Adjustable Bucket Scraper Assembly for Interior Residue Cleaning
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Cleaning the interior of buckets, especially those containing liquids or wet goods, is cumbersome, costly, and inefficient due to the difficulty in accessing and removing residual materials, which can lead to fatigue and injury for those performing the task.
Innovation Solution
A bucket cleaning apparatus comprising a frame with adjustable primary and secondary support members and scrapers that can be coupled to the frame, allowing the bucket to be rotated over the apparatus, enabling the scrapers to engage and remove material from the interior sides and bottom surfaces.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If manual cleaning methods are used to remove residual materials from bucket interiors, then the cleaning task can be performed, but the workers experience fatigue and injury from repetitive motion and physical exertion
Solution Approach 1:
The cleaning apparatus enables the bucket to clean itself through automated rotation and scraping mechanisms, eliminating the need for manual labor. The bucket is secured to a rotating platform that automatically rotates it while scrapers remove residual materials from the interior surfaces, allowing the system to perform the cleaning function autonomously without human physical intervention.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces manual mechanical cleaning actions with an automated mechanical system. Instead of workers manually scraping and wiping bucket interiors, the invention uses a motorized rotation mechanism combined with fixed scrapers that automatically contact and scrape the bucket interior as it rotates, substituting human mechanical effort with automated mechanical motion.
2Productivity
If the bucket interior is cleaned manually, then residual materials can be removed, but the process is cumbersome and inefficient due to difficulty in accessing the interior surfaces
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of having workers reach into the bucket interior to clean it, the invention inverts the approach by bringing the cleaning surfaces to the worker. The bucket is rotated automatically while stationary scrapers remain fixed in position, allowing the bucket interior to pass through the scrapers during rotation. This inversion eliminates the need for workers to access and manually reach into difficult-to-reach areas of the bucket interior.
Solution Approach 2:
The cleaning system introduces dynamic rotation of the bucket while keeping the scrapers stationary. The bucket rotates on a turntable mechanism, creating continuous motion that allows scrapers to contact all interior surfaces systematically. This dynamic approach replaces static manual cleaning with automated rotational motion, improving both accessibility and efficiency.
3Reliability
If multiple scrapers are used to clean different surfaces of the bucket, then thorough cleaning is achieved, but the device complexity increases with multiple support members and adjustable components
Solution Approach 1:
The cleaning apparatus is divided into segmented functional components: a rotation mechanism for the bucket, separate scrapers for different surfaces (side walls and bottom), and support structures for each scraper. This segmentation allows each component to perform its specific function independently while working together as a coordinated system, enabling thorough cleaning of all bucket surfaces through modular, manageable parts.
Solution Approach 2:
The rotating platform serves multiple functions: it secures the bucket, rotates it for comprehensive surface access, and positions the bucket interior against the scrapers. The same rotation mechanism enables both the bucket to be held securely and to be rotated through the cleaning action, demonstrating multi-functionality that reduces overall system complexity while maintaining thorough cleaning capability.
Data Source
AI summary
A bucket cleaning apparatus is provided. The bucket cleaning apparatus includes a frame. One or more primary support members is coupled individually to the frame. A corresponding secondary support member is coupled to each primary support member. A scraper is coupled to one or more of each of the primary support members and secondary support members, wherein each scraper is adjustable with respect to the primary support member or secondary support member to which the scraper is coupled. A bucket may be inserted over the top of the primary support members such that the scrapers on at least the primary support members engage interior surfaces of the bucket to clean out the bucket as the bucket is rotated about the primary support members.