Apparatus for cleaning surfaces using the bernoulli principle
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing cleaning apparatuses struggle to adhere to vertical or overhead surfaces effectively, causing user strain during cleaning operations.
Innovation Solution
A cleaning apparatus utilizing the Bernoulli principle, where a pressurized cleaning fluid is directed through a reduced cross-sectional area to increase fluid velocity and reduce pressure, creating a pressure differential that forces a membrane against the surface, securing the apparatus in place.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If a cleaning apparatus is designed to clean vertical or overhead surfaces, then the cleaning capability is improved, but the user experiences extended strain from raising the apparatus for prolonged periods
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the mechanical system of manual support and positioning with a fluid dynamic system based on Bernoulli's principle. The apparatus uses pressurized fluid flow through a nozzle to create a low-pressure region that generates lift force, substituting the need for mechanical support structures and reducing user physical strain during operation on vertical or overhead surfaces
Solution Approach 2:
The invention employs pneumatic principles by using pressurized fluid (gas or liquid) flowing through a nozzle to create a controlled pressure differential. This fluid dynamic system generates the necessary lift and holding forces to maintain the apparatus on vertical or overhead surfaces without requiring mechanical support, thereby improving ease of operation
2Reliability
If the cleaning head is pressed to the surface and kept there throughout the cleaning process, then cleaning effectiveness is improved, but the user must maintain continuous physical effort
Solution Approach 1:
The apparatus is designed to be self-sustaining through the Bernoulli effect. Once the pressurized fluid is activated, the resulting pressure differential automatically maintains the cleaning head in contact with the surface, creating a self-regulating system that eliminates the need for continuous user effort to press the head against the surface while ensuring consistent cleaning effectiveness
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 apparatus maintains its position against the surface without additional mechanical means, reducing user strain and enabling efficient cleaning of various surfaces, including flat and curved ones, by leveraging atmospheric pressure.
Implementation Method 1
a pressurized cleaning fluid is directed through a reduced cross-sectional area to increase fluid velocity and reduce pressure, creating a pressure differential that forces a membrane against the surface
Data Source
AI summary
An apparatus for cleaning a surface includes a support having a cavity, a conduit, at least one cleaning element, and a skirting member. A pressurized cleaning fluid is controllably directed to the cavity. When the apparatus is applied to a surface, the skirting member forms a fluid flow region with a reduced cross-sectional area through which the cleaning fluid must travel, increasing the velocity of the fluid and reducing the pressure in the fluid flow region. With a reduced pressure now in the fluid flow region between a surface to be cleaned and the skirting member, a greater atmospheric pressure beyond the skirting member employs the Bernoulli principle to force the skirting member, attached to the support, against the surface to be cleaned.