Patent Publication Number: US-2023160227-A1

Title: Autonomous impeller vacuum cleaner for cleaning swimming pools

Description:
TECHNICAL FIELD 
     The present invention belongs to the field of swimming pool maintenance devices and similar, particularly submersible vacuum cleaner robots and brushes, and more particularly relates to an autonomous impeller vacuum cleaner, having a small size adapted to shallow pools. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     To properly maintain swimming pools and remove the debris that accumulates at their bottoms, there are several types of impeller vacuum cleaners powered by a battery and provided with a filter bag. Such so-called autonomous, vacuum cleaners are for example described in the documents U.S. Pat. No. 5,768,734 (Dietrich) and US 2016/0273238 (Heffernan). Others also, developed by the present inventors, are described in the documents FR 3 080 879 (Kokido) and EP 3 832 053 (Kokido). 
     According to the models, the battery is either integrated within the vacuum cleaner, in which case it is intended to be immersed in the water of the swimming pool, or separate from the vacuum cleaner and placed outside of the swimming pool by being connected to the latter by electrical connection cables. 
     These vacuum cleaners also distinguish from one another by the position of the impeller in relation to the suction duct. 
     Generally, the motor and the impeller are positioned entirely within the suction duct. This requires an impeller diameter larger than that of the engine block in order to ensure an efficient bypass suction, and in fine significant dimensions of the suction duct receiving the impeller. 
     The document U.S. Pat. No. 10,094,130 (Water Tech) presents a solution wherein the motor is attached outside of the suction duct and the impeller, of large diameter, is placed straddling over the outlet of said duct to prevent leaves from accumulating under the impeller during the suction. However, the fact that the impeller is partially outside of the suction duct implies a reduction of the suction efficiency due to an absence of channeling of the eddy created in the filter bag outside of the duct. 
     The accumulation of leaves and other bulky debris under the impeller may be prevented by other alternative and more effective solutions. For example, the document EP 3 832 053 (Kokido) proposes a solution wherein a central deflector is placed between the motor and the impeller so as to prevent bulky debris from piling up below said impeller by discharging it towards the periphery of the suction duct. 
     The accumulation of bulky debris under the impeller of course remains a major problem, above all when this concerns small vacuum cleaners, but less critical than the risks related to electrical cables in contact with the water in the known solutions, and this despite the water-resistance of the connections because they are not entirely isolated from the water. 
     OBJECT AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The aim of the present invention is to overcome the drawbacks of the prior art disclosed above and propose a design making it possible to reduce the diameter of the suction duct and eliminate the risks related to a lack of watertightness of the connection between the motor and the battery. 
     To this end, the object of the present invention is a submersible vacuum cleaner for cleaning artificial pools such as swimming pools, comprising a suction head connected to a suction duct leading into a filter element, a motor coupled to an impeller located within the suction duct, the spinning of which produces the suction, and a battery powering the motor, that may be in the form of disposable accumulators, wherein the motor and the battery are placed in a watertight compartment, itself mostly placed within the filter element. 
     According to one embodiment, the watertight compartment is attached to a support that holds it suspended above the suction duct. 
     More particularly, the support includes a cover, closing the watertight compartment and receiving a connector for charging the battery, and at least one arm extending from the cover to the suction duct to be attached thereto, by being remote from the watertight compartment so as not to obstruct the passage of the bulkiest debris. 
     According to one advantageous embodiment, the vacuum cleaner further includes a central deflector placed between the impeller and the watertight compartment to prevent the accumulation of bulky debris at this location. 
     The filter element may comprise a flexible bag or a pleated cartridge. 
     According to advantageous embodiments, the vacuum cleaner has a length between 10 and 40 cm and its suction duct has a diameter between 40 and 200 mm. The fundamental concepts of the invention having just been disclosed above in their most elementary form, other details and features will become more clearly apparent upon reading the following description and with regard to the appended drawings, giving by way of nonlimiting example an embodiment of an autonomous impeller vacuum cleaner in accordance with the principles of the invention. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES 
       The figures are given purely by way of illustration for a better understanding of the invention without limiting its scope. The various elements may be shown schematically and are not necessarily to the same scale. In all of the figures, identical or equivalent elements bear the same numerical reference. 
       It is thus illustrated in: 
         FIG.  1   : a front view of a vacuum cleaner according to a first embodiment of the invention; 
         FIG.  2   : a side view of the vacuum cleaner; 
         FIG.  3   : a rear view of the vacuum cleaner; 
         FIG.  4   : a top view of the vacuum cleaner; 
         FIG.  5   : a bottom view of the vacuum cleaner; 
         FIG.  6   a   : a sectional view of the vacuum cleaner along the plane A-A of  FIG.  1   ; 
         FIG.  6   b   : a sectional view of the vacuum cleaner along the plane B-B of  FIG.  2   ; 
         FIG.  7   : an exploded view of the vacuum cleaner; 
         FIG.  8   : a front perspective view of a vacuum cleaner according to a second embodiment of the invention; 
         FIG.  9   : a rear perspective view of the vacuum cleaner; 
         FIG.  10   : a front view of the vacuum cleaner; 
         FIG.  11   : a side view of the vacuum cleaner; 
         FIG.  12   : a rear view of the vacuum cleaner; 
         FIG.  13   : a top view of the vacuum cleaner; 
         FIG.  14   : a bottom view of the vacuum cleaner; 
         FIG.  15   : a perspective sectional view of the vacuum cleaner; and 
         FIG.  16   : an exploded view of the vacuum cleaner. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS 
     It should be noted that certain technical elements well known to the person skilled in the art are described here to avoid any inadequacy or ambiguity in the understanding of the present invention. 
     In the embodiment described below, reference is made to an autonomous impeller vacuum cleaner, mainly intended for cleaning swimming pools. This example, nonlimiting, is given for a better understanding of the invention and does not exclude the use of the vacuum cleaner in other shallow pools such as jacuzzis, muscular recovery by immersion pools (cryotherapy), fountains, etc. 
     In the present description, the term “vacuum cleaner” designates a submersible vacuum cleaner brush for cleaning the bottom of pools, and the expression “autonomous vacuum cleaner” designates a vacuum cleaner the power supply of which is ensured by a battery. 
       FIGS.  1  to  3    show, according to various views, a vacuum cleaner  100  comprising a suction head  10  connected to a suction duct  20 , a watertight compartment  30  enclosing a motor  31  and a battery  32 , a support  40  attached to the suction duct  20  and holding the watertight compartment  30  suspended above said duct, an electrical switch  50  rotatably mounted on the support  40 , a filter bag  60  shown partially and schematically in  FIG.  1   , and a sleeve  70  hinged on the duct  20  and intended to receive a removable handle for gripping the vacuum cleaner  100 . 
     The vacuum cleaner  100  thus has a compact design extending along a longitudinal axis  300 , wherein the motor and the battery, as well as their electrical connections, are placed in a watertight compartment, itself placed, totally or partially within the filter bag. 
     The watertight compartment  30 , according to the illustrated example, has a substantially cylindrical shape and dimensions adapted to receive the motor  31  and the battery  32 . 
       FIGS.  6   a  and  6   b    show a possible layout of the watertight compartment  30  within the vacuum cleaner  100  as well as the arrangement of the motor  31  and of the battery  32  within said compartment. 
     The motor  31  is placed in a lower portion of the watertight compartment  31 , with a shaft  311  oriented downward to make a coupling with an impeller  81  positioned within the suction duct  20  possible. Indeed, the motor  31  is fitted at the bottom of the watertight compartment  30 , the latter being provided with a hole to make it possible to pass the shaft  311  through in a watertight manner. The shaft  311  thus extends outside of the watertight compartment  30  along a sufficient length to make the coupling of the impeller  81  possible. 
     In the illustrated example, the impeller  81  is positioned fairly low in relation to an outlet  21  of the suction duct  20 , slightly in the middle of said duct. However, it is preferable that the impeller  82  is flush with the upper edge  21  of the suction duct  20 , corresponding to its outlet leading into the filter bag  60 , while remaining entirely within said duct. This makes it possible to discharge this debris more easily towards the bag  60  and thus prevent an accumulation of bulky debris in the narrow interstice between the watertight compartment  30  and the inner walls of the suction duct  20 , as opposed to the configuration of  FIGS.  6   a  and  6   b    wherein said compartment is partially placed within said duct. 
     Nevertheless, the configuration of  FIGS.  6   a  and  6   b    remains acceptable insofar as most of the watertight compartment  30  is outside of the suction duct  20 . 
     The battery  32 , according to the illustrated example, is for its part positioned in an upper portion of the watertight compartment  30  and connected to the motor  31  by electrical cables not shown. The cables are thus entirely housed in the watertight compartment  30  and, thereby, isolated from the water of the swimming pool during the use of the vacuum cleaner  100  for greater safety. 
     The battery  32  is rechargeable and has an adapted connector located at a cover  41  of the support  40 , whereon the switch  50  is mounted. This cover  41  may further contain other electronic components necessary for operating the switch  50 , the battery  32  and the motor  31 . 
     According to the illustrated example, the battery  32  is attached directly to the cover  41  of the support  40 , said cover closing the watertight compartment  30  by a connection through a watertight attachment flange to totally isolate from the water the motor  31 , the battery  32  as well as other electronic elements of the vacuum cleaner. 
     Thus, the watertight compartment  30 , closed by the cover  41  of the support  40 , defines a volume isolated from the water and suspended within the filter bag  60  and above the suction duct  20 , without obstructing the suction of debris. 
     This suspension of the watertight compartment  30  is ensured by the support  40  which, to this end, comprises two spread apart arms  42  extending to the suction duct  20 , parallel to the longitudinal axis  200  of the vacuum cleaner. 
     In addition, each arm  42  is remote from the watertight compartment  30  thus leaving a space  45  so as to avoid obstructing the suction of debris towards the filter bag  60 , in particular for the bulkiest debris. 
     This particular design of the support  40  indeed makes it possible to free as much as possible the passage of debris of the suction duct  20  of the filter bag  60 , while ensuring a sufficient mechanical strength in view of the stresses that the vacuum cleaner is intended to be subjected during operation. 
     In order to further clear the passage of debris, the support  40  may, in an alternative design, include only one arm. Nevertheless, considering a favorable advantage/drawback ratio, the design with two arms remains preferable. 
     The support  40  may be attached to the suction duct  20  by any suitable means. 
       FIG.  7    shows the vacuum cleaner  100  in exploded view and thus makes it possible to better understand the arrangement of its various elements, particularly the attachment of the support  40  on the suction duct  20  by means of an annular base  43  of said support that comes to rest on the flat annular edge  21  of said duct. Plates  91  are provided to come to tighten, at the lower ends of the arms  42 , the annular edge  21  against the annular base  43  of larger diameter. 
     Of course, the operation of the rest of the vacuum cleaner  100  is known, particularly as regards the suction head  10  that, acting as cleaning interface intended to come into contact with the surfaces whereon debris is stored, may be equipped with any member adapted to this end and facilitating the cleaning operation such as brushes and scrapers, but also any movement means such as wheels or rollers. In addition, the suction head may have various shapes (circular, triangular, etc.) and include one or more suction nozzles. 
       FIGS.  4  and  5    make it possible to clearly display the shape of the suction head  10  according to the illustrated example, the latter has a rectangular shape at the front, substantially rounded at the apices, and trapezoidal at the rear, so that the inclined sides of the trapezium make possible a converging layout of two brushes  11  to bring the debris back to a suction nozzle  12  during the forward motion of the vacuum cleaner. 
     In this same example, the suction head  10  rests on three wheels  13  arranged in a triangle. 
     On another side, the sleeve  70  is hinged on the suction duct  20  about a transverse axis  72  perpendicular to the longitudinal axis  200  of the vacuum cleaner  100 . 
     Finally, thanks to this design, the vacuum cleaner  100  has a small size with particularly a length between 10 and 40 cm, preferably approximately 30 cm, and a suction duct  20  of variable diameter between 40 and 200 mm approximately. 
     It becomes clearly apparent from the present description that certain elements of the autonomous impeller vacuum cleaner may be modified, replaced or eliminated, without in as much departing from the scope of the invention. 
       FIGS.  8  to  16    show for example a vacuum cleaner  100 ′ according to another embodiment of the invention, wherein certain secondary elements are modified, particularly the overall shape of the vacuum cleaner.