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Title:
INLINE VERTICAL TACK-OFF MACHINE FOR AUTOMOBILE SIDE PANELS
Document Type and Number:
WIPO Patent Application WO/2019/018834
Kind Code:
A4
Abstract:
An inline vertical tack-off system for cleaning vehicular bodies that eliminates the need to spatially dispose rotating brushes and thereby enhance the cleaning efficiency while reducing the space occupied by the apparatus by vertically aligning a plurality of cleaning brushes to clean the full height of a vehicle body. Additionally, the apparatus includes a positioning system which allows the tack-off brushes to move in relation to any of a variety of vehicular bodies by adjusting the distance between the brushes and the vehicle body under the control of a program, as well as by controlling the tilt of the brushes match the vehicle contours and thereby optimize the contact force applied by the brushes to the vehicular surface being cleaned. Also, the system includes a vortex enhanced plenum utilized to evacuate ambient air and contaminant particles.

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Inventors:
SCHMALZEL DENNIS (US)
Application Number:
PCT/US2018/043203
Publication Date:
February 14, 2019
Filing Date:
July 21, 2018
Export Citation:
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Assignee:
SCHMALZEL DENNIS GEORGE JR (US)
International Classes:
B60S3/06
Attorney, Agent or Firm:
SINGH, Gautam, B. (US)
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Claims:
imed is inline vertical tack off machine comprising:

a lower brush assembly including

a lower hood having a shape of a hollow cylinder with a planar top surface and a planar bottom surface, curved surface, and an axis,

having a lower opening on the curved surface of the lower hood with a spindle running along the axis of the lower hood;

a lower brush having a cylindrical shape adapted to fit inside of the lower hood wherein the lower brush has a cavity adapted to accommodate the lower spindle such that a rotational movement of the lower spindle causes a corresponding rotational movement of the lower brush, and where the lower brush is exposed through the lower opening;

a lower exhaust in communication with the curved surface of the lower hood such that a passage exists therethrough from the lateral opening on the lower hood to the lower exhaust;

an upper brush assembly including

an upper hood having a shape of a hollow cylinder with a planar top surface and a planar bottom surface, curved surface, and an axis,

having an upper opening on the curved surface of the upper hood with a spindle running along the axis of the upper hood;

an upper brush having a cylindrical shape adapted to fit inside of the upper hood wherein the upper brush has a cavity adapted to accommodate the upper spindle such that a rotational movement of the upper spindle causes a corresponding rotational movement of the upper brush, and where the upper brush is exposed through the upper opening;

an upper exhaust in communication with the curved surface of the upper hood such that a passage exists therethrough from the lateral opening on the upper hood to the upper exhaust;

a primary tray including a pivot and having an upper surface and a lower surface wherein the upper surface of the primary tray includes a plurality of guide rails;

18 a secondary tray including a pivot and having an upper surface and a lower surface adapted to slide within the guide rails of the primary tray such that the lower surface secondary tray faces the upper surface of the primary tray; and where

the lower brush assembly is rotatably attached to the primary tray pivot and disposed below the lower surface of the primary tray, and

the upper brush assembly is rotatably attached to the secondary tray pivot and disposed above the upper surface of the secondary tray.

An inline vertical tack off machine of Claim 1 wherein the lower brush assembly and the upper brush assembly are disposed such that the lower brush assembly and upper brush assembly are in a stacked configuration in a vertical alignment with each other.

An inline vertical tack off machine of Claim 1 where the primary tray is adapted to linearly move along a primary axis.

An inline vertical tack off machine of Claim 2 further including

a primary axis actuator having a motor adapted to move a ball screw having a first end and a second end wherein

the first end is fixedly attached to the primary axis actuator and the second end is fixedly attached to the primary tray,

where the movement of the ball screw caused by the primary axis actuator creates a corresponding linear movement of the primary tray and the lower brush assembly attached to the primary tray.

An inline vertical tack off machine of Claim 1 where the secondary tray is adapted to linearly move along a secondary axis.

An inline vertical tack off machine of Claim 5 further including

a secondary axis actuator having a motor adapted to move a linkage having a first end and a second end wherein

the first end is fixedly attached to the secondary axis actuator and the second end is fixedly attached to secondary tray,

where the movement of the linkage caused by the secondary axis actuator creates a corresponding linear movement of the secondary tray and the upper brush assembly attached to the secondary tray.

19 An inline vertical tack off machine of Claim 1 where the upper brush assembly is adapted to tilt in a rotational motion along a tilt axis wherein the rotational motion along the tilt axis is adapted to effectuate a change in an orientation of the upper brush.

An inline vertical tack off machine of Claim 7 further including

a tilt actuator having a motor adapted to change a length of a linkage having a first end and a second end wherein

the first end is fixedly attached to the tilt actuator and the second end is fixedly attached to the upper brush assembly,

where the length change of the linkage caused by the tilt actuator creates a rotation about the secondary tray pivot thereby causing a change in an angle at which the upper brush assembly is disposed above the upper surface of the secondary tray.

An inline vertical tack off machine of Claim 1 wherein the upper brush assembly includes photo-eye adapted to detect a distance of a predefined object from the upper brush assembly. An inline vertical tack off machine comprising

a housing shaped substantially like a hollow rectangular prism having an open front face and an open back face disposed opposite from each other, and a pair of side surfaces each having an inside face and an outside face wherein

each of the inside face includes a primary guide rail fixedly attached thereto, and a primary tray actuator fixedly attached to one of the surfaces;

a primary tray shaped substantially like a rectangle providing top surface and a bottom surface including

a front edge, a back edge, and two side edges where

the front edge and the back edge are disposed opposite to each other, further with front edge disposed inside the front face, and the back edge disposed inside the back face,

the two side edges are disposed opposite to each other, with side edges each includes a plurality of rolling artifact adapted to glide inside the guide rail, a primary tray bracket fixedly attached to the top surface and having a threaded opening adapted to insert a ball screw therethrough wherein the ball screw has a first

20 end and a second end with the first end of the ball screw fixedly attached to the primary tray actuator,

a plurality of rolling artifacts fixedly attached to each side edge and adapted to slide within the primary guide rails,

a plurality of hinges fixedly attached to the bottom surface and disposed along the front edge where the hinges are adapted to accommodate a lower brush assembly, where

engaging the primary actuator is adapted to cause a linear displacement of the primary tray along a primary axis.

11. An inline vertical tack off machine of Claim 10 further includes a turn buckle having a length, a first end, and a second end, wherein the turn buckle has a mechanism for a change in the length of the turn buckle,

the first end of the turn buckle is fixedly attached to the primary tray, and the second end of the turn buckle is rotatably attached to the lower brush assembly, whereby

the change in the length of the turn buckle causes a predetermined change in a rotation of the lower brush assembly.

12. An inline vertical tack off machine of Claim 10 wherein the primary tray further includes a secondary tray actuator fixedly attached to the top surface,

a pair of secondary guide rails fixedly attached to the top surface and disposed along a configuration to be parallel to the primary tray side edges,

the inline vertical tack off machine further including

a secondary tray shaped substantially like a rectangle providing top surface and a bottom surface including

front edge, back edge, and two side edges where

the front edge and the back edge are disposed opposite to each other, further with front edge disposed inside the front face, and the back edge disposed inside the back face,

the two side edges are disposed opposite to each other, with side edges each including a plurality of rolling artifact adapted to slide inside the secondary tray guide rail;

21 a plurality of hinges fixedly attached to the top surface and disposed along the front edge of the secondary tray where the hinges are adapted to accommodate an upper brush assembly;

a secondary tray actuator bracket fixedly attached to the top surface of the secondary tray and removably connected to a linkage having a first end and a second end wherein the first end of the linkage is connected to the secondary tray actuator and the second end of the linkage is connected to the secondary tray actuator bracket; where

engaging the secondary tray actuator causes a linear movement of the secondary tray along a secondary axis.

13. An inline vertical tack off machine of Claim 11 wherein the secondary tray further includes a tilt actuator wherein the tilt actuator is fixedly attached to the top surface of the secondary tray;

a tilt linkage capable of changing a length and having a first end and a second end wherein the first end is fixedly attached to the tilt actuator;

a tilt hinge assembly fixedly attached to the top brush assembly and adapted to accommodate the second end of the tilt linkage therein; where

engaging the tilt actuator causes the change of length of tilt linkage and a change in orientation of the upper brush assembly along a tilt axis.

14. An inline vertical tack off machine of Claim 13 where the primary actuator, the secondary actuator and the tilt actuator are controlled by a computer program to correspondingly adjust the position of the primary tray along the primary axis, the secondary tray along the secondary axis, and the upper brush assembly orientation along the tilt axis.

15. A process of tacking-off using the inline vertical tack off machine of Claim 1, the process comprising the steps of:

having a vehicle to be tacked off and cleaned,

having a tack off machine comprising of a lower brush assembly, an upper brush assembly, where

lower bush assembly capable of moving linearly towards the vehicle further including a brush capable of being engaged to clean the vehicle,

22 upper brush assembly capable of moving linearly towards the vehicle, and the upper brush assembly is further capable of tilting its orientation to align with the upper body panels of the vehicle, the upper brush assembly further including a brush capable of being engaged to clean the vehicle,

moving the lower brush assembly along a primary axis towards the lower side panel of the vehicle until the brushes in the lower brush assembly comes in contact with the vehicle,

tilting the upper brush assembly by rotating about a tilt axis to align the brushes in the upper brush assembly with curvature of the upper side panel of the vehicle,

moving the upper brush assembly along a secondary axis towards the upper side panel of the vehicle until the brushes in the upper brush assembly come in contact with the vehicle,

engaging the brush in the lower brush assembly to clean the vehicle and engaging the brush in the upper brush assembly to clean the vehicle.

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