HK1115838B - Hand sander vacuum attachment - Google Patents

Description

Vacuum accessory of manual sand mill

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a manual sanding tool for connection to a vacuum source, and more particularly, to such a device having edge sanding capability and multi-position positioning capability.

Background

Various attempts have been made to provide manual sanding tools, modules, and other devices that are connected to a vacuum source through a vacuum hose. Many of these known sanding tools do not have the ability to adjust so that they cannot be used for sanding purposes near the center and at the edges. Further, with many vacuum-type sanding tools known in the art, the air flow created by the vacuum is directed through the sanding pad, or directly through the sandpaper, or both, thereby requiring the use of an open-flow type sanding screen. This greatly limits the user's choice of available sanding media. Also, these types of screens can cause clogging due to the accumulation of debris or other matter of indeterminate quality. This potential blockage can lead to performance degradation.

Disclosure of Invention

Accordingly, in one aspect of the present disclosure, a hand sanding device is provided having a lower sanding backer plate having front and rear end fastener arrangements for holding a spring metal clamping member disposed in place against a back side of the backer plate. These clamps hold and retain the respective tail ends of the underlying sandpaper sheet in a fixed position (taughtness). A generally hollow upper body portion is also provided which mates with the backer plate and has a surrounding skirt with front and rear lower skirt extensions. The body portion is held in place against the sanding backer plate by threaded fasteners. The slotted opening formed in the interior land area on the upper handle body portion, along with the threaded fasteners that secure the upper body portion to the lower sanding backer plate, allows for either centered or opposite side-to-side adjusted positioning of the sanding plate facing the upper handle body portion. This, in turn, allows the sanding backer plate and associated sandpaper sheet to be centrally aligned or, if desired, positioned to completely cover one of the edge surfaces of the upper body portion to effect edge sanding. Further, all vacuum air streams containing the sanded-off shavings, dry ash or similar powdery residue are enclosed adjacent the sandpaper sheet and sanding backer plate. The vacuum airflow is also directed along airflow channels formed on the underside of the upper body portion through the associated ribs and controlled release, e.g., to and along the front and rear edges of the backer plate, and then ultimately out through a vacuum tube assembly formed at the rear of the hand sander vacuum unit.

In another aspect of the present disclosure, a hand-operated sanding device is provided, comprising: a sanding backer plate assembly including a backer plate and a clamping member for removably clamping a sandpaper sheet in an unfolded condition on the backer plate; an upper housing member having a body, a handle and a lower skirt portion, the upper housing member adapted to be releasably and adjustably held in place adjacent the sanding backer plate assembly, the upper housing member having a mounting member adapted to be connected to a vacuum tube member; characterized in that the manual sander device further includes an adjustment member mounted to at least one of the sanding backer plate assembly and the upper housing member and adapted to allow for relative side-to-side adjustment of the sanding backer plate assembly and associated sandpaper sheet relative to the upper housing member such that the edges of the sandpaper sheet and backer plate are laterally extendable at least enough to reach one of the corresponding edges of the lower skirt portion of the upper housing member to allow for edge sanding.

Preferably, the sanding backer plate assembly further comprises: a sanding pad extending between the backer plate and an associated sandpaper sheet.

Preferably, the adjusting member includes: a slot opening formed in the upper housing member, and a fastening member supported by the sanding backer plate assembly and extending through the slot opening.

Preferably, the lower skirt portion comprises: front and rear skirt portions, and elongate side skirt portions, the front and rear skirt portions extending lower than the side skirt portions.

Preferably, the upper housing member has a length dimension and a height dimension corresponding to a major portion of the vacuum region of the upper housing member, the height dimension being only in the range of 15% to 30% of the length dimension.

Preferably, the upper housing member has a generally horizontal platform portion formed by a central channel portion and front and rear platform portions, each of which has upstanding post members between which the handle extends.

Preferably, the handle includes a solid member that blocks any vacuum airflow therethrough to help maximize vacuum airflow adjacent the periphery of the sanding backer plate assembly.

Preferably, the adjusting member further comprises: a generally vertically oriented stop member carried by the sanding backer plate assembly, and an air flow control rib carried by the upper housing member.

Preferably, the adjusting member further comprises: a repositioning rib carried by the sanding backer plate assembly, and an air flow control rib carried by the upper housing member.

Preferably, the fitting member extends rearward from the post member and the rear deck portion of the rear deck portion.

Preferably, the air flow control ribs are formed in an internal cavity formed by the upper housing member, the air flow control ribs being generally longitudinally aligned with the upper housing member to assist movement of the vacuum air flow to the forwardmost region of the internal cavity.

Preferably, a controlled air release area is formed on the lower edge of the air flow control rib for assisting in enhancing the movement of the vacuum air flow in the interior cavity along the side of the sanding backer plate assembly.

Preferably, the backup plate and the upper case member are each formed of a plastic material by injection molding.

Preferably, the cross-sectional dimensions of the respective post members are minimized to reduce interference with the vacuum airflow pattern in the interior of the upper housing member due to the presence of the post members.

Preferably, the respective outer ends of the respective air flow control ribs are angled away from each other to form an expanded vacuum air area adjacent the front and rear ends of the sanding backer plate assembly, respectively.

Preferably, the extended vacuum area of the front end of the sanding backer plate assembly is greater than the extended vacuum gas area of the rear end of the sanding backer plate assembly to help maximize the movement of vacuum gas toward the front area of the upper housing member.

Preferably, the clamping member comprises: a spring biased clamp plate adapted to removably clamp respective ends of a sandpaper sheet to the backer plate.

Preferably, the backer plate carries a pivotally movable clamping bar adapted to temporarily lift the clamping plate against its spring bias.

In yet another aspect of the present disclosure, a vacuum sanding apparatus for achieving uniform air flow in the apparatus is provided, the apparatus comprising: a housing member having a body portion, a handle, a lower skirt portion and a mounting portion operatively connectable to a vacuum source; a sanding backer plate assembly including a backer plate and a clamping member for removably clamping a sandpaper sheet to the backer plate, wherein the sanding backer plate assembly is adapted to be removably and adjustably positionally mountable to the housing member to permit multi-positional positioning of respective side edges of the sandpaper sheet relative to the housing member; and an airflow control rib member carried by the housing member and extending from a generally rear portion to a generally front portion of the housing member to form a central vacuum air passage to help maximize vacuum air transfer to the generally front and rear portions of the housing member.

Preferably, the vacuum sander apparatus includes a controlled air release area formed in the air flow control rib member to help stabilize the vacuum air flow along the central vacuum air passage of the housing member and along the side edges of the housing member to maximize the collection of sanding ash near the periphery of the housing member.

Preferably, the respective outer ends of the respective gas flow control rib members are angled outwardly away from each other to form an enclosed vacuum gas region at each respective end of the central vacuum gas channel of the housing member.

Preferably, the outward angling of the respective ends of the air flow control ribs is greater at the front of the housing member than at the rear of the housing member.

Drawings

The foregoing and other aspects of the disclosure are illustrated in the following drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a front perspective view of a vacuum sanding tool of the present disclosure;

FIG. 2 is a top view of the vacuum sanding tool of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a side view of the vacuum sanding tool of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is an elevational view of the vacuum sanding tool of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a bottom view of the vacuum sanding tool of FIG. 1;

FIG. 6 is a bottom cross-sectional view taken along line 6-6 of FIG. 3;

FIG. 7a is a perspective view of a portion of the lower sanding backer plate, a clamp, and an attached sandpaper;

FIG. 7b is a perspective view similar to FIG. 7a, with the clamp and sandpaper removed for better viewing;

FIG. 8 is another bottom view similar to FIG. 5, but with the lower sanding backer plate portion and sandpaper not centered but adjusted to the distal edge;

FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view of the vacuum sanding tool of FIG. 3, taken along line 9-9;

FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view of the vacuum sanding tool of FIG. 3 taken along line 10-10, but with the lower sanding backer plate portion moved to the distal edge as in FIG. 8;

FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view of the vacuum hand sanded upper body portion of FIG. 2 taken along line 11-11;

FIG. 12 is an enlarged view of the lower central portion of FIG. 9, corresponding to the area indicated by "12" in FIG. 9 and identified by dashed lines; and

fig. 13 is an enlarged view of the lower right portion in fig. 9, which corresponds to the area indicated by "13" in fig. 9, which is identified by a broken line.

Detailed Description

Referring to the drawings, wherein like reference numerals refer to like elements, there is shown in FIG. 1 a manual sander vacuum accessory assembly of the present disclosure, generally designated by the reference numeral 20. the assembly 20 is preferably formed primarily of an injection molded plastic component, including an upper body housing portion 22 and a lower sanding backer plate portion 24, which when assembled together form the unitary vacuum sander assembly 20. the upper body housing portion 22 includes a handle portion 26 formed and supported between two upstanding, generally hollow support posts 28a, 28b, the support posts 28a, 28b being integrally formed with front and rear platform portions 30a, 30b, respectively, and the front and rear platform portions 30a, 30b being separated by a central portion 32. further, the handle 26 is preferably formed as a solid component such that there is no vacuum airflow therethrough, thereby helping to maintain a substantial portion of the vacuum airflow over the trough portion, The rear platform portions 30a, 30b underlie and thereby maintain the vacuum air flow adjacent the periphery of the lower sanding backer plate portion 24. As best shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, a surrounding skirt member 34 extends downwardly from the front and rear platform portions 30a, 30b and from the central channel 32. thus, the skirt member 34 extends around the entire perimeter of the upper body shell portion 22 and is generally adjacent the lower sanding backer plate portion 24. it should be noted that the respective front and rear skirts 36a, 36b purposely extend further downwardly than the side skirts 38a, 38b so that the entire edge of the lower sanding backer plate portion 24 is exposed on both sides along its length adjacent the side skirts 38a, 38 b.

Preferably, the upper body housing portion 22 is formed of a polypropylene copolymer and the lower sanding backer plate portion 24 is formed of ABS plastic. It should be understood that while other materials may be used to form these components, it should be preferred to keep the lower sanding backer plate portion 24 as flat as possible.

The lower sanding backer plate portion 24 is held in place against the underside of the upper body shell 22 portion by threaded fasteners 40, the threaded fasteners 40 being shown in fig. 1 and 3 as wing nuts, and the threaded fasteners 40 being fastened by associated washers 44 to another threaded fastener, which is shown in the form of an anchor bolt 42 in fig. 3 and 6.

A rearwardly extending tubular fitting 46 is integrally formed with the upper body housing portion 22; preferably, the fitting 46 extends from the rear post 28b and the rear platform 30 b. The tubular fitting 46 may be connected to a vacuum inlet hose of a suitable vacuum source (both not shown) such that the vacuum gas flows in the direction of the double arrows (see, e.g., fig. 1-4). It should be understood that while the fitting 46 may be mounted at any location, such as along the front post 28a or the rear post 28b, it is preferably integrally formed at a generally lower location, i.e., along the rear support post 28b and a lower portion of the rear wall 48 of the rear platform 30 b. In this position, the fitting 46 is able to create an optimal direct flow of the desired vacuum gas between the interior space of the upper body housing portion 22 (generally indicated by reference numeral 50) and a hose (not shown) for a vacuum gas source.

As best seen in fig. 5, 6 and 8-11, portions of the generally hollow interior 50 of the upper body housing portion 22 are shown. That is, the upper body housing portion 22 includes an angled support member 52 that is part of the airflow control rib 84 and respective front and rear partitions 54a, 54b that form part of the central slot 32.

Turning to fig. 7a and 7b, the lower sanding backer plate portion 24 is shown having transverse front and rear clamping support walls 60a, 60b and longitudinally aligned backer plate stops 62. Centrally formed in the top surface of the lower sanding backer plate portion 24 is an upstanding support boss 64 that retains a hat-style threaded fastener 42, such as a bolt (see fig. 6). Vertical support ribs 66 are formed adjacent to the support bosses 64 to support the lower surface of the central channel portion 32. Each respective support rib 66 terminates in a cross-support wall 67 to assist in the repositioning of the lower sanding backer plate portion 24, as will be described below.

As shown in fig. 3, 7a, 7b, the lower sanding backer plate portion 24 includes an upstanding stop threshold 68 at each respective end thereof, the stop thresholds 68 helping to form an L-shaped corner, a clamping tail end 70 of a respective metal clamping plate 72 is seated within the L-shaped corner formed by the respective stop thresholds 68, a quick release clamping arrangement includes a clamping plate 72, the clamping plate 72 is securely held in place by a respective coil spring and a locking threaded fastener 74, such as a locking hex nut, the locking threaded fastener 74 is fastened to a threaded member 76, the threaded member 76 is carried by a support boss 78 (see fig. 7b) formed on an upper side of the lower sanding backer plate portion 24, the clamping plate 72 is correspondingly supported and held in proper alignment by the clamping support walls 60a, 60b and the fasteners 74, 76, such that the respective end tail end 70 of a sandpaper sheet 80 is clamped and held in place within the L-shaped corner of the stop thresholds 68, more particularly, the locking fastener 74 is used to receive and preload a coil spring which in turn applies a downward force to the clamping plate 72 to secure the sandpaper, the clamping bar is operatively positioned directly below the clamping plate 72 and pivots about two support posts 77 (see FIG. 7b) upstanding from the lower sanding backer plate portion 24. by pushing down on the free outer threshold of the clamping bar, the bar pivots about the support posts 77 and serves to lift the clamping plate 72 from its normal spring-biased operating position while compressing the coil spring, the force of the clamping action of the clamping bar and clamping plate 72, and the overall effect produced thereby, can be varied by tightening and loosening the locking fastener 74. preferably, the clamping plate 72 and clamping bar are formed from stamped stainless steel material Which abuts against the sandpaper sheet 80.

A soft sandpaper pad 82, preferably formed of a suitable foam or rubber material for example, is attached to the underside of the lower sanding backer plate portion 24; the pads 82 serve to accommodate non-uniformity in flatness between the lower sanding backer plate portion 24 and the corresponding surface being sanded (not shown). Due to the fact that the back edge 71 of the clamping plate 72 rests against the backer plate 62, the clamping tail 70 cooperates and limits the tendency of the end of the sandpaper sheet 80 and the clamping plate 72 to slide forward against the stop ledges 68, thereby helping to prevent any loosening of the fastened condition of the sandpaper 80 by stretching over the under-pad 82.

As further shown in fig. 7a, 7b and 13, there are respective pairs of repositioning ribs 63. That is, the ribs 63 assist in the desired repositioning of the lower sanding backer plate portion 24 relative to the upper body housing portion 22, thereby allowing for center sanding or side sanding as desired. More specifically, the pairs of repositioning ribs 63, as formed outwardly forward and rearward of the top side of the lower sanding backer plate portion 24, cooperate with the lower edge portions of the air flow control ribs 84 (described below) and together serve to minimize the likelihood of the lower sanding backer plate portion 24 from bending relative to the upper body housing portion 22.

Fig. 6 shows a bottom cross-sectional view of the upper body housing portion 22. As shown, a pair of air flow control ribs 84 exist between the respective side skirt members 38a, 38b and include the angled support members 52. These air flow control ribs 84 form a central vacuum air passage along the interior cavity 50 of the assembly 20 and help direct a maximum amount of vacuum air directly toward the front end of the assembly 20 during the vacuum sanding operation. Further, in FIG. 11, a particular so-called controlled air release cutaway area 86 can be seen, which is formed between the rib 84 and the upper surface of the lower sanding backer plate portion 24. These controlled air release areas 86, along with the air flow control ribs 84, help to equalize and even out the vacuum air flow pattern within the elongated central portion of the interior cavity 50 of the assembly 20 and about the perimeter of the lower sanding backer plate portion 24. More specifically, the presence and relative height of the controlled gas release areas 86 in the ribs 84 allows the appropriate desired amount, i.e., the average amount, of the input gas flow to merge through the release areas 86 along the sides of the device 20 into the main gas flow flowing down the central region of the interior cavity 50 between the gas center ribs 84. That is, if the controlled gas release area is too large or too widely open, the inflow of side gas will be too strong, thereby making the front end of the device 20 useless. Likewise, if the controlled gas release area 86 is too small or non-existent, the gas inflow from the front end will be too strong, while the side gas inflow will be of little importance. Thus, the ribs 84 and relief areas 86 together help to equalize the air flow and help to maximize the collection of the ash removed by sanding.

In fig. 6, it is also shown how the respective cross support walls 67 (formed at each end of the vertical support ribs 66 on the lower sanding backer plate portion 24) operate to rest against the respective guide ribs 69 carried by the upper body housing portion 22. In operation, the cross-support walls (of the lower sanding backer plate portion 24) cooperate with the guide ribs 69 (of the upper body housing portion 22) to help limit the likelihood of canting, i.e., the likelihood of canting of the lower sanding backer plate portion 24 relative to the upper body housing portion 22, when the lower sanding backer plate portion 24 is temporarily disengaged from its desired usable position facing the upper body housing portion 22.

Further, because the two vertical support posts 28a, 28b are relatively narrow in width and depth, i.e., of minimal cross-sectional dimension, they do not unduly affect the vacuum airflow within the interior cavity 50 of the upper body housing portion 22. That is, they allow for a sufficiently low landing surface area in the form of the front and rear landing sections 30a, 30 b. This in turn helps to optimize the pattern of vacuum gas (operating primarily between the gas flow control ribs 84 in the interior chamber 50 of the upper body housing portion 22) to the front end of the assembly 20 in a simple and free manner. It should be noted that the ribs 84 are correspondingly flared outwardly by the angled support members 52 to allow sanding debris to enter the respective front and rear skirt extensions 36a, 36b below. It should further be noted that the vacuum gas area (formed by angled support member 52) that expands forward of the backer plate is preferably larger than the vacuum gas area (formed by member 52) that expands rearward of the backer plate, thereby helping to maximize the movement of vacuum gas to the front of the housing member.

Importantly, during operation, the illustrated hand sander vacuum apparatus assembly 20 is capable of a variety of different lateral orientations of the lower sanding backer plate portion 24 to facilitate different types of sanding. For example, as shown in fig. 5 and 9, the lower sanding backer plate portion 24 and associated sandpaper sheet 80 may be of a centered configuration, i.e., wherein both longitudinal edges of the sandpaper sheet 80 are located inboard of the side skirt members 38a, 38 b. On the other hand, as shown in fig. 8 and 10, the lower sanding backer plate portion 24, and thus the sandpaper sheet 80, may be adjustably moved (to the respective upper left-most positions in these figures) such that the leftmost edge of the lower sanding backer plate portion 24 (fig. 10), the sandpaper pad 82, and thus the sandpaper sheet 80, are all positioned slightly outwardly from the left outer edge of the side skirt member 38 b. In this adjustable position, sandpaper 80 may be used to facilitate edge sanding of an article (not shown) to be sanded. Similarly, although not shown in the figures, it should be appreciated that the lower sanding backer plate portion 24, sandpaper pad 82, and sandpaper sheet 80 may be moved in unison toward the far respective lower right side (e.g., relative to fig. 5 and 9) such that the right edge of the sandpaper sheet 80 (fig. 9) may be fully extended slightly beyond the right edge of the side skirt member 38a, that is, in an adjustable position corresponding to, but opposite to, the position shown in fig. 8 and 10. As shown in fig. 7a, 7b and 13, to best achieve such centering or edge sanding positioning, the lower edge portions of the air flow control ribs 84 fit to either side of corresponding pairs of repositioning ribs 63 formed on the lower sanding backer plate portion 24, thereby helping to ensure proper positioning of the backer plate relative to the upper body housing portion 22 and helping to prevent the backer plate from being skewed relative to the upper body housing portion 22.

The above-described structure, which allows for such preferred side-to-side positioning of the lower sanding backer plate portion 24 and sandpaper sheet 80 relative to the position of the upper body shell portion 22 and side skirt members 38a, 38b, includes the relative positioning of the shafts of the fasteners 42 (held in the support tabs 64 of the lower sanding backer plate portion 24) and the channel openings 83 (formed in the central channel surface 32 of the upper body shell portion 22), see fig. 6. That is, the lower sanding backer plate portion 24 is adjustable side-to-side relative to the upper body housing portion 22 by loosening the threaded fasteners 40 on the fasteners 42 and by adjusting the fasteners 42 adjustably movable within the slots 83 and adjusting the sanding position of the lower sanding backer plate portion 24 relative to the upper body housing portion 22 and the sanding position of the lower edge of the airflow control rib 84 relative to the corresponding repositioning rib 63. More specifically, side-to-side adjustment positioning of the lower sanding backer plate portion 24 sometimes results in abutting engagement of the corresponding backer plate stops 62 (formed on the lower sanding backer plate portion 24) against the air flow control ribs 84 (carried by the upper body housing portion 22). That is, as shown in fig. 6 and 9, for example, the respective backer plate stops 62 are generally centered between the left and right airflow control ribs 84 and do not engage the control ribs 84. On the other hand, when the position of the sandpaper sheet 80 and the lower sanding backer plate portion 24 has been adjusted to one of the edges (see fig. 8 and 10), the leftmost backer plate stop 62 (shown in fig. 10) has moved into abutment against the air flow control rib 84. The importance of this easily adjustable side-to-side movement of the lower sanding backer plate portion 24 and sandpaper sheet 80 is that edge sanding can be accomplished by the manual sander vacuum assembly 20 and along either the right hand side edge or the left hand side edge of the manual sander vacuum 20. Alternatively, the assembly 20 allows for normal centered sanding with the sandpaper sheet 80 in a centered position, as shown in figures 5 and 9, if desired.

As shown in fig. 1 and 3, for example, the respective front and rear skirt extension portions 36a, 36b preferably extend further downward toward the sandpaper sheet 80 than the side skirt members 38a, 38b, the presence of such front and rear skirt extensions 36a, 36b is extremely beneficial in minimizing the amount of dry powder (drywall) or other ash created by sanding that has not been collected by the assembly 20. further, preferably, the height of the main portion of the assembly 20 (see dimension "H" in fig. 3) is only in the range of about 15% to 30% of the overall length of the upper body housing portion 22 (see dimension "L" in fig. 3 between the respective front and rear skirt extensions 36a, 36 b.) further, preferably, the percentage is about 21.5%. for example, for an apparatus 20 made in accordance with the present disclosure, the dimension H is about 1.75 inches, while the dimension L is about 8.12 inches. The height ("H") of the major portion of the upper body housing portion 22 is sufficiently small so that the maximum vacuum airflow, when conveyed by the fitting 46 and opening 47 at the rear of the assembly 20, reaches the forwardmost portion of the assembly 20, i.e., the portion of the interior cavity 50 furthest from the vacuum source, is further maximized based on the fact (see fig. 6) that the angle of the front angled support members 52 (relative to the ribs 84) is preferably more gradual than the angle of the rear members 52, thus allowing the vacuum area formed around the front end of the assembly 20 (furthest from the vacuum source) to be greater than the vacuum area present at the rear or vacuum source end of the assembly 20, as shown, all of the vacuum airflow enters the interior cavity 50 of the upper body housing portion 22 from near the outer perimeter of the sandpaper sheet 80, i.e., from near the location between the lower sanding support plate portion 24 and the skirt member 34, without vacuum air flow through the sandpaper sheet 80 or sandpaper pad 82, this allows the apparatus 20 to use different sizes and types of sandpaper 80, such as different abrasive sandpaper 80, for example, because, in the present disclosure, no sifting type of sanding medium is required as there is no residue or air flow directly through the sandpaper 80 or the lower sanding backer plate portion 24.

The foregoing detailed description has been given for clearness of understanding only, and no unnecessary limitations should be understood therefrom, as modifications will be obvious to those skilled in the art.

Claims (22)

1. A manual sander apparatus comprising:

a sanding backer plate assembly including a backer plate and a clamping member for removably clamping a sandpaper sheet in an unfolded condition on the backer plate;

an upper housing member having a body, a handle and a lower skirt portion, the upper housing member adapted to be releasably and adjustably held in place adjacent the sanding backer plate assembly, the upper housing member having a mounting member adapted to be connected to a vacuum tube member; characterized in that the manual sander apparatus further comprises,

an adjustment member mounted to at least one of the sanding backer plate assembly and the upper housing member and adapted to allow for relative side-to-side adjustment of the sanding backer plate assembly and associated sandpaper sheet relative to the upper housing member such that the edges of the sandpaper sheet and backer plate are laterally extendable at least enough to reach one of the corresponding edges of the lower skirt portion of the upper housing member to allow edge sanding.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the sanding backer plate assembly further comprises: a sanding pad extending between the backer plate and an associated sandpaper sheet.

3. The device of claim 1, wherein the adjustment member comprises: a slot opening formed in the upper housing member, and a fastening member supported by the sanding backer plate assembly and extending through the slot opening.

4. The device of claim 1, wherein the lower skirt portion comprises: front and rear skirt portions, and elongate side skirt portions, the front and rear skirt portions extending lower than the side skirt portions.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the upper housing member has a length dimension and a height dimension corresponding to a major portion of the vacuum region of the upper housing member, the height dimension being only in the range of 15% to 30% of the length dimension.

6. The device of claim 1, wherein the upper housing member has a generally horizontal platform portion formed by a central channel portion and front and rear platform portions, each of the front and rear platform portions having upstanding post members between which the handle extends.

7. The device of claim 6, wherein the handle includes a solid member that blocks any vacuum airflow therethrough to help maximize vacuum airflow adjacent the periphery of the sanding backer plate assembly.

8. The device of claim 2, wherein the adjustment member further comprises: a generally vertically oriented stop member carried by the sanding backer plate assembly, and an air flow control rib carried by the upper housing member.

9. The device of claim 3, wherein the adjustment member further comprises: a repositioning rib carried by the sanding backer plate assembly, and an air flow control rib carried by the upper housing member.

10. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein the fitting member extends rearwardly from the post member and the rear platform portion of the rear platform portion.

11. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the airflow control rib is formed in an internal cavity formed by the upper housing member, the airflow control rib being generally longitudinally aligned with the upper housing member to assist the vacuum airflow to move to a forwardmost region of the internal cavity.

12. The apparatus of claim 11 wherein a controlled air release area is formed on the lower edge of the air flow control rib for assisting in enhancing the movement of the vacuum air flow in the interior cavity along the side of the sanding backer plate assembly.

13. The device of claim 1, wherein the backer plate and the upper housing member are each formed from a plastic material that is injection molded.

14. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein a cross-sectional dimension of the respective post member is minimized to reduce interference with a vacuum airflow pattern in the interior of the upper housing member due to the presence of the post member.

15. The apparatus of claim 11 wherein the respective outer ends of the respective air flow control ribs are angled away from each other to form an expanded vacuum air area adjacent the front and rear ends of the sanding backer plate assembly, respectively.

16. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the extended vacuum area of the front end of the sanding backer plate assembly is greater than the extended vacuum gas area of the back end of the sanding backer plate assembly to help maximize movement of vacuum gas toward the front area of the upper housing member.

17. The device of claim 1, wherein the clamping member comprises: a spring biased clamp plate adapted to removably clamp respective ends of a sandpaper sheet to the backer plate.

18. The apparatus of claim 17 wherein the backer plate carries a pivotally movable clamping bar adapted to temporarily lift the clamping plate against its spring bias.

19. A vacuum sanding apparatus for achieving uniform air flow in the apparatus, the apparatus comprising:

a housing member having a body portion, a handle, a lower skirt portion and a mounting portion operatively connectable to a vacuum source;

a sanding backer plate assembly including a backer plate and a clamping member for removably clamping a sandpaper sheet to the backer plate,

wherein said sanding backer plate assembly is adapted to be removably and adjustably positionally mountable to said housing member to permit multi-positional positioning of the respective side edges of the sandpaper sheet relative to said housing member; and

an air flow control rib member carried by the housing member and extending from a generally rear portion to a generally front portion of the housing member to form a central vacuum air passage to help maximize vacuum air transfer to the generally front and rear portions of the housing member.

20. The apparatus of claim 19 including a controlled air release area formed in said air flow control rib member to help stabilize vacuum air flow along the central vacuum air passage of said housing member and along the side edges of said housing member to maximize the collection of sanding ash near the periphery of said housing member.

21. An apparatus according to claim 20, wherein respective outer ends of respective gas flow control rib members are angled outwardly away from each other to form an enclosed vacuum gas region at each respective end of the central vacuum gas channel of the housing member.

22. The device of claim 20, wherein the outward angling of the respective ends of the air flow control ribs is greater at the front of the housing member than at the rear of the housing member.