Cleaner

Abstract

To provide a cleaner for inexpensively improving an environmental problem.SOLUTION: A cleaner includes: a cleaner body for sucking dust; a biodegradable plastic-made dust collection part arranged in the cleaner body so as to collect the dust; a biodegradable plastic-made pipe part arranged in the cleaner body so as to send the dust passing inside to the dust collection part; a biodegradable plastic-made head part arranged at the distal end of the pipe part so as to suck the dust existing on a cleaning object; and a control part for issuing a notification to urge an exchange of the dust collection part, the pipe part, and the head part when a predetermined use permission period elapses from a use start.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a vacuum cleaner having a control unit. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, vacuum cleaners equipped with a control unit have been known. Patent Document 1 discloses an electric vacuum cleaner equipped with a fan motor that generates suction wind, a main body with the fan motor built in, a hose detachably connected to the main body, a fault detection switch, and a control unit that controls the operation of the main body. The control unit is composed of a hose signal transmission means that transmits a signal to the main body, a signal discrimination means that is provided in the main body and discriminates the signal, a fault discrimination means that judges a fault according to the signal classification discriminated by the discrimination means, and a notification means that notifies the fault discriminated by the fault discrimination means.

[0003] When the main body stops working during operation with the hose connected to the main body and the fault determination switch is operated, the fault determination means determines whether the signal category determined by the signal determination means is within a predetermined normal category for the hose. If the signal category is within the normal category, the fault determination means determines that there is a fault in the main body, and if not, determines that there is a fault in the hose, and the notification means issues a notification.

[0004] In this way, Patent Document 1 determines whether the hose or the main body is broken. When the vacuum cleaner breaks down, the user performs a simple operation and reports the result to the service center, which immediately identifies the broken part. The service center then dispatches a replacement part to the user, who then replaces the broken part with the replacement part. Therefore, when the vacuum cleaner breaks down, it is no longer necessary to collect the entire vacuum cleaner and have the service center determine the broken part. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] JP 2006-288460 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] However, the vacuum cleaner disclosed in Patent Document 1 does not take the environment into consideration. The plastic material used in the vacuum cleaner disclosed in Patent Document 1 may have a negative impact on the environment, mainly when the product is disposed of. Although a method of recycling the plastic material without disposing of it is conceivable, generally, when recycling dirty plastic material, it is necessary to wash the plastic material to remove the dirt. For this reason, there are cases where it is cheaper to dispose of the plastic material than to recycle it. Thus, there is a demand for a vacuum cleaner that improves environmental issues without incurring costs.

[0007] The present disclosure has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and provides a vacuum cleaner that improves environmental issues without incurring costs. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] The vacuum cleaner of the present disclosure comprises a vacuum cleaner body that sucks up dust, a biodegradable plastic dust collecting section provided in the vacuum cleaner body and collecting dust, a biodegradable plastic pipe section provided in the vacuum cleaner body and sending dust passing through the inside to the dust collecting section, a biodegradable plastic head section provided at the end of the pipe section and sucking in dust present on the cleaning target, and a control section that issues an alert to prompt replacement of the dust collecting section, the pipe section and the head section when a predetermined acceptable usage period has passed since the start of use. Effect of the Invention

[0009] According to the present disclosure, the control unit issues an alert to prompt replacement of the biodegradable plastic dust collection unit, pipe unit, and head unit when a predetermined allowable usage period has elapsed since the start of use. Biodegradable plastics change in properties in response to the action of decomposition by microorganisms. When an alert is issued to prompt replacement of the dust collection unit, pipe unit, and head unit, the dust collection unit, pipe unit, and head unit to be replaced are collected, and new dust collection unit, pipe unit, and head unit are supplied in their place. The collected dust collection unit, pipe unit, and head unit are then decomposed, for example, in a dedicated facility. In this way, environmental issues can be improved at less cost than when ordinary plastics are used. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing a vacuum cleaner according to a first embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0011] Hereinafter, an embodiment of a vacuum cleaner according to the present disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings. The present disclosure is not limited to the following embodiment, and various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the present disclosure. The present disclosure also includes all combinations of possible configurations among the configurations shown in the following embodiment and its modified examples. In each drawing, the same reference numerals are used to denote the same or equivalent parts, and this is common throughout the entire specification. In addition, the same reference numerals are used to denote the same or equivalent parts in the drawings, and the description thereof will not be repeated in principle. In each drawing, the relative dimensional relationship or shape of each component may differ from the actual one.

[0012] Embodiment 1 FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing a vacuum cleaner 1 according to the first embodiment. The vacuum cleaner 1 is for removing dust and the like present on a cleaning target such as a floor of a room. The types of the vacuum cleaner 1 include a canister type and a stick type. In the canister type, a vacuum cleaner body 2 provided with wheels is placed on a floor, and cleaning is performed by operating a pipe section 4 and a head section 5. In the stick type, the vacuum cleaner body 2, the pipe section 4, and the head section 5 are linearly connected. Although the vacuum cleaner 1 according to the first embodiment is exemplified as a stick type, it is also possible to apply it to a canister type. As shown in FIG. 1, the vacuum cleaner 1 includes a vacuum cleaner body 2, a dust collecting section 3, a pipe section 4, a head section 5, a sensor 7, and a control section 6.

[0013] (vacuum cleaner body 2) The cleaner body 2 is for removing dust present on a floor or the like, and has a cylindrical shape extending in the longitudinal direction.

[0014] (Dust collection section 3) The dust collecting unit 3 is provided in the vacuum cleaner body 2, and is a cylindrical member with a bottom for collecting dust. The dust collecting unit 3 is provided on one end side in the longitudinal direction of the vacuum cleaner body 2. The dust collecting unit 3 is made of biodegradable plastic.

[0015] (Pipe section 4) The pipe section 4 is provided in the vacuum cleaner body 2, and is a cylindrical member extending in the longitudinal direction to send dust passing through the inside to the dust collecting section 3. The base end of the pipe section 4 is provided on the other end side in the longitudinal direction of the vacuum cleaner body 2 opposite to the side on which the dust collecting section 3 is provided. The pipe section 4 is made of biodegradable plastic.

[0016] (Head part 5) The head unit 5 is a disk-shaped member provided at the tip of the pipe unit 4, which sucks in dust present on the floor or the like to be cleaned. One surface of the disk-shaped head unit 5 moves along the cleaning target, so that the dust present on the cleaning target is sucked into the head unit 5. The dust sucked into the head unit 5 moves from the head unit 5 to the pipe unit 4. The dust that moves to the pipe unit 4 passes through the inside of the pipe unit 4 as it is and reaches the dust collection unit 3. The dust that reaches the dust collection unit 3 collects in the dust collection unit 3 and accumulates in the dust collection unit 3. After a certain amount of dust accumulates in the dust collection unit 3, the dust in the dust collection unit 3 is discarded by the user. The head unit 5 is made of biodegradable plastic. The head unit 5 has a signal board 8 that sends use start information to the control unit 6. The use start information is, for example, information indicating that the head unit 5 has been replaced with a new one.

[0017] (Sensor 7) The sensor 7 is provided in at least one of the pipe portion 4 and the head portion 5, and measures the number of times an external force is applied to the pipe portion 4 or the head portion 5.

[0018] (Control unit 6) The control unit 6 is provided in the vacuum cleaner body 2 and controls the operation of the vacuum cleaner 1. Here, the hardware configuration of the control unit 6 will be described. The control unit 6 is composed of a processing circuit. The processing circuit is composed of dedicated hardware or a processor. The dedicated hardware is, for example, an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit) or an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array). The processor executes a program stored in the memory. The control unit 6 has a memory (not shown). The memory is a non-volatile or volatile semiconductor memory such as a RAM (Random Access Memory), a ROM (Read Only Memory), a flash memory, or an EPROM (Erasable Programmable ROM), or a disk such as a magnetic disk, a flexible disk, or an optical disk.

[0019] The control unit 6 issues a notification to prompt replacement of the dust collection unit 3, the pipe unit 4, and the head unit 5 when a predetermined allowable usage period has elapsed since the start of use. Here, the allowable usage period is the period during which cleaning of the parts is considered necessary when the vacuum cleaner 1 is used in an ordinary household. The allowable usage period is the period during which sufficient strength can be maintained against stresses such as stress generated during normal use and stresses such as heat. The control unit 6 can also update the allowable usage period based on the number of times measured by the sensor 7. If the number of times an external force is applied to the pipe unit 4 or the head unit 5 exceeds the number of times an external force is expected to be applied during normal use, the allowable usage period is accelerated.

[0020] Furthermore, the control unit 6 controls the vacuum cleaner body 2 to stop operating after the alarm is issued. This makes it possible to prevent damage to the dust collection unit 3, the pipe unit 4, and the head unit 5. When use start information is transmitted from the signal board 8, the control unit 6 determines the start time of use based on the use start information. This starts a new countdown until the permitted use period expires.

[0021] (Replacing parts of vacuum cleaner 1) Next, replacement of parts of the vacuum cleaner 1 will be described. When the permitted usage period ends, new dust collection unit 3, pipe unit 4, and head unit 5 are sent from the provider to the user. The user returns the dust collection unit 3, pipe unit 4, and head unit 5 that were being used up until that point to the provider. At this point, usage start information is sent from the signal board 8 of the head unit 5 to the control unit 6. When usage start information is sent from the signal board 8, the control unit 6 determines the time to start usage based on the usage start information.

[0022] According to the first embodiment, when a predetermined period has elapsed since the start of use, the control unit 6 issues a warning to prompt the user to replace the dust collection unit 3, the pipe unit 4, and the head unit 5 made of biodegradable plastic. The properties of biodegradable plastic change in response to the action of decomposition by microorganisms. When a warning is issued to prompt the user to replace the dust collection unit 3, the pipe unit 4, and the head unit 5, the dust collection unit 3, the pipe unit 4, and the head unit 5 to be replaced are collected, and new dust collection unit 3, the pipe unit 4, and the head unit 5 are supplied instead. Then, the collected dust collection unit 3, the pipe unit 4, and the head unit 5 are decomposed, for example, in a dedicated facility. In this way, environmental issues can be improved at a lower cost than when normal plastic is used. In addition, the vacuum cleaner 1 further includes a sensor 7 that is provided in at least one of the pipe unit 4 and the head unit 5 and measures the number of times an external force is applied to the pipe unit 4 or the head unit 5, and the control unit 6 updates the allowable use period based on the number of times measured by the sensor 7. Therefore, the allowable use period can be managed even in a place where the Internet environment is not in place.

[0023] Conventionally, plastic materials used in vacuum cleaners may have a negative impact on the environment, mainly when the product is disposed of. Although a method of recycling plastic materials without disposing of them is conceivable, generally, when recycling soiled plastic materials, the plastic materials need to be washed to remove the dirt. For this reason, there are cases where it is cheaper to dispose of them than to recycle them. In contrast, in the present embodiment 1, biodegradable plastics are used, and they can be disposed of without negatively impacting the environment, so there is no need to wash the parts.

[0024] Here, the head unit 5 has a signal board 8 that transmits use start information to the control unit 6, and when the use start information is transmitted from the signal board 8, the control unit 6 determines the start time of use based on the use start information. This allows the vacuum cleaner 1 itself to manage the period of use, eliminating the need for the user to manage the period. In addition, the control unit 6 controls the vacuum cleaner main body 2 to stop operation after an alert is issued. This makes it possible to prevent the vacuum cleaner 1 from being used outside of the permitted use period.

[0025] The vacuum cleaner 1 in the present embodiment 1 can also be used by a user through a subscription contract. The permitted use period is set as a period during which the strength that satisfies the designed performance is maintained. At the timing when the permitted use period ends, new dust collection unit 3, pipe unit 4, and head unit 5 are sent from the provider to the user. The user returns the dust collection unit 3, pipe unit 4, and head unit 5 that were used up until that point to the provider. The returned dust collection unit 3, pipe unit 4, and head unit 5 are decomposed in a compost (high temperature and high humidity) environment, thereby reducing the environmental load that may be generated by conventional plastic products. In this way, the dust collection unit 3, pipe unit 4, and head unit 5 are collected and replaced with new ones at a certain cycle, thereby saving the user the trouble of cleaning the dust collection unit 3, pipe unit 4, and head unit 5. In addition, when the subscription contract expires, the vacuum cleaner 1 is programmed to stop its functions, and it can also be controlled so that it cannot be used for more than a certain period of time.

[0026] Various aspects of the present disclosure are summarized below as appendices. [Appendix 1] The vacuum cleaner body that sucks up dust, A dust collecting section made of biodegradable plastic provided in the vacuum cleaner body for collecting dust; A pipe section made of biodegradable plastic provided in the vacuum cleaner body and configured to send dust passing through the inside of the pipe section to the dust collecting section; A head portion made of biodegradable plastic is provided at the tip of the pipe portion and sucks in dust present on the cleaning target; a control unit that issues a notification to prompt replacement of the dust collection unit, the pipe unit, and the head unit when a predetermined allowable usage period has elapsed since the start of use; A vacuum cleaner equipped with [Appendix 2] a sensor provided in at least one of the pipe portion and the head portion, the sensor measuring the number of times an external force is applied to the pipe portion or the head portion; The control unit is The allowable usage period is updated based on the number of times measured by the sensor. Attachment 1 describes a vacuum cleaner. [Appendix 3] The control unit is After the alarm is issued, the operation of the vacuum cleaner body is stopped. 4. A vacuum cleaner as described in claim 1 or 2. [Appendix 4] The head unit has a signal board that transmits start-of-use information to the control unit, When start-of-use information is transmitted from the signal board, the control unit determines a start time of use based on the start-of-use information. Attachment 1 to 3, the vacuum cleaner of any one of claims 1 to 3. [Explanation of symbols]

[0027] 1 vacuum cleaner, 2 vacuum cleaner body, 3 dust collection unit, 4 pipe unit, 5 head unit, 6 control unit, 7 sensor, 8 signal board.

Claims

1. The vacuum cleaner body that sucks up dust, A dust collecting section made of biodegradable plastic provided in the vacuum cleaner body for collecting dust; A pipe section made of biodegradable plastic provided in the vacuum cleaner body and configured to send dust passing through the inside of the pipe section to the dust collecting section; A head portion made of biodegradable plastic is provided at the tip of the pipe portion and sucks in dust present on the cleaning target; a control unit that issues a warning to prompt replacement of the dust collection unit, the pipe unit, and the head unit when a predetermined allowable period of use has elapsed since the start of use; A vacuum cleaner equipped with

2. a sensor provided in at least one of the pipe portion and the head portion, the sensor measuring the number of times an external force is applied to the pipe portion or the head portion; The control unit is The allowable usage period is updated based on the number of times measured by the sensor.

2. The vacuum cleaner of claim 1.

3. The control unit is After the alarm is issued, the operation of the vacuum cleaner body is stopped.

3. The vacuum cleaner according to claim 1 or 2.

4. The head unit has a signal board that transmits start-of-use information to the control unit, When start-of-use information is transmitted from the signal board, the control unit determines a start time of use based on the start-of-use information.

3. The vacuum cleaner according to claim 1 or 2.

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