Removable Mop Base Plate for Cleaning Obstructed Floor Spaces
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional flat mops with large surface areas struggle to access and clean obstructed floor spaces, such as areas between furniture and under tables, due to their size, often requiring users to omit these areas or use separate mops for different rooms.
Innovation Solution
A mop design featuring a removable base plate and a pivot joint allows the handle and top plate to be used as a separate cleaning device, enabling access to tight spaces with a smaller top plate that can be easily detached from the base plate, and equipped with a fluid deposition system for efficient cleaning.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If a large base plate is used to provide a large cleaning path, then cleaning efficiency is improved, but the ability to access obstructed floor spaces deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The mop is divided into two separate cleaning components: a large base plate with cleaning pad for open areas, and a smaller top plate with cleaning pad for obstructed spaces. The lock assembly allows these segments to be connected when needed or separated for accessing tight areas, resolving the contradiction between cleaning efficiency and adaptability.
2Device complexity
If a single large base plate is used, then fewer mops are needed, but the ability to clean different room types deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The single mop system is designed to perform multiple functions by combining a large base plate for open areas and a smaller top plate for obstructed spaces. The lock assembly enables the user to configure the mop according to the specific cleaning task, providing universality without requiring multiple separate mops.
3Adaptability or versatility
If the base plate is made removable, then adaptability to different spaces is improved, but device complexity deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The mop is segmented into a base plate and a top plate that can be independently used or combined. The lock assembly provides a straightforward mechanism for connecting or separating these segments, achieving adaptability while keeping the complexity manageable through clear functional division.
Data Source
AI summary
A mop having a base plate, a top plate, a handle, and a lock assembly to connect the top plate to the base plate. The base plate has a lower surface configured to face a surface to be cleaned, and an upper surface opposite the lower surface. The handle has a proximal end connected to the top plate by a joint, and a distal with a grip at the distal end. The lock assembly includes one or more slots on one of the base plate and the top plate, and one or more projections on the other of the base plate and the top plate. The one or more projections are movable between an engaged position in which the one or more projections are in the one or more slots, and a disengaged position in which the one or more projections are not in the one or more slots.