Abstract:
A lawn mower cleaning tool includes an elongated handle and a cleaning blade attached to one end of the handle. The handle has opposite ends, a longitudinal axis, and a length greater than the radius of the mower blade. An angled cleaning blade member attaches to one of the ends of the handle. The blade member includes a shank portion extending longitudinally from the handle and a scraping blade portion attached to the shank portion and diverging therefrom in a radial direction. Thus, the mower deck can be cleaned without the operator&#39;s hands entering into close proximity with the mower blade.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application is a Divisional of a application, Ser. No. 09/723,062, filed on Nov. 27, 2000, now abandoned, and is based upon and claims the priority of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 60/168,409, filed Dec. 1, 1999. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     A. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates to lawn mowers. More specifically, the present invention relates to mower cleaning tools that are designed to clean both riding and push lawn mowers. 
     B. Problems in the Art 
     As a lawn mower cuts through grass, a large quantity of grass sticks to the mower&#39;s blade and to the underside of the mower&#39;s deck. The grass that sticks to the underside of the mower&#39;s deck and blade can cause a number of problems. For instance, wet grass can lead to corrosion of the blade. The corrosion of the blade due to the grass and the moisture within the grass can lead to dulling of the blade. In addition, grass can obstruct airflow underneath the mower&#39;s deck, and in many mowers, particularly newer mulching mowers, the mower is designed for a particular airflow pattern within the mower&#39;s deck. Finally, grass that has stuck to the underside of the mower&#39;s deck will oftentimes fall off the mower&#39;s deck after the mower has been put into a storage area, leading to a dirty storage area. 
     To alleviate the problems associated with grass stuck to the mower&#39;s blade and the underside of the mower&#39;s deck, people have used a variety of tools and methods to clean both riding mowers and push mowers. One common method of cleaning the underside of the deck of a riding mower involves removing the deck, along with the blades. After the blades and deck are removed, they are scraped with a conventional putty knife. One drawback to this method is that it requires a great deal of time to remove the lawn mower deck. In addition, the putty knife does not have much surface area with which to scrape the deck. Thus, considerable time is required to clean the deck once it has been removed. 
     A second common method of cleaning a riding mower involves elevating the front end of the mower with a jack or other elevation apparatus. Then, as in the previous example, the putty knife is used to scrape the underside of the mower&#39;s deck and the mower&#39;s blades. However, the use of a jack to elevate the riding mower leads to safety concerns in that the jack could collapse and injure someone underneath the mower. In addition, the use of a putty knife underneath the mower is unsatisfactory. Due to the short handle on the putty knife, a user&#39;s hand will sometimes strike the mower blade while cleaning the deck, often cutting the hand in the process. 
     A common method of cleaning a push mower includes turning the mower over and once again scraping both the blade and the deck with a putty knife. As previously described, the short handle of the putty knife brings the hands in close proximity to the blade. When the hand is near the blade, it will often strike the blade and cut the hand. In addition, the putty knife is not set at an angle relative to the handle on the putty knife. Angling of the cutting blade relative to the handle would increase the cleaning effectiveness of the mower tool. 
     Therefore, it is a primary objective of the present invention to provide a riding lawn mower cleaning tool that allows for cleaning of the mower&#39;s deck without a need to remove the deck. 
     It is a further object of the present invention to provide a lawn mower cleaning tool that can be used without requiring the use of a jack to elevate the mower. 
     It is a further object of the present invention to provide a lawn mower cleaning tool which will keep hands and arms away from the blades while still allowing effective cleaning of the mower deck and the mower blades. 
     It is a further object of the present invention to provide a push mower cleaning tool which has a grip of sufficient size that a lawn mower deck can be cleaned while the hand remains distant from the mower blade. 
     It is a further object of the present invention to provide a push mower cleaning tool that has a blade that is angled relative to the handle to allow for more efficient cleaning of the mower deck and the mower blade. 
     It is a further object of the present invention to provide riding and push mower cleaning tools that provide a better looking lawn by promoting even grass cut by keeping blades from dulling, and grass clippings from bunching due to grass sticking to the underside of the mower&#39;s deck. 
     These, as well as other objects and features of the present invention, will be apparent from the following detailed description and claims in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to lawn mower cleaning tools. In a first embodiment, a riding lawn mower cleaning tool includes an elongated handle and a cleaning blade attached to one end of the handle. The cleaning blade includes a shaft attached to the handle and a generally L-shaped scraping blade attached to the shaft. A first leg of the scraping blade extends upward and the second leg of the scraping blade extends horizontally when the handle is oriented horizontally. This permits the scraping blade to scrape under the mower deck and around the inside of its circumferential wall while a portion of the handle remains available outside the mower deck for the user to hold. 
     In a second embodiment, a push mower cleaning tool includes a handle with a cleaning blade attached to one end of the handle. The cleaning blade includes a shaft and a scraping blade that extends at an angle relative to the handle and shaft. In both embodiments, the handle is of sufficient length when compared to the diameter of the mower deck such that the underside of the deck can be cleaned without the operator&#39;s hands entering into close proximity with the mower blade. 
     In a third embodiment, a push mower cleaning tool similar to the second embodiment has shorter handle, which requires the mower deck to be tipped over or tipped on its side for cleaning. However, the handle is still long enough to keep the operator&#39;s hands away from the mower blade. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is a side elevational view of a riding lawn mower cleaning tool according to the present invention. The elongated handle is shown broken to conserve space in the illustration. 
     FIG. 2 is an end elevational view of the riding lawn mower cleaning tool of FIG.  1 . 
     FIG. 3 is a partial side elevation view showing greater detail of the angled blade member of FIG.  1 . 
     FIG. 4 is a top plan view of a push lawn mower cleaning tool according to the present invention. The elongated handle is shown broken to conserve space in the illustration. 
     FIG. 5 is a side elevational view of the angled blade lawn mower cleaning tool of FIG.  4 . 
     FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing the cleaning tool of FIG. 1 in use. 
     FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing the cleaning tool of FIG. 4 in use. 
     FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing a shorter handle embodiment of the cleaning tool of FIG. 4 in use. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS 
     FIG. 1 shows a side elevational view of a riding lawn mower cleaning tool  10  according to the present invention. The riding lawn mower tool  10  has a wooden handle  12 . The handle could be made from other materials. The handle  12  has a hole  13  through the handle  12  at one end  15  of the handle  12 . The hole  13  allows the tool  10  to be hung up when the tool  10  is not being used. A metal collar  14  is connected to the second end  17  of the handle  12 . The collar  14  can be connected to the handle  12  by any conventional means. 
     Within the metal collar  14  there is a bore  19 . The bore  19  is designed to receive the steel shaft or shank  16  of a cleaning blade member. The steel shaft  16  can be forced into the bore  19  to create a friction fit between the bore  19  and the steel shaft  16 . Other means could be utilized to attach the steel shaft to the handle. 
     A steel scraping blade  18  is attached to the steel shaft  16 . The steel shaft  16  and the steel blade  18  could be integral wherein they are formed from the same piece of steel. However, in most situations, the steel blade  18  will be welded to the steel shaft  16 . 
     As can best be seen in FIG. 2, the steel blade  18  is a generally L-shaped strip of rigid material comprised of two portions or legs. The steel blade  18  includes an upright or vertical portion  20  and a horizontal portion  22 . As shown in FIG. 2, the transition between the upright portion  20  and the horizontal portion  22  comprises an arc  24  or curved corner with a generous radius, for example a one-half inch radius. Of course, other degrees of curvature could be used depending on the radius found at the interior corner of the mower deck. Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, the inside or trailing edge  30  and the outside or leading edge  32  of the upright portion  20  are sharpened or tapered to provide better cleaning action. 
     FIG. 3 shows a top view of the riding lawn mower cleaning tool  10  according to the present invention. In FIG. 3, the cleaning edges of the horizontal portion  22  of the scraping blade  18  can be seen. The horizontal portion  22  includes an interior or trailing edge  28  and an exterior or leading edge  26 . Both of these edges are preferably either sharpened or tapered. Sharpening of these edges allows for more effective cleaning of the mower deck and blade. 
     Referring to FIGS. 2 and 6, the upright portion  20  should be of sufficient length to allow the horizontal portion  22  to reach the mower upper interior deck surface  40  (see FIG.  6 ). In many riding mowers, the interior portion of the deck is recessed above the mower blade  42 . Therefore, the interior portion of the deck may be higher than the grass chute  44 . The handle  12  of the tool  10  cannot be raised above the grass chute. Therefore, the upright portion  20  should be long enough to allow the horizontal portion  22  to contact the mower blade  42  and the deck surface  40  even when the deck surface  40  is recessed significantly above the mower blade  42 . 
     As can best be seen in FIG. 6, the scraping blade  18  of the cleaning blade member is adapted so that it fits within the grass chute  44  of the riding mower. The handle  12  is of sufficient length to allow the blade  18  of the cleaning tool  10  to reach the far side of the deck without requiring that an operator reach underneath the deck with his hands. Thus, the handle  12  has a length that is greater than the maximum dimension of the mower deck. 
     FIG. 4 shows a top view of a push mower cleaning tool  50  according to the present invention. The push mower cleaning tool  50  has a wooden handle  52 . The handle  52  could be made from materials other than wood. The handle  52  has a hole  53  located at one end  55  of the handle  52 . The hole allows the tool  50  to be hung up. At the other end  57  of the handle  52  is attached a tapered metal collar  54 . The metal collar  54  has a bore  56 . The collar  54  can be attached to the handle  52  by any conventional method. 
     A cleaning blade member is attached to the handle  52 . The cleaning blade member includes a steel shaft or shank  58  and a steel scraping blade  60 . The steel shaft  58  is inserted into the bore  56 . The steel shaft  58  should be of sufficient strength to resist breaking or bending when the cleaning tool  50  is pushed against the lawn mower deck. The shaft  58  is preferably friction fitted within the bore  56 . Other means could be used to attach the shaft  58  to the handle  52 . 
     A steel scraping blade  60  is attached to the steel shaft  58 . The steel blade  60  and the steel shaft  58  could be integral. However, in most situations the steel blade  60  will be welded to the steel shaft  58 . The scraping blade  60  includes a sharpened or tapered leading edge  62 . The sharpened leading edge  62  is used to dig grass off of the mower&#39;s deck and blade. The sharpened edge  62  can be better seen in FIG.  5 . 
     FIG. 5 shows a side elevational view of the push mower cleaning tool  50  according to the present invention. As seen in FIG. 5, the scraping blade  60  is at an angle that diverges in a radial direction from the longitudinal axis of the shaft  58  and thereby the handle  52 . The angle is preferably an acute angle, more preferably about 20 degrees. This angle of the cleaning blade  60  with respect to the handle  52  can also be seen in FIG.  7 . Angling of the scraping blade  60  relative to the handle  52  allows for a better cleaning action. Of course, the cleaning blade could be at different angles relative to the shaft  58  and the handle  52 . 
     The scraping blade  60  of the tool  50  can be inserted through the grass chute  44 . The handle  52  of the push mower cleaning tool  50  should be long enough so that the upper surface  40  of the underside of the push mower&#39;s deck can be cleaned while keeping the hands free from the mower blade  42 . This feature of the push mower cleaning tool  50  can best be seen in FIG.  7 . As can be seen in FIG. 7, the scraping blade  60  is in contact with the push mower&#39;s deck. However, the operator&#39;s hands are still at a safe distance from the mower&#39;s blade. The handle  52  is long enough to keep the hands free of the blade, thus preventing skinning of the hands or even more serious cuts on the hands. Also, keeping the hands away from the mower&#39;s deck allows the hands to stay clean while the mower is being cleaned. 
     FIG. 8 shows another embodiment  50 A of the invention that is similar to the embodiment of FIGS. 4,  5  and  7 , except that the handle  52 A is shorter. Preferably the handle  52 A is at least approximately fourteen inches long, which is still longer than the radius of the mower blade  42  on typical push mowers designed to cut 20-24 inch wide paths. This shorter handle cleaning tool  50 A does generally require that the mower deck be tipped over or on its side to allow better access for cleaning. 
     One skilled in art will appreciate that the tool  10  could be used on a push mower and the tool  50  could be useful in cleaning the deck and/or blade of a riding mower as well. 
     In the drawings and specification, there have been set forth exemplary embodiments of the invention, and although specific terms are employed, these are used in a generic and descriptive sense only and not for purposes of limitation. Changes in the form and proportion of parts, as well as in the substitution of equivalents, are contemplated as circumstances may suggest or render expedient without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention as further defined in the following claims.