Floor Tool Converging Wheel Design for Smooth Vacuum Maneuverability
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional floor tools for cleaning appliances are difficult to maneuver beyond straight lines due to wheel configurations that either lift the cleaner head or result in bulky, heavy designs.
Innovation Solution
A floor tool with a cleaner head rotatably attached to a conduit carried by two converging wheels, where the conduit includes a pivotally attached forward and rearward portion with domed-shaped wheels that maintain a continuous rolling support and prevent lifting, allowing for compact and efficient steering.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If conventional wheel configurations are used to support the floor tool, then the floor tool can be maneuvered in straight lines, but it becomes difficult to maneuver beyond straight lines and may lift the cleaner head
Solution Approach 1:
The floor tool is segmented into modular components: a cleaner head, a conduit with pivotally attached forward and rearward portions, and two independently rotatable wheels. This segmentation allows each component to perform its specific function independently, enabling the conduit to pivot for steering while wheels provide stable support, thus improving maneuverability without compromising cleaner head stability.
Solution Approach 2:
The conduit incorporates dynamic elements including a pivotally attached forward portion that can rotate relative to the rearward portion, and wheels that can rotate about horizontal axes. This dynamic design allows the floor tool to adapt its configuration during maneuvering, enabling smooth transitions and directional changes while maintaining contact with the cleaning surface through the domed-shaped wheels.
2Strength
If traditional wheel arrangements are used, then structural support is provided, but the design becomes bulky and increases the height of the floor tool
Solution Approach 1:
The wheels are positioned to converge beneath the conduit, with their axes of rotation oriented such that they provide support in a three-dimensional configuration. This spatial arrangement allows the wheels to support the conduit effectively while minimizing the vertical height of the floor tool, avoiding the bulky appearance of traditional wheel arrangements.
Solution Approach 2:
The wheels are designed with domed-shaped surfaces that are coincident with a common sphere. This spherical geometry allows the wheels to provide continuous arcuate support as the conduit rotates, maintaining structural support while enabling compact positioning beneath the conduit, thus reducing the overall height of the floor tool.
3Ease of manufacture
If the conduit is made longer to accommodate wheel attachment points, then wheel attachment is facilitated, but the floor tool becomes less compact
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of attaching wheels to the ends of a long conduit, the invention inverts the arrangement by having the rearward portion attach to the forward portion at points above those at which the wheels are attached to the forward portion. This inverted configuration shortens the conduit length while still facilitating proper wheel attachment and maintaining structural integrity.
Data Source
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Figure 3
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AI summary
A floor tool (1) for a cleaning appliance comprising a cleaner head (2) rotatably attached to a conduit (15) carried by a pair of wheels (16) that converge beneath the conduit (15).