FR3123078A1 - Portable steamer comprising a handle enclosing a steam conduit - Google Patents

Abstract

Portable steamer comprising a handle (2), a steam emitting head (3) connected to an upper end of the handle (2) and a base (1) connected to a lower end of the handle (2), the steam emission head (3) comprising a treatment face (50), provided with at least one steam outlet hole (51), intended to come vertically opposite a garment to be smoothed when the appliance is maintained in a vertical steaming position with the handle (2) located under the head (3), said base (1) comprising a steam generator (4) and said handle (2) comprising a wall intended to be gripped by the hand of the user and enclosing a steam conduit (8) connecting the steam generator (4) to said at least one steam outlet hole, characterized in that the handle (2) encloses a sleeve (9) extending around the vapor duct (8) to form a thermal barrier limiting heat transfer between the wall of the handle (2) and the steam pipe (8). Fig. 3

Description

Portable steamer comprising a handle enclosing a steam conduit

The present invention relates to the field of portable steaming apparatus comprising a handle, a steam emitting head connected to an upper end of the handle and a base connected to a lower end of the handle, in which the base comprises a generator steamer and the handle includes a steam duct connecting the steam generator to at least one steam outlet hole on the head.

State of the art

It is known from patent application CN106801324, a portable steamer comprising a steam emission head connected to an upper end of the handle, the steam emission head comprising a treatment face, provided with orifices for steam outlet, intended to come vertically opposite a garment to be smoothed when the device is held with its handle oriented substantially vertically. The device disclosed in this document comprises a vaporization chamber formed in the base and connected to the head by a vapor conduit passing through the handle.

Such a device has the advantage of having a steam generator which is arranged in the base so that the balance of the masses thus procured offers good ergonomics of use. Indeed, the weight of the generator being located under the handle, it does not generate a torque that tends to twist the user's wrist when the device is held vertically.

However, such a device requires the passage of a steam pipe inside the handle which tends to heat the handle. In addition, the steam duct, which then extends between the base and the head of the device, has a significant length so that the steam which travels inside this steam duct tends to cool , which can cause the appearance of condensate. This condensate is then projected at the same time as the flow of steam outside the appliance and can stain the laundry or burn the user.

The present invention aims to remedy this drawback.

To this end, the subject of the invention is a portable steamer comprising a handle, a steam emitting head connected to an upper end of the handle and a base connected to a lower end of the handle, the head of emission of steam comprising a treatment face, provided with at least one steam outlet hole, intended to come vertically opposite a garment to be steamed when the device is held in a vertical steaming position with the handle located under the head, said base comprising a steam generator and said handle comprising a wall intended to be gripped by the user's hand and enclosing a steam conduit connecting the steam generator to said at least one steam outlet hole, characterized in that the handle encloses a sleeve extending around the steam duct to limit heat transfer between the wall of the handle and the steam duct.

Such a sleeve has the advantage of forming a thermal barrier around the steam duct which limits heat transfer and therefore the heating of the handle. Such a thermal barrier also makes it possible to limit the cooling of the steam during its circulation in the steam conduit and therefore the formation of condensates.

The apparatus may further have one or more of the following characteristics, taken alone or in combination.

According to an advantageous characteristic of the invention, the sleeve has a body of overall tubular shape, the steam conduit passing through a lower opening formed at a lower end of the sleeve and through an upper opening formed at an upper end of the sleeve.

According to an advantageous characteristic of the invention, the sleeve is constituted by an added piece inside the handle.

Such a characteristic makes it possible to limit the heat transfer established by conduction between the sleeve and the handle.

According to an advantageous characteristic of the invention, the sleeve has an outer surface comprising two projecting fixing studs intended to come into contact with the wall of the handle.

Such a characteristic has the advantage of limiting the contact surface between the sleeve and the handle and therefore of limiting heat transfer.

According to an advantageous characteristic of the invention, the fixing studs constitute the only points of contact between the wall of the handle and the sleeve.

According to an advantageous characteristic of the invention, the sleeve is made of plastic material.

According to an advantageous characteristic of the invention, the device comprises a case comprising two shells assembled on one another and the handle is produced by assembling the two shells of the case.

According to an advantageous characteristic of the invention, the handle comprises a trigger which must be actuated manually to allow the emission of steam, the trigger being advantageously fixed to the sleeve.

According to an advantageous characteristic of the invention, the sleeve extends over at least 50% of the height of the handle and preferably over more than 75% of the height of the handle.

Brief description of figures

The aims, aspects and advantages of the present invention will be better understood from the description given below of a particular embodiment of the invention presented by way of non-limiting example, with reference to the appended drawings in which :

The is a perspective view of an apparatus according to a particular embodiment of the invention;

The is an exploded perspective view of the apparatus of the ;

The is a longitudinal sectional view of the apparatus of the ;

The is a perspective view of the sleeve fitted to the handle of the device.

Only the elements necessary for understanding the invention have been represented. To facilitate reading of the drawings, the same elements bear the same references from one figure to another.

It will be noted that in this document, the terms "horizontal", "vertical", "lower", "upper", "top", "bottom", "front", "rear", "longitudinal", "transverse", used to describe the portable steamer refer to this device when it rests flat on its base.

The shows a portable steam straightening device comprising a portable casing 10 made of plastic material comprising a base 1 surmounted by a handle 2 and a head 3 for emitting steam.

The base 1 comprises a flat underside on which the device can come to rest stably in a rest position, illustrated in the , in which the longitudinal axis of the handle 2 is slightly inclined forwards, of the order of 15°.

As can be seen on the , the housing 10 of the device comprises a front shell 10A and a rear shell 10B made of plastic material which are assembled one on the other and form a hollow body in which various components of the device are arranged.

The base 1 contains a steam generator 4 and advantageously includes an electrical power cord, not shown in the figures, allowing it to be connected to a domestic electrical network.

In accordance with FIGS. 1 to 3, the vapor emission head 3 has a slender shape extending transversely to the handle 2, preferably forming an angle α of between 45° and 90° with respect to the longitudinal direction of the handle 2 .

The steam emission head 3 has a front end provided with an end plate 5, advantageously metallic, having a flat treatment face 50 intended to come vertically opposite a garment to be smoothed.

The treatment face 50 comprises several steam outlet holes 51 advantageously distributed along its periphery.

In accordance with the , the vapor emission head 3 encloses a reservoir 6 preferably disposed in a rear part of the head 3 and comprises a transparent envelope, defining the outer wall of the reservoir 6, provided with a removable plug 60 allowing the reservoir 6 to be filled .

Preferably, the tank 6 feeds by gravity the steam generator 4 arranged in the base 1 of the device, the steam generator 4 advantageously comprising an instantaneous vaporization chamber 40 formed in an aluminum foundry conventionally containing a resistance 41 electricity whose supply is regulated by means of a thermostat.

The tank 6 is connected to the vaporization chamber 40 by a supply conduit 7 extending inside the handle 2, the supply conduit 7 being advantageously equipped with a distributor 70 making it possible to control the passage of water through the supply conduit 7. By way of example, the distributor 70 may be constituted by a valve brought back into a closed position of the supply conduit 7 by return means, such as a spring, and brought in an open position of the supply duct 7 when pressure is exerted manually on a trigger 71 arranged on the front face of the handle 2.

The vaporization chamber 40 is connected by a vapor conduit 8 to a vapor diffusion chamber 52 formed in a body arranged in thermal contact with the end plate 5, the vapor diffusion chamber 52 communicating with the holes 51 of steam outlet arranged on the edge of the treatment face 50.

The steam conduit 8 is connected to a steam outlet orifice 41 formed on an upper face of the vaporization chamber 40 and travels vertically through the handle 2, then under the reservoir 6 to be connected to an inlet orifice 53 of the vapor diffusion chamber 52.

The handle 2, formed by assembling the front 10A and rear 10B shells of the case 10, comprises a wall, with a thickness of the order of 2 min, intended to be grasped by the hand of the user, the wall of the handle 2 having an internal surface 20 which delimits a volume in which the steam duct 8 and the supply duct 7 travel in particular.

More particularly according to the invention, the handle 2 comprises a sleeve 9 comprising a wall extending around the steam conduit 8, the steam conduit 8 passing through a lower opening 92 formed at a lower end of the sleeve 9 and through an opening upper 93 formed at an upper end of sleeve 9. Sleeve 9 has a small diameter compared to the diameter of handle 2 and advantageously extends over substantially the entire height of handle 2.

Preferably, the sleeve 9 comprises a body of overall tubular shape, made of plastic material, extending longitudinally to the handle 2 and has a flared lower part allowing a vertical path of the steam conduit 8 at the outlet of the steam generator. 4.

As can be seen in Figures 3 and 4, the sleeve 9 comprises two fixing studs 90 projecting from the wall of the sleeve 9 and coming into contact with the internal surface of the handle 2, the two fixing studs 90 making it possible to fix the sleeve 9 by gluing or by screwing onto the handle 2. The fixing studs 90 constitute the only points of direct contact between the handle 2 and the sleeve 9, a layer of air being provided between the internal surface of the handle 2 and the wall of the sleeve 9.

In accordance with the , the supply duct 7 is disposed outside the sleeve 9, the latter comprising, at its upper end, a fixing plate 91 coming opposite the front face of the handle 2 and on which is fixed the distributor 70 associated with trigger 71.

The operation of the apparatus will now be described.

When the user wishes to use the appliance, he fills the tank 6 with water then connects the appliance to the electrical network. The electrical resistor 41 of the vaporization chamber 40 is then supplied with current so that its temperature quickly reaches a setpoint temperature defined by the thermostat.

When the user wishes to use the device, he presses the trigger 71, which has the effect of opening the valve and allowing the flow of water through the supply conduit 7 towards the vaporization chamber 40 The steam produced by the vaporization chamber 40 then escapes through the steam conduit 8 in the direction of the vapor diffusion chamber 52 made in the head 3 and then exits through the steam outlet holes 51 made on the face. of treatment 50.

The presence of the sleeve 9 around the steam duct 8 forms a thermal barrier which limits the heat transfer between the handle 2 and the steam duct 8 and prevents excessive heating of the walls of the handle 2. Thus, such a sleeve 9 allows to prevent the user from having an unpleasant sensation linked to significant heating of the handle 2, or even from burning himself. In addition, such a sleeve 9 also makes it possible to avoid cooling of the steam conduit 8 at the level of the handle 2, which makes it possible to reduce the risk of condensate appearing in the steam conduit 8. The risk is thus limited that water droplets are projected through the steam outlet holes 51 and stain the laundry, or even burn the user.

The device thus produced therefore has the advantage of allowing improved ergonomics of use by limiting the heating of the handle while offering improved performance, by limiting the risk of projection of water droplets through the exit holes of steam.

Of course, the invention is in no way limited to the embodiment described and illustrated which has been given only by way of example. Modifications remain possible, in particular from the point of view of the constitution of the various elements or by substitution of technical equivalents, without thereby departing from the scope of protection of the invention.

Thus, in a variant embodiment not shown, the instantaneous vaporization chamber may be replaced by a pressurized steam generator provided with an outlet orifice equipped with a solenoid valve making it possible to control the emission of steam through the steam conduit. , the opening of the solenoid valve then being controlled by the trigger. In this alternative embodiment, the steam generator can be supplied with water by means of a pump connected to the tank.

Claims (9)

Portable steamer comprising a handle (2), a steam emitting head (3) connected to an upper end of the handle (2) and a base (1) connected to a lower end of the handle (2), the steam emission head (3) comprising a treatment face (50), provided with at least one steam outlet hole (51), intended to come vertically opposite a garment to be smoothed when the device is maintained in a vertical steaming position with the handle (2) located under the head (3), said base (1) comprising a steam generator (4) and said handle (2) comprising a wall intended to be gripped by the hand of the user and enclosing a steam conduit (8) connecting the steam generator (4) to said at least one steam outlet hole, characterized in that the handle (2) encloses a sleeve (9) extending around the steam duct (8) to limit heat transfer between the wall of the handle (2) and the steam duct (8 ). Portable steamer according to Claim 1, characterized in that the sleeve (9) has a generally tubular body, the steam conduit (8) passing through a lower opening provided at a lower end of the sleeve (9) and through an upper opening formed at an upper end of the sleeve (9). Portable steaming device according to any one of Claims 1 to 2, characterized in that the sleeve (9) consists of an added part inside the handle (2). Portable steamer according to any one of Claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the sleeve (9) comprises an external surface comprising two projecting fixing studs (90) intended to come into contact with the wall of the handle ( 2). Portable steamer according to Claim 4, characterized in that the said fixing studs (90) constitute the only points of contact between the wall of the handle (2) and the sleeve (9). Portable steamer according to any one of Claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the sleeve (9) is made of plastic material. Portable steamer according to any one of Claims 1 to 6, characterized in that it comprises a casing (10) comprising two shells (10A, 10B) assembled one on the other and in that the handle ( 2) is made by assembling the two shells (10A, 10B). Portable steamer according to any one of Claims 1 to 7, characterized in that the handle (2) comprises a trigger (71) which must be operated manually to allow the emission of steam and in that the trigger (71) is fixed on the sleeve (9). Portable steamer according to any one of Claims 1 to 8, characterized in that the sleeve (9) extends over at least 50% of the height of the handle (2) and preferably over more than 75% of the height of the handle (2).