water absorption rake component 3 can be maintained after falling down. Through the cooperation of buffer unit 5 and jacking subassembly 4, with the help of drive assembly 11 and the traction piece 12 of being connected with brush dish subassembly 2, it can be in the lifting state alone to realize brush dish subassembly 2 and absorb water and take off subassembly 3, also can be in the lifting state simultaneously, buffer unit 5 can provide the holding power when taking off swing arm 31 lifting for absorbing water and take off swing arm 31 and provide the cushion power when falling in absorbing water, the lifting and the whereabouts of taking off subassembly 3 absorb water are steady, the flexibility of taking off subassembly 3 in absorbing water has been improved.

When the brush disc assembly 2 is located at the second preset position, an included angle between the stress direction of the jacking assembly 4 and the stress direction of the water absorption raking assembly 3 is an acute angle; when the brush disc component 2 rotates from the second preset position to the third preset position, the included angle between the stress direction of the jacking component 4 and the stress direction of the water absorption raking component 3 changes from an acute angle to an obtuse angle, so that the water absorption raking component 3 can overcome the supporting force of the buffer component 5 under the action of self gravity.

The jacking component 4, the buffer component 5 and the brush disc component 2 form a triangular structure; when the brush disc assembly 2 rotates to the third preset position from the second preset position, the edge where the buffering assembly 5 is located extends gradually, and the water absorbing rake swing arm 31 presses the jacking assembly 4 downwards to further stretch the buffering assembly 5 as the water absorbing rake assembly 3 falls under the action of gravity, so that the buffering assembly 5 provides buffering in the falling process of the water absorbing rake assembly 3.

When the brush disc assembly 2 rotates from the second preset position to the third preset position, the included angle between the jacking assembly 4 and the brush disc assembly 2 is gradually reduced. In the rotation process of the brush disc assembly 2, the included angle between the stress direction of the jacking assembly 4 and the stress direction of the water sucking and raking swing arm 31 is gradually increased, so that the water sucking and raking swing arm 31 presses down the jacking assembly 4, the jacking assembly 4 is gradually close to the brush disc assembly 2, and the included angle between the jacking assembly 4 and the brush disc assembly 2 is gradually reduced.

The embodiment of the invention also provides a cleaning robot which comprises the cleaning mechanism.

The foregoing embodiments are merely illustrative of the principles and features of this invention, which is not limited to the above-described embodiments, but rather is susceptible to various changes and modifications without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention, which changes and modifications are within the scope of the invention as claimed. The scope of the invention is defined by the appended claims and equivalents thereof.