Abstract: In a machine which cleans or buffs a floor by rotating a cleaning or buffing pad against the floor at high speed, simplified means are disclosed for supplying a controlled amount of cleaning fluid to the floor at the center of the cleaning pad. Vacuum which is created within the pad housing by the centrifugal action of the cleaning pad draws cleaning fluid out of a reservoir and into the central region of the pad. Flow is controlled and flow rate is set by limiting atmospheric vents. There is precisely controlled flow to the center of the pad, which may be continuous or on demand, no pump or moving parts of any kind are required, and the system is self-cleaning.

Abstract: This is concerned with a surface cleaning machine such as a burnisher or scrubber and is more particularly concerned with a quick connect/disconnect holding and centering structure for high speed brush and pad use which is specifically constructed to accurately center a brush or pad and dampen any vibration so that the brush or pad may be operated at a high speed without special balancing, as well as to allow for each and quick connect or disconnect. The holding and centering structure comprises an opening in the center of a surface cleaning element adapted to receive a driven hub fitted down in the opening. A circumferential formation in the opening is adapted to interferingly bypass a complementary circumferential formation on the hub. One of the circumferential formations is uniformly distortable.

Abstract: A battery powered walk behind floor burnishing unit (10). The unit includes a main frame (12) supported by wheel means (18, 20, 36), the main frame being capable of supporting a plurality of batteries (14). At least one of the wheels (18) may be driven. A burnisher subassembly (22) is mounted on the rear of the frame by a mounting assembly for movement through an from a raised inoperative position through an intermediate ready position to a lowered operative position. The burnisher subassembly includes a drive head (80) and a rotatable drive block (94), the drive block being capable of being rotated by a motor (24) mounted on the drive head. The mounting assembly includes two pairs of parallel links (126, 128) and biasing means (140, 142) which normally biases the subassembly (22) to the raised inoperative position. A vacuum apparatus includes an open cell burnishing pad (114) carried by the burnisher subassembly.