Cleaning roller

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Solution Overview

Problem

Conventional cleaning rollers with foam cores often fail to maintain full-surface contact on uneven surfaces, leading to reduced cleaning effectiveness and potential wrinkling of the roller jacket during use.

Innovation Solution

Incorporating a plurality of spring elements around the bearing of the roller core, which extend to the roller shell, providing increased spring force and a larger contact surface, while maintaining a constant circumference to prevent wrinkling, and allowing for even weight distribution across the edge areas.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Strength

If a foam roller core is used, then the structure is simple and easy to manufacture, but the spring force is insufficient and the roller shell wrinkles during cleaning

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvespring forceVSAvoidroller core structure
Core Design Contradiction:
StrengthVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The roller core is segmented into multiple independent spring elements arranged circumferentially around the bearing. Each spring element extends from the bearing to the roller shell, providing distributed spring force throughout the roller structure rather than relying on a single foam core material property.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The spring elements are made of elastically deformable material (plastic or metal) that can be extruded or injection molded. The material parameters and geometric dimensions of the spring elements can be optimized to achieve the desired spring force characteristics, replacing the fixed properties of foam material.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #35Parameter changes

2Area of stationary object

If the roller shell is pressed against the surface with increased spring force, then the contact surface area increases, but the circumference of the roller may change causing wrinkling

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvecontact surface areaVSAvoidroller circumference
Core Design Contradiction:
Area of stationary objectVSShape

Solution Approach 1:

The spring elements are designed to be elastically deformable, allowing them to dynamically adjust their length and position in response to surface irregularities. This dynamic adaptation enables the roller shell to maintain constant circumference while achieving full-surface contact through the elastic deformation of the spring elements.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #15Dynamics

Solution Approach 2:

The roller shell is designed as a flexible structure that can adapt to surface contours. The combination of the flexible roller shell and the elastic spring elements allows the system to maintain its overall shape and circumference while achieving conformal contact with uneven surfaces.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #30Flexible shells and thin films

Applied Scientific Principles

This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.

Function Achieved in This Case

This configuration ensures a thorough and efficient cleaning by maintaining maximum contact area with the surface, preventing wrinkling and enhancing the cleaning effect, even on uneven surfaces, with improved spring force distribution compared to traditional foam rollers.

Implementation Method 1

The spring elements are made of an elastically deformable material, in particular a plastic

Methodology Applied
Scientific EffectElasticity: Elasticity

Data Source

PatentEP3359007B1Cleaning roller
Publication Date: 2020.03.25 VORWERK & CO INTERHOLDING GMBH
  • EP3359007B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP3359007B1 patent drawingFigure 2~3
  • EP3359007B1 patent drawingFigure 4~5

AI summary

The invention relates to a cleaning roller (1) for a cleaning appliance (2) or a cleaning appliance (2) having such a cleaning roller (1) for processing an area to be cleaned, in particular a wiping roller for a wet cleaning appliance, wherein the cleaning roller (1) has a roller core (4) that can rotate about a longitudinal axis (3) and has a bearing (5) for a drive shaft and a roller cover (6) surrounding the roller core (4) in the circumferential direction. In order to further develop a cleaning roller (1) or a cleaning appliance (2) having such a cleaning roller (1), in particular with regard to an optimized cleaning action, the roller core, according to the invention, based on a cross section perpendicular to the longitudinal axis (3), has a plurality of spring elements (7) formed beside one another in the circumferential direction of the cleaning roller (1), each of which extends from the bearing (5) to the roller cover (6).