Information
-
Patent Grant
-
6230361
-
Patent Number
6,230,361
-
Date Filed
Wednesday, December 15, 199924 years ago
-
Date Issued
Tuesday, May 15, 200123 years ago
-
Inventors
-
Original Assignees
-
Examiners
Agents
- Marshall, O'Toole, Gerstein, Murray & Borun
-
CPC
-
US Classifications
Field of Search
US
- 015 310
- 015 3271
- 015 3272
- 015 328
- 015 339
- 015 352
-
International Classifications
-
Abstract
A vacuum cleaner includes a receptacle with an interior, a motor assembly that draws air from the interior of the receptacle, an inlet on the receptacle wherein the inlet receives vacuumed material, and an opening on the receptacle in air flow communication with the interior of the receptacle. The vacuum cleaner also includes a dust pan that opens and closes the opening. The dust pan may be used for collecting large and small debris, liquids, and any other objects that cannot or should not enter the inlet.
Description
FIELD OF INVENTION
This invention relates generally to vacuum cleaners, and more particularly to devices that allow large debris to enter a vacuum cleaner.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Vacuum cleaners generally include a motor assembly, a tank or other receptacle, a hose inlet on the receptacle, and a hose that attaches to the hose inlet at one end and has a nozzle at the other end. The motor of the motor assembly drives an impeller that creates a low pressure area inside the receptacle. The pressure difference between the inside and the outside of the receptacle creates a suction effect at the hose inlet, which causes dust, debris, and liquids to enter the receptacle through the hose.
The capability of vacuum cleaners to pick up large debris has been limited to debris that is smaller than the diameter of the hose. Further, even debris that is smaller than the hose diameter may clog the hose when passing through a bend in the hose. A large diameter hose for accepting large debris may not be acceptable because it will reduce the air velocity in the hose inlet, thus reducing the efficiency of the vacuum cleaner. Hoses are often used with nozzles which may have an even smaller cross section, and further increase the likelihood of clogging. Additionally, a hose with limited bending capability to allow passage of large debris reduces the versatility of the vacuum cleaner by making it ineffective for accessing hard to reach areas. Therefore, in most instances, a vacuum cleaner operator must manually pick up large debris and dispose of it by other means.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The dust pan closure for a vacuum cleaner of the present invention eliminates the drawbacks noted above in a simple and effective manner.
Particularly, a vacuum cleaner may include a receptacle with an interior and a motor assembly that draws air from the interior of the receptacle. The vacuum cleaner may further include an opening on the receptacle in air flow communication with the receptacle. The vacuum cleaner includes a dust pan, moveable between a first position closing the opening and a position in which the opening is not closed.
The dust pan may include a debris holding surface with a front edge, a back edge, and two side edges. The dust pan may further comprise a back wall, two side walls, and a handle. The back wall and the two side walls are attached to the back edge and the two side edges of the debris holding surface respectively. The handle is attached to the back wall. Additionally, the back wall may be curved and is larger in dimension than the largest cross section of the dust pan.
Other features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the specification and drawings, in which like reference numerals denote like structures.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1
is a top elevational view of a vacuum cleaner of the present invention.
FIG. 2
is a partial cross-sectional view of the vacuum cleaner of
FIG. 1
taken at the lines
2
—
2
of FIG.
1
.
FIG. 3
is an isometric view of a receptacle of a vacuum cleaner of the present invention with the receptacle having an opening and a dust pan, wherein the dust pan is shown out of the opening.
FIG. 4
is an isometric view of a receptacle of a vacuum cleaner of the present invention with the receptacle having an opening and a dust pan, wherein the dust pan is inserted in the opening.
FIG. 5
is a top plan view of a dust pan of a vacuum cleaner of the present invention.
FIG. 6
is a front view of a dust pan of a vacuum cleaner of the present invention.
FIG. 7
is a side elevational view of a dust pan of a vacuum cleaner of the present invention.
FIG. 8
is a front isometric view of a dust pan of a vacuum cleaner of the present invention.
FIG. 9
is a back isometric view of a dust pan of a vacuum cleaner of the present invention.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
Referring initially to
FIGS. 1-4
, a vacuum cleaner
20
includes a receptacle
22
, a lid
24
(FIGS.
1
and
2
), a motor assembly
26
(FIGS.
1
and
2
), a hose inlet
28
(FIGS.
1
and
2
), an opening
30
, and a dust pan
32
opening and closing the opening
30
. The lid
24
has a rim
34
(
FIGS. 1 and 2
) which is designed to fit over the edge of the receptacle
22
for the vacuum cleaner
20
. Around the periphery of the lid
24
are several latch ports
36
(
FIG. 1
) which cooperate with latches
38
(
FIG. 1
) on the receptacle
22
in order to hold the lid
24
on the receptacle. The lid
24
houses a motor assembly
26
that is in air flow communication with the receptacle
22
through a filter
27
(FIG.
2
). Generally, the motor assembly
26
includes a power cord
29
(
FIG. 2
) for use with an electrical outlet, an electric motor, an air impeller, various housings, and other associated equipment (all not depicted) that create a low pressure area inside the receptacle
22
. A hose
39
removably connects at a first end
40
to a hose inlet
28
on the receptacle
22
. A nozzle
42
(
FIG. 2
) is attached at a second end
44
(
FIG. 2
) of the hose
39
for collecting debris. The vacuum cleaner
20
can be lifted and moved with a handle
45
(
FIGS. 1 and 2
) that is placed on the vacuum cleaner
20
. Additionally, the vacuum cleaner
20
can be moved by rolling it on casters (not shown).
When the vacuum cleaner
20
is in operation, the low pressure created in the receptacle
22
by the motor assembly
26
creates a pressure difference between the receptacle
22
and the nozzle
42
to cause a suction effect at the nozzle
42
. Small debris enters the nozzle
42
, travels through the hose
39
, and is deposited into the receptacle
22
.
As illustrated in
FIGS. 3 and 4
, the opening
30
accommodates large debris that cannot enter or that may become trapped inside of the hose
39
. The dust pan
32
can be pulled out of the receptacle
22
to open the opening
30
, and the dust pan
32
can be inserted into the opening
30
on the receptacle
22
to close the opening
30
. A vacuum cleaner operator deposits large debris into the receptacle
22
in either of two ways. First, the vacuum cleaner operator can open the opening
30
by removing the dust pan
32
, manually deposit large debris into the receptacle
22
, and close the opening
30
by inserting the dust pan into the opening
30
. Second, the vacuum cleaner operator can open the opening
30
by removing the dust pan
32
, sweep dust, large or small debris, and liquids into the dust pan
32
with a broom, manually or otherwise, and close the opening
30
by inserting the dust pan
32
into the opening
30
. It may be advantageous to sweep certain items, due to their size, shape or density, into the dustpan rather than attempting to draw them into the tank through the hose.
FIGS. 5-9
illustrate the dust pan
32
in greater detail. The dust pan
32
may comprise a dust and debris holding surface
50
(
FIGS. 5
,
8
, and
9
) that is partially enclosed on its sides by side walls
52
(
FIGS. 5
,
7
, and
9
) and fully enclosed at its back side by a back wall
54
(FIGS.
5
-
9
). The top of the dust pan can be partially enclosed by a top section
56
(
FIGS. 5
,
8
, and
9
) that is attached to the back wall
54
and attached to the two side walls
52
. The dust pan
32
may further include a handle
58
that is attached to the back wall
54
to facilitate handling of the dust pan
32
by a vacuum operator when removing or inserting the dustpan
32
.
The side walls
52
prevent spillage of dust and debris from the sides of the holding surface
50
. The portion of the back wall
54
that is inside the dust pan
32
and the top section
56
prevent spillage of dust and debris from the back side of the holding surface
50
. The back wall
54
is curved, thus having a concave side
55
(
FIGS. 5
,
8
, and
9
) and a convex side
57
(
FIGS. 5
,
6
,
8
,
9
). The back wall
54
extends beyond the boundaries of the cross section of the dust pan
32
by having larger dimensions than the dimensions of the largest cross section of the dust pan
32
. The extension of the back wall
54
in combination with its curvature creates a curved surface
60
(
FIGS. 5
,
7
, and
9
) that is on the perimeter of the concave side
55
of the back wall
54
. The curvature of the back wall
54
matches the curvature of the receptacle
22
at the location of the opening
30
on the receptacle
22
. Consequently, as illustrated in
FIG. 4
, when the dust pan
32
is fully inserted into the receptacle
22
to close the opening
30
, the curved surface
60
fits flush against the receptacle
22
to seal the opening
30
. The outside surface of the top section
56
, the outside surfaces of the side walls
54
, and the outside surface of the holding surface
50
guide the dust pan
32
into the opening
30
when the dust pan
32
is being inserted into the opening
30
, and secure the dust pan
32
from movement when it is fully inserted into the opening
30
.
The handle
58
is attached to the convex side
57
of the back wall
54
. The handle
58
may comprise a first section
62
(
FIGS. 5-9
) that extends away from the outside of the back wall
54
, and a second section
64
(
FIGS. 6-9
) that is attached to the first section
62
and extends downwardly from the first section
62
. The first section
62
and the second section
64
of the handle
58
provide a cavity
66
(
FIGS. 6-9
) under the handle
58
so that a vacuum operator can insert his/her fingers in the cavity
66
to pull the dust pan
32
out of the receptacle
22
. The handle
58
may further comprise third sections
68
(
FIGS. 7-9
) that are attached to the first section
62
and the second section
64
on the sides of the handle
58
to reduce the flexure of the handle
58
when a vacuum cleaner operator is pulling the dust pan
32
out of the receptacle
22
.
Although the present invention has been applied to tank or receptacle type vacuum cleaners, other types of vacuum cleaners, such as upright vacuum cleaners may be used in connection with the present invention. The opening and the dust pan of the present invention can be incorporated into any debris holding tank or receptacle component of other types of vacuum cleaners. The dust pan closure may be located in many areas of the vacuum cleaner, other than the side wall of the receptacle or tank as shown in
FIGS. 1-4
. For instance, the dustpan can be located on the lid of a receptacle or even on a compartment separate from but in air flow communication with the main tank or the receptacle.
The foregoing detailed description has been given for clearness of understanding only, and no unnecessary limitations should be understood therefrom, as modifications would be obvious to those skilled in the art.
Claims
- 1. A vacuum cleaner comprising:a receptacle having an interior; a motor assembly in air flow communication with the receptacle wherein the motor assembly draws air from the interior of the receptacle; an inlet on the receptacle, wherein the inlet receives vacuumed material; an opening on the receptacle in air flow communication with the interior of the receptacle; and a dust pan moveable between a first position closing the opening and a second position in which the opening is not closed.
- 2. The vacuum cleaner as recited in claim 1 wherein the dust pan is inserted in the opening to close the opening and pulled out of the opening to provide access to the opening.
- 3. The vacuum cleaner as recited in claim 1 wherein the inlet attaches to a hose.
- 4. The vacuum cleaner as recited in claim 1 wherein the dust pan comprises a debris holding surface having a front edge, a back edge, and two side edges.
- 5. The vacuum cleaner as recited in claim 4 wherein the dustpan comprises a back wall.
- 6. The vacuum cleaner as recited in claim 5 wherein the back wall is attached to the back edge of the debris holding surface.
- 7. The vacuum cleaner as recited in claim 5 wherein the back wall has larger dimensions than the dimensions of the largest cross section of the dust pan.
- 8. The vacuum cleaner as recited in claim 5 wherein the back wall is curved.
- 9. The vacuum cleaner as recited in claim 8 wherein the curvature of the back wall of the dust pan matches the curvature of the outside of the receptacle at where the opening is located on the receptacle.
- 10. The vacuum cleaner as recited in claim 8 wherein the back wall comprises a concave side and a convex side.
- 11. The vacuum cleaner as recited in claim 10 wherein the concave side of the back wall is attached to the back edge of the debris holding surface.
- 12. The vacuum cleaner as recited in claim 5 wherein the dustpan comprises two side walls attached to the two side edges of the debris holding surface.
- 13. The vacuum cleaner as recited in claim 12 wherein the two side walls extend from the back wall to the front edge of the debris holding surface.
- 14. The vacuum cleaner as recited in claim 13 wherein the side walls have a height, the height is greatest where the side walls attach to the back wall, and the height is smallest where the side walls meet the front edge of the debris holding surface.
- 15. The vacuum cleaner as recited in claim 13 wherein the dustpan comprises a top section attached to the side walls and the back wall.
- 16. The vacuum cleaner as recited in claim 15 wherein the top section partially covers the top of the dust pan.
- 17. The vacuum cleaner as recited in claim 5 wherein the dustpan comprises a handle.
- 18. The vacuum cleaner of claim 17 wherein the handle is attached to the back wall.
- 19. The vacuum cleaner as recited in claim 17 wherein:the handle comprises a first section and a second section; and the first section extends away from the back wall, and the second section is attached to the first section and extends downwardly from the first section.
US Referenced Citations (30)
Foreign Referenced Citations (2)
Number |
Date |
Country |
196 07 959 |
Sep 1997 |
DE |
0 643 905 |
Mar 1995 |
EP |