ES2753301T3 - Vacuum head for a vacuum cleaner or the like with an improved base plate channel - Google Patents

Abstract

Suction head (1) for a vacuum cleaner or the like comprising a base plate (2) with a base plate channel (3) open towards a surface to be cleaned and closed by an opposite lower surface (37), - wherein said channel (3) comprises a leading edge (31), a rear edge (32), a front wall (311) extending from said front edge (31), a rear wall (321) extending from said rear edge (32) and a lower surface (37) that closes said channel (3) and connects said front wall (311) and said rear wall (321), a section of said front edge (31) being parallel to a respective section of said rear edge (32), - wherein said front wall (311) is inclined at a first angle (β) with respect to a vertical plane (V) which is perpendicular to a horizontal plane (H) in the that the leading edge (31) and the trailing edge (32) of said channel (3) are arranged, - in which said rear wall (321) of the ca nal (3) is inclined at a second angle (α) with respect to said vertical plane (V), - in which the magnitude of said first angle (β) is at least three times the magnitude of said second angle (γ ), - in which an intermediate part of said channel (3) has a depth (D) that decreases at a third angle (δ), - in which a front band (34) is inclined at an angle (α34) comprised between 12º and 18º with respect to a horizontal plane defined by the front edge (31) and the rear edge (32) of the base plate channel (3), - in which a rear band comprises a flat part (36 ") and an inclined part (36) `which is inclined at an angle (α36`) comprised between 12 ° and 18 ° with respect to the horizontal plane, and - in which said base plate channel (3) has closed ends.

Description

DESCRIPTION

Vacuum head for a vacuum cleaner or the like with an improved base plate channel.

The present invention relates to a suction head to be mounted on a household appliance for cleaning by means of suction, such as a vacuum cleaner, electric broom or a multi-purpose vacuum cleaning drum, to remove dust and / or or fluids and / or dirt from a surface. In particular, the present invention relates to a suction head with a base plate having an improved base plate channel that provides optimal suction and silent level characteristics.

As is known, a vacuum cleaner, electric broom or similar household appliance for cleaning by means of vacuuming comprises a vacuuming head for removing dust, dirt or fluids from a surface. In the home appliance sector, a vacuum head is generally referred to by the term "brush" or "nozzle". For the purposes of the present description, therefore, the terms "suction head" and "brush" or "nozzle" are considered equivalent. Again for the purposes of the present invention, the term "vacuum cleaner" will be used in a broad meaning to include all such appliances, for domestic or professional use, which perform cleaning by means of vacuuming. Therefore, the term "vacuum cleaner" will comprise a vacuum cleaner, an electric broom, a so-called multi-purpose vacuum cleaning drum, a central vacuum system for industrial or domestic use, and a steam emission and aspiration apparatus.

Basically, a known brush comprises a base plate formed so that it has at least one base plate channel open to a surface to be cleaned, a suction channel which, in use, is formed together with the plate base and is in fluid communication with the base plate, and optionally a cover body that can be connected to the base plate / suction channel assembly. The other end of the suction channel communicates with a suction tube normally by a rotating union. Suction heads are also known in which the suction channel, in use, is formed together with the cover body.

In order to avoid an incorrect interpretation of certain expressions that will be used frequently during the course of the present description and in the claims, a number of definitions are provided hereinafter. These definitions will also be used further below with specific reference to the figures.

- The expression "suction duct inlet area" will be understood as meaning substantially the footprint of the base plate channel in a plane corresponding to the surface to be cleaned;

- the expression "width" of a suction head will be understood as meaning the maximum dimension (or base footprint) of a suction head without the cover body and calculated substantially parallel to a longitudinal axis of the base plate channel;

- the expression "aspiration efficiency" shall be understood as meaning essentially the ratio, in terms of the percentage, between the material aspirated and the material to be aspirated, the aspiration tests are carried out as stipulated in standard EN 60312 -1: 2013-05;

- the "quiet level" of a vacuum cleaner's vacuum head is determined depending on whether there is an increase or decrease in noise from the brush and the vacuum cleaner assembly compared to the vacuum cleaner alone; The more noise a brush vacuum cleaner increases compared to a brushless vacuum cleaner, the more the vacuum head is considered to be noisy.

Document WO 2005/074778 A1 refers to a vacuum cleaner nozzle comprising a nozzle body in which a suction plate, having an elongated suction opening, is rotatably arranged on an axis which is mainly parallel to the suction opening and mainly transverse to the direction of movement of the nozzle. The suction plate is connected to a nozzle outlet, so that the suction opening is in fluid communication with the nozzle outlet, and the nozzle body is provided with at least two wheels that are spaced as seen in the direction of movement of the nozzle. When the nozzle is located on a hard surface, the wheels are positioned so that a gap is created between the suction opening and the surface to be cleaned.

WO 02/26098 A1 describes a tool to be used to clean a floor by means of vacuuming. The tool comprises a plate having a suction channel that extends through the tool transversely with respect to the direction in which the tool travels through the ground surface. A first and a second working edge connect the transverse extending sides of the suction channel. Two suction openings are provided, each with a perpendicular wall. The two openings do not form closed channels.

US-A-20050262659 discloses a suction head for a vacuum cleaner.

Although different vacuum heads are available on the market that perform the function of removing dust and / or fluids and / or dirt from a surface efficiently enough, the Applicant has noted that there is a need to improve the performance of the vacuum heads. known. In particular, the Applicant has noted the need to increase the suction efficiency and to increase the level of silence of the known suction heads.

Applicant has found that the suction efficiency is increased by suitably forming the base plate channel and, optionally, suitably defining its dimensions with respect to the width of the suction head.

According to an embodiment, the invention relates to a suction head for a vacuum cleaner or the like comprising a base plate with a base plate channel open towards the surface to be cleaned and closed by an opposite bottom surface,

- wherein said channel comprises a leading edge, a rear edge, a front wall extending from said front axle, the rear wall extending from said rear axle and a lower surface that closes said channel and connects said front wall and said rear wall, wherein a section of said leading edge is parallel to a respective section of said trailing edge,

- in which said front wall is inclined at a first angle with respect to a vertical plane that is perpendicular to a horizontal plane, in which the leading edge and the trailing edge of said channel are arranged,

- wherein said rear channel wall is inclined at a second angle with respect to said vertical plane,

- wherein the magnitude of said first angle is at least three times the magnitude of said second angle,

- in which an intermediate part of said channel has a depth that decreases to a third angle, - in which a front band is inclined at an angle between 12 ° and 18 ° with respect to a horizontal plane defined by the front edge and the trailing edge of the base plate channel,

- in which a rear band comprises an inclined part that is inclined at an angle between 12 ° and 18 ° with respect to the horizontal plane, and

- in which said base plate channel has closed ends.

In one embodiment, the magnitude of the first angle is approximately 7 ° and the magnitude of the second angle is approximately 2 °.

In one embodiment, an intermediate part of the channel has a depth that decreases to a third angle between 5 ° and 8 °.

The present invention will become clearer from the following detailed description, provided by way of non-limiting example only, to be read with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

figure 1 shows a schematic cross-sectional view of a suction head according to an embodiment of the present invention;

Figures 2a and 2b are two bottom plan views of a base plate of a suction head according to an embodiment of the present invention;

figure 3 is a side view of the base plate shown in figure 2;

- Figures 4A1, 4A2, 4A3, 4A4 and 4A5 are cross sections along the lines A1-A1, A2-A2, A3-A3, A4-A4 and A5-A5 of Figure 2a, respectively; and

- Figures 5B1 and 5B2 are longitudinal sections along lines B1-B1 and B2-B2 of Figure 2a, respectively.

In the various figures, for the sake of clarity, some components considered non-essential have been omitted for the present invention. In particular, the cover body is not shown. Similarly, the pedal and associated control mechanism for moving a bristle holder or a rubber flap that may be present in some embodiments are not shown. The suction head is generally indicated by reference number 1.

Referring to the various figures, the suction head 1 comprises a base plate 2 with at least one base plate channel 3 open downwards, a suction channel 4 suitably formed and curved, and a rotating union 5 rotating on an axis 6. The assembly consisting of channel 3, channel 4 and gasket 5 forms the suction line 7.

Base plate 2 and base plate channel 3 are described in greater detail hereinafter.

For clarity, the cross-section lines are shown in Figure 2a along with some reference numbers. Figure 2b shows, in more detail, the reference numbers of the base plate 2 and associated channel 3.

The base plate 2 has a more or less rectangular shape with rounded corners. It has a larger dimension (length) L2 and a smaller dimension (width) W2. Channel 3 of the base plate extends substantially parallel to the length L2 of the base plate 2.

The base plate channel 3 extends substantially along the entire length L2 of the base plate, from one end to the other. The shape of the base plate channel 3 in plan view has a leading edge 31 that is substantially linear and parallel to the leading edge 21 of the base plate 2. The rear edge 32 of the base plate channel 3 is parallel to the trailing edge 22 of the base plate along its entire length L2, except for the ends 33 which are inclined towards the leading edge 31 so that the width of the base plate channel 3 gradually decreases. Preferably, the minimum width of the base plate channel is between 40% and 60% of its maximum width. The maximum width W32 of the base plate channel 3 is between 5% and 7% of the length L2 of the base plate channel 3.

In a preferred embodiment, the minimum width is substantially 50% of the maximum width. For example, for a base plate with L2 = 253 mm and a base plate channel 3 with a width of about W32 = 16.4 mm, the minimum width of the base plate channel at the ends 33 is about 8.22 mm.

Each of the two end sections 33 of the base plate channel 3 with decreasing width has a length L33 (measured parallel to the leading edge 21) of between 9% and 13% of the length of the base plate channel. It is preferably equal to about 11.7%. In the embodiment where the length L2 of the base plate is 253 mm, each of the sections L33 measures approximately 29 mm.

The front band 34 between the front edge 21 of the base plate and the front edge 31 of the channel 3 has a smaller width and is inclined so that, in use, the suction head 1 can rotate downwards when pushed forward. The inclination a34 of the front band 34 is shown in Figure 4A1.

Preferably, the width W34 of the front band 34 is relatively small. For example (when the base plate is seen in a top plan view), it can be between 3% and 5% of the width W2 of the suction head. In one embodiment it is approximately 4.3% of the width W2 of the suction head 2. In one embodiment, the length L2 of the base plate 2 is 253 mm and the width W2 is approximately 54 mm, the width W34 of the front band 34 can be equal to about 10.6 mm.

Preferably, the front band 34 is inclined at an angle a34 = 12 ° -18 ° with respect to a plane H defined by the front edge 31 and the rear edge 32 of the base plate channel 3. Preferably, a narrow band 35 of velvety or similar material is provided in a central position. It may be adhered to the front band 34 and optionally inserted into a cavity shown, for example, in Figure 4A1.

The rear band 36 between the rear edge 22 of the base plate and the rear edge 32 of the base plate channel 3 has a width W36 greater than the width W34 of the front band 34. In one embodiment, the rear band 36 has an inclined part 36 'and a flat part 36 ". The inclined part 36 'is configured such that, in use, the suction head 1 can rotate upwards when dragged backwards.

The width W36 'of the inclined part 36' of the rear band 36 (when the base plate is seen in a top plan view) can be between 5% and 8% of the width W2 of the suction head . In one embodiment, W36 'is equal to about 6.7% of the width W2 of the suction head. For example, for a base plate with a length L2 = 253 mm and a width W2 = 54.2 mm, W36 'can be approximately 16.8 mm and W36 ”can be approximately 10 mm.

Preferably, the inclined portion 36 'of the rear band W36 is inclined at an angle a36' = 12 ° -18 ° with respect to a plane F defined by the leading edge 31 and the trailing edge 32 of the base plate channel 3. Preferably, a narrow band 35 of velvety material or the like is provided in a central position. It may be adhered to the rear band W36 and optionally inserted into a cavity shown, for example, in Figures 2 and 4A1.

The applicant conducted numerous tests while modifying various parameters and characteristics of a known aspiration head and discovered that one of the characteristics that most positively influences the aspiration efficiency and the level of silence is the inclination p (beta) and y (gamma) of the walls 311, 321 of the base plate channel 3.

First, according to the applicant, the angle of inclination p (beta) of the front wall 311 of the base channel must be greater than the angle y (gamma) of the inclination of the rear wall 321. The angles are calculated with respect to a vertical plane V, which is in turn perpendicular to the horizontal plane 1H in which the leading edge 31 and the trailing edge 32 of channel 3 are arranged.

According to an advantageous embodiment, the angle p (beta) of the front wall is inclined between 5 ° and 10 ° with respect to the vertical plane V. Preferably, the angle (beta) is between approximately 6 ° and 8 ° and more preferably it is about 7 °.

According to an advantageous embodiment, the angle y (gamma) of the rear wall is inclined by 1 ° -3 ° with respect to the vertical plane V. Preferably, the angle y (gamma) is approximately 2 °.

Therefore, preferably, the angle p (beta) is greater than the angle y (gamma). More preferably, the angle p (beta) is at least twice the angle y (gamma). More preferably, the angle p (beta) is at least three times the angle y (gamma).

Angles p and y are configured such that channel 3 walls 311 and 321 converge from the top when baseplate 2 is in operating configuration, with channel 3 open toward the surface to be cleaned

Preferably, the radius connecting the bottom 37 of channel 3 and the corresponding side walls 311 and 321 is between approximately 1 and 3 mm. In one embodiment, it is approximately 2.5mm.

Channel 3 depth is generally indicated by the letter D. Specific channel depths are indicated by the letter D followed by the reference number of the section where the depth is calculated.

The depth D of the channel 3 preferably remains substantially constant along a first section around the opening towards the suction channel 4, gradually decreases towards the ends with a predetermined inclination along a certain intermediate section and decreases more significantly along end sections 33 for ends of base plate channel 3.

Preferably, the first section with a substantially constant depth has a depth D2 that is approximately 6% of the brush length L2. In one embodiment, with a suction head having a length L2 of about 253 mm, the first section may have a depth D2 of about 15.5 mm, namely about 6.12% of the length L2 of the suction head .

The first section extends to either end of the suction head over a length of approximately 15 mm, measured from edge 41 of the opening to suction channel 4.

The intermediate section extends to either end of the suction head. Starting from the center C of the suction head, the inclined intermediate section starts from a distance of about 47 mm and ends at a distance from the center of about 107 mm. More generally, the intermediate section ends at a distance from the center of the suction head equal to about 85% of half the length (L2 / 2) of the suction head.

Preferably, the intermediate section is inclined at an angle 8 (delta) of 5-8 °, preferably 6-7 °, and even more preferably of approximately 6.5 °.

The Applicant has carried out various tests to check the suction performance of the suction head according to the present invention. In particular, the tests were carried out by comparing a suction head known by the commercial abbreviation NEOo and commercially distributed by the same applicant and considered as a suction head with optimal suction characteristics. The tests were carried out with three different air flows (25 l / s, 30 l / s and 35 l / s, where "l / s" = liters / second).

Both the NE00 model and the suction head according to the invention had the same length L2-253 mm and width W2 54.2 mm. Table 1 shows the results obtained.

Table 1

It is evident that both with a relatively small air flow and with higher air flows the suction head according to the invention improves the suction performance. The greatest improvement in suction performance was obtained with a flow of 25 l / s. The aspiration efficiency increased from approximately 67% to approximately 80%, thereby improving by approximately 20%. With an air flow of 30 l / s, the improvement was approximately 5% while with an air flow of 35 l / s the improvement was approximately 4%.

Claims (11)

1. Suction head (1) for a vacuum cleaner or the like comprising a base plate (2) with a base plate channel (3) open towards a surface to be cleaned and closed by a lower surface (37) opposite, - wherein said channel (3) comprises a leading edge (31), a leading edge (32), a leading wall (311) extending from said leading edge (31), a rear wall (321) extending from said rear edge (32) and a lower surface (37) that closes said channel (3) and connects said front wall (311) and said rear wall (321), a section of said front edge (31) being parallel to a respective section of said trailing edge (32), - in which said front wall (311) is inclined to a first angle (P) with respect to a vertical plane (V) that is perpendicular to a horizontal plane (H) in which the leading edge (31) is arranged and the trailing edge (32) of said channel (3), - wherein said rear wall (321) of the channel (3) is inclined at a second angle (y) with respect to said vertical plane (V), - wherein the magnitude of said first angle (P) is at least three times the magnitude of said second angle (y), - in which an intermediate part of said channel (3) has a depth (D) that decreases to a third angle (8), - in which a front band (34) is inclined at an angle (a34) comprised between 12 ° and 18 ° with respect to a horizontal plane defined by the front edge (31) and the rear edge (32) of the plate channel base (3), - wherein a rear band comprises a flat part (36 ") and an inclined part (36) 'that is inclined at an angle (a36') comprised between 12 ° and 18 ° with respect to the horizontal plane, and - in which said base plate channel (3) has closed ends. 2. Suction head (1) according to claim 1, wherein the magnitude of said first angle (P) is between 6 ° and 8 ° and the magnitude of said second angle (y) is between 1 ° and 3 °. Suction head (1) according to claim 1 or 2, wherein said third angle (8) is between 5 ° and 8 °. Suction head (1) according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the maximum width (W32) of the channel (3) is between 5% and 7% of a length (L2) of the channel (3) . Suction head (1) according to any of the preceding claims, wherein said base plate (2) comprises a front band (34) between a front edge (21) of said base plate and the front edge (31 ), said front band (34) being inclined at an angle (a34) comprised between 12 ° and 18 °. 6. Suction head (1) according to any of the preceding claims, wherein said base plate (2) comprises a rear band (36) between a rear edge (22) of said base plate and the rear edge (32 ), said rear band (36) comprising an inclined part (36 ') that is inclined at an angle (a36') comprised between 12 ° and 18 °. Suction head (1) according to any one of the preceding claims, in which a maximum width (W32) of said channel (3) is between 5% and 7% of the length (L2) of said channel (3). 8. Suction head (1) according to claim 7, wherein a minimum width of said channel (3) is between 40% and 60% of said maximum width (W32). 9. The suction head (1) according to claim 1, wherein said front band (34) comprises a narrow band (35) of velvety material in a central position. 10. The suction head (1) according to claim 1 9, wherein said inclined part (36 ') of the rear band comprises a narrow band (35) of velvety material in a central position. 11. Suction head (1) according to claim 9 or 10, wherein said narrow band (35) of material velvety is inserted into a cavity. Ċ