EP0271454B1

EP0271454B1 - Apparatus for the maintenance of facades of buildings particularly of facades having wide glass surfaces

Info

Publication number: EP0271454B1
Application number: EP87830403A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Luigi Langella
Original assignee: ALAN Srl
Current assignee: ALAN Srl
Priority date: 1986-11-14
Filing date: 1987-11-12
Publication date: 1992-07-15
Anticipated expiration: 2007-11-12
Also published as: ES2033929T3; IT8622350A0; IT1198000B; DE3780425D1; DE3780425T2; ATE78143T1; EP0271454A3; EP0271454A2

Abstract

This invention occupies the technical field of apparatus for the manteinance of the facades of buildings particularly of facades with wide glass surfaces and comprises a framework (102, 2) characterized by means of delivery (100, 4, 80, 81) acting on the glazed surface (3) which operate simultaneously with drying means (108, 8, 9, 74) on said glazed surface. furthermore the apparatus is equipped with means for the moving (73, 14, 30, 51)of the framework along the glazed surface and means (160, 16, 40, 41) to keep the framework constantly parallel to the latter. the apparatus also comprises a control unit (7) designed to operate the framework and the means referred to.

Description

This invention covers an apparatus for the maintenance of facades of building particularly of facades with wide glass surfaces.
As it is known the extensive develpoement in the building industry recently has involved the construction of single buildings and urban areas with ever greater emphasis on the aestetic and technical requirements of the latter on the basis of the new construction materials available on the market today.
An important aspect in building contruction is that deriving from the type of material used for the enclosing and protection of the building structure.
In the building industry, due to its properties of resistance, light trasmission, resistance to corrosion by external agents, and to its attractive appearence and other further characteristics, recently glass has been used increasingly often as a material for the enclosure and protection of buildings.
The sheets of glass in such constructions are generally placed one beside the other and supported by structural metal, generally alluminium, which extends both logitudinally and crosswise to the building so as to realize the so-called continuos facades formed enterely by glass surfaces.
As mentioned above, glass, although possessing particular characteristics which make it ideal for use as an element for the enclosure and protection of buildings, has the disavantage that it has to be subjected periodically to the cleaning of the glass surfaces made up by it which, as will be easily understood, tend to become dirty to a degree which may be more or less obvious depending on the location of the building or the climatic conditions in the area of the construction.
The operation of cleaning glazed surfaces of buildings is currently performed by specialized companies that normally use, in addition to manual labour, scaffolding which is extremely expensive to erect, or aereal platforms.
These familiar devices for the cleaning of glazed surfaces and others still existing in addition to only being suitable for certain buildings, for example buildings which are not characterized by considerable height, as already mentioned, require the use of specialized labour and do not guarantee the operators a high degree of safety during the glass cleaning operation. From French patent N^o 2 132 192 is known an apparatus for cleaning glazed surface, as disclosed in the pre-characterizing part of claim 1, having a turbine for ejecting, by means of a slit, air with elevated pressure against the glazed surface to be clean. Said apparatus does not have a propeller for appling a pressure on its framework in direction towards the glazed surface.
The objective of the invention in question is that of eliminating the abovementioned disavantages by realizing an apparatus for the maintenance of facades of buildings particularly facades with wide glass surfaces which apparatus permits the cleaning or maintenance of the same in an efficent manner without the need for labour, save in a limited way and, in any case, ensuring absolute safety.
In this connection an important objective of the invention is to design an apparatus capable of being used on any of surface of a facade no matter whath its structural conformation may be.
Another aim of the invention is the realization of an apparatus characterized by a limited cost which can be amortized in a very short period of use for the cleaning or manteinance of glazed surfaces.
Another aim of the invention is the design of an apparatus which is extremely easy to use and which can be adapted to any application by its operator such as the painting or disinfestation of a facade.
This task in addition to this and other objectives are realized by an apparatus for the maintenance of facades of buildings particularly of facades having wide glass surfaces as claimed in claim 1.
Further characteristics and advantages of the invention are detailed in the description of a form of execution which is preferred but not exclusive, of the apparatus according to the invention which is illustrated in general and nonbinding form, in the attached drawings in which : - figure 1 is a cutaway side elevation wiew showing the apparatus according to the invention;

figure 2 is a perspective view of the means of movement of the framework along the glazed surface according to the invention;

With reference to the figure cited the apparatus according to the invention as indicated as a whole by reference number 1 and comprises a framework 102 characterized by means of delivery for example of a fluid onto the glazed surface 3 and more particularly by a rotating brush 100 connected by means of a shaft 101 to a motor 103 preferably an internal combustion engine.
Inside the framework 102 there is a pressurized tank 104 containing a detergent fluid 105 which is delivered, by means of channel 106 and at least one nozzle 4, to rotating brush 100.
The framework is also fitted with means of drying indicated as a whole by 107 which comprise a suction inlet 108 equipped, on the part facing the glass 3, with a flexible extremity 109 designed to clean the window.
Suction inlet 108 is also connected by means of an initial pipe 110 to a suction pump 111 whichn sucks the dirty fluid and conveys it , through a second pipe 112 , to a storage tank 113 equipped with pipe 114 with cock 115 to discharge the dirty liquid at the end of the job.
Suction pump 111 is operated by transmission belt 116 which engages two pulleys 117 keyed respectively onto the pump shaft and onto output shaft 118 coaxial with motor shaft 101 and driven by the latter. At the free end of output shaft 118 there are means of mantaining the framework to the glazed surface and more particularly a fan 160 housed in a special aera equipped with grille (120).
To obtain therefore, as already mentioned, a perfect adherence between framework 102 and the glazed surface to be cleaned there can also be, on the side opposite the glazed surface, at least one propeller or fan 160 designed to exercise a pressure on the framework itself in a direction which is substantially at right angles to the plane defined by the glazed surface 3.
Solely for the sake of example it should also be explained that the means of delivery for the removal of the dirt and for the drying of the glazed surface can, for example, be realized by means of an ultrasonic device 80 and at least one blower nozzle using pressurized air 81 to remove totally the dirt displaced by the ultrasonic device.
The operation of the apparatus according to the invention is as follows.
With a control unit 7, counter-weight 74 and support frame 73 on the roof, for example, by means of a remote control one activates windlass 14 and cables 15 for the raising or lowering the apparatus over the glazed surface.
At the same time motor 103 rotates brush 100 and the detergent is suppiled by means of the opening of valve 130 while pump 111, by means of suction inlet 108, sucks the dirty fluid from the glass for conveying to collection tank 113.
It has been found in practice that the apparatus according to the invention is particularly advantageous for the cleaning and maintenance of the glazed surfaces of buildings of considerable height without necessarily having to use specialized labour and without involving, for the cleaning personell, any dangerous operation as the apparatus is completely automated and manned by a single operator who works in absolute safety. The invention thus conceived is susceptible of numerous modifications and variants all within the scope of the concept of the invention, for example, the apparatus can be effectively used to supply the facade paint, disinfecting liquids or any other material designed for the maintainence of the same; furthermore all the detalis may be substituted with tecnically equivalent elements.
In practice both materials and dimentions can be those determined by requirements and the state of technical developement.

Claims

Apparatus for the maintenance of facades of buildings particularly of facades having wide glass surfaces, comprising a framework (102) equipped with delivery means (106, 4, 80, 81) acting on the glazed surface (3), drying means (107) for said glazed surface co-operating with said delivery means, means of movement (15) of said framework across said glazed surface, maintaining means (160) to keep said framework associated to said glazed surface, characterized in that said maintaining means comprise at least one propeller or fan (160) for appling a pressure on said framework in a direction which is substantially at right angles to the plane defined by said glazed surface (3), said propeller or fan (60, 160) being connected to the end of an output shaft (118) which is aligned substantially at right angles to said plane and arranged for applying said pressure on said framework (102), said output shaft (118) being connected to a motor (103), there being a control unit (7) for the operation of said framework (102).
Apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that said delivery means include a rotating brush (100) connected, by means of a motor shaft (101), to said motor (103), and at least one storage tank (104) for a detergent fluid (105) from which there extends a channel (106) for the delivery of said fluid to said rotating brush.
Apparatus in accordance with claim 1, characterized in that said delivery means comprise at least one nozzle (4) designed for the delivery under pressure of that fluid, said nozzle being connected by means of said channel to said one storage tank (104), containing said detergent fluid.
Apparatus in accordance with claim 1, characterized in that said drying means comprise a suction inlet (108) having, on the glazed surface side, a flexible extremity (109) and, on the opposite side, an initial pipe (110) in conjunction with a suction pump (111) for the dirty fluid, said suction pump having a second pipe (112) connected to a collection tank (113) for said dirty fluid, said collection tank being fitted with a pipe (114) with cock (115) for the discharge of said dirty fluid.
Apparatus in accordance with claim 4, characterized in that said pump has, keyed onto its shaft, pulley (127) operated by a transmission belt (116), by a second pulley (117) keyed onto said output shaft (118) of said motor, said output shaft being coaxial with said motor shaft.