Floor preparation machine and method
First Claim
1. A method of removing unwanted material, such as a coating, membrane, soilage or the like, from a surface, including the steps of moving a flexible driver through a predetermined path under down force against the surface being worked upon thereby creating a working zone, supplying free abrasive particles to the working zone between the driver and the surface and in a direction so that the particles will tend to be moved by the driver through the working zone, allowing the particles to be moved by the driver through the working zone in contact with the surface, continuing the down force on the driver and abrasive particles while they are in the working zone to cause them to remove unwanted material from the surface, and moving the driver over the surface at a rate of travel less than the relative motion between the exterior of the driver and a point on the surface being worked upon while continuing the supply of free abrasive particles between the driver and the working zone.
1 Assignment
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A machine and method for removing coatings and/or membranes from the surface of a floor or the like, which may be uneven, and also conditioning a floor so that it more readily acccepts a new coating. The machine takes the form of a driver member or element which may be abrasive or which may apply or work free abrasive particles against a floor with a controlled application rate that may be related to floor conditions and travel speed of the machine over the surface.
30 Citations
58 Claims
- 1. A method of removing unwanted material, such as a coating, membrane, soilage or the like, from a surface, including the steps of moving a flexible driver through a predetermined path under down force against the surface being worked upon thereby creating a working zone, supplying free abrasive particles to the working zone between the driver and the surface and in a direction so that the particles will tend to be moved by the driver through the working zone, allowing the particles to be moved by the driver through the working zone in contact with the surface, continuing the down force on the driver and abrasive particles while they are in the working zone to cause them to remove unwanted material from the surface, and moving the driver over the surface at a rate of travel less than the relative motion between the exterior of the driver and a point on the surface being worked upon while continuing the supply of free abrasive particles between the driver and the working zone.
- 5. A method of removing unwanted material, such as a coating, membrane, soilage or the like, from an irregular surface, including the steps of moving a flexible driver through a predetermined path against the surface being worked upon thereby creating a working zone, applying a predetermined down force against the driver as it moves through the working zone, creating an abrasive medium in the working zone between the driver and the surface, continuing the predetermined down force on the driver and abrasive medium in the working zone to cause them to remove unwanted material from the surface, maintaining the down force on the driver against the surface approximately constant as the driver encounters irregularities in the surface, providing a free abrasive medium, and moving the free abrasive medium between the driver and the surface.
- 10. In a machine for removing unwanted material, such as a coating from a surface, a mobile frame, a generally cylindrical work wheel on the frame disposed for rotation about a generally horizontal axis, a second wheel on the frame in spaced relation to the work wheel and above the surface being worked upon, a flexible belt around the work wheel and second wheel and means for tensioning the belt, means for biasing the work wheel and the portion of the belt under it against the surface being worked upon, means allowing the work wheel to tilt about an axis generally parallel to the direction of movement of the machine so that the work wheel and the belt under it will automatically conform to irregularities in the surface being worked upon, and a tracking mechanism on the frame for detecting lateral movement of the belt and for automatically centering the belt on the work wheel.
- 19. In a machine for removing unwanted material, such as a coating from a surface, a mobile frame and means for propelling it, a generally cylindrical work wheel on the frame disposed for rotation about a generally horizontal axis, power means for rotating the work wheel, means for biasing the work wheel toward the surface, a source of free abrasive on the frame, and means for supplying free abrasive between the work wheel and the surface being worked upon to remove a coating from the surface.
- 29. In a machine for removing unwanted material, such as a coating from a surface, a mobile frame and means for propelling it, a generally cylindrical work wheel on the frame disposed for rotation about a generally horizontal axis with its periphery adjacent the surface, power means for rotating the wheel, a flexible exterior on the work wheel having the general characteristics of rubber as to flexibility and distortability, a pattern of relief areas for the compressible exterior to provide increased distortability where the work wheel is in contact with the surface, and an abrasive medium between the work wheel and the surface being worked upon.
- 36. In a device for removing unwanted material, such as a coating from a surface, a mobile frame and power means for propelling it, a generally cylindrical work wheel on the frame disposed for rotation about a generally horizontal axis with its periphery adjacent the surface, a second wheel on the frame in spaced relation to the work wheel, a flexible belt around the work wheel and second wheel and means for tensioning the belt between them, means for biasing the work wheel and belt against the surface being worked upon, the belt being somewhat wider than the work wheel so that a straight cut will be taken on the surface even if the belt moves somewhat laterally on the work wheel, power means for driving at least one of the wheels, a trackig mechanism for sensing lateral movement of the belt, and means responsive to the tracking mechanism for adjusting the second wheel so that the belt will be maintained generally centered on the work wheel.
- 40. In a machine for removing unwanted material, such as a coating from a surface, a mobile frame and means for propelling it, a generally cylindrical work wheel on the frame disposed for rotation about a generally horizontal axis with its periphery adjacent to the work surface, power means for rotating the work wheel, an abrasive medium between the bottom of the work wheel and the surface being worked upon, and means for applying and maintaining a generally constant down force by the work wheel and abrasive medium on the surface being worked upon as the work wheel follows changes in the contours of the surface, the abrasive medium including a free abrasive supplied between the work wheel and the surface being worked upon.
- 47. In a machine for removing unwanted material, such as a coating, membrane, soilage or the like, from a surface, a generally cylindrical work wheel adapted to be disposed for rotation about a generally horizontal axis with its periphery adjacent the surface, a compressible exterior on the work wheel having the general characteristics of rubber as to flexibility and distortability, and an abrasive medium between the work wheel and the surface being worked upon, each end of the compressible exterior being slightly chamfered so that adjacent cuts on the surface being worked upon will be feathered together and will blend.
- 54. In a machine for removing unwanted material, such as a coating from a surface, a mobile frame with a defined direction of travel, a generally cylindrical work wheel on the frame disposed for rotation about a generally horizontal axis transverse to the direction of travel with the periphery of the wheel adjacent to the surface, power means for propelling the machine and rotating the work wheel, an abrasive medium between the periphery of the wheel and the surface for removing a coating therefrom, and a pivotal mounting so that the wheel may pivot about an axis generally parallel to the direction of travel to permit the periphery of the wheel to conform to irregularities in the surface.
Specification