Brushing, scrubbing, and general cleaning inventions 10/07

20070245505 - Disc cleaner: A disc cleaner (10) for cleaning discs (D), which in some aspects can clean vertically oriented discs. The disc cleaner may include a housing (20) for supporting a disc, a drive assembly supported by the housing and engageable with the disc to rotate the disc, and means for applying cleaning... Agent: Michael Best & Friedrich LLP

20070245506 - Variable function toothbrushes: A hybrid design between manual and electric toothbrush technology with a mechanical rotation or manual brushing action. Brush or polishing units on the toothbrush head are rotated and counter rotated many times when activated by a spring loaded lever but when the lever is locked, the toothbrush allows a conventional... Agent: King & Schickli, PLLC

20070245507 - Cleaning rotor: The invention relates to a cleaning rotor (1) having a longitudinal axis (L), a base part (5), which extends concentric to the longitudinal axis (L), a head part (3) and a strut element (9) that extends between the base part and the head part. Said strut element (9) extends in... Agent: Ralph A. Dowell Of Dowell & Dowell P.C.

20070245508 - Cleaning apparatus with gripping means for cleaning pads: The invention relates to an improved cleaning apparatus including a handle with gripping means to selectively grip a cleaning pad from a number of stacked cleaning pads to perform a cleaning operation, such as on a toilet bowl, and then selectively release the cleaning pad for disposal such as by... Agent: Unilever Intellectual Property Group

20070245509 - Glass cleaning apparatus: An apparatus for cleaning a glass surface having a handle, a generally triangularly shaped head having a pad with a front corner, two rear corners joined by a rear edge, a triangularly shaped pad and a universal joint which pivotally couples to the handle and the head. The pad has... Agent: Brooks Kushman P.C.

20070245510 - Floor care apparatus having visual dirt indicator with flexible membrane circuit: A floor care apparatus has a housing with a wall having a contour. A flexible membrane circuit includes an adhesive side that attaches the circuit to the wall to generally follow the contour. A controller connects to the circuit and illuminates a visual indicator as a relative function of the... Agent: King & Schickli, PLLC

20070245512 - Stall and manure vacuum truck: A vacuum truck includes a self-propelled vehicle, a storage tank, a vacuum source, a laterally-shiftable scraper, and a pullback scraper. Suction lines connect a collection area of the scrapers to the storage tank and to the vacuum source. The exhaust from the vacuum system heats the collection area and the... Agent: Price Heneveld Cooper Dewitt & Litton, LLP

20070245513 - Vacuum attachment for a yard vacuum apparatus: An outdoor yard vacuum apparatus is provided with a removable vacuum attachment. The vacuum attachment adapts the yard vacuum for cleaning and debris removal of a variety of both indoor and outdoor surfaces in a variety of environments beyond the original capabilities of the yard vacuum. The vacuum attachment having... Agent: Galasso & Associates, Lp

20070245514 - Vacuum cleaner filter: A vacuum cleaner having a base adapted for movement on a surface to be cleaned, a rear housing pivotally attached at a first end to the base, a vacuum source, a dirt collection container, and a handle attached to a second end of the rear housing. The handle has a... Agent: Hunton & Williams LLP Intellectual Property Department

20070245515 - Holder for rod shaped body: A holder for holding an eraser of an angular shape cross section is provided, which holder moves the eraser forward little by little by the knocking operation. The holder includes an inner case, an outer case, a clamp means, a chuckling, and a spring. An arm is formed at a... Agent: Jordan And Hamburg LLP

20070240267 - Method for fabricating electrostatic-line brush: The present invention provides a method for producing an electrostatic brush for an electrical device or a hand-held tool; and, the electrostatic brush can be eaily fabricated and contains electrostatic lines to be used with ease.... Agent: Troxell Law Office PLLC

20070240268 - Vibrating cleaning device: This invention relates to a vibrating cleaning device. Said vibrating cleaning device includes a handle portion, a vibrating shaft portion, said vibrating shaft portion having a proximal end and a distal end, a cleaning head portion, a damper, an electric motor, an offset weight; said cleaning head portion adapted for... Agent: John D. Tran Buus, Kim, Kuo, & Tran, LLP

20070240269 - Splunger: A combined toilet brush and plunger, termed the Splunger, combines both functions in one tool. In order to do so, the Splunger can be converted, conveniently and without tools, from a substantially rigid configuration in which a mop head is effectively mounted on one end of a rigid handle, so... Agent: Michael De Angeli

20070240270 - Device for cleaning floors and similar surfaces: A device for cleaning floors and similar surfaces, comprising a stick, connected, at a terminal portion thereof, by way of kinematic connection means, to a supporting means, which is associable with cleaning means, the supporting device comprising at least two arms, which lie along respective main longitudinal directions and are... Agent: Modiano & Associati

20070240271 - Wiper blade: The invention starts with a wiper blade (10) comprising a rubber elastic wiper strip (12) into whose lateral longitudinal grooves resilient rails (18, 20) are inserted as support elements and laterally protrude from the longitudinal grooves, wherein the resilient rails (18, 20) are held together at their ends and are... Agent: Michael Best & Friedrich LLP

20070240272 - Wiper system for vision block array in vehicles: A wiper assembly for a vehicle having at least one vision block within an outer face, generally consisting of a guide cylinder supportable on the vehicle, disposed adjacent and substantially parallel to the face of the vision block; a piston disposed in the guide cylinder and displaceable along the length... Agent: Stevens Davis Miller & Mosher, LLP

20070240273 - Wiper system: A wiper system includes a motor bracket to which a wiper motor is fixed, and the motor bracket is fixed to a body with a rubber pad therebetween. A mounting leg made of a hard material extends from a first pivot holder that supports a first pivot shaft, and is... Agent: Kenyon & Kenyon LLP

20070240274 - Windshield wiper system with tubular member plus internal hose: This invention relates to windshield wiper system and method which utilizes a flexible drive arm for withstanding bending loads applied to a wiper. The drive arm may be made of a pull-molded composite material having a relatively low modulus of elasticity and a relatively high elongation factor. The flexible arm... Agent: Matthew R. Jenkins, Esq.

20070240275 - Lighting apparatus for a vacuum cleaner: A lighting device for a vacuum cleaner is provided with a cleaning attachment, a housing adapted to attach to the cleaning attachment, and at least one lighting device. The lighting device is further provided with an electric circuit including a battery and a switch operably connected to the battery and... Agent: Pearne & Gordon LLP

20070240276 - Flexible pickup lips for use with fixed vacuum shoes on self-contained and propelled carpet cleaning equipment: An improved vacuum shoe for use on a self-propelled cleaning apparatus is disclosed. Specifically, the vacuum shoe may have a gliding member either integral or connected to the shoe housing. The gliding member is designed to decrease the drag coefficient of the vacuum shoe as it traverses a surface thereby... Agent: Sheridan Ross PC

20070240277 - Vacuum cleaner hair removal attachment: A vacuum cleaner attachment for the removal of pet hair. The attachment has a cap with a perimeter rim and orifices. The orifices have rims surrounding them and elastic projections held in place by rectilinear strips which are received by the cap and orifice rims. The projections extend beyond the... Agent: James Ray & Associates

20070234492 - Coverage robot mobility: An autonomous coverage robot includes a chassis, a drive system to maneuver the robot, an edge cleaning head carried, and a controller. The controller is configured to monitor motor current associated with the edge cleaning head and to reverse bias the edge cleaning head motor in response to an elevated... Agent: Fish & Richardson PC

20070234493 - Dental cleaning device: An electric toothbrush with a removable brush section having a transponder communicating with a handle portion of the toothbrush via a non-contacting inductive coupling.... Agent: Fish & Richardson PC

20070234495 - Apparatus for washing and disinfecting endoscope and brush unit for washing ducts of endoscope: In an endoscope washing and disinfecting apparatus, a duct of the endoscope is washed by a washing brush having a brush chip and a shaft having a distal end to which the brush chip is detachably loaded. A brush-chip accommodating unit has a brush-chip accommodating chamber communicable to a flow... Agent: Scully Scott Murphy & Presser, PC

20070234494 - Apparatus for washing and disinfecting endoscope and brush unit for washing ducts of endoscope: An apparatus for washing and disinfecting an endoscope comprises a frame, a brush unit, and a lid. The frame is equipped with a washing bath accommodating therein the endoscope for washing and disinfection. The brush unit accommodates therein a brush for washing a duct of the endoscope and is detachably... Agent: Scully Scott Murphy & Presser, PC

20070234496 - Gum massaging oral brush: An oral brush is provided that includes an elongated body, a head portion extending from the body, and a plurality of bristles, formed of particular thermoplastic elastomers, extending from the body. In various embodiments, the thermoplastic elastomer has a Shore A hardness of at least 30; the thermoplastic elastomer is... Agent: Fish & Richardson P.C.

20070234497 - Linking mechanism for a cleaning tool: A linking mechanism for a multi-function cleaning tool includes an extendable handle, a linking device connected with one end of the handle, a main base fixed together with the linking device. The main base is fixed with a water wiper and a brush at its two sides respectively. The other... Agent: Ta-chih Lee

20070234499 - Windshield washer system: A windshield washer control system comprising a wiper device; a motor connected to the wiper device, the motor being in operative connection with a controller, the controller including a timer; a pump selectively operated by the controller; and a sprayer for dispensing fluid.... Agent: Daimlerchrysler Intellectual Capital Corporation Cims 483-02-19

20070234502 - Automatic tennis court drying machine: An apparatus and method for automatically drying a tennis court or other flat surface after rainfall is provided. A robotic vehicle cooperates with a sensing unit preferably mounted on a fence adjacent the court or other paved surface. A sensing unit detects the onset and cessation of rain and then... Agent: Bruce H. Johnsonbaugh Eckhoff & Hoppe

20070234503 - Surface cleaning apparatus with accessory working air path: A surface cleaning apparatus comprises an accessory hose mounted to an upright handle and a recovery tank mounted to a base. An accessory working air path is formed between the accessory hose and the recovery tank when the upright handle is in an upright position and is separated when the... Agent: Mcgarry Bair PC

20070234504 - Vacuum cleaner having a blower capsule: The invention relates to a vacuum cleaner comprising a housing and an exhaust opening that is fluidically connected to an overpressure side of a motor/blower unit, which is surrounded by an insulating capsule and which is placed inside a blower housing, via a duct that has a duct section, which... Agent: Bsh Home Appliances Corporation Intellectual Property Department

20070234505 - Mode control arrangement for a floor care appliance: An upright vacuum cleaner is provided having a suction nozzle height adjustment arrangement controlled by a rotary mode control member located on the upper housing. The rotary mode control member controls a suction nozzle height adjustment motor and a rotary agitator drive disconnect arrangement. A wheel tensioner located on an... Agent: Michael J. Corrigan The Hoover Company

20070226926 - Substrate treatment apparatus and substrate treatment method: A substrate treatment apparatus including a substrate holding mechanism for holding a substrate; a first brush made of an elastically deformable material and having a cleaning surface inclined with respect to a perpendicular direction perpendicular to one surface of the substrate held by the substrate holding mechanism; a first brush... Agent: Ostrolenk Faber Gerb & Soffen

20070226928 - Dishwasher: Through the use of a lever (11) in the dishwasher (1), which is the object of the present invention, it is achieved to place such large kitchenware as saucepans, pans etc. on the basket (2) and, to easily change the position of the holder (5) by the user from active... Agent: Venable, Campillo, Logan & Meaney, P.C.

20070226929 - Wringable mop: A mop includes a liquid absorbent member having two ends fastened respectively to a movable rigid member and a fixed rigid member, a rod body, a tubular actuator unit sleeved on the rod body, a tubular driven unit sleeved rotatably on the actuator unit, and an operation member sleeved on... Agent: Fitzpatrick Cella Harper & Scinto

20070226930 - Push broom bracket: A cleaning apparatus includes a bracket assembly for securely attaching a handle to a block. The bracket assembly aids in securing the handle in a fixed position during use so that the handle will not loosen and/or disengage with use. The bracket assembly may include one or more flanges for... Agent: Banner & Witcoff, Ltd.

20070226931 - Toothbrush and methods of making and using same: The disclosed embodiments relate to a toothbrush and methods of making it. The toothbrush may have an elongated body being composed of a first material and having a head portion and a handle portion, a head composed of a second material and disposed in the head portion of the elongated... Agent: Duckor Spradling Metzger & Wynne A Law Corporation

20070226935 - Paint pad with adjustable handle: A paint pad with adjustable handle belong to painting tool field, includes a handle; a pad unite that includes a pad support body and a pad holder plate, the pad holder plate is connected to the bottom of the pad support body; wherein the pad support body has a handle... Agent: GlobalIPServices

20070226937 - Accessory for a cleaning appliance: An accessory for a cleaning appliance includes a head having a housing, a downwardly-directed suction opening in the housing and a neck adapted for attachment to a hose or wand of the cleaning appliance. A rotatable connection is provided between the neck and the head for allowing rotation of the... Agent: Morrison & Foerster LLP

20070226941 - Automobile windshield wiper blade: A wiper blade that cleans panes, in particular of motor vehicles. The wiper blade (10) comprises a strip-shaped, elongated, elastically resilient support element (12), the lower strip surface of which faces the pane (14) and is provided with an elongated, elastic wiper strip (24) running parallel to the longitudinal axis.... Agent: Michael Best & Friedrich LLP

20070226940 - Connector for connecting an arm in the form of a segment of a profiled element, to an articulated structure of a windscreen wiper blade: The invention relates to a connector (18) for connecting an end (14) of an arm (12) of a windscreen wiper blade (10) to an articulated transversal axle (30) pertaining to a structural element (16) of a wiper blade. Said connector is characterised in that it comprises an upper part (32)... Agent: Osha Liang L.L.P.

20070226942 - Device for drying or wetting a mop: A device for drying and/or wetting a mop with a removable container for receiving a liquid. The device has a receiver for the container with a collecting base which is located underneath the container when the container is disposed in the receiver, and the device has liquid conveying devices for... Agent: Lerner Greenberg Stemer LLP

20070226943 - Surface cleaning apparatus with recovery tank: A surface cleaning apparatus comprises a recovery tank. The surface cleaning apparatus can further include a base, and the recovery tank can have side rails to facilitate alignment of the recovery tank with the base. The recovery tank can include a float assembly with a pivotable closure member. The recovery... Agent: Mcgarry Bair PC

20070226944 - Cleaning appliance: A cleaning appliance has a main body and a hose attached thereto, the hose being attached to the main body by means of a connector. The connector is movable between a first position in which the hose is stored on the main body and a second position in which the... Agent: Morrison & Foerster LLP

20070226945 - Gutter cleaning vacuum system including a novel hinged vacuum manifold assembly: In various exemplary embodiments, the present invention provides a lightweight, maneuverable, thin-walled, transparent apparatus for use with a heavy-duty vacuum system for quickly and easily collecting and storing large volumes of bulky debris, thereby reducing the time needed for cleanup. The present invention also provides an improved vacuum manifold assembly... Agent: Clements Walker

20070226947 - Vacuum cleaner with an integrated handheld vacuum cleaner unit: Disclosed herein is a vacuum cleaner with an integrated handheld vacuum cleaner unit that includes a dust container detachably mounted on a body of the vacuum cleaner and configured to perform vacuum cleaning via air suction in a detached state. The dust container of the vacuum cleaner permits vacuum cleaning... Agent: Knobbe Martens Olson & Bear LLP

20070226946 - Vacuum cleaner with detachable cyclonic vacuum module: A multi-use, dual power mode vacuum cleaner capable of use as an upright vacuum or as a detachable vacuum module further comprising a cyclonic dirt separator has a detachable vacuum module selectively mounted to the base and support member of an upright vacuum cleaner. The vacuum module includes the vacuum... Agent: Mcgarry Bair PC

20070226948 - Canister vacuum arrangement: A canister vacuum arrangement including a canister vacuum carried by a cart. The canister vacuum including a blower motor and a canister housing. The canister housing includes a separation chamber, a particulate collection region located beneath the separation chamber, and a filter chamber located above the separation chamber. A removable... Agent: Merchant & Gould PC

20070226950 - Vacuum loader with louvered tangential cyclone separator: A tangential cyclone separator includes a support, a first sidewall, a second sidewall, and tube. The first sidewall extends away from the support and,includes a plurality of louvers each having a louver width and an inner edge. The plurality of inner edges define at least a portion of a first... Agent: Marshall, Gerstein & Borun LLP

20070226951 - Upright vacuum cleaner with cyclonic air path: An upright vacuum cleaner with a cyclonic airflow path includes a floor-engaging base unit, a body unit pivotally mounted to the base unit and a motor/fan assembly mounted on one of the base unit or body units. A dirt collecting enclosure is also mounted on the body unit and includes... Agent: Hunton & Williams LLP Intellectual Property Department