US2047158A - Floor surfacing machine - Google Patents

Description

July 7,1936. E W DH 2,047,158

I FLO R SURFACING MACHINE Fild March 20, 1954 C5 Sheets-Sheet l July 7, 1936. F. E. WADHAMS FLOOR SURFACING MACHINE Filed March 20, 1934 s Sheets-She et 2 July 7, 1936.

F. E. WADHAMS 2,047,158

FLOOR SURFACING MACHINE Filed March 20, 1934 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 mm1 E Patented July 7, 1936 I r PATENT "OFFICE FLOOR; SURFACING MACHINE Frederick E. Wadhams, Chicago, 111., assignor to Lincoln-Schlueter Floor Machinery 00., Inc.,

Chicago, Ill.

Application March 20, 1934, Serial No. 716,532

9 Claims.

My invention relatesin general to floor surfacing machines and in particular to a sanding device for surfacing or for resurfacing floors.

In the past, sanding machines used for surfac- 5 ing or resurfacing floors have been very heavy,

complicated devices, initially expensive, andexpensive to maintain. The complicated structure has necessitated a skilled workman both for the operation and maintenance of the machine, and this, together with the large investment in the machine itself, of course increases the cost of this type of work.

It is an object of my invention to provide an improved floor surfacing machine.

sive dependable sanding machine, light in weight,.

and readily portable.

Referring now to the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a top plan view of the complete sanding machine; l

Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the machine of my invention with a portion of the frame broken away to more clearly show the specific structure;

Fig. 3 is a side elevation in perspective, of the guard for the pulleys and belts on the sanding machine;

Fig. 4 is a perspective view of the sheet metal 40 frame itself;

Fig. 5 is a front elevation of the assembled ma chine with the sander guard raised;

Fig. 6 is a rear elevationof the frame and. a detail of part of the structure mounted thereon;

Fig. I is an elevation of a fragmentary portion of the sander drum, and mounting structure;

Fig. 8 is a top plan view of the dust pan;

Fig. 9 is a View in elevation of the motor drive pulley;

Fig. 10 is a sectional view along the, line l- -l0 of Fig. 9; and

Fig. 11 is a perspective of the complete machine. a 7

In the preferred form of my invention, I pro- 55 vide an integral sheet metal channel shaped A further object is to provide a compact and,

frame-having a drum carried beneath the shelf of the frame and inside the front portion thereof, dust collecting means carried at the inside rear of the frame comprising a dust pan, blower and blower tube for collecting the dust, with a motor mounted on the top shelf of the frame and having belts connecting both the drum and blower to simultaneously drive the two operating ele-' ments of the machine. I further provide an adjustment for the motor and blower such as to expedite the assembly of the machine and make it possible to take up any'slack developing in the belts without dismantling the entire apparatus. A sanding machine must of necessity be capable of operation at relatively great speeds to cut down 15 the surface of the floor, must be sturdy, and fairly heavy but "as light as possible to facilitate easy handling. The machine of my invention is built up from a sheet metal channel frame l0 having a shelf II and downwardly extending flanges I2 and i3 on two sides thereof. A hood M is provided .at the front of the frame and is movable on hinges l6 connecting with the shelf ll so it may be lifted to have access to the'drum. An axle IT is journaled in the two flanges l2 and I3, as shown particularly in Figs. 2 and 'I, and carries a sander drum l8 thereon. As illustrated in Fig. 'l,'the left end (from the front) of the shaft I1 is journaled in the flange l2 in a manner so as to permit the machine to be driven as close as 0 necessary to the wall to sand up to the quarterround A. This assembly comprises a bearing housing It: secured to the flange l2 and extending into a depressed portion lfi in one end of the drum to bring the latter as close to the outside of the frame .as'possible. This construction eliminates the hand 'work necessary with the machines heretofore used, which could not be operated close enough to the wall to surface the floor up to. themoulding; The sander includes 40 the ordinary heavy cast drum and a slot l9 for pinching the sanding paper or other material wrapped around the outside surface of the drum and holding it against movement during the operation of'the same. In operating the ,floor surfacing device, the sander 18, of course,'rests upon the surface of the floor and the frame is carried at the rear thereof by rubber tired wheels 21 and 22. These wheels are supported on an axle 23 of which one end is journaled in the flange l3 and the other end is adjustably supported in a bracket and adjusting screw assembly shown in Fig. 6. This structure includes an L-shaped bracket 26 having a horizontal leg 21 and a vertical leg 28. The axle 23 itself is journaled in the vertical leg 28, while an adjusting screw 29 is rotatably secured by pin 39 in the horizontal leg 21. The adjusting screw 29 protrudes through a threaded portion in the shelf H of the frame with the head of the same extending above said shelf such as to permit adjustment by means of a wrench or the like. Upon rotation of the adjusting screw 29, the axle 23 is raised or lowered out of its normal horizontal plane, and is guided and held against lateral movement, both during this action and when in the adjusted position, by means of a guide screw 3| secured in the vertical leg 28 of the bracket and extending through a vertical elongated slot 32 cut in the flange l3 of the frame. The screw 3| may be loosened prior to the adjustment of the screw 29 so as to permit more easy movement upwardly and downwardly, and then after the desired position is attained, may be tightened against the flange [3 to rigidly hold the bracket in this adjustment. By adjusting the horizontal plane of the rear axle 23 in the manner described, the sander l8 may be positioned and operated at angles such that one is enabled to work on uneven floors and particularly along the outer edge of the floor where the wall has sagged and in sagging lowered the floor itself.

As the sander is operated, sanding dust is removed from the floor, and it is necessary to provide means for collecting this as it leaves the sander l8 so as to preclude the circulation of this dust throughout the room. Ordinarily, in resurfacing fioors, dust is blown throughout the room to such an extent that elaborate preparations are necessary to protect the contents of the room against damage. In my device, however, substantially complete dust collection is effected so that resurfacing may be accomplished with no more extensive preparations for the Work than that attendant upon an ordinary polishing operation. The structure for accomplishing this includes a dust pan 33 which tapers rearwardly as shown in Fig. 8, from a narrow opening 34, extending the width of the sander H! to an annular neck fitting on to a blower housing 35. A blower (not shown) is carried in the housing on a shaft rotated by the operation of the pulley 35 The blower housing is suspended at the rear of the frame from the shelf I l. A blower tube 36 opens out of the housing 35 and extends upwardly to the rear of the shelf, as shown in Fig. 2. A cloth bag or the like 31 may be fastened to the top of the blower tube 36 and in turn secured to the handle of the machine. The blower is adjustably mounted for forward or rearward adjustment on the frame by means of bolts 38 (Fig. 1) extending through elongated apertures 39 in the shelf II.

In order to surface the floor and immediately collect the dust, the sander l8 and blower are simultaneously operated by a high speed motor 40 adjustably mounted on the top of the frame by bolts 4|. The high speed operation of the motor, with a corresponding speed for rotation of the blower, creates a considerable suction from the dust pan 33 at the sander. This is intensified by the shape of the pan, with the narrow slit opening, and extending rearwardly along straight walls to a comparatively large round neck.

' A double pulley P (Fig. 9) carried on the shaft of the motor includes a groove 42 for a belt connection to the pulley 43 on the sander axle l1, and a groove 42 for a belt connection with the pulley 35 on the blower. The pulley P is mounted very close to the motor on the motor shaft, and in order to assist in the circulation of air to cool the motor, fins 44 are provided and extend radially on the inside of the pulley. Air vents 45 extend inwardly at an angle between adjacent fins 44. The belt 4! connecting the sander extends through an aperture 48 in the shelf of the frame, and the belt 49 connecting the blower extends through the aperture to the rear of the frame.

The structure described above provides for a ready assembly of the entire machine, and the adjustable features on the blower and motor provide for the tightening of these belts after the entire machine has been completely assembled or as the belts become loosened through use. Thus by the adjustable mounting of motor and blower, the heavy sanding drum is fixedly mounted in the frame, but slack in the driving belts may be taken up. For instance if the sander belt '47 becomes loose, the motor is shift-ed to the rear to tighten the belt. This loosens the blower belt 49 but the slack may be taken up by shifting the blower rearwardly. If only the blower belt becomes slack it is only necessary to shift the blower rearwardly. Another important function of the adjustability of the motor, particularly, is the possibility of adjusting the weight on the frame so as to obtain the proper balance for most efficient operation of the device. The balance of the drum is important in obtaining smooth floor surfacing, and increasing the life of the sand paper on the drum.

A guard 50 as shown in Fig. 3 is removably secured to the motor and frame to cover the pulley P and belts at the pulley. An overall guard for the moving parts adds to the safety factor in the operation of the machine to insure against injury to an inexperienced operator in particular.

The machine as a whole may be very easily guided by means of a handle 52 carried on an upward extension 53 of the U-shaped handle bracket 54. The handle bracket is bolted at the rear of the frame as shown in Fig. 1, and extends rearwardly therefrom, with the opening in the center of the same permitting the mounting of the blower tube 36 to the rear of the frame, and free of the bracket. The handle itself may be adjusted through an angle of 360 as a result of the sleeve construction providing a handle tube member 56 fitting over the extension 53 and adjustably secured thereto by a hand screw 51. The handle may also be adjusted vertically on the extension 53. In order to'provide for greater ease in the guiding of the machine, a cross handle 58 extends at right angles to the shaft 58 and supplements the ordinary hand grip '59 at the top of the shaft. Because of the adjustable feature of the handle, it is possible to move the same to any position required for operating the machine along a wall, for instance where the cross handle 58 might rub against the wall and interfere with the guidance of the machine. The cross handle may also be used to tilt the machine momentarily to surface an uneven portion on the floor. An electrical connection 6| extends from the motor 40 up through the handle and out the cross handle 58 with a pronged plug 62 on the end thereof, which in turn maybe connected with an extension cord.

The light weight of the entire device makes it possible for one man to lift the machine by gripping the handle 63 on the motor 40, and the hand grip 64 integral with the bracket 54.

At the rear of and mounted on the sides of the frame are two feet 63 so arranged that the machine may be-tiltedbac'k on; wheels 2 l -,22 to rest onthe feet. j I Itwill thus beeseen thatI provide a very compact and, simple machine, comparatively light in weight and inexpensive from the standpoint of initial cost and maintenance as. compared to the large complicated sanding machines in ordinary use in the past. I furthermore provide a machine that may be operated and moved about by a single. person who is either experienced or inexperienced'in this particularwork, with a certainty of satisfactory resurfacing without the ordinary attendant extensive preparation for such ajob. M J- .j'.

I have referred to the drum as a sander, but

this drum may be replaced by any other type of drum or brush, or any surfacing placed on the drum as steel wool or other materials.

Although I have described the sanding machine in its preferred embodiment, it is understood that I do not limit the scope of my invention thereby, but I aim to cover all that which comes within the spirit and scope of the appended claims.

What I claim as new and desire to protect by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. In a floor surfacing machine, a frame comprising a shelf with downwardly extending side walls on two sides thereof, a drum carried at the front of the frame, and supporting wheels at the rear thereof, an axle for said wheels journalled at one end in a fixed position in one of said side walls, and adjustable supporting means for the other end of the axle, said means including a movable bracket within the frame and adjacent the other side wall for carrying the end of the axle in fixed relation to the movable bracket, an

adjusting screw threadedly secured in the frame shelf for supporting the bracket, and means between the latter side wall and the bracket for preventing lateral movement of the axle.

2. In a floor surfacing machine, a frame comprising a shelf with downwardly extending side walls on two sides thereof, a drum carried at the front of the frame, and supporting wheels at the rear thereof, an axle for said wheels journalled at one end in a fixed position in one of said side walls, and adjustable supporting means for the other end of the axle, said means including an L-shaped movable bracket within the frame and adjacent the other side wall, with a vertical leg for carrying the end of the axle in fixed relation thereto, and a horizontal leg at the top of said vertical leg, an adjusting screw rotatable in the horizontal leg and threadably secured in the frame shelf for supporting the bracket, and means for preventing lateral movement of the axle, including a pin extending between the horizontal leg and the adjacent side wall, but permitting vertical movement of the bracket.

3. In a floor surfacing machine, a frame comprising a shelf with downwardly extending side walls on two sides thereof, a drum carried at the front of the frame, and supporting wheels at the rear thereof, an axle for said wheels journalled at one end in a fixed position in one of said side walls, and adjustable supporting means for the other end of the axle, said means including an L-shaped movable bracket within the frame and adjacent the other side wall, with a vertical leg for carrying the end of the axle in fixed relation thereto, and a horizontal leg extending inwardly at the top of said vertical leg, an adjusting screw rotatable in the horizontal leg,'extending through the frame shelf and threadably secured therein for adjustably supportingthe bracket, and means for preventing lateral movement of the axle, including a headed pin in the vertical leg extending through and sliding in an elongated slot in'said other side wall in alignment with the vertical leg permitting vertical movement of the bracket.

4. In a floor machine, a frame carrying a floor surfacing drum and driving motor, a handle bracket for said frame and extending rearwardly therefrom in a horizontal plane, a stub shaft extending. upwardly at the rear of the bracket in an inclined position, a tubularv handle shaft adjustably carriedon the stub shaft to permit rotational or vertical movement of said handle, a gripping handle at the top of the handle shaft and a single laterally extending guiding handle on the shaft below the gripping handle.

5. In a floor machine, a frame carrying a floor surfacing drum and driving motor, a handle bracket for said frame and extending rearwardly therefrom, a handle shaft on said bracket having a gripping handle at the top thereof, a single guiding handle below said gripping handle on the shaft and extending laterally from one side thereof, means at the end of said lateral handle for making electrical connection with an electrial supply for said motor, and means for adjustably securing the shaft to the bracket to permit rotation or vertical movement of the shaft to vary the position of the guiding handle. 7

- 6. In a floor machine, a frame carrying a floor surfacing drum and driving motor, a handle bracket for said frame and extending rearwardly therefrom in a horizontal plane, a stub shaft extending upwardly at the rear of the bracket in an inclined position, a tubular handle shaft adjustably carried on the stub shaft to permit rotational or vertical movement of said handle, a gripping handle at the top of the handle shaft, a single laterally extending guiding handle on the shaft below the gripping handle, and means at the end of said lateral handle for making electrical connection with an electrical supply for said motor.

'7. In a floor surfacing machine, a channel sheet metal frame comprising a shelf having downwardly extending flanges on two sides thereof, a U-shaped bracket having its legs rigidly secured inside said frame and extending rearwardly in a horizontal plane therefrom, an annular extension extending upwardly at an inclined angle from the yoke of said bracket, and a tubular handle shaft telescopically mounted on the extension and adjustable thereon.

8. In a floor treating machine, a frame, a floor treating drum rotatably carried at one end, and a supporting wheel at the other end, drum operating means on said frame, an elongated guiding and operating handle at the rear of the frame adjustable to suit the height of the operator moving said machine on the floor, means facilitating the lifting of said machine from the floor for ready portability thereof, said means comprising a U-shaped bracket at the rear of the frame supporting said handle, with said handle removable therefrom, and said bracket having a horizontal yoke portion shaped for hand gripping tereof extending crosswise of said frame, and rigidly and horizontally from said frame, and a handle on said machine near the front thereof, lying crosswise of the machine and horizontally when in gripping position, whereby said machine may be raised from the floor and carried, supported in both hands, the positions of said gripping handles being such as to provides, good division of weight between the two hands.

9. In a floor machine, a frame having a motor carrying shelf and side walls on two sides thereof, a rotatable drum carried at the front of the frame, and supporting wheels at the rear thereof, means for guiding and leveling said machine to adapt it to non-normal operating conditions on a floor, said means including an axle for said rear supporting wheels j ournalled at one-end in a fixed position in one of said side walls, supporting means for the other end of said axle carried adjustably upwardly and downwardly with respect to the top of the frame to vary the level of the FREDERICK E. WADHAMS.

Images