Hand-held appliance

Abstract

The present application relates to a hand-held appliance comprising a housing including a reservoir to contain water and a tube to convey water from the reservoir for delivery to a surface. The tube extends into the reservoir and comprises multiple tube inlets spaced from each other within the reservoir so that, when the reservoir contains water, a tube inlet is submerged irrespective of the orientation of the housing. In one embodiment, the tube inlet comprises a separate valve assembly associated with each tube inlet so that a valve assembly associated with a submerged tube inlet opens to allow flow of water through that tube inlet and a valve assembly associated with a non-submerged tube inlet closes to prevent the flow of air through said non-submerged tube inlet. In an alternate embodiment, the appliance may be provided with a single valve member that allows water to flow through the valve assembly via a first opening, whilst also preventing the flow of air through the valve assembly through a second opening.

1 . A hand-held appliance comprising a housing including a reservoir to contain water and a tube to convey water from the reservoir for delivery to a surface, wherein the tube has a portion that extends into the reservoir, wherein the tube comprises multiple tube inlets spaced from each other within the reservoir so that, when the reservoir contains water, a tube inlet is submerged irrespective of the orientation of the housing, the tube inlet also comprising a separate valve assembly associated with each tube inlet so that a valve assembly associated with a submerged tube inlet opens to allow flow of water through that tube inlet and a valve assembly associated with a non-submerged tube inlet closes to prevent the flow of air through said non-submerged tube inlet. 
     
     
         2 . A hand-held appliance according to  claim 1 , wherein each valve assembly comprises a housing and a single valve member movable within the housing between a first position in which the tube inlet is open to allow water to flow past the single valve member into the tube inlet and a second position in which the inlet is closed to prevent the passage of air into the tube inlet. 
     
     
         3 . A hand-held appliance according to  claim 2 , wherein the valve member drops under its own weight into its first position and in a direction away from its associated inlet. 
     
     
         4 . A hand-held appliance according to  claim 1 , wherein each valve assembly is removably mounted to an end of the tube over the tube inlet. 
     
     
         5 . A hand-held appliance according to  claim 1 , wherein the tube portion comprises a primary tube portion extending into the reservoir and a secondary tube portion attached to a free end of the primary tube portion at a junction, a separate valve assembly being mounted to each end of the secondary tube portion remote from said junction. 
     
     
         6 . A hand-held appliance according to  claim 5 , wherein the secondary tube portion comprises two inlets and is integrally formed with a connector for attachment to said free end of the primary tube portion to effect fluid communication between the secondary tube portion and the primary tube portion. 
     
     
         7 . A hand-held appliance according to  claim 5 , wherein the secondary tube portion is formed of a plurality of independent sections, each section being attached to said free end of the primary tube portion via a connecting element to effect fluid communication between each independent section and the primary tube portion. 
     
     
         8 . A hand-held appliance according to  claim 7 , wherein the secondary tube portion comprises two independent sections and the connecting element is substantially T-shaped so that each independent section extends away from each other in opposite directions and the primary tube portion extends substantially at right-angles to each independent section. 
     
     
         9 . A hand-held appliance comprising a housing including a reservoir to contain water and a tube to convey water from the reservoir for delivery to a surface, wherein the tube has a portion that extends into the reservoir, wherein the tube comprises two inlets spaced from each other within the reservoir so that, when the reservoir contains water, at least one of said inlets is submerged irrespective of the orientation of the housing, the tube portion comprising a valve assembly having and outlet, first and second openings and a single valve member within said assembly that allows water to flow through the valve assembly via the first opening, whilst also preventing the flow of air through the valve assembly through the second opening, the valve member being configured such that it drops under its own weight into an alternate position in response to a change in the orientation of the steamer to allow water to flow through said second opening via one of said inlets whilst preventing the flow of air through said first opening via the other of said inlets. 
     
     
         10 . A hand-held appliance according to  claim 9 , wherein the tube portion comprises a primary tube portion, a free end of said primary tube portion being in fluid communication with the outlet of the valve assembly, and a secondary tube portion extending from each of the first and second openings of the valve assembly, said secondary tube portions being configured such that the valve member drops in a direction toward the opening from which a secondary tube portion having the uppermost inlet extends, depending upon the orientation of the hand-held appliance, to prevent the flow of air through said opening from said secondary tube portion. 
     
     
         11 . A hand-held appliance comprising a housing including a reservoir to contain water and a tube to convey water from the reservoir for delivery to a surface, wherein the tube has a tube portion that extends into the reservoir and comprises a primary tube portion and a secondary tube portion connected to a free end of the primary tube portion, wherein the secondary tube portion comprises an inlet at each end spaced from each other within the reservoir, and a valve element received within the secondary tube portion, said valve element being slideable under its own weight in response to a change in orientation so that, depending upon the orientation of the steamer, an uppermost inlet is closed to prevent the flow of air into the secondary tube portion and the lowermost inlet is open to allow the flow of water into the secondary tube portion. 
     
     
         12 . A hand-held appliance according to  claim 1 , comprising a heating chamber, wherein the tube is configured to convey water from the reservoir to the heating chamber to generate steam prior to delivery to a surface.