Electrode assembly for rotary atomizer and method of operation thereof

Abstract

The present invention relates to an electrode assembly (6) for electrostatic external charging of paint in a rotary atomizer (1), which preferably comprises an atomizer housing with an end tube (5) extending coaxially with the axis of rotation (3) of the rotary atomizer (1) towards a bell cup (2). The electrode assembly (6) according to the invention comprises a mounting ring (8) for mounting the electrode assembly (6) on the atomizer housing of the rotary atomizer, as well as at least one charging electrode (7) for electrostatic external charging of paint sprayed by the rotary atomizer (1), the at least one charging electrode (7) preferably protruding from the electrode assembly (6). The present invention further comprises a sealed tube shield (9) protruding from the end surface of the mounting ring (8) and extending along the rotation axis (3) of the rotary atomizer (1) to the tube (5) of the rotary atomizer (1) in the mounted state to shield at least a portion of the tube of the rotary atomizer (1) from overspray outside the rotary atomizer (1).

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an electrode assembly for externally electrostatically charging paint in a rotary atomizer. The present invention further includes a rotary atomizer equipped with an electrode assembly according to the present invention. The present invention also includes a method of operation thereof. [Background technology]

[0002] FIG. 1 shows a conventional rotary atomizer 1, which can be used, for example, as a motor for painting automotive body parts in a painting installation, and for this purpose has a bell cup 2 rotatable about a rotation axis 3. At its end, located on the left side of the drawing, the rotary atomizer 1 has an angled atomizer housing 4, which can be mounted on a mounting flange of a painting robot, as known from the prior art. At its distal end, the rotary atomizer 1 has a rotationally symmetrical tube 5, which tapers towards the bell cup 2 along the axis of rotation 3 of the bell cup 2. To increase the application efficiency and reduce troublesome overspray, in this case the applied paint is electrostatically charged. For this purpose, as known from the prior art, an electrode assembly 6 is used, which has a plurality of finger-like charging electrodes 7, which project obliquely outwards from a mounting ring 8 and electrostatically charge the applied paint. The mounting ring 8 is used for the exchangeable mounting of the electrode assembly 6 to the rotary atomizer 1. For this purpose, the mounting ring 8 is placed on the tube 5 of the rotary atomizer 1 and fixed to the rotary atomizer 1 in the position shown in the drawing. The mounting ring 8 leaves the tube 5 almost free. For this reason, overspray occurring during painting may adhere to the tube 5 of the rotary atomizer 1. Therefore, the tube 5 of the rotary atomizer must be periodically cleaned to remove the adhered overspray. Cleaning this tube 5 takes time. Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0003] The invention is therefore based on the task of solving the problem of tube fouling of rotary atomizers as simply as possible. [Means for solving the problem]

[0004] This problem is solved by an electrode assembly according to the main claim.

[0005] The electrode assembly according to the present invention is preferably used for electrostatic external charging of paint in a rotary atomizer having an atomizer housing with a front tube extending coaxially with the axis of rotation of the rotary atomizer toward a bell cup.

[0006] According to the prior art, the electrode assembly according to the invention also has a mounting ring which is used to mount the electrode assembly according to the invention to a rotary atomizer, for this purpose the mounting ring of the electrode assembly is placed on the atomizer housing of the rotary atomizer, preferably on the tube of the rotary atomizer.

[0007] Also in the electrode assembly according to the invention, at least one charging electrode is arranged, which serves for electrostatic external charging of the paint sprayed by the rotary atomizer, and which preferably protrudes from the electrode assembly, for example from the mounting ring. In a preferred embodiment, here, a plurality of finger-shaped charging electrodes are provided, which are preferably arranged in a uniformly distributed manner on the circumference of the mounting ring. For example, three, four, six or eight charging electrodes can be arranged in a distributed manner on the circumference.

[0008] The electrode assembly according to the present invention is characterized here by a tube shield that extends along the rotary atomizer's rotation axis to the rotary atomizer tube in order to shield at least a portion of the rotary atomizer tube from overspray on the outside thereof when the electrode assembly is attached protruding from the end face of the attachment ring. In this way, the tube shield protects the covered portion of the tube from contamination by overspray that occurs during painting, so that there is no need to clean the covered portion of the tube. Rather, it is sufficient to replace the electrode assembly contaminated by overspray with a clean electrode assembly.

[0009] In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the tube of the rotary atomizer has a distal cleaning area, which is located in the cleaning device and therefore can be cleaned by the cleaning device in an automatic cleaning process using the cleaning device. In a further preferred embodiment, the tube of the rotary atomizer has a proximal remaining area adjacent to the distal cleaning area, which is outside the cleaning device during the cleaning process of the cleaning device and therefore is not cleaned by the cleaning device. In a preferred embodiment, the tube shield at least partially, preferably completely covers the proximal remaining area of ​​the tube. A complete coverage of the proximal remaining area of ​​the tube is advantageous here, since the proximal remaining area cannot be cleaned by the cleaning device and should therefore be protected from contamination by overspray by the tube shield.

[0010] In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the tube shield has a seal at its distal end that seals the annular gap between the tube shield and the rotary atomizer tube, which is advantageous in preventing overspray from entering the annular gap between the tube shield and the rotary atomizer tube during painting, leading to contamination of the tube in this area.

[0011] This seal between the tube shield and the rotary atomizer tube is preferably achieved by a seal ring, which may have a sealing lip at its distal end that rests on the outside of the tube, and may be inserted, for example, in an annular groove in the end face of the tube shield.

[0012] The tube shield is preferably made of an electrically insulating material such as polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE).

[0013] In one variation of the invention, the tube shield is integrally molded to the attachment ring of the electrode assembly and is therefore constructed of the same material as the attachment ring of the electrode assembly, however, in another variation of the invention, the tube shield is a separate piece that is attached to the attachment ring of the electrode assembly, optionally constructed of a different material than the attachment ring.

[0014] In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the tube shield has an inner contour that is essentially complementary in shape to the outer contour of the rotary atomizer tube, so that when installed, the tube shield fits perfectly against the tube or surrounds an annular gap with the outer contour of the rotary atomizer tube. If the outer tube of the rotary atomizer is conical, the inner contour of the tube shield is preferably also conical.

[0015] The aforementioned annular gap in the annular direction between the outer contour of the rotary atomizer tube on the one hand and the inner contour of the tube shield on the other hand preferably has a radial cap width that is essentially constant over the axial length of the tube shield, which preferably means that the gap width measured radially over the entire axial length of the tube shield has a deviation of less than ±30%, ±20%, ±10% or ±5%.

[0016] It should also be mentioned that the annular gap between the outer contour of the tube of the rotary atomizer on the one hand and the inner contour of the tube shield on the other hand can be filled with an electrically insulating medium (e.g., petrolatum).

[0017] With regard to the tube shield, it should generally be mentioned that the tube shield is preferably substantially rotationally symmetric in shape and may have an axial length along the axis of rotation of the rotary atomizer of at least 3 cm, 5 cm, 7 cm, 9 cm, 11 cm or 13 cm in order to protect as large a portion of the tube as possible from contamination by overspray. Here, the tube shield is preferably tapered in the distal direction, for example conically. It should also be mentioned generally that the tube shield preferably surrounds the tube in a sleeve-like manner. With regard to the electrode assembly, it should also be mentioned generally that this is preferably replaceably mounted on the rotary atomizer.

[0018] During application, an electrical creepage path is formed along the tube shield between the closely located charged electrode, which is at high voltage potential on the one hand, and the electrically grounded bell cup on the other hand. This creepage path should be as long as possible without extending the required length of the rotary atomizer. The outer surface of the tube shield therefore preferably has a creepage path extension, in particular formed as an outer corrugation or labyrinth, for extending the electrical creepage path between the charged electrode and the bell cup.

[0019] Furthermore, it should be mentioned that the present invention does not claim protection only for the electrode assembly according to the present invention described above, but rather, the present invention also claims protection for a rotary atomizer equipped with such an electrode assembly according to the present invention.

[0020] Finally, the invention also claims protection for a cleaning method for cleaning such a rotary atomizer. The cleaning method according to the invention thus provides firstly that the rotary atomizer is inserted into a cleaning device through an insertion opening. The cleaning method according to the invention then provides that the insertion opening is sealed by a seal. In a next step, the rotary atomizer is cleaned in the cleaning device, for example by spraying a cleaning agent or cleaning mixture onto the rotary atomizer and / or by brush cleaning the rotary atomizer in the cleaning device.

[0021] Sealing of the insertion port of the cleaning device after insertion of the rotary atomizer can be achieved, for example, by a seal ring that remains on the outside of the tube shield of the electrode assembly of the rotary atomizer, or a seal ring of the tube shield or a seal lip of the tube shield.

[0022] In one variant of the invention, this sealing ring of the cleaning device is located axially above the sealing ring of the tube shield, so that the sealing ring of the cleaning device presses axially against the tube shield from the outside, increasing the radial contact pressure of the sealing ring of the tube shield.

[0023] However, in another variant of the invention, the sealing ring of the cleaning device is sealingly offset axially from the sealing ring of the tube shield, which is also possible.

[0024] Said sealing of the tube ring inlet can be achieved, for example, with a contact seal (eg, a seal ring) or a non-contact seal such as a blast air ring.

[0025] Other advantageous further embodiments of the invention are set forth in the dependent claims or are explained in more detail below together with the description of preferred embodiments of the invention with reference to the drawings. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0026] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a side view of a conventional rotary atomizer equipped with a conventional electrode assembly for external electrostatic charging. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing a rotary atomizer according to the present invention having an electrode assembly according to the present invention during a cleaning process in a cleaning device. [Figure 3A] FIG. 3A is a modification of FIG. [Figure 3B] FIG. 3B is an enlarged detail of FIG. 3A in the area of ​​the seal ring of the cleaning device. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 shows a variation of FIGS. 2, 3A and 3B in which the creepage distance is increased. [Diagram 5] FIG. 5 is a flow diagram illustrating the cleaning method according to the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0027] In the following, an embodiment of the present invention shown in FIG. 2 will be described, which corresponds generally to the conventional rotary atomizer 1 described at the beginning, so that in order to avoid repetition, reference is made to said description, whereby the same reference numbers are used for corresponding details.

[0028] A special feature of this embodiment is that a tube shield 9 is formed on the mounting ring 8 of the electrode assembly 6, which protrudes distally from the mounting ring 8 of the electrode assembly 6 and covers the tube 5 of the rotary atomizer 1, thereby protecting it from contamination due to overspray.

[0029] It is noted here that the inner contour of the tube shield 9 complementarily matches the outer contour of the tube 5, and the tube shield 9 surrounds an annular gap 10 with the tube 5, the gap width of which is substantially constant along the axis of rotation 3 of the bell cup 2. The annular gap 10 between the outer tube shield 9 and the inner tube 5 is filled with an insulating medium (e.g. petrolatum).

[0030] At its distal end, the sleeve-shaped pipe shield 9 has a circumferential annular groove at its front into which a sealing ring 11 is inserted and which, together with its distally projecting sealing lip, rests against the outer surface of the pipe 5 to form a seal.

[0031] The drawing shows the rotary atomizer 1 in a cleaning position in a cleaning device 12. The rotary atomizer 1 is inserted into an insertion port 13 at the top of the cleaning device 12.

[0032] An annular gap is formed between the outer shell of the tube shield 9 and the periphery of the insertion opening 13 of the cleaning device 12 , and this annular gap is sealed by a blast air ring 14 .

[0033] The cleaning device 12 has a cleaning nozzle 15 which serves to clean the tube 5 of the rotary atomizer 1 in a distal cleaning area 16 by spraying a cleaning agent into the tube 5. In this case, the distal cleaning area 16 is located inside the cleaning device 12 and can therefore be cleaned therein. Adjacent to the distal cleaning area 16 is a proximal remaining area 17 which cannot be cleaned therein as it is outside the cleaning device 12 during the cleaning process. It is important for the tube shield 9 to divide the tube 5 into the cleaning area 16 and the remaining area 17. Thus, the tube shield 9 completely covers the tube 5 of the rotary atomizer 1 in the proximal remaining area 17. In the proximal remaining area 17, cleaning of the tube 5 is not necessary since the tube 5 is covered by the tube shield 9 and therefore the tube 5 is not soiled by overspray. On the other hand, the distal cleaning area 16 does not need to be covered by the tube shield 9 since it can be easily cleaned inside the cleaning device 12.

[0034] 3A and 3B show a variant of the embodiment according to FIG. 2 and, to avoid repetition, reference is made to the above description, whereby the same reference numerals have been used for corresponding details.

[0035] A special feature of this embodiment is that the sealing of the insertion port 13 of the cleaning device 12 is not performed by the blast air ring 14 in FIG. 2 but by a sealing ring 18 which rests in contact with the sealing ring 11 of the tube shield 9, thereby pressing the sealing lip of the sealing ring 11 radially against the outer surface of the tube 5.

[0036] Figure 4 shows a further variant of the above-mentioned embodiment according to figures 2, 3A and 3B. Here, an additional corrugated creepage extension 19 is shown diagrammatically, which extends the electrical creepage between the charged electrode 7 and the electrically grounded bell cup 2 along the outer surface of the tube 5. In the figure, the creepage extension 19 is shown as a corrugation. However, it is also possible to form the creepage extension 19 as a labyrinth.

[0037] FIG. 5 is a flow diagram illustrating the cleaning method according to the present invention.

[0038] In a first step S1, the painting robot inserts the rotary atomizer 1 into the cleaning device 12 through the insertion port 13.

[0039] In a second step S2, the insertion port 13 of the cleaning device 12 is optionally sealed by a breast air ring 14 as shown in FIG. 2, or by a sealing ring 18 as shown in FIGS. 3A and 3B.

[0040] In a next step S3, the rotary atomizer 1 is cleaned in the cleaning device 12 by spraying it with a cleaning agent or cleaning mixture.

[0041] In a further step S4, the rotary atomizer 1 is dried in the cleaning device 12, for example by blowing it with compressed air.

[0042] In the final step S5, the rotary atomizer 1 is pulled out from the cleaning device 12 again.

[0043] The present invention is not limited to the preferred embodiment described above. Rather, the present invention also encompasses numerous variations and modifications that utilize the inventive idea and thus fall within the scope of protection. In particular, the present invention also claims protection for the subject matter and features of the dependent claims, independently of the claims to which it refers in each case, in particular without the features of the main claims. The present invention therefore consists of various aspects of the invention which enjoy protection independently of each other.

[0044] (Additional Note) (Appendix 1) An electrode assembly (6) for electrostatic external charging of paint in a rotary atomizer, said electrode assembly (6) comprising an atomizer housing (4) having a tube (5) at its end face, said tube (5) preferably extending coaxially with the axis of rotation (3) of said rotary atomizer (1) towards a bell cup (2); a) a mounting ring (8) for mounting the electrode assembly (6) to the atomizer housing (4) of the rotary atomizer (1); b) at least one charging electrode (7) for electrostatic external charging of the paint sprayed by said rotary atomizer, said at least one charging electrode (7) preferably protruding from said electrode assembly (6); Equipped with c) a sealed tube shield (9) protruding from an end face of the mounting ring (8) and extending to the tube (5) of the rotary atomizer (1) while being attached to the outside of the tube (5) of the rotary atomizer (1) along the rotation axis (3) of the rotary atomizer (1) to shield at least a portion of the tube (5) of the rotary atomizer (1) from overspray; Characterized by: Electrode assembly (6).

[0045] (Appendix 2) a) the tube (5) of the rotary atomizer (1) has a distal cleaning area (16) that is located within and can be cleaned by a cleaning device (12) in an automatic cleaning process by the cleaning device (12); b) the tube (5) of the rotary atomizer (1) has a proximal residual area (17) that is located outside the cleaning device (12) during the cleaning process by the cleaning device (12) and thus cannot be cleaned by the cleaning device (12); c) the vessel shield (9) at least partially, preferably completely covers the proximal remaining region (17) of the vessel (5); Characterized in that 2. The electrode assembly (6) of claim 1.

[0046] (Appendix 3) the tube shield (9) has a seal (11) at its distal end for sealing an annular gap (10) between the tube shield (9) and the tube (5) of the rotary atomizer (1); Characterized in that 3. The electrode assembly (6) according to claim 1 or 2.

[0047] (Appendix 4) The seal (11) has a seal ring (11). Characterized in that 4. The electrode assembly (6) of claim 3.

[0048] (Appendix 5) The tube shield (9) is made of an electrically insulating material, in particular polytetrafluoroethylene; Characterized in that An electrode assembly (6) according to any one of claims 1 to 4.

[0049] (Appendix 6) a) the tube shield (9) is integrally formed with the mounting ring (8) of the electrode assembly (6) and is constructed from the same material as the mounting ring (8); or b) the tube shield (9) is a separate component that is secured to the mounting ring (8) of the electrode assembly (6) and is optionally constructed from a different material than the mounting ring (8); Characterized in that An electrode assembly (6) according to any one of claims 1 to 5.

[0050] (Appendix 7) a) the tube shield (9) has an inner contour that is essentially complementary to the outer contour of the tube (5) of the rotary atomizer (1) so that, in the assembled state, the tube shield (9) fits completely against the tube (5) or circumferentially encloses an annular gap with the outer contour of the tube (5) of the rotary atomizer (1); and / or b) the annular circumferential gap (10) between the outer contour of the tube (5) of the rotary atomizer (1) and the tube shield (9) has an essentially constant gap width, the gap width of the annular gap (10) over the axial length of the tube shield (9) preferably having a deviation of less than ±30%, ±20%, ±10% or ±5%; and / or c) the annular gap (10) between the outer contour of the tube (5) of the rotary atomizer (1) and the tube shield (9) is filled with an electrically insulating medium, in particular petrolatum, and / or d) the tube shield (9) is substantially rotationally symmetrically shaped; and / or e) the tube shield (9) extends axially along the axis of rotation (3) of the rotary atomizer (1) for a length of at least 3 cm, 5 cm, 7 cm, 9 cm, 11 cm or 13 cm; and / or f) the tube shield (9) tapers in the distal direction, in particular conically, and / or g) the tube shield (9) is sleeve-shaped; and / or h) the electrode assembly (6) is replaceably attached to the rotary atomizer (1); Characterized in that An electrode assembly (6) according to any one of claims 1 to 6.

[0051] (Appendix 8) a) the tube shield (9) in the installed state forms an electrical creepage distance on its outer surface between the charged electrode (7) at high voltage potential and the grounded bell cup (2); b) the outer surface of the tube shield (9) has a creepage extension (19) for extending the creepage distance, in particular formed as an outer corrugation or labyrinth, Characterized in that 8. An electrode assembly (6) according to any one of claims 1 to 7.

[0052] (Appendix 9) The tube (5) of the rotary atomizer (1) preferably has a) rotationally symmetric; b) has a circular cross-section; and / or c) tapering, especially conically, towards its distal end; Characterized in that A rotary atomizer comprising an electrode assembly (6) according to any one of claims 1 to 8.

[0053] (Appendix 10) A cleaning method for cleaning the rotary atomizer (1) according to claim 9 with a cleaning device (12), comprising: a) inserting the rotary atomizer (1) into the cleaning device (12) through an insertion port (13); b) sealing the insertion opening (13) with a seal (14; 18) while the rotary atomizer is inserted into the cleaning device (12); c) cleaning the rotary atomizer (1) in the cleaning device (12), in particular by spraying the rotary atomizer (1) with a cleaning agent or a cleaning mixture and / or by brushing the rotary atomizer (1) in the cleaning device (12), Including, Cleaning method:

[0054] (Appendix 11) a sealing of the insertion port (13) of the cleaning device (12) after the rotary atomizer (1) is inserted by a seal ring (18) that remains on the outside of the tube shield (9) of the electrode assembly (6) of the rotary atomizer (1); Characterized by: The cleaning method described in appendix 10.

[0055] (Appendix 12) a) the sealing ring (18) of the cleaning device (12) in a sealed state during the cleaning process is axially offset from the sealing ring (11) of the tube shield (9) relative to the rotation axis (3) of the rotary atomizer (1), in particular in front of and close to the sealing ring of the tube shield (9), or b) the sealing ring (18) of the cleaning device (12) and the sealing ring (11) of the tube shield (9) sealingly mating axially, one above the other, during the cleaning process against the rotation shaft (3) of the rotary atomizer (1); Characterized by: 12. The cleaning method described in appendix 11.

[0056] (Appendix 13) a step of sealing the insertion opening (13) of the cleaning device (12) after the rotary atomizer (1) is inserted, the sealing being performed in a contactless manner, in particular by using a blast air ring (14); Characterized by: The cleaning method described in appendix 10. [Explanation of symbols]

[0057] 1 Rotary atomizer 2 Bell Cup 3 Bell cup rotation axis 4 Atomizer housing 5 Atomizer housing tube 6 Electrode assembly for external electrostatic charging of the paint to be sprayed 7. Charged electrode of electrode assembly 8 Electrode assembly mounting ring 9 Tube shield for electrode assembly 10 Annular gap between tube shield and tube 11 Seal ring of tube shield of electrode assembly 12 Cleaning equipment 13 Cleaning device insertion port 14 Blast air ring at the inlet of the cleaning device 15 Cleaning nozzle for cleaning the rotary atomizer 16 Cleaning area of ​​pipes that can be cleaned with the cleaning device 17 Residual areas of pipes that cannot be automatically cleaned 18 Seal ring at the insertion port of the cleaning device 19 Waveform creepage extension

Claims

1. An electrode assembly (6) for electrostatic external charging of paint in a rotary atomizer, wherein the electrode assembly (6) has an atomizer housing (4) having a tube (5) at an end face, and the tube (5) preferably extends coaxially with the rotation axis (3) of the rotary atomizer (1) towards a bell cup (2), a) a mounting ring (8) for attaching the electrode assembly (6) to the atomizer housing (4) of the rotary atomizer (1), b) at least one charging electrode (7) for electrostatic external charging of the paint sprayed by the rotary atomizer, preferably at least one of the charging electrodes (7) protruding from the electrode assembly (6), comprising, c) a sealed tube shield (9) protruding from an end face of the mounting ring (8) and extending along the rotation axis (3) of the rotary atomizer (1) to the tube (5) of the rotary atomizer (1) in a state of being attached to shield at least a part of the tube (5) of the rotary atomizer (1) from overspray, characterized by, the electrode assembly (6).

2. a) The tube (5) of the rotary atomizer (1) has a distal cleaning region (16) which is located within the cleaning device (12) and can therefore be cleaned by the cleaning device (12) during an automatic cleaning process by the cleaning device (12), b) The tube (5) of the rotary atomizer (1) has a proximal residual region (17) which is located outside the cleaning device (12) during the cleaning process by the cleaning device (12) and cannot thereby be cleaned by the cleaning device (12), c) The tube shield (9) at least partially, preferably completely covers the proximal residual region (17) of the tube (5), characterized in that, the electrode assembly (6) according to Claim 1.

3. The tube shield (9) has a seal (11) at its distal end to seal an annular gap (10) between the tube shield (9) and the tube (5) of the rotary atomizer (1), characterized in that, the electrode assembly (6) according to Claim 1 or 2.

4. The seal (11) has a sealing ring (11), characterized in that, the electrode assembly (6) according to Claim 3.

5. The tube shield (9) is made of an electrically insulating material, in particular polytetrafluoroethylene, characterized in that, The electrode assembly (6) according to claim 1 or 2.

6. a) The tube shield (9) is integrally formed on the mounting ring (8) of the electrode assembly (6), is composed of the same material as the mounting ring (8), or b) The tube shield (9) is an independent component fixed to the mounting ring (8) of the electrode assembly (6) and is optionally composed of a material different from the mounting ring (8), characterized in that the electrode assembly (6) according to claim 1 or 2.

7. a) The tube shield (9) has an inner contour that is basically complementary to the outer contour of the tube (5) of the rotary atomizer (1). In the assembled state, the tube shield (9) fits completely against the tube (5), or the outer contour of the tube (5) of the rotary atomizer (1) surrounds an annular gap in the circumferential direction, and / or b) The annular circumferential annular gap (10) between the outer contour of the tube (5) of the rotary atomizer (1) and the tube shield (9) has a basically constant gap width, and the gap width of the annular gap (10) over the axial length of the tube shield (9) preferably has a deviation of less than ±30%, ±20%, ±10% or ±5%, and / or c) The annular gap (10) between the outer contour of the tube (5) of the rotary atomizer (1) and the tube shield (9) is filled with an electrically insulating medium, especially petrolatum, and / or d) The tube shield (9) is shaped substantially rotationally symmetrically, and / or e) The tube shield (9) extends axially along the rotation axis (3) of the rotary atomizer (1) over a length of at least 3 cm, 5 cm, 7 cm, 9 cm, 11 cm or 13 cm, and / or f) The tube shield (9) tapers distally, especially conically, and / or g) The tube shield (9) is in the shape of a sleeve, and / or h) The electrode assembly (6) is detachably attached to the rotary atomizer (1), characterized in that the electrode assembly (6) according to claim 1 or 2.

8. a) The mounted tube shield (9) forms an electrical creepage distance on its outer surface between the charged electrode (7) at a high voltage potential and the bell cup (2) grounded, b) The outer surface of the tube shield (9) has a creepage distance extension (19), which is formed in particular as a corrugation or labyrinth of the outer surface, for extending the creepage distance. Characterized in that the electrode assembly (6) according to claim 1 or 2.

9. The tube (5) of the rotary atomizer (1) is preferably a) rotationally symmetric, b) has a circular cross-section, and / or c) tapers towards its distal end, in particular conically. Characterized in that a rotary atomizer comprising the electrode assembly (6) according to claim 1 or 2.

10. A cleaning method for cleaning the rotary atomizer (1) according to claim 9 with a cleaning device (12), comprising: a) inserting the rotary atomizer (1) into the cleaning device (12) through an insertion opening (13); b) sealing the insertion opening (13) with a seal (14; 18) while the rotary atomizer is inserted into the cleaning device (12); c) cleaning the rotary atomizer (1) in the cleaning device (12), in particular by spraying a cleaning agent or a cleaning mixture onto the rotary atomizer (1) and / or by brushing the rotary atomizer (1) in the cleaning device (12). Including the cleaning method.

11. The step of sealing the insertion opening (13) of the cleaning device (12) after insertion of the rotary atomizer (1) is realized by a seal ring (18) remaining outside the tube shield (9) of the electrode assembly (6) of the rotary atomizer (1). Characterized in that the cleaning method according to claim 10.

12. a) The seal ring (18) of the cleaning device (12) in the sealed state during the cleaning process is axially offset relative to the rotary axis (3) of the rotary atomizer (1) from the seal ring (11) of the tube shield (9), and is arranged in particular in proximity in front of the seal ring of the tube shield (9); or b) The seal ring (18) of the cleaning device (12) and the seal ring (11) of the tube shield (9) are axially aligned in the sealed state and one is on top of the other during the cleaning process with respect to the rotary axis (3) of the rotary atomizer (1). Characterized in that the cleaning method according to claim 11.

13. The sealing of the insertion opening (13) of the cleaning device (12) after insertion of the rotary atomizer (1) is performed in particular non-contact using a blast air ring (14). characterized by The cleaning method according to claim 10.

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