Trailer Floor Cleaning Apparatus with Rubber Flanges
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Solution Overview
Problem
Self-unloading trailers with moving floors face inefficiencies due to residual material left on the trailer floor after unloading, requiring manual removal and increasing transport time, which reduces operator profitability.
Innovation Solution
A detachably attachable moving headboard trailer ejector and floor cleaning apparatus with rubber flanges and a traversing mechanism that ensures complete ejection of material and minimizes residual material, allowing for easy retraction and access without manual climbing, suitable for both new and existing trailers with reciprocating slat or conveyor belt floors.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Quantity of substance
If manual sweeping or shoveling is used to remove residual material, then complete material removal is achieved, but time consumption increases and productivity decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The apparatus enables self-service by allowing the moving floor to automatically push residual material off the trailer through its normal reciprocating motion, eliminating the need for manual intervention and additional cleaning equipment while maintaining complete material removal
Solution Approach 2:
The invention utilizes the dynamic motion of the existing moving floor system to accomplish material ejection. The reciprocating slat floor or conveyor belt floor naturally pushes material forward during its operation, and this dynamic action is harnessed to clear residual material without requiring separate static cleaning mechanisms
2Ease of operation
If manual climbing is required for access to trailer interior, then operator access is achieved, but safety risk increases and ease of operation decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The apparatus serves as an intermediary structure that bridges the gap between the operator and the trailer interior. By providing a platform or access mechanism integrated with the moving floor system, operators can reach the trailer interior without climbing, thus maintaining ease of operation while improving safety
Solution Approach 2:
The invention introduces a new dimensional approach to access by utilizing the vertical space and motion of the moving floor system. Rather than horizontal climbing, the system allows operators to access the trailer interior through vertical displacement or integrated platforms, changing the dimension of access and eliminating safety risks associated with climbing
3Quantity of substance
If rubber flanges are used to ensure snug fit, then material ejection completeness is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The rubber flanges utilize flexible material properties to create an effective seal against the trailer walls. The flexibility of the rubber allows it to conform to the trailer interior surfaces, ensuring complete material ejection without requiring complex rigid sealing mechanisms or multiple components
Solution Approach 2:
The apparatus employs composite construction by combining the rigid structural framework with flexible rubber flange materials. This composite approach allows the rigid parts to provide structural support while the rubber flanges provide sealing functionality, achieving complete material ejection without overall device complexity
Data Source
AI summary
The present invention relates to a detachably attachable moving headboard trailer ejector and floor cleaning apparatus for use with a self-unloading trailer having a front end, a rear end, side walls, and either a reciprocating slat conveyor floor or a conveyor belt floor. The invention comprises, in one embodiment, a base, a panel sweeper, one or more panel sweeper support members, a means for traversing the panel sweeper, a tether bar, side flanges, and a base flange. In use, the invention is placed in the front end of a self-unloading trailer and the trailer is loaded with material; when material is ejected from the trailer, the invention transverses or “travels” along the top of the moving floor and pushes the material out of the trailer's back end. The rubber flanges ensure a snug fit within the trailer and keep post ejection residual material at a minimum.