Device for contactless removal of water drops remaining on vehicle exterior surfaces after a vehicle wash

Description

[0001] The invention relates to a device, in particular a compressed air directional blowing device, for the contactless removal of water droplets remaining on vehicle exterior surfaces after a vehicle wash, wherein the device is elongated and can be connected to a compressed air source via a flexible line and has at least one first outlet opening for compressed air, which is arranged longitudinally on the device.

[0002] A conventional method for drying vehicle exterior surfaces after a car wash is known as hand-sweeping. This involves using a special cloth that is periodically rinsed in a conventional container (bucket) with clean water and wrung out to dry and absorbent the cloth, preventing streaks from leaving on the vehicle's paintwork. This is, to say the least, unpleasant and time-consuming, especially in low outside temperatures.

[0003] As an improvement, a hand-held blower was described in DE 20 2016 008 698 U1, DE 10 2016 121 482 A1, AT 16 201 U1 and AT 16 202 U1, among others, which has a narrow nozzle, whereby complete drying can only be achieved with many laborious movements.

[0004] Devices with longitudinally arranged exhaust openings are also known from US 6,021,584 or US 2008 / 0216338 A1, in which case short nozzles are guided along the outer surface of the vehicle.

[0005] Another device is described in DE 103 33 976 A1, which shows a lance-shaped device with outlet openings arranged along its length. US-A-2008 / 308651 discloses the preamble of claim 1.

[0006] What all known devices have in common is that although they can dry the vehicle's exterior surfaces well, hard-to-reach areas remain moist and can therefore easily cause rust.

[0007] The present invention is intended to avoid the disadvantages of the prior art and to provide a device that enables vehicles to be dried as completely as possible while at the same time being easy to handle and avoiding time-consuming leathering of vehicle paint surfaces.

[0008] This object is achieved according to the invention by a device having the features of claim 1.

[0009] With an additional outlet opening located along the longitudinal axis of the device, it is now possible to reach places that would otherwise be very difficult to access. These include the center of the vehicle roof, the hood, or windows in larger vehicles, as well as wheel arches, gaps around the vehicle door, the hood, recessed headlights, ventilation slots, license plate holders, exterior mirrors, and many other hard-to-reach locations.

[0010] According to the invention, a first valve is provided, which is fluidly connected on one side to the compressed air source and on the other side to the at least one first outlet opening and the further outlet opening. The at least one first outlet opening can be connected to a first compressed air pipe, the at least one further outlet opening can be connected to a further compressed air pipe, and both compressed air pipes can be connected to the first valve. Such an arrangement allows an air flow to be directed in a targeted manner in one direction.

[0011] Furthermore, it has proven advantageous if the first valve has a first lever designed to switch a compressed air supply between the at least one first outlet opening and the further outlet opening. This allows an air flow to be easily directed to the desired outlet opening.

[0012] The at least one first outlet opening can be designed as a series of outlet openings or as an exhaust slot. This allows the device to be conveniently guided parallel over the vehicle's exterior surface, allowing large areas to be covered by an air stream.

[0013] Preferably, the blow-out slot has a width of 0.03 mm to 0.5 mm, preferably up to 0.05 mm. Such a narrow blow-out slot creates a kind of air knife, which can effectively cut off any remaining water droplets from the vehicle's exterior surface.

[0014] Furthermore, it has proven advantageous for the exhaust slot and / or the row of outlet openings to have a length of 200 mm to 500 mm, preferably 360 mm. This allows the air flow to be directed at various points on the vehicle's exterior surface.

[0015] It is advantageous to provide an additional valve for interrupting and / or regulating the compressed air flow from the compressed air source. This additional valve can be integrated into a handle. This allows the air flow to be switched off before and after drying a vehicle's exterior surface, and the air flow intensity can also be regulated.

[0016] Furthermore, it has proven advantageous to use a screw compressor as the compressed air source. A screw compressor can generate high pressures particularly cost-effectively.

[0017] It has proven particularly advantageous if the screw compressor is connected to the device via a flexible line, with the flexible line having a diameter of ¼ inch to 1 inch (6.65 mm to 25.4 mm). Previous devices in the prior art use lines with diameters of 8 cm to 15 cm, which makes these lines heavy and difficult to handle. With the solution according to the invention, the flexible line can also be easily laid around larger vehicles without adding any additional, disruptive weight.

[0018] Preferably, the screw compressor is configured to generate a compressed air flow of 0.5 m3 / min to 1.5 m3 / min, preferably 0.9 m3 / min to 1.2 m3 / min, at a pressure of 6 bar to 8 bar. This allows for the favorable generation of a high-speed, blown-out air flow.

[0019] It has proven advantageous if the screw compressor is equipped with a soft start function.

[0020] It has been shown that it is advantageous to select an appropriately sized screw compressor, whereby the screw compressor can be connected to several devices, preferably compressed air directional blowers. This allows several devices to be used simultaneously, for example, in adjacent boxes for manually drying vehicles.

[0021] Further features, advantages, and effects of the invention will become apparent from the following exemplary embodiments. Reference is made to the drawings, which show: Fig. 1 an embodiment of a device according to the invention; Fig. 2 another view of the device according to the invention; Fig. 3 a section of the device according to the invention; Fig. 4 the outlet opening arranged longitudinally; Fig. 5 a section of the device according to the invention with a switching device for switching an air flow; Fig. 6 the arrangement of the further outlet opening; Fig. 7 a view of a system with the device according to the invention and Fig. 8 another view of a system with the device according to the invention.

[0022] Fig. 1 shows a view of a device 1 according to the invention, in particular a compressed air directional blower device 1a. This is elongated in the shape of a lance and has at one end a connection 16 for a flexible line 3 for supplying compressed air from a compressed air source 4, for example a screw compressor 4a. This connection 16 is arranged on a handle 14, wherein the handle 14 has a further valve 13 with which the air flow can be regulated and / or interrupted. A connection 16 for the flexible line 3 is also provided on the handle 14. Furthermore, a support handle 17 is provided so that the device 1 can be held securely and guided manually. Between the handle 14 and the support handle 17, a first valve 8 with a first lever 11 is provided, which will be described in more detail below. The first outlet opening 5 is then provided at the end of the device 1, arranged along the longitudinal side.At the end, in the direction of the longitudinal axis 7 of the device 1, a further outlet opening 6 is provided, which is preferably circular and serves to direct an air flow to gaps between main vehicle parts and into otherwise difficult-to-access parts such as wheel arches 24, ventilation slots 23 and other vehicle parts and to blow out these parts in order to largely prevent later dripping from these recesses or gaps due to water accumulating there and also to minimize the risk of rust.

[0023] In Fig. 2 A view of the front of the device 1 is shown. Here, the first outlet opening 5, shown here as the blow-out slot 12, is particularly clearly visible. Of course, several outlet openings can also be provided in a row.

[0024] The additional outlet opening 6, depicted here as a circular nozzle, is also clearly visible on the front side. The handle 14, the first lever 11, and a first compressed air pipe 9 and another compressed air pipe 10 can also be seen.

[0025] Fig. 3 shows the situation at one end of the device 1 well. The air flow, which is supplied from the compressed air source 4 via a flexible line 3, enters the device 1 through a connection 16 arranged on a handle 14. Integrated into the handle 14 is a further valve 13 which can be controlled via a further lever 15. This allows the air quantity to be regulated, but also completely interrupted, which is particularly necessary before and after use. Adjacent to this is a switching device, shown here as the first valve 8, which is designed as a 3 / 2-way valve. This first valve 8 is connected to a first compressed air pipe 9, which is subsequently connected to the first outlet opening 5. Furthermore, the first valve 8 is connected to a further compressed air pipe 10, which is connected to the further outlet opening 6.This first valve 8 has a first lever 11, with which the air flow can be switched between the first compressed air pipe 9 and the second compressed air pipe 10. A support handle 17 is also provided for easier handling of the device 1.

[0026] In Fig. 4 the first outlet opening 5 is shown, which is arranged along the length of the device 1. A blow-out slot 12 can be provided, or a row of individual outlet openings can be arranged. The width of the blown-out first air stream 18 should be between 200 mm and 500 mm, preferably around 360 mm. This allows the air stream to be easily adapted to the conditions of the vehicle's outer surface 2. This figure also shows that the blown-out air stream creates a suction effect, which brings in additional air and contributes to drying the vehicle's outer surface 2. Due to the compressed air exiting the side of the device 1, the device 1 can be conveniently arranged parallel to the vehicle's outer surface 2 to be dried, and large areas can be covered by the drying stream.Thanks to the support handle 17, the device 1 can be guided well beyond the vehicle's outer surface 2, particularly beyond the vehicle's center, while maintaining good stability. A first compressed air pipe 9 and a second compressed air pipe 10 are visible between the support handle 17 and the first outlet opening 5.

[0027] Fig. 5 shows the situation around a switching device, which here is designed as a first valve 8, in detail. On the left side, the handle 14 with the integrated additional valve 13 and the additional lever 15 for regulating the compressed air flow can be seen. The first valve 8 is preferably a 3 / 2-way valve, with the air flow entering on the left and being passed on through the first compressed air pipe 9 or the additional compressed air pipe 10 depending on the position of the first valve 8. The switching is effected by the first lever 11 from a first position 25 to a second position 26. A support handle 17 is also provided for better handling of the device 1.

[0028] The Fig. 6 represents the part of the device 1 with the first outlet opening 5 and the further outlet opening 6, wherein the further outlet opening 6 is located in the longitudinal axis 7 of the device 1 on the front side and is designed, for example, as a nozzle with a circular cross-section. The diameter of the nozzle can be between 10 mm and 15 mm. With the further outlet opening 6, the further air stream 19 is blown out in the direction of the longitudinal axis 7 of the device 1 and can be used to blow off liquid in hard-to-reach places as well as gaps between vehicle parts or the ventilation slots 23.

[0029] In the Fig. 7 und 81 shows an entire system for drying vehicle exterior surfaces 2 after a vehicle wash. Specifically visible here is the compressed air source 4, which is preferably designed as a screw compressor 4a. This compressed air source 4 is designed to generate an air flow rate of 0.5 m / min to 1.5 m / min, preferably 0.9 m / min to 1.2 m / min, at a pressure of 6 bar to 8 bar. The current consumption is preferably 400 V, and the power consumption is advantageously between 5 kW and 10 kW. Prior art pressures of approximately 600 mbar are used, requiring a very large cross-section of the supply hose, often with diameters of between 8 cm and 15 cm. A flexible line 3, preferably a compressed air hose, with a diameter of 1 / 4 inch to 1 inch (6.65 mm to 25.4 mm) is connected to this compressed air source 4.Due to its small diameter, in contrast to the diameters of the prior art, this flexible line 3 is lightweight, so that no disruptive forces act on the device 1. The flexible line 3 can also be easily laid around larger vehicles. At the other end of the flexible line 3, it is connected to the device 1 via the connection 16. The individual parts such as the handle 14, first valve 8, support handle 17 as well as the first outlet openings 5 ​​and further outlet opening 6 are clearly visible here. In the variant shown, the liquid particles 20 still adhering to the vehicle's outer surface 2 are blown off by the first air stream 18 emerging from the first blow-out opening 5 arranged lengthwise. The further outlet opening 6 can then be used to clear gaps, e.g. at the vehicle doors 21, at the windows 22 or ventilation slots 23, as well as the wheel arches 24, of liquid particles 20.The system shown can be installed in a box for manually washing a vehicle or after an automatic car wash.

[0030] With the device 1 described above, in addition to removing water droplets on the smooth vehicle exterior surface 2, water droplets in hard-to-reach places can also be removed particularly well and easily.

Claims

1. A device (1), in particular a compressed air directional blowing device (1a) for removing water droplets remaining on outer vehicle surfaces (2) without contact after a car wash, wherein the device (1) is oblong in design, and can be hooked up to a compressed air source (4) via a flexible line (3), and has at least one first outlet opening (5) for compressed air, which is arranged lengthwise on the device (1), wherein at least one additional outlet opening (6) is provided, which is arranged on a longitudinal axis (7) of the device (1), wherein a first valve (8) is provided, which is fluidically connected on one side with the compressed air source (4) and on another side with the at least one first outlet opening (5) and with the additional outlet opening (6), characterized in that the at least one first outlet opening (5) is connected with a first compressed air pipe (9), and the at least one additional outlet opening (6) is connected with an additional compressed air pipe (10), and both compressed air pipes (9, 10) can be connected with the first valve (8).

2. The device (1) according to claim 1, characterized in that the first valve (8) has a changeover device, in particular a first lever (11), for switching a compressed air supply between the at least one first outlet opening (5) and the additional outlet opening (6).

3. The device (1) according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the at least one first outlet opening (5) is designed as a serial arrangement of outlet openings.

4. The device (1) according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the at least one first outlet opening (5) is designed as a blow-out slot (12).

5. The device (1) according to claim 4, characterized in that the blow-out slot (12) has a width of 0.03 mm to 0.5 mm, preferably of up to 0.05 mm.

6. The device (1) according to one of claims 3 to 5, characterized in that the blow-out slot (12) and / or the serial arrangement of outlet openings has a length of 200 mm to 500 mm, preferably of 360 mm.

7. The device (1) according to one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that an additional valve (13) is provided for interrupting and / or regulating a compressed air stream from the compressed air source (4).

8. The device (1) according to claim 7, characterized in that the additional valve (13) is integrated into a handle (14).

9. The device (1) according to one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that the compressed air source (4) is designed as a screw compressor (4a).

10. The device (1) according to claim 9, characterized in that the screw compressor (4a) is connected with the device (1) via a flexible line (3), wherein the flexible line (3) has a diameter of ¼ of an inch to 1 inch (6.65 mm to 25.4 mm).

11. The device (1) according to claim 9 or 10, characterized in that the screw compressor (4a) is designed to generate a compressed air stream of 0.5 m3 / min to 1.5 m3 / in, preferably of 0.9 m3 / min to 1.2 m3 / min, at a pressure of 6 bar to 8 bar.

12. The device (1) according to one of claims 9 to 11, characterized in that the screw compressor (4a) is equipped with a soft start function.

13. The device (1) according to one of claims 9 to 12, characterized in that the screw compressor (4a) can be connected with several devices (1), preferably compressed air directional blowing devices (1a).