Cleaning apparatus

Abstract

A surface cleaning head may include a fluid distributor configured to distribute a cleaning fluid, an agitator configured to absorb at least a portion of the distributed cleaning fluid and to agitate debris on the surface to be cleaned, a fluid stripper configured to remove, from the agitator, at least a portion of the distributed cleaning fluid absorbed by the agitator, a debris container, and a removable cover. The debris container may include a solid debris chamber and a fluid debris chamber. The removable cover may include a fluid catch plate configured to transfer at least a portion of the cleaning fluid removed from the agitator by the fluid stripper to the fluid debris chamber, the fluid catch plate being configured to selectively transition between an in-use position and a cleaning position when the removable cover is removed from the surface cleaning head.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A surface cleaning head comprising:
 an agitator configured to absorb a fluid and to agitate debris on a surface to be cleaned;   a fluid stripper configured to remove, from the agitator, at least a portion of the fluid absorbed by the agitator;   a debris container including a fluid debris chamber configured to collect at least a portion of the fluid removed by the fluid stripper; and   a removable cover extending over at least a portion of the debris container and at least a portion of the agitator, the removable cover including a fluid catch plate pivotably coupled thereto and configured to transfer at least a portion of the fluid removed by the fluid stripper to the fluid debris chamber, the fluid catch plate being configured to selectively and pivotably transition between an in-use position and a cleaning position when the removable cover is removed from the surface cleaning head.   
     
     
         2 . The surface cleaning head of  claim 1 , wherein the debris chamber further comprises a solid debris chamber configured to collect at least a portion of the debris agitated by the agitator. 
     
     
         3 . The surface cleaning head of  claim 1 , wherein the fluid catch plate comprises a collecting region, a first channel, and a second channel, the collecting region being disposed forwardly of the first channel and the second channel. 
     
     
         4 . The surface cleaning head of  claim 1 , wherein the debris container further comprises a fluid collection tray fluidly coupled to the fluid catch plate and a container valve disposed within the fluid collection tray, the container valve configured to selectively fluidly couple the fluid collection tray with the fluid debris chamber. 
     
     
         5 . The surface cleaning head of  claim 4 , wherein the container valve is configured to transition between an open position and a closed position based on a state of engagement of the surface cleaning head with the surface to be cleaned. 
     
     
         6 . The surface cleaning head of  claim 5 , wherein the container valve is biased towards the closed position. 
     
     
         7 . The surface cleaning head of  claim 1 , further comprising a multi-axis pivot joint pivotally coupling an upright section to the surface cleaning head, wherein the multi-axis pivot joint is configured such that the upright section is pivotable about at least a recline axis and a side-to-side pivot axis. 
     
     
         8 . The surface cleaning head of  claim 7 , wherein the multi-axis pivot joint includes a pivot body and a paddle pivotally coupled to the pivot body, the paddle being configured to pivot between a locked position and an unlocked position, the paddle pivoting between the locked position and the unlocked position based on a rotational position of the upright section about the recline axis. 
     
     
         9 . The surface cleaning head of  claim 8 , wherein, in the locked position, the paddle is configured to substantially prevent the upright section from pivoting about the side-to-side pivot axis and, in the unlocked position, the paddle does not substantially interfere with movement of the upright section about the side-to-side pivot axis. 
     
     
         10 . The surface cleaning head of  claim 9 , wherein the paddle includes a retaining portion and a triggering portion, the retaining portion being configured to selectively engage a portion of the upright section to substantially prevent the upright section from pivoting about the side-to-side pivot axis and the triggering portion being configured to engage with a portion of the surface cleaning head. 
     
     
         11 . The surface cleaning head of  claim 1 , further comprising a fluid distributor configured to distribute the fluid absorbed by the agitator. 
     
     
         12 . The surface cleaning head of  claim 11 , wherein the fluid distributor includes at least one of a spray nozzle or a steam manifold. 
     
     
         13 . A surface cleaning head comprising:
 an agitator configured to absorb at least a fluid and to agitate debris on a surface to be cleaned;   a fluid stripper configured to remove, from the agitator, at least a portion of the fluid absorbed by the agitator;   a debris container including a fluid debris chamber configured to collect at least a portion of the fluid removed by the fluid stripper; and   a removable cover extending over at least a portion of the debris container and at least a portion of the agitator, the removable cover including a fluid catch plate configured to transfer at least a portion of the fluid removed by the fluid stripper to the fluid debris chamber, the fluid catch plate being configured to selectively and pivotably transition between an in-use position and a cleaning position when the removable cover is removed from the surface cleaning head, wherein the fluid catch plate includes a collecting region, a first channel, and a second channel, the collecting region being disposed forwardly of the first channel and the second channel.   
     
     
         14 . The surface cleaning head of  claim 13 , wherein the fluid catch plate is pivotably connected to the removable cover. 
     
     
         15 . The surface cleaning head of  claim 13 , wherein the debris chamber further comprises a solid debris chamber configured to collect at least a portion of the debris agitated by the agitator. 
     
     
         16 . The surface cleaning head of  claim 13 , wherein the debris container includes a fluid collection tray fluidly coupled to the fluid catch plate and a container valve disposed within the fluid collection tray, the container valve configured to selectively fluidly couple the fluid collection tray with the fluid debris chamber. 
     
     
         17 . The surface cleaning head of  claim 16 , wherein the container valve is configured to transition between an open position and a closed position based on a state of engagement of the surface cleaning head with the surface to be cleaned, the container valve being biased towards the closed position. 
     
     
         18 . The surface cleaning head of  claim 13 , further comprising a fluid distributor configured to distribute the fluid absorbed by the agitator. 
     
     
         19 . The surface cleaning head of  claim 18 , wherein the fluid distributor includes at least one of a spray nozzle or a steam manifold. 
     
     
         20 . A surface cleaning device comprising:
 an upright section; and   a surface cleaning head pivotally coupled to the upright section, the surface cleaning head including:
 an agitator configured to absorb a fluid and to agitate debris on a surface to be cleaned; 
 a fluid stripper configured to remove, from the agitator, at least a portion of the fluid absorbed by the agitator;
 a debris container including a fluid debris chamber configured to collect at least a portion of the fluid removed by the fluid stripper; and 
 
 a removable cover extending over at least a portion of the debris container and at least a portion of the agitator, the removable cover including a fluid catch plate configured to transfer at least a portion of the fluid removed by the fluid stripper to the fluid debris chamber, the fluid catch plate being configured to selectively transition between an in-use position and a cleaning position when the removable cover is removed from the surface cleaning head, wherein the fluid catch plate includes a collecting region, a first channel, and a second channel, the collecting region being disposed forwardly of the first channel and the second channel.