Patent Publication Number: US-2009230217-A1

Title: Insulated cleaning tool

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This is a non-provisional of U.S. application Ser. No. 61/036,532, filed Mar. 14, 2008, the entire disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. 
    
    
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention pertains generally to cleaning tools, and more particularly to tools for producing controlled high pressure fluidic jets for cleansing action. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     A great number of nozzles and tools for producing pressurized cleaning action have been designed in the past for doing a variety of cleaning jobs. One of the most difficult and necessary cleaning tasks is that of air conditioning and refrigeration condenser coils, particularly of the type having closely spaced fins through which air passes to effect heat transfer. Obviously the accumulation of dirt and debris in outdoor condenser units clogs the air passages and coats the fin and coil surfaces which greatly reduce the capability for good heat exchange and efficient operation. My earlier U.S. Pat. No. 4,600,153 covered my basic cleaning tool configuration, and this tool is highly effective in condenser cleaning operations. However, despite safety warnings, users often do not turn off power to condensing units prior to initiating a cleaning function thereby endangering themselves to electric shock through the metal body of the tool. In addressing this safety problem it has been discovered that the functionality of my tool for use in many other household yard and automotive applications can also be enhanced in a simple and non-obvious way, and which also improves usage in the cleaning of cadavers in the mortuary business (as discussed in my &#39;153 patent). 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention pertains to cleaning tools for producing high and/or variable intensity fluidic cleansing action and is embodied in a tool having a long, thin body member with a liquid intake end and a remote outlet end having a plurality of jet openings for producing predetermined fluidic discharge patterns, and, further, pertains to insulation features that include protected hand placement zones for optimum safe control of the tool in varied uses. 
     The primary object of the present invention is to provide a simple, strong, durable, economical and efficient cleaning tool having a wide variety of useful applications. 
     Another object is to provide a cleaning tool having an insulated, wand-like body member that can easily be handled and manipulated to efficiently effect fluidic jet cleansing. 
     Another object is to provide a simple, yet efficient cleaning tool that is completely portable and connectable to available water sources or other pressurized fluids, and which provides protected hand positioning and at the same time can be regulated as to fluidic cleaning pressure. 
     Another object is to provide a cleaning tool useful for electrically powered fixtures and is safety insulated to protect careless users who are unmindful of safety instructions and may be subjected to electrical shock. 
     These and still other objects and advantages will become more apparent hereinafter. 
    
    
     
       DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The invention is embodied in the parts and in the combinations and arrangements of parts hereinafter described and claimed. In the accompanying drawings which form a part of this specification and wherein like numerals refer to like parts wherever they occur: 
         FIG. 1  is a fragmentary front elevational view of an insulated cleaning tool embodying the present invention, 
         FIG. 2  is a greatly enlarged cross-sectional view taken substantially along line  2 - 2  of  FIG. 1 , 
         FIG. 3  is a greatly enlarged cross-sectional view taken substantially along line  3 - 3  of  FIG. 1 , 
         FIG. 4  is a perspective view of the cleaning tool embodying the present invention, 
         FIG. 5  is an enlarged fragmentary side elevational view of the cleaning tool, and 
         FIG. 6  is a diagrammatic cross-section illustrating a typical condenser cleaning operation using the tool. 
     
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     Referring now to the drawings, a cleaning tool  10  embodying the invention is illustrated, in which the tool  10  comprises a long main body  11  formed of aluminum conduit or like hollow, tubular material and having a fluid inlet section  12  at one end and a jet outlet section  13  at the other end. The fluid inlet end  12  has a non-metal fitting  14  of electrical insulating material adapted to connect the tool  10  to a fluid source ( 17 ), and has a valve member  15  with a control handle  16  by which the internal valve (not shown) may be entirely opened or closed to fluid flow or turned to regulate the volume of such flow. The tool  10  will work efficiently with different fluid cleaning mediums such as compressed air, carbon dioxide, and pressurized cleaning fluids such as carbon tetrachloride or the like, but a conventional city water hook-up is highly effective, economical, easy to use and always readily available. Thus, the tool  10  through valve  15  may be connected to a typical garden house  17  ( FIG. 4 ). 
     The main body section  11  of the tool is flattened throughout a major portion of its length so that opposed wall segments  18  and  19  ( FIG. 2 ) have parallel surfaces and form a constricted interior passageway  20  leading to the outlet section  13  thereby creating a Venturi-type effect relative to the circular cross-sectional area  21  of the inlet section  12 . The outlet end section  13  tapers from the flattened wall segments  18  and  19  to a sealed margin  23  closing the end section  13 . In short, the convergence of the opposed wall segments define sloping wall sections  22  angularly related to the parallel flattened segments  18  and  19  and thus form a further constriction of the interior opening at the outlet end. An important feature of the tool resides in the construction and arrangement of jet ports or openings  24  in one of the flattened wall segments  23  and wall sections  19 . The aggregate cross-sectional area of the discharge jet openings is less than the cross-sectional area of the constricted interior passage  20  of the tool  10  and thereby forms a final Venturi action on the discharge of cleaning fluid therethrough with the effect of increased velocity and decreased pressure. 
     In a preferred embodiment the jet ports  24  are drilled or punched through the side wall  19  and are located in a predetermined pattern having three columns of openings and two of these columns are offset longitudinally from each other. The thickness of conduit wall  19  ( 18 ) can be a factor in determining the patterns of jet ports  24  since the fluid passage through the wall will become more directionalized if the wall is thicker (and the ports are longer). Therefore, the thicker the conduit material, the closer the ports should be to control convergence of the jet streams. In addition, the lowest or outer jet ports are located in wall section  23  immediately adjacent to the closed end margin and, preferably, are angularly drilled or punched in the wall to direct jet streams in a converging pattern as well as at a downward angle relative to the other jet streams discharged from upper openings  24 . This arrangement produces a highly effective and concentrated sweeping or scrubbing action in certain applications, such as cleaning condenser coils as will be described with reference to  FIG. 6 . 
     Referring particularly to  FIGS. 1-4 , the tool  10  of the present invention is greatly enhanced by having an electric-shielding coating or covering  26  encasing the main body section  11  and circular inlet section  12 . It will be noted that the lower margin  27  of this casing  26  ( FIGS. 1 and 4 ) is closely adjacent to the jet ports  24  at the outlet section  13 , but is spaced away sufficiently so as not to interfere with the fluid jetting action. The body section  11  and inlet section  12  of the tool are encased to guard against electric shock in hazardous applications in which power has not been interrupted due to carelessness or the like. More especially the encasement  26  is constructed and arranged to accommodate efficient and protected handling of the tool in various applications. Thus the circular inlet section  12  is designed to form an elongated first or primary hand-grip zone  28  for one of the user&#39;s hands on the tool adjacent to the regulating intake valve  15 , and the casing  26  extends from the non-metal (insulated) connector  14  to the flattened side wall sections  18  and  19  of the main body  11 . A second or secondary hand-grip zone  29  extends a substantial length of the main body section  11  and accommodates a varied guiding hand placement along the body for the other of user&#39;s hands, and thereby safely optimizes selective hand placement depending on the cleaning application and fluidic pressurization needed therefore. 
     Referring to  FIG. 6  of the drawings, a one typical air conditioning condenser coil and housing are diagrammatically shown in order to illustrate one typical operation of the cleaning tool  10 . The condenser unit  30  includes a housing having vented side walls  31  and a bottom wall  32 , and a top wall closure (not shown). The condensing unit  30  includes a condenser  33  having a serpentine coil  34  and closely spaced fins  35  providing heat exchange or transfer surfaces, and a fan  36  is provided to move ambient air through the condenser  33  to reduce the temperature of refrigerant in the coil  34  to its saturation temperature as a part of the typical refrigeration cycle. Through prolonged operation of the condensing unit  30 , the fan  36  will draw dirt and debris into the housing and, since the air flow is baffled to pass entirely through the condenser  33 , the coil  34  and fins  35  will catch or filter out this deleterious material and become clogged and coated so that heat transfer efficiency is substantially reduced. The operation of the cleaning tool  10  is as follows. The power to the unit  30  should be shut off, the cabinet top is removed and the fan motor is covered and shielded from the water or other cleansing fluid used. However it should be noted that impatient or careless workers or homeowners frequently fail to follow these basic first steps, and electric power is frequently left on. The cleaning tool  10  is connected to a pressurized fluid source ( 17 ), such as a city water tap (not shown) and the valve  15  is closed when this supply of water is turned on. It may be noted that the long, thin wand-like construction of the tool  10  creates a reaction force or “kick” at the closed end  22  due to the pressurized jet release. However, the wand construction permits easy control using two hands in the primary and secondary zones and the thinness of the tool is important in accessibility to all parts of the coil  34  and fins  35 . The tool  10  is moved, starting at the top of the coil, back and forth progressing downwardly to free soil and back-flush the entire condenser clean. The jet discharge is directed counterflow to normal air flow during condenser cleaning operations so that the material is flushed free rather than being driven into and wedged further between fins  35 . The jet pattern is predetermined to concentrate the water force on the fin surfaces and the lower or outer converging jets  24  efficiently pre-clean and wash debris downwardly ahead of the direct sweeping motion, and ultimately scrub and flush debris along the bottom wall  32  of the housing where it can be collected and removed. 
     It is manifest that the cleaning tool  10  is highly efficient and simple in its operation of cleaning surfaces and flushing into cracks and crevices. The extended length of the secondary hand-grip zone  29  and smooth outer surface of the casing  26  permits rapid and safe hand transference as needed to manipulate the tool for efficient cleaning. The special use of this cleaning tool  10  in the mortuary field for cleaning bodies may seem unusual, but is highly efficient with a minimum of effort and distasteful handling. In this application the tool  10  operates better at lower pressures which may be provided by longer jet-holes  24  or lowered water pressure. 
     It will also be apparent that varied vehicle and building structure applications may require different secondary hand zone control. Clearly the closeness of the second hand placement to the discharge end  13  will determine the amount of control of the wand  10 . 
     The invention is intended to include all changes and modifications which will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and is only limited by the scope of the claims which follow.