OBJECT OF THE INVENTION
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The present invention, "an improved machine for cleaning
air vents", refers to a machine of the type that is introduced
into air vents, normally those of air-conditioning systems, in
order to clean them. The machine moves upon tracks inside the
vents and the user controls the machine's movements by means
of a video camera mounted on it and connected to a monitor
situated outside. The machine is provided with brushes for
cleaning the vents which, as they turn, eliminate the dirt
from the walls, floor and ceiling of the air vent. The turning
of these brushes is also controlled by the user from the
external control panel.
DESCRIPTION OF THE STATE OF THE ART
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In the State of the Art different machines are used to
clean vents and they have different operating principles. The
present specification of patent of invention application, "an
improved machine for cleaning air vents", refers to those
which are automated and have two tracks at the sides of the
base, a camera in their upper part and cleaning brushes.
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Said robots have certain technical limitations which
prevent an optimal use being made of the functional and
technical qualities of these machines. The limited use of
their characteristics make cleaning operations longer and
considerably increase the costs of the operation. The duration
of the cleaning operation influences not only the cost of
same, but also affects the place where the air vents are
situated and, therefore, the people who work there, since the
place where the vents pass must be devoid of people due to the
dust or pollution thrown out during cleaning.
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These machines are supplied with power and controlled
through a hose through which the different cables run which
control each function that said machine can carry out. In
addition to this hose, there is another one through which air
is introduced. The first hose joins the air vent-cleaning
machine with the control unit in which both the control panel
and the colour monitor are situated and from which the user
controls the machine. The second hose joins the machine with
the air compressor, which will drive the air through the hose
to a pneumatic motor that activates the brushes which clean
the inside of the vent. Because there are two hoses, the
different manoeuvres of the machine inside the vent are
affected. Moreover, it is necessary to transport an additional
compressor to supply this air, which means an additional cost
in machinery and transport, thus making the operation of
cleaning the inside of the vent more expensive.
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The machines currently used in cleaning vents, to which
the present specification of patent application refers, have a
camera in their upper part which allows the user to guide the
machine along the air vent and concentrate its dirt
elimination effect on the most contaminated parts. Said
cameras have the serious limitation that their ability to turn
is restricted by being controlled by a cable of a determinate
length. When the camera turns on its axis, the control cable
winds around said axis until it reaches a limit determined by
the length of the cable, which limits the freedom of movement
of the camera, since once the cable is wound around the axis
after having turned in one direction, the camera has to be
turned in the opposite direction to retrace the path
previously followed. This limitation obliges the user to
attend to the turning of the camera, because the consecutive
windings of the cable around the turning axis cause continual
wearing of the connections as well as constant wearing of the
cable, thus increasing maintenance costs and increasing the
operation time due to the additional attention that must be
given by the operator of the machine.
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Current cameras can turn only in the above-mentioned
ground plane, thus limiting the user's view of the machine to
said ground plane, which means that the machine's movements
and manoeuvres must be increased in order to see the details
of those places that are situated above or below the camera's
ground plane.
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Cleaning of the vent is carried out mainly by means of
brushes that are selected according to the dimensions of the
vent, at least in height. The accumulated dirt is dragged by
means of friction, said friction being aided by the suction of
a vacuum cleaner situated at the end of the venL opposite to
that which the robot entered by. Said brushes cannot move
vertically and have only one turning direction, thus
significantly increasing cleaning time, since it is necessary
to pass more than once over the same place; and even so,
optimal cleaning is not achieved.
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The machines move inside the vents on wheels or roller
bands. Wheels present a problem when they are used in vents
made of fibreglass, since they break the same as it is very
delicate and as the weight of the machine is centred on the
specific supports of the wheels. On the other hand, this does
not happen with the roller bands, as the weight distribution
is more balanced on the fibre surface. Another problem arising
from fibre vents is that the material becomes detached as the
machine passes. Another type of material for manufacturing air
vents is compacted fibreglass lined inside with a sheet of
aluminium, which give fewer problems for cleaning. Currently,
the same type of tracks are used for cleaning all types of
vents, which affects the performance of the machine and the
cleaning operation, since each material requires a different
procedure according to its physical characteristics. The vent
made of simple fibreglass gives greater adherence to the
tracks, therefore smooth bands can be used. On the other hand,
the use of tracks provided with a tread or rough surface
causes erosion of the fibre and subsequent detachment of same.
Vents made of steel plate or fibre lined with aluminium do not
undergo such erosion but give less adherence, so that the
robot must have bands with rough contact surfaces to stop it
slipping when negotiating height differences or having
difficulty in pulling the weight of the electrical conduit
hose which joins it to the outside.
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When the machine is cleaning a vent, it is usually
necessary for it to go over certain places again or to focus
its cleaning action on certain points where there is a greater
concentration of dirt. To do this, machines with total freedom
of movement are required. Currently, the machines are turned
by stopping one of the tracks and making the other one to turn
in one direction, thus turning the whole machine in an arc on
the ground plane. This is a slow operation which also causes
unequal wearing of the tracks, thus affecting vent cleaning
time and maintenance costs.
DESCRIPTION
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The present patent application, "An improved machine for
cleaning air vents", has been developed to satisfactorily
resolve all the above mentioned problems.
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The operation of these machines involves the use of
different elements, so that cleaning the vent is not limited
to introducing the machine into it. The cleaning process
consists of making two apertures in the air vent, one at each
end of the same, in such a way that the cleaning machine is
introduced into one aperture and a hose or conduit connected
to a vacuum cleaner is placed at the opposite aperture. The
automated machine is controlled by a joy-stick operated by the
operator situated outside, allowing him to control the
movements of the same at a distance through the control post
or unit. There is a colour monitor in said control post on
which all images transmitted by the camera situated on the
machine can be observed. In said control post there is also a
control panel for controlling the different functions of the
apparatus and a video device for recording the vent cleaning
operation. Electrification of the motors that drive the
brushes makes it unnecessary to transport an additional
compressor and also allows a connection hose to be eliminated.
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The machine has great traction power, which allows
different accessories to be coupled to its body or bodywork
without affecting its output or performance. Once the machine
is introduced into the air vent, the operator can see the
inside of the latter and thus focus the cleaning action on the
places that most need it. To carry out this work correctly,
the machine must have as few limitations on its movements as
possible, since its manoeuvrability is clearly a crucial
advantage given the small space in which it has to move and
operate.
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To facilitate the movements of the machine inside the
vent, said machine can turn 360° on its own axis without
moving from the spot, turning both tracks at the same time,
but with one turning in the opposite direction to the other,
according to which side one wishes to turn or where one wishes
to focus the cleaning. While one track turns in one direction,
the opposite track turns in the opposite direction, in such a
way that the machine can turn in Lhe ground plane on its
vertical axis.
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The machine has a camera in its upper part to allow the
inside of the vent to be seen, by means of which the operator
guides and moves the machine to the appropriate place and is
able to check whether the vent is clean after the machine has
passed in any situation. To make this possible, the camera
must have total freedom of movement and be able to turn
without limit on the horizontal plane thanks to the fact that
the turning axis of the camera support is provided with a
rotating connector. Thus, the need to have a connection cable
disappears and so does the limitation on turning that this
imposes. The end checks on the rotation arc disappear and the
camera can rotate on its axis as many times as necessary, in
either direction without any hindrance. Another similar
connector allows the camera to move 90° in the vertical plane.
By these means the operator can thoroughly examine the inside
of the vent and check that after it has been cleaned it is in
a state to be used again. Said camera is situated inside a
head which also contains the spotlights needed to be able to
see inside the air vent.
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Cleaning of the inside of the vent is carried out by
means of rotating brushes situated at the end of the brush-holding
arm, on the upper part of the machine. Said brush-holding
arm can be adjusted in height and the turning
direction of the brushes is variable. The brush-holding arm is
adjusted in height by means of activating a hydraulic cylinder
controlled from the control unit and the floors or ceilings
can be cleaned according to the turning of the brushes and the
machine's direction of movement. The fact that the height
position of the brushes and their turning direction on their
axis are controlled from outside, allows any part of the
inside of the vent to be operated upon without having to
extract the robot to adjust it, as occurs in conventional
apparatus. This also allows us to clean ceilings in the
forward path inside the vent and floors in the return path, or
vice versa, which means that work time and, therefore its
costs, are reduced by half.
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The machine is provided with two different types of
tracks, which are determined according to the material of
which the air vent is made, whether of steel plate or fibre.
These tracks are made of rubber and plastic material and their
contact surface with the floor may be smooth or rough or
striated, thus providing bands which do little damage to the
surface of the vent, which are selected for vents made of bare
fibreglass; and others with a rough contact surface that are
used when the inner surface is metallic and one wishes to
maximise adherence capacity.
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The work carried out, from when the machine is
introduced into the vent until the latter is clean, is
recorded and stored on high-quality, Super-VHS, video tapes,
which allows subsequent processing and mounting of the images
for presenting the work done for the approval of the client,
without losing picture quality in this process.
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The advantages described in the present patent
application specification can easily be transferred to other
previous models of machines for cleaning air vents due to the
modular nature of the machine.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
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To facilitate the presentation of this "improved machine
for cleaning air vents", a drawing is attached to the present
patent application in order to promote a better understanding
of the principles on which the invention in question is based
and also a better understanding of the description of a
preferred embodiment, taking into account that the drawings
are illustrative and non-restrictive in nature.
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Figure 1 shows a machine for cleaning the inside of air
vents in which the improvements that are the object of the
present application can be observed.
DESCRIPTION OF A PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
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The proposed improvements in machines for cleaning the
inside of air vents are described below according to a
preferred embodiment.
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The improved machine for cleaning air vents (1) is
introduced inside the air vents with the object of cleaning
them inside. For cleaning the walls, ceiling and floor of the
vent, the machine (1) uses turning rollers (3) which move
vertically through the brush-holding arm (2). Said vertical
movement of the brush-holding arm (2) and therefore of the
brushes (3) is controlled by a hydraulic cylinder (4). The
brushes (3) can turn in both directions, so that the vent is
cleaned in two stages: in the first one, the machine (1) moves
forward and the rollers (3) turn in one direction while they
clean the ceiling and, in the second stage, the rollers (3)
are lowered and turn in the opposite direction to that of the
previous stage while the machine (1) reverses and retraces all
its previous path. These movements and those of the different
components are controlled by a control unit situated outside
the vent, which is provided with a joy-stick operated by the
operator in charge of cleaning the vent.
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In order to see inside the vent and where the dirt is
situated, the machine has a moveable head (9) provided with a
rotating connector, in which a camera (7) and two spotlights
(8) are introduced, said head (9) being situated on a device
(6) which allows the head (9) to move. The purpose of the
spotlights is to illuminate the inside of the vent so that the
operator can see it from outside on the colour monitor. Said
head (9) can turn without limits on the ground plane, while
its vertical movement is limited to 90°, since the combination
of both horizontal and vertical movements makes it possible to
view any part of the vent without needing to move the machine
(1).
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Once the machine (1) is inside the vent, it moves along
the same in order to clean it completely inside. Sometimes, it
will have to pass again over the same place if the accumulated
dirt has not been eliminated by a single pass, then, to apply
the cleaning action directly to a specific point, instead of
making the machine (1) go backwards, it is enough to make it
turn on its axis. This movement is achieved by making the two
tracks (5) turn at the same time, one turning in the opposite
direction to the other. The turning direction of both tracks
will depend on which side, left or right, one wishes to make
the machine (1) turn.
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Basically, there are two types of vents, characterised
by the material of which they are made, which may be steel
plate or fibreglass. According to the type of vent in
question, it is recommendable to use one type or another of
track (5). Therefore the machine (1) of the present invention
is provided with tracks that are interchangeable according to
the air vent to be cleaned. Vents made of fibreglass offer
greater adherence to the tracks, so that smooth tracks would
be sufficient; while vents made of steel plate or fibre lined
with aluminium offer less adherence, so the tracks must be
rough or striated.
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To eliminate transport of the compressor and therefore
the use of a second connection hose between said compressor
and the machine (1), a greater number of cables have been
introduced into the control hose (10), taking advantage of
said increase in capacity to replace the compressor by an
electric motor that controls the turning of the brushes (3),
thus making the transport of an additional compressor and the
use of a second hose unnecessary.
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The invention, within the scope of its essential nature,
may be put into practice in other embodiments that differ only
in detail from that which is indicated only by way of example.
The improved machine for cleaning air vents may thus be
embodied in any shape and size, with the most appropriate
means and materials and with the most convenient accessories;
and the components may be replaced by others which are
technically equivalent, providing they are comprised within
the claims.
