Classifications

• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A47—FURNITURE; DOMESTIC ARTICLES OR APPLIANCES; COFFEE MILLS; SPICE MILLS; SUCTION CLEANERS IN GENERAL
  • A47L—DOMESTIC WASHING OR CLEANING; SUCTION CLEANERS IN GENERAL
  • A47L11/00—Machines for cleaning floors, carpets, furniture, walls, or wall coverings
  • A47L11/40—Parts or details of machines not provided for in groups A47L11/02 - A47L11/38, or not restricted to one of these groups, e.g. handles, arrangements of switches, skirts, buffers, levers
  • A47L11/4061—Steering means; Means for avoiding obstacles; Details related to the place where the driver is accommodated
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A47—FURNITURE; DOMESTIC ARTICLES OR APPLIANCES; COFFEE MILLS; SPICE MILLS; SUCTION CLEANERS IN GENERAL
  • A47L—DOMESTIC WASHING OR CLEANING; SUCTION CLEANERS IN GENERAL
  • A47L11/00—Machines for cleaning floors, carpets, furniture, walls, or wall coverings
  • A47L11/34—Machines for treating carpets in position by liquid, foam, or vapour, e.g. by steam
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A47—FURNITURE; DOMESTIC ARTICLES OR APPLIANCES; COFFEE MILLS; SPICE MILLS; SUCTION CLEANERS IN GENERAL
  • A47L—DOMESTIC WASHING OR CLEANING; SUCTION CLEANERS IN GENERAL
  • A47L11/00—Machines for cleaning floors, carpets, furniture, walls, or wall coverings
  • A47L11/40—Parts or details of machines not provided for in groups A47L11/02 - A47L11/38, or not restricted to one of these groups, e.g. handles, arrangements of switches, skirts, buffers, levers
  • A47L11/4075—Handles; levers
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A47—FURNITURE; DOMESTIC ARTICLES OR APPLIANCES; COFFEE MILLS; SPICE MILLS; SUCTION CLEANERS IN GENERAL
  • A47L—DOMESTIC WASHING OR CLEANING; SUCTION CLEANERS IN GENERAL
  • A47L9/00—Details or accessories of suction cleaners, e.g. mechanical means for controlling the suction or for effecting pulsating action; Storing devices specially adapted to suction cleaners or parts thereof; Carrying-vehicles specially adapted for suction cleaners
  • A47L9/24—Hoses or pipes; Hose or pipe couplings
  • A47L9/242—Hose or pipe couplings
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A47—FURNITURE; DOMESTIC ARTICLES OR APPLIANCES; COFFEE MILLS; SPICE MILLS; SUCTION CLEANERS IN GENERAL
  • A47L—DOMESTIC WASHING OR CLEANING; SUCTION CLEANERS IN GENERAL
  • A47L9/00—Details or accessories of suction cleaners, e.g. mechanical means for controlling the suction or for effecting pulsating action; Storing devices specially adapted to suction cleaners or parts thereof; Carrying-vehicles specially adapted for suction cleaners
  • A47L9/32—Handles
  • A47L9/327—Handles for suction cleaners with hose between nozzle and casing
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B08—CLEANING
  • B08B—CLEANING IN GENERAL; PREVENTION OF FOULING IN GENERAL
  • B08B3/00—Cleaning by methods involving the use or presence of liquid or steam
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B08—CLEANING
  • B08B—CLEANING IN GENERAL; PREVENTION OF FOULING IN GENERAL
  • B08B3/00—Cleaning by methods involving the use or presence of liquid or steam
  • B08B3/02—Cleaning by the force of jets or sprays
  • B08B3/026—Cleaning by making use of hand-held spray guns; Fluid preparations therefor
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B08—CLEANING
  • B08B—CLEANING IN GENERAL; PREVENTION OF FOULING IN GENERAL
  • B08B2230/00—Other cleaning aspects applicable to all B08B range
  • B08B2230/01—Cleaning with steam

Definitions

• the present invention relates to a handgrip for a nozzle of a cleaning appliance for domestic use, in particular, to a handgrip for a nozzle for hot fluids and/or liquids under pressure, according to the preamble to Claim 1.
• Steam appliances are known to be an effective aid in domestic cleaning operations and, as well as cleaning thoroughly by virtue of the high water temperature, they can also sterilize, eliminating bacteria, germs, mites, fungi, and pollen which often give rise to allergic reactions of the skin and of the respiratory tract .
• detergents are not used so that there is no pollution of the environment and there is also no risk of poisoning by excessive use of chemical products .
• steam appliances may be divided into: 1) steam guns, which have a small boiler with a capacity of about 1/2 a litre of water and are specifically for limited areas ,-
• multifunctional appliances which combine with the steam further functions such as vacuum cleaning, dry pickup, pickup of liquids, and shampooing with extraction; these are suitable for any surface and also for fabrics .
• a cleaning appliance of this type usually has a switch, located on the handgrip of the steam- supply nozzle, for operating a solenoid valve. This enables the user of the cleaning appliance to control the steam-supply nozzle directly from the handgrip.
• US patent 6,314,972 describes an embodiment of a housing for the steam control/supply switch which also performs the functions of a hand guard.
• this solution also has disadvantages such as, for example, the need to design and to produce moulds for additional elements (that is, the hand-guard or protective housing) which involve a lengthening of design and production times and an increase in production costs .
• the object of the present invention is to provide a nozzle which overcomes the disadvantages mentioned above with reference to the prior art .
• this object is achieved by means of a steam-cleaning nozzle for domestic use according to the characterizing part of Claim 1.
• the present invention also permits a considerable saving in production times and costs.
• the present invention also ensures a degree of protection against undesired switching-on of the solenoid valve which is at least equal to that of the handgrips of known devices so as also to satisfy the most stringent accident-prevention regulations in force.
• Figure 1 is a perspective view of the nozzle according to the present invention in the condition of use
• Figure 2 is a perspective view of the nozzle to which a cleaning accessory according to the present invention is connected.
• an appliance for domestic use for cleaning by the blowing of steam, is generally indicated
• the appliance 1 has a substantially parallelepipedal casing 2 and comprises a nozzle 3 for cleaning operations which can supply steam by means of an accessory 4 disposed on one of its ends .
• accessory shown in the drawings is an example of the accessories which can be connected to the nozzle 3.
• the accessory 4 may in fact be a nozzle intake-outlet element useful for performing cleaning of the crevices or spaces between tiles as well as, for example, for the internal walls of an oven, or the accessory 4 may be a triangular brush for corners, or the accessory 4 may be a glass-cleaning brush for windows, mirrors and all vertical surfaces, etc.
• the appliance 1 further comprises a tube 5 and releasable coupling means 6 associated with the casing 2.
• the tube 5 extends between the releasable coupling means 6 and the nozzle 3.
• the coupling means 6 can be released by the user of the appliance 1 by pressing a manual operating member 6a.
• a steam-generating boiler Inside the casing 2 there are devices well known to persons skilled in the art such as, for example, a steam-generating boiler, a solenoid valve associated with the boiler for the supply of the steam, a communication tube for fluid, that is, for steam, between the accessory 4 and the solenoid valve, and a motor (a turbine) suitable for drawing in dust or similar material, with an associated paper bag, etc.
• a motor a turbine
• the tube 5 is constituted by a first tube 5a suitable for conveying a substantially incompressible fluid such as, for example, air during the normal operation of the appliance 1, and a second tube 5b suitable for conveying the steam generated by the boiler housed inside the casing 2, the first tube 5a and the second tube 5b being associated with one another.
• a substantially incompressible fluid such as, for example, air during the normal operation of the appliance 1
• a second tube 5b suitable for conveying the steam generated by the boiler housed inside the casing 2
• the first tube 5a and the second tube 5b being associated with one another.
• this is constituted by a body 7 from which an appendage 8 extends so as to constitute a handgrip for the user of the nozzle 3 (as shown by the hand indicated in broken outline in Figure 1) .
• the appendage 8 advantageously has at least a portion 8a which extends above the tube 5a, and the appendage 8 also has a free end 8b.
• the appendage 8 is shaped in the manner of a handgrip so as to facilitate cleaning operations, also permitting mobility of the nozzle 3 by virtue of the gripping area that is available for the user's hand. In fact with an appendage 8 of this type, the nozzle 3 becomes an actual extension of the user's arm.
• the appendage 8 is formed as a handgrip having an arcuate profile but it may also have appendages provided with profiles defined, for example, by discontinuous lines .
• the nozzle 3 adopts substantially the configuration of a dispenser gun since it has dimensions such that a user can easily grip it in his hand by grasping the appendage 8 with several fingers .
• a space having a depth of between 4 and 8 cm. is advantageously provided between the appendage 8 and the tube 5a for the insertion of the fingers of the user's hand.
• the handgrip 8 is preferably made of a plastics material such as, for example, nylon.
• the body 7 of the nozzle 3 has first releasable connection means 9 at its inlet and second releasable connection means 10 at its outlet.
• the first releasable connection means 9 enable the tube 5 to be connected to the body 7 of the nozzle 3, and the second releasable connection means 10 permit the connection of one of the accessories 4 listed above.
• the first releasable connection means 9 are composed of a threaded connector 9a and of a coupling element 9b by means which the connection to the first tube 5a and to the second tube 5b take place, respectively.
• a threaded connection is provided between the first tube 5a and the connector 9a and a snap-in coupling is provided between the second tube 5b and the coupling element 9b.
• the second releasable connection means 10 provide an engagement intake portion 10a and a steam-supply jet 10b on which one of the preselected accessories 4 is engaged in order to perform domestic cleaning operations .
• Pressure-generating means (not shown in the drawings) , known per se to persons skilled in the art, are provided inside the nozzle 3 and can be operated manually by means of a first manual operating member 11.
• the nozzle 3 also has a second manual operating member 12 the purpose of which will be described below.
• the first operating member 11 enables the steam to be supplied through the preselected accessory 4 since it is the member for the switching on/off of the solenoid valve housed inside the casing 2. In other words, once the first operating member 11 has been operated by the user of the appliance 1, it permits fluid communication between the tubes 5a and 10a and between the tubes 5b and 10b.
• the second manual operating member 12 is constituted substantially by an electrical switch which can regulate the suction produced by the motor (turbine) which is also housed in the casing 2 of the appliance 1, so as to draw in small items of debris and/or dust and collect them in the bag provided for the purpose.
• the second manual operating member 12 is an electrical control of the type with a variable electrical resistance which is constituted, for example, by a wire wound on a cylinder over which a slider slides, and which acts as a potentiometer.
• the potentiometer thus serves for the continuous regulation of the suction rate of the motor.
• the tube 13 acts as a connector between the nozzle 3 and the accessory 4.
• connection can be released by the operation of a connecting push-button 14 so that the various accessories can be replaced easily and conveniently.
• the presence of the tube 5 advantageously prevents accidental operation of the first operating member 11.
• the presence of the tube 5 acts as a protection for the user's hand and as a protection against accidental operation of the first operating member 11, that is, the first operating member 11 advantageously faces the tube 5a whilst the second tube 5b faces outwards .
• the hand-guard function and the function of protection against inadvertent switching-on of the first operating member 11 are performed by the first tube 5a, that is, by the air-conveying tube.
• the nozzle 3 is easy to manoeuvre by virtue of the characteristic configuration which the handgrip adopts, ensuring easier handling of the nozzle 3 for the user of the appliance.

Landscapes

• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
• Cleaning By Liquid Or Steam (AREA)
• Food-Manufacturing Devices (AREA)
• Nozzles (AREA)
• Cleaning In General (AREA)

Priority Applications (6)

Applications Claiming Priority (1)

Publications (1)

Family

ID=32894095

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (6)

Cited By (6)

Citations (7)

• 2003
  • 2003-02-19 DE DE60306689T patent/DE60306689D1/de not_active Expired - Lifetime
  • 2003-02-19 ES ES03712637T patent/ES2266795T3/es not_active Expired - Lifetime
  • 2003-02-19 AU AU2003217451A patent/AU2003217451A1/en not_active Abandoned
  • 2003-02-19 EP EP03712637A patent/EP1594388B1/en not_active Expired - Lifetime
  • 2003-02-19 WO PCT/IT2003/000092 patent/WO2004073478A1/en not_active Application Discontinuation
  • 2003-02-19 AT AT03712637T patent/ATE332100T1/de not_active IP Right Cessation

Patent Citations (7)

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