Fire hydrants or fire plugs are employed by nearly all municipalities. As with other infrastructure, fire hydrants need to be maintained. The intent of a fire hydrant maintenance program is to keep hydrants in a ready condition through flushing, inspection, lubricating, cleaning and painting. One of the more difficult aspects of a fire hydrant maintenance program is the process of cleaning the hydrant or plug. This is often accomplished by pressure washing or sandblasting the fire hydrant in order to remove dirt, grease and flaking paint from the outer surface of the hydrant. In order to protect the surroundings, a plastic shower cap may be used, along with a small tarp placed over the adjacent sidewalk or lawn. The cleaning process also requires a generator and an air compressor for the pressurized fluid or sand that is being applied to clean the hydrant not to mention a supply of the fluid or sand.
Another way of cleaning the fire hydrant is by a worker manually using a hand held wire brush to remove flaking paint, grease, dirt and the like from the outer surface of the accessible portion of the fire hydrant. As is easily recognized, such work is laborious and time consuming. A single worker is not able to clean very many hydrants or fire plugs in a single day. In order to clean the significant number of fire hydrants which even a midsize municipality employs in a reasonably limited time period, the municipality would need to employ a number of workers for the task.
It would be advantageous to provide a rotary brush system to clean fire hydrants, with the brush system including bristles that contact or are capable of contacting all of the above ground exterior surface of a hydrant or plug. The system could be mounted to a motor vehicle so that an effective and quick cleaning of the fire hydrant can take place by a single worker without the need for ancillary equipment such as generators, air compressors, a supply of cleaning material and the like and without needing multiple personnel during the cleaning process. Such a motorized cleaning system would also eliminate the need for multiple workers to be employed in the fire hydrant cleaning process, as a mechanized system would be significantly faster in cleaning a fire hydrant than would be a manual process for doing so. In other words, it would be advantageous to provide a one man cleaning system in order to reduce the costs to the municipality for cleaning fire hydrants.
In accordance with one aspect of the present disclosure, an apparatus for clearing around an associated stationary object comprises a housing including a top wall, a side wall, and at least one opening extending through the side wall. At least one paddle member is mounted to and extends radially outward from an exterior surface of the housing. The paddle member is adapted to clear around the associated stationary object. The apparatus further comprises a plurality of elongated cables mounted to a support that is selectively secured to an interior surface of the housing. The elongated cables are adapted to clean around the associated stationary object.
In accordance with another aspect of the present disclosure, an apparatus for clearing around an associated stationary object comprises a cylindrical housing including a longitudinal axis, a top wall, a side wall, and an open bottom. An opening is defined in the side wall of the housing and a cleaning member is mounted to an inner surface of the side wall. The apparatus further comprises a mounting member secured to the top wall of the housing.
In accordance with still another aspect of the present disclosure, an apparatus for the on-site clearing of snow from around an associated stationary object is provided. That apparatus comprises a housing including a top wall, an open bottom, a side wall, and a plurality of spaced slots extending through the side wall. The housing further comprises a longitudinal axis and the housing is adapted to be rotated about its longitudinal axis in relation to the associated stationary object. At least one paddle member is mounted to and extends radially outward from an exterior surface of the side wall. The at least one paddle member is located adjacent to and is aligned with one of the plurality of spaced slots in the housing. The apparatus further comprises an elongated cleaning member secured to an interior surface of the side wall. The elongated cleaning member extends radially into a space defined by the housing in a direction generally transverse to the longitudinal axis.
With reference now to
With reference now to
With reference again to
Secured to an interior wall of the housing 10 are one or more mounting blocks 70. Each of these supports a plurality of elongated cleaning members 72. In one embodiment, the elongated cleaning members comprise bristles made of a suitable material such as metal wire or the like. In another embodiment, the elongated cleaning members comprise descaling needles. Such needles are known in the art and generally range in diameter from 2 mm to 4 or 5 mm and in some embodiments will have a length of 180 mm or more. Some descaling needles have a flat tip, while others are chisel tipped. The use of such needles for removing foreign substances from metal, wood, stone or the like is known. The needles are typically formed of drill rod or similar tough hard elastic steel. Descaling needles are known for removing scale from welds and for removing foreign substances from generally rigid surfaces. Normally, descaling needles are used in a reciprocating manner being propelled either pneumatically or with a reciprocating hammer.
In contrast, the instant disclosure pertains to the use of such elongated cleaning members, whether they be termed descaling needles or metal brush elements or the like in one or more blocks or support members, or otherwise rigidly attached to an interior surface of the housing 10 so as to selectively contact the exposed surfaces of a stationary object which is to be cleaned by the apparatus disclosed herein. In one embodiment, brush elements, made of a spring steel wire, are provided in a single length but with two different diameters. More particularly, the cleaning members can be 11 inches (27.94 cm) in length and can come in a larger diameter of 0.177 inches (0.45 cm) and a smaller diameter of 0.090 inches (0.23 cm).
Fasteners 74 extend through apertures 76 (see
In the embodiment illustrated in
It should be appreciated that the bristles 72 are suitably sized so as to accommodate the several different diameter sections of the hydrant 90. As is evident from
With the embodiment illustrated in
In another embodiment, the bristles 72 could be so sized as to accommodate the varying diameter sections of a fire hydrant. In this embodiment of the disclosure, the clam shell halves of the housing would be open as they approach a fire hydrant and would be closed around the fire hydrant when cleaning of the hydrant is desired. Subsequently, the clam shell halves would again be opened in order to allow the cleaning system to be displaced from the fire hydrant.
With reference again to
With reference now to
While a brush mount of a particular size and configuration is illustrated in
Further, bristles of a variety of sizes and configurations could be employed as may be required. In addition, bristles of different materials may be used. In other words, both metallic and non-metallic bristles are contemplated for use. If metallic bristles are employed, the bristles can have diameters of varying sizes. Thus, different gauge wire can be employed for the bristles if so desired or required. As might be expected, thousands of such elongated cleaning elements, bristles or descaling needles can be employed to cover the interior surface of the housing 10.
It should be appreciated that the housing 10 has to be of a suitable diameter and length so as to accommodate the fire hydrant or fire plug being cleaned. Thus, the height of the cylinder has to cover the total above ground height of the fire hydrant and the diameter of the housing needs to accommodate the maximum diameter of the fire hydrant being cleaned and provide additional space for brushes mounted to the interior surface of the housing. One conventionally known size of fire hydrant or fire plug has a height of about 29 inches (73.66 cm) and has a diameter of about 18 inches (45.72 cm). Needless to say, other fire hydrant diameters and heights can also be accommodated by suitably sizing the housing 10.
With reference now to
In the embodiment illustrated in
In use, an operator sitting in the cab 158 of the vehicle 150 can approach a fire hydrant and lower the housing over the fire hydrant until the housing approaches a ground surface or otherwise encircles the fire hydrant. When the correct cleaning position of the housing is reached, the motor 50 is actuated in order to rotate the housing 10 and, hence, engage the bristles 72 against the outer surface of the hydrant 90. The length and thickness of the several elongated cleaning members or bristles is such as to allow for varying degrees of buckling and lateral deflection of the bristles when impacting a work surface, such as the outer surface of the hydrant 90. In other words, the ends of the bristles may splay out along the surface of the fire hydrant. As will be appreciated, the greater the deflection or splaying of the bristles, the less will be the intensity of the impact of the bristle tips against the outer surfaces of the fire hydrant. The length and flexibility of the elongated cleaning members enables a variation in the intensity of the impact of the cleaning members on the worked surface, i.e., the outer surface of the stationary object which is meant to be cleaned. It should be appreciated that the larger the amount of bristles in a given area, the more focused is the cleaning action on the fire hydrant or other stationary object, particularly if the bristles are not allowed to deflect or splay out. If desired, the force of a bundle of bristles can be intensified and confined to a smaller area. On the other hand, the more the cutting or working ends of the bristles are allowed to splay out or deflect, the more they are able to conform to the irregular outer surface of a fire hydrant or similar stationary object. In this way, the outer surface of the hydrant is cleaned or scoured in an efficient, rapid, and effective manner without the need for multiple personnel to handle the cleaning process and without the need for ancillary equipment, such as hoses, pumping equipment, power generators, cleaning fluids, sand and related material and equipment.
Once the cleaning process has been completed, the motor 50 is deactivated. The housing 10 can at that point be lifted away from the fire hydrant 90 via the arm 160. The vehicle can then be driven to the next adjacent hydrant to be cleaned. There, the process discussed above is again repeated.
In a further embodiment of the present disclosure, a single piece housing can be contemplated in which bristles are either detachably mounted to the housing via mounts or permanently secured to the housing. It should be appreciated that with a single piece housing, the housing would need to be lowered over the fire hydrant meant to be cleaned and then lifted upwardly away from the fire hydrant when the cleaning process is complete. With a single piece housing and permanently mounted bristles, the entire housing would be replaced when the bristles are no longer effective to clean a fire hydrant. With a single piece housing and detachable bristles secured on mounting blocks or mounts, the mounts would be detached and replaced as necessary.
It should also be appreciated that multiple piece housings can be employed, such that the housing comprises three or more sections which are joined to each other, such as by hinges. In such a design, each housing section would have mounted thereto bristle mounts, either permanently or detachably.
In another embodiment, the vehicle 150 can support a boom assembly having multiple link sections in order to allow the housing 10 and motor 50 to be moved greater distances away from the vehicle 150.
Once the cleaning system as finished its task, the fire plug or fire hydrant is prepped for priming and painting. Generally, the hydrant is primed and subsequently painted in at least one color. Many hydrants are painted two colors and sometimes even three colors. The various colors that hydrants are painted may indicate the flow characteristics of the hydrant. Different colors may indicate different water flow capacities as in gallons per minute (gpm), with one color indicating more than 1,500 gpm (567.1 liters per minute or lpm) and various other colors indicating 1,000-1,500 gpm (3785.4-5678.1 lpm), 500-999 gpm (1892.7-3781.6 lpm) or less than 500 gpm (1892.7 lpm). In other words, the amount of water that can be withdrawn from the hydrant could be indicated by the color of at least the cap of the hydrant.
In still another embodiment, the vehicle can be provided with not only a cleaning implement supported on a first boom, but a painting implement supported on a second boom that is spaced from the first boom. In this way, a single vehicle could be used not only to clean the fire hydrant, but also to paint the fire hydrant after the cleaning process has finished.
It should be appreciated that the cleaning assembly disclosed herein with suitable modifications can also be employed to clean highway pylons, shoulder posts and the like, located adjacent to roads or paths which can be traversed by the vehicle 150.
It is believed that the cleaning apparatus can clean a stationary object, such as a fire hydrant or fire plug in about one minute. Thus, the fire hydrant is ready to be painted in about sixty seconds. Moreover, the expensive sand blasting process previously employed to clean fire hydrants before painting has been eliminated. Thus, the manual labor involved and the man hours necessary for cleaning fire hydrants has been greatly reduced. Further, hand and eye injuries to workers employing known cleaning processes have been greatly reduced or eliminated entirely. Moreover, the productivity of the maintenance personnel employing the cleaning apparatus according to the present disclosure is greatly increased.
With reference now to
In this embodiment, an arbor cup brush 254 is mounted via a threaded rod 256 to the brush holder 250. This is employed for cleaning the arbor of the fire hydrant. It should be appreciated that several such brushes can be employed. Each arbor cup brush is adjustable via the threaded rod 256 so as to accommodate variations in geometry of the fire hydrant component being cleaned.
Selectively locking the barrel halves 212 and 214 together are angle iron locks 232 which have bolts 242 extending therethrough. In this embodiment, the barrel halves 212 and 214 are fastened together and subsequently the barrel cap 222 is lowered onto the barrel halves and the barrel cap flanges 240 which are mounted on the barrel halves (
With continued reference to
In this embodiment, brush elements, made of a spring steel wire, are provided in a single length but with two different diameters. More particularly, the cleaning members are 11 inches (27.94 cm) in length and include members having a larger diameter of 0.177 inches (0.45 cm) and having a smaller diameter of 0.090 inches (0.23 cm). In the embodiment illustrated in
Extending through multiple openings in both the small wire plate and the large wire plate are the respective wires or bristles. The openings are sized to accommodate the diameter of wire which is meant to be supported by the small wire plate and the large wire plate respectively. It should be apparent from
Depending downwardly from the plate 252 is a standoff 308 which is meant to contact the top of the fire hydrant to correctly space the cleaning assembly vertically in relation to the top of the fire hydrant.
With reference now to
The barrel cap 422 is provided with a plurality of spaced barrel cap flanges 440 which are employed to connect the barrel cap to the upper or first and second housing sections 412 and 414 via suitable fasteners 442 that extend through aligned apertures in the respective barrel cap flange and in the respective housing section. Once the several barrel sections are fastened together, the barrel cap 422 can be lowered onto the now joined barrel sections and fastened in place via the bolts 442 in order to provide a housing which is ready for use.
Mounted to an inner face of each of the respective housing sections 412-418 are wire brush assemblies or holders 470. Each holder includes and plurality of bristles 472. The bristles 472 extend inwardly in the barrel or housing 410 in order to contact the exposed surface of the fire hydrant once the barrel is lowered over the fire hydrant for cleaning purposes. With reference now also to
Suitable fasteners 484 are provided that extend through aligned fastener apertures 486 and 488 in the first and second holder plates 474 and 476 respectively in order to hold the plates together and thus support the bristles. If the fasteners are bolts, they can be secured via nuts 490. It should be appreciated that the respective fasteners 484 also extend through openings 492 in each of the respective housing sections 412-418 in order to securely mount the brush assemblies or wire holders for 470 in place on the housing 410. Thus, the openings or apertures 486, 488 and 492 are aligned in order that a fastener 484 can pass through each aligned set of openings. While the housing sections 412-418 are generally curved, the brush assemblies 470 can be generally planar in configuration as each brush assembly only occupies a limited portion of the circumference of the respective housing section. This can be seen best in
With reference now to
With reference now to
With reference now again to
With reference now to
A first collar 580 can be positioned at a proximal end of the cable segment 576 adjacent the plate interior surface or wall 571a. The collar 580 can be crimped in place on the cable segment 576. In one embodiment, a weld joint 582 secures the first collar 580 to the plate. A second collar 584 can be positioned adjacent a distal end of the cable segment 576. The purpose of the second collar 584 is to prevent the several strands 578 in the cable segment 576 from separating or unraveling from their helical configuration during use. It should be appreciated that both the first and second collars are fitted onto the cable segment 576 so as to crimp the same in place and retard any tendency by the collars 580 and 584 to slide or move longitudinally in relation to the cable segment 576. At the same time, the crimping of the first collar 580 around the cable segment 576 will retard any tendency by the cable segment to work its way out of the first collar 580.
With continued reference to
With reference now to
The housing 610 further comprises at least one slot or opening 696 extending through the side wall 612 of the housing 610. The purpose for providing at least one opening in the side wall of the housing is to facilitate snow, dirt, or other debris which is cleared away from the associated stationary object to be ejected from the housing 610. The one or more openings in the housing allow the material surrounding the associated stationary object to be cleared from around the object by exiting the housing through the opening. In this regard, in geographic areas that receive significant amounts of snowfall, fire hydrants and other ground-mounted objects often become covered by snow. It is desirable to clear the snow from around such objects to allow easier access to the objects and minimize delays in utilizing the objects. With regard specifically to fire hydrants, currently it is necessary not only to dig through the accumulation of snow up to the hydrant itself, but also to clear a sufficiently wide area radially around the hydrant such that there exists unobstructed access to the connection points of the hydrant in the event of an emergency such as a fire. It would clearly be advantageous to have the area around the fire hydrant cleaned before a fire requires urgent use of the fire hydrant. Precious time will otherwise need to be taken during the fire emergency to clean the area around the fire hydrant before it can be used.
Additionally, the one or more openings 612 provide the operator of the prime mover or vehicle (not illustrated in this embodiment, but like the one shown in
With continued reference to
Turning now to
It is to be understood that any desired number of openings can be provided in the housing. Similarly, any desired number of paddle members can be mounted to the housing as may be desired. For example, in one embodiment, multiple slots or openings are spaced apart around the housing and multiple paddle members are provided and are located adjacent to and aligned with respective ones of the spaced slots or openings in the housing. However, equal numbers of paddles and openings need not be provided. Thus, in some embodiments, there could be a lesser number of paddles than openings, if so desired.
It should also be appreciated that the paddle members 62 can be selectively detached from the housing 610. In this way, the housing can be employed for both cleaning the stationary object when the paddles are not necessary and can be reattached when such paddles prove useful, such as in the winter time.
With reference now to
As mentioned, in this embodiment, the cleaning members 672 comprise elongated cables that extend radially inward from the support 670 into an interior space defined in the housing in a direction generally transverse to a longitudinal axis of the housing. Thus, in this embodiment, the support 670 and the paddle member 620 extend substantially perpendicular to one another. On the other hand, the paddle 620 and the set of cables 672 extend radially outwardly and radially inwardly, respectively, from the housing 610. Thus, they extend in planes which are oriented parallel to the longitudinal axis of the housing 610. In fact, the paddles can be provided directly aligned with one of the sets of cables, if so desired.
With continued reference to
In the embodiment shown in
It should be appreciated that different kinds of supports and cleaning assemblies can be mounted to the housing as may be required for a particular purpose. Thus, in the winter time, it is not necessary for the cleaning members to thoroughly clean the stationary object of any accumulated rust or the like. Rather, it is only necessary that the accumulated snow be cleaned from around the associated object so that ready access can be had to the object. On the other hand, in the summer time, the cleaning members have to thoroughly engage the stationary object so as to clean same and make it ready for repainting. To this end, different kinds of cleaning assemblies using different kinds of cleaning members can be provided.
In addition to the snow being able to be removed from the housing via the openings 696 illustrated, for example, in
In this embodiment, the openings in the side wall do not have windows therein, unlike the embodiment illustrated in
Disclosed has been a one man cleaning system which could be mounted to a motor vehicle so that an effective and time efficient cleaning of a fire hydrant can take place by a single worker. Also disclosed has been a method for cleaning a fire hydrant in a mechanized manner without the need to employ multiple workers to manually clean the above-ground exterior surface of a fire hydrant or plug, or similar stationary object and without the need for ancillary equipment, such as generators, air compressors, a supply of cleaning material and the like. In addition to the other benefits discussed above, the need for preparation time and cleanup is substantially reduced through the use of the disclosed one man cleaning system because there is no need to set up ancillary equipment or supply cleaning materials and to clean up such materials after the fire hydrant has been cleaned and prepared for painting.
Disclosed has been a vehicle on which is mounted a rotary device for cleaning the fire hydrant. The device includes a generally cylindrically shaped housing. A rotary drive is provided for rotating the housing. Mounted on an interior wall of the housing are a plurality of elongated cleaning members which can extend radially and at various angles into the housing. The elongated cleaning members can flex or move to accommodate the contours of the fire hydrant being cleaned.
The disclosure has been described with reference to several embodiments. Obviously, modifications and alterations will occur to others upon a reading and understanding of this specification. It is intended to include all such modifications and alterations in so far as they come within the scope of the appended claims and the equivalence thereof.
This application is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/184,418 which was filed on Feb. 19, 2014 and is still pending. That application, in turn, was a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/894,905 which was filed on May 15, 2013 and is still pending and claims priority from Provisional Application Ser. No. 61/648,300 which was filed on May 17, 2012 and from Provisional Application Ser. No. 61/794,920 which was filed on Mar. 15, 2013. The subject matter of each of these applications is incorporated hereinto by reference in its entirety.
Number | Date | Country | |
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61648300 | May 2012 | US | |
61794920 | Mar 2013 | US |
Number | Date | Country | |
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Parent | 14184418 | Feb 2014 | US |
Child | 15015889 | US | |
Parent | 13894905 | May 2013 | US |
Child | 14184418 | US |