HAND-HELD SWIMMING POOL VACUUM CLEANER

Abstract

Various aspects of the present disclosure are directed to swimming pool vacuum cleaners. In one example embodiment, the pool vacuum cleaner includes a main body having a housing with an impeller driven by an electric motor, an inlet opening in a bottom region of the housing, and an outlet opening on an outlet side of the housing. The vacuum cleaner further includes a collecting container receptacle that accommodates a collecting container arranged in the region of the outlet opening, a rod receptacle releasably connected to a guide rod arranged in the region of the outlet side, and a guide fork pivotably connected to the housing about a pivot axis. The rod receptacle arranged on the guide fork. The pivot axis is arranged at a distance from a center of mass of the main body, and the center of mass is arranged between the pivot axis and the outlet opening.

Description

The invention relates to a hand-guided swimming pool vacuum cleaner comprising a main body having a housing with an impeller which can be driven via an electric motor, which housing has an inlet opening in a bottom region and an outlet opening on an outlet side, wherein a collecting container receptacle for accommodating a collecting container is arranged in the region of the outlet opening, and wherein a rod receptacle for releasable connection to a guide rod is arranged in the region of the outlet side.

Furthermore, from EP 2 989 270 B1 a hand-guided swimming pool vacuum cleaner is known, the housing of which has a lateral outlet opening to which a collection container for dirt is connected. Above the outlet opening, the housing has a rigid receptacle for a guide rod.

Rigid, i.e. non-pivoting guide rods have the disadvantage that when guiding the swimming pool vacuum cleaner at the bottom of the swimming pool, the housing may tip over, which has a negative effect on the cleaning function. Furthermore, if the swimming pool vacuum cleaner is handled incorrectly—for example, when moving the swimming pool vacuum cleaner while the impeller is stationary and/or when lifting the swimming pool vacuum cleaner out of the water—back-soiling from the collection container cannot be ruled out.

U.S. Pat. No. 10,704,282 B2 discloses a hand-guided swimming pool vacuum cleaner in which a connecting fork of a guide rod is connected in a hinged manner to the housing.

Similar pool cleaners are known from publications FR 2 430 494 A1, FR 3 080 879 A1 or ES 1 047 768 U.

It is the object of the invention to reliably prevent back-soiling in a swimming pool vacuum cleaner of the type mentioned at the beginning, in particular when removing it from the swimming pool.

According to the invention, this is achieved in that the rod receptacle is arranged on a guide fork which is pivotably connected to the housing about a pivot axis, wherein the pivot axis—as viewed in plan view—is arranged at a distance from a center of mass of the swimming pool vacuum cleaner, wherein the center of mass is arranged between the pivot axis and the outlet opening.

The center of mass is thus arranged on a side facing the outlet side of a plateau of the swimming pool vacuum cleaner containing the pivot axis.

Due to the position of the center of mass between the pivot axis and the outlet opening, the housing—as soon as the swimming pool vacuum cleaner is raised with the guide rod—is pivoted by gravity in relation to the guide fork in such a way that the outlet opening together with the collection container comes to rest at the lowest point. This effectively prevents dirt particles from the collection tank from flowing back into the swimming pool. Another effect of the pivotable guide fork is that during the guide movement the bottom area is guided parallel to the pool floor and tilting movements are avoided. The cleaning effect can thus be increased.

A robust connection between the guide fork and the housing is achieved if the housing and the guide fork are pivotably connected to one another via two pivot bearings spaced apart from one another, wherein each pivot bearing has a bearing journal and a bearing bore rotatably accommodating the bearing journal, wherein in particular at least one bearing journal is formed by the housing and at least one bearing bore is formed by the guide fork. In order to enable stable guidance of the swimming pool vacuum cleaner, it is advantageous if the two pivot bearings are arranged on side walls of the housing facing away from one another, wherein the distance between the two pivot bearings preferably corresponds at least to the—in particular largest—diameter of the, for example, circular inlet opening.

In one embodiment variant of the invention, it is provided that the guide fork has a defined pivoting range, wherein at least one end position of the pivoting range is defined by at least one stop, preferably arranged on the housing, for a projection corresponding to this stop.

One embodiment according to the invention provides that at least one preferably pin-like projection is formed by the guide fork and at least one stop is formed by the housing. Alternatively or additionally, it can be provided that at least one preferably pin-like projection is formed by the housing and at least one stop is formed by the guide fork.

In an embodiment of the invention that is simple to manufacture, it is provided that at least one stop is formed by a guide rail, wherein the projection is guided in or on the guide rail. The guide rail can be formed, for example, by an integrally formed strip.

To avoid uncontrolled pivoting movements, it is advantageous if the pivoting range is about 60° to 120°±10°, preferably 90°±10°.

Preferably, the housing has at least one bearing journal and the guide fork has at least one bearing bore, wherein the guide fork is arranged with the bearing bore on the bearing journal so as to be rotatable about the latter. This enables secure fastening of the guide fork to the housing and simple assembly.

In one embodiment variant of the invention, it is provided that the rod receptacle has a preferably cylindrical journal for accommodating a tubular guide rod. In particular, it is provided within the scope of the invention that the journal has at least one bore extending transversely to the longitudinal axis of the rod receptacle for accommodating an elastic latching element. This enables simple and safe assembly and disassembly of the guide rod on the guide fork.

Preferably, it is provided that the rod receptacle is operationally arranged in the area of the outlet side of the housing.

The guide fork and/or the housing can be made of plastic, for example.

The invention is explained in more detail below with reference to the non-limiting exemplary embodiment shown in the figures, wherein:

FIG. 1 shows an axonometric view of a swimming pool vacuum cleaner according to the invention;

FIG. 2 shows the swimming pool vacuum cleaner in a plan view;

FIG. 3 shows the swimming pool vacuum cleaner in a bottom view;

FIG. 4 shows the swimming pool vacuum cleaner in a front view;

FIG. 5 shows the swimming pool vacuum cleaner in a side view;

FIG. 6 shows a bottom view of the housing of the swimming pool vacuum cleaner;

FIG. 7 shows the housing of the swimming pool vacuum cleaner in a top view;

FIG. 8 shows the housing of the swimming pool vacuum cleaner in an outlet-side view;

FIG. 9 shows the housing of the swimming pool vacuum cleaner in a side view;

FIG. 10 shows the housing of the swimming pool vacuum cleaner in an axonometric view;

FIG. 11 shows the housing of the swimming pool vacuum cleaner in a further axonometric view;

FIG. 12 shows a guide fork of the swimming pool vacuum cleaner in an axonometric view;

FIG. 13 shows the guide fork of the swimming pool vacuum cleaner in another axonometric view;

FIG. 14 shows the guide fork of the swimming pool vacuum cleaner in a side view; and

FIG. 15 shows the guide fork of the swimming pool vacuum cleaner in another axonometric view.

The swimming pool vacuum cleaner 1 shown in FIGS. 1 to 5 has a main body 2 having a housing 3, a cover part 4 and a suction mouth part 5. An electric motor, which is not shown in closer detail, and an impeller 6 driven by the electric motor, which is designed as an axial impeller, are arranged inside the housing 3 (FIG. 3). The electric motor is powered, for example, by a rechargeable battery not shown further, which is arranged in a sealed space of the housing 2 below the cover part 5. The impeller axis oriented normal to a contact surface during operation is designated with reference sign 6a. The contact surface is formed, for example, by a swimming pool floor.

The housing 2 has a bottom area 7 with an inlet opening 8 and an outlet side 9 with a lateral outlet opening 10. The impeller 6 is arranged immediately downstream of the inlet opening 8 in the housing 2 to achieve a high cleaning effect. The cross-sectional area 10a of the outlet opening 10 is formed transversely, for example approximately normal to the cross-sectional area 8a of the inlet opening 8 (see FIG. 9). In the embodiment shown in FIG. 1 to FIG. 5, a plate-shaped suction mouth part 11 is arranged below the inlet opening 8, wherein the suction mouth part 5 has contact elements 11 formed by brushes, for example, which define a contact plane 11a of the swimming pool vacuum cleaner 1.

The impeller 6 draws in water through the suction mouth part 11 and the inlet opening 8 of the housing 2 and conveys it according to the arrows P to the lateral outlet opening 10 (FIG. 1 and FIG. 5). The lateral outlet opening 10 has a collection container receptacle 12 which is formed, for example, by a raised circumferential rim, bead or flange for a collection container not shown further, which can be formed, for example, by a filter bag. The lateral outlet opening 10 with the flow outlet axis 10b formed perpendicular to the impeller axis 6a has the advantage that the contaminants remain in the collection container when the electric motor is switched off and it is more difficult for them to seep back into the swimming pool.

The swimming pool vacuum cleaner 1 can be guided along the bottom of the swimming pool by means of a guide rod 13 indicated by dashed lines in FIG. 1. The guide rod 13 is firmly connected to the swimming pool vacuum cleaner 1 via a guide fork 14. The guide fork 14 has two fork arms 14a, 14b, wherein each fork arm 14a, 14b is connected to the housing 3 via a respective pivot bearing 15 so as to be pivotable about a pivot axis 15a. The pivot axis 15a is arranged as close as possible to the contact plane 11a. In the exemplary embodiment, the distance between the pivot axis 15a and the contact plane 11a, denoted by h, is less than half the diameter D of the inlet opening 8. This enables simple guidance of the swimming pool vacuum cleaner 1 along the contact surface formed by the bottom of the swimming pool. This allows for easy guidance of the swimming pool vacuum cleaner 1 along the contact surface formed by the bottom of the swimming pool. The pivot bearings 15 each consist of a bearing bore 16 and a bearing journal 17, which is pivotally disposed in the bearing bore 16. For example, the bearing bores 16 are formed by the guide fork 14 and the bearing pins 17 are formed by the housing 3. The pivot bearings 15 have a defined pivoting range 13 between two end positions of, for example, 60° to 120°±10°, in particular 90°±10° (FIG. 9).

The end positions are defined in each case by two interacting elements, for example a pin-like projection 18, which interacts with stops A, B. In the exemplary embodiment, the stops are formed by a guide rail 19 in or along which the projection 18 is guided. The guide rail 19 is formed, for example, by an integrally formed strip of a guide rail 19 which is formed, for example, by an integrally formed strip. The guide rail 19 is substantially formed as a circular arc segment around the pivot axis 15a. A first end position is defined by a first stop A and a second end position by a second stop B of the guide rail 19. In the exemplary embodiment, the stops A, B are formed as radial deflections in the end regions of the guide rail 19. The pin-like projection 18 is formed by the guide fork 14 (FIG. 12 to FIG. 15) and the guide rail 19 by the housing 3 (FIG. 9, FIG. 11) in the illustrated exemplary embodiment.

At an end facing away from the bearing bores 16 of the pivot bearings 15, the guide fork 14 has, for example, a cylindrical pin-like rod receptacle 20 for the tubular guide rod 13. The, for example, pin-like rod receptacle 20 has at least one recess 21 extending transversely to the longitudinal axis 20a of the rod receptacle 20 for accommodating an elastic latching element 22.

The main body 2 contains all elements of the swimming pool vacuum cleaner 1 with the exception of the guide fork 14 required for manual guidance and the guide rod 13 which can be attached to it. The swimming pool vacuum cleaner 1 thus consists of the main body 2 and the guide fork 13.

As shown in particular in FIG. 2 and FIG. 7, the pivot axis 15a is spaced from a center of mass S of the main body 2 of the swimming pool vacuum cleaner 1—as seen in plan view—with the center of mass S of the main body 2 being considered without guide rod 13 and without guide fork 13. The distance between the pivot axis S and the center of mass S is denoted by reference sign a. In detail, the center of mass S—as viewed in plan view—is located between the pivot axis 15a and the outlet opening 10. The center of mass S is thus located on a side facing the outlet opening 10 of a first plateau ε of the swimming pool vacuum cleaner 1 containing the pivot axis 15a.

In other words, the first plateau ε of the swimming pool vacuum cleaner 1 is distant from a second plateau η extending through the center of mass S and parallel to the first plateau ε by the distance a. The first plateau ε and the second plateau η are thereby arranged perpendicular to the cross-sectional area 8a of the inlet opening 8 (FIG. 5, FIG. 6, FIG. 7, FIG. 9).

Because the center of mass S of the main body 2 of the swimming pool vacuum cleaner 1 is arranged between the plateau ε extending through the pivot axis 15a and the outlet opening 10, there is a tilting movement of the main body 2 of the swimming pool vacuum cleaner 1 about the pivot axis 15a as soon as the swimming pool vacuum cleaner 1 is lifted from the contact surface G formed by the floor of the swimming pool. In the process, the outlet opening 10—together with the collection container attached to it—tilts downward, as indicated by the arrow K in FIG. 1. The tilting movement causes the outlet opening 10 to move downward and the container opening—not shown further—of the collection container connected to the outlet opening 10 is thus directed upward, reliably preventing dirt particles from falling out of or seeping back into the swimming pool from the collection container.

A particularly stable connection between the guide fork 14 and the housing 3 can be achieved if the pivot bearings 15 are arranged as far apart as possible. The two pivot bearings 15 are therefore arranged on two sides 3a, 3b of the housing 3 facing away from each other in the illustrated exemplary embodiment. The distance b between the two pivot bearings 15 corresponds at least to the diameter D of the, in particular, circular inlet opening 8 (FIG. 6). The two arms 14a, 14b of the guide fork 14 thus enclose the housing 3 in the area of the inlet opening 8. This allows safe and precise lateral guidance of the swimming pool vacuum cleaner 1 by the guide rod 13.

Claims

1. Hand-guided swimming pool vacuum cleaner comprising: a main body having a housing with an impeller configured and arranged to be driven by an electric motor,an inlet opening in a bottom region of the housing;an outlet opening on an outlet side of the housing;a collecting container receptacle configured to accommodate a collecting container is arranged in the region of the outlet opening;a rod receptacle configured to releasably connect to a guide rod is arranged in the region of the outlet side, anda guide fork pivotably connected to the housing about a pivot axis, where the rod receptacle is arranged on the guide fork, and wherein—as viewed in plan view—the pivot axis is arranged at a distance from a center of mass of the main body, wherein the center of mass is arranged between the pivot axis and the outlet opening.

2. The swimming pool vacuum cleaner of claim 1, characterized in that the housing and the guide fork are pivotably connected to one another via two pivot bearings spaced apart from one another, wherein each of the two pivot bearings includes a bearing journal and a bearing bore rotatably accommodating the bearing journal.

3. The swimming pool vacuum cleaner of claim 2, characterized in that the two pivot bearings are arranged on side walls of the housing facing away from one another.

4. The swimming pool vacuum cleaner of claim 1, characterized in that the guide fork has a defined pivoting range, wherein at least one end position of the pivoting range is defined by at least one stop for a corresponding projection.

5. The swimming pool vacuum cleaner of claim 4, characterized in that the corresponding projection is formed by the guide fork and the at least one stop is formed by the housing.

6. The swimming pool vacuum cleaner of claim 4, characterized in that the corresponding projection is formed by the housing and the at least one stop is formed by the guide fork.

7. The swimming pool vacuum cleaner of claim 4, characterized in that the at least one stop (A, B) is formed by a guide rail, wherein the corresponding projection is configured and arranged to be guided in or on the guide rail.

8. The swimming pool vacuum cleaner of claim 4, characterized in that the pivoting range about 60° to 120°±10°.

9. The swimming pool vacuum cleaner of claim 1, wherein the rod receptacle includes a cylindrical pin configured and arranged for accommodating the guide rod, and wherein the guide rod is tubular.

10. The swimming pool vacuum cleaner of claim 1, characterized in that the rod receptacle has at least one recess extending transversely to a longitudinal axis of the rod receptacle, the at least one recess configured and arranged for accommodating an elastic latching element.

11. The swimming pool vacuum cleaner of claim 1, characterized in that the rod receptacle is arranged operationally in the region of the outlet side of the housing.

12. The swimming pool vacuum cleaner according to claim 1, characterized in that the guide fork and/or the housing are made of plastic.

13. The swimming pool vacuum cleaner of claim 2, wherein at least one bearing journal of the two pivot bearings is formed by the housing and at least one bearing bore of the two pivot bearings is formed by the guide fork.

14. The swimming pool vacuum cleaner of claim 3, wherein the distance between the two pivot bearings corresponds at least the diameter of the inlet opening.

15. The swimming pool vacuum cleaner of claim 5, characterized in that the corresponding projection is pin-like.

16. The swimming pool vacuum cleaner of claim 6, characterized in that the corresponding projection is pin-like.

17. The swimming pool vacuum cleaner of claim 4, characterized in that the pivoting range is 90°±10°.