Road sweeping machine

• US 5,901,409 A
• Filed: 04/22/1998
• Issued: 05/11/1999
• Est. Priority Date: 10/23/1995
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Alfred Kaercher GmbH & Company KG
• Original Assignee: Alfred Kaercher GmbH & Company KG
• Inventors: Urban, Uwe, Schick, Roland, Veit, Eberhard
• Primary Examiner(s): MOORE, CHRISTOPHER K
• Application Number:
  US09/064,423
• Time in Patent Office: 384 Days
• Field of Search: 15/347, 15/349, 15/340.3, 15/340.4
• US Class Current: 15/340.3
• CPC Class Codes: E01H 1/0827 Dislodging by suction; Mechanical dislodging-cleaning apparatus with independent or dependent exhaust, e.g. dislodging-sweeping machines with independent suction nozzles combined with blowing E01H1/0872; Mechanical loosening devices working under vacuum
• CPC Class Codes: E01H 1/0854 Apparatus in which the mechanically dislodged dirt is partially sucked-off, e.g. dislodging- sweeping apparatus with dirt collector in brush housing or dirt container mechanical dislodging machines with independent suction nozzles E01H1/0827; combined with blowing and suction E01H1/0872

Abstract

In order that a road-sweeping machine with a chassis, with unsteered rear wheels and steered front wheels, with an engine which is disposed substantially above the rear wheels and drives them, with a seat near the engine and with a sweeping roller disposed on the underside of the chassis between the front and rear wheels at right angles to the direction of travel, and with a dirt collector, may be constructed in such a way that it has a compact construction of simple design and has a good sweeping effect whilst producing little dust, it is proposed that the dirt collector is disposed between the front and rear wheels adjacent to the sweeping roller and is connected by way of a suction line to a suction unit, and that the engine is disposed with the output shaft directed substantially vertically, the output shaft projecting upwards and downwards out of the engine, wherein the upwardly projecting portion thereof drives the suction unit and the downwardly projecting portion drives the rear wheels and the sweeping roller.

Claims

1. Road-sweeping machine with a chassis, with unsteered rear wheels and steered front wheels, with an engine which is disposed substantially above the rear wheels and drives them, with a seat near the engine and with a sweeping roller disposed on the underside of the chassis between the front and rear wheels at right angles to the direction of travel, and with a dirt collecting device, characterised in that the dirt collector is disposed between the front and rear wheels adjacent to the sweeping roller and is connected by way of a suction line to a suction unit, and that the engine is disposed with the output shaft directed substantially vertically, the output shaft projecting upwards and downwards out of the engine, wherein the upwardly projecting portion thereof drives the suction unit and the downwardly projecting portion drives the rear wheels and the sweeping roller.

2. Road-sweeping machine as claimed in claim 1, characterised in that the suction unit is disposed above the engine, adjacent to the upwardly projecting portion of the output shaft.

3. Road-sweeping machine as claimed in claim 1, characterised in that a V-belt pulley for a V-belt which drives the suction unit is held so as to be fixed against rotation on the portion of the output shaft which projects upwards out of the engine.

4. Road-sweeping machine as claimed in claim 2, characterised in that a V-belt pulley for a V-belt which drives the suction unit is held so as to be fixed against rotation on the portion of the output shaft which projects upwards out of the engine.

5. Road-sweeping machine as claimed in claim 1, characterised in that a gear for transferring the motion of the output shaft to the rear wheels and the sweeping roller is mounted on the portion of the output shaft which projects downwards out of the engine.

6. Road-sweeping machine as claimed in claim 2, characterised in that a gear for transferring the motion of the output shaft to the rear wheels and the sweeping roller is mounted on the portion of the output shaft which projects downwards out of the engine.

7. Road-sweeping machine as claimed in claim 3, characterised in that a gear for transferring the motion of the output shaft to the rear wheels and the sweeping roller is mounted on the portion of the output shaft which projects downwards out of the engine.

8. Road-sweeping machine as claimed in claim 1, characterised in that the gear includes V-belt pulleys for V-belts which drive the rear wheels and the sweeping roller .

9. Road-sweeping machine as claimed in claim 8, characterised in that the V-belt which drives the sweeping roller engages on a V-belt pulley which is mounted so as to be fixed against rotation on an intermediate shaft, wherein the intermediate shaft is rotatably mounted coaxially with the axis of rotation of the sweeping roller and is operatively connected by way of gear means to the sweeping roller .

10. Road-sweeping machine as claimed in claim 9, characterised in that the gear means between the intermediate shaft and the sweeping roller include a further V-belt with V-belt pulleys.

11. Road-sweeping machine as claimed in claim 8, characterised in that the V-belt which drives the rear wheels engages on a V-belt pulley of an intermediate gear which is operatively connected to the rear wheels.

12. Road-sweeping machine as claimed in claim 11, characterised in that the intermediate gear includes a V-belt pulley with variable external diameter for regulating the speed of the road-sweeping machine.

13. Road-sweeping machine as claimed in claim 1, characterised in that a brush which rotates about a substantially vertical axis of rotation is disposed on the chassis in front of the front wheels and is driven by the portion of the output shaft which projects downwards out of the engine by way of gear means.

14. Road-sweeping machine as claimed in claim 1, characterised in that there is connected into the suction line a fine dirt collector containing a filter through which the air stream passing through the fine dirt collector flows.

15. Road-sweeping machine as claimed in claim 14, characterised in that the fine dirt collector is disposed behind the engine in the direction of travel.