U.S. patent application number 10/894102 was filed with the patent office on 2005-02-03 for electrified extension hose for vacuum cleaner.
Invention is credited to Muhlenkamp, Eric E..
Application Number | 20050022338 10/894102 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 34102989 |
Filed Date | 2005-02-03 |
United States Patent
Application |
20050022338 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Muhlenkamp, Eric E. |
February 3, 2005 |
Electrified extension hose for vacuum cleaner
Abstract
An electrical extension hose includes a flexible hose body
having first and second ends. A first electrified coupler is
provided at the first end. A second electrified coupler is provided
at the second end. At least two electrical conductors interconnect
the first and second couplers. Further, the first and second
couplers are capable of mating interconnection. Thus any number of
electrical extension hoses may be connected together to construct a
working hose of desired length.
Inventors: |
Muhlenkamp, Eric E.;
(Danville, KY) |
Correspondence
Address: |
KING & SCHICKLI, PLLC
247 NORTH BROADWAY
LEXINGTON
KY
40507
US
|
Family ID: |
34102989 |
Appl. No.: |
10/894102 |
Filed: |
July 19, 2004 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
|
60490633 |
Jul 28, 2003 |
|
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Current U.S.
Class: |
15/414 ;
15/377 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A47L 9/246 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
015/414 ;
015/377 |
International
Class: |
A47L 009/04; A47L
005/38 |
Claims
What is claimed:
1. A electrified extension hose, comprising: a flexible hose body
having a first end and a second end; a first coupler on said first
end of said hose body; a second coupler on said second end of said
hose body; a first electrical terminal and a second electrical
terminal on said first coupler; a third electrical terminal and a
fourth electrical terminal on said second coupler; a first
electrical conductor carried on said hose body and connecting said
first and third electrical terminals; a second electrical conductor
carried on said hose body and connecting said second and fourth
electrical terminals; and said electrified extension hose being
characterized by at least one of said first and second couplers
being capable of mating with a corresponding electrical coupler on
another hose.
2. The electrified extension hose of claim 1 wherein said hose body
defines a lumen and includes a reinforcing wire and a collapsible
wall.
3. The electrified extension hose of claim 1, wherein said first
coupler carries a first connector and said second coupler carries a
second connector.
4. The electrified extension hose of claim 3, wherein said first
and second connectors are cooperating male and female connectors
that secure two like hoses together.
5. An electrical extension hose, comprising: a flexible hose body
having a first end and a second end; a first electrified coupler at
said first end; a second electrified coupler at said second end;
and at least two electrical conductors interconnecting said first
and second electrified couplers; said first and second electrified
couplers being capable of mating interconnection.
Description
[0001] This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional
Patent Application Ser. No. 60/490,633 filed on Jul. 28, 2003.
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0002] The present invention relates generally to the floor care
equipment field and, more particularly, to an electrified extension
hose for a vacuum cleaner specially designed to allow one or more
such extension hoses to be connected together so the vacuum cleaner
operator may construct a hose of desired length.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0003] It has long been known in the art to equip canister vacuum
cleaners with an electrified hose in order to power a motor for
driving the rotary agitator of a power nozzle assembly. More
recently, stretch hoses have been utilized so that the operator has
an additional length of hose to allow operation of the power nozzle
assembly a greater distance from the canister of the vacuum
cleaner.
[0004] In a recent development, the assignee of the present
invention has designed an upright vacuum cleaner incorporating a
small powerhead and equipped with a stretch hose in order to power
the motor for driving the rotary agitator of that powerhead.
[0005] While such vacuum cleaner designs are particularly useful
and beneficial for an operator, some operators have been frustrated
by the limited length of hose that is provided on such vacuum
cleaners. The present invention relates to an electrified extension
hose. Any number of segments of such an extension hose may be
connected together in order to provide a stretch hose of
substantially any desired length for substantially any vacuum
cleaner.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0006] In accordance with the purposes of the present invention as
described herein, an electrified extension hose is provided. The
electrified extension hose includes a flexible body having a first
end and a second end. A first coupler is provided on a first end of
the hose body. A second coupler is provided on the second end of
the hose body. First and second electrical terminals are provided
on that first coupler. Third and fourth electrical terminals are
provided on that second coupler.
[0007] A first electrical conductor carried on the hose body
connects the first and third electrical terminals. A second
electrical conductor carried on the hose body connects the second
and fourth electrical terminals. The electrified extension hose is
further characterized by at least one of the first and second
couplers being capable of mating with a cooperating electrical
coupler on another hose.
[0008] Further describing the invention, the hose body includes a
reinforcing wire and a collapsible wall. Further, the first coupler
carries a first connector and the second coupler carries a second
connector. In one possible embodiment the first and second
connectors are cooperating male and female connectors that secure
two like hoses together.
[0009] In accordance with yet another aspect of the present
invention the electrified extension hose may be defined as
comprising a flexible hose body having a first end and a second
end. A first electrified coupler is provided at the first end while
a second electrified coupler is provided at the second end. At
least two electrical conductors interconnect the first and second
electrified couplers. Further, the first and second electrified
couplers are capable of mating interconnection.
[0010] In the following description there is shown and described a
preferred embodiment of the invention, simply by way of
illustration of one of the modes best suited to carry out the
invention. As it will be realized, the invention is capable of
other different embodiments and its several details are capable of
modification in various, obvious aspects all without departing from
the invention. Accordingly, the drawings and descriptions will be
regarded as illustrative in nature and not as restrictive.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIGURES
[0011] The accompanying drawing incorporated in and forming a part
of this specification, illustrates several aspects of the present
invention, and together with the description serves to explain
certain principles of the invention. In the drawing:
[0012] FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the electrified
extension hose of the present invention connected between a wand
and an original equipment hose of a canister vacuum cleaner;
[0013] FIG. 2 is a detailed, perspective view of a first coupler on
a first end of the hose body;
[0014] FIG. 3 is a detailed, perspective view of the second coupler
on the second end of the hose body; and
[0015] FIG. 4 is a detailed, cross-sectional view showing the
interconnection of a first coupler on the first end of the
extension hose with a coupler on another hose such as an original
equipment hose of the canister vacuum cleaner illustrated in FIG.
1.
[0016] Reference will now be made in detail to the present
preferred embodiment of the invention, an example of which is
illustrated in the accompanying drawing.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0017] Reference is now made to FIG. 1 showing the electrified
extension hose 10 of the present invention in use interconnecting
the original equipment hose H and wand W of the canister vacuum
cleaner V. As illustrated, that vacuum cleaner V includes a
canister housing C mounted on wheels L for movement across the
floor. The wand W carries a powerhead P including a motor driven
rotary agitator A. A switch S on the wand W allows the operator to
turn on both the suction generator G in the canister housing and
the motor M of the powerhead P for driving the agitator A.
Advantageously, the extension hose 10 of the present invention
includes the necessary electrical circuitry to allow proper
interconnection between the switch S on the wand W, the motor M in
the powerhead P and the suction generator G in the canister housing
C to allow proper operation.
[0018] The electrified extension hose 10 includes a flexible hose
body 12 including a lumen that defines a dirty air pathway. The
hose body 12 has a first end 14 and a second end 16. The hose body
12 is constructed from a flexible resin that is molded around a
coiled reinforcing wire 18, a first insulated electrical conductor
20 and a second insulated electrical conductor 22 (see FIG. 3). For
many applications the hose body 12 also includes a third insulated
electrical conductor (not shown). The wall of the body 12 is
collapsible with a resilient memory to assume a retracted or
shortened length. Thus, when at rest the electrified extension hose
10 assumes a static length A. In contrast, when in use such as when
the wand W is manipulated for above-floor cleaning, the hose 10 may
be stretched to a length B where B>A by extending the
collapsible wall of the body 12. Additional details relating to the
construction of electrified stretch hoses of the type incorporated
into the present invention may be gleaned from reviewing various
prior art references including, for example, U.S. Pat. No.
5,555,915 to Kanao.
[0019] A first coupler 26 is provided on the first end 14 of the
hose body 12 while a second coupler 28 is provided on the second
end 16 of the hose body. The first coupler 26 includes an outer
hard plastic sleeve 30 constructed, for example, from ABS or
polycarbonate plastic and an inner soft plastic sleeve 32
constructed of, for example, polyvinylchloride or
tetrapolyfluoroethylene. As further illustrated in FIG. 2, the
first coupler 26 carries a first electrical terminal 34 and a
second electrical terminal 36. Further, the first coupler 26
carries a first connector 38 which may, for example, take the form
of a male connector such as a projecting lug.
[0020] As illustrated in FIG. 3, the second coupler 28 includes an
outer sleeve 40 constructed from a soft plastic such as
polyvinylchloride or tetrapolyfluroethylene and an inner sleeve 42
constructed from a hard plastic such as ABS or polycarbonate.
Additionally, the second coupler 28 carries a third electrical
terminal 44 and a fourth electrical terminal 46. In addition, the
second coupler 28 carries a second connector 48. That second
connector 48 may take the form of a female connector sized and
shaped to cooperate and mate with the first connector 38 of the
first coupler 26. Thus, as illustrated, the second connector 48 may
take the form of a groove such as the hook-shaped groove
illustrated in drawing FIG. 3.
[0021] It should be appreciated that the first conductor 20 runs
through the hose body 12 of the electrified extension hose 10 and
interconnects the first electrical terminal 34 on the first coupler
26 with the third electrical terminal 44 on the second coupler 28.
Similarly, the second electrical conductor 22 runs through the hose
body 12 of the electrified extension hose 10 and interconnects the
second electrical terminal 36 on the first coupler 26 with the
fourth electrical terminal 46 on the second coupler 28.
[0022] By providing standard first and second, mating electrical
couplers 26, 28 on all hoses and either a first or second coupler
on the wand W and the opposite thereof on the canister housing C,
one may interconnect any number of electrified extension hose
sections 10 of the present invention to provide a working hose
between the canister housing C and the wand W of substantially any
desired length.
[0023] The interconnection of the first end 14 and, therefore,
first coupler 26 of the extension hose 10 of the present invention
with the free or wand end of the original equipment hose H is
illustrated in FIG. 4. As should be appreciated, the first coupler
26 is of a diameter that may be snugly received in the inner
diameter of the original equipment hose coupler O which corresponds
to the second coupler 28. Accordingly, the first coupler 26 is
aligned with the coupler O so that the first connector 38 is
inserted into the second connector 48 as the two couplers are
pushed together. During this interconnection, the first coupler is
twisted slightly so that the first connector 38 follows the curve
of the hook-shaped groove of the second connector 48. When the
first coupler 26 is fully seated in the coupler O, the first
terminal 34 exposed through the outer wall of the first coupler is
brought into contact with the third terminal 44 exposed through the
inner wall of the second coupler O. Similarly, the second terminal
36 exposed through the outer wall of the first coupler 26 is
brought into contact with the fourth terminal 46 exposed through
the inner wall of the second coupler O. Accordingly, not only is
fluid communication established between the two hoses 10, H but so
is full electrical connectivity through the mating terminals 34,
36, 44 and 46 and the hose conductors 20, 22.
[0024] The second end 12 and second coupler 28 of the extension
hose 10 may be similarly interconnected with the end of the wand W.
In this way both fluid communication and electrical connectivity
are fully established between the canister housing C and the
powerhead P. As a result, the operator may manipulate the switch S
to energize both the suction generator G in the canister housing C
and the motor M for the rotary agitator A in the powerhead P. Thus
dirt and debris are brushed and beaten from the nap of an
underlying carpet by the rotary agitator A. That dirt and debris
becomes entrained in the suction airstream produced by the suction
generator G. As a result the dirt and debris is drawn through the
wand W, the first extension hose 10 and the original equipment hose
H into the dirt collection vessel V in the canister housing C. That
air is then passed over the motor of the suction generator G to
cool the motor before being exhausted into the environment through
the exhaust vents E. The vessel V may, of course, be a filter bag,
a dirt cup or a cyclonic collection vessel.
[0025] Since the first and second couplers 26, 28 are standardized
for interconnection, any number of extension hoses or sections 10
may be coupled together to provide a working hose of substantially
any desired length. The design of the couplers 26, 28 ensures that
full airstream fluid communication and electrical connectivity are
maintained throughout the length of the working hose no matter how
many extension hose sections 10 are connected together.
[0026] The foregoing description of the preferred embodiment of
this invention has been presented for purposes of illustration and
description. It is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the
invention to the precise form disclosed. Obvious modifications or
variations are possible in light of the above teachings. For
example, while the electrified extension hose 10 described in
detail above is a "stretch hose", the invention also includes
non-stretch embodiments. Further, while illustrated for use with a
canister vacuum cleaner, it should be appreciated that the
extension hose 10 may also be used with an upright vacuum cleaner
if desired.
[0027] The embodiment was chosen and described to provide the best
illustration of the principles of the invention and its practical
application to thereby enable one of ordinary skill in the art to
utilize the invention in various embodiments and with various
modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated. All
such modifications and variations are within the scope of the
invention as determined by the appended claims when interpreted in
accordance with the breadth to which they are fairly, legally and
equitably entitled. The drawings and preferred embodiment do not
and are not intended to limit the ordinary meaning of the claims
and their fair and broad interpretation in any way.
* * * * *