Apparatus spreading fluid on floor while moving

• US 5,636,402 A
• Filed: 06/05/1995
• Issued: 06/10/1997
• Est. Priority Date: 06/15/1994
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Moneual Incorporated (Hong-Seok Park, MBA)
• Original Assignee: Minolta Corporation Limited (Konica Minolta Inc.)
• Inventors: Kubo, Naoki, Oyokota, Shigeru, Kawagoe, Nobukazu
• Primary Examiner(s): Scherbel, David
• Assistant Examiner(s): TILL, TERRENCE R
• Application Number:
  US08/463,506
• Time in Patent Office: 736 Days
• Field of Search: 15/49.1, 15/50.1, 15/50.2, 15/51, 15/52, 15/52.2, 15/97.1, 15/98, 15/319, 15/320, 118/263, 118/679, 118/707, 222/52, 222/330
• US Class Current: 15/98
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 11/03 characterised by having provisions for supplying cleaning or polishing agents A47L11/065, A47L11/085, A47L11/125, A47L11/145, A47L11/161, A47L11/1625, A47L11/185, A47L11/201 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 11/4011 Regulation of the cleaning machine by electric means; Control systems and remote control systems therefor
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 11/4072 Arrangement of castors or wheels
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 11/4088 Supply pumps; Spraying devices; Supply conduits
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 2201/00 Robotic cleaning machines, i.e. with automatic control of the travelling movement or the cleaning operation
• CPC Class Codes: A47L 2201/06 Control of the cleaning action for autonomous devices; Automatic detection of the surface condition before, during or after cleaning
• CPC Class Codes: B08B 1/32 using rotary cleaning members
• CPC Class Codes: B08B 3/04 Cleaning involving contact with liquid

Abstract

An apparatus of spreading a fluid on the floor includes four rectangular application rotating bodies partially overlapping each other, and four nozzles supplying the fluid provided in rotation areas of the respective application rotating bodies. The rotation position of the application rotating body is detected by a light shielding plate and a photosensor. A control portion controls each component so that the fluid is applied onto the floor from a tank through the nozzle by a pump when the application rotating body is not directly under the nozzle. As a result, the apparatus of spreading a fluid on the floor capable of optimally controlling the quantity of the fluid to be applied according to the application condition can be provided.

Claims

1. A spreading apparatus which spreads a fluid on a surface, comprising:

a working unit having a working member which moves along a predetermined path so as to spread the fluid on the surface;

a supplier having an outlet through which the fluid is applied onto the surface, said outlet being located over the path of the working member; and

a controller which prevents operation of said supplier when the working member is immediately under the outlet.

2. The spreading apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the fluid is wax for finishing the surface.

3. The spreading apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein

the working member has a rectangular configuration, and the working member is rotatable around an axis perpendicular to the surface so as to move along a circular path.

4. The spreading apparatus as claimed in claim 3, wherein a length of the working member is shortened on one side so that a first end of the working member is positioned closer to a rotational center of the working member than a second end of the working member.

5. The spreading apparatus as claimed in claim 3, wherein said working unit includes at least two working members, and circular paths formed by the two working members are partially overlapped in an overlapped area.

6. The spreading apparatus as claimed in claim 5, wherein

the outlet is located over the overlapped area, and said supplier applies the fluid onto the overlapped area.

7. The spreading apparatus as claimed in claim 3, wherein

said working unit includes at least two working members, one of said working members being driven in a first direction, and the other being driven in a second direction opposite to the first direction.

8. The spreading apparatus as claimed in claim 3, wherein

said working unit includes at least two working members, one of said working members being rotated with a first phase, and the other being rotated with a second phase different from the first phase.

9. The spreading apparatus as claimed in claim 1, further comprising:

a sensor detecting the working member being immediately under the outlet,

wherein said controller prevents operation of said supplier based on an output of said sensor.

10. The spreading apparatus as claimed in claim 9, wherein the sensor is a photosensor.

11. The spreading apparatus as claimed in claim 9, wherein said working unit includes at least two working members, and the sensor detects each working member being immediately under the outlet.

12. The spreading apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein

said controller controls said supplier so as to apply the fluid each time the working member moves along the path a predetermined number of times.

13. The spreading apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein said spreading apparatus is moved along the surface by one of an operator and a moving source provided as a component of said spreading apparatus.

14. The spreading apparatus as claimed in claim 13, further comprising:

a speed detector detecting a moving speed of said spreading apparatus,

wherein the working member has a rectangular configuration, and the working member is rotatable around an axis perpendicular to the surface so as to move along a circular path, and

said controller controls a rotating speed of the working member based on an output of said speed detector.

15. The spreading apparatus as claimed in claim 13, further comprising:

a speed detector detecting a moving speed of said spreading apparatus,

wherein said controller controls the quantity of applied fluid based on an output of said speed detector.

16. The spreading apparatus as claimed in claim 1, further comprising:

a motor which moves the working member,

wherein said working unit includes at least two working members, and the motor moves all the working members.

17. The spreading apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the working member comprises nonwoven fabric cloth.

18. The spreading apparatus as claimed in claim 17, wherein the working member further comprises a rotating member, and

wherein said nonwoven fabric cloth is detachably attached to the rotating member.

19. A spreading apparatus which spreads a fluid on a surface, comprising:

a working unit including at least two working members having first and second ends which are rotated around axes perpendicular to the surface so as to spread the fluid on the surface, one of the working members being rotated with a first phase, and the other being rotated with a second phase different from the first phase;

wherein a length of each working member is shortened on one side of the rotational axis so that the first end of each working member is positioned closer to a rotational center of each working member than the second end of each working member; and

a supplier having an outlet through which the fluid is applied to the surface, said outlet being located over a path of the second end, but not over a path of the first end.

20. The spreading apparatus as claimed in claim 19, wherein

the working members each have a rectangular configuration.

21. The spreading apparatus as claimed in claim 19, wherein

circular paths formed by the two working members are partially overlapped.

22. The spreading apparatus as claimed in claim 19, wherein

one of the working members is driven in a first direction, and the other is driven in a second direction opposite to the first direction.

23. The spreading apparatus as claimed in claim 19, further comprising:

a motor which rotates all the working members.