Automatic cleaning device for cooling tower sump

The automatic cleaning device driven by guide rails and brushes solves the problem of incomplete cleaning of cooling towers, achieving efficient and stable cooling water quality and heat exchange effect, and reducing the difficulty of operation and the impact of human factors.

CN224340804UActive Publication Date: 2026-06-09SHENZHEN RUNFENG QINGYUAN HEAT TRANSFER TECHNOLOGY CO LTD

Patent Information

Authority / Receiving Office
CN · China
Patent Type
Utility models(China)
Current Assignee / Owner
SHENZHEN RUNFENG QINGYUAN HEAT TRANSFER TECHNOLOGY CO LTD
Filing Date
2025-03-05
Publication Date
2026-06-09

AI Technical Summary

Technical Problem

Existing cooling tower cleaning methods are difficult to be comprehensive and thorough, the cleaning effect is unstable, affecting the cooling water quality and heat exchange efficiency, and they depend on the operator's skill level and sense of responsibility.

Method used

Design an automatic cleaning device that includes a guide rail, brushes, and a power unit. The brushes are driven by an electric motor to move laterally and rotary on the guide rail, and the cleaning is automated by combining an intelligent control box.

Benefits of technology

It significantly reduces operational difficulty, ensures stable cooling water quality, improves heat exchange efficiency, reduces the impact of human factors, and achieves an efficient and standardized cleaning process.

✦ Generated by Eureka AI based on patent content.

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Abstract

This utility model discloses an automatic cleaning device for cooling tower water collection pans, including a first guide rail and a second guide rail, and two first brushes and two second brushes respectively mounted on the first and second guide rails. It also includes a first power assembly and a second power assembly, which are respectively mounted on the first and second guide rails. Furthermore, it includes a first power steering assembly, a second power steering assembly, and a control box. This utility model, through the coordinated operation of the first and second guide rails, the first and second brushes, the first and second power assemblies, the first and second power assemblies, the first and second power steering assemblies, and the control box, achieves an automatic cleaning device for cooling tower water collection pans, overcoming cleaning difficulties, significantly reducing operational complexity, standardizing the cleaning process, effectively ensuring cooling water quality, improving heat exchange efficiency, and fully utilizing the cooling function.
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Description

Technical Field

[0001] This utility model relates to the field of cooling tower water collection pan cleaning technology, specifically an automatic cleaning device for cooling tower water collection pans. Background Technology

[0002] In numerous industrial production processes and air conditioning systems of large buildings, cooling towers serve as indispensable key equipment, undertaking crucial cooling tasks. Their basic working principle utilizes water as a circulating cooling medium, employing the physical process of heat exchange to absorb and release the heat generated during system operation into the atmosphere, thereby lowering the water temperature and ensuring the entire system can operate stably in a suitable temperature environment.

[0003] However, cooling towers face numerous severe challenges in actual operation. On the one hand, as the cooling water continuously absorbs heat, its temperature remains at a high level. This warm and humid environment acts as a breeding ground for bacteria, creating ideal conditions for the reproduction of various microorganisms. On the other hand, cooling towers are usually installed outdoors, inevitably exposing them to complex natural environmental factors. During daily operation, windblown sand particles enter the cooling tower with airflow. Simultaneously, impurities and debris accumulated in the pipes over long-term use gradually mix into the cooling water, ultimately accumulating in the cooling tower's water collection basin.

[0004] Existing cooling tower cleaning methods have significant limitations and shortcomings. The cleaning operation is extremely difficult. The structural design of the water collection basin and its complex internal environment make it difficult for conventional cleaning tools and methods to reach every corner, thus failing to achieve a comprehensive and thorough cleaning. More importantly, the cleaning work largely depends on the workers' conscientiousness and sense of responsibility, which means that the quality and frequency of the cleaning work lack stable and reliable guarantees. Differences in the operating skills and work attitudes of different workers can easily lead to inconsistent cleaning results. This unstable cleaning situation makes it difficult to effectively guarantee the quality of the cooling water. A large number of bacteria, impurities, and sediments in the water will adhere to the heat exchange surface, forming a fouling layer that seriously hinders heat transfer. This, in turn, has a significant negative impact on the heat exchange effect of the cooling tower, reduces the operating efficiency of the entire cooling system, increases energy consumption, and may even lead to equipment failure, affecting normal production or use. Utility Model Content

[0005] The purpose of this invention is to provide an automatic cleaning device for cooling tower water collection trays to solve the problems mentioned in the background art.

[0006] To achieve the above objectives, this utility model provides the following technical solution: an automatic cleaning device for a cooling tower water collection tray, comprising a first guide rail and a second guide rail, and two first brushes and two second brushes respectively mounted on the first and second guide rails, further comprising a first power assembly and a second power assembly, the first power assembly and the second power assembly being respectively mounted on the first and second guide rails, the first power assembly driving the first brushes to move laterally on the guide rails, and the second power assembly driving the second brushes to move laterally on the guide rails, further comprising a first power steering assembly, a second power steering assembly and a control box, the first power steering assembly being connected to the first power assembly, and the output shaft of the first power steering assembly being connected to the two first brushes respectively.

[0007] Preferably, the second power steering assembly is located below the second power assembly, and two second brushes are connected to the output shaft of the second power steering assembly. The second brush located at the top is rotatably connected to the second power assembly. The first power steering assembly can drive the first brush to rotate for cleaning, and the second power steering assembly can drive the second brush to rotate for cleaning.

[0008] Compared with the prior art, the beneficial effects of this utility model are as follows:

[0009] This utility model, through the cooperation of a first guide rail, a second guide rail, a first brush, a second brush, a first power component, a second power component, a first power steering component, a second power steering component, and a control box, realizes an automatic cleaning device for cooling tower water collection trays, overcoming cleaning difficulties, significantly reducing operational difficulty, standardizing the cleaning process, effectively ensuring cooling water quality, improving heat exchange efficiency, and fully utilizing the cooling function. Attached Figure Description

[0010] Figure 1 This is a three-dimensional structural diagram of the present invention.

[0011] In the diagram: 1 First guide rail, 2 Second guide rail, 3 First brush, 4 Second brush, 5 First power assembly, 6 Second power assembly, 7 First power steering assembly, 8 Second power steering assembly, 9 Control box, 10 Support frame. Detailed Implementation

[0012] The technical solutions of the present utility model will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings of the embodiments. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of the present utility model, and not all embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present utility model, all other embodiments obtained by those of ordinary skill in the art without creative effort are within the protection scope of the present utility model.

[0013] Please see Figure 1 An automatic cleaning device for a cooling tower water collection tray includes a first guide rail 1 and a second guide rail 2, as well as two first brushes 3 and two second brushes 4 that are movable and respectively disposed on the first guide rail 1 and the second guide rail 2.

[0014] Furthermore, the first brush 3 and the second brush 4, as key components that directly contact the cooling tower water collection tray and perform the cleaning task, are designed with the principles and structure of car wash brushes in mind. Considering the special nature of the cooling tower water collection tray cleaning environment, the strength of the brush linkage and the brush density will be precisely determined and optimized in later practice based on factors such as the actual working conditions, cleaning effect, and specific structural characteristics of the water collection tray. This design ensures that the brushes can meet different cleaning needs while maximizing cleaning efficiency and quality, and extending the service life of the brushes.

[0015] It also includes a first power component 5 and a second power component 6, which are respectively mounted on the first guide rail 1 and the second guide rail 2.

[0016] Furthermore, the first power assembly 5 and the second power assembly 6: electric motors are selected as the power source for the entire cleaning device. To ensure safe and stable operation in the humid cooling tower environment, the waterproof rating of the electric motors is based on the standards of submersible pumps with excellent performance and strong waterproof capabilities. In addition, to further ensure the safety of operators and equipment, the control system is specially equipped with a leakage protection device. In the event of leakage, the power supply can be quickly cut off to avoid safety accidents. The power unit is also equipped with a professional slot. The slot is ingeniously designed to achieve a tight and precise connection with the power steering device, providing a solid foundation for the effective transmission of power and the stable operation of the device. The electric power drives the rollers to move laterally on the guide rail 1 through the output shaft, so that the power assembly can drive the power steering assembly and the brush to move laterally.

[0017] Furthermore, the first guide rail 1 and the second guide rail 2 serve as the tracks for the cleaning device to run. This unique guide rail design is an important guarantee for achieving precise cleaning. By making full use of the power output of the power components, the cleaning device can achieve automatic transmission on the guide rail. This intelligent upgrade can not only significantly reduce the intensity of manual labor, but also significantly improve the efficiency and accuracy of cleaning operations.

[0018] It also includes a first power steering assembly 7, a second power steering assembly 8, and a control box 9. The first power steering assembly 7 is connected to the first power assembly 5. Two first brushes 3 are connected to the output shaft of the first power steering assembly 7. The second power steering assembly 8 is located below the second power assembly 6. Two second brushes 4 are connected to the output shaft of the second power steering assembly 8. The second brushes 4 located at the top are rotatably connected to the second power assembly 6. The power steering assembly can drive the brushes to rotate and clean.

[0019] Further, the first power steering assembly 7 and the second power steering assembly 8 are the key hubs of the entire cleaning system. They cleverly realize the conversion of force direction. They adopt an advanced gear conversion structure inside, which can accurately convert the vertical rotational force output by the motor into the horizontal driving force, providing the necessary power support for the brush to perform horizontal cleaning operations in the water collection tray. The power steering assembly is equipped with a professional slot on the outside. The slot design is perfectly matched with the interface of the brush and the power assembly, which can realize the quick and stable locking of the brush or the power assembly, thereby ensuring the structural stability and power transmission reliability of the entire cleaning device during operation.

[0020] Furthermore, the first guide rail 1 and the second guide rail 2 are mounted on the support frame 10, and the control box 9 is mounted on the support frame 10.

[0021] This utility model, through the cooperation of the first guide rail 1, the second guide rail 2, the first brush 3, the second brush 4, the first power assembly 5, the second power assembly 6, the first power steering assembly 7, the second power steering assembly 8 and the control box 9, realizes an automatic cleaning device for cooling tower water collection trays, overcomes the cleaning problem, significantly reduces the operation difficulty, standardizes the cleaning process, effectively ensures the quality of cooling water, improves heat exchange efficiency, and fully utilizes the cooling function.

[0022] Furthermore, the cooling tower can be cleaned periodically according to a pre-set time interval. The automated or semi-automated operation greatly simplifies the cleaning process, making the originally complex and arduous cleaning task easier to implement. This effectively reduces the overall difficulty of the cleaning work and significantly improves cleaning efficiency. The cleaning device, with its stable and reliable operating mechanism, strictly follows the established cleaning procedures and parameters, unaffected by human factors. This effectively avoids problems caused by individual worker differences and subjective factors leading to non-standard cleaning. As a result, the cleaning work becomes more regular and reliable, continuously and stably cleaning the cooling tower and promptly removing bacteria, sand, pipe debris, and other impurities from the water collection pan. This provides a solid guarantee for ensuring the quality of the cooling water. By stabilizing the cooling water quality, the adhesion and accumulation of impurities on the heat exchange surface are reduced, allowing the heat exchange process to proceed more smoothly. This not only significantly improves the heat exchange effect of the cooling tower but also ensures that it can fully perform its cooling function under various operating conditions, effectively reducing water temperature. This provides stable and reliable cooling support for equipment and systems that rely on cooling towers, such as industrial production and air conditioning systems, ultimately achieving efficient and stable system operation.

[0023] Furthermore, before installing the cooling tower cleaning device, a comprehensive and in-depth site survey is required. Careful measurement and analysis of the cooling tower's spatial layout, surrounding environment, and various factors that may affect the installation and operation of the device are necessary. The guide rails are firmly fixed to the support frame 10 using self-tapping screws, and then the support frame 10 is fixed to the ground. Simultaneously, a level is used for calibration to ensure that the horizontal error of the guide rails is controlled within a minimal range, laying the foundation for the stable operation of the subsequent device. After the guide rails are successfully fixed, the power assembly and power steering assembly are precisely installed according to the equipment's technical specifications and installation drawings. Professional measuring tools, such as laser rangefinders and angle meters, are used to repeatedly calibrate the position and angle of each device, ensuring the positional accuracy and tightness of the connection between the power assembly and the guide rails. This ensures that the power steering assembly can smoothly and efficiently transmit power. At the same time, strict anti-loosening treatment and sealing protection are applied to all connection points to prevent loosening or damage to the device due to long-term vibration or a humid environment.

[0024] Furthermore, regarding the compatibility of the brush installation: Based on the specific shape and size of the cooling tower's water collection tray, as well as the adhesion characteristics and accumulation degree of dirt, carefully select the matching brush type and specifications. When installing the brushes, use the professionally designed slots on the outside of the power steering assembly to precisely and securely install the brushes. During installation, carefully adjust the angle and spacing of the brushes to ensure they fit the inner wall of the water collection tray to the maximum extent, covering all areas that need cleaning. At the same time, ensure that the brushes maintain appropriate contact pressure with the water collection tray to effectively remove dirt without causing excessive wear or damage to the water collection tray. After the brushes are installed, conduct a comprehensive manual inspection and trial run test to check the brushes' rotational flexibility, stability, and whether there are any issues such as skewness. If any abnormalities are found, adjust and correct them promptly.

[0025] Furthermore, the intelligent addition and functional improvement of the time control device: the control box 9 uses a high-performance microcontroller as its core, paired with a high-precision real-time clock module, which can achieve precise time setting and control.

[0026] Automatic control function: Operators can flexibly set personalized automatic cleaning parameters according to the actual operating conditions of each cooling tower, such as usage frequency, water quality change patterns, and dirt formation rate. The start time, cleaning duration, and cleaning cycle of each cleaning operation can be precisely set. The time control device will automatically trigger the cleaning program according to the preset schedule, realizing unattended automated cleaning operations. For example, for cooling towers with poor water quality and high operating load, a shorter cleaning cycle and a longer cleaning duration can be set; while for cooling towers with relatively good water quality and a cleaner operating environment, the cleaning cycle can be extended accordingly, rationally allocating cleaning resources to ensure that each cooling tower receives timely and effective cleaning.

[0027] Manual control function: Considering special circumstances or temporary needs, the time control device is equipped with an intuitive and easy-to-use manual operation interface. Operators can manually start, pause, or stop the cleaning operation at any time through physical buttons or a touch screen on the control panel, and can flexibly adjust parameters such as cleaning time and frequency. This function plays an important role in equipment debugging, troubleshooting, and responding to emergencies, providing great flexibility and operability for cleaning operations.

[0028] When installing control box 9, ensure its electrical connection with the entire cleaning system is safe and reliable, perform strict insulation treatment and grounding protection, and take effective electromagnetic shielding measures to prevent external electromagnetic interference from affecting the normal operation of the device. After installation, conduct comprehensive and detailed debugging and testing of the automatic and manual control functions of control box 9 to verify the accuracy and stability of each function and ensure that it can operate stably and reliably.

[0029] Specifically, the process for staggered cleaning of multiple cooling towers involves the following refined staggered cleaning operation: When multiple cooling towers are running simultaneously, to avoid system instability and water waste caused by centralized cleaning, a staggered cleaning strategy is implemented. Preparation before cleaning: Before starting to clean a particular cooling tower, the automatic water supply valve, drain valve, and return valve of that cooling tower are accurately located and closed using the control system. During the closing process, the valve status is closely observed to ensure complete closure, preventing water from flowing in or out during cleaning, which could affect the cleaning effect and cause water waste. Brush cleaning operation: After the valves are closed, the control box 9 is activated, and the brushes are driven to thoroughly and meticulously clean the cooling tower's water collection tray according to the preset cleaning mode and parameters. During the cleaning process, the operator... Closely monitor the operation of the brushes, such as their rotation speed and oscillation amplitude. Simultaneously, use on-site monitoring equipment to monitor the cleaning progress and effectiveness of the water collection tray in real time. If any abnormalities are detected during cleaning, such as brush jamming or power unit overload, immediately stop the cleaning operation, promptly investigate and resolve the problem before resuming. For wastewater discharge and replenishment: After cleaning, open the drain valve of the cooling tower to discharge the wastewater and dirt generated during the cleaning process. During discharge, adjust the discharge time according to the flow rate and turbidity of the wastewater to ensure complete removal of wastewater and impurities from the water collection tray. After discharge, close the drain valve and activate the automatic water replenishment device to begin replenishing water into the cooling tower. During replenishment, monitor the water level in real time. When the water level reaches the preset standard level, automatically stop the replenishment operation.

[0030] Restoring normal operation: After water replenishment is completed, open the outlet valve of the cooling tower to restore the cooling tower to normal operation. During this process, continuously monitor various operating parameters of the cooling tower, such as water temperature, water pressure, and water flow rate, to ensure stable equipment operation and that all indicators meet normal operation requirements. Following the same process, perform staggered cleaning operations on other cooling towers in sequence to ensure the stable operation of the overall system during the cleaning process of multiple cooling towers.

[0031] Although embodiments of the present invention have been shown and described, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes, modifications, substitutions and alterations can be made to these embodiments without departing from the principles and spirit of the present invention, the scope of which is defined by the appended claims and their equivalents.

Claims

1. An automatic cleaning device for cooling tower water collection trays, characterized in that: It includes a first guide rail (1) and a second guide rail (2), and two first brushes (3) and two second brushes (4) that are movable on the first guide rail (1) and the second guide rail (2), respectively. It also includes a first power assembly (5) and a second power assembly (6), which are respectively disposed on the first guide rail (1) and the second guide rail (2). It also includes a first power steering assembly (7), a second power steering assembly (8) and a control box (9). The first power steering assembly (7) is connected to the first power assembly (5), and the output shaft of the first power steering assembly (7) is connected to the two first brushes (3).

2. The automatic cleaning device for a cooling tower water collection tray according to claim 1, characterized in that: The second power steering assembly (8) is located below the second power assembly (6). The output shaft of the second power steering assembly (8) is connected to two second brushes (4) respectively. The second brushes (4) located at the top are rotatably connected to the second power assembly (6).