Rectangular Eccentric Driven Floor Cleaner

Abstract

A cleaning pad device is provided having a rectangular pad which moves in an oscillating or back and forth motion of the rectangular pad. The device can be provided as a dedicated unit having a motor mounted on a base and a handle. The device may also be provided as an attachment to an existing floor cleaner having a round pad which rotates. In the attachment configuration, support members engage the base of an existing floor cleaner. A planar rectangular pad support is connected to the support members with flexible connectors. The rectangular pad support is operatively coupled with the rotating drive assembly for the round pad to convert the rotational motion to a back and forth motion of the pad support and any rectangular pad thereon.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a cleaning device for planar surfaces, such as floors, patios and the like. More particularly, the invention relates to a rectangular cleaning component having a cleaning surface, such as a pad which moves eccentrically. The device may be a free standing rectangular cleaner as a unit, or more preferably, it may be configured for operative removable coupling to a conventional orbital floor cleaner having a circular rotating eccentric support surface. So engaged, the eccentric circular movement of the orbital floor cleaner imparts translating or eccentric circular movement to the rectangular support and engaged cleaning pad.

2. Prior Art

Conventional floor cleaning devices generally include cleaning head assemblies with handles engaged thereon. Such cleaning head assemblies generally consist of a drive motor (electric or gas powered) which are mounted to a separate frame, which drives a flywheel to power a drive plate which is operatively mounted on the end of a handled frame. The drive on many conventional cleaning and sanding devices operate to rotate eccentrically and are preferred in many instances to a simple rotation. Conventional orbital cleaning devices which employ a circular pad, such as those manufactured by ORBOT USA of Vista, California and sold worldwide, have a drive motor and frame which may be moved along on wheels when not in use. These highly regarded cleaners employ cleaning head assemblies with flywheels adapted to engage polisher supports and pads. The pads are operatively engaged to a drive plate which is engaged to the motor in a manner which imparts an oscillation movement of the pad or polisher and the plate they are mounted upon. Weights are conventionally employed to achieve the desirable cleaning oscillation. This oscillation of a round support surface and pad has been shown to provide improved cleaning characteristics when used upon stone, tile, ceramic, cement, wood, carpet, and other surfaces of floors during cleaning. However, currently, such orbital cleaners and polishers having such an oscillating movement are limited to a round or circular pad mounted on a round oscillating plate.

The forgoing examples of related art of orbital floor and surface cleaners and the limitations related therewith, are intended to be illustrative and not exclusive, and they do not imply any limitations on the invention described and claimed herein. Various other limitations in the related art of floor and surface cleaners will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon a reading and understanding of the specification below and the accompanying drawings.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Currently, orbital cleaners and polishers for floors and carpets and other surfaces, needing cleaning, such as those manufactured by the ORBOT USA, of Vista, California and shown as an example which is in no way limiting in U.S. Pat. No. 8,839,479, which is incorporated herein by this reference thereto as to the structure and function of such conventional cleaners which operate with an oscillating rotation of the cleaning or other pad.

Such conventional surface cleaners are configured with round pad supports adapted for engaging round polishing or cleaning pads thereon. As noted, while such cleaners having a round driver or pad mount moving in an eccentric orbit work extremely well, in many instances, where the cleaning involves many corners or intersections and/or long linear surface edges of the floor surface being cleaned, the rotating circular shaped pad can be a challenge to operate efficiently.

During such operation in corners and long linear edges the small length of the edge of a circular pad progressing along a long linear surface can easily cause missed spots which are not cleaned properly. Also, the curved perimeter of the round polishing pads can form arc shaped streaks and in some case arc shaped scratches where the user tips the polisher and the small length area of the circumference of the pad contacts the floor. This type of short length contact can also leave arced streaks and scratches where the user leaves the polisher for a duration which is too long on an area of the floor being polished.

The elongated edge of the square polisher pad herein provides a solution to these shortcomings since an entire linear edge of the rectangle may contact the surface being polished. As such, long runs along linear edges where a floor meets a wall or in corners is rendered much easier since the rectangular pad with perpendicular edges can match the edges of the floor or surface being cleaned. Further, a rectangular pad, in many cases, is less likely to streak or scratch the surface since tipping in any direction of the polisher is resisted by the entire length of the rectangular pad in the direction of such tipping.

Additionally desirable to companies who may have numerous round-configured cleaners is the ability to temporarily or permanently convert round cleaners with round cleaning pads to a surface cleaner having a rectangular cleaning pad. To that end the system and device herein may be configured with an attachable frame which may be permanently or temporarily positioned to an operative coupling to the existing floor and surface cleaner. So positioned, the user may then move the cleaner with a rectangular cleaning pad mounted to a rectangular support surface but driven by the existing rotational motor and oscillating components. By operative coupling herein is meant that the planar rectangular support surface and cleaning pad thereon are connected to an existing cleaners and powered for an oscillating cleaning movement during use, by the rotating oscillating orbital drive assembly of the existing floor and surface cleaner.

The rectangular surface cleaner device herein has a support frame which is coupled with the circular driver base of a conventional round rotating eccentric cleaner having a circular eccentrically rotating pad. This driver base is engaged to the existing handle and wheels and provides support for the motor powering the conventional existing floor cleaning device to such an eccentric rotation.

The support frame of the device herein, currently connects to the driver base using members in an engagement or contact with at least the top surface thereof. The planar frame has flexible connectors communicating from the stationary members through openings in the frame to a rectangular pad support. This rectangular pad support is configured to engage with a rectangular pad on an outward surface.

The rectangular pad support is coupled to the eccentrically rotating component of the conventional surface cleaner which is normally engaged to a circular pad support and powered for eccentric rotation by the motor mounted on the circular driver base of an existing surface cleaner, such as the noted cleaner manufactured by ORBOT. However, the device herein can be configured for operative coupling of the support frame and rectangular pad support to the powered rotating system of any existing brand of surface cleaner.

This connection of the rectangular pad support to the source of powered eccentric rotation provides for eccentric movement to the rectangular pad support and any pad engaged thereon during operation. During this movement the flexible connectors extending between the mounting members and the rectangular pad support will flex and bend as needed to allow for an oscillating movement while holding the rectangular pad support in the operative coupling to the powered rotating component of the existing round surface cleaner. The rectangular pad moves back and forth in a repetitive up-and-down motion, rather than rotating in a circular pattern like the circular pad. Where the device herein is configured for operative coupling to an existing rotating cleaner, it thus provides the user with the option to change the direction and shape of the pad being employed.

With respect to the above description, before explaining at least one preferred embodiment of the herein disclosed rectangular surface cleaner device in more detail, it is to be understood that it is not limited in its application to the details of construction and to the arrangement of the components in the following description or illustrated in the drawings. The invention herein described is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced and carried out in various ways which will be obvious to those skilled in the art. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology employed herein are for the purpose of description and should not be regarded as limiting.

As such, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the conception upon which this disclosure is based may readily be utilized as a basis for designing of other rectangular floor and planar surface cleaning devices which are preferably removably engageable to an existing round-configured floor cleaner with eccentric movement. It is important, therefore, that the claims be regarded as including such equivalent construction and methodology insofar as they do not depart from the spirit and scope of the present invention.

It is an object of this invention to provide a floor and other planar surface cleaner which has a rectangular cleaning surface.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a rectangular shaped floor and surface cleaner which may be operatively coupled to an existing conventional floor surface cleaner having a round cleaning pad surface to convert it to a rectangular cleaning pad and support surface.

The objects, features, and advantages of the present rectangular floor and surface cleaner as well as the advantages thereof over existing prior art, which will become apparent from the description to follow, are accomplished by the improvements described in the following detailed description which fully discloses the invention, but should not be considered as placing limitations thereon.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWING FIGURES

The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated herein and form a part of the specification, illustrate some, but not the only or exclusive, examples of embodiments and/or features of the rectangular shaped floor and surface cleaner herein. It is intended that the embodiments and figures herein are to be considered illustrative of rectangular cleaner system and method herein, rather than limiting.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 depicts the rectangular cleaning device herein in operative coupling to a conventional floor and surface cleaner which is normally configured with a round cleaning pad on a round eccentrically moving pad support surface.

FIG. 2 depicts a view from the rear of the conventional surface cleaner of FIG. 1 where the round pad support has been removed and the rectangular pad support is held in operative coupling by the flexible connectors.

FIG. 3 depicts a conventional cleaner having a rotating circular or round cleaning pad from a lower end view.

FIG. 4 shows the conventional cleaner of FIG. 3 wherein the pad and any pad support therefor have been removed and the rotating drive assembly for rotating the pad is exposed.

FIG. 5 shows the device herein being operatively coupled to the base of a conventional floor cleaner of FIGS. 1-3.

FIG. 6 shows the rectangular cleaning pad device, as in FIG. 3, with the motor of the conventional cleaner removed for clarity and showing the two support members engaged atop the existing base and showing the flexible connectors extending to support the rectangular pad support.

FIG. 7 depicts the device, as in FIG. 6, but with a central area of the pad support removed to show the connection point for the pad support to the existing rotating drive assembly such as to the bearing assembly which may rotate eccentrically.

FIG. 8 shows the device herein, as in FIGS. 6-7, from an end view to show the connection of the rectangular pad support to the existing eccentric drive powered by the existing motor.

FIG. 9 depicts the device herein in operative coupling to the existing cleaner such as after the positioning shown in FIG. 5 wherein a central plate portion of the pad support is connected to the mount bearing assembly of the existing cleaner which is employed to rotate a round pad.

FIG. 10 shows the rectangular pad positioned on the pad support and ready for oscillating back and forth movement during use.

Other aspects of the present rectangular eccentric surface cleaning device shall be more readily understood when considered in conjunction with these accompanying drawings, and the following detailed description, neither of which should be considered limiting.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION

In this description, the directional prepositions of up, upwardly, down, downwardly, front, back, top, upper, bottom, lower, left, right and other such terms refer depictions as they are oriented and appear in the drawings and are used for convenience only. These terms are not intended to be limiting or to imply that the attachable rectangular surface cleaner for a conventional round surface cleaner have to be used or positioned in any particular orientation.

Now referring to drawings in FIGS. 1-10, wherein similar components are identified by like reference numerals, there can be seen in FIG. 1 the attachable rectangular cleaning device 10 herein. As depicted, the device 10 is in operative coupling to a conventional floor and surface cleaner 12 which is normally configured with a round cleaning pad on a round eccentrically moving pad support surface. Such conventional cleaners 12 are generally powered by an electric motor 14 operatively engaged to a base 16 having wheels, to power an underlying eccentric rotating mechanism for a circular pad.

Another view of the device 10 herein, in an operative coupling to an existing cleaner 12 using rotating round pads, is shown in FIG. 2. In the rear view of FIG. 2, it can be seen that the round pad support has been removed and the rectangular pad support 18 is held in operative positioning by a plurality of flexible connectors 20.

It should be noted that the device 10 herein can be provided as a single unit configured to clean surfaces with rectangular pads 18 in an oscillating back and forth motion and such would be configured essentially, as shown in FIGS. 1-2, and use the components described herein.

As noted, FIGS. 3-4 show a bottom view of a conventional cleaner having a base 16 supporting the motor 14 providing rotational drive to rotating circular or round pad 17 which is engaged to a support plate 19 which is connected to a drive assembly 15 to provide rotation during use. The round pad 17 and support plate 19 therefor is shown removed in FIG. 4 wherein a drive assembly 15 connected to the motor 14 for powered rotation is exposed. The drive assembly has a rotating bearing assembly 28 connected to a rotating plate 30 having weights thereon which impart a slight eccentric movement to a rotating round pad 17 when engaged.

The device 10 herein when operatively coupled, couples the pad support 18 to the drive assembly 15. This may be accomplished using fasteners which engaged the pad support 18 to the bearing assembly 28 or to other components of such a drive assembly 15 as would occur to those skilled in the art where such a coupling communicates the movement of the drive assembly 15 to impart a back and forth oscillation to the pad support 18 and pad 24 thereon.

In FIG. 5 is depicted the device 10 herein being operatively coupled to the base 16 of the conventional cleaner of FIGS. 1-4. As shown, the device 10 is operatively coupled by engaging the support members 22 to the base 16 of the cleaner, such as to an upper surface of the base 16, as in FIG. 6. Once so engaged, the flexible connectors 20 extend between the support members 22 and the pad support 18 to form a flexible connection of the pad support to the support members 22. The central mount 26 area of the pad support 18 is engaged with the drive assembly 15 with fasteners, such as screws or bolts or the like. Currently, the central mount 26 area is connected to the bearing assembly 28 of the drive assembly 15, and as the drive assembly 15 rotates, the bearing assembly 28 rotates on a mount to the drive assembly 15 and moves eccentrically. This eccentric movement communicates an eccentric back-and-forth movement to the pad support 18 and the rectangular pad 24 mounted thereon.

FIGS. 6-7 show opposite views of the device 10 herein in the operative coupling with the base 16 of a cleaner. As shown, the support members 22 may be engaged to a mounting plate 13 which is connected to the base 16 of the cleaner. While the current support member 22 connection to the base 16 or attachments to the base 16 are preferred ways to form the operative coupling of the device 10, other engagements of the support members 22 to the base 16 of an existing cleaner having a motor 14 powering a drive assembly 15 may be used, when required to provide a flexible support to a pad support 18 and coupling to a drive assembly 15 since some manufactures may vary on the configuration. It should be noted that any such operative coupling of an oscillating rectangular pad 24 which is powered by the drive assembly 15 of a cleaner is considered within the scope of this patent.

A side perspective view of the connection is shown in FIG. 8. As shown, the rectangular pad support 18 is held in place by the flexible connectors 20 which allow the pad support 18 and any cleaning or polishing or other pad 24 thereon to move eccentrically back and forth, when powered by the drive assembly 15 engaged with the motor 14. As noted, the device 10 may be removed from the existing conventional cleaners 12 and the round pad 17 replaced, should such be desired.

Shown in FIGS. 9-10 are views of the device 10 in which it has been placed in operative coupling with an existing cleaner having a round pad 17, as noted above. The pad support 18 has been connected to the drive assembly 15 by fasteners 27 engaged with the central mount 26 area and the bearing assembly 28 of the drive assembly 15. The pad support 18 is also to support members 22 by the flexible connectors 20 and the support members 22 are either connected directly to the base 16 or to components engaged with the base 16. The rectangular pad 24 is thereby moved in a back and forth motion by using the power from the motor 14 communicated to the drive assembly 15.

Where a single unit dedicated to a rectangular pad 24 imparting oscillating back and forth movement to a surface is provided. As noted, it would have the base 16 supporting a motor 14 which will provide power to move the pad 24 back and forth through a drive assembly which may be configured similar to the depicted drive assembly 15 where the bearing assembly 28 moves in an oscillating circle to communicate the back and forth movement to the pad support 18 and pad 24.

In a method of employing the device 10 herein to change a floor cleaner having a rotating circular pad connected to a drive assembly to provide an oscillating or back and forth movement of a square pad for floor cleaning, in a first step, the round pad and any support plate therefor will be removed from engagement with the drive assembly of the existing cleaner.

In a next step, the device 10 herein is placed in an operative coupling to the existing floor cleaner by connecting support members which are engaged by flexible connectors to a pad support to a base of the floor cleaner.

In a next step, the pad support is operatively coupled to a drive assembly of the floor cleaner.

In a next step, a rectangular pad is positioned upon the pad support.

While all of the fundamental characteristics and features of the engageable rectangular surface cleaner device 10 herein and method therefor have been shown and described herein, with reference to particular embodiments thereof, a latitude of modification, various changes and substitutions are intended in the foregoing disclosure and it will be apparent that in some instances, some features of the attachable invention may be employed without a corresponding use of other features without departing from the scope of the invention as set forth. It should also be understood that various substitutions, modifications, and variations may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention. Consequently, all such modifications and variations and substitutions are included within the scope of the invention as defined by the following claims.

Claims

1. A cleaning pad apparatus comprising: a planar rectangular pad support;at least one support member for engagement with a base of a floor cleaner;flexible connectors coupling said planar rectangular pad support to said support member; andsaid planar rectangular pad support for operative coupling to said floor cleaner whereby a rotating drive assembly of said floor cleaner, driven by a motor thereon, imparts a back and forth motion to said planar rectangular pad support.

2. The cleaning pad apparatus of claim 1 additionally comprising: said operative coupling comprising fasteners coupling said planar rectangular pad support to a bearing assembly of said drive assembly; anda rectangular pad positionable upon said planar rectangular pad support, said rectangular pad moving in said back and forth motion during contact with a surface being cleaned by said floor cleaner.

3. The cleaning pad apparatus of claim 2 additionally comprising: two said support members for said engagement with said base; andtwo said flexible connectors, one each of said flexible connectors coupling said planar rectangular pad support to said each respective said support member.

4. A method of mounting said cleaning pad apparatus of claim 2 to a floor cleaner having a round pad mounted upon a round pad mount, which rotates, to provide said floor cleaner with a back and forth motion of a rectangular pad, comprising: removing said round pad mount to expose said drive assembly;connecting said support member to a base of said floor cleaner;engaging said fasteners to couple said planar rectangular pad support to said drive assembly; whereby actuating said motor to rotate said drive assembly imparts said back and forth motion to said planar rectangular pad support and to any rectangular pad thereon during contact thereof with a surface being cleaned by said floor cleaner.

5. A cleaning pad apparatus comprising: a planar rectangular pad support;at least one support member for engagement with a base of a floor cleaner;flexible connectors coupling said planar rectangular pad support to said support member; andsaid planar rectangular pad support for operative coupling to a drive assembly rotated by a motor of said floor cleaner whereby rotation of said drive assembly imparts a back and forth motion to said planar rectangular pad support.

6. A floor surface cleaner, comprising: a base having wheels thereon;a motor engaged to said base;said motor engaged to a drive assembly to impart rotation thereto;a planar rectangular pad support for positioning of a rectangular pad thereon;said planar rectangular pad support in a connection with said base;a coupling of said planar rectangular pad support to said drive assembly; androtation of said drive assembly imparting a back and forth motion to said planar pad support.

7. The floor surface cleaner of claim 6 wherein said connection of said planar rectangular pad support with said base comprises: at least one flexible connector engaged holding said planar rectangular pad support to said base.