Carpet cleaning apparatus
First Claim
1. In a rotary scrubber comprising a horizontal downwardly facing rotary brush journalled for rotation about a vertical axis:
- a brush motor generally centered about the axis and drivingly connected to the brush;
a vacuum chamber extending partially about the periphery of the brush;
a wet vacuum unit comprising a recovery tank and a blower motor, the wet vacuum unit supported above the motor;
an improvement comprisinga chassis fixedly attached to the brush motor, the chassis having attached thereto a shampoo inlet valve, an attachment means attaching the vacuum chamber to the chassis, and a control handle; and
a brush housing extending horizontally above the brush and downwardly outboard of the periphery thereof, the downwardly extending portion of the brush housing intermediate the brush and the vacuum chamber, the brush housing supporting none of the other recited elements of the scrubber.
1 Assignment
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
An improved rotary brush carpet cleaning apparatus provides superior cleaning performance both by more efficiently dispensing shampoo onto a scrubbed portion of a carpet and by more effectively holding an extraction ring against the surface being cleaned and thereby better extracting dirt and used shampoo. The apparatus includes an arrangement of two springs (instead of the one spring used in the prior art) biasing the extraction ring downward from a chassis onto the carpet being scrubbed. The improved apparatus also minimizes operator fatigue by: a) reducing the overall weight of the cleaning machine; b) supporting the weight of a shampoo feed tank with the spinning brush, rather than on the operator'"'"'s arms: and c) providing an improved mechanical advantage for resisting torques and imbalances arising from the spinning brush in a way that does not also compromise the maneuverability of the machine.
32 Citations
17 Claims
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1. In a rotary scrubber comprising a horizontal downwardly facing rotary brush journalled for rotation about a vertical axis:
- a brush motor generally centered about the axis and drivingly connected to the brush;
a vacuum chamber extending partially about the periphery of the brush;
a wet vacuum unit comprising a recovery tank and a blower motor, the wet vacuum unit supported above the motor;
an improvement comprisinga chassis fixedly attached to the brush motor, the chassis having attached thereto a shampoo inlet valve, an attachment means attaching the vacuum chamber to the chassis, and a control handle; and a brush housing extending horizontally above the brush and downwardly outboard of the periphery thereof, the downwardly extending portion of the brush housing intermediate the brush and the vacuum chamber, the brush housing supporting none of the other recited elements of the scrubber. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)
- a brush motor generally centered about the axis and drivingly connected to the brush;
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9. In a rotary scrubber comprising a downwardly facing circular horizontal brush rotated about a vertical axis by a brush motor, a control handle extending rearwardly from the brush motor along a push axis, a cleaning solution reservoir having a rearwardly facing surface and a center of gravity, the reservoir feeding a cleaning solution onto a top surface of the brush;
- an improvement comprising pivotal attachment means for the reservoir allowing the reservoir to pivot between a first limiting position in which the rearwardly facing surface of the reservoir is adjacent the control handle, and a second limiting position in which the center of gravity of the reservoir is above a point on the scrubbed surface within the circumference of the brush.
- View Dependent Claims (10)
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11. In a rotary scrubber comprising a downwardly facing circular horizontal brush rotated about a vertical axis by a brush motor;
- a control handle extending rearwardly from the brush motor along a push axis, the control handle having a cross-arm at an end thereof distal from the brush motor;
a cleaning solution reservoir feeding a cleaning solution onto a top surface of the brush; and
a wet vacuum system comprising a flexible hose and a recovery tank disposed above and coaxial with the brush motor;
an improvement comprising an extension arm extending laterally from one side only of the push-axis for a distance greater than the width of an operator'"'"'s body. - View Dependent Claims (12, 13)
- a control handle extending rearwardly from the brush motor along a push axis, the control handle having a cross-arm at an end thereof distal from the brush motor;
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14. In a rotary scrubber comprising a horizontal downwardly facing rotary brush journalled for rotation about a vertical axis, a brush motor generally centered about the axis and drivingly connected to the brush, the brush motor having a motor casing;
- a wet vacuum unit comprising a vacuum chamber extending partially about the periphery of the brush, a recovery tank and a blower motor;
an improved means holding the vacuum chamber against a carpet being scrubbed, the means comprising a first spring, a second spring and a horizontal arm pivotally connected to the motor casing, the arm having an inboard end and an outboard end, the outboard end retained for slidable vertical motion within a housing extending upwards from the vacuum chamber, the first spring operatively attached between the arm and the motor casing, the first spring biasing the outboard end of the arm downwards, the second spring operatively attached between the outboard end and the vacuum chamber, the second spring biasing the outboard end and the vacuum chamber apart from each other. - View Dependent Claims (15, 16, 17)
- a wet vacuum unit comprising a vacuum chamber extending partially about the periphery of the brush, a recovery tank and a blower motor;
Specification