US3687369A

US3687369A - Cleaning apparatus

Info

Publication number: US3687369A
Application number: US79878A
Authority: US
Inventors: Cyril Patrick Johnstone
Original assignee: North American Car Corp
Current assignee: North American Car Corp
Priority date: 1970-10-12
Filing date: 1970-10-12
Publication date: 1972-08-29
Anticipated expiration: 1989-08-29

Abstract

An improved cleaning apparatus comprising means for mechanically imparting high frequency pulses to washing fluid directed, at high pressure, through a conduit against a surface to be cleaned. The pulses are imparted to the fluid by directing the fluid through an orifice within the conduit toward a reed loosely mounted intermediate its ends within the conduit. The reed has configuration to cause it to vibrate when the fluid is directed at it.

Description

United States Patent Johnstone Aug. 29, 1972 [54] CLEANING APPARATUS 2,947,312 8/ 1960 Heinicke ..134/ 191 Inventor: Cy il P k Johnstone Morin 3,123,305 3/1964 Eisenkraft "239/102 Heights Quebec, Canada 3,278,165 10/1966 Gaffney .259 R 3,356,345 12/1967 Goodman ..259/1 R 1 Asslgneer North American Corporaflon, 3,410,529 11/1968 Simonetti ..259/4 Chicago, Ill. [22] Filed: Oct 2 197 Primary Examiner-M. Henson Wood, Jr.

Assistant Examiner-Edwin D. Grant [21] Appl. NO; 79,878 Attorney Alan swabey [52] US. Cl ..239/102, 134/1, 259/DIG. 43, ABSTRACT 5 1 I t Cl B 5 3 An improved cleaning apparatus comprising means for d 2 4 mechanically imparting high frequency pulses to wash- 1 0 13 3 5 6 2 4 ing fluid directed, at high pressure, through a conduit against a surface to be cleaned. The pulses are imparted to the fluid by directing the fluid through an [56] References C'ted orifice within the conduit toward a reed loosely UNITED STATES P ATENTS mounted intermediate its ends within the conduit. The reed has configuration to cause it to vibrate when the 3,408,050 10/ 1968 Jacobs ..259/4 fluid is directed at it 3,169,013 2/1965 Jones ..259/4 2,657,021 10/ 1953 Cottell et a1. ...259/1 R 11 Claims, 4 Drawing figures Patented Aug. 29, 1972 3,687,369

INVENTOR Cyril Patrick JQHNSTONE A TTORNE Y CLEANING APPARATUS BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention This invention relates to improvements in a fluid cleaning system. More particularly, the invention relates to improvements in a fluid cleaning system, which system imparts pulses to a cleaning fluid directed, under high pressure, against a surface or object to be cleaned.

2. Description of the Prior Art Cleaning systems of the type imparting pulses to the flow of cleaning liquid are known, as shown in US. Pat. No. 2,947,312, issued Aug. 2, 1960, K. J. Heinicke, inventor, for example. These systems employ a reed mounted centrally within a conduit which conducts the cleaning fluid. The reed is constructed in such a manner as to vibrate within the conduit and thus set up pulses in the cleaning fluid as it passes through the conduit. The pulsed fluid is then directed, through a nozzle located at the end of the conduit, against the surface or object to be cleaned.

The known systems, however, do not operate satisfactorily when dirt is exceedingly difficult to remove from the surface or object to be cleaned. The known systems operate at relatively low pressures, usually no higher than 300 psi. This pressure, however, is not sufficient to effectively and efliciently remove a heavy accumulation of dirt and grime from railway cars or buses, for example. In order to improve the cleaning efficiency, higher pressures are necessary. However, at higher pressures, the reed used in the known systems no longer vibrates to provide a pulsing action to the washing fluid.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is the purpose of the present invention to provide an improved cleaning method and an improved cleaning system for carrying out the method which can,

under pressures of 750 psi or higher, generate a pulsed action to the washing liquid in order to provide more efficient cleaning action. The improved system markedly reduces the amount of washing fluid required and the time required to clean a surface as compared to the known washing systems.

The invention is more particularly directed toward a cleaning system which includes a fluid conduit having an outlet, means supplying fluid to the conduit, and means in the conduit upstream of the outlet for impart ing pulses to the fluid flowing through the conduit. The pulse imparting means includes a thin, elongated plate member with mounting means on the member intermediate its ends for loosely mounting the member in the conduit to extend longitudinally and substantially axially therein. The member includes means upstream of the mounting means to cause vibration of the member as fluid flows past the member. Means are positioned adjacent to and upstream from the upstream end of the member for restricting the flow of fluid through the conduit and for directing the fluid in the form of a jet toward the upstream end of the member.

The plate or reed member includes a main section I lying in a plane containing the longitudinal central axis of the conduit. The vibration causing means upstream of the mounting means of the member include a first section extending from the main section of the reed at a first angle to the plane of the main section. A second section extends in an opposite direction from the first section at a second angle to the plane of the main section. A third section extends in an opposite direction from the second section at a third angle to the plane of the main section. The leading upstream edge of the third section lies in the plane of the main section.

The combination of the flow restricting and directing means and the specific shaped reed have been found to set up high frequency pulses in the fluid being directed through the conduit at high pressure. The reed member is loosely mounted in the conduit so as to have a very slight pivoting or wobble action about its point of mounting in order to improve the pulsing action imparted to the fluid. If the reed is fixedly mounted, it has been found that no pulses are provided, even at high pressure.

While the improved means for providing pulses is found to operate satisfactorily under a high pressure, there is an occasional tendency for the pulses to be provided intermittently or in bursts. This intermittent pulsing action has been found to be due to the variation in pressure of the fluid supplied by the supply means.

In order to maintain substantially continuous vibration of the reed and thus apply a continuous pulsing action to the washing fluid, means are provided to supply the fluid at a more uniform pressure. One manner of doing this is to provide a double acting piston pump. Another solution is to provide a quick acting accumulator located in the conduit between the fluid supply means and the improved pulsing means.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The invention will now be described in detail having reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 discloses one embodiment of the improved washing system;

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 2-2 of FIG. 1 showing a detail of the improved means for imparting pulses to the washing fluid;

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 33 of FIG. 2 showing the improved pulsing means in further detail; and

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 4--4 of FIG. 3.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The improved washing system 1 comprises a supply source 3, such as a tank, of washing fluid. The washing fluid is usually water. A conduit 5 connects the supply source to a pump 7. The pump is selected to deliver the washing fluid under a pressure of at least 750 psi, and preferably 1,200 psi, to a conduit 9 having an outlet nozzle 11 at its other end for directing the fluid against the surface or object to be cleaned. The pump 7 preferably is a piston pump. Located in the conduit 9 between the nozzle and the pump are means 13 for imparting pulses to the fluid. While the pulse imparting means 13 may be located anywhere in the conduit 9 between the outlet nozzle 11 and the pump 7, it is preferred that it is located adjacent to the outlet nozzle 11 so as to reduce any damping of the pulses imparted to the fluid as it travels from the pulse imparting means through the conduit to the outlet nozzle 1 l.

The pulse imparting means 13 includes a thin, elongated plate member or reed 15 mounted within the conduit. Means 19 are provided for mounting the reed 15 within the conduit 9 so that it extends in a longitudinal plane containing the longitudinal axis of the conduit 9.

The reed 15 must be loosely mounted within the conduit 9 to ensure effective operation. By the term loosely, as used in this present application, it is meant that the reed 15 is not rigidly connected at any point to its mounting within the conduit but rather is free to move slightly relative to its mounting. To mount the reed 15 in this manner in the conduit, the reed is provided with mounting means 19 in the form of laterally extending

wings

21, 23. The

wings

21, 23 extend a short lateral distance from the side edges 25, 27 of the reed and are located intermediate its

end edges

29, 31. A tubular sleeve member 33 is mounted within the conduit 9. The sleeve member 33 has

slots

35, 37 in its side wall 39 extending from the upstream end 41 of the sleeve member. The reed 15 is mounted within the sleeve member 33 by sliding the

wings

21, 23 down the

slots

35, 37 to the end of the slots. Preferably, the

slots

35, 37 have a width no more than a few thousandths of an inch greater than the thickness of the wings so that the reed is, therefore, loosely mounted. The sleeve member 33, with the reed 15 in position, is then mounted in a conduit section 43, which section can be coupled, by suitable coupling means (not shown) at either end thereof, into the conduit 9. Preferably, the sleeve 33 is fixed within the conduit section 43. The conduit section 43 can be readily removed to replace the reed 15, if necessary.

The reed 15 includes means 45 upstream of its mounting means 19 for causing vibration of the reed as the fluid flows past it. The vibration causing means 45 preferably includes first, second and

third sections

47, 49, 51 angularly joined together and extending, in sequence, in a direction upstream from a main section 17. The

sections

47, 49 and 51 are preferably formed by bending or crimping a portion of the reed, upstream from the mounting means 45, along

bend lines

53, 55 and 57 respectively. The first section 47 extends from the main section 17 at a first angle A to the plane of the main section 17. The second section 49 extends from the first section 47 in an opposite direction to the direction of the first section 47 at a second angle B to the plane of the main section 17. The third section 51 extends from the second section 49 in an opposite direction to the direction of the second section 49 at a third angle C to the plane of the main section 17. The free leading upstream edge 31 of the third section 51, and thus of the reed, lies in the plane of the main section 17.

To further ensure the pulsing action imparted to the fluid by the reed, one or more apertures may be provided in the reed, particularly in the location of the vibration causing means 45. It has been found that the use of one or more apertures in the reed at varying locations provides effective means of controlling the compression and rarefaction of the fluid and thus the vibrations. The size of the apertures and their locations will be governed by the deflection loadings necessary to allow for free vibration of the reed. In the embodiment shown, an opening 83, having a diameter of approximately one-fourth inch,when using a reed having a one-tenth inch thickness and located in the third section 51 of the reed, has been found acceptable.

The reed No. 15 preferably is made of pretempered carbon spring material SAE 1,095 and tempered to a Brinell hardness of 52-50. The strip has a thickness of approximately one-tenth inch. The angles at which the first, second and

third sections

47, 49 and 51 extend relative to the plane of main section 17 are relatively shallow. However, the crimp or bend

lines

53, 55, 57 separating the sections, are sharply defined. Joining the sections by rounded crimps to produce a wavy profile was not found to be as effective as using sharply defined comersto provide a very shallow M shaped profile. Preferably, the

sections

47, 49 and 51 each decrease in length compared to the preceding section in the upstream direction. In one embodiment, using a sleeve with an inner diameter of 0.824 and mounted in a conduit having an inner diameter of 1.049, section 47 is one inch long, and section 49, three-fourths inch long, and section 51, five-sixteenths inch long. The overall length of the reed is 4-5/16 inches and its width, excluding the wings, is twenty-three thirty-seconds inch. Preferably, the second angle B is equal but opposite to the third angle C. In the one embodiment, the first angle A is approximately 7 and the second and third angles B and C are approximately 25.

It is also necessary, in order to obtain an effective pulsing action of the reed at high pressure, to provide means 61 adjacent to but upstream of the end edge 59 of the reed which restricts the flow through the conduit and also directs the fluid in the form of a jet toward the upstream edge 59 of the reed. These means comprise a plug member 63 located within the conduit 9 adjacent the upstream edge 59 of the third section 51 of the reed. The plug member 63 can be mounted in the conduit section 43 by suitable means (not shown) and has an axial orifice 65 for directing the fluid supplied by the pump axially toward the reed. The plug member 63 should have an orifice 65 to provide a jet of fluid which does not diverge to any great extent. An orifice 65 which provides a jet diverging no more than 40 (20 to either 'side of the longitudinal axis of the conduit) is acceptable. In the preferred embodiment, the jet diverges 15. When using a sleeve member 33 which has an inside diameter of 0.824 inches, for example, the orifice 65 in the plug should be approximately 0.125 inches upstream from the upstream edge 59 of the reed and approximately one-sixteenth inch in diameter.

In operation, fluid under a high pressure of at least 750 psi, and preferably 1,200 psi, is provided by the pump 7 at one end of the conduit 9. The washing fluid passes through the orifice 65 in the plug 63 to be directed against the upstream end of the reed 15. The fluid, being supplied by the piston pump, has a pulsing action already imparted thereto because of the pumping action. This pulsing action, together with the angular configuration of the reed, is believed to set up vibrations in the loosely mounted reed. Once the reed has commenced vibrating, it is then believed that the reed imparts additional pulses to the fluid and resonantly increases the frequency of pulses in the fluid as it flows from the orifice and past the vibrating reed. Why the vibrating reed, having the configuration described, imparts additional pulses to the fluid and thus increases the frequency of the pulses is not entirely understood. It is thought that the longitudinally spaced apart high points on the reed, defined by

bend lines

53, 55 and 57, provide reinforcing pulses to the fluid as it splits and flows past the reed while it is vibrating, thus building up resonant frequencies in the fluid.

The reed, loosely mounted, can pivot or wobble slightly about its mounting means 19. Thus, the rear or tail portion 67 of section 17, downstream from the mounting means 19, also moves up and down with respect to the longitudinal axis of the conduit imparting further pulses to the fluid. If the tail portion 67 is omitted, by mounting the reed at its downstream end, the pulsing action may cease.

The pulsed fluid travels through the conduit 9 and out the outlet nozzle 11 in a continuous flow of bursts to provide a continuous series of impacts against the surface being cleaned. This, together with the high pressure, results in very efficient cleaning.

It has been found at high pressure operation that if the pressure varies a great deal from the average pressure delivered by the pump, there may be periods in which the reed will stop vibrating for intermittent periods of time, thus providing pulses in short bursts rather than continuously. This action is particularly noticeable when a single acting piston pump is used to pump the fluid. While the average pressure of the water supplied may be at 1,200 psi, for example, the pressure may actually vary from 1,000 to 1,400 psi because of the action of the reciprocating pump. 'With sudden drops in pressure from the average pressure, the vibrations set up in the reed may cease during periods of low pressure, and no additional resonant pulses will then be imparted to the fluid. In order to provide continuous pulsing of the fluid by the reed, it is, therefore, desirable to provide means for supplying the fluid to the reed at more uniform pressure. A preferred manner in doing this is to provide a double acting piston pump so that when one piston is in the return stroke, and the other piston is on the pressure stroke to thereby reduce the range between the maximum and minimum pressures. A suitable double acting piston pump is one manufactured by Frank Wheatley Industries Ltd. under Model No. PIOOA. This double acting piston pump reciprocates at 281 rpm thereby providing 562 strokes or impulses per minute. A further advantage in using a double acting piston pump is that its inherent pulsing action will quickly return the vibratory action of the reed to its normal pitch after any sudden, unexpected drop in pressure, such as might occur with momentary blockage of the lines leading to the pump.

To further ensure pulsing at a more uniform pressure, an accumulator 71 can be provided in the conduit 9 located between the pump 7 and the pulsing means 13 to further dampen the pressure surges. The accumulator is a quick acting type, such as a gas accumulator.-

The accumulator 71 includes a short conduit 73 connecting a chamber 75 to the main conduit 9. Located within the chamber 75 is an inflatable member 77 filled with an inert gas such as nitrogen, for example. Any surges in pressure are dampened by the accumulator, thus providing a much more uniform pressure throughout the conduit 9 and ensuring continuous pulsing action of the reed. A suitable accumulator is one manufactured by Greerolator Products, a Division of Greer Hydraulics Inc., under Model No. A64523- 200. Preferably, both the double acting piston pump and accumulator are used together.

A cut-off valve 79 may be provided adjacent the outlet norzle 11 so that the operator may shut off flow at any time. In view of the high pressure in the line, a pressure relief valve 81 should be provided in the system. The pressure relief valve 81 may be located between the accumulator 71 and the pulsing means 13.

lclaim:

l. A cleaning system including a fluid conduit having an outlet, means supplying fluid to the conduit, means in the conduit upstream of the outlet for imparting pulses to the fluid flowing through the conduit, said pulse imparting means including a thin, elongated plate member, mounting means on the member intermediate its ends for loosely mounting the member in the conduit to extend longitudinally and substantially axially therein, the member including means upstream of the mounting means to cause vibration of the member as fluid flows past the member, the member mounted within the conduit having a main section lying in a plane which includes the longitudinal axis of the conduit, said vibration causing means including three sections extending angularly in sequence upstream from the main section, and means adjacent to and upstream from the upstream end of the member for restricting the flow of fluid through the conduit and for directing the fluid in jet form toward the upstream end of the member.

2. A system as claimed in claim 1, wherein said vibration causing means further includes one or more apertures in said angularly extending sections.

3. A system as claimed in claim 2, wherein the mounting means include wings extending laterally from the main section intermediate its ends, and slots within the conduit for loosely receiving the wings.

4. A system as claimed in claim 3, wherein the slots are provided. in a tubular sleeve member mounted within the conduit.

5. A system as claimed in claim 2, wherein the first of the three sections extends in a direction at a first relatively shallow angle to the plane of the main section, the second of the sections extends in an opposite direction to the first section at a second relatively shallow angle to the plane of the main section, and the third of the sections extends in an opposite direction to the second section at a third relatively shallow angle to the plane of the main section.

6. A system as claimed in claim 5, including an opening centrally located in the third section of the reed.

7. A system as claimed in claim 6, wherein the second and third angles are substantially equal.

8. A system as claimed in claim 5, wherein the free upstream edge of the third section lies in a plane containing the longitudinal axis of the conduit.

9. A cleaning system including a fluid conduit having an outlet, pulsating delivery means supplying fluid to the conduit, means in the conduit upstream of the outlet for imparting pulses to the fluid flowing through the conduit, said pulse imparting means including a thin, elongated plate member, mounting means on the member intermediate its ends for loosely mounting the member in the conduit to extend longitudinally and substantially axially therein, the member including means upstream of the mounting means to cause vibration of the member as fluid flows past the member, and means adjacent to and upstream from the upstream end of the member for restricting the flow of fluid through the conduit and for directing the fluid in jet form toward the upstream end of the member.

10. A system as claimed in claim 9, wherein the pulsating delivery means comprises a double acting piston pump.

11. A cleaning system including a fluid conduit having an outlet, means supplying fluid to the conduit, means in the conduit upstream of the outlet for imparting pulses to the fluid flowing through the conduit, said pulse imparting means including a thin, elongated plate member, mounting means on the member intermediate its ends for loosely mounting the member in the conduit to extend longitudinally and substantially axially therein, the member including means upstream of the mounting means to cause vibration of the member as fluid flows past the member, and means adjacent to and upstream from the upstream end of the member for restricting the flow of fluid through the conduit and for directing the fluid in jet form toward the upstream end of the member, including an accumulator located in the conduit between the fluid supply means and the pulse imparting means.

Claims

1. A cleaning system including a fluid conduit having an outlet, means supplying fluid to the conduit, means in the conduit upstream of the outlet for imparting pulses to the fluid flowing through the conduit, said pulse imparting means including a thin, elongated plate member, mounting means on the member intermediate its ends for loosely mounting the member in the conduit to extend longitudinally and substantially axially therein, the member including means upstream of the mounting means to cause vibration of the member as fluid flows past the member, the member mounted within the conduit having a main section lying in a plane which includes the longitudinal axis of the conduit, said vibration causing means including three sections extending angularly in sequence upstream from the main section, and means adjacent to and upstream from the upstream end of the member for restricting the flow of fluid through the conduit and for directing the fluid in jet form toward the upstream end of the member.

4. A system as claimed in claim 3, wherein the slots are prOvided in a tubular sleeve member mounted within the conduit.