JP2003169766A - Cleaning device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a cleaning device capable of efficiently cleaning not only a flat surface but also a recessed/projecting surface and a deformable surface, suppressing damage caused by applying an excessive pressure to a surface to be cleaned, and facilitating the replacement of a stained sheet. <P>SOLUTION: This cleaning device 10 is provided with a cleaning device body 1 having a shape capable of being directly held by a hand and the sheet 7 wound around the cleaning device body 1. The cleaning device body 1 is provided with a prescribed-thickness cleaning part 6 comprising an elastically deformable material in its one part. The cleaning part 6 is softer than parts other than the cleaning part 6 in the cleaning device body 1. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2003,JPO

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a cleaning tool suitable for cleaning hard surfaces, especially screen doors.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art The applicant of the present invention has previously proposed, in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2000-14613, a cleaning tool in which a sheet is wound around a cleaning tool body having an inwardly grasping grasping portion. This cleaning tool is easy to replace when the sheet is dirty, and has good cleanability on flat hard surfaces such as window glass surfaces. However, screen doors,
When cleaning a deformable surface to be cleaned such as a sofa, a carpet, a curtain, clothes, and a futon, the ability to follow the deformation of the surface to be cleaned is insufficient, and it is not easy to perform efficient cleaning. Moreover, since the surface to be cleaned does not have sufficient followability with respect to deformation, the contact area becomes small, which may cause damage due to excessive pressure applied to the surface to be cleaned.

Japanese Patent No. 2607207 describes a wiping / cleaning tool for wiping with a wiping cloth. This cleaning tool has a base part having a handle. The base part is formed of a rigid body, and on its bottom surface, a plurality of elastic projections that elastically deform and bend when a pressing force is applied and elastically deform and expand when the pressing force is released. It is installed. The wiping cloth is attached to the base so as to cover the elastic protrusions. This cleaning tool can follow a surface to be cleaned having irregularities.
However, as compared with the cleaning tool described in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2000-14613 described above, replacement of a dirty sheet is troublesome. Also, since it has a handle, the overall shape is large and complicated. As a result, there are problems in that the operability in detail of the surface to be cleaned and the storability during storage are reduced, and the cost is increased.

Therefore, the present invention is not limited to flat surfaces,
Even uneven surfaces and deformable surfaces can be cleaned efficiently,
Moreover, it is an object of the present invention to provide a cleaning tool that can easily replace a dirty sheet. Another object of the present invention is to provide a cleaning sheet that can be cleaned without applying excessive pressure to the uneven surface and the deformable surface to be cleaned.

[0005]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention is a cleaning tool including a cleaning tool main body having a shape that can be directly grasped by a hand, and a sheet wound around the cleaning tool main body. A cleaning unit having a predetermined thickness formed of an elastically deformable material, the cleaning unit being softer than a portion of the cleaning unit body other than the cleaning unit. By doing so, the above object is achieved.

[0006]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION The present invention will now be described based on its preferred embodiments with reference to the drawings. In Figure 1,
The perspective view of one Embodiment of the cleaning tool main body in the cleaning tool of this invention is shown, and the use condition of the cleaning tool is shown by FIG.

The cleaning tool of this embodiment includes a cleaning tool body and a sheet wound around the cleaning tool body. As shown in FIG. 1, the cleaning tool body 1 has a shape that can be directly gripped by a hand. In detail, the cleaning tool main body 1 has a slightly flat rectangular parallelepiped in which the long side and the short side are larger than the height. On both sides 2 and 2 on the long side of the rectangular parallelepiped, a recess is formed by tapering the inside of the cleaning tool body 1 rather than the corners of the four corners.
3 is provided to narrow the width of the central portion of the cleaning tool body.
Each recess 3 has a groove 3a extending in the thickness direction of the cleaning tool body 1.
Are formed in plural. The four faces other than these side faces are flat.

Both side surfaces 4 and 4 on the short side are parallel to each other. At the corners of the four corners, the angle θ formed by the side surface 4 on the short side and the side surface 2 on the long side is 45 ° ≦ θ <90 °. As a result, operability in the details of the portion to be cleaned is improved without causing fatigue. At the time of use, as shown in FIG. 2, the recesses 3 and 3 are directly gripped by hand.

As shown in FIG. 1, the cleaning tool body 1 has a two-layer structure of an upper layer 5 and a lower layer 6 in the thickness direction. The upper layer 5 is made of a hard foam that is lightweight and does not easily elastically deform. On the other hand, the lower layer 6 is made of an elastically deformable material, and is softer than other parts of the cleaning tool body 1, that is, the upper layer 5. The lower layer 6 is a portion that functions as a cleaning unit in the cleaning tool body 1,
Its lower surface is flat.

The lower layer 6, which is the cleaning portion, has a surface hardness of Asker C hardness (SRIS Japan Rubber Association Standard 010
The hardness specified in 1] is preferably 20 degrees or less, and more preferably 10 degrees or less. As a result, the conformability to the uneven surface and the deformable surface becomes sufficient, and the cleaning can be efficiently performed. The Asker C hardness was measured using a hardness meter Asker C type (trade name) manufactured by Kobunshi Keiki Co., Ltd. The lower limit of the surface hardness of the lower layer 6 may be 0 degree.
The Asker C hardness of 0 degree means that the hardness in the present measuring method is 0 degree, that is, the detection limit or less, and does not mean that the material has no hardness. Using another hardness notation, the Asker F hardness is preferably 10 degrees or more, and particularly preferably 20 degrees or more. If the Asker F hardness is less than 10 degrees, problems such as insufficient followability and insufficient durability may occur due to insufficient strength. The Asker F hardness was measured using a hardness meter Asker F type (trade name) manufactured by Kobunshi Keiki Co., Ltd.

The thickness of the lower layer 6 is preferably smaller than that of the upper layer 5 from the viewpoint of operability. Further, from the viewpoint of conformability to uneven surfaces and deformable surfaces, it is preferably 3 to 40 m.
m, and more preferably 5 to 20 mm. Thickness is 3mm
If it is less than 40m, it may not be possible to obtain sufficient followability,
If it is m or more, the effect of the followability may be saturated and the operability may be deteriorated.

As the material of the cleaning portion which satisfies the above-mentioned Asker C hardness, it is preferable to use soft urethane foam or the like from the viewpoint of workability.

On the other hand, the upper layer 5 has a role of ensuring the strength and operability of the cleaning tool body 1, and is made of a material harder than the lower layer from this point. It is preferable to use a resin such as foamed polyethylene, foamed ethylene vinyl acetate copolymer (EVA), or polyethylene as the constituent material of the upper layer 5 in terms of touch when grasped, weight, ease of processing, cost, and the like.

The surface hardness of the upper layer 5 is not particularly limited as long as it has no problem in grasping the cleaning tool main body 1 in order to ensure good operability and is relatively hard as compared with the lower layer 6. From the viewpoint of operability, etc., the Asker C hardness is 30 degrees to 6 degrees.
It is preferably 0 degrees.

The thickness of the upper layer 5 is larger than that of the lower layer 6 from the viewpoint of ensuring operability.
It is preferably 0 to 150 mm, particularly preferably 15 to 100 mm.

Next, the sheet used together with the cleaning tool body 1 will be described. The sheet is not particularly limited in its type as long as it can withstand friction with the surface to be cleaned and can wipe off dirt. As the sheet, for example, non-woven fabric, rag,
A non-woven fabric is preferable because it is preferably a chemical rag or the like, and is particularly easy to process and has a high degree of freedom in form. As the non-woven fabric, for example, suction heat bond non-woven fabric, spun lace non-woven fabric, air-laid non-woven fabric, spun bond non-woven fabric, laminated non-woven fabric of spun bond non-woven fabric and melt blown non-woven fabric,
A laminated non-woven fabric of spun lace non-woven fabric and melt blown non-woven fabric is preferably used.

In order to improve the cleaning property, an uneven portion may be formed on the surface of the sheet. The method of forming the uneven portion on the surface of the sheet is heat embossing, a method of heat-treating a fiber web containing a heat shrinkable fiber to cause fine undulations (unevenness) on the surface, a heat shrinkable film and a fiber. After integrating the web with a predetermined part, heat treatment is performed to develop fine undulations (unevenness) on the surface of the web, and the heat-shrinkable net and the fibrous web are integrated by a water jet or the like. After that, a heat treatment is performed to develop fine undulations (unevenness) on the web side surface, a method for producing a concavo-convex pattern by imprinting a carrier wire pattern on the nonwoven fabric during the production of a spunlaced nonwoven fabric, and a fibrous web. It is possible to use a processing method or the like in which suction is performed while the pattern net is held, and the pattern net is imprinted on the fibrous web to develop unevenness.

As will be described later, when the sheet is impregnated with the water-based cleaning agent, it is preferable to use one that can sufficiently retain the cleaning agent. For example, a hydrophilic non-woven fabric containing hydrophilic fibers such as rayon is preferable. Specifically, it contains 10 to 95% by weight, particularly 40 to 90% by weight of hydrophilic fibers such as rayon, and 90 to 5% by weight of binder fibers such as core-sheath type composite fibers and side-by-side type composite fibers. Particularly preferred is a spunlace nonwoven fabric containing 60 to 10% by weight.

The sheet has a basis weight of 30 to 300 g / m.
² , especially from 40 to 150 g / m ² , is preferable from the viewpoint that the strength enough to withstand the friction with the surface to be cleaned is imparted and a sufficient impregnation amount is secured when impregnating the cleaning agent.

In order to improve the cleanability, it is preferable to impregnate the sheet with a cleaning agent. The type of cleaning agent is not particularly limited as long as it can clean the surface to be cleaned. From the viewpoint of handleability and the like, it is preferably water-based. Water-based detergents use water as a medium, and include surfactants, organic solvents, thickeners, pH adjusters, chelating agents, disinfectants, preservatives, dyes, antistatic agents, insect repellents, waxes, etc. What has been done can be used. The blending amount of these components can be appropriately adjusted according to the specific surface to be cleaned. Typical formulation examples include a formulation in which a surfactant such as a nonionic surfactant is 0.001 to 5% by weight, an organic solvent such as ethanol is 0.5 to 50% by weight, and the balance is water. .

The cleaning agent is 50% based on the dry weight of the sheet.
It is preferably impregnated with ˜500 wt%, especially 100-400 wt%. When the impregnated amount is in this range, a sufficient amount of the cleaning agent is released to the surface to be cleaned, and a decrease in operability and an increase in cost due to the release of an excessive amount of the cleaning agent are prevented.

As shown in FIG. 2, the cleaning tool 1 according to this embodiment.
In No. 0, the sheet 7 is wound in a U-shape around the cleaning tool body 1 so that the lower layer 6 which is the cleaning portion of the cleaning tool body 1 is covered with the sheet 7, and the portion of the recess 3 in the cleaning tool body 1 is removed. Clean the surface to be cleaned by grasping it directly with your hand. In the cleaning tool 10 of the present embodiment, since the lower layer 6 of the cleaning tool body 1 has a specific Asker C hardness, not only the flat surface but also the uneven surface and the deformable surface can be efficiently cleaned. In addition, since the ability to follow the deformation of the surface to be cleaned is sufficient,
Excessive pressure is not easily applied to the surface to be cleaned and damage is prevented. Therefore, the cleaning tool 10 of the present embodiment is effective not only for cleaning flat hard surfaces such as window glass and whiteboard, but also for cleaning deformable surfaces to be cleaned such as screen doors. Moreover, since the sheet 7 is only wrapped around the cleaning tool body 1, the replacement thereof is extremely easy.

Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. Regarding the second embodiment, only the points different from the first embodiment will be described, and for points that are not particularly described, the detailed description of the first embodiment will be applied as appropriate. Further, in FIG. 3, the same members as those in FIGS. 1 and 2 are designated by the same reference numerals. In the present embodiment, the sheet gripping piece 7 is attached to the upper surface of the cleaning tool body 1. The sheet gripping piece 7 has a horizontally long rectangular shape, and is attached to the cleaning tool main body 1 so that the longitudinal centerline (horizontal centerline) thereof matches the horizontal centerline of the cleaning tool main body 1. The sheet gripping piece 7 extends outward from both left and right edges of the cleaning tool body 1 and forms a pair of left and right flap portions 7a, 7a. The flap portion 7a is rotatable about a side edge of the cleaning tool body 1 as a pivot. The degree of extension of the flap portion 7a is approximately the same as or smaller than the height of the cleaning tool body 1. When cleaning is performed using the cleaning tool body of the present embodiment, a sheet is wound around the cleaning tool body 1 in a U-shape so that the lower layer 6 of the cleaning tool body 1 is covered with the sheet. 1
The sheet located on the side surface of the sheet is sandwiched between the side surface and the flap portion 7a. By using it in this way, there is an advantage that the sheet does not come into direct contact with the hand. in this case,
If a sheet slip prevention means (not shown) is attached to the inner surface of the flap portion 7a, that is, the surface facing the side surface of the cleaning tool body 1, it is possible to effectively prevent the sheet from being displaced during cleaning.

As a modification of the present embodiment, the flap portion 7
Examples thereof include those in which a is formed into a bag shape or a cylindrical shape. In the case of a bag-shaped flap portion, the bag inlet is near the side edge of the cleaning tool body 1. On the other hand, in the case of the tubular flap portion, the axial direction of the tube is made to coincide with the thickness direction of the cleaning tool body 1. With the flap portion having such a configuration, a finger can be inserted into the flap portion when gripping the cleaning tool body 1. As a result, stains on the hands during the cleaning operation are more effectively prevented.

The cleaning tool of the present invention is effective for cleaning uneven surfaces and deformable surfaces such as screen doors, sofas, carpets, curtains, clothes and duvets. Others, walls inside and outside the house, floors,
Cleaning of tatami mats, ceilings, roofs, etc., cleaning of bathroom fixtures such as walls / floors / doors / bathtubs / basins in the bathroom, kitchen walls / floors / sinks / ranges / ventilators, etc. Shelf, chest of drawers,
Cleaning furniture such as tables, desks, chairs, bookshelves, refrigerators, TVs, personal computers, stereos, air conditioners, microwave ovens, washing machines, dryers, lighting appliances, etc., residential windows, doors, furniture Cleaning glass used for doors, windows of automobiles, floors of toilets,
Cleaning of walls, doors, toilet bowls, toilet seats, etc., cleaning of tableware, cooking utensils, cleaning of painted surfaces and plastic surfaces of automobiles, motorcycles, cleaning of automobile wheels, exteriors, entrances, terraces, fences, fences, gates It is also effective for cleaning the entire hard surface such as the surrounding area.

The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment. For example, in the above-described embodiment, the cleaning tool main body 1 has a two-layer structure of the upper layer 5 and the lower layer, but instead of this, a third layer made of the same material as the lower layer 6 is laminated on the upper surface of the upper layer 3
The cleaning tool body may have a layered structure. In this case, both upper and lower surfaces of the cleaning tool body can be used for cleaning.

Further, in the above embodiment, the surface of the lower layer 6 which is the cleaning portion is flat. However, in order to improve the followability and the like, a large number of irregularities, slopes or curves are formed on the surface of the lower layer 6. Is preferred.

Example 1 (1) Manufacture of Cleaning Tool Body A cleaning tool body shown in FIG. 1 was manufactured. Dimensions are length 135
mm, width 75 mm, and thickness 35 mm. The upper layer of the cleaning tool body is a foamed ethylene vinyl acetate copolymer (EV
It was composed of A) and had a thickness of 25 mm. The lower layer was made of soft polyurethane foam and had a thickness of 10 mm. Asker C hardness of the foamed ethylene vinyl acetate copolymer is 48
The Asker C hardness of the soft polyurethane foam was 0 degree (Asker F hardness was 40 degrees).

(2) Production of sheet A spunlace nonwoven fabric comprising 70% by weight of rayon and 30% by weight of binder fiber (core-sheath type composite fiber having a polypropylene core and a polyethylene sheath) was produced. The basis weight of this nonwoven fabric was 60 g / m ² . The size of this non-woven fabric was 290 mm × 215 mm, and it was folded in four and used. This nonwoven fabric was impregnated with a water-based detergent. The impregnation rate was 300% by weight. The water-based cleaning agent is
It was composed of 0.1% by weight of dodecyl glucoside (condensation degree 1.4), 5% by weight of ethanol, and the balance water.

(3) Performance evaluation As the lower layer of the cleaning tool body is covered with a sheet,
A sheet was wound around the cleaning tool body in a U-shape and directly grasped by a hand to clean the screen door. The following method evaluated the followability to a screen door and the operability at the time of cleaning. The results are shown in Table 1 below.

[Flatability to mesh door] (a) Preparation of dirty mesh door A mesh door (size: 54 cm × 75 cm) was left outdoors for 3 months to prepare a dirty mesh door. (B) Cleaning Method One back and forth wipe was performed in the lateral direction while applying force evenly to the screen door, and this was repeated for four steps. (C) Evaluation of followability Twenty panelists cleaned the screen door. When the surface area of the lower layer 6 was set to 100%, the stain adhesion area ratio of the sheet after cleaning was visually evaluated in 11 steps from 0% to 100% at 10% intervals. The average value of the obtained values was used as the evaluation index. The closer this value is to 100%, the better the followability.

[Operability at the time of cleaning] 20 panelists were made to clean the screen door, and the operability at that time was evaluated according to the following criteria, and the most opinions were used as the evaluation index. ◯: No problem in operability. X: The force is not applied during cleaning and it is difficult to operate.

Example 2 The screen door was cleaned in the same manner as in Example 1 except that the sheet was not impregnated with a cleaning agent. The ability to follow the screen door and the operability during cleaning were evaluated in the same manner as in Example 1. The results are shown in Table 1.

Comparative Example 1 A cleaning tool body was manufactured in the same manner as in Example 1 except that the lower layer of the cleaning tool body was made of the same material as the upper layer. Using this cleaning tool body, the screen door was cleaned in the same manner as in Example 1, and the followability to the screen door and the operability during cleaning were evaluated in the same manner as in Example 1. The results are shown in Table 1.

Comparative Example 2 A cleaning tool body was manufactured in the same manner as in Example 1 except that the materials of the lower layer and the upper layer of the cleaning tool body were reversed. Using this cleaning tool body, the screen door was cleaned in the same manner as in Example 1, and the followability to the screen door and the operability during cleaning were evaluated in the same manner as in Example 1. The results are shown in Table 1.

[0036]

[Table 1]

As is clear from the results shown in Table 1, it is understood that the cleaning tool of the embodiment (the product of the present invention) has a high ability to follow the screen door and can efficiently clean the deformable surface to be cleaned. Further, it can be seen that the operability during cleaning is also good.

[0038]

According to the cleaning tool of the present invention, not only a flat surface but also an uneven surface or a deformable surface can be efficiently cleaned. Further, according to the cleaning tool of the present invention, it is easy to replace a dirty sheet. Furthermore, according to the cleaning tool of the present invention, cleaning can be performed without applying excessive pressure to the uneven surface and the deformable surface to be cleaned.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an embodiment of a cleaning tool body.

FIG. 2 is a schematic view showing a usage state of the cleaning tool.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view (corresponding to FIG. 1) showing a second embodiment of a cleaning tool body.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 cleaning tool body 2 sides 3 dents 4 sides 5 upper layers 6 lower layers 7 sheets 10 cleaning tools

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A cleaning tool comprising: a cleaning tool main body having a shape that can be directly grasped by a hand; and a sheet wound around the cleaning tool main body, wherein the cleaning tool main body is partially elastically deformed. A cleaning tool that has a cleaning part made of a possible material and has a predetermined thickness, and the cleaning part is softer than a portion of the cleaning tool body other than the cleaning part. 2. The cleaning tool according to claim 1, wherein the surface hardness of the cleaning portion is 20 degrees or less in Asker C hardness and the thickness thereof is 3 to 40 mm. 3. The cleaning tool main body forms a rectangular parallelepiped, and the cleaning tool main body central portion is formed by forming recesses on both sides of the rectangular parallelepiped on the long side of the cleaning tool main body so that the inside of the cleaning tool main body is tapered rather than the corners of the four corners. 3. The cleaning tool according to claim 1, wherein the cleaning section is provided on at least one or more of the four surfaces other than the both side surfaces. 4. The both sides on the short side of the rectangular parallelepiped are parallel to each other, and the angle θ formed by the side on the short side and the side on the long side at each of the four corners is 45 ° ≦ θ <90 °. The cleaning tool according to claim 1, wherein the sheet is impregnated with a cleaning liquid. 5. The cleaning tool according to claim 1, which is for a screen door.