Bowling lane duster

• US 4,550,467 A
• Filed: 03/12/1982
• Issued: 11/05/1985
• Est. Priority Date: 03/12/1982
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Brunswick Corporation
• Original Assignee: Brunswick Corporation
• Inventors: Johnson, Richard H., Muma, George A.
• Primary Examiner(s): ROBERTS JR, EDWARD
• Application Number:
  US06/357,603
• Time in Patent Office: 1,334 Days
• Field of Search: 15/98, 15/99, 15/228, 15/231, 15/232, 15/233, 15/51, 118/257
• US Class Current: 15/228
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 13/29 having movable or detachable polishing or shining cloths

Abstract

A bowling lane cleaning apparatus serving as a lane duster, including a rigid frame having a transversely disposed spacer bar with a foam padded bar disposed beneath the spacer bar. The padded bar works in conjunction with cloth roller bars to provide adequate wide area exposure of cloth fabric to the bowling lane surface.

Claims

1. A lane duster, comprising:

a frame having a pair of spaced apart roller bars;

a center bar on the frame lying parallel to and located between the roller bars, the center bar having a handle pivot-hinged thereto;

pad means carried by the center bar and projecting below the plane of the roller bars, said pad means having a curved, downwardly facing surface and a foam covering on said downwardly facing surface;

one of the roller bars having a roll of cloth fabric wound therearound with the free end of the fabric being threaded below the pad means and onto the other roller bar, said pad means deforming so that the cloth fabric disposed below the pad means is continuously contacting and conforming to a bowling lane surface; and

the frame being pivoted about the line of contact of the pad means with the lane surface to selectively contact the fabric below one or the other of the roller bars with the lane surface to accommodate movement of the duster in opposite directions, said curved, downwardly facing surface maintaining the foam covering in contact with the bowling lane surface as the frame is pivoted and permitting effective lane dusting in each of said opposite directions.

2. A lane duster, comprising:

a frame having a pair of spaced apart roller bars;

a center bar on the frame lying parallel to and located between the roller bars, the center bar having a handle pivot-hinged thereto;

pad means carried by the center bar and projecting below the plane of the roller bars, said pad means comprising a polyurethane foam covered by a polyethylene film;

one of the roller bars having a roll of cloth fabric wound therearound with the free end of the fabric being threaded below the pad means and onto the other roller bar, said pad means deforming so that the cloth fabric disposed below the pad means is continuously contacting and conforming to a bowling lane surface; and

the frame being pivoted about the line of contact of the pad means with the surface to selectively contact the fabric below one or the other of the roller bars with the surface to accommodate movement of the duster in opposite directions.

3. A lane duster, comprising in combination:

a frame comprising first and second spaced cloth fabric covered roller bars;

a spacer bar on said frame and hinge connected to a handle;

a cylindrical tube carried by and disposed beneath the spacer bar, between the first and second roller bars, below the plane of the first and second roller bars and having a peripheral surface;

a foam pad means substantially surrounding the peripheral surface of the tube; and

means for disposing the cloth fabric from one roller bar under said foam pad and back to another of said roller bars;

said foam pad means conforming to the contour of a lane surface to continuously contact the cloth fabric with the surface,

said cylindrical tube serving as a pivot about which the frame is moved to selectively bring one or the other of the first and second spaced roller bars into contact with the lane surface,

said frame movable in opposite directions to effectively dust the lane in either of said opposite directions by reason of the cylindrical configuration of the tube and the peripheral disposition of the foam pad means on the tube.

4. A lane duster as in claim 3, wherein the cloth fabric below said foam pad means and the cloth fabric covering at least one roller bar is in contact with a bowling lane surface.

5. A lane duster, comprising, in combination, a frame, a handle hinged to the frame, spaced rollers having a cloth fabric wound thereon and being stretched there between, said rollers being capable of selective contact with a bowling lane surface;

wherein the improvement comprising;

pad means carried by said frame, said cloth fabric stretched between said rollers interfacing between said pad means and said lane surface, in contact along with said one of said rollers with said lane surface;

said pad means conforming to the contour of a lane surface to continuously contact the cloth fabric with the surface; and

a friction reducing film on said pad means.

6. A lane duster comprising:

a rectangularly shaped frame having a central spacer bar and a pair of end castings, a handle hinged to said central spacer bar for connecting the handle to the frame;

said frame further comprising roller bars for carrying rolled cloth fabric for use in cleaning the surface of a bowling lane;

said frame having a span of at least the width of a bowling lane;

hand-operable means for placing tension on at least one of said rollers to prevent slipping or override of the cloth fabric during a cleaning operation;

ratchet means associated with at least one of said rollers and operable in rotating the one roller for exposing new areas of fabric cloth for cleaning use;

a lower bar attachment structured just below the central spacer bar, covered with a polyurethane foam pad covered by a polyethylene film, whereby the cloth fabric may conform according to the contour of a bowling land surface to be cleaned;

said lane duster means further comprising dual wiper capacity whereby said lower lower bar and at least one of said cloth rollers contact the lane surface for cleaning.

7. A cleaning apparatus having a frame comprised of a pair of end castings connected to each other by a transversely disposed spacer bar,

a handle hinged to said spacer bar,

a pair of roller bars fixedly secured to said end castings,

means on one of said end castings for applying resistance to rotation of one of said roller bars,

means on one of said end castings operatively connected to the other of said roller bars for applying incremental turning movement to said other roller bar,

surface conforming means carried by the frame and extending below the plane of the roller bars, and

fabric means wound on the one roller bar and extending below said surface conforming means and extending to the other roller bar,

whereby the fabric below said surface conforming means conforms to a surface being cleaned and whereby the fabric below one or the other roller bars also contacts and cleans said surface.

8. Apparatus for use in cleaning bowling lanes and the like comprising:

a rockable frame;

a pair of transversely extending rollers carried by said frame in laterally spaced apart relationship;

a web of absorbent material stretched between said rollers and coiled around the same in such a manner that as one of the rollers is rotated to coil up the web, the other roller pays out the web to the one roller;

means for releasably retaining the rollers in selected rotative positions;

a web-engaging fulcrum carried by said frame between said rollers in offset relationship with an imaginary line intersecting the peripheries of the web coils around said rollers whereby the frame may be rocked fore-and-aft about said fulcrum to selectively bring either of said web coils and the fulcrum-engaged portion of the web to bear against the lane surface; and

means for rocking the frame about said fulcrum in one direction when the frame is moved forwardly along the lane surface and for rocking the frame in the opposite direction about the fulcrum when the frame is moved reversely along the lane surface.

9. Apparatus as claimed in claim 8 wherein said rocking means includes means for applying a force to the frame for moving the same along the lane surface at a point on the frame normally spaced above said fulcrum.

10. Apparatus as claimed in claim 8 wherein said rocking means includes an elongated push-pull handle coupled with the frame.

11. Apparatus as claimed in claim 10 wherein said handle is coupled to the frame at a point normally spaced above said fulcrum to present a moment arm about the fulcrum.

12. Apparatus as claimed in claim 11 wherein said coupling of the handle to the frame includes means for permitting the handle to pivot about a transverse axis.

13. Apparatus for use in cleaning bowling lanes and the like comprising:

a rockable frame;

a pair of transversely extending rollers carried by said frame in laterally spaced apart relationship;

a web of absorbent material stretched between said rollers and coiled around the same in such a manner that as one of the rollers is rotated to coil up the web, the other roller pays out the web to the one roller;

means for releasably retaining the rollers in selected rotative positions;

a web-engaging fulcrum carried by said frame between said rollers in offset relationship with an imaginary line intersecting the peripheries of the web coils around said rollers whereby the frame may be rocked fore-and-aft about said fulcrum to selectively bring either of said web coils and the fulcrum-engaged portion of the web to bear against the lane surface;

said fulcrum comprising a relatively soft, resilient, curved, downwardly facing surface; and

means for rocking the frame about said fulcrum in one direction when the frame is moved forwardly along the lane surface and for rocking the frame in the opposite direction about the fulcrum when the frame is moved reversely along the lane surface.

14. Apparatus for use in cleaning bowling lanes and the like comprising:

a rockable frame comprising a pair of elongated end members connected to each other by a transversely disposed spacer means;

a pair of transversely extending rollers carried by said frame in laterally spaced apart relationship;

a web of absorbent material stretched between said rollers and coiled around the same in such a manner that as one of the rollers is rotated to coil up the web, the other roller pays out the web to the one roller;

means for releasably retaining the rollers in selected rotative positions;

a web-engaging fulcrum carried by said frame between said rollers in offset relationship with an imaginary line intersecting the peripheries of the web coils around said rollers whereby the frame may be rocked fore-and-aft about said fulcrum to selectively bring either of said web coils and the fulcrum-engaged portion of the web to bear against the lane surface; and

handle means coupled to said spacer means to pivot about a transverse axis for rocking the frame about said fulcrum in one direction when the frame is moved forwardly along the lane surface and for rocking the frame in the opposite direction about the fulcrum when the frame is moved reversely along the lane surface.

15. Apparatus for use in cleaning bowling lanes and the like comprising:

a rockable frame comprising a pair of elongated end members connected to each other by a transversely disposed spacer means;

a pair of transversely extending rollers carried by said frame in laterally spaced apart relationship;

a web of absorbent material stretched between said rollers and coiled around the same in such a manner that as one of the rollers is rotated to coil up the web, the other roller pays out the web to the one roller;

means for releasably retaining the rollers in selected rotative positions comprising means on said end members for applying resistance to rotation of said pair of rollers;

a web-engaging fulcrum carried by said frame between said rollers in offset relationship with an imaginary line intersecting the peripheries of the web coils around said rollers whereby the frame may be rocked fore-and-aft about said fulcrum to selectively bring either of said web coils and the fulcrum-engaged portion of the web to bear against the lane surface; and

means for rocking the frame about said fulcrum in one direction when the frame is moved forwardly along the lane surface and for rocking the frame in the opposite direction about the fulcrum when the frame is moved reversely along the lane surface.