Floor treatment machine

Abstract

A floor treatment machine comprising a base portion (4, fig 13) provided with a floor-facing work head, a cleaning liquid tank (10, fig 1) and cleaning liquid outlet for delivering cleaning liquid ont

Description

The present invention relates to a floor treatment machine, such as a floor scrubber drier. Particularly, though not exclusively, the invention relates to a wet floor treatment machine having a cleaning fluid reservoir and a waste fluid tank provided in a configuration such that the tanks are simultaneously removable I attachable from or to the machine. Known floor scrubbers typically have at least one work head formed from an annular rotating scrubbing portion including bristles or a polishing pad. The work head(s) are driven by one or more electric drive motors via a rechargeable cell or battery, or by mains electric power. Typical floor scrubbers have a cleaning fluid dispenser from which detergent or dilute cleaning solution can be distributed over the surface to be cleaned in advance of, or through, the work head. A squeegee suction collector trails behind the work head to entrain and draw dirty cleaning liquid disposed on the floor surface into a waste tank. The waste tank and reservoir are typically independently removeable for cleaning, draining and filling at least once during use of the machine. Removal and attachment of the reservoir tanks can be a time-consuming and intricate task for a machine operator, with a risk of counter-productive spilling of the waste tank’s contents. It is known to provide a floor treatment machine with clean and waste fluid tanks that are more easily manipulated by an operator using the machine. WO2023073331A1 (Numatic International Limited) discloses a wet scrubber-drier having a base portion with at least one floor treatment head, and an upright handle portion which supports two vertically stacked liquid containers. The liquid containers are attached to one another so that the containers may be removed from the machine together as a single unit together. One container is the cleaning liquid reservoir and the other is the waste tank. The container unit is removed by lifting upwards away from a lower shelf region of the upright handle portion. An upper lid is provided for securing the container to the lower shelf region. The lid sits on the container unit upper end and is itself attached to the handle portion, so as to retain the unit in place. The lid includes an inlet which feeds to the waste tank, and a vent which communicates with a suction fan, for lowering the pressure of the waste tank so that waste water may be drawn therein through the waste inlet. One problem with this arrangement is that the lid can be dislodged if the container unit is impacted or falls onto the floor surface. If the lid flexes, seals around the vent or inlet may be compromised, causing leakage of waste water or reduced suction, or if the lid is dislodged displacement of the whole container unit from the machine. The present invention seeks to provide a floor treatment in which a container unit is more securely retained on the machine and which helps prevent leakage of the seals around any inlet or vent. According to one aspect of the present invention there is provided a hand guided, walk-behind floor treatment machine for cleaning and / or treating a floor surface, the floor treatment machine comprising: a base portion provided with at least one floor-facing work head, a cleaning liquid tank and cleaning liquid outlet configured so that cleaning liquid can be delivered onto the floor surface in front of the work head, or via the work head onto the floor beneath the work head, a waste liquid tank and a squeegee pick-up device arranged to be trailed behind the work head(s) and which pick-up device is in fluid communication with the waste liquid tank; an upright handle portion having a lower end region pivotably connected to the base portion and an upper region provided with a machine handle, so that the handle portion can be moved up or down during use to adjust for user height whilst permitting steering of the base portion by the user so as to follow a desired cleaning path; wherein the cleaning liquid tank and waste liquid tank are attached to one another to form a dual-tank unit, the dual-tank unit being removably attached to the handle portion by retaining means, and wherein a lid is provided on the handle portion at a position above the retaining means, the lid having a first latching feature and the dual-tank unit having a second latching feature, the arrangement being such that when the lid is moved from an open to a closed orientation the latching features co-operate with one another to hold the dualtank unit clamped between the lid and retaining means. Having a lid which acts as a clamp ensures that the dual-tank unit is stably retained in position on the handle portion. By adjusting the latching tolerances the clamp can be made to urge the dual-tank unit into position in its seat or bay on the handle portion. The second latching feature is preferably provided with a pressure pad or thumb pad, depression of which disengages the first latching feature and the second latching feature from one another, thereby to unlock the lid. The second latching feature is therefore configured so that a simple user action is required to unlock the lid, thereby to permit removal of the dual-tank unit from the handle portion. The second latching feature may comprise a base section on which the pressure pad is located, and a pivot arm extending away from the base section and comprising a hooked portion at an end of the pivot arm distal from the base section; wherein depression of the pressure pad causes the pivot arm to pivot against the force of a resilient means acting on an underside of the base section, thereby to disengage the hooked portion from a groove of the first latching feature. The dual-tank unit is preferably provided with a carry handle for facilitating manual withdrawal of the dual dual-tank from its retaining means on the machine handle portion. The carry handle may for example comprise a finger grip, such that the dualtank unit can be lifted away from the handle portion and transported by a simple finger hold. Preferably, the pressure pad of the second latching features is located adjacent to the carry handle. A user can therefore apply a finger hold to the carry handle, whilst applying thumb pressure to the pressure pad. This simplifies operation and allows for one-handed removal of the dual-tank unit by a user, i.e. the user can unlock the dualtank unit, and lift it away from the handle portion, in a single, one-handed movement. This is a marked improvement as compared to prior art machines where at least a dual action is necessary for removal of the waste tank.. The lid is preferably biased to adopt the open orientation, so that when the pressure pad is depressed, the lid flips open under the biasing for removal of the dual-tank unit. The biasing may be achieved by a leaf or coil spring, or some other resilient member. The retaining means may comprise a seat or bay. This may accommodate a lower end region of the dual-tank unit. The lid may have a rim region which is pivotably attached to the handle portion, so that the lid rotates on the handle portion between open and closed orientations. The biasing may act between the lid and the handle portion. The lid may define an internal chamber adjacent a top end of the dual-tank unit. A portion of the chamber may be provided with an inlet port of the waste liquid tank. The inlet port may be fed by a conduit from the pick-up device. Another portion of the chamber may be provided with an air outlet port from the waste liquid tank. The air outlet port may be in fluid communication with a suction generating device, such as a motorized suction fan or turbine. Preferably, at least one of the chamber inlet port and outlet port is / are provided in an upper region of the waste liquid tank. The waste and clean water tanks are preferably detachable from one another once removed from the machine. In a typical use cycle a full waste tank is emptied and a pre-filled or refilled clean water tank is obtained or made-up. These two are then attached to each other to form the dual-tank unit, which is placed in the bay or seat. The lid may then be latched to the second latching feature to retain the dual-tank unit in the handle portion. The waste and cleaning liquid tanks are typically disposed side-by-side when attached to one another. One of the tanks may be configured to occupy or nest in a recess in the other tank. Preferably, each of the waste liquid tank, the cleaning liquid tank, and the dual-tank unit is / are self-supporting upright on a flat surface. In a preferred machine, the pivotable connection to the base portion comprises a first fore-aft pivot and a further side-to-side pivot. The first and further pivots may form a Cardan joint which facilitate steering of the base portion by twisting the handle portion clockwise or anti-clockwise about its longitudinal axis. Following is a description by way of example only of one mode for putting the invention into effect. In the drawings: Figure 1 is a view of an isometric view of a cleaning liquid tank and a waste liquid tank in accordance with the present invention; Figures 2 and 3 are isometric views of a dual-tank unit formed by the tanks of figure 1; Figure 4 is a isometric front view of part of a machine in accordance with the present invention; Figures 5 to 7 are side views, partially in cross-section, of part of a machine in accordance with the present invention, illustrating a sequence of assembling a dualtank unit onto the machine; Figures 8 to 10 are side views, partially in cross-section, of part of a machine in accordance with the present invention, illustrating a sequence of removing a dual-tank unit from the machine; Figure 11 is a cross-sectional partial view of a machine in accordance with the present invention with the lid in a closed and locked orientation; Figure 12 is a cross-sectional partial view of a machine in accordance with the present invention with the lid in a closed and unlocked orientation; and Figure 13 is a side view of a machine in accordance with the present invention. Figure 1 illustrates a cleaning liquid tank 10 and a waste liquid tank 14 for a wet floor treatment machine. The cleaning liquid tank 10 comprises a front face 12, and a rear face 14 comprising a recessed portion 16. In a lower region of the cleaning liquid tank 10 is provided a cleaning liquid outlet 18, which is configured to be in fluid communication with a work head of the machine. The waste liquid tank 20 comprises a front face 22, and a rear face 24 comprising a recessed portion 26. The waste liquid tank 20 also comprises, in an upper region of the tank, an inlet 28 which is in fluid communication with a squeegee pick-up device (not shown) via a conduit 38 (illustrated in figures 5 to 10), and an air outlet I suction port 30 which communicates, via a further conduit, with a suction generating device (not shown) such as a motorized suction fan or turbine. The cleaning liquid tank 10 and the waste liquid tank 20 can be assembled together to form a dual tank unit 50 as described below. Referring to Figure 13 illustrates a floor treatment machine 2 incorporating the dual tank unit 50. In use of the machine 2, cleaning fluid from the cleaning liquid tank 10 can be delivered to a floor surface in front of a work head 6 attached to a base portion 4 of the machine, or via the work head 6 onto the floor beneath the work head 6. The suction generating device which is in fluid communication with the suction port 30 causes an airflow to enter the waste liquid tank 20 via the conduit 38 and the inlet 28. The airflow comprises dirt and dirty liquid lifted from the floor, for example by a squeegee pick-up device arranged to be trailed behind the work head 6. The recessed portion 26 of the waste liquid tank 20 is configured to partially accommodate the cleaning liquid tank 10. (In alternative embodiments, the waste liquid tank 20 could be partially accommodated in a recess provided in the cleaning liquid tank 10). The cleaning liquid tank 10 and the waste liquid tank 20 can be assembled together, in a side-by-side nested configuration, to form the dual-tank unit 50 as illustrated in figures 2 and 3. When assembled as the dual tank-assembly 50, the cleaning liquid tank 10 and the waste liquid tank 20 are held together by a releasable dual-tank locking mechanism, comprising a locking feature 54 (figure 1) provided on the cleaning liquid tank 10, which cooperates with a corresponding locking feature 56 (figure 3) provided on the waste liquid tank 20. A carry handle 52, provided on the front face 22 of the waste liquid tank 20, enables a user to carry the dual-tank unit 50 (or the waste liquid tank 20 by itself), single handedly. This allows the operator to have one hand free to open / close doors, move furniture etc. without the need to place the dual-tank unit 50 on a flat surface first. As illustrated in figures 5 to 10, the dual-tank unit 50 can be assembled onto, and removed from, a handle portion 40 of a hand guided, walk-behind floor treatment machine for cleaning and / or treating a floor surface. The handle portion 40 includes an elongate stem 48, and a body portion 47. An upper region 44 of the handle portion 40 is provided with a user handle 46, and a lower end region 42 of the handle portion 40 is connected to the base portion 4 of the machine 2, via a pivotable connection 70. The pivotable connection 70 could comprise a first, fore-aft pivot and a further, side-to-side pivot. The first and further pivots may form a Cardan joint which facilitates steering of the base portion 4 by twisting of the handle portion 40 in clockwise or anti-clockwise about its longitudinal axis. During use of the machine 2, the pivotable connection 70 between the handle portion 40 and base portion 4 enables a user to move the handle 46 upwardly or downwardly with respect to a floor, to allow adjustment for user height, whilst permitting steering of the base portion 4 by the user so as to follow a desired cleaning path. A lid 60 for the dual-tank unit 50 is provided on the handle portion 40. The lid 60 has a rim region 62 which is pivotably attached to the handle portion 40, such that the lid 60 can pivot with respect to the handle portion 40 about a pivot axis passing through pivot point 61 (illustrated in figure 4). The lid 60 is pivotable between a raised, open orientation (as illustrated in figures 5, 6 and 8), and a lowered, closed orientation (as illustrated in figures 7, 9 and 10). The lid 60 is biased towards the open orientation. The biasing may be achieved by a leaf or coil spring, or some other resilient member. The dual-tank unit 50 comprises hooks 58 extending out of the rear face 14 of the cleaning liquid tank 10, which hook into corresponding apertures (not visible) provided on the handle portion 40. Installation of the dual-tank unit 50 onto the handle portion 40 is illustrated sequentially in figures 5 to 7. As illustrated in figure 5, a user manually lowers the unit 50 onto the handle potion 40, beneath the lid 60 which is biased into the open orientation. The dual-tank unit 50 can be lowered single-handedly, therefore the user can use their other hand to steady the machine. The body portion 47 of the handle portion 40 is provided with a bay, comprising a seat 72 and a surrounding wall 74. The dual-tank unit 50 is lowered onto the handle portion until the hooks 58 provided on the rear face 14 of the cleaning liquid tank 10 are caused to hook into the corresponding apertures provided on the handle portion 40 and a base 82 of the dual-tank unit 50 is seated on the seat 72 of the handle body portion 47. The surrounding walls 74 of the bay act as a guide, to aid insertion of the dual-tank unit 50. The shape of the lower region of dual-tank unit 50 and the bay also acts as a keyway to prevent the dual-tank unit 50 being installed in an incorrect orientation. When the dual-tank unit 50 is installed, a lower region of the dual-tank unit 50 is accommodated in the bay provided by the seat 72 and the surrounding walls 74 of the handle body portion 47. The seat 72 and the bay thereby act as a retaining means for the dual-tank unit 50. The recessed portion 16 of the cleaning liquid tank rear face 14 is configured to accommodate the stem of the handle portion 40 when the dual-tank unit 50 is in place. With the dual-tank 50 installed onto the handle portion 40, the user then closes the lid 60 as illustrated in figure 6. To close the lid 60 the user applies pressure to the top of lid 60 to urge it, against its bias, from the raised, open orientation, toward the lowered, closed orientation. The lid 60 is provided with a first latching feature 66, and the dual-tank unit 50 is provided with a second latching feature 68. The latching features are shown in more detail in Figures 11 and 12. The first latching feature 66 comprises a groove 76. The second latching feature 68 comprises a main portion 33, a surface of which forms a pressure pad or thumb pad 31. The second latching feature 68 is located such that the thumb pad 31 is adjacent to the carry handle 52. In other embodiments the thumb pad could be in close proximity to the carry handle 52. The second latching feature 68 further comprises a resilient means comprising a spring 32, and a pivot arm 35 extending generally upwardly (in the orientation of Figure 11) from the main portion 33 and having a hooked portion 36 at an end distal to the main portion 33. The hooked portion 36 is shaped and dimensioned so as to fit into the groove 76. The spring 32 abuts and applies pressure to an underside surface 34 of the main portion 33, the underside surface 34 being perpendicular to the pivot arm 35. The spring 32 acts to bias the hooked portion 36 of the pivot arm 35 outwardly, away from the stem 48 of the handle portion 40, i.e. in orientation of Figures 11 and 12, the pivot arm 35 is urged in an anti-clockwise direction by the spring 32. As the lid 60 is pushed towards the closed orientation, a sloped internal surface 75 of the lid 60, extending from the periphery of the lid 60 towards the groove 76, contacts a sloped surface 37 of the hooked portion 36, and thereby urges the hooked portion 36 against the action of the spring 31. Further closing of the lid 60 causes the hooked portion 36 to align, and snap into, the groove 76. The force of the spring 31 acting on the acts to maintain the hooked portion 36 in the groove 76, and thereby to keep the lid 60 locked in the closed orientation as illustrated in figure 11. Figure 7 shows the dual-tank unit 50 installed on the handle portion 40, and the lid 60 locked in the closed orientation. When the lid 60 is locked in the closed orientation, the dual-tank unit 50 is clamped between the lid 60 and the seat 72 of the handle portion 40. The lid 60 is locked in position with respect to the dual-tank unit 50 by interaction between the first latching feature 66 and the second latching feature 68 as described above. When the lid 60 is in the closed position above the dual-tank unit 50, it defines an internal chamber adjacent a top end of the dual-tank unit 50. The lid 60 comprises a first aperture 90 which, when the lid 60 is installed on the dualtank unit 50, becomes an inlet port of the waste liquid tank 20, enabling the required fluid communication between a squeegee pick-up device and the waste liquid tank 20. The lid 60 further comprises a second aperture 92 which, when the lid 60 is installed on the dual tank-unit 50, becomes a suction outlet port of the waste liquid tank 20, enabling the required fluid communication between a suction generating device and the waste water tank 20. In use, the conduit 38 is attached between the first lid aperture 90, and the squeegee pick-up device. The conduit 38 is accommodated in a first recess 94 provided in the top of the lid 60. A further conduit is attached between the second lid aperture 92 and a suction generating device; the further conduit is accommodated in a second recess 96 provided in the top of the lid 60. The lid 60 comprises a seal around the inside of the rim region 62, which ensures a vacuum seal between the waste liquid tank 20 and the conduits. Removal of the dual-tank unit 50 from the handle portion 40 is illustrated sequentially in figures 8 to 10. As illustrated in figure 8, a user initially unlocks the lid 60, by applying pressure onto the thumb pad 31 of the second latching feature 68. Pressure applied to the thumb pad 31 depresses the thumb pad 31 and thereby urges the pivot arm 35 to pivot, against the force of the spring 32, (i.e. in a clockwise direction in the orientation of figures 11 and 12), thereby moving the hooked portion 36 out of engagement with the groove 76. Figure 12 shows the lid 60 in a closed but unlocked orientation; when the lid 60 is unlocked, it will flip under its biasing to the open orientation. When the lid 60 is in the open orientation, the dual-tank unit 50 is no longer clamped between the lid 60 and the seat 72. As illustrated in figures 9 and 10, the user can use the carry handle 52 to manually lift the dual-tank unit 50 clear from the seat 72. Because the second latching feature 68 is located such that the thumb pad 31 is adjacent, or in close proximity to, the carry handle 52, the user can be holding the carry handle 52 by their fingers whilst pressing the thumb pad 31 with their thumb. The user can thereby unlock, and then lift, the dual-tank unit 50 in a single motion. When the dual-tank unit 50 has been removed from the handle portion 72, the cleaning liquid tank 10 and the waste liquid tank 20 can be separated from one another by disengagement of the dual-tank locking mechanism. The cleaning liquid tank 10 can be refilled with cleaning liquid and / or the waste liquid tank 20 can be emptied of waste liquid as required. The base of each of the cleaning liquid tank 10 and the waste liquid tank 20 are provided with feet, which enable each of the individual tanks, and also the dual-tank unit 50, to be self-supporting when placed upright on a flat surface. In the present embodiment, the base of the cleaning liquid tank 10 is provided with a first foot 84, and a second foot is provided by a connector 86 provided at the outlet 18. The location and footprint of the first foot 84 and of the connector 86 are selected so as to enable the cleaning liquid tank 10 to be self-supporting on a flat surface by itself, i.e. when it is not connected to the waste water tank 20. The waste water tank 20 is provided with feet formed by contoured wall portions 88, the locations of which are selected so as to enable the waste water tank 20 to be self-supporting on a flat surface by itself, i.e. when it is not connected to the cleaning liquid tank 10. When the cleaning liquid tank 10 and the waste liquid tank 20 are connected to one another as the dual-tank unit 50, the plurality of feet enable that the dual-tank 50 is also self-supporting on a flat surface. In alternative embodiments, a different number of feet could be provided in different configurations, to provide a steady base for each of the cleaning liquid tank 10, the waste water tank 20, and the dual-tank unit 50. 21 10 25

Claims

1. A hand guided, walk-behind floor treatment machine for cleaning and / or treating a floor surface, the floor treatment machine comprising:a base portion provided with at least one floor-facing work head, a cleaning liquid tank and cleaning liquid outlet configured so that cleaning liquid can be delivered onto the floor surface in front of the work head, or via the work head onto the floor beneath the work head, a waste liquid tank and a squeegee pick-up device arranged to be trailed behind the work head(s) and which pickup device is in fluid communication with the waste liquid tank; an upright handle portion having a lower end region pivotably connected to the base portion and an upper region provided with a machine handle, so that the handle portion can be moved up or down during use to adjust for user height whilst permitting steering of the base part by the user so as to follow a desired cleaning path;wherein the cleaning liquid tank and waste liquid tank are attached to one another to form a dual-tank unit and are disposed side-by-side to one another when attached to one another, the dual-tank unit being removably attached to the handle portion by retaining means, and wherein a lid is provided on the handle portion at a position above the retaining means, the lid having a first latching feature and the dual-tank unit having a second latching feature, the arrangement being such that when the lid is moved from an open to a closed orientation the latching features co-operate with one another to hold the dualtank unit clamped between the lid and retaining means.21 10 252. A machine as claimed in claim 1, wherein the second latching feature comprises a pressure pad, depression of which disengages the first latching feature and the second latching features from one another thereby to unlock the lid.

3. A machine as claimed in claim 2, wherein the second latching feature further comprises a base section on which the pressure pad is located, and a pivot arm extending away from the base section and comprising a hooked portion at an end of the pivot arm distal from the base section; wherein depression of the pressure pad causes the pivot arm to pivot against the force of a resilient means acting on an underside of the base section, thereby to disengage the hooked portion from a groove of the first latching feature.

4. A machine as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the dualtank unit is provided with a carry handle for facilitating manual withdrawal of the dual-tank unit from its retaining means on the machine handle portion.

5. A machine as claimed in claim 2 or claim 3, wherein the dual-tank unit is provided with a carry handle for facilitating manual withdrawal of the dual-tank unit from its retaining means on the machine handle portion, and wherein the pressure pad of the second latching feature is located adjacent to the carry handle.

6. A machine as claimed in any one of claims 2, 3 or 5, wherein the dual-tank unit is provided with a carry handle for facilitating manual withdrawal of the dualtank unit from its retaining means on the machine handle portion, and whereinthe lid is biased to adopt the open orientation, so that when the pressure pad is depressed, the lid flips open under the biasing to permit removal of the dualtank unit.

7. A machine as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the retainingmeans comprises a seat or bay which accommodates a lower end region of the dual-tank unit.

8. A machine as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the lid has arim region which is pivotably attached to the handle portion, so that the lidrotates on the handle portion between open and closed orientations.CXI9.A machine as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein at least oneof an inlet port and an outlet port is / are provided in an upper region of the wasteCXIliquid tank.

10. A machine as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the lid defines aninternal chamber adjacent a top end of the dual-tank unit.

11. A machine as claimed in claim 10, wherein a portion of the chamber is providedwith an inlet port of the waste liquid tank.

12. A machine as claimed in claim 11, wherein the inlet port is fed by a conduit fromthe pick-up device.

13. A machine as claimed in any one of claims 10 to 12, wherein another portion ofthe chamber is provided with an air outlet port from the waste liquid tank.

14. A machine as claimed in claim 13, wherein the air outlet port is in fluid communication with a suction generating device, such as a motorized fan or turbine.

15. A machine as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the waste and clean water tanks are detachable from one another once removed from the machine.

16. A machine as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein one of thetanks is configured to occupy in a recess in the other tank.

17. A machine as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein each of thewaste liquid tank, the clean tank and the dual-tank unit is self-supporting uprighton a flat surface.

18. A machine as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the pivotable connection to the base portion comprises a first fore-aft pivot and a further side-to-side pivot.

19. A machine as claimed in any of the preceding claims, wherein the first and further pivots form a Cardan joint which facilitate steering of the base portion bytwisting the handle portion clockwise or anti-clockwise about its longitudinal axis.21 10 25

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