AU2016100448A4

AU2016100448A4 - Vacuum cleaning tool

Info

Publication number: AU2016100448A4
Application number: AU2016100448A
Authority: AU
Inventors: Keith Hill
Original assignee: AC Macao Commercial Offshore Ltd
Current assignee: AC Macao Commercial Offshore Ltd
Priority date: 2015-05-20
Filing date: 2016-04-22
Publication date: 2016-05-26
Anticipated expiration: 2024-04-22
Also published as: CN204722973U

Abstract

A vacuum cleaning tool for a vacuum cleaner, includes a brushroll driven by a turbine located in an air passage between an inlet and outlet. A two-part housing assembly 5 holding the brushroll and turbine comprising a lower housing in which the air inlet is formed and an upper housing. One of the upper and lower housings is formed of polymeric material and includes a pair of metallic threaded inserts, located in registration with a pair of fastener-receiving openings in the other of the housings, and fixed its respective housing by one of: moulding, press fitting, adhesive bonding and 10 welding. Figur 12 s7- - -8 -0 -------- Figutre2

Description

1 Vacuum cleaning tool Technical field The present invention relates to a vacuum cleaning tool for a vacuum cleaner with a rotary brushroll driven by an air turbine. 5 Background of the Invention The engineering of a vacuum cleaning tool requires trade-offs to be made in a number of areas. A goal of technologists working in this area might therefore be considered to be a quest for an optimum balance between the competing the requirements of manufacturing and assembly, ease of operation, safety, ease of 10 maintenance, durability and cost. For instance, a small, lightweight cleaning tool can be more readily manipulated by the user and may be made cost-effectively, but unless the right balance is found such a tool could suffer from durability or maintenance problems. For cleaning tools with a housing assembly formed by two or more parts, the connections between these housing parts are a challenging 15 engineering problem. It is therefore an object of the present invention to address the need for a more optimum balance between these competing requirements or, more generally, to provide an improved vacuum cleaning tool for a vacuum cleaner. Disclosure of the Invention According to one aspect of the present invention there is provided a vacuum 20 cleaning tool for a vacuum cleaner, comprising: a brushroll; 2 a turbine for driving the brushroll; a two-part housing assembly holding the brushroll and turbine and defining an air inlet adjacent the brushroll and an air outlet; the housing assembly comprising a lower housing in which the air inlet is formed and 5 an upper housing, wherein one of the upper and lower housings is formed of polymeric material and includes a pair of metallic threaded inserts located in registration with a pair of fastener-receiving openings in the other of the upper and lower housings, and a threaded fastener is engaged with a respective one of the metallic threaded inserts 10 to secure the upper and lower housings together, wherein each of the metallic thread inserts is fixed its respective housing by one of: moulding, press fitting, adhesive bonding and welding. It will be understood that in addition to the application of heat to soften or fuse the polymeric material, the welding may be performed ultrasonically and that the 15 threaded fastener may comprise a screw or a nut. Preferably the one of the upper and lower housings formed of polymeric material comprises the upper housing, and each metallic threaded insert has an internal screw thread for engaging an external screw thread of the threaded fastener. Preferably the air outlet is formed on the upper housing, the air outlet is tubular and 20 has an axis, and the housing assembly is generally bisected by a central plane in which the axis lies.

3 Preferably the tubular air outlet is disposed at a proximal end of the housing assembly, a brushroll chamber at a distal end of the housing assembly holds the brushroll and a turbine chamber in which the turbine is mounted connects the brushroll chamber and the tubular air outlet, the housing assembly having a width 5 transverse to the central plane that varies in a stepwise manner, with the turbine chamber being wider than the tubular outlet and the brushroll chamber wider than the turbine chamber. Preferably, near the distal end, one of the upper and lower housings comprises a pair of projections integrally formed therewith for receiving a pair of recesses 10 integrally formed with the other of the of the upper and lower housings, the projections and recesses cooperating with the fastener and metallic threaded inserts to secure the upper and lower housings together, and wherein the metallic threaded inserts are disposed near the turbine chamber. Preferably respective rotation axes of the brushroll and the turbine are parallel and 15 generally orthogonal to the central plane, the turbine and brushroll are coupled by a belt and one of the metallic threaded inserts of the pair and one projection of the pair of projections is disposed on either side of the central plane. Preferably the upper and lower housings comprise mutually engaged mating surfaces extending around the perimeter of each housing part, an inner axial end of 20 each metallic screw insert is mounted flush with the mating surface of the upper housing. Preferably a screw-threaded opening in each of the metallic threaded inserts is blind.

4 Preferably the upper and lower housings comprise mutually engaged mating surfaces extending around the perimeter of each housing part, wherein one of the mating surfaces comprises a rib received in a complementary groove in the other of the mating surfaces. 5 Preferably each insert-receiving aperture is formed in a cylindrical or frusto-conical stanchion portion integral with the respective housing and located between an inner wall of the turbine chamber and an outer wall of the upper housing, and wherein a web extends between the cylindrical or frusto-conical stanchion portion and the outer wall. 10 Preferably each metallic screw insert includes an elongate cylindrical body with a plurality of knurled external surfaces spaced apart lengthwise. Preferably the polymeric material of the upper housing is transparent. This invention provides a vacuum cleaning tool which is effective and efficient in operational use, offers reduces maintenance costs, and which may be economically 15 constructed due to overall simple design which minimizes manufacturing costs. Brief Description of the Drawings Preferred forms of the present invention will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein: 5 Figure 1 is a perspective view of a vacuum cleaning tool in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention; Figure 2 is an exploded view of the vacuum cleaning tool of Figure 1; Figure 3 is a perspective view of a lower housing of the vacuum cleaning tool of Figure 5 1; Figure 4 is a perspective view of an upper housing of the vacuum cleaning tool of Figure 1; Figure 5 is a sectional view of the vacuum cleaning tool of Figure 1 taken along an upright central plane, and 10 Figure 6 is a fragmentary traverse sectional view of the connection of the threaded inserts with the screw fasteners in the vacuum cleaning tool of Figure 1. Description of the Preferred Embodiments A vacuum cleaning tool 10 has a two-part housing assembly formed by an upper housing 12 and a lower housing 14 which are removably coupled with each other. 15 The housing assembly includes at a distal end an air inlet 16 formed in the lower housing 14, and at a proximal end an air outlet 18 formed in the upper housing 14. The upper and lower housings 12, 14 together define an air passageway through the assembly and comprising a brushroll chamber 61, and a turbine chamber 63 between the brushroll chamber 61 and the outlet 18. The air outlet 18 of the tool 12 20 may be tubular, with an axis 73. A central plane 65 in which the axis 73 lies, bisects the housing assembly. The width of the housing assembly, transverse to the upright central plane 65, varies in a stepwise manner, with a housing portion 20 bounding 6 the turbine chamber 63 being wider than the tubular outlet 18, and a housing portion 24 bounding the brushroll chamber 61 being wider than the housing portion 20. As shown in Figure 2, a brushroll 26 may have radially extending bristles 28, or like flexible fingers, and is mounted in the brushroll chamber 61 such that the bristles 28 5 project through the air inlet 16 to agitate a surface as the brushroll 26 is rotated. A turbine 30 mounted in the turbine chamber rotates about an axis substantially parallel with a long axis of the brushroll, and both axes are both generally orthogonal to the central plane 65. The brushroll 26 may be coupled with the turbine 30 by a belt 67. The upper housing 12 is made of polymeric material, preferably transparent 10 material allowing the user to view the brushroll 26 and turbine 30. A generally planar floor-engaging surface 71 in which the inlet 16 is formed, is inclined at an acute angle to the axis 73, as best seen in Fig. 5. The upper and lower housings 12, 14 of the housing assembly are removably coupled with one another by a pair of screw fasteners 32 and metallic threaded 15 inserts 34 that are arranged to receive the screw fasteners. The threaded inserts 34 each include an elongate cylindrical body that may include a blind screw-threaded opening in which the fastener 32 is threadingly engaged. Each threaded insert 34 may include three circumferential knurled external surfaces 36 that are axially spaced apart. The threaded inserts 34 may each be fixed in the upper housing 12 by 20 moulding i.e. the threaded inserts 34 are inserted into a mould, and the upper housing 12 is moulded around the inserts. Alternatively, an insert-receiving aperture may be formed in the upper housing 12 and the metallic thread inserts fixed in a respective insert-receiving aperture by press fitting, adhesive bonding or welding. Each threaded insert 34 may be surrounded by a cylindrical stanchion portion 75 25 integrally formed with the upper housing 12. The stanchion portions 75 are located 7 between an inner wall 60 of the turbine chamber portion and an outer wall 62 of the upper housing 12, and may be arranged either side of the central plane 65. The stanchion portions 75 may connected with the outer wall 62 of the upper housing 12 through at least one web 64. In this manner, as a result of the moulding the 5 polymeric material of the housing is bonded to the insert about its cylindrical external surface and at one axial end. The threaded inserts 34 thus fixed in the upper housing 12 are in registration with respective fastener-receiving openings 46 in the lower housing 14. The fastener receiving openings 46 in the lower housing 14 are through-extending openings, with 10 a shoulder against which a head of the fastener 32 can bear. The fastener-receiving openings 46 are likewise formed in stanchions cylindrical or frusto-conical nubs located between an inner wall 48 of the turbine chamber portion and an outer wall 50 of the lower housing 14. Mutually aligned recesses 38 and projections 40 are disposed on the upper and 15 lower housings 12, 14 respectively and integrally formed therewith. Owing to their alignment, the recesses 38 and projections 40 cooperate with the screws 32 and threaded inserts 34 for fixing the upper and lower housings together. As best seen in Fig. 4, the recesses 38 extend generally orthogonally to the nearby mating surface 68. In this manner, with the mating surfaces 68 mutually engaged, each projection 20 40 is received in a recess 38, thereby connecting the upper and lower housing parts. The recesses 38 and projections 40 are generally disposed symmetrically on either side of the central plane 65 adjacent a distal end of the housing assembly. As shown in Figure 3, the lower housing 14 includes, from the distal end to the proximal end, the inlet 16 formed adjacent the brushroll chamber portion, and a 8 turbine chamber portion adjacent the brushroll chamber portion. An arc shaped cut out 42 is formed at the proximal end for receiving the tubular outlet 18. The upper and lower housings comprise mutually engaged mating surfaces 68 extending generally around the perimeter of each housing part, and one of the mating surfaces 5 comprises a rib 56 received in a complementary groove 44 in the other of the mating surfaces so as to provide sealing to the housing assembly. As shown in Figure 6, when the upper and lower housings 12, 14 are assembled, the metallic threaded insert 34 may be moulded into the stanchion portion 75. The inner axial end of the metallic threaded insert 34 is mounted flush with the mating surface 10 68. The head of the screw fastener 32 abuts a wall portion 70 of the fastener receiving opening 46 of the lower housing 14, and the shank of the screw fastener 32 extends at least partly into the blind screw-threaded opening of the threaded insert 34 fixed in the stanchion portion of the upper housing 12. A person skilled in the art would readily appreciate that various modifications to the 15 tools are possible in other embodiments without departing from the spirit of the present invention. It is to be understood that, if any prior art publication is referred to herein, such reference does not constitute an admission that the publication forms a part of the common general knowledge in the art, in Australia or any other country. 20 In the claims which follow and in the preceding description of the invention, except where the context requires otherwise due to express language or necessary implication, the word "comprise" or variations such as "comprises' or "comprising" is used in an inclusive sense, i.e. to specify the presence of the stated features but not to preclude the presence or addition of further features in various embodiments of 9 the invention.

Claims

1. A vacuum cleaning tool for a vacuum cleaner, comprising: a brushroll; a turbine for driving the brushroll; 5 a two-part housing assembly holding the brushroll and turbine and defining an air inlet adjacent the brushroll and an air outlet; the housing assembly comprising a lower housing in which the air inlet is formed and an upper housing, wherein one of the upper and lower housings is formed of polymeric material and includes a pair of metallic threaded inserts 10 located in registration with a pair of fastener-receiving openings in the other of the upper and lower housings, and a threaded fastener is engaged with a respective one of the metallic threaded inserts to secure the upper and lower housings together, wherein each of the metallic thread inserts is fixed to its respective housing by one of: moulding, 15 press fitting, adhesive bonding and welding.

2. The vacuum cleaning tool of claim 1, wherein the one of the upper and lower housings formed of polymeric material comprises the upper housing, and each metallic threaded insert has an internal screw thread for engaging an external screw thread of the threaded fastener. 20

3. The vacuum cleaning tool of claim 1, wherein the air outlet is formed on the upper housing, the air outlet is tubular and has an axis, and the housing 11 assembly is generally bisected by a central plane in which the axis lies.

4. The vacuum cleaning tool of claim 3, wherein the tubular air outlet is disposed at a proximal end of the housing assembly, a brushroll chamber at a distal end of the housing assembly holds the brushroll and a turbine chamber in which the 5 turbine is mounted connects the brushroll chamber and the tubular air outlet, the housing assembly having a width transverse to the central plane that varies in a stepwise manner, with the turbine chamber being wider than the tubular outlet and the brushroll chamber wider than the turbine chamber.

5. The vacuum cleaning tool of claim 4, wherein near the distal end, one of the 10 upper and lower housings comprises a pair of projections integrally formed therewith for receiving a pair of recesses integrally formed with the other of the of the upper and lower housings, the projections and recesses cooperating with the fastener and metallic threaded inserts to secure the upper and lower housings together, and wherein the metallic threaded inserts are disposed near 15 the turbine chamber.

6. The vacuum cleaning tool of any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein respective rotation axes of the brushroll and the turbine are parallel and generally orthogonal to the central plane, the turbine and brushroll are coupled by a belt and one of the metallic threaded inserts of the pair and one projection of the 20 pair of projections is disposed on either side of the central plane.

7. The vacuum cleaning tool of any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the upper and lower housings comprise mutually engaged mating surfaces extending around the perimeter of each housing part, an inner axial end of each metallic screw insert is mounted flush with the mating surface of the upper housing. 12

8. The vacuum cleaning tool of any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein a screw threaded opening in each of the metallic threaded inserts is blind.

9. The vacuum cleaning tool of any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the upper and lower housings comprise mutually engaged mating surfaces extending around 5 the perimeter of each housing part, wherein one of the mating surfaces comprises a rib received in a complementary groove in the other of the mating surfaces.

10. The vacuum cleaning tool of claim 9, wherein each insert-receiving aperture is formed in a cylindrical or frusto-conical stanchion portion integral with the 10 respective housing and located between an inner wall of the turbine chamber and an outer wall of the upper housing, and wherein a web extends between the cylindrical or frusto-conical stanchion portion and the outer wall.

11. The vacuum cleaning tool of any one of claims 1-5, wherein each metallic screw insert includes an elongate cylindrical body with a plurality of knurled 15 external surfaces spaced apart lengthwise.

12. The vacuum cleaning tool of any one of claims 1-5, wherein the polymeric material of the upper housing is transparent.

13. A vacuum cleaning tool for a vacuum cleaner, comprising: a brushroll; 20 a turbine for driving the brushroll; a two-part housing assembly holding the brushroll and turbine and defining an air inlet adjacent the brushroll and an air outlet; 13 the housing assembly comprising a lower housing in which the air inlet is formed and an upper housing, wherein the upper housing is formed of polymeric material and includes a pair of metallic threaded inserts located in registration with a pair of fastener-receiving openings in the lower housing, and 5 a threaded fastener is engaged with a respective one of the metallic threaded inserts to secure the upper and lower housings together, wherein each of the metallic thread inserts is fixed to the upper housing by one of: moulding, press fitting, adhesive bonding and welding; wherein each metallic threaded insert has an internal screw thread for 10 engaging an external screw thread of the threaded fastener; and wherein the air outlet is formed on the upper housing, the air outlet is tubular and has an axis, and the housing assembly is generally bisected by a central plane in which the axis lies.

14. The vacuum cleaning tool of claim 13, wherein the tubular air outlet is disposed 15 at a proximal end of the housing assembly, a brushroll chamber at a distal end of the housing assembly holds the brushroll and a turbine chamber in which the turbine is mounted connects the brushroll chamber and the tubular air outlet; the housing assembly having a width transverse to the central plane that varies in a stepwise manner, with the turbine chamber being wider than 20 the tubular outlet and the brushroll chamber wider than the turbine chamber.

15. The vacuum cleaning tool of claim 14, wherein near the distal end, the lower housing comprises a pair of projections integrally formed therewith for receiving a pair of recesses integrally formed with the upper housing, the projections and 14 recesses cooperating with the fastener and metallic threaded inserts to secure the upper and lower housings together, and wherein the metallic threaded inserts are disposed near the turbine chamber.

16. The vacuum cleaning tool of claim 15, wherein the upper and lower housings 5 comprise mutually engaged mating surfaces extending around the perimeter of each housing part, wherein one of the mating surfaces comprises a rib received in a complementary groove in the other of the mating surfaces; and an inner axial end of each metallic screw insert is mounted flush with the mating surface of the upper housing. 10

17. The vacuum cleaning tool of claim 16, wherein each insert-receiving aperture is formed in a cylindrical or frusto-conical stanchion portion integral with the upper housing and located between an inner wall of the turbine chamber and an outer wall of the upper housing, and wherein a web extends between the cylindrical or frusto-conical stanchion portion and the outer wall. 15

18. The vacuum cleaning tool of any one of claims 13-17, wherein each metallic screw insert includes an elongate cylindrical body with a plurality of knurled external surfaces spaced apart lengthwise; and a screw-threaded opening in each of the metallic threaded inserts is blind.

19. The vacuum cleaning tool of any one of claims 13-17, wherein the polymeric 20 material of the upper housing is transparent.

20. The vacuum cleaning tool of any one of claims 13-17, wherein respective rotation axes of the brushroll and the turbine are parallel and generally orthogonal to the central plane; and the turbine and brushroll are coupled by a 15 belt.