JP2006311943A - Vacuum cleaner - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To miniaturize a storage space and shorten a time required till using a vacuum cleaner and a time for storing the vacuum cleaner. <P>SOLUTION: When a user takes a handle button 6a in the storage state of the handle member between hand fingers and pushes it inward from the both sides 7, the locking of a handle member 7 is unlocked and the user rotates it till turning it in the approximately vertical direction. When the releases the handle button from the hand fingers and stops the pushing at position where the handle member 7 becomes non-rotatable, the handle member 7 is locked again to become non-usable state. In the usable state, the handle member 7 forms an approximately straight line with a handle joint 5 and a pipe 3, so that the user can clean a floor while moving a suction port member 4 attached to the pipe 3 along the floor face by operating the handle member 7. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

The present invention relates to a vacuum cleaner, and more particularly to a vacuum cleaner in which a vacuum cleaner body travels on a floor surface (a so-called floor surface travel type vacuum cleaner).

Conventional floor-operated vacuum cleaners consist of a suction port member, extension pipe, handle member, hose, and vacuum cleaner body. When storing, do you slide the hose suction joint to shorten the length? The extension pipe was removed from the suction joint and stored.

On the other hand, in the vertical type vacuum cleaner (so-called upright type vacuum cleaner) in which the conventional vacuum cleaner main body and the handle member are integrally formed, the handle member cannot generally be folded. A lock mechanism that locks the handle member upright with respect to the main body of the vacuum cleaner and a release button that unlocks the handle member by the lock mechanism are provided so that the handle member can be unlocked during storage to reduce the storage space. (See, for example, Patent Document 1 to Patent Document 4).
Japanese Patent No. 3205892 JP 2003-61878 A JP 2001-87187 A JP-A-9-66006

As described above, in the conventional floor running type vacuum cleaner, when storing, the suction joint portion of the hose is slid to shorten the length, or the extension pipe is removed from the suction joint portion and stored. So, it took time to store the vacuum cleaner, and when using it, it was necessary to slide the hose suction joint part to lengthen it or attach an extension pipe to the suction joint part, There was a problem that it took time to use the vacuum cleaner.

In addition, in the case where the suction joint is slid, the vacuum cleaner main body and the suction joint in the housed state are fixed only by inserting ribs, so the suction joint may be detached from the vacuum cleaner main body. There was a problem of lack of stability.

A first object of the present invention is to provide an electric vacuum cleaner that can reduce the storage space and shorten the time until the electric vacuum cleaner is used and the time until the electric vacuum cleaner is stored. It is in.

A second object of the present invention is to provide a vacuum cleaner that is easy to carry without worrying that the handle member may come off from the main body of the vacuum cleaner in the housed state.

Means for Solving the Problems and Effects of the Invention

The vacuum cleaner according to claim 1, wherein the vacuum cleaner main body traveling on the floor surface, a hose led out from the vacuum cleaner main body, a pipe attached to the tip of the hose, and attached to the tip of the pipe The suction port member, the hose and the pipe connected at one end, a handle joint provided with a handle button at the other end, and a rotation lock mechanism connected to the handle button at the handle joint. And a handle member that is swingably attached. According to the vacuum cleaner of the first aspect, the storage space can be reduced, and the time until the vacuum cleaner is used and the time until the vacuum cleaner is stored can be shortened. Further, since the bending of the handle member also serves as fixing of the storage, it is easy to carry without worrying that the handle member is detached from the cleaner body when moving with the handle in the cleaner body.

The vacuum cleaner according to claim 2 is the vacuum cleaner according to claim 1, wherein the rotation lock mechanism includes a handle state in which the handle member is in parallel with the pipe, and a use state in which the handle is aligned with the pipe. It is characterized by locking with. According to the vacuum cleaner of claim 2, since the rotation lock mechanism locks the handle member in the storage state parallel to the pipe and the use state aligned with the pipe, the handle member is stored compactly in the storage state. In the use state, the handle member and the pipe are integrated, and the handle member is operated to smoothly operate the suction port member attached to the pipe.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided the electric vacuum cleaner according to the first or second aspect, wherein the rotation lock mechanism projects from the handle button, a circumferential wall of the handle joint, and an inner peripheral surface thereof. And a high arc wall and a low arc wall projecting so as to be fitted to the circumferential wall of the handle member, and a handle spring interposed between the handle buttons. It is characterized by. According to the vacuum cleaner of the third aspect, there is an advantage that the rotation lock mechanism can be realized by a very simple mechanism.

The electric vacuum cleaner according to claim 4 is the electric vacuum cleaner according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the vacuum cleaner body and the pipe are detachably integrated by a fastener. It is characterized by. According to the vacuum cleaner of claim 4, since the cleaner body and the pipe are integrated by the fastener, the hose for connecting the cleaner body and the pipe in the stored state, and the suction port attached to the pipe There is an effect that the member does not wobble.

The electric vacuum cleaner according to claim 5 is the electric vacuum cleaner according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein a grip portion of the handle member is curved in an arc shape, and the electric vacuum cleaner is in the stored state. The arc-shaped gripping portion is housed in a handle housing recess formed in the cleaner body. According to the vacuum cleaner of the fifth aspect, since the arc-shaped grip portion of the handle member is stored in the handle storage recess of the cleaner body in the stored state, there is an effect that the handle member does not fluctuate in the stored state. .

Since the bending of the handle member also serves as fixing of the storage, the storage space can be reduced, and the time to use the vacuum cleaner and the time to store the vacuum cleaner are shortened. The handle is easy to carry without worrying about detachment from the vacuum cleaner body.

Hereinafter, the vacuum cleaner which concerns on Example 1 of this invention is demonstrated using drawing.

1 and 2 are a perspective view and a side view showing a housed state of the electric vacuum cleaner according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. The vacuum cleaner according to the first embodiment includes a vacuum cleaner body 1 that travels on the floor, a hose 2 that is led out from the vacuum cleaner body 1, a pipe 3 that is attached to the tip of the hose 2, The suction port member 4 attached to the distal end, the hose 2 and the pipe 3 are connected to each other at one end, the handle joint 5 is provided with handle buttons 6a and 6b at the other end, and the handle button 6a is connected to the handle joint 5. , 6b, and a handle member 7 that is swingably attached via a rotation lock mechanism 8 (see FIG. 5).

The vacuum cleaner body 1 has a dust collection chamber and an electric blower (both not shown) housed therein, is formed in a short cylindrical body, and is attached to both side surfaces that are circular end surfaces of the short cylindrical body 1a, 1b and the roller 1c attached to the lower surface part are made to drive | work a floor surface. The cleaner body 1 is provided with a charging adapter insertion port 1d and a charging display lamp 1f, and is used cordlessly after charging. The vacuum cleaner body 1 is provided with a power switch 1g and a handle 1h is attached so as to be freely pulled out. Further, as shown in FIG. 9, a handle housing recess 1 i for housing the curved gripping portion 7 b of the handle member 7 is formed on the outer peripheral surface of the cleaner body 1.

The hose 2 is formed of a flexible tubular body that can be expanded and contracted. A base end portion of the hose 2 is airtightly connected to the suction port of the cleaner body 1 and the other end portion passes between the handle member 7 and the handle buttons 6a and 6b. The handle joint 5 is fixed to one end. As shown in FIG. 8, a rail-like fastener 21 is fixed to the outer periphery of the connecting portion of the hose 2 with the cleaner body 1 so as to be on the side opposite to the cleaner body 1.

One end of the pipe 3 is fixed to one end of the handle joint 5 so as to communicate with the tip of the hose 2, and the suction port member 4 is detachably attached to the other end. As shown in FIG. 8, a double-winged fastener 31 is fixed to the outer periphery of the connection portion of the pipe 3 with the suction port member 4 so as to be on the cleaner body 1 side. Therefore, when the double-wing-shaped fastener 31 is inserted into the rail-shaped fastener 21 so as to slide from above, the pipe 3 is integrated with the cleaner body 1.

The suction port member 4 is formed in a horizontally long thin box shape that sucks while sliding against the floor surface, and the base end portion is attached to the tip end portion of the pipe 3 in an airtight and detachable manner. ing.

The handle joint 5 connects the hose 2 and the pipe 3 at one end, and handle buttons 6a and 6b are provided at the other end. The handle joint 5 has the other end portion divided into a pair of thin plate portions, and the pair of thin plate portions can be elastically deformed to be close to each other or to be separated from each other.

The handle member 7 is formed of a substantially straight linear portion 7a and an arc gripping portion 7b which is curved and extended from the linear portion 7a in a semicircular arc shape, and the base end portion of the linear portion 7a is the handle joint 5. Is attached to the other end portion of the rotary lever via a pair of handle buttons 6a, 6b connected to the rotation lock mechanism 8. The handle member 7 has a base end portion divided into a pair of thin plate portions, and the distance between the pair of thin plate portions is fixed by screws and kept constant.

As shown in FIG. 7, the rotation lock mechanism 8 includes a pair of handle buttons 6a and 6b, a circumferential wall 51 provided at the tip of the handle joint 5, and a pair of locking pieces projecting from the inner peripheral surface thereof. 52, 52, two high arc walls 71, 72 and one low arc wall 73 projecting from the handle member 7 so as to be fitted to the circumferential wall 51, and a handle spring inserted between the handle joint 5 9 (see FIG. 6). A gap between the high arc wall 71 and the low arc wall 73 is a storage lock groove 74 in which the pair of locking pieces 52 and 52 are fitted in the storage state of the handle member 7. Further, the gap between the high arc wall 72 and the low arc wall 73 is a use lock groove 75 in which the pair of locking pieces 52 and 52 are fitted in the use state of the handle member 7.

As shown in FIG. 6, the handle buttons 6 a and 6 b are disposed so as to be slidably fitted into holes formed in the base end portion of the handle member 7, and The position is regulated so as not to be closer than a predetermined distance within the hole drilled in the base end. The handle buttons 6a and 6b are urged in a direction (outside) away from each other by an extensible handle spring 9 inserted between a pair of thin plate portions at the tip of the handle joint 5. 6a and 6b are prevented from slipping out from the hole formed in the handle member 7 by a flange protruding from the outer periphery of the inner end.

The handle spring 9 is inserted between the pair of thin plate portions at the distal end portion of the handle joint 5 so as to insert a screw for fixing the position (distance) between the pair of thin plate portions of the handle member 7. For this reason, the handle spring 9 biases the handle buttons 6a and 6b away from each other (outside) through a pair of thin plate portions at the distal end portion of the handle joint 5 by extension elasticity.

Next, operation | movement of the vacuum cleaner which concerns on this Example 1 comprised in this way is demonstrated.

(1) Usage procedure

In the storage state shown in FIG. 2, the locking pieces 52, 52 inside the handle joint 5 enter the storage lock groove 74 between the high arc wall 71 and the low arc wall 73 of the handle member 7 (FIG. 5). The handle member 7 is locked in the housed state by the rotation lock mechanism 8.

When the user holds the handle buttons 6a and 6b with fingers of the hand and presses them inward from both sides in the locked state shown in FIG. 6A, the handle buttons 6a and 6b are moved to the handle spring 9 as shown in FIG. 6B. The pair of thin plate portions at the distal end portion of the handle joint 5 is pressed against the expansion elasticity of the handle joint 5. For this reason, the pair of thin plate portions at the distal end portion of the handle joint 5 are pressed and bent (elastically deformed), whereby the low arc wall 73 of the handle member 7 and the engagement pieces 52 and 52 of the handle joint 5 are engaged. Is released, and the rotation lock mechanism 8 is unlocked with respect to the rotation direction (arrow a) of the lower arc wall 73 of the handle member 7. On the other hand, since the high arc wall 71 of the handle member 7 is high, the engagement with the locking pieces 52 and 52 of the handle joint 5 is not released, and the rotation lock mechanism 8 is rotated in the rotational direction of the high arc wall 71 of the handle member 7. The lock is not released with respect to (the direction opposite to the arrow a). Therefore, the handle member 7 can be rotated in a fixed direction (arrow a) in which the rotation lock mechanism 8 is unlocked.

Accordingly, when the user pushes the handle buttons 6a and 6b with fingers of the hand and pushes them inward from both sides, as shown in FIG. 3, the handle member 7 is rotated until it is almost perpendicular to the direction of the arrow a. As shown in FIG. 7, the high arc wall 72 of the handle member 7 engages with the locking piece 52 of the handle joint 5 and can no longer rotate.

Therefore, when the user stops releasing the hand from the handle buttons 6a and 6b and presses it, as shown in FIG. 6 (a), the elastic force of the handle spring 9 causes a pair of thin plate portions at the tip of the handle joint 5 to pass through. Then, the handle buttons 6a and 6b are pushed back outward, and as shown in FIG. 7, the locking piece 52 of the handle joint 5 is used in the locking groove 75 between the low arc wall 73 and the high arc wall 72 of the handle member 7. The rotation lock mechanism 8 is locked again. In a state in which the rotation lock mechanism 8 is locked again, the handle member 7 becomes substantially straight with the pipe 3 and the handle joint 5 as shown in FIG.

When the pipe 3 is lifted from the use state of the handle member 7 shown in FIG. 3 and the double-wing-like fastener 31 of the pipe 3 is removed from the rail-like fastener 21 of the cleaner body 1, as shown in FIG. The vacuum cleaner according to 1 is in use. Therefore, the user can start cleaning by holding the arc-shaped gripping portion 7b of the handle member 7 with one hand, attaching the suction port member 4 to the floor, and turning on the power switch 1g. Along with the movement of the handle member 7 by the user, the suction port member 4 moves on the floor surface, and at the same time, the cleaner body 1 connected by the hose 2 moves.

(2) Storage procedure

When storing the electric vacuum cleaner according to the first embodiment from the usage state where the cleaning is performed as shown in FIG. 4, the user brings the suction port member 4 closer to the cleaner main body 1, as shown in FIG. 8. As described above, the double-wing-like fastener 31 of the pipe 3 is inserted into the rail-like fastener 21 of the cleaner body 1. Then, it will be in the state of FIG.

Next, when the user holds the handle buttons 6a and 6b with fingers of the hand and presses them inward from both sides in the state shown in FIG. 3, the handle buttons 6a and 6b are moved to the handle spring 9 as shown in FIG. 6B. The pair of thin plate portions at the distal end portion of the handle joint 5 is pressed against the expansion elasticity of the handle joint 5. For this reason, the pair of thin plate portions at the distal end portion of the handle joint 5 are pressed and bent (elastically deformed), whereby the low arc wall 73 of the handle member 7 and the engagement pieces 52 and 52 of the handle joint 5 are engaged. Is released, and the lock of the rotation lock mechanism 8 is released with respect to the rotation direction (arrow b) of the low circular arc wall 73 of the handle member 7. On the other hand, since the high arc wall 72 of the handle member 7 is high, the engagement with the locking pieces 52, 52 of the handle joint 5 is not disengaged, and in the rotation direction (arrow a) of the high arc wall 72 of the handle member 7. On the other hand, the lock of the rotation lock mechanism 8 is not released. Accordingly, the handle member 7 can be rotated in the rotation direction (arrow b) in which the rotation lock mechanism 8 is unlocked.

Therefore, when the user rotates the handle member 7 so as to be folded in the direction of the arrow b as shown in FIG. 3 while holding the handle buttons 6a and 6b with fingers of the hand and pushing them inward from both sides, FIG. As shown in FIG. 2, the high arc wall 71 of the handle member 7 engages with the locking piece 52 of the handle joint 5 and cannot be rotated any further.

Accordingly, when the user stops releasing the finger of the hand from the handle buttons 6a and 6b and stops pressing, the pair of thin plate portions at the distal end portion of the handle joint 5 is caused by the expansion elasticity of the handle spring 9 as shown in FIG. The handle buttons 6a and 6b are pushed back to the outside, and the locking pieces 52 and 52 of the handle joint 5 are located between the high arc wall 71 and the low arc wall 73 of the handle member 7 as shown in FIG. The rotary lock mechanism 8 is locked in the stored state by fitting in the storage lock groove 74. In the storage state in which the rotation lock mechanism 8 is locked, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the handle member 7 is substantially parallel to the pipe 3, and the grip portion 7 b is stored in the handle storage recess 1 i of the cleaner body 1. Will be.

In the storage state as shown in FIG. 2, the handle member 7 does not come off the cleaner body 1 unless the handle buttons 6 a and 6 b on both sides of the handle member 7 are pushed to release the lock of the rotation lock mechanism 8. Thereby, even if a user pulls up the handle 1h from the vacuum cleaner main body 1 and carries the electric vacuum cleaner, there is no fear that the handle member 7 is detached from the pipe 3 and the vacuum cleaner main body 1.

Thus, according to the first embodiment, the storage space can be reduced, and the time until the vacuum cleaner is used and the time until the vacuum cleaner is stored can be shortened. Further, since the bending of the handle member 7 also serves as fixing of storage, the handle member 7 can be removed from the cleaner body 1 even when the handle 1h in the cleaner body 1 is held and moved. Easy to carry.

As described above, the first embodiment of the present invention has been described. However, this is merely an example, and the present invention is not limited to this, and the knowledge of those skilled in the art can be obtained without departing from the scope of the claims. Various modifications based on this are possible.

For example, although the vacuum cleaner has been described as being a rechargeable cordless vacuum cleaner, it goes without saying that the present invention can be similarly applied to a normal vacuum cleaner that is powered by a cord from a household power source. .

The perspective view of the vacuum cleaner which concerns on Example 1 of this invention. The side view of the vacuum cleaner which concerns on Example 1 of this invention. The side view which shows the state which pulled up the handle member from the accommodation state. The side view which shows the use condition of the vacuum cleaner which concerns on the present Example 1. FIG. Sectional drawing which shows the rotation lock mechanism of the vacuum cleaner which concerns on the present Example 1. FIG. (A) is a sectional view showing a state when the handle button is not pressed, and (b) is a cross-sectional view showing a state when the handle button is pressed. Sectional drawing explaining the action | operation of the rotation lock mechanism shown in FIG. The figure explaining fixation to the vacuum cleaner main body of a pipe. The figure explaining the accommodation to the handle accommodation recessed part of a handle member.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Vacuum cleaner main body 1a, 1b Wheel 1c Roller 1h Handle 2 Hose 3 Pipe 4 Suction member 5 Handle joint 6 Handle button 7 Handle member 8 Rotation lock mechanism 9 Handle spring 21 Rail-like fastener 31 Twin-wing-like fastener 51 Circumferential wall 52 Locking piece (locking part)
71, 72 High arc wall 73 Low arc wall 74 Storage lock groove 75 Lock groove used

Claims (5)

A vacuum cleaner body that runs on the floor,
A hose derived from the vacuum cleaner body;
A pipe attached to the tip of the hose;
A suction port member attached to the tip of the pipe;
A handle joint that connects the hose and the pipe at one end and a handle button is provided at the other end;
A vacuum cleaner comprising: a handle member swingably attached to the handle joint via a rotation lock mechanism connected to the handle button. The electric vacuum cleaner according to claim 1, wherein the rotation lock mechanism locks the handle member in a storage state parallel to the pipe and a use state in alignment with the pipe. The rotation lock mechanism is protruded so as to be fitted to the circumferential wall of the handle button, a circumferential wall of the handle joint and a locking portion projecting from the inner circumferential surface thereof, and the handle member. The vacuum cleaner according to claim 1 or 2, comprising a circular arc wall and a low circular arc wall, and a handle spring interposed between the handle buttons. The vacuum cleaner according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the vacuum cleaner body and the pipe are detachably integrated by a fastener. The grip portion of the handle member is curved in an arc shape, and the arc-shaped grip portion is stored in a handle storage recess formed in the cleaner body in the storage state. The vacuum cleaner according to item 1.

Images