WO2000054646A2

WO2000054646A2 - A container for storage of cleaning textiles, a cleaning trolley for transporting the container and a method of transporting cleaning textiles

Info

Publication number: WO2000054646A2
Application number: PCT/DK2000/000119
Authority: WO
Inventors: John Christian PASBØL
Original assignee: Dit International Hq A/S
Priority date: 1999-03-16
Filing date: 2000-03-16
Publication date: 2000-09-21
Also published as: DE20080287U1; AU3273700A; WO2000054646A3

Abstract

A container for storing cleaning textiles, such as mops, and which can be opened and closed by means of, e.g., a mop holder. The movement does not require tugging or pulling of parts, but only the application of a predetermined pressure on the container to open it, and pressure or a pushing movement to close it again. A trolley to support and transport one or more such containers is also described. This trolley can also transport other containers in a manner such that, e.g., a mop holder can still engage with a mop in such a way that the user's back is not overstrained. It will be possible to keep the trolley width such that it is suitable for use in connection with cleaning. Finally, a method of transporting cleaning textiles in the containers is described.

Description

A CONTAINER FOR STORAGE OF CLEANING TEXTILES, A CLEANING TROLLEY FOR TRANSPORTING THE CONTAINER AND A METHOD OF TRANSPORTING CLEANING TEXTILES

The invention relates to a container for storage of cleaning textiles, especially mops, for cleaning floors, ceilings and/or walls, a cleaning trolley upon which said container can be mounted and transported, and a method of transporting cleaning textiles from, e.g., a laundry to a location where the textiles are to be used.

Background of the invention

There are a number of known types of containers for storing mops which are mounted on the mop holder by means of, e.g., Velcro strips. In these, the clean, wet mops lie in an open container which is mounted on a cleaning trolley. The disadvantage of this open container is that the clean, wet mops dry out if they are not used within a limited period of time. One object of the present invention is therefore to provide a container for cleaning textiles, such as mops, which container can be substantially closed, can be mounted on a cleaning trolley, and permits changing of, e.g., mops on a mop holder in a manner convenient for the user.

There are also many different cleaning trolleys for the transport of various cleaning articles, and wherein the individual containers are mounted on the trolley. One disadvantage with many of these trolleys is that the containers often are mounted on the side of the trolley or positioned transversely in relation to the travelling direction of the trolley, so that the trolley becomes broad and can be unwieldy to transport. It is therefore another object of the invention to provide a cleaning trolley which can transport cleaning articles, including the above-mentioned containers for cleaning textiles, such as mops, and at the same time have a more suitable width.

Furthermore, it is important that clean cleaning textiles delivered, e.g., from a laundry are not contaminated before being used. It is therefore a further object of the invention to provide a method of transporting cleaning textiles in a way that avoids a contamination. Summary of the invention

The present invention provides a container which has a cavity for receiving and storing cleaning textiles and which has means for opening and closing the container, and in which the means for opening and closing the container are means which open the container when a predetermined pressure is exerted on the container and which maintain the container in a closed condition when it is closed.

It should be understood that the cleaning textiles may comprise any kind of textiles being adapted to clean floors, ceilings and/or walls, such as cloths, dishcloths, mops, flat mops or other textiles.

How great said certain pressure should be depends on the individual user and the characteristics of the container. This pressure should be sufficiently great to ensure that the container is not opened by chance and sufficiently small to ensure that a user can open the container many times without problems. This pressure will typically correspond to the weight of e.g. 2-20 times the weight of a mop holder.

The container may be of a type which may be openable and closable by a user, e.g., with the aid of a mop holder with which the cleaning textiles can be used. In the manner the user will not have to bend down to gain access to the textiles or to close the container and make sure that the cleaning textiles, such as the wet flat mops, do not dry out.

In this connection it should be noted that in an upright position it is difficult to pull something with the aid of, e.g., a mop holder. It is much easier to push or press. This is the reason why these movements are employed to open and close the container.

Several different embodiments of this device can be contemplated, depending on how the cavity for storage of the cleaning textiles is orientated relative to the container. In a preferred embodiment, the means for opening and closing the container comprise a lid which in a first, closed position substantially closes the cavity, and which in a second, open position allows a textile to be removed from the cavity, the means further comprising means for moving the lid from the closed to the open position when pressure is exerted on the lid, and means for maintaining the lid in the closed position when it is moved from the open to the closed position. By means of this container with lid, changing of, e.g., a mop is done by first removing the dirty mop from the mop holder. The mop can, for example, be mounted on the mop holder with Velcro strips. A new mop is then mounted on the mop holder by the user placing the mop holder on the top of the lid of the storage container, which is closed, and with a 5 vertical downward push causing the lid to open, the lid being, e.g., closed with a click-lock as is known for example with the doors on a rack for a stereo system or with ashtrays in cars. The mop holder can now be set down in the cavity with the clean, wet mops, and by placing the mop holder on top of the uppermost mop, the latter becomes attached, e.g., by means of Velcro strips, to the mop holder. When the lid is to be closed again, the lid is 10 pressed downwards towards the container by means of the mop holder and is kept shut by means of, e.g., the click-lock.

Preferably, the lid only opens to the extent that it forms, in the open position, an angle to the horizontal of 5°-130°, preferably of 25°-110°, more preferably of 45°-90°, such as 65°- 15 70°. This is especially apparent when two such containers are provided and are positioned such that the lids open towards each other. In this case, the two open lids would otherwise be so close that it would be difficult to close them with the aid of, e.g., a mop holder.

20 The lid can be mounted on the container with hinges, and in a preferred embodiment it will be spring-loaded in such a way that is opens automatically when it is pressed down on and the click-lock is released. The spring-loading can be adapted in such a way that it is possible for a person of poor strength to press the lid down into the closed position again without overstraining his/her back.

25

Instead of opening the container by moving the lid, the lid may at least substantially remain in its position and the container instead be moved, such as rotated and/or translated, so as to form, in the open position, an angle to the horizontal of 5°-130°, preferably of 25°-110°, more preferably of 45°-90°, such as 65°-70°.

30

In an alternative embodiment the container may contain a drawer-like portion which can be slid into and out of a hollow element and which substantially closes the drawer-like portion when it is moved into the element, and the means for opening and closing the container may contain means for moving the drawer-like portion out of the element when

35 pressure is applied to said portion and to retain the drawer-like portion within the element when said portion is slid into it. In this embodiment, e.g., the mops will lie in the drawerlike portion and thereby be moved out of the trolley, whereupon the person can position the mop holder in the drawer and attach a clean mop. To make it easier for the user, the drawer-like portion could be moved out of the hollow element by means of a spring or the like.

This embodiment has the advantage that the region above the containers for storing cleaning textiles is usable for the storage of other cleaning articles or the like.

Since the user's back could be overstrained by pushing the drawer-like portion horizontally into the element, the drawer-like portion could be positioned such that to close the container it must be moved downwards and into the hollow element at an angle to the horizontal of 0-45°, such as 10-35°, such as 15-30°, such as 20-25°. In this way the movement of the drawer-like portion will not only be horizontal but also vertical, which could make the movement easier.

Further, the invention relates to a cleaning trolley for transporting cleaning articles, including mops, wherein the trolley is adapted to hold one or more of the containers for storage of cleaning textiles ("first containers") as described above.

To achieve a convenient working position for the user when changing the textiles, the first containers may be positioned on the trolley substantially at floor height, in other words such that the first containers may be positioned at a height above the floor of at most 25 cm, such as at most 20 cm, such as at most 15 cm, such as about 10 cm. In this way it is easy for the person to change the textiles, e.g., a flat mop in an upright position and with the aid of the handle on the mop holder. The person may activate the means for opening and closing the first container and changes the mop in an upright position. Alternatively, the first containers could be positioned on the trolley at a height 40 cm or 60 cm or 80 cm or 100 cm or even higher above the floor.

A cleaning trolley normally has not only first containers for, e.g., changing mops, but also various additional containers for cloths, rubbish, etc. The trolley according to the invention therefore preferably comprises means for holding second containers or cleaning articles, these second means being positioned at a level above the first containers and such that these second means are preferably narrower than the total width of the first containers. Preferably, these second means are positioned above the first containers, in such a way that they are positioned at a height at which the user can reach them with his/her hand and in an upright position.

Alternatively, the second containers or cleaning articles could be positioned at a level below the first containers.

It will be an advantage, particularly if the first containers comprise lids, if the second means and containers are narrower than the first containers positioned at the bottom of the trolley, so that more space is available for the user to stick, e.g., the mop holder down into the first container.

In using the drawer-like portion, the cavity of the first container containing the textiles can be moved to the side, so that the requirement of space above the first containers for storing or using of, e.g., a mop holders is not as great.

The position of the first container or containers relative to the second containers or cleaning articles is preferably such that it allows, e.g., a mop holder to have an angle of 0- 20° to the vertical when it is engaged with a mop in one of the first containers. The force which a user needs to exert in connection with engaging a mop holder with a new clean mop depends on the angle at which the mop holder is to be. The load is therefore less when the mop holder can be vertical during the "engagement". This is yet another feature which reduces the load on the user.

This also provides the possibility, when the mop holder is not in use, of engaging it with holders adapted thereto on the side of the means for holding the second containers, so that the mop holder can be positioned vertically on the top of the first containers. Moreover, this takes place without increasing the total width of the trolley, which makes it more convenient to handle.

To achieve this relative positioning, the distance between the first containers and the second means - especially in the case of containers with lids - should be at least 20 cm, such as at least 30 cm, such as at least 40 cm, such as at least 60 cm, such as at least 80 cm, such as at least 100 cm or more such as at least 140 cm. Since there by means of this invention can be achieved full accessibility to the cleaning textiles in a manner such that the trolley can have a well defined, relatively narrow width during transport when the first container is closed, there is thus provided a trolley which is very well suited for this use.

The width of the trolley can be 15-100 cm, such as 30-85 cm, such as 45-70 cm, but one of the factors defining the optimal width of such a trolley is the normal width of a door. This width is about 60 cm, and it is therefore preferred that the width of the trolley is approximately 60 cm.

The invention further relates to a method of transporting cleaning textiles from a first location, e.g. a laundry where the textiles are washed/cleaned, to a second location where the textiles are to be used for cleaning. This method comprises the steps of:

- placing the textiles in one or more of the first containers,

- transporting the one or more first containers containing the textiles from said laundry to said location,

- opening the one or more first containers, and

- mounting one or more of the textiles onto a cleaning instrument(s).

Prior to be used for cleaning, the textiles may be wetted with water and/or other aqueous cleaning agents. In case the textiles are placed in the first containers in a dry condition, e.g., at the laundry, the method may then further comprise, subsequent to the step of opening the first container, wetting the textiles by pouring them with said water and/or other aqueous cleaning agents. Preferably, the cleaning agents are of the type adapted to clean floors, ceilings and/or walls.

In case the textiles have to be placed in the first containers in a wet condition, the method may further comprise, prior to the step of placing the textiles in the first container(s), wetting the textiles by pouring them with said water or other aqueous cleaning agents.

The method may further comprise, prior to the step of placing the textiles in the first container(s), the steps of washing the textiles and subsequently exposing the textiles to a rinsing process that comprises rinsing the textiles with an aqueous liquid comprising one or more cleaning agents which remain in the textiles after rinsing. Thereby, the textiles can be placed in the first containers in a wet condition, and wherein the textiles comprises the cleaning agents, so that they are to be used immediately after opening the container and thus not need a pre-pouring.

The step of mounting textiles to cleaning instruments may comprise mounting a mop, such as a flat mop, to a mop holder.

Brief description of the drawings

A preferred embodiment of the invention will be described in the following with reference to the drawings, wherein

Figs. 1-4 show containers according to the invention for storing cleaning textiles ("first containers"), and

Figs. 5-7 show a cleaning trolley according to the invention for transporting containers for storage of cleaning textiles and second containers.

Figs. 1-4 show containers 4 for storage of cleaning textiles, such as mops 6, and comprising a cavity 1 for storing the mops, a lid 2 for substantially closing the container 4 and means in the form of a click-lock 3 for holding the lid 2 of the container 4 closed or for releasing it when the lid is pressed down with a predetermined pressure. Fig. 1 shows the container 4 in a closed condition, Fig. 2 shows the container 4 in an open condition, and Fig. 3 shows two containers 4 in an open condition and which contain mops 6 that may be attached to a mop holder 5, as shown in Fig. 6.

Fig. 4 shows three containers 4 which are stacked, so as to transport a plurality of containers in an easy and comfortable way.

Figs. 5-7 show the cleaning trolley 10 from different sides, and it comprises two containers 4 for storage of mops 6, a mop holder 5, means for holding various second containers 12 and 16 for the dirty mops, dirty cloths and rubbish.

The two containers 4 for storage of mops 6 are placed on the trolley 10, and these containers are placed in the arrangement of cavities formed in the lower frame of the cleaning trolley 10, so that the two containers 4 are positioned beside each other and along the length of trolley 10 in the front part thereof. In this way, the trolley 10 achieves, in its front part, a width which is not greater than the maximal width of two containers 4 standing beside each other, which in a preferred embodiment is about 42 cm.

Above the containers 4 for the mops 6 there is placed holding means 11 which hold the containers 12 for storing e.g. cloths, rubbish, etc. This holding means 11 are positioned such that they are supported by vertical rails 13 in one end and by vertical support bars 14 at the other end. The holding means in this case have a width which is narrower than the width of the two containers 4, resulting in there being room to place the mop holder 5 down in the container 4, at the same time allowing the shaft or handle 17 on the mop holder 5 to be positioned vertically upwards from the container and resting in a holder 15 which is mounted on the side of the holding means 11.

The lid 2 is opened by pressing the mop holder 5 down against the closed lid 2, whereupon the lid opens as a consequence of the manner of operation of the click-lock 3. The mop holder 5 is then placed on the top of the uppermost mop 6 which attaches itself to the mop holder 5 by means of e.g. Velcro strips. The container 4 is closed by pressing the lid 2 downwards towards the container 4 by means of the mop holder 5.

In Fig. 6, the mop holder 5 is attached to a mop (not shown) in the container 4. When the mop holder is not in use it is positioned on the top of the container and the handle 17 is attached to the holder 15, as shown in Fig. 5.

Claims

1. A container for storing cleaning textiles, which container comprises:

- a cavity for receiving and storing the cleaning textiles, means for opening and closing the container,

c h a r a c t e r i z e d in that the means for opening and closing the container are means which:

open the container when a predetermined pressure is exerted on the container, and maintain the container in a closed condition when it is closed.

2. A container according to claim 1 , wherein the means for opening and closing the container comprise a lid which in a first, closed position substantially closes the cavity, and which in a second, open position allows a cleaning textile to be removed from the cavity, said means further comprising means for:

- moving the lid from the closed to the open position when a predetermined pressure is exerted on the lid, and

keeping the lid in the closed position when it has been moved from the open to the closed position.

3. A container according to claim 2, wherein the lid in an open position forms an angle to the horizontal of 5°-130°, such as 25°-110°, such as 45°-90°, such as 65°-70°.

4. A container according to any of claims 1-3, wherein the means for moving the lid from the closed to the open position comprise a spring.

5. A container according to claim 1 , wherein the container comprises a drawer-like portion which can be moved into and out of a hollow element which substantially closes the drawer-like portion when said portion is moved into the element, and wherein: the means for opening and closing the container comprise means for:

moving the drawer-like portion out of the element when a predetermined pressure is exerted to said portion, and - retaining the drawer-like portion within the element when said portion is moved into said element.

6. A container according to claim 5, wherein the means for moving the drawer-like portion out of the element comprise a spring.

7. A container according to claim 5 or 6, wherein the drawer-like portion is positioned so that it may be moved downwards and into the hollow element at an angle to the horizontal of 0-45°, such as 10-35°, such as 15-30°, such as 20-25°, for closing the container.

8. A container according to any of claims 1-7, wherein the cleaning textiles comprise any kind of textiles for cleaning floors, ceilings and/or walls, such as mops, flat mops, cloths, dishcloths or other textiles, which may be mounted to instruments made for this purpose, such as a mop holders or scrubbing-brushes.

9. A cleaning trolley for transport of cleaning articles, including mops, c h a r a c t e r i z e d in that the trolley is adapted to hold one or more first containers according to any of claims 1-8.

10. A cleaning trolley according to claim 9, wherein the first containers are placed on the trolley substantially at floor height or higher, such as up to 20 cm or 40 cm or 60 cm or 80 cm or 100 cm above the floor.

11. A cleaning trolley according to claim 10, which trolley comprises second means for holding second containers or cleaning articles, said second means being positioned at a level above the first containers and preferably such that said second means are narrower than the total width of the first containers.

12. A cleaning trolley according to claim 11 , wherein the position of the first container(s) relative to the second containers or cleaning articles is such as to allow, e.g., a mop holder to have an angle of 0°-45°, such as 15°-30° to the vertical when said mop holder is engaged with a mop in one of the first containers.

13. A cleaning trolley according to claim 11 or 12, wherein the distance between the first 5 container(s) and the second means is at least 20 cm, such as at least 30 cm, such as at least 40 cm, such as at least 60 cm, such as at least 80 cm, such as at least 100 cm or more such as at least 140 cm.

14. A cleaning trolley according to any of claims 9-13, wherein the width of the trolley is 10 15-100 cm, preferably 30-85 cm, or more preferably 45-70 cm, such as approximately 60 cm.

15. A method for transporting cleaning textiles from a first location, such as a laundry, to a second location where the textiles are to be used, the method comprising the steps of:

15

- placing the textiles in one or more of the first containers according to any of claims 1-8,

20

- opening the one or more first containers, and

- mounting one or more of the textiles onto a cleaning instrument(s).

25 16. A method according to claim 15, further comprising, subsequent to the step of opening the first container, wetting the textiles by pouring them with water or other aqueous cleaning agents.

17. A method according to claim 15, further comprising, prior to the step of placing the 30 textiles in the first container(s), wetting the textiles by pouring them with water or other aqueous cleaning agents.

18. A method according to any of claims 15-17, further comprising, prior to the step of placing the textiles in the first container(s), the steps of:

35 - washing the textiles, and subsequently

- exposing the textiles to a rinsing process that comprises rinsing the textiles with an aqueous liquid comprising one or more cleaning agents which remain in the textiles after rinsing.

19. A method according to any of claims 15-18, wherein the step of mounting comprises mounting a mop, such as a flat mop, to a mop holder.