US3509590A

US3509590A - Vacuum cleaner

Info

Publication number: US3509590A
Application number: US611939A
Authority: US
Inventors: Hideya Koshiyama
Original assignee: Hitachi Ltd
Current assignee: Hitachi Ltd
Priority date: 1966-01-26
Filing date: 1967-01-26
Publication date: 1970-05-05
Anticipated expiration: 1987-05-05
Also published as: CH442643A; FI48415C; FR1523210A; GB1107174A; DE1628638A1; NL6701250A; DE1628638B2; FI48415B

Description

May 5, 1970 HIDEYA' KCIDSHIYAMA 3,509,590

VACUUM CLEANER Filed Jan. 26, 1967 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 May 5, 1970 HIDEYA KOSHIYAMA VACUUM CLEANER 4 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed Jan. 26, 1967 FIG.

May 5, 1970 HIDEYA KOSHIYAMA VACUUM CLEANER 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed Jan. 26, 1967 FIG.

FIG.

- combination including; anhousing. mounted on. that extending rest memberseoured to said i described a foldable handlevand various air conduit hold antenna Int Cl. A471 11.5.. CI. -423; l

ABSTRACTtQE 'IHE mscLosunn .1 t :1

This specification discloses va mobile ivacuum cleane wheels. and front casteriwheels and having aX IearWardIy extending handle to support the partly: flexible, partlyw rigid air conduit connectedqto the cleaner; There is als i r ngements in. association with the handle BACKGROUNDHOF THE INVENTION X ,The popularity of the canister or. tank-type; vacuurnky cleaner over the earlier developed upright vacuum cleaner has increased from year to year due to the greater flex ibility and maneuverability of this cleaner arrangement for typical household cleaning to the point where the former equipment is used almost exclusively at the present time. There are, however, certain disadvantages to the canister-type equipment relating to the stability and to the storage thereof.

Presently used equipment generally consists of a nozzle releasably connected at the suction inlet of the cleaner by a flexible hose and, if necessary, various combinations of rigid air pipes, which telescope with one another and interconnect one end of the flexible hose with the cleaner nozzle. The air pipes are ordinarily provided in several sections which interlock with one another by force fit to produce a rigid air pipe of the proper length to facilitate movement of the cleaner nozzle comfortably by a person of normal height. The pipes are made in sections rather than in one piece so that the various lengths may be disassembled for compact storage. However, the storage of these short lengths of pipe and the more cumbersome flexible hose has proven to be very inconvenient due to the shape and configuration of these parts. In addition, while the flexible hose may be manipulated to an extent, due to its diameter and construction it is not capable of compact coiling for storage. It has also been found in practice that while the force fit assembly of the short pipe lengths of the air pipe provides for a rapid assembling of the elements, they have a tendency to work loose during operation of the cleaner causing a separation of the various pipe lengths resulting in a dropping off of the cleaner nozzle.

In addition to the storage problems inherent in the cleaners of known construction, it has been found, especially in connection with canister-type cleaners, that the manueverability thereof over obstacles during the cleaning operation is far from satisfactory. With such equipment, it is the natural practice to pull the cleaner by the flexible cleaner hose; however, due to the fact that the force on the cleaner hose is directed at the end of the cleaner hose well above the body of the cleaner, rapid movement very often results in a pitching of the cleaner body in a back and forth direction causing a toppling or tumbling of the cleaner resulting in damage casing for :pre:

venting tipping and forty cooperating withan upwardly;

provide a supporvfor ,a pairof auxiliary rear. whee ov the surface upon whichnthe g and serve jltofpreventla backwar, toppling of the, cleaner. Therearwardly extending bracket: also serves as cooperatesjw upon'the vacu .the air pipe may bearewhich i normally cleaner is stand the air pipe an removal from the vacuum cleaner. i

provide a newl and surface 'ofthe leaner body an xtendingrearwardlyxt ,rnembernfor the, vacuum: nozzle an the flex It is another,.dbiectofdhe,presentwinvention t y and stability of movemen proved maneu'jerabilit {of I the. present invention I which it is traveling and other adjacent objects.

It is still another object of the present invention to provide a new vacuum cleaner construction having a conveniently accessible storage case for cleaning implements and other attachments utilized with the overall combination.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a new vacuum cleaner construction providing means for the simplified and compact storage of accessories without requiring complete disassembly of air hose, air pipes, cleaner nozzle, and associated items.

These and other objects, features and advantages will become more apparent from the following detailed description of the present invention when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, which illustrate the various features thereof, and wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a side view of a cleaner constructed in accordance with the present invention;

FIGURE 2 is a rear view of the back end of the cleaner of FIGURE 1 FIGURE 3 is an enlarged side view partly cut away of the cleaner of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 4 is a bottom plan view of the cleaner of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 5 is a perspective view of a portion of the handle construction of the cleaner of FIGURE 1 showing the air pipe holding means;

FIGURE 6 is a vertical sectional view taken along line VIVI of FIGURE 5;

FIGURE 7 is a front view of the caster wheel assembly employed in the cleaner of FIGURE 1 at the front end thereof;

FIGURE 8 is a bottom plan view of the caster wheel construction of FIGURE 7;

FIGURE 9 is a vertical sectional view taken along line IX--IX of FIGURE FIGURE 10 is a perspective view of the upper construction of the cleaner of FIGURE 1 showing a storage case for the cleaning elements mounted thereon;

FIGURE 11 is a vertical sectional view of the storage case of FIGURE 10;

object of the ,present inventiont himproved vacuuni,cleaner construe 1 tion which eliminates or otherwise altogether .avoids th above-mentioned defects inheren cleaner.

? j vide anew vacuurnflcleaner construction havinga cleaner construction provi ng a; t ng pitching movements thereof: so as to prevent tipping and damage to the surface upon FIGURE 12 shows a second embodiment of the pres:

ent invention having amodifiedwhcelmounting member for the rear wheel combinationsimilar. to thatof the FIGURES l9 and 20 show the handle hinge construetion for the embodiment of FIGURES l7 and 18.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF. THE INVENTION- The same reference numerals have been utilized to identify identical parts inthe various views of the drawing wherever possible. While certain specific constructions are described in the following specification and illustrated in the drawings as examples of the present invention, it should be understood that obvious modifications or equivalent constructions can be provided in lieu thereof without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention.

Referring now more specifically to the drawings, FIG- URES 1 through 4 illustrate a canister-type vacuum cleaner 1 including an upper housing casing 2 and a lower housing casing 3 releasably secured to one another by suitable locking members 4 and enclosing standard power equipment, such as a motor, a fan and a filter (not shown) of any suitable construction generally provided for such cleaner units. The lower casing3 is provided with an air suction inlet 5 at the front end thereof to which one end 6 of a flexible air hose 7 is detachably mounted. To the otherend of the flexible hose 7 is connected a nozzle by way of a curved rigid air pipe 8 and a straight rigid air pipe9, which may be formed in one or more removable sections. The flexible hose 7 and the

air pipes

8 and 9 in combination serve as the air conduit member between the nozzle 10 and the air suction inlet 5 of the cleaner.

The lower casing 3 is further provided with a front caster wheel 13, a pair of main wheels 12 somewhat larger in diameter than the caster wheel 13, and a pair of rear auxiliary wheels 14. A mounting and support bracket 11 is secured to the bottom face of the lower casing'3 for mounting the main wheels 12 and the rearwheels 14, as seen in FIGURE 4. The bracket 11 includes a pair'of transversely disposed arms 15 serving as respective axles for the main wheels 12 and is formed integrally with a U-shaped bracket portion consisting of leg members 16 dicated in greater detail hereinafter, asa support for the cleaner nozzle 10. The rear auxiliary wheels 14 are sup ported upon a shaft 19 which is in turn supported between the Iegmembers 16 of the bracket 11'.The bracket 11 may be secured to-the lower face of the casing 3 by any suitable conventional fasteningmembers, such as the screws The bracket 11 is preferably mounted to the casing 3 at a point behind the center of. gravity G of the cleaner,

as illustrated in FIGURES 3 and 4, so that the axles 15 dynamic;balance, and resistance against tipping isprovided so that. the cleaner may quickly recover to the normal state ofequilibrium upon being subjectedto pitching forces during maneuver thereof. Thus, thifs embodiment of the present invention provides an especially improved pitching maneuverability which allows the cleaner to-move oven-obstacles on the floor without tipping or criticalloss-of stability. 7 a p .The rear wheels 14 are so positioned and dimensioned in comparison with the main wheels 12 that they ride or fioat above the floor. by acertain height H when the. cleaner is in its normal equilibrium-state of rest, but'will contact the-floor to provide equilibrium to the cleanershould the cleaner body be pitched backward around the rear wheels 12 to the critical equilibrium point by adistance H where the center of gravity passes through the axle .ofwheels 12. Thus the cleaner is always maintained in a state of equilibrium, either due to the position of the center of gravity of the cleaner construction, or through contact of the rear wheels 14 wiih the surface over which the cleaneris being pulled. The heights H and H are selected to be approximately 38 to 40 centimeters, respectively, since this range makes possible a traversal of usually encountered 0bstacles without loss of stability.

A handle 20 is secured to the upper casing 2 of the cleaner 1 by a suitable securing means 21 so as to extend at a slight angle to the vertical in the rearward direction permitting movement of thecleaner by way of a grip 22 mounted at the upper end of the handle 20. A cross piece 23 is secured to the handle 20 at a point below the grip 22 by means of suitable securing means 24 and is provided, as illustrated specifically in FIGURES 5 and 6, with a protruding or pressed out portion 25 on either side of which a pair of brackets 26 are formed, preferably, by pressing out tabs from the cross piece 23. A holder 27 for the rigid air conduit 9 formed of. a shapedwire having a curved contact portion 28 for clamping around the outer periphery of the conduit 9 is mounted by the end portions 29 thereof in suitable support holes in the brackets 26 on the cross piece 23. The end portion 29 of the wire holder 27 is provided with a terminal protruding portion engaging frictionally with the inner contour of the protruding portion'25, as illustrated inFIGURE 6, so as to provide for a spring locking of the holder 27 in the raised or horizontal. position. 1

As illustrated in FIGURE 1, with the holder 27 extending in the horizontal position and the cleaner nozzle 10 supported upon the angular portion 17 of the bracket 11, the air cleaner conduit 9 may be clamped into the curved contactportion 28 of the holder 27 thereby supporting the conduit in a'substantially vertical position with the curved conduit portion extending rearwardly so that the flexible hose 7 is stretchedbetween the air suction inlet 5 and the upper curved end 8 of the rigid conduit. In this way, the flexible hose and the rigid conduit maybe stored with the cleaning apparatus without dismantling or removal from the equipment for-storage separate from the cleaner casing. This also makes possible a more secure interconnection of the rigid pipe sections, which no longer have to be disassembled for storage, eliminating the sannoying separation of these sections duringuse; i

mentof FIGURE 1, is preferably'constitutedin the form.

of a resiliently mounted castenas shown in FIGURES 7 for the wheels 12are located on a linespaced from the vertical line of the center of gravity G by horizontal distance'a toward the rear of the cleaner construction. This distance 5 is preferably selected so'as'to place the center of' gravity G of the cleaner at a suitable point between the front caster wheel 13 and the 'main wheels 12. In this way, with the cleaner normally supported on a floor by the front caster wheel and the mainwheels, a good through9. In this construction, a base plate 30 is mounted directly to the lower face of the casing 3 byv suitable means (not'shownlxand a support bracket 31 is horizontallyrotatably mounted-in the conventional snap-locking manner by means of'the" ring 38 on a. shaft 32secured to the base plate 30.- A pivot shaft 35 extending transversely to the shaft 32 pivot'ably connects'the bracket 31 to a wheel support member 33, which is mounted on the bracket 33 by means of axle 34. Resilient support for the wheel is then provided to cushion rotation of the wheel 13 mounted on the rotating bracket 33 by means of a spring 36 inmanner. In accordance. with the embodiment of the in inounting and suPPQIt bracket 11 may befmade on tic so. as to provideaflexing at the time jlof contactno I 4l for hangingya crevice nozzle 56 and 1 I a I eombined with a removable trash boxu42. With thin serted between the support bracket 31 and the: wheel sup- I port 33. With a mechanical force Pp applied to thefront caster wheel 13, as shown in FIGURE 9, the bearing means 33 yields resiliently ina dinection R to bufiFer the 3 force from the casing}. The cushioning effect may: be; additionally increased by providing a rubber bllif6l3-7 between theaxle 34. anda stop portion on thej bracket 31 The rear wheels 14 may also be mounted in a cushioned vention illustrated in FIGURES... 1. through: 4, ,the whee suitable resilient material, such as atresilientorganic plas the rear wheels 14 with the surface :overwhich the cleane is being moved. The rear wheels 14 are rotatablymounted on a shaft 19 whichis securedto the wheelmounting and support bracket 11 at a certain distance from thek main shaft of the wheel 12. i

carrier 39, illustrated in FIGURES. 10 and 11, for storing cleaner may be mounted by. an integral hook arrangement I 4.0. on the cross piecev2 3 1mounted. to handleNZO which carrier arrangement may be providedwith arhanger means rangement, the cleaniiig elements and attachments will always be maintainedflwith the cleanerisobIthatithey are; u always accessible. for use and are easily SiIDl'CdfWlth thew mainz cleaner construction. ;:As illustratedtimFIGURE LI I,

the trash carrier 42 may be provided with a pair of hooks a; for engaging over the frontface of the attachment box providing for simplified removal for disposal of the trash therein without requiringa removal of the equipment carrying containeritself. 1

While the embodiment ofFIGURES 1 through 4 illus- I trates the use of two rear wheels 14, it isalsowithin the; I contemplation of thepresenttinvention that one rear wheel; or no rear wheel at all, but= only the bracket 16, maybe sufficient for preventing the cleaner 1 from toppling over.

An alternative embodiment illustrated in FIGURES 12 p and 13 utilizes a single rear wheel 14 mounted by means of a resilient shaft 43 between the legs 16' of the bracket member 11. The cushioning effect of the rear wheel is provided by a flexing of the flexible shaft 43 upon contact of the wheel 14 with the surface over which the cleaner is being moved. In other respects, the bracket member 11 may be substantially identical to that provided in the embodiment of FIGURES 1 through 4.

In order to increase the resiliency of the wheel mounting member 11 over that provided even by a flexible plastic bracket, a plurality of aligned slots 44, as illustrated in FIGURE 14 may be provided at the point of support of the bracket 11 at the lower casing 3 of the cleaner. The slots 44 serve to eliminate the rigidity provided by the substantially U-shaped cross section of the bracket at the points where the slots are positioned, and if the bracket is secured to the casing 3 at points on either side of the slots 44, a flexibility is provided without sacrificing the structural strength of the combination. A flexible shaft 19 with a single wheel 14 may also be included in this combination to provide for maximum flexibility and cushioning of the rear wheel combination.

FIGURES l5 and 16 disclose another embodiment of the present invention including a modified handle construction having an air conduit holder 46 formed as an integral part of the grip portion of the handle 20. The grip portion is formed into a V-shaped or U-shaped curve to accommodate the rigid conduit 9 and a flexible band 47 is positioned over the looped end of the air duct consisting of the flexible hose 7 and the rigid curved portion 8 of the air conduit so that the resilience of the flexible hose 7 connected to the air suction intake of the cleaner serves to maintain the rigid conduit 9 in firm contact with the curved portion 46 of the handle while the vacuum to the vertical thereby. I, 1 I II Another embodiment of the. present .invention illusa. trated in FIGURES lllllthrouglilfl provides for a foldablev handle capable [of,supportingxtheair conduitfortstoragew .I.:andgalso be gj fiedmanipulation a'ld.II'ZIHSPOIQQIIORlilIGOftThC GlllbOCi .I

curved basediportion 48 secured to of I the cleaner 1 I in I any convenient an offset terminal portion to which is secured a magnet 5.5. The vertically extending rear t JOrJ- ment l includee at nozzle 10 is maintained in contact with the upwardly I the upper casi 5 manner andihaving curving support portion of th61bl36k6t 11, in the manner. u illustrated in FIGURE 1..Thisxarrangementeliminatesthe 1 need for a separate spring holderfor the rigid conduit andy' permits a positioningof thehandleZll at a greater anglew forlmare simplifiedrnovementof the cleaner.

tion of the base .member 48 isahinged to an arm portion 49 provided with awhandle gripy55 and hinged at Ithe extreme end thereof to za conduit holding member .150,

similar to that illustrated in FIGURESglS and 16. Tulan lar sleeves 52 are provided in thearea ofeach of the hinges 51 and are slipped oven;thenhinges, as illustrated;

11 full lines in FIGURES 19-and 20; toprovide for rigidtu extension of .the hinged parts. However, for purposesof I folding the ha I i is in FIGURE 18 t own; xfrom around th otated to ahorizontal.

position with the extreme hinged end formed by the holding member 50 rotated intocontactywith the magnetw53 In thisposition, theiihandle grip 551 is positioned 8ubstan-. I

tially over the center 1. of gravity of the cleaner. casing and serves as ameans for transporting the vacuum clean-1 er assembly. In addition, a cleaning element storage case.

54 is suitably secured either to the, base member 48 or to the upper Icasing2 of theclea ner and serves to provide means for transportationand storage of the various cleans 9 ing accessories ;utilized. with thewacuum cleaner equip.

ment. A cover 56 maybe mounted on thehandlepprtion 49inthis embodiment so thatluponifolding of the handle into the retracted position, the cover 56 will form a closure for the cleaning element storage case 54.

The foregoing embodiments have been described in connection with a canister-type vacuum cleaner construction; however, it should be apparent that the principles thereof may also be applied equally well to other types of cleaner constructions, such as the conventional tanktype construction and similar arrangements. It should also be apparent that the operating efiiciency and workability of the cleaner in accordance with the present invention is greatly improved over the constructions provided by the prior art and the difliculties enumerated above in connection with the prior art devices is completely eliminated or substantially reduced by the novel featuresof the present invention. Moreover, due to the simplified construction of the present invention, the cost of manufacture has been greatly decreased, While the speed of manufacture and dependability and durability of construction have been greatly increased.

I have shown and described several embodiments in accordance with the present invention. It is understood that the same is not limited thereto but is susceptible of numerous changes and modifications as known to a person skilled in the art.

I claim:

1. A canister-type movable vacuum cleaner comprising a casing enclosing power equipment for said cleaner;

an air suction inlet provided on said casing for producing a suction in a suction nozzle via air conduit means;

an elongated handle mounted on said casing having a holding member mounted thereon for holding said air conduit means intermediate the ends thereof;

a pair of main wheels and at least one additional Wheel mounted on said casing with said additional wheel 7 being positioned adjacent one end of said casing for *movably supporting said casing;

a rest member secured to and projecting from the other end of said casing including a support portion for supporting said suction nozzle; and

at least one auxiliary wheel mounted on said rest member,

wherein said auxiliary wheel is spaced a predetermined distance above the surface upon which the cleaner is supported and a vertical line through the center of gravity of the cleaner passes between said main wheels and said additional wheel when said casing is supported in a first position on said main Wheels and said additional wheel, and the vertical line through the center of gravity of the cleaner passesthrough 1 closing said container in the folded condition of said handle.

9. The combination defined in claim 1 wherein said rest member is constructed with a substantially U-shaped cross section having a pair of leg members and a cross member.

10. The combination defined in claim 1 wherein said rest member is composed of flexible material.

11. The combination defined in claim 1 wherein said auxiliary wheel is resiliently mounted on said rest member.

12. The combination defined in claim l wherein said pair of leg members have at least a pair of slots for increasing the flexibility of said bracket.

the vicinity ofthe axis of said main wheels when thecasing. is supported in a second position on said main wheels and said auxiliary wheel, so that th cleaner is maintained in an equilibrium condition in either said first or said second positions. 2. The combination defined in claim 1 wherein said holding member includes a pivotally mounted flexible clasp for engaging said air conduitmeans with said suction nozzle supported on said rest member.

3. The combination defined in claim 2 wherein said holding member further includes a bracket secured to said handle having a pressed out portion in communication with: said flexible clasp for locking said clasp in an extended position.

4. The combination defined in claim 1 further including a storage container removably mounted on said handle for storing cleaing elements and a trash container detachably mounted on said storage container.

5. The combination defined in claim 1 wherein said holding member consists of a flexible band mounted over a looped central portion of said air cond uit so as to press said conduit against said handle with one end thereof connected tosaid suction inlet and said suction nozzle end supported on said rest member.

6. The combination defined in claim 5 wherein the end of said handle includes a substantially U-shaped portion for engagement with said air conduit.

7. The combination defined in claim 1 wherein said handle is hinged in first and second places for folding into a horizontal position and magnet means forlocking.

the end thereof so that said handle forms a substantially rigid rectangle.

8. The combination defined in claim 7 further including a storage container mounted on said casingadjacent said handle and a closure means secured to said handlefor i 13. A mobile vacuum cleaner comprising; i

vacuum power means including acasing and a suction inlet therein for producing a suction,

apair of main wheels and at least one additional wheel mounted on either side of a vertical line through the center of gravity of said casing for support of the cleaner in a first equilibrium position with said additional wheel being positioned adjacent to said suction inlet at one end of said casing, a suction nozzle and. air conduit means for: detachably connecting said nozzleto said suction inlet, and a rest member secured to and projecting fromrthe other end of said casing opposite said additionalwheel and including a support portion for supporting said suction nozzle, said restmember being spaced. above the support plane of said cleaner in said first equilibrium position by a sufficient distance to provide support for said cleaner in a secondequilibrium position on said main Wheels and said rest member with the vertical line through the center of gravity of said cleaner passing through the vicinity of the axis of said main wheels.

References. Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,559,804 1l/l925. Sweeny.

. 2,232,548 2/1941 McAnerney 15257 X 2,738,542 3/1956 Clark 1644 2,850,756 9/ 1958 Ziegler, et al.

2,819,485 l/ 1958 Sparklin 15-323 FOREIGN PATENTS 76,749 11/ 1953 Denmark. 895,125 3 [1944 France.

ROBERT w. MITCHELL, Primary Examiner