Vacuum cleaner

• US 10,314,448 B2
• Filed: 02/28/2017
• Issued: 06/11/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 02/29/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Original Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Inventors: Son, Jungkyu, Nam, Bohyun, Park, Jaeyong, Bae, Sehwan, Seo, Jonghyun, Lee, Jinwoo, Lee, Sangchul, Hyun, Kietak, Ko, Jungmin, Eo, Suhan
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen, Dung Van
• Application Number:
  US15/445,018
• Publication Number:
  US 20170245704A1
• Time in Patent Office: 833 Days
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 5/362 of the horizontal type, e.g. canister or sledge type
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/0081 Means for exhaust-air diffusion; Means for sound or vibration damping
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/009 Carrying-vehicles; Arrangements of trollies or wheels; Means for avoiding mechanical obstacles
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/102 Dust separators cyclones A47L9/16
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/106 Dust removal
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/108 Dust compression means
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/12 Dry filters
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/122 flat
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/1625 for series flow
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/1641 for parallel flow
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/1666 with filtering means
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/1683 Dust collecting chambers; Dust collecting receptacles
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/242 Hose or pipe couplings
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/2805 Parameters or conditions being sensed
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/2826 the condition of the floor
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/2852 Elements for displacement of the vacuum cleaner or the accessories therefor, e.g. wheels, casters or nozzles
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/2857 User input or output elements for control, e.g. buttons, switches or displays
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/2884 Details of arrangements of batteries or their installation
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/2889 Safety or protection devices or systems, e.g. for prevention of motor over-heating or for protection of the user

Abstract

Provided is a vacuum cleaner including a cleaner body; a moving wheel provided at each of both side surfaces of the cleaner body, rotated for travelling of the vacuum cleaner and configured to support the cleaner body to be rotatable in normal and reverse directions; a wheel motor assembly connected to the moving wheel and configured to rotate the moving wheel for the travelling of the vacuum cleaner; a main motor provided inside the cleaner body, located at a rear side further than a vertical extension line of a rotating center of the moving wheel and driven to suction dust; and a battery provided inside the cleaner body, located at the rear side further than the vertical extension line of the rotating center of the moving wheel and configured to provide electric power to the main motor and the wheel motor assembly, wherein a center of gravity of the cleaner body is located at a rear of the vertical extension line of the rotating center of the moving wheel due to an arrangement of the main motor and the battery.

Claims

1. A vacuum cleaner comprising:

a cleaner body;

a moving wheel that is located at a side surface of the cleaner body, that is configured to support the cleaner body, and that is configured to rotate about a center axis of the moving wheel based on the vacuum cleaner moving in a forward direction or a reverse direction;

a wheel motor assembly that is connected to the moving wheel and that is configured to rotate the moving wheel;

a main motor that is located inside the cleaner body, that is located between a rear of the vacuum cleaner and the center axis of the moving wheel, and that is configured to generate a suction force; and

a battery that is located inside the cleaner body, that is located between the rear of the vacuum cleaner and the center axis of the moving wheel, and that is configured to provide electric power to the main motor and the wheel motor assembly,

wherein a center of gravity of the cleaner body is located between the rear of the vacuum cleaner and the center axis of the moving wheel.

2. The vacuum cleaner according to claim 1, wherein the battery protrudes further toward the rear of the vacuum cleaner than the main motor.

3. The vacuum cleaner according to claim 1, comprising:

a connector that is configured to receive a suction hose, that is located at the cleaner body, and that is located above the center axis of the moving wheel.

4. The vacuum cleaner according to claim 1, comprising:

a dust container that is located at a front surface of the cleaner body;

a cover member that is rotatably connected to an upper surface of the cleaner body and that is configured to cover an upper portion of the dust container; and

a suction hose that is configured to receive dust and that is connected to a front of the cover member.

5. The vacuum cleaner according to claim 1, comprising:

a detecting part that is located at the cleaner body and that is configured to detect a slope of the cleaner body with respect to a floor; and

a printed circuit board (PCB) that is configured to control the wheel motor assembly in response to the detected slope.

6. The vacuum cleaner according to claim 5, wherein the PCB is configured to maintain a level of a bottom surface of the cleaner body based on the vacuum cleaner moving by controlling the wheel motor assembly.

7. The vacuum cleaner according to claim 5, comprising:

a suction hose that is connected to a front surface of the cleaner body,

wherein the PCB is configured to control the wheel motor assembly in response to a change of the slope of the cleaner body with respect to the floor and based on the suction hose being pulled.

8. The vacuum cleaner according to claim 5, wherein the wheel motor assembly is configured to turn off based on the slope being greater than or equal to a set angle and is configured to rotate the moving wheel based on the slope being less than the set angle.

9. A vacuum cleaner comprising:

a cleaner body;

a moving wheel that is located at a side surface of the cleaner body, that is configured to support the cleaner body, and that is configured to rotate about a center axis of the moving wheel based on the vacuum cleaner moving in a forward direction or a reverse direction;

a wheel motor assembly that is connected to the moving wheel and that is configured to rotate the moving wheel;

a main motor that is located inside the cleaner body and that is located between a rear of the vacuum cleaner and the center axis of the moving wheel;

a battery that is located between the rear of the vacuum cleaner and the center axis of the moving wheel and that is located below the main motor; and

a connector that is located at a front surface of the cleaner body, that is located above the battery, and that is configured to receive a suction hose,

wherein a center of gravity of the cleaner body is located between the rear of the vacuum cleaner and the center axis of the moving wheel.

10. The vacuum cleaner according to claim 9, wherein a dust container is located at the front surface of the cleaner body and at least a portion of the dust container is located between the main motor and the battery.

11. The vacuum cleaner according to claim 9, wherein a dust container is located at the cleaner body, and

the center of gravity of the cleaner body is located between the rear of the vacuum cleaner and the center axis of the moving wheel regardless of an amount of dust in the dust container.

12. A vacuum cleaner comprising:

a cleaner body;

a moving wheel that is located at a side surface of the cleaner body, that is configured to support the cleaner body, and that is configured to rotate about a center axis of the moving wheel based on the vacuum cleaner moving in a forward direction or a reverse direction;

a wheel motor assembly that is connected to the moving wheel and that is configured to rotate the moving wheel;

a connector that is located at a front surface of the cleaner body and that is configured to receive a suction hose;

a dust container that is located at the front surface of the cleaner body;

a main motor that is located inside the cleaner body and that is located between a rear of the vacuum cleaner and the center axis of the moving wheel; and

a battery that is located between the rear of the vacuum cleaner and the center axis of the moving wheel and that is located below the main motor,

wherein

the main motor is located above the battery,

wherein the connector is located above the battery and between the front surface of the vacuum cleaner and the center axis of the moving wheel,

wherein at least a part of a bottom surface of the dust container is located below the main motor and between the front surface of the vacuum cleaner and the center axis of the moving wheel and below the main motor, and

wherein a center of gravity of the cleaner body is located between the rear of the vacuum cleaner and the center axis of the moving wheel.

13. The vacuum cleaner according to claim 12, wherein

a rear surface of the dust container slopes with respect to a floor and faces toward the moving wheel, and

an upper end of the dust container is nearer to the rear of the vacuum cleaner than a lower end of the dust container.

14. The vacuum cleaner according to claim 12, comprising a dust storing part that is located at a lower end of the dust container and that is configured to store dust.

15. The vacuum cleaner according to claim 12, wherein a rear surface of the dust container slopes with respect to a floor.

16. The vacuum cleaner according to claim 12, comprising an opening and closing member that is configured to selectively cover an upper portion of the dust container and that is configured to rotate,

wherein the connector is located at a front of the opening and closing member.

17. The vacuum cleaner according to claim 12, wherein the wheel motor assembly is located between the rear of the vacuum cleaner and the center axis of the moving wheel.

18. A vacuum cleaner comprising:

a cleaner body;

a moving wheel that is located at a side surface of the cleaner body, that is configured to support the cleaner body, and that is configured to rotate about a center axis of the moving wheel based on the vacuum cleaner moving in a forward direction or a reverse direction;

a wheel motor assembly that is connected to the moving wheel and that is configured to rotate the moving wheel;

a connector that is located at a front surface of the cleaner body;

a main motor that is located inside the cleaner body and that is configured to generate a suction force; and

a battery that is located inside the cleaner body, that is located between a rear of the vacuum cleaner and the center axis of the moving wheel, and that is configured to provide electric power to the main motor and the wheel motor assembly,

wherein a center of gravity of the cleaner body is located between the rear of the vacuum cleaner and the center axis of the moving wheel.

19. A vacuum cleaner comprising:

a cleaner body that has a center of gravity that is closer to a rear of the vacuum cleaner than to a front of the vacuum cleaner;

a moving wheel that is located between the front of the vacuum cleaner and the center of gravity of the cleaner body, that is configured to support the cleaner body, and that is configured to rotate about a center axis of the moving wheel based on the vacuum cleaner moving in a forward direction and a reverse direction;

a wheel motor assembly that is connected to the moving wheel and that is configured to rotate the moving wheel; and

a suction hose that is connected to an upper end of a front surface of the cleaner body,

wherein the wheel motor assembly is configured to adjust a rotational speed of the moving wheel based on a distance between a bottom surface of a dust container and a surface to be cleaned.

20. The vacuum cleaner according to claim 19, wherein the wheel motor assembly is configured to decrease the rotational speed of the moving wheel based on an angle defined by a bottom surface of the cleaner body and the surface to be cleaned being larger than a set angle.

21. The vacuum cleaner according to claim 19, wherein the cleaner body rotates in the reverse direction about the center axis of the moving wheel based on the cleaner body being stopped and rotates in the forward direction based on the suction hose being pulled forward.