AU2018101025A4

AU2018101025A4 - A Carpet Iron

Info

Publication number: AU2018101025A4
Application number: AU2018101025A
Authority: AU
Inventors: Kane Archie Scott
Original assignee: Cordless Carpet Tools Pty Ltd
Current assignee: Cordless Carpet Tools Pty Ltd
Priority date: 2017-12-23
Filing date: 2018-07-24
Publication date: 2018-08-23
Anticipated expiration: 2026-07-24
Also published as: CN210194279U

Abstract

A carpet iron includes a support structure. An elongate baseplate of a thermally conductive material is mounted on the support structure. The baseplate has opposite ends and opposite sides, the opposite ends defining leading and trailing ends as the carpet iron is moved to and fro during normal operation. At least two heating circuits are arranged on the baseplate and are configured to heat at least two respective zones terminating at respective said ends. Each heating circuit includes at least one heating element. A temperature sensor is operatively arranged with respect to the baseplate to sense a temperature of the zone of the heating circuit. A controller is operatively connected to the at least one heating element and the temperature sensor to control operation of the at least one heating element upon signals received from the temperature sensor. A processor is connected to the controllers to control operation of the controllers. A rechargeable power supply is provided for supplying power to the, or each, heating element. m r-4 bfl 00 i 00 r14 r-4 r*4 r-4 (N 0 (N4 m

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION [0001] Various embodiments of a carpet iron are described herein.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [0002] According to one aspect of the invention, there is provided a carpet iron that includes:

a support structure;

an elongate baseplate of a thermally conductive material mounted on the support structure, the baseplate having opposite ends and opposite sides, the opposite ends defining leading and trailing ends as the carpet iron is moved to and fro during normal operation;

at least two heating circuits arranged on the baseplate and configured to heat at least two respective zones terminating at respective said ends, each heating circuit including at least one heating element;

a temperature sensor operatively arranged with respect to the baseplate to sense a temperature of the zone of the heating circuit; and a controller operatively connected to the at least one heating element and the temperature sensor to control operation of the at least one heating element upon signals received from the temperature sensor; a processor that is connected to the controllers to control operation of the controllers; and a rechargeable power supply for supplying power to the, or each, heating element.

[0003] The temperature sensors may be thermistors.

[0004] Each heating element may include several power resistors.

[0005] The carpet iron may include an accelerometer that is operatively connected to the processor and is configured to generate a signal upon movement of the carpet iron and to communicate that signal to the processor, the processor being configured to interpret the signal to determine a speed and a direction of the carpet iron.

2018101025 24 Jul 2018 [0006] The processor may be configured to control operation of the controllers such that the heating element of that zone that leads the, or each other, zone is supplied with more power than the remaining heating elements.

[0007] The processor may be configured to control operation of the controllers such that a power supply to the heating elements can be adjusted according to a speed of movement of the carpet iron.

[0008] The support structure may include a housing containing the, or each, controller and the processor. The housing may include a central portion that extends generally orthogonally with respect to the baseplate, and two opposed handles mounted on the central portion and configured so that an operator can grasp either one of the handles.

[0009] The rechargeable power supply may be a rechargeable battery that is detachably mounted on the housing.

[0010] The carpet iron may include at least one laser pointer mounted on the support structure and oriented to direct a laser beam in a direction that corresponds substantially to a direction of movement during said normal operation of the carpet iron.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS [0011] Figure 1 shows a side view of an embodiment of a carpet iron, in accordance with the invention.

[0012] Figure 2 shows a side view of another embodiment of a carpet iron, in accordance with the invention.

[0013] Figure 3 shows a three-dimensional view of the carpet iron of figure 1.

[0014] Figure 4 shows an end view of the carpet iron of figure 1.

[0015] Figure 5 shows an underneath plan view of the carpet iron of figure 1.

[0016] Figure 6 shows a schematic layout of heating zones for a baseplate of the carpet iron of figure 1 or 2.

[0017] Figure 7 shows an arrangement of power resistors on an internal surface of the baseplate.

[0018] Figure 8 shows one example of heating circuitry of the carpet iron.

2018101025 24 Jul 2018 [0019] Figure 9 shows another example of heating circuitry of the carpet iron.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION [0020] In figure 1, reference numeral 100 generally indicates one example of a carpet iron.

[0021] The carpet iron 100 includes a support structure having a housing 12. A base plate 102 is mounted on the support structure and has opposite ends 16 and opposite sides 18. In use, the carpet iron 10 is moved back and forth along a line extending between the ends 16. The base plate 102 is of a thermally conductive material, such as metal, that can be heated electrically. Thus, the base plate 102 can be of a metal that is conventionally used for carpet irons.

[0022] The base plate 102 is flat. However, as with the embodiment shown in figure 2, the end 16 can terminate operatively upwardly curved portions of the baseplate 102 to prevent snagging.

[0023] The housing 12 includes a base portion 20 that covers an inner surface of the base plate 102. A central portion 22 of the housing 12 extends from the base portion 20. Two elongate handles 24 are mounted on the central portion 22 and extend from the central portion 22 in opposite directions and generally parallel to said line extending between the ends 16. Thus, manipulation of the carpet iron 10 from either end of the carpet iron 10 is facilitated.

[0024] A power switch 26 is mounted on each handle 24 at an intersection between each handle 24 and the central portion 22.

[0025] A rechargeable power supply in the form of a rechargeable battery 28 is detachably mounted on the central portion 22. A display 30 is mounted in the housing 12 so that an operator can determine operating characteristics of the carpet iron 10.

[0026] A laser pointer 32 is mounted on an end of each handle 24 so that a laser beam emitted by the pointer 32 extends generally parallel to said line extending between the ends 16.

[0027] In figure 2, reference numeral 40 generally indicates another embodiment of a carpet iron. With reference to the preceding drawings, like numerals refer to like parts, unless otherwise specified. The use of common reference numerals is for convenience only and does not imply that the components commonly indicated are

2018101025 24 Jul 2018 essential. Furthermore, where practical, the components of the embodiments described herein can be interchanged.

[0028] A base plate 14 is mounted on the support structure. The ends 16 of the base plate 14 terminate operatively upwardly curved end portions of the base plate 14. This facilitates movement of the carpet iron 10 without snagging on a carpet.

[0029] The housing 12 of the carpet iron 40 includes support portions 42 that extend between the base portion 20 and respective ends of the handles 24 to provide extra support for the handles 24.

[0030] The base plate 102 of the carpet iron 100 defines a series of longitudinally extending ridges 104.

[0031] As shown in figure 5, the ridges 104 are divided into four regions 106, in the form of two end regions 106.1 and two intermediate regions 106.2 with three transversely extending channels 108 through the ridges 104, which demarcate the regions 106. Each of the regions 106 corresponds with associated heating zones that are described below.

[0032] Figure 6 shows a general layout of heating zones 50 on the base plate 14, 102. The base plate 14, 102 includes four heating zones, in the form of two end zones 50.1 terminating at respective ends 16 and two intermediate zones 50.2. The zones 50 are positioned side-by-side and extend between the ends 16.

[0033] The carpet iron 40, 100 includes four heating circuits, one for each zone 50, each heating circuit being independently operable relative to the other heating circuits.

[0034] Each heating circuit includes a number of heating elements and a temperature sensor. In this example, each heating circuit includes eight power resistors 52 and a thermistor 54.

[0035] Figure 7 shows a possible arrangement of the power resistors 52.

[0036] In figure 8, reference numeral 60 generally indicates an example of heating and control circuitry for the carpet iron 40, 100. With reference to the preceding drawings, like reference numerals refer to like parts, unless otherwise specified. In this example, a heating element 62 is mounted in each zone 50 to heat that zone when energised. A heat sensor in the form of a thermistor 64 is also

2018101025 24 Jul 2018 mounted in each zone 50 to generate a signal relating to a temperature of the zone 52.

[0037] The circuitry 60 includes four zone controllers 66 associated with respective zones 50. Each zone controller 66 is connected to a heating element 62 and a thermistor 64 of the associated zone 50. Each zone controller 66 is configured to energise the associated heating element 62 and to receive the signal relating to the temperature of the zone 50.

[0038] The circuitry 60 includes a processor 68 for setting the temperature of each zone 50. The processor 68 can be configured to control the heating elements 62, via the controllers 66, in various ways. For example, the processor 68 can be configured to control the heating elements 62 so that each zone 50 is heated independently. Thus, the end zones 50.1 can be heated more than the intermediate zones 50.2.

[0039] The processor 68 is connected to the controllers 66 to communicate with the controllers 66 using a PWM signal.

[0040] The rechargeable battery 28 is connected to the controllers 66 via an on/off switch 70. The switch 70 may be connected to, or be, the power switches 26.

[0041] In figure 9, reference numeral 80 generally indicates an example of heating and control circuitry for the carpet iron 40, 100. With reference to the preceding drawings, like reference numerals refer to like parts, unless otherwise specified.

[0042] The circuitry 80 includes an accelerometer 82. The accelerometer 82 can be mounted in the housing 12. The accelerometer 82 is configured to generate a signal that corresponds to a direction and acceleration of the carpet iron 40, 100. The accelerometer 82 is operatively connected to the processor 68.

[0043] The processor 68 is configured to energise the heating elements 62 to an extent that is proportional to a speed of movement of the carpet iron 40, 100 in use.

[0044] The processor 68 can also be configured to energise that heating element 62 associated with one of the end zones 50.1 that defines a leading zone during movement of the carpet iron 10, 40,100 more than the other heating elements 62. The reason for this is that the leading zone 50 is required to deliver the greatest amount of heat energy when compared with the other zones because it will contact

2018101025 24 Jul 2018 the seaming tape of the carpet before the other zones. The other zones will be required to deliver consecutively less energy with the trailing zone being required to deliver the least amount of energy. It will be appreciated that this can amount in less energy consumption than if all the zones or if the entire base plate were heated to the same extent.

[0045] The circuitry 80 includes a tilt sensor 84. The tilt sensor 84 can be mounted in the housing 12. The tilt sensor 84 is configured to generate a cut off signal for receipt by the processor 68 when the carpet iron 40, 100 is tilted a predetermined extent from its operative position. For example, the tilt sensor 84 is configured to generate the cut off signal when the carpet iron 40, 100 is tilted more than 45 degrees from vertical.

[0046] The processor 68 is configured to determine a thermal load on the base plate 14, via the thermistors 64 and zone controllers 66. The processor 68 can be configured to limit power supplied to the heating elements 62 when little or no thermal load is detected to conserve energy.

[0047] A feature of the carpet iron 40, 100 is that it includes the rechargeable battery 28. Thus, the carpet iron 40, 100 is capable of being used conveniently without the burden of an electrical cable connected to the carpet iron 40, 100. As a result, the carpet iron 40, 100 can be used in locations in which an electricity supply is not readily available. Furthermore, the carpet iron 40, 100 is more manoeuvrable than other carpet irons that require connection to an electrical supply during operation.

[0048] It has been necessary for the inventor(s) to determine the characteristics of a rechargeable battery that is suitable for heating the base plate 14, 102 to a sufficient degree to perform the necessary carpet ironing function. With the base plate 14, 102 being of similar characteristics to existing base plates, it was found that the base plate 14 requires between approximately 100 W to 200 W of power. For example, the rechargeable battery 28 can be in the form of a battery pack having an operating voltage of approximately 18 V and being capable of a minimum instantaneous power supply of approximately 120 W to 160 W.

[0049] The base plate 14, 102 can be of aluminium sheet and the power resistors 52 and thermistors 54 can be directly mounted to the base plate 14, 102, as shown in figure 7.

2018101025 24 Jul 2018 [0050] The base plate 14, 102 has a length of 250 mm, a width of 75 mm and a thickness of 1.2 mm. The base plate is divided into the four zones 50 together carrying forty power resistors 52 and four thermistors 54., Each zone 50 has ten resistors 52 and a thermistor 54. The thermistors 54 are negative temperature coefficient (NTC) thermistors.

[0051] It will readily be appreciated that any number of resistors and thermistors can be mounted on the base plate 14, depending on requirements.

[0052] Each resistor 52 is a 33-ohm resistor and is rated at a 10 W power dissipation. To cater for this, the battery 28 should be capable of a peak discharge of approximately 22 A at 18 V. This translates to an instantaneous power of 400 W to allow for the rating of the resistors 52. For an operation time of 30 minutes, the battery 28 has at least a capacity of 3600 mAh.

[0053] A temperature setting, indicated at 86 in figure 8, can be in the form of a switch or dial that can apply several different heating modes to the base plate 14, 102.

[0054] As referred to above, the carpet iron 40, 100 is more manoeuvrable than a conventional carpet iron that is connected to an electrical power supply with a cable. However, to achieve the carpet iron 40, 100 with characteristics sufficient to perform suitable carpet ironing operations, which includes the melting of the seaming tape of the carpet, it is necessary to regulate the power consumption to optimise battery life. This is achieved by independently controlling heating of the zones 50, as described above. The use of such independent control can result in a system in which the leading zone is heated to a greater extent than the trailing zones. Thus, energy is conserved by not heating those zones that are not associated with melting the seaming tape. The use of the accelerometer, as described above, allows selective heating of the zones or regions 106 depending on a direction and speed of movement of the carpet iron 40, 100.

[0055] The appended claims are to be considered as incorporated into the above description.

[0056] The use of common reference numerals is not intended to limit the scope of the appended claims. Furthermore, such use of common reference numerals should not be understood as excluding the possibility of interchanging components, where practicable, between the embodiments of the carpet iron described herein.

2018101025 24 Jul 2018 [0057] Throughout the specification, including the claims, where the context permits, the term “comprising” and variants thereof such as “comprise” or “comprises” are to be interpreted as including the stated integer or integers without necessarily excluding any other integers.

[0058] It is to be understood that the terminology employed above is for the purpose of description and should not be regarded as limiting. The described embodiments are intended to be illustrative of the invention, without limiting the scope thereof. The invention is capable of being practised with various modifications and additions as will readily occur to those skilled in the art.

[0059] When any number or range is described herein, unless clearly stated otherwise, that number or range is approximate. Recitation of ranges of values herein are intended to serve as a shorthand method of referring individually to each separate value falling within the range, unless otherwise indicated herein, and each separate value and each separate subrange defined by such separate values is incorporated into the specification as if it were individually recited herein.

[0060] Words indicating direction or orientation, such as “front”, “rear”, “back”, etc, are used for convenience. The inventor(s) envisages that various embodiments can be used in a non-operative configuration, such as when presented for sale. Thus, such words are to be regarded as illustrative in nature, and not as restrictive.

2018101025 24 Jul 2018

Claims

1. A carpet iron that includes:

a support structure;

2. The carpet iron as claimed in claim 1, in which the temperature sensors are thermistors.

3. The carpet iron as claimed in claim 1, in which each heating element includes a number of power resistors.

4. The carpet iron as claimed in claim 1, which includes an accelerometer that is operatively connected to the processor and is configured to generate a signal upon movement of the carpet iron and to communicate that signal to the processor, the processor being configured to interpret the signal to determine a speed and a direction of the carpet iron.

5. The carpet iron as claimed in claim 4, in which the processor is configured to control operation of the controllers such that the heating element of that zone that leads the, or each other, zone is supplied with more power than the remaining heating elements.

ίο

2018101025 24 Jul 2018

6. The carpet iron as claimed in claim 4, in which the processor is configured to control operation of the controllers such that a power supply to the heating elements can be adjusted according to a speed of movement of the carpet iron.

7. The carpet iron as claimed in claim 1, in which the support structure includes a housing containing the, or each, controller and the processor.

8. The carpet iron as claimed in claim 7, in which the housing includes a central portion that extends generally orthogonally with respect to the baseplate, and two opposed handles mounted on the central portion and configured so that an operator can grasp either one of the handles.

9. The carpet iron as claimed in claim 8, in which the rechargeable power supply is a rechargeable battery that is detachably mounted on the housing.

10. The carpet iron as claimed in claim 1, which includes at least one laser pointer mounted on the support structure and oriented to direct a laser beam in a direction that corresponds substantially to a direction of movement during said normal operation of the carpet iron.

11. The carpet iron as claimed in claim 1, in which the ends of the baseplate are curved operatively upwardly.

2018101025 24 Jul 2018

CXI cn

Figure 1

2018101025 24 Jul 2018

CXI co

CXI τΓ

2018101025 24 Jul 2018

Figure 3 108

2018101025 24 Jul 2018

CXI O

Figure 4

2018101025 24 Jul 2018

Figure 5

2018101025 24 Jul 2018 >peg

1UOJJ

Figure 6

2018101025 24 Jul 2018

Figure 7

2018101025 24 Jul 2018

Γ''·

Figure 8

2018101025 24 Jul 2018 ο Γ·χ