EP3248526A1

EP3248526A1 - Vacuum cleaner ground brush and vacuum cleaner having same

Info

Publication number: EP3248526A1
Application number: EP16739757.9A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Xuqiang ZHAO; Huaiqiang REN
Original assignee: Ecovacs Robotics Suzhou Co Ltd
Current assignee: Ecovacs Robotics Suzhou Co Ltd
Priority date: 2015-01-21
Filing date: 2016-01-15
Publication date: 2017-11-29
Also published as: WO2016116010A1; CN105852739B; EP3248526A4; CN105852739A

Abstract

A vacuum cleaner floor brush and a vacuum cleaner having same are disclosed. The vacuum cleaner floor brush (B) comprises a casing (100); an air inlet (111) is provided at a bottom surface of the casing; a sealing strip is provided at the periphery of the air inlet, comprising a first sealing strip and a second sealing strip; the first sealing strip is provided with a first opening (310); the first opening can be in the opened or at least partially blocked state by means of the movement of the second sealing strip to adjust the air flow at the air inlet (111). By controlling the movement mode of the sealing strip arranged on the floor brush, the vacuum cleaner floor brush and the vacuum cleaner thereof can effectively adjust the air flow at the air inlet, attain simplification of structure and convenience of operation, adapt to different working surface requirements, and improve the efficiency of dust collection.

Description

Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a vacuum cleaner floor brush and a vacuum cleaner having the same, which belongs to the technical field of the manufacture of household electric appliances.

Background art

Vacuum cleaners have been widely used in daily life, and play an important role in the home cleaning work. As we all know, a vacuum cleaner mainly consists of a body and a floor brush connected to the body by a connection pipe. Figs. 1 and 2 illustrate a top view and a bottom surface view of an existing floor brush, respectively. As shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the floor brush A comprises a casing 100, the cavity inside of which casing forms an air flow passage. An air inlet 111 for dust collection is provided on the bottom surface 110 of the casing, and the floor brush A is connected to the vacuum cleaner body (not shown) by a connection pipe 200. The casing 100 further comprises a lifting board (not shown) which is controlled to move up and down by a pedal 120 provided on the casing 100. In order to facilitate the movement of the floor brush, the floor brush is also equipped with a wheel 112. A sealing strip 113, which may be a wool top or a leather strip, may be provided on the casing 100 or the lifting board at the periphery of the air inlet 111, for example, at one or both of a front side and a rear side of the air inlet 111. Openings 114 are provided at equal intervals on the wool top or the leather strip so as to facilitate air intake and dust collection. When collecting the dust on a flat surface, the floor brush can work normally, but when collecting the dust on a surface with gaps, these openings in turn reduce the degree of vacuum in the floor brush mouth, thereby affecting the dust collection effect at gaps.

Summary of the Invention

To overcome the deficiencies in the prior art, the present invention aims to provide a vacuum cleaner floor brush, and by controlling the movement mode of a sealing strip provided on the floor brush, the air flow at the air inlet may be effectively adjusted, which attains simplification of structure and convenience of operation, can adapt to different working surface requirements, and improves the efficiency of dust collection.
The technical objective of the present invention is realized through the following technical solutions:

A vacuum cleaner floor brush comprises a casing with an air inlet provided at a bottom surface of the casing, and a sealing strip is provided at the periphery of the air inlet, wherein the sealing strip comprises a first sealing strip provided with first openings and a second sealing strip, and the first openings are enabled to be in an open or at least partially blocked state by means of the movement of the second sealing strip so as to adjust the air flow at the air inlet.

For the purpose of further adjusting the air flow, the second sealing strip is provided with second openings and is connected to a knob, and the knob moves left and right along a sliding slot provided on the casing such that the positions of the first openings and the positions of the second openings are completely overlapped or at least partially overlapped so as to enable the first openings to be in an open or at least partially blocked state.
Specifically, the second sealing strip is connected to a button which drives the second sealing strip to move up and down with respect to the casing so as to enable the first openings to be in an open or at least partially blocked state.
In order to facilitate cleaning, a scrubbing strip is further provided on the outer side with respect to the first sealing strip.
More specifically, the first sealing strip comprises a wool top and/or a leather strip, and the second sealing strip comprises a wool top and/or a leather strip.
The number of the first openings is two or more based on actual needs.
Normally, the sealing strip is provided on a front side and/or a rear side of the air inlet.
In order to facilitate connection, the second sealing strip is provided with a connecting portion and is connected to the knob through the connecting portion.
The casing is further provided with a lifting board which is controlled to move up and down by a pedal provided on the casing, and the sealing strip is provided on the lifting board.
The present invention also provides a vacuum cleaner, comprising a vacuum cleaner body and a floor brush connected to the vacuum cleaner body by a connection pipe, and the floor brush is the vacuum cleaner floor brush as described above.
In conclusion, the present invention, by controlling the movement mode of the sealing strip provided on the floor brush, can effectively adjust the air flow at the air inlet, attain simplification of structure and convenience of operation, adapt to different working surface requirements, and improve the efficiency of dust collection.
The technical solution of the present invention now will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments.

Description of attached drawings

Figs. 1 and 2 are a top view and a bottom surface view of an existing floor brush, respectively.
Fig. 3 is a schematic diagram of the overall structure of the floor brush according to the first embodiment of the present invention.
Fig. 4 is a structure schematic diagram of the sealing strip provided on the bottom surface of the casing according to the first embodiment of the present invention.
Fig. 5 is a structure schematic diagram of the sealing strip provided on the bottom surface of the casing according to the second embodiment of the present invention.
Figs. 6 and 7 are structure schematic diagrams of the sealing strip provided on the lifting board according to the third embodiment of the present invention.
Figs. 8 and 9 are structure schematic diagrams of the sealing strip provided on the lifting board according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention.
Figs. 10 and 11 are structure schematic diagrams of the sealing strip provided on the lifting board according to the fifth embodiment of the present invention.
Figs. 12 and 13 are structure schematic diagrams of the sealing strip provided on the lifting board according to the sixth embodiment of the present invention.

Detailed Description of Preferred Embodiments

The first embodiment

Fig. 3 is a schematic diagram of the overall structure of the floor brush according to the first embodiment of the present invention, and Fig. 4 is a structure schematic diagram of the sealing strip provided on the bottom surface of the casing according to the first embodiment of the present invention. As shown in Figs. 3 and 4, the present invention provides a floor brush B comprising a casing 100, the cavity inside of which casing forms an air flow passage. An air inlet 111 for dust collection is provided on a bottom surface 110 of the casing, and the floor brush B is connected to a vacuum cleaner body (not shown) by a connection pipe 200. A sealing strip, which comprise a first sealing strip (i.e. a wool top 300) and a second sealing strip (i.e. a moving leather strip 400), is provided on the bottom surface 110 of the casing 100 at one side of the air inlet 111. As shown in Fig. 2, the sealing strip 113 may also be provided at both the front side and the rear side of the air inlet 111. First openings 310 are provided at equal intervals on the wool top 300, and similarly, second openings 410 are provided at equal intervals on the moving leather strip 400, so as to facilitate air intake and dust collection. More specifically, as shown in Fig. 4. a positioning groove 140 is provided at an edge of the bottom surface 110 of the casing 100, and the end of the wool top 300 and the end of the moving leather strip 400 are each inserted into the positioning groove 140. In addition, a sliding slot 510 is further provided on the bottom surface 110 of the casing 100, and a connecting portion 420 is provided on the moving leather strip 400. A knob 500 is connected to the moving leather strip 400 through the connecting portion 420 and can slide freely within the sliding slot 510 so as to drive the moving leather strip 400 to move left and right, resulting in that the first openings 310 provided on the wool top 300 are enabled to be in an open, partially blocked or completely blocked state with respect to the second openings 410 provided on the moving leather strip 400 so as to adjust the air flow at the air inlet 111. For example, when the floor brush B collects the dust on a flat surface, the first openings 310 and the second openings 410 can be made aligned with each other so as to be in an open state, and the floor brush may work normally. However, when collecting the dust on a surface with gaps, the user may stagger the positions of the first openings 310 and the positions of the second openings 410 by pushing the knob 500 so as to be in a partially blocked or completely blocked state in order to prevent these openings from reducing the degree of vacuum at the floor brush mouth and to guarantee the dust collection effect at gaps as well as the working efficiency. Of course, according to actual needs, the second sealing strip can also be a wool top so as to improve the cleaning efficiency.

The second embodiment

Fig. 5 is a structure schematic diagram of the sealing strip provided on the bottom surface of the casing according to the second embodiment of the present invention. As shown in Fig. 5, the present embodiment is different from the first embodiment in the structure and the movement mode of the second sealing strip, i.e., the moving leather strip 400. To be specific, in the present embodiment, the first sealing strip (i.e., the wool top 300) is still provided with the first openings 310, while the moving leather strip 400 is a complete strip body. The moving leather strip 400 is connected to a button 600 through the connecting portion 420, and by pressing down or pulling up the button 600, the moving leather strip 400 may be moved up and down such that the first openings 310 on the wool top 300 are enabled to be in an open, partially blocked or completely blocked state.
The other technical features of the present embodiment are the same as those of the first embodiment, and the detailed descriptions thereof are omitted here.

The third embodiment

Figs. 6 and 7 are structure schematic diagrams of the sealing strip provided on the lifting board according to the third embodiment of the present invention. As shown in Figs. 6 and 7, the present embodiment is an improvement on the basis of the first embodiment. As mentioned in the Background, the casing 100 of the floor brush may further comprise a lifting board 130. In the present embodiment, the setting position of the sealing strip is on the lifting board 130. Similar to the above described two embodiments, a positioning groove 131 may be provided at an edge of one side of the lifting board so as to position the sealing strip on the lifting board. In the present embodiment, the number of the sealing strip is changed. To be specific, the first sealing strip comprises a wool top 300 and a fixed leather strip 700, and the second sealing strip is a moving leather strip 400. As shown in Fig. 6, the moving leather strip 400 is relatively closer to the setting position of the fixed leather strip 700. Further, the wool top 300 and the fixed leather strip 700 are provided with the first openings 310, and the moving leather strip 400 is provided with the second openings 410. In addition, a sliding slot 510 is further provided on the lifting board 130. and a connecting portion 420 is provided on the moving leather strip 400. A knob 500 is connected to the moving leather strip 400 through the connecting portion 420 and can slide freely within the sliding slot 510 so as to drive the moving leather strip 400 to move left and right, resulting in that the first openings 310 provided on the wool top 300 and on the fixed leather strip 700 are enabled to be in an open, partially blocked or completely blocked state with respect to the second openings 410 provided on the moving leather strip 400 so as to adjust the air flow at the air inlet 111. For example, the positions of the first openings 310 provided on the wool top 300 and the positions of the first openings 310 provided on the fixed leather strip 700 may be aligned with each other. In the state shown in Fig. 6, the second openings 410 and the first openings 310 on the fixed leather strip are blocked, while in the state shown in Fig. 7, the second openings 410 and the first openings 310 on the fixed leather strip are open to allow the air intake at the positions of the first openings 310 and the second openings 410.
The other technical features of the present embodiment are the same as those of the first embodiment, and the detailed descriptions thereof are omitted here.

The fourth embodiment

Figs. 8 and 9 are structure schematic diagrams of the sealing strip provided on the lifting board according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention. As shown in Figs. 8 and 9, the present embodiment is different from the third embodiment in that: a scrubbing strip 800 is adopted instead of the wool top 300 in the third embodiment; the fixed leather strip 700 functions as the first sealing strip provided with the first openings 310; and the moving leather strip 400 functions as the second sealing strip provided with the second openings 410. The second openings 410 provided on the moving leather strip 400 are enabled to be in an open, partially blocked or completely blocked state with respect to the first openings 310 provided on the fixed leather strip 700 merely by pushing the knob 500 so as to drive the moving leather strip 400 to move left and right, such that the air flow at the air inlet 111 is adjusted.
The other technical features of the present embodiment are the same as those of the third embodiment, and the detailed descriptions thereof are omitted here.

The fifth embodiment

Figs. 10 and 11 are structure schematic diagrams of the sealing strip provided on the lifting board according to the fifth embodiment of the present invention. As shown in Figs. 10 and 11, the present embodiment is different from the third embodiment in the structure and the movement mode of the moving leather strip 400. To be specific, in the present embodiment, the first sealing strip comprises the wool top 300 and the fixed leather strip 700 both provided with first openings 310, while the second sealing strip, i.e., the moving leather strip 400, is a complete strip body. The moving leather strip 400 is connected with a button 600, and by pressing down or pulling up the button 600, the first openings 310 on the wool top 300 and the fixed leather strip 700 are enabled to be in an open, partially blocked or completely blocked state so as to adjust the air flow at the air inlet 111. For example, the positions of the first openings 310 provided on the wool top 300 and the positions of the first openings 310 provided on the fixed leather strip 700 may be made aligned with each other. In the state shown in Fig. 10, the button 600 is pressed down such that the moving leather strip 400 is positioned at a lower place so as to block the first openings 310 on both the wool top 300 and the fixed leather strip 700, while in the state shown in Fig. 11, the button 600 is pulled up to position the moving leather strip 400 at an upper place such that the first openings 310 on both the wool top 300 and the fixed leather strip 700 are enabled to be in an open state, and thus the air intake at the opening positions on both the wool top 300 and the fixed leather strip 700 may be allowed.
The other technical features of the present embodiment are the same as those of the third embodiment, and the detailed descriptions thereof are omitted here.

The sixth embodiment

Figs. 12 and 13 are structure schematic diagrams of the sealing strip provided on the lifting board according to the sixth embodiment of the present invention. As shown in Figs. 12 and 13, the present embodiment is different from the fourth embodiment in that the lifting board 130 is only provided with the first sealing strip (i.e., the fixed leather strip 700) and the second sealing strip (i.e., the moving leather strip 400), but no scrubbing strip 800. The moving leather strip 400 is driven to move left and right by the left and right movement of the knob 500 within the sliding slot 510, such that the second openings 410 provided on the moving leather strip 400 are enabled to be in an open, partially blocked or completely blocked state with respect to the first openings 310 provided on the fixed leather strip 700 so as to adjust the air flow at the air inlet 111.
The other technical features of the present embodiment are the same as those of the fourth embodiment, and the detailed descriptions thereof are omitted here.
Furthermore, as can be seen from the above six embodiments, the movement of the moving leather strip 400 is achieved by a switch directly connected thereto. If the moving direction of the moving leather strip is left-and-right direction, the moving leather strip may be connected to the knob 500, and if the moving direction of the moving leather strip is up-and-down direction, the moving leather strip may be connected to the button 600. As mentioned in the Background, the casing 100 further comprises a lifting board. The lifting board is controlled to move up and down by the pedal 120 provided on the casing 100. Therefore, in practice, when a corresponding sealing strip is required to move up and down, it is also possible to use the existing pedal 120 instead of setting a separate switch such that, by setting a linkage mechanism with the pedal, it can also be achieved that the moving leather strip 400 is controlled to move up and down while the lifting board is moved up and down. Since the control of the lifting board by the pedal 120 belongs to the prior art, the specific structure thereof may be referred to patent of US 3952363 , and the detailed description is omitted here. In order to guarantee the cleaning effect and the working efficiency of the floor brush, in addition to the first sealing strip and the second sealing strip, a scrubbing strip 800, which is provided on the bottom surface of the casing or the lifting board, is further added in the fourth embodiment.
The present invention further provides a vacuum cleaner, comprising a vacuum cleaner body and a floor brush connected to the vacuum cleaner body by a connection pipe, and the floor brush is a vacuum cleaner floor brush according to any one of the above six embodiments. Based on the above six embodiments, it can be seen that, actually, the main inventive idea of the present invention is that a combination of different movement modes of the sealing strip provided on the bottom surface of the casing or the lifting board is used to adjust the air flow at the air inlet. Specifically, the sealing strip comprises a first sealing strip provided with openings and a second sealing strip that can move left and right or up and down. The first sealing strip and the second sealing strip may be of multiple combinations of a wool top and/or a leather strip. Thus, in the above embodiments, the first sealing strip actually comprises a wool top 300 and a fixed leather strip 700, and the second sealing strip comprises a moving leather strip 400. Therefore, in the present invention, by setting combinations of the wool top with a different number of leather strips provided on the floor brush casing or the casing lifting board and combinations of the wool top and the leather strip with openings and/or with no openings, the openings on the wool top, the moving leather strip and the fixed leather strip are selectively open or closed so as to adjust the air flow at the air inlet. As to the flat surface, the openings may be open, and when cleaning the gaps or under other conditions that the increased degree of vacuum of the floor brush is required, the openings may be closed. Therefore, an appropriate air intake and degree of vacuum may be obtained irrespective of the working surface, and the present invention may be adapted to different working surface requirements and improve cleaning effect and the working efficiency.

Claims

A vacuum cleaner floor brush (B), comprising a casing (100) with an air inlet (111) provided at a bottom surface of the casing, a sealing strip being provided at the periphery of the air inlet, characterized in that, the sealing strip comprising a first sealing strip provided with first openings (310) and a second sealing strip, and the first openings are enabled to be in an open or at least partially blocked state by means of the movement of the second sealing strip so as to adjust the air flow at the air inlet (111).
A vacuum cleaner floor brush of claim 1, characterized in that, the second sealing strip is provided with second openings (410) and is connected to a knob (500), and the knob moves left and right along a sliding slot (510) provided on the casing such that the positions of the first openings (310) and the positions of the second openings are completely overlapped or at least partially overlapped so as to enable the first openings to be in an open or at least partially blocked state.
A vacuum cleaner floor brush of claim 1, characterized in that, the second sealing strip is connected to a button (600) which drives the second sealing strip to move up and down with respect to the casing (100) so as to enable the first openings to be in an open or at least partially blocked state.
A vacuum cleaner floor brush of claim 2, characterized in that, a scrubbing strip (800) is further provided on the outer side with respect to the first sealing strip.
A vacuum cleaner floor brush of claim 3, characterized in that, a scrubbing strip (800) is further provided on the outer side with respect to the first sealing strip.
A vacuum cleaner floor brush of claim 1, characterized in that, the first sealing strip comprises a wool top and/or a leather strip, and the second sealing strip comprises a wool top and/or a leather strip.
A vacuum cleaner floor brush of claim 1, characterized in that, the number of the first openings is two or more.
A vacuum cleaner floor brush of claim 1, characterized in that, the sealing strip is provided on a front side and/or a rear side of the air inlet (111).
A vacuum cleaner floor brush of claim 2, characterized in that, the second sealing strip is provided with a connecting portion (420) and is connected to the knob (500) through the connecting portion.
A vacuum cleaner floor brush of anyone of claims 1-9, characterized in that, the casing is further provided with a lifting board (130) which is controlled to move up and down by a pedal (120) provided on the casing (100), and the sealing strip is provided on the lifting board.
A vacuum cleaner, comprising a vacuum cleaner body and a floor brush connected to the vacuum cleaner body by a connection pipe (200), characterized in that, the floor brush is the vacuum cleaner floor brush (B) according to anyone of claims 1-10.