UPRIGHT VACUUM CLEANER

Abstract

The present invention relates to the field of vacuum cleaners for cleaning carpets and other floor surfaces. The invention particularly relates to upright cleaners which have a cleaning head portion and an upstanding handle portion which typically carries a collection device for collecting detritus lifted by a vacuum induced airflow. The present invention provides an upright vacuum cleaner, the cleaning head portion being provided with wheel means which allow the cleaner to be moved over a floor surface, wherein the wheel means comprises first and second laterally spaced apart rear wheels and a castor wheel that is located at a position forward of the rear wheels and preferably aft of the roller brush. The castor wheel is preferably located in a domed recess in an underside of the cleaning head.

Description

The present invention relates to the field of vacuum cleaners for cleaning carpets and other floor surfaces.

The invention particularly relates to upright cleaners which have a cleaning head portion and an upstanding handle portion which typically carries a collection device, such as a filter bag, for collecting detritus lifted by a vacuum induced airflow. The handle portion typically has a lower region pivotally connected to the cleaning head portion so as to permit push-pulling of the cleaning head portion over a floor surface by user-manipulation of a grip provided at an upper region of the handle portion.

Such cleaners may be distinguished from wand and bin type cleaners in which a tubular wand is used to lift and convey detritus from a floor surface. The wand is connected by a flexible tube to a wheeled bin or drum portion which contains a collection bag or receptacle.

It is well known to provide upright cleaners with wheels or rollers which permit the cleaner to be moved over a floor surface during cleaning. The typical arrangement uses two spaced apart rear wheels and two spaced apart front wheels, as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,255,410. One problem with this layout is that the cleaning width may be restricted by the presence of the front wheels, as these limit the length of the brush roller when they are located at either end of the brush roller. Another problem arises when the cleaning head is manoeuvred, as it is necessary to slide the wheels when turning left or right, as the wheels are not steerable. This can be awkward when the cleaner is bulky or the operator is fatigued.

GB-A-1127570 (18 Sep. 1968) discloses a push-along sweeper with a rotary brush driven by two centrally disposed wheels. The device has front and rear castor wheels which project from leading and trailing edges respectively of the sweeper housing edge.

JP-A-10179483 discloses an industrial cleaning trolley which is intended to be pushed by a forklift truck. The trolley is equipped with two rotary cleaning brushes (having a vertical axis of rotation). The trolley has two spaced apart rear wheels and a front castor wheel which projects forward on a bracket. The device is provided with a sound generator to provide a warning signal or melody. US2004/0045121A1 (published 11 Mar. 2004) discloses a vacuum cleaner of a type having a tubular cleaning wand and a wheeled housing which may be trailed behind the wand, and which is not therefore an upright cleaner. The housing is provided with two rear wheels and a pair of castors located on a front underside region of the housing. The castors are each provided with a slip-prevention protrusion which renders the housing stable on stairs.

It is an object of the present invention to provide wheeled support for an upright vacuum cleaner which provides improved mobility in use.

According to the present invention there is provided an upright vacuum cleaner, typically comprising a vacuum motor, a cleaning head portion which includes a brush roller and an upright handle portion which includes a collector for vacuumed detritus, the cleaning head portion being provided with wheel means which allow the cleaner to be moved over a floor surface, wherein the wheel means comprises first and second laterally spaced apart rear wheels and a castor wheel. The castor wheel may be located at a position forward of the rear wheels and, preferably, aft of the roller brush.

The castor allows the cleaning head to be turned left or right without needing to slide front wheels or rollers. Rather, the castor follows the movement by swivelling and rolling. This reduces the effort for the user to turn the cleaner, which makes a small convenience difference which may nevertheless become significant over extended cleaning periods.

The location of the castor behind the roller brush means that the brush can clean close to extraneous edges, such as skirting boards or furniture, unhindered by the presence of wheels or rollers adjacent, in front or coaxial with the brush. This provides an improved edge cleaning effect as compared to cleaners whose brushes cannot approach edges as closely.

The vacuum motor is preferably located in the handle portion, but can alternatively be located in the cleaning head.

As is conventional for upright cleaners, the handle portion has a lower region pivotally connected to the cleaning head portion so as to permit pivoted rocking of the handle portion forward and backwards. This allows the user to push-pull the cleaning head portion over a floor surface by manipulation of a grip provided at an upper region of the handle portion.

The brush roller is preferably electric motor-driven. In one embodiment the brush roller has a transverse axis of rotation and is disposed above an elongate transverse sweeping aperture formed in a front underside region of the work head.

The castor preferably depends from an underside of the cleaning head. In one preferred embodiment the castor is accommodated in a domed recess provided in an underside of the cleaning head. This allows a large enough castor wheel diameter to be used to roll over floor features such as room threshold bars and rug edges and the like, because the castor wheel upper region can be accommodated in the dome.

The castor is preferably located equidistant from each of the rear wheels. In other words the castor is at the apex of a notional horizontal isosceles triangle. In this way the weight of the cleaner can be stably shared between the castor and the rear wheels.

The castor is generally centrally located between rear and front ends of an underside of the cleaning head. This helps make the cleaner easy to turn.

In a preferred embodiment there is only one castor wheel. There are typically only two rear wheels. Thus the entire weight of the cleaner is supported by these three wheels.

Following is a description by way of example only and with reference to the drawings of one mode for putting the present invention into effect.

In the drawings:—

FIG. 1 is a perspective three quarter view of an upright vacuum cleaner according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an underside view of the vacuum cleaner of FIG. 1.

In FIG. 1 an upright cleaner is shown generally as 10. The cleaner has a cleaning head portion 11 which sits on a floor surface. A front end region of the cleaning head is formed with a hemi-cylindrical housing 12 for a horizontal brush roller 13 (visible in FIG. 2). A rear end region of the cleaning head is provided with two wheels 14 (one visible in FIG. 1). These wheels each have a horizontal axis of rotation about an associated axle (not visible) and each wheel is thus capable of rotating independently.

An upright handle portion 15 of the vacuum cleaner is mounted to an upper rear region of the cleaning head by a latchable pivot, as is known in the art. This allows the handle portion to be locked vertical for storage, but released to incline for cleaning use.

The handle portion includes a lower vacuum motor housing section 16 and an upper vacuum bag collector housing 17. The top of the housing is formed with a grip 18 as shown in FIG. 1. A secondary handle 19 may also be provided for a cleaning wand (not visible) attached to a flexible vacuum tube 20.

In FIG. 2 an underside 22 of the cleaning head is shown. There are two rear wheels 14 and a generally central, recessed dome 23 formed in the underside forward of the rear wheels, and behind an elongate transverse aperture 24 for the brush roller 13. A castor vertical stub axle (not visible) is push-fitted into a corresponding vertical bore at the apex of the dome. A castor wheel 25 is therefore free to swing 360 degrees around the dome.

In use, the castor wheel makes the cleaner easily steerable and manoeuvrable. The cleaning head may turn left and right without having to slide front wheels or rollers. The castor does not obscure the roller aperture 24, so roller cleaning is possible right up to the front and side edges of the roller housing 12.

Thus, the present invention relates to the field of vacuum cleaners for cleaning carpets and other floor surfaces. The invention particularly relates to upright cleaners which have a cleaning head portion and an upstanding handle portion which typically carries a collection device for collecting detritus lifted by a vacuum induced airflow. The present invention provides an upright vacuum cleaner, the cleaning head portion being provided with wheel means which allow the cleaner to be moved over a floor surface, wherein the wheel means comprises first and second laterally spaced apart rear wheels and a castor wheel that is located at a position forward of the rear wheels and preferably aft of the roller brush. The castor wheel is preferably located in a domed recess in an underside of the cleaning head.

Claims

1. An upright vacuum cleaner comprising a cleaning head portion which includes a brush roller and an upright handle portion which includes a collector for vacuumed detritus, the cleaning head portion being provided with wheel means which allow the cleaner to be moved over a floor surface, wherein the wheel means comprises first and second laterally spaced apart rear wheels and a castor wheel that is located at a position forward of the rear wheels and aft of the brush roller.

2. An upright cleaner as claimed in claim 1 wherein the handle portion has a lower region pivotally connected to the cleaning head portion so as to permit directed pushing of the cleaning head portion over a floor surface by user-manipulation of a grip provided at an upper region of the handle portion.

3. An upright cleaner as claimed in claim 1 wherein the brush roller has a transverse axis of rotation and is disposed above an elongate transverse sweeping aperture formed in a front underside region of the work head.

4. An upright vacuum cleaner as claimed in claim 1 wherein the castor wheel depends from an underside of the cleaning head.

5. An upright cleaner as claimed in claim 1 wherein the castor wheel is accommodated in a domed recess provided in an underside of the cleaning head.

6. An upright cleaner as claimed in claim 1 wherein the castor wheel is located equidistant from each of the rear wheels.

7. An upright cleaner as claimed in claim 1 wherein the castor is generally centrally located between rear and front ends of an underside of the cleaning head.

8. An upright vacuum cleaner as claimed in claim 1 wherein the castor wheel depends from an underside of the cleaning head and is accommodated in a domed recess therein.

9. An upright vacuum cleaner comprising a cleaning head portion which includes a brush roller and an upright handle portion which includes a collector for vacuumed detritus, the cleaning head portion being provided with wheel means which allow the cleaner to be moved over a floor surface, wherein the wheel means comprises first and second laterally spaced apart rear wheels and a castor wheel that is located at a position forward of the rear wheels and aft of the brush roller,

wherein the handle portion has a lower region pivotally connected to the cleaning head portion so as to permit directed pushing of the cleaning head portion over a floor surface by user-manipulation of a grip provided at an upper region of the handle portion, and

wherein the brush roller has a transverse axis of rotation and is disposed above an elongate transverse sweeping aperture formed in a front underside region of the work head.

10. An upright vacuum cleaner as claimed in claim 9 wherein the castor wheel depends from an underside of the cleaning head.

11. An upright cleaner as claimed in claim 9 wherein the castor wheel is accommodated in a domed recess provided in an underside of the cleaning head.

12. An upright cleaner as claimed in claim 9 wherein the castor wheel is located equidistant from each of the rear wheels.

13. An upright cleaner as claimed in claim 9 wherein the castor is generally centrally located between rear and front ends of an underside of the cleaning head.

14. An upright vacuum cleaner as claimed in claim 9 wherein the castor wheel depends from an underside of the cleaning head and is accommodated in a domed recess therein.