WO1990003758A1

WO1990003758A1 - A floor cleaning machine

Info

Publication number: WO1990003758A1
Application number: PCT/GB1989/001191
Authority: WO
Inventors: Michael Levy
Original assignee: Trewax Manufacturing Limited
Priority date: 1988-10-13
Filing date: 1989-10-09
Publication date: 1990-04-19
Also published as: GB8824012D0; AU4407289A

Abstract

A machine for cleaning floors or a floor covering on a floor has a pump by which liquid is supplied to spray jets by which it is sprayed on to the floor or covering, a rotatable brush arranged to brush the floor or covering and an electric motor which drives the pump and which is used to drive the brush as and when required.

Description

A FLOOR CLEANING MACHINE

This invention relates to machines for cleaning floors such as tiled floors, or floor coverings such as plastic vinyl materials or carpet, hereinafter referred to as carpet, on a floor.

It is known for floor cleaning machines to be provided with spray jets through which liquid can be sprayed on to the floor and for a rotatable brush to engage the part of the floor on to which the liquid has been sprayed. The pump which supplies the liquid to the spray jets is driven by an electric motor and a second electric motor is used to rotate the brush.

It is also known for carpet cleaning machines to have spray jets through which liquid can be sprayed on to the carpet, a rotatable brush to brush the part of the carpet which has received the liquid, and a vacuum pump connected to a vacuum head which is arranged to collect, by suction, most of the liquid which has been sprayed on to the carpet. The collected liquid carries with it dirt and debris from the carpet. The pump which supplies the spray jets, the rotatable brush and the vacuum pump are all driven by separate electric motors.

It is an object of the present invention to make machines for cleaning floors or floor coverings of a simplified construction, thus reducing the cost of manufacture.

According to a first aspect of the invention, a floor cleaning machine has spray jets through which liquid can be sprayed on to a floor; a pump for supplying liquid to the spray jets; a rotable brush arranged to engage with the part of the floor which has received the liquid; and an electric drive motor connected in driving relation with the pump and connected in driving relation with the brush in such a manner that optionally the brush can also be rotated by the motor.

According to a second aspect of the invention, a carpet cleaning machine has spray jets through which liquid can be sprayed on to a carpet; a pump for supplying liquid to the spray jets; a rotatable brush arranged to engage with the part of the carpet which has received the liquid; a vacuum pump connected to a vacuum head which is arranged to collect soiled liquid from the carpet; and an electric drive motor connected in driving relation with the liquid supply pump and connected in driving relation with the brush in such a manner that optionally the brush can also be rotated by the motor.

Preferably, the electric motor can be rotated in opposite directions and, in one direction of rotation, it drives both the pump and the brush and, in the other direction of rotation, it drives only the pump. Conveniently, the drive shafts project from opposite ends of the body of the motor, one of the shafts is connected to the pump and the other is connected through a one-way clutch device to the brush. Rotation in one direction drives the pump and the brush and rotation in the other direction drives the pump only.

The floor cleaning machine may be used to clean floors without a floor covering on them; for example, floors which are tiled, marble, stone or Terrazzo. The machine is moved over the surface of the floor and the cleaning liquid is sprayed on to the floor and rotated by the rotatable brush. There is usually some form of device for wiping up the liquid and the debris which has been loosened from the floor by the rotation of the brush. It is not always necessary for the brush to be rotated as the spray jets are spraying the liquid on to the floor and, consequently, with a cleaning machine of the present invention, the pump supplying the liquid to the sprays jets can be driven by the electric drive motor and, as required, the drive motor can be used to rotate the brush. It is convenient for the drive motor to rotate in one direction of rotation to drive the pump alone and in the opposite direction of rotation to drive the pump and the brush.

Similarly, the invention can be applied to a carpet cleaning machine in which the machine is moved over the surface of the carpet whilst it is in situ on the floor and cleaning liquid can be sprayed on to the carpet from the spray jets. The brush can then be caused to rotate whilst further liquid is being supplied to the spray jets and rotation of the brush loosens dirt and other debris in the pile of the carpet so that it is washed out by the spray liquid, A vacuum head following the action of the rotatable brush then collects most of the liquid from the carpet at the same time collecting dirt and other debris with the liquid.

In order that the invention may be more readily understood, it will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawing which is a partly cut-away view of a carpet cleaning machine in accordance with the present invention.

A carpet cleaning machine has a sheet metal chassis 1 mounted on wheels 1A. Extending substantially the entire width of the chassis at the lower side thereof is a cylindrical brush 2 mounted in bearings so that the brush can be rotated about its longitudinal axis. An electrical drive motor 3 is also supported in the. chassis and it has a pair of drive shafts 4a, 4b projecting from opposite ends. The axis of rotation of the drive shafts is parallel with the axis of rotation of the brush and pulleys on one end of the drive shaft and on one end of the brush are connected by a belt 6. Positioned on the drive shaft 4a, between the shaft and the pulley, there is a needle clutch bearing 5 which transmits the drive from the shaft 4a to the pulley only when the shaft is rotated in one particular direction of rotation. When the shaft is rotated in the opposite direction of rotation, there is no drive transmitted from the drive shaft 4a to the pulley.

The drive shaft 4b is permanently connected to a diaphragm pump 7 which operates when the drive shaft 4b is rotated in both directions of rotation. Operation of the pump draws cleaning liquid from a tank (not shown) mounted on the chassis and supplies it to a plurality of spray jets mounted on the underside of the chassis so that the liquid is sprayed on to the carpet as the machine is moved over the surface of the carpet.

The electric motor 3 is operable in both directions of rotation and is controlled through a two-way switch (not shown) which energises the motor such that, in one position of the switch, the motor rotates in one direction of rotation in which it drives the pump but not the brush and, in the other direction of rotation it drives the pump and the brush.

A vacuum head 8 is also mounted on the chassis with the inlet to the head in close proximity to the carpet. The actual position of the head relative to the carpet can be adjusted. The vacuum head is connected through a hose 9 to a vacuum pump 10 which, when operated, lowers the pressure in the vacuum head. Thus, as the head is moved over the surface of the carpet, liquid is sucked from the carpet into the head and through a hose to a soiled liquid collection tank (not shown) .

In uέe, the machine is moved over the surface of the carpet and, at the same time, the motor is rotated in the direction of rotation in which the pump is operated but the brush is not operated. In this way, cleaning liquid is sprayed through the spray jets on to the surface of the carpet. After sufficient liquid has been sprayed on to the carpet, the motor is then rotated in the opposite direction of rotation, again causing further liquid to be sprayed on to the carpet but, at this time, the brush is also rotated to open up the spaces between the pile of the carpet to allow the cleaning liquid to enter into the spaces to reach the dirt and other debris which is present. The vacuum applied to the vacuum head then sucks up most of the liquid including much of the dirt and other debris which has been loosened by the action of the liquid sprayed on to the surface of the carpet.

The diaphragm pump 7 is conveniently one sold by the FLOJET CORPORATION of Irvine, California 92714, U. S. A. The reversible electric motor 3 is conveniently one sold by ELECTRIC MOTOR DEVELOPMENTS LIMITED, Kings Road, Halstead, Essex. The vacuum motor may be one manufactured by AMETEK LAMB ELECTRIC DIVISION, Kent, Ohio, U. S. A.

Claims

Claims :

1. A floor cleaning machine having spray jets through which liquid can be sprayed on to a floor; a pump for supplying liquid to the spray jets; a rotable brush arranged to engage with the part of the floor which has received the liquid; and an electric drive motor connected in driving relation with the pump and connected in driving relation with the brush in such a manner that optionally the brush can also be rotated by the motor.

2. A carpet cleaning machine having spray jets through which liquid can be sprayed on to a carpet; a pump for supplying liquid to the spray jets; a rotatable brush arranged to engage with the part of the carpet which has received the liquid; a vacuum pump connected to a vacuum head which is arranged to collect soiled liquid from the carpet; and an electric drive motor connected in driving relation with the liquid supply pump and connected in driving relation with the brush in such a manner that optionally the brush can also be rotated by the motor.

3. A cleaning machine as claimed in claim 1 or 2, in which the electric motor can be rotated in opposite directions and, in one direction of rotation, it drives both the pump and the brush and, in the other direction of rotation, it drives only the pump.

4. A cleaning machine as claimed in claim 3, in which the drive shaft of the motor is connected to the pump and is connected to the brush through a one-way clutch device whereby the brush is rotated only when the motor is rotated in said one direction of rotation.

5. A cleaning machine as claimed in claim 4, in which drive shafts project from opposite ends of the body of the motor, one of said shafts is connected to the pump and the other is connected through said one¬ way clutch device to the rotatable brush.

6. A cleaning machine as claimed in claim 3, 4 or 5, including a manually operable switch for switching the electrical supply to the motor to reverse the direction of rotation of the motor.