US2943340A - Self-wringing sponge mop - Google Patents

Description

y 1960 c. A. CHANNELL SELF-WRINGING SPONGE MOP 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed April 2, 1956 m w m m C. A. CHANNELL SELF-WRINGING SPONGE MOP July 5, 1960 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed April 2, 1956 INVENTOR. QZfl/l/Z Mv United States 2,943,340 Patented July 5, 1960 'SELF-WRINGING SPONGE MOP Charles Arthur Channel], Wilmette, Ill., assignor to American-Marietta Company, OCedar Division, Chicago, 111., a corporation of Illinois Filed Apr. 2, 1956, Ser. No. 575,616

3 Claims. (Cl. 15-119) This invention relates to mop devices generally and particularly to a mop device having integral squeezing or wringing means.

. While many forms of mops are known in the art which are arranged to be wrung by means integral therewith, certain disadvantages are found in these mops which limit their appeal and utility to the housewife. The more serious disadvantages include the rapid wear and deterioration of the mop element or sponge caused by pinching and similar excessive pressure application thereon by the wringing or squeezing means. Another disadvantage is that the means for attaching the mop head to the mop handle are relatively complicated and resultingly costly to manufacture.

The principal object of this invention is to provide a new and improved mop device of the type having integral squeezing means.

Another object is to provide such a mop wherein the mop element or sponge is folded on itself into two substantially similar portions by means of a roller, bearing against a limited portion of the sponge.

A further object is to provide such a mop device wherein a freely extending section of the sponge is arranged for coaction with the roller and is reinforced over a portion thereof with a suitable flexible material. Still another object is to provide such a mop device wherein the roller may roll over the unreinforced portion of the extending section during the wringing compression of the sponge thereby allowing a substantial pressure to be applied over a limited area while effectively precluding undesirable curling or wrapping of the sponge around the roller.

Yet another object is to provide a mop device which is adaptively usable with any one of a plurality of sponges having different dimensions.

Still another object is to provide a new and improved manual operating means for actuating the roller compressing means.

Other' features and advantages will be apparent from the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings wherein:

Figure 1 is a top plan view of a mop device embodying the invention and carried on an end portion of a mop handle;

Figure 2 is an enlarged side elevational view thereof with the parts shown in the position of normal mop use;

Figure 3 is a side elevational view thereof, similar to Figure 2, but with the parts thereof shown in the position assumed during the wringing of the mop element;

Figure 4 is a fragmentary rear elevational view thereof with the parts arranged in the position of Figure 3;

Figure 5 is a fragmentary perspective view showing the means for securing the mop head to the support;

Figure 6 is a side elevational view similar to Figure 2 but having a modified form of mop head and securing means;

' Figure 7 is a top plan view of modified form of the mop device having a modified form of operating lever;

Figure 8 is an enlarged, side elevational view of the device of Figure 7, with the parts arranged in the normal mop use position; and

Figure 9 is a side elevational view. thereof, similar to Figure 8, but with the parts arranged in the position assumed during the wringing operation. In the exemplary embodiment of the invention disclosed 1n Figures 1 to 5 of the drawings, a mop device generally designated 10 is shown to comprise a mop head 11 includmg a mop element or sponge 11a secured to a plate 12. Secured to a handle 13 of the mop is a support 14 to which plate 12 is adapted to be secured readily removably in facial juxtaposition by a locking means generally designated 15. Only the front portion of sponge 11a is secured to plate 12 with the remainder of the sponge extending rearwardly to underlie handle 13. Means for wringing the sponge are provided in the form of a roller device 16 which is connected to support 14 by means of arms 17 which are pivotally secured to the support to allow the roller means to swing in an are against the rear portion of the sponge and while rolling thereagainst press the rear portion toward the forward portion and plate 12. This action effectively folds the sponge into two substantially equal portions during the wringing operation.

The wringing pressure applied to the sponge is localized by the limited area of contact between roller 16 and the sponge, and stress distributing means are provided in the form of a flexible sheet 18 carried across the top of the sponge front portion and partially across the top of the sponge rear portion. A manual operating lever 19 is pivotally secured to support 14, and is connected to roller 16 by a suitable link 20 to effect the desired arcuate rolling movement of the roller during the wringing operation. To secure lever 19 in an out-of-the-way position under handle 13 when desired, a suitable spring clip 21 may be provided.

The general structure of my mop device having been made clear, the specific detailed construction thereof will now be described. Mop element 11a comprises a general, elongated block of suitable mop material such as conventional sponge (skeletal Porifera) or similar water absorbent material. Sponge 11a is preferably rectangular in cross section and is divided lengthwise, medially into a front portion 11b and a rear portion 11c. On top surface 11b of front portion 11b is secured plate 12 by any of suitable means well known in the art. Plate 12 preferably comprises an elongated strip of relatively rigid ma terial such as metal or a plastic and extends substantially completely lengthwise of sponge 11a with only a small peripheral portion of sponge 11a extending laterally outwardly from the plate to prevent undesired engagement of the plate with the household furnishings during use of the mop, The top surface of sponge rear portion lie is divided into two portions, namely inner top surface and outer top surface 11c". Across plate 12a, the exposed periphery of front top surface 11b, and inner top surface 110' is secured, by suitable means such as cementing, a flexible reinforcing material, preferably comprising a fabric material such as canvas, and forming reinforcing sheet 18. Locking means 15 includes at least one lug 12a upstanding from plate 12 to extend through sheet 18 and having a portion 12b disposed parallel to plate'12 and spaced upwardly therefrom. Two such lugs 1211 are provided in the preferred embodiment, being formed integrally with plate 12 by being upset therefrom.

Support 14- comprises a flat member generally similar to plate 12 in dimensions and is provided with suitable openings 14a through which lugs 12a are adapted to pass when plate 12 and support 14 are arranged in facial juxtaposition. Extending rearwardly from, support 14 are a plurality of hinge blocks 1% each having a slot 140 extending transversely therethrough to receive one end 1711 of arms 17. Upstanding fromsupport 14 intermediate its ends is a tubular socket member 14d adapted to receive the lower end of handle 13. Means may be provided for securing the handle tomember ldd in as sembledrelationship such as an indented portionl ie on socket 14d adapted to have threaded engagement witlithe lower end of hai1dle'13.

For illustrative'purpos'es, I have shown the hinge blocks as being disposed below the plane of support 14; it should be understood, however, that the hinge'block's' could be otherwise disposed and arms 17 suitablyarranged to effect the desired swinging of 'roller device 16. Such adaptability is particularly advantageous'in that different size sponges 11a may be' used "with mop "device with suitable wringing being effected throughuse of the desired pivoting arm structurefl' Lock means includes a bar'15 a having one end pivotally secured to support 14 adjacent an opening 14a, to allow the otherend of the 'bar'to 'be'positioned removably across the opening. 'The'thickness ofbar 15a is preferably comparable to or 'just slightly greater than the spacing of lug portion 12b above the top surface ofsupport 14 when plate'12' and support 14 are'brought together. Thus, bar '14 may be" wedged tightly between lug portion 12b and support'14 across" opening14d to lock plate 12 to support 14. To provide'improved ease of manipulation the'freeend 'I'Sbofbar 14;: may be arranged to project upwardly from support 14 and form a grasping flange.

Roller 16 includes a rod 16a which extends longitudinally slightly less than the length of'mop head'llf -'Arms 17 are each provided at their ou'ter'end 17b with an opening 17c through which rod 16a is passed to have free rotation aboutits axis; 'Rotatabl'y carried on rod 16:: are a plurality of tubular sleeves 16b extending longitudinally between arms 17 and to adjacent the extreme ends of the rod. Tosecure the rod and'sleeves in assembled relationship with'arms 17, the extreme ends 16a and 16a" of the rod may be peaned.

The inner end 1711 of each'of'ar'ms 17 is provided with an opening 17d and arod 17a is arranged toextend through each of binge blocks 1 4b 'and through openings 17d with the inner ends 1751' of the arms received in slots 14c. Longitudinal movement of rod 17e, when thus installed, is prevented by means such as penning of the extreme ends 172 and l7e' of therod. Arms 17 are thus carried by rod 17a to swing roller 16 in a circular are from a position, as seen in Figure 2, laterally of plate 12 to a position, as seen in Figure' 3, spaced below the plate. in-which latter position sponge 11a is wringingly compressed by the roller. "Arms 17'are made arcuate'to prevent engagement with sponge 11a."

Operating lever 19 is arranged to' provide a mechanical advantage in the wringing'of roller 16. To this" end, lever 19 is secured at its lowerend 19a tosocket 14d by a suitable pivotal connection"19bl' Link 20 is secured to lever 19 at oneend 20a by a suitable pivotal connectionZOb and is provided with an opening 20c in its other end 20d through which a midportion of rod 16;: is passed to secure the end 20dof the lug'pivotally'to the rod. The relative positioning of pivotal connections 1% and 2012, rod 16a, and rod '17s is made such that when lever 19 is pivoted away from handle 13 (in a clockwise direction, as seen in Figure '2) link 20 causes roller 16 to move eircurnferentially aboutthe axis of rod 17a, as described above.

An opening 190 is provided in lever 19 through which spring clip 21 extends when lever '19 is returned to the inoperative position adjacent handle 13. Clip 21 is arranged to engage releasably the portion of lever 19 defining opening 190 to secure releasably the lever in the inoperative position. i i

The utilization of mop device 10 is extremely simple. Mop head 11 is secured'to support 1 4 by locking means 15. To this end, sponge 11a is positioned with plate 12 facially juxtaposed'to support 1'4 and"lugs'12a"extending through openings 14a. Bar 15a is then moved to the locking position. The mop device may then be utilized in the normal mopping operation as desired. When it is desired to wring the mop, lever 19 is grasped and moved away from handle 13 causing roller 16 to pass rotatively against top surface and to move to the wringing position wherein sponge 11d is folded on itself and pressed against plate 12. wringing operation may be re peated as desired. Because the'area of engagement of the roller with the sponge is relatively small'and the lever provides a desirable mechanical advantage, a high compressiveor wringing forcemay be developed with relative ease by theo'perator. Because the roller acts against the unreinforced surface 11c", rear portion 11c may be forced against front portion 11b without curling or wrapping of the rear portion about the roller and, thus the liquid may be edectively'wrung from" all portions of the sponge." The extensioh of reinforcing sheet 18 overi'nner surface 110' etfec ts a distribution of'the stresses produced in the sponge to prevent'uride sired pinching of the sponge during thefolding thereof. Uponcompletion'of the wringing operation'lever19fis returned to the position along side handle 131with springclip'2racting automatically to'retain it in thisposition. 1

In Figure'6 is shown a modified form of mop device 110 havinga non-wringable mopheadj such asa' dusting, waxing or b ufnng'rnop' element 111a, A plate 112 is provided which extends"substantially laterally beyond a support 114 which'is similar to support'fltof the first described form. A lug 112a iscarriedby the plate and is similar to lug .12 except that the portion 112!) is spaced substantially further fromthe plate'tq allow the disposition of a clamping plate 122 between plate 112and-support 114; The lateral extent of'clamping plate 122 is made similar to that 'of plate 112 and the outer edge 111d ofmop element 111a is brought into the space between the peripheries of'plate 1 12and 122. Edge 1114 is tightly clamped therebetween'when the plates are secured to support 1'4by mean s'of a locking bar 115a which'issimilar to locking bar 15a. Thusfit may be seen that mop'head 111 may bereadily installed in or removed from mop device 110 by the simple clamping and tinclarnping of plates *112and 122 to support 114;

Another form "of the invention isshown iir'Figures 7 t wh r in a mQP" @'ssn s Y nat is seen to include a manual operating lever 219 arranged to be pivotally connected to a support socket 214d.""'1he lower end 219a of lever 219 is bifurcated to extend on opposite sides ofhan dle 2 13 and two'links 220'corinect end'219a to a roller 'me'ans'216. Lever 21915 arranged to lie proximate the upper side of'handle 213*when'not ifl e wh n' t'i ds sd tq'w ns e map t e p s end 21% of lever'219is pivoted away from handle 213 whereby the lower end 2194 is moved dowriiivardlyto the opposite side of die handle to move roller means 216 in' a'r'nanner similar to thatofl'roller in' mopjdeviccl 10. With the exception'thatthe above described means for manually swea n r9 1?! tlfifdif er. sbmsnha t qm that of mop device 10 the structures and functioniog of p dev ses 1 and ,0 are m a In device 9 the movement of the operating levei'v'relative to the handle is upwardly, whereas in device 10 the movement of the operating lever is downwardly, the structure for connecting the levers to the roller means being such however to efiect a similar operationof'the'rollermeans in either devlce' While I have shown and described certain embodiments of my invention, it is to beunderstood that it is capable of many modifications. Change s," therefore, in the construction and arrangement may be made 'without departing from the spirit and scope. of the invention as disclosed in he ppe ded c a s I claim:

1. A mop device comprising: an elongated block of spongy material, divided into two substantially equal parts forming a front portion having a rectangular top surface and a rear portion having a rectangular top surface; a plate attached to said block at said front top surface; a socket attached to said plate and adapted to receive a handle; flexible reinforcing means across at least a portion of the rear top surface; roller means extending lengthwise of said block adjacent said rear top surface; a plurality of arms arranged to pivot about an axis extending lengthwise of said block and between said surfaces, with one end of each of said arms pivotally attached to said plate and the other end attached to said roller means to cause said roller means to bear against said rear top surface at the edge thereof most remote from said front top surface and to move circumferentially about said axis toward said front top surface and fold said block yieldingly on itself to urge said block compressingly against said plate; a link articulted to said roller means; and a lever articulated to said link with one end pivotally attached to said socket, said lever being movable toward and away from said roller means.

2. A mop device comprising: an elongated block of spongy material divided into two substantially equal parts forming a front portion having rectangular top surface and a rear portion having a rectangular top surface; a plate attached to said block at said front top surface; a socket attached to said plate and adapted to receive a handle; flexible reinforcing means across at least a portion of said rear top surface; roller means extending lengthwise of said block adjacent said rear top surface and arranged to bear against said rear top surface; and means for moving said roller means laterally arcuately toward said front top surface to fold said block yieldingly on itself and urge said block compressingly against said plate, including a leved pivotally carried on said socket and having a grasping portion arranged to extend on one side of said handle and a bifurcated portion arranged to straddle said socket and to extend from the other side of said handle when the grasping portion is pivoted away from the socket during wringing and also including link means to connect said bifurcated portion and said roller means.

3. A mop device comprising: an elongated block of spongy material, divided into two substantially equal parts forming a front portion having a rectangular top surface and a rear portion having a rectangular topsurface; a plate attached to said block at said front top surface; a socket attached to said plate and adapted to receive a handle; flexible reinforcing means across at least a portion of the rear top surface; a roller means extending lengthwise on said block adjacent said rear top surface; a plurality of arms arranged to pivot about an axis extending lengthwise of said block and between said surfaces, with one end of each of said arms pivotally attached to said plate and the other end attached to said roller means to cause said roller means to bear against said rear top surface at the edge thereof most remote from said front top surface and to move circumferentially about said axis toward said front top surface and fold said block yieldingly on itself to urge said block compressingly against said plate; a link articulated to said roller means; and a lever articulated to said link pivotally connected to said socket means with a portion thereof movable toward and away from the location occupied by said rear top surface when the sponge block is unfolded.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,221,557 Rogers Nov. 12, 1940 2,224,462 Williams Dec. 10, 1940 2,251,384 Thomas Aug. 5, 1941 2,663,042 Richard et al. Dec. 22, 1953 2,715,743 Ljungdahl Aug. 23, 1955 2,731,658 Miller Ian. 24, 1956 2,761,161 Channel Sept. 14, 1956 FOREIGN PATENTS 708,239 Great Britain Apr. 28, 1954 935,021 France Jan. 19, 1948

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