Surface cleaning apparatus

1 . A hand vacuum cleaner having a front end, a rear end, an upper end and a lower end, the hand vacuum cleaner comprising:

(a) an air flow path extending from a nozzle comprising a dirty air inlet to a clean air outlet;

(b) an air treatment chamber positioned in the air flow path downstream of the dirty air inlet, the air treatment chamber having a longitudinal axis extending centrally through the air treatment chamber between a front end of the air treatment chamber and a rear end of the air treatment chamber;

(c) a motor and fan assembly producing an air flow through the air flow path, the motor having an axis of rotation; and,

(d) a single driving handle, which, in use, is used to move the nozzle over a surface to be cleaned, wherein the single driving handle is moveable between a first use position and a second use position

wherein the single driving handle has a hand grip portion having a handle axis that extends through the hand grip portion from a first hand grip portion end to a second hand grip portion end, when the single driving handle is in the first use position, the handle axis extends generally in a forward/rearward direction and the hand grip portion is rearward of the hand vacuum cleaner, and when the single driving handle is in the second use position, the hand grip portion of the single driving handle extends in a generally transverse direction to the longitudinal axis, and

wherein the nozzle is fixed in position with respect to the motor and fan assembly at all times when the hand vacuum cleaner is in use, and

wherein an inlet conduit extends from the dirty air inlet provided at a front end of the inlet conduit to an air inlet of the air treatment chamber provided at a rear end of the inlet conduit, and

wherein, when the single driving handle is in the first use position, an axis that is parallel with the longitudinal axis extends through the inlet conduit from the front end of the inlet conduit to the rear end of the inlet conduit, the air treatment chamber, the first hand grip portion end and the second hand grip portion end.

2 . The hand vacuum cleaner of claim 1 further comprising a single lock securing the single driving handle in the first use position and the second use position.

3 . The hand vacuum cleaner of claim 1 wherein, when the single driving handle is in the first use position, the hand grip portion of the single driving handle extends in the same direction as the motor axis of rotation.

4 . The hand vacuum cleaner of claim 3 wherein, when the single driving handle is in the first use position, the hand grip portion of the single driving handle is located between upper and lower ends of the hand vacuum cleaner.

5 . The hand vacuum cleaner of claim 3 further comprising a main body that houses the motor and fan assembly and the single driving handle is mounted to a rearward facing wall of the main body.

6 . The hand vacuum cleaner of claim 1 wherein the hand grip portion of the single driving handle houses an on board energy storage member.

7 . The hand vacuum cleaner of claim 6 wherein the on board energy storage member is removably positionable in the hand grip portion of the single driving handle.

8 . The hand vacuum cleaner of claim 1 wherein the single driving handle further comprises a power button.

9 . The hand vacuum cleaner of claim 1 further comprising a main body that houses the motor and fan assembly and the single driving handle is mounted to a rearward facing wall of the main body.

10 . The hand vacuum cleaner of claim 1 further comprising a first lock securing the single driving handle in the first use position and a second lock securing the single driving handle in the second use position.

11 . The hand vacuum cleaner of claim 10 wherein a portion of the first lock is located at the first handle end and a portion of the second lock is provided at the second handle end.

12 . The hand vacuum cleaner of claim 10 wherein, when the single driving handle is in a third use position, an enclosed finger grip area is provided by the handle and the main body.

13 . The hand vacuum cleaner of claim 1 further comprising a main body that houses the motor and fan assembly and the first handle end is located abutting a rearward facing wall of the main body when the single driving handle is in the first use position.

14 . The hand vacuum cleaner of claim 13 wherein, when the single driving handle is moved to the second use position, the first handle end is rotated away from the rearward facing wall.

15 . The hand vacuum cleaner of claim 1 further comprising a main body that houses the motor and fan assembly and a lock securing the single driving handle in the first use position, the lock comprising first and second inter-engaging members, the first inter-engaging member provided on the handle and the second inter-engaging member provided on the main body.

16 . The hand vacuum cleaner of claim 1 further comprising a main body that houses the motor and fan assembly, wherein, in the first use position, a lock secures the handle to the main body in the first use position.

17 . A hand vacuum cleaner comprising:

(a) an air flow path extending from a nozzle comprising a dirty air inlet to a clean air outlet;

(b) a main body housing a motor and fan assembly producing an air flow through the air flow path, the motor having an axis of rotation;

(c) an air treatment chamber positioned in the air flow path downstream of the dirty air inlet, the air treatment chamber having a longitudinal axis extending centrally through the air treatment chamber between a front end of the air treatment chamber and a rear end of the air treatment chamber; and,

(d) a single driving handle, which, in use, is used to move the nozzle over a surface to be cleaned, wherein the single driving handle is rotatably mounted to a rearward facing wall of the main body, the single driving handle has a hand grip portion having a handle axis that extends through the hand grip portion from a first hand grip portion end, which is rotatably mounted to the rearward facing wall by a rotatable mount mounted at the rearward facing wall, to a second hand grip portion end and, in a first use position, the handle axis extends in a forward/rearward direction and is located rearward of the rearward facing wall of the main body and, in a second use position, the handle axis extends generally transverse to the forward/rearward direction, and

wherein the nozzle is fixed in position with respect to the motor and fan assembly at all times when the hand vacuum cleaner is in use, and

wherein, in the first use position, an axis that is parallel with the longitudinal axis intersects the nozzle and the first hand grip portion end, and

wherein the rotatable mount is directly fixed to the main body in all operation configurations of the hand vacuum cleaner.

18 . The hand vacuum cleaner of claim 17 wherein in the first use position, the axis that extends in a common direction with the longitudinal axis also intersects the air treatment chamber.

19 . A hand vacuum cleaner comprising:

(a) an air flow path extending from a nozzle comprising a dirty air inlet to a clean air outlet;

(b) a main body housing a motor and fan assembly producing an air flow through the air flow path, the motor having an axis of rotation;

(c) an air treatment chamber positioned in the air flow path downstream of the dirty air inlet, the air treatment chamber having a longitudinal axis extending centrally through the air treatment chamber between a front end of the air treatment chamber and a rear end of the air treatment chamber;

(d) a single driving handle, which, in use, is used to move the nozzle over a surface to be cleaned, wherein the single driving handle is rotatably mounted to a rearward facing wall of the main body, the single driving handle has a hand grip portion having a handle axis that extends through the hand grip portion from a first hand grip portion end, which is rotatably mounted to the rearward facing wall by a rotatable mount mounted at the rearward facing wall, to a second hand grip portion end and, in a first use position, the handle axis extends in a forward/rearward direction and is located rearward of the rearward facing wall of the main body and, in a second use position, the handle axis extends generally transverse to the forward/rearward direction, and

(e) an energy storage member; and,

wherein the nozzle is fixed in position with respect to the motor and fan assembly at all times when the hand vacuum cleaner is in use, and

wherein, in the first use position, an axis that is parallel with the longitudinal axis intersects the air treatment chamber, the energy storage member and the first hand grip portion end, and

wherein the rotatable mount is directly fixed to the main body in all operation configurations of the hand vacuum cleaner.

20 . The hand vacuum cleaner of claim 19 wherein in the first use position, the axis that extends in a common direction with the longitudinal axis also intersects the second hand grip portion end.