A cleaner head for a cleaning appliance

Abstract

A cleaner head for a cleaning appliance, including an agitator rotatable about an axis; a housing having a front side, a rear side and first and second sides which extend between the front side and rear side, said housing at least partially defining a chamber. The chamber at least partially surrounds the agitator, the chamber having a dirty air inlet and a dirty air outlet. The chamber includes an opening for permitting access to and removal of the agitator from the chamber and a cover cooperatively associated with the housing for permitting access to the chamber through the opening. The cover is movable to an agitator access position to permit the agitator to be removed from the chamber through the opening in a direction substantially orthogonal to the axis of the agitator and in a direction which is substantially parallel to a plane of the surface to be cleaned.

1 . A cleaner head for a cleaning appliance comprising:
 an agitator rotatable about an axis;   a housing having a front side, a rear side and first and second sides which extend between the front side and rear side, said housing at least partially defining a chamber, wherein said chamber at least partially surrounds the agitator, the chamber having a dirty air inlet and a dirty air outlet, wherein the housing is configured to move along a surface to be cleaned;   wherein the chamber includes an opening for permitting access to and removal of the agitator from the chamber;   a cover cooperatively associated with the housing for permitting access to the chamber through the opening;   wherein the cover is movable to an agitator access position to permit the agitator to be removed from the chamber through the opening in a direction substantially orthogonal to the axis of the agitator and in a direction which is substantially parallel to a plane of the surface to be cleaned.   
     
     
         2 . A cleaner head according to  claim 1  wherein the opening and the cover are positioned at or on the front side of the housing. 
     
     
         3 . A cleaner head according to  claim 1   wherein the cover is releasably connectable to the housing.   
     
     
         4 . A cleaner head according to  claim 1  wherein the cover is pivotably movable with respect to the housing to an agitator access position. 
     
     
         5 . A cleaner head according to  claim 4  wherein the housing includes at least one recess for providing a pivotal connection and the cover includes at least one protrusion for providing a pivotal connection wherein the at least one protrusion is configured to permit the cover to pivot about an axis defined by the at least one recess. 
     
     
         6 . A cleaner head according to  claim 5  wherein the at least one protrusion is substantially curvilinear and the at least one recess is substantially curvilinear to permit the at least one protrusion to be received in the at least one recess and to permit the cover to pivot with respect to the housing about an axis defined by the at least one recess. 
     
     
         7 . A cleaner according to  claim 5  wherein the cover includes first and second protrusions for providing a pivotal connection, wherein the first protrusion is provided at or near a first end of the cover adjacent the first side of the housing and the second protrusion is provided at or near a second end of the cover adjacent the second side of the housing; and
 wherein the housing includes first and second recesses positioned on a front side of the housing at or near the first and second sides of the housing for providing a pivotal seating in which the first and second protrusions are received, in use. 
 
     
     
         8 . A cleaning appliance including a cleaner head according to  claim 1 . 
     
     
         9 . A cleaning appliance according to  claim 8  including a source of suction for drawing air through the dirty air outlet. 
     
     
         10 . A cleaner head according to  claim 4  wherein the cover is pivotably movable downwardly with respect to the housing to the agitator access position.