JP7469801B2 - Cleaning tools - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a cleaning tool suitable for cleaning bathroom floors, walls, bathtubs, etc.

Cleaning tools for cleaning bathroom floors, walls, bathtubs, etc. are well known, as disclosed in, for example, Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2. These cleaning tools have a cleaning member such as a sponge attached to a head formed at the end of a handle, and this cleaning member is used to remove dirt that has adhered to the bathroom floor, walls, or bathtub.

However, known cleaning tools have a cleaning member attached to a head connected to the end of a long handle, and therefore are large and complex in structure, making them difficult to use when cleaning narrow areas or corners of the bathroom.
In addition, when the cleaning tool was not in use, it was stored by hanging or leaning it against a wall in the bathroom, etc., but since the wet cleaning parts remained in contact with the wall or floor, not only were the parts of the wall or floor that came into contact with the cleaning parts easily soiled, but there was also the drawback that the wet cleaning parts were difficult to dry.

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 11-128157 JP 2000-287912 A

The objective of the present invention is to provide a cleaning tool that is small and simple in structure, easy to use in tight spaces such as bathroom corners, and easy to store when not in use.

In order to solve the above problems, the cleaning tool of the present invention has a head having a cleaning member attached to the underside of a plate-shaped base, and a handle connected to the upper surface of the head via a pivot so as to be rotatable in the front-to-rear direction of the head, the handle having a rotating part connected to the pivot, an arm part extending from the rotating part toward the front of the head, and a grip part extending from the tip of the arm part toward the rear of the head, the tip of the arm part being freely engaged with and detached from the base by a locking mechanism formed forward of a connecting position where the handle is connected to the head , and the grip part is oriented upward and a rear end of the grip portion protruding rearward beyond the rear end of the head, a permanent magnet being attached to the rear end of the grip portion and forming a magnetically attracted surface, the magnetically attracted surface being located above a first imaginary plane including the underside of the base and facing diagonally downward to the rear of the head when the tip of the arm portion is engaged with a base, and configured such that when the head is rotated about the pivot axis and a cleaning surface, which is the underside of the head, is brought into opposition to a second imaginary plane including the magnetically attracted surface, at least a portion of the cleaning surface is out of contact with the second imaginary surface.

The cleaning tool of the present invention also has a flange-shaped magnet attachment portion formed at the rear end of the grip portion, a magnetic attraction surface larger than the cross section of the grip portion formed on the front surface of the magnet attachment portion, and a permanent magnet larger than the cross section of the grip portion is attached to the magnetic attraction surface.

In addition, in the cleaning tool of the present invention, the locking mechanism has an elastic locking piece formed on the base and a locking edge formed on the arm portion, and when the tip of the arm portion is pressed against the base, the elastic locking piece elastically locks to the locking edge, locking the handle in a non-rotating state, and when the elastic locking piece is released from the locking edge, the handle becomes freely rotatable around the pivot.

In this case, it is preferable that the elastic locking piece has an upright portion that rises upward from the base and a hanging portion that extends downward from the upper end of the upright portion, with a locking claw formed at the lower end of the hanging portion that can be freely engaged with and disengaged from the locking edge, and that the arm portion has a fitting hole formed in the vertical direction into which the elastic locking piece fits, and that the locking edge is formed inside the fitting hole.

The cleaning tool of the present invention is small and simple in structure compared to known cleaning tools in which a head is connected to the end of a long handle, making it easy to use in narrow areas such as bathroom corners. When storing the cleaning tool, the head is rotated so that it faces parallel to the magnetic attraction surface at the rear end of the handle, and the magnetic attraction surface is attached to a magnetic body provided on the wall of the bathroom or other room, and the cleaning tool is hung from the wall. This means that the cleaning surface of the cleaning member faces the wall and a space is formed between the cleaning surface and the wall, so the cleaning tool can be stored neatly without soiling the wall with the cleaning member and in a state where the wet cleaning member can easily dry.

1 is a perspective view of a cleaning tool according to the present invention; FIG. 2 is a side view of the cleaning tool of FIG. 1 . FIG. 3 is a right side view of FIG. 2 . FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along line IV-IV in FIG. 3 is an end view taken along line VV in FIG. 2. FIG. 4 is a side view showing the cleaning tool in a stored state.

One embodiment of the cleaning tool according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to Figures 1 to 6. This cleaning tool has a head 1 and a handle 2 attached to the top surface of the head 1 so that it can be rotated in the front-rear direction of the head 1.

The head 1 comprises a plate-like base 3 made of synthetic resin and a cleaning member 4 made of sponge, nonwoven fabric or the like attached to the lower surface of the base 3.
The planar shapes of the base 3 and the cleaning member 4 are both rectangular shapes that are elongated in the front-rear direction. In this case, the front-rear (length) diameter and the left-right (width) diameter of the cleaning member 4 are larger than the front-rear and left-right diameters of the base 3, so that the front-rear and width ends of the cleaning member 4 protrude outward from the front-rear and width ends of the base 3.

A pair of left and right bearings 5, 5 are formed at the center of the upper surface of the base 3, and one end and the other end of the pivot 6 extending in the left-right direction of the base 3 are supported by one and the other of the pair of bearings 5, 5.

In addition, an elastic locking piece 8 is provided integrally with the base 3 on the upper surface of the base 3 at a position forward of the position where the pivot 6 is attached, which constitutes the locking mechanism 7 together with a locking edge 9 formed on the handle 2. This elastic locking piece 8 has an upright portion 8a that stands upward from the base 3, an inclined portion 8b that extends diagonally downward from the upper end of the upright portion 8a toward the front of the base 3, and a hanging portion 8c that extends downward from the tip of the inclined portion 8b, and a locking claw 8d that can be freely engaged with and disengaged from the locking edge 9 is formed at the lower end of the hanging portion 8c.

The handle 2 has a rotating part 2a connected to the pivot 6, an arm part 2b extending from the rotating part 2a toward the front of the head 1, and a grip part 2c extending from the tip of the arm part 2b toward the rear of the head 1, and the rotating part 2a, arm part 2b, and grip part 2c are integrally formed from synthetic resin.

The rotating part 2a is cylindrical and extends in the left-right direction of the base 3. It has an axial hole 11 in its center through which the pivot 6 is rotatably inserted, and a notch 12 on its side that leads to the axial hole 11. The width of the notch 12 is slightly smaller than the diameter of the pivot 6, and by forcing the pivot 6 into the axial hole 11 through the notch 12, the pivot 6 is fitted into the axial hole 11 so that it can rotate relatively to the rotating part 2a, but does not slip out through the notch 12 to the outside.

The arm portion 2b extends from the rotating portion 2a along the upper surface of the base 3, approximately parallel to the upper surface, and the tip of the grip portion 2c is integrally connected to the tip of the arm portion 2b. A fitting hole 13 into which the elastic locking piece 8 of the base 3 fits is formed at the connecting portion 2d where the arm portion 2b and the grip portion 2c are connected, so as to penetrate the connecting portion 2d in the vertical direction. Inside the fitting hole 13, a step portion 10 is formed that protrudes from the front wall 13a of the fitting hole 13 toward the rear wall 13b side, and the locking edge 9 that locks the locking claw 8d of the elastic locking piece 8 from above is formed at the tip of the step portion 10, and the locking mechanism 7 is formed by this locking edge 9 and the elastic locking piece 8.

Since the locking mechanism 7 is configured in this way, when the handle 2 is rotated to press the tip of the arm portion 2b against the upper surface of the base 3, the locking claw 8d of the elastic locking piece 8 elastically locks onto the locking edge 9 from above, as shown in Figure 4, and the handle 2 is locked in a non-rotating state. When the inclined portion 8b of the elastic locking piece 8 is pushed with a finger toward the rear wall 13b of the fitting hole 13 to release the locking claw 8d, the handle 2 becomes freely rotatable around the pivot 6.

The grip portion 2c is curved in an upwardly convex shape, and the middle portion of the grip portion 2c is formed in a shape that is somewhat closer to a straight line by reducing the degree of curvature so that it is easier to hold with the hand. As shown in FIG. 5, the cross-sectional shape of the grip portion 2c is H-shaped, and has wide upper and lower walls 2e and 2f, and a narrow connecting wall 2g that connects the centers of the upper and lower walls 2e and 2f.

The rear end of the grip portion 2c protrudes rearward beyond the rear end of the head 1, and a flange-shaped magnet attachment portion 14 is formed at the rear end. A permanent magnet 16 larger than the cross section of the grip portion 2c is attached to the front surface of the magnet attachment portion 14, and the surface of the permanent magnet 16 forms a magnetic attraction surface 15 larger than the cross section of the grip portion 2c.
The shape of the magnet attachment portion 14 is preferably a shape that spreads in all directions, such as a circle, an ellipse, or a polygon, but it may also be a shape that is elongated in the vertical or horizontal direction, such as a rectangle having a major axis and a minor axis, a cross, or any other irregular shape. The same applies to the shape of the permanent magnet 16.

However, the magnet attachment portion 14 may be the same size as the rear end of the grip portion 2c, i.e., it may be a size that does not extend laterally beyond the rear end, in which case the permanent magnet 16 and magnetic attraction surface 15 will be the same size as or slightly smaller than the rear end of the grip portion 2c.

It is also desirable that the permanent magnet 16 is attached to the front surface of the magnet mounting portion 14 so that the front surface and the surface of the permanent magnet 16, i.e., the magnetic attraction surface 15, are positioned on approximately the same plane, but it is also acceptable for the surface of the permanent magnet 16 to protrude slightly (approximately 1 mm) from the front surface.

2, when the tip of the arm portion 2b is engaged with the base 3 by the engaging mechanism 7, that is, when the handle 2 is locked in a non-rotating state, the magnetically attracted surface 15 is located generally above the first imaginary plane P1 including the lower surface of the base 3 and faces diagonally downward toward the rear of the head 1. In other words, the second imaginary plane P2 including the magnetically attracted surface 15 is inclined with respect to the first imaginary plane P1. The inclination angle of the magnetically attracted surface 15, i.e., the second imaginary plane P2, with respect to the first imaginary plane P1 at this time is such that, as shown by the chain line in FIG. 2, when the head 1 is rotated around the pivot 6 and the cleaning surface 4a, which is the lower surface of the head 1, is directed toward the second imaginary plane P2, the cleaning surface 4a is in a completely non-contact state with the second imaginary plane P2, or a part (front end or rear end) of the cleaning surface 4a is partially in contact with the second imaginary plane P2. In other words, the inclination angle is an angle at which at least a portion of the cleaning surface 4a is not in contact with the second imaginary plane P2.

The cleaning member 4 is formed from a sponge plate formed by foaming synthetic resin, a cloth made of nonwoven fabric or woven fabric, or a fiberboard formed by laminating such cloths, and the cleaning member 4 having such a configuration is adhered to the underside of the base 3. However, the cleaning member 4 may also be a brush planted on the underside of the base 3.

When using a cleaning tool having the above-mentioned configuration to clean a bathroom floor or wall, the handle 2 and head 1 are locked together by the locking mechanism 7 as shown in Figs. 1 and 4, and in this state, the grip portion 2c of the handle 2 is held in one hand and the cleaning member 4 is pressed against the area to be cleaned to clean. At this time, since the handle 2 and head 1 are fixed to each other, the pressing force (cleaning force) from the handle 2 is reliably transmitted to the head 1. In addition, since the magnet mounting portion 14 at the rear end of the handle 2 is located above the underside of the base 3, the magnet mounting portion 14 may come slightly closer to the floor or wall surface as the cleaning member 4 is compressed, but it will not come into contact with them, and therefore the magnet mounting portion 14 does not become an obstacle to cleaning.

When cleaning is completed and the cleaning tool is to be stored, the inclined portion 8b of the elastic locking piece 8 in the locking mechanism 7 is pushed toward the rear wall 13b of the fitting hole 13 with a finger to release the locking claw 8d from the locking edge 9, and the head 1 is rotated as shown by the chain line in Fig. 2 to face approximately parallel to the magnetic attraction surface 15 (second imaginary plane P2). In this state, as shown in Fig. 6, the magnetic attraction surface 15 is attracted to a magnetic body (iron plate, etc.) 18 attached to a wall surface 17 of a bathroom or the like, and the cleaning tool is hung from the wall surface 17. At this time, the cleaning surface 4a faces the wall surface 17, and a space 19 is formed between the cleaning surface 4a and the wall surface 17. In this case, the cleaning surface 4a does not necessarily have to be completely parallel to the wall surface 17, but may be inclined, or the front end (lower end) or rear end (upper end) of the cleaning surface 4a may be in partial contact with the wall surface 17.

As a result, the cleaning surface 4a of the cleaning tool is hidden from view, allowing the cleaning tool to be stored neatly, and since the cleaning surface 4a does not come into contact with the wall surface 17 over a large area, not only does the wall surface 17 not get dirty, but the space 19 also makes it easier for wet cleaning members 4 to dry.

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 head 2 handle 2a rotating portion 2b arm portion 2c grip portion 3 base 4 cleaning member 4a cleaning surface 6 pivot 7 locking mechanism 8 elastic locking piece 8a upright portion 8c hanging portion 8d locking claw 9 locking edge 13 fitting hole 14 magnet attachment portion 15 magnet attraction surface 16 permanent magnet P1 first imaginary surface P2 second imaginary surface

Claims (4)

The cleaning device has a head having a cleaning member attached to the underside of a plate-shaped base, and a handle connected to the upper surface of the head via a pivot so as to be rotatable in the front-rear direction of the head,
the handle has a rotating part connected to the pivot, an arm part extending from the rotating part toward the front of the head, and a grip part extending from a tip of the arm part toward the rear of the head,
a tip end of the arm portion is capable of being engaged with and disengaged from the base by a locking mechanism;
the grip portion is curved upwardly in a convex shape, a rear end portion of the grip portion protrudes rearward beyond a rear end of the head, a permanent magnet is attached to the rear end portion of the grip portion, and a magnetic attraction surface is formed by the permanent magnet,
the magnetic attraction surface is located above a first imaginary plane including a lower surface of the base when the tip of the arm portion is engaged with the base, and faces diagonally downward and rearward of the head,
When the head is rotated about the pivot shaft and a cleaning surface, which is a lower surface of the head, is opposed to a second imaginary surface including the magnetic attraction surface, at least a part of the cleaning surface is configured to be out of contact with the second imaginary surface.
A cleaning tool characterized by: 2. The cleaning tool according to claim 1, characterized in that a flange-shaped magnet mounting portion is formed at the rear end of the grip portion, the magnetic attraction surface larger than the cross-section of the grip portion is formed on the front surface of the magnet mounting portion, and the permanent magnet larger than the cross-section of the grip portion is attached to the magnetic attraction surface. The cleaning tool described in claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the locking mechanism has an elastic locking piece formed on the base and a locking edge formed on the arm portion, and when the tip of the arm portion is pressed against the base, the elastic locking piece elastically locks with the locking edge to lock the handle in a non-rotating state, and when the elastic locking piece is released from the locking edge , the handle becomes freely rotatable around the pivot axis. the elastic locking piece has an upright portion rising upward from the base and a hanging portion extending downward from an upper end of the upright portion, and a locking claw is formed at a lower end of the hanging portion so as to be able to be engaged with and disengaged from the locking edge;
The arm portion has a fitting hole formed in the vertical direction into which the elastic locking piece fits, and the locking edge is formed inside the fitting hole.
4. The cleaning tool according to claim 3 .

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