Ultrasonic cleaning apparatus

The disclosure relates to a compact apparatus which effectively washes holes of printed circuit cards, flushes exfoliation off printed circuit cards and nameplates after etching, degreases and flushes number-plates before painting, and cleans iron, plastic, and glass plates, wherein a processing cistern is divided into a carry-in compartment (A), a cleaning compartment (B), a water-wash finishing compartment (C) and a drying compartment (D), the carry-in compartment (A) comprising an infeed roller, a pair of rubber rollers mounted vertically facing each other at a certain forward position thereof and a cleaning solution shut-out roller rotatable by the lower roller of the pair, the cleaning compartment (B) comprising a pair of rubber rollers vertically facing each other at a certain forward position of the pair of rubber rollers, a cleaning solution shut-out roller rotatable by the lower roller thereof, transfer rollers with conveying belts stretched therebetween so mounted that they may be rotated at the same level with or lower than the contact faces of and between the pairs of rubber rollers, and an ultrasonic vibrator installed at the bottom, and the water-finishing compartment (C) comprising vertically spaced water injectors opposite to each other and squeezing rollers in contact with each other.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
Hitherto, cleaners employing ultrasonic vibrators have been well known, 
which are of a batch-process type wherein washing immersed in liquid in a 
processing cistern is exposed to ultrasonic waves generated by vibrators 
equipped on the inside walls and at the bottom of the cistern. This type 
of cleaner requires much time and trouble for putting in and removing of 
articles from a wash and further another rinsing step to finish the 
cleaning, thus necessitating much equipment and labor for these purposes. 
OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION 
An important object of the present invention is to improve said troublesome 
processes for higher labor efficiency by the employment of a conveying 
system which will permit continuous operations including the rinsing and 
drying steps. Another object of the present invention is to supply a 
market with a compact and inexpensive apparatus which can perform powerful 
cleaning by the use of ultrasonic waves and ultimately contribute to labor 
saving and high productivity. 
These and other objects of the present invention will be made clearer by 
reference to the following descriptions and drawings attached hereto.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
In all the drawings numeral 1 designates the frame of an apparatus which 
contains a control, a blower, and a motor. Numeral 2 indicates a 
processing cistern placed horizontally on said frame 1, which is 
partitioned into a carry-in compartment A, a cleaning compartment B, a 
water-finishing compartment C, and a drying compartment D in sequence 
along the traveling direction of articles being cleaned. Said compartments 
are constructed as follows: 
Said carry-in compartment A consists of an infeed roller 3, a pair of 
rubber rollers 4a and 4b mounted vertically facing each other at a certain 
distance forward of said roller 3, and a sealing roller 5, said rubber 
rollers 4a and 4b being rotated clockwise or counterclockwise i.e. in the 
direction of the arrow by means of a driving chain to be described later 
and said infeed roller 3 rotated toward the arrow thereon, wherein the 
contact faces P of said rubber rollers 4a and 4b serve as a combination of 
an inlet for articles to be cleaned and a sealing face of wash water and 
said sealing roller 5 is so mounted as to freely rotate in contact with 
said rubber roller 4b and at a slightly lower position than the axial 
center thereof, the contact faces E of said rollers also forming a sealing 
face for wash water. The contact face F of said roller 5 with a horizontal 
plate 6 on the inlet side of said processing cistern 2, (i.e., the 
peripheral face of said roller 5 elastically in pressure contact with the 
nose of a rubber-like tongue 7) also serves as a sealing face for wash 
water. Numerals 8 and 9 designate freely rotating guide rollers mounted in 
such a position that the top faces thereof are slightly higher than the 
top face of said sealing roller 5, the horizontal line h connecting said 
rollers 8 and 9 being at the same level with or slightly lower than the 
horizontal H passing between the contact faces of said rubber rollers 4a 
and 4b. 
Said cleaning compartment B comprises a pair of rubber rollers 10a and 10b 
mounted vertically facing each other at a certain distance forward of said 
pair of rollers 4a and 4b, transferring rollers 11 and 12 being rotated in 
the direction of the arrow by a driving chain and a freely rotating 
intermediate roller 13 therebetween, both being placed between said two 
pairs of rubber rollers and having a number of evenly spaced grooves 
arranged alternately, in which conveying belts 14a, 14b, 14c . . . and 
15a, 15b, 15c . . . are stretched by way of said intermediate roller 13. 
Reference numerals 16, 17, and 18 designate pressure roller shafts on 
which a number of rolls 16a, 16b, 16c . . . , 17a, 17b, 17c . . . and 18a, 
18b, 18c . . . are fixed axially in such a way that they can move up and 
down for a given stroke on said rollers 11, 12, and 13. 
Said rubber rollers 10a and 10b serve as an outlet for articles being 
cleaned from said cleaning compartment B as well as a cleaning solution 
sealing face for wash water just like said rubber rollers 4a and 4b. The 
outlet side of said lower roller 10b is in close contact with a sealing 
roller 19 freely rotating in a slightly lower position than the axial 
center thereof, the contact faces G of both roller 10b and 19 also forming 
a cleaning solution sealing face for wash water, just as seen in said 
sending-in compartment A. 
The reverse face of said roller 19 is in pressure contact with a 
rubber-like tongue 22 attached to the nose of a horizontal plate 21 
mounted at the same level with said plate 6 in said carry-in compartment A 
on the lower parting plate 20b fixed vertically at the cistern bottom, the 
contact faces K serving as cleaning solution sealing face of wash water. 
Numerals 24 and 25 designate freely rotating guide rollers placed in such 
a position that the top faces thereof are slightly higher than that of 
said sealing roller 19, and a delivery roller 26 is so mounted that the 
top face thereof is at the same level with those of said guide rollers 27a 
and 27b designating ultrasonic vibrators installed at the cistern bottom. 
Said water-wash finishing compartment C comprises the upper partition plate 
20a facing said lower partition plate 20b spaced from each other to such 
an extent that articles sent out by said delivery roller 26 can pass 
smoothly between said two plates, L-shaped conduits 28a and 28b attached 
to said partition plates 20a and 20b on the side opposite to said cleaning 
compartment B, through which water pipes 29a and 29b are arranged 
longitudinal thereto with a number of through holes 30 on the facing 
surfaces to provide jets of finishing water, and two pairs of squeezing 
rollers 31a, 31b, and 32a, 32b mounted ahead of said conduits, each pair 
of rollers facing each other. 
Said drying compartment D is divided roughly into a preparatory drying 
means and a finish drying means, the former comprising air injectors 35a 
and 35b vertically opposite to each other from which a hot air blast comes 
out, hoods 36a and 36b permitting said hot blast to blow both against the 
upper and lower sides of articles delivered out of said squeezing rollers, 
and hot blast hoses 37a and 37b, the finish drying means consisting of a 
wire-meshed conveyor 38 circling through a definite distance by way of 
conveying rollers 39 and 40, an electric heater 41 housed in said 
wiremeshed conveyor 38, and a hood 42. 
Said rollers in all compartments, such as infeed roller 3, rubber rollers 
4a, 4b, 10a, and 10b, transferring rollers 11 and 12, delivery roller 26, 
squeezing rollers 31a, 31b, and 32a, 32b, and conveying rollers 39 and 40 
are driven by the rotation of sprockets 47a, 47b, 47c . . . fixed on said 
roller shafts and connected with each other by a chain 48 which is 
achieved by a drive sprocket 46 at the front of the apparatus rotated by a 
sprocket coaxial therewith and integral with one end at the back of the 
apparatus of the shaft of said rubber roller 10b, said sprocket 45 being 
driven via a chain 44 by means of a motor 43 contained in the frame 1 of 
the apparatus. (See FIG. 3.) 
In the preferred embodiment disclosed by the present invention, water 
always flows in through a cock 49 on the back wall thereof so that water 
in said cleaning compartment B can be kept constantly at a certain level g 
(high enough to immerse washing of articles therein) (See FIG. 2.) water 
over said level g flows out of a weir 50, and wash water leaking just when 
the articles pass between said rubber rollers is discharged through a 
receiving conduit 51 at the front of the embodiment. As illustrated in 
FIG. 4, sealing packings 52, 52', and 53, 53' fitted on both ends of said 
rubber rollers 10a are in contact with the wall surfaces of said 
compartment B, which is also seen with said rubber rollers 4a and 4b and 
sealing rollers 19 and 5. 
As described hitherto, the preferred embodiment disclosed by the present 
invention is of such construction that when in service wash water flows 
into said cleaning compartment to the level g, said ultrasonic vibrator 
27a therein is operated to generate ultrasonic vibrations, and said motor 
43 drives rollers such as said infeed roller 3 and rubber rollers 4a and 
4b, water and hot air blast being injected through said water injectors 
29a and 29b and said air jet pipes 35a and 35b respectively and heating 
being effected by said electric heater 41. Hence, articles being cleaned 
are first caught between the contact faces of said rollers 4a and 4b from 
said infeed roller 3 and sent into said cleaning compartment B where they 
are exposed to ultrasonic vibrations generated by said ultrasonic 
vibrators 27a and 27b to be cleaned of dirt during traveling on said 
conveying belts 14a, 14b, 14c . . . and 15a, 15b, 15c . . . . 
Articles after cleaning pass between said rubber rollers 10a and 10b up to 
said water-finishing compartment C, wherein they are finished with water 
blown against the upper and lower sides from said water injectors 29a and 
29b, then dehydrated while traveling through said squeezing rollers 31a, 
31b, 32a, and 32b. 
Finally, the articles are sent into said drying compartment D, wherein they 
are exposed to a hot air blast blown against the upper and lower sides to 
evaporate water, and then thoroughly dried at the dry atmospheric 
temperature in the space formed between said hood 42 and said wire-meshed 
conveyor 38 while shifting thereon, and after that taken out of the 
cistern. 
The embodiment described hitherto has an intermediate roller 13 fitted 
between said transferring rollers 11 and 12 so that two series of 
conveying belts 14a, 14b, 14c . . . and 15a, 15b, 15c . . . may be 
provided. The present invention can also be embodied by designing a 
cleaning compartment B with the appropriate number of intermediate rollers 
depending upon its size and varying the number and locations of ultrasonic 
vibrators. 
The embodiment disclosed by the present invention can automatically 
introduce articles put on said infeed roller 3 into said carry-in 
compartment A, perform effective cleaning by means of ultrasonic 
vibrations acting rectangular to the articles while traveling in cleaning 
solution, and further provide consistent continuous operations including 
final water-finishing and drying in said compartments C and D, thus making 
great contributions to labor saving and high productivity. Moreover, the 
connection of existing apparatus is possible to the front or back of the 
embodiment.