US2933753A - Hair gathering vacuum cleaner attachment - Google Patents

Description

April 26, 1960 J. K. WOODHULL 2,933,753

HAIR GATHERING VACUUM CLEANER ATTACHMENT Filed Jan. 31, 1955 IN V EN TOR. JOHN K. WOODHULL afig ArrqR/vn HAIR GATHERING VACUUM CLEANER ATTACHMENT John K. Woodhull, La Jolla, Calif.

Application January 31, 1955, Serial No. 484,881

3 Claims. (Cl. 15-360) My invention relates to hair gathering vacuum cleaner attachments, adapted for use with a conventional vacuum cleaner wherein the body or housing thereof contains certain hair gathering portions whereby hair, such as cat or dog hair, thread, lint, etc. is lifted out of the rug nap when a slight pressure is applied thereto while sliding the attachment across the rug surface, and the objects of my invention are:

First, to provide a hair gathering vacuum cleaner attachment that will remove hair or the like from the rug nap without necessity for any motive power other than supplied through normal usage by the operator thereof.

Second, to provide a hair gathering vacuum cleaner attachment adapted to permit easy, unhampered, sliding operation over a rug surface during normal cleaning process while a slight additional downward pressure on the wand will cause removal of hair or lint stubbornly imbedded in the rug nap.

Third, to provide a hair gathering vacuum cleaner attachment that is completely self-contained and having no moving or working parts.

Fourth, to provide a hair gathering vacuum cleaner attachment that glides effortlessly across the rug surface without undue force applied by the operator thereof.

Fifthy, to provide a hair gathering vacuum cleaner attachment having readily replaceable hair gatherers.

'Sixth, to provide a hair gathering vacuum cleaner attachment that is simple of construction, efiicient, durable, easy to manufacture and which will not readily deteriorate or get out of order.

With these and other objects in view as will appear hereinafter, my invention consists of certain novel features ofconstruction, combination and arrangement of parts and portions as will be hereinafter described in detail and particularly set forth in the appended claims, reference being bad to the accompanying drawings and to the characters of reference thereon which form a part of this application in which:

Figure 1 is a side elevational view of my hair gathering vacuum cleaner attachment with portions broken away and in section to amplify the illustration.

Fig. 2 is a bottom plan view having a portion thereof broken out and Fig. 3 is a reduced scale bottom plan view similar to Figure 2 and showing a modified form of the hair gatherers.

Similar characters of reference refer to similar parts and portions throughout the several views of the drawmgs.

The main housing or body 1 is provided with a wand attachment sleeve 1a revolubly secured to the housing 1 in a manner conventional to vacuum cleaner attachments of similar design, not shown and which is no part of my present invention. A plate 2 having an extruded opening 2a and corner openings 2b is secured to the housing 1 intermediate the edging which consists of the box-shaped in cross section members 3 and caps 4 which may be substantially U-shaped in cross section desired.

nited SttesfPatent The housing 1, plate 2, edging and caps 3 and 4 respectively are all rigidly secured together by screws or the like not shown.

The ends of the edging members 3 are provided with slots 3a adapted to receive the free end portions of the glider springs 5 thereby permitting the glider springs 5 to be installed on the attachment by springing the free ends together in a U-shaped configuration so as to pass between the edge members 3 and then permitting the glider spring 5 to return to its natural formed state as shown in Fig. l of the drawings. Thus it will be seen that the glider springs 5 support the edge and cap members 3 and 4 respectively in slightly spaced relation to the rug R during normal cleaning operations. Hair gatherers 6 are preferably made of rubber or the like and are secured to the plate 2 by screws 6a positioned in recessed slots" 6b. The lower surface of the hair gatherers 6 are substantially V-shaped as shown in Fig. l but it is to be omitted. Edging 8, caps 9, glider springs 16, are each identical in construction to the edging 3, caps 4, and glider springs 5 as previously described for the preferred embodiment of my invention. The hair gatherers 11 are similar in cross section to the hair'gatherers 6 but differ in plan view in that the hair gatherers 11 are formed substantially in wave shape instead of straight. Screws 11a secure the hair gatherers 11 to the plate 7 in a manher as previously described for the hair gatherers 6. It

is to be noted that the crest of the wave portions of the forward or left hand hair gatherer 11 is in direct tandem relation with the trough of the Wave portions of the aft A or right hand hair gatherer 11 when positioned on the plate 7. Therefore, the crests of the forward hair gatherer 11 serve to pick up hair or lint when the vacuum attachment is moved in a forward direction and the crests of the aft hair gatherer 11 will similarly act when the vacuum attachment is moved in an aft direction.

From the foregoing it will be understood that under normal cleaning conditions, the vacuum attachment is stroked across a rug surface in the conventional back and forth movement. When hair or lint is encountered which is stubbornly embedded in the nap of the rug, a slight downward pressure on the wand which connects to the sleeve 1a of the housing 1, causes the hair gatherers 6 or 11 to engage the rug surface and thereby lift the hair or lint out of the nap whereby the air being drawn through the passages 6b hold the air or lint securely to the hair gatherers 6 or 11 until the vacuum attachment is released from the rug. Upon release, hair or lint is immediately drawn from the hair gatherers 6 or 11 into the openings 2a, 2b or 7a of the plates 2 and 7 by the vacuum created by the vacuum cleaner and thusly discharged into a suitable container.

Though I have shown and described the particular construction combination and arrangements of parts and portions, I do not wish to be limited to this particular construction, combination and arrangement, but desire to include in the scope of my invention, the construction, combination and arrangement substantially as set forth in the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In a vacuum cleaning attachment, the combination Patented Apr. 26, 1960 oiahollow. elongated body member havinganopeninga plate secured to said body member extending across said opening, said plate being provided with a centrally arranged longitudinally extendingrestricted opening, tubular edging strips securedto the front and rear longitudinal-i edges of said plate extending parallel to and offset from said central opening, hair gathering strips of flexible'material securedto said plate and extending along the marginal edges of said longitudinally extending restricted opening, said hair gathering strips being constructed to extend downwardly with their lower edges in a plane extending beneath the plane'of said tubular edging strips, and. arcuately curved flexible glider strips formedof flat spring metal arranged at each end of said. attachment with their ends received in; openings in the ends of said edging, strips, said-flexible glider strips being curved in a directiondownward with their intermediate curved portions arranged to engage the surface over. which the attachrnent is moved and hold said hair gathering stripsv in.

slightly spaced relation from said surface, and said hair gathering strips being. adapted to engage a surface to remove hair and lint therefrom when downward pressure isexerted on said body member to move said hair gathering strips into engagementwith said surface.

2. In a vacuum cleaning attachment, the combination of a hollow elongated body member having anopening, an. elongated plate secured to said body member over said opening having a centrally arranged longitudinally.

extending restricted opening, tubular edging strips secured to the longitudinal front and rear edges of saidplate ex-- tending parallel to said. central ,opening,,hair gatheringstripsof flexible and resilient material secured to said plate on opposite sides of said central longitudinally extending restricted opening, said hair gathering-strips being arranged to extend downwardly with their lower edges in.

a plane offset beneath a plane extending along the lower edges of said edging strips, and arcuately curved flexible glider strips formed of flat metal springmaterial arranged,

at each end of said attachment with their ends slidably received in correspondingly shaped openings in ends of said front and rear edging strips, said flexible glider. strips being curved in a downward direction so that their intermediate portion will engage the surface over which the;

attachment is moved, and said flexible glider strips being adapted to normally hold said hair-gathering strips out of engagement with said'surface and allowing'said hair gathering strips to be moved into engagement with: said surface when downward pressure istexerted on saidi'hole low elongated body, member.

3. In avacuum: cleaning attachment, thecombination mesmeof. a .ho1low elongated body member having an opening,' an elongated plate secured to said body member over said opening having a centrally arranged longitudinally extending slot, tubular edging strips secured to the front and rear longitudinal edges of said plate and extending parallel to said central longitudinally extending slot in spaced relation therefrom, hair gathering strips of flexible yieldingmaterial secured. to said plate on opposite sides of said central longitudinally extending slot arranged adjacent the marginal edges thereof, said hair gathering strips being positionedto extend downwardly with their lower. edges in a plane offset beneath a plane extending along the lower edges of said edging strips, slotted openings in said plate between said edging strips and hair gathering strips, and flexible glider members formed of arcuately bent leaf springs of flat material arranged at each end of said attachment with their ends slidably and floatingly. received in correspondingly shaped openings in the ends of said front and rear edging strips, said flexible glider members being arcuately bent in a downward. direction with their intermediate portions adapted to engagethe surface over which said attachment is moved, and said flexible glider members being adapted to normally hold said hair. gathering strips in slightly spaced relation to said surface out of engagement with said surface overwhich'the cleaning attachment is moved and to allow said hair gathering strips to be moved into engagement with said surface when downward pressure is exerted on said hollow elongated body'member, the edging strips. being-closely spaced from the surface when pressure is.exerted-.on.said body member .to-restrict ain.

passage therebeneath through said slotted openings.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 7 782,260 Milne Feb. 14, 1905 1,907,370 Scholler May 2, 1933 1,908,069 Smellie May 9, 1933 1,936,367 Riebel. Nov. 21, 1933 1,987,296 Hoover Jan. 8, 1935 1,994,616 Leitzel Mar. 19, 1935 2,227,298 Cranmer Dec. 31, 1940 2,286,818 Leathers June 16, 1942 2,677,144 Parry May 4, 1954- 2,825',925'1 Acheson Mar. 11, 1958' FOREIGN PATENTS 699,332 Germany Nov. 27; 1940 1,078,868: France May 12, 1954

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