Vacuum cleaner height adjustment mechanism
First Claim
1. An improved height adjustment mechanism for a vacuum cleaner, said vacuum cleaner including a foot formed with a nozzle opening, a height of said foot being adjustable relative to a surface being cleaned, said height adjustment mechanism including a wheel carriage which engages the surface and supports a front of the foot thereon, said wheel carriage being movable to adjust the height of the foot, a height adjustment cam movably mounted on the foot and having a camming surface for engaging the wheel carriage, and a cam actuator connected to the height adjustment cam for moving said height adjustment cam, the improvement comprising:
- a plurality of longitudinally extending ribs formed on the camming surface for reducing the surface-to-surface contact between the height adjustment cam and the wheel carriage.
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0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A height adjustment mechanism for a vacuum cleaner includes a wheel carriage pivotally mounted to a foot of the vacuum cleaner, a height adjustment cam which engages the wheel carriage, and a cam actuator which attaches to the height adjustment cam for camming the height adjustment cam against the wheel carriage. The height adjustment cam is formed with a stepped bottom camming surface. The camming surface is formed with a plurality of spaced parallel ribs having a rounded outer surface which minimizes the surface-to-surface contact between the height adjustment cam and the wheel carriage. This reduced surface-to-surface contact reduces the frictional resistance between the height adjustment cam and the wheel carriage allowing the cam actuator to be easily slid for height adjustment of the vacuum cleaner foot.
32 Citations
19 Claims
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1. An improved height adjustment mechanism for a vacuum cleaner, said vacuum cleaner including a foot formed with a nozzle opening, a height of said foot being adjustable relative to a surface being cleaned, said height adjustment mechanism including a wheel carriage which engages the surface and supports a front of the foot thereon, said wheel carriage being movable to adjust the height of the foot, a height adjustment cam movably mounted on the foot and having a camming surface for engaging the wheel carriage, and a cam actuator connected to the height adjustment cam for moving said height adjustment cam, the improvement comprising:
a plurality of longitudinally extending ribs formed on the camming surface for reducing the surface-to-surface contact between the height adjustment cam and the wheel carriage. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
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14. A height adjustment mechanism for a suction nozzle of a vacuum cleaner, said height adjustment mechanism including:
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a wheel carriage pivotally mounted to the suction nozzle for supporting said suction nozzle on a floor surface; a height adjustment cam movable along said suction nozzle, said height adjustment cam having a camming surface to engage the wheel carriage and cammingly pivot the wheel carriage relative to the nozzle when said height adjusting cam is displaced, to thereby adjust the height of said nozzle above a floor surface; an actuator for selectively displacing the height adjustment cam; and wherein the camming surface of the height adjustment cam is formed with a plurality of longitudinally extending ribs for reducing the surface-to-surface contact between said camming surface and the wheel carriage. - View Dependent Claims (15, 16, 17, 18, 19)
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Specification