WO2009116706A1

WO2009116706A1 - Dust receptacle and vacuum cleaner having the same

Info

Publication number: WO2009116706A1
Application number: PCT/KR2008/003650
Authority: WO
Inventors: Jang-Keun Oh; Min-Ha Kim
Original assignee: Samsung Gwangju Electronics Co Ltd
Current assignee: Samsung Electronics Co Ltd
Priority date: 2008-03-18
Filing date: 2008-06-25
Publication date: 2009-09-24
Anticipated expiration: 2010-09-18
Also published as: KR20090099850A

Abstract

A dust receptacle having a variable dust-collecting capacity and a vacuum cleaner having the same are provided. The dust receptacle includes a main body which has a space for collecting dust, and a variable member which modifies the dust-collecting capacity of the main dust receptacle.

Description

DUST RECEPTACLE AND VACUUM CLEANER HAVING THE

SAME

Technical Field

[1] The present invention relates to a vacuum cleaner. More particularly, the present invention relates to a dust receptacle for collecting dust and a vacuum cleaner having the same.

Background Art [2] Vacuum cleaners clean dust and contaminants drawn in from a surface which is being cleaned. That is, such a vacuum cleaner draws dust-laden air thereinside using a suction force generated by a suction motor, and separates dust from in-drawn air using a cyclone air current. [3] Air from which dust has been separated is discharged externally from the vacuum cleaner, and the separated dust is collected in a separate collecting space. The collecting space is implemented as a dust receptacle which is detachably installed in a main body of the vacuum cleaner in order that the collected dust may be dumped therein. [4] In general, the capacity of the dust receptacle is set at a fixed amount at the time of manufacture, so a user may need dust receptacles of various sizes according to his or her taste, the state of the vacuum cleaner, or the state of the surface to be cleaned, or may need to use a dust receptacle of a fixed size.

Disclosure of Invention

Technical Problem [5] The present invention is to solve the above problems and to provide a dust receptacle of which the capacity can be adjusted and a vacuum cleaner having the same.

Technical Solution [6] In order to achieve the above object, a dust receptacle of a vacuum cleaner includes a main dust receptacle which has a space for collecting dust, and a variable member which modifies the dust-collecting capacity of the main dust receptacle. [7] The variable member may be attached closely to an internal surface and/or an external surface of the main dust receptacle so as to be slid in a stepped manner. [8] The dust receptacle may further include at least one sealing member which seals a space between the main dust receptacle and the variable member. [9] The dust receptacle may further include a fixing unit which fixes the variable member on the main dust receptacle. [10] The fixing unit may include a plurality of fixing grooves which are formed on the main dust receptacle in the direction in which the variable member slides, and a hook which is formed on the variable member to be hooked into one of the plurality of fixing grooves.

[11] The hook may include a hooking lever which comprises on a first end a fixing protrusion to be inserted into one of the plurality of fixing grooves, and which has a seesaw motion in order for the fixing protrusion to be inserted into or discharged from one of the fixing grooves, and a manipulation unit which is formed on a second end of the hooking lever to elastically press the hooking lever in order to insert the fixing protrusion into one of the plurality of fixing grooves.

[12] The fixing unit may include a rack which is formed on the main dust receptacle in the direction I which the variable member slides, and a pinion which is formed on the variable member to be inserted into the rack and be rotated.

[13] The dust receptacle may further include a dial which is connected to the pinion to manipulate rotation of the pinion.

[14] A lower cover may be formed on a bottom of the main dust receptacle to discharge collected dust, and wherein the lower cover may be opened and closed.

[15] In order to achieve the above object, a vacuum cleaner may include a main body which separates dust from dust-laden air drawn thereinto, and a dust receptacle which is detachably installed in the main body to collect the separated dust, wherein the dust receptacle may include a main dust receptacle which has a space for collecting dust, and a variable member which modifies the dust-collecting capacity of the main dust receptacle.

[16] The main body may include a receiving unit in which the dust receptacle is accommodated, and the receiving unit compensates variation in the dust-collecting capacity of the dust receptacle.

[17] In order to achieve the above object, a dust receptacle of a vacuum cleaner may include a first dust collecting member, a second dust collecting member which is movable with respect to the first dust collecting member, so the dust-collecting capacity of the dust receptacle may be adjusted, and a fixing unit which fixes the first dust collecting member on the second dust collecting member.

Advantageous Effects

[18] As can be appreciated from the above description of the dust receptacle and the vacuum cleaner having the same, the dust-collecting capacity of the dust receptacle can be adjusted using the variable member which can be slid along the main dust receptacle. Therefore, since the user can modify the size of the dust receptacle according to his or her taste, or according to the environment being cleaned, the efficiency of the vacuum cleaner can be increased. Brief Description of the Drawings

[19] FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view illustrating a vacuum cleaner according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention;

[20] FIG. 2 is a side view illustrating the dust receptacle shown in FIG. 1 ;

[21] FIGs. 3 to 6 are schematic side views illustrating the dust receptacle having a variable capacity;

[22] FIG. 7 is a side view illustrating a fixing unit;

[23] FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view illustrating the dust receptacle cut along a V-V line in FIG. l; and

[24] FIGs. 9 and 10 illustrate a dust receptacle according to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention. Best Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[25] The exemplary embodiments of the present invention are described below with reference to the drawings.

[26] Referring to FIG. 1, a vacuum cleaner 1 according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention includes a main body 10 and a dust receptacle 100.

[27] The main body 10 includes elements to draw dust-laden air into itself and separate dust from the dust-laden air, such as a suction brush, a suction motor, and a cyclone unit.

[28] Since such a technical configuration of the main body 10 is well known, detailed description and illustration is omitted here.

[29] As shown in FIG. 1, the dust receptacle 100 is detachably installed in a receiving unit

11 of the main body 10 to collect dust separated from the dust-laden air.

[30] As shown in FIGs. 3 to 6, the dust receptacle 100 has a feature in being able to be adjusted in its capacity. In order to implement such a feature of the present invention, the dust receptacle 100 includes a main dust receptacle 110, a variable member 120, and a fixing unit 140.

[31] The main dust receptacle 110 has a cylindrical shape with space for collecting dust separated by the main body 10 of the vacuum cleaner 1.

[32] An upper part of the main dust receptacle 110 is opened in order to be in fluid communication with the main body 10 of the vacuum cleaner, and a lower part of the main dust receptacle 110 is selectively opened by a lower cover 111 which is formed on the main dust receptacle 110 to be opened and closed so as to discharge the collected dust. That is, the lower cover 111 forms a bottom surface of the main dust receptacle 110. The variable member 120 is separated from the main dust receptacle 110.

[33] However, the structure of the main dust receptacle 110 is not limited to the structure described here. In other exemplary embodiments, a viahole (not shown) may be formed in a side of the main dust receptacle 110 to be in fluid communication with the main body 10 of the vacuum cleaner 1, or an upper cover may be formed on the upper part of the main dust receptacle 110 to discharge the collected dust.

[34] The variable member 120 adheres closely to the external surface of the main dust receptacle 110 to be able to be slid in direction Sl or S2 shown in FIG. 2, so the capacity of the main dust receptacle 110 can be modified. To this end, the variable member 120 has a diameter greater than the main dust receptacle 110, and is open at the top and bottom.

[35] However, the structure of the variable member 120 is not limited to the structure described here. The variable member 120 may be slidingly attached to the internal surface, or to both internal and external surfaces of the main dust receptacle 110. In addition, the shape of a cross-section of the main dust receptacle 110 and variable member 120 is not limited to a circle, but may be a polygon such as a rectangle or hexagon.

[36] As shown in FIG. 8, at least one sealing member 130 is formed between the variable member 120 and the main dust receptacle 110 to prevent dust collected in the main dust receptacle 110 from leaking.

[37] As described above, since the capacity for collecting dust is determined by sliding the variable member 120 on the main dust receptacle 110, the main dust receptacle 110 and the variable member 120 may be referred to as first and second members.

[38] The fixing unit 140 fixes the location of the slid variable member 120 on the main dust receptacle 110, and includes fixing grooves 141, 142, 143, 144 and 145, and a hook 146.

[39] As shown in FIG. 2, a plurality of fixing grooves 141, 142, 143, 144 and 145 are formed on the main dust receptacle 110 in the direction Sl and S2 in which the variable member 120 slides. In this exemplary embodiment, the plurality of fixing grooves 141, 142, 143, 144 and 145 are formed sequentially from the bottom of the main dust receptacle 110 to the top, and are referred to as first, second, third, fourth, and fifth fixing grooves.

[40] In this exemplary embodiment, the first to fifth fixing grooves 141, 142, 143, 144 and 145 are formed at locations allowing the capacity of the main dust receptacle to be set to 0.8£ IM, \2€, \M and 1.6£ respectively.

[41] The hook 146 is formed on the variable member 120 so as to be hooked into any one of the first to fifth fixing grooves 141, 142, 143, 144 and 145. The hook 146 includes a hooking lever 147 and a manipulation unit 149, as shown in FIG. 7.

[42] The hooking lever 147 has a fixing protrusion 148 on a first end to be inserted into any one of the plurality of fixing grooves 141, 142, 143, 144 and 145. As shown in FIG. 7, the hooking lever 147 has a seesaw motion, moving in direction Rl or R2 with respect to the rotation axis 147a so that the fixing protrusion 148 can be inserted into or discharged from one of the fixing grooves 141, 142, 143, 144 and 145.

[43] The manipulation unit 149 is formed on a second end of the hooking lever 147 to provide a manipulation force in order for the hooking lever 147 to seesaw between direction Rl and R2. An elastic member 149a is formed inside the manipulation unit 149 to elastically press the hooking lever 147 towards the plurality of fixing grooves 141, 142, 143, 144 and 145.

[44] Detailed description of the operation of the fixing unit 140 is given below. If the fixing protrusion 148 is inserted into the first fixing groove 141 as shown in FIGs. 2 and 3, the dust-collecting capacity formed by the main dust receptacle 110 and the variable member 120 is set at 0.8f.

[45] If the user wishes to increase the dust-collecting capacity of the dust receptacle 100 to LOf as shown in FIGs. 2 and 4, the user presses the manipulation unit 149 in direction F as shown in FIG. 7. As a result, the first end of the hooking lever 147 performs a seesaw motion in direction Rl, so that a hooking force between the first fixing groove 141 and the fixing protrusion 148 is released.

[46] If a hooking force between the first fixing groove 141 and the fixing protrusion 148 is released, a fixing force between the variable member 120 and the main dust receptacle 110 is also released. Accordingly, as shown in FIG. 2, the variable member 130 can be slid along the external surface of the main dust receptacle 110.

[47] If the user slides the variable member 130 upwards, that is, in direction Sl, and releases a manipulation force F on the manipulation unit 149, the hooking lever 147 rotates in direction R2 by a restitution force of the elastic member 149a and thus inserts the fixing protrusion 148 into the second fixing groove 142. Consequently, the main dust receptacle 110 can have a capacity of LOf as a result of movement of the variable member 120.

[48] If dust becomes accumulated in the dust receptacle 100, the user may dispose of the collected dust by opening the lower cover 111 or using the open upper part of the main dust receptacle 110.

[49] In the above exemplary embodiment, the capacity of the dust receptacle 100 changes from 0.8f to LOf by moving the fixing protrusion 148 from the first fixing groove 141 to the second fixing groove 142. In addition, since changing the capacity of the dust receptacle 100 to 1.2f, 1Λ£ and 1.6f follows the same process as the above description, detailed description is omitted here.

[50] The dust receptacle 100 is mounted in the receiving unit 11 in the main body 10 as shown in FIG. 1. The bottom of the receiving unit 11 in the main body 10 is supported by a spring 11a which raises or lowers the receiving unit 11 in order to compensate for variation in the capacity of the dust receptacle 100. [51] The configuration of the receiving unit 11 which compensates for variation in the capacity of the dust receptacle 100 may be any one of diverse compensation methods other than the spring structure.

[52] In the above exemplary embodiment, a single fixing protrusion 148 is formed on the first end of the hooking lever 147, but the number of fixing protrusions 148 is not limited thereto. The number of fixing protrusions and the number of fixing grooves 141, 142, 143, 144 and 145 may be any number.

[53] In addition, in the above exemplary embodiment, the fixing unit 140 is formed at a single location where the main dust receptacle 110 is connected to the variable member 120, but the number of location where the fixing unit 140 is formed is not limited to 1.

[54] The dust receptacle 200 in FIGs. 9 and 10 according to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention is similar to the dust receptacle 100 according to the above exemplary embodiment of the present invention shown in FIGs. 1 to 8 in having a main dust receptacle 210 and a variable member 220.

[55] However, the dust receptacle 200 is distinct in a fixing unit 250 which fixes the variable member 220 to the main dust receptacle 210 includes a rack 251 and a pinion 252.

[56] More specifically, the rack 251 is formed on the main dust receptacle 210 in direction

Sl and S2, in which the variable member 220 slides. The pinion 252 is formed on the variable member 120 to correspond to the rack 251, and is connected to a dial 253 in order to be manipulated conveniently by the user.

[57] Therefore, if the user rotates the dial 253, the pinion 252 moves along the rack 251 in direction Sl or S2. In addition, even if the user does not rotate the dial 253, the pinion 252 can be moved along the rack 251 by the variable member 220 sliding in direction Sl or S2.

[58] The sliding variable member 120 is fixed by releasing the manipulation force of the pinion 252.

[59] For reference, although not shown in the drawings, diverse means for fixing movement of the pinion 252 in respect to the rack 251 may be applied. For example, if a means for fixing movement of the pinion 252 with respect to the rack 251 is integrally formed with the dial 253, and the dial 253 moves towards the pinion 252, the movement of the pinion 252 with respect to the rack 251 is fixed. If the dial 253 moves in a reverse direction, the movement of the pinion 252 with respect to the rack 251 is released.

[60] While the invention has been shown and described with reference to certain exemplary embodiments thereof, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes in form and details may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims. Industrial Applicability

[61] Since the present invention provides a dust receptacle having variable capacity, the user can adjust the size of the dust receptacle according to the cleaning environment.

Claims

[1] A dust receptacle of a vacuum cleaner, comprising: a main dust receptacle which has a space for collecting dust; and a variable member which modifies the dust-collecting capacity of the main dust receptacle.

[2] The dust receptacle of claim 1, wherein the variable member is attached closely to an internal surface and/or an external surface of the main dust receptacle so as to be slid in a stepped manner.

[3] The dust receptacle of claim 2, further comprising at least one sealing member which seals a space between the main dust receptacle and the variable member.

[4] The dust receptacle of claim 1, further comprising a fixing unit which fixes the variable member on the main dust receptacle.

[5] The dust receptacle of claim 4, wherein the fixing unit comprises: a plurality of fixing grooves which are formed on the main dust receptacle in the direction in which the variable member slides; and a hook which is formed on the variable member to be hooked into one of the plurality of fixing grooves.

[6] The dust receptacle of claim 5, wherein the hook comprises: a hooking lever which comprises on a first end a fixing protrusion to be inserted into one of the plurality of fixing grooves, and which has a seesaw motion in order for the fixing protrusion to be inserted into or discharged from one of the fixing grooves; and a manipulation unit which is formed on a second end of the hooking lever to elastically press the hooking lever in order to insert the fixing protrusion into one of the plurality of fixing grooves.

[7] The dust receptacle of claim 4, wherein the fixing unit comprises: a rack which is formed on the main dust receptacle in the direction I which the variable member slides; and a pinion which is formed on the variable member to be inserted into the rack and be rotated.

[8] The dust receptacle of claim 7, further comprising a dial which is connected to the pinion to manipulate rotation of the pinion.

[9] The dust receptacle of claim 1, wherein a lower cover is formed on a bottom of the main dust receptacle to discharge collected dust, and wherein the lower cover may be opened and closed.

[10] A vacuum cleaner, comprising: a main body which separates dust from dust-laden air drawn thereinto; and a dust receptacle which is detachably installed in the main body to collect the separated dust, wherein the dust receptacle comprises: a main dust receptacle which has a space for collecting dust; and a variable member which modifies the dust-collecting capacity of the main dust receptacle.

[11] The vacuum cleaner of claim 10, wherein the variable member is attached closely to an internal surface and/or an external surface of the main dust receptacle so as to be slid in a stepped manner.

[12] The vacuum cleaner of claim 11, further comprising at least one sealing member which seals the space between the main dust receptacle and the variable member.

[13] The vacuum cleaner of claim 10, further comprising a fixing unit which fixes the variable member on the main dust receptacle.

[14] The vacuum cleaner of claim 13, wherein the fixing unit comprises: a plurality of fixing grooves which are formed on the main dust receptacle in the direction in which the variable member slides; and a hook which is formed on the variable member to be hooked into one of the plurality of fixing grooves.

[15] The vacuum cleaner of claim 14, wherein the hook comprises: a hooking lever which comprises on a first end a fixing protrusion to be inserted into one of the plurality of fixing grooves, and which has a seesaw motion in order for the fixing protrusion to be inserted into or discharged from one of the fixing grooves; and a manipulation unit which is formed on a second end of the hooking lever to elastically press the hooking lever in order to insert the fixing protrusion into one of the plurality of fixing grooves

[16] The vacuum cleaner of claim 13, wherein the fixing unit comprises: a rack which is formed in the direction in which the variable member slides; and a pinion which is formed on the variable member to be inserted into the rack and rotated.

[17] The vacuum cleaner of claim 16, further comprising a dial which is connected to the pinion in order to manipulate rotation of the pinion.

[18] The vacuum cleaner of claim 10, wherein a lower cover is formed on a bottom of the main dust receptacle to discharge collected dust, and wherein the lower cover may be opened and closed.

[19] The vacuum cleaner of claim 10, wherein the main body comprises a receiving unit in which the dust receptacle is accommodated, and the receiving unit compensates variation in the dust-collecting capacity of the dust receptacle. [20] A dust receptacle of a vacuum cleaner, comprising: a first dust collecting member; a second dust collecting member which is movable with respect to the first dust collecting member, so the dust-collecting capacity of the dust receptacle may be adjusted; and a fixing unit which fixes the first dust collecting member on the second dust collecting member. [21] The dust receptacle of claim 20, wherein the second dust collecting member is attached closely to an internal surface and/or an external surface of the first dust collecting member to be able to be slid in a stepped manner. [22] The dust receptacle of claim 21, wherein the fixing unit comprises: a plurality of fixing grooves which are formed on the first dust collecting member in the direction in which the second dust collecting member slides; a hooking lever which comprises a fixing protrusion to be inserted into and hooked in one of the plurality of fixing grooves; and a manipulation unit which elastically presses the hooking lever in order to insert the fixing protrusion into one of the plurality of fixing grooves. [23] The dust receptacle of claim 21, wherein the fixing unit comprises: a rack which is formed on the first dust collecting member in the direction in which the second dust collecting member slides; and a pinion which is formed on the second dust collecting member to be inserted into the rack and rotated. [24] The dust receptacle of claim 20, further comprising at least one sealing member which seals a space between the first dust collecting member and the second dust collecting member. [25] The dust receptacle of claim 20, wherein the first dust collecting member comprises a closed bottom and the second dust collecting member comprises opened bottom and top.