Patent Document

CROSS REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
   Not Applicable 
   STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH 
   Not Applicable 
   REFERENCE TO APPENDIX 
   Not Applicable 
   BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
   Currently, when one desires to clean a bathroom, it is necessary to have multiple tools to reach the various regions of the room. In addition, when mopping the floor or cleaning the walls, the user often is required to use a separate sponge and bucket. When one wishes to clean the bathtub, one must operate on his knees with his back bent over. In all, cleaning a room, especially a bathroom, is not a comfortable or practical endeavor but very necessary. 
   A. Field of the Invention 
   The present invention relates to a device for cleaning. It further relates to a device for cleaning multiple regions of a room. 
   B. Prior Art 
   Prior art exists which aids in the act of cleaning regions of a room. An example of such prior art is Jurkanis U.S. Pat. No. 2,955,311. However, this prior art patent fails to perform the same function as the present invention. This prior art patent also does not have the same structure as the present invention. 
   Prior art also exists which relates to the simple cleaning of objects. Examples of such prior art are Vosbikian U.S. Pat. No. 5,454,659, Rothweiler U.S. Pat. No. 4,826,340, Richard U.S. Pat. No. 6,491,463, Smith U.S. Pat. No. D447,635, Kelly U.S. Pat. No. D384,436, Holberg U.S. Pat. No. 4,225,254, and Lynch U.S. Pat. No. D434,911. However, these prior art patents are dissimilar in structure in that they are generally smaller and handheld objects of a fixed design. The present invention rests on a fixed surface, such as a floor, and has swivel capabilities. In addition, the present invention utilizes separate tubes to transfer cleaning fluids from the handle to the cleaning device. The prior art patents do not have such a feature. 
   BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
   The present invention is a cleaning tool that would be used to clean the bathtub, shower, walls, and surrounding area. It consists of a handle with several buttons which lead to a series of internal, refillable tubes to be filled with cleaning fluids. At the other end of the device is an interchangeable and detachable swivel sponge head. The sponge head receives the cleaning fluids through connection tubes. The fluid is released by the user pressing one of the buttons on the handle. This device will be large enough so that the user may stand in an erect position and clean the floor, similar to the method for using a mop. In addition, the device will be light enough to use when cleaning a wall. The sponge head will also swivel so as to allow the user to clean the interior of a bathtub. 
   It is an object of this device to create one tool to clean multiple areas of a room. It is a further object of this device to store and dispense cleaning fluids for the purpose of cleaning, if that is desired or necessary. 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       FIG. 1  is a perspective view of the device as it would look in use. 
       FIG. 2  is an isometric exploded view of the device. 
       FIG. 3   a  is a view of the handle taken along line  3 — 3  on  FIG. 1  showing the button on the handle not depressed. 
       FIG. 3   b  is a view of the handle taken along line  3 — 3  on  FIG. 1  showing the button on the handle depressed. 
       FIG. 4  is a view of the cleaning head taken along line  4 — 4  on  FIG. 1 . 
       FIG. 5  is a view of the cleaning canister according to line  5 — 5  on  FIG. 1 . 
   

   DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS 
   DRAWING REFERENCE NUMERALS 
   
       
         5  Device 
         10  Sponge 
         12  Holes 
         14  Clasping Balls 
         15  Plate 
         20  Swivel Point 
         25  Arm 
         30  Hose 
         31  Opening to Tubes 
         32  Second Hose Barb 
         34  First Hose Barb 
         35  Activation buttons 
         36  Spring 
         37  Piston 
         40  Handle/Canister 
         41  Cleaning solution 
         42  Liquid cleaning fluid/cleaning canister 
         43  Cleaning solution 
         45  Cap 
         50  Tie 
     
  
   The present invention is a device  5  to be used as a replacement for a mop when cleaning a room, specifically a bathroom. At the bottom end of the device  5  will be a sponge  10 .  FIG. 1  The sponge  10  will be removable and interchangeable. The sponge  10  will contain a central plate or piece with holes  12  and several clasping mechanism or clasping balls  14 . The sponge  10  will be attached to a solid and flat plate  15 .  FIG. 2  The plate  15  will have several holes around its periphery and the clasping balls  14  will be securely inserted through these holes to lock the sponge in place. A swivel  20  will be attached to the center of the plate  15  on the side opposite the sponge  10  and allow the direction of the sponge to conform to the shape or contour of the surface to be cleaned.  FIG. 1   
   Secured to and extending upwardly from the swivel  20  is an elongated arm  25 . This arm  25  will be rigid and provide support and shape to the device  5 . A pair of hoses  30  will extend alongside the arm  25  from the plate  15 . The hoses  30  will connect to the plate  15  on a first pair of hose barbs  34 .  FIGS. 2 ,  4  The hose barbs  34  are hollow and extend from one side of the plate  15  to the other. The hoses  30  will be secured to the arm  25  through the use of ties  50 . At the end of the arm  25  and hoses  30  on the opposite end of the device  5  will be a handle/cleaning canister  40 . The arm  25  will be securely attached to the front side of the handle/canister  40 . The handle/canister  40  will be hollow and will allow a cleaning fluid within the canister  40  and also act as a handle for the device.  FIGS. 1 ,  2   
   A second pair of hose barbs  32  will be stationed at and extend from the external side of the front of the handle/canister  40  to the interior side. The pair of hoses  30  will attach to the second pair of hose barbs  32  on the external side. On the top of the handle/canister  40  are a pair of activation buttons  35 . On the rear surface of the handle/canister  40  is one or more caps  45 .  FIG. 2   
   Within the interior of the handle/canister  40  is the liquid cleaning fluid  42 .  FIGS. 3   a ,  3   b ,  5  The pair of activation buttons  35  are connected to a piston  37  which sits on a spring  36 .  FIGS. 3   a ,  3   b  An opening is provided in the piston  37  to allow cleaning fluid  42  to travel from the interior of the canister  40  to the second hose barb  34  through the opening  31  in the canister.  FIG. 5  When one of the buttons  35  is depressed, the piston  37  pushes the spring  36  down and exposes the second hose barbs  32  to the cleaning fluid  42  such as depicted in  FIG. 3   b . When the button  35  is released, the spring  36  pushes the piston  37  upward and closes the opening of the second hose barbs  32  thus preventing the flow of liquid cleaning fluid  42  into the hoses  30  such as depicted in  FIG. 3   a . It is anticipated that the cleaning canister  40  will have two separate compartments in which to store two different cleaning solutions  41 ,  43  if desired.  FIG. 5  There are two separate canisters which are operated by two separate piston and spring arrangements. This will enable the user to put different kinds of cleaning solutions in the respective canister if so desired. 
   The cleaning fluid  42  is placed in the handle/canister  40  by removing the caps  45 . Once the handle/canister  40  is full, the cap  45  is replaced. The device  5  should be made of durable and lightweight material, such as plastic. The approximate size of the device  5  is a length of between three and four feet long.

Technology Category: 1