Patent Publication Number: US-2012023697-A1

Title: Vacuum attachment assembly

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
     This application claims filing benefit of U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 61/368,825 having a filing date of Jul. 29, 2010, which is incorporated herein in its entirety by reference. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND 
     Vacuum cleaners have been developed that can efficiently clean multiple floor surfaces, from high pile carpets to bare concrete surfaces. Unfortunately, while vacuum cleaners can clean large, flat surfaces, such as floors, they are less useful when one is desirous of cleaning objects that define a three dimensional shape and/or do not have a hard surface against which a vacuum cleaner head can be pressed. For instance, standard vacuum cleaners and vacuum cleaner attachments have proven less than desirably effective at cleaning dusters, curtains, furniture, and other objects that present a flexible surface. 
     What is needed in the art is a vacuum cleaner attachment capable of cleaning surfaces and objects having a pliant surface, particularly objects that are inefficiently cleaned by standard vacuum cleaners. 
     SUMMARY 
     According to one embodiment, disclosed is a vacuum attachment assembly. For instance, the vacuum attachment assembly can include a main body including an upper section and a lower section. An opening can be defined in each of the upper section and the lower section, and the two openings can be aligned with one another, such that an object, such as a drape or a duster can be passed through the openings. In addition, the width of the main body can be greater than a cross sectional dimension of the first and second openings; 
     An assembly can also include shaft extending from the main body, the shaft including a first end and a second end, the first end intersecting the main body and the second end being distal to the main body. 
     In another embodiment, the assembly may also include various features such as a shaft insert that is either removably attachable at or fixed at the second end of the shaft, a suction control attachment that is removably attachable the upper globe opening, the suction control attachment defining at least one opening with variable orientations, and a brush that is removably attachable at the lower globe opening. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES 
       A full and enabling description of the presently disclosed subject matter, including the best mode thereof, to one of ordinary skill in the art, is set forth more particularly in the remainder of the specification, including reference to the accompanying Figures, in which: 
         FIG. 1  presents several views of a vacuum attachment assembly as disclosed herein. 
         FIG. 2  illustrates a vacuum attachment assembly during use and two different views of a vacuum attachment assembly. 
         FIG. 3  is a front view of a vacuum attachment assembly. 
         FIG. 4  is a rear view of a vacuum attachment assembly. 
         FIG. 5  is a side section view of a vacuum attachment assembly. 
         FIG. 6  is a top view of a vacuum attachment assembly. 
         FIG. 7  is an exploded view of a vacuum attachment assembly. 
         FIG. 8  is a ¾ rear view of a vacuum attachment assembly. 
         FIG. 9  is a ¾ front view of a vacuum attachment assembly. 
         FIG. 10  presents a view of a vacuum attachment assembly including a brush attachment and a suction adjustment attachment. 
         FIG. 11  illustrates a vacuum attachment assembly including a suction adjustment attachment in a fully closed position. 
         FIG. 12  illustrates a vacuum attachment assembly including a suction adjustment attachment in a fully open position. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF REPRESENTATIVE EMBODIMENTS 
     Reference will now be made in detail to various embodiments of the disclosed subject matter, one or more examples of which are set forth below. Each embodiment is provided by way of explanation of the subject matter, not limitation thereof. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations may be made to the disclosed subject matter without departing from the scope or spirit of the disclosure. For instance, features illustrated or described as part of one embodiment, may be used with another embodiment to yield a still further embodiment. 
     The present disclosure is generally directed to a vacuum attachment assembly. More specifically, disclosed vacuum attachment assemblies can include a universal attachment mechanism for attachment to any typical vacuum hose or pipe, including household vacuums as well as smaller duster units such as those typically sold with rechargable battery packs. Disclosed vacuum attachment assemblies can provide improved cleaning capability, particularly when considering the cleaning of pliable, flexible surfaces such as may be found on objects including dusters, drapes, furniture surfaces, clothing, and so forth. Moreover, while disclosed attachments can efficiently clean objects that include flexible surfaces, they are not limited to such surfaces and can also be utilized in cleaning hard surfaces such as floors, walls, furniture (e.g., tables), and the like. 
       FIG. 1  illustrates several views of an assembly  10 . In general, an assembly  10  can include a generally globe shaped main body  12  that can conveniently be referenced by an upper section  14  and a lower section  16  which form a hollow body. The assembly can also include a shaft  18  extending from the main body  12 . An assembly can also include a shaft insert  20  that can be located at the distal end of the shaft  18  from the section  12 . 
       FIG. 2  illustrates an assembly  10  during use, for instance as may be used to clean a duster. As can be seen, the main body  12  of the assembly of  FIG. 2  has a generally toroid shape, allowing passage of an object, e.g., a duster, through the assembly  10  as shown. During use, the suction provided by an attached vacuum device can cause air to be pulled through the duster and circulated around and through the main body  12 , thereby removing dirt, dust, etc. from the surface of the duster. While not wishing to be bound to any particular theory, it is believed that the toroid shape of the attachment main body  12  in the depicted embodiment encourages a circulating air flow to be established within the main body  12  during use. Thus, the attachment can provide improved airflow as compared to previously known attachments that are merely extensions of a vacuum hose, with no expansion across the attachment dimensions as is provided by the illustrated devices. 
       FIG. 3  is a front view of an assembly  10 . As can be seen, in this embodiment the main body  12  of the assembly  10  is formed of a transparent or translucent material, e.g., an at least partially transparent polymeric material, such that the terminus  22  of the shaft  18  can be seen through the main body  12 . This is not a requirement of disclosed devices, and in other embodiments, the main body  12  may be opaque. The terminus  22  of the shaft  18  can intersect the main body  12  with an elongated cross section, as illustrated. This is understood to improve air flow around and through the main body  12  during use. This is not a requirement of dislcosed devices, however, and in another embodiment, the terminus of a shaft can define a different cross section, such as circular, square, or any other shape. 
       FIG. 4  is a rear view of an assembly  10 . The shaft  18  and second end  24  of shaft  18  of the assembly  10  can generally define a circular cross section, so as to adapt to the shape of a typical vacuum device. As with the terminus  22  of the shaft  18 , however, disclosed devices are not limited to any specific cross sectional shape. In one embodiment, the shaft  18  can be formed of a pliable material, so as to be easily adaptable to a vacuum hose or device of any shape. 
       FIG. 5  presents a cross sectional view of an attachment assembly  10 . In this embodiment, a shaft  18  can include a shaft insert  20  therein. A shaft insert  20  can be fixed within a shaft  18  or can be removable, as desired. A shaft insert  20  can define a decreasing radius of curvature over the length of the shaft insert  20 . Thus, a shaft insert  20  can provide a tight friction fit to a vacuum device of multiple different sizes. Shaft insert  20  can generally be formed of a material that can form to a vacuum portion (e.g., a vacuum hose) and hold to same with a friction fit, for instance an elastomeric polymer. 
     At attachment can include an opening  25  that passes from the top to the bottom of a main body  12 , as illustrated in  FIG. 6 . As can be seen, however, the total width of the interior of the main body  12  can be greater than the opening  25  passing therethrough. Thus, upon passage of an object through the main body  12 , e.g., a duster, a piece of clothing, etc., air flow can be maintained around as well as through the object passing through the attachment  10 . Moreover, it should be understood that though illustrated as a generally circular main body from the top view, disclosed attachments are not limited to any specific geometry. 
       FIG. 7  provides an exploded view of an attachment  10 . In one embodiment, an attachment  10  may be dissasembled, so as to provide easier cleaning, though this is not a requirement of disclosed devices. 
       FIG. 8  and  FIG. 9  illustrate two perspective views of an attachment  12  as described herein. 
     In one embodiment, an attachment  10  can include one or more removable portions. For example,  FIG. 10  illustrates one embodiment of an attachment device  10  including a suction control attachment  26  and a brush  28 . As can be seen a suction control attachment  26  can be provided at an opposite side of a main body  12  as a second attachment, such as the illustrated brush  28 . 
       FIG. 11  illustrates an attachment device  10  with the brush  28  of  FIG. 10  removed, and the suction control attachment  26  in a closed orientation. Thus, the full suction power of the attached vacuum can be provided through the open bottom of the main body  12  during use. In  FIG. 12  the same suction control attachment  26  is shown in a fully opened orientation, such that the suction at the opposite side of the main body  12  is less, as may be preferred when cleaning certain objects, such as loose-hanging drapes. 
     It will be appreciated that the foregoing examples, given for purposes of illustration, are not to be construed as limiting the scope of this disclosure. Although only a few exemplary embodiments have been described in detail above, those skilled in the art will readily appreciate that many modifications are possible in the exemplary embodiments without materially departing from the novel teachings and advantages of this disclosure. Accordingly, all such modifications are intended to be included within the scope of this disclosure as defined in the following claims and all equivalents thereto. Further, it is recognized that many embodiments may be conceived that do not achieve all of the advantages of some embodiments, yet the absence of a particular advantage shall not be construed to necessarily mean that such an embodiment is outside the scope of the presently disclosed subject matter.