JP7200848B2 - Inhaler - Google Patents

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD This invention relates to a suction tool that can be used in a vacuum cleaner.

A suction tool for an electric vacuum cleaner includes a case forming an outer shell and a rotating brush rotated by a driving part in the case, and the case has a mechanism for attaching or detaching the rotating brush to or from the case. An opening is provided through which the rotating brush can be pulled out for removal. The rotating brush has a gripping portion which is partly exposed outside the case and the other portion is accommodated in the case for gripping when installing or removing the rotating brush, and the gripping portion is attached in the removing direction of the rotating brush. There is known a device in which an urging means for urging the rotating brush is provided in the grip portion, and when the rotating brush is removed, the urging means protrudes the grip portion from the surface of the case in the removal direction (for example, Patent Document 1 (See FIG. 16, etc.).

JP 2013-022277 A

However, in the suction tool as disclosed in Patent Document 1, an urging means such as an elastic spring provided inside the grip causes the grip to protrude from the surface of the case when the rotating brush is removed. A part of the grip part is exposed outside the case and the other part is accommodated in the case. For this reason, the grip must be large enough to accommodate the urging means and to partially remain inside the case even when it protrudes from the surface of the case. Therefore, the holding portion occupies a large proportion of the total length of the rotating brush, and the width of the brush (cleaning body) becomes narrow. Further, when the width of the cleaning body in the rotating brush becomes narrow, the cleaning performance is lowered. Alternatively, in order to secure a certain cleaning ability, it is necessary to increase the size of the rotary brush and the suction tool as a whole.

The present invention has been made to solve such problems. It is an object of the present invention to provide a suction tool in which the rotating brush can be easily attached and detached without causing a reduction in cleaning performance and an increase in the size of the rotating brush.

A suction tool according to the present invention includes a suction port body having a suction port formed thereon, and a brush chamber formed inside the suction port body and communicating with the suction port, facing the suction port. a rotating brush rotatable about an axis, wherein the rotating brush moves parallel to the rotating axis and can be attached to and detached from the inside of the brush chamber through an opening formed in the side surface of the suction port body. a cleaning body holding portion having a cleaning body attached to an outer peripheral portion; a shaft member that supports the cleaning body holding portion so as to be rotatable with respect to the suction port body about the rotation shaft; A grip portion provided at the end on the opening side for a user to grip when attaching and detaching, and an elastic body provided inside the shaft member for pushing the grip portion out of the brush chamber along the rotating shaft. and wherein the shaft member is capable of extending and contracting in a direction parallel to the rotation axis, and includes a member that covers the elastic body from the outside in a state in which the shaft member is stretched .

According to the suction tool according to the present invention, it is possible to easily attach and detach the rotating brush without causing a decrease in cleaning performance and an increase in the size of the rotating brush.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Fig. 1 is a front view of a vacuum cleaner provided with a suction tool according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention; BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a vacuum cleaner provided with a suction tool according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention; BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS It is a front view of the main body of the vacuum cleaner which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention. FIG. 4 is a sectional view along section AA in FIG. 3; 1 is a perspective view of a tubular body of a vacuum cleaner according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention; FIG. Fig. 2 is a bottom view of the tubular body of the vacuum cleaner according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention; FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line BB in FIG. 6; 1 is a side view of a suction tool according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention; FIG. 1 is a top view of a suction tool according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention; FIG. It is a bottom view of the suction tool which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention. FIG. 11 is a sectional view along section CC in FIG. 10; FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing the movable range of the connecting portion of the suction tool according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention; 1 is a side view of a vacuum cleaner and a stand according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention; FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a vacuum cleaner and a stand according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention; FIG. FIG. 11 is a sectional view along section DD in FIG. 10; It is the bottom view which expanded the principal part of the suction tool which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention. Fig. 2 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of a main part of the suction tool according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention; Fig. 2 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of a main part of the suction tool according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention; 1 is a perspective view of a suction tool according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention; FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a suction tool according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention; FIG. 1 is a front view of a suction tool according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention; FIG.

Embodiments for carrying out the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. In each figure, the same or corresponding parts are denoted by the same reference numerals, and overlapping descriptions are appropriately simplified or omitted. The present invention is not limited to the following embodiments, and can be modified in various ways without departing from the scope of the present invention.

Embodiment 1.
Embodiment 1 of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 21. FIG. FIG. 1 is a front view of a vacuum cleaner equipped with a suction tool. FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a vacuum cleaner with a suction tool. FIG. 3 is a front view of the body of the vacuum cleaner. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view along section AA in FIG. FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the tubular body of the vacuum cleaner. FIG. 6 is a bottom view of the tubular body of the vacuum cleaner. FIG. 7 is a sectional view along section BB in FIG. FIG. 8 is a side view of the suction tool. FIG. 9 is a top view of the suction tool. FIG. 10 is a bottom view of the suction tool. FIG. 11 is a sectional view along section CC in FIG. FIG. 12 is a cross-sectional view showing the movable range of the connecting portion of the suction tool. FIG. 13 is a side view of the vacuum cleaner and stand. FIG. 14 is a perspective view of the vacuum cleaner and stand. FIG. 15 is a sectional view along section DD in FIG. FIG. 16 is an enlarged bottom view of the main part of the suction tool. 17 and 18 are enlarged cross-sectional views of the essential parts of the suction tool. 19 and 20 are perspective views of the suction tool. And FIG. 21 is a front view of a suction tool.

In the following description, dust and other debris may be collectively referred to simply as "dust." Also, air mixed with dust may be referred to as "dust-containing air". Air from which dust has been removed is sometimes called “clean air”. Also, in some of the figures, forward, backward, and upward, downward directions are indicated and specified by arrows. The left-right direction is a direction orthogonal to both the front-rear direction and the up-down direction. Basically, the side closer to the surface to be cleaned is defined as "lower" and the opposite side is defined as "upper". Also, the main cleaning direction, that is, the direction in which the arm is pushed out during cleaning is defined as "front", and the opposite direction in which the arm is pulled is defined as "rear".

The suction tool 5 according to this embodiment is used by being attached to the electric vacuum cleaner 1 . The vacuum cleaner 1 described here is a cordless vertical vacuum cleaner, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 . As shown in these figures, the vacuum cleaner 1 includes a main body 3 and a tubular body 4 in addition to a suction tool 5 as main components. As shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, the main body 3 has a handle 15, an outer shell 16 and a dust collector 17. As shown in FIGS. The handle 15 is a part that is held by a user while using the vacuum cleaner 1 . A user can grip the main body 3 of the vacuum cleaner 1 by gripping the handle 15 .

The outer shell part 16 is a member that forms an outer shell of the main body 3, that is, an outer cover. An electric blower 66 and a battery 62 are built in the outer shell 16 of the main body 3 as shown in FIG. The electric blower 66 is for generating suction air for the vacuum cleaner 1 . Battery 62 is a secondary battery for supplying electric power for driving electric blower 66 .

The shell portion 16 includes a case portion 61 and a connection tube portion 63 . The connecting tube portion 63 is a hollow cylindrical member to which the tubular body 4 is detachably connected. The connection pipe portion 63 has a connection port 68 for sucking dust. The connection port 68 is an opening formed at one end of the connection tube portion 63 . An air passage is formed inside the connecting pipe portion 63 to guide the airflow of the dust-containing air that has passed through the connection port 68 to the dust collecting portion 17 . One end of the handle 15 is arranged on the other end of the connecting tube portion 63 so as to be continuous in appearance. An operation portion 65 is provided on the other end side of the handle 15 .

A battery 62 , an electric blower 66 and a control section 67 are housed inside the case section 61 . The control unit 67 includes a circuit and the like for controlling the operation of the electric blower 66 . The battery 62 is arranged below the case portion 61 . Also, the battery 62 is arranged on an extension line of the central axis of the connecting tube portion 63 .

The dust collector 17 is for collecting dust in the dust-containing air sucked into the main body 3 by the suction air generated by the electric blower 66 . As shown in FIG. 4, the dust collector 17 is detachably attached to the main body 3. As shown in FIG. As shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, the dust collecting portion 17 has a cylindrical appearance as a whole. In the configuration example described here, the dust collector 17 has a cyclone separator. The cyclone separation device is a device that separates dust from the dust-containing air by swirling the dust-containing air inside by an air flow generated by the electric blower 66 . A dust collection chamber 69 is formed in the dust collection section 17 . Dust separated by the cyclone separator is collected in the dust collection chamber 69 .

The external shapes of the battery 62 and the dust collecting portion 17 are columnar. The central axes of the battery 62, the dust collector 17, and the connection tube 63, and the rotation axis of the electric blower 66 are all parallel. The case portion 61 has a cylindrical shape. Further, when the dust collecting portion 17 is attached to the main body 3 , the dust collecting portion 17 has a cylindrical shape coaxial with the case portion 61 and having the same diameter. The outer shape of the integrated case portion 61 and the dust collecting portion 17 is cylindrical. Therefore, a unified appearance can be obtained.

Also, a portion of the handle 15 is arranged on an extension line of the battery 62 . Therefore, the heavy battery 62 is placed near the hand of the user holding the handle 15 . Therefore, for example, when the suction tool 5 is rotated left and right by twisting the wrist, since the heavy object is near the hand, it is difficult to apply a load to the hand, and the operability is improved.

As shown in FIG. 2 , the shell 16 includes an exhaust 64 . The exhaust portion 64 is an opening formed in the outer shell portion 16 . The airflow from which dust has been removed by the dust collector 17 is discharged from the exhaust section 64 to the outside of the main body 3 .

The electric blower 66 is driven according to the operation of the operation portion 65 provided on the handle 15 . When the electric blower 66 is driven, a suction force acts on the inside of the dust collecting portion 17 and the connection pipe portion 63 , and dust-containing air is sucked through the connection port 68 . The dust-containing air sucked into the connection port 68 passes through the connection pipe portion 63 and is taken into the dust collection portion 17 . In the dust collector 17, dust is separated from the dust-containing air. Clean air discharged from the dust collector 17 passes through the electric blower 66 . The clean air that has passed through the electric blower 66 is discharged from the exhaust portion 64 to the outside of the main body 3 .

Here, an example in which the dust collection unit 17 has a cyclone separator for centrifugal separation has been described. However, the method of separating and accumulating dust is not limited to this, as long as the dust collecting unit 17 separates dust from the dust-containing air and accumulates the separated dust. For example, dust and air may be separated by a filter without centrifugation. Alternatively, a so-called paper pack type may be used.

Next, the configuration of the tubular body 4 will be described with reference to FIGS. 5 to 7. FIG. The tubular body 4 is a hollow tubular member having a straight outer shape along its longitudinal axis. One end side of the tubular body 4 is detachably connected to the main body 3 . The other end side of the tubular body 4 is detachably connected to the suction tool 5 . The tubular body 4 includes a pipe portion 11 and a pipe cover portion 12 . The longitudinal axis of the tubular body 4 is the longitudinal axis of the internal air passage of the tubular body 4 . The internal air passage is a linear air passage. The outer shape of the tubular body 4 is rod-shaped.

The pipe portion 11 includes a pipe 11a and a first engaging portion 11b. The pipe 11a is a hollow tubular member having a straight outer shape along its longitudinal axis. The first engaging portion 11b is a protrusion formed on the other end side of the pipe 11a. The first engaging portion 11b is used for engaging the tubular body 4 and the suction tool 5. As shown in FIG. The pipe cover portion 12 is attached to the lower portion of the pipe portion 11 . The pipe cover portion 12 has a linear outer shape along the longitudinal axis. A cross section perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the pipe cover portion 12 has an arc shape.

A first latch portion 13 and a first terminal portion 14 are provided on the aforementioned one end side of the tubular body 4 . The first latch portion 13 is arranged on the side opposite to the pipe cover portion 12 on the aforementioned one end side of the tubular body 4 . The first latch portion 13 maintains the connection state between the connecting pipe portion 63 of the main body 3 and the tubular body 4, and allows the user to easily release this connection.

The first latch portion 13 includes a first latch 13a and a first cover latch 13b. When the aforementioned one end side of the tubular body 4 is inserted into the connecting pipe portion 63 of the main body 3, the first latch 13a is engaged with the connecting pipe portion 63, and the coupling state between the connecting pipe portion 63 and the tubular body 4 is maintained. When the user presses the first latch 13a, the connecting tube portion 63 and the tubular body 4 are disconnected. The tubular body 4 can be removed from the main body 3 by moving the tubular body 4 away from the main body 3 in a state where the joint between the connecting pipe portion 63 and the tubular body 4 is released. The first latch 13a is provided not on the main body 3 but on the tubular body 4 side. By doing so, the user can remove the tubular body 4 from the main body 3 while holding the handle 15 of the main body 3 with one hand and pressing the first latch 13a with the other hand.

The first terminal portion 14 is a relay component for energizing the main body 3 and the suction tool 5 . The first terminal portion 14 is arranged between the pipe portion 11 and the pipe cover portion 12 on the one end side of the tubular body 4 . The first terminal portion 14 is connected to a lead wire (not shown). This lead wire is arranged between the pipe portion 11 and the pipe cover portion 12 so as to reach the other end side of the tubular body 4 .

Next, the configuration of the suction tool 5 will be described. The suction tool 5 includes a suction port body 18 and a connecting portion 19, as shown in FIG. The suction tool 5 is connected to the above-described other end side of the tubular body 4 via the connecting portion 19 . As shown in FIG. 9, the shape of the inlet body 18 is rectangular in plan view. The cleaning direction in the suction port body 18 is called the lateral direction of the suction port body 18 . Planar view WHEREIN: The direction perpendicular|vertical to the short direction of the suction port body 18 is called the longitudinal direction of the suction port body 18. As shown in FIG. The length of the suction port body 18 in the longitudinal direction is longer than the length of the suction port body 18 in the lateral direction.

As shown in FIG. 10, the inlet body 18 has two front wheels 21 and two rear wheels 22 on the bottom. The front wheels 21 and the rear wheels 22 are arranged at symmetrical positions from the center of the suction port body 18 in the longitudinal direction. The front wheels 21 and the rear wheels 22 are in rolling contact with the surface to be cleaned during cleaning. A suction port 23 is formed on the bottom surface of the suction port body 18 . The suction port 23 is an opening facing downward.

The suction tool 5 is for cleaning the surface to be cleaned. The surface to be cleaned is, for example, a flat surface such as a floor surface. During cleaning, the suction tool 5 is arranged, for example, in a state in which three or more of the four front wheels 21 and rear wheels 22 are in contact with the surface to be cleaned. In this state, when the suction tool 5 is moved back and forth, the front wheels 21 and the rear wheels 22 roll and come into contact with the surface to be cleaned. Also, in this state, most of the bottom surface of the suction port body 18 is arranged parallel to the surface to be cleaned.

The suction port body 18 includes a rotating brush 40 and a rotating brush motor (not shown). A brush chamber 27 is formed inside the suction port body 18 . The brush chamber 27 communicates with the suction port 23 and the connecting portion 19 . The rotating brush 40 is arranged inside the brush chamber 27 so as to face the suction port 23 from above the suction port 23 . Electric power supplied from the main body 3 through the tubular body 4 rotates the rotating brush motor, and the rotation is transmitted by the power transmission mechanism to rotate the rotating brush 40 . As the rotating brush 40 rotates, dust on the surface to be cleaned is scraped up.

The inlet body 18 has a safety switch 26 . The safety switch 26 is for detecting whether or not the suction port 18 is on the surface to be cleaned. The safety switch 26 has a wheel 26a and an elastic member (not shown). The elastic member is for example a spring. The wheel 26a is attached so as to be vertically movable. The wheels 26a are movable above the front wheels 21 and the rear wheels 22. As shown in FIG.

When the suction port body 18 is separated from the surface to be cleaned, the wheel 26a projects downward from the front wheel 21 and the rear wheel 22 due to the elastic member. In this state, safety switch 26 detects that suction port 18 is not on the surface to be cleaned. When the safety switch 26 detects that the suction port 18 is not on the surface to be cleaned, the rotating brush 40 does not rotate. When the suction port 18 is on the surface to be cleaned, the wheel 26a is pushed to the same position as the front wheels 21 and the rear wheels 22 by the surface to be cleaned. In this state, the safety switch 26 detects that the inlet body 18 is on the surface to be cleaned. When the safety switch 26 detects that the inlet body 18 is on the surface to be cleaned, the rotating brush 40 rotates.

As shown in FIG. 9, one end of the connecting portion 19 is attached via a joint structure to the middle portion in the longitudinal direction of the suction port body 18 and to one side in the lateral direction. The other end of the tubular body 4 is detachably connected to the other end of the connecting portion 19 .

As shown in FIGS. 8 and 11 , a second latch portion 24 and a second terminal portion 25 are provided on the other end side of the connecting portion 19 . The second latch portion 24 holds the coupling state between the tubular body 4 and the connecting portion 19, and allows the coupling to be easily released by the user's operation.

The second latch portion 24 comprises a second latch 24a and a second cover latch 24b. When the other end of the connecting portion 19 is inserted into the other end of the tubular body 4, the second latch 24a engages the first engaging portion 11b of the tubular body 4, and the connecting portion 19 and the tubular body 4 are connected. The connection state with is maintained. When the user presses the second latch 24a, the connecting portion 19 and the tubular body 4 are disconnected. When the suction tool 5 is moved away from the pipe body 4 in a state in which the coupling between the connecting part 19 and the pipe body 4 is released, the suction tool 5 can be removed from the pipe body 4 .

The second latch 24a is provided on the side of the suction tool 5 instead of the tubular body 4 . By doing so, the user can remove the suction tool 5 from the tubular body 4 while holding the handle 15 of the main body 3 or the tubular body 4 with one hand and pressing the second latch 24a with the other hand. be able to.

The second terminal portion 25 is a relay component for energizing the main body 3 and the suction tool 5 . The second terminal portion 25 is connected to a lead wire (not shown). This lead is connected to the rotating brush motor and safety switch 26 .

The aforementioned articulated structure of the connecting portion 19 has a plurality of rotation axes that are not parallel to each other, and is independently rotatable in each direction about the plurality of rotation axes. The joint structure of the connecting portion 19 has, for example, a first rotation axis X indicated by a black circle (●) in FIGS. 8 and 11 and a second rotation axis Y indicated by a dashed line. The first rotation axis X is a rotation axis parallel to the longitudinal direction of the suction port body 18 when viewed from the side. The second rotation axis Y is a rotation axis inclined with respect to the horizontal direction when viewed from the side and parallel to the lateral direction when viewed from the top. The first rotation axis X and the second rotation axis Y have a torsion positional relationship.

Even if the connecting portion 19 rotates about the first rotation axis X and the second rotation axis Y, the opening direction of the suction port 23 is maintained. That is, the tubular body 4 connected to the connecting portion 19 can be tilted within a predetermined angle range with respect to the suction port body 18 while maintaining the opening direction of the suction port 23 . In this manner, the connecting portion 19 connects the suction tool 5 and the tubular body 4 so that the angle between the bottom surface of the suction tool 5 and the longitudinal axis of the tubular body 4 can be changed within a preset angle range.

As shown in FIG. 12, the rotation angle of the connection portion 19 with respect to the suction port body 18 about the first rotation axis X is defined as a first angle α. When the direction parallel to the bottom surface of the suction tool 5 and in which the connection portion 19 is arranged when viewed from the suction port body 18 is set to the first angle α=0°, the first angle α is, for example, 0° to A range of 90° is possible. More preferably, the first angle α can range from 0° to 92°. Therefore, the angle range described above includes the angle at which the bottom surface of the suction tool 5 and the longitudinal axis of the tubular body 4 are parallel. In addition, the aforementioned angle range also includes an angle at which the bottom surface of the suction tool 5 and the longitudinal axis of the tubular body 4 are perpendicular to each other. 11 shows the state of the first angle α=0°, and FIG. 12 shows the state of the first angle α=92°.

Further, as shown in FIG. 10, the rotation angle of the connection portion 19 with respect to the suction port body 18 about the second rotation axis Y is defined as a second angle β. When the direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the suction port body 18 is the second angle β=0°, the second angle β can range, for example, from −90° to +90°. However, since FIG. 10 is viewed from a direction not orthogonal to the second rotation axis Y, the apparent second angle β in FIG. 10 is not -90° to +90°. When the first angle α=0° and the second angle β=±90°, the tip of the connecting portion 19 is positioned below the bottom surface of the suction tool 5 .

When the main body 3, the tubular body 4, and the suction tool 5 are integrally connected, the connecting part 19 and the tubular body 4 are positioned forward regardless of the angle of the first rotation axis X and the second rotation axis Y. It is arranged above the lower ends of the wheels 21 and the rear wheels 22 . Further, when the second angle β is 0°, the main body 3 is arranged above the lower ends of the front wheels 21 and the rear wheels 22 regardless of the angle of the first rotation axis X.

A vacuum cleaner system 100 according to this embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 13 and 14, includes the vacuum cleaner 1 and the stand 2 configured as described above. The stand 2 is placed, for example, on the floor of a living room. The vacuum cleaner 1 is removed from the stand 2 when used. The stand 2 is, for example, a charging stand. By placing the vacuum cleaner 1 on the stand 2 when not in use, the battery 62 of the vacuum cleaner 1 can be charged.

The stand 2 includes a base portion 210 , a support portion 220 and a body support portion 230 . The base portion 210 is a portion that serves as a base arranged at the lowest position of the stand 2 . The column portion 220 is formed to stand vertically upward from the upper surface of the base portion 210 . The main body support portion 230 is fixed to the intermediate portion of the strut portion 220 .

When the vacuum cleaner 1 is placed on the stand 2, the front end side of the suction tool 5 and the side on which the dust collecting section 17 is arranged, when viewed from the tubular body 4 and the connecting tube section 63, are positioned toward the support column section 220 of the stand 2. directed to. That is, the stand 2 supports the main body 3 of the vacuum cleaner 1 from the front end side of the suction tool 5 . After finishing cleaning, the user can put the vacuum cleaner 1 on the stand 2 while moving the vacuum cleaner 1 to the front side of the suction tool 5 as it is. The suction tool 5 is supported by the base portion 210 of the stand 2 when the vacuum cleaner 1 is attached to the stand 2 .

Next, the configuration of the suction tool 5 according to this embodiment will be further described with reference to FIGS. 15 to 21 as well. The rotating brush 40 of the suction tool 5 is provided inside the brush chamber 27 of the suction port body 18 so as to be rotatable around the rotation axis. The rotation axis of the rotating brush 40 is parallel to the longitudinal direction of the suction port body.

Also, the rotating brush 40 is detachable from the suction port body 18 . The rotating brush 40 is arranged inside the brush chamber 27 while being attached to the suction port body 18 . An opening 54 is formed in the side surface of the suction port body 18 . The opening 54 communicates with the inside of the brush chamber 27 . By pulling the rotating brush 40 out of the brush chamber 27 through the opening 54 , the rotating brush 40 can be removed from the suction port body 18 . Conversely, by inserting the rotating brush 40 into the brush chamber 27 through the opening 54 , the rotating brush 40 can be attached to the suction port body 18 . In attaching/detaching the rotating brush 40 in this manner, the rotating brush 40 moves parallel to the above-described rotating shaft.

As shown in FIGS. 15 to 17 , the rotating brush 40 has a cleaning body 41 and a cleaning body holding portion 42 . The cleaning body 41 is for scraping dust on the surface to be cleaned. The cleaning body 41 is, for example, a blade made of an elastic material such as rubber, or fibrous brush bristles. The cleaning element holding portion 42 is a cylindrical member. A plurality of cleaning bodies 41 are spirally protruding and attached to the outer peripheral portion of the cleaning body holding portion 42 . The cylindrical central axis of the cleaning element holding portion 42 is along the above-described rotation axis of the rotating brush 40 .

As mentioned above, rotation of the rotating brush 40 is driven by a rotating brush motor. In other words, the rotating brush motor of this embodiment is a drive unit that generates power for rotating the rotating brush 40 . Power generated by the driving section is transmitted to the rotating brush 40 by the power transmission mechanism section 30 .

As shown in FIG. 15 , the power transmission mechanism section 30 has a gear 31 and a connecting protrusion 33 . The gear 31 and the connecting protrusion 33 are fixed to the same shaft 35 and rotate together. The shaft 35 is rotatably supported by a support portion 32 provided on the suction port body 18 side.

The connecting protrusion 33 protrudes into the brush chamber 27 . A connecting recess 43 is formed at the end of the cleaning element holding portion 42 opposite to the opening 54 . When the rotating brush 40 is installed in the brush chamber 27, the connecting projection 33 is arranged inside the connecting recess 43, and the connecting projection 33 and the connecting recess 43 are engaged with each other. In a state where the connecting projection 33 and the connecting recess 43 are engaged, the connecting projection 33 and the connecting recess 43 rotate together.

The rotation of the drive shaft of the rotary brush motor, which is the drive unit, is first transmitted to the gear 31 . Rotation of the gear 31 results in rotation of the connecting protrusion 33 via the aforementioned shaft. The rotation of the connecting projection 33 is transmitted to the rotating brush 40 via the connecting recess 43 . The connecting convex portion 33 and the connecting concave portion 43 configured as described above are connecting portions for transmitting the power of the driving portion described above to the rotating brush 40 attached inside the brush chamber 27 .

As shown in FIGS. 15 and 16, a portion of this connecting portion is arranged at a position facing the suction port 23 with the rotating brush 40 attached. The inlet body 18 has a cover 34 . The cover 34 is arranged closer to the suction port 23 than the connecting portion. The cover 34 covers at least part of the portion of the connecting portion facing the suction port 23 . By providing such a cover 34, it is possible to prevent dust from entering the connecting portion from the suction port 23 side.

At least part of the portion of the connecting projection 33 facing the suction port 23 is provided with a tapered portion 33a. The tapered portion 33a has a tapered shape that narrows toward the rotating brush 40 side. By providing such a tapered portion 33 a , it is possible to prevent hair, lint, etc. wound around the rotating brush 40 from moving further into the power transmission mechanism portion 30 from the connecting convex portion 33 .

The rotating brush 40 has a shaft member. The shaft member is a member that supports the cleaning element holding part 42 so as to be rotatable with respect to the suction port body 18 about the above-described rotation axis. As shown in FIGS. 17 and 18, the shaft member has a first shaft member 44, a second shaft member 45, a third shaft member 46 and a fourth shaft member 47. As shown in FIGS. The first shaft member 44 is an elongated rod-shaped member. The first shaft member 44 is provided along the cylindrical central axis of the cleaning element holding portion 42 . The second shaft member 45 , the third shaft member 46 and the fourth shaft member 47 are provided near the end of the first shaft member 44 on the opening 54 side.

The second shaft member 45 is fixed to the third shaft member 46 in the rotational direction. The third shaft member 46 is arranged closer to the opening 54 than the second shaft member 45 and outside the second shaft member 45 . The fourth shaft member 47 is fixed to the first shaft member 44 so as to cover both the second shaft member 45 and the third shaft member 46 . The third shaft member 46 is not fixed to the first shaft member 44 . Therefore, the third shaft member 46 is movable with respect to the first shaft member 44 , the second shaft member 45 and the fourth shaft member 47 . The third shaft member 46 can move relative to the first shaft member 44 along the aforementioned rotation axis. Therefore, the shaft member can be expanded and contracted in a direction parallel to the aforementioned rotation axis.

The rotating brush 40 has a grip portion 48 . The grip portion 48 is a portion that a user grips when attaching and detaching the rotating brush 40 to and from the suction port body 18 . The grip portion 48 is provided at the end of the shaft member on the opening 54 side. More specifically, the grip portion 48 is fixed to the third shaft member 46 . Therefore, the grasping portion 48 is integrated with the third shaft member 46 and is movable with respect to the first shaft member 44 , the second shaft member 45 and the fourth shaft member 47 .

The rotating brush 40 has an elastic body 49 . The elastic body 49 is arranged between the second shaft member 45 and the third shaft member 46 . The elastic body 49 is, for example, a compression spring. The elastic body 49 applies force in the direction of increasing the distance between the second shaft member 45 and the third shaft member 46 . Therefore, with the rotating brush 40 attached to the suction port body 18 , the third shaft member 46 and the gripping portion 48 are further pushed out of the brush chamber 27 through the opening 54 by the elastic body 49 . In other words, the elastic body 49 pushes the grip portion 48 out of the brush chamber 27 along the above-described rotating shaft. Due to the elastic force of the elastic body 49, the shaft member extends when no external force acts on the rotating brush 40. As shown in FIG. Further, the fourth shaft member 47 covers the elastic body 49 from the outside. That is, the elastic body 49 is provided inside the shaft member.

As shown in FIGS. 8 and 19, a storage portion 55 is provided on the side surface of the suction port body 18 where the opening 54 is formed. The storage portion 55 is a portion formed by recessing the side surface of the suction port body 18 . The grip portion 48 is provided with a lever 48a. The lever 48 a protrudes from the side surface of the grip portion 48 . With the rotating brush 40 attached to the suction port body 18 , the gripping portion 48 protrudes from the opening 54 to the outside of the brush chamber 27 . In this state, the lever 48 a of the grip portion 48 is arranged inside the storage portion 55 .

As shown in FIG. 19, the storage portion 55 is provided with an attachment position 55a and a removal position 55b. When the rotary brush 40 is attached to the suction port body 18, the grip portion 48 and the lever 48a are rotatable around the shaft member. Rotation of the grip portion 48 and the lever 48a while the lever 48a is in the storage portion 55 causes the lever 48a to move between the attachment position 55a and the removal position 55b.

A projecting portion 56 is provided between the mounting position 55a and the removing position 55b. The protrusion 56 restricts the free movement of the lever 48a between the attachment position 55a and the removal position 55b. By applying a force to the lever 48a to rotate it, the lever 48a can climb over the projecting portion 56 and move between the attachment position 55a and the removal position 55b.

When attaching the rotating brush 40 to the suction port body 18 , the rotating brush 40 is inserted into the brush chamber 27 through the opening 54 , and the grip portion 48 is pushed in against the elastic force of the elastic body 49 . Then, while pushing the grip portion 48, the lever 48a is rotated from the removal position 55b to the attachment position 55a. Then, the grip portion 48 and the third shaft member 46 are engaged with the wall portion 57 of the suction port body 18, and the grip portion 48 is held in a pushed state. In this way, as shown in FIGS. 15 and 17, the rotary brush 40 is attached to the suction port body 18 and fixed.

On the other hand, when removing the rotating brush 40 from the suction port body 18, the lever 48a is rotated from the mounting position 55a to the removing position 55b. Then, as shown in FIG. 18 , the gripping portion 48 and the third shaft member 46 are disengaged from the wall portion 57 , and the elastic force of the elastic body 49 extends the shaft member of the rotating brush 40 to extend the gripping portion 48 . And the third shaft member 46 is pushed further outside the brush chamber 27 through the opening 54 . In this state, the grip portion 48 protrudes outside the case outer shell 58 of the suction port body 18 . Therefore, the user can easily hold the grip portion 48 and pull out the rotary brush 40 . It should be noted that FIG. 20 shows a state in which the rotating brush 40 is being attached/removed.

As described above, in the suction tool 5 of this embodiment, the grip portion 48 to be gripped by the user when attaching and detaching is provided at the end of the shaft member of the rotating brush 40 on the opening 54 side. An elastic body 49 is provided inside the shaft member of the rotary brush 40 to push the grip portion 48 out of the brush chamber 27 along the rotary shaft. For this reason, the grasping portion 48 only needs to be large enough for the user to hold, so that the ratio of the grasping portion 48 to the total length of the rotating brush 40 can be suppressed from increasing. When removing the rotating brush 40 , the elastic body 49 in the shaft member allows the grip portion 48 to protrude outside the case outer shell 58 of the suction port body 18 . Therefore, the attachment and detachment of the rotating brush 40 are easy without incurring neither deterioration of the cleaning ability nor increase in the size of the rotating brush 40 .

As shown in FIGS. 10 to 12, a slope portion 51 is formed at the lower end portion of the front end surface of the suction port body 18 . In other words, the slope portion 51 is provided on the bottom surface of the suction port body 18 on the front side of the suction port 23 . The slope portion 51 is arranged in the same range as the suction port 23 in the left-right direction. By providing such a slope portion 51 , dust such as rice grains on the surface to be cleaned can be sucked into the suction port 23 without being flipped by the front end of the suction port body 18 .

As shown in FIGS. 8, 9 and the like, a buffer portion 52 is attached to the front end surface of the suction port body 18 . The buffer portion 52 is made of an elastically deformable soft material such as silicon resin. The buffer part 52 has a role of reducing the impact of the suction port body 18 hitting the walls of the room or the like and preventing damage. The buffer portion 52 covers the slope portion 51 from the front side. That is, the buffer portion 52 is a soft material attached to the front end surface of the suction port body 18 so as to cover the slope portion 51 from the front side.

As shown in FIGS. 19 and 20, two slits 53 are formed in the buffer portion 52 made of soft material. These slits 53 reach the lower end of the buffer section 52 . Further, as shown in FIGS. 10 and 21, these slits 53 are arranged at the left and right ends of the slope portion 51, respectively. By providing such a slope portion 51 and two slits 53, the lower portion of the buffer portion 52 between the two slits 53 is easily deformed according to the movement of the suction port 18 relative to the surface to be cleaned. . Therefore, the lower end of the buffer portion 52 follows the movement of the suction port 18 with respect to the surface to be cleaned, and the operation on the surface to be cleaned, such as a carpet, which has a large amount of friction, is easy.

As shown in FIG. 13 , a base portion 210 of the stand 2 is provided with a stand-side slope portion 211 . When the suction tool 5 is placed on the base portion 210 of the stand 2, the slope portion 51 of the suction port body 18 hits the stand-side slope portion 211, so that the suction port body 18 can be smoothly placed on the base portion 210 with a small force. It is possible. At this time, the buffer portion 52 between the two slits 53 is deformed along the slope portion 51, so that the suction port body 18 can be moved onto the base portion 210 more smoothly.

Note that the terms longitudinal axis and central axis are used in the above description. With respect to these terms, the central axis does not necessarily limit its outer shape to a perfect circle, and the outer shape may have irregularities for engagement or fitting, for example. The central axis may also include a widthwise center or a depthwise center axis. That is, the central axis can also be regarded as the longitudinal axis at the center in the width direction or the center in the depth direction. Briefly, the central axis refers to the approximate center axis of an object having a longitudinal axis.

Reference Signs List 1 vacuum cleaner 2 stand 3 main body 4 tubular body 5 suction tool 11 pipe portion 11a pipe 11b first engaging portion 12 pipe cover portion 13 first latch portion 13a first latch 13b first cover latch 14 first cover latch terminal portion 15 handle 16 outer shell portion 17 dust collection portion 18 suction port body 19 connection portion 21 front wheel 22 rear wheel 23 suction port 24 second latch portion 24a second latch 24b second cover latch 25 second terminal Part 26 Safety Switch 26a Wheel 27 Brush Chamber 30 Power Transmission Mechanism Part 31 Gear 32 Support Part 33 Connecting Projection 33a Taper Part 34 Cover 35 Shaft 40 Rotating Brush 41 Cleaning Body 42 Cleaning Body Holding Part 43 Connection Concave 44 First Shaft Member 45 Second shaft member 46 Third shaft member 47 Fourth shaft member 48 Grasping portion 48a Lever 49 Elastic body 51 Slope portion 52 Buffer portion 53 Slit 54 Opening 55 Storage portion 55a Mounting position 55b Removal position 56 Protruding portion 57 Wall Part 58 Case outer shell 61 Case part 62 Battery 63 Connection pipe part 64 Exhaust part 65 Operation part 66 Electric blower 67 Control part 68 Connection port 69 Dust collection chamber 100 Vacuum cleaner system 210 Base part 211 Stand side slope part 220 Support part 230 Main body support

Claims (5)

a suction port body in which a suction port is formed;
a rotating brush that is provided facing the suction port inside a brush chamber that is formed inside the suction port body and communicates with the suction port and that is rotatable about a rotation shaft;
The rotating brush is
It can move parallel to the rotating shaft and can be attached to and detached from the inside of the brush chamber through an opening formed in the side surface of the suction port body,
a cleaning element holding part having a cleaning element attached to its outer periphery;
a shaft member that supports the cleaning element holding portion so as to be rotatable about the rotation axis with respect to the suction port;
a gripping portion provided at the end of the shaft member on the opening side and gripped by a user when attaching and detaching;
an elastic body that is provided inside the shaft member and pushes the grip portion to the outside of the brush chamber along the rotation shaft ;
The suction tool , wherein the shaft member is capable of extending and contracting in a direction parallel to the rotation axis, and has a member that covers the elastic body from the outside in a state in which the shaft member is stretched . a drive unit that generates power for rotating the rotating brush;
a connecting portion for transmitting power of the driving portion to the rotating brush mounted inside the brush chamber;
2. The suction tool according to claim 1 , further comprising a cover that covers at least part of a portion of the connecting portion facing the suction port. 3. The suction tool according to claim 2 , wherein said connecting portion is provided in at least a portion of a portion facing said suction port, and includes a tapered portion that tapers toward said rotating brush. further comprising a sloped portion formed at the lower end portion of the front end surface of the suction port body;
The suction tool according to any one of claims 1 to 3 , wherein the slope portion is arranged in the same range as the suction port in the left-right direction. further comprising a soft material attached to the front end surface of the suction port body so as to cover the slope portion from the front side;
5. The suction tool according to claim 4 , wherein slits reaching the lower end of the soft material are formed in the soft material at both left and right ends of the slant surface.

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