Wet/dry vacuum

Abstract

A wet/dry vacuum is disclosed. 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. 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.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

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.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

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.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a wet/dry vacuum of a preferred embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the operation of a wet/dry vacuum of a preferred embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a view of the underside of a lid modified with concentric lips and gaskets to accommodate different diameter buckets.

FIG. 4 is a view of the underside of another lid modified with a different size gasket to accommodate a variety of different diameter buckets.

FIG. 5 is a view of a truncated cone with a gasket formed in its interior that can also accommodate different diameter buckets.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a wet/dry vacuum with truncated cone with a gasket formed on its exterior that can accommodate different diameter buckets.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

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.

FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of a preferred embodiment of a wet/dry vacuum 8. The vacuum generally includes a base 10, a handle 12, a lid 14, and a container 16. The base 10 includes a lower portion 70 and an upper portion 72. In the preferred embodiment, the lower portion 70 comprises a support plate 18 with an upper surface 20 and a lower surface 22. The preferable shape of the support plate 18 is rounded, but alternate shapes such as square or rectangular may be utilized as well. The support plate 18 also has a front 24 and a back 26. In the preferred embodiment, the upper portion 72 comprises a rear support member 28 with two sides 52. In the preferred embodiment, the back of the support plate 18 is attached to the rear support member 28, preferably at the lower end of the rear support member 28. The support plate 18 and the rear support member 28 may either be formed integrally as shown or as separate pieces that are fastened together using bolts, clips, pins or other fasteners. The preferable shape of the rear support member 28 is rectangular, but alternate shapes such as square or circular may be utilized as well. The base 10 is preferably formed from plastic. The base 10 can also be formed from alternative materials such as ceramic, wood or metal. In operation of the wet/dry vacuum 8, a container 16 is inserted and placed on the base 10. The container 16 is likewise removable from the base 10 once operation of the wet/dry vacuum 8 is complete.

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.

FIG. 2 shows the operation of the wet/dry vacuum of a preferred embodiment. To operate the wet/dry vacuum 8, a container 16 needs to be inserted and placed on a base 16 of the wet/dry vacuum 8. In operation, the handle 12 and the lid 14 of the wet/dry vacuum 8 can be moved between two positions. In the first position 210, the handle 12 is positioned forward from the rear support member 28 of the base 10, whereas the lid 14 is positioned so that when the container 16 is inserted in the base 10, the lid 14 is located at a position above the container 16 and is also not in contact with the container 16. To place the handle 12 and the lid 14 in the second position, the handle 12 is rotated towards the rear of the base 10 until it is locks into place in its second position 220. As the handle 12 is rotated on the pivots 34, the lid 14 is simultaneously lowered over the container 16. When the handle 12 is locked into its second position 220, the lid 14 is lowered to the point where if is locked onto the container 16. The opening of the lid 14 along with the rubber gasket fits over the edge of the container 16 to affix the lid 14 to the container 16 (as shown in FIG. 1), which allows for the operation of the wet/dry vacuum 8.

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 FIG. 3, the lid 14 may also be modified by having a series of concentric lips 54′ that allow the lid 14 to engage different diameter buckets. Further, the gasket 50 may be provided in between each of the concentric lips 54′ on the underside of the lid 14 lid to provide effective sealing for the different size buckets. Of course, any number of concentric lips and gaskets can be used. As an alternative, since the lips 54′ are not necessary to secure the lid 14 to the bucket, a lid 14 having a larger gasket 50 (i.e., a greater difference between the inner 56 and outer 58 gasket diameters) on its underside, as shown in FIG. 4, will also allow for different diameter buckets to be used with the same vacuum. Again, different size gaskets can be used to accommodate a varying range of bucket diameters.

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 FIG. 5. The truncated cone 60 can be formed with the largest diameter at the bottom 62 of the cone 60, with the diameter of the cone 60 decreasing from the bottom 62 to the top 64 of the cone 60. In this embodiment, the gasket 50 is formed around the interior of the cone 60, so that when the lid 14 is lowered onto a bucket, the gasket 50 is able to effectively secure the lid 14 to the bucket. Furthermore, the tapering effect of the cone 60 will allow the gasket 50 to secure the lid 14 to buckets with varying diameters. Therefore, the size of the truncated cone 60 (i.e., the distance between the top 64 and the bottom 62 of the cone 60) can vary based on the range of bucket sizes that the vacuum can be utilized with.

Alternatively, the truncated cone 60 shown in FIG. 5 can be inverted in relation to the lid 14, as shown in FIG. 6, and still be utilized with different sized buckets. In this embodiment, the gasket 50 will be formed around the exterior of the truncated cone 60′. Further in this embodiment, the largest diameter of the cone 60′ is formed at the top 64′ of the cone 60′, with the diameter of the cone 60′ decreasing from the top 64′ to the bottom 62′ of the cone 60′. The tapering effect of the cone 60′, along with the gasket 50 formed on its exterior, will allow the gasket 50 to secure the lid 14 to buckets with varying diameters.

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.

Claims

1. A wet/dry vacuum comprising:

a base having an upper and a lower portion;

a handle pivotably mounted to said upper portion of said base, said handle being moveable between a first and second position;

a lid incorporating a vacuum motor housing, said lid being attached to said handle so that said lid moves to a first lid position when said handle is in said first position and to a second lid position when said handle is in said second position; and

a container detachably mounted to said base, wherein said container is removeable when said handle is in said first position and is secured when said handle is in said second position.

2. The wet/dry vacuum according to claim 1, wherein said container is a conventional five gallon construction bucket.

3. The wet/dry vacuum according to claim 2, wherein said container is manufactured from PVC.

4. The wet/dry vacuum according to claim 1, wherein said handle is an overmold handle.

5. The wet/dry vacuum according to claim 1 wherein a seal is coupled with an outer perimeter of said lid.

6. The wet/dry vacuum according to claim 5, wherein said seal is manufactured from foam rubber.

7. The wet/dry vacuum according to claim 1, wherein said lid further comprises a tapered truncated cone with an exterior surface capable of forming a seal with said container.

8. The wet/dry vacuum according to claim 1, wherein said lid further comprises a tapered truncated cone with an interior surface capable of forming a seal with said container.

9. The wet/dry vacuum according to claim 1, wherein a secondary locking mechanism is coupled with said lid to secure said lid with said container.

10. The wet/dry vacuum according to claim 1, wherein said vacuum unit comprises a motor and a hose coupled with said motor.

11. The wet/dry vacuum according to claim 1, wherein a pivot is utilized to couple said lid to said handle.

12. A method of operating a wet/dry vacuum, the method comprising:

(a) providing a vacuum unit, said vacuum unit comprising a base, a pivotable handle coupled with said base, and a lid coupled with said handle, wherein said lid houses a vacuum motor;

(b) inserting a container onto said base; and

(c) rotating said handle towards the rear of said unit, wherein the rotation of said handle lowers and secures said lid to said container.

13. The method according to claim 12, wherein said container is a conventional five gallon construction bucket.

14. The method according to claim 13, wherein said container is manufactured from PVC.

15. A wet/dry vacuum comprising:

a base having an upper and a lower portion;

a handle mounted to said upper portion of said base; and

a bucket releasably attached to said base.

16. The wet/dry vacuum according to claim 15, wherein said bucket is a construction site bucket.

17. The wet/dry vacuum according to claim 15, further comprising a lid attached to said handle, said lid having a seal and incorporating a vacuum motor housing.

18. The wet/dry vacuum according to claim 17, wherein said lid further comprises a tapered truncated cone with an interior capable of forming a seal with said container.

19. The wet/dry vacuum according to claim 17, wherein said lid further comprises a tapered truncated cone with an exterior capable of forming a seal with said container.

20. The wet/dry vacuum according to claim 17, wherein a secondary locking mechanism is coupled with said lid to secure said lid with said bucket.