Cleaning windows and other smooth surfaces is usually done today by wetting a prewasher, sponge or window brush in a detergent solution and moving it across the surface that is to be washed before removing the detergent by using a wiper blade that is moved across the surface in a separate operation. There are also cleaning implements in which a sponge and a wiper blade are arranged parallel to <BR> <BR> each other on the same implement. The user moves the implement across, e. g. , the window with the sponge first so that washing and drying can be carried out in the same operation. It may often be difficult to apply the detergent evenly across the surface, and streaks of detergent in the end areas of the wiper blade are a common occurrence. It is particularly difficult to obtain a good result when washing uneven or non-planar surfaces such as the windscreen of a car. The cleaning result is also affected by the fact that it may be difficult to reach the corners, and for example, the bottom edge of the inside of the car windscreen.

Proportioning the detergent on the cleaning implements is yet another problem area, as too much detergent results in a film on the surface being washed, which may mean streaks and smears on the surface after it has been cleaned.

Another problem with the commonly used cleaning implements is that they quickly become saturated with dirt when they are used on very dirty surfaces. This leads to a major disadvantage during the cleaning task, as the work must be interrupted to change the sponge or brush in order to obtain a satisfactory result.

The object of the invention is to provide a cleaning device that is effective, easy for the user to use, and which gives a good cleaning result in just one operation.

The object of the invention is achieved by means of the features set forth in the patent claims.

The washing device comprises a pad, a holder to which the pad can be attached, and a handle that can be connected to the holder.

The cleaning is done by moving the pad, which either is pre-moistened or is moistened on use, across the surface that is to be cleaned. When the pad is favourably moist, the surface is washed without the pad leaving any moisture on the surface. The most favourable moisture has been found to be in the range of 20- 35%, preferably in the range of 22-32% moisture.

In one embodiment, the pad is made in the form of a prism-shaped, thin pad or mat of a suitable material, such as a composite material. The cleaning face of the pad, <BR> <BR> i. e. , the face that is to be moved across the window or other surface to be cleaned, is preferably rectangular, but may in other embodiments be round, oval, square, polygonal etc.

In a preferred embodiment, a recessed groove is provided in the pad. It has been found expedient to use two intersecting rectilinear grooves. When the pad has a rectangular cleaning face, it is expedient to arrange the grooves parallel with the two diagonals of the rectangle. Dirt that is caught by the pad is held in the groove.

In this way, the collecting capacity of the pad is increased, and the pad can be used for longer before it has to be changed. Tests have shown that a pad with such grooves can collect 20% more dirt that a similar pad without grooves.

On the opposite face to the cleaning face, the fastening face, the pad is fastened to the holder using a suitable fastening means. The fastening means may be glue, hook-and-loop fasteners, tape or the like. The holder is made of a flexible material so that it is easy to bend and at the same time has resilience or flexural strength.

The holder may advantageously be given a slight double-curved shape so that in its unloaded (free) state it has a convex shape seen from the fastening face of the pad.

Because of its flexibility and resilience, the holder will function as a suction cup <BR> <BR> during washing. I. e. , the curved holder and attached cleaning pad will when in use wash with a slight vacuum that helps to retain the dirt, thereby facilitating the cleaning of the surface that is to be washed.

In one embodiment the holder and pad are produced in the same material, or in materials that belong to the same category of waste so that they can be thrown away together, and thus be easy to handle in connection with source separation of waste.

The holder also comprises a connecting means that is a part of a connecting mechanism for connecting the handle to the holder. The connecting means may be <BR> <BR> a groove into which a correspondingly shaped part of the handle fits, e. g. , an axle on the handle that can be clamped into the groove on the holder. The connecting means is preferably designed so that it allows rotation of the holder and thus the pad. In a preferred embodiment, the holder can rotate 323°.

The handle may have several designs depending on the area of use of the cleaning device. In one embodiment the handle is elongate and has a length that is adapted for cleaning the windscreen of a car whilst sitting in one of the front seats of the car. As the holder and pad can be rotated relative to the handle, the whole windscreen can thus be washed in a simple and comfortable manner without any water being spilled in the interior of the car.

The pad can be pre-moistened and packed in a sealed manner prior to sale. When a user who has bought the pad opens the packet, he can immediately start to use a pad having the right moisture, which further reduces the risk of spilt water and which guarantees a good cleaning result. Alternatively, the pad can be fastened to the holder prior to packing, and they are then packed together for even simpler use.

The invention will now be described in more detail with the aid of an exemplary embodiment that is illustrated in the attached figures.

Figure 1 shows a cleaning device according to the invention.

Figure 2 shows the connecting mechanism that connects the handle and the holder of the cleaning device.

Figure 3 shows the arrangement of recessed grooves in the cleaning device pad.

Figures 4a and 4b illustrate that the cleaning device can be used on curved surfaces.

Figure 5 illustrates schematically the curved shape of the holder according to a preferred embodiment of the invention.

Figure 1 shows a cleaning device 10 according to the invention. The cleaning device 10 comprises a pad 11, a holder 12, a connecting mechanism 16 consisting of a connecting means 14 and an axle device 13, and a handle 15. The connecting means 14 is a fixed part of the holder 12 and the axle device 13 is a part of the handle 15. Thus, the handle 15 and the holder 12 are separate parts that can be bought and stored separately and joined together when the cleaning device 10 is to be used.

The connecting mechanism 16 is shown more clearly in Figure 2. The axle device 13 can be pressed into the connecting means 14. The fit between the axle device 13 and the connecting means 14 is so loose that the holder 12 and the pad 11 can easily rotate about the axle device, but tight enough to prevent the parts from becoming detached from each other when in use. In this example, the holder 12 can only rotate in one plane, but connecting mechanisms that allow rotation in several planes, for example ball joints or the like, may be used in other embodiments.

The pad 11 is fastened to the holder 12 with glue. The cleaning face 31 of the pad 11 is shown in Figure 3. The cleaning face 31 has two intersecting recessed grooves 32,33. When the pad 11 is moved across a dirty surface, the dirt will collect in the grooves 32,33, and the capacity of the pad for holding dirt is thus

increased compared to a pad without such depressions. The pad may, for example, be made of a plastic composite material.

Figures 4a and 4b show that the pad 11 and the holder 12 mould themselves to the shape of the surface that is to be washed when they are pressed against the surface during washing. In the figures the pad 11 and the holder 12 are pressed against a curved surface 41,42. A coordinate system for the pad is defined so that an axis which runs in the cleaning face parallel to the plane of rotation is defined as the x- axis, whilst the axis perpendicular to the x-axis, also in the cleaning face, is defined as the y-axis.

In Figure 4a the cleaning device is pressed against a curved surface so that the pad and the holder curve along the x-axis with a radius of curvature. In Figure 4b the pad and the holder curve along the y-axis with a different radius of curvature.

Figures 4a and 4b are intended to illustrate the flexibility of the holder; it can be pressed into and curve against virtually any surface that is concave seen in relation to the cleaning face of the pad. In other words, the pad and the holder in Figs. 4a and 4b have an opposite curve to that of the free, unloaded form of the holder as illustrated in Figure 5.