The present invention relates to the field of manual floor cleaners, and particularly to manual dust mops. More specifically, the invention relates to a device/accessory configured to trap litter or debris that might otherwise roll or float over the cleaning head/pad of the floor cleaner.
The patent literature discloses attachments for brooms. See Sanders Pat. No. D302059, issued Jul. 4, 1989, which discloses a device fixed to a broom by a rigid triangular bracket clamped to the not-pivotal broom handle. See also Meyer U.S. Pat. No. 1,024,454, issued Apr. 23, 1912, which discloses a dust-catching attachment fixed by a rigid clamp system to the broom bristles of a broom with a non-pivotal handle.
The invented device comprises a trapping system for catching litter/debris that typically is not captured during use of a manual floor cleaner. The device is especially beneficial for trapping lightweight litter/debris that floats/rolls over the top, and falls behind, the cleaning head/pad of a floor cleaner. The device is adapted to be particularly effective on a floor cleaner that has a pivotal handle, by not interfering with use of the cleaner while the user pivots the handle and pushes/pulls the floor cleaner in many directions and orientations.
In certain embodiments, the device is adapted to catch litter/debris when the user is pushing the floor cleaner quickly and/or forcefully, resulting in quick/forceful air flow over the top of the head/pad of the floor cleaner that therefore carries light litter/debris up above and/or over the cleaner head/pad. Therefore, the preferred embodiment of the device is especially-well adapted for use with a conventional pivot-handle dust mop. Such conventional pivot-handle dust-mops have a low-profile dusting head/pad that catches and carries dust and pushes heavy items such as cans or dropped food along in front of it, but that allows light-weight litter/debris to float over said head/pad instead of getting caught by, or pushed along, by the head/pad. Such light-weight litter/debris may include, for example, cellophane, plastic wrap, onion peels, paper, receipts, facial tissues, etc.
The device comprises a catching portion that is especially effective for said light-weight litter/debris, and a connection system for connecting the device to the floor cleaner. The preferred catching portion comprises a long, planar or generally planar member that extends from a location at or close to the top of the cleaner head/pad, upward at least several inches and toward the handle, to intercept and thereby catch the floating/rolling litter/debris. The connection system connects the lower portion or edge of the catching portion to the cleaner head/pad and the upper portion or edge of the catching portion to the cleaner handle, in a way that allows the catching portion to pivot with the handle forward and rearward/backward relative to the head/pad and that allows the handle to pivot side-to-side relative to said catching portion and said head/pad.
Preferably, the connection system is adapted so that the device is easily attachable to and detachable from the conventional floor cleaner. Thus, the device may be provided as an accessory for addition to a conventional floor cleaner, such as a conventional dust mop; such detachability will be beneficial for many users who already own or are supplied with conventional floor cleaners by an employer. Such detachability also will be effective for cleaners that feature heads/pads that are conventionally removed for cleaning or replacement, so that the device does not interfere with the removal/replacement. In certain embodiments, the device may be original equipment manufacture (OEM) for conventional cleaners and/or specialty cleaners.
These and/or additional objects, features and advantages of the device will be readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art upon reading the following detailed description of the presently-preferred embodiments when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
The accompanying drawings, which are included to provide a further understanding of the invention are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate several, but not all, embodiments of the invention and together with the description serve to explain the principles of the invention.
Referring to the Figures, there are shown several, but not the only, embodiments of the invented device. It will be noted that the largest dimensions of the floor cleaner/dust mop head, and the largest dimension of the device, are referred to in this Detailed Description as the “length” of the head and device, respectively. The lengths of the head and the device are parallel (or generally parallel) to each other, and parallel (or generally parallel) to the floor, and the lengths of the head and of the device are transverse to what is understood to be the forward and rearward directions of mopping. Note that the length of the device 100 extends between right and left edges of the drawing sheet in
In
In certain embodiments, the magnets/mounting devices 130 are immovably fixed to the device 100, for example, fixed to the device frame 110. In such embodiments, the magnetic connection to the cleaner head frame 205 allows the magnets/mounting devices 130, and hence the device 100 and its frame 110, to rotate relative to the frame 205 for forward and rearward pivoting of the device 100 relative to the head 200, 200′. In certain embodiments, the magnets/mounting devices 130 are pivotally connected to the device 100, for example, pivotally connected to the device frame 110. In such embodiments, the device 100/frame 110 may pivot relative to the magnets/mounting devices 130 and the head 200, 200′, with the magnets/mounting devices 130 remaining in place (or generally in place) relative to the frame 205 and head 200, 200′ while the device 100/frame 110 pivots.
In
The upper connector is not clamped onto, bolted to, immovably fastened to the handle, or otherwise fixed to the handle, but instead allows free movement of the handle relative to the device 100 through and along the entire length of the slot of the upper connector. This way, the slot 143 may be described as a “track” along which, and through which, the handle can pivot/slide/travel while the dust mop head stays substantially or entirely parallel to the floor.
Once connected to the floor cleaner, the device 100 is configured to catch debris that would otherwise float or fall over top of the floor cleaner 200. Preferred embodiments are used on a dust mop, which is traditionally used for dusting, that is, catching and/or picking up dust and particulate or fine granular material in its dust mop cover cloth and fibers. However, many environments where a dust mop is used will also include larger debris on the floor or other surface to be cleaned. When said larger debris is light-weight, for example, cellophane, plastic wrap, onion peels, paper, receipts, facial tissues, etc., it will typically be caught by the device 100. When said larger dirt and debris is a heavy object, such as an empty aluminum beverage can, the can will typically be pushed along by the dusting head/pad, and the user will pick it up immediately, or push it to a recycle or waste bin so that he/she may pick it up there and dispose of it.
Therefore, debris that is most likely to be caught by the device 100 is schematically portrayed in
The catching portion trapping surface 120 may be one or more piece(s)/plate(s)/sheet(s) of fabric, flexible fabric, net, mesh, plastic, or other material against which debris 300 tends to remain while the cleaner is being pushed along the floor. In certain embodiments, the catching portion trapping surface 120 is planar or generally planar, light-weight, flexible and/or textured, and/or have a shape that tends to catch the light-weight debris 300 that floats/rolls up to the surface 120. In certain embodiments, the trapping surface 120 is net or mesh or loosely-woven material, as it had a texture that tends to hold the debris against it but does not create much air resistance to the user pushing the dust mop and the device forward. It may be noted that “mesh” may be defined as a surface/material with a large number of closely spaced holes. Mesh is often made of strands of metal, fiber, yarn, or other flexible and/or ductile material but can also be formed directly from plastics or other materials. It may be noted that “net or netting” may be defined as a specific type of mesh material wherein the warp and weft yarns are looped or knotted at their intersections. In certain embodiments, however, the trapping surface may be a smooth plate of material without texture, holes, or recesses, as the in-use air flow toward the trapping surface will tend to hold the debris 300 against even a smooth trapping surface. Therefore, in certain embodiments, the trapping surface may be selected from a group consisting of fabric, flexible fabric, textured fabric, net, mesh, plastic, flexible plastic, textured plastic, smooth fabric, and smooth plastic.
The catching portion also preferably comprises a frame 110 around and/or otherwise maintaining the shape and orientation of the trapping surface 120. Several methods to attach the trapping surface 120 to the frame 110 are well known to those skilled in the art, including sewing, heat sealing, clamping, or tying the trapping surface directly onto the frame, for example. The frame 110 may made of a lightweight material such as small metal rods, spring wire, or rigid plastic tubing, for example. It is preferred that that the frame 110 be rigid or semi-rigid to maintain the preferred shape and size of the trapping surface. As explained below, a further role of the frame 110 may be to provide a bar/member that serves as a portion of the connector 140 and defines the front edge of the vertical slot 143.
While the frame 110 and trapping surface 120 may various shapes in certain embodiments, it is expected that the frame 110 and surface 120 will be rectangular or oval in shape, longer than tall, and narrow from front to back. The frame may be made of a single piece in certain embodiments, or multiple pieces in other embodiments. The trapping surface 120 preferably fills/covers the entire space surrounded by the frame 110.
The multiple-piece frame 110 of
In certain embodiments, the frame 110 may be designed to expand or contract to adjust to the length 202 of the floor cleaner head/pad 200, 200′ for example, by using telescopic tubing for the frame 110. Preferably, the catching portion, including its trapping surface 120 and frame 110, has a length, or is expandable to a length, that is generally similar to the length of the head 200, 200′, for example, a length that is 60-110%, preferably 60-100%, and more preferably 65-80% of the length 202 of the head 200, 200′. In certain embodiments, the device 100 is shorter in length than the head 200, 200′, so that about 6-8 inches of the head 200, 200′ extends beyond the device 100 to reach into a toe kick space of a cabinet, for example, as in
The catching portion, including in certain embodiments the frame 100 and trapping surface 120, may be of various heights between the bottom edge and bottom edge of the catching portion. For example, heights in the range of 5-14 inches, 6-12 inches, or 9-12 inches, have been found effective in combination with a conventional dust mop.
The upper connector 140 plays a key role in the installation and retention of the device 100 on the preferred floor cleaner, that is, a conventional pivot-handle dust mop, by keeping the top edge of the device 100 near the handle 201 but not clamping, fixing, or otherwise immovably anchoring the top edge or any portion of the device 100 to the handle. Support armature member 141 extends rearward from the frame 110, and more specifically, is connected to and extends rearwardly from the first frame member 111. To install the device 100, the floor cleaner handle 201 is inserted up along the back side of the trapping surface 120, into and through the slot 143 between the armature member 141 and the frame member 111. Then, the device 100 is generally centered lengthwise relative to the length of the dust mop head 200, 200′, while lowering the device 100 on the handle 201 to the dust mop head 200, 200′ until the magnets 130 connect to the mop head 200, 200′ by virtue of magnetic attraction to the conventional metal inner frame 205 inside the head 200, 200′. The dust mop plus device 100 is then ready for use.
The preferred upper connector 140 may be described as a bracket, formed by long straight frame member 111, and the long straight main bar of armature member 141 with two ends, surrounding the slot 143. The frame member 111, the main bar of armature member 141, and the slot may all be described as elongated, parallel to each other, much longer than tall (high), and much longer than deep (front to back). The frame member 111 and the main bar of the armature member 141 are relatively close together. For example, preferred frame member 111 and the main bar of armature member 141 are spaced apart all or substantially all along their lengths a consistent distance that is somewhat larger than the diameter of the handle 201, for example, 1.5 to 3 times the diameter of the handle 201. For certain conventional dust mop handles of about 1 inch in diameter, frame member 111 and the main bar of armature member 141 may be about 1.5 to 3 inches apart all along their lengths, creating a slot that is likewise 1.5 to 3 inches deep (from front to back) all along its length. The closed ends of the upper connector 140 and of the slot 143 are provided by end portions of the armature member 141 that bend, preferably at about 90 degrees, to connect the armature member 141 to the frame member 111. This way, the closed-end slot 143 is uniform or substantially uniform all along the length of the upper connector 140 and will smoothly, slidably, and reliably receive the handle 201 while the handle pivots, as will be further illustrated and discussed below. This smooth, slidable, and reliable receiving of the handle for handle pivoting is best accomplished when the armature member 141 is rigid or semi-rigid, and is rigidly or semi-rigidly fixed to the frame 110; this will keep the armature member 141 from bending a significant distance from the frame 110 so that the user's control of the handle will control the location of the device 100 in addition to controlling the head 200, 200′.
Further, the upper connector 140, including the frame member 111 and armature member 141 are formed by smooth or rounded bars/members, or at least from material that will not gouge or bind with the handle when the handle pivots. Relative movement of the handle 201 relative to the frame member 111 and the armature member 141 occurs both when the handle pivots side-ways, or forward and rearward, so smooth sliding of the handle in the slot 143 is desired. The substantial amount of sliding of the handle relative to members 111, 141 during sideways pivoting of the handle is shown in
An especially-preferred embodiment, portrayed in
Referring to Each of
In the Summary of the Invention above, throughout the Detailed Description, and in the accompanying drawings, reference is made to particular features, including method steps, of certain embodiments of the invention. It is to be understood that the disclosure of the invention in this specification includes all possible combinations of such particular features. For example, where a particular feature is disclosed in the context of a particular aspect, a particular embodiment, or a particular Figure, that feature can also be used, to the extent appropriate, in the context of other particular aspects, embodiments, and Figures, and in the invention generally. Further, although this disclosed technology has been described above with reference to particular means, materials and embodiments, it is to be understood that the disclosed technology is not limited to these disclosed particulars and extends instead to all equivalents within the broad scope of this disclosure and of following claims.
This application is a Continuation-in-Part of U.S. Non-Provisional application Ser. No. 14/059,605, filed Oct. 22, 2013, the entire disclosure of which is incorporated herein by this reference.
Number | Name | Date | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
1024454 | Meyer | Apr 1912 | A |
2090412 | Geiger | Aug 1937 | A |
3324494 | Vosbikian | Jun 1967 | A |
3979146 | Berg | Sep 1976 | A |
4369109 | Edge | Jan 1983 | A |
4724566 | Fawcett | Feb 1988 | A |
D302059 | Sanders | Jul 1989 | S |
5342513 | Wall | Aug 1994 | A |
5614085 | Platt, III | May 1997 | A |
D585168 | Bar-Noy et al. | Jan 2009 | S |
7836540 | Vasilakes | Nov 2010 | B2 |
8056178 | Bar-Noy et al. | Nov 2011 | B2 |
8100446 | Moore et al. | Jan 2012 | B1 |
8196249 | Spooner | Jun 2012 | B1 |
8438689 | Noble | May 2013 | B2 |
8689533 | Abughazaleh | Apr 2014 | B2 |
9375076 | Weis | Jun 2016 | B2 |
20030164176 | Arbon | Sep 2003 | A1 |
20040250365 | Anderson | Dec 2004 | A1 |
Number | Date | Country | |
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Parent | 14059605 | Oct 2013 | US |
Child | 15944213 | US |