阅读说明：本技术 真空清洁器吸嘴 (Vacuum cleaner nozzle ) 是由 M·H·鲁伯斯 J·史提曼 K·希尔弗达 B·J·德维特 于 2019-02-25 设计创作，主要内容包括：在包括一个或多个后轮(RW)的真空清洁器吸嘴(N)中,铰链(H3)被布置成当被连接到吸嘴(N)的吸管(ST)绕吸管(ST)的纵向轴线被旋转时(例如在吸嘴(N)已经借助于另一铰链(H2)被旋转超过45°以便在吸嘴的运动方向上将吸嘴的相对较短的一侧定位在吸嘴的前部处而使得吸嘴能够清洁相对较小的空间之后),从地面(F)抬起所有一个或多个后轮(RW),其中如果吸嘴的相对较长的一侧在吸嘴的运动方向上位于吸嘴的前部处,则该空间可能无法被进入。如果一个或多个后轮(RW)包括至少两个后轮,则铰链(H3)被布置用于从地面(F)同时抬起后轮(RW)。优选地,铰链(H3)是双稳态的,为此,铰链(H3)可以被设置有磁体(M1-2、M3-4)或双稳态弹簧(S),双稳态弹簧(S)用以将铰链(H3)固定在：一个或多个后轮(RW)被布置成接触地面(F)的第一位置中、或在一个或多个后轮(RW)被布置成从地面(F)被抬起的第二位置中。真空清洁器有利地包括这种吸嘴。(In a vacuum cleaner nozzle (N) comprising one or more Rear Wheels (RW), the hinge (H3) is arranged to lift all the one or more Rear Wheels (RW) from the floor (F) when a Suction Tube (ST) connected to the nozzle (N) is rotated about the longitudinal axis of the Suction Tube (ST) (e.g. after the nozzle (N) has been rotated over 45 ° by means of another hinge (H2) in order to position the relatively shorter side of the nozzle at the front of the nozzle in the direction of movement of the nozzle so that the nozzle can clean a relatively small space, which space may not be entered if the relatively longer side of the nozzle is located at the front of the nozzle in the direction of movement of the nozzle). If the one or more Rear Wheels (RW) comprise at least two rear wheels, the hinge (H3) is arranged for simultaneously lifting the Rear Wheels (RW) from the ground (F). Preferably, the hinge (H3) is bistable, for which purpose the hinge (H3) may be provided with a magnet (M1-2, M3-4) or a bistable spring (S) to fix the hinge (H3) to: the one or more Rear Wheels (RW) are arranged in a first position contacting the ground surface (F) or in a second position in which the one or more Rear Wheels (RW) are arranged to be lifted from the ground surface (F). The vacuum cleaner advantageously comprises such a suction nozzle.)

1. A vacuum cleaner nozzle (N), comprising:

one or more Rear Wheels (RW) and characterised by

A hinge (H3) for lifting all one or more Rear Wheels (RW) from the ground (F) when a Suction Tube (ST) connected to the vacuum cleaner nozzle (N) is rotated about a longitudinal axis of the Suction Tube (ST).

2. Vacuum cleaner nozzle (N) according to claim 1, wherein

The vacuum cleaner nozzle (N) comprises a further hinge (H2) for enabling the vacuum cleaner nozzle (N) to be rotated over 45 DEG, whereby a side of the vacuum cleaner nozzle (N) becomes a front of the vacuum cleaner nozzle (N) in a direction of movement of the vacuum cleaner nozzle (N), and

the hinge (H3) is arranged for: -lifting the one or more Rear Wheels (RW) from the ground (F) when the Suction Tube (ST) connected to the vacuum cleaner nozzle (N) is rotated about its longitudinal axis after the vacuum cleaner nozzle (N) has been rotated more than 45 °.

3. A vacuum cleaner nozzle (N) according to claim 1 or 2, wherein said one or more Rear Wheels (RW) comprise at least two rear wheels, and said hinge (H3) is arranged for simultaneously lifting said Rear Wheels (RW) from said ground surface (F).

4. A vacuum cleaner nozzle (N) according to claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein said hinge (H3) is bistable.

5. A vacuum cleaner nozzle (N) according to claim 4, wherein said hinge (H3) is provided with magnets (M1-2, M3-4) to secure said hinge (H3) in: -said one or more Rear Wheels (RW) are arranged in a first position contacting said ground surface (F), or in a second position in which said one or more Rear Wheels (RW) are arranged to be lifted from said ground surface (F).

6. A vacuum cleaner nozzle (N) according to claim 4, wherein said hinge (H3) is provided with a bistable spring (S) to secure said hinge (H3) in: -said one or more Rear Wheels (RW) are arranged in a first position contacting said ground surface (F), or in a second position in which said one or more Rear Wheels (RW) are arranged to be lifted from said ground surface (F).

7. A vacuum cleaner comprising a vacuum cleaner nozzle according to any of the preceding claims.

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a vacuum cleaner nozzle, and to a vacuum cleaner provided with such a nozzle.

Background

US7,979,959 discloses an accessory for a cleaning appliance comprising a head having a housing, a downwardly directed suction opening in the housing and a neck adapted to be attached to a hose or wand of the cleaning appliance. A rotatable connection is provided between the neck and the head to allow the neck to rotate relative to the head. The wheel arrangement is operable to support the attachment on a surface to be cleaned and is mounted on the neck of the attachment. The wheel arrangement may typically be in contact with the surface to be cleaned, but the point or points of contact between the wheel arrangement and the surface to be cleaned depend on the rotational position of the neck relative to the head.

EP2929821 discloses a vacuum cleaner suction tool having a suction tool body, a coupling tube section and a wheel section with two wheels. If the suction nozzle is turned, one wheel is lifted from the floor, while the other wheel remains in contact with the floor.

WO2005/110179 discloses an accessory for a cleaning appliance having a head comprising a housing and a downwardly directed suction opening and a neck adapted to be attached to a hose or wand of the cleaning appliance. A rotatable connection is provided between the neck and the head to allow the neck to rotate relative to the head, and a wheel arrangement is provided for operably supporting the accessory on a surface to be cleaned. The wheel arrangement is mounted on the neck of the attachment. In a preferred embodiment, the wheel arrangement is normally in contact with the surface to be cleaned, but the point or points of contact between the wheel arrangement and the surface to be cleaned is dependent on the rotational position of the neck relative to the head. Likewise, if the suction nozzle is turned, one wheel is lifted from the floor while the other wheel remains in contact with the floor.

EP2064978 discloses a floor nozzle for a vacuum cleaner. Likewise, if the suction nozzle is turned, one wheel is lifted from the floor while the other wheel remains in contact with the floor.

The known vacuum cleaner nozzle has a rear wheel at the rear end of the nozzle, i.e. the end facing the user of the vacuum cleaner in the normal way of operating the nozzle. Although these rear wheels are adapted to move the suction nozzle forwards and backwards in the normal way of operating the suction nozzle, if the user wants to move the suction nozzle sideways, i.e. in a direction substantially parallel to the long sides of the suction nozzle, these rear wheels hamper the movement of the suction nozzle, thereby moving the suction nozzle into a narrow space, since the relatively small side of the suction nozzle now becomes the front of the suction nozzle.

Disclosure of Invention

It is, inter alia, an object of the invention to provide an improved vacuum cleaner nozzle. The invention is defined by the independent claims. Advantageous embodiments are defined in the dependent claims.

One aspect of the invention provides a vacuum cleaner nozzle comprising one or more rear wheels, wherein the hinge is arranged to: when a suction tube connected to the suction nozzle is rotated about its longitudinal axis (for example after the suction nozzle has been rotated over 45 ° by means of another hinge in order to position a relatively short side of the suction nozzle at the front of the suction nozzle in the direction of movement of the suction nozzle so that the suction nozzle can clean relatively small spaces), all one or more rear wheels are lifted from the floor, wherein these spaces may not be accessible if a relatively long side of the suction nozzle is located at the front of the suction nozzle in the direction of movement of the suction nozzle. If the one or more rear wheels comprise at least two rear wheels, the hinge is arranged for simultaneously lifting the rear wheels from the ground. Preferably, the hinge is bistable, for which purpose it may be provided with a magnet or a bistable spring to fix it: the one or more rear wheels are arranged to contact the ground in a first position or in a second position in which the one or more rear wheels are arranged to be lifted from the ground. The vacuum cleaner advantageously comprises such a suction nozzle.

These and other aspects of the invention will be apparent from and elucidated with reference to the embodiments described hereinafter.

Drawings

FIGS. 1A-1C and 2 illustrate an embodiment of the present invention; and

fig. 3A, 3B and 4A, 4B illustrate other embodiments of the present invention.

Detailed Description

The vacuum cleaner nozzle may have one or more rear wheels at the rear of the nozzle for supporting the weight of the vacuum cleaner (i.e. supporting the tube in the case of a canister) and enabling steering of the nozzle. These rear wheels therefore have a grip/friction towards the ground to prevent sliding and uncontrolled behaviour. The suction nozzle may also have front wheels to support the weight of the suction nozzle, prevent the bottom of the suction nozzle (sole plate) from contacting and scraping the floor, and reduce the resistance to movement when moving backwards and forwards. The hinge connects the suction nozzle to the tube (and the vacuum cleaner). The hinge allows the suction pipe to be tilted up and down and rotates the suction nozzle when the suction pipe (vacuum cleaner) is rotated. When the nozzle has a very flexible hinge, the nozzle can be rotated over 45 °, and preferably over 60 °, or over 75 °, or (close to) 90 °. In this rotational position the suction nozzle will fit in a narrow space, since the relatively small side of the suction nozzle now becomes the front of the suction nozzle. One problem is that in this rotational position the suction nozzle cannot be pushed back and forth smoothly, because the anti-skid rear wheel blocks the movement when the wheel is oriented at an angle to the direction of motion. Reducing the friction between the rear wheel and the floor surface allows the nozzle to be pushed backwards and forwards smoothly when it is rotated over 45, but this prevents proper steering performance because the rear wheel will slide over the floor surface rather than roll when the user tries to steer the nozzle. The result will be an uncontrolled steering behavior.

In view of this, according to an aspect of the invention, the rear wheel is lifted when the nozzle is rotated over 45 °. If one or more rear wheels comprises more than one rear wheel, then not only one rear wheel needs to be lifted (as in US7,979,959) because then the other rear wheel would contact the ground and interfere with smooth movement in a direction perpendicular to the orientation of that rear wheel; conversely, the rear wheels should be lifted at the same time so as not to interfere with smooth movement. Preferably, this is done in combination with the feature of supporting the nozzle to roll or slide smoothly over the floor in that direction. The mechanism for tilting the rear wheels is preferably very robust, since the suction nozzle works in dirty environments. One of the main elements is to add an extra hinge point to the hinge.

Fig. 1A to 1C illustrate side views of a vacuum cleaner nozzle N according to an embodiment of the present invention. The nozzle N has a nozzle body B, front wheels FW and one or more rear wheels RW. The suction nozzle N may be connected to the suction tube ST. The first hinge H1 allows the suction tube ST to move up and down, and the second hinge H2 allows the suction nozzle N to rotate, whereby the suction nozzle N can be steered to a desired direction. According to an aspect of the invention, a third hinge H3 is provided, which allows one or more rear wheels RW to be lifted from the ground. The additional hinge H3 is added so that when the suction nozzle is rotated over 45 deg., such as over 60 deg., or over 75 deg., or (close to) 90 deg., the rear wheel or wheels RW are lifted. Rotating the suction tube ST (via the handle) will first rotate the suction nozzle N and once the suction nozzle is rotated, the rotation of the suction tube ST will lift one or more rear wheels RW via the force/torque on the additional hinge H3.

Fig. 2 illustrates the vacuum cleaner provided with a suction nozzle when the suction nozzle has been rotated according to this embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 2 shows a situation in which the suction nozzle N has been rotated 90 deg.. In this embodiment, the vacuum cleaner is a stick type vacuum cleaner having a handle H, a vacuum cleaner body VCB accommodating a fan and a dirt container, a suction pipe ST, a hinge arrangement HA formed by hinges H1, H2 and H3 of any of fig. 1A to 1C, and a nozzle body B. When the suction nozzle N is rotated over 45 ° (e.g. rotated 90 ° as indicated in fig. 2) and the rear wheel or wheels RW are lifted from the floor F, the suction nozzle N can slide on the front wheel FW in a forward direction as indicated by arrow a. The front wheels FW should be made of a material having a low friction coefficient in conjunction with different ground types. The lower the friction coefficient, the easier it is for the suction nozzle N to move forward in the rotated position. The only function of the front wheels FW is to support the suction nozzle N and to ensure that the sole plate does not contact/scrape the floor. Thus, those front wheels FW may be replaced by gliding elements FG1, FG 2. In order to make the suction nozzle N slide more stably in the rotational position and to ensure that the sole plate does not contact/scrape the floor, additional gliding elements/wheels RG1, RG2 may be added to the rear of the sole plate.

The following are the optimum arrangements of the components to accommodate the optimum handling of the suction nozzle with the function of moving the vacuum cleaner backwards and forwards when the suction nozzle is in the 90 deg. rotational position. The suction nozzles are connected via a hinge arrangement with three hinges H1, H2, H3, which rise in count from the suction side. When the suction nozzle is rotated over 45 deg., the first two hinges H1, H2 rotate the suction nozzle and the suction tube, thus effecting steering, while the third hinge H3 lifts the rear wheel (which has sufficient friction with the floor to effect steering). The axis of the first hinge H1 is almost parallel to the ground and perpendicular to the axis of the second hinge H2 and the axis of the third hinge H3, which are also parallel to the ground. The axis of the first hinge H1 is parallel to the ground and to the axis of the third hinge H3. The axis of the second hinge H2 is perpendicular to the axes of the first hinge H1 and the third hinge H3. The suction nozzle N is supported by a support element in the front part of the suction nozzle N and optionally but preferably also in the rear part of the suction nozzle. These support elements may be wheels made of low friction material such as POM, POM + PTFE, HMPE, etc. The wheel may alternatively have a layer of soft material, such as velvet, to prevent the wheel from scratching the ground. Alternatively, the support element may be a caster that always rotates in the direction of movement. These casters radiate the agility of the nozzle. A very simple support element can be formed by the bristles.

Fig. 3A, 3B and 4A, 4B illustrate other embodiments of the present invention. The additional hinge H3 is such that: when the suction nozzle is rotated over 45 deg., one or more rear wheels RW can be lifted. Rotating the suction tube (e.g. via handle H) will first rotate the suction nozzle N and once the suction nozzle N is rotated, the rotation of the suction tube ST will lift one or more rear wheels RW via the force/torque on the additional hinge H3. In order to make the suction nozzle N more stable in the rotated position and in order to prevent the one or more rear wheels RW from falling and interfering with the movements on the floor surface F, the additional hinge H3 should be bistable. This can be done by adding magnets M1-2 and M3-4 as shown in fig. 3A, 3B, or by adding bistable leaf springs S in the hinge H3 as shown in fig. 4A, 4B. Fig. 3A and 4A show the suction nozzle with one or more rear wheels RW still in contact with the floor surface F, while fig. 3B and 4B show the suction nozzle in a second position, in which the one or more rear wheels RW are lifted from the floor surface F. Bi-stability of hinge H3 also has a positive impact on the user experience when hinge H3 does snap in the second position.

It should be noted that the above-mentioned embodiments illustrate rather than limit the invention, and that those skilled in the art will be able to design many alternative embodiments without departing from the scope of the appended claims. If the vacuum cleaner is a stick-type vacuum cleaner, in which the vacuum cleaner body is close to the suction nozzle, the concept "suction tube" should be understood as the connection of the vacuum cleaner body to the suction nozzle. In the claims, any reference signs placed between parentheses shall not be construed as limiting the claim. The word "comprising" does not exclude the presence of elements or steps other than those listed in a claim. The word "a" or "an" preceding an element does not exclude the presence of a plurality of such elements. The invention may be implemented by means of hardware comprising several distinct elements. In the device claim enumerating several means, several of these means may be embodied by one and the same item of hardware. The mere fact that certain measures are recited in mutually different dependent claims does not indicate that a combination of these measures cannot be used to advantage.