US2978732A

US2978732A - Vacuum cleaner

Info

Publication number: US2978732A
Application number: US685977A
Authority: US
Inventors: Clarence E Hansen
Original assignee: Whirlpool Corp
Current assignee: Whirlpool Corp
Priority date: 1957-09-24
Filing date: 1957-09-24
Publication date: 1961-04-11
Anticipated expiration: 1978-04-11

Description

C. E. HANSEN VACUUM CLEANER April ll, 1961 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 bmw Wh, NWN WM.

Q Q, NQ@ N MN ml.

April 1l, 1951 c. E. HANSEN 2,978,732

VACUUM CLEANER 5 sheets-sheet 2 @MEW/@w C. E. HANSEN VACUUM CLEANER April 1l, 1961 5 Sheets-Shea?I 3 Filed Sept. 24, 1957 April l1, 1961 c. E. HANSEN VACUUM CLEANER 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed Sept. 24. 1957 NN NNL April 11, 1951 c. E. HANSEN 2,978,732

VACUUM CLEANER Filed Sept. 24, 1957 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 VACUUM CLEANER Clarence E. Hansen, Chicago, Ill., assignor to Whirlpool Corporation, a corporation of Delaware Filed Sept. V24, 1957, Ser. No. 685,977

6 Claims. (Cl. 15-323) This invention relates to a vacuum cleaner.

The vacuum cleaner of this invention is of compact, lightweight construction that has a very low center of `gravity and in which the -dirt separating'member is readily available and easily installed and removed when it is necessary to replace a filled dirt separator with an empty one.

Vacuum cleaners of the type described and claimed herein are ordinarily known as canister type cleaners in which the vacuum producing and dirt separating structure is attached through a exible hose and tubular wan-d to a cleaning tool. Various tools may be attached to the wand depending upon the type of cleaning job being done. As the tool is moved over the surface being cleaned, such as a floor covering or a b are floor, the` suction producing structure is adapted to be pulled along behind the operator of the vacuum cleaner. Such cleaners and their operation are well known inthe art.

One of the features of the present invention is the provision of an improved vacuum cleaner in which the suction producing and dirt separating portion is of low conbe easily carried about from place to place by a handle attached to one end. A particular feature of one embodiment of this invention is theprovision of a cleaning tool carrier of an improved construction in which tools can be stored and the provision of wand section and exible hose retaining meansfor retaining the wand sections and vhose, on the cleaner when it is in storage position.

Other features and advantages of the invention `will be apparent from the embodiments shown in the accompanying drawings. Of the drawings:

Figure l is a side elevational view of a vacuum cleaner illustrating Vthe invention. o V- Y i Y Figure 2 is a substantially central vertical section through the yacuum cleaner ofrFigure 1. i

vFigure 3 is an enlarged sectional view, broken in the middle and at the left-hand end, showing the vacuum cleaner of Figure 2 with thecover in raised position.

Figure 4 is -a plan' view, partially broken Aaway for clarity of illustration, of the vacuum .cleaner with the cover. and motor Vand fan u nit removed.

" Figure 5 is a fragmentary plan view of thel rear tool carrier end of the vacuumcleaner., l o

.Figure 6 is a sectional,,jelevatlonal view, partially along line 7 7 of Figure l.,`

v YFigure 8 is a vertical, sectionalview similar to Figurje 2 -rbut illustrating',A a second `embodiment of the, invention.

2,978,732 Patented Apr. 11, i961= ICC Figure 9 is a view similar to Figure 8 but showing the cover in raised position.

Figure 10 is a fragmentary plan view, partially in section, of the intake end of this second embodiment.

Figure ll is a sectional, elevational view illustrating a releasable catch used in both of the illustrated embodiments of the vacuum cleaner. i

In the embodiment shown in Figures l-7 inclusive the "vacuum cleaner comprises a platform 10 of generally rectangular cross section having a downwardly extending skirt 11 around the margin of the platform. This skirt is covered over a major portion of its outer surface with a rubber bumper strip 12. The cleaner is supported for movement over a surface such as a rug being cleaned by va pair of laterally spaced rear wheels 13, each rotatably held in a bracket 14. The skirt 11 is long enough to conceal at least partially the wheels 13. Located at the front of the cleaner is a caster wheel 1S rotatably mounted on a caster 16, also within the contines of the skirt 11.

Depending from the platform 1t) at a forward location thereon is a downwardly extending sheet metal chamber 17 having a lower wall 17a essentially parallel to the door 18 or other surface and a substantially circular outer wall 17b. Mounted on the lower wall 17a adjacent to the outer wall 17b are a plurality of brackets 19 extending beyond the ywall 17b. These brackets serve to retain the electric cord 20 in place when it is wound .around the outer surface 17h as on a reel.

The bottom wall 17a of the chamber 17 is formed with an opening 21 defined by an inwardly directed flange 17C. Concentrically located with respect to this flange is an infwardly positioned cylindrical member 22 provided with an inwardly directed ange 22a.. The two anges 17o and 22a have their inner edges of substantially the same diameter and aligned.

`The upper portion of the sheet metal chamber 17 is dened by an outwardly extending flange 23 which ,is attached to the bottom surface of the platform 1d by a plurality of bolts 24. The section of the platform 10 adjacent to this flange 23 is bent upwardly to provide a channel 10a in which is located an annular ring of resilient rubber 25. ASubstantially centrally of this rubber ring 'is positioned the outer edge of an annular plate 26 that is provided with a central opening 26a and which extends across an opening 10b in the platform 10 defined by the inner edge vof the flange 10a. VHeld in the central opening 26a of the sheet metal plate 26 is a suction unit 27 that includes a vertically aligned motor and casing 28 having an upwardly extending motor shaft 29 on which is located a multi-stage fan 30. This suction unit is provided with an outwardly anddownwardly extending flange 31 adjacent .to theiinterior end of the fan Sil on which is rerriovablyheldv,

such as by friction, an air pervious felt covered metal screen 32 of generally dish shape. The construction of the suction unit 27 including the motor and casing 28, shaft 29, fan 30 and screen 32 is purely conventional and need not be described further except to say that rotation of the fan by the motor causes air to be drawn from within the space 33 through the felt covered screen 32 which acts as a safety guard into the `entrance 30a to the fan Within the motor and casing 28 and into the space 34 within the chamber 17 from which the air is exhausted through the opening 21 into the atmosphere. n

Mounted on the front end of the platform 1d adjacent to the front caster 16 is atransverse bracket 35, having a bottom ange 35a attached to the platform as by rivets 36, and an upwardly extending plate portion, ,facing the Vfront or' right-hand end of the cleaner vas viewed in Figures v1 and 2.' This plate portion Sfis provided with .a centrally heated pvm'ng adiaen t0. the top. thereof in which is positioned the front end of a rearwardly extending tube 38. The inner end of this tube is provided with a circular upwardly extending bead 38a. Mounted on the front surface ofthe plate portion 37 around the front end of the tube 38 is a ring of resilient sponge'rubber39. The top edge of the plate portion 37 is bent forwardly as illustrated at 37a to contact the top surface of the ring 39. The opposite ends of the plate portion 37 are provided with substantially forwardly extending projections 37b.

Immediately rearwardly of the-suction unit 27 is a catch plate 40 attached to the rear of the flange 10a as by means of rivets 4i. This catch plate extends upwardly to beyond the top of the screen 32 and is curved forwardly `and is provided with side reinforcing edges 40a and an upper opening 40b, the top of which is defined by an inwardly extending flange 40e. The top of the plate 40 above the iiange is curvedupwardly and forwardly to describe a smooth curve 40d.

Located rearwardly of the catch plate 46 and on the rear end of the platform is a container 42 for cleaning tools. This container has a bottom 43 attached to the top of the platform 1), as by screws 44, a rear Wall 4S extending upwardly from the edge of the platform 10, side Walls 46 adjacent to the rear side edges of the piatf'orm 10 and an upper forwardly extending ange 47 around the rear and side Walls covered by a resilient 'agravan rubber strip 48 which extends downwardly along the top of the outer surfaces of the rear wall 42 and side walls 4'6. The rubber covered flange 47 serves to aid in retaining cleaning tools within the container 42. The forward edges of each side Wall 46 are covered by a sheet metal trim strip 49 which extends the full vertical height of the side wall 46 and which provides a decorative appearance. j

Movably mounted on the platform 1t)l is an enclosing casing cover 50 having a top 50a, front Sub, rear 50c and side 50d Walls. In the embodiment shown, the cover Sti is hingedly attached to the front of the platform 1t) by means of hinge sections 51 attached to the lower front edge of the cover and cooperating with the projections 37b and 4connected thereto by hinge pins 52. The cover 50 is provided at its lower end with a sealing gasket 53 adapted to make sealing contact with the platform 10 when the cover is in closed position.

In order to lock the cover in closed position it is provided with a generally U-shaped bracket 54 at the upper central portion of the rear wall Stic of Vthe cover. This bracket 54 movably supports a catch pin 55 that extends through the rear wall 50c which is provided on its outer end `with a knob 56. The pin -55 is urged toward a forward position by means of a coil spring.N 57 that surrounds the pin 5S and extends between the inner surface of the cover and a cross pin 53 mounted on the catch pin 55. .When in fully extended position, as shownk for example in Figure 2, the inner end of the catch pin S5 extends into the. opening 4Gb and engages lthe lower surface of the flange 40C to retain the cover Sil in closed position. When it is desired to open the cover the operator grasps the knob 56 and pulls rearwardly against the spring 57 and then rotates the cover forwardly about the hingepins 52 to the position shown in dotted lines 1n Figures 2 and 8 and in solid lines in Figure 3.

In order to aid in preventing 'cleaning tools within the container 42 coming inV contact with `lthe' rear wall 50cA of the cover 50, the. container, is provided-with a pair of metall straps S9-vertically spaced from each other and extending between' the forward edges ofthe side walls Y 46 adjacent to the cover 56. i

The front wall 50b of the' cover is provided with an annular fitting 66 of customary construction kwhich 'is used to retain the 'cleanerend of a suction hose (not wall opening 'Stiefoperates yas a suction inlet for laden shown) vof conventional construction. l`hus the ttingrh 60 which is concentric with the tubeA 38 landthefrout air to the space 33 within the cover 50. This iitting 60, its cooperation with the flexible hose of the vacuum cleaner and its service as a suction inlet is purely conventional. l

In order to lift the cleaner and move it from place to place the front wall 50h of the cover 50 is provided with a handle 61 having endsf61a rotatably held in posts 62 on opposite sides of the iittin-g 60.

Mounted on the forward portion of the skirt 11 is a switch 63 whose inner end is received within the switch box 64. The electrical connections to the switch 63 and to the motor 65 of the suction unit 27 are purely conventional and need not be described.

The platform 1t) is made of relatively thin sheet metal and is reinforced by'means of reinforcing channels 66.

Mounted on the bottom of the platform 10 adjacent to the rear thereof and within the skirt 11 are a pair of downwardly extending bracket 67, each located adjacent to a side of the platform. Each bracket is held in position as by rivets 68. Each bracket 67 has mounted thereon a forwardly extending resilient rubber member 69 having conical surfaces. Aligned with each rubber conical member 69 and forwardly thereof is a spring clip 70 attached to the bottom of the platforni 10 as by rivets 71. Each spring clip has curved sides adapted to grasp and retain the sides of the wand section indicated by the broken line 71a in Figure l when the end of the wand section is pressed against the conical surface of` the resilient member 69,. With this construction when the cleaner is resting in storage position supported on the rear sides of the bumper strip 12 and rubber strip 48, the two wand sections 71a will be retained by the members l69 and theclips 70. In this position the flexible hose can be dropped over the upwardly positioned front end of the cleaner. The cleaning tools may be retained within the container 42. The vacuum cleaner, wands, hose and cleaning tools can thus be stored in an extremely small space andA can be transported Ifrom place to place by means of a handle 61.

The embodiment shownin Figures 8-11 inclusive is a simplified forrn of the first embodiment previously described. Thus the construction features of the second embodiment are substantially identical, differing primarily in the fact that the tool container 42 is omitted and the platform v is correspondingly shorter. There is also a slight difference in the support for the suction unit 27. In `this second embodiment the suction unit 27 is supported within a central opening of an essentially inverted dish shaped plate 126. This plate is sealed to the platform 110 by means of a gasket 125 extending around an opening 1i0b in the platform defined by an upwardly extending arcuate fiange. Skirt 11 is provided on its'bottorn -edge witharubber bumper 112.` Y j In both embodiments of the invention a paper'bag made of porous material is attached by means of a rubber diaphragm to the tube or horn 38. Such a paper bag filter provided with a rubber diaphragm is conventional and is shown in the Clarence E. Hansen co-pending appli- 38y into' the Ainterior ofthe paper bag. Here the dirt is filtered from the air andthe filtered air is drawn through the porous screen-32 andthrough the suction unit 27 into the inter-iorff34 of the chamber. 17.v` From -here it is ex hausted through the opening 21. When the filter bag is to be changed theknob 56 is pulled rearwardly to disengagethecatch'and the cover 50 is rotated forwardly to the position shown in Figure 3ror Figure 9. The dirty bag is then removed anda clean bag installed. The cover Y When the cleaner is to be used as a blower it is turned so that the bottom `of the platform 10, or platform 110, is exposed. The end of the flexible hose which normally engages the fitting 60 is then inserted to engage the flanges 17e and 22a. In this position the exhaust air is forced through the hose in the customary manner to function as a blower. The cleaning tools, wand sections and hose have not been illustrated as they are purely conventional and function in this invention in the customary manner.

While I have shown and described certain embodiments of my invention, it is to be understood that it is capable of many modifications. Changes, therefore, in the construction and arrangement may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as disclosed in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A vacuum cleaner, comprising: a platform; an enclosing chamber having a bottom wall and side walls beneath said platform, the side walls forming generally a cord supporting surface; supporting wheels on said platform spaced outwardly of said chamber extending to beneath said chamber; a suction unit on said platform having an inlet above the platform and an outlet within said chamber and including a motor provided with an electric cord leading to the exterior of the cleaner, the chamber having an air outlet beneath the platform; means on said chamber to aid in retaining said cord on said continuous surface when wound thereon; and means on said platform for supporting said cleaner in a bottom exposed, cord winding position.

2. The cleaner of claim l wherein said platform is provided with a depending skirt therearound tending to hide said chamber beneath the platform, the cord wound thereon, and at least the tops of said wheels.

3. A vacuum cleaner, comprising: a platform; support- Vfing wheels thereon; a suction unit on said platform having an inlet above and an outlet beneath the platform; a cas- Iing on said platform normally enclosing said unit having vits top closely adjacent to but spaced from the unit; a suction inlet in said casing; a depending skirt around the edge of said platform normally hiding at least the upper portions of said wheels; means for supporting said cleaner :'in storage position with the platform resting on one side :and extending substantially vertically; means beneath the `platform for retaining one end of each of a plurality of wand sections thereon when the cleaner is in storage position; and releasable means on said platform within the confines of said skirt for releasably retaining said wand sections with the other ends of the sections extending lbeyond said skirt to receive and support a vacuum cleaner hose.

4. A vacuum cleaner, comprising: a platform; an enclosing chamber having a bottom wall and side walls beneath said platform, the sidewalls forming generally '.a continuous surface; supporting wheels on said platform -extending to beneath said chamber; a suction unit on said platform having an inlet above the platform and 1an outlet within said chamber and including a motor provided with an electric cord .leading to the exterior of the ycleaner, the chamber having an air outlet beneath the platform; means on said chamber to aid in retaining said cord on said continuous surface when wound thereon; a depending skirt around said platform tending to hide said chamber beneath the platform, the cord wound thereon, and at least the tops of said wheels; a resilient bumper -on the outer surface of said skirt; a switch for said motor on said skirt; a pair of spaced resilient members beneath the platform adjacent a rearwardly disposed side por Vtion of said skirt each for releasably receiving one end of a tubular wand section when the cleaner is in storage astra-rsa 6 jacent to but spaced from the unit; a suction inlet' in said casing; and means for attaching a filter within said casing in communication with said suctioninlet.

5. A vacuum cleaner, comprising: a platform; an enclosing chamber having a bottom wall and side walls beneath said platform, the side walls forming generally a continuous surface; supporting wheels on said platform extending to beneath said chamber; a suction unit on said v platform having an inlet above the platform and an outposition resting on said side portion; a pair yof spaced normally enclosing said unit having its top closely adlet within said chamber and including a motor provided with an electric cord leading to the exterior of the cleaner; the chamber having an air outlet beneath the platform; means on said chamber to aid in retaining said cord on said continuous surface when wound thereon; a depending skirt around said platform tending to hide said chamber beneath the platform, the cord wound thereon, and at least the tops of said wheels; a resilient bumper on the outer surface of said skirt; a switch for said motor on said skirt; a casing on said platform normally enclosing said unit having its top closely adjacent to but spaced from the unit; a suction inlet in said casing; means for attaching a filter within said casing in communication withsaid suction unit; and a cleaning tool container on the rear end of said platform having rear and side Walls having inwardly directed top flanges and a barrier extending between the side walls adjacent to the casing for aid in retaining the tools within the container, the suction unit and casing being forwardly of said container.

6. A vacuum cleaner, comprising: a platform; an enclosing chamber having a bottom wall and side walls beneath said platform, the side walls forming generally a continuous surface; supporting wheels on said platform extending to beneath said chamber; a suction unit on said platform having an inlet above the platform and an outlet within said chamber and including a motor provided with an electric cord leading to the exterior of the cleaner, the chamber having an air outlet beneath the platform; means on said chamber to aid in retaining said cord on said continuous surface when wound thereon; a depending skirt around said platform tending to hide said chamber beneath the platform, the cord wound thereon, and at least the tops of said wheels; a resilient bumper on the outer surface of said skirt; a switch for said motor on said skirt; a pair of spaced resilient members beneath the platform adjacent a rearwardly disposed side portion of said skirt each for releasably receiving one end of a tubular wand section when the cleaner is in storage position resting on said side portion; a pair of spaced resilient spring members beneath the platform each forwardly of and aligned with one of said resilient members for receiving a wand section; a casing on said platform normally enclosing said unit-having its top closely adjacent to but spaced from the unit; a suction inlet in said casing; means for attaching a filter Within said casing in communication with said suction inlet; and a cleaning tool container on the rear end of. said platform having rear and side walls having inwardly directed top flanges and a barrier extending between the side walls adjacent to the casting for aid in retaining the tools within the container, the suction unit and casing being forwardly of said container, the top of said rear container wall and said rearwardly disposed side portion of said skirt being substantially coplanar for supporting the cleaner in said storage position.

References Cited in the file of vthis 'patent UNITED STATES yPATENTS 955,886 Laughlin Apr. 26, 1910 1,721,459 McClatchie July 16, 1929 2,348,966 Dow et al. May 16, 1944 2,439,182 Nuffer et al. a Apr. 6, 1948 2,573,091 Brown Oct. 30, 1951 2,591,305 Segesman Apr. l, 1952 2,616,517 Beck Nov. 4, 1952 2,734,594 Meeker Feb. 14, 1956 (Other references on following page) 7 UNITED STATES PATENTS 1 Famolare et a1. f Apr. 10, 1956 Meyerhoefer Jan. 29, 1957 Coons et al. Feb. 12, 19,57 Sparklin Jan. 14, 1958 Kasper Dec. 22, 1959