RETAINING PLATE FOR A VACUUM-CLEANER FILTER BAG

Abstract

The invention comprises a retaining plate (1), comprising a first plate (2) and a second plate (3) arranged in a first plane, and a third plate (8) arranged in a second plane which runs in parallel to the first plane, the third plate (8) having a lower flexural stiffness than the first plate (2) and the second plate (3), wherein the first plate (2) and the second plate (3) are interconnected by means of the third plate (8) such that a hinge is formed between the first plate (2) and the second plate (3) about the hinge axis (A) of which the first plate (2) and/or the second plate (3) can be bent together with the respective part of the third plate (8) connected thereto.

Claims

1. A retaining plate, comprising a first plate and a second plate arranged in a first plane, and a third plate arranged in a second plane which runs in parallel to the first plane, the third plate having a lower flexural stiffness than the first plate and the second plate, wherein the first plate and the second plate are interconnected by means of the third plate such that a hinge is formed between the first plate and the second plate about a hinge axis (A) of which the first plate and/or the second plate can be bent together with a respective part of the third plate connected thereto.

2. The retaining plate according to claim 1, wherein the third plate is designed to be thinner than the first plate and/or the second plate.

3. The retaining plate according to claim 1, wherein the third plate is made of a material different from that of the first plate and/or the second plate, wherein the material of the third plate has a lower elastic modulus than the material of the first plate and/or the second plate.

4. The retaining plate according to claim 1, wherein the first plate and the second plate are glued, welded, or positively connected to the third plate.

5. The retaining plate according to claim 1, wherein in the first plate, a passage opening is arranged which in particular overlaps with a passage opening in the third plate.

6. The retaining plate according to claim 1, wherein in the second plate, one or more positioning openings are provided for positioning and/or fastening it in a retaining plate mounting.

7. A vacuum-cleaner filter bag, comprising: a bag wall and a retaining plate connected thereto; wherein the retaining plate comprises a first plate and a second plate arranged in a first plane, and a third plate arranged in a second plane which runs in parallel to the first plane, the third plate having a lower flexural stiffness than the first plate and the second plate; and wherein the first plate and the second plate are interconnected by means of the third plate such that a hinge is formed between the first plate and the second plate about a hinge axis (A) of which the first plate and/or the second plate can be bent together with a respective part of the third plate connected thereto.

8. The vacuum-cleaner filter bag according to claim 7, wherein the bag wall is welded to the third plate, and wherein the third plate comprises a plastic which is compatible with a plastic material of an outermost layer of the bag wall to which the third plate is welded.

9. A system, the system comprising: a vacuum-cleaner filter bag, the vacuum-cleaner filter bag comprising: a bag wall and a retaining plate connected thereto; and wherein the retaining plate comprises a first plate and a second plate arranged in a first plane, and a third plate arranged in a second plane which runs in parallel to the first plane, the third plate having a lower flexural stiffness than the first plate and the second plate, and wherein the first plate and the second plate are interconnected by means of the third plate such that a hinge is formed between the first plate and the second plate about a hinge axis (A) of which the first plate and/or the second plate can be bent together with a respective part of the third plate connected thereto; and a mounting for the retaining plate in a vacuum-cleaner housing, wherein the mounting is designed such that the first plate and/or the second plate and the respective part of the third plate connected thereto are bent about the hinge axis (A) in an operating position with respect to the first and second planes.

10. The retaining plate according to claim 2, wherein the third plate is made of a material different from that of the first plate and/or the second plate, and wherein the material of the third plate has a lower elastic modulus than the material of the first plate and/or the second plate.

11. The retaining plate according to claim 10, wherein the first plate and the second plate are glued, welded, or positively connected to the third plate.

12. The vacuum-cleaner filter bag according to claim 8, wherein the third plate is designed to be thinner than the first plate and/or the second plate.

13. The vacuum-cleaner filter bag according to claim 8, wherein the third plate is made of a material different from that of the first plate and/or the second plate, and wherein the material of the third plate has a lower elastic modulus than the material of the first plate and/or the second plate.

14. The vacuum-cleaner filter bag according to claim 8, wherein the first plate and the second plate are glued, welded, or positively connected to the third plate.

15. The vacuum-cleaner filter bag according to claim 8, wherein in the first plate, a passage opening is arranged which in particular overlaps with a passage opening in the third plate.

16. The system according to claim 9, wherein the third plate is designed to be thinner than the first plate and/or the second plate.

17. The system according to claim 9, wherein the third plate is made of a material different from that of the first plate and/or the second plate, and wherein the material of the third plate has a lower elastic modulus than the material of the first plate and/or the second plate.

18. The system according to claim 9, wherein the first plate and the second plate are glued, welded, or positively connected to the third plate.

19. The system according to claim 9, wherein in the first plate, a passage opening is arranged which in particular overlaps with a passage opening in the third plate.

20. The system according to claim 9, wherein in the second plate, one or more positioning openings are provided for positioning and/or fastening it in a retaining plate mounting.

Description

[0054] Further features and advantages of the invention will be described below with reference to the exemplary figures. In the drawings:

[0055] FIG. 1 shows a plan view onto an exemplary retaining plate;

[0056] FIG. 2 shows a section through an exemplary retaining plate;

[0057] FIG. 3 shows a side view of an exemplary retaining plate in a first position;

[0058] FIG. 4 shows a side view of an exemplary retaining plate in a second position; and

[0059] FIG. 5 shows a plan view onto an exemplary vacuum-cleaner filter bag.

[0060] FIG. 1 shows a plan view onto an exemplary retaining plate 1, comprising a first plate 2 and a second plate 3 which are embodied as completely separate components. In this example, the plates 2, 3 are spaced apart by a gap 7. It would also be conceivable for the plates 2, 3 to touch each other in this arrangement as long as they remain separate components. The first plate 2 and the second plate 3 are only connected by a third plate which cannot be seen in FIG. 1 and which is arranged in a plane parallel to the plane of the first plate 2 and the second plate 3 and is in particular also provided in the region under the gap 7.

[0061] FIG. 2 shows a section through the exemplary retaining plate 1. The third plate 8 is arranged under the first plate 2, the second plate 3, and in particular under the gap 7, so that the third plate 8 connects the plates 2, 3. The third plate 8 is arranged on the side of the retaining plate 1 that is provided for the connection with the bag wall of a vacuum-cleaner filter bag.

[0062] The third plate 8 moreover has a lower flexural stiffness than the first plate 2 and/or the second plate 3. In this example, this is achieved in that the third plate 8 is thinner both than the first plate and the second plate 3. As an alternative or in addition, the third plate 8 can be made of a material different from that of the first plate 2 and/or the second plate 3, wherein the material of the third plate has a lower elastic modulus than the material of the first plate 2 and/or the second plate 3.

[0063] By the higher flexibility of the third plate and the reduced thickness of the retaining plate 1 in the region of the gap 7 between the plates 2, 3, a hinge is formed. The hinge axis A is indicated in FIG. 1 by a dashed line. The second plate 3 can be bent or pivoted about this hinge axis A with respect to the first plate 2 together with the part of the third plate 8 connected thereto. This is represented in FIGS. 3 and 4. In FIG. 3, all plates 2, 3, 8 are completely located in two parallel planes, while in FIG. 4, the second plate 3 and the part of the third plate 8 connected thereto are bent about the hinge axis A perpendicularly to the planes of FIG. 3. Thereby, the retaining plate 1 can also be introduced into mountings which have a bent guide and thereby require a retaining plate with flexible regions.

[0064] As is shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, in the first plate 2, a passage opening 4 is formed which also extends, as is shown in FIG. 2, through the third plate 8. Thereby, an admission opening is formed together with a passage opening of the bag wall of a vacuum-cleaner filter bag. However, it is also conceivable that the third plate 8 does not extend over the complete bottom side of the first plate 1 and thus does not overlap the passage opening 4 in the first plate 2. The admission opening is then formed only by the passage opening 4 in the first plate 2 together with the passage opening of the bag wall.

[0065] The retaining plate 1 has a sealing lip 10 of a thermoplastic elastomer, TPE, in a manner known per se which is molded to the edge of the passage opening 4 of the first plate 2 in this example. However, it is also possible to form the sealing lip 10 by the third plate 8 if it comprises or consists of a thermoplastic elastomer, TPE, by the passage opening in the third plate 8 having a smaller diameter than the passage opening 4 in the first plate 2. According to further alternatives, the sealing lip 10 can also be glued or welded onto the first plate 2 from above or from the bottom. “Above” here refers to the side facing away from the third plate 8, and “bottom” to the side facing the third plate 8.

[0066] One can also see in FIG. 1 two positioning openings 5, 6 in the second plate 3 for positioning and/or fastening it in a retaining plate mounting. The positioning openings 5, 6 can also be provided as passage holes in the third plate 8. In operation, positioning elements of the retaining plate mounting of the vacuum cleaner can engage with the positioning openings 5, 6 and thereby position and/or fix the retaining plate 1.

[0067] In FIG. 5, the retaining plate 1 is connected to a bag wall 9 of a vacuum-cleaner filter bag. The bag wall 9 can in particular be welded to the third plate 8, the third plate 8 comprising a plastic which is compatible with the plastic material of the outermost layer of the bag wall 9 to which the third plate 8 is welded. Thereby, the strength of the welded joint between the retaining plate 1 and the bag wall 9 can be improved.

[0068] The bag wall 9 comprises a plurality of non-woven fabric layers or a plurality of non-woven fabric and fibrous web layers which overlap each other from the bag's interior to the bag's exterior. The non-woven fabric or fibrous web layers can be loosely lie one upon the other or be connected to each other. The connections can be accomplished across the surface (e. g. via spray adhesives), or punctually (e. g. via a calendaring pattern).

[0069] The individual layers can in particular comprise different plastic materials, both among each other and/or within one respective layer.

[0070] The exemplary vacuum-cleaner filter bag of FIG. 5 is a so-called flat bag wherein the bag wall 9 comprises an upper side and a bottom side which are connected to each other by a surrounding weld seam. Both the upper side and the bottom side of the flat bag comprise, as mentioned above, a plurality of filter material layers, in particular a plurality of non-woven fabric layers or a plurality of non-woven fabric and fibrous web layers. Both the upper side and the bottom side can in particular be formed of a laminate of a plurality of non-woven fabric layers. However, the invention is not limited to flat bags but can also be applied, for example, for gusset bags or pad bottom bags.

[0071] Advantageously, the retaining plate 1 in this example comprises a recycled plastic material, for example, recycled polypropylene (rPP) or recycled polyethylene terephthalate (rPET).

[0072] It will be understood that features mentioned in the above-described embodiments are not restricted to these special combinations and are also possible in any other combinations. It will be furthermore understood that geometries shown in the figures are only given by way of example and are also possible in any other designs.