AU2019275871A1

AU2019275871A1 - Wiper plate

Info

Publication number: AU2019275871A1
Application number: AU2019275871A
Authority: AU
Inventors: Alessandro Brugora
Original assignee: Carl Freudenberg KG
Current assignee: Carl Freudenberg KG
Priority date: 2018-05-29
Filing date: 2019-05-16
Publication date: 2020-11-26
Anticipated expiration: 2039-05-16
Also published as: EP3801172B1; PL3801172T3; EP3801172C0; DE102018112822A1; CA3101647A1; AU2019275871B2; ES2960445T3; EP3801172A1; WO2019228818A1; CA3101647C; CN112188858A

Abstract

The invention relates to a wiper plate (1) comprising a main body (2) to which a first wiper plate wing (3) and a second wiper plate wing (4) are pivotably connected, the wiper plate wings (3, 4) being reversibly fixable in a working position (6) by means of a fixing device (5), the fixing device (5) comprising a foot pedal (7), the fixing device (5) being released by actuating the foot pedal (7) so that the wiper plate wings (3, 4) can be pivoted from the working position (6) into a wringing-out position (8), the foot pedal (7) being pivotably mounted on the first wiper plate wing (3), and the foot pedal (7) fixing the second wiper plate wing (4) in the working position (6), wherein the foot pedal (7) has spring means which are designed such that the second wiper plate wing (4) pivots relative to the first wiper plate wing (3) when the foot pedal (7) is actuated.

Description

17PA0102WO

1

16. May 2019 Mattausch/ ki

Applicant: Carl Freudenberg KG, 69469 Weinheim

Wiper Plate

The invention concerns a wiper plate, comprising a basic structure, to which a first wiper plate wing and a second wiper plate wing are attached pivotably, wherein the wiper plate wings can be fixed in a working position reversibly by means of a fixing facility, wherein the fixing facility encompasses a foot pedal, wherein the fixing facility releases itself through activating the foot pedal, so that the wiper plate wings can be swivelled from the working position to a wringing out position, wherein the foot pedal has been arranged pivotably on the first wiper blade wing and wherein the foot pedal fixes the second wiper plate wing in the working position.

Such types of wiper plates are known for example from DE 10 2012 007 525 Al. The wiper plate forms a part of a wiping device, wherein the wiping device has a shaft along with the wiper plate, which is connected to the wiper plate via a joint. The wiper plate is allocated a wiper covering, which is attached to the wiper plate detachably in such a way, that it can contact the floor for cleaning. In this way, the wiper plate presses the wiper covering flat down flat onto the floor which must be cleaned.

In order to be able to remove the wiper covering, it is a fact that the wiper plate is implemented pivotably, wherein the wiper plate includes two wiper plate wings, which are directed in a working position predominantly in a horizontal plane. For removing the wiper covering, or for wringing out the wiper covering, the wiper plate wings can be transferred into a wringing out position. This takes place through swivelling the wiper plate wings towards one another.

Furthermore, it is a fact that for the wiper plate wings to independently remain in a working position, a fixing facility must be provided, which fixes the wiper plate wings to one another in the working position. The fixing facility contains a foot pedal, which is formed in such a way, that through activating the foot pedal fixing for the wiper plate wings is loosened, so that the wiper plate wings can subsequently be swivelled

One problem is that the activation direction of the foot pedal for unlocking fixing corresponds to the swivelling direction of the wiper plate wings from the working position to the wringing out position. In this way it is possible that the wiper plate wings during activation of the foot pedal freeze in the working position and after unlocking the foot pedal are fixed in the working position again. In order to prevent this, it is a fact from the latest state of technology, that the two wiper plate wings must be pre-tensioned by means of a spring element in such a way, that the wiper plate wings independently swivel into the wringing out position. When doing so however, it is disadvantageous that an additional structural element is required and that transferring the wiper plate wings from the wringing out position to the working position may become complicated.

This invention is based on the task, of providing a wiper plate which can be manufactured in a cost-efficient manner and can also exhibit simple operability.

This task is solved with the characteristics of Claim 1. The sub-claims refer to the advantageous forms of design.

To solve this task, the foot pedal has a means of springing which is designed in such a way, that on activating the foot pedal, the second wiper plate wing swivels relative to the first wiper plate wing. In this way, on activating the foot pedal on the one hand unlocking the fixing of the two wiper plate wings occurs and on the other hand simultaneously a pivoting of the two wiper plate wings occurs, so that the two wiper plate wings on releasing the foot pedal do not catch in place again immediately.

Fixing the two wiper plate wings should preferably take place by means of a snap coupling. To do this, the foot pedal, which is arranged pivotably on the first wiper plate wing, includes a section which locks the second wiper plate wing with a further section. To do this, the foot pedal may have holder elements on the edge allocated to the second wiper plate wing, which in the working position overlap the second wiper plate wing and in this way fix it in place. Alternatively, one or more protrusions may be provided, which in the working position project into depressions which are formed out of the second wiper plate wing. On activating the foot pedal, the foot pedal moves to a distance away from the second wiper plate wing, so that the holder elements are at a distance away from the second wiper plate wing and the second wiper plate wing can be pivoted relative to the foot pedal and therefore to the first wiper plate.

The foot pedal and the second wiper plate wing should furthermore preferably be formed in such a way, that fixing the two wiper plates succeeds independently, whenever the two wiper plate wings are transferred from the wringing out position to the working position. In this design form, one section of the second wiper plate wing independently engages below the foot pedal, wherein the foot pedal in this case swivels independently.

The foot pedal should preferably be connected to the first wiper plate flexibly, wherein the foot pedal has a first free end protruding down from the wiper plate, which forms the activation section of the foot pedal and has a second end which points in the direction of the second wiper plate, which forms the locking section of the foot pedal.

The wiper plate may encompass a top side and an underside forming the wiping surface, wherein the undersides of the first wiper plate wing and the second wiper plate wing on pivoting from the working position to the wringing out position move towards one another. The undersides of the first wiper plate wing and the second wiper plate wing are predominantly directed in a horizontal plane in the working position. The foot pedal should preferably be arranged on the topside of the first wiper plate wing. To do this, the foot pedal is shaped in the form of a tilting lever.

The foot pedal may be allocated at least one protrusion, which is assigned to the locking section, wherein the protrusion in the working position is assigned to the underside of the second wiper plate wing. In this way, two protrusions may be provided. On activating the foot pedal, the protrusions press on the underside of the second wiper plate wing. In this way the second wiper plate wing swivels relative to the first wiper plate wing through a small angular measure. This is sufficient, for the two wiper plate wings to no longer be able to catch once the foot pedal is released. To this extent, on activating the foot pedal, the foot pedal is released from the second wiper plate wing and the second wiper plate wing is raised up at the same time. If the wiper plate is subsequently removed to a distance from the floor to be cleaned, the two wiper plate wings swivel towards one another and the wiper covering can either be wrung out or can be removed from the wiper plate.

The protrusions may be formed as spring elements. According to a further advantageous design, the protrusions may be formed as spring clips. With this design, the protrusions are formed as cover plates with thin walls. The protrusions should preferably consist of plastic suitable for injection moulding just like the two wiper plate wings. With this form of design, the protrusions may deform on activating the foot pedal, which facilitates easier operability.

The foot pedal may contain a holder section, which is allocated to the locking section, wherein the holder section is assigned to the topside of the second wiper plate wing in the working position. When doing this, the second wiper plate wing should preferably be formed in such a way, that viewed from above it grips around the basic structure in a U-shape and in this way partially covers the first wiper plate wing over. Through this design, two elements are formed hanging down on the on the second wiper plate wing, which on swivelling the wiper plate wings from the working position to the wringing out position, pivot in the direction of the joint. The holder section of the foot pedal is assigned to the elements hanging down, which overlap the elements in the working position and in this way lock the wiper plate wings in place. Both wiper plate wings cannot independently swivel in this position. If the foot pedal is activated, the elements are removed from the holder section, so that the second wiper plate wing is released relative to the foot pedal, or to the first wiper plate wing and can swivel.

The holder elements and the holder section in this case are preferably selected in such a way, that the holder section on swivelling from the wringing out position to the working position through simply pressing on the shaft independently snaps open onto the elements and independently catches in this position. This may for example occur, through the holder section coming to rest on the elements of the second wiper plate wing, wherein the elements swivel the foot pedal with the holder section. As soon as the holder section overlaps the elements, the foot pedal swivels back again, and the wiper plate wings are locked in place in the working position.

The first wiper plate wing and the second wiper plate wing in each case may include toothed gears, which interlock with one another. In this way we ensure, that the wiper plate wings pivot uniformly.

The first wiper plate wing, the second wiper plate wing and the foot pedal may be locked in the working position in a form-fit manner.

A few forms of design of the wiper plate in accordance with the invention are explained in more detail below by means of the figures. These depict, in each case schematically:

Fig. 1 the wiper plate in working position viewed from the front; Fig. 2 the wiper plate in working position viewed from above; Fig. 3 the wiper plate in working position viewed from below; Fig. 4 the wiper plate in working position viewed from the side; Fig. 5 the wiper plate in working position viewed in a further side-on view; Fig. 6 wiper plate in working position viewed in spatial representation; Fig. 7 the wiper plate in wringing-out position viewed from the side; Fig. 8 the wiper plate in wringing-out position viewed in cross-section; Fig. 9 the wiper plate in working position viewed in cross-section; Fig. 10 the wiper plate in front-on view, viewed in cross-section with the foot pedal activated.

The Figures show a wiper plate 1 with a basic structure 2, to which a first wiper plate wing 3 and a second wiper plate wing 4 are connected in a pivotable manner. The basic structure 2 is assigned a joint 15, in this case a universal joint, which can be connected to a shaft. The wiper plate wings 3, 4 can be fixed reversibly in a working position 6 by a fixing facility 5. In working position 6, the two wiper plate wings 3, 4 are in principle directed in a single plane. The fixing facility 5 encompasses a foot pedal 7, wherein the fixing facility 5 unlocks itself through activating the foot pedal 7, so that the wiper plate wings 3, 4 can be swivelled from working position 6 into a wringing out position 8.

The wiper plate 1 and wiper plate wings 3, 4 have a topside 11 and an underside 12 forming the wiping surface. The undersides 12 of the first wiper plate wing 3 and the second wiper plate wing 4 move towards one another when the wiper plate wings 3, 4 are swivelled from the working position 6 into the wringing out position 8. In the wringing out position 8, the two undersides 12 of the two wiper plate wings 3, 4 are opposite one another.

The foot pedal 7 is arranged on the first wiper plate wing 3 pivotably and is formed in such a way, that the foot pedal 7 fixes the second wiper plate wing 4 in place in the working position 6. What is more, the foot pedal 7 is formed in such a way, that the second wiper plate wing 4 on activating the foot pedal 7 swivels relative to the first wiper plate wing 3.

The foot pedal 7 is attached flexibly to the first wiper plate wing 3, wherein the foot pedal 7 has a first free end 9 hanging down from the first wiper plate 1, which forms the activating section of the foot pedal 7. What is more, the foot pedal 7 has a second free end 10 protruding in the direction of the second wiper plate wing 4, which forms a locking section of the foot pedal 7.

The foot pedal 7 has two holder elements 26 on the facing side of the second free end 10, which are assigned to the locking section. The two holder elements 26 overlap the second wiper plate wing 4 in working position 6. On the underside 12 of the second wiper plate wing 4, protrusions 13 formed as spring clips with elastic pre-tension at the same time. The protrusions 13 are likewise formed on the foot pedal 7. The two holder elements 26 and protrusions 13 in working position 6 abut above and below the second wiper plate wing 4 and clamp it between them. In this way, the wiper plate wings 3, 4 are locked in place in the working position 6.

The second wiper plate wing 4 has protruding elements 25, is [sic: are] formed in such a way, that the second wiper plate wing 4 including elements 25 grip around the basic structure 2 in a U-shape. On swivelling the wiper plate wings 3, 4, the elements 25 swivel in the direction of the joint 15. In working position 6, the holder elements 26 rest on the elements 25 on the topside 11 and in this way lock wiper plate wings 3, 4 in working position 6.

If the foot pedal 7 is activated, the holder elements 26 move a distance away from the second wiper plate wing 4, or the element 25 and release the second wiper plate wing 4 for swivelling. At the same time, the two protrusions 13 press against the underside 12 of the second wiper plate wing 4 and in this way swivel the second wiper plate wing 4 relative to the first wiper plate wing 3 through activating the foot pedal 7.

The first wiper plate wing 3 and the second wiper plate wing 4 in each case have toothed gears 14, which interlock with one another. In this way, both wiper plate wings 3, 4 swivel at the same time relative to the basic structure 2. In wringing out position 8, both wiper plate wings are situated below the basic structure 2, or in a straight line to the shaft, the joint 15 and the basic structure 2.

The first wiper plate wing 3, the second wiper plate wing 4 and foot pedal 7 are locked in the first working position 6 in an interlocking manner.

The basic structure 2, wiper plate wings 3, 4 and joint 15 are formed from plastic suitable for injection moulding. The underside 12 of wiper plate wings 3,

4 is covered with a structure in the form of ribs 16. The ribs 16 make it possible to locally press the wiper covering flat on the floor for cleaning under high pressure. In this way, the cleaning performance is improved.

The wiper plate wings 3, 4 must be fitted with a facility 17 for fastening a wiper covering. This consists in the design on hand of recesses, which are applied in the edge regions of the thin sides of wiper plate wings 3, 4 and serve for taking up pressure buttons. In this way, the wiper covering is also connected securely to the wiper plate 1 in wringing out position 8, so that the wiper covering can be wrung out hanging down from the wiper plate 1 in a wringing out attachment.

Figure 1 shows wiper plate 1 in working position 6 in a frontal view.

Figure 2 shows wiper plate 1 in working position 6 as viewed from above.

Figure 3 shows wiper plate 1 in working position 6 as viewed from below. Along with the ribs 16, in the view from below a covering 24 can be detected, which covers the foot pedal 7 on the underside 12. In this way, foot pedal 7 is protected against undesired interventions from the underside 12.

Figure 4 shows wiper plate 1 in the working position 6 viewed from the side. In this side-on view, the first wiper plate wing 3 is shown with foot pedal 7. Figure 5 shows wiper plate 1 in the working position 6 in a further side-on view. In this side-on view, the second wiper plate wing 4 is represented.

Figure 6 shows wiper plate 1 in working position 6 in a spatial representation.

Figure 7 shows wiper plate 1 in the wringing out position 8 as seen in a side-on view. The first wiper plate wing 3 is shown with foot pedal 7. What is more, the elements 25 of the second wiper plate wing 4 can be detected. In the wringing out position, the elements are 25 are pivoted in the direction of joint 15.

Figure 8 shows wiper plate 1 in wringing out position 8 in a frontal view.

Figure 9 shows wiper plate 1 in working position 6, wherein the region around the foot pedal y is shown in cross-section. In this representation the protrusions 13 can be detected, which are formed as spring clips and abut against the underside 12 of the second wiper plate wing 4 under pre-tension. What is more, the holder element 26 can be recognised, which is formed from foot pedal 7 and which rests on the topside 11 of the second wiper plate wing 4, or on the elements 25 and together with the protrusions 13 locks the two wiper plate wings 3, 4 in place. Spacers 19 are arranged on the elements 25, which contact the protrusions 13, whenever the wiper plate wings 3, 4 are swivelled from wringing out position 8 to working position 6. Through the spacers 19, the elements 25 impact the protrusions 13 at an early stage on swivelling. What is more pre-tensioning of the protrusions 13 formed as spring clips increases, so that wiper plate wings 3, 4 independently move out of working position 6 following activation of the foot pedal 7.

Figure 10 shows the wiper plate in accordance with Figure 9 wherein the foot pedal 7 has been activated. In this way, the holder elements 26 separate themselves at a distance from wiper plate wing 4 so the latter is released for pivoting. At the same time, the protrusions 13 press on the underside 12 of the second wiper plate wing 4 and in this way move the second wiper plate wing 4 and via the toothed gears also the first wiper plate wing 3 out of working position 6. If the foot pedal 7 is subsequently released, then the wiper plate wings 3, 4 can no longer independently lock themselves in position and on lifting the wiper plate 1 up, the wiper plate wings 3, 4 swivel into wringing out position 8.

Claims

Patent Claims

1. Wiper plate (1), encompassing a basic structure (2), to which a first wiper plate wing (3) and a second wiper plate wing (4) are connected pivotably, wherein the wiper plate wings (3),(4) can be fixed in place reversibly by means of a fixing facility (5) in a working position (6), wherein the fixing facility (5) encompasses a foot pedal (7), wherein the fixing facility (5) unlocks itself through activating foot pedal (7), so that the wiper plate wings (3, 4) can be swivelled from the working position (6) to a wringing out position (8), wherein the foot pedal (7) is arranged on the first wiper plate wing (3) in a pivotable manner and wherein the foot pedal (7) locks the second wiper plate (4) in working position (6), characterised in, that the foot pedal (7) has a means of springing, which is formed in such a fashion, that the second wiper plate wing (4) swivels relative to the first wiper plate wing (3), on activating the foot pedal (7).

2. Wiper plate according to Claim 1, characterised in, that the foot pedal (7) is connected flexibly to the first wiper plate wing (3), wherein the foot pedal (7) has a first free end (9) hanging down from the first wiper plate wing (3), which forms the activation section of the foot pedal (7) and has a second free end (10) protruding in the direction of the second wiper plate wing(4),which forms the locking section of the foot pedal (7).

3. Wiper plate according to Claim 1 or 2, characterised in, that the wiper plate (1) has a topside (11) and an underside (12) forming the wiping surface, wherein the undersides (12) of the first wiper plate wing (3) and the second wiper plate wing (4) move towards one another on swivelling from the working position (6) into the wringing out position (8).

4. Wiper plate according to Claim 3, characterised in, that foot pedal (7) includes at least one protrusion (13), which is assigned to the locking section, wherein the protrusion (13) in working position (6) is assigned to the underside (12) of the second wiper plate wing (4).

5. Wiper plate according to Claim 4, characterised in, that two protrusions (13) are provided.

6. Wiper plate according to Claim 4 or 5, characterised in, that the protrusions (13) are formed as spring elements.

7. Wiper plate according to one of the Claims 1 to 6, characterised in, that the foot pedal (7) includes at least one holder element (26), which in working position (6) is connected with the second wiper plate wing (4) in an interlocking manner.

8. Wiper plate according to Claim 7, characterised in, that the holder element (26) in working position (6) overlaps the second wiper plate wing (4).

9. Wiper plate according to one of the Claims 1 to 8, characterised in, that the first wiper plate wing (3) and the second wiper plate wing (4) and the foot pedal (7) in working position (6) are locked in place in form fit.

10. Wiper plate according to one of the Claims 1 to 9, characterised in, that the first wiper plate wing (3) and the second wiper plate wing (4) in each case have a toother gear (14), which interlock with one another.