Floor cleaning apparatus
First Claim
1. An apparatus for cleaning a surface comprising:
- a frame;
means, operatively attached to said frame, for cleaning a surface;
at least three wheels for moving said frame and said means for cleaning over a surface; and
means for steering at least one of said at least three wheels;
said means for cleaning includes a first disk brush for scrubbing the surface and that rotates in a clockwise direction about a first vertical axis;
a second disk brush, located adjacent to said first disk brush, for scrubbing the surface and that rotates in a counter-clockwise direction about a second vertical axis;
wherein, during operation of said first and second disk brushes, a stream of wastewater is produced behind said first and second disk brushes, said stream of wastewater is heavier in an area between said first and second vertical axes and lighter elsewhere;
a first squeegee located behind said first and second disk brushes to collect said wastewater; and
a second squeegee located between said first and second disk brushes and said first squeegee, and located to collect at least a portion of the heavier stream of wastewater so that more wastewater is collected.
6 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
The present invention provides an apparatus for cleaning floors. In one embodiment, the apparatus includes four wheels, two of which are steerable wheels, and a steering mechanism that permits the two steerable wheels to turn to a degree that allows very tight turns to be made by the sweeper. In another embodiment, the apparatus is a sweeper with a cylindrical side broom. Yet a further embodiment of the sweeper includes flaps or seals that form a skirt about the broom and a mounting mechanism for slidably receiving the flap or seal. In a further embodiment, the apparatus is a sweeper that employs flaps with wear indicators that tell an operator when to adjust or replace the flap. In another embodiment, the apparatus is a sweeper that utilizes a pre-filter to remove debris that remains in the vacuum airstream after having passed through the hopper and that is of a size that can require frequent cleaning of a subsequent filtering device. In yet a further embodiment, the apparatus is a scrubber with two counter rotating disk brushes, a primary squeegee, and a second or pre-squeegee for relieving the primary squeegee from processing the heavier concentration of wastewater produced in the area between the brushes. In yet another embodiment, the apparatus is a scrubber that includes a squeegee mounting systems that is relatively easy to use and permits the squeegee rubber to extend beyond the end of the mounting structure.
30 Citations
20 Claims
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1. An apparatus for cleaning a surface comprising:
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a frame; means, operatively attached to said frame, for cleaning a surface; at least three wheels for moving said frame and said means for cleaning over a surface; and means for steering at least one of said at least three wheels; said means for cleaning includes a first disk brush for scrubbing the surface and that rotates in a clockwise direction about a first vertical axis; a second disk brush, located adjacent to said first disk brush, for scrubbing the surface and that rotates in a counter-clockwise direction about a second vertical axis; wherein, during operation of said first and second disk brushes, a stream of wastewater is produced behind said first and second disk brushes, said stream of wastewater is heavier in an area between said first and second vertical axes and lighter elsewhere; a first squeegee located behind said first and second disk brushes to collect said wastewater; and a second squeegee located between said first and second disk brushes and said first squeegee, and located to collect at least a portion of the heavier stream of wastewater so that more wastewater is collected. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19)
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20. An apparatus for cleaning a surface comprising:
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a frame; means, operatively attached to said frame, for cleaning a surface; at least three wheels for moving said frame and said means for cleaning over a surface; and means for steering at least one of said at least three wheels; said means for cleaning includes a first disk brush for scrubbing the surface and that rotates in a clockwise direction about a first vertical axis; a second disk brush, located adjacent to said first disk brush, for scrubbing the surface and that rotates in a counter-clockwise direction about a second vertical axis; wherein, during operation of said first and second disk brushes, a stream of wastewater is produced behind said first and second disk brushes, said stream of wastewater is heavier in an area between said first and second vertical axes and lighter elsewhere; a first squeegee located behind said first and second disk brushes to collect said wastewater; wherein said first squeegee includes a vacuum squeegee; a second squeegee located between said first and second disk brushes and said first squeegee, and located to collect at least a portion of the heavier stream of wastewater so that more wastewater is collected; wherein said second squeegee includes a vacuum squeegee; wherein said first squeegee is located substantially parallel to said second squeegee, and said first squeegee has a first length and said second squeegee has a second length that is less than said first length.
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Specification