Patent Application
20050257340
Wet/dry vacuums are commonly used for various cleaning purposes, including cleaning both solid and liquid debris. In general, the wet/dry vacuums utilize a canister into which both solid and liquid debris are drawn. Typically, a plug is found at the bottom of the canister, which can pulled when it is desired to empty the contents of the canister. However, it is often desirable to be able to empty the canister at a level above the bottom of the canister. Accordingly, a wet/dry vacuum that overcomes these deficiencies is needed.
The invention may be better understood with reference to the following figures and detailed description. The components in the figures are not necessarily to scale, emphasis being placed upon illustrating the principles of the invention.
By way of introduction, the preferred embodiments described below include a wet/dry vacuum and a method of utilizing the wet/dry vacuum. The wet/dry vacuum preferably includes a base, a handle coupled with the base, a lid coupled with the handle, and a container that is removable from the base. The phrase “coupled with,” as used herein, means coupled either directly or indirectly via one or more intervening elements. In operation, the container is placed on the base. As the handle is rotated towards the rear of the base, the handle secures the container to the base by lowering the lid onto the container. In addition, the wet/dry vacuum is designed so that it utilizes a conventional bucket, which preferably is a five gallon bucket.
In the preferred embodiment of the invention, the wet/dry vacuum 8 is constructed to be operated with a five gallon bucket to be used as the container 16. The container 16 is preferably formed from PVC. The container 16 can also be formed from alternative plastics or other lightweight materials. A five gallon PVC bucket is the preferred container because of its versatility, durability, and disposability. Five gallon PVC buckets are commonly found (especially on construction worksites and around many homes), they are inexpensive, and they can also be purchased at a wide variety of hardware stores. Other advantages of five gallon PVC buckets are that they are sealable and also recyclable. Alternatively, the wet/dry vacuum 8 can be constructed so that it can be operated with various sizes of PVC buckets other than the preferred size of five gallons. As will be explained, the operation for sealing the vacuum to the bucket may allow for different size buckets to be used with the same vacuum.
Also in the preferred embodiment, a plurality of wheels are coupled to the lower surface 22 of the support plate 18, which allow the wet/dry vacuum 8 to be easily moved. Preferably, two domed rear caster wheels 30 are coupled at opposite sides to the lower surface 22 of the support plate 18 at the back of the support plate 18. The rear caster wheels 30 are preferably formed from rubber, but can also be formed from alternate materials such as plastic or metal. The domed feature of the rear caster wheels 30 helps prevent the rubber of the wheels from scuffing any surfaces that the wheels may come in contact with, such as walls, sideboards, etc., thus making the wet/dry vacuum 8 home friendly. Also coupled to the lower surface 22 of the support plate 18 at the plate's front end is a front wheel 32. Preferably, the front wheel 32 is located in the middle of the support plate 18, and is formed from a ball and socket construction, which enables the wet/dry vacuum 8 to easily change direction as it is being moved.
A handle 12 is coupled with the upper portion 72 of the base 10. Preferably, the handle 12 is attached to the upper end of both of the two sides 52 of the rear support member 28 of the base 10. Preferably, the handle 12 is rotatably coupled with each side 52 of the rear support member 28 with a pivot 34 that allows the handle 12 to have rotational motion relative to the base 10. The handle 12 is preferably comprised of a grip portion 38 and two supports 40. The grip portion 38 is coupled at each of its ends to either one of the supports 40. In the preferred embodiment, the grip portion 38 is formed with an overmold construction, which provides a secure grip and also adds an aesthetic feature to the handle 12 of the wet/dry vacuum 8. Preferably, the upper portion of each support 40 is coupled with the grip portion 38, and the lower portion of each support 40 is coupled with the base 10. In addition, the two supports 40 may also be coupled with each other via a support bar 42 located in between the two members. The handle 12 is preferably formed from plastic.
A lid 14 is coupled with the handle 12 so that rotation of the handle 12 simultaneously moves the positioning of the lid 14 relative to the base 10. Preferably, the lid 14 is rotatably coupled with the support bar 42 of the handle 12 with a pivot 44. The pivot 44 also operates as a cam locking mechanism to assist in securing the lid 14 to the bucket 16. Alternatively, a secondary latch or locking mechanism 80 placed on the lid 14 could be used to secure the lid 14 to the bucket 16, either as a substitute for the cam located in the pivot 44 or as an additional means of securing the lid 14 to the bucket 16. The lid 14 preferably also has a lip 54 that allows the lid 14 to engage the bucket 16, for example by way of locking or snapping into place on the bucket 16. However, because a vacuum is created, the lip 54 is not necessary to secure the lid 14 to the bucket 16. In the preferred embodiment, the lid 14 is comprised of a housing 46 for a vacuum motor (not shown) and an attachment 48 for a hose that is coupled with the housing 46. A sealing gasket 50 is preferably attached around the bottom of the motor housing 46. The gasket 50 provides a tight seal with the container 16 when the lid 14 is lowered onto the container 16 for operation of the wet/dry vacuum 8. The gasket 50 can be manufactured from a variety of materials that are able to form a seal between the lid 14 and the container 16. In the preferred embodiment, the gasket 50 is manufactured from foam rubber.
Different size buckets may be used with a single vacuum by making certain modifications to the vacuum. Specifically, by allowing a wide range of rotational motion of the handle 12 on the pivots 34, buckets of different heights may accommodated between the lid 14 and the base 16. As shown in
As another alternative manner in which to utilize different sized buckets with the same vacuum, the gasket 50 can be formed around the interior of a tapered truncated cone 60, as shown in
Alternatively, the truncated cone 60 shown in
Various embodiments of the invention have been described and illustrated. However, the description and illustrations are by way of example only. Many more embodiments and implementations are possible within the scope of this invention and will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art. Therefore, the invention is not limited to the specific details, representative embodiments, and illustrated examples in this description. Accordingly, the invention is not to be restricted except in light necessitated by the accompanying claims and their equivalents.
