Surface cleaner with integrated hose-and-wand assembly

Abstract

A hose-and-wand assembly for use with a surface cleaning apparatus having a handheld portion and a base assembly includes a flexible suction hose having first and second working positions, electrical conductors connected to or carried by the flexible suction hose, and a rigid wand body. The wand body defines an elongated slot and surrounds a wand cavity that is contiguous with the elongated slot. End couplers are connected to opposite ends of the hose and releasably connectable a respective one of the base assembly and the handheld portion. The end couplers each have electrical contacts connected to the electrical conductors. The elongated slot is configured to admit the flexible suction hose into the wand cavity for stowage therein in the first working position and release the flexible suction hose from the wand cavity in the second working position.

We claim: 
     
         1 . A hose-and-wand assembly for use with a surface cleaning apparatus, the surface cleaning apparatus having a handheld portion and a base assembly, the hose-and-wand assembly comprising:
 a flexible suction hose having a first working position and a second working position;   electrical conductors connected to or carried by the flexible suction hose;   a rigid wand body defining an elongated slot and surrounding a wand cavity that is contiguous with the elongated slot; and   a pair of end couplers connected to opposite ends of the flexible suction hose and releasably connectable to a respective one of the base assembly and the handheld portion, the pair of end couplers each having electrical contacts connected to the electrical conductors, wherein the elongated slot is configured to:
 (i) admit the flexible suction hose into the wand cavity for stowage therein in the first working position; and 
 (ii) release the flexible suction hose from the wand cavity in the second working position. 
   
     
     
         2 . The hose-and-wand assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the rigid wand body includes a pair of rectilinear walls having respective proximal edges that are joined together, and respective distal edges that are spaced apart from each other to define the elongated slot therebetween. 
     
     
         3 . The hose-and-wand assembly of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 a pair of retention collars each configured to connect the rigid wand body to the pair of end couplers.   
     
     
         4 . The hose-and-wand assembly of  claim 3 , wherein each of the pair of retention collars is formed integrally with the rigid wand body and disposed at opposing ends of the rigid wand body. 
     
     
         5 . The hose-and-wand assembly of  claim 4 , wherein one of either the end couplers or the retention collars include at least one rib and the other of either the end couplers or the retention collars include at least one slot corresponding to the at least one rib for selectively securing each end coupler to the rigid wand body via the pair of retention collars. 
     
     
         6 . The hose-and-wand assembly of  claim 1 , wherein each of the pair of end couplers defines one or more tab slots, and wherein the rigid wand body includes one or more tabs configured to engage a respective one of the one or more tab slots. 
     
     
         7 . The hose-and-wand assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the pair of end couplers include a respective push-activated latch configured to connect the hose-and-wand assembly to the handheld portion or the base assembly. 
     
     
         8 . The hose-and-wand assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the rigid wand body is characterized by an absence of electrical conductors located therein or thereon. 
     
     
         9 . A surface cleaning apparatus, comprising:
 a base assembly including a suction nozzle and a housing, the housing being connected to or defining the suction nozzle;   a handheld portion including a hand grip, a dirty air outlet, and a suction source in fluid communication with the suction nozzle and the dirty air outlet, the suction source being configured to generate a working airstream; and   a hose-and-wand assembly configured to connect the handheld portion to the base assembly, the hose-and-wand assembly including:
 a flexible suction hose defining an air path, the air path being configured to direct the working airstream from the suction nozzle to the dirty air outlet; 
 electrical conductors connected to or carried by the flexible suction hose; 
 a rigid wand body defining an elongated slot and a wand cavity that is contiguous with the elongated slot, wherein the elongated slot is configured to admit into and stow the flexible suction hose in the wand cavity in a first working position of the flexible suction hose, and to release the flexible suction hose from the wand cavity in a second working position of the flexible suction hose; and 
 a pair of end couplers connected to opposite ends of the flexible suction hose and releasably connectable to a respective one of the base assembly and the handheld portion, the pair of end couplers having electrical contacts connected to the electrical conductors. 
   
     
     
         10 . The surface cleaning apparatus of  claim 9 , wherein the rigid wand body includes a pair of rectilinear walls having:
 respective proximal edges that are joined together; and   respective distal edges that are spaced apart from each other to define the elongated slot therebetween.   
     
     
         11 . The surface cleaning apparatus of  claim 10 , wherein the pair of rectilinear walls are arranged at an acute angle with respect to each other. 
     
     
         12 . The surface cleaning apparatus of  claim 9 , wherein each of the pair of end couplers defines one or more tab slots, and wherein the rigid wand body includes one or more tabs configured to engage a respective one of the one or more slots. 
     
     
         13 . The surface cleaning apparatus of  claim 9 , further comprising:
 a pair of retention collars, each respective retention collar of the pair of retention collars being configured to connect the rigid wand body to the pair of end couplers.   
     
     
         14 . The surface cleaning apparatus of  claim 9 , wherein each of the pair of retention collars is formed integrally with the rigid wand body. 
     
     
         15 . The surface cleaning apparatus of  claim 9 , wherein the rigid wand body is constructed of molded plastic, aluminum, or carbon fiber. 
     
     
         16 . The surface cleaning apparatus of  claim 15 , wherein the rigid wand body is constructed from the aluminum, and wherein the aluminum includes a monolithic piece of extruded aluminum. 
     
     
         17 . The surface cleaning apparatus of  claim 9 , wherein the pair of end couplers include a respective push-activated latch configured to connect the hose-and-wand assembly to the handheld portion or the base assembly. 
     
     
         18 . A surface cleaning apparatus, comprising:
 a base assembly including a suction nozzle and a housing, the housing being connected to or defining the suction nozzle;   a handheld portion including a hand grip, a dirty air outlet, and a suction source in fluid communication with the suction nozzle and the dirty air outlet, the suction source being configured to generate a working airstream; and   a hose-and-wand assembly configured to connect the handheld portion to the base assembly, the hose-and-wand assembly including:
 a flexible suction hose defining an air path, the air path being configured to direct the working airstream from the suction nozzle to the dirty air outlet; 
 a rigid wand body having interconnected rectilinear walls arranged at an angle relative each other to thereby define an elongated slot and a wand cavity, the elongated slot being configured to admit the flexible suction hose into the wand cavity in a first working position of the flexible suction hose, and to release the flexible suction hose from the wand cavity in a second working position of the flexible suction hose; 
 electrical conductors connected to or carried by the flexible suction hose and configured to electrically connect the handheld portion to the base assembly; and 
 a pair of end couplers connected to the electrical conductors and to opposing ends of the flexible suction hose, the pair of end couplers being connectable to a respective one of the base assembly and the handheld portion; and 
 a pair of retention collars, each respective retention collar of the pair of retention collars being configured to connect the rigid wand body to the pair of end couplers. 
   
     
     
         19 . The surface cleaning apparatus of  claim 18 , wherein the rigid wand body is constructed of extruded aluminum. 
     
     
         20 . The surface cleaning apparatus of  claim 18 , wherein each of the pair of retention collars is formed integrally with the rigid wand body.