Car washing installation

• US 4,920,997 A
• Filed: 04/12/1989
• Issued: 05/01/1990
• Est. Priority Date: 10/16/1986
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Alfred Kaercher GmbH & Company KG
• Original Assignee: Alfred Kaercher GmbH & Company KG
• Inventors: Vetter, Kurt, Hafner, Kurt, Krautter, Jurgen, Schulze, Werner
• Primary Examiner(s): Coe, Philip R.
• Application Number:
  US07/340,178
• Time in Patent Office: 384 Days
• Field of Search: 134/45, 134/57 R, 134/123, 134/179, 134/180, 134/181, 239/752, 239/240, 239/263.2, 239/263.3, 239/264, 239/587
• US Class Current: 134/57.00R
• CPC Class Codes: B60S 3/04 for exteriors of land vehicles B60S3/002, B60S3/004 take precedence; specially adapted for railway vehicles B60S3/006

Abstract

A car washing installation has several jet nozzles (20) for a cleaning fluid, if necessary mixed with chemical substances, arranged one next to the other transversely to the length of the car and moved past the car in its longitudinal direction. The jet nozzles (20) are designed as rotative nozzles that supply a point contact jet that emerges from the rotative nozzles at a maximum acute angle of about 30° in relation to the axis of rotation of the nozzles. To ensure that all car surfaces are reliably cleaned, even when the car has a rugged surface, characterized by recesses, the jet nozzles (20) can be periodically moved along the profile of the car on a perpendicular plane to the longitudinal axis of the car.

Claims

1. Vehicle washing installation, in particular for vehicles with a very rugged surface, comprising several spray nozzles for a cleaning liquid possibly with chemicals added thereto arranged next to one another transversely to the longitudinal direction of the vehicle along a portal and moved past said vehicle in the longitudinal direction of said vehicle, said spray nozzles (20) being designed as rotor nozzles which deliver one point contact jet each, said point contact jet issuing at an acute angle of up to approximately 30 degrees at the most at an incline to the axis of rotation of said rotor nozzle and describing the lateral area of a cone, characterized in that said spray nozzles are movable back and forth along the portal around a vehicle in a plane lying transversely to the longitudinal axis of said vehicle, the amplitude of the motion of neighboring spray nozzles (20) being at least so large that the parts of said vehicle (5) over which their point contact jets repeatedly pass ajoin one another.

2. Installation according to claim 1, characterized in that the direction of the axis of rotation of said spray nozzle (20) is adjustable.

3. Installation according to claim 2, characterized in that said spray nozzles are driven hydrodynamically by the cleaning liquid.

4. Installation according to claim 2, characterized in that said spray nozzles (20) are driven by a motor drive.

5. Installation according to claim 2, characterized in that the angle of inclination of said point contact jet is adjustable relative to said axis of rotation.

6. Installation according to claim 1, characterized in that said spray nozzles are driven hydrodynamically by the cleaning liquid.

7. Installation according to claim 6, characterized in that the angle of inclination of said point contact jet is adjustable relative to said axis of rotation.

8. Installation according to claim 1, characterized in that said spray nozzles (20) are driven by a motor drive.

9. Installation according to claim 8, characterized in that the angle of inclination of said point contact jet is adjustable relative to said axis of rotation.

10. Installation according to claim 1, characterized in that the angle of inclination of said point contact jet is adjustable relative to said axis of rotation.

11. Installation according to claim 1, characterized in that said spray nozzles (20) are repeatedly movable back and forth by a common drive (11;

24).

12. Installation according to claim 11, characterized in that several spray nozzles (20) are held on a supply pipe (7) for the cleaning liquid which is repeatedly moved back and forth.

13. Installation according to claim 12, characterized in that said supply pipe (7) extends along the supports (2, 3) and the crossbeam (4) of a portal (1) and comprises flexible deflection regions (8) in the transition between said supports (2,3) and said crossbeam (4).

14. Installation according to claim 1, characterized in that said spray nozzles (20) are adjustable about an axis extending transversely to the longitudinal axis of said vehicle and along the portal.

15. Installation according to claim 14, characterized in that sensors responding to said vehicle (5) are provided to actuate via a control means a drive (28) which rotates said spray nozzles (20) about the axis extending transversely to the longitudinal axis of said vehicle and along the portal.

16. Installation according to claim 1, characterized in that said spray nozzles (20) have associated closure valves which are actuatable for individual spray nozzles or groups of spray nozzles.

17. Installation according to claim 1, characterized in that spray nozzles (20) with different size openings are provided.

18. Installation according to claim 17, characterized in that spray nozzles (20) with larger openings are arranged in the bottom part of said installation.

19. Installation according to claim 1, characterized in that said spray nozzles (20) are arranged at different mutual spacings along the portal.

20. Installation according to claim 1, characterized in that said point contact jet is of pulsating configuration.

21. Installation according to claim 20, characterized in that when a rotor nozzle is used, the pulsation frequency of said point contact jet is an integral multiple of the rotational speed of said rotor nozzle.

22. Installation according to claim 1, characterized in that when said spray nozzles (20) are arranged on a portal (1), the latter is inclined relative to a vertical plane arranged transversely to the longitudinal axis of said vehicle.