Hand-Held Floor Cleaner With Integrated Suction and Roller Wiping

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing hand-held floor cleaning machines do not effectively combine suction and wiping functions to achieve optimized cleaning results while being easy to handle.

Innovation Solution

The design incorporates a cleaning roller with a mouth wall that protrudes into its bristles, creating a suction flow for effective dirt removal, and a wiping function with a cleaning liquid dispenser, along with a sweeping lip for coarse dirt collection, all integrated into a compact, user-friendly device.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Productivity

If a mouth wall protrudes into the bristles of the cleaning roller, then suction efficiency is improved, but device complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvesuction efficiencyVSAvoiddevice complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
ProductivityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The suction channel device is integrated directly with the cleaning roller such that the mouth wall protrudes into the bristles, merging the suction function with the cleaning roller structure to improve suction efficiency without adding separate components

Inventive Principle:
Principle #5Merging (Combining)

Solution Approach 2:

The mouth wall extends in the radial direction into the bristle layer, creating a three-dimensional suction path that intersects with the bristle volume, thereby improving suction efficiency by utilizing the vertical dimension within the roller structure

Inventive Principle:
Principle #17Another dimension (Dimensionality change)

2Object-affected harmful factors

If support wheels are removed to reduce abrasion, then harmful factors are reduced, but ease of operation deteriorates

Engineering Contradiction:
ImproveabrasionVSAvoidease of operation
Core Design Contradiction:
Object-affected harmful factorsVSEase of operation

Solution Approach 1:

The cleaning roller is designed to perform multiple functions: it provides the primary cleaning action through its bristles, supports the entire weight of the device, and enables user control, thereby replacing the traditional support wheels and maintaining ease of operation without causing abrasion

Inventive Principle:
Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

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 enhances suction efficiency, improves fluid tightness, and ensures effective dirt extraction and wiping, allowing for efficient cleaning of large areas without support wheels, which reduces abrasion and maintains low residual moisture.

Implementation Method 1

a fan device (40) which generates a suction flow

Methodology Applied
Scientific EffectSuction: Suction

Data Source

PatentEP3079553B1Floor-cleaning machine
Publication Date: 2021.02.17 ALFRED KARCHER SE & CO KG
  • EP3079553B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP3079553B1 patent drawingFigure 2
  • EP3079553B1 patent drawingFigure 3

AI summary

The invention proposes a floor-cleaning machine, in particular hand-operated and/or hand-held floor-cleaning machine, which comprises a carrier device, at least one cleaning roller, which is arranged on the carrier device, can be driven in rotation and is provided with a border, also comprises a fan device for generating a suction stream, and further comprises a suction-extraction-channel device which is intended for the suction stream and creates at least one suction-extraction channel with a fluid-active connection between the fan device and the at least one cleaning roller, wherein the at least one suction-extraction channel has at least one mouth cavity in the direction of the at least one cleaning roller and the at least one mouth cavity has a first mouth-cavity wall and a spaced-apart, second mouth-cavity wall, a mouth-cavity opening being formed between said two walls, wherein, in the case of at least one cleaning roller having been placed in position on a floor which is to be cleaned, the first mouth-cavity wall is positioned above the second mouth-cavity wall, as seen in relation to the direction of gravitational force, wherein the first mouth-cavity wall and/or the second mouth-cavity wall butt and/or butts against the border of the at least one cleaning roller or project/projects into the same.