Surface cleaner with suction and simplified operation

Abstract

A surface cleaner with suction and simplified operation, which can be moved by hand using a push bar (30) over a cleaning surface on the floor, and consists of a pot-shaped housing (6) that is open towards a cleaning surface, in which housing at least one rotor arm (7) having spray nozzles (10) attached to it is driven to rotate under the action of a high-pressure medium, wherein a manually operated valve device (1, 3, 25, 26) is present, which supplies the high-pressure medium selectively to one or more rotor arms (7) and/or to the suction device (8), wherein, for two-handed operation, the manually operated valve device consists of two spatially separated operating handles (1, 3) with manually operated operating levers (25, 26), which are arranged at the two ends of the push bar (30) of the surface cleaner.

Claims

1. A surface cleaner with suction and simplified operation, which can be moved by hand using a push bar over a cleaning surface on the floor, and consists of a pot-shaped housing that is open towards a cleaning surface, in which housing at least one rotor aim having spray nozzles attached to it is driven to rotate under the action of a high-pressure medium, wherein a manually operated valve device is present, which supplies the high-pressure medium selectively to one or more rotor arms and/or to the suction device, characterized in that, for two-handed operation, the manually operated valve device consists of two spatially separated operating handles with manually operated operating levers, which are arranged at the two ends of the push bar of the surface cleaner.

2. The surface cleaner according to claim 1, wherein, in a first operating state with the actuation of the first operating lever in the first operating handle, the high-pressure medium can be supplied to the rotor aim, wherein, in a second operating state with the actuation of the second operating lever in the second operating handle, the suction device is supplied with the high-pressure medium alone, and wherein, in a third operating state with the actuation of both operating levers in the two operating handles, the high-pressure medium can be supplied to both the rotor arm and the suction device.

3. The surface cleaner according to claim 1, wherein the high-pressure medium is applied via a high-pressure connection to the input of the first operating handle, to which a T-shaped adapter attaches, via which the high-pressure medium is directed into a connecting hose which opens into the input side of the second operating handle.

4. The surface cleaner according to claim 1, wherein the push bar consists of two parallel push bar tubes which open into two parallel swivel joints in the region of the housing of the surface cleaner.

5. The surface cleaner according to claim 1, wherein the upper, operator-end of the push bar opens into two oppositely positioned fork tubes, to which the operating handles are attached.

6. The surface cleaner according to claim 1, wherein the actuating handles are designed as pistol grips.

7. The surface cleaner according to claim 1, wherein the Venturi nozzle arranged in the suction device is preceded on the inlet side by a pressure relief valve.

8. The surface cleaner according to claim 7, wherein the pressure relief valve, in the event of overpressure, directs the high-pressure medium at least partially into a bypass line bridging the Venturi nozzle and opening into the outlet of the suction device.

9. The surface cleaner according to claim 1, wherein in the double operation mode with both surface cleaning and suction, the water consumption of the suction device is about 20% to 40%, preferably 33%, of the total amount of water.

10. The surface cleaner according to claim 1, wherein the swivel angle of the push bar is continuously adjustable.

Description

[0044] In the drawings:

[0045] FIG. 1: is a perspective side view of a surface cleaner according to the invention

[0046] FIG. 2: is an enlarged detailed illustration according to FIG. 1

[0047] FIG. 3: is the enlarged detail view of FIG. 1, on the operating side

[0048] FIG. 4: is a view of the underside of the housing

[0049] In FIG. 1, a surface cleaner is shown which substantially consists of an approximately pot-shaped and cylindrical housing 6 which is open at the bottom on one side, and on whose outer circumference a number of casters 20 are arranged, evenly distributed around the circumference. According to FIG. 4, the housing 6 forms a double jacket 27 which forms an annular gap 28 between the outer and inner jacket, through which the suction takes place on the cleaned surface. Instead of arranging an annular gap 28 assigned to the suction device, suitable suction nozzles according to DE 20 2011 107 459 U1 can also be arranged in the housing 6. The lower edge of the housing is sealed against the cleaning surface on the bottom side by means of a circumferential, self-contained, annular brush seal 29, which is arranged on the lower edge of the housing.

[0050] In the interior of the housing 6 there is a rotor arm 7 with two opposite cleaning nozzles, which are directed obliquely against the rotor direction, in order to achieve a rotation of the rotor arm 7 during high-pressure operation by the resulting recoil effect. At the same time, the cleaning nozzles emit a forced high-pressure jet onto the surface to be cleaned.

[0051] The invention is not limited to a single rotor arm 7 with two opposite cleaning nozzles. There can also be a cruciform arrangement of a rotor arm, or a plurality of rotor arms.

[0052] The rotor arm 7 is rotatably attached to a swivel joint 5 in the center of the housing. The high-pressure medium is fed to the rotor arm 7 through the swivel joint 5.

[0053] A push bar 30 attaches to the housing, which in the embodiment shown consists of two parallel push bar tubes 16 which fork in the region of the housing 6 and are pivotably received there in the region of two spaced apart swivel joints 17, 18.

[0054] In this way, the working angle for the operator can be continuously adjusted with the inclination of the push bar 30.

[0055] The push bar 30 with its push bar tube 16 branches in the upper area into two fork tubes 14, 15, which form an operating fork 11.

[0056] The two operating handles 1, 3 according to the invention are each arranged at the ends of the operating fork 11.

[0057] The operating handle 1 intended for the high-pressure cleaning mode is designed as a pistol grip and has a first operating lever 25, while the second operating handle 3 intended for the suction mode has a further operating lever 26.

[0058] The high-pressure medium is fed into the operating handle 1 via a high-pressure connection 24, and is simultaneously fed to the input side of the other operating handle 3 via a T-shaped adapter 2 with a connecting hose 23.

[0059] The high-pressure medium is therefore constantly applied to the high-pressure connection 24, and also to the input side of the operating handle 1 and to the input side of the operating handle 3.

[0060] Upon actuation of the actuating lever 25 in the (right) actuating handle 1, the high-pressure medium is fed via the high-pressure hose 4a into the central swivel joint 5 on the housing to supply pressure to the rotor arm 7, which results in the first operating mode—specifically, high-pressure surface cleaning via the action of the cleaning nozzles on the rotor arm 7.

[0061] If it turns out that water remains on the surface being cleaned, which can be the case with high-pressure operation alone, the operator optionally and under his visual control opens the (left) operating handle 3 in order to switch on the suction device 8, by actuating the operating lever 26.

[0062] The suction device 8 is attached to the housing 6. In its interior, a Venturi nozzle 9 is arranged in a manner known per se (DE 20 2011 107 459 U1); the high-pressure hose 4b applies the high-pressure medium thereto when the actuating lever 26 on the actuating handle 3 is actuated (see FIG. 3).

[0063] As such, during the surface cleaning operation, the operator can optionally switch on the suction, or not, by actuating the actuating lever 26 in the actuating handle 3.

[0064] In the suction mode alone, the actuating lever 25 in the actuating handle 1 is closed, and only the actuating lever 26 on the actuating handle 3 is open, such that only the suction device 8 is put into operation—which then extracts the amount of water remaining on the cleaning surface through the annular gap 28 with a particularly high vacuum. It leads into a waste water hose (not shown in detail) connected to the outlet of the suction device.

[0065] It may be that in the suction mode alone, an overload of the Venturi nozzle 9 could occur, due to the applied overpressure of the high-pressure water supply. Therefore, a pressure relief valve 21, which has a bypass line 22, is arranged on the inlet side of the suction device 8. The bypass line is shown with dashed lines in FIGS. 1 and 2, because it is located in the interior of the suction device 9. When the pressure relief valve 21 is triggered, the excess water is passed through the bypass line 22 into the drain, bypassing the Venturi nozzle 9.

[0066] The casters 20 of the chassis 19 shown here can also be designed in a different manner. Roller elements, ball rollers, sliding elements, runners or the like can be used. Overall, the technical teaching according to the invention results in a significant operating advantage and an improved working speed with an improved working result and better cleaning performance.

LIST OF REFERENCE SIGNS

[0067] 1 operating handle (right)

[0068] 2 adapter

[0069] 3 operating handle (left)

[0070] 4a high-pressure hose; 4b high-pressure hose

[0071] 5 swivel joint

[0072] 6 housing

[0073] 7 rotor arm

[0074] 8 suction device

[0075] 9 Venturi nozzle

[0076] 10 spray nozzle

[0077] 11 operating fork

[0078] 12 connector

[0079] 13 connector

[0080] 14 fork tube

[0081] 15 fork tube

[0082] 16 push bar tube

[0083] 17 swivel joint

[0084] 18 swivel joint

[0085] 19 chassis

[0086] 20 castor

[0087] 21 pressure relief valve

[0088] 22 bypass line

[0089] 23 connecting hose

[0090] 24 high-pressure connection

[0091] 25 operating fever (right)

[0092] 26 operating lever (left)

[0093] 27 double jacket

[0094] 28 annular gap

[0095] 29 brush seal

[0096] 30 push bar