US2140651A - Vacuum cleaner - Google Patents

Description

Dec. 20, 1938. I F. RIEBEL. JR. ET AL 2,140,651

VACUUM CLEANER Filed Oct. 26, 1935 2 Sheets-Sheet l N I INVENTORfi Zm m@@@% 20, 1938. F. IRIEBEL. JR, ET AL 2,140,651

' VACUUM CLEANER Filed Oct. 26, 1935 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented Dec. 20, 1938 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE VACUUM CLEANER Frederick RiebeL'Jn, and Dewey M. Dow, Toledo, Ohio, assignors to Air-Way Electric Appliance Corporation, Toledo, Ohio, a corporation of Delaware Application October 26, i935, Serial No. 46,896

1 Claim.

This invention relates to suction cleaners, and has for its object to provide a novel arrangement of fan, fan motor, suction nozzle and motor driven rotary agitator, having the combination of the following advantages: agitator and fan driven from the same motor; agitator drive accessible mounted. which is relatively more simple and inexpensive than prior structures of the same general type.

Another obj ect-is to provide novel and improved means for detachably securing an agitation element to a rotary agitator spindle of a hollow shell type.

Other objects of the invention will become apparent in the exemplification set forth in the following detailed description making reference to the appended drawings in which- Fig. 1 is a vertical longitudinal sectional view through the body of a vacuum cleaner embodying the invention;

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the same;

Fig. 3 is a plan view of the rotary agitator embodied in the invention;

Fig. 4 is a plan view of the agitator shell;

Fig. 5 is a plan view of the agitator in a different position;

Fig. 6 is a longitudinal sectional view through parts of the agitator;

Fig. '7 is a cross sectional view taken on the line 'l--'l of Fig. 5;

Fig. 8 is a cross sectional view taken on the line 88-of Fig. 5;

Fig. 9 is a cross sectional view taken on the line 9-9 of Fig. 5, and

Fig. 10 is an internal plan view of a. section of the agitator illustrating the brush mounting.

The invention provides a suction chamber l0 formed on its rear side with a throat H which broadens out where it merges with the suction chamber, as indicated in dotted lines in Fig. 2. The rear end of the throat II is formed integrally with a downwardly and rearwardly opening fan case I2, separated from the throat H by a dividing wall l3 in the center of which is the fan inlet or eye M.

The electric motor l5, which drives the fan l8 and rotary agitator H is mounted on top of the throat H and fan case l2. The axis of the motor l5 and fan case 12 is downwardly and rearwardly inclined. The motor shaft l8 projects from both ends of the motor l5 one end of the shaft projecting downwardly through the throat II and into the fan case where it carries the fan l6 and the other end projecting upwardly and being provided with a pulley l9 which drives the belt 20 and furnishes power to the rotary agitator ll.

- The'belt 20 projects through a slot 2| in the suction nozzle l0, and is quarter twisted.

The direction of rotation is as indicated by the arrow 22, and the rotary agitator sweeps the dust, etc., from'the carpet 23 rearwardly into' the throat II. The passageway from the suction nozzle Ill through the throat H, the eye of the fan H, the fan case and the fan case discharge outlet 24, is a broad curve with no abrupt bends, sweeping first rearwardly and thence gradually upwardly until it is indirect alignment'with the inlet neck 25 of the collecting bag 26. This is made possible by positioning the fan case low just clearing the carpet 23 and in an upwardly and rearwardly inclined plane, and positioning the throat I I above therfan case.

, The over-all height of the fan case and motor is .reduced to a minimum by the forward tilting of the motor which brings the highest point of the pulley l9 below the level it would have to assume if positioned on a vertical axis. This forward tilting also brings the pulley l9 much closer to the agitator ll than it would otherwise be possible. The positioning of the fan case in the upwardly and rearwardly inclined plane, makes it possible for the discharge outlet 24 to lie in the same plane as the fan case thus eliminating bends in said discharge outlet, i. e., the plane of the fan case is aligned with the 'axis of bag inlet neck 25.

Another advantage of the arrangement is the fact that the belt 20 lie's almost wholly outside.

chamber l0 and its open end latched as at 29 against the top of the fan case l2. The motor and belt are made accessible by unlatching the latch 29 and lifting the cover upwardly and forwardly. In doing so, it clears the fork 33 of the handle 3| which is hinged at 32 to the sides of the fan case II.

The cleaner is supported upon front wheels 33, mounted in wheel sockets 33a formed integrally with the throat ll, andrear wheels 34 mounted onadjustable bracket 35 attached to the rear side of the fan case l2 or fan case cover 36.

The bag 29 is supported by a mast 31, the lower end of which is secured to the fan case-l2 or outlet 24. Some type of detachable connection 39 is employed to suspend the upper end of the bag from the lower end of the mast 3 The rotary agitator I I comprises a hollow shell,

of metal tubing 39 and 40 respectively. The shell sections 99 and 40 are connected by a pulley 4| which is formed with opposite integral collars 42 secured in the ends of the shell sections 39 and go 40. The pulley 4| is of thin tubing, rounded so as to extrude the center portion to a diameter greater than that of the shell sections 39 and 40 and to reduce the collar portion 42 to a diameter such as to fit within the shell sections. For the remov- 35 able brush elements, slots 43 are cut into the respective shell sections. Each slot 43 has spaced from its respective ends two sets of notches 44. Each brush element (Fig. 10) has a back formed near its respective ends with two sets of a lugs 46 so positioned as to pass through the notches 44 when one end of the back is closely adjacent one end of the slot 43. In inserting the brush element, the lugs 46 are thus passed through the notches 44 and the brush element is thence 5 moved longitudinally to the position shown in Fig. 10 wherein the lugs are displaced from the notches 4d and are engaged beneath the wall regions defining the slot 43. To this end, the upper extremes of the lugs 49 are positioned below 4.5 the upper face of the brush back 46 (Fig. 6) so that the latter may projectupwardly through the slot 43. That portion of the brushback 45 which projects above the surface of the shell is formed with longitudinal laterally extending flangwdi which rest against the outer surface of the shell.

By the co-operative engagement of lugs 46 and flanges M with the rear and outer surfaces of shell respectively, the brush element is thus held secure against radial displacement. In order to prevent it from working back to a position where the lugs 48 could pass through the notches 48, we provide a securing element 48, U shape in cross section, the web of which is extended to form an end 49 through which a screw ill secures it to the shell 39 or 46 as the case may be. For the purpose, the shell is provided with screw threaded bosses St. The securing element 48, is held against rotating around the axis of the screw 5d by the edges of slot 43 through the end region of which it projects.

Secured in the back it are the usual brush bristles 52.

The heating elements (Fig. 9) each comprise elongated channels 53 of smooth faced metal or the like and are secured to the edge 5% of a soft rubber strip 55. The opposite edge region of the shown in Fig. 4 which is built up of two sections" latter is mounted in a tubular trunnion member 56 the ends of which are journalled in sockets 51 (Fig. 8) in mounting plates 58, and removable bearing caps 59. The mounting plates 58 are secured in slots 60 cut in the shell member 39, 49, and are provided with flanges 6| which are welded or otherwise suitably secured to the wall regions defining the slots 60. The slots 80 are wide enough so that the axes of the trunnions 58 are disposed substantially below the extended cylindrical contour of the. shell 39, 40. This makes it possible to increase the radius height of the beater elements without increasing the over-all diameter of the agitator.

The rubber strip has lateral wings 62 which engage the flat surface of the mounting plate 53 and hold the beater element in the radially outstanding position while allowing'it to recede under carpet contact.

Making the shell in two sections greatly facilitates the perforation of slots 43 and 60. The pulley 4| serves as the means for connecting the shell sections and holding them in axial alignment. Cylindrical seamless tubing is used to form the shell sections so as to assure accurate axial alignment. In the ends of the shell sections are discs 64 on which are mounted stub shafts 65 by means of which the rotary agitator is journalled in the ends of suction chamber it.

The mounting plates 58 are die-pressed sheet metal and'can be made very accurately uniform. By cutting away a shell as at and inserting separate mounting plates, a difiiculty which would be encountered if an attempt were made to simply flatten the shell member 99 or to is entirely avoided. This difliculty would be the deforming of the adjacent regions of the tube out of true cylindrical shape.

We claim as our invention:

A rotary agitator adapted to be mounted in the nozzle of a vacuum cleaner, said agitator comprising a. thinwalled tubular spindle and an agitating element detachably carried thereby, said spindle being provided with a slot extending longitudinally thereofand having notches at its opposite sides, said agitating element including a back member of less length than said slot and having a width such that it will fit snugly between the sides of said slot, lugs on said back member in position to/enter said notches when said back member is inserted inwardly into said slot, means to limit the inward movement of said back member in said slot, the upper ends of said lugs cooperating with said last mentioned means to radially position said back by being received under the walls adjacent the slot of said spindle upon longi tudinal displacement of the back so that one end of said back member is in engagement with the adjacent end of said slot and an engagement member detachably secured to said spindle at the other end of said slot and extending into that portion of the slot which is exposed by said longitudinal displacement.

FREDERICK RIEBEL, JR. DEWEY M. DOW.

Images