Title: Floor sweeping apparatus
Abstract: Floor sweeping apparatus (9) of the type having a rotary brush member (20), which in use is driven to rotate about a generally horizontal axis, the brush member (20) having bristle elements (22) that, as the brush member (20) rotates, extend during part of their range of movement through an aperture (13) in a base plate (12) of a housing (10) in which the rotary brush member (20) is rotatably journalled has at least one bristle element (22), hereinafter called an end-most bristle element (25), arranged immediately adjacent to each end of said brush member (20), and a deflector member (26) is provided at each end of the aperture (13) to co-operate with said end-most bristle element (25) at the respective end of the brush member (20). The deflector members (26) deflect said end-most bristle elements (25) axially beyond the end of the aperture (13) as said end-most bristle elements (25) extend through the aperture (13) during the rotation of the brush member (20) to effectively extend the sweeping action at least up to, and preferably beyond, the outer edge of the housing.
Patent Number: 7,017,221 Issued on 03/28/2006 to Grey, et al.
| Inventors:
|
Grey; Nicholas Gerald (Crowle, GB);
Sentance; Graham Robert (St. Johns, GB)
|
| Assignee:
|
Techtronic Industries Company Limited (Tsuen Wan, HK)
|
| Appl. No.:
|
129409 |
| Filed:
|
November 3, 2000 |
| PCT Filed:
|
November 3, 2000
|
| PCT NO:
|
PCT/GB00/04244
|
| 371 Date:
|
August 9, 2002
|
| 102(e) Date:
|
August 9, 2002
|
| PCT PUB.NO.:
|
WO01/32065 |
| PCT PUB. Date:
|
May 10, 2001 |
Foreign Application Priority Data
| Current U.S. Class: |
15/41.1; 15/42; 15/383 |
| Current Intern'l Class: |
A47L 5/30 (20060101); A47L 9/04 (20060101) |
| Field of Search: |
15/411,42,383
|
References Cited [Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
| 3744077 | Jul., 1973 | Smyth.
| |
| 4219902 | Sep., 1980 | DeMaagd.
| |
| Foreign Patent Documents |
| 30 39 167 | May., 1982 | DE.
| |
| 32 29 786 | Feb., 1984 | DE.
| |
| 0 285 096 | Oct., 1988 | EP.
| |
Other References
Patent Abstract of Japan vol. 016, No. 202 (C-0940), JP 04 035632, Feb. 6, 1992.
|
Primary Examiner: Chin; Randall
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Venable, Kinberg; Robert, Schwarz; Steven J.
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. Floor sweeping apparatus comprising a housing having a base plate, and a rotary
brush member rotatably journalled in the housing, wherein the brush member is driven
to rotate about a generally horizontal axis, the brush member having bristle elements
that, as the member rotates, extend during part of their range of movement through
an aperture in the base plate, wherein there is at least one bristle element, hereinafter
called an end-most bristle element, arranged immediately adjacent to each end of
said brush member, and wherein a deflector member is provided at each end of the
aperture to co-operate with said end-most bristle element at the respective end
of the brush member to deflect said end-most bristle element outwardly away from
the brush member in the axial direction with respect to the generally horizontal
axis as said end-most bristle element extends through the aperture during the rotation
of the brush member.
2. Floor sweeping apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the housing includes
at least one side wall having a lower edge with a recess in register with the aperture.
3. Floor sweeping apparatus according to claim 1 wherein each deflector member
comprises a guide wire of appropriate form which is arranged to extend across the
aperture adjacent the end thereof.
4. Floor sweeping apparatus according to claim 3 wherein each guide wire is of
generally smoothly curved shape so that when or immediately after the respective
end-most bristle element first extends through the aperture it contacts the guide
wire and is smoothly deflected outwardly to reach maximum deflection at or slightly
before its lowest point, and is then allowed to return in a manner controlled by
the remainder of the guide wire.
5. Floor sweeping apparatus according to claim 3 wherein each guide wire is formed
with a generally straight middle section and curved or angled end portions so that
the respective end-most bristle element is maintained at substantially maximum
deflection over most of its travel while extending through the aperture.
6. Floor sweeping apparatus according to claim 3 wherein each guide wire is of
generally V-shape, with unequal limbs, such that the end-most bristle element is
deflected more sharply on its outward movement than on its return movement.
7. Floor sweeping apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the deflector member
is formed integrally with the base plate of the housing.
8. Floor sweeping apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the deflector member
does not extend across the entire width of the aperture.
9. Floor sweeping apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the deflector member
is adapted to positively return the bristle elements axially inwardly into the housing.
10. Floor sweeping apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the rotary brush member
is supported by bearings which engage it externally at positions spaced inwardly
from its opposite ends.
11. Floor sweeping apparatus according to claim 10, further comprising at least
one bridge member that extends across the aperture at a position inset from the
side walls, wherein the bridge member supports the bearings.
12. Floor sweeping apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the housing includes
one or more side walls having bearing cups, and the rotary brush member includes
one or more stub axles having end portions that extend into the bearing cups.
Description
DESCRIPTION OF INVENTION
This invention relates to floor sweeping apparatus of the type having a rotary
brush member, which in use is driven to rotate about a generally horizontal axis,
the brush member having bristle elements that, as the member rotates, extend during
part of their range of movement through an aperture in a base plate of a housing
in which the member is rotatably journalled.
Such apparatus may typically form part of a vacuum cleaner, and in that case
suction will normally be applied to the housing to draw collected dirt and debris
away form the brush member to a suitable collecting chamber which is disposed remotely
from the housing. However, the apparatus may also from part of a mechanical floor
sweeper of the kind in which the housing itself is provided with a receptacle which
serves to collect dirt and debris thrown from the brush member as it rotates.
In such apparatus there has been a long-standing problem in that the sweeping
action can only take place within the confines of the housing, and more particularly
within the confines of the aperture through which the bristle elements come into
contact with the surface being swept.
Conventionally, the brush member is mounted in the housing by means
of bearings at the ends thereof, so that each end of the brush member is spaced
inwardly from the side face of the housing by a distance sufficient to accommodate
the bearing. This effectively makes it impossible for the user to clean fully to
the edge of a floor, thus leaving an unswept strip at the junction between the
floor or floor covering and the wall or skirting at the base of the wall.
In an attempt to reduce the width of such unswept strip in some cases the brush
member has been designed to be supported by bearings that are disposed at positions
spaced inwardly of the ends of the brush member and thus disposed away from the
side faces of the housing, so that the aperture can extend fully up to the side
walls of the housing and bristle elements can correspondingly be provided immediately
adjacent to the sides of the housing.
Whilst this represents an improvement in that it reduces the width of the
unswept strip, it does not eliminate the unswept strip entirely, and it has also
been proposed to provide, at positions adjacent to the sides of the housing, additional
rotary brushes which are arranged for rotation about substantially vertical axes
so that bristles thereof extend beyond the side faces of the housing during part
of their range of movement. However such an arrangement involves substantial additional
complication in the construction of the apparatus and is accordingly costly to implement.
According to the present invention there is provided floor sweeping apparatus
of the type having a rotary brush member, which in use is driven to rotate about
a generally horizontal axis, the brush member having bristle elements that, as
the member rotates, extend during part of their range of movement through an aperture
in a base plate of a housing in which the rotary brush member is rotatably journalled,
wherein there is at least one bristle element, hereinafter called an end-most bristle
element, arranged immediately adjacent to each end of said brush member, and wherein
a deflector member is provided at each end of the aperture to co-operate with said
end-most bristle element at the respective end of the brush member and deflect
said end-most bristle element axially outwardly as said end-most bristle element
extends through the aperture during the rotation of the brush member.
To facilitate such deflection of the end-most bristle element, the lower edge
of a side wall of the housing may be formed with a recess in register with the
end of the aperture, and preferably the arrangement is such that the end-most bristle
element projects outwardly beyond the end of the aperture.
The deflector member may comprise a guide wire of appropriate form which is arranged
to extend across the aperture adjacent the end thereof. Typically the guide wire
may be of generally smoothly curved shape so that as, or immediately after, the
end-most bristle element first extends through the aperture it contacts the guide
wire and is smoothly deflected outwardly to reach maximum deflection at or slightly
before its lowest point, and is then allowed to return in a manner controlled by
the remainder of the guide wire.
However, it will be appreciated that other arrangements are possible. For
example, the guide wire may be formed with a generally straight middle section
and curved or angled end portions so that the end-most bristle element is maintained
at substantially maximum deflection over most of its travel while extending through
the aperture. Moreover, it may be desirable to contour the guide wire such that
the end-most bristle does not contact the surface being swept while it is moving
outwardly, so as to avoid any tendency to throw dust away from the aperture, but
only engages the surface during its return inward movement, thus throwing any dust
towards the aperture for collection.
The deflector member may alternatively be formed integrally with the base plate
of the housing, and in some cases may not extend across the entire width of the aperture.
If required, the housing may include a guide adjacent the edge of the aperture
at which the end-most bristle element passes back into the housing so as positively
to return the bristle element axially inwardly.
The rotary brush member may be supported by bearings which engage it externally
at positions spaced inwardly from its opposite ends, or by internal bearings carried
by stub axles which extend from the side walls of the housing and into end portions
of the brush member, the arrangement in either case being such that the brush member
is enabled to extend fully up to, but preferably not into direct contact with,
the adjacent side wall.
These and other features of the invention will now be described with reference
to the accompanying drawings wherein:
FIG. 1 is a fragmentary end view of a first embodiment of floor sweeper in accordance
with the invention;
FIG. 2 is a fragmentary underneath plan view of the embodiment of FIG. 1;
FIG. 3 is a fragmentary end view of a second embodiment of floor sweeper in
accordance with the invention;
FIG. 4 is a fragmentary underneath plan view of the embodiment of FIG. 3, and
FIGS. 5 and 6 are fragmentary end views of alternative forms of deflector member.
Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, a floor sweeper
9 in accordance with
the invention includes a housing
10 having side walls
11 (only one
of which is illustrated) and at its underside a base plate
12.
A rotary brush member
20 is mounted in the housing
10 for rotation
about an axis which, when the sweeper
9 is in use, extends generally horizontally
above the surface being cleaned. The member
20 comprises a generally cylindrical
body
21 from which spaced bristle elements
22 project radially. In
this embodiment, each bristle element
22 comprises a group of bristles arranged
in a tuft, but it will be appreciated that other arrangements are possible. The
base plate
12 is formed with an aperture
13 which extends fully between
the side walls
11 of the housing
10, so as to allow the bristle elements
22 to project through the base plate
12 and into engagement with
the surface being cleaned as the brush member
22 is rotated.
In this embodiment, the aperture
13 is bridged at positions inset from
the side walls
11 by cross members
14 which carry bearings (not shown)
which support the cylindrical body
21 by external engagement with reduced
diameter portions
23 thereof. In this way, the cylindrical body
21
can extend fully up to the side walls
11 of the housing, but preferably
with sufficient clearance to avoid direct contact with the internal faces thereof.
However, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 (in which like parts carry like references),
it is possible as an alternative for the cylindrical body to be supported internally
at the ends thereof. As illustrated, a modified brush member
30 includes
a cylindrical body
31 which has end portions
32 of relatively increased
diameter. The end portions
32 carry bristle elements and the end faces thereof
are formed with a respective recess
33 in which is located an outwardly
projecting stub axle
34. A respective part-circular recess
16 is
formed in the modified side walls
11, and each recess
16 serves to
locate an end cap
35 of generally dished shape, so as to enter the recess
33, with a central outwardly extending hollow bearing cup
36 in which
the corresponding stub axle
34 is received. In this way the cylindrical
body
31 is supported at its end while still being able to extend up to the
side walls
11.
In accordance with the invention, at each end of the cylindrical body
21,
31
there is provided at least one bristle element
25 which is disposed immediately
adjacent to the end of the cylindrical body, for example there may be two such
end-most bristle elements at diametrally opposed positions. Deflector members
26
are provided at opposite ends of the brush member
20,
30 to engage
said end-most bristle elements
25 and deflect them axially outwardly as
they travel through the aperture
13 as the brush member
20,
30 rotates.
In the embodiments illustrated in FIGS. 1 to 4, the deflector member
26
comprises a curved wire which is secured to the underside of the base plate
12,
but it will be appreciated that the deflector member could be formed integrally
with the base plate if desired.
The arrangement is such that as the end-most bristle element
25 emerges
from the aperture
13 it engages the laterally outer surface of the deflector
member
26 and is thereby progressively deflected laterally outwardly so
as to extend beneath, and preferably beyond, the adjacent side wall
11 as
illustrated in FIGS. 2 and 4. To facilitate such deflection, the underside of the
side wall
11 may be formed with a recess
15 in register with the
end of the aperture
13, as shown most clearly in FIGS. 1 and 3.
With the deflector member
26 as illustrated, the end-most bristle element
25 reaches its position of maximum deflection when it is in its lowest position
during its rotary movement and then it is allowed to retract inwardly as the movement
continues. During inward movement the end-most bristle element positively throws
dust into the aperture
13.
However, the deflector member may take other forms, and for example as illustrated
in FIG. 5 the deflector member
26a includes a straight central portion
which maintains maximum deflection of the end-most bristle element
25 over
a substantial portion of its travel across the aperture
13. In a further
alternative arrangement as shown in FIG. 6, the deflector member
26b
is of generally shallow V-shape, with unequal limbs, such that the end-most
bristle element is deflected more sharply on its outward movement than on its return
movement, with the consequence that it engages the surface only during its inward
movement. In this way any tendency to throw dust outwardly is avoided.
Whilst the deflector member preferably extends fully across the width of the
aperture
13, it will be understood that if desired it could terminate short
of the edge of the aperture
13 at which the end-most bristle element
25
returns into the interior of the housing
10. Also, if desired, the housing
could include a deflector element which serves positively to return the end-most
bristle element, as may be appropriate in the case of a bristle element consisting
of relatively soft fibres with little inherent elasticity.
The bristle elements may comprise groups of relatively rigid bristles which are
sufficiently flexible and resilient to follow the shape of the deflector member,
or groups of relatively softer and non-resilient fibres, or individual spikes of
an appropriately flexible material, for example synthetic rubber.
In the present specification "comprises" means "includes or consists of" and
"comprising"
means "including or consisting of".
The features disclosed in the foregoing description, or the following claims,
or the accompanying drawings, expressed in their specific forms or in terms of
a means for performing the disclosed function, or a method or process for attaining
the disclosed result, as appropriate, may, separately, or in any combination of
such features, be utilised for realising the invention in diverse forms thereof.
*
