Abstract: A vacuum cleaner having a nozzle, a handle pivotally attached to the nozzle, and a suction motor that has an inlet, and is adapted to generate a working air flow through the nozzle. The vacuum includes a separation system having an outer wall and a closed tube having at least a portion of its length located within the wall, and forming a separation chamber between the wall and the closed tube. The separation chamber has an inlet, in communication with the nozzle, that is adapted to impart a tangential component to the air flow as it flows through the separation chamber. A hollow tube is generally coaxially aligned with the closed tube and has a tube inlet at an end adjacent the closed tube and a tube outlet at an end opposite the closed tube. The tube outlet is in fluid communication with the suction motor inlet.

Abstract: An upright vacuum cleaner having a nozzle adapted to be traversed on a surface to be cleaned, and having an internal passage defined by a nozzle inlet positioned to be substantially adjacent the surface to be cleaned and a nozzle outlet remote from the nozzle inlet. A handle is pivotally attached to the nozzle, and a suction motor is provided in the nozzle or the handle. The suction motor has a suction motor inlet, and is adapted to generate a working air flow through the nozzle and into the suction motor inlet.