JP2947013B2 - Car wash machine - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a car washing machine for washing a vehicle to be washed while the body of the car washing machine and the vehicle to be washed are relatively moved.
In particular, the present invention relates to a car washer (hereinafter, referred to as a continuous car washer) for continuously washing a vehicle to be washed while being transported by a vehicle moving means.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art The configuration of a conventional continuous car washer is disclosed, for example, in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 3-90456. That is, a tunnel type car washer body is installed on the floor, and a vehicle transport device for transporting a vehicle to be washed from an inlet to an outlet is installed in the car washer body, and a high-pressure spray nozzle, a front brush, A washer block formed from a rear brush and the like, a wax block formed from a wax nozzle, a side brush, a top brush, and the like, and a drive lock formed from a side (blow) nozzle, a top (blow) nozzle, and the like are provided. .

[0003]

However, in the conventional continuous car washer described above, since the width of the vehicle varies depending on the type of the vehicle to be cleaned, the distance between the side nozzle and the vehicle to be cleaned increases depending on the type of the vehicle. As a result, there is a problem that the dry state becomes poor, and the worker must perform post-work such as hand wiping after the car washing is completed. In order to solve such a problem of lowering the work efficiency, a distance to a side surface of a vehicle to be cleaned is detected and stored, for example, as disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 5-147504.
A method is considered in which the side nozzles are moved out and back in accordance with the distance, and the side nozzles are brought close to the side surface of the vehicle to be cleaned.

However, this method requires a large amount of memory to detect and store the distance from the side of the vehicle to be cleaned, and has a problem that control becomes complicated. In addition, when the side nozzle is moved out and close to the vehicle to be cleaned, if the vehicle to be cleaned has a fender mirror or a door mirror, the escape control has to be performed, and the control is further complicated. . Also, if such escape control is performed, the movement stroke of the side nozzle becomes longer,
There is a possibility that the vehicle to be cleaned may be damaged by contacting the side surface of the vehicle to be cleaned due to inertia.

The present invention solves the above problems,
It is an object of the present invention to provide a car washer capable of always performing good drying regardless of a vehicle type, simplifying control of a side nozzle, and preventing a side nozzle from damaging a vehicle to be cleaned.

[0006]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In order to solve the above problems, a car washer according to the present invention is a car washer for washing a vehicle to be washed while the body and the vehicle to be washed are relatively moved. A side nozzle is provided in the main body so as to be able to move back and forth in a direction perpendicular to the direction of the relative movement so as to blow air to a side surface of the vehicle to be cleaned.
A sensor sheet for detecting the vehicle to be cleaned by contact with the vehicle; and operating the sensor sheet when drying the side surface of the vehicle to be cleaned by protruding the side nozzle to near the side surface of the vehicle to be cleaned and blowing out wind. A side nozzle control means for controlling escape from the side surface of the vehicle to be washed is provided.

[0007]

According to the above configuration, when the side of the vehicle to be cleaned is dried by the side nozzle, the side nozzle is protruded to the vicinity of the side of the vehicle to be cleaned and provided at the tip of the side nozzle.
Sensor sheet touches the vehicle to be cleaned and the vehicle to be cleaned detects
As a result , escape control from the side surface of the vehicle to be cleaned is performed. Therefore, the side nozzle is brought close to the side surface of the vehicle to be cleaned by simple control without detecting and storing the distance to the side surface of the vehicle to be cleaned unlike the related art, and excellent drying is performed. In addition, the side nozzle prevents the vehicle to be cleaned from being damaged.

[0008]

An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a side view showing an internal configuration of a car wash in one embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a plan view showing an internal configuration of the car wash.

As shown in the figure, a stationary car wash machine main body 2 and a pair of left and right roller conveyors (vehicle moving devices) 3 penetrating the car wash machine main body 2 from the front and reaching the rear are installed on the floor surface 1. Have been. The car washer body 2 is formed in a gate shape, and a washing section 4, a wax coating section 5, and a drying section 6 are formed in the car wash machine body 2 in this order from the front. A sonic sensor 8 for detecting the height of the vehicle 7 to be washed is attached to the front end of the car washer body 2, and operation panels 9 and 10 are provided on the front and rear surfaces, respectively.

The roller conveyor 3a on the right side (abbreviated as right side) of the roller conveyor 3 in the transport direction of the vehicle 7 to be cleaned.
The right and left wheels 11a, 11b of the vehicle 7 to be cleaned are supported and transported. The roller conveyor 3b on the left side (abbreviated as left) in the transport direction of the vehicle 7 to be cleaned is front and rear left and right of the vehicle 7 to be cleaned. The wheels 11c and 11d are supported and transported. The width W1 of the conveying surface of the roller conveyor 3a on the right side is formed to be narrow, and the right side of the vehicle 7 to be washed is set to a substantially constant position regardless of the type of vehicle. Are constant, and the width W2 of the conveying surface of the right roller conveyor 3b is formed wide so as to be able to cope with various vehicle widths.

The cleaning section 4 includes a pair of left and right cleaning side / rocker brushes 12 for cleaning lower portions on both sides of the vehicle 7 to be cleaned and side surfaces of the front and rear wheels 9, and a cleaning top for cleaning the upper surface of the vehicle 7 to be cleaned. A brush 13 and a pair of left and right side brushes 14 for cleaning the front, rear, and both sides of the vehicle 7 to be cleaned.
And a cleaning arch 15 for spraying cleaning water and a detergent arch 16 for spraying detergent. Also, as shown by the phantom line in FIG.
12a is fixed to the car washer body 2 and is swingable in the front-rear direction.
As shown by the imaginary line in FIG. 2, b is attached to the right cleaning side / rocker brush 12a via the swing arm 12c so as to be able to approach and separate from the right side, and is also swingable in the front-rear direction. The right side brush 14a is fixed to the car washer body 2, and the left side brush 14b has a drive mechanism for moving the front, left, and rear surfaces of the vehicle 7 to be cleaned.

The wax applying section 5 includes a wax top brush for applying wax to the upper surface of the vehicle 7 to be cleaned.
A pair of left and right side and rocker brushes 18 for applying wax to both sides of the vehicle 7 to be cleaned and the sides of the wheels 11; and a wax arch 19 for injecting liquid wax.
And wax base arch 20 that sprays wax base agent
Is formed from a fusco coat arch 21 for injecting a fusco coat agent.

The drying section 6 is provided with a top nozzle 24 for drying the upper surface of the vehicle 7 to be cleaned and a lifting nozzle for forming an air curtain provided between the top nozzle 24 and the rocker brush 18 for wax. 25
A pair of left and right side nozzles 26 provided on the rear side of the top nozzle 24 for drying both side surfaces of the vehicle 7 to be cleaned and a pair of left and right sub side nozzles 27 for drying the upper surface of the vehicle 7 to be cleaned, and the top nozzle 24 A pair of left and right first blower devices 30 for supplying air to the side nozzle 26 and the sub side nozzle 27
And a pair of left and right second
It is formed from a blower device 31.

The side nozzle 26 and the auxiliary side nozzle 27 are shown in FIG.
This will be described in detail with reference to FIG. One end of a pair of left and right blower tubes 28 and 29 for sending air to the respective side nozzles 26 and the sub side nozzle 27 is connected to upper surfaces of the side nozzles 26 and the sub side nozzles 27, respectively.
The other end of 29 is connected to the first blower device 30. Also,
The right side nozzle 26a is fixed to the car wash machine main body 2, and the left side nozzle 26b is provided with an actuating device that allows the side nozzle 26b to freely move in the left and right direction as shown by the phantom line in FIG.
32 are installed.

The actuating device 32 is, as shown in FIGS.
By pivoting a parallel link mechanism 37 around a fulcrum 36 of a support member 35 fixed to the car wash machine main body 2 against one end against a force of a spring 34 by an air cylinder 33 supported on the car wash main body 2 at one end. , Side nozzle 26 fixed to parallel link mechanism 37
The side nozzle 26b is configured to move back and forth, and the position and the inclination angle of the side nozzle 26b are realized by adjusting the length of the parallel link of the parallel link mechanism 37. Further, in order to detect the limit position of the side nozzle 26b, there is provided a retractable position detecting sensor 38 comprising, for example, a reflection type photoelectric switch. Further, a sensor sheet 39 formed in a sheet shape including a sensor by protective rubber is provided over the tip of the side nozzle 26b. This sensor sheet 39 operates when it comes into contact with the vehicle 7 to be cleaned.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the roller conveyors 3a and 3b are disposed over a pair of front conveyors 40a and 40b into which the vehicle 7 to be cleaned is carried in, and over the cleaning section 4, respectively. And a pair of rear conveyors 42a and 42b from which the vehicle 7 to be washed is carried out. A front slope 43 is provided at the beginning of the front conveyors 40a and 40b to allow the vehicle 7 to be washed in smoothly, and the vehicle 7 is smoothly discharged to the end of the rear conveyors 42a and 42b. A rear slope 44 is provided to allow for this.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram of a control system of the car washer according to the present embodiment. The control system of the car washer is large,
Input interface unit 51, output interface unit 52, memory unit that stores data and programs
A control device 55 composed of a microcomputer having a control unit 53 and a control unit 54, a sensor system 56 composed of operation panels 9 and 10, a sonic sensor 8, a sensor sheet 39, an exit position detection sensor 38, and the like, and a conveyor 3 are driven. Actuator 3 for motor (conveyor motor) 57 and side nozzle 26b
2, a drive system 59 including the first blower device 31 and the like. The control device 55 inputs and stores operation signals such as start and stop from the operation panels 9 and 10, and a detection signal of the sensor system 56. Then, the driving system 59 is controlled in accordance with the operation signal and the detection signal to control the operation of the entire car wash machine body 2.

Hereinafter, the side nozzle 26 by the control device 55 will be described.
The drying process of the vehicle 7 to be cleaned using the a and b will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. The operation panel 9 inputs that the vehicle 7 to be cleaned is a vehicle with a door mirror. The conveyor 3 conveys the vehicle 7 to be cleaned at a predetermined speed.
The time since detection is counted and the side nozzle
It is assumed that the arrival of the front end of the vehicle 7 to be washed at the 26 position and the passage of the rear end are detected.

First, when it is confirmed that the wax application step by the wax application section 5 is completed before the drying step (step-1), a first timer and a second timer described later are reset (step-1). 2) Subsequently, a drive signal is output to the first blower device 31 to supply air to the side nozzles 26a and 26b (step-3). Next, when the arrival of the vehicle 7 to be cleaned at the position of the side nozzle 26 is detected (step-
4), the first timer is driven (step-5), and it is confirmed whether the sensor sheet 39 is operating (step-5).
6) If the sensor sheet 39 is not operating, the operating device
When the sensor sheet 39 is operating, a push-back signal is output to the operating device 32 to output a push-out signal to the side nozzle 26 to protrude the side nozzle 26b (step-7).
b is retracted (step-8). Next, when the first timer reaches the set time T ₁ (when counting up) (step -9), drives the second timer (Step -1
0), until the retracting position is detected by the retracting position detection sensor 38, the retracting signal is output to the operating device 32 and the side nozzle 26
b is retracted to the limit (steps 11 and 12). next,
When the second timer reaches the set time T ₂ (when counting up) (step -13), to confirm whether the working sensors sheet 39 again (step -14), the sensor sheet 39
If the sensor sheet 39 is not operating, a push-out signal is output to the operating device 32 to cause the side nozzle 26b to protrude (step-15). If the sensor sheet 39 is operating, a pullback signal is output to the operating device 32 to output a side signal. The nozzle 26b is moved backward (step-16). Then, the vehicle 7 to be cleaned at the position of the side nozzle 26
Is detected (step 17), a stop signal is output to the first blower device 31 to stop the air supply (step 18), and a return signal is output to the operating device 32. Retract the side nozzle 26b to the limit (steps 19 and 2).
0).

By the above-described drying operation, the first blower device 31 is driven to blow air from the left and right side nozzles 26a and 26b, and the side nozzle 26b is moved to the side of the vehicle 7 to be cleaned according to the operation of the sensor sheet 39. The wind is blown to the vehicle 7 to be cleaned by approaching, and dried by the wind. Also, as shown in FIG.
The position of the side nozzle 26b is determined by the driving of the second timer, the escape operation of the door mirror 60 of the side nozzle 26b is performed, and the contact of the side nozzle 26b with the door mirror 60 is avoided.

As described above, the side nozzle 26b is brought close to the side surface of the vehicle 7 to be cleaned, and the wind is blown against the vehicle 7 to be cleaned. Therefore, it is not necessary to perform the work after the completion of the car washing as in the conventional art, and the work efficiency can be improved. Further, by using the sensor sheet 39, it is not necessary to detect and store the distance to the side surface of the vehicle 7 to be cleaned according to the vehicle 7 to be cleaned, so that the memory can be reduced and the control can be simplified. Further, it is possible to prevent the side nozzle 26b from being damaged by contact with the vehicle 7 to be cleaned.

In this embodiment, the washing is performed while moving the vehicle 7 to be washed by the roller conveyor 3, but the present invention can also be applied to a car washer in which the vehicle to be washed is washed while moving the car washing machine body. Although the roller conveyor 3 is used as the vehicle moving device, other means for moving the vehicle 7 to be cleaned may be used. Further, the operation panel 9
Is input as to whether or not the vehicle 7 to be cleaned is a vehicle with a door mirror. However, the sonic sensor 8 is driven to detect the vehicle body shape of the vehicle 7 to be cleaned, and the vehicle type is automatically determined. Can be determined.

[0023]

According to the present invention as described above, according to the present invention, when drying the sides of the cleaning vehicle by the side nozzles, the side nozzles are protruded to a side surface near the object to be cleaned vehicle, Saidono
By controlling the escape from the side surface of the vehicle to be cleaned by the operation of the sensor sheet provided at the tip of the spill , the side nozzle can always be close to the side surface of the vehicle to be cleaned, and the drying state of the vehicle to be cleaned having different vehicle widths can be constantly controlled. Thus, it is not necessary to perform the work after the end of the car washing as in the related art, and the work efficiency can be improved. Furthermore, it is not necessary to detect and store the distance to the side surface of the vehicle to be cleaned according to the vehicle to be cleaned, so that the memory can be reduced and the control can be simplified. Further, by using the sensor sheet, it is possible to prevent the vehicle to be cleaned from being damaged by the side nozzle.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side view showing an internal configuration of a car washer according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a plan view showing an internal configuration of the car washer.

FIG. 3 is a rear view of the car washer body of the car washer.

FIG. 4 is a rear view of a main part of a side nozzle portion of the car washer.

FIG. 5 is a plan view of a main part of a side nozzle portion of the car washer.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram of a control system of the car washer.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart of a drying process of the control device of the car washer.

FIG. 8 is a view showing a locus of a side nozzle of the car washer.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Floor surface 2 Car wash machine main body 3 Roller conveyor (vehicle moving device) 4 Washing part 5 Wax application part 6 Drying part 7 Vehicle to be washed 8 Sonic sensor 24 Top nozzle 25 Secondary top nozzle 26 Side nozzle 27 Secondary side nozzle 30, 31 Blower Device 32 Actuator 39 Sensor seat 55 Control device 60 Door mirror

Claims (1)

(57) [Claims] 1. A car washing machine for washing a vehicle to be washed while causing a body of the car washing machine and a vehicle to be washed to move relative to each other. A side nozzle for blowing air is provided on a side surface of the vehicle to be cleaned , and a tip of the side nozzle is provided for contact with the vehicle to be cleaned.
When providing a sensor sheet for detecting the vehicle to be cleaned more , when the side nozzle is protruded to near the side surface of the vehicle to be cleaned and blows air to dry the side surface of the vehicle to be cleaned,
A car washer comprising a side nozzle control means for controlling escape from a side surface of the vehicle to be washed by operation of the sensor seat.