CLEANING DEVICE

Abstract

A cleaning device includes: a main body having a roller apparatus and a suction apparatus, the roller apparatus defining a line of movement of the cleaning device, the suction apparatus opening out into a suction opening which is arranged on a side of the main body facing a floor to be cleaned, the suction opening being bordered by a first wall and a second wall, the first wall and the second wall running transversely to a line of movement. A lip with an elastic design, which when the cleaning device is used as intended lies on the floor to be cleaned, is assigned to the suction opening. When the cleaning device is moving in a first direction of movement along the line of movement, the lip rests against the first wall.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO PRIOR APPLICATIONS

This application is a U.S. National Phase application under 35 U.S.C. § 371 of International Application No. PCT/EP2021/050685, filed on Jan. 14, 2021, and claims benefit to German Patent Application No. DE 10 2020 102 283.2, filed on Jan. 30, 2020. The International Application was published in German on Aug. 5, 2021 as WO 2021/151678 under PCT Article 21(2).

FIELD

The invention relates to a cleaning device comprising a main body having a roller apparatus and a suction apparatus, wherein the roller apparatus defines a line of movement of the cleaning device, wherein the suction apparatus opens out into a suction opening which is arranged on the side of the main body facing the floor to be cleaned, wherein the suction opening is bordered by a first wall and a second wall, wherein the first wall and the second wall run transversely to the line of movement, wherein a lip with an elastic design, which when the cleaning device is used as intended lies on the floor to be cleaned, is assigned to the suction opening, wherein when the cleaning device is moving in a first direction of movement along the line of movement, the lip rests against the first wall, and while the cleaning device is moving along the line of movement in a second direction, the lip rests against the second wall.

BACKGROUND

A cleaning device of this kind is known from DE 10 2018 105 461 A1. The cleaning device known from the prior art further comprises a roller brush, so that dirt can be loosened from the floor to be cleaned, and also a device for wetting the floor to be cleaned with liquid. The apparatus is assigned to the roller brush. The cleaning device allows combined dry and wet cleaning. When the cleaning device is moved in the first direction, the suction opening initially comes into contact with the dirt lying on the floor to be cleaned. Particulate and dust-like dirt is conveyed through the suction opening and the suction channel into a dirt container in this case. At the same time, the floor to be cleaned is wetted by means of the apparatus with a cleaning liquid which loosens dirt adhering to the floor. This dirt is then removed from the floor to be cleaned by the roller brush. The first direction of movement in this case corresponds to the forward movement of the cleaning device. In the first direction of movement, the lip rests against the first wall, so that a gap opens along the front edge in the region of the second wall, through which gap dirt, in particular particulate dirt, passes via the suction opening into the suction channel.

When the cleaning device is moved in the second movement direction, the lip rests against the second wall, so that a gap is produced in the region of the first wall, through which the dirt loosened by the roller brush and the liquid applied by the apparatus reaches the suction channel. This movement corresponds to the backward movement of the cleaning device.

When the direction of movement changes from the first direction of movement to the second direction of movement, the lip turns down, wherein a liquid film lying in front of the lip in the form of a line remains on the floor to be cleaned, in particular when the cleaning device is once again moved over the floor that has already been dampened. This finally dries and leaves behind streaks of dirt on the cleaned floor.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In an embodiment, the present invention provides a cleaning device, comprising: a main body having a roller apparatus and a suction apparatus, the roller apparatus defining a line of movement of the cleaning device, the suction apparatus opening out into a suction opening which is arranged on a side of the main body facing a floor to be cleaned, the suction opening being bordered by a first wall and a second wall, the first wall and the second wall running transversely to a line of movement, wherein a lip with an elastic design, which when the cleaning device is used as intended lies on the floor to be cleaned, is assigned to the suction opening, wherein, when the cleaning device is moving in a first direction of movement along the line of movement, the lip rests against the first wall, and while the cleaning device is moving along the line of movement in a second direction, the lip rests against the second wall, and wherein the lip is configured such that during movement in the second direction of movement, the lip rests against the floor to be cleaned in a sealing manner and during movement in the first direction of movement, the lip allows liquid to pass through.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Subject matter of the present disclosure will be described in even greater detail below based on the exemplary figures. All features described and/or illustrated herein can be used alone or combined in different combinations. The features and advantages of various embodiments will become apparent by reading the following detailed description with reference to the attached drawings, which illustrate the following:

FIG. 1 shows a cleaning device;

FIG. 2 shows a detail of the lip arranged in the cleaning device; and

FIG. 3 shows some embodiments of the lip.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In an embodiment, the present invention provides a cleaning device in such a manner that an improved cleaning performance is made possible.

With the cleaning device according to the invention, the lip is configured in such a manner that during movement in the second direction of movement, the lip rests against the floor to be cleaned in a sealing manner and during movement in the first direction of movement, it allows liquid to pass through. According to the invention, as a result of this the lip rests against the floor to be cleaned during a forward movement of the cleaning device, in such a manner that particulate dirt can pass into the suction opening and that the suction apparatus can display a high suction performance, but a liquid lying on the floor is not pushed in front of the lip in such a manner that when there is a change in the direction of movement, a linear film of liquid is left on the floor to be cleaned. When the cleaning device is moved in the second direction of movement, on the other hand, the lip rests against the floor to be cleaned in such a manner that a liquid film can be removed from the floor to be cleaned and finally fed to the suction opening. This means that the floor to be cleaned dries quickly and without streaking.

Within the meaning of the invention, “in a sealing manner” does not mean that no liquid is allowed to pass between the lip and the floor. During movement in the second direction of movement, a film of liquid is also left behind the lip on the floor to be cleaned. However, this contains less liquid than the liquid film which is left behind the lip during movement in the first movement direction.

To this extent, a particularly good cleaning result can be achieved, because although the lip borders the suction opening during movement in the first direction of movement, in such a manner that particulate dirt can easily be received by the suction apparatus, a liquid film located on the floor is not removed too strongly by the lip. On the other hand, during movement along the second direction of movement, the lip lies on the floor to be cleaned, in such a manner that a liquid film lying on the floor is pushed in front of the lip and is finally conveyed into the suction opening by means of the suction apparatus. The residual liquid remaining on the floor to be cleaned dries up on its own.

The first direction of movement and second direction of movement differ from one another. In particular, the first direction of movement and the second direction of movement are opposed to one another. This can therefore involve a forward movement and a backward movement of the cleaning device.

The lip may have a supporting body and a sealing body, wherein the supporting body is arranged pivotably in the suction opening, and wherein the sealing body is arranged on the edge of the supporting body facing the floor to be cleaned. With this embodiment, the lip has an elastic section and a comparatively rigid section, wherein the rigid section allows a defined steering capacity and the elastic section allows good sealing action.

The edge of the sealing body assigned to the floor to be cleaned may be rounded. This allows better linear contact by the lip in the direction of the floor to be cleaned, even when the lip is curved at least partially. According to a first advantageous embodiment, the edge assigned to the floor to be cleaned has a quarter-circular shape when viewed in cross section. The lip in this case may be arranged in such a manner that the rounding of the quarter circle points in the direction of the first edge. During movement in the second direction of movement, the tip of the quarter-circular contour of the lip in this case comes into contact with the floor to be cleaned. This produces a high pressure gradient, which in turn goes hand-in-hand with a high sealing action. When the lip moves in the first direction of movement, on the other hand, the rounded section comes into contact with the floor to be cleaned. This leads to a smaller pressure gradient, because a liquid film can build up in the gap produced by the quarter-circle section and the floor to be cleaned, which gap finally leads to the lifting of the lip from the floor to be cleaned.

The lip may have a thickening on the edge assigned to the floor to be cleaned. The thickening in this case may be substantially circular in design. The thickening allows a linear bearing of the lip, even when the lip is turned down.

The supporting body and the sealing body may have a strip-like design, wherein the sealing body is angled to the supporting body. In this case, the free end of the lip preferably projects in the direction of the first wall. Through the angled sealing body, during movement in the first direction of movement, a liquid film can in turn build up in the gap between the lip and the floor to be cleaned, which results in the lifting of the sealing lip. If the lip rests against the second wall and the cleaning device moves in the second direction of movement, a large pressure gradient develops, on the other hand, so that the lip does not allow liquid to pass through in this direction of movement and pushes a liquid film in front of it and feeds it to the suction opening.

The sealing body may have a recess running at least partially in the longitudinal direction on at least one side. The recess is preferably introduced on the side of the lip which is assigned to the first wall. The recess gives rise to a material weakening which increases the elasticity of the lip. In this way, the lip is soft, particularly in the first direction of movement, so that the liquid film can lift the lip from the floor to be cleaned.

The sealing body may be formed from elastic plastic and the supporting body from dimensionally stable plastic. The lip in this case may be configured as a two-component injection-molding. A lip of this kind can be produced inexpensively.

The figures show a cleaning device 1 with a main body 2. A roller apparatus 3 and a suction apparatus are arranged in the main body 2. The cleaning device 1 is a hand-guided cleaning device. To this extent, the main body 2 is further connected to a handle attached to the main body 2 in an articulated manner.

The suction device opens into a suction opening 5 which is arranged on the side of the main body 2 facing the floor to be cleaned. The rolling apparatus 3 is likewise arranged on the side of the main body 2 facing the floor to be cleaned and comprises in the present exemplary embodiment two wheels arranged spaced apart from one another, which project from the floor.

The main body 2 further comprises a brush assembly with a rotatable roller brush. The roller brush 15 is likewise arranged in the main body 2 in such a manner that it is facing the floor to be cleaned.

The suction opening 5 has a second wall 7 facing the front edge of the main body 2 and a first wall 6 facing the roller brush 15. The roller apparatus 3 defines a movement line 4 of the cleaning device 1, wherein a first direction of movement 9 along the movement line 4 corresponds to a forward movement of the cleaning device 1. A movement along the second direction of movement 10 along the movement line 4 corresponds to a backward movement of the cleaning device 1.

The first wall 6 and the second wall 7 run transversely to the line of movement 4 and extend transversely across the main body 2 and border the substantially rectangular suction opening 5.

The roller brush 15 is designed to loosen dirt from the floor to be cleaned. The roller brush 15 in the present embodiment has a soft pile made of microfibers. In addition, the main body 2 is assigned an apparatus 16 for wetting the floor to be cleaned with liquid. The apparatus 16 is arranged between the roller brush 15 and suction opening 5. During the cleaning process, a cleaning liquid drips from the apparatus 16 onto the floor to be cleaned and loosens firmly adhering dirt. The loosened dirt is finally removed from the floor to be cleaned by the roller brush 15 and finally passes into the suction opening 5.

The suction opening 5 is pivotably assigned a lip 8 which, depending on the direction of movement 9, 10, rests alternately against the first wall 6 or the second wall 7.

FIG. 2 shows that the lip 8 rests against the first wall 6 during movement in the first direction of movement 9 along the movement line 4, and against the second wall 7 during movement in the second direction of movement 10.

When the cleaning device 1 is used as intended, the lip 8 lies on the floor to be cleaned and is pivotably fixed in the main body 2. For this purpose, the lip 8 has, along a longitudinal edge, a circular thickening 17 which is arranged in a congruently shaped recess of the main body 2.

The lip 8 is configured in such a manner that the lip 8 rests on the floor to be cleaned in a sealing manner during movement in the second direction of movement 10 and allows liquid to pass through during movement in the first direction of movement 9.

The lip 8 has a supporting body 11 and a sealing body 12, wherein the supporting body 11 is arranged pivotably in the suction opening 5 and wherein the sealing body 12 is arranged on the edge of the supporting body 11 facing the floor to be cleaned. The lip 8 is configured as a two-component injection molding and comprises a sealing body 12 made of injection-moldable elastic material and a supporting body 11 made of dimensionally stable, injection-moldable plastic. The supporting body 11 and the sealing body 12 have a strip-like design.

FIG. 3 shows a few embodiments of the sealing body 12. The embodiments are explained in greater detail from left to right below.

The first embodiment shows a sealing body 12, in which the edge of the sealing body 12 assigned to the floor to be cleaned is rounded. For this purpose, the edge has the shape of a quarter circle viewed in cross section, wherein the rounded section is assigned to the second wall 7 and the perpendicularly running section is assigned to the first wall 6.

In the case of the second embodiment, the sealing body 12 has a recess 14 running at least partially in the longitudinal direction on at least one side, and in the present embodiment, the recess is provided on the side of the sealing body 12 assigned to the first wall 6.

In the case of the third and fourth embodiment, the sealing body 12 is angled to the supporting body 11. In the present embodiment, the sealing body is angled in the direction of the first wall 6.

In the case of the fifth embodiment, the lip 8 has a thickening 13 on the edge assigned to the floor to be cleaned.

While subject matter of the present disclosure has been illustrated and described in detail in the drawings and foregoing description, such illustration and description are to be considered illustrative or exemplary and not restrictive. Any statement made herein characterizing the invention is also to be considered illustrative or exemplary and not restrictive as the invention is defined by the claims. It will be understood that changes and modifications may be made, by those of ordinary skill in the art, within the scope of the following claims, which may include any combination of features from different embodiments described above.

The terms used in the claims should be construed to have the broadest reasonable interpretation consistent with the foregoing description. For example, the use of the article “a” or “the” in introducing an element should not be interpreted as being exclusive of a plurality of elements. Likewise, the recitation of “or” should be interpreted as being inclusive, such that the recitation of “A or B” is not exclusive of “A and B,” unless it is clear from the context or the foregoing description that only one of A and B is intended. Further, the recitation of “at least one of A, B and C” should be interpreted as one or more of a group of elements consisting of A, B and C, and should not be interpreted as requiring at least one of each of the listed elements A, B and C, regardless of whether A, B and C are related as categories or otherwise. Moreover, the recitation of “A, B and/or C” or “at least one of A, B or C” should be interpreted as including any singular entity from the listed elements, e.g., A,

Claims

1. A cleaning device, comprising:

a main body having a roller apparatus and a suction apparatus, the roller apparatus defining a line of movement of the cleaning device, the suction apparatus opening out into a suction opening which is arranged on a side of the main body facing a floor to be cleaned, the suction opening being bordered by a first wall and a second wall, the first wall and the second wall running transversely to a line of movement,

wherein a lip with an elastic design, which when the cleaning device is used as intended lies on the floor to be cleaned, is assigned to the suction opening,

wherein, when the cleaning device is moving in a first direction of movement along the line of movement, the lip rests against the first wall, and while the cleaning device is moving along the line of movement in a second direction, the lip rests against the second wall, and wherein the lip is configured such that during movement in the second direction of movement, the lip rests against the floor to be cleaned in a sealing manner and during movement in the first direction of movement, the lip allows liquid to pass through.

2. The cleaning device of claim 1, wherein a contact pressure gradient between the floor and lip in the direction of movement is smaller in the first direction of movement than in the second direction of movement.

3. The cleaning device of claim 1, wherein the lip has a supporting body and a sealing body,

wherein the supporting body is arranged pivotably in the suction opening, and

wherein the sealing body is arranged on an edge of the supporting body facing the floor to be cleaned.

4. The cleaning device of claim 3, wherein the edge of the sealing body assigned to the floor to be cleaned is rounded.

5. The cleaning device of claim 3, wherein the lip has a thickening on the edge assigned to the floor to be cleaned.

6. The cleaning device of claim 3, wherein the supporting body and the sealing body acre strip-like, and

wherein the sealing body is angled with respect to the supporting body.

7. The cleaning device of claim 3, wherein the sealing body has a recess running at least partially in a longitudinal direction on at least one side of the sealing body.

8. The cleaning device of claim 3, wherein the sealing body comprises elastic plastic and the supporting body comprises dimensionally stable plastic.

9. The cleaning device of claim 3, wherein the lip comprises a two-component injection-molding.