US20060070205A1

US20060070205A1 - Upright vacuum cleaner incorporating telescopic wand assembly

Info

Publication number: US20060070205A1
Application number: US11/238,557
Authority: US
Inventors: Richard Fischer; Danielle Hafling; J. Hitzelberger
Original assignee: Panasonic Corp of North America
Current assignee: Panasonic Corp of North America
Priority date: 2004-10-04
Filing date: 2005-09-29
Publication date: 2006-04-06
Also published as: GB2418598B; GB0520094D0; CA2522159A1; GB2418598A; GB0520096D0; CA2522159C

Abstract

A floor cleaning apparatus includes a housing having a nozzle assembly and a canister assembly. The canister assembly is pivotally connected to the nozzle assembly. Both a suction generator and dirt collection vessel are carried on the housing. The apparatus also includes a telescopic wand assembly having a first end equipped with an operator handle and a second end incorporating an airstream inlet. A wand assembly coupler is provided on the housing. The wand assembly coupler receives and holds the second end of the telescopic wand assembly. A flexible hose is connected to the first end of the telescopic wand assembly and provides fluid communication between the wand assembly and the dirt collection vessel and suction generator. The telescopic wand assembly is displaceable between a floor cleaning position wherein the second end of the wand assembly is held in the coupler and a specialty cleaning position wherein the second end is released from the coupler.

Description

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 60/615,777 filed on 4 Oct. 2004.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates generally to the floor care equipment field and, more particularly, to a floor cleaning apparatus incorporating a telescopic wand assembly.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Upright vacuum cleaners have become increasingly popular over recent years. An upright vacuum cleaner may be generally described as comprising a canister assembly that is pivotally connected to a nozzle assembly. The canister assembly includes an operating handle that is manipulated by the operator to move the vacuum cleaner back and forth across the floor during the cleaning operation. The canister assembly also includes a dirt collection vessel, in the form of a dirt cup or filter bag that traps dirt and debris. A suction generator, in the form of a motor driven fan, is provided on either the nozzle assembly or the canister assembly. It is this suction generator that provides the drop in air pressure necessary to produce the desired cleaning action.
The nozzle assembly includes a suction inlet through which dirt and debris is drawn into the vacuum cleaner by the suction generator. In order to provide more effective cleaning of the nap of rugs and carpets, most upright vacuum cleaners are also equipped with a rotary agitator. The rotary agitator is carried on the nozzle assembly and usually extends substantially across the full width of the suction inlet. During vacuum cleaner operation the rotary agitator beats dirt and debris from the nap of the underlying carpet. That dirt and debris is then drawn in an airstream through the suction inlet into the vacuum cleaner by the suction generator. The dirt and debris becomes entrapped in the dirt collection vessel and the suction generator then moves the clean air through the motor to provide cooling before exhausting that air back into the environment.
While upright vacuum cleaners are generally useful and convenient for cleaning expansive areas of carpeting or flooring, it should be appreciated that the size of the nozzle assembly prevents the operator from operating the vacuum cleaner in smaller spaces, such as in a corner of the room adjacent heavy furniture where insufficient clearance exists for the nozzle assembly. Further, the nozzle assembly of an upright vacuum cleaner is not adapted to be utilized above the floor in, for example, cleaning baseboards, window sills or the like.
Recognizing this shortcoming, many upright vacuum cleaners incorporate a wand assembly that may be utilized to perform these specialty cleaning tasks. Some, such as disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,867,833 to Duff, 4,573,236 to Dyson and 6,374,453 to Kim allow the wand to also function as the control handle for the upright vacuum cleaner. Advantageously, this reduces the overall weight of the upright vacuum cleaner and provides a simpler and cleaner design. Unfortunately, however, these designs all suffer from certain undesirable aspects. For example, the suction inlet ends of the wand assemblies in the '833 and '236 patents are provided at the control handle end that is manipulated by the user when the wand is secured to the vacuum cleaner in the upright vacuum cleaner or normal flooring cleaning mode. Many operators find it undesirable to hold the working or suction end of the wand assembly and, accordingly, this represents a significant design drawback. In the '453 patent the wand must be removed from the vacuum cleaner and the hose must be connected to the removed wand for purposes of specialty cleaning. This step of connecting the hose is an inconvenient and undesirable feature.
The present invention relates to a floor cleaning apparatus incorporating a combined handle and wand assembly that addresses and overcomes these shortcomings of the prior art.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In accordance with the purposes of the present invention as described herein, an improved floor cleaning apparatus is provided. That floor cleaning apparatus includes a housing having a nozzle assembly and a canister assembly pivotally connected to that nozzle assembly. A suction generator and dirt collection vessel are both carried on the housing. The apparatus also includes a telescopic wand assembly having a first end equipped with an operator handle and a second end incorporating an airstream inlet. A wand assembly coupler is provided on the housing. The wand assembly coupler receives and holds the second end of the telescopic wand assembly. Further the apparatus includes a flexible hose that is connected to the first end of the telescopic wand assembly and provides fluid communication between the wand assembly and the dirt collection vessel and suction generator.
The telescopic wand assembly is displaceable between a floor cleaning position and a specialty cleaning position. In the floor cleaning position the second end of the telescopic wand is held in the coupler. In the specialty cleaning position, the second end of the wand is released from the coupler and the suction inlet may be used with or without a cleaning attachment in order to draw air through the wand assembly and the dirt collection vessel toward the suction generator.
More specifically describing the invention, the telescopic wand assembly includes a first wand section and a second wand section to form a telescoping air path. A wand lock secures the first and second wand sections together in any one of a number of positions so as to allow the operator to adjust the assembly to a desired length.
The nozzle assembly includes a suction inlet and carries at least one rotary agitator adjacent that suction inlet. The dirt collection vessel is a filter bag or alternatively a dirt cup. In one possible embodiment the dirt cup is cylindrical in shape and includes a tangentially directed inlet in order to provide for cyclonic airflow. A first filter may be provided in the dirt cup. A second filter may be provided downstream from the suction generator.
In the following description there is shown and described a preferred embodiment of this invention, simply by way of illustration, of one of the modes best suited to carry out the invention. As it will be realized, the invention is capable of other different embodiments and its several details are capable of modification in various, obvious aspects all without departing from the invention. Accordingly, the drawings and descriptions will be regarded as illustrative in nature and not as restrictive.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING

The accompanying drawing incorporated in and forming a part of this specification, illustrates several aspects of the present invention, and together with the description serves to explain certain principles of the invention. In the drawing:
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an upright vacuum cleaner constructed in accordance with the teachings of the present invention;
FIG. 2 is a perspective view similar to FIG. 1 but showing the wand assembly withdrawn from the canister assembly to allow for above floor cleaning; and
FIG. 3 illustrates a dirt cup of cylindrical construction including a tangentially directed inlet and a centrally located filter so as to provide for cyclonic airflow.
Reference will now be made in detail to the present preferred embodiment of the invention, an example of which is illustrated in the accompanying drawing.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

As illustrated in FIG. 1, the present invention relates to an upright vacuum cleaner 10 including a housing comprising both a nozzle assembly 12 and a canister assembly 14. The canister assembly 14 is pivotally connected to the nozzle assembly 12. The upright vacuum cleaner 10 rides over the floor surface being cleaned on wheels 15 carried on the housing.
The nozzle assembly 12 includes a suction inlet 16. A rotary agitator 18 carried on the nozzle assembly 12 is mounted in the suction inlet 16. The rotary agitator 18 includes bristle tufts 20, brushes, wipers or the like to beat dirt and debris from the nap of an underlying carpet being cleaned as the agitator 18 is rotated at high speeds with respect to that carpet and the nozzle assembly 12.
The canister assembly 14 includes a dirt collection vessel 22 housed in an internal cavity 23. As illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2 the dirt collection vessel 22 is a filter bag of permeable filter material adapted to entrap dirt and debris while allowing the passage of clean air through the bag. In an alternative embodiment the dirt collection vessel 22 may take the form of a dirt cup 24. As illustrated in FIG. 3, such a dirt cup 24 may include a cylindrical dirt collection chamber 26 having a tangentially directed inlet 26 and an axial outlet 28. Such an arrangement promotes cyclonic airflow in the chamber 26 which efficiently removes dirt and debris from the airstream in a manner well known in the art. A filter 30 may be concentrically mounted within the dirt collection chamber 26 over the outlet 28. Such a filter 30 strips any remaining fine dirt and debris from the airstream as it moves through the filter toward the outlet 28.
The canister assembly 14 also includes a telescopic wand assembly generally designated by reference numeral 32. The wand assembly 32 may be similar in design to that disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,148,474 to Ohara et al. The wand assembly 32 includes first and second telescopic wand sections 34, 36. The second wand section 36 is telescopingly received in the first wand section 34. The wand sections 34 and 36 are connected together by a wand lock, generally designated by reference numeral 38, that is carried on the end of the section 34. A control handle 40 having a hand grip 42 is provided at a first end of the first wand section 34 opposite the wand lock 38. The second end of the second wand section 36 opposite the wand lock 38 is received in a coupler 44 mounted to the rear of the canister assembly 14. A flexible hose 46 extends from the first end of the wand assembly 32 adjacent the control handle 40 to the inlet 48 connected to the dirt collection vessel 22.
During standard floor cleaning operation, the wand assembly 32 is secured to the canister assembly 14 by means of the coupler 44. Thus, the wand assembly 32 functions as a handle by which the operator may manipulate and direct the vacuum cleaner 10. In this mode of operation, the rotary agitator 18 scrubs and beats dirt and debris from the nap of an underlying carpet being cleaned. A suction generator 50 carried on the housing draws air entrained with that dirt and debris through the suction inlet 16, the connector 44, the wand section 36, the wand section 34, the control handle 40, the hose 46 and the inlet 48 into the dirt collection vessel 22. The dirt and debris is captured in the vessel 22 while relatively clean air is drawn over the motor of the suction generator 50 in order to provide cooling. That air is then exhausted through a final filter 52 and returned to the environment through an exhaust port 54.
As illustrated in FIG. 2 the wand assembly 32 includes a second end that is removable from the canister assembly 14 to allow manipulation and specialty cleaning. More specifically, the distal end of the wand section 36 is removable from the coupler 44. The telescopic sections 34, 36 of the wand assembly 24 may then be retracted or extended as desired to produce a wand of desired length. The wand assembly 32 is then manipulated by the operator through the control handle 40. In this mode of operation air including dirt and debris is drawn into the open distal end or airstream inlet 33 of the wand assembly 32. That air then travels through the wand section 36, the wand section 34, the control handle 40, the hose 46 and the inlet 48 into the dirt collection vessel 22. There the dirt becomes trapped and clean air then passes over the motor of the suction generator 50 before being exhausted through the final filter 52 and exhaust port 54 into the environment.
It should be appreciated that in either mode of operation, the user engages the hand grip 42 in order to direct the cleaning operation. Further, there is no need to detach and then reattach the hose 46 when changing between operation modes as is necessary in some prior art equipment. Thus, user convenience is maximized.
The embodiment was chosen and described to provide the best illustration of the principles of the invention and its practical application to thereby enable one of ordinary skill in the art to utilize the invention in various embodiments and with various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated. All such modifications and variations are within the scope of the invention as determined by the appended claims when interpreted in accordance with the breadth to which they are fairly, legally and equitably entitled. The drawings and preferred embodiment do not and are not intended to limit the ordinary meaning of the claims and their fair and broad interpretation in any way.

Claims

1. A floor cleaning apparatus, comprising:

a housing including a nozzle assembly and a canister assembly pivotally connected to said nozzle assembly;

a suction generator carried on said housing;

a dirt collection vessel carried on said housing;

a telescopic wand assembly having a first end equipped with an operator handle and a second end incorporating an airstream inlet;

a wand assembly coupler on said housing receiving and holding said second end of said telescopic wand assembly; and

a flexible hose connected to said first end of said telescopic wand assembly and providing fluid communication between said telescopic wand assembly and said dirt collection vessel and suction generator;

wherein said telescopic wand assembly is displaceable between a floor cleaning position wherein said second end of said telescopic wand assembly is held in said coupler and a specialty cleaning position wherein said second end is released from said coupler.

2. The floor cleaning apparatus of claim 1, wherein said telescopic wand assembly includes a first wand section and a second wand section forming a telescoping air path.

3. The floor cleaning apparatus of claim 1, wherein said nozzle assembly includes a suction inlet and carries at least one rotary agitator adjacent said suction inlet.

4. The floor cleaning apparatus of claim 1, wherein said dirt collection vessel is a filter bag.

5. The floor cleaning apparatus of claim 1, wherein said dirt collection vessel is a dirt cup.

6. The floor cleaning apparatus of claim 5, wherein said dirt cup is cylindrical in shape and includes a tangentially directed inlet.

7. The floor cleaning apparatus of claim 2, further including a wand lock for securing said first wand section together with said second wand section.

8. The floor cleaning apparatus of claim 7, wherein said nozzle assembly includes a suction inlet and carries at least one rotary agitator adjacent said suction inlet.

9. The floor cleaning apparatus of claim 8, wherein said dirt collection vessel is a filter bag.

10. The floor cleaning apparatus of claim 8, wherein said dirt collection vessel is a dirt cup.

11. The floor cleaning apparatus of claim 10, wherein said dirt cup is cylindrical in shape and includes a tangentially directed inlet.

12. The floor cleaning apparatus of claim 6, further including a first filter in said dirt cup.

13. The floor cleaning apparatus of claim 12, further including a second filter downstream from said suction generator.