The present disclosure relates generally to surface maintenance or conditioning machines, and more particularly to such machines that employ a liquid cleaning solution to perform a cleaning task.
Surface maintenance or condition machines—such as extractors—that use a cleaning liquid to clean a carpet, upholstery, or like surfaces are well known in the art. A conventional extractor generally includes a cleaning liquid delivery system including a container for holding the cleaning liquid, a rotating brush or a revolving scrubber for scrubbing the surface to be cleaned, and a gravity feed or pump for delivering the cleaning liquid to the surface. The conventional extractor also includes a cleaning liquid recovery system having a recovery nozzle, a suction generating device (such as a motor driven fan), and a dirty cleaning liquid recovery tank. Such extractors are more effective than typical vacuum cleaners due to their ability to loosen ground in dirt by the action of the rotating brush or revolving scrubber in conjunction with application of the cleaning liquid.
Known surface maintenance or condition machines suffer from various drawbacks. For example, many extractors leave excess amounts of cleaning liquid on the surface being cleaned, which must then be dried for an undesirable length of time. Excessive surface wetting may promote the growth of fungus and/or bacteria on or within the surface, especially when the surface is carpet. Additionally, over-wetting may cause surface stains to appear or reappear on the surface; this might occur, for example, as underlying soil or stains migrate upward through carpet until visible on the carpet surface. Some surface maintenance or condition machines also provide an uneven distribution of fluid across the surface to be cleaned, resulting in uneven cleaning of the surface and, in some cases, streaks on the surface.
Additionally, many surface maintenance or conditioning machines use pumps or spray jets to convey cleaning liquid from a cleaning liquid storage tank either to the surface itself or to a scrub brush or pad used to agitate and clean the surface. Such devices increase both the purchase cost and the complexity of the extractors in which they are used, require increased maintenance, and introduce additional failure modes.
Accordingly, there is a need for a cleaning liquid distribution system for use in surface maintenance or conditioning machines that evenly distributes an appropriate amount of cleaning fluid in an efficient, cost-effective, and low-maintenance manner.
Embodiments of the present disclosure achieve an even distribution of cleaning liquid without the use of pumps or spray jets. As a result, the system described herein reduces the cost of the surface maintenance and conditioning machines in which it is used, is easier to use and maintain, is more reliable, and provides improved results.
An embodiment of the present disclosure includes (1) a shroud that is open on the bottom; (2) within the shroud, front and rear adjacent, counter-rotating brush rollers extending across substantially the entire width of the shroud and rotating about axes that are substantially horizontal and substantially parallel; (3) a manifold extending across substantially the entire width of the shroud, above the counter-rotating brush rollers; (4) an agitation blade extending across substantially the entire width of the shroud, the agitation blade attached to the shroud adjacent the manifold on a side proximal the rear counter-rotating brush roller and extending underneath the manifold to contact the front counter-rotating brush roller; and (5) a baffle extending across substantially the entire width of the shroud, the baffle attached to the shroud above the front counter-rotating brush roller and extending downward to contact the front counter-rotating brush roller. The agitation blade, the baffle, the shroud, and the front counter-rotating brush roller enclose a misting volume. In some embodiments, a dispersion strip is attached to the body of each counter-rotating brush roller and extends along the length thereof. In some embodiments, the front and rear counter-rotating brush rollers comprise end caps positioned at the axial end thereof, which facilitate the installation and removal of the front and rear counter-rotating brush rollers from the shroud.
In operation, gravity pulls cleaning liquid into the manifold from a cleaning liquid storage tank located above the shroud. Cleaning liquid drips from the manifold onto the agitation blade, which vibrates at high frequency due to its contact with the rotating front brush roller. These vibrations break each drop of cleaning liquid into fine droplets, which fill the misting volume and work their way into the bristles of the front brush roller. The baffle, agitation blade, and, when used, the dispersion strip all prevent drops of cleaning liquid from falling directly onto the surface being cleaned, and thus also prevent the undesirable streaks that result from such drops.
It is an object of the present disclosure to describe a cleaning liquid delivery system that, without using pumps or spray jets, achieves an even distribution of cleaning liquid across one or both of the counter-rotating brush rollers thereof, and further prevents cleaning liquid from dripping onto the surface being cleaned and causing undesirable streaks on the surface. Other objects and advantages of the present disclosure will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon a review of the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments and the accompanying drawings.
According to varying embodiments of the present disclosure, a gravity feed solution distribution system is disclosed.
The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute part of the specification, illustrate embodiments of the present disclosure and together with the general description of the gravity feed solution distribution system given above and the detailed description of the drawings given below, serve to explain embodiments of the present disclosure.
It should be understood that the drawings are not necessarily to scale. In certain instances, details that are not necessary for an understanding of the disclosure or that render other details difficult to perceive may have been omitted from these drawings. It should be understood, of course, that the present disclosure is not limited to the particular embodiments illustrated in the drawings.
Varying embodiments of the present disclosure are described herein with reference to the drawings. It is expressly understood that although the figures depict one embodiment of a gravity feed solution distribution system, the present disclosure is not limited to that specific disclosed embodiment.
According to the present invention, referring to
In certain embodiments, the brush rollers 14, 18 are of substantially the same diameter and their axes are separated by a distance substantially equal to that diameter. In other embodiments, the brush rollers 14, 18 are of different diameters, and/or are separated by more or less distance than the diameter of either brush roller 14, 18. The brush rollers 14, 18 partially extend out of the bottom of shroud 10 so as to engage a surface to be cleaned. In various embodiments, the positioning of the rollers, including the relative distance between the rollers 14, 18 and the relative distance between at least one roller and a surface to be cleaned is selectively adjustable by a user. Such adjustability may be particularly desirable where the texture, material, and height of carpets or surfaces to be cleaned is variable.
In some embodiments, mechanical agitators other than bristle brush rollers are provided. When bristle brush rollers 14, 18 are provided, as in the depicted embodiment, the bristles are preferably soft and are preferably arranged in a dense, well-distributed fill pattern. The bristles may be directly tufted or inserted into each brush roller 14, 18. Alternatively, the bristles may be held by means of a replaceable strip attached to the body of each brush roller 14, 18. Any other suitable mechanical agitator may be used, including, for example, resilient wiper blades or a series of resilient projecting elastomeric fingers.
The surface cleaning device 2 further comprises a manifold 22 that extends across substantially the entire transverse dimension of the shroud 10, parallel to brush rollers 14, 18. In the depicted embodiment, the manifold 22 is provided on the shroud 10 and preferably disposed vertically above brush rollers 14, 18, and preferably at a point in between the axes of brush rollers 14, 18. A series of delivery ports 26 are provided at spaced locations along the length of the manifold 22. The manifold 22 is in fluid communication with a cleaning liquid storage tank 9 of the surface cleaning machine 2, the tank being preferably located elsewhere on the machine at a position of greater gravitational potential energy than the manifold 22 such cleaning liquid from the cleaning liquid may be provided to the manifold 22 and rollers 14, 18 under the force of gravity. Cleaning liquid is distributed along the manifold 22 and provided to the delivery ports 26 inside the manifold 22, thus providing a substantially even distribution of cleaning liquid across a width of shroud 10 and/or rollers 14, 18. A valve is provided at one or more locations along the cleaning liquid flow path between the cleaning liquid storage tank and the manifold 22 for user-selected control of fluid flow. Such valve or control comprises the ability to completely restrict fluid flow to the manifold 22, and to allow various flow rates of fluid to the manifold. Various valves, including ball valves, gate valves, and various similar devices as will be recognized by one of skill in the art are suitable for providing this function along a fluid flow path of the cleaning fluid. In some embodiments, a solenoid valve is provided for this purpose, and in some embodiments, the opening and closing of the solenoid valve is controlled by circuitry adapted for that purpose, based on a setting selected by the operator of the surface maintenance or conditioning machine.
In some embodiments, two or more manifolds 22 are disposed in adjacent positions within the shroud 10. In such embodiments, each manifold 22 has a different flow rate due to variations in the size thereof, variation in the number of delivery ports 26 therein, and/or the size of delivery ports 26 therein. When two or more manifolds 22 are disposed in shroud 10, one or more valves are used to start and stop the flow to each manifold 22. This allows an operator to select an appropriate flow rate for a given application—i.e., a higher flow rate for a particularly dirty surface and a lower flow rate for a moderately dirty surface.
Also disposed within the shroud 10 is an agitation blade 38. In certain embodiment, the agitation blade 38 extends across substantially the entire transverse dimension or width of at least one of the rollers 14, 18. The agitation blade 38 is fixedly or removably attached to the shroud 10 adjacent manifold 22 and extends underneath the manifold 22 and contacts at least one brush roller 14, 18. When the at least one brush roller 14, 18 is caused to rotate, a contact between the bristles of the brush roller 14, 18 and the agitation blade 38 causes the agitation blade 38 to vibrate at high frequency. The agitation blade 38 preferably comprises a resilient material, such a metal, rubber, plastic, or other material with at least some capability of elastic deformation. The agitation blade 38 induces a misting effect on at least one of the rollers 14, 18 that increases the evenness of a distribution of the liquid that is gravity fed to the roller 14, 18. In the depicted embodiment, the agitation blade 38 is provided and arranged so as to act upon a first roller 14, with a second roller comprising an opposition direction of rotation. It will be expressly recognized, however, that the present invention is not limited to this particular arrangement. Indeed, it is contemplated that various alternative arrangements are provided, including those where the agitation blade 38 acts on the second roller 18 or both rollers 14, 18. In various embodiments, a preferred liquid or fluid distribution is provided. This distribution is provided by the provision and arrangement of the rollers 14, 18, the manifold 22, and the agitation blade 38.
In certain embodiments, a baffle 34 is provided. The baffle 34 extends across substantially the entire transverse or width dimension of the shroud 10, and is positioned to substantially contain a spray or fluid mist to the area immediately above the brush roller 14 and the outer radius of brush roller 14. The volume bounded by the shroud 10, brush roller 14, baffle 34, and agitation blade 38 comprises a misting volume 46. The baffle 34 prevents excess solution dispersed by agitating blade 38 that has not yet worked into brush roller 14 from collecting on the inner surface of the shroud and dripping onto the surface being cleaned, which could cause undesirable streaks or pooling on a carpet or surface to be cleaned. Cleaning liquid that reaches baffle 34 is redirected into brush roller 14 and/or back into the misting volume 46. Baffle 34 thus enhances the distribution of cleaning liquid over brush roller 14 for improved cleaning efficiency.
During operation of the gravity feed solution distribution system, a drive motor 30 causes brush rollers 14, 18 to counter-rotate in the direction shown in
In some embodiments, the baffle 34 extends to contact at least one brush roller 14, such that when the brush roller 14 is rotating contact between the bristles of brush roller 14 and the baffle 34 causes the baffle 34 to vibrate at high frequency. In such embodiments, baffle 34 acts as a second agitation blade in that it causes the cleaning liquid to re-disperse into misting volume 46 as fine droplets for even distribution on brush roller 14.
In some embodiments, and as shown in
In some embodiments, the shroud 10 is movably attached to the body of the cleaning device 2 using a hinge or other mechanism, such that the side of shroud 10 can be opened for easy removal of counter-rotating brushes 14, 18 and/or other components of the gravity feed solution distribution system.
A gravity feed solution distribution system according to the present disclosure is useful with a variety of known surface conditioning and maintenance machines. For example, a gravity feed solution distribution system as described herein may be used with the floor cleaning apparatus described in U.S. Pat. No. 7,533,435, which is incorporated herein by reference. Brush rollers 14, 18 may be mounted on and/or in the shroud 10 using stationary (i.e. non-hinged) plates and steel spring clips. Such a mounting system is disclosed in the published United States Patent Application having Publication No. US 2006/0156498 A1, which is incorporated by reference herein.
A non-drive side 60 of the roller 51 is seated in a housing on the shroud 50, and may be secured thereto by a clip or similar fastener. Preferably, the non-drive side 60 of the roller 51 comprises a bearing surface, wherein force or torque imparted upon the drive side 52 causes the brush core to rotate and non-drive side 60 does not substantially impede such rotation. As shown in
The embodiment depicted in
A method of installing a roller 51 is contemplated, the method comprising providing a brush roller 51 for installation with or into a shroud 50, installing a drive side 52 by mating the drive side 52 with a drive shaft 54 provided on one side of the shroud 50 and wherein mating is accomplished by securing at least one drive shaft cross-pin 56 within at least one drive slot 64 by providing an axial force on the roller 51. Subsequently, a non-drive side of the roller 51 is secured at a second end. Securing the second end may be accomplished, for example, by rotating the roller 51 about a point proximal to the drive shaft 54 until the non-drive side is secured within the shroud 50 and allowed to rotate substantially freely therein. Removal of a roller 51, such as may be required for maintenance or replacement, is accomplished by conducting substantially the same sequence in reverse.
Preferably, a plurality of drive slots 64 and ramped surfaces 62 are provided on the drive-side 52 of the brush 51. The provision of such a plurality aids in installation, particularly in applications where an installer has limited visibility, such as when installing rollers under the deck of a large floor cleaning or treatment device.
Power and/or torque is transmitted to drive shaft 54 and any interconnected rollers 51 by, for example, an on-board power source such an engine or motor and associated components such as drive belts, pulleys, etc. (not shown).
Although a preferred embodiment provides a substantially conical drive shaft with at least one transverse cross-pin for driving a roller, various alternative embodiments are contemplated. The present disclosure contemplates a system comprising a drive member and a roller, the roller being selectively attachable to the drive member and the system comprises user-friendly features to facilitate such attachment. Accordingly, various embodiments are within the scope and spirit of the present disclosure. For example, various embodiments of the present disclosure contemplate various systems wherein at least one of a brush roller and a drive member comprise at least a male projection and the opposing device comprises at least a female member. In further embodiments, a brush roller and a drive member comprise both male and female components adapted for force-transmitting communication with one another. For example, a roller and a drive member of one embodiment each comprise toothed or geared projections for engaging each other in force-transmitting communication. At least one conical member is provided on one or both members to guide and ease attachment of the members.
The baffle 94 further comprises a distribution baffle 91 which extends downwardly from the manifold 76 and the remainder of the baffle 94. In certain embodiments, the distribution baffle 91 extends along a length of the brush and comprises a plurality of ports (84 in
While various embodiments of the present disclosure have been described in detail herein, it is apparent that modifications and alterations of those embodiments will occur to those skilled in the art. However, it is to be expressly understood that such modifications and alterations are within the scope and spirit of the present disclosure, as set forth in the following claims. Further, the invention(s) described herein are capable of other embodiments and of being practiced or of being carried out in various ways. In addition, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology used herein is for the purposes of description and should not be regarded as limiting. The use of “including,” “comprising,” or “adding” and variations thereof herein are meant to encompass the items listed thereafter and equivalents thereof, as well as additional items.
This U.S. Non-Provisional Patent Application claims the benefit of priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/752,227, filed Jan. 14, 2013, the entire disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.
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