Suction Pool Cleaner With Pivotable Tracks for Lower-Power Turns
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Solution Overview
Problem
Suction pool cleaners face inefficiencies in cleaning patterns, power requirements during turns, and tendency to get stuck in corners, particularly due to high frictional forces and limited power output from turbines.
Innovation Solution
A suction pool cleaner with pivotable leg assemblies and rotatable loop tracks that reduce suction force and power requirements by lifting diagonally opposite ends from the pool surface during turns, enabling a zigzag cleaning pattern through opposite direction rotation of tracks.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If tracked suction pool cleaners use ground engaging continuous rubber tracks driven by one or more drive wheels for steering, then the cleaner can navigate across the pool surface, but the frictional forces increase significantly during turning actions causing the turbine to overload and stall
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies dynamics by making the leg assemblies pivotable relative to the housing, allowing the contact patch geometry to change dynamically during turning operations. The leg assemblies can pivot to reduce the effective footprint during turns, thereby reducing frictional forces and power requirements during steering maneuvers while maintaining navigation capability.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent segments the continuous rubber track into discrete loop tracks mounted on separate pivotable leg assemblies. This segmentation allows independent control and movement of each leg assembly, enabling the cleaner to reduce its effective contact area during turns by pivoting individual leg assemblies, thus reducing the power required for steering.
2Productivity
If the pool cleaner maintains a large contact patch with the pool surface for stable cleaning, then cleaning coverage is improved, but the suction force between the cleaner and pool surface increases making turning difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The pivotable leg assemblies allow the cleaner to dynamically adjust its contact patch area. During straight cleaning operations, the leg assemblies maintain full contact for maximum cleaning coverage. During turning operations, the leg assemblies pivot to reduce the contact patch area, thereby reducing suction force and making turning easier while maintaining effective cleaning coverage during straight movement.
3Ease of operation
If the cleaner travels in circular patterns around the pool as shown in Figure 2, then the cleaner can navigate the pool surface, but the cleaning pattern is inefficient with repeated tracks leaving patches uncleaned and taking 8 or more hours
Solution Approach 1:
The pivotable leg assemblies with adjustable loop tracks enable the cleaner to dynamically change its movement pattern from inefficient circular paths to efficient zigzag patterns. The ability to pivot leg assemblies and adjust track rotation allows precise control over the cleaner's trajectory, enabling it to cover the pool surface systematically in zigzag patterns that ensure complete coverage without repeated tracks, significantly improving cleaning efficiency.
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
The solution allows for efficient pool cleaning in a zigzag pattern, reducing power consumption and avoiding stalls, while ensuring complete pool surface coverage in less time.
Implementation Method 1
Another type of suction pool cleaner is driven by the energy of water flowing through a turbine
Implementation Method 2
an automatic pool cleaner is designed to move around the pool autonomously. In this regard, automatic pool cleaners are self-propelled devices which during operation attach to the surface (floor and walls) of the swimming pool by negative pressure (vacuum)
Implementation Method 3
each leg assembly having a rotatable loop track for moving the pool cleaner over the pool surface
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3
AI summary
A suction pool cleaner (1) for cleaning of a pool surface, the pool cleaner (1) comprising a housing (11) having a debris inlet (13) for suction-drawn flow of water and debris, a first leg assembly (3) and a second leg assembly (5), each leg assembly (3, 5) being pivotable with respect to the housing (11), each leg assembly (3, 5) having a rotatable loop track (39) for moving the pool cleaner (1) over the pool surface, the tracks (39) being selectively rotatable in a first direction and an opposite second direction, wherein when the tracks (39) are rotated in opposite directions to one another, the leg assemblies (3, 5) pivot with respect to the housing (11) in opposite directions, thereby lifting the debris inlet (13) away from the pool surface such that suction force between the debris inlet (13) and the pool surface is reduced along with the footprint provided by each track (39) such that less power is required to turn the pool cleaner (1).