Abstract:
A vacuum cleaner includes a dirt tank, a tank cover mounted on the dirt tank, and a blower detachably mounted on the tank cover. The blower includes a handle. A latching mechanism located at the handle allows selective attachment or detachment of the blower and the tank cover.

Description:
RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     The present application is a continuation of co-pending U.S. patent application No. 12/466,876, filed May 15, 2009, to be issued as U.S. Pat. No. 8,590,099, to which Applicants hereby claim benefit under 35 U.S.C. §120, and which Applicants hereby incorporate by reference herein for all purposes. 
    
    
     TECHNICAL FIELD 
     The present disclosure relates to a vacuum cleaner, and more particularly to a vacuum cleaner having a detachable blower, and to a related locking assembly. 
     BACKGROUND 
     Presently, one type of vacuum cleaner having a detachable blower may perform blowing or sucking operation. The detachable blower is commonly attached to or detached from a body of the vacuum cleaner via a locking assembly. When the vacuum cleaner needs to perform blowing operation, the blower is detached from the body for separately processing blowing operation, such as blowing debris from a machine table to the ground before sucking operation, or blowing dispersive debris or leaves together for conveniently vacuum or clearing. As shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,880,364 and U.S. Patent Publication Number 2002/0108205, a vacuum cleaner having a detachable blower disclosed in either of them forms two hand grip portions on two opposite sides of the detachable blower for the user to grip the blower. However, for such a vacuum cleaner, the user must grip the two hand grip portions with both hands to lift the whole vacuum cleaner. If one hand of the user is wounded or carrying other objects, she/he can not lift the whole vacuum cleaner, thereby such a vacuum cleaner is inconvenient in use. 
     In a vacuum cleaner having a detachable blower, the body commonly includes a dirt tank and a tank cover located between the dirt tank and the blower. A drive motor and an impeller are mounted in a housing of the blower for generating low pressure suction force in the dirt tank to thereby suck debris, dust or liquid waste into the dirt tank through a hose mounted at the dirt tank. The vacuum cleaner has blowing and sucking function, and when it is used for blowing function, the blower is detached from the vacuum cleaner for independently processing blowing function. Accordingly, a locking assembly is arranged between the dirt tank and the blower, for attaching or detaching the blower from the dirt tank. However, referring to U.S. Patent Publication Number 2002/0138938, a locking assembly disclosed therein can not reliably lock the blower with the dirt tank, so the blower maybe accidentally break away from the dirt tank. 
     SUMMARY 
     To overcome one or more the shortcomings of vacuum cleaners having a detachable blower, or to provide other benefits, the present disclosure provides a vacuum cleaner which is convenient in use. Also, the present disclosure provides a detachable blower which can reliably and conveniently be locked or unlocked from the vacuum cleaner body. 
     If desired, according to some aspects of the disclosure, a vacuum cleaner may include a detachable blower, a dirt tank, and a tank cover mounted on the dirt tank. The blower may be detachably mounted on the tank cover and include a main body with a single handle, the single handle located on a top face of the main body. 
     Also, according to certain other aspect of the disclosure, a locking assembly is disclosed for a vacuum cleaner with a detachable blower, the vacuum cleaner including a tank cover and the blower being detachably engaged with the tank cover. The locking assembly may be arranged between the tank cover and the blower. The locking assembly may include a latch, a resilient member and a locking shoulder, the resilient member being connected between the blower and the latch, the latch being pivotally mounted at the blower and engageable with the locking shoulder. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The present disclosure will be further described with reference to the accompanying drawings and embodiments below. 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a vacuum cleaner having a detachable blower according to certain aspects of the disclosure. 
         FIG. 2  is a front planar view of the vacuum cleaner in  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 3  is a top planar view of the vacuum cleaner in  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 4  is a cross-sectional view of the vacuum cleaner of  FIG. 1  taken along the line  4 - 4  in  FIG. 3 . 
         FIG. 5  is a partially exploded perspective view of a blower of the vacuum cleaner in  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 6  is a partially exploded perspective view of the vacuum cleaner in  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 7  is a front planar view of the blower of the vacuum cleaner in  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 8  is a top planar view of the blower of the vacuum cleaner in  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 9  is perspective view of a vacuum cleaner having a detachable blower according to certain aspects of the disclosure. 
         FIG. 10  is a partially exploded perspective view of a blower and a tank cover of the vacuum cleaner in  FIG. 9 . 
         FIG. 11  is a partially exploded perspective view of a locking assembly and a handle of the vacuum cleaner in  FIG. 9 . 
         FIG. 12  is a partially exploded front planar view of the vacuum cleaner in  FIG. 9 . 
         FIG. 13  is a partial sectional front view of the vacuum cleaner of  FIG. 9  with the blower to be assembled to the tank cover in a first position. 
         FIG. 14  is a partial sectional front view of the vacuum cleaner of  FIG. 9  with the blower to be assembled to the tank cover in a second position. 
         FIG. 15  is a partial sectional front view of the vacuum cleaner of  FIG. 9  with the blower to be assembled to the tank cover in a third position. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     Detailed reference will now be made to the drawings in which examples embodying the present disclosure are shown. The detailed description uses numerical and letter designations to refer to features in the drawings. Like or similar designations in the drawings and description have been used to refer to like or similar parts of the embodiments. 
     The drawings and detailed description provide a full and detailed written description of the disclosed subject matter, and the manner and process of making and using it, so as to enable one skilled in the art to make and use it, as well as the best mode of carrying out the disclosed subject matter. However, the examples set forth in the drawings and detailed descriptions are provided by way of explanation of the subject matter and are not meant as limitations of the subject matter. The inventions encompassed by this disclosure therefore include any modifications and variations of the following examples as come within the scope of the appended claims and their equivalents. 
     Referring to  FIGS. 1 to 5 , a vacuum cleaner according to one embodiment of the present subject matter includes a blower  1 , a dirt tank  3 , and a tank cover  2  located between the blower  1  and the dirt tank  3 . 
     The dirt tank  3  includes a plurality of wheeled casters  32  mounted at a circumference of a bottom portion thereof, and a wind outlet  34  on a top portion thereof. 
     The tank cover  2  is attached to the dirt tank  3  via a latch  4 , and defines a receiving chamber  21  (see  FIG. 6 ) in a top face thereof for receiving the blower  1 . As shown in  FIG. 4 , a filter mechanism  36  is mounted at a bottom portion of the tank cover  2  and located in the dirt tank  3 . Further referring to  FIG. 6 , the tank cover  2  further includes a locking shoulder  22  and a U-shaped cutout  24  which are located at the top face thereof opposite each other and communicating with the receiving chamber  21 . Furthermore, a pair of latching shoulders  23  is formed at both sides of the cutout  24 . 
     Further referring to  FIGS. 7 to 8 , the blower  1  includes a main body  12 . A drive motor  13  and an impeller  14  assembled with the drive motor  13  are mounted in the main body  12 . A plate  16  having a plurality of wind inlets  162  are arranged at a bottom of the main body  12 . The main body  12  together with the plate  16  is received into the receiving chamber  21 . The blower  1  forms a blowing outlet  15  at one side of the main body  12 . A pair of abutting shoulders  121  is formed at both sides of the blowing outlet  15 . When the blower  1  is mounted to the tank cover  2 , the blowing outlet  15  is received in the cutout  24  and the abutting shoulders  121  are abutted beneath the pair of latching shoulder  23  of the tank cover  2 . 
     Additionally, the blower  1  includes a single handle  11  on a top face  122  thereof. The handle  11  includes a front end portion  111  extending upward from the top face  122 , a rear end portion  112  extending from a rear side of the main body  12 , and a hand grip portion  115  connecting the front end portion  111  and the rear end portion  112 . A power switch  113  is mounted on the front end portion  111 . A locking assembly  114  is arranged at the rear end portion  112  as detailed below, engageable with the locking shoulder  22  of the tank cover  2 , for attaching or detaching the blower  1  from the tank cover  2 . The hand grip portion  115  is in an arc shape. As best seen in  FIGS. 5 and 8 , the handle  11  has a symmetrical construction with respect to a central plane  116  thereof, and is aligned with the blowing outlet  15 . The blower  1  also has a substantially symmetrical construction, and the central plane  116  of the handle  11  is also a central plane of the blower  1 . 
     According to the disclosed embodiment, the central plane  116  of handle  11  is coplanar with an axis  132  of a motor shaft  131  of the drive motor  13 . Therefore, when the vacuum cleaner is to be lifted up, a user needs only one hand to carry on the single hand grip portion  115  and exert an upward force along the axis  132  of the motor shaft  131 , thereby the vacuum cleaner can be easily lifted up via one hand of the user once the upward force exerted by the user is slightly larger than gravity of the vacuum cleaner extending downward along the axis  132  of the motor shaft  131 . Alternatively, the axis  132  of the motor shaft  131  may be parallel to the central plane  116  of the handle  11 , which is also practicable and only needs a slight larger upward force exerted on the hand grip portion  115  of the handle by the user&#39;s one hand. 
       FIGS. 9-15  show an alternate related vacuum cleaner design showing more details of a locking assembly. Referring to  FIGS. 9 and 10 , a perspective view of a vacuum cleaner according to a certain aspects of the present subject matter is shown. The vacuum cleaner includes a dirt tank  201 , a tank cover  202  mounted on a top portion of the dirt tank  201 , a detachable blower  203  mounted at the tank cover  202  and a universal wheel assembly  204  mounted on a bottom portion of the dirt tank  201 . The blower includes a housing  208 , a handle  207  mounted on a top surface (not labeled) of the housing  208  and a wind outlet  209  mounted at a side of the housing  208 . A drive motor and an impeller (both not shown, see previous Figures) are disposed in the housing  208  for generating low-pressure suction force in the dirt tank to thereby suck debris, dust or liquid waste into the dirt tank through a hose (not shown) mounted to the dirt tank  201 . The dirt tank  201  further defines a receiving chamber  215  in a top face thereof for receiving the blower  203 . 
     Further referring to  FIGS. 10 to 12 , a locking assembly is arranged between the blower  203  and the tank cover  202 , and includes a latch  210 , a resilient member  214 , and a plurality of engagement shoulders (not labeled). The latch  210  is mounted at the handle  207 . The resilient member  214  is arranged between the latch  210  and the handle  207 . The plurality of engagement shoulders includes a locking shoulder  212 , a latching shoulder  213  and an abutting shoulder  211  engageable with the latching shoulder  213  and located at both sides of the wind outlet  209 . The handle  207  is formed by two halves, and includes a grasp portion  275  and an opening  272  below the grasp portion  275 . A center shaft  271  and a baffle  273  are formed in the grasp portion  275 . The grasp portion  275  further defines a receiving opening  274  in a bottom portion thereof. 
     The latch  210  is independently formed and includes an activating portion  301 , a rotating portion  302  and a latching portion  303 . The rotating portion  302  defines a central hole  304  which rotatably encloses on the center shaft  271  for pivotally connecting the latch  210  with the handle  207 . The activating portion  101  is partially embedded into the opening  72 . The latching portion  303  includes a latch section  305 , an abutting slot  307  and a positioning member  306  projected from a center of the abutting slot  307 . The latch section  305  and the abutting slot  307  are located at opposite sides of the latching portion  303 . The latch section  305  has a top face  309  and a slanted bottom face  308 . One end of the resilient member  214  is enclosed on the positioning member  306  and abutting against the abutting slot  307 , and the other end of the resilient member  214  is abutted against the baffle  273  of the handle  207 . The resilient member  214  after assembly has an original position in a compressed state, so the latching portion  303  is pushed away from the baffle  273  by the resilient member  14 , and the latch section  105  thereof is extended beyond the receiving opening  274 , and latches with the locking shoulder  212 , thereby locking the blower  203  with the tank cover  202 . 
       FIGS. 13 to 15  show steps of the blower  203  assembly with the tank cover  202 . As shown in  FIG. 13 , the abutting shoulder  211  of the blower  203  is firstly abutted beneath the latching shoulder  213 , then the blower  203  is rotated about the engagement position between the abutting shoulder  211  and the latching shoulder  213  and toward the tank cover  202  till the bottom face  308  of the latch section  305  thereof contacts the locking shoulder  212 ; then, due to gravity of the blower  203  itself plus a pressing force on the latch section  305 , the latching portion  303  of the blower  203  is rotated about the center shaft  271 , toward a direction opposite to the locking shoulder  212  until the latch section  305  thereof is received into the receiving opening  274 , accordingly, the blower  203  is successfully received into the receiving chamber  215 . As shown in  FIGS. 14 and 15 , when the bottom face  308  disengages from the locking shoulder  212 , the latch section  305  extends out from the receiving opening  274  due to resilient force of the resilient member  214  on the latching portion  303 , thus, when the handle  207  of the blower  203  is carried upward, the top face  309  of the latch section  305  is latched with a bottom surface of the locking shoulder  212 , thereby reliably locking the blower  203  with the tank cover  202 . 
     When the blower  203  needs to be disconnected from the tank cover  202 , starting in the position shown in  FIG. 15  the activating portion  301  is firstly pushed upward to be received into the opening  272 , and the latching portion  303 , driven by the activating portion  301 , is rotated in a direction opposite to the locking shoulder  212 , so that the resilient member  214  is pressed and the latch section  305  is received into the receiving opening  274  toward the position shown in  FIG. 14 . Therefore, the top face  309  of the latch section  305  is disengaged from the locking shoulder  212  and at this time the blower  203  can be lifted upward. Then the abutting shoulder  211  is extracted out from the latching shoulder  213 . Therefore, the blower  203  is completely extracted from the tank cover  202 . 
     While preferred embodiments have been shown and described, those skilled in the art will recognize that changes and modifications may be made to the foregoing examples without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention. For example, specific styles and dimensions of various elements of the illustrated embodiments and materials used for those elements may be altered to suit particular applications and industry regulations. It is thus intended to claim all such changes and modifications as fall within the scope of the appended claims and their equivalents.