JPH0220251B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Object of the Invention] (Industrial Application Field) The present invention relates to a vacuum cleaner, and more particularly to a connection structure for a suction hose to a vacuum cleaner body.

(Prior Art) Conventionally, as a connection structure for a suction hose to a vacuum cleaner body, for example, a substantially cylindrical connection port is provided on the vertical front surface of the vacuum cleaner body to communicate the dust collection chamber with the outside. The hose is provided horizontally, and a straight, substantially cylindrical hose has a structure in which a connecting pipe portion on the main body side is fitted and connected to the connecting port portion. That is, in this structure, the direction of the connecting pipe portion of the hose relative to the cleaner body is fixed in one horizontal direction.

In addition, as shown in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 60-132533, the front surface of the vacuum cleaner body is formed into an inclined surface, and a cylindrical connection that is perpendicular to the direction of inclination, that is, inclined upward, is provided on this inclined surface. Provide a mouth part,
A structure has also been adopted in which a straight hose connection pipe portion is fitted and connected to the inclined connection port portion. That is,
With this structure, the connecting pipe portion of the hose is fixed to the vacuum cleaner body in a state facing upward at a certain angle.

By the way, when cleaning, for example, the extension pipe and the suction port body are connected to the hand grip provided on the opposite side of the connection pipe part of the hose, and the vacuum cleaner main body is collected from the suction port body through the extension pipe and hose. Inhale dust into the dust chamber. At this time, although the hose is flexible, as in the vacuum cleaner disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 60-132533, the direction of the connection pipe of the hose is fixed relative to the main body of the vacuum cleaner. With this structure, the suction port connected to the hose cannot be directed over a wide area without moving the vacuum cleaner itself, making cleaning difficult.

Also, Utility Model Application Publication No. 1986-94152, Utility Model Application No. 1987-
As shown in Japanese Utility Model Application Publication No. 97560, Japanese Utility Model Application Publication No. 60-97562, and Japanese Utility Model Application Publication No. 60-101051, a connection port is provided on the top surface of the vacuum cleaner body so as to be able to rotate freely in the horizontal direction. A structure is also adopted in which a connecting pipe portion of a hose bent at a substantially right angle is fitted and connected to the mouth portion. That is, in this structure, the direction of the connecting pipe portion of the hose relative to the cleaner body can be changed only within a substantially horizontal plane.

Furthermore, as shown in Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 48-5531, a vertical cylindrical connection port is provided on the top surface of the vacuum cleaner body, and a hose connection pipe portion bent approximately at right angles is attached to the connection port. In addition to the fitting connection, a structure is also adopted in which the orientation of the hose connecting tube with respect to the vacuum cleaner body can be changed only in a substantially horizontal plane by means of a rotating portion provided on the connecting tube of the hose.

However, in the vacuum cleaners disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Application No. 60-101051 to Utility Model Publication No. 48-5531, etc., although the direction of the connection pipe of the hose relative to the main body of the vacuum cleaner can be freely changed in the horizontal plane, Since the hose cannot be changed vertically, it is difficult to clean high places such as walls and ceilings, and if the short hose is bent forcibly, the hose is easily damaged. Furthermore, in order to move the vacuum cleaner body while cleaning, the hand grip part of the hose is grasped and pulled, but at this time, the vacuum cleaner body does not move and only the hose tends to rotate horizontally. There was also the problem that the main body of the vacuum cleaner was prone to tipping over due to its poor tracking ability.

In addition, if the connecting pipe of the hose is bent substantially at a right angle, as in the vacuum cleaner disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Application Publication No. 60-101051, the air passage resistance increases and the suction performance deteriorates. There was a problem where the decline was large.

Furthermore, as shown in Japanese Utility Model Application Publication No. 60-168456, an introduction pipe is supported on the main body of the vacuum cleaner so as to be horizontally rotatable, and a connecting tube is supported on the introduction pipe so as to be vertically movable. A structure in which a hose is connected to the tube is also adopted.

According to this structure, the direction of the hose can be changed freely. However, when moving the hose diagonally upward, for example, the hose must be moved in two steps, resulting in poor operability. Moreover, the structure near the connection port of the vacuum cleaner body has become complicated.

(Problems to be Solved by the Invention) As mentioned above, conventional vacuum cleaners that allow the direction of the hose relative to the vacuum cleaner body to be changed not only horizontally but also vertically have two rotation axes. Because of the heat, it was difficult to operate, had a complicated structure, and required major design changes to the vacuum cleaner itself.

An object of the present invention is to be able to change the direction of the hose relative to the vacuum cleaner body not only horizontally but also vertically, with a simple structure, and possible regardless of the structure of the vacuum cleaner body. To provide a vacuum cleaner which has good running followability when moving a vacuum cleaner body by pulling the vacuum cleaner, and which can further reduce deterioration in suction performance.

[Structure of the invention]

(Means for Solving the Problems) In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the present invention provides a dust collection chamber that includes a built-in electric blower and communicates with the electric blower, and also communicates the dust collection chamber with the outside. In a vacuum cleaner, the vacuum cleaner includes a vacuum cleaner main body provided with a connection port to connect the connection port, and a hose forming a connection pipe portion connected to the connection port of the vacuum cleaner main body, the connection pipe portion of the hose is connected to the connection port of the vacuum cleaner main body. It consists of a plug-in tube connected to the mouth portion, and a rotating tube rotatably connected to the plug-in tube by slidably joining the end surfaces thereof, and further, the end surface of the plug-in tube The surface to be joined is
When the plug-in pipe is connected to the connection port, the plug-in pipe shall be inclined upward with respect to a horizontal plane, and the joint surface of the end face of the rotary pipe rotatably joined to the joined surface of the plug-in pipe. is an inclined joint surface that is inclined with respect to the direction of the central axis of this rotating tube.

(Function) In the vacuum cleaner of the present invention, when the plug-in pipe of the connection pipe section of the suction hose is connected to the connection port of the vacuum cleaner body, the surface to be joined of the plug-in pipe is in a horizontal plane. It slopes upward. Then, the inclined joint surface formed on the rotating tube of the connecting pipe section and tilted with respect to the central axis direction rotates while being joined to the surface to be joined of the plug-in tube, so that it is perpendicular to this surface to be joined. The rotation tube of the hose changes direction not only horizontally but also vertically with respect to the vacuum cleaner body.

(Embodiment) The configuration of an embodiment of the vacuum cleaner of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 4.

Reference numeral 1 denotes a vacuum cleaner body, which is composed of a main body case 3 having an opening 2 formed on the front side of the upper surface, and a removable lid 4 for opening and closing the opening 2 of the main body case 3. The inside of the main body case 3 is partitioned into the front and back by a partition wall 6 provided approximately in the center thereof and having a communication port 5, and an electric blower 7 is disposed in a space behind the partition wall 6. At the same time, a space in front of the partition wall 6 serves as a dust collection chamber 8 having the opening 2 on the upper surface. Further, a clamp 10 biased by a spring 9 is pivotally attached to the front surface of the main body case 3, and
An engagement hole 11 is formed at the rear edge of the opening 2 .

Further, in the lower part of the main body case 3, wheels 12a and a turning ring 12b for moving the cleaner main body 1 are rotatably provided on the rear side of both sides and the front side of the lower surface.

The lid body 4 is formed in the shape of a thin box with an open bottom surface, and has the locking part 13 on its front edge with which the clamp 10 is removably engaged through a rotational movement.
In addition, a rear locking portion 14 having an L-shaped side surface and removably engaging with the engagement hole 11 of the main body case 3 is formed on the rear edge. Further, a packing 15 is provided on the periphery of the lower surface of the lid 4 to be brought into airtight contact with the periphery of the opening 2 of the main body case 3.

The front side of this lid body 4 is formed into an inclined surface 16 that descends toward the front and becomes a surface to be joined.
A generally cylindrical connection port 17 is integrally formed on the lower surface of the inclined surface 16 and has a central axis that slopes upward toward the front and obliquely intersects with the inclined surface 16 . Further, a recess 19 having a locking hole 18 on one side is formed on one side of the front end of the connection port 17 . Further, an inner wall 20 is provided inside the lid body 4 so as to face the inclined surface 16, and the inner wall 20 has a ventilation hole 21 that overlaps with the rear end opening surface of the connection port 17. An opening is formed.
Further, on the rear side of the inner wall 20 in the drawing, an annular packing 22 is provided around the periphery of the ventilation port 21, and a port frame holding portion 23 is provided at appropriate locations surrounding the ventilation port 21. It is being

Reference numeral 31 denotes a dust collection filter, which is composed of a bag-like filter medium 32 and a mouth frame 34 provided on the opening side of the bag-like filter medium 32 and having a dust collection port 33 formed therein. The dust collecting filter 31 is secured to the dust collecting chamber 3 by having its mouth frame 34 clamped and held by the packing 22 of the inner wall 20 of the lid body 4 and the mouth frame holding part 23.
It is designed to be removably installed inside the device.

Further, an auxiliary filter 35 is detachably attached to the front surface of the partition wall 6 of the main body case 3.

Reference numeral 41 denotes a hose, which includes a bellows-shaped and bendable hose body 42, a cylindrical connecting pipe portion 43 provided at one end of the hose body 42 and serving as the end of the hose 41 on the cleaner body 1 side, and the hose It consists of a hand grip part (not shown) provided at the other end of the main body 42 and to which an extension tube or the like is connected.

The connecting pipe section 43 includes a substantially cylindrical insertion tube 44 that is detachably fitted into the connection port 17 of the vacuum cleaner main body 1, and one end of which is rotatably connected to the insertion tube 44. It consists of a substantially cylindrical rotating tube 45 to which the hose main body 42 is connected and fixed.

The end surface of the rotating tube 45 on the insertion tube 44 side is formed by the inclined surface 16 of the cleaner body 1 and the central axis of the connection port 17 with respect to the central axis direction of the rotating tube 45. It is formed in an inclined joint surface 46 inclined at an angle equal to the angle. In addition, this inclined joint surface 4
6, this joint surface 4 has an arcuate cross section on its inner circumferential side.
The engaging claw portion 4 has a circular shape when viewed from a direction perpendicular to 6.
7 is formed to protrude, and an annular flange portion 48 is formed to protrude from the outer peripheral side. In addition,
A notch 49 is formed on one side of the flange portion 48 .

On the other hand, the end surface of the insertion tube 44 on the rotation tube 45 side is a cover that is inclined at an angle equal to the inclination angle of the inclined joint surface 46 of the rotation tube 45 with respect to the central axis direction of the insertion tube 44. It is formed on the joint surface 51,
Guide portions 52 are formed protrudingly at appropriate locations on the inner peripheral side of this surface to be joined 51 .

The rotary tube 45 has an engaging claw portion 47.
is slidably engaged with the guide portion 52 of the plug-in tube 44, and the inclined joining surface 46 is slidably joined to the joined surface 51 of the plug-in tube 44. It is rotatably connected with the direction perpendicular to the inclined joint surface 46 as a rotation axis. In addition,
A slit portion may be formed in the engaging claw portion 47 of the rotating tube 45, and the guide portion 52 of the insertion tube 44 may be engaged with the engaging claw portion 47 through this slit portion during assembly.

Further, a cover body 54 having a built-in movable clamp 53 is attached to one side of the outer peripheral surface of the insertion tube 44. The movable clamp 53 is attached to the cover body 5
4, and a locking claw portion 56 that is inserted into and removed from the locking portion 18 of the connection port 17, and is biased outwardly by a spring 57. There is.

Next, the operation of this embodiment will be explained.

During cleaning, the hose 41 is connected to the cleaner main body 1 by fitting the insertion pipe 44 of the connecting pipe portion 43 of the hose 41 into the connection port 17 of the cleaner main body 1. That is, as the insertion tube 44 is fitted into the connection port 17, the cover body 54 is fitted into the connection port 17.
The locking claw portion 56 of the clamp 53, which is fitted into the recess 19 of the clamp 53 and urged by the spring 57, is inserted into the locking hole 18 of the connection port 17 through a reciprocating motion, and the hose 41 is in the connected state. is maintained. In this state, the flange portion 48 of the rotating tube 45 of the connecting tube portion 43 is slidably joined to the inclined surface 16 of the cleaner main body 1 as the surface to be joined, and the illustrated rear end of the insertion tube 44 is inserted into the dust collection filter 31 through its dust collection port 33.

When removing the hose 41 from the vacuum cleaner body 1, push the operating part 55 of the clamp 53 to remove the locking claw part 56 from the locking hole 18 of the connection port 17, and then remove the connection pipe part 43 of the hose 41. Pull it out from the connection port 17.

Further, an extension pipe and a suction port body are sequentially connected to the hand grip portion of the hose 41 in a detachable manner.

Then, by driving the electric blower 7, dust is sucked in from the suction port body, and the extension pipe and hose 41
The dust is guided to the dust collection chamber 8 of the cleaner body 1 through the dust collection chamber 8 and stored in the dust collection filter 31. At this time, the user, while grasping the hand grip part of the hose 41,
Move the suction port body over the surface to be cleaned.

At that time, the joining surface 46 inclined with respect to the central axis of the rotating tube 45 of the hose 41 is connected to the joining surface 1 inclined upward with respect to the horizontal surface on the cleaner body 1 side.
As the rotary tube 45 rotates on the surfaces 16 and 51, it swings around a direction perpendicular to the surfaces 16 and 51 to be joined, and its direction changes not only horizontally but also vertically. . In other words, the surface to be joined 1
If the angle of inclination of the rotating shaft 45 with respect to the horizontal plane is α, and the angle of the inclined joint surface 46 with respect to the central axis of the rotating tube 45 is γ, then the elevation angle of the rotating shaft 45 with respect to the horizontal plane is 180 from γ−α. It will change to −α−γ.

In this way, the direction of the rotating tube 45 of the connecting pipe section 43, which is the end of the hose 41 on the cleaner body 1 side, can be changed not only horizontally but also vertically with respect to the cleaner body 1. Therefore, it is possible to easily and efficiently clean a wide range in the horizontal direction and vertical direction, such as a wide floor surface, wall surface, ceiling surface, etc.

Moreover, according to the above configuration, this can be done only by rotation around one rotation axis, resulting in good operability and simple structure.

Further, the hose 41 rotates as the gripping portion thereof is gripped and moved, and as described above, at this time, the rotation tube 45 of the hose 41
Since the hose 41 swings within a range of less than 180 degrees around the direction perpendicular to the direction, that is, the direction tilted upward and forward, the rotation followability of the hose 41 is good. Furthermore, when moving the vacuum cleaner main body 1 during cleaning, the hand grip portion of the hose 41 is grasped and pulled, but in this case as well, for the above-mentioned reasons, the running followability of the vacuum cleaner main body 1 should be good. Become.

Incidentally, the floor surface is often the object of cleaning, and when cleaning the floor surface, it is better that the angle of elevation of the rotation tube 45 is small. In addition, in order to reduce the air path resistance at the joint between the rotation tube 45 and the insertion tube 44 of the hose 41, and to reduce the reduction in suction performance and noise, it is necessary to It is preferable that the angle formed with the central axis of the tube 44, that is, the central axis of the connecting port 17, be close to 180°. In the present embodiment, the angle formed by the inclined joint surface 46 with respect to the central axis of the rotating tube 45 and the angle formed by the inclined surface 16 of the vacuum cleaner main body 1, which is the surface to be joined, with respect to the connection port 17. are at the same angle γ, so when the rotating tube 45 rotates, its central axis and the connecting port 17
There is a position where the central axis of is in a straight line. Moreover, the direction of the central axis of the connection port 17 is set so that the angle of elevation of the rotation tube 45 is the smallest at that position. Therefore, when the rotating tube 45 faces the direction most frequently used, cleaning can be performed with the highest suction efficiency and with the least amount of noise.

In addition, the above-mentioned vertical cleaning efficiency, rotation followability of the hose 41, running followability of the vacuum cleaner body 1,
In order to obtain good results regarding changes in suction efficiency due to the angle between the rotating tube 45 and the connecting port 17, the maximum elevation angle of the rotating tube 45 with respect to the horizontal plane should be within a range of approximately 40° to 150°. It is desirable that the angle be within the range.

Next, another embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. Note that the same reference numerals are given to the parts structurally corresponding to those of the previous embodiment, and the explanation thereof will be omitted.

In this embodiment as well, the vacuum cleaner main body 1 consists of a main body case 3 having an opening 2 for inserting and removing a dust collection filter 31, and a lid body 4 for opening and closing this opening 3. A connection port 61 that communicates the chamber 8 with the outside is provided on the vertical front surface of the main body case 3 instead of on the lid 4, and the central axis of this connection port 61, which is formed in a cylindrical shape, is horizontal. ing.

On the other hand, the connecting pipe portion 43 of the hose 41 also has a rotating pipe 45 having an inclined joint surface 46, as in the previous embodiment.
and an insertion tube 44 which has a joined surface 51 to which the inclined joint surface 46 is rotatably joined and is removably fitted into the connection port 61. A flange portion 48 that comes into contact with the cleaner body 1 as in the previous embodiment is attached to the inclined joint surface 46 of 45.
is not provided, and the only surface 51 to be joined to which the inclined joint surface 46 is joined is the surface 51 to be joined of the insertion tube 44.

Also in this embodiment, the vacuum cleaner main body 1
The rotating tube 45 of the hose 41 swings around the direction perpendicular to the inclined joint surface 46 with respect to the insertion tube 44 of the hose 41 fitted into the connecting port 61 of the hose 41. The same effects as in the embodiment can be obtained.

Thus, according to the configuration of the hose 41,
Without making any design changes to the vacuum cleaner body 11,
The direction of the hose 41 can be easily changed not only horizontally but also vertically. That is, even with the conventional vacuum cleaner main body 1 having the fixed connection port 17, efficient cleaning is possible by using the hose 41.

In both of the above embodiments, the structure has been described with the hose 41 being detachably attached to the cleaner body 1, but the hose 41 may be provided integrally with the cleaner body 1.

〔Effect of the invention〕

According to the present invention, the connecting pipe portion of the hose is constituted by the plug-in pipe connected to the connecting port of the vacuum cleaner body and the rotary pipe rotatable with respect to the plug-in pipe. The surface to be joined shall be inclined with respect to the horizontal plane,
The joint surface of the rotary tube, which is rotatably joined to this surface to be joined, is tilted upward with respect to the central axis of the rotary tube, so that the hose can be moved not only horizontally but also vertically with respect to the main body of the vacuum cleaner. By changing the orientation, you can easily and efficiently clean a wide range of horizontal and vertical surfaces such as floors and ceilings.Moreover, since there is only one rotation axis, it is easy to operate and has a simple structure. is easy, and even if it is a conventional vacuum cleaner body without any design changes,
By using the hose, efficient cleaning becomes possible. In addition, since the rotation tube of the hose oscillates within a range of less than 180° in a direction approximately perpendicular to the surface to be joined which is inclined with respect to the horizontal plane,
The hose can be easily rotated, and by pulling the hose, the ability to follow the movement of the cleaner body is improved.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

Fig. 1 is a partially cutaway side view showing an embodiment of the vacuum cleaner of the present invention, Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the same as above;
Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the vicinity of the connection port showing the connection method of the above hose, Fig. 4 is a sectional view of the vicinity of the connection port of the above, and Fig. 5 is a partially cutaway view showing another embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1...Vacuum cleaner body, 7...Electric blower, 8...
Dust collection chamber, 17, 61...Connection port, 41...Hose, 43...Connection pipe, 44...Plug-in pipe, 45...
...Rotating tube, 46... Inclined joining surface, 51... Joining surface.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. A vacuum cleaner body, which has a built-in electric blower and is provided with a dust collection chamber therein which communicates with the electric blower, and a connection port which communicates the dust collection chamber with the outside;
A hose formed with a connecting pipe portion connected to the connecting port portion of the vacuum cleaner body, and the connecting pipe portion of the hose includes an insertion pipe connected to the connection port portion, and an end face on the insertion pipe. It consists of a rotary tube which is rotatably connected by slidingly joining the same, and the surface to be joined at the end face of the plug-in tube is in a horizontal plane when the plug-in tube is connected to the connection port. The joint surface of the end surface of the rotary tube, which is rotatably joined to the surface to be joined of the insertion tube, is inclined upward with respect to the central axis direction of the rotary tube. A vacuum cleaner characterized by having a sloped joint surface. 2. The vacuum cleaner according to claim 1, wherein the maximum elevation angle of the connecting pipe portion when the hose is rotated is within a range of approximately 40° to 120°.