Self-contained dust collector with quick release adapter duct

Claim 1

In a self-contained dust collector comprising a support frame; a housing mounted on said frame having partition means therein dividing said housing into a dirty air chamber having a dirty air inlet and a clean air chamber having a clean air outlet, said partition means having an aperture therethrough connecting said dirty air chamber in air flow communication with said clean air chamber; a filter means operatively mounted across said aperture; means for circulating dirty air through said dirty air inlet, into said dirty air chamber, through said filter means into said clean air chamber and out said clean air outlet; a hopper mounted on said frame in dust receiving relation to said filter means and having a first opening constituting a dust discharge port; and a dust storage receptacle spaced from said dust discharge port and having wall means defining a second opening constituting a dust receiving port, the improvement comprising a quick release adapter duct movable to either an open nonduct forming position or a closed duct forming position relative to said storage receptacle, said adapter duct including: a semiflexible unitary planar member having an outer periphery and an inner central opening swingably mounted in sealed relation around said dust discharge port; a plurality of foldable pleats in said planar member, each of said foldable pleats defined by angularly spaced fold axes on said planar member, each of said fold axes having an outer and an inner end, all of said inner ends of said fold axes for each of said pleats intersecting to form an acute angle having a vertex which is located adjacent said inner central opening, all of said outer ends of said fold axes for each of said pleats terminating at spaced points on said outer periphery; said foldable pleats being movable between an open attitude lengthening said outer periphery to cause said planar member to assume said open nonduct forming position and to a closed attitude shortening said outer periphery to cause said planar member to assume said closed duct forming position in which said outer periphery of said planar member is in contact with said receptacle wall means in surrounding relation to said dust receiving port; and resilient means urging said pleats into said closed attitude to maintain said outer periphery of said planar member in sealed contact with said receptacle wall means when said adapter duct is in said closed duct forming position.