Cleaning apparatus

• US 20080062618A1
• Filed: 08/07/2007
• Published: 03/13/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 02/11/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Alfred Kã¤Rcher GmbH & Company KG
• Original Assignee: Alfred Kã¤Rcher GmbH & Company KG
• Inventors: Frank, Juergen, Hensel, Maic, Lepold, Holger
• Granted Patent: US 7,450,367 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 361/600
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/2878 Dual-powered vacuum cleaners, i.e. devices which can be operated with mains power supply or by batteries
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/2884 Details of arrangements of batteries or their installation
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 50/202 Casings or frames around the primary casing of a single cell or a single battery
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 50/204 Racks, modules or packs for multiple batteries or multiple cells
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 50/247 specially adapted for portable devices, e.g. mobile phones, computers, hand tools or pacemakers
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 50/264 for cells or batteries, e.g. straps, tie rods or peripheral frames
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 50/296 characterised by terminals of battery packs terminals of batteries H01M50/543
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 60/10 Energy storage using batteries

Abstract

The invention relates to a cleaning apparatus comprising a cleaning unit driven by an electric motor and a housing which has a battery chamber for accommodating at least one rechargeable battery, a connecting device having a mechanical mounting part and an electrical plug connector part being disposed in the battery chamber for establishing an electrical and mechanical connection between the battery and the cleaning apparatus. In order to further develop said cleaning apparatus in such a way that batteries of different physical shapes can be used, the invention proposes that the mounting part is detachably mounted in the battery chamber, and the plug connector part is detachably connectable as desired to the mounting part or to a chamber wall of the battery chamber.

Claims

1. Cleaning apparatus comprising a cleaning unit driven by an electric motor and a housing which has a battery chamber for accommodating at least one rechargeable battery, a connecting device having a mechanical mounting part and an electrical plug connector part being disposed in the battery chamber for establishing an electrical and mechanical connection between the battery and the cleaning apparatus, wherein the mounting part is detachably mounted in the battery chamber, and the plug connector part is detachably connectable as desired to the mounting part or to a chamber wall of the battery chamber.

2. Cleaning apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the chamber wall has a plug connector receptacle for inserting the plug connector part.

3. Cleaning apparatus according to claim 2, wherein guide elements which interact with one another are disposed on the plug connector receptacle and on the plug connector part.

4. Cleaning apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the guide elements comprise guide ribs and guide grooves which receive said guide ribs.

5. Cleaning apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a guide groove is in each case disposed on the plug connector part on sides which face away from each other, with a guide rib which is provided on the chamber wall entering said guide groove.

6. Cleaning apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the mounting part is detachably connectable to the chamber wall, said mounting part covering the plug connector receptacle.

7. Cleaning apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the mounting part has an accommodation compartment for accommodating the plug connector part.

8. Cleaning apparatus according to claim 7, wherein guide elements which interact with one another are disposed on the accommodation compartment and on the plug connector part.

9. Cleaning apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the guide elements comprise guide ribs and guide grooves which receive said guide ribs.

10. Cleaning apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a guide groove is in each case provided on the plug connector part on sides which face away from each other, and a guide rib which is provided on the mounting part enters said guide groove.

11. Cleaning apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the mounting part comprises at least one positively locking element for establishing a positively locking connection to a battery.

12. Cleaning apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the at least one positively locking element is configured as a guide rail.

13. Cleaning apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the mounting part has two positively locking elements which are spaced apart from one another and between which the plug connector part is positionable.

14. Cleaning apparatus according to claim 13, wherein the two positively locking elements are fixedly connected to one another by means of a connecting wall of the mounting part and, together with the connecting wall, delimit an accommodation compartment for accommodating the plug connector part.

15. Cleaning apparatus according to claim 14, wherein the connecting wall has an opening which receives a projection of the plug connector part.

16. Cleaning apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the at least one positively locking element is disposed on an end face of the mounting part, which end face faces the interior of the battery chamber when the mounting part is inserted into the battery chamber.

17. Cleaning apparatus according to claim 16, wherein the end face of the mounting part forms a contact surface for contact by a battery above the at least one positively locking element.

18. Cleaning apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the chamber wall is configured as a pivotable flap which closes an access opening in the battery chamber.

19. Cleaning apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the battery chamber can be fitted with at least two rechargeable batteries, it being possible to alternately operate the cleaning apparatus with one of the batteries which are inserted into the battery chamber.

20. Cleaning apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the cleaning apparatus is configured as a suction apparatus comprising a cleaning unit in the form of a suction unit and comprising a dirt-collection container which has a suction inlet and is in flow connection with the suction unit.

21. Cleaning apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the housing comprises a housing lower part and a housing upper part which can be placed onto said housing lower part, the cleaning unit and the battery chamber being disposed in the housing upper part.