Floor Cleaning Apparatus with Integrated Dispensing and Containment Rolls

• US 20120167317A1
• Filed: 01/05/2011
• Published: 07/05/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 01/05/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Garcia, Fernando
• Original Assignee: Garcia, Fernando
• Inventors: Garcia, Fernando
• Granted Patent: US 8,555,449 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 15/97.1
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 11/26 Floor-scrubbing machines, hand-driven A47L11/29 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 11/4047 Wound-up or endless cleaning belts
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 11/4069 Driving or transmission means for the cleaning tools

Abstract

A floor cleaning apparatus is provided. The floor cleaning apparatus includes a roller arrangement for carrying rolls of soiled and unsoiled cleaning media thereon. The floor cleaning apparatus also includes an actuation arrangement operable to simultaneously unwind unsoiled cleaning media and wind soiled cleaning media.

Claims

1. A manual floor cleaning apparatus, comprising:

a frame;

a dispensing roller mounted to the frame and adapted to carry a roll of cleaning media thereon;

a collection roller mounted to the frame and adapted to collect the cleaning media in a roll form once the cleaning media has transitioned across a cleaning surface of the frame positioned between the dispensing roller and the collection roller;

an actuation arrangement carried by the frame and connected between the dispensing roller and the collection roller and operable to simultaneously rotate the dispensing roller and the collection roller to advance the cleaning media from the dispensing roller to the collection roller.

2. The floor cleaning apparatus of claim 1, wherein the dispensing roller and the collection roller rotate at the same speed as one another to maintain a constant tension in cleaning media extending between the dispensing roller and collection roller.

3. The floor cleaning apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a first and a second pair of roller grips, the first pair of roller grips mounted on the dispensing roller for rotation therewith, and the second pair of roller grips mounted on the collection roller for rotation therewith, wherein each of the first and second pairs of roller grips are positioned to axially compress the roll of cleaning media.

4. The floor cleaning apparatus of claim 3, wherein the first and second pairs of roller grips are mounted on the dispensing and collection rollers, respectively, such that the cleaning media carried on the dispensing and collection rollers does not rotate relative to the dispensing and collection rollers.

5. The floor cleaning apparatus of claim 1, wherein the frame includes a bottom wall defining the cleaning surface and a pair of side walls extending upwardly therefrom in opposed spaced relation, the dispensing and collection rollers mounted to the pair of side walls and extending therebetween.

6. The floor cleaning apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a handle and a grip slidably mounted to the handle, the grip mechanically coupled to the actuation arrangement.

7. The floor cleaning apparatus of claim 6, wherein the grip is mechanically coupled to the actuation arrangement such that movement of the grip relative to the handle in a first direction rotates the dispensing roller and the collection roller.

8. The floor cleaning apparatus of claim 7, wherein movement of the grip relative to the handle in a second direction opposite the first direction will not cause rotation of either of the dispensing roller and the collection roller.

9. A manual floor cleaning apparatus, comprising:

a frame;

a roll arrangement carried by the frame and adapted to carry replaceable cleaning media, the roll arrangement mounted to the frame such that the cleaning media extends across a cleaning surface of the frame; and

a one-way advancing mechanism connected to the roll arrangement and adapted to rotate the roll arrangement to move the cleaning media across the cleaning support surface in a first direction and prevent movement of the cleaning media across the cleaning support surface in a second direction opposite the first direction.

10. The floor cleaning apparatus of claim 9, wherein the roll arrangement includes a dispensing roller and a collection roller, the one way advancing mechanism mechanically coupling the dispensing roller and the collection roller to rotate the dispensing and collection rollers in the first direction.

11. The floor cleaning apparatus of claim 10, wherein the dispensing roller and collection roller rotate in the first direction simultaneously.

12. The floor cleaning apparatus of claim 10, wherein the one-way advancing mechanism includes a drive train and a follower mechanism, the drive train mechanically coupling a drive shaft of the roll arrangement and the collection roller, and the follower mechanism mechanically coupling the collection roller and the dispensing roller.

13. The floor cleaning apparatus of claim 12, wherein the drive train is connected to an input end of the drive shaft, and connected to an input end of the collection roller, and wherein the follower mechanism is connected to an output end of the collection roller and connected to an input end of the dispensing roller.

14. The floor cleaning apparatus of claim 13, wherein the one-way advancing mechanism is arranged to cycle the floor cleaning apparatus through a winding cycle and a return cycle, and wherein the drive train includes a drive gear, floating gear, linking gear, and collection roller input gear, in the winding cycle, the drive gear in meshed contact with the floating gear, the linking gear in meshed contact with the floating gear, and the collection roller input gear in meshed contact with the linking gear.

15. The floor cleaning apparatus of claim 14, wherein the drive gear and the floating gear are in meshed contact in the return cycle and the floating gear is not in meshed contact with the linking gear in the return cycle.

16. A manual floor cleaning apparatus, comprising:

a frame;

a handle mounted to the frame;

a first roller mounted to the frame and adapted to carry a roll of cleaning media thereon;

a second roller mounted to the frame and adapted to wind up the cleaning media from the first roller;

a third roller interposed between the first and second rollers and mechanically coupled to the second roller; and

a sliding grip slidably coupled to the handle and mechanically coupled to the third roller, wherein movement of the sliding grip along the handle in a first direction causes the first and second rollers to rotate in a first rotational direction, and the third rollers to rotate in a second rotational direction opposite the first rotational direction, and movement of the sliding grip along the handle in a second direction opposite the first direction causes the third roller to rotate in a third rotational direction opposite the second rotational direction, with the first and second rollers remaining fixed relative to the third roller.

17. The floor cleaning apparatus of claim 16, wherein the second and third rollers are mechanically connected via a drive train and the first and second rollers are mechanically connected via a follower mechanism.

18. The floor cleaning apparatus of claim 17, wherein the drive train includes a pawl mechanism arranged to allow for the second roller to rotate in the first rotational direction and prevent the second roller to rotate in a fourth rotational direction opposite the first rotational direction.

19. The floor cleaning apparatus of claim 18, wherein the follower mechanism includes a braking arrangement arranged to allow a follower belt of the follower mechanism to travel between a braking element and a braking pad of the braking arrangement in a first linear direction, the braking arrangement arranged to prevent the follower belt to travel between the braking element and braking pad in a second linear direction opposite the first linear direction.

20. The floor cleaning apparatus of claim 19, wherein the braking element compresses the follower belt against the braking pad when the third roller rotates in a fifth rotational direction opposite the second rotational direction.