BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Conventional brooms have uniform length bristles that contact the floor while sweeping. While the bristles can be pressed against the floor, most bristles contact the floor at an angle such that a lateral surface of each bristle, especially those that are bent, rather than and end of the bristle, sweeps against the floor as the broom is moved. Moreover, when sweeping, almost half of the bristles fail to touch or impact the dirt or debris being swept and only touch air while sweeping.

Additionally, conventional dustpans require a user to bend over or kneel to reach the dustpan while collecting swept dirt and debris. Most users also hold the dustpan at an angle that biases the edge of the collection area against the floor to facilitate swiping of dirt and debris into the dustpan. Such use requires the user to bend and stress their body, which may be uncomfortable for some users.

One solution that has been proposed in the past to address potential challenges with using a waste receptacle such as a dustpan can be seen in U.S. Pat. No. 8,875,339 to Dobson. Dobson describes a dustpan that includes a blade (20, FIG. 1) that is pressed against the floor, as shown inFIGS. 6-8, when the user steps and applies a force a foot-pedal (14, FIG. 1) that is integrated with a handle (16) on the rear of a dustbin (26). While Dobson's device provides some improvement over conventional dustpans, the location of the foot-pedal decreases the overall capacity of the dustbin (26), and while the dustpan is pressed against the floor, the dustbin's flat underside (see 30, FIG. 5) may prevent an effective seal to be created under the blade (20) when the dustpan is used on an uneven surface, or if there is debris present in the area of contact between the dustpan and the floor.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The invention provides a system including a step-on dustpan configured to include a step-on portion, a handle, a lip, a handle clip, a pan surface and side panels. The system also includes a broom configured to include a broom handle, a broom block and beveled bristles. The beveled bristles are disposed in the broom block to form a v-shape in a transverse direction with respect to the broom block. When the step-on portion is engaged by a user, the lip is configured to form a seal against a floor surface.

In one aspect, the present disclosure describes a dustpan that includes a receptacle, which is enclosed on four sides by a bottom pan, two sidewalls and a back panel, and includes a lip at a free end of the bottom pan opposite the back panel. The dustpan further includes a handle connected to the back panel and extending opposite the receptacle. The handle has a curved shape that terminates at a floor pad. The dustpan is configured to only contact a flat floor surface along the floor pad and the lip when in an at-rest position. The dustpan further includes at least one foot disposed on an exterior surface of the receptacle. A step-on portion is defined on the handle and is angled with respect to the flat floor surface and configured to provide a pedal for a user to apply a force. When the force is applied to the pedal, the dust pan transitions from the at-rest position to an operating position in which the handle deforms to permit the at least one foot to further contact the flat floor surface and to decrease an angle between the lip and the flat floor surface.

In another aspect, the disclosure describes a broom having an elongate handle having a first end and a second end. A broom block is connected to the first end of the elongate handle, and a first plurality of bristles is connected to a first section of the broom block. The first plurality of bristles defines a broom head, which has a sweeping end. The sweeping end includes two planar sections, each having an elongate shape, wherein the two planar sections are disposed at an angle relative to one another and intersect a bottom edge to define a bevel along the sweeping end of the broom head.

In yet another aspect, the disclosure describes a cleaning system that includes a broom and a dustpan. The broom has an elongate handle and a broom block connected at one end of the elongate handle. The broom head comprises a first plurality of bristles connected to the broom block, which define a broom head having a sweeping end opposite the broom block. The sweeping end includes two planar sections disposed at an angle relative to one another to define a bevel. The dustpan has a receptacle connected to a handle, which includes a cylindrical channel with locking nubs that is releasably attachable to the elongate handle of the broom. The handle further includes a floor pad opposite its connection to the receptacle, and a lip disposed opposite its connection to the handle such that, when the dustpan is detached from the broom and sits on a flat floor surface in an at-rest position, the dustpan contacts the flat floor surface only along the floor pad and the lip, and remaining portions of the handle and receptacle are suspended above the flat floor surface.

