JP2002078652A - Vacuum cleaner and filter unit therefor - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a vacuum cleaner capable of preventing filter loading from being neglected, or a filter unit capable of easily eliminating clogging. SOLUTION: A filter unit 20 unremovably containing a filter 24 in a case 21 is detachably arranged in the body 10 of a vacuum cleaner 1. The filter 24 can be compressed by a filter compressor 25 disposed in the case 21. The filter compressor 25 is restored to its original state by the elasticity of the filter 24. Otherwise, it is restored to its original state by an elastic means other than the filter. When the filter unit 20 is not at a predetermined position in a filter storage room 30, a filter unit detector 35 keeps the door 32 of the filter storage room 30 open. Otherwise, a filter unit detector 40 prohibits the operation of an electric blower 12. Otherwise, a display 35 issues a warning.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a novel structure of a vacuum cleaner filter and a structure of a vacuum cleaner incorporating such a filter.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art It is usual to arrange another filter between a dust collecting portion of a vacuum cleaner, for example, a paper dust bag and an electric blower. This filter has the role of catching dust leaking from the paper dust bag, especially from the connection to the hose, and even if you forget to attach the paper dust bag, it stops dust here, It plays a role in preventing dust from rushing into the blower. An example of such a vacuum cleaner in which another filter is arranged downstream of the paper dust bag can be found in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. Hei 7-111961.

[0003] Even in a vacuum cleaner adopting a cyclone dust collecting method, an electric blower may be used when the dust suction force is reduced and the centrifugal force is reduced, or when a large amount of dust is accumulated in a dust collecting cup. There is a possibility that dust flows into the air blower, and it is necessary to arrange a filter between the dust collector and the electric blower.

[0004]

Problems to be Solved by the Invention
In a conventional vacuum cleaner typified by the one described in Japanese Patent Publication No. 1 (1993), a filter downstream of a paper dust bag is fixed to a partition wall in the vacuum cleaner main body by a mounting frame. The filter can be separated from the mounting frame.Therefore, when the filter is separated from the mounting frame and washed with water to eliminate clogging, the filter may be forgotten and only the mounting frame may be returned to the main body of the vacuum cleaner. However, even in such a case, the electric blower can be driven, and there is a risk that dust is sucked into the electric blower as it is. If a paper dust bag is used as the dust collection part, there is little problem if the paper dust bag is functioning properly, but if the bag is torn or severely attached, However, it is not possible to prevent dust from being sucked into the electric blower, which may lead to a failure of the electric blower. Therefore, the present invention is a vacuum cleaner that can prevent forgetting to put the filter,
It is another object of the present invention to provide a structure of a filter unit that can easily eliminate clogging.

[0005]

In order to achieve the above object, according to the present invention, a filter unit in which a filter is housed in a case and which cannot be normally taken out and which is stored in a "cannot be taken out" state is detachably provided in the main body of the vacuum cleaner. To do.
However, the filter may be configured to be taken out by a method other than a normal use method such as using a tool or disassembling the case. Thereby, only the filter can be replaced when the filter is damaged, which is economical.

Further, in the present invention, the filter is stored in a case so as not to be taken out, and in this state, the filter can be compressed by using a filter compressing body arranged in the case.

In the present invention, the filter compression body is restored by the elasticity of the filter.

Further, in the present invention, an elastic means other than the filter for restoring the compressed filter is provided.

Further, according to the present invention, a filter storage chamber for disposing a filter unit is formed in a main body,
When the filter unit is not at the predetermined position, a filter unit detecting device for preventing the lid of the filter storage chamber from closing is arranged.

[0010] In the present invention, a filter accommodating chamber for disposing a filter unit is formed in the main body.
When the filter unit is not at the predetermined position, a control device for stopping the operation of the electric blower, issuing an alarm, or both is provided.

Further, according to the present invention, when the filter unit is arranged at a predetermined position, all the sucked air passes through the filter.

The present invention is configured as described above, and since the filter is stored in the case so as not to be taken out, the case is not attached to the main body of the vacuum cleaner without the filter. In this way, the filter cannot be taken out, but the filter can be compressed using the filter compressor placed in the case.If the filter is clogged, dust can be removed by repeating compression several times. Clogging can be eliminated. Further, if the filter unit is not at a predetermined position, the lid of the filter storage chamber cannot be closed, the electric blower cannot be driven, or an alarm is issued, so that it is possible to reliably prevent forgetting to insert the filter unit. Further, when the filter unit is arranged at a predetermined position, all the sucked air passes through the filter, so that the dust to be captured by the filter can be reliably captured.

[0013]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. In FIG. 1, a main body 10 of the vacuum cleaner 1 is shown.
Inside, a paper dust bag 11, an electric blower 12, and an exhaust filter 13 are arranged. When the electric blower 12 is driven, air is sucked from the suction port 14 via the hose 15. The sucked air is filtered by a paper dust bag 11 and sucked into an electric blower 12. The air discharged from the electric blower 12 is finally purified by the exhaust filter 13 and then discharged from the exhaust port 16 of the main body 10.

A filter unit 20 is detachably disposed between the paper dust bag 11 and the electric blower 12. FIG.
FIG. 3 shows a first embodiment of the filter unit 20.
A case 21 made of a hard synthetic resin forms the skeleton of the filter unit 20. The case 21 has a square front shape, and ventilation holes 22 and 23 are formed on the front surface (the side where air enters) and the rear surface (the side where air exits), respectively. Inwardly protruding edges 45 and 46 are provided on the outer peripheral portions of the vents 22 and 23, respectively. Vent 22, 2
A filter 24 made of a soft and elastic material having air permeability such as urethane foam is inserted between them.
The filter 24 has an outline substantially the same shape as the inner surface of the case 21, is sealed in the case 21, and cannot be taken out by ordinary use. The filter 24 may be configured to be able to be taken out by a method other than a normal use method such as using a tool or disassembling the case 21.

A grid-like filter compression body 25 made of a hard synthetic resin is arranged between the vent 23 and the filter 24. The filter compression body 25 has a plurality of ventilation windows 26 and can move back and forth inside the case 21, but like the filter 24, it cannot be taken out in a normal use. The filter 24 is compressed and held between the projecting edge 45 of the outer peripheral portion of the vent 22 and the filter compression body 25.

The filter unit 20 is connected to the dust bag 1 made of paper.
When disposed at a predetermined position between the air blower 1 and the electric blower 12, the case 21 and the main body 10
It is sealed with a seal member 60 made of an elastic material such as rubber. That is, in the passage of the airflow from the paper dust bag 11 to the electric blower 12, the filter 24 constitutes the only air passage therebetween, and all the sucked air passes through the filter 24. Therefore, dust leaking from the paper dust bag, particularly the connection portion with the hose 15, is captured by the filter 24.

When the clogging of the filter 24 becomes severe, the filter unit 20 is taken out of the main body 10 and the filter compression body 25 is pushed as shown in FIG.
4 is compressed. When the user releases the filter compression body 25, the filter compression body 25 is restored to the position shown in FIG. By repeating this operation, dust oozes out of the filter 24. Doing this in the water is even more effective. Water squeezing when the filter 24 is washed with water can be easily performed by pressing the filter compression body 25 to compress the filter 24.

FIGS. 4 to 6 show a second embodiment of the filter unit 20. FIG. 4 is a front view, and FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken along line AA of FIG. Components common to those of the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals as before, and description thereof is omitted. In this embodiment, there is no projecting edge on the outer peripheral portion of the ventilation port 23 on the rear surface of the case 21, and the case 21 has a shape that is entirely open. A plurality of columns 27 extend from the filter compression body 25 toward the front surface of the case 21. The support column 27 passes through a hole 47 provided in a protruding edge portion 45 of the outer peripheral portion of the vent 22, and
, And a retaining ring 28 is attached to the tip of the protruding portion. Therefore, the filter compression body 25 does not come out of the ventilation port 23 on the rear surface of the case 21.

The filter 24 is compressed and held between the projecting edge 45 of the outer periphery of the vent 22 and the filter compression body 25. The filter 24 has an outline substantially the same shape as the inner surface of the case 21, and a hole or a cutout for passing the support 27 is provided in a portion corresponding to the support 27 of the filter compression body 25. When the filter compression body 25 is pressed as shown in FIG. 6, the filter 24 is compressed. Filter compression body 25
When the hand is released, the filter compression body 25 is restored to the position shown in FIG.

FIG. 7 shows a third embodiment of the filter unit 20. The configuration of this embodiment is substantially the same as that of the second embodiment, but differs from the second embodiment in that an elastic means other than the filter 24 is provided. That is, the compression coil spring 29 was disposed outside the column 27, and one end was engaged with the filter compression body 25 and the other end was engaged with the inner surface of the protruding edge 45. If you press the filter compression body 25, the filter 24
The compression coil spring 29 is also compressed, and the compression coil spring 29 is released together with the filter 24 when the hand is released.
5 is restored. Due to the presence of the compression coil spring 29, the restoration of the filter compression body 25 is speeded up. Along with this, the restoration of the filter 24 is also accelerated, and the movement of the air contained in the filter 24 or the water in the case of washing with water is activated, and the separation of the dust contained in the filter 24 is promoted.
If the front surface and the rear surface of the filter 24 are fixed to the protruding edge 45 and the filter compression body 25 by bonding or the like, respectively, a restoring force exceeding its own elasticity acts on the filter 24 by the force of the compression coil spring 29. That is, dust separation is further promoted.

FIGS. 8 to 11 show various embodiments of the filter unit receiving structure in the main body 10. In these figures, the filter unit 20 according to the embodiment shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 is illustrated, but it is needless to say that another embodiment can be used. Now, in the first embodiment shown in FIG. 8, a filter storage chamber 30 for disposing the filter unit 20 is formed in the main body 10. The upper surface of the filter storage chamber 30 is an opening 31 for taking the filter unit 20 in and out.
Here, the lid 32 is attached so as to be rotatable about a support shaft 33 in a vertical plane. To maintain the lid 32 closed, a suitable type of latch device (not shown) is provided. The filter unit 20 is hermetically sealed by the sealing member 60 on the paper dust bag 11 side and the electric blower 12 side, and all the sucked air passes through the filter 24 and is sucked into the electric blower 12 side.

In the opening 31, a filter unit detecting device 35 is disposed. The filter unit detecting device 35 includes an L-shaped lever 37 rotatably supported in a vertical plane by a support shaft 36 on the inner wall of the filter storage chamber 30, and a filter unit 20 that projects from the filter unit 20 and hits a short side of the L-shaped lever 37. The projecting piece 38 for rotating the lever is a main component. The L-shaped lever 37 is normally urged by an unillustrated torsion spring to an angular position where its long side protrudes from the opening 31 (the broken line state in FIG. 8). In this state, the lid 32 is not completely closed, and even if the vacuum cleaner 1 is operated, almost no suction force is generated in the suction port 14. Filter unit 2
When 0 is pushed into the filter storage chamber 30, the projecting piece 38 hits the short side of the L-shaped lever 37 when approaching the end of the stroke, and rotates the lever against the urging force. When the filter unit 20 is completely pushed in, the L-shaped lever 37 is at the angle indicated by the solid line in FIG.
Does not hinder the closing. Therefore, the lid 32 can be firmly closed and the operation of the vacuum cleaner 1 can be started.

FIG. 9 shows a second embodiment of the filter unit receiving structure. In this embodiment, an independent airtight chamber 39 is formed outside the bottom of the filter storage chamber 30, and the filter unit detection device 40 is disposed here. The main components of the filter unit detection device 40 are a filter unit detection switch 41 and a projection 42 protruding from the bottom of the filter unit 20. Projection 42
Completely removes the filter unit 20 from the filter storage chamber 30.
Into the hole 43 at the bottom of the filter storage chamber 30
From the airtight chamber 39, and presses the actuator 44 of the filter unit detection switch 41. Thereby, the filter unit detection switch 41 is connected to the filter unit 2.
0 is detected at a predetermined position.

As shown in FIG. 10, the filter unit detection switch 41 is connected to the control device 50. In addition to the filter unit detection switch 41, the control unit 50 is connected with a drive unit 51 of the electric blower 12, an operation switch 52 of the electric vacuum cleaner 1, and a display unit 53 of the operation state of the electric vacuum cleaner. The operation switch 52 selects an operation mode of the electric blower 12 such as “strong, medium, weak, off”. The display unit displays various messages such as the operation mode of the electric blower 12 and the degree of dust accumulation. The drive unit 51 is provided inside the main body 10 together with the electric blower 12. The operation switch 52 and the display unit 53 are provided on a handle portion formed at the end of the hose 15 or on the main body 10.

The control device 50 performs the following operation when the filter unit 20 is not at the predetermined position, that is, when there is no signal from the filter unit detection switch 41 that the presence of the filter unit 20 is detected. That is, a command to stop the operation of the electric blower 12 is issued to the drive unit 51, and an alarm indicating that the filter unit 20 is not at the predetermined position is displayed on the display unit 53. May be executed only one of them, or both may be executed. The warning may be not only visual means such as blinking light and text message, but also a method of appealing to the five senses other than visual such as voice message and vibration, or a combination thereof. In this way, when an unusual state occurs, the user of the vacuum cleaner 1 knows that the filter unit 20 is not properly attached, and solves the problem.

The embodiment of FIG. 9 can be combined with the embodiment of FIG. Alternatively, an appropriate type of filter detection switch may be combined with the L-shaped lever 37 in FIG. 8, and a signal indicating the presence or absence of the filter unit 20 may be transmitted to the control device 50 by the movement of the L-shaped lever 37.

FIG. 11 shows a third embodiment of the filter unit receiving structure. In this embodiment, a rubber seal member 60 is mounted on the outer surface on the front side and the rear side of the filter unit 20. The seal member 60 has a ring shape and surrounds the ventilation holes 22 and 23. When the filter unit 20 is inserted into the filter storage chamber 30, the seal member 60 comes into close contact with the inner wall of the filter storage chamber 30, the filter 24 becomes the sole air passage, and all of the sucked air is filtered.
4 to make it even more secure. The seal member 60 may be fixed to the inner wall of the filter storage chamber 30. This embodiment can be used in combination with the embodiments shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, and it is possible to obtain sufficient airtightness at important points with a simple structure without considering the degree of sealing of the lid 32 of the filter storage chamber 30. it can.

Although various embodiments of the present invention have been described above, these are merely examples, and various modifications can be made without departing from the gist of the invention.

[0029]

According to the present invention, the following effects can be obtained. Since the filter is stored in the case irretrievably,
There is no case where only the case is attached to the main body of the vacuum cleaner without a filter. No filters are lost. Since the filter can be compressed using the filter compressor placed in the case, if the filter is clogged, the dust contained in the filter can be squeezed out by repeating compression several times to eliminate the clogging . If this is performed in water, the filter can be washed without removing the filter from the case. Draining after washing can be easily performed by compressing the filter with the filter compression body, and the filter can be dried quickly. When the filter unit is not at the predetermined position, the user can be reliably notified that the vacuum cleaner cannot be used by using a structure in which the lid of the filter storage chamber does not close. When the filter unit is not at the predetermined position, the electric blower cannot be driven, so that trouble caused by cleaning without the filter unit can be reliably prevented. When the filter unit is not at the predetermined position, an alarm is issued, so that the user can be reliably notified that the vacuum cleaner cannot be used. When the filter unit is arranged at a predetermined position, all the sucked air passes through the filter, so that the dust to be captured can be reliably captured by the filter.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a vacuum cleaner.

FIG. 2 is a side sectional view of the filter unit of the first embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a side sectional view of the filter unit according to the first embodiment, showing a state different from FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a front view of a filter unit according to a second embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a side sectional view of a filter unit according to a second embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a side cross-sectional view of the filter unit of the second embodiment, showing a state different from FIG.

FIG. 7 is a partial cross-sectional view of a filter unit according to a third embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a partial cross-sectional view of a vacuum cleaner main body showing a first embodiment of a filter unit receiving structure.

FIG. 9 is a partial cross-sectional view of a cleaner body showing a second embodiment of the filter unit receiving structure.

FIG. 10 is a block diagram of a vacuum cleaner control circuit related to the second embodiment of the filter unit receiving structure.

FIG. 11 is a partial cross-sectional view of a cleaner body showing a third embodiment of a filter unit receiving structure.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Vacuum cleaner 10 Main body 11 Paper dust bag 12 Electric blower 13 Exhaust filter 20 Filter unit 21 Case 22 Vent 23 Vent 24 Filter 25 Filter compression body 29 Compression coil spring (elastic means other than a filter) 30 Filter storage room 32 Lid 35 Filter unit detection device 39 Airtight chamber 40 Filter unit detection device 41 Filter unit detection switch 50 Control device 51 Electric blower drive unit 53 Display unit 60 Seal member

Claims (7)

[Claims] 1. A vacuum cleaner wherein a filter unit in which a filter is stored in a case so as not to be taken out of the case is detachably disposed in a main body. 2. A filter unit for a vacuum cleaner, wherein the filter is stored in a case so as not to be taken out of the case, and in this state, the filter can be compressed by using a filter compression body disposed in the case. 3. The filter unit for a vacuum cleaner according to claim 2, wherein the filter compression body is restored by elasticity of the filter. 4. An apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising an elastic means for restoring the compressed filter body other than the filter.
A filter unit for an electric vacuum cleaner according to item 1. 5. A filter housing for forming a filter unit, wherein a filter housing is formed in the main body, and a filter unit detecting device for preventing a lid of the filter housing from closing when the filter is not at a predetermined position is arranged. The vacuum cleaner according to claim 1, wherein: 6. A control device for forming a filter housing chamber for disposing a filter unit in a main body, and for stopping operation of an electric blower, issuing an alarm, or both when the filter unit is not at a predetermined position. The vacuum cleaner according to claim 1, further comprising: 7. The vacuum cleaner according to claim 1, wherein when the filter unit is arranged at a predetermined position, all of the sucked air passes through the filter.