WO2001058333A2

WO2001058333A2 - Liquid suction mouth and device, as well as a brush machine comprising said device

Info

Publication number: WO2001058333A2
Application number: PCT/IT2000/000044
Authority: WO
Inventors: Camillo Leoncini
Original assignee: Leoncini Motorscop, S.R.L.
Priority date: 2000-02-14
Filing date: 2000-02-14
Publication date: 2001-08-16
Also published as: AU3189300A; WO2001058333A3

Abstract

Suction mouth for liquids applicable to a brush machine for washing floors, said machine being provided with at least one round brush (1) which is rotated around the vertical axis thereof by means of a motor (2) arranged above the brush (1), said motor (2) and said brush (1) being at least partially covered with a downwardly open box-like body (4), characterized in that it comprises a hollow body (10) provided with at least one downwardly turned lower opening (20) for sucking up liquids, and with one or more upper openings (21) for the connection to suction ducts (13), as well as with a squeegee (11) made with an elastomeric material which is arranged around the edges of said lower opening (20) and is provided with smooth internal surfaces (23) and corrugated external surfaces (24), wherein said hollow body (10) has a perimetrical development having an internal side profile with a shape substantially complementary to the external side profile of said box-like body (4). The present invention also relates to a liquid suction device comprising said mouth, as well as a brush machine comprising said device.

Description

"LIQUID SUCTION MOUTH AND DEVICE. AS WELL AS A BRUSH MACHINE COMPRISING SAID DEVICE"

The present invention relates to a liquid suction mouth and a device comprising said mouth, which can be applied and/or integrated into brush machines for washing floors. Furthermore, the present invention relates to a brush machine comprising said device.

Brush machines for washing floors are known to comprise one or more round brushes which are rotated around their vertical axis by means of a motor, so as to clean the floors. This cleaning is often carried out with the help of liquids, for example water mixed with detergents, which can also be spread by means of apparatuses arranged on the same brush machines. At present, in order to remove the water from the floors, a suitable and separate suction device is used, having a rectilinear mouth provided with a rear squeegee which is used for holding the liquids under the mouth itself.

However, the presence of a devoted operator is necessary for using and moving this suction device, and therefore the cleaning of a floor and the subsequent drying thereof needs two operators or the double time with respect to the cleaning only. Further, the presence of the rear squeegee disadvantageously reduces the depression under the suction mouth and thus the efficiency thereof in the liquid suction.

Therefore, object of the present invention is to provide liquid suction means which are free from said drawbacks. Said object is obtained by a liquid suction mouth and device, as well as a brush machine whose main features are respectively disclosed in claims 1, 6 and 10, while other features are disclosed in the remaining claims.

Thanks to its particular perimetrical development, the suction mouth according to the present invention can be advantageously applied around the known brush machines, so as to suck up liquids during the use of the machines, with resulting gain in labor time and costs.

The suction mouth according to the present invention provides also for a high efficiency in liquid suction due to the particular arrangement and conformation of the squeegee which it is provided with.

Further, the suction device according to the present invention can be advantageously arranged above the box-like body which covers the motor of the known brush machines, so as to minimize the dimensions of the resulting assembly, which can easily used by only one person.

Another advantage of the present invention consists in the possibility of easily integrating the mouth and the suction device into a new brush machine, which therefore is very compact and easy to handle. Further advantages and features of the mouth, device and machine according to the present invention will appear to those which are skilled in the art from the following detailed and non-limiting description of one embodiment thereof with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein:

- figure 1 shows a frontal view in a cross-section along a vertical plane of a brush machine comprising the mouth and the device according to the present invention;

- figure 2 shows a partial bottom view of the machine of figure 1; and

- figure 3 shows a partial front view in a cross-section along a vertical plane of the mouth according to the present invention.

Referring to figure 1 , it can be seen that a brush machine for washing floors comprises in a known way at least one round brush 1 which is rotated around its vertical axis by means of a motor 2, for instance electric, which is arranged above brush 1 and is mechanically connected thereto through a drive system 3. Motor 2, drive system 3 and brush 1 are at least partially covered with a downwardly open box-like body 4. The lower end of a handle bar 5 is fixed to the box-like body 4 so that an operator can easily move the brush machine on the floor. Further, the upper portion of handle bar 5 is provided with levers 6 and pushbuttons 7 for starting and controlling the working of the brush machine, as well as with a further lever 8 which can be actuated for opening the valve of a pipe which brings a washing liquid, generally water mixed with a detergent, from a tank 9 to a nozzle (not shown in the figure) arranged next to brush 1.

The liquid expelled from said nozzle, after having been used for washing a floor, is sucked up by means of at least one suction mouth 10 which is suitably arranged around brush 1. Underneath suction mouth 10 at least one squeegee 11 made with an elastomeric material is arranged, suitable for maintaining inside the mouth itself a depression which is generated by a suction device comprising a collecting tank 12 connected through one or more suction ducts, for example flexible pipes 13, to suction mouth 10. The suction device also comprises a suction pump 14 which sucks up the air from tank 12 and pumps it outwards through an exhaust duct 15. Pump 14 can be actuated by an electric motor and provided with an air filter. In order to prevent the liquids sucked into tank 12 from reaching the level of pump 14, fitting 16 of pipes 13 is extended downwards, so that when the level of the sucked liquids reaches the free end of fitting 16, pump 14 cannot suck anymore. Also pump 14 is provided with a suction duct 17, the free end of which ends with a cap 18 which removably closes an opening made in the upper wall of tank 12. Pump 14 is thus prevented from accidentally sucking up the liquids collected in tank 12, while the last mentioned opening can be useful for emptying and, if necessary, examining the inside of tank 12.

In order to reduce the dimensions, tank 12 has substantially the same width and depth of box-like body 4, as well as a lower wall 19 suitably shaped so as to form a cavity having a shape substantially complementary to that of the upper portion of box-like body 4.

With reference to figure 2, suction mouth 10 is seen to comprise a hollow body having at least a lower opening 20 turned downwards for the liquids suction, as well as one or more upper openings 21 for the connection to pipes 13. Said hollow body is suitably provided with a perimetrical development, having an internal side profile with a shape substantially complementary to the external side profile of box-like body 4, for instance round shaped, so as to completely or mainly surround the latter. Particularly, in the present embodiment suction mouth 10 is substantially ring-shaped with a rectangular cross-section and is interrupted for a ring arc of about 60° at the wheels 22 for moving the brush machine. In other embodiments of the present invention, suction mouth 10 can have a perimetrical development having an internal profile with a substantially rectangular, triangular, square or pentagonal shape, if the brush machine to which the mouth has to be applied comprises two, three, four or five non-coaxial brushes respectively.

Now, referring also to figure 3, it is seen that the internal surfaces 23 of squeegee 11, which is arranged around the edges of opening 20 of suction mouth 10, are smooth, while the external surfaces 24 are corrugated, for instance by means of a multiplicity of vertical relieves. By this measure, when the brush machine is moved on the floor to be washed in the sense of the arrow in the figure, squeegee 1 1 presses against the floor itself and bends towards the side opposite to the sense of the machine movement. The liquids to be sucked up pass under squeegee 11 through the small openings arranged among the relieves of external surfaces 24, remain trapped because of internal smooth surfaces 23 and are sucked up by suction mouth 10.

Further variations and/or additions can be made by those which are skilled in the art to the above described and illustrated embodiment by remaining within the scope of the invention itself. For instance, mouth 10 can be split into a number of portions arranged around box-like body 4.

Claims

1. Suction mouth for liquids applicable to a brush machine for washing floors, said machine being provided with at least one round brush (1) which is rotated around the vertical axis thereof by means of a motor (2) arranged above the brush (1), said motor (2) and said brush (1) being at least partially covered with a downwardly open box-like body (4), characterized in that it comprises a hollow body (10) provided with at least one downwardly turned lower opening (20) for sucking up liquids, and with one or more upper openings (21) for the connection to suction ducts (13), as well as with a squeegee (1 1) made with an elastomeric material which is arranged around the edges of said lower opening (20) and is provided with smooth internal surfaces (23) and corrugated external surfaces (24), wherein said hollow body (10) has a perimetrical development having an internal side profile with a shape substantially complementary to the external side profile of said box-like body (4).

2. Mouth according to the preceding claim, characterized in that the external surfaces (24) of the squeegee in elastomeric material (11) are provided with a multiplicity of vertical relieves.

3. Mouth according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that said hollow body (10) is substantially ring-shaped.

4. Mouth according to the preceding claim, characterized in that the hollow body (10) is substantially ring-shaped with a rectangular cross-section and is interrupted for a ring arc.

5. Mouth according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that said hollow body (10) has a perimetrical development having an internal side profile of substantially rectangular, triangular, square or pentagonal shape, if said brush machine comprises two, three, four, or five non-coaxial brushes respectively.

6. Liquid suction device applicable to a brush machine for washing floors, said machine being provided with at least one round brush (1) which is rotated around the vertical axis thereof by means of a motor (2) arranged above the brush (1), said motor (2) and said brush (1) being at least partially covered with a downwardly open box-like body (4), characterized in that it comprises a suction mouth according to one of the preceding claims, a collecting tank (12) connected through one or more suction ducts (13) to the suction mouth (10), as well as a suction pump (14) which sucks up air from the inside of the tank (12) and pumps it outwards through an exhaust duct (15).

7. Suction device according to the preceding claim, characterized in that the collecting tank (12) has substantially the same width and depth of the boxlike body (4), as well as a lower wall (19) shaped so as to form a cavity having a shape substantially complementary to that of the upper portion of the box-like body (4).

8. Suction device according to claim 6 or 7, characterized in that the collecting tank (12) is provided with a fitting (16) for the suction ducts (13) which is downwardly extended and has the free end arranged at a lower height with respect to the suction pump (14).

9. Suction device according to one of claims 6 to 8, characterized in that the suction pump (14) is provided with a suction duct (17), the free end of which ends in a cap (18) which removably closes an opening made in the upper wall of the collecting tank (12).

10. Brush machine, characterized in that it comprises a liquid suction device according to one of claims 6 to 9.