Patent Publication Number: US-2010116302-A1

Title: Device for cleaning a support

Description:
The invention relates to cleaning devices. 
     In particular, the invention relates to fabric cleaning devices, such as, for example, shade fabrics. 
     However, the present invention is not limited to this specific application. It encompasses the cleaning of any surface, for example, the facade of a building or a terrace. For these reasons, in the remainder of the present patent application, we will call the object to be cleaned the “support,” without this terminology being considered limiting in any way. 
     We are familiar with a cleaning device comprising a nozzle intended to project a cleaning liquid under high pressure upon the support to be cleaned. This device can only be used to wash small surfaces during a pass. Therefore, several successive passes over the support are required in order to clean it in its entirety. However, because of the deformability of the support, especially when it is made from fabric, the distance between the cleaning nozzle and the support is not constant during passes of the device. Consequently, cleaning is not uniform and marks remain. Finally, repeated passes of the device result in wear of the support. 
     An object of the invention is to provide a device for uniformly washing a support without wear. 
     To that end, the invention provides for a cleaning device for a support, comprising a casing and at least one cleaning-liquid spray means mounted on the casing. The device also has means for adjusting the distance between the spray means and the support. 
     According to another advantageous characteristic of the present invention, the casing has at least two cleaning-liquid spray means. 
     Thus, the use of at least two cleaning-liquid spray means allows the liquid to be sprayed homogeneously onto the support so as to clean the latter uniformly. Additionally, the possibility of adjusting the distance between the spray means and the support allows older materials to be cleaned, whose composition and relief differ, without the risk of damaging their surface. 
     Advantageously, but optionally, the assembly has at least one of the following characteristics:
         when placed in a cleaning direction, one of the cleaning-liquid spray means of the device is offset with respect to the other in the direction of cleaning   the device also comprises at least three points of contact between the casing and the support   the device comprises four points of contact with the support   the points of contact are wheels   the device also comprises means articulated with the casing capable of accepting device handling means   the cleaning-liquid spray means have an opening with a principal dimension on the order of 0.3 mm   when the device is in operation, the cleaning-liquid spray means have an acute spray channel angle   the spray aperture angle has a value of approximately 40°   the cleaning-liquid spray means are arranged in such a way as to support, during operation, an allowable pressure comprised between approximately 30 bars and approximately 130 bars   the cleaning-liquid spray means are arranged in such a way as to support, during operation, an allowable temperature comprised between approximately 30° C. and approximately 100° C.   the device also comprises means for stiffening the cleaning-liquid feed system, mounted on a the cleaning-liquid spray means feed system, behind said spray means with respect to the support   the cleaning-liquid spray means are high-pressure nozzles       

     According to the invention, a support cleaning system comprising a pressurized machine for supplying cleaning liquid and a device having at least one of the previous characteristics is also provided. 
    
    
     
       Other characteristics and benefits of the invention will be made clear from the following description, which is purely illustrative and non-limiting, and should be read in conjunction with the attached drawings, in which: 
         FIG. 1  is a two-dimensional front view of a device according to a particular embodiment of the invention, partly cut away to illustrate the axis of rotation of a wheel. 
         FIG. 2  is a cutaway of the device along 1′-11 according to the same embodiment of the invention. 
         FIG. 3  is a top view of the device according to the same embodiment of the invention. 
         FIG. 4  is a similar view of the top of the device after removal of a stiffening plate. 
         FIGS. 5   a  and  5   b  area perspective and cutaway views respectively of a nozzle, and 
         FIG. 6  is a view of the impact zones of the cleaning-liquid jets on the support. 
     
    
    
     With reference to  FIGS. 1 to 6 , we now describe a particular embodiment of the invention. A device according to the invention has:
         casing  10     cleaning-liquid spray means  20  mounted on casing  10     points of contact  30  for casing  10  on the support   means  40  articulated with the casing  10  suitable for receiving device handling means       

     With respect to this particular embodiment, casing  10  consists of U-shaped sheet metal with a central core  12  and two lateral sides  14 ,  16 , both perpendicular during use to the surface of the support to be cleaned. Thus, the casing  10  is open on three sides: the side facing the support, the side opposite to it, and the side located between the two side walls  14 ,  16 , opposite the core  12  and which faces the user, and wherein means  40  articulated with casing  10  mentioned above are located. 
     In a variant, the side opposite the side facing the support is closed. 
     The casing  10  must also be sufficiently close to the support to prevent cleaning liquid from projecting beyond the surface to be cleaned. To that end, the height by which points of contact  30  extend beyond the base of the casing  10  is preferably comprised between 0.5 mm and 20 mm, typically on the order of 10 mm. 
     According to the particular embodiment illustrated in the attached drawings, three cleaning-liquid spray means  20  are provided. 
     These are formed of nozzles distributed along the length of a principal conduit  22  extending between the two side walls  14 ,  16 , that is, appreciably perpendicular to the direction of movement D effected during cleaning. 
     The nozzles  20  project beyond the principal conduit  22  and extend at least appreciably parallel to the core  12  and the side walls  14 ,  16 . 
     The nozzles  20  consist of a cylindrical body  24  having a central bore  26  culminating, at the extremity of body  24 , in a diametral throat  27  whose bottom  28  is defined by a concave dihedral (see  FIGS. 5   a  and  5   b ). This geometry gives the jet exiting the nozzle the shape of a fan, leaving on the support traces of length l 1  and width l 2 , which is considerably smaller than l 1  (see  FIG. 6 ). 
     Preferably, diametral throats  27  of nozzles  20  are oriented parallel to an orthogonal generatrix in the direction of movement D, such that the fan jets in combination cover a support width appreciably equal to casing  10  and such that the liquid is projected onto the surface of the support parallel to the weave of the fabric when the support is made from fabric. In this way, the support is cleaned along the grain for greater washing efficiency. 
     Preferably, spray means  20  are not all rigorously aligned along a generatrix orthogonal to the direction of movement D. 
     Preferably, central nozzle  20  is offset with respect to the two others in the direction of cleaning D, which corresponds to the direction of movement of the device. In this way, the jets of the three nozzles  20  do not interfere with or disturb one another, and the impact zones of the cleaning liquid (references  80 ,  82 ,  84 , on  FIG. 6 ) do not overlap, leaving no marks on the support so that the cleaning of the surface is optimally uniform (see  FIG. 6 ). 
     In a variant, the three nozzles  20  can be aligned but have slightly different angular orientations in order to generate offset jets on the support, as illustrated in  FIG. 6 . 
     Principal conduit  22 , whose ends are blocked by plates  70 ,  72 , is fed with cleaning liquid by tip  50 , which is then divided into two arms  52 ,  54 , which rejoin the principal conduit  22 , on which are mounted cleaning-liquid spray means  20 . 
     The aforementioned arrangements can be used to clean a large surface uniformly. 
     Cleaning-liquid spray means  20  are formed by small diameter nozzles, for example, on the order of 0.3 mm. They may have an acute spray aperture angle, comprised between 35° and 55° for proper operation. In the case of this particular embodiment, this spray aperture angle is approximately 40° for optimal operation. They are also arranged so as to support an allowable pressure comprised between 30 bars and 130 bars and an allowable temperature comprised between 30° C. and 100° C. The pressure and temperature are adjustable based on the type of support being cleaned. For example, a black or dark color support is treated at a temperature on the order of 30° C. 
     In the case of this particular embodiment, these cleaning-liquid spray means are high-pressure nozzles  20 . 
     The points of contact  30  are mounted on the casing  10  so as to ensure perfect alignment of the support surface—in the case of a deformable support—on a plane delimited by points of contact  30 . This allows a geometric surface to be defined, on which the effect of cleaning-liquid spray means  20  is identical at every point, thus ensuring uniform cleaning at every point of the cleaned surface. 
     In particular, for this particular embodiment, four points of contact are provided, thus delimiting the largest possible geometric cleaning surface beneath the cleaning-liquid spray perimeter. 
     These four points of contact can be wheels  30 , providing uniform and trouble-free movement on the support. Wheels  30  are preferably mounted rotationally, in respective proximity to the ends of the base of side walls  14 ,  16 , along shafts  32 ,  34 , extending between side walls  14 ,  16 . 
     The device also has a stiffening plate  60  mounted on the cleaning-liquid feed system  50  to  54  and on the principal conduit  22 , behind the high-pressure nozzles  20  with respect to the support. This plate serves to stabilize the cleaning-liquid feed system. 
     This plate can also be used to protect the user from the cleaning-liquid spray. 
     In this case, according to this particular embodiment of the invention, the stiffening plate  60  consists of sheet metal  62  capable of entirely covering the cleaning-liquid feed system  50  and nozzles  20  and capable of extending to the three edges of the casing  10 . Holes  64  made in plate  60  can be used to evacuate the steam given off by the cleaning liquid exiting the nozzles  20 . The user can also observe, through holes  64 , the jets of cleaning liquid sprayed onto the support and thereby verify that the device is operating properly. 
     Means  40  are mounted in articulated manner on casing  10  and are capable of accepting device handling means. 
     In the present case, this is an articulated U-shaped shell  40  connected in pivoting manner at  42 ,  44  to side walls  14 ,  16  of casing  10 , at the base of those side walls  14 ,  16 , opposite core  12 . This shell  40  is provided with tip  46  for adapting handling means, for example, a long handle, to the device in such a way that, if required to clean a support at a height, it is possible to work from the ground directly upon the support without having to detach it. 
     The handling means must be sufficiently long to be able to clean the device from the ground without having to use a step ladder, for example. 
     As indicated previously, according to the invention, means are provided to adjust the height between spray means  20  and the support. Several embodiments are possible for these adjustment means. 
     Preferably, they comprise two plates  70 ,  72 , joined to the ends of the principal conduit  22  and adapted so they can be attached by any appropriate means, for example screws  74  associated with wing nuts  76  of adjustable height on the outside walls  14 ,  16 . To that end, sides  14 ,  16  can be provided with a plurality of holes  15  arranged near the top of sides  14 ,  16  to accommodate screws  74 . As a variant, an oblong opening instead of holes provides finer adjustment of the height of spray means  20 . 
     Typically, the distance separating nozzles  20  from one another is comprised between 5 cm and 15 cm, preferably on the order of 9 cm, and the distance separating the exit opening of the nozzles  20  and the support is comprised between 0.5 cm and 10 cm, preferably on the order of 4.5 cm. 
     Because the height of the nozzles  20  with respect to the support is adjustable, different material surfaces, compositions, and reliefs can be cleaned. Additionally, once the adequate height for a support has been adjusted, it is possible to maintain a given pressure and, therefore, a given impact of the cleaning liquid upon the surface to be cleaned. 
     Of course, the present invention is not limited to the particular embodiment that has been described but extends to all variants consistent with its intent.