Vacuum cleaner

• US 20070136980A1
• Filed: 02/28/2006
• Published: 06/21/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 12/16/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Panasonic Corporation (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Takahashi, Masaki, Fujiwara, Tosiaki, Hayasi, Nobuhiro, Nakao, Hiroshi
• Granted Patent: US 7,698,777 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 15/319
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/2805 Parameters or conditions being sensed
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/2831 Motor parameters, e.g. motor load or speed
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/2842 Suction motors or blowers
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/2847 Surface treating elements

Abstract

A vacuum cleaner includes an electric blower; an electric blower controller for controlling the electric blower; an electric blower current detector for detecting at least a current flowing in the electric blower; and a dust chamber provided at an upstream of the electric blower, for collecting dust particles sucked by the electric blower. A predetermined level of a current is made to flow in the electric blower regardless of a dust particle amount in the dust chamber. Preferably, the vacuum cleaner further includes voltage detector for detecting a voltage of a power supply applied to the vacuum cleaner. More preferably, the vacuum cleaner further includes a frequency detector for detecting a frequency of a power supply applied to the vacuum cleaner.

Claims

1. A vacuum cleaner comprising:

an electric blower;

an electric blower controller for controlling the electric blower;

an electric blower current detector for detecting at least a current flowing in the electric blower; and

a dust chamber provided at an upstream of the electric blower, for collecting dust particles sucked by the electric blower,

wherein a predetermined level of a current is made to flow in the electric blower regardless of a dust particle amount in the dust chamber.

8. The vacuum cleaner of claim 1, further comprising a voltage detector for detecting a voltage of a power supply applied to the vacuum cleaner, wherein a predetermined level of a current is made to flow in the vacuum cleaner regardless of a change in the voltage of the power supply.

10. The vacuum cleaner of claim 1, further comprising a frequency detector for detecting a frequency of a power supply applied to the vacuum cleaner, wherein a predetermined level of a current is made to flow in the vacuum cleaner regardless of a change in the frequency of the power supply.

12. The vacuum cleaner of claim 1, wherein the electric blower current detector includes a variable factor detector for detecting variable factors other than the current flowing in the electric blower, wherein the current flowing in the electric blower is indirectly estimated based on the variable factors detected by the variable factor detector.

14. The vacuum cleaner of claim 1, further comprising a cleaning mode detector for detecting whether the vacuum cleaner is in a floor cleaning mode or a non-floor cleaning mode, wherein, in case of the non-floor cleaning mode, an operation of an electric motor is stopped, and then, the current of the electric blower is increased by as much as a decrement in the current caused by stopping the rotational brush or the electric motor.

16. The vacuum cleaner of claim 14, further comprising a time counter for detecting a duration of the non-floor cleaning mode of the vacuum cleaner, wherein, if the non-floor cleaning mode is shorter than or equal to a predetermined time period, the current of the electric blower is not increased.

18. The vacuum cleaner of claim 1, wherein the predetermined level of the total current flowing in the vacuum cleaner is set to be an upper limit set by the regulation or a constant level smaller than the upper limit.

2. A vacuum cleaner comprising:

an electric blower;

an electric blower controller for controlling the electric blower;

an electric motor for driving a rotational brush for brushing dust particles to be removed from a surface to be cleaned;

an electric motor controller for controlling the number of rotation of the electric motor;

a current detector for detecting at least a total current equal to a sum of a current flowing in the electric motor and a current flowing in the electric blower; and

a dust chamber provided at an upstream of the electric blower, for collecting dust particles sucked by the electric blower,

wherein the total current is controlled to be maintained at a predetermined level regardless of a condition of the surface to be cleaned and a dust particle amount in the dust chamber.

3. The vacuum cleaner of claim 2, further comprising an electric power setting unit for setting. an electric power of the electric blower, wherein the total current is controlled to be maintained at a predetermined level by increasing the number of rotation of the electric motor if the electric power set by the electric power setting unit is not a maximum power, regardless of the electric power set by the electric power setting unit, a condition of the surface to be cleaned and the dust particle amount in the dust chamber.

4. The vacuum cleaner of claim 2, further comprising a rotation number setting unit for setting the number of rotation of the electric motor, wherein, if the number of rotation set by the rotation number setting unit is not a maximum number of rotation, the total current is controlled to be kept a predetermined level by increasing the electric power of the electric blower, regardless of the number of rotation set by the rotation number setting unit, a condition of the surface to be cleaned and the dust particle amount in the dust chamber.

5. The vacuum chamber of claim 2, wherein the current detector includes an electric blower current detector for detecting a current flowing in the electric blower and an electric motor current detector for detecting a current flowing in the electric motor.

6. The vacuum chamber of claim 3, wherein the current detector includes an electric blower current detector for detecting a current flowing in the electric blower and an electric motor current detector for detecting a current flowing in the electric motor.

7. The vacuum chamber of claim 4, wherein the current detector includes an electric blower current detector for detecting a current flowing in the electric blower and an electric motor current detector for detecting a current flowing in the electric motor.

9. The vacuum cleaner of claim 2, further comprising a voltage detector for detecting a voltage of a power supply applied to the vacuum cleaner, wherein a predetermined level of a current is made to flow in the vacuum cleaner regardless of a change in the voltage of the power supply.

11. The vacuum cleaner of claim 2, further comprising a frequency detector for detecting a frequency of a power supply applied to the vacuum cleaner, wherein a predetermined level of a current is made to flow in the vacuum cleaner regardless of a change in the frequency of the power supply.

13. The vacuum cleaner of claim 2, wherein the electric blower current detector includes a variable factor detector for detecting variable factors other than the current flowing in the electric blower, wherein the current flowing in the electric blower is indirectly estimated based on the variable factors detected by the variable factor detector.

15. The vacuum cleaner of claim 2, further comprising a cleaning mode detector for detecting whether the vacuum cleaner is in a floor cleaning mode or a non-floor cleaning mode, wherein, in case of the non-floor cleaning mode, an operation of a rotational brush or an electric motor is stopped, and then, the current of the electric blower is increased by as much as a decrement in the current caused by stopping the rotational brush or the electric motor.

17. The vacuum cleaner of claim 15, further comprising a time counter for detecting a duration of the non-floor cleaning mode of the vacuum cleaner, wherein, if the non-floor cleaning mode is shorter than or equal to a predetermined time period, the current of the electric blower is not increased.

19. The vacuum cleaner of claim 2, wherein the predetermined level of the total current flowing in the vacuum cleaner is set to be an upper limit set by the regulation or a constant level smaller than the upper limit.