Cleaner Head Conduit Pivot Layout for Leak-Free Airflow
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing cleaner head designs for vacuum cleaning appliances suffer from air leakage and turbulence due to the pivoting connection within the airflow path, which reduces pick-up performance and generates noise.
Innovation Solution
The cleaner head features a conduit assembly with connectors outside the fluid flow path, allowing for any desired configuration without seals, and includes elbow sections with a seal to prevent fluid leakage, enabling the rear conduit to pivot relative to the front conduit without disrupting airflow, and a chassis with wheels for stable support and minimal profile.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a pivoting connection is provided within the airflow path to enable maneuvering, then the cleaner head can be manoeuvred over the floor surface, but air leakage occurs and pick-up performance is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the pivoting connection from the airflow path by positioning it laterally adjacent to the flow path rather than within it. This allows the conduit assembly to pivot for maneuvering while the airflow remains uninterrupted and sealed, eliminating air leakage at the pivot point.
2Ease of operation
If a pivoting connection is provided within the airflow path to enable maneuvering, then the cleaner head can be manoeuvred over the floor surface, but turbulence and noise are generated
Solution Approach 1:
The pivoting connection is extracted from the airflow path and repositioned adjacent to it. This separation eliminates the disruption of airflow that causes turbulence and noise, while preserving the maneuverability function through the lateral positioning of the pivot mechanism.
3Ease of manufacture
If connectors are positioned within the airflow path to connect front and rear conduits, then the conduit assembly can be assembled, but seals are required and air leakage occurs
Solution Approach 1:
The connectors joining the front and rear conduits are extracted from the airflow path and positioned laterally adjacent to it. This allows the conduit assembly to be constructed with simple connectors without requiring complex sealing mechanisms, as the connectors no longer interfere with the airflow path.
4Volume of moving object
If the cleaner head maintains a compact profile, then it can be stored and transported efficiently, but maneuvering stability may be compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs dynamic positioning of the rear conduit, which can pivot between a raised position for compact storage and a lowered position for stable maneuvering. This dynamic adjustment allows the system to optimize for either compactness or stability depending on the operational context.
Solution Approach 2:
The rear conduit is positioned in a different spatial dimension (laterally adjacent to the airflow path) rather than within it, allowing the profile to be minimized while maintaining maneuvering stability through the lateral support structure.
Data Source
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AI summary
A cleaner head (10) for a surface treating appliance includes a main body having a fluid outlet port located at the rear of the main body (12); a front conduit (100) for receiving a fluid flow from the outlet port of the main body, and a rear conduit for receiving the fluid flow from the front conduit. The front conduit includes a front section (104) connected to the main body for rotation relative thereto about a first axis extending rearwardly from the main body and centrally through the front section, a rear elbow section (108) and at least one first connector. The rear conduit includes a front elbow section into (112) which the rear elbow section of the front conduit is inserted, a rear section (20/116) and at least one second connector connected to said at least one first connector to enable the rear conduit (102) to pivot relative to the front conduit about a second axis which is orthogonal to the first axis and which lies outside a fluid flow path passing through the front conduit and the rear conduit.