权利要求：
CLAIMS
1. A surface cleaning apparatus for cleaning a floor surface, comprising: a housing adapted for movement over a surface to be cleaned; a suction nozzle defining a dirty inlet to a recovery pathway; a brushroll on the housing provided adjacent to the suction nozzle, the brushroll configured to agitate the surface to be cleaned; a cover attached to the housing and configured to partially enclose the brushroll; a latch holding the cover to the housing; a hand grip on the cover adjacent to the latch; a fluid distributor configured to deliver cleaning fluid to at least one of the brushroll and the surface to be cleaned; and a headlight comprising a light source having at least one light emitting element internal to the housing; wherein the cover comprises a light pipe capable of conveying light emitted from the light emitting element to an exterior of the housing, the light pipe having an entrance end in register with the light source.
2. The surface cleaning apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the light source comprises a light emitting diode module, wherein the light source comprises a covering located forwardly of the light emitting diode module in proximity thereto, wherein the covering is one of optically translucent and optically transparent.
3. The surface cleaning apparatus of claim 2, wherein the light source comprises a holder mounting the light emitting diode module to a light source receiver in the housing and holding the light emitting element in alignment with an opening in the housing, wherein the light emitting diode module is sealed within the holder by the covering to protect against ingress of water.
4. The surface cleaning apparatus of any one of claims 1 -3, wherein the housing and the cover cooperatively define a brush chamber for the brushroll, and the light source is disposed above a portion of the housing defining a rearward side of the brush chamber to position the light source above and rearward of the brushroll.
5. The surface cleaning apparatus of any one of claims 1 -4, wherein the light pipe is a solid structure integrally molded with the cover; optionally, wherein the cover comprises an upper cover part secured to a lower cover part, and the light pipe is a solid structure molded with the upper cover part.
6. The surface cleaning apparatus of any one of claims 1 -5, wherein the entrance end comprises a prism at a light input location of the cover, the light input location disposed proximate to the light source.
7. The surface cleaning apparatus of any one of claims 1 -6, wherein the light pipe is laterally-elongated along a width of the cover to distribute light onto the floor surface across a substantial width of the cover.
8. The surface cleaning apparatus of any one of claims 1 -7, wherein the light pipe extends from the entrance end to at least one exit end, and the light source is remote from exit end, and wherein the light pipe includes at least one bend between the entrance end and the at least one exit end.
9. The surface cleaning apparatus of any one of claims 1 -8, wherein the cover comprises a light transmissive polymeric material, and the brushroll is at least partially visible to a user through the cover and the light pipe.
10. The surface cleaning apparatus of claim 1 , comprising an upright body and a base coupled with the upright body and adapted for movement across a surface to be cleaned, the base including the housing, and optionally comprising: a pump in fluid communication with the fluid distributor and a brushroll motor coupled with the brushroll to drive the brushroll, wherein the pump and brushroll motor are mounted in the housing.
11. A surface cleaning apparatus for cleaning a floor surface, comprising: a housing adapted for movement over a surface to be cleaned; a suction nozzle defining a dirty inlet to a recovery pathway; a brushroll on the housing provided adjacent to the suction nozzle, the brushroll configured to agitate the surface to be cleaned; a cover attached to the housing and configured to partially enclose the brushroll; a fluid distributor configured to deliver cleaning fluid to at least one of the brushroll and the surface to be cleaned; and a headlight comprising a light source having at least one light emitting element internal to the housing; wherein the cover comprises a light pipe capable of conveying light emitted from the light emitting element to an exterior of the housing, the light pipe having an entrance end in register with the light source;
wherein the light pipe extends from the entrance end to a first exit end and a second exit end, the first exit end disposed proximate a front of the housing to propagate light along the front of the housing at a first front portion thereof, and the second exit end disposed proximate the front of the housing to propagate light along the front of the housing at a second front portion thereof.
12. The surface cleaning apparatus of claim 11 , wherein the cover includes an upper stepped portion defining the first exit end and a lower stepped portion defining the second exit end, wherein the upper and lower stepped portions are elongated in a lateral direction that is generally perpendicular to a direction of forward movement of the surface cleaning apparatus over a surface to be cleaned; optionally wherein the light pipe includes a first bend disposed between the entrance end and the upper stepped portion and a second bend disposed between the upper and lower stepped portions.
13. The surface cleaning apparatus of claim 12, wherein the upper stepped portion is vertically and horizontally spaced from the lower stepped portion, with the upper stepped portion set back farther from the front of the housing than the lower stepped portion.
14. The surface cleaning apparatus of any one of claims 11-13, wherein the first exit end has a face disposed a first angle relative to vertical, and the second exit end has a face disposed a second angle relative to vertical, wherein the first and second angles are different.
15. The surface cleaning apparatus of any one of claims 11-14, comprising a latch holding the cover to the housing and a hand grip on the cover adjacent to the latch.
16. The surface cleaning apparatus of any one of claims 11-15, wherein the housing and the cover cooperatively define a brush chamber for the brushroll, and the light source is disposed above a portion of the housing defining a rearward side of the brush chamber to position the light source above and rearward of the brushroll.
17. A brushroll for a surface cleaning apparatus for cleaning a floor surface, comprising: a brushroll axis about which the brushroll is rotatable; at least one agitation element; and a hollow core brush bar supporting the at least one agitation element, the brush bar comprising a cavity at a center of the brush bar located at the brushroll axis; wherein the at least one agitation element comprises at least one of: a plurality of bristles extending from the brush bar; and
a microfiber material disposed on the brush bar.
18. The brushroll of claim 17, wherein the plurality of bristles comprise a plurality of nylon bristles and the microfiber material comprises polyester.
19. The brushroll of any one of claims 17-18, wherein the cavity extends along the brushroll axis from a first end of the brush bar to a second end of the brush bar, and optionally wherein the cavity extends through the first and second ends of the brush bar, such that the first and second ends of brush bar are open to the cavity.
20. The brushroll of any one of claims 17-19, wherein the cavity extends at least 50% of a length of the brush bar and has a diameter of at least 50% of an outer diameter of the brushroll.
21 . A surface cleaning apparatus for cleaning a floor surface, comprising the brushroll of any one of claims 17-20.
22. A brushroll for a surface cleaning apparatus for cleaning a floor surface, comprising: a brushroll axis about which the brushroll is rotatable; at least one agitation element; a hollow core brush bar supporting the at least one agitation element, the brush bar comprising a cavity at a center of the brush bar located at the brushroll axis; a first end cap at a first end of the brush bar, the first end cap configured to couple with a drive assembly of a surface cleaning apparatus, wherein the brush bar is rotatable with the first end cap.
23. The brushroll of claim 22, comprising a ferrule on the first end of the brush bar, wherein the first end cap is inserted through the ferrule into the cavity of the brush bar.
24. The brushroll of any one of claims 22-23, comprising a gasket between the first end cap and the brush bar.
25. The brushroll of any one of claims 22-24, comprising an end assembly at a second end of the brush bar, the end assembly configured to rotatably support the brushroll in a surface cleaning apparatus, wherein the end assembly comprises a stub shaft extending from the second end of the brush bar and a bearing having an inner race press fitted on the stub shaft and an outer race fixed in a second end cap, optionally comprising a brushroll removal grip extending from the second end cap.
26. A surface cleaning apparatus for cleaning a floor surface, comprising the brushroll of any one of claims 22-25.
27. A surface cleaning apparatus, comprising: a housing; a brushroll on the housing to agitate a surface to be cleaned; a fluid distributor to deliver cleaning fluid to at least one of the brushroll and the surface to be cleaned; a suction nozzle defining a dirty inlet to a recovery pathway and including a nozzle cover removably attached to the housing to partially enclose the brushroll; a headlight to illuminate the surface to be cleaned; a sensing component to sense whether the nozzle cover is attached to the housing; and a headlight power switch operable to close and supply power to the headlight when the nozzle cover is attached to the housing, and operable to open when the nozzle cover is removed from the housing; wherein, when the sensing component senses that the nozzle cover is separated from the housing, the headlight power switch deactivates the headlight.
28. The surface cleaning apparatus of claim 27, wherein: the housing includes a magnet, and the sensing component detects the magnet when the nozzle cover is attached to the housing, optionally wherein the headlight power switch comprises the sensing component, and wherein the headlight power switch closes in the presence of the magnet and opens in the absence of the magnet.
29. The surface cleaning apparatus of claim 27, wherein the sensing component is a Hall Effect sensor provided on one of the nozzle cover and the housing, and a magnet is positioned on the other one of the nozzle cover and base housing in a location to be detected by the Hall Effect sensor when the nozzle cover is attached to the housing.
30. The surface cleaning apparatus of claim 27, wherein the headlight comprises a light source covered by the nozzle cover when the nozzle cover is attached to the housing and exposed when the nozzle cover is removed from the housing, and wherein the headlight power switch is coupled with the light source of the headlight;
optionally, wherein the headlight comprises a light pipe configured to convey light emitted from the light source to an exterior of the housing, optionally wherein the nozzle cover comprises the light pipe.
31 . The surface cleaning apparatus of any one of claims 27-30, comprising a user interface and a printed circuit board electrically coupled with the headlight and the sensing component, wherein, when the sensing component senses that the nozzle cover is separated from the housing, the sensing component sends a signal to the printed circuit board and the user interface issues a status update that the nozzle cover is missing.
32. The surface cleaning apparatus of any one of claims 27-31 , comprising: a brushroll motor coupled with the brushroll to drive the brushroll; and a brushroll motor switch operable to close and supply power to the brushroll motor when the nozzle cover is attached to the housing, and operable to open when the nozzle cover is removed from the housing.
33. The surface cleaning apparatus of any one of claims 27-32, comprising a battery to power the headlight.
34. The surface cleaning apparatus of any one of claims 27-33, comprising a latch holding the nozzle cover to the housing and a hand grip on the cover adjacent to the latch.
35. The surface cleaning apparatus of any one of claims 27-34, wherein the nozzle cover comprises a light transmissive polymeric material, and the brushroll is at least partially visible to a user through the nozzle cover.
36. The surface cleaning apparatus of any one of claims 27-35, comprising: a recovery system comprising the suction nozzle, a suction source in fluid communication with the suction nozzle, a recovery tank, and a clean air outlet; and a fluid delivery system comprising a supply tank and the fluid distributor, optionally comprising: a pump in fluid communication with the fluid distributor; and a brushroll motor coupled with the brushroll to drive the brushroll; wherein the pump and brushroll motor are mounted in the housing.
37. The surface cleaning apparatus of any one of claims 27-36, comprising an upright body and a base coupled with the upright body and adapted for movement across the surface to be cleaned, the base including the housing, optionally wherein the nozzle cover wraps around and in front of the brushroll to define a front of the base at an exterior side thereof.
38. A surface cleaning apparatus for cleaning a floor surface, comprising: a base adapted for movement over a surface to be cleaned and comprising: a suction nozzle defining a dirty inlet to a recovery pathway; a brushroll on the base to agitate a surface to be cleaned; a fluid distributor to deliver cleaning fluid to at least one of the brushroll and the surface to be cleaned; and a headlight to illuminate the surface to be cleaned, the headlight capable of emitting light in at least a first color and a second color; and an upright body pivotally mounted to the base and comprising: a handle; a power input control to turn the surface cleaning apparatus on and off; and an actuator to control the delivery of cleaning fluid from the fluid distributor; a controller on one of the base and the upright body, the controller operable to: turn the headlight on to emit light in a first color when the power input control is pressed to turn the surface cleaning apparatus on; and control the headlight to emit light in a second color when the actuator is pressed to deliver cleaning fluid from the fluid distributor.
39. The surface cleaning apparatus of claim 38, wherein the controller is operable to control the headlight to emit light in the first color when the actuator is released to stop delivery of cleaning fluid from the fluid distributor.
40. The surface cleaning apparatus of any one of claims 38-39, wherein the actuator comprises a trigger on a handgrip of the handle, and optionally wherein the power input control comprises a button on the handle.
41. The surface cleaning apparatus of any one of claims 38-40, wherein the headlight is configured to emit light in a first state when the power input control is pressed to turn the surface cleaning apparatus on and to emit light in a second state when the actuator is pressed to deliver cleaning fluid from the fluid distributor.
42. The surface cleaning apparatus of any one of claims 38-41 , wherein the first state is a steady state and the second state is an animated state.
43. The surface cleaning apparatus of any one of claims 38-42, wherein the headlight comprises a light emitting diode module with multiple LED chips, including at least one white LED chip and at least one non-white LED chip; optionally wherein the controller is operable to:
power the at least one white LED chip when the power input control is pressed to turn the surface cleaning apparatus on; and power the at least one non-white LED chip when the actuator is pressed to deliver cleaning fluid from the fluid distributor.
44. The surface cleaning apparatus of any one of claims 38-43, wherein the headlight comprises a light source internal to the base and the base comprises a light pipe configured to transmit a portion of the light emitted by the light source to an area exterior of the base.
45. The surface cleaning apparatus of any one of claims 38-44, comprising: a pump in fluid communication with the fluid distributor; and a brushroll motor coupled with the brushroll to drive the brushroll; wherein the pump and brushroll motor are mounted in the base.
46. A surface cleaning apparatus comprising: a base adapted for movement over a surface to be cleaned and comprising: a suction nozzle defining a dirty inlet to a recovery pathway; a brushroll on the base to agitate a surface to be cleaned; a fluid distributor to deliver cleaning fluid to at least one of the brushroll and the surface to be cleaned; a light source internal to the base housing and positioned to emit light within an interior of the base, the light source capable of emitting light in at least a first color and a second color; and a light pipe configured to transmit a portion of the light emitted by the light source to an area exterior of the base; and an upright body pivotally mounted to the base and comprising: a handle; a power input control to turn the surface cleaning apparatus on and off; and an actuator to control the delivery of cleaning fluid from the fluid distributor; a controller on one of the base and the upright body, the controller operable to: turn the light source on to emit light in a first color when the power input control is pressed to turn the surface cleaning apparatus on, with the light in the first color transmitted to an area exterior of the base by the light pipe; and control the light source to emit light in a second color when the actuator is pressed to deliver cleaning fluid from the fluid distributor, with the light in the second color transmitted to an area exterior of the base by the light pipe.
47. The surface cleaning apparatus of claim 46, wherein: the base comprises a base housing and a cover attached to the base housing, the brushroll partially enclosed by the cover; and the cover comprises the light pipe; optionally, wherein the light pipe is a solid structure integrally molded with the cover.
48. The surface cleaning apparatus of claim 47, wherein the light pipe is laterally-elongated along a width of the cover to distribute light onto the surface to be cleaned across a substantial width of the cover.
49. The surface cleaning apparatus of any one of claims 46-48, wherein the controller is operable to control the light source to emit light in the first color when the actuator is released to stop delivery of cleaning fluid from the fluid distributor, optionally wherein the power input control comprises a button on the handle and the actuator comprises a trigger on a handgrip of the handle.
50. The surface cleaning apparatus of any one of claims 46-49, wherein the light source is configured to emit light in a first state when the power input control is pressed to turn the surface cleaning apparatus on and to emit light in a second state when the actuator is pressed to deliver cleaning fluid from the fluid distributor, optionally wherein the first state is a steady state and the second state is an animated state.
51 . The surface cleaning apparatus of any one of claims 46-50, wherein the light source comprises a light emitting diode module with multiple LED chips, including at least one white LED chip and at least one non-white LED chip, wherein the controller is operable to: power the at least one white LED chip when the power input control is pressed to turn the surface cleaning apparatus on; and power the at least one non-white LED chip when the actuator is pressed to deliver cleaning fluid from the fluid distributor.
52. The surface cleaning apparatus of any one of claims 46-51 , comprising: a pump in fluid communication with the fluid distributor; and a brushroll motor coupled with the brushroll to drive the brushroll; wherein the pump and brushroll motor are mounted in the base.