MXPA98001211A - Apparatus for collecting liquids that are used for the cleaning or drying of superfic - Google Patents

Abstract

An apparatus for collecting liquids by means of a section, includes a collection container (10) with an air / liquid separator (30) placed in the corner between two adjacent walls (13, 14) of the container and extending obliquely in relation to both side walls. The separator (30) comprises an inlet pipe (31) terminating in an outlet end portion that expands outwards (33) and discharges directly into the collection container (10). The inlet tube (31) and the end portion (33) extend into the container (10) through an air outlet chamber (20) which is connected to an outlet opening (17) of the container (10) . A filter element (40) is provided in the mouth (24) of the outlet chamber (20) and around the end portion of the outlet (33) of the inlet tube (31). The oblique arrangement of the separator (30) allows the device to be used in a vertical or horizontal orientation and the shape of the air / water separator ensures efficient separation of the droplets of water drawn from the stream of air flowing around the protrusion (35) of the end portion (33), without requiring that the air current collide against a deflect

Description

APPARATUS FOR COLLECTING LIQUIDS USED FOR THE CLEANING OR DRYING OF SURFACES FIELD OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to an apparatus for collecting liquid that is used in operations of drying and cleaning surfaces, where the liquid is collected, for example, from the surface of a floor (such as the one that is available). in a floor or in a floor covering) or other types of surfaces, such as those provided by a wall or window, using a suction head so that the water is carried away by a flow of air from the head of suction to an air / liquid separator, where the entrained liquid is separated from the flow and collected in a container or container. This device can be designed and used to dry floor surfaces or to collect spills, or a reservoir can also be incorporated for a cleaning liquid (which can be water or any suitable cleaning solution) and means for supplying this liquid to a cleaning head, which can be incorporated in the suction head or can be separated from it, so that the device is capable of performing, simultaneously or sequentially, floor cleaning and floor drying operations or similar operations in other P1098 / 9T MX surfaces.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Various types of air / liquid separators have been proposed to allow the liquid to be separated from an air stream and delivered to a collection container or container. For example, the specification of British Patent No. 1121225 shows a simple centrifugal separator wherein the air flow enters an annular chamber tangentially, the lower side of the chamber is connected to the upper end of a collection container. Our specification of British Patent 1601456 shows a separator wherein the air flow is directed radially into a radially narrow annular space, between the outer wall of a reservoir container and the outer wall of a collection chamber, within which it fits the container of the tank, the latter has a central suction duct that extends through it and that, by its lower end, is formed as a cone that widens downwards, with vertical fins to prevent circular air flow . In other examples, labyrinth type separators are used, as shown in the specification of US Patent No. 2986764. In case of devices P1098 / 98 MX relatively small hand held, which in use can be subjected to a fairly vigorous movement, an arrangement that is used inside the collection container is made to prevent droplets from being expelled from the container, for example in EP 0170720. In still other cases a wider inlet tube supplies an air / liquid stream over a baffle placed through the tube mouth, for example in the specification of German Patent No. 3540956 or the of US Pat. No. 1328339. In all these prior art arrangements, the air outlet from the collection chamber is made towards a position remote from the air / liquid inlet.

OBJECTS AND ADVANTAGES OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide an improved form of separator / collector of a simplified but very efficient design. Another object of the invention is to provide a collection container that can work equally well in different operations. According to one aspect of the invention, a device for collecting liquid includes a suction head that entrains the liquid in an air flow to P109T / 98 MX from the head to an air / liquid separator and a collection container to receive the liquid coming from the surface, the air / liquid separator comprises an inlet tube that extends from an air inlet / liquid and ends in an outlet end portion that is used outwardly and the collection container has an air outlet chamber through which an inlet pipe extends, characterized in that the outlet end portion of the air / liquid separator is discharged directly into the collection container. We have discovered, surprisingly, that by simply conveniently extending the outlet end portion of the inlet tube and placing the inlet tube so that it extends through the air outlet, so that the direction of flow of air is inverted in the collection container, it is possible to achieve effective separation of water droplets entrained by the incoming air flow, simply as a result of a consequent decrease in air velocity and change in the direction of flow of air. air, without requiring the droplets to collide with the collection surface and without requiring violent changes in the direction of air flow, in contrast to the basic principles of the known air / liquid separators used in this P1098 / 9T MX device type. Preferably, the end portion of the inlet tube is formed in a bell-like manner that progressively and smoothly widens from the inlet tube to an outlet opening having an area of at least twice the area in cross section of the tube. In particular, the tube and the outlet opening are conveniently circular in cross section and the diameter of the outlet opening is at least twice the diameter of the tube. The inner surface of this bell preferably is curved outward and terminates in a rim portion extending substantially transversely relative to the axial center line of the bell. The shape of the bell can be defined as a surface of revolution swept by a curve, which at least approximates the shape of a hyperbola, parabola or ellipse. Between the air outlet chamber and the collection container a filter element can be provided, in the space between the inlet tube and the outlet wall of the container. The filter element can be formed as a porous member of a relatively large pore size (usually in the range of 1 to 2.5 mm) in order to impose a significant restriction on the air flow P1098 / 98 MX to the outlet, while providing a large surface area on which the entrained water droplets can coalesce and drain into the collection container, against the outgoing air flow. The material that is suitable for the construction of the filter is a cross-linked foam of a filamentary mesh, preferably made from a synthetic plastic material. Conveniently, the surface of the filter element facing the collection container is positioned at a specific angle relative to the adjacent wall of the container, so that, during orientation of the container while in use, the percolating liquid again towards the filter element it can be drained by gravity towards the adjacent wall. In a particularly preferred arrangement, the filter element extends obliquely through a corner of the collection container as defined by the two adjacent walls thereof, so that the axial center line of the hood is placed at an angle substantially equal in relation to the two adjacent walls. With this arrangement, the collection container can be placed in a range of orientations without decreasing P1098 / 98 MX the efficiency of the separator. In particular, this allows the collection container to be housed in a suction cleaner or to be part of it, of the type that use a basket and that can be used in horizontal or vertical orientations. In this way, the collection container can be associated with an impeller and motor unit, which creates the required air flow in a unit that is held alone; said unit, when it is oriented horizontally, can rest on the surface of the floor being cleaned and be pulled through that surface and, when it is in vertical orientation, it can be held in a stable manner, for example in one of the steps of a ladder that is being cleaned. According to a further aspect of the invention, we provide a collection container that is used with an apparatus for collecting liquid by means of a suction head, which collects the liquid by a flow of air that comes from the head and the liquid goes towards the collection container, wherein the collection container comprises an air / liquid separator and a hollow body for receiving the liquid coming from the separator, the air / liquid separator comprises an inlet tube extending from an inlet of air / water and P1098 / 98 MX ends in an outlet end portion that widens outward and the collection container has an air outlet chamber through which the inlet pipe extends, characterized in that the outlet end portion of the air / liquid separator is discharged directly into the collection container. According to another aspect of the invention, we provide a collection container that is used with a device for collecting liquid, by means of a suction head that drags the liquid in a flow of air from the head to the collection container, in wherein the collection container comprises an air / liquid separator and a hollow body having two adjacent wall portions extending substantially perpendicular to each other, characterized in that the air / liquid separator is placed on a longitudinal central line thereof. , which extends from a corner defined by the joint between the adjacent side wall portions and an oblique angle relative to the two adjacent side wall portions, and wherein the body has two additional wall portions extending substantially in shape perpendicular to the air / liquid separator, whereby the container or container can rest in a to stable in any of the additional wall portions, either in a P1098 / 9T MX horizontal orientation on a floor surface being cleaned, to move through that surface, or in a vertical orientation, for example on a step of a ladder being cleaned.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING The invention will now be described by means of an example in which reference will be made to an embodiment of the apparatus that incorporates a collection container with an air / liquid separator, according to the invention and as illustrated in FIG. accompanying drawing.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED MODALITY In the accompanying drawing, a container 10 for the collection of water or other liquid collected by means of the suction head (not shown) in a drying or cleaning operation comprises a hollow body in the form of tank, generally rectangular in cross section and joined by a bottom wall 11, a rear wall 12, an upper wall 13, a front wall 14 and side walls 15. An outlet opening 17 placed obliquely is provided in the corner of the container 10 at the junction of the upper and front walls 13, 14. An outlet chamber 20 is connected to the P1098 / 98 MX container or container 10 in the opening 17. The outlet chamber 20 is formed with an air outlet opening 21 communicating with an air duct 22 leading to an inlet of a motor driven impeller 23. Opposite to the air outlet opening 21, the outlet chamber provides a mouth 24 communicating with the interior of the container 10. An air / water separator 30 extends through the outlet chamber 20 towards the inside of the container 10. Separator 30 comprises an inlet tube 31 having an inlet opening 32 at one end adjacent to outlet opening 21 and terminating at the other end in an outwardly expanding hood 33, which extends in an oblique angle relative to the tube 31 and extends towards the container 10 on a central line 34 positioned at an angle of approximately 45 ° with respect to the upper and front walls 13, 14. The bell 33 terminates in a ring 35 extending substantially perpendicular to the inlet tube 31. As can be seen, the sidewalls of the bell 33 gently curve outwards to join with the ring 35 and, preferably, the bell is defined as a surface of revolution swept by a curve that approaches, at least in part, the shape of a hyperbola, parabola or ellipse. P1098 / 98 MX In annular filter element 40 is placed in the mouth 24 of the outlet chamber 20 and surrounds the hood 33. The filter element 40 comprises a housing 41 with openings, which serves to locate the bell 33 inside the the mouth 24 of the chamber 20, and a porous filter member 42 of a relatively large pore size, typically remaining in the range of 2.5 mm, in order to impose a significant restriction on the flow of the outlet 21, while that a large surface area is provided in which any droplet entrained residual water can coalesce. The inlet opening 32 of the tube 31 coincides with one end of a suction tube 25 which can be connected to its other end with a suction hose 26 which leads to any suitable shape of the pick-up head (not shown). The suction is applied to the pick-up head by means of a motor-driven impeller 23 which is placed forward of the container 10 inside a housing 37 and which extracts air through a container 10a indicated by the arrows A / B. The air is then passed through the pick-up head, the suction hose 26, the suction tube 25, the inlet tube 31 and the bell 33 into the interior of the container 10, around the ring 35 of the hood 33, a through the filter member 42 towards the interior of the external chamber P1098 / 98 MX 20 and towards the exit opening 21 of the air duct 22, and into the interior of the impeller 23. The liquid that is entrained in the incoming air flow as indicated by the arrow A, is separated from the air as a result of the reduction in the velocity of the air flow that occurs in the hood 33. , which is made slightly wider in the downward direction, and in the inverse direction of the direction around the ring 35. Any residual droplets that are entrained in the air flow are captured in the filter member 42 and drained by gravity towards the bottom of the filter element 40 and the front wall 14 of the container 10, the downward air flow of the filter member 42, as indicated in the arrow B, is essentially free of entrained liquid. If necessary, the outlet chamber 20 can be dimensioned in such a way as to constitute an expansion chamber wherein the velocity of the air flow is further reduced so that any drop that can pass through the filter element 40 can be separated before it the air reaches the outlet opening 21. In practice, the water can be collected in the container 10 until it reaches the lower level of the hood or even slightly exceeds it, without thereby impairing the efficiency of the water separation, the Airflow around the lower portion of the hood P109T / 98 MX 33 causes a local depression in the surface of the collected liquid. Ribs 38, 39 are provided in the upper and front walls 13, 14 which serve as barriers to reduce the risk of the collected water spilling into the mouth 24 of the outlet chamber 20 as the apparatus is moving. As illustrated, rollers 18, 19 are provided on the underside of the hood comprising the housing unit 37 and the container 10, so that the unit can move on a floor and can be pulled on the floor surface. by means of the hose 28, while the cleaning operation is being carried out. However, the rear wall 12 of the container is essentially flat and is adapted to serve as an alternative base on which the unit can be supported in a vertical position, for example in a step. Due to the angled arrangement of the hood 33, the air / water separation is effected with the same efficiency in this alternative orientation and the apparatus can be used in any orientation, without requiring any adjustment by the user. The container 10 is designed to releasably attach to the housing 37, so that the P1098 / 98 MX content of the container 10 can be emptied by removing the container from the housing and removing the unit, from the outlet chamber and from the separator 30 and the filter 40, whereby the collected liquid can be emptied through the mouth 24. If the cleaner will also be used as an ordinary vacuum cleaner to collect dust and other dry materials, an interchangeable collection container is provided to be used in place of the collection container 10, this other collection container incorporates a filter or similar to remove dust from the air flow. The apparatus may also include a reservoir for a cleaning liquid to be applied to the surface to be cleaned, by means of a separate suction head or a liquid collecting head. The particularities set forth in the foregoing description or in the accompanying drawings, which are expressed in their specific forms or in terms of a means to develop the function set forth, or a process or method to achieve the exposed result, may be used, either separately or in combination, to carry out the invention in the different possible forms thereof.

P1098 / 98 MX

Claims (26)

1. NOVELTY OF THE INVENTION Having described the present invention, it is considered as a novelty and, therefore, the content of the following CLAIMS is claimed as property. * 1. A device for collecting liquid that includes a suction head that draws the liquid in a flow of air that comes from the head and goes to an air / liquid separator, and a collection container to receive the liquid from the separator , the air / liquid separator comprises an inlet tube that extends from an air / water inlet and terminates in an outlet end portion that expands outwards and the collection container has an outlet chamber through which the inlet tube is extended, characterized in that the outlet end portion of the air / liquid separator is discharged directly into the collection container. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the end portion of the inlet tube is formed as a bell that slowly and progressively widens from the inlet tube to an outlet opening having an area that is at least twice the area in cross section of the tube. 3. An apparatus according to claim 2, in P1098 / 98 MX where the inlet pipe and the outlet opening are circular in cross section and the diameter of the outlet opening is approximately twice the diameter of the pipe. * 4. An apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the inner surface of the hood is curved outwardly from the ring portion and terminates therein, extending substantially in transverse direction to the axial center line of the bell. . An apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the shape of the bell is defined as a surface of revolution by a curve approaching, at least in part, the shape of a hyperbola, parabola or ellipse. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the inlet tube enters the collection container at a corner thereof, at the junction of two adjacent container walls, the center line of the outlet end portion of the inlet tube it is inclined in relation to the two side walls. An apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the axis of the exit end portion is inclined at an angle essentially equal to two walls. 8. An apparatus according to any of the preceding claims, wherein a P1098 / 98 MX filter element in the space in the inlet tube and the walls of the outlet chamber. An apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the filter element is formed as a porous member of a relatively large pore size (typically in the range of 1 to 2.5 mm) in order not to impose a significant restriction on the flow of air towards the outlet, while providing a large surface area on which the entrained droplets of residual water can coalesce and drain into the collection container against the outgoing air flow. An apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the surface of the filter element is facing the collection container and is positioned at such an angle relative to the adjacent side wall of the container that, in the container usage orientation , the liquid that percolates back towards the filter element can be drained by gravity towards the adjacent wall. An apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the filter element extends obliquely through a corner of the collection container, as defined by the two adjacent walls of the hollow body, the axial centerline of the portion of The outlet end of the inlet tube is positioned at a substantially equal angle relative to the two adjacent walls. P1098 / 98 MX 12. An apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the collection container is associated with a drive unit and motor, which creates the required air flow, forming a unit that stands alone and that, being oriented horizontally, can rest on the surface of the floor being cleaned and can be pulled through this surface and, when in vertical orientation , it can be held upright in a stable manner, for example on a step of a ladder being cleaned. 13. A collection container that is used with an apparatus for collecting liquid by means of a suction head, which entrains the liquid in a flow of air that comes from the head to the collection container, where the collection container comprises an air / liquid separator and a hollow body for receiving liquid from the separator, the air / liquid separator comprises an inlet tube extending from an air / water inlet and terminating at an outlet end portion that widens outwardly and the collection container has an air outlet chamber through which the inlet tube extends, characterized in that the outlet end portion of the air / liquid separator is discharged directly into the collection container. P1098 / 98 MX 14. A collection container according to claim 13, wherein the end portion of the inlet tube is formed as a bell that progressively and gently widens from the inlet tube towards an outlet opening having an area that is at least double the area in cross section of the tube. A collection container according to claim 14, wherein the inlet tube and the outlet opening are of circular shape in cross section and the diameter of the outlet opening is approximately twice the diameter of the tube. A collection container according to claim 15, wherein the inner surface of the bell is curved outward and terminates in a rim portion extending substantially transverse about the axial centerline of the bell. A collection chamber according to claim 16, wherein the shape of the bell is defined as a surface of revolution swept by a curve approaching, at least in part, the shape of a hyperbola, parabola or ellipse. 18. A collection container according to claim 13, wherein the inlet tube enters the collection container at a corner thereof, at the P1098 / 98 MX union of two adjacent walls of the container, the center line of the outlet end portion of the inlet tube is inclined in relation to the two walls. 19. A collection container according to claim 18, wherein the axis d * e the exit end portion is inclined at an angle essentially equal to that of the two side walls. 20. A collection container according to any of claims 13 to 19, wherein a filter element is provided in the space between the inlet tube and the walls of the outlet chamber. A collection container according to claim 20, wherein the filter element is formed as a porous member of a relatively large pore size (typically in the range of 1 to 2.5 mm) in order to impose a significant restriction on the flow of air towards the outlet, while providing a large surface area over which any residual droplet entrained with water can coalesce and drain into the collection container, against the outgoing air flow. 22. A collection container according to claim 20, wherein the surface of the filter element facing the collection container is positioned at a specific angle with P1098 / 98 MX to the adjacent wall of the container, so that in the orientation of use of the container, the liquid that can percolate back through the filter element can be drained by gravity towards the adjacent wall. 23. A collection container according to claim 22, wherein the filter element extends obliquely through the corner of the collection container, as defined by the two adjacent walls thereof, the axial center line of the portion The outlet end of the inlet tube is positioned at a substantially equal angle with respect to the two adjacent walls. 24. A collection container according to claim 23, wherein the hollow body comprises two additional walls that extend substantially perpendicular to each other and that are in a corner opposite to that in which the air / liquid separator is placed, by means of which the container can rest stably on any of the additional walls, either in a horizontal orientation on a floor surface being cleaned and moving through this surface, or in a vertical orientation, for example in a step of a ladder being cleaned. 25. A collection container that is used P1098 / 98 MX in a device to collect liquid by means of a suction head, which drags the liquid in a flow of air that comes from the head, towards the collection container, wherein the collection container comprises an air / liquid separator and a hollow body having two adjacent wall portions extending substantially perpendicular to each other, characterized in that the air / liquid separator is positioned by a longitudinal center line thereof extending from a corner defined by the joint between the adjacent side wall portions and an oblique angle with respect to the two adjacent side wall portions, and in which the body has two additional wall portions extending essentially perpendicular to each other and located in an opposite corner to which the air / liquid separator is placed, whereby the container can rest stably on any of the additional wall portions with respect to a horizontal orientation on a floor surface that is being cleaned, to move through e is, or with respect to a vertical orientation, for example on the step of some stairs that are being cleaned. 26. An apparatus collecting liquid by means of suction, which incorporates a collection container and a P1098 / 98 MX air / water separator, substantially as described herein in relation to the accompanying drawings and shown therein. P1098 / 98 MX