WO2000025653A1

WO2000025653A1 - Circulation air type cleaner

Info

Publication number: WO2000025653A1
Application number: PCT/JP1998/004956
Authority: WO
Inventors: Yasuyuki Fujimura
Original assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Kankyo
Priority date: 1998-11-02
Filing date: 1998-11-02
Publication date: 2000-05-11

Abstract

A circulation air type cleaner capable of collecting dust on an object surface by small power, and carrying out a cleaning operation with an improved cleaner controllability without polluting the environmental air, comprising an air flow generating unit adapted to generate a blast and drive the blast from an air blow-out hole onto the object surface at a predetermined angle in a predetermined direction, and a rotary brush provided on an air blowing portion of the air flow generating unit and adapted to scrape up the dust on the object surface, the dust being thereby blown in a predetermined direction to introduce the dust from an air flow receiving hole into an inflow passage and collect the dust by a collecting filter provided on the inflow passage, the air flow used to transfer the dust being returned from an air circulating passage to the air flow generating unit and not discharged to the outside, the cleaner controllability during a cleaning operation being excellent since all constituent elements are provided in one cleaner body.

Description

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1

Description Circulating air cleaner Technical field

The present invention relates to a circulating air cleaner, and more particularly to a cleaner that blows and collects dust on a surface to be cleaned while circulating an air flow. Technology background

Conventionally, an electric fan and a dust collection chamber are provided in the main body, and dust is sucked together with air from a suction nozzle connected to the dust collection chamber via a suction hose, and the dust is collected and discharged. A sucker type I vacuum cleaner is known.

Such a suction-type vacuum cleaner has a small gap between the suction nozzle and the surface to be cleaned, and sucks air from this gap to reduce the flow of air (hereinafter simply referred to as “air flow”). The dust is formed, and the dust is sucked up and transported by the airflow by this suction to collect it.

Here, dust collection by suction occurs when air is sucked from a wide area around the suction port and collides with the dust to give kinetic energy. Therefore, when the dust is located away from the suction port of the nozzle, the amount of air given to the dust is small, and the suction power for the dust is weak. Therefore, in order to increase the suction force against dust, it is conceivable that the suction port is brought closer to the surface to be cleaned and the suction range is narrowed to increase the amount of air given to the dust. An excessive load may be applied to the electric fan. In addition, if they are brought too close to each other, the suction port and the surface to be cleaned come into close contact with each other, so that the above-described suction airflow does not occur and dust cannot be collected.

In addition, if the size of the electric fan is increased to increase the output, the suction force will increase.However, this strengthening method will increase the power consumption and noise, and will increase the size of the sweeper housing the electric fan. Cleaning work is difficult because the rotation is worse. Furthermore, if the suction force increases, the air discharge capacity also increases, so that after dust collection, There was a risk that minute dust that could not be collected during exhaust could be easily discharged into the air.

In order to solve such a problem, various exhaust-type vacuum cleaners using the exhaust of an electric fan for suction have been proposed in the vacuum cleaners.

For example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Nos. Hei 1-86964 and Hei 3-49724 disclose that the exhaust of an electric fan is introduced into a suction nozzle having a predetermined indoor space via a recirculation passage. A vacuum cleaner which blows dust on the surface to be cleaned by blowing it onto the surface to be cleaned and then sucks the dust is shown. With this configuration, the dust on the surface to be cleaned is floated in the indoor space by blowing the exhaust air, and is made closer to the suction port, thereby facilitating the suction of the dust and improving the dust collection efficiency. I have.

However, the above-mentioned suction-type vacuum cleaner that positively uses exhaust air also has a main cleaning means that transports dust by suction, and adds an effect of floating dust from the surface to be cleaned by blowing the exhaust air. Things. Therefore, in theory, the suction power can be made smaller than that of a suction-only vacuum cleaner, and in view of the dust collection capacity, a stronger suction power is required.The electric fan is still large, and the power consumption increases. It has problems such as noise.

Also, if exhaust gas is completely circulated, the exhaust fan does not sufficiently radiate heat from the electric fan, so the internal temperature of the vacuum cleaner may become too high and malfunction.

In addition, the routing of the hose while the main body is being pulled down impairs the operational feeling during cleaning work and gives the user discomfort.

Furthermore, the above-mentioned vacuum cleaner must have a predetermined gap between the suction port and the surface to be cleaned by suction in order to prevent the suction surface from sticking. Exhaust gas returned to the suction nozzle could leak out of this gap, and fine dust and bacteria that could not be applied to the filter could be scattered.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and an object of the present invention is to remove dust on a surface to be cleaned with less power and to contaminate surrounding air during cleaning work. Provided is a vacuum cleaner that has improved operability of the vacuum cleaner without any cleaning work. It is to be. Disclosure of the invention

In order to achieve the above object, a circulating air cleaner according to claim 1 of the present invention has one cleaner main body having an internal space surrounded by an upper surface member and a side member, and has a predetermined wind speed. Dust blowing between the airflow generating section that generates the blowing airflow, the airflow blowing section that guides the generated blowing airflow and blows out from the airflow outlet toward the surface to be cleaned at a predetermined angle, and the airflow blowout port An inflow passage having an airflow receiving port installed at a predetermined distance from the airflow blowing port so as to form a space, and an inflow passage for guiding the airflow received from the airflow receiving port further downstream, and a dust blowing swirl space. A rotating brush portion arranged and rotated by a predetermined driving force, a dust collecting portion provided downstream of the inflow passage for collecting dust that has flowed in with the air, and a dust collecting portion that passes through the dust collecting portion. A ring passage for air inflow circulating lead the airflow generating portion, is provided in the cleaner body.

Thus, the dust on the surface to be cleaned can be blown by the airflow blown from the airflow blowing portion to the surface to be cleaned and collected in the dust collecting portion. Therefore, the airflow generation unit only needs to generate the airflow that blows the dust, and the output of the airflow generation unit can be reduced.

That is, the moving force can be more directly and efficiently applied to the dust than in the case where the dust is sucked up together with the air. Therefore, dust existing over a wide area of the dust blowing region can be collected with energy saving. In addition, the dust collecting operation is more effective due to the action of the rotating brush. Since the airflow for transporting the dust circulates in the cleaner, it is possible to effectively prevent the fine dust from being scattered to the surroundings by discharging the airflow to the outside. Furthermore, since each component of the present invention can be integrally provided in one cleaner body, all cleaning is performed by moving only the cleaner body without operating the hose-shaped member / nozzle. Necessary operation is performed.

The circulating air cleaner according to claim 2 is

The dust collecting portion reduces the flow velocity from the flow velocity of the airflow from the upstream inflow passage. A dust collecting chamber, and a filter unit installed in the dust collecting chamber for restraining dust when passing through an air flow. In this way, the flow velocity of the blast air blown into the dust collecting portion from the inflow passage is reduced in the dust collecting chamber. Accordingly, the storage state of the collected dust and the dust control function of the filter provided in the dust collection chamber are improved.

The circulating air cleaner according to claim 3 is:

The airflow outlets are installed so as to oppose each other at two positions separated by a predetermined distance, and so that the airflows from both collide at an intermediate position, and the airflow receiving ports are provided from both sides. Is provided above the collision portion of the blown airflow. As a result, dust blown from two directions on the surface to be cleaned can be more reliably and promptly sent to the inflow passage by the ascending airflow formed by the collision of the blowing airflow. In other words, the blast airflow that has collided moves in the direction opposite to the surface to be cleaned, that is, in the upward direction, and carries dust.

The air circulation type vacuum cleaner according to claim 4 is:

The airflow generating section is formed by a sirocco fan having two airflow sending sections so as to send out blowing airflows in two different directions. This enables the sirocco fan to create an airflow that uniformly and linearly pushes air in one direction, and achieves uniform airflow in two different directions without complicating the structure. Have been.

The circulating air set vacuum cleaner according to claim 5,

The rotating brush portion is composed of a pair of rotating brushes that are rotated in directions in which the opposing surfaces move upward on substantially parallel rotating shafts. The rotating brush is formed by collision of blown airflows from both the rotating brushes. They are opposed to each other so as to form a pair with the ascending airflow part between them.

Therefore, each rotating brush is rotated in the direction in which the side facing the rising air flow portion moves upward. That is, each is rotated in the opposite direction by the rotating brush mechanism. This allows the dust on the surface to be cleaned to be more effectively moved upward, in addition to the effect of the invention according to each of the above-mentioned claims, and an improvement in the dust collecting function of the cleaner is achieved. The circulating air set cleaner according to claim 6 is:

The airflow outlet is formed in a long hole shape having a predetermined width, the opening of which extends substantially parallel to the surface to be cleaned. By adopting a long hole shape, a wide air flow can be blown out in the length range, and dust on the surface to be cleaned can be blown off accurately over a wide range.

In addition, since the airflow can be sent over the predetermined width in parallel to the surface to be cleaned, the blowing airflow can be blown by the uniform wind force on the surface to be cleaned, and the dust on the surface to be cleaned can be evenly and efficiently. Can be pushed into the inflow passage.

The circulating air cleaner according to claim 7 is:

The shape of the lower side edge portion of the opening of the airflow outlet is a corrugated shape. Thereby, the shape of the opening of the airflow outlet is configured such that the opening area is smaller on the lower side than on the upper side. With such a configuration, it is possible to suppress generation of turbulence at a position below the airflow outlet. This has been confirmed by experiments.

The circulation air type vacuum cleaner according to claim 8 is:

The airflow outlet is configured by arranging a plurality of small outlets. By using small outlets, it is possible to blow out the blowing locus, the speed of the air flow, and the blowing airflow, making the dust blowing more accurate.

The circulating air cleaner according to claim 9 is:

The opening of each of the small outlets has an inverted water droplet shape in which the upper side is arc-shaped and the lower side converges to a pointed end. With such a configuration, an airflow outlet having both the function of the small outlet and the effect of preventing the generation of turbulent airflow by reducing the opening area on the lower side can be obtained.

The circulating air set cleaner according to claim 10 is

The rotating brush is not rotated by wheels provided on the cleaner body for manual movement on the surface to be cleaned, and a rotating brush drive mechanism for transmitting the rotating operation of the wheels.

The rotating brush driving mechanism includes a first rotating unit that is directly rotated by the rotating operation of the wheels, and a final rotating unit that is provided so as to always rotate coaxially with each rotating brush. The rotating operation of the rotating unit and the first rotating unit is finally performed as an operation of rotating the rotating brushes in the direction of moving the rotating brushes toward the opposing surfaces, regardless of the rotating direction of the first rotating unit. And an intermediate rotating part for transmitting the rotating part to the rotating part.

According to this, the rotating brushes which are opposed to each other so as to form a pair in the space by moving the dust are rotated by the rotating brush driving mechanism driven by the rotating operation of the wheels.

The rotating brush is rotated by the rotating brush driving mechanism in a direction in which the mutually facing surfaces of the rotating brushes that are opposed to each other move upward regardless of the rotating direction of the wheel.

As described above, the rotating brush is rotated in a fixed direction only by using the rotating operation of the wheel generated when the dust collecting unit main body is manually moved without using the electric driving means.

The rotating brush driving mechanism achieves a rotating operation in a certain direction by a rotating section having different functions in three stages. When a plurality of rotating brushes are provided, the final rotating unit is provided coaxially for each rotating brush, and thus has a plurality of rotating bodies.

The circulation air type vacuum cleaner according to claim 11

The configuration of the first rotating part includes two first rotating bodies each provided at the tip of two arm members that are attached to the wheel and the same bow and rotate within a predetermined angle range, respectively. have. The angle between the two arm members is always constant. For example, the two arm members are formed integrally.

The two first rotating bodies rotate in the predetermined angle range according to the rotating direction of the wheel. Then, only one of the two first rotating members transmits the rotating operation to the intermediate rotating portion by the rotation operation. In other words, since the two arm members are always at a constant angle, in a situation where the two arm members rotate and one of the rotating bodies transmits the rotating operation to the intermediate rotating part, the other first member is rotated. The rotating body is located away from the intermediate rotating part. If the direction of rotation of the wheel changes, the first rotator on the other side will be in a position to transmit the rotation operation, and the first rotator on one side will be in the position without transmission. The intermediate rotating part is provided with a plurality of rotating parts arranged so as to always transmit the same rotational movement to the final rotating part by transmitting the rotating movement from either the one or the other first rotating body. It has a second rotating body. In other words, using the rotation of the two arm members, the forward rotation and the reverse rotation of the wheel can be controlled by the different transmission operations of the intermediate rotating parts, so that the final rotating part has a constant rotational direction. It has been achieved.

The circulating air cleaner according to claim 12 is

The first rotating part is mounted coaxially with the wheel and rotates within a predetermined angle range according to the forward and reverse rotation of the wheel.One arm member and its tip are provided and the rotation of the wheel is directly transmitted. And one first rotating body. Then, the rotation of the arm member due to the forward and reverse rotation of the wheels causes the first rotating body to directly transmit the rotating operation to the final rotating section on one side, and the final rotating section on the other side transmits Rotational motion is transmitted from the intermediate rotating part.

In this way, by the rotation of one arm member, the direct connection from the wheel to the first rotating body and further to the final rotating part is performed as an operation of rotating one rotating brush. Therefore, since the intermediate rotating part is used only for rotating the rotating brush on the other side, the structure of the intermediate rotating part can be simplified accordingly. For example, the number of rotators provided as intermediate rotators can be reduced.

The circulating air cleaner according to claim 13 is:

The first rotating part is provided at one end of the arm member and at the tip of the arm member in the same manner as in the configuration of the vacuum cleaner according to claim 12, and the first rotating body to which the rotation of the wheel is directly transmitted is provided. have. The intermediate rotating part is provided at the distal end of a small arm member rotatably mounted coaxially with the first rotating body, and is constituted by an intermediate rotating body to which rotation operation is transmitted from the first rotating body. .

Then, the small arm member having the intermediate rotator performs a rotation operation by the rotation of the arm member and the rotation operation of the first rotator caused by the forward and reverse rotation operations of the wheels. By this rotation, the rotation position of the intermediate rotator provided at the distal end of the small arm member moves. This movement takes place between the last rotating part on one side and the last rotating part on the other side. In the rotation operation transmission of the present invention, as in the invention of claim 12, as the operation for rotating the rotating brush on one side, the connection between the wheel, the first rotating body, and the final rotating portion on one side is made, and The operation for rotating the rotating brush on the side is transmitted by an intermediate rotating body whose position of the rotating shaft can be changed. Therefore, since the rotation of the intermediate rotating body can be transmitted to each final rotating part by changing the position of the rotating shaft, the number of rotating bodies constituting the intermediate rotating part can be further reduced. it can.

The circulation air cleaner according to claim 14 is:

The first rotator constituting the first rotator is configured as a planetary gear inside an internal gear formed on a wheel. Thus, the first rotating portion is housed inside the wheel, and the size of the rotating brush drive mechanism can be reduced.

The circulating air cleaner according to claim 15 is:

It has a clutch mechanism that cuts off transmission of driving force to the rotating brush when a torque equal to or more than a predetermined value is applied to the final rotating part. According to this, for example, when the wheel is rotated in a state where the rotation of the rotating brush is stopped, the final rotating portion idles with respect to the rotating brush without rotating the rotating brush. Thus, it is possible to prevent an excessive load from being applied to the first rotating unit, the final rotating unit, and the intermediate rotating unit provided in the rotating brush driving mechanism, thereby protecting the rotating brush driving mechanism. . The circulating air cleaner according to claim 16 is

The airflow generating unit is driven by receiving power from a secondary battery provided in the cleaner body in a state where the airflow generating unit can be charged from the outside. The airflow generating section only needs to generate an airflow that blows the dust, so that the output can be reduced. Therefore, the power required to drive the fan motor used in the airflow generating section can be reduced.

As a result, it is possible to be driven by a secondary battery that can be built in the cleaner body. As a result, the power cord, which is indispensable for conventional vacuum cleaners and obstructs the cleaning work, can be omitted, and the handling of the vacuum cleaner can be dramatically improved without reducing the cleaning ability. it can. The circulating air cleaner according to claim 17 is

The inflow passage has a check valve for preventing return of dust. This prevents the dust that has been blown into the dust collecting portion by the blast air flow and once collected flows backward through the inflow passage and leaks to the outside.

The circulating air cleaner according to claim 18 is

The filter unit is provided with a filter hitting unit for giving vibration. As a result, when vibration is applied to a part of the filter, fine dust that is stuck in the part of the filter and is stationary is knocked out and falls into the dust collecting part. Therefore, the effect of preventing clogging of the filter portion and reducing the frequency of cleaning a part of the filter can be obtained. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view illustrating a vacuum cleaner according to a first embodiment. FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view showing the vacuum cleaner of FIG. 1 from the back.

FIG. 3 is a schematic vertical sectional explanatory view showing the internal configuration of the vacuum cleaner according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a schematic perspective view for explaining the rotating operation of the rotating brush.

FIG. 5 is a schematic vertical sectional explanatory view showing an internal configuration of a vacuum cleaner according to a second embodiment.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing another pattern of blowing of the blown airflow in the second embodiment.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram showing a configuration example of the opening of the airflow outlet.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram showing a configuration example of a distal end member of the airflow outlet.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view showing an example of an attached state of a distal end member of the airflow outlet.

FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram showing a configuration example of an intersection between an airflow blowing passage and an inflow passage.

FIG. 11 is an explanatory perspective view showing a configuration of a sirocco fan used in the second embodiment. FIG. 12 is an explanatory diagram showing one embodiment of a rotary brush driving mechanism according to the second embodiment.

FIG. 13 is an explanatory diagram of the operation of the rotary brush drive mechanism of FIG.

FIG. 14 is an explanatory view showing another embodiment of the rotary brush driving mechanism.

FIG. 15 is an explanatory diagram of the operation of the rotary brush drive mechanism of FIG.

FIG. 16 is an explanatory view showing still another embodiment of the rotary brush driving mechanism. FIG. 17 is an explanatory diagram of the operation of the rotary brush drive mechanism of FIG.

FIG. 18 is an explanatory diagram showing an installation state of the rotary brush driving mechanism shown in FIG.

FIG. 19 is a schematic perspective view for explaining the operation of the rotary brush driving mechanism shown in FIG.

FIG. 20 is an explanatory diagram showing a configuration of a brush coaxial gear 95 having a built-in clutch mechanism. BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

Next, a first embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view showing the external configuration of the vacuum cleaner according to the present embodiment, FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view showing the rear configuration of the vacuum cleaner in FIG. 1, and FIG. FIG. 4 is a schematic vertical sectional explanatory view conceptually showing the internal configuration of the vacuum cleaner according to the embodiment.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the vacuum cleaner 1 includes a main body 10 having at least a side portion surrounded as a main body of the vacuum cleaner. A running wheel 12 and an auxiliary wheel portion 14 are provided for tightening.

The traveling wheels 12 are rotatably mounted on the left and right side walls 10a, 10b of the main body 10 at a position close to the front, one by one.

The auxiliary wheel portion 14 is provided at a rear position of the lower surface 10 c of the main body 10, and has a cylindrical wheel 14 a, and the main body 1 supports the wheel 14 a and rotates in a substantially constant direction. And a shaft 14b for supporting the rear side of the main body 10. The running wheel 12 and the sub-wheel portion 14 allow the main body 10 to move smoothly on the surface to be cleaned. As shown in FIG. 3, an airflow generating section 16 for generating an airflow having a predetermined wind speed is provided at a front portion of the indoor space of the main body 10, and a dust box for collecting and storing dust. 24 are provided at the rear.

Further, between the lower surface 10 c of the main body 10 and the surface to be cleaned F at the front position, there is formed a dust blowing space 40, which is surrounded and closed by a side surface portion. The dust existing there is blown out in 0 and guided into the dust box 24.

The airflow generating section 16 is a sirocco fan composed of a multi-blade blade 18 provided with a fan motor and a fan casing chamber 20 surrounding the blade. The multi-blade blade 18 has a rotating shaft center. It is provided to extend in the vertical direction in the installation state of 10.

The fan casing chamber 20 is formed such that the distance between the inner peripheral surface 20a and the multi-blade blade 18 gradually increases as the distance from the narrowest portion shifts in the fan rotation direction. The front end is connected to a blowing passage 21 connected to the space 40 by blowing dust.

At the tip of the outlet passage 21, there is provided an airflow outlet 42 for blowing out the blast airflow from the airflow generator 16 at a predetermined angle with respect to the surface to be cleaned. The shape of the opening of the outlet 42 is formed in the shape of a long hole extending in the left-right direction substantially parallel to the surface F to be cleaned, and the width of the long hole is narrowed gradually from the side of the blowing passage 21. It is formed to do. Further, in the present embodiment, the blowing angle of the airflow to the surface F to be cleaned is set to about 45 degrees.

An airflow receiving port 44 is provided at a predetermined interval from the airflow outlet 42. The air blown from the airflow outlet 42 to the surface F to be cleaned flows into the airflow receiving port 44 after colliding with the surface F to be cleaned. The airflow receiving port 44 has an elongated hole shape wider than the airflow outlet 42, and is inclined at a predetermined angle such that the blown airflow collides with the surface F to be cleaned and then flows in. ing. In the present embodiment, it is inclined by about 45 degrees.

That is, a dust blowing space 40 is formed between the air flow outlet 42 and the air flow receiving port 44. Dust blowing space on both sides of 40 A plate portion 50 is provided, and an upper portion is a ceiling portion 52 provided to face the surface to be cleaned. The air flow outlets 42 and the air flow receiving ports 44 are provided at the front and rear positions of the side plates 50, 50, respectively, and are located at positions facing each other with the space 40 interposed therebetween by blowing dust.

In the dust blowing space 40, a rotating brush 60, which is a brush portion, is arranged with its rotation axis substantially parallel to the airflow outlet 42. FIG. 4 is a schematic perspective view for explaining the rotating operation of the rotating brush 60. As shown in the figure, the rotating brush 60 has an interface in which a brush coaxial gear 95 coaxially coupled to a rotating shaft end 60 a of the rotating brush 60 is provided on an inner ring portion of the traveling wheel 12. Owing to being provided so as to engage with the null gear 12a, it cannot be rotated by directly receiving the rotation of the traveling wheel 12 o

That is, the thrust of the main body 10 is transmitted from the rotating operation of the traveling wheel 12 to the brush coaxial gear 95 via the internal gear 12a, and is driven by the coaxially coupled rotary brush 60. Therefore, the rotating brush 60 according to the present invention does not rotate when the main body 10 does not move.

The density at which the rotating brush 60 is erected is adjusted so that the airflow is not extremely obstructed. In addition, for example, the rotating brush 6 is applied to the outer peripheral speed V of the traveling wheel 12 (when there is no slipping force, the same as the traveling speed of the main body) so that the surface to be cleaned can always be lifted up during traveling. Each gear ratio is determined so that an outer peripheral speed of 0 has 2 V.

As shown in FIG. 3, an inflow passage 22 is provided downstream of the airflow receiving port 44, and the inflow passage 22 communicates with the dust box 24. In the dust box 24, a filter 25 which is formed in a substantially mesh shape by a material having air permeability and is capable of collecting fine dust is provided. This dust box 24 has a sufficient cross-sectional area and volume compared to other passages, and heavy dust accumulates at the bottom of the dust box 24 due to a decrease in airflow velocity. It is stopped at 25 and falls, and is reliably collected in the dust box 24.

The downstream side of the dust box 24 communicates with a return passage 28 into which the airflow after passing through the filter 25 flows. The circulation passage 28 has a downstream end 28 a The casing chamber 20 is connected so as to open to the suction surface. In this way, the blown airflow sent from the airflow generation unit 16 and blowing the dust circulates in the main body 10 without being discharged from the main body 10 to the outside. This prevents dust that could not be captured by the filter 25 from being blown out together with the airflow.

The sirocco fan type was adopted as the airflow generator 16 because the airflow blown out from the outlets 42 was not a rotating airflow with an axis in the traveling direction like an axial fan but in one direction. This is because a straight and parallel airflow can be formed. This makes it possible to obtain an airflow most suitable for blowing the dust in the dust blowing space 40 toward the airflow receiving port 44.

Above the circulation passage 28, a control device for the airflow generation unit 16 is arranged. On both sides of the inflow passage 22, a battery power supply for supplying power to the airflow generation unit 16 is mounted. (Both are not shown.) This battery power source is a secondary battery that can be repeatedly charged from an external power source using a charger or the like. For example, a NiCd battery can be used.

The basic operation when using the vacuum cleaner 1 having the above configuration is as follows. First, the vacuum cleaner 1 is first placed on the surface to be cleaned, and the grip 11 provided on the upper surface of the vacuum cleaner 1 or, if necessary, The operation is started by being moved in a cleaning direction by an operation handle (both not shown) projecting upward from the main body 10.

In the airflow generating section 16, the electric power is supplied from a battery power supply to the drive motor directly connected to the shaft of the multi-blade blade 18, so that the multi-blade blade 18 is rotated in the casing chamber 20. As a result, an airflow is generated in the fan casing chamber 20.

The flow rate of the blast airflow is increased by an airflow blowout port 42 narrowed gradually from the airflow blowout path 21 side, and is blown swiftly and obliquely to the surface F to be cleaned.

In the dust blowing space 40, the dust on the surface F to be cleaned is jumped up by the lifting operation of the rotating brush 60 which receives the manual thrust. The airflow blown out from the airflow outlets 42 gives more momentum to the splashed dust. The dust is easily blown toward the airflow receiving port 44 that opens rearward. As a result, the dust flows from the airflow receiving port 44 into the inflow passage 22, passes through the inflow passage 22, and flows into the dust box 24. Then, they are collected and stored by falling down in the dust box 24 or catching on the filter 25.

Such an operation of blowing dust by the airflow can be performed by a fan motor having a smaller output than suction. The reason is that the blowing is performed by blowing air in a narrow area from the airflow outlets 42 in a directional manner, so that the blast airflow can be efficiently concentrated on the dust, and a large momentum is applied to the dust. Because it can be given.

Therefore, a small-output fan motor is used for blowing dust, that is, the fan motor of the airflow generation unit 16 can be reduced in size, and the required power can be reduced. Thus, the size of the entire vacuum cleaner 1 can be reduced. In addition, the reduction in electric power allows the fan motor to be driven by a battery housed in the main body 10 of the cleaner 1. As a result, the power cord, which is indispensable to conventional vacuum cleaners and obstructs cleaning work, can be omitted, and the cleaning of the vacuum cleaner 1 can be drastically performed without reducing the cleaning ability. Can be improved. In addition, the noise of the fan motor can be reduced by downsizing the fan motor, and the quietness during the cleaning operation can be improved.

Further, a further characteristic of the present embodiment is that the dust blowing and moving space 40 is a substantially closed area. As a result, the dust is blown only in the dust blowing space 40, and the airflow to the outside of the cleaner body 10 and the leakage of the dust can be effectively prevented.

Further, in particular, the presence of the return passage 28 enables the cleaning operation to be performed without polluting the environment without discharging the blast air flow used for feeding and transporting the dust to the outside. In other words, a circulation path for circulating air is formed in the airflow generation section 16, the dust blowing space 40, and the dust box 24 in order, and if it is designed to keep the resistance of the circulation path low, in addition to the effects described above, Furthermore, the airflow is smoothly guided without impairing the inertial force of the blowing airflow, and the drive motor of the airflow generation unit 16 can be made smaller. You.

Next, FIG. 5 shows a second embodiment of the present invention, and is a vertical schematic sectional explanatory view conceptually showing the present embodiment. The same components as those in the above-described first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof will be omitted. As shown in the figure, a characteristic feature of the present embodiment is that the airflow from the airflow generation unit 16 using a sirocco fan is blown out from two directions. The route from the outlet passage 21 to the air outlet 42 is also divided into two directions. In the present embodiment, the air flow outlets 42 are opposed to each other at a predetermined interval, and are installed at a predetermined angle with respect to the surface F to be cleaned. In the present embodiment, the inclination angle is about 30 degrees with respect to the surface F to be cleaned. The airflow receiving port 44 is formed to open at an upper position between the two airflow outlets 42, that is, at a position that covers the collision point of the blown airflow upward.

As shown in the drawing, the airflows 200 blown out from both airflow outlets 42 are once reflected by the surface F to be cleaned and collide with each other at intermediate positions. After this collision, the airflow becomes ascending airflow 300, flows into the inflow passage 22, and flows into the dust box 24 as the airflow 400 as it is, and becomes the airflow 500.

Dust is blown by the blown airflow in the dust blowing space 40 formed between the two airflow outlets 42, and is further moved by the upward airflow 300, the airflow 400, and 500. It is transported inside the dust box 24. Then, when the dust passes through the filter 25 provided in the dust box 24 upward from below, the dust is stopped here and is accumulated in the dust box 24.

Furthermore, the airflow 600 that has passed through the filter 25 passes through the circulation passage 28, and returns to the airflow generation section 16 again as the airflow 700. In this way, the dust blown up and moved by the airflow blown out from the two directions is reliably collected, and the airflow used to transport the dust flows through the inside of the cleaner body 10 without being discharged to the outside. It will surely circulate.

Next, the speed of the circulating airflow will be described. First, an airflow 100 is sent from the airflow generation unit 16 to the left and right at a uniform airflow and a substantially equal speed by power supply from the battery power supply. The blast air flow 100 passes through the outlet passage 21 and the air At the point of exit from the flow outlet 42, the flow velocity increases, for example, to 7 to 1 lmZs.

The blown airflow 200 blown out from the airflow outlets 42 reflects off the surface F to be cleaned and collides. At the time of passing, it is 5 to 6 01-5. Then, at the time of entering the dust box 24, since the volume of the dust box 24 is large, the flow velocity becomes gentle and becomes 0.5 to 0.5 S mZ s. That is, due to the decrease in the flow velocity in the dust box 24, the dust is more reliably stopped by the filter 25, falls, and is collected in the dust box 24.

In other words, heavy dust quickly accumulates at the bottom of the dust box 24, and light dust rises even at a gentle flow velocity, but is stopped by the filter 25 and falls, and is reliably collected in the dust box 24.

FIG. 6 shows another example of the airflow blowing method, in which the blown airflow 200 blown out from the two airflow outlets 42 facing each other is indicated by an arrow line. (A) in the figure shows an example in which the airflow outlets 42 are set closer to each other, and the airflow 200 is set to collide immediately after being reflected on the surface F to be cleaned. In the figure (B), the blown airflow 200 collides before contacting the surface F to be cleaned, descends after the collision, hits the surface F to be cleaned, is reflected and rises. An example is shown in which the configuration is such that

As described above, the airflow outlet 42 can be installed in various patterns as long as it is a blown airflow that can move and blow up the dust in the dust blowing space 40.

Next, Fig. 7 shows various configuration examples of the shape of the opening of the airflow outlet 42. Figure (A) shows an example of the simplest long hole shape. In FIG. 3B, the airflow outlets 42 are configured by arranging a plurality of small outlets 42n at a predetermined interval in a line, and the shape of each opening is substantially circular. . When the configuration of the plurality of small air outlets 42 n is applied to the embodiment shown in FIG. 5, the small air outlets 42 n of the opposed air flow outlets 42 are each one pair. It is arranged to face 1. In the same figure (C), the shape of the opening of the airflow outlet 42 is set to be smaller on the lower side (closer to the surface F to be cleaned) than on the upper side (farther than the surface F to be cleaned). It was made smaller. In this configuration example, the shape of the lower edge 42a is formed as a waveform. With such a configuration, it is possible to prevent turbulence generated between the air flow outlets 42 and the surface F to be cleaned at the lower part of the front end. The turbulence generated below the nozzles, that is, below the airflow outlets 42 hinders the movement of dust into the dust blowing space 40, but the above configuration can prevent the generation.

Further, FIG. 3D shows the configuration of each of the small outlets 42 n shown in FIG. 3B in which the shape of each opening is inverted water droplet shape. That is, the shape of the upper edge of the small outlet 42 n is arc-shaped, and the shape of the lower edge 42 na converges toward the end and becomes sharp. This is an application of the configuration in which the area of the opening on the lower side shown in the same figure (C) is reduced to the configuration of the small outlet 42n. This makes it possible to suppress the generation of turbulence at a position below each of the small outlets 42n.

FIG. 8 shows an example of the constituent members of the airflow outlet 42 shown in FIG. 7 (D). (A) is a partial front view showing a part from the front, (B) is a rear view, and (C) is a cross-sectional view taken along line C-C of (A). As shown in the figure, the airflow outlet 42 has a tip member 43 integrally formed, and the tip member 43 has a plurality of small water outlets having a plurality of inverted water droplet-shaped openings. Are arranged in a row. FIG. 9 is an explanatory view of an installation state of the distal end member 43. As shown in the figure, the tip member 43 is installed in the vacuum cleaner 1 so as to blow out the blast air stream 200 at an inclination angle of about 30 degrees with respect to the surface F to be cleaned. You.

Next, FIG. 10 shows a configuration example (a schematic cross section of that portion) of an intersection portion between the inflow passage 22 and the outlet passage 21 in the embodiment shown in FIG. That is, it is a configuration of a portion where the airflow 100-2 blown out from the airflow generation unit 16 and the airflow 400 flowing into the dust box 24 intersect.

FIG. 2A shows an example of a configuration in which the outlet passages 21 are arranged so as to pass through substantially the center of the inflow passages 22, and FIG. 2B shows outlets 21 on both sides of the inflow passages 22. FIG. 2C shows an example of a configuration in which the outlet passage 21 passes through both sides and almost the center of the inflow passage 22.

As shown in the drawing, the outlet passage 21 has a horizontally elliptical cross section in the horizontal direction, and is formed such that the long axis is located in the extending direction of the inflow passage 22. Thus, the airflow 400 flowing into the inflow passage 22 can flow into the dust box 24 without being obstructed by the blowout passage 21 as much as possible. FIG. 10 is an embodiment, and can be configured in various modes as long as the flow of the airflow in both the outlet passage 21 and the inflow passage 22 is not hindered.

FIG. 11 shows an airflow generation section 16 having a specific configuration used in the embodiment shown in FIG. The airflow generating section 16 has a configuration in which a sirocco fan is deformed, and as shown in the figure, a fan casing 2 provided with two outlets 18a and 18b for blowing out blast airflow from two places. It has a zero, and can send out the blast airflows 100-1 — 1 and 100-2 in almost 180 degrees directions (in opposite directions) that are separated from each other.

With such a configuration of the airflow generating section 16, it is possible to create an airflow that pushes air uniformly and linearly in one direction as described above, and the sirocco fan type in centrifugal blowers has the same diameter. Utilizing the characteristic that the maximum flow rate and pressure can be obtained under the condition of the same rotation speed with the impeller, uniform and efficient airflow in two different directions can be achieved without complicating the configuration. Delivery has been achieved, and as another characteristic configuration, as shown in FIG. 5, a check valve 23 for preventing backflow of dust is provided in the middle of the inflow passage 22. is there. The check valve 23 is made of a resin sheet that is moderately flexible and lightweight enough to soar up by the passage of airflow. The upper end is fixed to the upper part of the inflow passage 22, and the lower end is It is provided so as to hang down from above so as to form a free end that comes into contact with the lower part of the inflow passage 22 when airflow is not passed.

Thus, when the airflow generating section 16 is operated, the lower end of the check valve 23 is quickly moved upward around the upper end by the thrust of the airflow to allow the passage of dust. When the operation of is stopped, the lower end descends and the inflow passage is closed. You.

Therefore, if the main body 10 is tilted forward when the operation is stopped, the dust in the dust box 24 is prevented from flowing backward in the inflow passage 23 by the check valve 23, and the airflow inlet 4 4 It is prevented from returning to the side. Note that the check valve 23 may be provided at an inflow portion from the inflow passage 22 to the dust box 24.

The dust box 24 is drawn horizontally rearward from the main body 10 and is configured to be capable of discarding dust stored inside. On the ceiling surface of the main body 10, there is provided a filter tapping portion 27 which is provided so as to hang down from the ceiling surface so that the lower end thereof comes into contact with the upper surface of the filter 25. The filter hitting portion 27 has some elasticity, and when the dust box 24 is pulled out from the main body 10, it comes into contact with the upper surface of the filter 25 and vibrates it.

The fine dust stuck in the filter 25 is stopped by the filter 25 by the vibration of the filter hitting portion 27 and falls into the dust box 24. This has the effect of preventing clogging of the filter 25 and reducing the frequency of cleaning the filter 25.

FIG. 12 is a schematic configuration diagram showing a rotary brush driving mechanism and a rotary brush unit according to the second embodiment shown in FIG. The rotating brushes 60 _ 1 and 60 _ 2 generate an upward airflow 300 (No. 5) generated by the air blown from the airflow outlets 42 reflecting on the surface F to be cleaned and colliding at the central portion thereof. (Refer to the figure). The rotating shafts 61-1 and 61-2 of the rotating brushes 60-1 and 60-2 are rotatably supported at both ends thereof on the side plate 50 of the main body 10.

As described above, the rotating brushes 60-1 and 60-2 are arranged so as to form a pair in the dust blowing space 40, and the tips of their hairs overlap by about 10 mm. It is arranged in such a state.

Vacuum cleaner 1 according to the present embodiment has a carrying action that is more than blowing up dust on the surface to be cleaned and carrying dust by simply blowing air from airflow outlet 42. In other words, the rotating brushes 60-1 and 60-2 lift up the dust on the surface to be cleaned and transport them so that they are sandwiched between the rotating brushes 60. W

20

Momentum is given to heavy dust that cannot be lifted, and it can be surely put on the upward flow.

One characteristic feature of the present invention is that the rotating brush 60 is not rotated by an electric drive source, but is driven by the operation of the traveling wheels 12 which are manually moved on the surface to be cleaned. The point is that it is rotated accordingly.

FIG. 12 shows one embodiment of a rotating brush drive mechanism that rotates the rotating brush 60 by using the rotating operation of the traveling wheel 12. The inner ring portion of the traveling wheel 12 is formed as an internal gear 12a, and as a first rotating portion that directly receives the rotating operation of the traveling wheel 12, two arm members 7 2, 7 4, Also, first rotating gears 76 and 78 as two first rotating bodies rotatably attached to the tip portions thereof are provided.

In the present embodiment, the two arm members 72 and 74 are integrally formed substantially linearly, and are supported by the rotation center shaft 12 b of the traveling wheel 12. The rotation of the arm members 72, 74 is restricted by the rotation restricting pins 82, 84 protruding from the side wall surface 10a of the cleaner body 10, and the distal ends of the arm members 72, 74 are set within a predetermined angle. Rock with. The first rotating gears 76 and 78 at the tip end respectively correspond to the internal gears 12 a of the traveling wheels 12.

In the figure, the rotating brushes 60 that are arranged to face each other in pairs are indicated by dashed lines as 60-1 and 60-2. In addition, brush coaxial gears 95-1, 95-2, which are coaxially fixed and rotate together, are provided at the ends of these rotary brushes 60 as a final rotary section.

In addition, four intermediate rotating gears are used as intermediate rotating portions for transmitting the rotating operation from the first rotating gears 76 and 78 to the brush coaxial gear 95, and four intermediate rotating gears 10a, 1a It is supported by O b. These four intermediate rotating gears include an intermediate rotating gear 88 connected to the first rotating gear 78, an intermediate rotating gear 90 connected to the brush coaxial gear 95-2, an intermediate rotating gear 90 and a brush coaxial gear 90. The intermediate rotation gear 92 and the intermediate coaxial gear 86 that are compatible with the brush coaxial gear 95-1. Next, the operation of the rotary brush driving mechanism having the above configuration will be described with reference to FIG. Fig. (A) shows the operation when the traveling wheel 12 rotates in the direction of arrow AD in the figure. (B) shows the traveling wheel 1 in the direction of arrow RE (hereinafter, rotation in the direction of arrow AD in Fig. (A) is referred to as "forward direction", and rotation in the direction of arrow RE in Fig. (B) is referred to as "reverse direction"). The figure shows the operation when 2 rotates.

When the traveling wheel 12 rotates in the forward direction (see Fig. (A)), the first rotating gear 76 rotates in the forward direction and the arm member 72 rotates in the forward direction until the arm member 72 comes into contact with the restriction pin 82. I do. Thus, the rotating operation of the first rotating gear 76 is transmitted to the intermediate rotating gear 86, and the brush coaxial gear 955-1 rotates in the forward direction. Then, the other brush coaxial gear 95-2 rotates in the opposite direction by transmitting the rotation operation from the two intermediate rotating gears 92, 90. Therefore, the rotating brushes 60-1 and 60-2 rotate in the direction in which the sides facing each other move upward. In this state, the first rotating gear 78 continues to rotate without transmitting the rotating operation to the other gears.

When the traveling wheel 12 rotates in the opposite direction (see FIG. 3B), the first rotating gear 78 also rotates in the opposite direction. Then, the arm members 72 and 74 rotate in the reverse direction until they contact the restriction pins 84. In this state, the first rotating gear 76 continues to rotate without transmitting the rotating operation to the other gears. The rotation of the first rotating gear 78 rotates the brush coaxial gear 95-2 in the opposite direction via the intermediate rotating gear 88. The rotating operation of the brush coaxial gear 95-2 is transmitted to the brush coaxial gear 95-1 via the intermediate rotating gears 90 and 92, and the brush coaxial gear 95-1 rotates in the forward direction.

In this way, the two rotating brushes 60-1 and 60-2 always move in the same direction, that is, in the rising airflow part, without using other power by rotating the running wheels 12 in the forward and reverse directions. It is possible to rotate in the direction along the flow.

The rotation speed of the rotating brushes 60-1, 60-2 is determined by the gear ratio between the first rotating gears 76, 78 and the internal gear 12a and the intermediate rotating gears 86, 88, 90. The rotation speed of the outer diameter portion of the rotary brush 60, which is determined by the gear ratio between the brushes 92 and the brush coaxial gear 95, is set to be higher than the traveling speed of the main body 10. In this embodiment, the speed is about 2.2 times faster. Thus, regardless of the moving speed of the main body 10, the dust sweeping function by the rotating brush 60 is well ensured. W

twenty two

Next, FIG. 14 shows another embodiment of the rotary brush driving mechanism. In the drawing, the same elements as those in the embodiment of FIG. 12 are denoted by the same reference numerals. As shown in the figure, the first rotating part is composed of one arm member 110 and a first rotating gear 112 attached to the distal end thereof, and the arm member 110 has a base end. Are supported by the rotation center axis 1 2b of the traveling wheel 12 and the rotation control pins 1 1 3 and 1 with the tip end protruding laterally from the side wall surfaces 10 a and 10 b of the main body 10. Swings between 1 and 4. Between the brush coaxial gears 95-1 and 95-2, intermediate rotating gears 116 and 118 connected to the brush coaxial gears 95-1 and 95-2 are provided.

FIG. 15 shows the operation of the embodiment having the above configuration. As shown in FIG. 3A, when the traveling wheel 12 rotates in the forward direction, the first rotating gear 11 2 connected to the internal gear 12 a rotates in the forward direction. Accordingly, the arm member 110 also rotates in the forward direction until it comes into contact with the rotation restricting pin 1 14. In this state, the first rotating gear 1 12 is engaged with the brush coaxial gear 95-2 and transmits the rotating operation. Therefore, the brush coaxial gear 95-2 rotates in the opposite direction.

The rotating operation of the brush coaxial gear 951-2 is transmitted to the opposing brush coaxial gear 955-1 via two intermediate rotating gears 118, 116 as two intermediate rotating parts, and the brush The coaxial gear 955-1 rotates in the forward direction.

When the traveling wheel 12 rotates in the reverse direction, as shown in FIG. 3B, the first rotation gear 11 2 connected to the internal gear 12 a rotates in the reverse direction. Accordingly, the arm member 110 rotates in the reverse direction until it comes into contact with the regulating pin 113. In this state, the first rotating gear 1 1 and 2 are combined with the brush coaxial gear 95-1, and the brush coaxial gear 95-1 rotates in the forward direction.

The rotation of the brush coaxial gear 95-1 is transmitted to the brush coaxial gear 95-2 through the intermediate rotating gears 116 and 118 as a reverse operation. Thus, similarly to the first embodiment, the rotating brushes 60-1 and 60-2 always face upward when the traveling wheels 12 rotate in either the forward or reverse direction. The rotation operation in the moving direction is performed. According to the present embodiment, it is possible to reduce the number of gears of the first rotating part by one and the number of gears of the intermediate rotating part by two compared to the embodiment shown in FIG. ing. Next, FIG. 16 shows a configuration of another embodiment of the rotary brush driving mechanism. In the figures, the same reference numerals are used for the same elements as those shown in FIGS. 12 and 14.

In the drawing, the configuration as a first rotating unit is an arm member 110 and a first rotating gear 112, and is the same as the configuration of the first rotating unit of the embodiment shown in FIG. . What is characteristic is that the structure of the intermediate rotating portion is constituted by the small arm member 120 and the intermediate rotating gear 122 attached to the front end thereof.

The small arm member 120 is rotatably provided about the rotation axis of the first rotation gear 112 as a center of rotation, and the intermediate rotation gear 122 attached to the distal end thereof is It is possible to reciprocate between the brush coaxial gears 95-1 and 95-2 with the rotation of the small arm member 120 while always being engaged with the first rotary gear 1 12. is there. That is, it is configured to be compatible with both.

FIG. 17 shows the operation of the embodiment having the above configuration. As shown in FIG. 3A, when the traveling wheel 12 rotates in the forward direction, the first rotating gear 11 2 coupled with the internal gear 12 a rotates in the forward direction. The arm member 110 rotates about the rotation center axis 12b until it contacts the rotation restriction pin 114.

Then, in this state, the first rotating gear 112 is directly engaged with the brush coaxial gear 955-2 to directly transmit its rotating operation. At this time, the intermediate rotating part is driven by the small arm member in accordance with the forward rotation operation of the arm member 110 and the forward rotation operation of the first rotating gear 112.

Rotating operation is performed in the positive direction of the 120 force, and the intermediate rotating gear 122 is engaged with the brush coaxial gear 955-1. Therefore, the forward rotation of the first rotating gear 1 1 2

It is transmitted to 95-1 as a positive direction operation. As a result, the brush coaxial gears 95-1 and 95-2 respectively perform desired rotation direction operations.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 3B, when the traveling wheel 12 performs an operation in the reverse direction, the first rotary gear 11 2 coupled with the internal gear 12 a rotates in the reverse direction. Then, the arm member 110 rotates in the reverse direction until it comes into contact with the rotation restricting pin 113.

In this state, the first rotating gear 1 1 2 is directly coupled with the brush coaxial gear 95-1. The rotation operation is transmitted to the brush coaxial gear 95-1, and the brush coaxial gear 95-1 performs a forward rotation operation. Due to the reverse rotation operation of the arm member 110 and the reverse rotation operation of the first rotary gear 112, the small arm member 120, which is the intermediate rotating part, performs the reverse rotation operation, The intermediate rotating gear 122 is coupled to the brush coaxial gear 955-2 on the opposite side and rotates it in the opposite direction.

Thus, according to the present embodiment, similarly to the first embodiment, the rotating brushes 60-1 and 60-2 are always driven by the rotation of the traveling wheel 12 in either the forward or reverse direction. The rotating operation can be performed in the direction of moving toward the surface side facing each other.

Then, the intermediate rotating gear 122 is changed in position of its rotating shaft, so that it is combined with both brush coaxial gears 95-1, 95-2, so that compared with the embodiment shown in FIG. Further, the number of gears in the intermediate rotating part can be reduced by one.

FIG. 18 is an explanatory view showing how the rotary brush driving mechanism is installed inside the traveling wheels 12 of the main body 10 .The rotary brush driving mechanism shown in FIG. 12 is employed. 1 shows an embodiment according to the present invention. FIG. 19 is a schematic perspective view for explaining the operation of the rotating brush drive mechanism shown in FIG.

As shown in FIG. 18, a rotating brush drive mechanism including a first rotating unit, an intermediate rotating unit, and a final rotating unit is provided inside the traveling wheel 12. As shown in Fig. 19, the rotating brushes 60-1 and 60-2 are coaxially coupled to the brush coaxial gears 95-1 and 95-1-2, which are the final rotating parts, respectively. It has been done.

The arm members 72 and 74 each having the first rotating gears 76 and 78 attached to the distal end thereof are supported by the rotation center shaft 12 b of the traveling wheel 12. On the other hand, an intermediate rotating part consisting of four intermediate rotating gears 86, 88, 90 and 92 and a final rotating part consisting of two brush coaxial gears 95-1 and 95-2 are composed of a main body 10 It is axially attached to the side portions 10a and 1Ob.

Further, as an additional configuration of each of the above-described embodiments, a clutch mechanism for preventing torque exceeding a predetermined value from being applied to the brush coaxial gear 95 may be incorporated. FIG. 20 is an explanatory diagram showing a configuration of a brush coaxial gear 95 having a built-in clutch mechanism. As shown in the figure, the brush coaxial gear 95 has four clutch claws 130 having a predetermined flexibility at a central shaft portion thereof. A substantially rectangular hole is formed in the portion. The rotating shaft end 60a of the rotating brush 60 having a substantially quadrangular prism shape is fitted into the hole.

Therefore, under normal conditions, the brush coaxial gear 95 and the rotating brush 60 are coaxially connected and rotate integrally. Then, for example, when the traveling wheel 12 is rotated in a state where the rotating brush 60 cannot rotate (locked state), a thrust exceeding the transmission torque may be applied to each gear.

Here, before each gear is damaged, the tip of the clutch claw 130 bends, causing the end of the rotating shaft 60 a of the rotating brush 60 to idle, thereby avoiding damage to the brush coaxial gear 95. can do. Therefore, the rotating brush drive mechanism is protected, and the function of removing dust is always ensured.

According to each of the above embodiments, the rotating brush 60 provided in the vicinity of the ascending airflow portion can be rotated only by the rotating operation of the traveling wheels 12 for traveling the main body. In other words, it is possible to ensure the dust lifting function of the rotating brush 60 that has a good function for collecting dust without increasing power consumption.

Therefore, an electric drive device and a power transmission belt for rotating the rotating brush are not required, and the weight of the main body can be reduced. In addition, the cost is extremely small because it is composed of only a plurality of rotating parts that do not use electric power. Also, compared to the case of using a one-way clutch, the occurrence of malfunction due to dust contamination is suppressed, and the reliability of the rotating operation of the rotating brush is improved.

The present invention is not limited to the configuration of each of the above embodiments, and various modifications can be made within the scope of the present invention. For example, the angle of inclination of the air outlet 42 with respect to the surface F to be cleaned in the second embodiment is 30 degrees as an angle that works well, but is not limited to this. Various adjustments can be made according to the condition of the surface to be cleaned.

In addition, the auxiliary wheel portion 14 supporting the rear side of the main body 10 is a cylindrical shape having a horizontal axis in the present embodiment, but the wheel portion 14a is formed by adding one rotation axis in the vertical direction. A caster type that can turn in a horizontal plane, or slides on the surface to be cleaned without a shaft Any structure of smooth projection type is acceptable.

Further, the transmission of the rotational motion from the traveling wheel 12 to the first rotating portion is such that an internal gear 12a is formed on the inner wheel side of the traveling wheel 12 and the first rotating body is combined with the internal gear 12a. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the periphery of the bearing portion of the traveling wheel 12 is formed in a large circular portion with a large diameter, and a gear is formed on the outer periphery thereof, and the first rotating body is combined with this. It is also possible to adopt a configuration in which this is done.

Further, in each of the above-described embodiments, the configuration of the rotating body is a gear, but the present invention is not limited to this. Is also possible. The invention's effect

As described above, according to the vacuum cleaner of the present invention, by blowing the blast air at a predetermined angle and a predetermined direction to the floor, the dust on the floor is blown in a predetermined direction to move the dust collection unit. Can be collected. In addition, a blast air flow used to collect dust that has been blown onto the floor is circulated and blown back to the floor, preventing discharge of the blast air flow to the outside and a cleaning work space for cleaning. Air pollution can be prevented. Furthermore, since each component is provided in one vacuum cleaner main body, improved operability during cleaning work has also been achieved. Further, in another aspect of the invention, dust is conveyed more effectively by adding a lifting operation of a rotating brush that can be powered by manual operation, and the dust on the surface to be cleaned is cleaned with less power. can do.

Claims

The scope of the claims

1. In a circulating air type vacuum cleaner that has one vacuum cleaner body that has an internal space surrounded by an upper surface member and a side wall member and that collects dust on the surface to be cleaned by the action of airflow,

An airflow generating unit that generates a blowing airflow having a predetermined wind speed,

An airflow blowing unit that guides the generated airflow and blows the airflow from the airflow outlet toward the surface to be cleaned at a predetermined angle.

A dust blowing space formed by covering at least a side of the wall with a wall for a predetermined distance from the airflow outlet and opening a bottom thereof,

A rotating brush part which is disposed in a space where the tip of the rotating body contacts the surface to be cleaned and is moved by blowing the dust when the cleaner body is installed on the surface to be cleaned, and which is rotated by a predetermined driving force;

An inflow passage that has an airflow receiving port arranged so as to be able to receive the blown airflow in the dust blowing space, and that guides the airflow received from the airflow receiving port further downstream;

A dust collecting unit provided on the downstream side of the inflow passage for collecting dust that has flowed in with air;

A circulation passage that guides and circulates the inflow airflow that has passed through the dust collection unit to the airflow generation unit,

A cleaning device for cleaning the circulation surface, wherein dust on the surface to be cleaned is blown by an airflow which is blown from the airflow blowing portion to the surface to be cleaned and flows into the inflow passage, and is collected in the dust collecting portion. Machine.

2. The dust collecting unit is

A dust collecting chamber for lowering the flow velocity than the flow velocity of the air flow flowing through the inflow passage, and a filter unit installed in the dust collecting chamber and for suppressing dust when the air flow passes therethrough, is provided. The circulating air cleaner according to 1.

3. The airflow outlet is

At two locations separated by a predetermined distance, they are opposite each other! It is installed so that the outgoing air stream collides at the intermediate position

3. The circulating air cleaner according to claim 1, wherein the airflow receiving port is provided at a position above a collision portion of the blown airflows from both sides.

4. The airflow generating section is

4. The circulating air-type vacuum cleaner according to claim 3, wherein the circulating air cleaner is formed by a sirocco fan having two airflow sending portions so as to send airflows in two different directions.

5. The rotating brush part is

It consists of a pair of rotating brushes that are rotated in the direction in which the opposing surfaces move upward on substantially parallel rotation axes,

The circulating air system according to claim 3, wherein the rotating brushes are arranged to face each other with a pair of rising airflow portions formed by collision of the blowing airflows from both sides. Vacuum cleaner.

6. The air flow outlet is

The circulating air cleaner according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the opening force is formed in a long hole shape having a predetermined width extending substantially in parallel with the surface to be cleaned.

7. The airflow outlet is

7. The circulating air-type vacuum cleaner according to claim 6, wherein a shape of a lower side edge portion of the opening is a corrugated shape.

8. The air outlet is

The circulating air cleaner according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein a plurality of small air outlets are arranged and arranged.

9. The opening shape of each of the small outlets is

9. The circulating air cleaner according to claim 8, wherein the upper side has an arc shape and the lower side converges to form an inverted water drop having a pointed end.

10. The rotating brush is

A wheel provided for manual movement of the cleaner body on the surface to be cleaned, and a rotating brush driving mechanism for transmitting a rotating operation of the wheel, the wheel being rotated by a rotating brush drive mechanism,

The rotating brush drive mechanism,

A first rotating unit directly rotated by the rotating operation of the wheel, A final rotating unit provided so as to always rotate coaxially with each rotating brush,

The final rotation is performed by always rotating the first rotating unit in the direction in which the opposing surfaces of the rotating brushes move upward regardless of the rotating direction of the first rotating unit. An intermediate rotating part transmitting to the part,

The circulating air cleaner according to claim 5, further comprising:

1 1. The first rotating part includes:

Two arm members mounted coaxially with the wheel and reciprocatingly rotating within a predetermined angle range in accordance with forward and reverse rotation operations of the wheel, the two arm members having an always constant angle with each other; And two first rotators provided one at each of the distal ends of the two arm members, and the first and second arm members are rotated by forward or reverse rotation of the wheels. Only one or the other of the two first rotating bodies is in a state of transmitting the rotating operation to the intermediate rotating section,

The intermediate rotating part includes:

A plurality of second rotators arranged so as to always transmit the same rotational motion to the final rotating portion by transmitting the rotational motion from either side of the one or the other first rotator. The circulating air cleaner according to claim 10, wherein the vacuum cleaner is configured.

1 2. The first rotating part includes:

One arm member mounted coaxially with the wheel and rotating within a predetermined angle range according to the forward / reverse rotation operation of the wheel, and provided at the distal end thereof, and the rotation operation of the wheel is directly transmitted. A first rotating body, and the first rotating body directly transmits a rotating operation to a final rotating portion on one side by a rotating operation of the arm member caused by a forward or reverse rotating operation of the wheel. Will be in a state

The intermediate rotating part includes:

There are a plurality of intermediate rotators that transmit the rotation operation from the first rotator to the last rotator on the other side when the first rotator directly transmits to the last rotator on one side. 10. The circulating air cleaner according to claim 10, wherein:

1 3. The first rotating part is One arm member mounted coaxially with the wheel and rotating within a predetermined angle range according to the forward / reverse rotation operation of the wheel, and provided at the distal end thereof, and the rotation operation of the wheel is directly transmitted. A first rotating body, and the first rotating body directly transmits a rotating operation to a final rotating portion on one side by a rotating operation of the arm member caused by a forward or reverse rotating operation of the wheel. Will be in a state

The intermediate rotating part includes:

A small arm member rotatably mounted coaxially with the first rotator, and an intermediate rotator provided at a distal end thereof and receiving a rotation operation from the first rotator. At the time of direct transmission by the rotator to the final rotating part on one side, the rotation of the arm member and the rotation of the small arm member caused by the rotation of the first rotator cause the intermediate rotator to rotate. 10. The circulating air cleaner according to claim 10, wherein the state is such that the rotation operation is transmitted to the final rotating section on the other side.

1 4. The first rotating body is

The circulating air type vacuum cleaner according to any one of claims 11 to 13, wherein the planetary gear is configured as a planetary gear inside an internal gear formed on the wheel.

1 5. The final rotating part is

The circulating air according to any one of claims 10 to 14, further comprising a clutch mechanism that cuts off transmission of driving force to a rotary brush arranged coaxially when a torque is applied to a predetermined value or more. Vacuum cleaner.

1 6. The airflow generation section

The circulating air-type cleaning device according to any one of claims 1 to 15, wherein the device is driven by receiving power from a secondary battery provided in the cleaner body in a state where the device can be charged from the outside. Machine.

1 7. The inflow passage

The circulating air type vacuum cleaner according to any one of claims 1 to 16, further comprising a check valve for preventing return of dust.

18. The circulating air cleaner according to any one of claims 2 to 17, further comprising a filter hitting portion for applying vibration to a part of the filter.