Cleaning device having vacuum cleaner and dust collecting station

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12532998-B2
Application number	US-202217944773-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Sep 14, 2022
Priority date	Nov 22, 2021
Publication date	Jan 27, 2026
Grant date	Jan 27, 2026

Abstract

A cleaning device includes: a vacuum cleaner including a dust collecting container; and a dust collecting station connectible to the dust collecting container to receive the foreign substances collected in the dust collecting container The dust collecting container includes a dust collecting container main body including a first opening and a dust collecting container door configured to open or close the first opening by rotating around a first axis. The dust collecting station includes: a station main body including an accommodation space, a capturing portion including a second opening to intercommunicate with the first opening, and configured to capture the foreign substances, and a pressurizer configured to rotate around a second axis to apply pressure on one side of the dust collecting container door so that the dust collecting container door rotates around the first axis to be adjacent to the dust collecting container main body.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . A cleaning device comprising: a vacuum cleaner including a dust collecting container to collect foreign substances therein; and a dust collecting station connectable to the dust collecting container, and to receive the collected foreign substances from the dust collecting container,
wherein the dust collecting container includes: a dust collecting container main body including a first opening; and a dust collecting container door configured to open or close the first opening by rotating around a first axis in a clockwise direction or in a counterclockwise direction; and a door latch to lock or unlock the dust collecting container door, wherein the dust collecting station includes: a station main body including: an accommodation space formed therein to store the received foreign substances; a capturing portion formed on one side of the station main body, the capturing portion including a second opening to intercommunicate with the first opening of the dust collecting container main body in response to connecting the dust collecting container with the dust collecting station, and configured to capture the foreign substances collected in the dust collecting container; a pressurizer having a hollow opening to face the second opening, and rotatable around a second axis, which is perpendicular to the first axis, to close the dust collecting container door, the pressurizer including: a base portion having the hollow opening and rotatable around the second axis; and a stepped portion protruded from one side of the base portion toward a center of the hollow opening to cover a part of the hollow opening, and rotatable to make contact with the dust collecting container door to close the first opening; and a processor configured to: in response to receiving a user input to discharge the foreign substances collected in the dust collecting container to the dust collecting station, unlock the door latch of the dust collecting container so that the dust collecting container door opens the first opening and a part of the dust collecting container door enters into the accommodation space of the station main body through the second opening and the hollow opening thereby intercommunicating the first opening with the second opening to start the discharging of the foreign substances from the dust collecting container to the accommodation space of the station main body; in response to finish the discharging of the foreign substances, control the pressurizer to rotate around the second axis so that the stepped portion makes contact with the dust collecting container door to push the dust collecting container door to rotate around the first axis to close the first opening, and the door latch locks the dust collecting container door; and in response to closing the first opening by the dust collecting container door and locking the dust collecting container door by the door latch, control the pressurizer to rotate back to an original state which the pressurizer is not in contact with an exterior side of the dust collecting container door.

2 . The base portion has a shape of a ring; and
The stepped portion has a circular segment shape and protrudes from the one side of the base portion in a direction toward the second axis and extending along an angle in a circumferential direction of the base portion, and wherein one side of the stepped portion is arranged to face the exterior side of the dust collecting container door.

3 . The cleaning device of claim 2 , wherein, in response to closing the first opening by the dust collecting container door, the one side of the stepped portion is arranged to be in contact with the exterior side of the dust collecting container door, and
in response to opening the first opening by the dust collecting container door, the one side of the stepped portion is arranged not to be in contact with the exterior side of the dust collecting container door.

4 . The cleaning device of claim 1 , further comprising a first driving motor configured to apply power to the pressurizer to rotate around the second axis.

5 . The cleaning device of claim 1 , further comprising:
a locking controller having a main body; an accommodating portion to accommodate the main body of the locking controller in an unlock state of the dust collecting container door, wherein the main body of the locking controller is protruded from the accommodating portion in a lock state of the dust collecting container door, the locking controller is configured to switch the dust collecting container door between the lock state which the locking controller locks the dust collecting container door by applying pressure to the door latch arranged at the dust collecting container and the unlock state which the locking controller unlocks the dust collecting container door by releasing the applied pressure to the door latch.

6 . The cleaning device of claim 5 , wherein, in response to closing the first opening by the dust collecting container door and switching to the lock state by the locking controller, the one side of the stepped portion is arranged not to be in contact with the exterior side of the dust collecting container door.

7 . The cleaning device of claim 5 , further comprising a second driving motor configured to apply power to the locking controller to be protruded from the accommodating portion or to be accommodated in the accommodating portion.

8 . The cleaning device of claim 1 , further comprising an intake fan configured to form an intake current so that the foreign substances in the dust collecting container are captured in the capturing portion,
wherein, by the intake current, the dust collecting container door is further configured to rotate around the first axis in the clockwise direction or in the counterclockwise direction to open the first opening arranged at the dust collecting container main body.

9 . The cleaning device of claim 1 , further comprising an elastic spring configured to apply elastic force to the dust collecting container door to close the first opening arranged at the dust collecting container main body.

10 . The cleaning device of claim 9 , wherein the elastic spring is a torsion spring arranged on the first axis.

11 . The cleaning device of claim 2 , further comprising a hinge portion connecting the dust collecting container main body to the dust collecting container door,
wherein the stepped portion rotates along the second axis to be adjacent to the hinge portion in response to the dust collecting container door being in an open state to open the first opening, and the stepped portion rotates along the second axis to be apart from the hinge portion in response to the dust collecting container door being in a close state to close the first opening.

12 . The cleaning device of claim 4 , further comprising a power transfer gear configured to transmit the power generated by the first driving motor to the pressurizer.

13 . A dust collecting station connectible to a dust collecting container of a vacuum cleaner to receive foreign substances collected in the dust collecting container from the dust collecting container, the dust collecting station comprising: a station main body including:
an accommodation space formed therein to store the received foreign substances; a capturing portion formed on one side of the station main body, the capturing portion including a second opening to intercommunicate with a first opening of a dust collecting container main body in response to connecting the dust collecting container with the dust collecting station, and configured to capture the foreign substances colle

Assignees

• Samsung Electronics Co Ltd

Inventors

• Park Dahwe
• Inoue Norihiko
• Hamilton Thomas Francis
• Plevnik Marko
• Kim Kangdoo
• Park Guyong
• Park Sookyoung
• Shin Youngsun

Classifications

• A47L9/106

  Dust removal · CPC title

• A47L9/1683 Primary

  Dust collecting chambers; Dust collecting receptacles · CPC title

• A47L9/2873

  Docking units or charging stations (for autonomous or robotic vacuum cleaners A47L2201/02) · CPC title

• A47L9/108

  Dust compression means · CPC title

• A47L9/1691

  Mounting or coupling means for cyclonic chamber or dust receptacles · CPC title