Adapter device for a cordless electric vacuum cleaner

Abstract

It is disclosed an adapter device for a vacuum cleaner comprising a hollow tubular body comprising a first end configured to engage a part of the vacuum cleaner and a second end configured to engage an accessory or a flexible tube, wherein the hollow tubular body is at least partially of a deformable material with elastic return and comprises a ring protruding radially outwards from the external surface of the tubular body. The adapter device could comprise a plurality of rings protruding radially outwards from the external surface of the tubular body. The rings of the plurality of rings could have an increasing diameter.

Claims

1. A kit of parts comprising: an adapter device for a vacuum cleaner comprising a hollow tubular body, the tubular body comprising: a first end configured to be inserted into a tube stump of a main body of the vacuum cleaner; a second end configured to be inserted into an end of a hose or an accessory; and a first ring provided between the first end and the second end; wherein said hollow tubular body comprises a deformable material with elastic return; wherein said second end comprises a plurality of second rings protruding radially outwards from the external surface of the second end of the tubular body; wherein the second rings have a substantially circular shape; wherein the second rings have an increasing diameter; and, wherein the second rings are flat and each second ring is of constant thickness throughout the respective second ring; wherein the second end is conical and comprises a first section with a first angle of taper, and wherein a truncated cone surface is provided between two adjacent second rings which protrude radially outwards from the first section of the second end; and one or more of the following parts into which the second end is configured to be inserted: a flexible tube, a rigid nozzle, a brush, a rigid curve, a suction head, and a pet grooming tool.

2. An adapter device for a vacuum cleaner comprising a hollow tubular body having a longitudinal axis comprising: a first cylindrical end configured to be inserted into a tube stump of a main body of the vacuum cleaner; a second conical end configured be inserted into an end of a hose or an accessory; and a first ring arranged between the first cylindrical end and the second conical end; wherein said hollow tubular body comprises a deformable material with elastic return; wherein said second conical end comprises a plurality of second rings protruding radially outwards from the external surface of the second conical end of the tubular body; wherein the second rings have a substantially circular shape; wherein the second rings have an increasing diameter; wherein the second rings are flat and each second ring is of constant thickness throughout the respective second ring; wherein the second conical end comprises a first conical section with a first angle of taper, a second conical section with a second angle of taper and a third conical section with a third angle of taper, wherein the second angle of taper is greater than the first angle of taper and the third angle of taper.

3. The adapter device of claim 2 wherein a truncated cone surface is provided between two adjacent second rings which protrude radially outwards from the first section of the second end.

4. The adapter device of claim 2, wherein the rings are substantially at 90° with respect to an axis of the tubular body.

5. The adapter device of claim 2, wherein the first taper angle is greater than the third taper angle.

6. The adapter device of claim 2, wherein said first ring has a first thickness which is greater than the thickness of the second rings.

7. An adapter device for a vacuum cleaner comprising a hollow tubular body having a longitudinal axis, the adapter device comprising: a first end configured to be inserted into a tube stump of a main body of the vacuum cleaner; a second end configured to be inserted into an end of a hose or an accessory; and a first ring provided between the first end and the second end; wherein said hollow tubular body comprises a deformable material with elastic return; wherein said second end comprises a plurality of second rings protruding radially outwards from the external surface of the second end of the tubular body; wherein the second rings have a substantially circular shape; wherein the second rings have an increasing diameter; wherein the second rings are flat and each second ring is of constant thickness throughout the respective second ring; wherein the second end is conical and comprises a first section with a first angle of taper, and wherein a truncated cone surface is provided between two adjacent second rings which protrude radially outwards from the first section of the second end.

8. The adapter device of claim 7, wherein the second rings of the plurality of second rings have a uniformly increasing diameter.

9. The adapter device of claim 7, wherein said first end has a substantially circular section and wherein said first ring has a first thickness which is greater than the thickness of the second rings.

10. The adapter device of claim 7, wherein the adapter device comprises natural rubber, synthetic rubber, thermoplastic elastomer, thermoplastic polyurethane, or any combination thereof.

11. The adapter device of claim 7, wherein the rings are substantially at 90° with respect to an axis of the tubular body.

12. The adapter device of claim 7, wherein the first ring is flat with a constant thickness throughout the first ring.

13. The adapter device of claim 7, wherein said second end comprises the first conical section, a second conical section, and a third conical section.

14. The adapter device of claim 13, wherein the first conical section has an angle of taper less than about 5.5°, the second conical section has an angle of taper between about 7° and about 22°, and the third conical section has an angle of taper between 0.5° and about 5°.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

(1) The present invention will become clearer from the following description, given as a non-limiting example, to be read with reference to the enclosed drawings, in which:

(2) FIG. 1 is a first axonometric view of an adapter device according to an embodiment of the present invention;

(3) FIG. 2 is a second axonometric view of the adapter device of FIG. 1;

(4) FIG. 3 is a side plan view of the adapter device of FIGS. 1 and 2;

(5) FIG. 4 is a view from the first end of the adapter device of FIGS. 1-3,

(6) FIG. 5 is a view from the second end of the adapter device of FIGS. 1-3; and

(7) FIG. 6 is an exemplary image of a known electric cordless vacuum cleaner.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

(8) FIGS. 1-5 show an embodiment of an adapter device 10 of the invention.

(9) The adapter device 10 comprises a hollow tubular body 11. Preferably, the hollow tubular body 11 is made at least partially of a deformable elastic return material. For example, it can be made of rubber, natural or synthetic, or of a thermoplastic elastomer (TPE), or of a thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU), or of polyvinyl chloride (PVC), or any combination thereof. For the purpose of the present description, the term “elastic return deformable material” means a material which can be deformed by a healthy adult using only one hand, without excessive effort and which is able to return substantially to the original configuration at the end of the deformation in a few seconds or in any case within 300 seconds.

(10) Preferably, the deformable elastic return material has a hardness of between about 40 Shore A and about 100 Shore A. More preferably, comprised between about 50 Shore A and about 90 Shore A. Even more preferably comprised between about 60 Shore A and about 80 Shore A. According to embodiments it is between about 65 Shore A and about 75 Shore A, for example about 70 Shore A.

(11) The hollow tubular body 11 comprises a first end 20 configured to engage the main body 51 of a vacuum cleaner 50 and a second end 30 configured to engage an accessory or a hose.

(12) The first end 20 is preferably substantially cylindrical or with a very low taper, mainly necessary for manufacturing reasons. Preferably it has a substantially circular cross-section. According to embodiments, the first end 20 may have a diameter of about 30-40 mm. Preferably, it has a diameter of about 33-37 mm and more preferably has a diameter of about 35 mm.

(13) The second end 30 is preferably conical.

(14) According to embodiments, the second end 30 has a single taper, i.e. it uniformly increases its diameter in the direction toward the first end 20.

(15) According to other embodiments, the second end 30 has two different tapers, i.e. two sections can be identified in which the diameter increases differently in the direction toward the first end 20.

(16) According to still other embodiments, the second end 30 has three different tapers, i.e. three sections 31, 32, 33 can be identified in which the diameter increases in a different way in the direction toward the first end 20. This embodiment is shown in particular in FIG. 3.

(17) According to other embodiments, the second end 30 has a taper number greater than three.

(18) With reference to the various figures but in particular to FIG. 3, the embodiment will be described in which the second end 30 comprises three sections, each with a different angle of taper. A first portion 31 has a diameter which increases with a first taper angle α1 (alpha 1) comprised between about 0° and about 5.5°, preferably comprised between about 1° and about 3.5°, more preferably comprised between about 1° and about 2.5°. According to embodiments, the first taper angle α1 is between about 1.5° and about 2°, for example 1.8°. A second section 32 (intermediate) has a diameter which increases with a second taper angle α2 (alpha two) comprised between about 7° and about 25°, preferably comprised between about 9° and about 22°, more preferably comprised between about 12° and about 20°. According to embodiments, the second taper angle α2 is comprised between about 14° and about 18°, for example 16°. A third section 33 has a diameter which increases with a third taper angle α3 (alpha three) comprised between about 0.5° and about 5°, preferably comprised between about 1° and about 4°, more preferably comprised between about 1° and about 3°. According to embodiments, the third taper angle α3 is comprised between about 1.5° and about 2.5°, for example 2°.

(19) Preferably, the second taper angle α2 is greater than both the first taper angle α1 and the third taper angle α3. In turn, the first taper angle α1 is preferably greater than the third taper angle α3.

(20) Preferably, the first section 31 of the second end 30 has a length greater than the second section 32 and the third section 33. Preferably, the second intermediate section 32 has a length less than the other two sections 31, 33.

(21) The smaller diameter of the first section 31 can be about 20-25 mm, preferably about 21-24 mm and more preferably about 22 mm.

(22) The hollow tubular body 11 can have a length L of about 100-200 mm, for example about 120-160 mm. Preferably it has a length of about 140 mm.

(23) According to preferred embodiments, the hollow tubular body 11 comprises a plurality of sealing rings (41-47) projecting radially outward from the outer surface of the tubular body. Preferably, the sealing rings 41-47 have a substantially circular flattened shape. Preferably, the rings 41-47 are integral with the outer surface of the hollow tubular body.

(24) According to the embodiment shown in the figures, the sealing rings 41-47 are substantially at 90° with respect to the axis of the tubular body. However, in other embodiments not shown, they could be inclined to form an angle greater than 90° or less than 90° to facilitate insertion or extraction.

(25) Preferably, the first section 31 of the second end 30 comprises a plurality of rings 41-44 of uniformly increasing diameter and a ring 45 of greater diameter near the second portion 32.

(26) Preferably, the second portion 32 of the second end 30 comprises a single ring 46, preferably about in the middle of the second portion 32.

(27) Preferably, the third portion 33 of the second end 30 comprises a single ring 47, preferably close to the second portion 32.

(28) Preferably, the rings of the three sections of the second end are substantially equally spaced apart.

(29) Preferably, the rings 41-47 of the three sections 31-33 of the second end 30 have a thickness substantially equal to each other.

(30) Preferably, a further sealing ring 21 or shoulder is provided between the first end 20 and the second end 30.

(31) Preferably, the further sealing ring 21 has a diameter substantially equal to the diameter of the sealing ring 47 of the third section 33 but may have a greater thickness. This is because the further sealing ring 47 acts as a shoulder or abutment for the end edge of the flexible tube to which the adapter 10 is associated.

(32) In use, therefore, the first end 20 of the adapter 10 according to the present invention is inserted into the end of a hose or an accessory. The second end 30 of the adapter 10 is instead inserted in the tube stump 52 of the main body 51 of the vacuum cleaner 50. Depending on the shape and size of the latter, only the first section 31, or the first section 31 and the second section 32 or all three sections 31-33 of the second end of the adapter 10 are inserted. The soft material of the adapter 10 allows it to adapt substantially to any shape and size of the tube 52 of the main body 51. The rings 41-47 projecting from the outer surface of the cylindrical body 11 advantageously act as a plug, i.e. they form an air seal and therefore considerably limit the load losses, maintaining the suction efficiency substantially at the nominal value.

(33) The adapter 10 according to the present invention may be provided as a separate piece, may be provided in association with the vacuum cleaner 50 or may be part of a kit. The kit may comprise the adapter 10 and one or more of the following parts: A hose, a rigid nozzle, a brush, a rigid bend, a suction head or a pet grooming brush.

(34) The adapter 10 of the present invention is particularly suitable to be used in association with a wireless electric vacuum cleaner 50 (also called “electric broom”) but it can also be used for other vacuum cleaners. In particular, it can be used to connect the rigid nozzle of an industrial vacuum cleaner installed in a car wash or in a gas station to his/her own accessory or to his/her own hose. This makes it possible to use the industrial car wash vacuum cleaner better, more efficiently and more hygienically. In fact, the flexible tube and the rigid nozzle of an industrial vacuum cleaner installed in a car wash is used by a plurality of people, generally without great care by the users, to suck also earth, stones, oil and liquids of various types, . . . . The use of the nozzle and of the hose provided to the industrial vacuum cleaner is therefore anti-hygienic and risks to render more dirty the interior of the vehicle.

(35) The adapter 10 of the present invention allows to connect to the rigid nozzle or to the hose provided in the car wash a hose and/or an accessory thereof (for example of the above kit). The hose and accessories of the user are certainly cleaner and hygienically safer. Once the work is complete, it is sufficient to detach the adapter 10 and his/her own hose or his/her own accessory.