Patent Publication Number: US-2019194929-A1

Title: Cleaning device for internal cleaning of drain or sewer pipes

Description:
PRIORITY 
     This is a non-provisional application, and claiming priority of Finnish application Finnish application No. 20176143 filed on Dec. 21, 2017, the contents of all of which are incorporated herein by reference. 
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The invention relates to a cleaning device for the internal cleaning of drain or sewer pipes. More particularly the invention relates to the cleaning device for the cleaning of drain or sewer pipes according to the preamble of the independent cleaning device claim. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     It is known that in maintenance and repair work of drain or sewer pipes and in coating of inner surfaces of drain or sewer pipes and in installing renovation liners inside drain or sewer pipes one important part of the work is to clean the inner surfaces of the drain or sewer pipes to remove any material impurity deposits, for example rust, grease, lime, dirt, crusts and scales. Removal of impurities has been accomplished by the use of cleaning devices comprising a tool, for example steel chains attached to a rotatable arm or cable or wire rope or like. Thus the chains are rotated to centrifugally inside the drain or sewer pipe such that at least part of the chain contacts the inner surface of the drain or sewer pipe and thus the impurities are detached and removed from the inner surfaces and flushed away by means of liquid, typically water flow from the drain or sewer pipe. The chains are rotated by a motor or corresponding means. Thus the cleaning internally of the drain or sewer pipes by the cleaning device is accomplished by rotating a tool by means of the wire rope or the equivalent inside the drain. The tool, i.e. the chain or chains of the cleaning device are formed of links connected together as known from common chain structures, for example of snow chains or lifting chains. The chains can also include claws bent from the chain known of snow chains. A problem is that the chains are not particularly sharp and have a limited wear life. By failing to provide sharp edges, the chains tend to be unable to detach all impurities. A problem of the cleaning devices known form prior art is that the cleaning chains are of similar material of their durability as the drain or sewer pipe itself and therefore the cleaning device is not efficient for all cleaning purposes, especially if the impurities have strong adherence to the inner surface of the drain or the sewer pipe. A disadvantage has also been short life time of the chains. 
     In U.S. Pat. No. 9,649,671 is disclosed a cleaning device for the internal cleaning of drainpipes, including one or more chains including several links, and on one or more sides of one or more links is fastened one or more hard metal blades, which are soldered or welded fast to the link. The fastening of the blades to each link of the chain requires a lot of manufacturing work. In some cases, also problems have occurred as the blades have come loose from the link. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     An object of the present invention is to provide an improved cleaning device for the internal cleaning of drain or sewer pipes, in which the problems and disadvantages of cleaning devices known from prior art are eliminated or at least minimized. 
     An object of the present invention is to provide a method of manufacturing a chain for a cleaning device for the internal cleaning of drain or sewer pipes, in which the problems and disadvantages of the manufacturing methods known from prior art are eliminated or at least minimized. 
     An object of the invention is to introduce a cleaning device which is effective in cleaning and has a long life time. 
     In order to achieve the above objects and those that will come apparent later the cleaning device according to the invention is characterized by the features of the characterizing part of independent cleaning device claim. Advantageous embodiments and features are defined in dependent claims. 
     According to the invention the cleaning device for internal cleaning of drain or sewer pipes comprising at least one chain with several chain links, two end parts, to one of which one end of the chain/chains is/are fastened and to another of which another end of the chain/chains is fastened, which end parts each comprise a central opening, through which a rotatable element extends, wherein at least some of the chain links of at least one chain of the cleaning device have a blade pin with blade parts at each end of the blade pin, the blade pin extends through an internal opening of the chain link and the blade parts are of hard material. 
     According to an advantageous feature of the invention the blade parts are of hard metal. The material of the blade parts is advantageously tungsten carbide. The material of the blade parts can also be for example PCD, diamond segments, diamond granules, tungsten carbide granules. 
     According to an advantageous feature of the invention the cleaning device comprises 1-6 chains. 
     According to an advantageous feature of the invention blade pin has an outwards widening form such that the blade parts of the blade pin are larger than the link opening such that the blade pin cannot itself detach from the link opening. 
     According to an advantageous feature of the invention the blade parts have a round or angular or oval form. 
     According to an advantageous feature of the invention hardness of the hard material is at least 300 HB. 
     According to an advantageous example of the invention the blade parts are formed as parts of the blade pin. 
     According to an advantageous example of the invention the blade parts are separate parts of the blade pin fastened to the blade pin by welding, soldering, screw fastening or by other fastening means. 
     According to an advantageous feature of the invention ends of the chain/chains is/are attached to the corresponding end parts by welding. 
     The invention is applicable in many different types of sewer and drain pipes with various diameters and a cleaning device with many advantages is achieved. Cleaning device for the internal cleaning of drain or sewer pipes according to the invention and its advantageous features provides for efficient cleaning due to the blade pins of the chain links and has a long life time and good durability due to the hard material of the blade parts. Also cleaning zone of each chain is wider and more uniform as the blade pins and/or blade parts provide for the cleaning effect. Manufacturing of the chains for the cleaning device is work saving and cost effective as there is no need for separate fastening welding of the blades. Further the lifetime will be longer as each blade pin and/or blade part has large wear surface. The blade pins and/or blade parts are also easy replace, if needed. Additionally, clogging risks of drain and sewer pipes will decrease as the cleaning zone is wider due to the large cleaning surface of the blade parts and/or blade pins and thus impurities and like on the inner surfaces of the drain and sewer pipes will be more effectively removed. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       In the following the invention is described in more detail by reference to the accompanying drawing in which 
         FIG. 1  shows schematically a simplified example of a cleaning device according to the invention, 
         FIG. 2A-2B  show schematically simplified examples of a part of a chain of a cleaning device for internal cleaning of drain or sewer pipes according to the invention, 
         FIG. 3  shows schematically a simplified example of a cleaning device according to the invention in a drain or a sewer pipe. 
     
    
    
     During the course of the following description of the  FIGS. 1-3  corresponding reference numbers and signs will be used to identify corresponding elements, parts and part components unless otherwise mentioned. In the figures some references sign have not been repeated for clarity reasons. 
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     In  FIG. 1  is shown schematically a simplified example of a cleaning device  20  comprising one or more chains  25  formed of several chain links  10 . In the example of the  FIG. 1  the cleaning device  20  comprises three chains  25 . The cleaning device  20  comprises at least one chain  25 , advantageously one to six chains  25 . The cleaning device also comprises two end parts  22  in between of which the chains  25  extend and to which end parts  22  respectively each end of each chain  25  is fastened, for example by welding or by screw fastening. In the example of  FIG. 1  the ends of the claims are attached to the end parts by attaching the uttermost chain links  10  of each chain  25  to the corresponding end part by screws  26 . The end parts  22  comprise a central through opening  24 , through which the rotatable wire rope or rotatable arm or rotatable cable or like rotatable element  27  extends,  FIG. 3 . The end part  22  also comprises at least one screw  23  that extends to the through opening  24  for fastening the end part  22  to the desired location on the rotatable element  27  so that the end parts  22  are at required distance L from each other on the rotatable element  27  and that the end part  22  is fastened non-rotatably in the rotatable element  27 ,  FIG. 3 . In at least one of the chain links  10  of at least one of the chains  25  a blade pin  15  has been located to extend through link opening  17  of the chain link  10 . Advantageously each chain  25  comprises several blade pins  15  each located in the corresponding link opening  17  of the chain links  10 . The chain links  10  are connected to each other by pressing opened loops to closed loops after the blade pins  15  have been inserted so that the loops will not allow the chain links  10  to detach, whereby the chain  25  is formed. The blade pins  15  have an outwards widening form such that the ends i.e. blade parts  16  of the blade pin are larger than the link opening  17  such that the blade pin  15  cannot itself detach from the link opening  17 . The part of each blade pin  15  located in the link opening  17  is smaller than the link opening such that the blade pin  17  can move within the link opening  15  as allowed by the distance between the blade parts  16 . 
     In  FIG. 2A  is shown schematically a simplified example of a part of a chain  25  with chain links  10  comprising through link opening  17  positioned blade pins  15 . In this example each blade pin  15  comprises at each end a separate blade part  16 , which is fastened to the blade pin  15  by welding, soldering, screw fastening or by other fastening means. In this example the blade parts  16  have a hexagonal outer form but the form can vary, it can be round, angular, oval etc. 
     In  FIG. 2B  is shown schematically a simplified example of a part of a chain  25  with a chain links  10  comprising through link opening  17  positioned blade pins  15 . In this example each blade pin  15  comprises at each end a blade part  16 , which is formed as part of the blade pin  15 . In this example the blade parts  16  have a round form but the form can vary, it can be angular, oval etc. 
     The blade parts  16  are of hard material, advantageously hard metal, more advantageously tungsten carbide, which hard material has advantageously hardness of at least 300 HB. The blade pins  15  can be of hard metal or of other material, such as for example PCD, diamond segments, diamond granules, tungsten carbide granules. 
     In  FIG. 3  is shown schematically a simplified example of the cleaning device  20  in a drain or a sewer pipe  30 . The cleaning device  20  is located inside the pipe  30  such that the chains  25  during rotating the rotatable element  27  contact inner surface  31  of the pipe  30  at cleaning zone Z. The rotatable element  17  is connected to a rotating means  28 , for example a rotating motor or rotating drive or pneumatic rotating means. The rotatable element  27  extends through the openings  24 ,  FIG. 1 , of the end parts  22 . The end parts  22  are fastened to the desired location on the rotatable by the screws  23 ,  FIG. 1 , so that the end parts  22  are at required distance L from each other on the rotatable element  27 ,  FIG. 3 . The rotatable element  27  is moved in the pipe  30  in its axial direction so that the cleaning zone Z can be moved along the length of the pipe  30 . By adjusting the distance L between the end parts  22  the circumferential location of the chains  25  can be adjusted to correspond the inner diameter D of the pipe  30  such that desired cleaning effect and length of the cleaning zone Z is achieved. 
     The invention is applicable in many different types of drain and sewer pipes of wide range of diameters. 
     REFERENCE SIGNS USED IN THE DRAWINGS 
     
         
           10 . Chain Link 
           15 . Blade Pin 
           16 . Blade Part 
           17 . Link Opening 
           20 . Cleaning Device 
           22 . End Part 
           23 . Screw 
           24 . End Part 
           25 . Chain 
           26 . Screw 
           27 . Wire Rope 
           28 . Rotating Means 
           30 . Pipe 
           31 . Inner surface of the Pipe 
         D. Diameter 
         L. Distance 
         Z. Zone