Patent Publication Number: US-2016242615-A1

Title: Adapter for attaching a cleaning head to a mop handle of a mop

Description:
TECHNICAL FIELD 
     The invention relates to an adapter for attaching a cleaning head to a mop handle of a mop, which adapter is substantially channel-shaped, comprising two side webs and one connecting web interconnecting the side webs, the adapter being formed so as to be open towards the cleaning head to be received and the connecting web having an inner side which faces the cleaning head to be received and forms the stop face for the cleaning head. 
     BACKGROUND 
     U.S. Pat. No. 6,490,749 B1 discloses an example of an adapter. This adapter is a universal adapter. Using this universal adapter, there are four different options for connecting differently shaped mop handles to the cleaning head of the mop by means of the adapter. A first option consists in that the adapter comprises two tabs, which are provided with recesses and project perpendicularly from the surface of the adapter, on the side facing away from the cleaning head, hooks on the mop handle engaging in the recesses in the tabs and thus connecting the mop handle to the adapter. 
     A second attachment option consists in that the adapter comprises, on the side facing away from the cleaning head, a roof-shaped raised portion that extends in the longitudinal direction of the adapter, through which portion a hook on the mop handle is guided. 
     The third option for connecting the adapter to the mop handle consists in that the adapter comprises, on each of the side webs, guides which extend in the longitudinal direction and are connected to a clamp-shaped receiving portion of the mop handle. The adapter and the mop handle are assembled by a relative movement in the longitudinal direction of the adapter. 
     A screwed connection is given as a fourth option for connecting the adapter to the mop handle, the mop handle, which is provided with an external thread for this purpose, being screwed into a corresponding internal thread of the adapter. 
     The advantage of the known adapter is its universal usability. In this case, it is however disadvantageous that the adapter is comparatively complex and expensive to produce as a result. For many applications, just one option for attaching the mop handle to the adapter is sufficient. 
     The cleaning head of the known mop comprises a clamping strip and a cleaning body, which is for example a cleaning sponge. The adapter is connected to the cleaning head by a sliding connection that is similar to a dovetail joint. To mount the cleaning head on the adapter, the cleaning head needs to be slid into the adapter in the longitudinal direction of the cleaning head and the adapter. Clamp-shaped projections on the adapter engage in guide grooves on the clamping strip. 
     In the case of the known mop, changing the cleaning head is a complex process. 
     SUMMARY 
     In an embodiment, the present invention provides an adapter for attaching a cleaning head to a mop handle of a mop. The adapter is substantially channel-shaped and includes two side webs and one connecting web interconnecting the side webs. The adapter is formed so as to be open towards the cleaning head to be received. The connecting web has an inner side which faces the cleaning head to be received and forms a stop face for the cleaning head. Each of the side webs comprises at least one latching projection formed so as to be resiliently flexible transversely to a longitudinal direction of the adapter. The latching projections are movable towards and away from each other in the manner of a clamp and are configured to be releasably snapped behind latching lugs on the cleaning head in a non-destructive manner. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The present invention will be described in even greater detail below based on the exemplary figures. The invention is not limited to the exemplary embodiments. All features described and/or illustrated herein can be used alone or combined in different combinations in embodiments of the invention. The features and advantages of various embodiments of the present invention will become apparent by reading the following detailed description with reference to the attached drawings which illustrate the following: 
         FIG. 1  shows a cleaning head as a separate part and a mop which comprises an adapter according to the invention for receiving the cleaning head, 
         FIG. 2  shows the mop from  FIG. 1 , in which the cleaning head is connected to a mop handle of the mop by means of the adapter, 
         FIG. 3  is a simplified view of the adapter which is connected to the cleaning head, and 
         FIG. 4  shows the adapter from  FIG. 3  with the lever removed. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     The present invention relates to an adapter that can be easily and cost-effectively produced and that it is easy to handle, in particular that can be easily and rapidly connected to a cleaning head and removed therefrom just as easily and rapidly. 
     In some embodiments, each of the side webs comprise at least one latching projection, that the latching projections are each formed so as to be resiliently flexible transversely to the longitudinal direction of the adapter and so as to be movable towards or away from each other in the manner of a clamp, and that the latching projections can be releasably snapped behind latching lugs on the cleaning head in a non-destructive manner. 
     Here, it is advantageous that the cleaning head does not need to be slid into the adapter in the longitudinal direction, this being a drawback in terms of rapid and easy handling, in particular in the field of professional cleaning. 
     The adapter according to the invention is connected to a cleaning head axially in the direction of the mop handle of the mop. The adapter and the cleaning head are interconnected by simply snapping together without relative movement in the longitudinal direction. Owing to the resilient flexibility of each of the latching projections transverse to the longitudinal direction of the adapter, the latching projections releasably engage behind the corresponding latching lugs on the cleaning head in an automatic and non-destructive manner. 
     According to a preferred embodiment, it may be provided that the latching projections can be brought into an open position by a release device and can thereby be released from the latching lugs in a non-destructive manner. The release device may be formed by a lever which penetrates the connecting web from the outer side to the inner side thereof. 
     Owing to the release device in the form of the lever, it is easier still to handle the mop. To release the cleaning head from the adapter, the user can operate the lever using their foot. The latching projections and the latching lugs then come out of engagement and the cleaning head is released from the adapter. 
     Depending on the structural configuration of the release device, it is possible that the lever has to be pulled or pushed to release the cleaning head from the adapter. 
     The latching projection on one side web may be offset in the longitudinal direction from the latching projection on the other side web. The latching projections may be produced particularly simply in that they are first punched out of an originally planar strip of material of which the adapter consists. Since the latching projections are offset from each other in the longitudinal direction of the adapter, the strip of material is weakened to a lesser extent than if the latching projections were arranged so as to be directly opposite each other. Owing to the latching projections being offset from each other in the longitudinal direction, it is also possible to design the adapter to be narrow. The material webs remaining after the punching process are, owing to the configuration described, thick enough to ensure consistently good functional properties of the adapter, in particular resilient properties of the latching projections, over a long service life. 
     According to another embodiment, it may be provided that the latching projections, when viewed in the longitudinal direction, are arranged so as to be directly opposite each other. Here, it is advantageous that no moments occur when connecting/releasing the adapter to/from the cleaning head, thereby preventing canting and at the same time allowing the latching projections to engage with or to be released from the cleaning head. This makes the adapter easier to handle. 
     The side webs, the connecting web and the latching projections may be formed so as to transition into one another in an integral manner and are made of the same material. As a result, the adapter has a simple structure and can be produced cost-effectively. 
     The side webs, the connecting webs and the latching projections preferably consist of a corrosion-resistant material, for example of a stainless steel. 
     An embodiment of the adapter according to the invention is explained in greater detail below with reference to  FIGS. 1 to 4 . 
       FIG. 1  shows an embodiment of the adapter according to the invention, the adapter being a component of the mop  3  and forming a pre-assembled unit  26  together with the mop handle  2 . 
     In addition, the cleaning head  1  is shown as a separate part in a non-assembled state. 
     The mop handle  2  comprises a rod assembly  33  which can be actuated by a handle  32 , the rod assembly  33  being connected to the adapter, as can be seen more clearly in  FIG. 3 . By actuating the handle  32 , the adapter is moved up and down as required between the two wringing rollers  35 ,  36  in the axial direction  34  of the mop handle  2 , the cleaning body  17  of the cleaning head  1  which is connected to the adapter being pulled through the wringing rollers  35 ,  36  during the upward movement and being wrung out thereby. After the cleaning body  17  has been wrung out, a downward movement shapes the cleaning head  1  into the ready-to-use shape  27  thereof (cf.  FIG. 2 ). 
     In the embodiment described herein, the cleaning head  1  comprises a stainless steel clamping strip  16 , the cleaning body  17  taking the form of a cleaning sponge and being received in the clamping strip  16  with a force fit and interlocking fit. The interlocking fit can be produced for example by the two side walls  18 ,  19  having, on the sides thereof facing each other, retaining hooks which engage in the surface of the cleaning body  17 . 
     The clamping strip  16  is channel-shaped, is open in the axial direction  34  towards the cleaning body  17  and is delimited by the two side walls  18 ,  19  which are interconnected by the connecting strip  20 . 
     A connecting region  23  is arranged on the outer side  22  of the connecting strip  20 , which outer side faces away from the cleaning body  17 , and marks the region on the outer side  22  of the connecting strip  20  which is covered by the adapter during the intended use of the mop  3 . This connecting region  23  is shown for example particularly clearly in  FIG. 3 . 
     The connecting region  23  on the outer side  22  of the connecting strip  20  is substantially planar and is formed as a counter-stop  25  for the stop  8  on the adapter, the counter-stop  25  being arranged in the imaginary plane  24 , in the same manner as the attachment means in the form of the latching lugs  12 ,  13 . 
     The latching lugs  12 ,  13  form a component of the connecting strip  20  and extend in the connecting region  23  transversely to the longitudinal direction  11 . The latching lugs  12 ,  13  extend transversely to the longitudinal direction  11  beyond their respective side walls  18 ,  19  and thereby form an undercut  28 ,  29 . The latching projections  9 ,  10  on the adapter can snap into place to connect to the latching lugs  12 ,  13 . To release the cleaning head  1  from the adapter, the latching projections  9 ,  10  on the adapter are moved away from each other transversely to the longitudinal direction  11  in the opposite direction to the direction in which they were latched together by actuating the lever  15 , thereby releasing the latched connection between the cleaning head  1  and the adapter. The cleaning head  1  can, for example, then be changed. 
     On the sides which face each other, the adapter and the cleaning head  1  have a stop face  8  and a counter-stop face  25 , said stop faces coming into contact with each other when the mop  3  is ready to use. 
     The latching lugs  12 ,  13  on the side walls  18 ,  19  may be offset from each other in the longitudinal direction  11 , in the same manner as the corresponding latching projections  9 ,  10  in the side webs  4 ,  5  of the adapter, so that the material strength of the connecting strip  20  and the connecting web  6  is only negligibly weakened. 
     The latching projections  9 ,  10  and the latching lugs  12 ,  13  can each be arranged so as to be directly opposite each other in the longitudinal direction  11 , so that it is easier to mount the cleaning head  1  on the adapter. 
     In the embodiment described herein, the only components to protrude beyond the plane  24  are the positioning knobs  30 ,  31 , which make it easier for users to position the cleaning head  1  relative to the adapter. The pre-assembled unit  26 , which comprises the adapter and the mop handle  2 , is placed on the cleaning head  1  in the axial direction  34 , in such a way that the inner side  7  of the adapter, which is in the form of a stop surface  8 , comes into contact with the outer side  22  of the clamping strip  16 . Pressure is then applied to the mop handle  2  in the axial direction  34  and the latching projections  9 ,  10  on the adapter, which are formed integrally with the side webs  4 ,  5 , interlock with the latching lugs  12 ,  13  on the cleaning head  1 . 
       FIG. 2  shows the mop  3  in its ready-to-use state  27 . The parts shown in  FIG. 1  are assembled. 
       FIG. 3  shows a detail of the mop  3 , in which, for the sake of clarity, the wringing rollers  35 ,  36  from  FIGS. 1 and 2  are not shown. 
     The adapter and the cleaning head  1  are interconnected with an interlocking fit, the latching projections  9 ,  10  on the adapter being able to be brought into an open position by the release device  14  and thereby released from the latching lugs  12 ,  13  on the cleaning head  1  in a non-destructive manner. In the embodiment described herein, the release device  14  is formed by the lever  15 , which penetrates into the connecting web  6 . 
     The cleaning head  1  is released from the adapter as a result of the lever  15  being moved upwards by, for example, the user&#39;s foot. The latching projections  9 ,  10  on the adapter are consequently moved away from each other transversely to the longitudinal direction  11  and counter to the latching direction, and release the latching lugs  12 ,  13  on the cleaning head  1  and thereby the entire cleaning head  1 , as shown in  FIG. 1 . 
       FIG. 4  shows the adapter according to the invention without the release device  14  in the form of the lever  15 . 
     The latching projections  9 ,  10  are offset from each other in the longitudinal direction  11 , the latching projections  9 ,  10  being formed so as to be resilient transversely to the longitudinal direction  11 . 
     The latching projections  9 ,  10  engage behind the latching lugs  12 ,  13  on the cleaning head  1  (cf.  FIG. 1 ) when the mop  3  is ready to use. To release the connection, the lever  15  shown in  FIG. 3  is moved upwards. In this case, the tabs  37 ,  38  of the latching projections  9 ,  10  are pressed outwards and thus away from each other transversely to the longitudinal direction  11 . The latching connection between the cleaning head  1  and the adapter is then released. 
     While the invention has been illustrated and described in detail in the drawings and foregoing description, such illustration and description are to be considered illustrative or exemplary and not restrictive. It will be understood that changes and modifications may be made by those of ordinary skill within the scope of the following claims. In particular, the present invention covers further embodiments with any combination of features from different embodiments described above and below. 
     The terms used in the claims should be construed to have the broadest reasonable interpretation consistent with the foregoing description. For example, the use of the article “a” or “the” in introducing an element should not be interpreted as being exclusive of a plurality of elements. Likewise, the recitation of “or” should be interpreted as being inclusive, such that the recitation of “A or B” is not exclusive of “A and B,” unless it is clear from the context or the foregoing description that only one of A and B is intended. Further, the recitation of “at least one of A, B and C” should be interpreted as one or more of a group of elements consisting of A, B and C, and should not be interpreted as requiring at least one of each of the listed elements A, B and C, regardless of whether A, B and C are related as categories or otherwise. Moreover, the recitation of “A, B and/or C” or “at least one of A, B or C” should be interpreted as including any singular entity from the listed elements, e.g., A, any subset from the listed elements, e.g., A and B, or the entire list of elements A, B and C.