Vacuum cleaner

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11896194-B2
Application number	US-202017011242-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Sep 3, 2020
Priority date	Apr 20, 2017
Publication date	Feb 13, 2024
Grant date	Feb 13, 2024

Abstract

A vacuum cleaner of the present disclosure includes a cleaner body having a suction motor provided inside thereof and a handle provided outside thereof, and a suction nozzle connected to the cleaner body, wherein the suction nozzle includes a housing having at least part of a front portion opened, and a rotary cleaning unit disposed inside the housing, having at least part thereof exposed through the opening of the housing, and configured to clean a floor by a rotating operation, wherein the rotary cleaning unit includes a cylindrical nozzle body rotatably installed inside the housing, and fiber filaments and metal filaments disposed on an outer circumferential surface of the nozzle body.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A vacuum cleaner, comprising:
a cleaner body; and
a suction nozzle connected to the cleaner body,
wherein the suction nozzle comprises:
a housing defining an opening at a front portion of the housing,
a rotary cleaning unit located inside of the housing and configured to rotate relative to the housing, at least a portion of the rotary cleaning unit being exposed through the opening of the housing, and
a driving unit coupled to the housing, the driving unit comprising (i) a motor located at a side of the rotary cleaning unit and (ii) a gear portion configured to transmit power of the motor to the rotary cleaning unit,

wherein the rotary cleaning unit comprises:
a nozzle body rotatably coupled to an inside of the housing, the nozzle body having a cylindrical shape,
a protrusion that protrudes from an inner circumferential surface of the nozzle body, the protrusion having a surface that is oriented in a circumferential direction of the nozzle body, and
a plurality of fiber filaments and a plurality of metal filaments disposed on an outer circumferential surface of the nozzle body,

wherein the surface of the protrusion includes:
(i) a first surface that is configured to engage with the driving unit by rotation of the driving unit to rotate the rotary cleaning unit and (ii) a second surface that is opposite to the first surface, the first surface and the second surface being adjacent to each other, and
wherein a circumferential distance of the inner circumferential surface of the nozzle body between the first surface and the second surface is longer than a circumferential distance of the driving unit disposed between the first surface and the second surface such that the driving unit is configured to rotate along the inner circumferential surface of the nozzle body to engage with the first surface.

2. The vacuum cleaner of claim 1 , wherein each metal filament comprises:
a fiber filament; and
a conductive coating layer disposed on an outer circumferential surface of the fiber filament.

3. The vacuum cleaner of claim 2 , wherein the conductive coating layer comprises brass or digenite (Cu 9 S 5 ).

4. The vacuum cleaner of claim 2 , wherein an average thickness of the conductive coating layer is from 0.3 to 1.0 μm.

5. The vacuum cleaner of claim 1 , wherein an average thickness of the plurality of metal filaments is from 220 to 260 deci-Tex (dTex).

6. The vacuum cleaner of claim 1 , wherein a ratio of a number of the plurality of metal filaments to a total number of the plurality of fiber filaments and the plurality of metal filaments is greater than or equal to 2.5%.

7. The vacuum cleaner of claim 1 , wherein a ratio of an area of the plurality of metal filaments to a total area of the outer circumferential surface of the nozzle body is greater than or equal to 2.5%.

8. The vacuum cleaner of claim 1 , wherein an electric resistance of a single metal filament of the plurality of metal filaments is less than or equal to 100 kΩ.

9. The vacuum cleaner of claim 1 , wherein a tensile strength of a single metal filament of the plurality of metal filaments is greater than or equal to 3.5 centi-Newton/deci-Tex (cN/dTex).

10. The vacuum cleaner of claim 1 , wherein a tensile elongation of a single metal filament of the plurality of metal filaments corresponds to 33 to 45% of a length of the single metal filament.

11. The vacuum cleaner of claim 1 , wherein a surface resistance value of the rotary cleaning unit is from 1×102 to 1×103Ω/10 cm.

12. The vacuum cleaner of claim 1 , wherein a specific resistance value of the plurality of metal filaments is 1×10-1 to 1×10-2Ω/10 cm.

13. The vacuum cleaner of claim 1 , wherein the rotary cleaning unit comprises:
a strap portion that includes the plurality of fiber filaments; and
an antistatic portion that includes both of the plurality of fiber filaments and the plurality of metal filaments, and
wherein the strap portion and the antistatic portion each extend at least one of in a lengthwise direction of the nozzle body, the circumferential direction of the nozzle body, or a spiral direction of the nozzle body.

14. The vacuum cleaner of claim 1 , further comprising a bracket configured to rotate with the protrusion to transmit the power of the motor to the rotary cleaning unit,
wherein the surface of the protrusion is configured to engage with the bracket based on rotation of the driving unit.

15. The vacuum cleaner of claim 14 , wherein the protrusion has a rectangular cross-sectional shape and extends straight to both ends along a longitudinal direction of the nozzle body.

16. The vacuum cleaner of claim 14 , wherein the bracket includes an extending portion, and the extending portion of the bracket and the protrusion are configured to be disposed at a common plane defined by the inner circumferential surface of the nozzle body.

17. The vacuum cleaner of claim 16 , wherein a distance between two opposing portions of the extending portion defining a thickness of the extending portion is greater than an inner diameter of the nozzle body.

18. The vacuum cleaner of claim 1 , wherein the surface of the protrusion is configured to, based on rotation of the driving unit, couple to the gear portion and receive the power of the motor from the gear portion.

19. The vacuum cleaner of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of metal filaments extends along a longitudinal direction of the nozzle body, the circumferential direction of the nozzle body, or a spiral direction of the nozzle body.

20. A vacuum cleaner, comprising:
a cleaner body; and
a suction nozzle connected to the cleaner body,
wherein the suction nozzle comprises:
a housing defining an opening at a front portion of the housing, and
a rotary cleaning unit located inside of the housing and configured to rotate relative to the housing, at least a portion of the rotary cleaning unit being exposed through the opening of the housing,

wherein the rotary cleaning unit comprises:
a nozzle body rotatably coupled to an inside of the housing, the nozzle body having a cylindrical shape,
a plurality of fiber filaments and a plurality of metal filaments disposed on an outer circumferential surface of the nozzle body,
a fiber layer that surrounds the outer circumferential surface of the nozzle body, and
a supporting portion configured to support the plurality of fiber filaments and the plurality of metal filaments,

wherein the fiber layer includes a plurality of planting portions that are spaced apart from each other, each planting portion being configured to receive a portion of the plurality of fiber filaments and a portion of the plurality of metal filaments,
wherein each planting portion comprises a hole and a bridge that crosses the hole,
wherein each fiber filament comprises a bundle of threads that twist around each other, and each metal filament comprises a bundle of threads that twist around each other,
wherein a center of each fiber filament and a center of each metal filament are coupled to the bridge,
wherein an end of each fiber filament and an end of each metal filament extend outward from a center of the nozzle body, and
wherein the supporting portion comprises an adhesive that is cured between the nozzle body and the fiber layer, the supporting portion extending at least one of in a lengthwise direction of the nozzle body, a circumferential direction of the nozzle body, or a spiral direction of the nozzle body.

Assignees

• Lg Electronics Inc

Inventors

• Yang Ingyu
• Ko Moohyun
• Ryu Jungwan
• Chang Daeho

Classifications

• A47L9/2889 Primary

  Safety or protection devices or systems, e.g. for prevention of motor over-heating or for protection of the user · CPC title

• A47L5/26

  with driven dust-loosening tools · CPC title

• A47L9/0081

  Means for exhaust-air diffusion; Means for sound or vibration damping · CPC title

• A47L9/0411

  driven by electric motor · CPC title

• A47L9/0427

  Gearing or transmission means therefor · CPC title