Cleaner with high pressure cleaning jets

• US 20040074524A1
• Filed: 10/17/2002
• Published: 04/22/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 01/25/1999
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Aqua Products Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Aqua Products Incorporated
• Inventors: Erlich, Giora, Horvath, Tibor
• Granted Patent: US 6,971,136 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 134/22.18
• CPC Class Codes: E04H 4/1618 Hand-held powered cleaners
• CPC Class Codes: E04H 4/1654 Self-propelled cleaners

Abstract

A swimming pool cleaner discharges water jets under the cleaner body, directed toward its center from its sides, to agitate and lift debris toward one or more vacuum intake openings, to greatly enhance the cleaning ability of the cleaner. The suspended dirt and debris become semi-buoyant under the force of the jetted water which is preferably moving in the same direction as the cleaner, so that the relative speed between the cleaner and the suspended dirt and debris is reduced, thereby enabling the cleaner to move at a relatively faster rate and still clean with equivalent or even greater efficiency than a pool cleaner that is not equipped with directional cleaning water jets. In addition, displaced front and back orientations of the intake ports allow for longer time for any dirt and debris to be picked up.

Claims

1. A pool cleaning apparatus comprising:

a housing;

an associated filter for entraining dirt and debris;

a baseplate extending along the bottom of the housing;

at least one intake port in the baseplate for admitting water into the filter;

pump means for drawing water from beneath the pool cleaner baseplate and through the filter; and

at least one directional cleaning water jet outlet for discharging a pressurized water jet stream at the pool surface beneath the pool cleaning apparatus, whereby dirt and debris resting on the surface that is contacted by the pressurized stream is lifted into suspension proximate the intake port.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the apparatus is self-propelled.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the filter is located inside of the housing.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the pump is located inside of the housing.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the at least one intake port has a longitudinal axis extending in the direction of movement of the pool cleaner.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the at least one intake port includes:

a pair of intake ports, each port having a longitudinal axis extending in the direction of movement of the pool cleaner, and means for selectively closing one of the pair of intake ports when the other intake port is open.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising:

a plurality of cleaning water jet outlets; and

means for selectively delivering a pressurized stream of water to a first and then a second directionally oriented one or more of the plurality of cleaning water jet outlets.

8. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising:

at least one conduit in fluid communication with an outlet of the pump means and the at least one directional cleaning water jet outlet.

9. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein at least one of the filter and the pump is located external to the housing.

10. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the pump means is contained in the housing and includes:

a first pump; and

a second pump, wherein the fluid discharge of the first pump is delivered to the at least one directional cleaning jet and the discharge of the second pump is delivered to a discharge port extending through an upper wall of the housing.

11. The apparatus of claim 10, further comprising:

a pump motor positioned inside the housing; and

a drive shaft extending from the pump motor, the first and second pumps being operationally mounted on the drive shaft.

12. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the first pump is a centrifugal pump and the second pump is a propeller pump.

13. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the centrifugal pump is positioned proximate the pump motor and the propeller pump is positioned proximate the discharge port in the housing.

14. The apparatus of claim 10 further comprising:

a bi-direction water jet propulsion assembly mounted on the exterior of the cleaner housing for receiving a pressurized stream of water from the discharge port, the assembly including;

directional control means; and

at least one directional discharge conduit, whereby the pressurized stream is discharged to alternatively propel the pool cleaner over the surface to be cleaned in a first direction and in a second opposite direction.

15. The apparatus of claim 1 further comprising:

a bi-direction water jet propulsion assembly mounted on the exterior of the cleaner housing for receiving a pressurized stream of water from the discharge port, the assembly including;

directional control means;

at least one direction discharge conduit; and

cleaning jet conduits extending from the propulsion assembly to the one or more cleaning water jet outlets, whereby a portion of the pressurized water stream discharged through the outlet port in the cleaner housing is directed through the cleaning jet conduits and cleaning jet conduits to raise dirt and debris from the surface to be cleaned for induction through the at least one inlet port in the baseplate.

23. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the at least one water jet outlet comprises first and second transverse conduits extending normal to the direction of movement of the apparatus and spaced apart from the intake port, each of said transverse conduits including a plurality of outlets directed at the surface of the pool beneath the apparatus, whereby a plurality of water jet streams are alternatingly discharged from the first and second conduits

16. A pool cleaning apparatus comprising:

a housing having an intake port;

a water jet outlet for discharging a pressurized stream at a pool surface beneath the housing to direct water substantially adjacent to the intake port, where the directed water contains dirt and debris, toward the intake port;

a filter for entraining the dirt and debris removed from water passing through the intake port; and

a pump for drawing the directed water through the intake port and the filter.

17. A method for cleaning pools using a pool cleaning apparatus, the method comprising the steps of:

discharging a pressurized stream of water at a pool surface beneath the pool cleaning apparatus from at least one directional cleaning water jet outlet, whereby dirt and debris resting on the pool surface that is contacted by the pressurized stream is lifted into suspension proximate at least one intake port of the pool cleaning apparatus;

admitting the water containing the suspended dirt and debris through the intake port;

passing the admitted water through a filter using a pump; and

filtering the water to entrain dirt and debris removed from the water.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the at least one intake port is a single intake port oriented in a front and a back direction relative to the longitudinal orientation of the water jet stream.

19. The method of claim 17, further comprising the steps of:

providing first and second intake ports each oriented in a front and a back direction relative to the longitudinal orientation of the water jet stream;

selectively opening the first intake port of the pair of intake ports to admit the water; and

simultaneously closing the second intake port.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein the opening and closing of the intake ports is responsive to a change in direction of movement of the pool cleaner.

21. The method of claim 17, further comprising the steps of:

providing a plurality of cleaning water jet outlets, including first and second cleaning water jet outlets;

directionally orienting the first cleaning water jet outlet;

selectively delivering the pressurized stream of water to the first directionally oriented cleaning water jet outlet of the plurality of cleaning water jet outlets;

directionally orienting the second cleaning water jet outlet; and

selectively delivering the pressurized stream of water to the second directionally oriented cleaning water jet outlet of the plurality of cleaning water jet outlets.

22. The method of claim 20, wherein the first and second cleaning water jet outlets each comprise a plurality of spaced apart outlets extending transversely across the apparatus along a line that is normal to the direction of travel of the apparatus, thereby directing a plurality of individual cleaning water jet streams to the surface of the pool beneath the apparatus.

24. The apparatus of claim 21 further comprising a friction-reducing orifice fitting assembled into each of the transverse conduit outlets.