Vacuum cleaner with function to adjust sensitivity of dust sensor

• US 5,105,502 A
• Filed: 06/11/1991
• Issued: 04/21/1992
• Est. Priority Date: 12/06/1988
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Takashima, Yoshinori
• Primary Examiner(s): Coe, Philip R.
• Assistant Examiner(s): COOLEY, CHARLES E
• Application Number:
  US07/713,614
• Time in Patent Office: 315 Days
• Field of Search: 356/338, 356/342, 356/343, 356/438, 356/439
• US Class Current: 15/319
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/04 with driven brushes or agitators
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/2815 using optical detectors
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/2847 Surface treating elements
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/2857 User input or output elements for control, e.g. buttons, switches or displays
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 9/2894 Details related to signal transmission in suction cleaners

Abstract

A vacuum cleaner includes an agitator brush which only becomes operational when a carpeted floor is being cleaned. In order to avoid erroneous activation of a dust indicator lamp when individual strands of carpet pile are pulled onto the cleaner, a surface discrimination device lowers the sensitivity of a dust sensor circuit, which drives the lamp, when shag or high pile carpet is encountered so as to prevent erroneous signaling of the presence of dust.

Claims

1. A vacuum cleaner with a suction nozzle which draws dust from an object to be cleaned and which has therein a rotatable member coming into contact with said object, said vacuum cleaner comprising:

dust sensor means for detecting a quantity of dust present in air drawn through a suction passage of said vacuum cleaner coupled to said suction nozzle to generate a dust signal indicative of the result of the detection;

adjusting means for adjusting the sensitivity of said dust sensor means for the dust detection in accordance with a control signal; and

discrimination means for detecting the kind of object to be cleaned by said vacuum cleaner to generate a discrimination signal indicative thereof, said discrimination signal being supplied as the control signal to said adjusting means to adjust the sensitivity of said dust sensor means and further supplied to switching means which is in turn operable so as to drive said rotatable member in said suction nozzle.

2. A vacuum cleaner as claimed in claim 1, wherein said adjusting means comprises a resistor and a transistor which are connected in parallel relation to each other, said transistor being arranged to short said resistor in response to the discrimination signal from said discrimination means.

3. A vacuum cleaner as claimed in claim 1, wherein said discrimination means includes discrimination switching means which is provided in said suction nozzle of said vacuum cleaner and which is arranged to be opened or closed in accordance with a state of a surface of said object and which generates said discrimination signal when said discrimination switching means is switched to a preselected position.

4. A vacuum cleaner as claimed in claim 3, wherein said discrimination means includes roller means which rolls along the surface of said object and which is movable up and down in accordance with the state of the surface of said object, the up-and-down movements of said roller means causing the opening and closing operation of said discrimination switching means.

5. A vacuum cleaner as claimed in claim 1, wherein said discrimination means is coupled to motor-driving switching means for driving an electric motor for operating an agitator provided in said suction nozzle of said vacuum cleaner, so that said electric motor is operable in response to said discrimination signal from said discrimination means.