Vacuum cleaner

Abstract

To provide a vacuum cleaner capable of cleaning the periphery of the legs of a desk, a chair or the like without having contact with the legs.SOLUTION: A vacuum cleaner 100 includes: a blowing case 21 having a blowing port 21a to blow out the air sucked by an electric blower 12; a suction case 22 having a suction port 22a to suck the air blown out from the blowing port 21a by the suction operation of the electric blower 12; a hollow part 26 which is formed by enclosing by the blowing case 21 and the suction case 22 and to which the blowing port 21a and the suction port 22a are opened; and an opening part 27 formed between the distal end of the blowing case 21 and the distal end of the suction case 22 so as to communicate with the hollow part 26.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a vacuum cleaner.

Background Art

[0002] Indoors, there are cases where a vacuum cleaner is used to clean around the legs of a desk or chair. By the way, Patent Document 1 discloses an outdoor vacuum cleaner for cleaning garbage such as fallen leaves.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] Indoors, when cleaning around the legs of a desk or chair with a vacuum cleaner, the head part of the vacuum cleaner may come into contact with the legs. Therefore, there is a risk of damage to the head part or the legs.

[0005] On the other hand, the vacuum cleaner disclosed in Patent Document 1 includes an injection nozzle and a suction nozzle. In this vacuum cleaner, by the user's movement operation such that the injection nozzle and the suction nozzle face each other, the garbage lifted by the air ejected from the injection nozzle is sucked in by the suction nozzle. Therefore, the vacuum cleaner disclosed in Patent Document 1 is not for cleaning around the legs of a desk or chair indoors and cannot solve the above problems.

[0006] The present disclosure has been made to solve the above problems, and an object thereof is to provide a vacuum cleaner that can clean around the legs of a desk or chair without contacting the legs.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0007] The vacuum cleaner according to this disclosure comprises: an outlet case having an outlet for blowing out air sucked in by an electric blower; a suction case having a suction port for sucking in air blown out from the outlet by the suction operation of the electric blower; a hollow portion formed by being surrounded by the outlet case and the suction case, with the outlet and suction port opening; and an opening formed between the tip of the outlet case and the tip of the suction case, communicating with the hollow portion. [Effects of the Invention]

[0008] According to this disclosure, it is possible to clean around the legs of a desk or chair, etc., without coming into contact with the legs. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0009] [Figure 1] This diagram shows the configuration of the vacuum cleaner according to Embodiment 1. [Figure 2] This diagram shows the state when the head unit has moved around the legs. [Figure 3] This diagram shows the configuration of the vacuum cleaner according to Embodiment 2. [Figure 4] This diagram shows the configuration of the vacuum cleaner according to Embodiment 3. [Figure 5] This shows the state when the vacuum cleaner according to Embodiment 3 moves around the legs. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0010] The embodiments of this disclosure will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings.

[0011] Embodiment 1. The vacuum cleaner 100 according to Embodiment 1 will be described with reference to Figures 1 and 2. Figure 1 is a diagram showing the configuration of the vacuum cleaner 100 according to Embodiment 1. Figure 2 is a diagram showing the state when the head portion 20 has moved around the legs 50. The arrows shown in Figure 1 indicate the airflow.

[0012] The vacuum cleaner 100 shown in Figure 1 is for indoor use and is an exhaust-recirculating type vacuum cleaner. This vacuum cleaner 100 comprises a vacuum cleaner body 10 and a head unit 20.

[0013] The vacuum cleaner body 10 has a dust collection chamber 11 and an electric blower 12.

[0014] The dust collection chamber 11 is equipped with a dust collection filter (not shown). This dust collection chamber 11 is connected to the suction side of the head unit 20, which will be described later.

[0015] The electric blower 12 is composed of, for example, a motor and a fan (both not shown). The electric blower 12 also has a suction port and an exhaust port (both not shown). The suction port of the electric blower 12 is in communication with the dust collection chamber 11. The exhaust port of the electric blower 12 is connected to the blowing side of the head unit 20, which will be described later.

[0016] Therefore, in the electric blower 12, the fan rotates when the motor is driven. As a result, the air in the dust collection chamber 11 is drawn in through the suction port of the electric blower 12, passes through the fan of the electric blower 12, and is discharged from its exhaust port. At this time, the air in the dust collection chamber 11 passes through the dust collection filter, and the dust and dirt contained in the air are captured by the dust collection filter. The air discharged from the exhaust port of the electric blower 12 is then sent to the blowing side of the head unit 20.

[0017] The head unit 20 moves across the floor surface to clean up dust, dirt, and other debris scattered on the floor. For this purpose, multiple wheels (not shown) are rotatably supported at the bottom of the head unit 20. These wheels are capable of moving across the floor surface.

[0018] The head portion 20 has a blowing case 21, a suction case 22, a connecting case 23, an exhaust pipe 24, a suction pipe 25, a hollow portion 26, and an opening 27. In the head portion 20, although details will be described later, the installation side of the opening 27 is the front side, and the installation side of the connecting case 23 is the rear side.

[0019] The blowing case 21 and the suction case 22 are connected by the connecting case 23. Specifically, the proximal end of the blowing case 21 is connected to one end side (blowing side) of the connecting case 23. The proximal end of the suction case 22 is connected to the other end side (suction side) of the connecting case 23. For this reason, inside the head portion 20, a hollow portion 26 surrounded by the inner surfaces of the blowing case 21, the suction case 22, and the connecting case 23 is formed. Also, an opening 27 is formed between the distal ends of the blowing case 21 and the suction case 22. This opening 27 communicates with the hollow portion 26.

[0020] As shown in FIG. 2, the vacuum cleaner 100 has a hollow portion 26 and an opening 27 in the head portion 20, so that it can efficiently clean the periphery of the leg 50 on the floor surface. This leg 50 is, for example, the leg of a desk or a chair. For this reason, the hollow portion 26 has a width such that the blowing case 21, the suction case 22, and the connecting case 23 are arranged around the leg 50. Also, the opening 27 has an opening width through which the leg 50 can pass.

[0021] The blowing case 21 and the suction case 22 are provided so as to approach each other from their respective proximal ends toward their distal ends. At this time, the intersection angle α at which the center line of the blowing case 21 and the center line of the suction case 22 intersect is set, for example, at 30 to 60 degrees. Thus, the vacuum cleaner 100 can prevent dust from being discharged from the opening 27 while maintaining the cleaning target area around the leg 50 by including the blowing case 21 and the suction case 22.

[0022] The blower case 21 has a blower outlet 21a. This blower outlet 21a is open across between the lower surface and the inner surface in the blower case 21. That is, the blower outlet 21a faces the floor surface and the hollow portion 26.

[0023] And the blower outlet 21a is connected to the exhaust pipe 24 through the inside of the blower case 21 and the inside of the connection case 23. For this reason, the air discharged from the electric blower 12 is sent into the blower outlet 21a, and the air sent into this blower outlet 21a is blown onto the floor surface in the hollow portion 26 from the blower outlet 21a. As a result, the dust on the floor surface in the hollow portion 26 is blown away toward the suction port 22a.

[0024] The suction case 22 has a suction port 22a. This suction port 22a is open across between the lower surface and the inner surface in the suction case 22. That is, the suction port 22a faces the floor surface and the hollow portion 26. The suction port 22a faces the blower outlet 21a.

[0025] And the suction port 22a is connected to the suction pipe 25 through the inside of the suction case 22 and the inside of the connection case 23. For this reason, a negative pressure is generated at the suction port 22a by the drive of the electric blower 12, and the air blown out from the blower outlet 21a is sucked into the suction port 22a and refluxes into the cleaner main body 10. As a result, the dust on the floor surface in the hollow portion 26 is sucked from the suction port 22a together with the air blown out from the blower outlet 21a and sent into the dust collection chamber 11 of the cleaner main body 10.

[0026] Therefore, when using the vacuum cleaner 100 to clean the floor surface as usual, the user moves the head unit 20 back and forth across the floor surface in a forward and backward direction, in response to the debris on the floor. As a result, the debris passes through the opening 27 from the front of the head unit 20 and enters the hollow section 26. The debris that enters the hollow section 26 is then blown towards the intake port 22a by the air blown out from the outlet port 21a. As a result, the blown-away debris is sucked into the intake port 22a and then collected by the dust collection filter in the dust collection chamber 11.

[0027] Furthermore, when using the vacuum cleaner 100 to clean around the legs 50 on the floor, the user moves the head unit 20 around the legs 50. That is, as shown in Figure 2, by moving the head unit 20, the user allows the legs 50 to pass through the opening 27 from the front of the head unit 20 and enter the hollow section 26.

[0028] In this case, with the vacuum cleaner 100, the legs 50 are inserted into the hollow section 26, and the head section 20 is moved back and forth. In this case, it is not necessary for the head section 20 to be in contact with the legs 50. Alternatively, with the vacuum cleaner 100, the head section 20 may be fixed in place without being moved back and forth. In this case, the user does not need to move the head section 20 back and forth, thus reducing the physical strain on the user compared to when it is moved back and forth.

[0029] Therefore, dust around the legs 50 on the floor surface is blown away towards the intake port 22a by the air blown out from the outlet port 21a. As a result, the blown-away dust is sucked into the intake port 22a and then collected by the dust collection filter in the dust collection chamber 11.

[0030] As described above, the vacuum cleaner 100 according to Embodiment 1 comprises a discharge case 21 having a discharge port 21a for blowing out air sucked in by an electric blower 12, a suction case 22 having a suction port 22a for sucking in air blown out from the discharge port 21a by the suction operation of the electric blower 12, a hollow portion 26 formed by being surrounded by the discharge case 21 and the suction case 22, with the discharge port 21a and the suction port 22a opening, and an opening 27 formed between the tip of the discharge case 21 and the tip of the suction case 22, communicating with the hollow portion 26. Therefore, the vacuum cleaner 100 can clean around the legs 50 of a desk or chair, etc., without coming into contact with the legs 50.

[0031] Furthermore, in the vacuum cleaner 100, the air outlet case 21 and the suction case 22 are arranged so that they approach each other as they move from their base ends towards their tips. As a result, the vacuum cleaner 100 can maintain the area to be cleaned around the legs 50 while preventing dust from being discharged from the opening 27.

[0032] Embodiment 2. The vacuum cleaner 200 according to Embodiment 2 will be described with reference to Figure 3. Figure 3 is a diagram showing the configuration of the vacuum cleaner 200 according to Embodiment 2. Components that have the same functions as those described in Embodiment 1 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and their descriptions are omitted.

[0033] As shown in Figure 3, the vacuum cleaner 200 according to Embodiment 2 has a configuration that adds a first brush 28a and a second brush 28b to the configuration of the vacuum cleaner 100 according to Embodiment 1. Note that the vacuum cleaner body 10 is omitted in the vacuum cleaner 200 shown in Figure 3.

[0034] The brushes 28a and 28b suppress the scattering of dust from the hollow section 26. These brushes 28a and 28b are made of, for example, an elastic resin material.

[0035] Brush 28a is provided on the upper edge of the inner surface of the discharge case 21. This brush 28a extends from the upper edge of the inner surface of the discharge case 21 to the center of the upper surface of the hollow section 26. Similarly, brush 28b is provided on the upper edge of the inner surface of the suction case 22. This brush 28b extends from the upper edge of the inner surface of the suction case 22 to the center of the upper surface of the hollow section 26. As a result, brushes 28a and 28b cover the hollow section 26 from above.

[0036] Therefore, when using the vacuum cleaner 100 to clean the floor surface as usual, even if the dust that enters the hollow section 26 is blown away by the air blown out from the outlet 21a, it will not be blown upward from the hollow section 26. For this reason, even if the vacuum cleaner 200 blows away the dust on the floor surface with the air from the outlet 21a, it can still suck up the dust from the intake port 22a.

[0037] Furthermore, when cleaning around the legs 50 on the floor using the vacuum cleaner 100, the legs 50 push aside the brushes 28a and 28b and enter the hollow section 26. Also, the brushes 28a and 28b deform to conform to the outer surface of the legs 50 that have entered the hollow section 26. As a result, the gap between the legs 50 and the brushes 28a and 28b is almost eliminated.

[0038] In contrast, even if the dust around the legs 50 on the floor is blown away by the air blown out from the outlet 21a, it does not fly upward from the hollow section 26. Therefore, even if the vacuum cleaner 200 blows away the dust around the legs 50 on the floor with the air from the outlet 21a, it can still suck up the dust from the intake port 22a.

[0039] As described above, the vacuum cleaner 200 according to Embodiment 2 includes a brush 28a provided in the air outlet case 21 and a brush 28b provided in the suction case 22. The brushes 28a and 28b are arranged to cover the hollow section 26 from above. Therefore, the vacuum cleaner 200 can suppress dust from flying up from the hollow section 26.

[0040] Embodiment 3. The vacuum cleaner 300 according to Embodiment 3 will be described with reference to Figures 4 and 5. Figure 4 is a diagram showing the configuration of the vacuum cleaner 300 according to Embodiment 3. Figure 5 shows the state when the vacuum cleaner 300 according to Embodiment 3 has moved around the legs 50.

[0041] The vacuum cleaner 300 shown in Figure 4 is, for example, an autonomous vacuum cleaner. The vacuum cleaner 300 has a circular vacuum cleaner body 30 when viewed from above. This vacuum cleaner body 30 moves on the floor surface to clean up dust and dirt scattered on the floor surface. For this purpose, multiple wheels (not shown) are rotatably supported at the bottom of the vacuum cleaner body 30. These wheels are capable of moving on the floor surface.

[0042] The rear of the vacuum cleaner body 30 houses a dust collection chamber 11 and an electric blower 12. The front of the vacuum cleaner body 30 is provided with a blowing case 21, a suction case 22, a connecting case 23, an exhaust pipe 24, a suction pipe 25, a hollow section 26, and an opening 27.

[0043] Therefore, when using the vacuum cleaner 300 to clean the floor surface as usual, the vacuum cleaner 300 moves back and forth across the floor surface in response to the debris. As a result, the debris passes through the opening 27 from the front of the vacuum cleaner body 30 and enters the hollow section 26. The debris that enters the hollow section 26 is then blown towards the intake port 22a by the air blown out from the outlet port 21a. As a result, the blown-away debris is sucked into the intake port 22a and then collected by the dust collection filter in the dust collection chamber 11.

[0044] Furthermore, when using the vacuum cleaner 300 to clean around the legs 50 on the floor, the vacuum cleaner 300 moves around the legs 50. That is, as shown in Figure 5, the vacuum cleaner 300 moves the vacuum cleaner body 30 so that the legs 50 pass from the front of the vacuum cleaner body 30 through its opening 27 and enter the hollow section 26. As a result, the dust around the legs 50 on the floor is blown away towards the intake port 22a by the air blown out from the outlet port 21a. As a result, the blown-away dust is sucked into the intake port 22a and then collected in the dust collection filter of the dust collection chamber 11.

[0045] Furthermore, the vacuum cleaner 300 may be equipped with the brushes 28a and 28b on the inner surfaces of the air outlet case 21 and the suction case 22. This allows the vacuum cleaner 300 to suppress dust from flying up from the hollow section 26.

[0046] As described above, the vacuum cleaner 300 according to Embodiment 3 comprises a discharge case 21 having a discharge port 21a for blowing out air sucked in by an electric blower 12, a suction case 22 having a suction port 22a for sucking in air blown out from the discharge port 21a by the suction operation of the electric blower 12, a hollow portion 26 formed by being surrounded by the discharge case 21 and the suction case 22, with the discharge port 21a and the suction port 22a opening, and an opening 27 formed between the tip of the discharge case 21 and the tip of the suction case 22, communicating with the hollow portion 26. Therefore, the vacuum cleaner 300 can clean around the legs 50 of a desk or chair, etc., without coming into contact with the legs 50.

[0047] Within the scope of this disclosure, it is possible to freely combine the embodiments, modify any component in each embodiment, or omit any component in each embodiment. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0048] 10,30 Vacuum cleaner body, 11 Dust collection chamber, 12 Electric blower, 20 Head unit, 21 Outlet case, 21a Outlet, 22 Suction case, 22a Suction port, 23 Connecting case, 24 Exhaust pipe, 25 Suction pipe, 26 Hollow section, 27 Opening, 28a,28b Brush, 50 Legs, 100,300,200 Electric vacuum cleaner.

Claims

1. an air outlet case having an outlet for blowing out air sucked by the electric blower; an intake case having an intake port that draws in the air blown out from the outlet by the suction action of the electric blower; a hollow portion formed by the outlet case and the suction case, the hollow portion having the outlet port and the suction port opening therein; an opening formed between the tip of the blowing case and the tip of the suction case and communicating with the hollow portion; A vacuum cleaner characterized by:

2. The blowing case and the suction case are disposed so as to approach each other from their respective base ends to their respective tip ends.

2. The vacuum cleaner according to claim 1.

3. a first brush provided in the blowout case; a second brush provided in the suction case, The first brush and the second brush are disposed so as to cover the hollow portion from above.

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

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