The disclosure relates to cleaning devices and more particularly pertains to a new cleaning device for cleaning and polishing a desired surface by using interchangeable cleaning attachments.
An embodiment of the disclosure meets the needs presented above by generally comprising a housing having a top wall and a perimeter wall attached to and extending downwardly from the top wall. A plurality of cleaning attachments is provided each having a first surface opposite a second surface. A selectable one of the cleaning attachments is removably coupled to the housing whereby the cleaning attachments are interchangeably couplable to the housing. A motor is electrically coupled to the selectable one of the cleaning attachments when the selectable one of the cleaning attachments is coupled to the housing for vibrating the selectable one of the cleaning attachments.
There has thus been outlined, rather broadly, the more important features of the disclosure in order that the detailed description thereof that follows may be better understood, and in order that the present contribution to the art may be better appreciated. There are additional features of the disclosure that will be described hereinafter and which will form the subject matter of the claims appended hereto.
The objects of the disclosure, along with the various features of novelty which characterize the disclosure, are pointed out with particularity in the claims annexed to and forming a part of this disclosure.
The disclosure will be better understood and objects other than those set forth above will become apparent when consideration is given to the following detailed description thereof. Such description makes reference to the annexed drawings wherein:
With reference now to the drawings, and in particular to
As best illustrated in
A hand mitt 38 is coupled to the top wall 14. The hand mitt 38 has a main body 39 and a plurality of finger projections 40 attached to the main body 39. Each of the finger projections 40 is configured to receive a finger of a user therein. The main body 39 has a first end 41 being open wherein the user's fingers are received in the main body 39 through the first end 41. The hand mitt 38 permits a user to use the assembly 10 without the handle 18 wherein the user's hand, when positioned in the hand mitt 38, maneuvers the housing 12 where desired. The hand mitt 38 may have a notch 42 extending therein toward the finger projections 40 defining a pair of spaced arms 44, 46. The notch 42 ensures that the hand mitt 38 does not obstruct the port 20. Each of the arms 44, 46 has a distal end 48, 50 with respect to the finger projections 40. The top wall 14 of the housing 12 may curve downwardly from the distal ends 48, 50 of the arms 44, 46 to the perimeter wall 16 of the housing 12 defining a ramp 52 configured for supporting a palm of the user's hand when the user's fingers are positioned in the hand mitt 38. The hand mitt 38 may comprise a flexible material. A distance from a top 98 of the hand mitt 38 to a bottom edge 96 of the perimeter wall 16 of the housing 12 may measure between approximately 18.0 cm and 32.0 cm. An outer diameter of the housing 12 may also measure between approximately 18.0 cm and 32.0 cm.
A plurality of cleaning attachments 54 is provided each having a first surface 56 opposite a second surface 58. A selectable one of the cleaning attachments 54 is removably coupled to the housing 12 whereby the cleaning attachments 54 are interchangeably couplable to the housing 12 in order to accomplish a variety of cleaning tasks. Each of the cleaning attachments 54 has a socket 60 coupled to a respective one of the second surfaces 58. The first surface 56 of each cleaning attachment 54 has a respective hole 62 positioned therein. Each hole 62 extends around the respective socket 60. The plurality of cleaning attachments 54 may include a pad attachment 64, a bonnet attachment 66 and a brush attachment 68. The first surface 56 of the pad attachment 64 is comprised of an abrasive material 65, while the first surface 56 of the bonnet attachment 66 is comprised of a non-abrasive material 67, such as terry cloth, microfiber or the like. The non-abrasive material 67 is used for applying or buffing away polish, wax or a similar substance. The first surface 56 of the brush attachment 68 has a plurality of bristles 70 extending outwardly therefrom.
A motor 72 is electrically coupled to the selectable one of the cleaning attachments 54 when the selectable one of the cleaning attachments 54 is coupled to the housing for vibrating the selectable one of the cleaning attachments. A power source 74 is electrically coupled to the motor 72 for causing vibrational movement of the selectable one of the cleaning attachments 54 when the selectable one of the cleaning attachments 54 is coupled to the housing 12. The power source 74 may include at least one rechargeable battery or a power cord electrically couplable to an external electrical outlet. A shaft 76 is operationally coupled to and extends from the motor 72. The shaft 76 is coupled to the housing 12 and is insertable into the socket 60 of the selectable one of the cleaning attachments 54 for removably coupling the selectable one of the cleaning attachments 54 to the motor 72. The hole 62 of the selectable one of the cleaning attachments 54 receives the shaft 76 when the selectable one of the cleaning attachments 54 is attached to the housing 12. The housing 12 may have at least one vent 78 positioned therein whereby an interior space of the housing 12 is in fluid communication with ambient space surrounding each vent 78. This will provide airflow to the motor 72 in order to help prevent the motor 72 from overheating during use of the assembly 10.
A locking assembly 80 is provided including a first mating member 82 coupled to the shaft 76 and a plurality of second mating members 84 each coupled to a respective one of the sockets 60. The locking assembly 80 removably secures the shaft 76 to the selectable one of the cleaning attachments 54 when the shaft 76 is received within the respective socket 60. The first mating member 82 may include a spring-loaded ball 86 and each second mating member 84 may include a detent member 88. Each detent member 88 receives the associated ball 86 therein in a generally conventional manner when the shaft 76 is received within the respective socket 60.
A bottom surface 90 of the top wall 14 and an inner surface 92 of the perimeter wall 16 define a receiving space 94 for receiving the selectable one of the cleaning attachments 54. The shaft 76 extends from the bottom surface 90 of the top wall 14. The first surface 56 of each cleaning attachment 54 may be positioned flush with the bottom edge 96 of the perimeter wall 16 of the housing 12 when the selectable one of the cleaning attachments 54 is positioned in the receiving space 94.
In use, a selectable one of the cleaning attachments 54 is attached to the housing 12 depending on the particular cleaning task that needs to be accomplished. Thus, the pad attachment 64 and the brush attachment 68 can be used to clean floors, sinks toilets or the like, while the bonnet attachment 66 can be used to polish a floor, car or other desired surface. The user then grasps the handle 18 and rubs the cleaning attachment 54 against the surface to be cleaned. Alternatively, the user can remove the handle 18 and position his or her hand inside the hand mitt 38 to guide the cleaning attachment 54 over the surface to be cleaned.
With respect to the above description then, it is to be realized that the optimum dimensional relationships for the parts of an embodiment enabled by the disclosure, to include variations in size, materials, shape, form, function and manner of operation, assembly and use, are deemed readily apparent and obvious to one skilled in the art, and all equivalent relationships to those illustrated in the drawings and described in the specification are intended to be encompassed by an embodiment of the disclosure.
Therefore, the foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the disclosure. Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the disclosure to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and accordingly, all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the disclosure.
Number | Name | Date | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
3027585 | Freedman | Apr 1962 | A |
3231917 | Reed | Feb 1966 | A |
3357033 | Sawyer | Dec 1967 | A |
3436869 | Zowe | Apr 1969 | A |
3444576 | Daane | May 1969 | A |
3445877 | Stout | May 1969 | A |
4005502 | Stevens (Boyer) | Feb 1977 | A |
4724567 | Rones | Feb 1988 | A |
5309594 | Thompson | May 1994 | A |
5495632 | Baker | Mar 1996 | A |
5511269 | Watson | Apr 1996 | A |
5797157 | Gregg | Aug 1998 | A |
5890249 | Hoffman | Apr 1999 | A |
5950268 | Murphy et al. | Sep 1999 | A |
D498027 | Alsruh et al. | Nov 2004 | S |
7363673 | Schonewille et al. | Apr 2008 | B2 |
7565712 | Long et al. | Jul 2009 | B2 |
7937792 | Munn et al. | May 2011 | B2 |
9038224 | Esquibel | May 2015 | B1 |
20040103490 | Long | Jun 2004 | A1 |
20060059640 | Hornsby | Mar 2006 | A1 |
20060168746 | Guyuron | Aug 2006 | A1 |
20130180547 | Kent | Jul 2013 | A1 |
Number | Date | Country |
---|---|---|
3341465 | May 1985 | DE |
811317 | Apr 1959 | GB |
2001-70048 | Mar 2001 | JP |
2001-275753 | Oct 2001 | JP |
2013093619 | Jun 2013 | WO |
Number | Date | Country | |
---|---|---|---|
20150327744 A1 | Nov 2015 | US |