Vacuum Cleaner With Height Adjustment

Abstract

A large vacuum cleaner with height adjustment mechanism for the vacuum nozzle is provided. The adjustment mechanism includes two foot-operated levers, one effective to change the height of the nozzle in a direction away from the surface to be cleaned, and one to change the height of the nozzle in a direction toward the surface by releasing the first lever from a predetermined position. The mechanism is easily operated from the rear by an operator manipulating the vacuum cleaner by its handle. The mechanism is also simple, maintenance free, reliable, and inexpensive.

Description

This invention relates to a vacuum cleaner and more specifically a large vacuum cleaner of the industrial or commercial type having an improved height adjustment for the vacuum cleaner nozzle.

Numerous large vacuum cleaners designed specifically for industrial and commercial applications are known in the art. Many of such vacuum cleaners have adjustable mechanisms for raising or lowering the nozzle inlet relative to the surface to be cleaned. However, such adjustments have often been difficult to manipulate, requiring that the operator bend over, stop the machine, etc. or time consuming to adjust, e.g. screwing or unscrewing wing nuts, etc. Other height adjustments have been unreliable, enabling the nozzle to slip or change positions, have required undue maintenance, or have been relatively expensive, adding excessively to the cost of the machine.

The present invention provides a large industrial or commercial type vacuum cleaner with an improved height adjustment for the nozzle of the cleaner. The height adjustment according to the invention can be operated from the rear of the vacuum cleaner, without the operator moving from his position at the handle of the cleaner. The height adjustment is also foot operated, so that the amount of effort required is small, and the operator need not stoop or bend over to effect the adjustment. The new adjustment can be quickly operated, there being no screws or other fasteners which must be tightened or loosened. The adjustment is also reliable, relatively maintenance free, and inexpensive.

It is, therefore, a principal object of the invention to provide a large vacuum cleaner having an improved height adjustment mechanism achieving the advantages outlined above.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following detailed description of a preferred embodiment thereof, reference being made to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is an overall view in perspective of a large vacuum cleaner embodying the invention;

FIG. 2 is a somewhat schematic side view in elevation of the vacuum cleaner of FIG. 1, with a cover thereof removed, and with parts broken away;

FIG. 3 is a top view of the vacuum cleaner with the cover and a collection bag removed;

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary side view in elevation similar to FIG. 2 but with the cover on and with the vacuum cleaner nozzle adjusted to a different height;

FIG. 5 is an enlarged, detailed view of a portion of the height adjustment mechanism of the vacuum cleaner; and

FIG. 6 is a diagrammatic side view in elevation of the height adjustment mechanism.

Referring particularly to FIG. 1, a large industrial or commercial type vacuum cleaner embodying the invention is indicated at 10 and includes a main frame 12, an inlet head or suction nozzle 14, a cover 16, main wheels 18, a rear handle 20, and a collection bag 22.

Referring particularly to FIGS. 2 and 3, the main frame 12 includes side frame members 24 and 26 and a transverse back plate 28 which is suitably affixed to the side frame members 24 and 26 and slants forwardly. The nozzle 14, being affixed to the forward ends of the side frame members 24 and 26, also serves as part of the framework, in effect. The nozzle 14 forms an elongate suction chamber 30 extending the full width of the vacuum cleaner and has a cylindrical brush 31 therein rotatably supported in end walls of the nozzle. A bumper 32 extends around the nozzle and a guide roll 33 is located at a corner of the nozzle. The main wheels 18 are located somewhat to the rear of the center of gravity of the vacuum cleaner and are mounted on stub axles 34 which are suitably affixed to the side frame members 24 and 26 and extend inwardly therefrom.

A drive motor 36 is mounted on a plate 38 which, in turn, is affixed to the top of the nozzle 14. The motor 36 drives the brush 31 through a V-belt 40 which extends through a slot 42 in the top of the nozzle and is connected to a pulley at one end of the brush. A blower housing 44 has an outlet 46 affixed to the back plate 28 in communication with an opening 48 therein, the plate having a rearwardly extending spout or collar 50 to which an inlet opening of the collection bag 22 is suitably affixed. The blower housing 44 has a central opening connected to an inlet duct 52 which communicates with a central portion of the nozzle 14. An impeller in the housing 44 is also driven by the motor 36 through a V-belt 54.

Referring now to the height adjustment mechanism according to the invention, the suction nozzle 14 has a long rod 56 (FIG. 3) extending throughout most of its length and supported slightly above the nozzle by ears or tabs 58. Near one end of the rod 56, a supporting bar 60 is affixed to the rod, as by welding, and extends rearwardly therefrom. Near the opposite end of the rod 56, a foot-operated lever 62 is affixed, as by welding, and extends rearwardly beyond the main wheels 18. The rear end of the bar 60 and an intermediate portion of the lever 62 are supported on a transverse frame member 64 which, in turn, is supported on casters 66. The frame member 64 also is connected to the stub axles 34 by connecting links 68. The links 68 thereby hold the frame member 64 in a fixed transverse position relative to the vacuum cleaner, although the links and frame member can pivot relative to the wheel axles 34 and the main frame 12. With this arrangement, the suction nozzle 14 can be supported in a given position above the surface to be cleaned through the bar 60, the lever 62, the frame member 64 and the casters 66.

The lever 62 includes a forward, generally horizontal portion 70 which is parallel to the supporting bar 60, and a rearward, upwardly-extending portion 72 which terminates in a foot pedal 74. When pressure is exerted downwardly on the foot pedal 74, which can be done by an operator at the rear of the handle 20, the suction nozzle 14 is raised relative to the surface to be cleaned, being pivoted through the side frame members 24 and 26 on the axles 34, with the lever 62 pivoting on the frame member 64.

In order to hold the first foot-operated lever 62 in a given position, a second foot-operated lever 76 is provided. This lever includes an upwardly-extending connecting bar 78 and a rearwardly-extending foot bar 80 having a pedal 82. The lever 76 is pivotally connected by a pin 83 to the side frame member 24 and pivots in a clockwise direction, as viewed in FIGS. 2 and 4, when the foot pedal 82 is depressed. The foot lever 76 is urged in a counterclockwise direction by a spring 84 connected to an upper portion of the connecting bar 78 and to a fixed part of the vacuum cleaner, such as one of the axles 34.

Referring to FIG. 5, the connecting bar 78 has an elongate opening 86 therein, into which extends a supporting pin 88 affixed to the rear portion 72 of the first lever 62. The opening 86 has a plurality of vertically-spaced notches 90 in an elongate edge of the opening 86 opposite the spring 84 and has a plurality of offsets or shoulders 92 on the elongate edge toward the spring 84, the offsets 92 being staggered relative to the notches 90. When the first foot-operated lever 62 is depressed, the pin 88 moves downwardly in the opening 86, with the second lever 76 yielding slightly in a clockwise direction each time the pin 88 moves toward the next lower notch 90, the spring 94 moving the lever 76 in a counterclockwise direction again as the pin 88 moves into the next notch. The cooperation of the pin and notch then holds the first lever 62 in a predetermined position when the force on the lever is released, there being six adjustable positions achieved with the six notches 90 in the opening 86.

When the pin 88 is in one of the intermediate notches 90, and it is desired to lower the suction nozzle 14 toward the surface to be cleaned, the second foot lever 76 is depressed, to move the lever clockwise. The connecting bar 78 then moves rearwardly, causing the pin 88 to come out of the engaged notch 90. The pin 88 then engages the offset 92 on the opposite side of the opening 86 and when the lever 76 is released, and the spring 84 moves the connecting bar 78 forwardly or counterclockwise, the pin is then disengaged from the offset 92 and moves into the next upper notch 90. Consequently, when the lever 76 is depressed and released, the pin 88 moves up one notch and the first lever 62 correspondingly moves up, thereby causing the suction nozzle 14 to pivot downwardly a predetermined distance. The lever 62 can be moved downwardly a distance corresponding to the space between the uppermost notch 90 and the lowermost notch 90 in one push of the operator's foot. However, for the lever 62 to move upwardly, the second lever 76 must be depressed and released once for each of the notches 90.

The operation of the height adjustment mechanism will be reviewed with reference to the diagrammatic representation of FIG. 6. Assume that the nozzle 14 is in its lowest position relative to the surface to be cleaned, with the pin 88 of the first foot-operated lever 62 in the upper one of the notches 90 of the lever 76. If it is desired to raise the suction nozzle 14 a distance corresponding to the space between the upper and the third ones of the notches 90, the foot lever 62 is pushed downwardly by the operator with the second foot lever 76 then yeilding against the force of the spring 84 to enable the pin 88 to move downwardly past the second notch and into the third one. When the lever 62 is then released, the pin 88 remains engaged in the third notch. During this movement, the nozzle 14 has been raised, with the lever 62 pivoting about the transverse frame member 64 which is held in a fixed position relative to the surface to be cleaned by the casters 66. The nozzle also pivots at this time about the connecting link 60 (FIG. 2) which is affixed to the rod 56 and thereby moves as a functionally integral unit with the forward portion 70 of the lever 62. With the downward movement of the lever 62, the second lever 76 also moves downwardly somewhat since the rear portion of the side frame member 24 moves downwardly as the side frame members pivot about the axles 34. However, the downward movement of the second lever 76 is small relative to the downward movement of the lever 62 since the lever pivots about the transverse frame member 64 while the side frame member 24 pivots about the stub axle 34, the latter distance being much smaller than the former one.

When it is desired to lower the nozzle 14 again, the second foot lever 76 is depressed to move the pin 88 out of the notch 90 in which it is engaged and cause it to temporarily engage the upper adjacent offset 92. When the lever 76 is released, the spring 84 moves it in a counterclockwise direction and the pin 88 moves across the opening 86 into the next upper notch 90, the minimum distance across the opening 86 being less than the diameter of the pin 88. Two depressions and releases of the lever 76 will cause the pin 88 to move up two of the notches and, in this instance, back to its original position in the uppermost notch.

From the above, it will be seen that the height adjustment mechanism according to the invention is convenient to operate since the operator can manipulate the levers 62 and 76 from the rear of the machine and does not even have to stoop over to do so. The mechanism is also simple and relatively maintenance free, as well as being low in cost.

Various modifications of the above described embodiment of the invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art and it is to be understood that such modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the invention, if they are within the spirit and the tenor of the accompanying claims.

Claims

I claim:

1. A vacuum cleaner having a height adjustment mechanism for changing the distance of a vacuum nozzle of the vacuum cleaner from a surface to be cleaned, said vacuum cleaner comprising a pair of main supporting wheels, axle means rotatably supporting said wheels, a vacuum nozzle, side frame members connected to said nozzle and pivotally supported by said axle means, said frame members supporting said nozzle in front of said wheels and said frame members extending a substantial distance to the rear of said axle means, a transverse frame member supported in a fixed position relative to the surface to be cleaned between said nozzle and said wheels, a first foot-operated lever having an end portion connected to said nozzle, an intermediate portion supported by said transverse member, sad a rear portion to the rear of said wheels and above one of said side frame members, a second foot-operated lever pivotally connected to said one of said side frame members at the rear of said axle means, said rear portion of said first foot lever and said second foot lever having cooperating notch and pin means to hold said first foot lever at any of a plurality of different positions relative to said one side frame member and to vary the distance said end portion of said first foot-operated lever and said vacuum nozzle are from the surface to be cleaned.

2. A vacuum cleaner according to claim 1 characterized by said cooperating notch and pin means comprising an elongate opening in said second foot lever, said opening having a plurality of downwardly facing sequential notches along one side thereof and a plurality of offsets along the opposite edge thereof, and a pin affixed to said rear portion of said first foot lever and extending into said elongate opening.

3. A vacuum cleaner according to claim 2 characterized by said notches being along the rear edge of said elongate opening, and resilient means urging the portion of said second lever having the elongate opening forwardly toward said nozzle.

4. A vacuum cleaner according to claim 1 characterized by casters supporting said transverse member in the fixed position relative to the surface to be cleaned.

5. A vacuum cleaner according to claim 1 characterized by said second foot-operated lever being L-shaped with a foot engageable portion extending rearwardly from the pivotal connection with said one of said side frame members.

6. A large vacuum cleaner having a height adjustment for changing the distance of a nozzle of the vacuum cleaner from a surface to be cleaned, said vacuum cleaner comprising a main frame, wheels supporting said main frame, a nozzle supported by said main frame in front of said wheels, a brush rotatably carried by said nozzle, a motor supported by said main frame for driving said brush, a blower housing supported by said main frame, a handle connected to said main frame and extending rearwardly and upwardly therefrom, a collection bag to the rear of said main frame and supported thereby in communication with an outlet of said blower housing, a first foot-operated lever connected to said nozzle and extending rearwardly therefrom, said lever having a pivotable portion pivotally supported by said vacuum cleaner and a portion which can be engaged by an operator at the rear handle, said first foot-operated lever being effective to change the height of said nozzle when said lever is depressed, a rotatably-mounted second foot-operated lever connected to a portion of said first lever by cooperating notch and pin means to hold said first lever in any of a plurality of predetermined positions and to release the first lever therefrom when said second lever is depressed and moved relative to said first lever.

7. A large vacuum cleaner having a height adjustment for changing the distance of a nozzle of the vacuum cleaner from a surface to be cleaned, said vacuum cleaner comprising a main frame, wheels supporting said main frame, a nozzle supported by said main frame in front of said wheels, a brush rotatably carried by said nozzle, a motor supported by said main frame for driving said brush, a blower housing supported by said main frame, a handle connected to said main frame and extending rearwardly and upwardly therefrom, a collection bag to the rear of said main frame and supported thereby in communication with an outlet of said blower housing, an additional frame member supported a predetermined distance above the surface to be cleaned in front of said wheels, a first foot-operated lever connected to said nozzle and extending rearwardly therefrom, said lever having a portion which is spaced from said nozzle and supported by said additional frame member, said lever also having a portion which can be engaged by an operator at the rear handle, said first foot-operated lever being effective to change the height of said nozzle when said lever is depressed, a movably mounted second foot-operated lever connected to a portion of said first lever and effective to hold said first lever and said nozzle in any of a plurality of predetermined positions and to release said first lever from a predetermined position when said second lever is depressed.

8. A vacuum cleaner according to claim 7 characterized by said second foot-operated lever being pivotally connected to said main frame and having a portion which can be engaged by an operator at the rear handle extending rearwardly from the pivotal connection.

9. A vacuum cleaner according to claim 7 characterized by said additional frame member being located between said nozzle and said wheels and being supported on the surface to be cleaned by casters.