EP0824336B1 - Implement for simultaneously drying a surface and collecting a liquid - Google Patents

Abstract

PCT No. PCT/FR96/00703 Sec. 371 Date Nov. 10, 1997 Sec. 102(e) Date Nov. 10, 1997 PCT Filed May 10, 1996 PCT Pub. No. WO96/35366 PCT Pub. Date Nov. 14, 1996An implement for drying a surface and for simultaneously recovering a liquid from the surface includes a drying blade of flexible material secured to a hand-held support, the drying blade having a linear leading edge for scraping the surface and for drying the surface by establishing a bead of the liquid behind the leading edge on an inside face of the drying blade, and a substrate having a face fixed to a face of the drying blade adjacent the linear leading edge and which collects the bead of liquid established behind the linear leading edge. This substrate constitutes a drying and liquid recovery head.

Description

The invention relates to a tool for drying and recovering a cleaning liquid. present on a surface, such as for example a glazed surface, see a ground, said liquid is a cleaning product and / or condensed vapors containing dirt previously or simultaneously dissolved and dispersed. It consists of a flexible blade of known type, for drying the liquid, which is found on many cleaning tools, squeegees and cleaning devices with a blade, on which a capillary substrate for recovering the liquid. The flexible and thin blade has a leading edge linear intended to scrape the smooth surface, and cooperates with the collection substrate of the liquid bead which forms under the internal face of the blade during its movement on the area. Said recovery and dewatering system is adaptable to any type of squeegees and surface cleaning apparatus.

In the case of cleaning vertical glass surfaces, with a simple squeegee conventional flexible blade, we see that when moving it, said blade scrapes the film of liquid and accumulates, along its leading edge, a bead of liquid comprising dirt previously suspended by mechanical action and detergent (for example with a sponge and detergent). This liquid bead is maintained under the blade as long as the surface tension forces compensate for the dead weight of this bead. When this equilibrium is broken, in particular at the arrival of the continuous flow produced by advancing the blade, the bead grows and cracks and there are no which flow on the doorframe, then on the wall and the floor.

The liquid collection device must solve both problems engorgement under the influx of dirty liquid, preserving the balance of the bead liquid moving with the stripping blade, preventing any flow of the latter, no drips on the surface to be cleaned and traces of blade edges. It is obvious that the dirt must be completely suspended beforehand and / or dispersion in the liquid to be dried, either by manual mechanical action or by projection of steam and detergent, because the drying tool is not intended for this function.

The general public - cleaning ladies and other non-professionals - uses these squeegees, after having carried out a mechanical action with a wetting brush, a sponge etc., impregnated with a detergent solution, for solubilization and disperses dirt on the surface.
It is moreover impossible to carry out a drying free from traces because they do not have the gestures of the professional window washer. Indeed, each time that it rests the drying lip, for a new pass, on the part of glass that it has already dried, as the blade is already soaked on the other side of its leading edge , it leaves a trace. In addition, with each new pass, the advancement front of the liquid bead, in addition to the flows due to the break in equilibrium of said bead, there is leakage of dirty liquid at the ends of the lip, leaving other traces important and continuous, above the squeegee, which must be removed with a cloth. Known electromechanical systems have solved some of these problems, but have created others that are unacceptable and are extremely expensive, especially for consumer use. Pump systems are necessarily fitted with a suction box at the level of the stripping blade. Even being very beveled, this box prevents the drying of the glass near the turn of the doorframe because the box abuts against it, which is unacceptable. The same is true for glass doors and other surfaces, because it is not possible to bypass everything that emerges from surfaces, vertical or horizontal, handles, hinges etc. This phenomenon is accentuated when using a pole for working at height due to the reduction in the angle of attack of the blade, which makes it unusable. The bottom of the glass and the doorframe are then to be resumed in manual finishing with a cloth, which is also unacceptable. Such electrical equipment also imposes the handicap of using a storage battery or a long electric power cable. In addition it is not possible to move such a squeegee in the horizontal direction without leaving linear traces;

Other known techniques, inexpensive, use a sponge placed under the squeegee drying blade. They do not solve the problem of correct drying of the surface: traces of edge of the lip with each new pass and leaks from the lateral edges of the lip and the lower edge of the glass due to the thickness of the sponge. In addition, as the sponge touches the glass, it opposes very significant friction forces which stop the physicochemical action of sliding of the lip on the glass, which makes the squeegee impossible to handle.

The object of the present invention is to remedy these drawbacks and to produce a tool adaptable to simple and sophisticated squeegees and to cleaning apparatuses comprising a surface drying blade, which is both of a simple and economical design. and of a simple and efficient operation, recovering the cleaning liquid without additional and very expensive suction means,
not leaving traces of drying blade or linear traces of edge even in horizontal displacement, nor traces of cleaning product, directly allowing the finishing of the lower edge of the windows to the jamb for vertical surfaces, leaving no also no traces and recovering the liquid on the horizontal surfaces, not requiring professional training, nor electromechanical sucking and pumping equipment powerful, expensive and unwieldy, to obtain these results. In the case of cleaning large horizontal surfaces, for example floors, the known cleaning systems, with suction and pumping, are justified despite their high cost, due to the importance of the volume of liquid used.
On the other hand, the direct suction mode of the liquid bead, near the leading edge of the stripping blade, has the significant drawback of pumping air at the same time as the liquids. This leads to very high pump flow rates and therefore to powerful and very expensive equipment such as a suction turbine.

The dewatering tool according to the invention, suitable for a floor cleaning device, remedy this drawback by considerably reducing the power of the pump electromechanical, eliminating the need for suction of the liquid, therefore also for suction because the pumping takes place directly in the liquid collector located at the back of the tool, supplied by the capillary layer replacing the squeegee, capturing and transferring said liquid into this collector. The pump flow is then very low. The nozzle of these devices, intended to suck this liquid cannot be wide because of the very high suction power that would be required. The result is that a much greater number of passages on soils very often very large area. Hence a great saving of time and cost of cleaning and very expensive equipment with recovery by capillary substrate. Only so-called self-washing machines have a high power and can suck on a larger surface that can be equivalent to that of the drying head according to the invention, but with a difference of cost and enormous bulk.

• dans CH-A-681 209, un appareil à vapeur, pour le nettoyage de vitres, de sols, de tapis et surfaces de meubles, qui comprend dans sa structure un dispositif d'essuyage. Ledit dispositif d'essuyage peut lui-même comprendre une racle et une barre d'essuyage. Une telle barre d'essuyage n'est nullement équivalente au substrat de recueil du bourrelet liquide de l'outil selon l'invention (voir plus loin) ;
• dans FR-A-2 106 101, un appareil portatif pour le nettoyage de vitres qui comprend dans sa structure un racloir et une éponge. Ces éléments interviennent, dissociés, et ne collaborent donc pas au sens de l'invention (voir plus loin).

According to the prior art, it has in particular been described:

• in CH-A-681 209, a steam appliance, for cleaning windows, floors, carpets and furniture surfaces, which includes in its structure a wiping device. Said wiping device can itself include a doctor blade and a wiping bar. Such a wiping bar is in no way equivalent to the substrate for collecting the liquid bead of the tool according to the invention (see below);
• in FR-A-2 106 101, a portable device for cleaning windows which includes in its structure a scraper and a sponge. These elements intervene, dissociated, and therefore do not collaborate within the meaning of the invention (see below).

According to the invention, there is provided a tool for drying a surface and simultaneous recovery of the liquid initially found on said surface which includes a stripping blade made of a flexible material, secured to a support manual; said stripping blade having a linear leading edge intended to scrape said surface and dry it by forming behind it, under the internal face of said blade, a bead of said liquid. Typically, at said blade of dewatering is fixed a substrate for collecting said bead of said liquid, for constitute a drying and liquid recovery head.

Thanks to this particular arrangement of the device for collecting the liquid bead at its source, the quantity of liquid is continuously evacuated as the bead forms during the movement of the tool on the surface, so as to prevent rupture of said bead.
In addition, the drying head acts only on the scraped liquid, that is to say containing the soil in suspension.

Advantageous variants of the tool of the invention are as specified below and / or as defined in the claims attached.

According to an advantageous characteristic of the invention, the means for draining and recovering the liquid is formed by a spongy body or for example by a substrate made of materials with high capillarity, highly absorbent, hydrophilic or the like existing at present or to come, of which one of the edges, called active, extends over the entire length of the stripping blade and on its lateral sides, which also prevents any lateral and upper leakage. Thus the capture automatically starts dry by capillary action as the liquid bead is formed and is also maintained entirely automatically in a natural manner when the cleaning tool is moved.
In addition, the capillary substrate, being in the form of a sheet, it will be understood that its texture naturally pumps, by absorption and capillarity, the liquid scraped at its active edge and transfers the liquid backwards. Each time the blade is moved away from the surface, the capillary action continues according to its absorption capacity, which dries up the edge of the blade in the vicinity of its leading edge. This avoids any risk of liquid being present on the other side of the edge of the blade each time the operator places the blade on the surface for a new passage and prevents the formation of liquid traces above the blade during its movement and at the place of the installation of the blade.

Said tool according to the invention can be used on all types of tools or devices provided a drying blade, for example: simple or disposable squeegees; sophisticated comprising a sponge for dissolving and / or dispersing dirt; raclette cooperating with a sponge increasing its autonomy; devices with a nozzle emission of steam and / or detergent; devices successively spraying, friction and suction and other professional or non-window cleaning devices or vertical, horizontal or oblique surfaces etc.

• figure 1, un exemple de tête interchangeable d'assèchement et de récupération de liquide selon l'invention, collée sur un support clippable sur tout type d'outil ou d'appareil;
• figure 2, une coupe d'un exemple d'outil d'assèchement et de récupération selon l'invention, muni de sa tête d'assèchement, d'un presseur et d'un collecteur de liquide;
• figure 3, d'une vue de dessus de l'outil selon la figure 2;
• figure 4, une coupe d'un exemple de variante d'outil jetable ou non, avec une mise en place simplifiée de la tête d'assèchement;
• figure 5, une vue en élévation d'un autre exemple de variante de disposition de tête d'assèchement, illustrant un second mode de réalisation d'outil selon l'invention;
• figure 6, 7 et 8, une vue de côté et une vue de dessus partielle d'une raclette jetable;
• figures 9 à 12, des vues en coupe agrandies de la tête d'assèchement avec divers types de substrat capillaire;
• figure 13, une lame vue de l'avant équipée d'un substrat capillaire protégeant les bords latéraux de la lame;
• figure 14, une autre version d'outil selon l'invention avec une disposition frontale de la lame d'assèchement;
• figure 15, la version de la figure 14 équipée avec une tête d'assèchement amovible et interchangeable;
• figure 16, un outil comportant une tête d'assèchement à essorage automatique à chaque retrait de contact de la lame d'assèchement avec la surface à assécher.
• figures 17, 18 et 19, les forces physiques en jeu dans le bourrelet liquide contenant les salissures en suspension et/ou en dispersion.

The characteristics and advantages of the cleaning tool according to the invention will emerge more clearly from the description which follows with reference to the appended drawings given by way of nonlimiting examples, in which it has been shown:

• FIG. 1, an example of an interchangeable head for drying and recovering liquid according to the invention, bonded to a clip-on support on any type of tool or apparatus;
• FIG. 2, a section through an example of a dewatering and recovery tool according to the invention, provided with its dewatering head, a presser and a liquid collector;
• Figure 3, a top view of the tool according to Figure 2;
• FIG. 4, a section through an example of a variant of a disposable or non-disposable tool, with a simplified positioning of the drying head;
• FIG. 5, an elevation view of another example of an alternative arrangement of the drying head, illustrating a second embodiment of the tool according to the invention;
• Figure 6, 7 and 8, a side view and a partial top view of a disposable squeegee;
• Figures 9 to 12, enlarged sectional views of the drying head with various types of capillary substrate;
• FIG. 13, a blade seen from the front equipped with a capillary substrate protecting the lateral edges of the blade;
• Figure 14, another version of tool according to the invention with a front arrangement of the stripping blade;
• Figure 15, the version of Figure 14 equipped with a removable and interchangeable drying head;
• FIG. 16, a tool comprising a dewatering head with automatic wringing at each withdrawal of contact of the dewatering blade with the surface to be dewatered.
• Figures 17, 18 and 19, the physical forces involved in the liquid bead containing the soil in suspension and / or in dispersion.

As shown in Figure 1, the dewatering and recovery head seen in elevation comprises a blade 1, of generally rectangular shape, thin and relatively flexible, made of elastomer or similar or of pure rubber, bonded to a plate 2 of injected plastic material provided with a rounded shape 3 to limit bending of the blade 1 and of at least one lateral guide means constituted by a groove 4 arranged under the rear of the plate 2 extending beyond the blade 1, a clipping housing 5 on the top of said plate, and a strongly capillary and or absorbent substrate 6, fixed under said blade and a portion of which locally protects each lateral side of said blade 1. Said drying and liquid recovery head will be mentioned later under the reference 9. The nature and the fixing of the capillary substrate will be seen in more detail on the Figures 9 to 13. As fitted, the dewatering head 9 can be mounted on all types of cleaning tools or devices (glass or smooth surfaces, walls, vehicle bodies, floors of various kinds, kitchen furniture, furniture tops offices, communities, etc.), fitted with a drying blade and clipping means complementary. Even more simply, the blade 1 equipped with its capillary substrate 6, 7, can be glued directly in place of the stripping blade on all types of tools and of the aforementioned devices or fixed by any known means.

FIGS. 2 and 3 show an example of a drying and recovery tool according to the invention, intended for recovering the liquid containing the soilings in suspension and for drying, on the surfaces to be cleaned, such as for example a glass surface , forming part of a window or constituting both a vehicle windshield. This liquid can be either water, a water-alcohol mixture, or a specific cleaning liquid, etc. This drying and recovery tool can also operate on a cleaning device emitting steam alone or mixed with a cleaning product, and for this purpose comprises a spray nozzle added to said tool with its control means. This example of a tool comprises a body 10, for example made of injected plastic, arranged to receive the drying head 9, and a part 11 of which forms the handle allowing its easy handling. The blade 1, of generally rectangular shape, has a linear leading edge 6 intended to dry and evacuate the liquid on the glass or other surface. The capillary substrate is provided for capturing the liquid bead which forms under the internal face 13 of the blade 1 during the movement of said blade on the glass face. In fact, it has been found that this bead, also called the advancement front, is made up of a mixture of dirt and liquid, which remains under the blade of the squeegees used by professional window cleaners, especially as the forces of surface tension compensate for the self-weight of said bead. During the advancement of the blade and therefore of the enlargement of this bead, this balance is destroyed and the liquid bead is broken, causing an influx of sagging. Then it is reconstituted until the appearance of a new imbalance thus causing successive waves of streaks. The capillary substrate 6 which extends over the entire blade 1 and on its lateral sides 7, is arranged under the internal face 13 slightly receding from the leading edge 12 of the blade 1. It is located in the region of formation of the liquid bead. Preferably, the edge of the stripping head is located approximately 0.5 millimeter from the leading edge 12 of the blade 1 so that the substrate is approximately 0.3 millimeter from the advancement front, the remaining part up to the leading edge of the blade, provides sealing by bending on the surface. In order to obtain a careful and continuous work of the stripping blade, the stripping head 9 is associated with a scraped liquid collector 25. Thanks to this arrangement, progressively as the bead or forehead d advancement of dirty liquid, the drying head 9 prevents the formation of the critical mass of said bead by absorbing, gradually, the amount of dirty liquid collected by the blade. To avoid clogging of the capillary substrate, provision has been made to add a means for exerting pressure on the rear of the capillary substrate, acting as for pressing a sponge.
In professional devices, one can for example use a small articulated shutter on which one presses manually to press the back of the substrate. Better still, one can use, for example, to perform this wiping function of the substrate, a plate 20 acting as a spreader, of the entire width of the blade 1, comprising, below, two articulations 21 cooperating with those 22 of a lever 23 which is pulled in the direction of arrow 24 to press the substrate and extract the excess liquid.
In professional devices, a small collecting tank 25 is provided, fixed under the handle 11 of the tool, by means of screws 26, 27. The operating handle 28 of the lever 23, passes through a clearance 29 in the body 10 for emerge above the tool. The reservoir 25 is also provided with two tabs 31, 32 which are placed elastically on the edges of the body 10. When the capillary substrate is loaded with dirty particles, residues or cleaning sludge, the lever 30 is unclipped and extracts the drying head which is replaced by another clean head. Of course, this wiping function of the substrate can be ensured by any known means, for example by means of a lever arranged on the handle and maneuverable directly with the index finger.

In Figure 4 is shown in section, another mode of arrangement of a stripping blade 40 and its capillary substrate 41 held in a thread glued to a support 42 arranged above the body 43 and together forming a head d dewatering and removable recovery 45, held resiliently by clipping 46 at the end of the body 43. The blade 40, of the entire width of the tool, is very short and glued in a housing of the support 42, arranged perpendicular to the surface to dry out. The body 43 includes, on its internal lateral sides, a positioning slide for the support 42 of the drying head, which abuts on a rib 47. On this version of tool, a reservoir 48 is located which collects the dirty liquid collected. The capillary substrate 41 rests on a mesh plate which may or may not be included in the protective net of the substrate 41. Lockers 51 have been provided for receiving the aggregates rising along the substrate, and 52 for receiving the non-solubilized residual sludge. As for the version of FIGS. 2 and 3, a presser lifter 54, of the entire length of the blade and of the substrate, is arranged, moved by a lever 55 articulated on the body 43 at 56 and articulated on the lifter at 57. It suffices to exert a push along arrow 58 on the handle 59 to press the substrate and extract the excess liquid which is evacuated in the collector 48. The blade 40 has been shown in sealed contact on a surface 60, and a liquid bead 61 with a diameter of the order of 0.5 millimeter on the advancement front of the blade 40.
In this version, the capillary substrate can be thick and long, therefore with a large absorption volume giving greater autonomy to the tool, before discharging the overflow. The substrate is placed approximately 0.5 millimeter from the leading edge 62 of the blade. Depending on its thickness, it can allow high speeds of movement of the blade, and therefore allow an appreciable time saving compared to the other shapes and arrangements of the capillary substrate.

In FIG. 5, the simplest version of the drying head has been shown. comprising its blade 1 fitted with its capillary substrate 65, the fixing thread of which is glued on the top of the blade 1 and of a wiper plate 66 of the substrate, included in said thread 64 for protecting and fixing the substrate to the slide 1. This drying head 67 including its spin plate, can be glued to a disposable squeegee body 70 of the type current of the trade, or on that represented on figure 6, or on a plate 2 of the Figure 1, shown in dotted lines to make it interchangeable.

In FIGS. 6, 7 and 8 we have shown, in elevation, partial end and top view, a very simple squeegee, which is thrown away when the substrate is clogged with non-sludge solubilized, the drying head not being interchangeable. This drying head comprises a plate 71 for wiping the substrate, fixed for example by bonding to each sides 72 of the body 70, by a thin veil 73, in accordion, to facilitate its bending during spinning the substrate 6.

The capillary substrate can be produced in different ways without leaving the invention. It can be made up of: a spongy body made of different materials open cell synthetics, woven or nonwoven hydrophilic material, any highly absorbent fibrous material, etc. The advantage of nonwoven tablecloths is that it allow the passage of aggregates present in the liquid to be dried. In the event that the liquid to be dried is a condensate of vapors and micro-droplets described in the patent PCT / FR9300290, when this liquid dries in the substrate, the re-solubilization is almost instantaneous as soon as it is again in contact with this type of liquid condensate, which is not a general case. During the tests, permanent self-cleaning was found substrate with this liquid.

The capillary substrate can be, in FIG. 9, in the form of a sheet 80, the edge 12 of which is said to be active, extends at least over the entire length of the stripping blade 1 and is fixed to this blade. The thickness of this sheet is chosen so as not to come into contact with the liquid present on the surface, or in contact with the surface.
The sheet 80 is made of a material comprising, for example, hydrophilic threads. It is reinforced by a second outer layer constituted by a mesh forming a fine veil like "tulle", made of mechanically resistant fibers and supporting heat and aggressive products, hot solvents etc., in the case of use with spraying of vapor and detergent products. This combination makes it possible to obtain both good capillarity for capturing and transferring the liquid to the collector 25, 48 and a certain longevity of the sheet.

In the preferred embodiment, as shown diagrammatically in FIGS. 1 to 6, the ply 22 is preferably a material with high capillarity, absorbent, hydrophilic or spongy, in natural and / or artificial fibers, intertwined or not, felt or similar type, stickable or depositable by any known means, directly on the area of the internal face of the blade 1, in slight withdrawal from the leading edge 12. The various versions of the drying head can be mass produced. In an advantageous embodiment, the tablecloth 80 is made of fabric non-woven, up to 4 to 5 millimeters thick in several layers as long as that the thickness, in the vicinity of the leading edge, does not exceed 0.2 millimeters, provided with a maximum capillarity and a higher flow rate than that of woven or meshed webs, to favor the transfer of dirt to the liquid recovery collector. same saturated, if you press the tablecloth at the back to remove the overflow, it continues to pick up the bead fluid at the front. In the disposable version of the recovery tool and of dewatering of FIGS. 5 to 8 and in domestic applications, the capillary substrate may contain in its fibers, absorbent crystals such as silica gel. To be able to properly dry vertical surfaces such as for example glazing, it is essential to keep a minimum distance D from the leading edge 12 of the blade 1, which comes into tight contact on the surface and acts as a drier behind which forms the liquid bead.

To limit the volume of this bead and stand clearly below its breaking point of equilibrium, it is necessary to bring the capillary sheet 80 closer to the end of the blade 1 to initiate the capture as close as possible to the bead. If this capillary sheet 80 is too close to the end of the blade, as shown in FIG. 10, it comes into contact with the surface, hinders the sliding of the blade 1 and prevents the proper formation of the liquid bead. A compromise is therefore to be found between: the proximity of the capillary layer 80 of the leading edge of the blade 1, the formation and maintenance of the bead and its capillary capture at a rate sufficient to avoid breakage and drips.
The optimal bead volume is a function of the speed with which the blade is pulled over the surface and the capillary absorption capacity of the sheet. It is preferable that the absorption capacity of the sheet is slightly overabundant.

To illustrate this superabundant absorption capacity of the water table, we have shown, FIG. 11, a sheet 82 made up of several layers 83 arranged in a staircase 84 from of the optimal distance D. The first layer of the web 82 is closest to the active edge of the end of the blade 1. It is she who first begins to capture the liquid from the bead.

The larger the bead, the more it comes into contact with the capillary layers successive which increase the capture power. This provision limits pumping capillary and optimizes the size of the bead regardless of the speed of movement of the blade on the surface. It allows to obtain a very high capillary power of the tablecloth 82, without risking coming into contact with the surface as shown in FIG. 10, what let the inclination of the blade be 1. The length 84 between each successive layer is at determine as a function of the minimum possible angle 85 of the stripping blade 1.

Figure 12 shows an alternative implementation of the capillary layer of Figure 11. The profile of the blade 1 was extruded with a housing 86 to receive the sheet 87. This housing has a sloping portion 88 of about 45 °. The different layers of this capillary layer 87 are arranged at this angle 88 and can greatly exceed the thickness of 0.5 millimeter.

In FIG. 13 is shown schematically a blade 1 seen at the end, provided with its capillary ply 90, which rises on the lateral sides 91 and 92 of said blade the retaining net for the ply is glued to the top of the blade 1 This arrangement avoids upper marks and lateral sagging on vertical, oblique and horizontal surfaces, and allows the blade to be moved horizontally without leaving a trace of upper end. To avoid sticking the capillary ply 90 under the blade 1, the gluing reducing the capillary qualities of the ply, the net 93, 94 made of mesh fabric with fine mesh, for example non-hydrophobic treated polyamide, is first glued to the parts of the blade receiving the tablecloth, underside and lateral sides, then put the tablecloth in place and cover it with the mesh fabric which is then stretched and glued outside the tablecloth, on the top of the blade and at the back . This arrangement makes it possible to use, apart from the intertwined fabrics, mesh or non-woven, in capillary material, materials of the kind of those used in baby's diapers, highly absorbent.
The fibers are preferably oriented to transfer the captured liquid only towards the rear of the blade, the capillary action being exerted in one direction as for example with fibers known as "RETENSORBES" or "SPHAIGNES" used in certain diapers and sanitary napkins women's periodicals.
As with diapers, the capillary substrate can be completely ready in its net, which only remains to stick on the top of the blade in an automatic machine. In applications to vertical surfaces, the capillarity of the sheet is assisted by the force of gravity, which facilitates the evacuation of the liquid in the collector.

In applications to horizontal surfaces and particularly for floors, the hair mass should be greater. Periodic pressing of the tablecloth. will also avoid saturation of its capillary mass, as for working on surfaces vertical. As the surfaces are much larger, the reserve of liquid the dewatering tool will be insufficient to dewater a large area. We will empty periodically in a seal the collector which may be provided with a transparent sight glass to visually assess the filling level or for very large areas, will be able to use a small electric or other pump, portable, of very low power, which will pump the liquid collected in the collector periodically or continuously.

In FIG. 14, a disposable stripping tool has been shown, a variant of FIG. 4, having a stripping blade 100, arranged vertically relative to the body 99, its outer edge 101 resting against the surface to be dried 102. The bead 103 transfers of itself on its other side where it is captured by the substrate 104 slipped into housings 105 separated into compartments by thin walls for holding the external support 106 on which the vertical strip 100 is glued. This arrangement of the drying and recovery head makes this type of tool non-reusable, therefore disposable, when the substrate 104 is saturated with dirt in suspension in the liquid. The back of the substrate has a spin plate 107 included in its protective and fixing net, which is glued to a surface perforated 108 of the body 99 for the evacuation of the liquid containing the dirt. The body 99 is very light and very inexpensive.

FIG. 15 shows a version of FIG. 14 on which the drying and recovery head 110 is made removable by unclipping. This head consists of a plate 111 comprising, at its front end a wing 112 at 90 ° stiffened by ribs 113. The stripping blade 114 is bonded to the outer face of the wing 112. The capillary substrate 115 is fixed by a thread on the plate 111. It is notched at the front to engage between the stiffening ribs 113.
The support plate 111 is notched at 116 to receive at least one immobilizing clip 117 on the body 118 of the tool. The substrate 115 rests on an openwork veil 119 for the evacuation of the liquid overflow when the rear of the plate 111 is pressed at the level of the arrow 120. It is possible to use a collector of recovered liquid represented in dotted lines.

FIG. 16 shows another example of an interchangeable drying head 125 comprising a blade 1 and its capillary substrate in the thread of which a pressing plate 66 has been put as in FIG. 5, but arranged upside down.
The blade 1 is glued to a support plate 126 which clips into a corresponding housing 127 in the body 128 of the tool. The plate 126 comprises a curvature 127 for limiting the bending of the blade 1 at its free end, a fold 128 and a counter-fold 129 carrying a clip 130 engaged in the contreclip 131 of the body 132. The body comprises a stop 133 for limiting bending stroke of the plate 126, articulated on folds 129, 130, and extending to the base of the curvature 127 of the plate 126. At least one leaf spring 135, metallic or plastic, integral with the stop 133, normally maintains the plate 126 in the low position in which the substrate 6 is compressed by its pressing plate 66 against a stop 136 of the body. When the leading edge 12 of the blade 1 is pressed on the surface to be dried, the blade bends elastically and comes to follow the curve 127 of the plate 126 which in turn bends and comes to rest under the stop 133. This double bending releases the press plate 66 and the substrate is decompressed and in a state to capture the liquid containing the dirt es.

When the blade 1 is released from the surface, the spring 135 pushes the plate 126 back low position, which automatically spins the overflow of the substrate which flows into a collector 138. In order to be able to change the drying head, provision has been made clearances in the stop 133, at the level of the clipping zones. To avoid bending side of the blade relative to the body, you can add guide rails between the plate 126 and the stop 133. This elastic wiping arrangement can be adapted to the different types of tools.

Figures 17, 18 and 19 show the physical forces at play in the liquid bead containing soil in suspension and / or in dispersion.

Figure 17 shows the bead on a traditional drying blade, with substantially equal surface tensions at A and B and a surface tension intermediate X in the liquid bead.

Figure 18 shows the effect of capillary substrate C on the bead. If the blade L has Optimized "spreading power", the surface tension at B is eliminated. The bead spreads out at the point of contact with capillary C set back 3 to 4 millimeters from the forehead 12 of blade L.

FIG. 19 shows the instant of contact of the liquid S with the capillary C. The capillarity of the substrate immediately begins and takes action in cooperation with the force R of liquid retention due to its own surface tension. The more the substrate is absorbent, the more this phenomenon is accentuated. The choice of the material of the blade L of drying has a great importance on the phenomenon of spreading of the liquid. The best results are obtained by combining the absorption force of the substrate, the retention force of the liquid due to its surface tension and the material of the blade L.

Claims (17)

1. An implement for drying a surface and for simultaneously recovering liquid initially on said surface, said implement comprising a drying blade (1) of flexible material, secured to a hand-held support; said drying blade (1) having a linear leading edge (12) for scraping said surface and for drying it by establishing a bead of said liquid behind the leading edge (12) beneath the inside face (13) of said drying blade (1); said implement being characterized in that a substrate (6) for collecting said bead of said liquid is fixed to said drying blade (1) to constitute a drying and liquid recovery head (9).
2. The implement according to claim 1, characterized in that said absorbent or highly capillary substrate (6) is fixed to said drying blade (1) beneath its inside face (13), set back a little from said linear leading edge (12) of said drying edge (1), and extends along the entire length of said drying blade (1).
3. The implement according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that said substrate also partially covers the lateral sides (7) of said drying blade (1).
4. The implement according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the front of said substrate (6) is situated in the zone in which said bead of said liquid is formed, preferably about 0.5 mm from said linear leading edge (12) of said drying blade (1).
5. The implement according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that said substrate (6) consists in a spongy body, a cloth (80, 82, 87) resulting from the superposition of a plurality of pieces of non-wovens, or of a very absorbent material of the kind used for diapers, in which the fibers are preferably oriented so that the liquid picked-up is transferred towards the back of the drying blade (1).
6. The implement according to claim 5, characterized in that said substrate (6) consists in a cloth (80, 82, 87) that results from superposing a plurality of pieces of non-wovens ; said non-wovens being disposed in a stepped configuration going towards the back of said drying blade (1); said cloth (82) being fixed directly beneath said drying blade (1) or said cloth (87) being disposed in a housing (86) provided in the structure of said drying blade (1).
7. The implement according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that said substrate (6) contains absorbent crystals in its structure, such as crystals of silica gel.
8. The implement according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that said substrate (6) is disposed in a fine mesh net made of a material that withstands mechanical wear, heat, and detergents; which net is glued directly beneath the drying blade (1) and to the lateral sides thereof.
9. The implement according to any one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that said drying and liquid recovery head (9) also includes means for squeezing out said substrate (6), advantageously coupled to a collector (25) for collecting the squozen out liquid.
10. The implement according to claim 9, characterized in that said drying and liquid recovery head (9) includes a squeezing out presser disposed behind the substrate (6, 41) and constituted by a swingle presser plate (20, 54) pressing against said substrate (6, 41), and manually operable by means of a lever (23, 55) pivoted to the body of the implement and to said presser plate (20; 54), or by a presser plate (66) included in a net (64) for protecting and fixing the substrate (65) beneath the drying blade (1).
11. The implement according to any one of claims 1 to 10, characterized in that said drying and liquid recovery head (9) comprising the drying blade (1), the substrate (6), and optionally the means for squeezing said substrate optionally associated with a collector for collecting the squozen out liquid, is interchangeable - the top of the drying blade (1) being advantageously glued beneath a support of injected plastics material (2, 42, 110, 126) including lateral guide means (4) and clip means (5, 46, 130) engaging in a housing in the body (10, 43, 118, 132) of said implement provided with corresponding guide and clip means (131) - or glued to the body (70) of a disposable scraper.
12. The implement according to any one of claims 1 to 11, characterized in that said hand-held support is provided with a sponge and/or means for squirting a detergent liquid and/or vapors.
13. The implement according to any one of claims 1 to 12, characterized in that it also includes an electromechanical device for picking up the liquid that accumulates while the drying blade is being moved over the surface.
14. The implement according to any one of claims 1 to 13, characterized in that:

    it includes a body (43) having a removable drying and liquid recovery head (63) clipped thereto; said head (63) comprising a drying blade (40) glued in an inclined internal housing provided at the end of a plate (42), and the substrate (41) in the form of a thick cloth in a protective and fixing net bearing against an apertured support (50) fixed behind said blade (40) beneath said plate (42);

    said body (43) including a first compartment (51) for receiving solids making their way through the substrate (41), a second compartment (52) for receiving sludge made up of undissolved dirt and a collecting tank (48); and

    it further includes means for squeezing the back of the substrate (41), which means are constituted by a plate (54) pivoted on the end of a lever (55), itself pivoted to said body (43) and provided with a presser handle (59).
15. The implement according to any one of claims 1 to 13, characterized in that it includes a body (99) having a substantially vertical end wall on the front of which the drying blade (100) is glued; the substrate (104) being engaged behind said blade (100) and extending above it, being fixed to an apertured wall (108) of said body (99) by a protective and fixing net, including a presser plate (107).
16. The implement according to any one of claims 1 to 13, characterized in that it includes a body (118) on which a removable drying and liquid recovery head (110) is clipped; said head (110) being clipped via a plate (111) which includes a flange (112) at its end remote from said body (118), the said flange (112) extending at 90° relative to the axis of the plate, being stiffened by ribs (113), and having the drying blade (114) glued vertically on the outside face thereof; the substrate (115) being fixed beneath said plate (11) by a protective and fixing net, resting on an apertured web (119) secured to said body (118), and being notched at the front to engage between said stiffening ribs (113).
17. The implement according to any one of claims 1 to 13, characterized in that the drying and liquid recovery head (125) includes a drying blade (1) beneath which the substrate (6) is fixed by means of its net including a presser plate (66); said drying blade (1) being glued beneath a plate (126) clipped in a corresponding housing in the implement, in that the free end of said plate (126) includes a curve for limiting bending of the drying blade (1) and bends (128, 129) acting as a pivot for the plate (126) between a top abutment (133) and a bottom abutment (136) for limiting the bending stroke of said plate (126), at least one leaf spring (135) holding said plate (126) in a low position in which the substrate (6) is compressed by its presser plate (66) against the bottom abutment (136); said substrate being uncompressed when the leading edge (12) of the blade (1) is pressed against the surface to be dried, the plate (126) then pressing against the top abutment (133).

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