Patent Publication Number: US-6341402-B2

Title: Device for a vacuum cleaner

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The invention relates to a device for a vacuum cleaner having a vacuum source communicating with an inlet channel and an outlet channel for air flowing through the vacuum cleaner. 
     2. Description of Related Art 
     Vacuum cleaners are used to remove dust and dirt particles from floors by means of conventional floor nozzles. Different accessories are know for facilitating the use of the vacuum cleaner for drawing dust and dirt from furniture, shelves and other types of objects. These accessories usually comprise a brush nozzle, which is placed on the vacuum cleaner tube handle. The tube handle is, via a flexible hose, connected to the vacuum cleaner housing. The brush nozzle is however, together with the associated hose and tube handle, often regarded as too cumbersome or indelicate to be used for cleaning of shelves and other surfaces on which there are fragile objects or objects that are tightly packed. 
     Instead dusters or feather-dusters are used for cleaning such surfaces. Feather-dusters have the advantage that they comprise many light and flexible fibers and/or thread shaped elements that are bent away when touching the objects such that the feather-duster can reach in between and more or less surround the objects being cleaned. The feather-dusters and so-called micro fiber dusters are designed such that they are charged with static electricity when being used. This means that dust particles when being removed from the surface adhere to the feather-duster. The drawback with these feather-dusters as well as all types of dusters is however that the operator regularly has to go to a space where the operator can shake the feather-duster or the duster such that the dust which is adhered comes loose. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     A purpose of the present invention is to achieve a system for using a feather-duster or a duster together with a vacuum cleaner thereby integrating vacuum cleaning and dusting in one comprehensive rational working operation. In accordance with the present invention, the feather-duster or the duster is always accessible during vacuum cleaning while a hygienic cleaning of the feather-duster or the duster is safeguarded in association with the vacuum cleaner. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     These and further features of the present invention will be apparent with reference to the following description and drawings, wherein: 
     FIG. 1 is a schematic side view of a first embodiment of the invention showing a vacuum cleaner provided with a device according to the invention; 
     FIG. 2 is a vertical section through the inventive device; 
     FIG. 3 is a longitudinal section of a second embodiment of the invention; 
     FIG. 4 is a partly-broken view of a part of the device shown in FIG. 3; and, 
     FIG. 5 is a schematic perspective view showing a section of the embodiment according to FIGS.  2  and  3 . 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     The vacuum cleaner  10  shown in FIG. 1 has a vacuum cleaner housing  11  with a vacuum source  12 , preferably a motor-fan unit, communicating with a separation container  13 . The separation container  13  surrounds an air permeable bag  14 , a cyclone separator or the like in which the dust and the dirt particles are separated from the dust-laden air flow. The dust-laden air flow flows from a nozzle  15  via a tube shaft  16 , a tube handle  17 , and a hose  18  into the separation container  13 . Thus, the lastmentioned parts  15 , 16 , 17 , 18  and  13  form an inlet channel for the dust-laden air. The air passage  11   a  after the motor-fan unit, as seen in the flow direction, forms an outlet channel for the cleaned air entering the atmosphere. 
     The tube shaft  16  supports a holder  19  for a feather-duster  20  close to the tube handle  17 . The holder  19  preferably forms a cylindrical chamber  21  that, at its upper wall part, has several tangentially directed air inlets  22  and, at its lower wall part, additional air inlets  23 . The holder  19  also has a closed bottom part  24  and a roof part  25 . The roof part  25  has a central opening  26  through which the feather-duster  20  can be inserted into the holder  19 . 
     Between the tube shaft  16  and the holder  19  there is an outlet  27  through which air can flow from the chamber  21  to the tube shaft  16 . During a normal vacuum cleaning operation the outlet  27  is closed by a cover  28  that is turnably supported by a hinge  29 . The cover  28  is connected to a flap  30  that, during normal vacuum cleaning operation, does not prevent air from flowing through the tube shaft  16 . The cover  28  is under the influence of a spring  31  that biases the cover  28  toward a closed position. The cover  28  also includes an extending flange  32  that is acted on by the feather-duster  20 . 
     The device operates in the following manner. During a normal vacuum cleaning operation the feather-duster is stored in the holder in a partly inserted position. In the partly inserted position the feather duster  20  does not engage the flange  32 . This means that the dust laden air can freely flow through the tube shaft  16  from the nozzle  15  to the vacuum source  12 . When the operator comes to a place where the feather-duster  20  shall be used, the feather duster  20  it is drawn out from the holder  19 . After the dusting operation, the feather-duster is again inserted into the holder  19 . The operator may choose to insert the feather-duster partly into the holder, which means that the feather-duster will not be cleaned and vacuum cleaning can be made as before. Alternatively, the operator may choose to insert the feather-duster completely into the holder. 
     If the feather-duster  20  is inserted completely into the holder  19  it will, during its movement, act on the flange  32  such that the cover  28  and, hence, the flap  30  is turned clockwise about the hinge  29  to the position shown in FIG. 2 in order to open the outlet  27 . If the vacuum cleaner is now activated, air will be drawn in through the inlet  22  and  23 , through the chamber  21 , and through the outlet  27  to the upper part of the tube shaft  16 , and then through the tube handle and the hose into the bag  14 . The air flowing through the chamber will thus draw the dust from the feather-duster and simultaneously shake the flexible thin threads of the feather-duster. Accordingly, the dust collected by the feather-duster leaves with the air flow and is later separated in the bag  14 . Simultaneously, the threads are charged electrostatically since they are shaken and rubbed against the surrounding wall. The feather-duster can then be partly removed from the holder  19  to thereby close the cover  28  and stop the air flow through the chamber. The feather-duster is again ready to be used. 
     The second embodiment shown in FIGS. 3-5 comprises a tube part  33  which has an upper portion  33   a  that is connected to a tube handle (not shown) and a lower portion  33   b  which is connected to a tube shaft (not shown). The tube part  33  is slidably arranged on a holder  35  for the feather-duster  20 , and is provided with a spherical valve body  36  that is turnably arranged in a seat  37  within the tube part  33 . The valve body  36  has a pipe shaped bore  38  with an upper opening  38   a  and a lower opening  38   b  normally facing the upper and the lower portions  33   a,    33   b,  respectively, of the tube part  33 . The bore  38  has mainly the same diameter as the tube part  33 , and the bore has a further opening  38   c  normally facing the seat  37 . The tube part  33  is provided with an opening  33   c  which is normally covered by the valve body  36 . The valve body is also provided with turning means  39  at each side of the tube part  33 . 
     Each turning means  39  is designed as sector of a circle having teeth  40  that are in engagement with a rack gear  41 . The rack gear is secured in the holder  35  and is parallel to the longitudinal axis of the tube part  33 . The holder  35  is also provided with a chamber  42  surrounding the seat  37 . The length of the chamber  42  is such that it allows the tube part  33 , together with the valve body  36 , to be moved longitudinally (upwards and downwards in FIG. 3) with respect to the holder  35 . The chamber  42  is provided with an opening  43  facing an air channel  44  in the holder  35 . The air channel  44  extends to a bottom part  45  of the holder  35 . The channel  44  is, via an opening  46 , connected to a chamber  47  in which the feather duster  20  is inserted. Preferably, the chamber  47  is surrounded by a transparent tube  48 . The feather duster  20  is inserted into the chamber  47  via an opening  49  normally closed by a collar  50  applied on the feather-duster and serving as a cover for the opening  49 . At the upper part of the chamber  47  there is an inlet  51  for air. The inlet  51  is preferably arranged such that the air flows tangentially into the chamber  47 . 
     The device according to FIGS. 3-5 operates in the following manner. During normal vacuum cleaning operations the feather duster is stored in the chamber  47  and can easily be taken out in order to remove dust from objects. After inserting the feather duster again into the chamber  47 , the operator can choose to remove the dust from the feather duster by pulling the complete holder  35  longitudinally upwards in FIG. 3 with respect to the tube shaft and tube handle which are secured to the tube part  33 . This means that the teeth  40  of the turning means  39 , by their engagement with the rack gear  41 , turn the valve body  36  clockwise 90° such that the opening  38   a  of the bore  38  comes into alignment with the opening  33   c  of the tube part  33  at the same time as the opening  43  moves to a position in which it comes into alignment with the openings  33   c  and  38   a.  Simultaneously, the communication between the upper and lower tube portions is blocked by means of the valve body  36 . This means that air which has previously been drawn from the vacuum cleaner nozzle  15  through the tube shaft  16 , the tube portions  33   b  and  33   a  and further into the tube handle  17  is now instead sucked through the opening  51 , the chamber  47 , the channel  44 , the openings  43 ,  33   c,    38   a  and the upper portion  33   a.  Consequently, the air which flows tangentially into the tube  48  will circulate in the chamber  47  and create a cyclonic effect thereby shaking the complete feather-duster, removing particles from the feather-duster  20  and delivering them to the vacuum cleaner housing at the same time as the threads and/or fibers of the feather duster vibrate and are charged with static electricity. The dust removal from the feather duster can then easily be interrupted by pushing the holder  35  downwards. This means that the valve body  36  is turned counterclockwise and returns to the initial position shown in FIG.  3 . 
     The threads of the duster-feather should be manufactured from a material that differs from the material of the surrounding wall the choice of material being such that the different materials are heavily separated from one another in the so called triboelectrical serie in order to achieve a high static charging of the feather-duster. 
     Although the foregoing description relates to a method for cleaning a duster-feather, the same method can be used for cleaning a duster. Then, it is of course suitable to adapt the holder  19  and hence the chamber  21  and the opening  26  to the shape of the duster as well as providing the holder or the duster with some kind of means for securing the duster to the vacuum cleaner during the vacuum cleaning and charging operation. 
     It should also be mentioned that even if the embodiment described above relates to so called canister vacuum cleaners it could as well be used for so called upright vacuum cleaners. 
     The holder preferably is placed close to the hands of the operator but it can, course, be placed at a suitable place on the vacuum cleaner. It is also possible to provide the vacuum cleaner with some kind of electrically or pneumatic driven means that can be activated in order to shake the duster or the feather-duster during the cleaning operation. 
     In case a feather-duster is used it is preferably provided with a telescopic shaft by means of which the length of the shaft can be adjusted such that it suits the actual use. 
     It is also possible to use the cylindrical chamber as a holder for the feather-duster or duster for so called cyclone vacuum cleaners, i.e. vacuum cleaners in which the dust is separated from the air flow in a cylindrical chamber by means of cyclone effect, during the cleaning and/or charging stage. 
     As an alternative the dust pick-up tool might be inserted into the holder and be cleaned by other means than the air flow whereby the dust is removed from the tool and collected in the chamber. When the valve is later opened the chamber will be cleaned separately or together with the feather-duster or the duster.