Integrated sound baffle
First Claim
1. A floor cleaning apparatus comprising:
- a) a chassis with a plurality of wheels engaging the floor to support the floor cleaning apparatus and to permit it to be easily moved about on said floor;
b) means for scrubbing the floor including a circular disc positioned beneath said chassis and a brush motor mounted on the chassis to rotate said circular disc;
c) a solution tank for storage of cleaning solution;
d) a recovery tank for storage of dirty solution;
e) a hollow body mounted on the chassis, said body having an inlet and an outlet and an interior passageway allowing fluid communication between said inlet and said outlet, said body supporting the load of said solution tank and said recovery tank;
f) vacuum squeegee means to remove said dirty solution from the floor and transfer it to said recovery tank, including a vacuum motor; and
g) means for connecting the outlet on said vacuum motor to the inlet of said body to direct the exhaust from said vacuum motor into said body and through said passageway to reduce noise as said exhaust exits said outlet of said body.
5 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
The floor cleaning machine utilizes an integrated sound baffle to reduce the noise level of the machine during operation. The floor cleaning machine relies upon a vacuum motor to create a negative pressure in a recovery tank for operation of a vacuum squeegee. The integrated sound baffle is a hollow u-shaped body having an interior passageway through which the exhaust from the vacuum motor is directed. The noisy exhaust is required to turn four 90° corners as it passes through the interior passageway of the baffle which reduces the noise level of the exhaust. The moist exhaust is also isolated from the brush motor and the vacuum motor while it passes through the hollow baffle. The baffle is an integrated component of the apparatus and is a load bearing member for the solution tank and the recovery tank. The baffle can be roto-molded using conventional techniques with a thermoplastic such as HDPE.
27 Citations
16 Claims
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1. A floor cleaning apparatus comprising:
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a) a chassis with a plurality of wheels engaging the floor to support the floor cleaning apparatus and to permit it to be easily moved about on said floor; b) means for scrubbing the floor including a circular disc positioned beneath said chassis and a brush motor mounted on the chassis to rotate said circular disc; c) a solution tank for storage of cleaning solution; d) a recovery tank for storage of dirty solution; e) a hollow body mounted on the chassis, said body having an inlet and an outlet and an interior passageway allowing fluid communication between said inlet and said outlet, said body supporting the load of said solution tank and said recovery tank; f) vacuum squeegee means to remove said dirty solution from the floor and transfer it to said recovery tank, including a vacuum motor; and g) means for connecting the outlet on said vacuum motor to the inlet of said body to direct the exhaust from said vacuum motor into said body and through said passageway to reduce noise as said exhaust exits said outlet of said body. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12)
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13. An integrated sound baffle for use in a floor cleaning machine having a chassis with brush motor mounted thereon, a solution tank, a recovery tank and a vacuum squeegee means including a vacuum motor and a shoe to remove dirty solution from the floor and transfer it to the recovery tank comprising:
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a) a hollow elongate u-shaped body mounted on the chassis, said body having an inlet and an outlet and an interior passageway allowing fluid communication between said inlet and said outlet; b) said inlet positioned on one leg of the u-shaped body and said outlet positioned on the opposing leg of said body; and c) said hollow elongated u-shaped body having a bottom surface in contact with the chassis and an upper surface supporting the load of the solution tank and the recovery tank. - View Dependent Claims (14, 15, 16)
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Specification