Cleaning nozzle attachment for a suction cleaner

• US 3,908,223 A
• Filed: 01/11/1974
• Issued: 09/30/1975
• Est. Priority Date: 06/30/1972
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: White Consolidated Industries Incorporated (AB Electrolux)
• Original Assignee: Joseph F. Brooks, Robert B. Meyer
• Inventors: Brooks, Joseph F., Meyer, Robert B.
• Primary Examiner(s): Feldman, Peter
• Assistant Examiner(s): Moore, C. K.
• Application Number:
  US05/432,679
• Time in Patent Office: 627 Days
• Field of Search: 15/333,361,377,410,383
• US Class Current: 15/383
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/0411 driven by electric motor

Abstract

A cleaning nozzle attachment for a canister-type suction cleaner or built-in cleaning system, wherein an electric motor driven brush roll is rotatably mounted in a suction chamber in the body of the attachment so as to agitate a portion of the rug or carpet underlying the suction opening of the attachment when the latter is in operation. A socket member is pivotally mounted at the rear of the body and serves to communicate suction to the suction chamber through a plurality of connected tubular wands which are detachably connected to the socket member and which provide a handle for manipulating the attachment. A pair of wheels are carried by the wand socket member and the downward thrust component from the wands is transmitted to the wheels rather than to the socket member by mounting the wheels on the socket member so that the wheel axis is substantially intersected by the axis of the wands. A lost motion connection between the wand socket member and the nozzle body permits substantially vertical relative movement therebetween so that the nozzle body '"'"''"'"''"'"''"'"'floats'"'"''"'"''"'"''"'"' bodily on the surface of a rug or carpet being cleaned. A pair of ramps are provided on the nozzle body, which coact with a pair of trunnion pins on the wand socket member to cause the wheels to be positively extended to a predetermined lowered position with respect to the underside of the nozzle body when the wands and socket member are pivoted to an upright position.

Claims

1. In a rug and carpet cleaning nozzle attachment adapted to be connected to a source of vacuum and to be manipulated over a rug or carpet to be cleaned by at least one tubular wand, said attachment including a nozzle body having front and rear ends etending generally transversely to the axis of said wand and an underside having a suction opening therein, said nozzle body also having a socket member movably mounted therein adjacent to said rear end and a tubular portion adapted to receive one end of said wand, and at least one wheel rotatably carried by said socket member and adapted to roll on a rug or carpet to be cleaned when said attachment is in use, the improvement comprising mechanism for extending said wheel to a predetermined lowered position below the underside of said nozzle body in response to movement of the tubular portion of said socket member to an upright position with respect to said body, whereby the rear end of said body is elevated and said body is supported in a stable condition on said rug or carpet by said wheel and the front end of said body.

2. The attachment of claim 1, further characterized in that said wheel extending mechanism comprises at least one ramp on said nozzle body, and at least one abutment on said socket member and movable into engagement with said ramp as said socket member is moved toward said upright position.

3. The attachment of claim 2 further characterized in that a transversely spaced pair of said ramps are provided on said nozzle body, and a transversely spaced pair of said abutments are provided on said socket member.

4. The attachment of claim 3, further characterized in that said abutments comprise a pair of pins extending transversely outwardly from the opposite respective sides of said socket member.

5. The attachment of claim 2, including means for releasably retaining said abutment in a predetermined position on said ramp corresponding to the extended position of said wheel.

6. The attachment of claim 5, further characterized in that said releasable retaining means comprises a depression in said ramp for receiving said abutment, and spring means engageable with said abutment and operable to bias said abutment into said depression.

7. The attachment of claim 6, further characterized in that said spring means comprises a resilient arm having one end secured to said nozzle body and the opposite end thereof disposed in the path of movement of said abutment so as to engage the latter as said abutment moves into said depression.

8. The attachment of claim 5, further characterized in that said releasable retaining means comprises a shoulder on said ramp.

9. The attachment of claim 1 further characterized in that a transversely spaced pair of said wheels are mounted on said socket member and respectively disposed on opposite sides Thereof.

10. The attachment of claim 1, further characterized in that at least the front end of said nozzle body is transversely elongated, and said socket member is located substantially centrally of said rear end, whereby said nozzle body is supported on a substantially triangularly-shaped base when said socket member is in said upright position.

11. The attachment of claim 1, further characterized in that said nozzle body has a chamber therein communicating with said suction opening, a brush roll having a plurality of radially outwardly extending bristles thereon is rotatably mounted in said chamber and operable when driven to agitate the surface of a rug or carpet underlying said suction opening, and said wheel extending means is effective to elevate said nozzle body sufficiently so as to prevent said bristles from contacting the surface of said rug or carpet when said socket member is in said upright position.