Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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SURFACE CLEANING HEAD FOR VACUUM CLEANER
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] The present application claims the benefit of U.S. Patent Application
Serial No.
15/685,456 filed August 24, 2017.
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0002] The present disclosure relates to vacuum cleaners and more
particularly, to a vacuum
cleaner surface cleaning head with dual agitators such as a leading roller and
a brush roll.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
[0003] Vacuum cleaners generally include a suction conduit with an opening
on the
underside of a surface cleaning head for drawing air (and debris) into and
through the surface
cleaning head. One of the challenges with vacuum cleaner design is to control
engagement of
the suction conduit with a surface being cleaned to provide the desired amount
of suction. If the
suction conduit is spaced too far from a surface, the suction may be less
because the air is
flowing into the suction conduit through a greater surface area. If the
suction conduit is directly
engaged with the surface and thus sealed on all sides, air will stop flowing
into the suction
conduit and the suction motor may be damaged as a result.
[0004] Vacuum cleaners also generally use agitation to loosen debris and
facilitate capturing
the debris in the flow of air into the suction conduit. Agitators are often
used in the suction
conduit of a surface cleaning head proximate a dirty air inlet to cause the
agitated debris to flow
into the dirty air inlet. If the agitator in the suction conduit is unable to
loosen the debris or if the
debris is too small, the suction conduit may pass over the debris without
removing the debris
from the surface. In other cases, the surface cleaning head may push larger
debris forward
without ever allowing the debris to be captured in the flow into the suction
conduit (sometimes
referred to as snowplowing). A rotating agitator may also cause the debris to
circulate without
being captured in the air flow into the dirty air inlet.
[0005] One example of an agitator is a cleaning roller such as a brush
roll. A cleaning roller
may be located within a suction conduit and/or may be located at a leading
side of a suction
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conduit (e.g., a leading roller). One challenge with cleaning rollers is the
ability to access the
cleaning rollers, for example, to remove debris and/or replace the cleaning
rollers. Other
challenges include accommodating two cleaning rollers within the housing and
driving the two
cleaning rollers.
SUMMARY
[0006] Consistent with an embodiment, a surface cleaning head includes a
housing having a
front side, a back side, a first lateral side and a second lateral side. The
housing defines a suction
conduit with a suction conduit opening on an underside of the housing between
the front side and
the back side. The surface cleaning head also includes a brush roll rotatably
mounted to the
housing within a brush roll chamber and a leading roller mounted to the
housing in front of the
brush roll. The suction conduit passes through the brush roll chamber and at
least a portion of
the brush roll is proximate the opening of the suction conduit. A removable
cover is removably
coupled to the housing for covering the brush roll chamber and the brush roll
and at least
partially covering the leading roller.
[0007] Consistent with another embodiment, a surface cleaning head includes
a housing
having a front side, a back side, a first lateral side and a second lateral
side. The surface cleaning
head also includes a brush roll rotatably mounted to the housing within a
brush roll chamber and
having a first brush roll end proximate the first lateral side and a second
brush roll end proximate
the second lateral side. The surface cleaning head further includes a leading
roller mounted to
the housing in front of the brush roll and having a first leading roller end
proximate the first
lateral side and a second leading roller end proximate the second lateral
side. A drive
mechanism is coupled to the first brush roll end for rotating the brush roll,
and the second brush
roll end of the brush roll is coupled to the second leading roller end of the
leading roller for
transferring rotation from the brush roll to the leading roller. The drive
mechanism includes a
drive motor.
[0008] Consistent with a further embodiment, a surface cleaning head
includes a housing
having a front side and a back side and defining a brush roll chamber and a
suction conduit with
a suction conduit opening on an underside of the housing between the front
side and the back
side. The suction conduit passes from the suction conduit opening through at
least a portion of
the brush roll chamber. The surface cleaning head also includes a brush roll
rotatably mounted
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to the housing within the brush roll chamber with at least a portion of the
brush roll being
proximate the opening of the suction conduit and a vacuum channel extending
from a back side
of the brush roll chamber such that the suction conduit passes from the brush
roll chamber and
into the vacuum channel. A shelf structure is located at the back side of the
brush roll chamber
and includes a surface facing generally downward toward the underside of the
housing and
opposing rotation of the brush roll. The shelf structure is configured and
positioned to knock
down and de-energize debris moving at the back side of the brush roll chamber
to allow the
debris to enter the vacuum channel via air flow through the suction conduit.
[0009] Consistent with yet another embodiment, a surface cleaning head
includes a housing
having a front side and back side and defining a brush roll chamber and a
suction conduit with a
suction conduit opening on an underside of the housing between the front side
and the back side.
The suction conduit passes through at least a portion of the brush roll
chamber. The surface
cleaning head also includes wheels coupled to the housing for supporting the
housing on a
surface to be cleaned, a brush roll rotatably mounted to the housing within
the brush roll
chamber with at least a portion of the brush roll extending through the
suction conduit opening,
and a leading roller mounted to the housing in front of the brush roll. The
surface cleaning head
further includes at least one floor sealing strip along a rear side of the
suction conduit opening
and along at least a portion of sides of the suction conduit opening. Side air
passageways are
formed between the leading roller and ends of the at least one floor sealing
strip on the sides of
the suction conduit. A sole plate on an underside of the housing defines at
least a portion of the
suction conduit opening and has a clearance from the surface to be cleaned
when the wheels are
supported on the surface to be cleaned. The brush roll extends beyond the sole
plate less than or
equal to the clearance and the at least one floor sealing strip extends
greater than the clearance.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
100101 These and other features and advantages will be better understood by
reading the
following detailed description, taken together with the drawings wherein:
100111 FIG. I is a top perspective view of a surface cleaning head
including dual agitators,
consistent with an embodiment of the present disclosure.
[0012] FIG. 2 is a bottom perspective view of the surface cleaning head
shown in FIG. I.
[0013] FIG. 3 is a top view of the surface cleaning head shown in FIG. I.
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[0014] FIG. 4 is a bottom view of the surface cleaning head shown in FIG.
1.
[0015] FIG. 5 is an exploded view of the surface cleaning head shown in
FIG. 1 showing a
removable cover and a leading roller removed from a housing.
[0016] FIG. 6 is a bottom view of the removable cover shown in FIG. 5.
[0017] FIG. 7 is an enlarged side view of the surface cleaning head shown
in FIG. 1 with a side
panel removed to show a latch mechanism used to engage the removable cover.
[0018] FIG. 8 is a side cross-sectional view the latching mechanism
engaging the cover and the
cover securing a leading roller.
[0019] FIG. 9 is a top view of the surface cleaning head shown in FIG. 1
with the removable
cover removed.
[0020] FIG. 10 is a side cross-sectional view of the surface cleaning head
shown in FIG. 1
illustrating a shelf structure at a back side of a brush roll chamber.
[0021] FIG. 11 is a top cross-sectional view of the surface cleaning head
taking along line
11-11 in FIG. 10 and further illustrating a shelf structure at a back side of
a brush roll chamber.
[0022] FIG. 12 is a bottom perspective view of a portion of the housing
defining the shelf
structure in the surface cleaning head.
[0023] FIG. 13 is a front view of the portion of the housing shown in FIG.
12.
[0024] FIG. 14 is a top view of a drive mechanism driving dual agitators
for use in the
surface cleaning head shown FIG. 1.
[0025] FIG. 15 is a top view of a bleed valve mechanism in the surface
cleaning head shown
in FIG. 1.
[0026] FIG. 16 is a top view of a bleed valve mechanism in the surface
cleaning head shown
in FIG. 1 and illustrating the bleed valve actuator.
[0027] FIG. 17 is a perspective view of a stick vacuum including a surface
cleaning head,
consistent with embodiments of the present disclosure.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0028] A surface cleaning head, consistent with some embodiments of the
present disclosure,
includes dual rotating agitators (e.g., a leading roller and a brush roll) and
a removable cover for
covering a top of the agitators and allowing access to the agitators from a
top of the surface
cleaning head. The dual agitators may be used to facilitate capturing of
debris in the air flow into
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a suction conduit on the underside of the surface cleaning head. The brush
roll may be located in
a brush roll chamber and at least partially in an opening to the suction
conduit. The leading roller
may be positioned adjacent to and in advance of the suction conduit opening
such that the
leading roller engages debris and moves the debris toward the brush roll and
the opening. The
leading roller may be removable from the housing and held in place by the
removable cover.
The removable cover may be coupled to the housing of the surface cleaning head
using one or
more latching mechanisms that are isolated from the brush roll chamber. A
surface cleaning
head may also include a drive mechanism that drives a brush roll at one end
with the brush roll
transferring rotation to a leading roller at the other end.
[0029] In other embodiments, a surface cleaning head includes a brush roll
in a brush roll
chamber and a shelf structure at a back side of the brush roll chamber to
knock down and de-
energize debris and facilitate movement of the debris into a vacuum channel
extending from the
back side of the brush roll chamber. The vacuum channel may include a flared
mouth in
communication with the brush roll chamber with at least a portion of the shelf
structure
extending into the flared mouth.
[0030] In further embodiments, a surface cleaning head may include features
for improving
air flow into a suction conduit. A surface cleaning head may include sealing
strips on an
underside around at least a portion of an opening to the suction conduit,
forming side air
passageways between the sealing strips and a leading roller. A surface
cleaning head may
provide a sole plate clearance sufficient to provide a desired carpet
engagement by a brush roll
and may have bristle strips extending from the underside to provide desired
sealing on a hard
wood floor. A surface cleaning head may also include a bleed valve with an
actuator capable of
being actuated by a pull stroke of the surface cleaning head to lower suction
and facilitate
maneuverability.
[0031] Although various features and concepts are described in the context
of an example
embodiment of a surface cleaning head, other embodiments of the surface
cleaning head are
within the scope of the present disclosure and the features and concepts
described herein may be
used in other embodiments of a surface cleaning head either alone or in
combination.
Embodiments of the surface cleaning head may be used in different types of
vacuum cleaners
including, without limitation, an "all in the head" type vacuum, upright
vacuum cleaners,
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canister vacuum cleaners, stick vacuum cleaners, robotic vacuum cleaners and
central vacuum
systems.
[0032] As used herein, a "surface cleaning head" refers to a device
configured to contact a
surface for cleaning the surface by use of suction air flow, agitation, or a
combination thereof. A
surface cleaning head may be pivotably or steeringly coupled by a swivel
connection to a wand
for controlling the surface cleaning head and may include motorized
attachments as well as fixed
surface cleaning heads. A surface cleaning head may also be operable without a
wand or handle.
As used herein, "seal" or "sealing" refers to preventing a substantial amount
of air from passing
through to the suction conduit but does not require an air tight seal. As used
herein, "agitator"
refers to any element, member or structure capable of agitating a surface to
facilitate movement
of debris into a suction air flow in a surface cleaning head. As used herein,
"soft" and "softer"
refer to the characteristics of a cleaning element being more compliant or
pliable than another
cleaning element. As used herein, the term "flow path" refers to the path
taken by air as it flows
into a suction conduit when drawn in by suction. As used herein, the terms
"above" and "below"
are used relative to an orientation of the surface cleaning head on a surface
to be cleaned and the
terms "front" and "back" are used relative to a direction that a user pushes
the surface cleaning
head on a surface being cleaned (i.e., back to front). As used herein, the
term "leading" refers to
a position in front of at least another component but does not necessarily
mean in front of all
other components.
[0033] Referring to FIGS. 1-4, a surface cleaning head 100, consistent with
embodiments of
the present disclosure, is shown and described. The surface cleaning head 100
includes a
housing 110 with a front side 112, a back side 114, first and second lateral
sides 116a, 116b, an
upper side 118, and a lower or under side 120. The housing 110 defines a
suction conduit having
an opening 111 on the underside 120 of the housing 110 (shown in FIGS. 2 and
4). The suction
conduit is the interior space defined by interior walls in the housing 110,
which receives and
directs air drawn in by suction, for example, by a suction motor (not shown)
either in the surface
cleaning head 100 or another location in the vacuum. The suction conduit
opening 111 is where
the suction conduit meets the underside 120 of the housing 110.
[0034] The surface cleaning head 100 includes dual rotating agitators 122,
124, for example,
a brush roll 122 and a leading roller 124. Although the example embodiment
includes dual
agitators, some of the features and concepts described herein may also be used
in a surface
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cleaning head with only a single agitator or with more than two agitators. The
brush roll 122 and
leading roller 124 may be configured to rotate about first and second rotating
axes. The rotating
brush roll 122 is located in a brush roll chamber 119, and the leading roller
124 is positioned in
front of and spaced from the brush roll 122. The brush roll chamber 119
defines a portion of the
suction conduit and the brush roll 122 is located at least partially in the
suction conduit opening
111. Thus, the brush roll 122 is located in the primary air flow path into the
suction conduit
opening 111.
[0035] The leading roller 124 is generally located in advance of and
outside of the suction
conduit opening 111, but at least a portion of the leading roller 124 may be
exposed to a primary
air flow into the suction conduit opening 111. In some embodiments, at least
an inside upper
portion (e.g., upper half) of the leading roller 124 is not exposed to the
primary air flow path into
the opening 111 of the suction conduit while at least an inside of the bottom
portion of the
leading roller 124 is exposed to the primary flow path into the opening 111 of
the suction
conduit. Other variations are possible where different portions of the leading
roller 124 may be
exposed or not exposed to the flow path into the suction conduit. In other
embodiments, for
example, a flow path may allow air to flow over the upper portion of the
leading roller 124.
[0036] The rotating brush roll 122 may have bristles, fabric, or other
cleaning elements, or
any combination thereof around the outside of the brush roll 122. Examples of
brush rolls and
other agitators are shown and described in greater detail in U.S. Patent No.
9,456,723 and U.S.
Patent Application Pub. No; 2016/0220082. One example of the rotating brush
roll 122 may
include a combination of shorter stiffer bristles for engaging a carpet and
longer softer bristles
for engaging a hard surface. In particular, the rotating brush roll 122 may
include one or more
arrangements or groups of the shorter stiffer bristles and one or more
arrangements or groups of
the longer softer bristles, wherein the longer softer bristles are longer and
softer as compared to
the shorter stiffer bristles.
[0037] The leading roller 124 may be selected to be substantially softer
than that of the brush
roll 122. The softness, length, diameter, arrangement, and resiliency of the
bristles and/or pile of
the leading roller 124 may be selected to form a seal with a hard surface,
whereas the bristles of
the brush roll 122 may selected to agitate carpet fibers or the like. Softness
may be determined,
for example, based on the pliability of the bristles or pile being used. The
leading roller 124 may
also have an outside diameter that is smaller than the outside diameter of the
brush roll 122.
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Examples of leading rollers 124 including sizes and the material used are
described in greater
detail in U.S. Patent Application Pub. No. 2017/0127896.
[0038] The leading roller 124 may include a relatively soft material (e.g.,
soft bristles, fabric,
felt, nap or pile) arranged in a pattern (e.g., a spiral or helical pattern)
to facilitate capturing
debris. In one example, a thin helical strip of stiffer, longer bristles may
be used together with a
wider helical strip of softer bristles. Rotation of the leading roller 124
with the helical strip of
stiffer, longer bristles may thus create a moving air channel that facilitates
capturing of debris.
In this example, the softer bristles may include nylon bristles having a
length in a range of 4 to
12 mm and a diameter less than 0.08 mm. An example of longer, stiffer bristles
includes nylon
bristles having a length in a range of 6 to 16 mm and a diameter in a range of
0.06 to 0.20 mm.
[0039] The surface cleaning head 100 may also include a combing unit 129
with combing
protrusions or teeth engaging the leading roller 124 for removing hair and
other similar debris
from the leading roller 124. Examples of a combing unit are described in
greater detail in U.S.
Patent Application Pub. No. 2017/0127896 and U.S. Patent Application Serial
No. 15/492,320.
[0040] The surface cleaning head 100 includes one or more wheels 130, 132,
134 for
supporting the housing on a surface to be cleaned. In the illustrated
embodiment, for example,
larger rear wheels 130 are disposed proximate the back side 114 with smaller
rear wheels 132
disposed therebetween on the underside 116 of the housing 110 and smaller
forward wheels 134
are disposed on the underside 120 of the housing 110 proximate the front side
112. Other wheel
configurations may also be used. The wheels 130, 132, 134 may provide the
primary contact
with the surface being cleaned and facilitate moving the surface cleaning head
100 along the
surface to be cleaned. The larger rear wheels 130 may also allow the user to
easily tilt or pivot
the surface cleaning head 100 (e.g., brush roll 122 and/or the leading roller
124) off of the
surface to be cleaned. When the surface cleaning head 100 is positioned on the
surface being
cleaned, the leading roller 124 may also rest on the surface being cleaned, as
will be described in
greater detail below.
[0041] The surface cleaning head 100 also includes one or more floor
sealing strips 136, 138
on the underside 120 of the housing 110 to facilitate sealing against a
surface being cleaned (e.g.,
a hard surface) and to help direct air to the suction conduit opening 1 1 1
(see FIGS. 2, 4 and 10).
The floor sealing strips 136, 138 may include bristle strips formed by soft
bristles or may include
fabric material, rubber material, or other material capable of contacting the
surface being cleaned
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to substantially prevent air flow into the suction conduit opening 111. The
sealing strips 136,
138 may also include a combination of elements or materials, such as bristles
with a cloth or
rubber strip extending along the strip between the bristles (e.g., with the
bristles being longer) to
improve sealing.
[0042] The floor sealing strips 136, 138 may include one or more sections
extending
downward from the housing 110 and having a length sufficient to contact a hard
surface being
cleaned when the surface cleaning head 100 is supported on the hard surface.
In one
embodiment, as shown in FIG. 10, the sealing strips 136, 138 have a length
that is greater than
the clearance or height H of the sole plate 137 to allow more sealing on a
hard surface. The
clearance or height H of the sole plate 137 and the extent to which the brush
roll 122 extends
beyond the sole plate allow good carpet engagement with the brush roll 122 but
with minimal
brush roll engagement of a hard surface. Thus, the brush roll 122 extends
beyond the sole plate
137 at or less than the clearance or height H of the sole plate 137 and the
floor sealing strips 136,
138 extend at or greater than the clearance or height H of the sole plate 137.
In one example, the
clearance or height H of the sole plate 137 is in a range of 1.5 to 7.0 mm,
the brush roll 122
extends beyond the sole plate in a range of 3 to 6 mm, and the floor sealing
strips 136, 138
extend in a range of 5 to 10 mm.
[0043] In the illustrated embodiment shown in FIG. 2, the sealing strips
136, 138 are
arranged to provide sealing around a portion of the suction conduit opening 1
1 1 while also
providing side air passageways as shown by arrows 139. The rear sealing strip
136 extends
along a rear side of the suction conduit opening 111 and the side sealing
strips 138 extend from
the rear sealing strip 136 along at least a portion of the sides of the
suction conduit opening 111.
Although separate sealing strips are shown, a single sealing strip may extend
along both the sides
and rear of the suction conduit opening. The leading roller 124 provides
sealing along a front
side of the suction conduit opening 111 and the space between the side sealing
strips 138 and the
leading roller 124 defines the side air passageways 139, thereby causing
directed air flow into the
suction conduit opening 111 at a location that facilitates capturing debris in
the air flow (e.g.,
between the brush roll 122 and the leading roller 124). An increased speed of
the air flow
directed through the side air passageways 139 also enhances edge cleaning. In
the illustrated
embodiment, the side sealing strips 138 extend just short of the suction
conduit opening 111 to
form side air passageways 139 directed laterally toward the opening 111. Other
configurations
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of the sealing strips 136, 138 are also contemplated, for example, the side
sealing strips 138 may
be longer or shorter.
[0044] In an embodiment, the surface cleaning head 100 includes a removable
cover 140
coupled to the housing 110 and covering a top of the agitators 122, 124, as
shown in FIGS. 5 and
6. The cover 140 is removable to allow access to the agitators 122, 124 for
cleaning debris
tangled on the agitators 122, 124 and/or removing the agitators. The cover 140
covers the brush
roll chamber 119 and brush roll 122 and covers a top portion of the leading
roller 124 leaving a
front of the leading roller 124 exposed. Removing the cover 140 allows access
to the brush roll
122 and the leading roller 124 for purposes of removing debris such as hair.
The cover 140 may
include a transparent window over at least the brush roll 122 allow visual
inspection of the brush
roll 122 during use.
[0045] The cover 140 includes a bumper 142 that extends out over the
leading roller 124 and
just in front of the leading roller 124, thereby providing a leading edge. As
shown, the bumper
142 may extend laterally along a substantial portion of the front side 112 and
downward
proximate each of the sides 116a, 116b. The bumper 142 may be made of a
material that is more
compliant and flexible than the other material used for the cover 140 to allow
the bumper 142 to
flex, for example, when contacting a wall surface. In one example, the cover
140 may be made
of a hard plastic or polymer material such as polycarbonate (PC) or
acrylonitrile-butadiene-
styrene (ABS) with the bumper 142 being made of a thermoplastic elastomer such
as
thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU).
[0046] The bumper 142 is configured to seal partially against a vertical
surface (e.g., a wall)
during use while forming air flow passageways at certain locations to improve
front edge
cleaning. When contacting the vertical surface, for example, the bumper 142
will direct air
through front edge passageways below the sides of the bumper 142. The bumper
142 may also
include one or more compression elements 143 (e.g., ribs) that form air
passageways. When the
bumper 142 is pushed against the vertical surface, the compression elements
143 contact the
vertical surface first and push the bumper 142 locally farther back than the
rest of the bumper
142, thereby forming a gap on either side of the compression elements 143. The
gaps on either
side of the compression elements 143 form air paths allowing air to be drawn
down in front of
the leading roller 124, which may disturb dust and debris so that it can be
directed into the air
flow path toward the suction conduit opening 111.
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[0047] The removable cover 140 also includes a seal 144 on an underside of
the cover 140
and configured to engage the housing 110 around an upper perimeter of the
brush roll chamber
119 for sealing the brush roll chamber 119 at the top side of the housing 110.
By sealing the
brush roll chamber 119 at the top side, suction and airflow into the suction
conduit opening 111
may be improved. The removable cover 140 may be held against the housing 110
securely to
maintain the seal. In the illustrated embodiment, the removable cover 140
includes one or more
tabs 146a-c at a back end of the cover 140 for engaging respective slots 113a-
c in the housing
110 and one or more protrusions 147 inside the cover 140 at the sides of the
front end of the
cover 140 for engaging respective latch fingers 150 at the sides 116a, 116b of
the housing 110.
The latch fingers 150 may be retracted toward the housing by respective latch
actuators 152 to
release and remove the cover 140.
[0048] Referring to FIGS. 7 and 8, an embodiment of the latch mechanism on
one side 116b
is shown and described in greater detail. In this embodiment, the latch finger
150 is at one end
of a sliding member 154 and the latch actuator 152 is engaged with the other
end of the sliding
member 154. The latch actuator 152 includes or is connected to a portion 153
extending
downward to engage the sliding member 154. A resilient member 156, such as a
spring, biases
the sliding member 154 and the latch finger 150 outward and away from the
housing 110 and
into engagement with the protrusion 147 inside the cover 140. The latch finger
150 may be
retracted against the bias of the resilient member 156 by sliding the latch
actuator 152 rearward
in the direction of the arrow. The latch finger 150 includes an angled top
surface 151 to allow the
protrusion 147 to slide over the latch finger 150 and push the latch finger
150 rearward against
the bias of the resilient member 156 when the cover 140 is moved downward into
engagement
with the housing 110. When the protrusion 147 moves beyond the latch finger
150, the latch
finger 150 will be biased into a position over the protrusion 147 thereby
engaging the protrusion
147 and holding the front end of the cover 140. Other types of latch
mechanisms are also within
the scope of the present disclosure.
[0049] The latch mechanisms are isolated from the brush roll chamber 119
and thus do not
affect the suction into the suction conduit opening 111. In particular, the
latch actuator 152 is
spaced from the opening to the brush roll chamber 119 as shown in FIG. 9.
[0050] In the example embodiment, the leading roller 124 is removable and
is held in place
by the cover 140. A downwardly extending portion 148 of the cover 142 at one
side engages a
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non-rotating end 126 of the leading roller 124 (see FIGS. 5 and 7). The non-
rotating end 126
includes a tab 128 that extends outward and an inside portion of the cover 140
engages the tab
128 when the cover 140 is held in place by the latch mechanism (see FIG. 8).
The leading roller
124 may be configured to be removed and may have a driven end and non-driven
end, for
example, similar to the removable brush roll described in U.S. Patent
Application Publication
No. 2016/0220082. Although the brush roll 122 in the example embodiment of the
surface
cleaning head 100 is not removable, the brush roll 122 may also be similarly
removable in other
embodiments.
[0051] Referring to FIGS. 10-13, other embodiments of the surface cleaning
head 100 may
include a shelf structure 160 at a back side of the brush roll chamber 119.
The shelf structure
160 may have various configurations and shapes but includes at least a surface
facing generally
downward toward the underside 120 of the housing 110 and opposing the rotation
of the brush
roll 122. As debris circulates around the brush roll chamber 119 by rotation
of the brush roll
122, the shelf structure 160 knocks down and de-energizes the debris to
facilitate capturing the
debris in the air flow through the suction conduit, as shown by the arrows.
Although the shelf
structure 160 is shown in the illustrated embodiment of the surface cleaning
head 100 including
dual agitators 122, 124, the shelf structure may also be used in other surface
cleaning heads, for
example, without a leading roller 124.
[0052] In this embodiment, a vacuum channel 162 extends from the back side
of the brush
roll chamber 119 to further define the suction conduit. Thus, the suction
conduit passes from the
suction conduit opening 111 through a portion of the brush roll chamber 119
and through the
vacuum channel 162. The illustrated embodiment of the vacuum channel 162
includes a flared
mouth 164 at the intersection with the brush roll chamber 119, which provides
a dirty air inlet
that receives dirt and debris together with air being drawn through the
suction conduit. As
shown in FIGS. 10 and 11, the shelf structure 160 may extend into at least a
portion of the flared
mouth 164 of the vacuum channel 162.
[0053] FIGS. 12 and 13 show the portion of the housing 110a that defines
the back side of
the brush roll chamber and the flared mouth 164 of the vacuum channel 162. As
shown in
FIGS. 12 and 13, the shelf structure 160 may include shelf portions 160a
extending into the
flared mouth 164 and shelf portions 160b extending along at least a portion of
the back side of
the brush roll chamber. The shelf structure 160 may have a depth of about 5-10
mm and a height
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CA 03073677 2020-02-21
of about 12-20 mm. The shelf portions 160a extending into the flared mouth 164
may be deeper
than the shelf portions 160b extending along the back side of the brush roll
chamber.
[0054] Referring to FIG. 14, embodiments of the surface cleaning head 100
may also include
driving the brush roll 122 and the leading roller 124 at opposite ends. A
drive mechanism 170
directly drives the brush roll 122 at a first brush roll end 121 (e.g., via a
first drive belt 172) and
the leading roller 124 is driven at a second leading roller end 127 from a
second brush roll end
123 of the brush roll 122 (e.g., via a second drive belt 174). The drive
mechanism 170 includes a
drive motor 171 for providing the rotation and first and second drive belts
172, 174 are used to
transfer rotation. In other embodiments, gears may be used to transfer
rotation. By driving the
leading roller 124 at the opposite end, the leading roller 124 is not required
to be offset and may
be more centrally located in the housing 110.
[0055] Referring to FIGS. 15 and 16, embodiments of the surface cleaning
head 100 may
also include a motion-actuated bleed valve 180. The motion-actuated bleed
valve 180 includes a
pivoting actuator 181 including surface engaging elements 182 (shown in FIGS.
2 and 4), such
as stiff bristles, configured to catch on a surface being cleaned during a
pull stroke. The pivoting
actuator 181 is coupled to a pivoting valve member 184 that covers a port 186
in a side of the
vacuum channel 162. The pivoting valve member 184 is biased into a closed
position covering
the port 186, for example, by a resilient member (not shown) such as a torsion
spring. When the
surface engaging elements 182 catch on a surface during the pull stroke, the
pivoting actuator
181 pivots and causes the valve member 184 to pivot away from the port 186,
thereby allowing
air to flow or bleed out of the vacuum channel 162. This air flow reduces the
suction and makes
it easier to pull the surface cleaning head 100 (i.e., when attached to wand
of a vacuum cleaner).
The bleed valve is useful on heavier upright vacuum cleaners especially with
higher suction
resulting, for example, from the techniques described herein.
[0056] FIG. 17 illustrates one type of vacuum cleaner 1700 that may include
a surface
cleaning head 1702, consistent with the embodiments described herein. The
surface cleaning
head 1702 with the leading roller 1724 may be used on a stick type vacuum
cleaner 1700 with a
removable handheld vacuum 1701 coupled at one end of a wand 1704, such as the
type described
in U.S. Patent Application Pub. No. 2015/0135474. The surface cleaning head
with the leading
roller may also be used on an upright vacuum cleaner (not shown) with a
removable canister
coupled to a wand, such as the type described in U.S. Patent Application Pub.
No.
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CA 03073677 2020-02-21
2015/0351596. A surface cleaning head consistent with embodiments described
herein may also
be used in a robotic vacuum cleaner such as the type described in U.S. Patent
Application Serial
No. 62/511,099.
[0057] Accordingly, embodiments of a surface cleaning head, consistent with
the present
disclosure, may be capable of improved suction and air flow, improved front
and edge cleaning,
improved versatility on both carpets and hard surfaces, improved access to
dual agitators for
cleaning and removal, and/or improved maneuverability.
[0058] While the principles of the invention have been described herein, it
is to be understood
by those skilled in the art that this description is made only by way of
example and not as a
limitation as to the scope of the invention. Other embodiments are
contemplated within the scope of
the present invention in addition to the exemplary embodiments shown and
described herein.
Modifications and substitutions by one of ordinary skill in the art are
considered to be within the
scope of the present invention, which is not to be limited except by the
following claims.
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