GB1260207A - Apparatus for washing vehicles - Google Patents

Abstract

1,260,207. Washing apparatus for vehicles. BOEWE, BOEHLER & WEBER K.G. 2 Dec., 1969 [3 Dec., 1968; 10 May, 1969; 27 Sept., 1969], No. 58690/69. Heading B7J. An apparatus for washing a vehicle moved relative thereto comprises a rotatable brush 9 mounted on a guide device 5, 8, to move transversely with respect to its axis of rotation and substantially in a straight line' as indicated by the/arrow 19 in Fig. 2, the guide device being pivotal with respect to a support 2, 3 having a fixed axis coincident with, Figs. 1 and 2, or alternatively parallel to Fig. 13 (not shown), theaxis of rotation of the brush 9, the direction of this fixed axis extending from above, Figs. 1 and 2, or from the side, Figs. 18-26 (not shown), of the vehicle at right angles to the direction of movement of the vehicle and passing through the surface thereof, the brush 9, when displaced from a starting position, being movable back into this position by a restoring force. In the embodiment of Figs. 1 and 2, the guide device comprises two arms 5, 8 pivotal about joints 6 and 7 respectively as well as about the support, which comprises a pivot support 2 and rotatable pin 3, and the restoring force is provided by a cylinder 28 interconnecting the arm 5 and support 2, 3. The arms 5, 8 are interconnected by a coupling device comprising two pulleys 20, 22 fixed in the same plane to the arm 8 and to a lateral extension 4 of the pin 3 respectively, and an interconnecting cable 21, the ends (23, 24) of which are fixed, the latter via a spring (25). The coupling causes the arms to move in opposite directions of rotation and substantially diagonally to the movement of the brush 9. A further cylinder 13, fed with a pressurized medium via a reversing valve controlled by switches 39 and 43, actuated by the vehicle or the arm 5, causes the pin 3 to pivot between two limiting positions. Rotation of the pin 3 causes the brush and guide device to move from the position shown in solid lines in Fig. 6 to that shown in dotted lines, thus allowing the brush sufficient rotation about the support 2, 3 to enable it to wash the front, side and rear surfaces of the vehicle. The movement of the apparatus of Figs. 1 and 2 during a car washing cycle is shown in Figs. 4-9. In an alternative embodiment of the invention the coupling device and cylinder 28 are replaced by two springs, one connecting the two pivotal arms, the other connecting the arm 5 to the pin 3. In a further embodiment the brush is mounted in a guide rail arranged pivotally about the fixed axis, which is located substantially half way along the length of the rail. In a further embodiment the cylinder 13 is replaced by a motor such that the pin 3 can rotate through at least 360 degrees. The brush and guide device may be mounted about horizontal axes as described with respect to Figs. 18 to 26 (not shown) in which case only the ends and upper surfaces of the vehicle are washed.