The present application relates to a hand-held appliance comprising a housing including a reservoir to contain water and a tube to convey water from the reservoir for delivery to a surface. The tube extends into the reservoir and comprises multiple tube inlets spaced from each other within the reservoir so that, when the reservoir contains water, a tube inlet is submerged irrespective of the orientation of the housing. In one embodiment, the tube inlet comprises a separate valve assembly associated with each tube inlet so that a valve assembly associated with a submerged tube inlet opens to allow flow of water through that tube inlet and a valve assembly associated with a non-submerged tube inlet closes to prevent the flow of air through said non-submerged tube inlet. In an alternate embodiment, the appliance may be provided with a single valve member that allows water to flow through the valve assembly via a first opening, whilst also preventing the flow of air through the valve assembly through a second opening.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a hand-held appliance in which a water reservoir is mounted within a housing that is held in the hand and which has an outlet or nozzle to discharge fluid or steam onto a surface, such as a garment, a fabric article such as a curtain or fabric covered items of furniture. The hand-held appliance of the invention may also be used to clean solid surfaces such as floors or counter tops by the application of steam and/or fluid to the surface.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

A conventional hand-held garment steamer1is illustrated inFIG. 1, and comprises a housing2containing a water tank or reservoir3and a heating chamber4. Water is delivered from the reservoir3to the heating chamber4via a delivery system comprising a pump5and a tube6that has a portion7which extends into the reservoir3and which has an inlet8at its free end for the flow of water into the portion7of the tube6and along the tube6into the heating chamber4. Water delivered to the heating chamber4is converted into steam for delivery to the surface being steamed through an outlet9. InFIG. 1, the housing2is orientated in its intended position of use so that steam is ejected through the outlet9in a substantially horizontal direction, as indicated by arrow A.

The portion7of the tube6extends into the reservoir3such that the inlet8is positioned at the lowest point in the reservoir3when the hand-held steamer is held in its intended orientation during use so that substantially all the water in the reservoir3will be drawn into the heating chamber4, i.e. in the vertical orientation shown inFIG. 1, in which steam exits the outlet9substantially horizontally. However, it is also desirable to be able to use the hand-held steamer1in other orientations such as when steaming garments or fabric articles placed on an ironing board or when steaming fabric covered items of furniture. In these circumstances, the hand-held steamer1will be held in a non-vertical orientation and may even be held horizontally so that steam is exits the housing through the outlet9in a substantially vertical direction. However, when a conventional hand-held steamer is held in this way, the inlet8will not always be submerged in water in the reservoir3, especially when the reservoir3is only partially full. This results in air being drawn into the heating chamber4rather than water, preventing efficient steam generation.

The present invention seeks to provide a hand-held appliance that overcomes or substantially alleviates the problems with a conventional hand-held appliance, such as those identified above, and which maintains adequate delivery of fluid or steam to a surface irrespective of the orientation of the appliance.

Although reference is primarily made to a hand-held steamer for steaming garments or fabric articles, it will be appreciated that the appliance of the invention may be used for a variety of different purposes and may, for example, be used for cleaning solid surfaces such as floors or windows as well as steam ironing of fabric articles or garments. Furthermore, the appliance need not be capable of generating steam, in which case the fluid, such as water contained in the reservoir can be delivered directly onto a surface to be cleaned. However, it is preferable that the appliance is provided with a heating chamber so that water contained in the reservoir is delivered to the heating chamber to be turned into steam prior to delivery to a surface. It is also envisaged that the appliance may be provided with a switch that provides a user with the option to deliver liquid or steam to a surface. For example, it may be possible to use the appliance with the heating chamber switched off.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a hand-held appliance comprising a housing including a reservoir to contain water and a tube to convey water from the reservoir for delivery to a surface, wherein the tube has a portion that extends into the reservoir and comprises multiple inlets spaced from each other within the reservoir so that, when the reservoir contains water, an inlet is submerged irrespective of the orientation of the housing, the tube portion also comprising a separate valve assembly associated with each tube inlet so that a valve assembly associated with a submerged tube inlet opens to allow flow of water through that inlet and a valve assembly associated with a non-submerged tube inlet closes to prevent the flow of air through said non-submerged tube inlet.

As the tube portion contains multiple inlets, at least one tube inlet will always be in a submerged position irrespective of the orientation of the appliance. The hand-held appliance will therefore continue to emit fluid or steam consistently in whatever position or orientation it is held in. As the tube inlets which are located above the water line are closed by the valve which is associated with the non-submerged tube inlet, no air will be drawn into the heating chamber through that, or those, tube inlet(s).

Preferably, each valve assembly comprises a housing and a single valve member movable within the housing between a first position in which the inlet is open to allow water to flow past the valve into the inlet and a second position in which the inlet is closed to prevent the passage of air into the inlet.

The valve member may drop under its own weight into its first position and in a direction away from its associated inlet.

In a preferred embodiment, each valve assembly is removably mounted to an end of the tube over the inlet.

The aforementioned features provide a hand-held appliance in which an independent, but identical valve design is used for each tube inlet. As a separate valve assembly is removably attached to each end of the tube over an inlet, the assembly becomes more flexible and easier to manufacture and assemble. It also means that more than two inlets can be used without having to re-design the valve assembly, as a separate but identical valve assembly is simply provided for each inlet. The length of the tube portion within the reservoir is also irrelevant, as the valve assembly can be attached to the end of a tube of any length. It is therefore applicable to hand-held appliances having reservoirs of various different sizes and shapes. As each valve assembly may be removable, they can be replaced easily due to wear or malfunction without replacing the other valve assembly or assemblies.

In a preferred embodiment, the tube portion comprises a primary tube portion extending into the reservoir and a secondary tube portion attached to a free end of the primary tube portion at a junction, a separate valve assembly being mounted to each end of the secondary tube portion remote from said junction. The primary tube portion may extend into the reservoir so that its free end is positioned roughly at a central point within the reservoir. The secondary tube portion can then extend to opposite ends of the reservoir so that at least one inlet will always be submerged in any water in the reservoir irrespective of the orientation of the appliance.

The secondary tube portion may comprise two inlets and may be integrally formed with a connector for attachment to said free end of the primary tube portion to effect fluid communication between the secondary tube portion and the primary tube portion. The connector may comprise a connection piece integrally formed with the secondary tube portion for fluidly connecting the secondary tube portion to the free end of the primary tube portion. Ideally, the secondary tube portion may be a linear or straight section of tubing, and the connection piece can extend at right angles from the secondary tube portion at a point midway between each end of the secondary tube portion so that each tube inlet is positioned at approximately the same distance away from the free end of the primary tube portion. The connection piece may simply be a short, hollow length of tube that is a push fit into the free end of the primary tube portion so as to effect fluid communication between the primary tube portion and the secondary tube portion.

In an alternate embodiment, the secondary tube portion may be formed of a plurality of independent sections. In this case, each independent section may be attached to the free end of the primary tube portion via a connecting element to effect fluid communication between each independent section and the primary tube portion. The secondary tube portion may comprise two independent sections and so the connecting element may, for example, be T-shaped so that each end of the ‘T’ forms a connector that is a push fit within the end of each tube to be connected. If the connecting element is substantially T-shaped, each independent section may extend away from each other in opposite directions and the primary tube portion may extend substantially at right-angles to each independent section.

According to a second aspect of the invention, there is provided a hand-held appliance comprising a housing including a reservoir to contain water and a tube to convey water from the reservoir for delivery to a surface, wherein the tube has a portion that extends into the reservoir and comprises two inlets spaced from each other within the reservoir so that, when the reservoir contains water, at least one of said inlets is submerged irrespective of the orientation of the housing, the tube portion comprising a valve assembly having an outlet, first and second openings and a single valve member within said valve assembly that allows water to flow through the valve assembly via the first opening, whilst also preventing the flow of air through the valve assembly through the second opening, the valve member being configured such that it drops under its own weight into an alternate position in response to a change in the orientation of the appliance to allow water to flow through said second opening whilst preventing the flow of air through said first opening.

The appliance according to this aspect of the invention has a simple valve construction, as only one valve member is required to control flow through each of the first and second openings.

Preferably, the tube comprises a primary tube portion that extends into the reservoir so that a free end of said primary tube portion is in fluid communication with the outlet of the valve assembly, and a secondary tube portion extends from each of the first and second openings of the valve assembly, said tube portions being configured such that the valve member drops in a direction toward the opening from which a tube portion having the uppermost inlet extends, depending upon the orientation of the hand-held appliance, to prevent the flow of air through said opening from said secondary tube portion.

According to a third aspect of the invention, there is provided a hand-held appliance comprising a housing including a reservoir to contain water and a tube to convey water from the reservoir for delivery to a surface, wherein the tube has a portion that extends into the reservoir, said portion comprising a primary tube portion and a secondary tube portion connected to a free end of the primary tube portion, said secondary tube portion comprising an inlet at each end spaced from each other within the reservoir, and a valve element received within the secondary tube portion, said valve element being slideable under its own weight in response to a change in orientation of the valve element so that, depending upon the orientation of the steamer, an uppermost inlet is closed to prevent the flow of air into the secondary tube portion and the lowermost inlet is open to allow the flow of water into the secondary tube portion.

Preferably, the hand-held appliance according to any aspect of the invention includes a heating chamber and the tube is configured to convey water from the reservoir to the heating chamber to generate steam prior to delivery to a surface.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

Embodiments of the invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference toFIGS. 2 to 5of the accompanying drawings.

There is shown inFIGS. 2aand2ba partial view of a first embodiment of a hand-held appliance10that is capable of generating steam and which comprises a housing2and a reservoir3, similar to the conventional hand-held steamer1described with reference toFIG. 1above. However, the portion7of the tube6(seeFIG. 1) that extends into the reservoir3now has two tube inlets11,12which are positioned at opposite ends of the reservoir3. A valve assembly13,14is positioned at each inlet11,12. When the hand-held steamer10is positioned in the orientation shown inFIG. 2a, i.e. in the same orientation as the hand-held steamer1shown inFIG. 1, inlet11is lowest and will be submerged in any water contained in the reservoir3. The valve assembly13associated with the inlet11will then be in an open position to allow water to flow from the reservoir3into the portion7of the tube6, whereas the valve assembly14associated with the other inlet12, which is positioned above inlet11, will be closed to prevent air from entering the portion7of the tube6.

Each valve assembly13,14is attached to the portion7of the tube6over each inlet11,12. Each valve assembly13,14is preferably releasably attached to the portion7to enable independent removal and replacement of each valve assembly13,14, although it is envisaged that one or both valve assemblies13,14can be permanently attached to the portion7or otherwise formed integrally with it. Each valve assembly13,14contains a valve member in the form of a weighted body or ball15that drops due to gravity and does not float. As shown inFIG. 2a, both bodies15have dropped under gravity so that the body15of the valve assembly14associated with the upper inlet12is in contact with a valve seat16at the end of the portion7, thereby closing the upper inlet12and preventing the passage of air into the portion7. However, the body15of the valve assembly13associated with the lower inlet11is in a position in which it is distanced from its corresponding valve seat16, thereby allowing water to flow into the portion7past the body15. The body15is held in a cage17to constrain its movement and prevent it from falling out. The cage17has openings or passages therein to allow water to flow around the body15and into the inlet11when the body15is spaced from its valve seat16.

FIG. 2billustrates the same hand-held steamer10as shown inFIG. 2a, but in an orientation in which steam is directed out of the outlet9(seeFIG. 1) in the housing2onto the garment being steamed in a vertically downward direction. The housing2may be held in this orientation when, for example, a fabric article that has been placed on an ironing board or on a table or such like is being steamed or, when steaming an item of furniture. As can be appreciated fromFIG. 2b, in this orientation, inlet12is now positioned below inlet11and will be submerged in any water contained in the reservoir3whereas, depending on the amount of water in the reservoir3, inlet11will be above the water line. Therefore, valve assembly13associated with inlet11is closed to prevent the ingress of air whilst valve assembly14associated with inlet12is open to maintain a flow of water to the heating chamber4(seeFIG. 1).

As shown inFIGS. 2aand2b, the portion7of the tube6within the reservoir3may comprise a primary tube portion18that extends from a flow control valve19in the wall of the reservoir3, which is connected to a secondary tube portion20. The inlet11is at one end of the secondary tube portion20and the other inlet12is at the opposite end of the secondary tube portion20. The secondary tube portion20has an integral connector21positioned midway between the inlets11,12to fluidly connect it to a free end of the primary tube portion18. The secondary tube portion20may extend diagonally across the inside of the reservoir3so that, when the housing2is in the position shown inFIG. 2b, inlet12will be below inlet11. The primary tube portion18and/or the secondary tube portion20may be formed from rigid or flexible parts or a combination of both.

A modified version of the steamer10shown inFIGS. 2aand2bis shown inFIG. 3. In the embodiment ofFIG. 3, the secondary tube portion20is formed in two parts20a,20bfluidly connected together by a separate T-shaped connector22, which also fluidly connects the two parts20a,20bto the free end of the primary tube portion18. Each secondary tube portion20a,20bmay be formed from flexible or rigid tubing.

Although the embodiments ofFIGS. 2a,2bandFIG. 3each have a secondary tube portion20,20a,20bthat has two inlets, it will be appreciated that the secondary tube portion20a,20bcould also be provided with more than two inlets, each inlet being positioned in a different location within the reservoir3. Further inlets may be required depending upon the shape of the reservoir3and so as to ensure that at least one inlet will be submerged in any water remaining in the reservoir3irrespective of the orientation of the steamer.

Another embodiment will now be described, with reference toFIGS. 4aand4b. In this embodiment, the primary tube portion18is connected directly a single fluid flow control valve23which is located roughly centrally within the reservoir3. Secondary tube portions24a,24bare fluidly attached to, and extend in opposite directions from, the fluid flow control valve23. An inlet25,26is provided at the end of each secondary tube section24a,24b.In this embodiment, the fluid flow control valve23comprises a valve housing27containing a weighted body30which toggles between a first position at one end of the valve housing27, as shown inFIG. 4a, in which it sits against a first valve seat28to close the secondary tube portion24aand stop ingress of air into inlet25; and a second position, as shown inFIG. 4b, in which it sits against a second valve seat29at the opposite end of the valve housing27to close the secondary tube portion24band stop ingress of air into inlet26. The weighted body30moves between its first and second positions under gravity and in response to a change in the orientation of the housing2. When the housing2is in an orientation in which steam is emitted from the outlet9(seeFIG. 1) in a substantially horizontal direction as shown inFIG. 4a, the body30sits against valve seat28to close the secondary tube portion24aand, when the housing2is in an orientation in which steam is emitted from the outlet9in a substantially vertical direction as shown inFIG. 4b, the body30sits against valve seat29to close the secondary tube portion24b.As shown inFIG. 4b, the secondary tube portion24ais positioned so that the inlet25is lower than the inlet26at the end of the other secondary tube portion24bwhen the housing2is in the orientation shown inFIG. 4bso that the inlet25will always be submerged in any water contained in the reservoir3when the housing2is in this position.

A further embodiment is shown inFIGS. 5aand5b. In this embodiment, the portion7of the tube6has a secondary tube portion31connected to the free end of the primary tube portion18, as in the embodiment ofFIGS. 2aand2b. However, in this embodiment the valve assembly is formed by a rod32slideably received in the secondary tube portion31so that it protrudes from the inlets33,34at each end of the secondary tube portion31. An enlarged head35a,35bis provided at each end of the rod32and carries a sealing disc36a,36bthat faces its corresponding inlet end33,34of the secondary tube portion31.

When the housing2is in a position shown inFIG. 5a, in which the outlet9(seeFIG. 1) is positioned to eject steam in a substantially horizontal direction, the rod32slides downwardly under its own weight within the secondary tube portion31so that the sealing disc36aon the uppermost head35acontacts and seals against the inlet33preventing the flow of air into the secondary tube portion31. At the same time, the sealing disc36bon the lowermost head35bis spaced from its corresponding inlet34, thereby allowing any water in the reservoir3to pass into and along the secondary tube portion31via the annular passage defined by the rod32and the inner surface of the secondary tube portion31when the lowermost inlet34is submerged. When the housing2is orientated in the position shown inFIG. 5b, in which the outlet9is positioned so that steam is ejected in a substantially vertical direction, the rod32slides within the secondary tube portion31so that the sealing member36ais now spaced from the lowermost inlet33and the uppermost inlet34is closed by the other sealing member36b,thereby allowing any water in the reservoir3to flow into the secondary tube portion31via the annular passage defined by the rod32and the inner surface of the secondary tube portion31when the lowermost inlet33is submerged.

Although claims have been formulated in this application to particular combinations of features, it should be understood that the scope of the disclosure of the present invention also includes any novel features or any novel combinations of features disclosed herein either explicitly or implicitly or any generalisation thereof, whether or not it relates to the same invention as presently claimed in any claim and whether or not it mitigates any or all of the same technical problems as does the parent invention. The applicants hereby give notice that new claims may be formulated to such features and/or combinations of features during the prosecution of the present application or of any further application derived therefrom.