Classifications

• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A47—FURNITURE; DOMESTIC ARTICLES OR APPLIANCES; COFFEE MILLS; SPICE MILLS; SUCTION CLEANERS IN GENERAL
  • A47L—DOMESTIC WASHING OR CLEANING; SUCTION CLEANERS IN GENERAL
  • A47L9/00—Details or accessories of suction cleaners, e.g. mechanical means for controlling the suction or for effecting pulsating action; Storing devices specially adapted to suction cleaners or parts thereof; Carrying-vehicles specially adapted for suction cleaners
  • A47L9/02—Nozzles
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A47—FURNITURE; DOMESTIC ARTICLES OR APPLIANCES; COFFEE MILLS; SPICE MILLS; SUCTION CLEANERS IN GENERAL
  • A47L—DOMESTIC WASHING OR CLEANING; SUCTION CLEANERS IN GENERAL
  • A47L9/00—Details or accessories of suction cleaners, e.g. mechanical means for controlling the suction or for effecting pulsating action; Storing devices specially adapted to suction cleaners or parts thereof; Carrying-vehicles specially adapted for suction cleaners
  • A47L9/009—Carrying-vehicles; Arrangements of trollies or wheels; Means for avoiding mechanical obstacles
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A47—FURNITURE; DOMESTIC ARTICLES OR APPLIANCES; COFFEE MILLS; SPICE MILLS; SUCTION CLEANERS IN GENERAL
  • A47L—DOMESTIC WASHING OR CLEANING; SUCTION CLEANERS IN GENERAL
  • A47L11/00—Machines for cleaning floors, carpets, furniture, walls, or wall coverings

Definitions

• the invention is a protective device for cleaning devices in order to protect furniture, baseboards, floor panels, walls and similar objects in case of accidental bumping by the cleaning device for protection against scratches, abrasion and other damage.
• the purpose of the invention is to provide a protective sleeve which eliminates the risk of damage to furniture or baseboards and so, increases the pace of work.
• the invention is an abrasion protection sleeve for vacuum cleaner systems, but such may also be used on other sweeping, and cleaning systems for commercial and private use.
• This abrasion protection sleeve can be retrofitted to different cleaning systems, used and finally removed due to its elastic behavior. Through the use of compressible dimples or other bosses or material accumulations on the surface of the abrasion protection sleeve, blows against adjacent objects are softened, leading to an elimination of damage to furniture, baseboards, walls, or room dividers.
• FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a vacuum cleaner with a suction tube, hose and a suction head, which is covered with the abrasion protection sleeve of the invention.
• FIG. 2A is a bottom view of the suction head of the vacuum cleaner shown in FIG. 1, on which is placed an exemplary abrasion protection sleeve of the invention.
• FIG. 2B is a cross-sectional view of a section taken along line A-A of FIG. 2 A.
• a vacuum cleaner is shown in exemplary form and represents one of the most used cleaning equipment forms having the purpose of removing impurities from a surface.
• a commercial vacuum cleaner has a body 1, which contains the electronics, the pump for the vacuum, and any necessary filters and/or dust bags.
• the body 1 is moveable by virtue of rollers which are affixed to the underside of the device.
• a suction hose 14 is attached, which is in turn attached to a suction tube 16.
• the operator moves the body 1, mounted on wheels, in order to facilitate movement by pulling on the vacuum hose 14, while he or she cleans using the suction tube 16 through forward and backward movements thereof.
• a suction head 24 is attached, which has a groove or elongated opening in the bottom thereof. This large opening creates a large area of suction when the vacuum pump operates.
• the suction head 24 often also is roller guided and additionally has a pedal on the top, with which the suction head 24 can be adjusted to better adapt to various surfaces such as, for example, a wooden floor or a carpet.
• This pedal operates a brush system located on the inside of the suction head 24, actuated by pressing the pedal, which lifts or lowers the brushes.
• These suction heads 24 are in most cases made of a metal core, which is covered by a hard plastic shell. Furthermore, the plastic is often dyed very dark, even black, which aggravates the problem of scuffing against a well or furniture.
• the abrasion protection sleeve 20 eliminates the risk of damage and allows for speedy work.
• Such abrasion protection sleeve 20 is preferably made of a flexible material such as an elastomer, such as silicone rubber Q or a soft thermoplastic material such as soft polyvinyl chloride (PVC-P).
• the permanently mounted abrasion protection sleeve 20 includes a compliant compound attached to the hard plastic of the suction head 24. This is achieved , for example in the manufacture of the suction head 24.
• a possible method for this is a two-component process in which the elastic abrasion protection sleeve 20 is mounted directly to the hard component of the suction head 24 for example by injection molding.
• This abrasion protection sleeve 20 has resilient bosses, protrusions, nipples, knobs, dimples or lugs 22, against which any applied energy which is released by the hitting of the suction head 24 on a wall or piece of furniture may be absorbed and softened, in order to prevent damage.
• protrusions 22 are preferably arranged so that they offset one from the other, so that there are no large flat unprotected overlapping areas.
• the protrusions 22 are of a number sufficient to protect the entire exposed surface of the abrasion protection sleeve 20, so as to contact any surface against which the suction head 24 may touch before such surface can contact the body of the suction head.
• the protrusions 22 are generally located so as to protrude laterally from the suction head (around region 24) as well as on the upper surface of the suction head 24 to avoid damage that may occur if the suction head 24 is being used under furniture which has a low portion adjacent the floor.
• a second variant of the inventive abrasion protection sleeve 20 is embodied in a flexible sleeve on which the protrusions 22 are formed.
• the edges 26 have reinforcing ribs 28, in order to prevent tearing when installed over the suction head 24.
• this elastic sleeve has nubs 22, which are arranged as already described above.
• the flexible abrasion protection sleeve 20 is designed of sufficient elasticity that it may be stretched over and, once in place, maintain a residual holding force around the edge of the suction head 24 by means of friction. This flexibility may be obtained using many different shapes and sizes of such suction heads 24.
• a hole or cut out 30 is provided in the protective sleeve 20 to allow the suction tube 16 to pass though. Note as well that the cut out 30 does not need to be a hole, but rather, could be a recess in the sleeve 20 that allows the sleeve to be wrapped around the suction tube 16 and fixed in place using, for example, Velcro straps or snaps (not shown).
• the choice of material ensures that the sleeve 20 has an appropriate elasticity, to allow a person of ordinary or even less than ordinary strength to be able to install the sleeve.
• a ductile material such as a rubber, an elastomer, thermoplastic elastomer or soft PVC.
• the abrasion of protection 20 protects against possible collisions with furniture or walls, leaving no trace on a wall or furniture due to the fact that the material is soft, flexible, non-scuff, and therefore does not impart damage to items against which it collides.
• the material is also ideally of a transparent color or a bright, even white color.
• the material may glow in the dark, and thus help illuminate nocks and crannies.
• Various colors and designs of the protrusions 22 are possible.
• a space for commercial advertising may also be provided, which proves useful in advertising the services of industrial or commercial cleaners.
• Variations in design may be provided whose purpose is to provide an abrasion protection sleeve which is more aesthetically pleasing and which matches to the form or color of certain users.
• the protective function of the abrasion protection sleeve 20 can be further optimized.
• the material of the abrasion protection sleeve 20 is selected so that oil, grease may be easily cleaned using common household cleaners but is also resistant to more aggressive cleaners. This damage of the material of the abrasion protection sleeve 20 by various polishes and cleaning is prevented. Since many suitable elastomers can be heated without problem to 30 ° C - 60 ° C, there is little risk of damage when hot cleaning emulsions are used. The removable protective abrasion (20) can thus also be washed.
• system contemplates the use, sale and/or distribution of any goods, services or information having similar functionality described herein.

Landscapes

• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
• Cleaning Implements For Floors, Carpets, Furniture, Walls, And The Like (AREA)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Publications (1)

Family

ID=43304663

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (3)

Family Cites Families (12)

• 2010
  • 2010-08-11 EP EP10765488A patent/EP2464268A1/de not_active Withdrawn
  • 2010-08-11 WO PCT/IB2010/001990 patent/WO2011018699A1/en not_active Ceased
  • 2010-08-11 US US13/390,089 patent/US20120137461A1/en not_active Abandoned

Non-Patent Citations (1)

Also Published As

Similar Documents

Legal Events