Abstract:
An upright-type vacuum cleaner having an improved, foldable handle structure to reduce the amount of storage space required when the cleaner is not in use. The upright vacuum cleaner is provided with a handle that is hinged at a pivot point to enable the handle to rotate relative to the cleaner body. A locking unit locks and releases the handle in at least one user-desired position.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application claims the benefit of Korean Patent Application No. 2004-19856, filed Mar. 24, 2004, in the Korean Intellectual Property Office, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates generally to a vacuum cleaner and, more particularly, to an upright-type vacuum cleaner which has a foldable handle to reduce the amount of space needed for storage when the cleaner is not in use. 
     2. Description of the Background Art 
     General upright-type vacuum cleaners comprise a cleaner body having a vacuum generator and a dust collecting apparatus, a suction nozzle for collecting dust lying on a surface being cleaned, and a handle for a user to grip the cleaner body. The handle, provided for carriage of the cleaner body, may be further equipped with a controlling panel so as to be more convenient use. 
     However, since the upright-type vacuum cleaner is usually stowed in an upright manner, the handle protrudes to extend upwardly from the cleaner body. Therefore, it becomes possible for the handle to be broken or damaged by impact while the vacuum cleaner is in storage. Further, when the vacuum cleaner is not in use, excessive space is required due to the handle that extends obliquely away from the vacuum cleaner. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     An aspect of the present invention is to solve at least the above-mentioned problems and/or disadvantages and to provide at least the advantages described below. Accordingly, an aspect of the present invention is to provide an upright-type vacuum cleaner having an improved handle to reduce the required storage space and to prevent damage of the handle when the cleaner is not in use. 
     In order to achieve the above-described aspects of the present invention, there is provided an upright-type vacuum cleaner comprising a cleaner body, a handle hinged at a pivot point enabling the handle to rotate relative to the cleaner body, and a locking unit for fixing the handle at a desired position. 
     The cleaner body preferably comprises a handle receiving recess, in which the handle is received when it has been folded over, as described below. 
     The locking unit fixes the handle in either the extended or folded positions, respectively. The locking unit may be disposed on a hinge shaft for connecting the handle to the cleaner body. 
     The locking unit preferably comprises a locking mechanism, a holder for selectively receiving the locking mechanism and the guiding hinge movement of the handle, and at least one release button disposed adjacent the holder to depress the holder. Preferably, two release buttons are disposed opposite each other relative to the holder. 
     The holder comprises a locking groove corresponding to the locking mechanism such that the handle can selectively rotate about the hinge on the cleaner body. 
     The locking mechanism comprises a locking body, a guide boss formed in the center of the locking body, and a plurality of locking projections formed around the guide boss to extend into and retract from apertures in the handle. 
     The guide boss includes a resilient member disposed to contact the guide boss so that the locker body is resiliently supported thereby and is biased toward one inner side of the handle. 
     The holder comprises a locking groove corresponding to each locking projection so as to selectively receive the handle in the cleaner body. 
     The release button is disposed in a space formed between the holder and the cleaner body and is configured to depress the locking mechanism. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIGURES 
       The above aspect and other features of the present invention will become more apparent by achieving an understanding of the following detailed description of the exemplary embodiments thereof with reference to the attached drawing figures, wherein: 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of an upright-type vacuum cleaner having a foldable handle according to an embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 2  is a perspective, enlarged detail view of the connection of the foldable handle shown in  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 3  is an exploded, perspective detail view of the foldable handle according to an embodiment of the present invention; and 
         FIGS. 4 and 5  are perspective views illustrating the operation of a locking unit, in the different positions in which the handle is upright and folded down, respectively, in an upright-type vacuum cleaner according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawing figures. 
     In the following description, identical drawing reference numerals indicate the same or similar elements between the views of the different drawings. The matters set forth in the description below, such as the detailed construction, elements and method of operation, are exemplary only and are provided only to assist in a comprehensive understanding of the invention. Thus, it is apparent to those having ordinary skill that the present invention can be carried out without use of or reference to these exemplary specified embodiments. Also, well-known functions or constructions are not described in detail, since they would obscure the invention in unnecessary detail. 
       FIG. 1  is a perspective view of an upright-type vacuum cleaner having a foldable handle according to an embodiment of the present invention. The upright-type vacuum cleaner  100  comprises a cleaner body  110  including a suction nozzle  111  for drawing in dust from a surface being cleaned, the suction nozzle  111  being hingedly connected to one end of the cleaner body  110 , and a handle  120 , hingedly connected to the opposite end of the cleaner body  110 . 
     Due to the hinge structure between the cleaner body  110  and the suction nozzle  111 , although a user grasps the handle  120  and inclines the cleaner body  110  toward the user&#39;s body, the suction nozzle  111  maintains close contact with the surface being cleaned. Therefore, the user can operate the cleaner in a more comfortable posture by utilizing the cleaner body  110  at a certain inclination to the vertical. 
     In addition, a handle receiving recess  112  is formed on a front of the cleaner body  110  to minimize the portion of the handle  120  that protrudes when the handle is folded down into the cleaner body  110 . The handle receiving recess  112  has a shape corresponding to the handle  120  such that the handle  120  is received into the handle receiving recess  112 . 
     The handle  120  is hingedly mounted to the cleaner body  110 , and a hinge shaft is provided in the cleaner body, which comprises a locking unit  200  ( FIG. 2 ) to fix the position of the handle  120  in both an extended position and in a folded position. 
     According to an embodiment of the present invention, the handle  120  is constructed by first and second handle housings  121  and  122 , as shown in  FIGS. 2 and 3 . The first and second handle housings  121  and  122  enclose a locking mechanism  210 , which will be described below, and a resilient member  214 . The first and second handle housings  121  and  122  are fastened to each other by a bolt  215 , as shown in  FIG. 3 . 
     The locking unit  200  comprises the locking mechanism  210 , a holder  220  and a release button  230 . 
     The locking mechanism  210 , as shown in  FIG. 3 , is mounted within the handle  120  so as to be resiliently inserted into and out of the handle  120 . The locking mechanism  210  comprises a locking body  211 , a guide boss  212  and a locking projection  213 . 
     The locking body  211  is formed so as to engage the first and second handle housings  121  and  122 , and preferably, is formed as a disc having a center aligned with an inner boss  123  of the handle housings  121  and  122 . The locking body  211 , the guide boss  212  and the locking projection  213  may be integrally formed, for example, by molding or other appropriate manufacturing process. 
     The guide boss  212 , disposed substantially adjacent the center of the locking body  211 , is coupled with the inner boss  123 , which defines the hinge shaft of the handle  120 . The guide boss  212  guides the movement of the locking body  211  while sliding along an axis of the inner boss  123  within the handle  120 . Furthermore, the guide boss  212  comprises therein the resilient member  214 , of which one end is supported by an inner surface of the second housing  122 . The resilient member  214  resiliently supports the locking body  211  and biases it in a direction away from the second housing  122 . 
     A plurality of locking projections  213  is disposed around the guide boss  212 , and the locking projections are formed to be able to protrude out of a perforate aperture or hole  124 . According to an embodiment of the present invention, a pair of the locking projections  213   a  and  213   b  is positioned to be oppositely disposed with respect to the guide boss  212 , as shown in  FIG. 3 . However, this is only a preferred embodiment, and the number of the locking projection  213  is not limited to the two shown. For example, several locking projections  213  may be provided symmetrically with respect to the guide boss  212 . 
     The holder  220  is attached to an upper part of the cleaner body  110  to prevent separation of the handle  120  therefrom. A first locking groove  221  is formed on an inner circumference  222  of the holder  220  to receive the first locking projection  213   a . On the upper part of the cleaner body  110 , a second locking groove  115  is formed, oppositely disposed relative to the first locking groove  221 , to receive the second locking projection  213   b . When the handle  120  is folded down into the cleaner body  110 , the second locking groove  115  receives the first locking projection  213   a , which has been received in the first locking groove  221 . It should be noted that although the locking grooves  115  and  123  are described in the singular, a second set of grooves is preferably disposed on the other holder, essentially duplicating the above-described structure. 
     The release button  230  is provided for releasing the locking mechanism from the locked position of the handle  120  when a user wants to fold the handle  120  down over and into the cleaner body  110  for storage of the upright-type vacuum cleaner  100 , or to extend the handle  120  for use of the upright-type vacuum cleaner  100 . As shown in  FIG. 2 , the release button  230  is mounted in a space  113  defined when the cleaner body  100  and the holder  220  are connected, and is designed to be resiliently pressed. If the release button  230  is pushed in the direction of the arrow shown in  FIG. 4 , the first and the second locking projections  213   a  and  213   b  are depressed to a position inside of the handle  120 , thereby releasing the locking projections from engagement with the first and the second locking grooves  115  and  221 . Accordingly, the handle  120  is released from the fixed position retaining the handle either in the upright or folded position. When the first and the second locking projections  213   a  and  213   b  engage the first and second locking grooves  115  and  221 , while being rotated, the first and the second locking projections  213   a  and  213   b  are received in the first and second locking grooves  115  and  221  and are retained therein by the resilient recovering force of the resilient member  214 . 
     Hereinbelow, the operation of the upright-type vacuum cleaner  100  having the foldable handle  120  according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to  FIGS. 4 and 5 . 
     As shown in  FIG. 1 , in which view the handle  120  is shown to be extended in the upright position, the user depresses the release button  230  mounted in the space  113  ( FIG. 2 ) between the cleaner body  110  and the holder  220  in order to initiate the operation to fold the handle  120  down toward the cleaner body  110 . 
     Accordingly, the release button  230  depresses the first and the second locking projections  213   a  and  213   b  ( FIG. 3 ), thereby releasing them from the first and second locking grooves  115  and  221 . The first locking projection  213   a , being released from the first locking groove  221 , slides along the inner circumference  222  ( FIG. 3 ) of the holder  220  in association with the turning of the handle  120 , to reach the second locking groove  115 . The second locking projection  213   b  slides in the same manner along the inner circumference formed by the upper portion of cleaner body  110  and the holder  220 , similar to that of the first locking projection  213   a , until it reaches the first locking groove  221 . 
     As shown in  FIG. 5 , when the first locking projection  213   a  reaches the second locking groove  115 , the first locking projection  213   a  is caused to protrude out of the handle  120  by the resilient recovering force of the resilient member  214 , thereby being received and fixed in the second locking groove  115 . 
     As shown in  FIG. 5 , when the handle  120  is extended to the upright position, the second locking projection  213   b  is received in the second locking groove  115 , whereas when the handle  120  is folded down, the second locking projection  213   b  is received in the first locking groove  221  ( FIG. 2 ). Accordingly, the handle  120  can be fixed in the desired position, both when the handle is folded or extended, and is retained by the first and second locking projections  213   a  and  213   b . Therefore, the user can operate and stow the upright-type vacuum cleaner  100  with the handle in the desired folded position, and the handle will remain in that position as needed. 
     As can be appreciated from the above description of the upright-type vacuum cleaner  100 , by use of the foldable handle  120 , the amount of space necessary for stowage of the vacuum cleaner  100  is reduced, and damage of the handle  120  can be prevented when the vacuum cleaner  100  is stored. 
     While the invention has been shown and described with reference to certain embodiments thereof, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes in form and details may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.