SURFACE CLEANING APPARATUS
A hand vacuum cleaner has a main body housing a suction motor and fan assembly and an air treatment assembly having an air treatment chamber and a dirt collection region, the air treatment assembly having an openable door that is rotatable from a closed vacuuming position to an open dirt emptying position. A floor standing unit having a dirt collection chamber and a dirt inlet port. A hand vacuum cleaner handle is provided on the lower end of the hand vacuum cleaner and the openable door is rotatably mounted to a lower end of the hand vacuum cleaner. When the hand vacuum cleaner is docked with the floor standing unit and the openable door is opened, the door rotates into the dirt inlet port of the floor standing unit and dirt collected in the dirt collection region is transferrable to the dirt collection chamber of the floor standing unit.
1 . An apparatus comprising:
(a) a hand vacuum cleaner having an upper end, a lower end, a front end and a rear end, the hand vacuum cleaner comprising:
(i) an air flow path extending from a dirty air inlet to a clean air outlet, the dirty air inlet is provided at the front end of the hand vacuum cleaner;
(ii) a main body comprising a front end, a rear end and a main body axis that extends between the front and rear ends of the main body, the main body housing a suction motor and fan assembly, the suction motor and fan assembly having a suction motor axis of rotation; and,
(iii) an air treatment assembly positioned in the air flow path, the air treatment assembly comprising an air treatment chamber and a dirt collection region, the air treatment assembly having an openable door that is rotatable from a closed vacuuming position to an open dirt emptying position; and,
(iv) a handle; and,
(b) a floor standing unit having a dirt collection chamber and a dirt inlet port,
wherein, the handle is provided on the lower end of the hand vacuum cleaner and the openable door is rotatably mounted to a lower end of the hand vacuum cleaner, and
wherein the hand vacuum cleaner is dockable with the floor standing unit and, when the hand vacuum cleaner is docked with the floor standing unit and the openable door is opened, the door rotates into the dirt inlet port of the floor standing unit and dirt collected in the dirt collection region is transferrable to the dirt collection chamber of the floor standing unit.
2 . The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the air treatment assembly is removably mounted to the main body.
3 . The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the handle comprises a pistol grip handle, an inlet conduit extends from the dirty air inlet to the air treatment chamber of the air treatment assembly and, when the inlet conduit is oriented horizontally, the pistol grip handle extends upwardly and forwardly.
4 . The apparatus of claim 1 wherein, when the main body axis is oriented horizontally, the suction motor axis of rotation is also oriented horizontally.
5 . The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the dirt collection chamber of the floor standing unit is removable for emptying.
6 . The apparatus of claim 5 wherein the dirt collection chamber of the floor standing unit has an openable portion and the dirt collection chamber of the floor standing unit is removable for emptying with the openable portion in a closed position.
7 . The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the only air moving member of the apparatus is the suction motor.
8 . The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the air treatment chamber comprises a cyclone and the cyclone has a cyclone axis of rotation that is parallel to the main body axis.
9 . The apparatus of claim 8 wherein the cyclone axis of rotation is parallel to the suction motor axis of rotation.
10 . The apparatus of claim 9 wherein the cyclone axis of rotation is spaced from the suction motor axis of rotation in a direction transverse to the cyclone axis of rotation.
11 . The apparatus of claim 8 wherein the cyclone axis of rotation is spaced from the suction motor in a direction transverse to the cyclone axis of rotation.
12 . The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the openable door is automatically moved to the dirt emptying position as the hand vacuum cleaner is docked with the floor standing unit.
13 . The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the dirt collection chamber of the floor standing unit is automatically connected in communication with a dirt outlet of the air treatment assembly when the hand vacuum cleaner is docked with the floor standing unit.
14 . The apparatus of claim 13 wherein an upper end of the dirt collection chamber of the floor standing unit has an engaging portion that drives the openable door to the dirt emptying position as the floor standing unit is docked with the floor standing unit.
15 . The apparatus of claim 14 wherein the engaging portion extends upwardly.
16 . The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the openable door is biased to the closed vacuuming position.
17 . The apparatus of claim 1 wherein an upper end of floor standing unit has an upwardly extending rear wall, which has the dirt inlet port.
18 . The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the upper end of the floor standing unit has a generally horizontal support portion on which the hand vacuum cleaner seats when the hand vacuum cleaner is docked with the floor standing unit.
19 . The apparatus of claim 18 wherein the generally horizontal support portion has a vertically extending generally U-shaped recess.
20 . The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the dirt collection region comprises a dirt collection chamber that is exterior to the air treatment chamber.