Beater bar patent

[vac-o-matic]

Maybe this has been covered before, but if so, I've forgotten. Does anyone know when other vacuums besides Hoover were allowed to use beater bars on their brushrollers and not infringe on their "beats as it sweeps as it cleans" trademark?

Rick

 

[vintagehoover]

*Consults vintage company literature*

According to 'Steps to the Hoover Sale', an official Hoover salesman's guide printed in 1936:

"This is the famous Hoover Agitator which is an exclusive patented feature of The Hoover. No other cleaner can use this principle until after 1950."

So based on that, I'd say 1950. But I'm sure my fellow Hooverettes will correct me if I'm wrong!

 

[hoover1060]

to the best of my knowledge..

The first cleaner NOT a Hoover to have beater bars after the patent was Singer, introduced on their re-designed model U-41 twin fan upright about 1961 or so. Theirs was a metal beater bar, kind of like Hoovers, but it was in a wood core brush roller and inserted like a Hoover brush strip.
Eureka added red plastic beater bars to their uprights about 1969 or so, and introduced their metal brush roll (Vibra Groomer I) about 1972.
Sears introduced their green plastic beater bar on the powermate canister also about 1970 or so.

If anyone else has more info or can correct me, please do so!

 

[normvac]

I would just add that Eureka came out with their VG 11 Early
80's. It was a unique adaptation of the beater bar. The metal
was molded, with bumps, rather then strips for agitating the
carpet. The roller was chrome plated, orange strips with white or black brush strips were replaceable. The cost factor
was reduced(from the VG 1) and the cleaning results were much
improved over the wooden roller with the red plactic strips.
The VG 11 still had sleeve bearings as oppossed to the Steel
VG 1 with sealed ballbearing which were less maintenace then
the greased bearing in the hoover beater bar.
Actually the VG 11, with sleeve bearing was first used in a
Eureka self propelled. Then they had to introduce a VG 11 with
sealed ball bearing, as the sleeve bearing rollers did not hold up with the hight speed 6.5 ESP motor.
Norm

 

[williamr1248]

beater bar patend

This may be a question for Tom or Jeff
Many years ago a older gentleman at the Hoover Service Station in Indianapolis told me that the beater bar and the "Beats as it sweeps as it cleans" really had nothing to do with cleaning better but was used as a marketing tool to sell vacuums. He said in the early days of vacuum sales women were used to "beating the rugs on a outside line". They related to the "beats as it sweeps as it cleans". This was to help them relate to electric sweepers. This same thing was done for example years later with the Amana "radar range". They marketed it with the name "range' because women were used to the term range. I guess if you think about it this would relate to Rexairs "wet dust can't fly" or the Electrolux-"the cleaner you never have to empty or Air-Ways "no container to empty. The fact that is was a better idea was a side benefit. The main idea was to sell more vacuums.

 

[williamr1248]

beater bar patent

Next question-Does anyone know why Hoover changed from the metal beater bars to the plastic and then removed the beater bars? I have advertising from the 1950's where they talk about how using only brushes was not good. It's a mystery since they were so well known for the beater bar uprights.

 

[hoover1060]

why Hoover changed from the metal beater bars to the plastic

This is my own theory, so its subject to being way off, BUT
I think it was because of carpeting trends.

When the beater bar was introduced, everyone had area rugs. The rugs were not glued or tacked down, and it was easy for the cleaner to pick the rug up and clean it "on a cushion of air"
Wall to wall carpeting changed that some, but if the carpeting was flat-er it could still be picked up and "beaten" by the beater bars and cleaned "on a cushion of air"
Look at the performance of a 2-position Convertible on flatter rugs....
Even Kirby used the cushion of air thing in their instruction manuals.
Things changed in the late 60's with the advent of SHAG and glued down indoor-outdoor carpets. Neither rug lent itself very well to being cleaned "on a cushion of air".
Same story with plush carpeting.
Enter the stiffer brush strips on Hoover cleaners starting in 1975, along with the High-Performance Convertible.
Then the Concept One in 1978 with the quadreflex brush. The "beater bars" on that agitator don't really beat, they are more to serve as stiffeners for the brushes. A Concept One is in its element on a thick plush rug. It will clean it better than anything thanks to its aggressive brushing.
Eureka went a different route with their cleaners, via the ESP line in 1979.
Kirby didn't change their brush roll until the Heritage I came out in 1982.
So after all that rambling, what I mean to say is I think they found that an aggressive all bristle design worked better for the modern rugs, and they went with that design.

 

[williamr1248]

Beater bar patent

Thanks Jeff! That makes sense. I put a large piece of carpeting in my basement to use with the vacs. It is not very thick and not tacked down. My newer Hoovers don't work very well but you put my old 28 Hoover on that same carpet and it does a wonderful job. The same thing happens when I tried the newer canisters with the floating heads. They did not clean as well as the old straight suction Electrolux. With the old carpet they are actually pulling the air through the rug.
I do think some cleaners have gone way too far with the stiff brush idea(Dysons ruined my dining room rug)
Thanks again Jeff
Rob

 

[kirbyvertibles]

I was reading on the wikipedea on the internet the other night about the Hoover cleaner and read what that old Hoover man said about the beats as it sweeps ad. It was a sales thing even before the beater bar. Now I don't know how right the WIKIPEDEA is but it is an interesting story and I think you all will enjoy it.


I also read on that site that David Oreck no longer owns Oreck. He sold out in 2004 to a bigger company but stayed on the team to be the voice and face of Oreck.

 

[hoover1060]

tis true...

"It Beats...as it sweeps...as it cleans..." was first used in 1920, 6 years before the beater bar came out

 

[aeoliandave]

Thanks guys, for the Beater Bar Tutorial. It is fascinating and valuable and particularly of interest this week as I tackle a few PN rebuilds of different makes.

Dave

 

[camelotshadow]

Been going through my vacs functionality for comparison

The Eureks Vibra Groom 2 is a hell of a groomer cleaner for a cheap vac.

I have 2
One 5.5HP
One ESP 6 HP

The suction on them is excellent too
draws the carpet up

Great cleaners

 

[rolls_rapide]

Beater bars

Didn't Hoover state that the addition of beater bars to the agitator, improved the cleaning performance by over 100%?

Or am I getting muddled up?

 

[hoover1060]

well maybe...

but the beater bar certainly got more deep down stuff out of rugs than the previous design.

What you hear when a Hoover is operating is not so much the beater bar beating the rug, rather its the rug fluttering against the bottom plate of the cleaner.
The suction pulls the rug up against the opening, and the beater bar pushes it away as it goes around. The suction then pulls the carpet back against the opening with a SNAP, which pitches the deep down stuff up and into the suction stream.

 

[charles~richard]

No one has mentioned the Twin-Motor AirWay, introduced in the late 1920s. I believe the Twin-Motor AirWay was the first machine other than Hoover to use agitator bars. It looked rather like the earlier upright AirWay "Chief," but actually had two motors -- one for suction power and the other to drive a revolving brush.

The revolving brush had two rows of bristles and two sets of metal agitators affixed to the brush roll with rubber mounts, the idea being that they would be flexible and 'bend' with the rug when the machine was in operation.

AirWay was successfully sued for patent infringement by Hoover. AirWay contended that since their agitators were not a permanent, integral part of the brush roll as was the case with the Hoover design, but were attached with rubber mounts, their agitators were significantly different from the Hoover system. However, Hoover prevailed in their lawsuit, and thus was ended the short-lived Twin-Motor AirWay.

 

[charles~richard]

 

[charles~richard]

 

[charles~richard]

I believe the Twin-Motor AirWay was the first machine other than Hoover to use agitator bars.

I should clarify that -- I mean, I believe the Twin-Motor AirWay was the first machine other than Hoover to use agitator bars with METAL AGITATORS and not just brushes.

 

[electroluxxxx]

what does the brush roll in the airway look like???