Abstract:
A convertible wash platform ( 10 ) for motor vehicles ( 11 ). The wash platform ( 10 ) has a plurality of modules ( 22 ) adapted to be reconfigurable between a first configuration and a second configuration. In the first configuration, the plurality of modules ( 22 ) defines the wash platform ( 10 ). At least some of the modules include water collection portions. In the second configuration, the plurality of modules ( 22 ) integrally define a transportable unit, whereby the transportable unit can be transferred to a deployment site and can be readily reconfigured into the wash platform ( 10 ) of the first configuration for use at the deployment site.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0001]     For safety and other reasons, it is often desirable to wash a vehicle before it leaves a particular site or location. Such situations can arise from natural disasters, man-made disasters, military activities, and even terrorist attacks.  
         [0002]     Asbestos, glass particles and caustic powder are among the many continuing dangers after the collapse of a building. The World Trade Center towers contained 5000 tons of asbestos for insulation, just in the structural steel. This asbestos was part of the dust clouds that rolled through lower Manhattan and settled surrounding the site.  
         [0003]     To protect people outside the contaminated zones, persons and vehicles must be cleaned prior to leaving the area. Because of the thin fibers inherent to asbestos, this kind and other contaminated dust must be taken up wet. While individuals can be decontaminated in tent stations, that they must leave the contaminated site through, heavy vehicles such as fire trucks and transport vehicles require a thorough vehicle wash so they do not contaminate outside the hot zone.  
         [0004]     Vehicle wash systems capable of washing large trucks are generally massive systems at fixed locations. Trucks drive through spray arches to reach all sides of the vehicle. Water and chemical cleaning solutions are pumped throughout the system and water is collected and recycled or disposed of.  
         [0005]     Disasters, military activities and terrorist attacks can occur anywhere in the world and, as such, vehicles need to be washed of contaminants in many different locations with the equipment being provided to these locations quickly and by means of various modes of transportation.  
         [0006]     The ability to ship a system over road, rail, ocean and air, along with the ability for it to be lifted by various means, are desirable requirements.  
         [0007]     The transportation industry, as well as the Department of Defense, has an ongoing initiative to standardize shipping containers so they may be easily deployed using truck, train, ship or plane. The United States participates in ANSI/ISO under the sponsorship of the American National Standards Institute. ANSI/ISO Technical Committee  104  handles a variety of matters related to freight containers. The Department of Defense and many other organizations have adopted these standards for transport containers.  
         [0008]     In view of the foregoing, there exists a need for a vehicle wash platform that can be easily transported and rapidly deployed.  
       BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0009]     The present invention is a portable vehicle wash platform, capable of washing large trucks, that can be broken down and reconfigured such that the reconfigured platform itself forms a standard ANSI/ISO “container” that can be lifted by standard container handling equipment and can be transported by standard modes of container transportation.  
         [0010]     A vehicle wash system that can be broken down and reconfigured into a container size that complies with the standards for ANSI/ISO containers could be rapidly deployed to a disaster zone or other location to wash vehicles exiting the site and reduce the risk of contamination in the surrounding areas.  
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0011]      FIG. 1   a  is a perspective view of a fully deployed wash station in accordance with the present invention;  
         [0012]      FIG. 2  is a side view of the wash station seen in  FIG. 1 ;  
         [0013]      FIG. 3   a - 3   g  illustrate the wash station, seen in  FIG. 1 , in successive configurations as it is being reconfigured into a shipping container or containerized platform;  
         [0014]      FIG. 4  is a perspective view of a wash station according to a second embodiment of this invention; and  
         [0015]      FIG. 5  is a table illustrating various standard methods for lifting containers and the “containerized” wash platform of this invention. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION  
       [0016]     The following description of the preferred embodiments are merely exemplary in nature, and is in no way intended to limit the scope of the invention or its application or uses.  
         [0017]     In the preferred combination, a portable vehicle wash platform  10  capable of washing large vehicles  11  such as trucks, cars, tractor-trailers, gravel or debris handlers, fire-trucks, and military vehicles is provided. The wash platform  10  can be disassembled and reconfigured as a standard sized ANSI/ISO container or containerized platform  12 . The container  12  includes well known fittings  14  on its corners which meet ISO standards and allow lifting of the container  12  onto various means of transportation by different lifting methods. Once the containerized platform  12  is at the deployment site, it may be readily reassembled into its wash platform  10  configuration. This reassembly can be performed by a variety of means including manually, with a crane or by an automatic mechanism, such as hydraulic means, built into the vehicle wash platform  10 .  
         [0018]     In one embodiment of the vehicle wash platform  10 , six module portions are provided. These module portions includes an entrance ramp  13  with two entrance ramp modules  14 ,  16  for the vehicle  11  to drive onto the platform  10 , an exit ramp  17  with two exit ramp modules  18 ,  20  for the vehicle  11  to drive off the platform  10  and two main platform modules for the vehicle to be supported upon while it is being washed. Several views of a vehicle wash platform  10  are shown in various stages of disassembly in  FIGS. 1-3   g.    
         [0019]     Referring to  FIGS. 1 and 2 , a spray arch  26  or multiple spray arches are attached to the main platform modules  22 ,  24  of the vehicle wash platform  10  to allow the vehicle  11  to pass therethrough and wash the truck  11  from a variety of angles. The arch  26  may otherwise be per a construction well known in the vehicle wash industry. Plumbing  28  is run through the vehicle wash platform  10  to bring water and/or chemicals to the spray arch  26 , or the plumbing may connect directly to the arches. Various other mechanisms commonly necessary for vehicle washing can be self contained within the main modules and included in the system, as one skilled in the art will appreciate.  
         [0020]     The main platform modules  22 ,  24  have a grate top surface  30  and built in sloped internal surfaces  32  to divert the dirty water from the vehicle wash to an outlet  34 , which could lead to a settling pit constructed underneath the vehicle platform  10  or an integral pump (not shown) that sends the dirty water to another location for disposal and/or recycling. The entrance and exit ramps  13 ,  17  could also be provided with internal surfaces directing the water to collection areas after washing to be disposed of at a later time. The top portions of the various modules, for example in the areas of man-ways  36 , are provided as removable panels for permitting access to the interior of the vehicle wash platform  10  and the various modules.  
         [0021]     Provided according to this invention, the vehicle wash platform  10  can be brought to and removed from the contaminated site in its containerized condition  12 , which has the external dimensions and capabilities of a standard ANSI/ISO shipping container. The overall or external dimensions of the containerized platform  12  is therefore 8 ft. (height)×8 ft. (width)×20 ft. (length) or 8 ft.×8 ft.×40 ft. Half heights and other divisions of the container dimensions may also be possible, so long as the end configuration of combined multiples is of a standard size.  
         [0022]      FIGS. 3   a - 3   g  illustrate one method by which the six individual modules of the vehicle wash platform  10  can be broken down and reconfigured during containerization. As will be apparent from the following discussion, converting the containerized platform  12  into the vehicle wash platform  10  entails the reversal of the steps mentioned below.  
         [0023]     Starting from the vehicle wash platform  10  seen in  FIG. 3   a , end supports  38  are added to low height ends  40 ,  41 ,  42 ,  43  of the entrance and exit ramp modules  14 ,  16 ,  18 ,  20 . The end supports  38  provide upright extensions to the low height ends  40 ,  41 ,  42 ,  43  and extend to a height corresponding with the height of the opposing ends of the entrance and exit modules  14 ,  16 ,  18 ,  20 , about two feet in a full sized standard container version of the invention. The end supports  38  may be attached to the low height ends  40 ,  41 ,  42 ,  43  by various means, included having mounting tubes thereon inserted into recesses in the appropriate two corners of the modules  14 ,  16 ,  18 ,  20 , fastening the end supports with pins, bolts, screws, interlocks or other such means.  
         [0024]     The first entrance module  14  is then positioned on main platform module  22  such that its low height end  40  is centrally positioned on the main platform module  22 , with its opposing end located toward the exit ramp module  18 .  
         [0025]     Exit ramp module  18  is similarly moved and positioned on the main platform module  22 . Its low height end  41  and end support  38  are accordingly located adjacent to the low height end  40  and end support  38  of the first entrance ramp module  14 . This is generally seen in  FIG. 3   d.    
         [0026]     In similar fashion, the second entrance ramp module  16  and the second exit ramp module  20  are reconfigured and stacked on the first entrance ramp module  14  and the first exit ramp module  18 , respectively. Illustrations of the above two steps are seen in  FIGS. 3   e  and  3   f.    
         [0027]     Finally, the second main platform module  24  is positioned on top of the second entrance and exit ramp modules  16 ,  20 . (See  FIG. 3   g ). In this configuration, the vehicle wash platform  10  has been containerized and bears the dimensions of a standard sized shipping container.  
         [0028]     The various modules  14 ,  16 ,  18 ,  20 ,  22 ,  26  are removeably secured with appropriate mechanisms to interlock or fit together when assembled. Such interlocks and mechanisms may include conventional fasteners, twist locks and other mechanisms, both during containerization and deployment.  
         [0029]     As mentioned above, standard ISO fittings are attached either after assembly or built-in to the modules so that the containerized platform  12  can be lifted by standard means and secured to the transport vehicle by standard securement methods. Examples of the lifting means and methods for the containerized platform  12  are shown in  FIG. 4 , and are provided such that the containerized platform  12  may be lifted by cranes, front-end lifts or other machinery. An example of such a securement mechanism includes twist-locks.  
         [0030]     After containerization, the containerized platform  12  is seen to have recesses  48  or areas within it to store various wash system components such as pumps, spray arches, plumbing means, hoses, etc.  
         [0031]     Because of the standard size and ability to be handled by standard means, as indicated in  FIG. 5 , and transported by standard means, the containerized platform  12  can easily be transported via truck, rail, ship or air. The containerized platform  12  also will exhibit a good distribution of weight, which will aide in vehicle stability during transportation. If desired, the recesses  48  can be left open in the sides of the containerized platform  12  to reduce the effects of wind during transport.  
         [0032]     As can be readily understood by persons of ordinary skill in the art, the vehicle wash platform  10  may include and utilize other suitable devices and combinations. As seen in  FIG. 4 , a transportable and rapidly deployable wash system  100  could be provided utilizing more than one container. Such a system  100  includes the vehicle wash platform  10  described above, and also includes one or more other standard sized containers  102 ,  104 . The containers  102 ,  104  are self-contained and include various other equipment required by the vehicle wash platform  10 , including, without limitation, pumps, valve systems, control systems, water heaters, chemical tanks, water softeners, generators, filters, water tanks, reclamation tanks, etc. Connecting of the containers  102 ,  104  and their equipment, to the vehicle wash platform  10  is readily achieved by removing the man-ways  36  of one or both main wash modules  22 ,  24  and engaging the appropriate fittings and couplings appropriately provided between the containers  102 ,  104  and the main wash platforms  22 ,  24 .  
         [0033]     The foregoing discussion discloses and describes a preferred embodiment of the invention. One skilled in the art will readily recognize from such discussion, and from the accompanying drawings and claims, that changes and modifications can be made to the invention without departing from the true spirit and fair scope of the invention as defined in the following claims.