Dirt collecting system for a floor care appliance
First Claim
1. A dirt collecting system for a floor care appliance of the type having a suction source for generating an airstream originating at a suction nozzle, comprising:
- a dirt container interposed in the airstream having an inner sidewall;
an inlet in the dirt container in fluid communication with the suction nozzle for allowing the airstream to enter said dirt cup;
a conduit located in said dirt container having one open end;
a member having a peripheral edge extending radially outward from said conduit so that the peripheral edge is a distance from the inner sidewall of the dirt container a distance less than the full distance from the conduit to the inner sidewall of said dirt container;
a first portion of an apertured wall formed in said conduit located in a portion of said dirt container above said member to allow a portion of said airflow from said inlet to flow therethrough while preventing large particles from flowing into said conduit; and
a second portion of an apertured wall formed in said conduit located in a portion of said dirt container beneath said member to allow a portion of said airflow from said inlet to flow therethrough while preventing large particles from flowing into said conduit;
wherein a portion of said airstream flows past said member and into said conduit through said second portion of said apertured wall and a portion of said airstream flows into said first portion of said apertured wall.
2 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A dirt collecting system for a vacuum cleaner includes a dirt cup formed from a cylindrical sidewall having a disc shaped member separating the dirt cup into an upper portion and a lower portion. The dirty airstream flows past the disc shaped member from the upper portion to the lower portion through a small gap between the outer periphery of the disc shaped member and the sidewall of the dirt cup. The disc shaped member is supported on a centrally located conduit which has apertured walls located both above and below the disc shaped member. The apertured walls allows the airstream to flow into the conduit for further filtering or exiting the dirt cup. The apertured wall located above the disc shaped member improves sustained performance by enabling the airstream to continue to flow through the dirt cup as the lower portion of the dirt cup fills with large dirt particles and the apertured wall located beneath the disc shaped member becomes increasingly restricted. In the various embodiments of the invention, the airstream is directed through the conduit to a fine particle filter located in a compartment at the bottom of the dirt cup, at the top of the dirt cup or into filter sock located at the upper end of the dirt cup. Alternately, the fine particle filter may be located in a separate container located above or below the dirt container.
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Citations
32 Claims
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1. A dirt collecting system for a floor care appliance of the type having a suction source for generating an airstream originating at a suction nozzle, comprising:
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a dirt container interposed in the airstream having an inner sidewall;
an inlet in the dirt container in fluid communication with the suction nozzle for allowing the airstream to enter said dirt cup;
a conduit located in said dirt container having one open end;
a member having a peripheral edge extending radially outward from said conduit so that the peripheral edge is a distance from the inner sidewall of the dirt container a distance less than the full distance from the conduit to the inner sidewall of said dirt container;
a first portion of an apertured wall formed in said conduit located in a portion of said dirt container above said member to allow a portion of said airflow from said inlet to flow therethrough while preventing large particles from flowing into said conduit; and
a second portion of an apertured wall formed in said conduit located in a portion of said dirt container beneath said member to allow a portion of said airflow from said inlet to flow therethrough while preventing large particles from flowing into said conduit;
wherein a portion of said airstream flows past said member and into said conduit through said second portion of said apertured wall and a portion of said airstream flows into said first portion of said apertured wall. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18)
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19. A dirt collecting system for a floor care appliance of the type having a suction source for generating an airstream originating at a suction nozzle, comprising:
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a dirt container interposed in the airstream having an inner sidewall;
an inlet in the dirt container in fluid communication with the suction nozzle for allowing the airstream to enter said dirt cup;
a conduit located in said dirt container having one open end;
a member having a peripheral edge extending radially outward from said conduit so that the peripheral edge is a distance from the inner sidewall of the dirt container a distance less than the full distance from the conduit to the inner sidewall of said dirt container;
a first portion of an apertured wall formed in said conduit located in a portion of said dirt container above said member to allow a portion of said airflow from said inlet to flow therethrough while preventing large particles from flowing into said conduit;
a second portion of an apertured wall formed in said conduit located in a portion of said dirt container beneath said member to allow a portion of said airflow from said inlet to flow therethrough while preventing large particles from flowing into said conduit; and
a container in fluid communication with said one open end of said conduit;
wherein a portion of said airstream flows past said member and into said conduit through said second portion of said apertured wall and a portion of said airstream flows into said first portion of said apertured wall wherein said airstream is directed from said conduit to said container. - View Dependent Claims (20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27)
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28. A method of collecting particles from a surface, comprising the steps of:
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generating a dirt laden airstream originating at a suction nozzle;
inputting the dirt laden airstream into a dirt container in fluid communication with the suction nozzle, the dirt container having an inner sidewall and an inlet for allowing the dirt laden airstream to enter therein;
directing a portion of the dirt laden airstream from the inlet to flow through a gap between the inner sidewall of said dirt container and a member to a portion of the dirt container located beneath said member, the member for preventing large dirt particles from reentering a portion of the dirt container located above said member;
filtering large dirt particles from the dirt laden airstream by further directing said portion of the dirt laden airstream from said inlet through a first apertured wall located beneath said member into a conduit, the large dirt particles being collected in the portion of the dirt container located beneath said member;
directing another portion of the dirt laden airstream from the inlet through a second apertured wall located above a portion of the dirt container located above said member into a conduit for preventing large dirt particles from entering said conduit, and further, allowing a greater portion of the dirt laden airstream to flow into said second apertured wall as the portion of the dirt container located beneath said member fills with dirt particles and restricts said first apertured wall. - View Dependent Claims (29, 30, 31, 32)
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Specification