Patent ID: 7377452

Claim:
Apparatus for cleaning a set of parts which had been in contact with paint from a hand-held paint spray gun during previous operation of the paint spray gun, the apparatus comprising; a. a paint cup containing the set of parts; and b. a cleaning cap having: i. a first fitting for receiving the paint cup; ii. a second fitting for receiving a garden hose and having at least one aperture in fluid communication therewith directing substantially all fluid from the garden hose into the paint cup; and iii. an outlet passageway providing an outlet fluid communication path from an interior of the cap to an exterior of the cap and at least one barrier in the outlet passageway blocking the expulsion of any one of the set of parts from within the paint cup wherein the at least one barrier is a plurality of fins aligned with a direction of fluid flow in the outlet fluid communication path, and iv. an inlet fluid communication path from the second fitting to an interior of the cap wherein the inlet fluid communication path includes a first aperture and a second aperture, and a pair of sleeves, with each one of the pair of sleeves extending from and in fluid communication with a respective one of the first aperture and the second aperture.