CN118476762A - Surface cleaning machine - Google Patents

Abstract

The application discloses a surface cleaner, comprising a cleaning base, a wet cleaning roller, a dry wiping roller which is spaced from the wet cleaning roller in the front-back direction, a liquid supply system for loading cleaning liquid to the wet cleaning roller, and a dryer which is arranged on the cleaning base and is used for drying the dry wiping roller, wherein the cleaning base is jointly supported on a surface to be cleaned through the wet cleaning roller and the dry wiping roller, the cleaning base comprises a rear stirring cavity with a second opening at the lower part, the dry wiping roller is arranged in the rear stirring cavity, the lower part extends out of the second opening, the dryer is at least partially positioned in the rear stirring cavity, at least one blocking piece is arranged in the rear stirring cavity, the at least one blocking piece is positioned between the second opening and the dryer, and the at least one blocking piece is contacted with the dry wiping roller. The heat energy blocking function of the blocking piece reduces the heat energy overflow of the dryer, thereby improving the energy utilization rate of the whole surface cleaning machine.

Description

Surface cleaning machine

Technical Field

The application relates to the technical field of surface cleaning equipment.

Background

Surface cleaning apparatuses that perform cleaning operations using a cleaning liquid, such as water or the like, have been widely used in daily life. For example, wet floor cleaning devices that can utilize water or a water/detergent mixture to scrub the floor, each of which carries a recovery tank for recovering used cleaning liquid into which used and soiled cleaning liquid entrains debris from the floor for recovery by a suction motor or the like.

In the process of recycling the sewage and the scraps, the wet floor cleaning equipment often leaves some residual moisture on the cleaned floor due to the liquid which cannot be fully recycled; after using the wet floor cleaning device, in order to avoid secondary pollution caused by the residual moisture being stepped on by the user, the user has to wait for a period of time before entering the space where the floor is located, which may cause using trouble to the user.

In the prior art, in order to reduce the amount of water remaining on the floor, some wet floor cleaning devices only allow a very low flow of cleaning liquid to flow onto the floor per unit time, which, although can avoid too much water remaining on the floor after cleaning, the low flow will also mean a reduced amount of dirt liquid entrained with debris, which may impair the ability of the wet floor cleaning device to clean the floor; still other wet floor cleaning machines employ a set of hot air systems on the apparatus to dry the floor by scrubbing the floor with water or a water/detergent mixture while drying the floor with the hot air system; however, since the time for wiping the floor is extremely short, it is difficult to dry the floor in such a short time even if the hot air system is controlled according to the limit operation power of the wet floor cleaning device, and since the hot air system is used, the operation noise of the wet floor cleaning device is extremely large.

Accordingly, the various configurations of prior art wet floor cleaning devices have not always solved the floor moisture retention problem well.

Disclosure of Invention

In order to solve the problem of water residue on the surface to be cleaned in the prior art, the invention aims to provide a surface cleaning machine which can effectively remove the water residue on the surface to be cleaned in the cleaning process.

In order to achieve the above object, the present application provides a surface cleaning machine comprising a cleaning base, a wet cleaning roller drivingly rotatably disposed on the cleaning base, a dry wiping roller drivingly rotatably disposed on the cleaning base and spaced apart from the wet cleaning roller in a front-rear direction, a liquid supply system for supplying cleaning liquid to the wet cleaning roller, and a dryer disposed on the cleaning base and for drying the dry wiping roller, the cleaning base being supported on a surface to be cleaned by the wet cleaning roller and the dry wiping roller together, the cleaning base including a rear agitation chamber having a second opening in a lower portion thereof, the dry wiping roller being disposed in the rear agitation chamber and a lower portion thereof protruding from the second opening, the dryer being at least partially located in the rear agitation chamber, the rear agitation chamber being provided with at least one blocking member located between the second opening and the dryer, the at least one blocking member being in contact with the dry wiping roller.

In a preferred embodiment, the rotational axes of the wet cleaning roller and the dry wiping roller are parallel to each other and the rotational directions of the wet cleaning roller and the dry wiping roller are opposite.

In a preferred embodiment, the dryer includes a heat generating body capable of converting electric energy into heat and a heat conducting member in heat conducting contact with the heat generating body, the heat conducting member having a hot surface, the dry wiping roller being in contact with or in close proximity to the hot surface.

In a preferred embodiment, the hot surface is circumferentially wrapped around a portion of the periphery of the dry wiping roller.

In a preferred embodiment, the thermal surface is arcuate.

In a preferred embodiment, the at least one barrier is made of a flexible material.

In a preferred embodiment, the surface cleaning machine further comprises a rechargeable battery pack, and the rechargeable battery pack is electrically connected with the heating element to provide electric energy required by heating for the heating element.

In a preferred embodiment, the cleaning base comprises a bottom facing the surface to be cleaned, the bottom having a rear end defining a front boundary of the second opening, at least one of the barriers being arranged between the rear end and the dryer.

In a preferred embodiment, the cleaning base includes a rear cover plate having a rear top wall and a rear side wall defining a rear portion of the rear agitation chamber, the rear side wall extending downwardly from a rear edge of the rear top wall and at least partially below the axis of rotation of the dry wiping roller.

In a preferred embodiment, the rear side wall is at least partially circumferentially wrapped around a portion of the periphery of the dry wiping roller and the portion of the rear side wall is in contact with or in close proximity to the dry wiping roller.

In a preferred embodiment, the surface cleaning machine further comprises a recovery system comprising a suction channel, a suction motor and a recovery tank, the cleaning base comprising a front agitation chamber having a first opening in a lower portion thereof, the wet cleaning roll being disposed in the front agitation chamber, the suction channel being at least partially located within the cleaning base and in fluid communication with at least the front agitation chamber.

In a preferred embodiment, the liquid supply system includes a water supply tank, a liquid dispenser positioned within the front agitation chamber, and a pump positioned between the water supply tank and the liquid dispenser.

In a preferred embodiment, the surface cleaner further comprises a squeegee member on the cleaning base, the squeegee member being positioned within the front agitation chamber and abutting the wet cleaning roller to remove liquid and debris from the wet cleaning roller.

In a preferred embodiment, the surface cleaner further comprises a first motor for driving the wet cleaning roller in rotation and a second motor for driving the dry wiping roller in rotation.

In a preferred embodiment, the surface cleaning machine is configured as an upright machine or as a surface cleaning robot capable of autonomous travel on the floor and autonomous steering.

Compared with the prior art, the application has the following beneficial effects: by means of the combined action of the dry wiping roller and the dryer, the cleaning base can be effectively assisted to reduce water residues after use; and the blocking effect of the blocking piece reduces the heat energy overflow of the dryer, thereby improving the energy utilization rate of the whole surface cleaning machine.

Drawings

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a surface cleaning machine according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 2 is a perspective view of a cleaning base provided in an embodiment of the present application in a bottom view;

FIG. 3 is a bottom view of the cleaning base of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the cleaning base of FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is an enlarged schematic view of a front portion of the cleaning base of FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is an enlarged schematic view of a rear portion of the cleaning base of FIG. 4;

FIG. 7 is a schematic illustration of the cleaning base of FIG. 6 with the dry wiping roller removed;

Fig. 8 is a schematic cross-sectional view of another cleaning base according to an embodiment of the present application.

Wherein: 10. a surface cleaner; 1. cleaning a base; 2. a handle body portion; 3. a rotary joint; 11. a base; 111. a front part; 112. a rear portion; 113. a top; 114. a bottom; 12. a front agitation chamber; 13. a rear agitation chamber; 14. a suction nozzle; 15. a wet cleaning roller; 16. a liquid dispenser; 161. a scraping roller member; 18. a dry wiping roller; 19. a dryer; 1111. a front cover plate; 121. a first lower opening; 122. a front opening; 151. a first roller body; 152. a first cleaning member; 1121. a back cover plate; 131. a second lower opening; 181. a second roller body; 182. a second cleaning member; 11211. a top wall; 11212. a rear sidewall; 11213. an arc section; 11214. a bottom edge; 11215. recess 1141, front end; 1142. a rear end portion; 191. a heating element; 192. a heat conductive member; 1921. a hot surface; 193. a barrier; 21. a handle; 22. a body; 211. an operation unit; 32. a water supply tank; 41. a recovery box; 42. a suction motor; 51. a rechargeable battery pack; 8. cleaning a base; 82. a front agitation chamber; 83. a rear agitation chamber; 85. a wet cleaning roller; 88. a dry wiping roller; 89. a dryer; 87. a suction channel; 871. a narrow channel.

Detailed Description

The surface cleaning machine of the present application is configured to be capable of contacting a surface to be cleaned with a cleaning base; the surface to be cleaned is typically a hard floor surface, such as a floor surface, a floor tile surface, or the like, and the cleaning base is used to scrub the floor surface with cleaning liquid while thoroughly recovering the used cleaning liquid and the debris present on the surface to be cleaned. The surface cleaner solution can be used in various types of cleaning apparatuses.

The terms "upper" and "lower" orientation referred to below are oriented relative to the surface cleaning base over the surface to be cleaned, and the terms "front" and "rear" orientation are oriented relative to the direction in which the operator is standing on the surface to be cleaned to propel the surface cleaning machine (i.e., the rear-to-front propulsion direction).

FIG. 1 illustrates a surface cleaning machine 10 provided by the present application; the surface cleaning machine 10 is a straight upright machine comprising a cleaning base 1 and a handle body portion 2 located on the upper side of the cleaning base 1. The lower part of the handle body part 2 is pivotally connected to the cleaning base 1 by means of a swivel joint 3, the handle body part 2 having a storage position standing upright relative to the cleaning base 1 for storage and a working position inclined backwards relative to the cleaning base 1 for a user to push the surface cleaning machine 10.

As shown in fig. 1-3, the cleaning base 1 has a base 11, the base 11 including a front 111, a rear 112, a top 113, and a bottom 114.

As shown in fig. 2-7, the front portion 111 has a front agitation chamber 12 and the rear portion 112 has a rear agitation chamber 13. Is disposed adjacent the front agitation chamber 12 at the suction nozzle 14. Within the front agitation chamber 12 are disposed a wet cleaning roller 15 which is driven to rotate, a liquid distributor 16 which partially extends into the front agitation chamber 12, and a squeegee member 161. A dry wiping roller 18 and a dryer 19 are provided in the rear agitation chamber 13. So arranged, the wet cleaning roller 15 and the dry wiping roller 18 will be spaced apart in the front-rear direction, and the cleaning chassis 1 can be supported on the surface to be cleaned by the wet cleaning roller 15 and the dry wiping roller 18, i.e., during the same working time, the cleaning chassis 1 can clean the surface to be cleaned by both the wet cleaning roller 15 and the dry wiping roller 18.

The front portion 111 includes a front cover plate 1111, and the front cover plate 111 covers the upper side of the wet cleaning roller 15. The lower portion of the front agitation chamber 12 has a first lower opening 121, and the front portion of the front agitation chamber 12 has a front opening 122, the front opening 122 communicating with the first lower opening 121. The lower and front portions of the wet cleaning roller 15 are exposed from the first lower opening 121 and the front opening 122, respectively, to contact the surface to be cleaned.

The wet cleaning roller 15 includes a first roller body 151 defining a rotation axis X1 extending in a horizontal direction, and first cleaning members 152 covered on an outer peripheral side surface of the roller body 151, the first cleaning members 152 being configured to be wettable by a cleaning liquid such as water. The roller diameter D1 of the first roller 151 is preferably 50 to 60mm. In this example, the first cleaning elements 152 are fibrous fluff, e.g., the fluff length L1 of the first cleaning elements 152 is 5-10mm of the first roll brush length L1. In other embodiments, the first cleaning element may be a sponge, fabric, or the like.

The cleaning base 1 is further provided with a first motor (not shown) in driving connection with the wet cleaning roller 15 for driving the wet cleaning roller 15 to rotate about the rotation axis X1.

The liquid distributor 16 is directed towards the wet cleaning roll 15 and is configured to distribute cleaning liquid from a liquid supply system (not shown in the figures) over the wet cleaning roll 15.

The suction nozzle 14 is directed towards the front agitation chamber 12. The suction nozzle 14 is in fluid communication with a suction channel 17; the suction channel 17 may be defined in part by the housing 11 or may be defined entirely by a conduit disposed within the housing 11. The suction channel 17 guides fluid, such as dirt liquid, debris, air, etc., sucked through the suction nozzle 14.

The position of the scraping roller member 161 within the front agitation chamber 12 is closer to the suction nozzle 14 than the liquid dispenser 16; as for the rotation direction of the wet cleaning roller 15, the wiping roller member 161 is located downstream of the suction nozzle 14, and the liquid dispenser 16 is located downstream of the wiping roller member 161. The squeegee member 161 is typically a hard squeegee assembly that abuts the first cleaning elements 152 of the wet cleaning roller 15 to remove liquid and debris from the first cleaning elements 152 of the wet cleaning roller 15.

The rear portion 112 includes a rear cover plate 1121, and the rear cover plate 1121 circumferentially wraps around a portion of the periphery of the dry wiping roller 18. The lower portion of the rear agitation chamber 13 has a second lower opening 131. A lower portion of the dry wiping roller 18 is exposed from the second lower opening 131 to contact the surface to be cleaned.

The dry wiping roller 18 includes a second roller body 181 defining a rotation axis X2 extending in the horizontal direction, and a second cleaning member 182 covering the outer peripheral side surface of the roller body 181, the second cleaning member 182 being configured to be capable of absorbing a cleaning liquid such as water. The roller diameter D2 of the second roller body 181 is preferably 35 to 50mm. In this example, the second cleaning elements 182 preferably select fiber fluff, e.g., the fluff length L2 of the second cleaning elements 182 is 5-15mm. In other embodiments, the second cleaning element may be of other types, such as a sponge, fabric, or the like. In some preferred embodiments, to increase liquid-absorbing properties, the fluff length L2 of the second cleaning elements 182 is greater than the fluff length L1 of the first cleaning elements 152.

The cleaning base 1 is further provided with a second motor (not shown) in driving connection with the dry wiping roller 18 for driving the dry wiping roller 18 to rotate about the rotation axis X2. The first motor and the second motor may be internal motors built into the respective rollers, or may be external motors disposed outside the respective rollers. In other possible embodiments, the first motor and the second motor may be replaced by one motor, i.e., the dry wiping roller 18 and the wet cleaning roller 15 are driven to rotate simultaneously by the same motor.

In this example, the roller diameter D2 of the second roller body 181 is preferably smaller than the roller diameter D1 of the first roller body 151. In the same operation, the wet cleaning roller 15 is driven to rotate at a first angular velocity, and the dry wiping roller 18 is driven to rotate at a second angular velocity greater than the first angular velocity, for example: the first angular velocity is greater than or equal to 6.6pi radians per second and the second angular velocity is greater than or equal to 33 pi radians per second. The arrangement is such that during the same operation the frequency of rotation of the dry wiping roller 18 is as much as possible greater than the frequency of rotation of the wet cleaning roller 15, so that the dry wiping roller 18 can contact the surface to be cleaned more frequently to achieve absorption of residual liquid on the surface to be cleaned. In some preferred embodiments, the second angular velocity may be set to be more than 2 times the first angular velocity.

The rear cover plate 1121 includes a rear top wall 11211 and a rear side wall 11212, the rear side wall 11212 defining a rear portion of the rear agitation chamber 13, the rear side wall 11212 extending downward from a rear edge of the rear top wall 11211 and extending below the rotation axis X2 of the dry wiping roller 18. The lower portion of the rear sidewall 11212 has an arcuate segment 11213 with the bottom edge 11214 of the arcuate segment 11213 below the axis of rotation X2 and the inside surface of the arcuate segment 11213 immediately adjacent to the dry wiping roller 18.

The bottom 114 includes a front end 1141 and a rear end 1142; the front end 1141 defines a rear boundary of the first lower opening 121, and the rear end 1142 defines a front boundary of the second lower opening 131. In this example, the front and rear end portions 1141 and 1142 each include a flexible wiper strip.

The dryer 19 is located within the rear agitation chamber 13 and outside the dry wiping roller 18, and the dryer 19 is configured to dry the second cleaning member 182 of the dry wiping roller 18. A recess 11215 is provided on the inner side of the top wall 11211, and the dryer 19 is partially accommodated in the recess 11215.

In this example, the dryer 19 includes a heat generating body 191 capable of converting electric energy into heat, and a heat conducting member 192 thermally connected to the heat generating body 191. The dryer 19 generates heat by the heat generating body 191, and then transfers the heat to the external dry wiping roller 18 via the heat conducting member 192. The heat conductive member 192 is preferably a metal element, and the heating element 191 is preferably embedded in the heat conductive member 192.

The thermally conductive member 192 includes a curved thermal surface 1921, the thermal surface 1921 extending circumferentially about the rotational axis X2 of the dry wiping roller 18 and circumferentially wrapping around a portion of the periphery of the second cleaning element 182. In this example, the thermal surface 1921 will contact the second cleaning element 182. While the heating body 191 is heating, the heat surface 1921 continuously transmits heat to the second cleaning member 182, thereby achieving drying of the wet second cleaning member 182.

The dryer 19 is not limited to the above type, and may be a dryer including a tubular member such as a quartz tube or a carbon fiber tube, a dryer including a ceramic heating sheet, or the like, as long as it can perform a drying process on the rotating dry wiping roller 18.

In order to reduce the heat loss at the dryer 19, a barrier 193 is also provided within the rear agitation chamber 13, the barrier 193 being arranged between the rear end 1142 and the dryer 19; the barrier 193 is in contact with the dry wiping roller 18; the barrier 193 is preferably made of a hard material. The barrier 193 can space the dryer 19 from the outside. The baffle 193 and the arcuate sections 11213 of the rear side wall 11212 are configured to prevent heat generated by the dryer 19 from spreading out.

As further shown in fig. 1-2, the handle body portion 2 includes a handle 21 and a body 22 disposed in an upper portion. The handle 21 is fixedly attached to the top of the body 22 and is configured to be held by a user, who can hold the surface cleaner 10 with one hand by means of the handle 21 and thereby push the cleaning base 1 of the surface cleaner 10 back and forth over the surface to be cleaned in a rearwardly inclined working position. The handle 21 is further provided with an operation part 211 which is connected with a control unit (not shown in the figure) in a signal manner so that a user can control the operation of the surface cleaning machine 10, and the specific form of the operation part 211 is not limited to a button, a trigger, a switch, etc. In other embodiments, the operating portion may be located elsewhere on the surface cleaning machine, such as on a top wall or side wall of the handle body portion of the lower portion of the handle, and the operating portion may be a portable remote control or may be located on a hand-held terminal capable of information interaction with the surface cleaning machine.

The body 22 is capable of receiving and carrying a plurality of working components on the handle body portion 2. These multiple working components include a water supply tank 32 capable of storing and providing cleaning liquid to the outside. Wherein the water supply tank 32 is preferably removably mounted to the body 22 to facilitate the user's addition of fresh water thereto.

The water supply tank 32 is in fluid communication with the liquid dispenser 16 on the cleaning base 1 and defines an infusion path (not shown) for the flow of cleaning liquid, and a selectively activatable pump (not shown) is provided in the infusion path to selectively deliver liquid to the liquid dispenser 16 or block fluid communication between the water supply tank 32 and the liquid dispenser 16 by controlling the pump to be turned on and off. The pump may be arranged either in the body 22 or in the cleaning base 1. The liquid supply system consisting of the water supply tank 32, water delivery path, pump and liquid dispenser 16 will enable on-demand liquid supply to the wet cleaning rolls 15.

The working parts provided on the machine body 22 further include a recovery tank 41 that can receive and store the contaminated liquid and the chips, and a suction motor 42 provided on the upper side of the recovery tank 41. The suction nozzle 14, the recovery tank 41 and the suction motor 42 in the cleaning base 1 are in fluid communication in sequence, the suction channel 17 being located between the suction nozzle 14 and the recovery tank 41, the suction motor 42 being configured to be able to push a fluid containing air along the recovery flow path from the suction nozzle 14 towards the recovery tank 41. The recovery tank 41 is detachably mounted to the body 22 so as to facilitate the user to pour the contaminated liquid. The recovery system consisting of the suction nozzle 14, suction channel 17, recovery tank 41 and suction motor 42 will enable recovery of dirt and debris on the surface to be cleaned.

The body 22 is further provided with a rechargeable battery pack 51, and the rechargeable battery pack 51 is electrically connected to the heating element 191 so as to supply electric power to the heat generation of the heating element 191.

In other embodiments, the power supply means of the body 22 may also comprise a power cord capable of electrically connecting with a household electrical outlet. The heating element 191 supplies electric power required for heating by the alternating current introduced from the power supply line.

When the surface cleaning machine 10 is in operation, the pump is started, the cleaning liquid in the water supply tank 32 reaches the liquid distributor 16 through the liquid conveying path and is distributed to the wet cleaning roller 15 by the liquid distributor 16, the rotating wet cleaning roller 15 scrubs the surface to be cleaned with the cleaning liquid, the suction motor 42 is started and forms flowing air flow, the wet cleaning roller 15 carries dirty liquid and carries the chips picked up from the surface to be cleaned into the front stirring cavity 13 along with the flowing air flow, and moves along the recovery flow path 43 towards the suction motor 42, and the dirty liquid and the chips are finally stored in the recovery tank 41; at the same time, the rotating dry wiping roller 18 will continuously contact the surface to be cleaned, which the wet cleaning roller 15 passes over, thereby absorbing the liquid remaining on the surface to be cleaned by means of the second cleaning member 182, the dryer 19 will start to operate, the second cleaning member 182 of each section will continuously move to the dryer 19 during rotation, the liquid absorbed by the second cleaning member 182 will be heated and volatilized by means of the heating and drying action of the dryer 19, and the second cleaning member 182 of the dry wiping roller 18 will remain dry and have excellent liquid absorbing performance after a long period of use.

As shown in fig. 8, the cleaning base 8 of this embodiment is similar in structure to the cleaning base 1 described above, and also has a front agitation chamber 82 and a rear agitation chamber 83, and a wet cleaning roller 85 and a dry wiping roller 88 are respectively disposed in the two chambers, and a dryer 89 is located in the rear agitation chamber 83; the cleaning base 8 differs from the cleaning base 1 described above in that the rear agitation chamber 83 is in fluid communication with the suction channel 87 through a narrow channel 871 at the same time, i.e., the fluid in the rear agitation chamber 83 can also be sucked into the suction channel 87. In order not to interfere with the suction action of the suction nozzle 84, the cross-sectional area of the narrow passage 871 is as small as possible, e.g., the cross-sectional area at the narrowest point of the narrow passage 871 is 1/2 or less of the cross-sectional area at the narrowest point of the passage between the front agitation chamber 82 and the suction passage 8.

The surface cleaning machine scheme of the application can be applied to the vertical machine, and can also be applied to a surface cleaning robot which can autonomously run on the surface to be cleaned and autonomously turn; or to a canister surface cleaning machine.

The foregoing has shown and described the basic principles, principal features and advantages of the application. It will be understood by those skilled in the art that the present application is not limited to the foregoing embodiments, which have been described in the foregoing embodiments and description merely illustrates the principles of the application, and various changes and modifications may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the application, the scope of which is defined in the appended claims, specification and their equivalents.

Claims (15)

1. A surface cleaning machine comprising a cleaning base, a wet cleaning roller drivingly rotatably disposed on the cleaning base, a dry wiping roller drivingly rotatably disposed on the cleaning base and spaced apart from the wet cleaning roller in a front-rear direction, a liquid supply system for supplying cleaning liquid to the wet cleaning roller, and a dryer disposed on the cleaning base and for drying the dry wiping roller, the cleaning base being supported on a surface to be cleaned by the wet cleaning roller and the dry wiping roller together, the cleaning base including a rear agitation chamber having a second opening in a lower portion thereof, the dry wiping roller being disposed in the rear agitation chamber and the lower portion thereof projecting from the second opening, the dryer being at least partially disposed in the rear agitation chamber, the rear agitation chamber being provided with at least one barrier disposed between the second opening and the dryer, the at least one barrier being in contact with the dry wiping roller.

2. The surface cleaner of claim 1, wherein the rotational axes of the wet cleaning roller and the dry wiping roller are parallel to each other and the rotational directions of the wet cleaning roller and the dry wiping roller are opposite.

3. The surface cleaning machine of claim 1 wherein the dryer includes a heat generating body capable of converting electrical energy into heat and a heat conducting member in heat conducting contact with the heat generating body, the heat conducting member having a hot surface, the dry wiping roller contacting or being in close proximity to the hot surface.

4. A surface cleaning machine as claimed in claim 3, wherein said hot surface is circumferentially wrapped around a portion of the periphery of said dry wiping roller.

5. A surface cleaning machine as claimed in claim 3, wherein the hot surface is arcuate.

6. A surface cleaning machine as claimed in claim 3, wherein the at least one barrier is made of a hard material.

7. The surface cleaning machine of claim 3, further comprising a rechargeable battery pack electrically connected to the heater for providing the heater with electrical energy for generating heat.

8. The surface cleaning machine of claim 1 wherein said cleaning base includes a bottom facing the surface to be cleaned, said bottom having a rear end defining a front boundary of said second opening, at least one of said barriers being disposed between said rear end and said dryer.

9. The surface cleaning machine of claim 1 wherein the cleaning base includes a rear cover plate having a rear top wall and a rear side wall defining a rear portion of the rear agitation chamber, the rear side wall extending downwardly from a rear edge of the rear top wall and at least partially below the axis of rotation of the dry wiping roller.

10. The surface cleaning machine of claim 9 wherein said rear sidewall is at least partially circumferentially wrapped around a portion of said dry wiping roller and wherein said portion of said rear sidewall contacts or abuts said dry wiping roller.

11. The surface cleaning machine of claim 1 further comprising a recovery system, said recovery system including a suction channel, a suction motor and a recovery tank, said cleaning base including a front agitation chamber having a first opening at a lower portion, said wet cleaning roll being disposed within said front agitation chamber, said suction channel being at least partially located within said cleaning base and in fluid communication with at least said front agitation chamber.

12. The surface cleaning machine of claim 11 wherein the liquid supply system includes a water supply tank, a liquid dispenser positioned within the front agitation chamber, and a pump positioned between the water supply tank and the liquid dispenser.

13. The surface cleaning machine of claim 11 further comprising a squeegee member on the cleaning base, the squeegee member positioned within the front agitation chamber and abutting the wet cleaning roller to remove liquid and debris from the wet cleaning roller.

14. The surface cleaner of claim 1, further comprising a first motor for driving the wet cleaning roller in rotation and a second motor for driving the dry wiping roller in rotation.

15. The surface cleaning machine of claim 1, wherein the surface cleaning machine is configured as an upright machine or as a surface cleaning robot capable of autonomous travel and autonomous steering on the floor.