EP3320988A1

EP3320988A1 - Bootcleaner

Info

Publication number: EP3320988A1
Application number: EP17075020.2A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Gerrit Jan Vink
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2016-11-10
Filing date: 2017-11-09
Publication date: 2018-05-16
Also published as: NL1042136B1

Abstract

An installation for cleaning boots with an articulating closing cap (2) that is equipped with flexible flaps (4) for closing off around the boot, in such a way that in the forward movement required to completely clean the boot, these flaps (4) remain positioned around the bootleg so that no splash water can escape.

Description

The invention concerns an installation to clean boots.
Owing to requirements in the area of hygiene and healthcare, in many business sectors, such as intensive farming, slaughterhouses and food production companies, it is necessary to clean and disinfect boots thoroughly. This generally takes place when the boot is still being worn. Boots are often equipped with profiled soles that are more difficult to clean than the bootleg, that generally has a smooth surface. Cleaning with brushes and jets of water has the disadvantage that water can enter at the top of the boot and that the brushes become contaminated and have to be cleaned on their turn, while profiled soles are difficult to clean with brushes. There are different installations in use. Most are a combination of scrapers, mats, brushes, and jets of water or air and an installation to disinfect existing of a compressible mat that is saturated with a disinfecting product or nozzles that spray a disinfecting product on to the boot. A similar installation is known from the patent specification: US6668842 .
The disadvantage of the brushes and mats that are used in these installations is that these tools become contaminated and start to form a source of mould and bacteria whereby proper cleaning is no longer possible. Cleaning boots with a high-pressure water jet has the disadvantage that the jet must be under high pressure for proper cleaning and the contaminated water splashes around in the installation and therefore is difficult to close off. Furthermore, the decontamination with water under high pressure a separate high-pressure installation.
The aim of the invention is to provide an installation that cleans and disinfects the boots properly and does not feature the abovementioned disadvantages and additionally is simple in execution and can be produced relatively cheap. Thereto, according to the invention no brushes or water under high pressure are used, but solely a large amount of water with limited pressure. Most companies dispose over their own pump installation of approx. 4 m3 per hour and a pressure of approx. 4 to 6 bars. The large amount of water with a limited pressure makes the contamination come loose from the boots and is washed away. Thereafter, the cleaned boot can be decontaminated.
According to the invention, the boot cleaner exists of a housing with two, in a vertical plane rotating sprayers, that are connected to a water supply and are driven by it. The sprayers both exist out of two or more spray arms. These have been mounted in the housing with space in between, in such a way that a boot can move in between. Between the two sprayers, an elevation has been provided on which the boot can be placed, that ensures that the sole of the boot can be reached by the water. The nozzles attached to the spray arms are directed in such a way that they let the spray arms rotate. Furthermore, one part of the sprayers is pointed towards the rotary axis and the other part is pointed away from it. This achieves that both the underside of the boot as well as the bootleg are cleaned. By moving the boot from the front to the back between the rotating sprayer, the entire boot: underside, the sides, the front and back and the upper side of the foot, will be cleaned.
However, the difficulty is blocking the splashing water in this forward movement. An obvious solution would be to place an elongated cap over the installation with a wide groove through which the boot can be moved back and forth and that is closed off with synthetic hair. The disadvantage of this is that the movement with the booth through the groove is very heavy with sufficient closing off, behind the boot always remains a v-formed opening so that splashing water comes up, because the hairs do not directly seal behind the boot. Furthermore, the hairs have the undesired characteristic that they hold contamination.
For the installation according to the invention, the housing is equipped with a closing cap with a groove on the front in which the boot can be placed that is closed off with flexible synthetic flaps. The spherical cap articulates on the underside, beyond the middle behind the entry of the installation. This allows for the boot to be moved through the spray installation while the boot remains positioned on the same place in the cap and the space around the boot therefore remains closed off. Of course, this effect of the forward moving cap can also be achieved by a cap that is sliding over this process or that is formed differently.
The installation is equipped with two handles, one to open and close the water supply, the other can partially close off the water supply, and allows for the intake of disinfectant. Behind the partial closure negative pressure arises, so that the disinfectant is sucked in.
The invention will be further specified below on the basis of an in illustrations depicted model of an example embodiment of the installation in accordance with the invention.

Fig. 1 shows a rear and side view of the installation that is partially openwork.
Fig. 2 shows the installation without boot.
Fig. 3 shows the installation with the inserted boot.
Fig. 4 shows the boot halfway the forward movement.
Fig. 5 shows the boot at the end of the forward movement.

The housing (1) has an articulating closing cap (2) with an opening at the front where the boot can be inserted and can be placed on the elevated footrest (3) that can be closed off by flaps (4). The sprayers (5) exist of the rotating spray arms (8) with the nozzes (7) that partly point towards the rotary axis (14), and partly point towards the opposite direction, so that the water sprays are pointed in such a way that the boot is completely cleaned. The closing cap (2) is articulated around the joints (9). In a forward movement of the booth, the closing cap (2) moves with the boot, so that the position of the boot in relation to the closing cap does not change, the flaps (4) remain positioned tightly around the boot and no water can escape around the boot. Handle (10) serves to open and close the water supply, handle (11) serves to partially close off the water supply whereby negative pressure arises and a disinfecting product is added.

Claims

Installation for cleaning of boots existing of a housing with sprayers that are connected to the water pipe and an elevated footrest to place the boot with the characteristic that housing (1) is provided with an articulating closing cap (2) of which the front and top exist of flexible flaps (4) with an opening through which the boot can be inserted while the flaps (4) seal tightly around the bootleg, so that no splash water can escape past the bootleg and whereby closing cap (2) can articulate around the joints (9) whereby the boot in the forward movement, that is required to completely clean the boot, takes the upper side of closing cap (2) along and the boot remains in the exact same position in relation to closing cap (2), so that neither in this forward movement splash water can escape past the bootleg.